Basketball Blunders

Disclaimer: "Me fail English? That's unpossible." – Ralph Wiggum, the Simpsons

Chapter 7: Fights!

The youth center in Malibu

"RAAAAAAAR!" Rhinox roared. The powerhouse Jamaican mutant ripped a bench out of the stands and pitched it at three members of the heroic mutant team known as the West Coast Misfits: The blonde singing lightengale called Dazzler, the African-American speedster/aerokinetic called Velocity, and the loudmouthed Bostonian electrokinetic called Thunderbolt.

"Whoa! Look out!" Ali exclaimed. The three young mutants jumped out of the way of the bench, which ended up hitting the ground and shattering. They ended up tumbling to the ground. Kyle landed awkwardly, causing him to tumble into the stands. "Kyle!"

"Man, that was a tumble." Kyle grumbled as he held his head. Rhinox got into a position like a football player and charged at Kyle like a football player. "Aw, going for the Gore, huh?" The Bostonian managed to put a smirk on. "Okay…" At the last second, just before Rhinox could slam into Kyle, the human battery created a slide out of electricity, and Thunderbolt easily slipped down it. Rhinox slammed into the stands. "And the gore gets countered! GORE got countered! GORE got countered! GORE got countered!"

"Somebody get this ring off me!" Ali struggled to get one of Ringer's energy rings off from being wrapped around her.

"Hang on, girl!" Terrell zipped up to her and tugged at the ring.

"Hang on, hang on! There are tools for this kind of thing." Kyle created an electrical construct of a crowbar, and used it to pry at the ring. He created a saw out of electricity and held it out to Terrell. "Here!"

"Uh…" Terrell blinked.

"Take it, jabroni!" Kyle exclaimed, holding out the saw.

"Uh…is it safe? It's not going to fry me or anything…" Terrell wondered.

"Just take the saw, jabroni!" Kyle snapped. "It'll be fine! I'm okay!"

"Yeah, but…" Terrell countered. "You're immune to electrical shock."

"It's a solid construct made of electricity. You'll feel a tingle, but it won't shock you unless I want it to." Kyle grunted.

"Okay…" Terrell nervously took the saw. "Huh…you were right, Kyle. There's only a tingle."

"Just saw already!" Kyle snapped, prying at the ring.

"Hey, ow! Careful!" Ali exclaimed. "Eek!" Several rings exploded near them.

"Geez!" Ringer scowled. "Try to compliment a woman, and they take it as a something disturbing!" The blond mutant grinned as he created several rings, and formed them into a long chain. "Heh heh…" He started twirling it over his head. "Heh heh. I'm gonna whip ya! Whip ya good!" He started humming.

"Who does this guy think he is? Some kind of legendary musician?" Kyle grumbled, continuing to pry at Ali's ring.

"The ring's digging into my elbow! Ow!" Ali exclaimed. She screamed at Ringer. "Let me out of this thing, you jerk!" Ringer chuckled.

"I think it looks good on you, baby! I thought chicks dug rings!" Ringer laughed as he cracked his energy ring whip.

"Not when the ring wears the person!" Ali snapped as she leapt out of the way of the whip.

"Hey, watch it!" Terrell snapped.

"RAHHHHH!" Rhinox roared as he recovered from the failed Gore attempt. He used his human rocket power to rocket into the air and slam into the ground, knocking the three mutants down. The fall did wonders for the Farrah-haired Dazzler.

"Hey, I got this ring off!" Ali grinned to herself. "Go me!"

"Awwwww!" Ringer pouted. "I thought you liked my little gift!" Ali scowled at Ringer as Kyle and Terrell went to engage Rhinox.

"Here, take it back!" Ali growled as she pitched the ring back at the blond mutant. Just before it could hit his face, the ring stopped, and the blond mutant smirked.

"Uh uh uh, girl…" Ringer shook his finger at her in a tutting manner. "I can control my energy rings, so you can't hurt me with them." He started to laugh crazily. Ali smirked in response.

"Too bad you can't control this, laughing boy." Alison smirked. "You see, I'm a mutant, too. My body absorbed the noise of all those explosions and the fight. I can take that noise and convert it to light."

"So?" Ringer sneered. "I've seen you on stage. You can create fancy light effects. Big deal!" He scoffed. "What're gonna do? Strobe me to death?"

"Nope." Ali grinned. "I can use my light powers to create…lasers!" Ali fired a yellow energy beam from her hand. The beam sliced Ringer's ring chain in half.

"Hoo boy…" Ringer winced. "Not the face…"

The Whip's penthouse suite

"Yeow!" Firestorm, the red-haired demolitions expert of the Malibu Joe team, exclaimed as he leapt out of the way of a liquid metal tentacle, which ended up smashing through a desk.

"Whoa!" Rock 'n' Roll, the blond-haired-and-bearded machine gunner of the Malibu Joe team, ducked a mace made of liquid metal, which smashed into a wall.

"Come now, gentlemen…" Mercury chuckled. "Did you really believe you can defeat me unarmed?" Rock 'n' Roll threw a stapler like a shuriken at the mutant's head. However, Mercury simply turned the rest of his body into a liquid state, allowing the stapler to pass right through him. "Charming." He answered dryly. "You know, may I admit something? I actually respect you Joes. I have heard of your ability to conquer great odds. I will regret beating you senseless."

"Lucky us." Rock 'n' Roll groused as he hid behind a desk. Firestorm tried to sneak behind the teenage silver-haired mutant and clobber him with a chair leg. However, Mercury wasn't the type to be caught easily. He used his powers to stretch his neck and hit Firestorm right in the nose with the top of his head.

"AGH!" Firestorm grabbed his nose.

"Commendable effort, my friend." Mercury complimented. The next thing that the two Joes know, they were flying through the wall. "You two humans are hardier than I had imagined."

"Army training, sir." Rock 'n' Roll mumbled in funny voice in a daze.

"Ugh…" Firestorm scowled as he got to his feet. Rock 'n' Roll soon followed. Mercury lashed out again with a pair of liquid metal piledrivers. The two Joes rolled out of the way. Out of the corner of his eye, Firestorm saw a fire extinguisher. "Rock!" He shot a quick glance to the extinguisher, and then a nod. Rock 'n' Roll gave the red-haired demolitions expert a quick nod back. Rock 'n' Roll quickly looked around and noticed a piece of the wall next to him. He quickly grabbed the piece.

"Hey, you psychotic little T-1000 wannabe! Come and get me, you psychotic little twerp!" Rock 'n' Roll called out as he charged the teenage mutant, the piece of wall held over his head in preparation for a blow. Mercury transformed into his liquid metal form, and Firestorm took it as his signal. He grabbed the fire extinguisher, and quickly got it ready to fire. Mercury grabbed Rock 'n' Roll and threw him into a couch. Still in his liquid state, Mercury turned around and ended up eating foam from the fire extinguisher.

"Eat foam, you walking smelt reject!" Firestorm roared.

"ARRRRRGH!" Mercury screamed as the cold foam hit his liquid body. It caused him to freeze. In a matter of seconds, he became a frozen statue. Firestorm breathed heavily as he ran to check on Rock 'n' Roll. "You alright?"

"Yeah…" Rock 'n' Roll moaned. "Just let me find my ribs."

Back at the youth center

The fight between Rhinox and the combined force of Dazzler, Thunderbolt, and Velocity had boiled down to a stalemate. Dazzler had easily taken out Ringer, who had been left in the stands, knocked silly. The Jamaican rhino-like mutant was too powerful, Velocity and Dazzler (Who was using her roller skates) were too quick, and Kyle was too experienced a fighter.

"There has got to be a way to crush you, man!" Rhinox growled as he threw a punch at air in the wake of Velocity, another missed blow.

"This guy's got the hide of a rhino!" Kyle quipped as he threw electric bursts. "There has got to be a way to break this stalemate!"

"No kidding!" Ali agreed as she zipped by Rhinox, firing a series of light bursts. "I can't create a light blast strong enough to hurt him!"

"Ohhh…" Ringer moaned as he woke up, holding his head. He noticed a basketball roll towards him from a rack that was wrecked in the fight. He then let out a weak grin as an idea formed in his head.

Well, well, well! Looks like Ringer has an idea! What is his insane idea? What madness will happen next? How did Firestorm know that would work? Where's the Whip? Find out in the next chapter! Suggestions needed badly!