Disclaimer: I don't own Sky High.
Read on, oh faithful ones...
A/N: this story is a spin-off for A world of their own.
...
According to all official reports outside of the Lab, Bolt didn't exist. She preferred it that way, and didn't mind that she had to keep out of the public eye, that she was confined to her home, rather than being out in public. Bolt and people didn't mix very well together anyway, and with her power, it was unlikely that would ever change.
Still, Bolt had more family and friends than she'd ever thought possible when she was younger, long before Chaos' reign. She was the fiercest weapon in Chaos' arsenal besides Chaos themselves, and she held her position on the third tier of their hierarchy with pride. Today, however, the unthinkable had happened: Bolt's position had been challenged.
She had, of course, seen Gwen's rise through the ranks on TV herself. Up until now, she'd actually been impressed with the young woman's resolve and control. Now, however, Bolt had to wonder if Gwen wasn't as smart as she thought she was. A technopath against her? It had never happened before, and with Chaos' stipulation for her to remain out of sight, Bolt wondered if it even would happen. She looked at the yellow rose that accompanied the green challenge card - three petals and a single leaf. Bolt saw that it was already 2:45pm, so she had half an hour to get ready before she needed to meet with Chaos.
Bolt changed her clothes, then grabbed her keys and the challenge card, and headed out the door to go to Chaos' apartment. The elevator arrived in a matter of seconds thanks to a quick burst of power, and she arrived at their penthouse apartment with five minutes to spare. Knocking on the door, Bolt waited patiently for an answer. The door opened a few moments later, and she smiled at Hourglass, signing hello.
"Hello, Bolt. You're early, that's good. Take a seat, Chaos will be out in a moment."
Nodding, Bolt sat on the indicated lounge. Hourglass sat across from her and nodded to the challenge card. "Are you nervous about the challenge?"
Bolt shook her head.
"Do you think Gwen's good enough for third tier?" Hourglass asked curiously.
Considering the question for a moment, Bolt eventually nodded.
"She beat Blaze a few days ago; have you seen him since?"
Bolt nodded.
"That's good. Blaze misses you, you know."
She nodded again and shrugged.
"I'm sure Tempest would love to see you as well; she's nervous about Gwen's fight."
Bolt bit her lip at the mention of her former Hero, back when heroes and sidekicks still existed. She shrugged; she might see Tempest, she might not. She doubted Tempest would want to see her anyway.
Before Hourglass could ask another question, Chaos entered the room. Poison smiled at Bolt, Fire nodded in acknowledgement, and they both sat across from Bolt.
"Hello, Bolt. How are you?" Poison asked.
Bolt shrugged. Not bad.
"That's good. You got Gwen's challenge, I see. Do you feel up to accepting the challenge?" Poison asked.
Bolt thought about it, as she had ever since receiving the green card. Finally, she nodded once, firm and adamant.
"You mustn't kill her, Bolt," Fire added.
Bolt glared at him briefly, and his hand lit up in response to her electrical manipulation.
"See, that's what I mean. You let your emotions get the better of you," Fire said, shaking out the flames that had protected him. "You could be second tier if you controlled your emotions, Bolt."
She gave a nod, and then Bolt posed her own question. She concentrated, encouraging a brief pulse of electricity, the words forming in their minds as electrical signals passed between neurons carefully. Will the fight between us be televised?
Fire and Poison both blinked at the question, then looked to Hourglass.
"Within the Lab, yes. Those outside the Lab will not be able to handle the fact that Bolt is actually alive and well."
Bolt shrugged; she didn't care about them.
"Do you have any more questions?" Poison asked.
Bolt shook her head. Fire drew her attention and passed her an old iPhone charger that had seen better days. Bolt grinned her thanks and bit into the cord eagerly; while the residual energy wasn't quite what she was used to, it was a nice enough snack.
"I'll take you out for dinner tomorrow after your challenge," Hourglass promised with a smile.
Bolt nodded eagerly.
"Not the Lab's main power plant again?" Fire asked with a grin.
"Not quite. There's an old power plant that's not on the mainframe any more. It still has enough power for a decent-sized meal, Bolt," Hourglass said.
Bolt grinned, and with the main business over for the day, Chaos talked with Bolt about the recent changes in the Lab since the Mad Professor's death and Coach's disappearance. Of course, Bolt knew that the Mad Professor's death had been faked, and Coach had left with the Mad Professor. She wondered where they'd gone, but as she doubted she'd get an answer, Bolt didn't bother wasting energy to ask.
Their reminiscing was cut short when Hourglass informed Chaos of their next appointment, and after hugging the other three briefly, Bolt left to go back home. Hourglass reminded her of her promise for dinner the next night, and Bolt smiled for some time afterwards.
...
Heidi's increase in power didn't happen like most supers - Zach's power was increased due to his girlfriend's betrayal, Ethan's was changed after a kiss, Layla's increased after her mother's death, and Warren's increased once he killed his father. Heidi's power increase didn't happen until after she was already working as Wendy's sidekick.
Even though she was strung up above a vat of toxic waste, Heidi didn't blame Wendy. It wasn't Wendy's fault, Heidi knew that then, and Bolt knew it now. Wendy had challenged another super over a territorial dispute, and that super had thought that capturing Heidi would make Wendy comply. The super didn't realise that Heidi's power was linked with Wendy's; when the weather-controlling woman built lightning bolts in her clouds, Heidi's control over electricity ensured that they would strike in the exact spot required. She fed Wendy's power and as such, Heidi could tell whenever Wendy was creating a storm.
Right now, with electrons and neutrons building in the atmosphere above her, Heidi knew that Wendy was gathering one of the largest storms she'd ever attempted. It was a way of finding her, allowing Heidi to direct the lightning bolt to her location, but as Wendy had no idea where the super had taken her, she was creating a storm to cover several towns and cities at once.
Heidi closed her eyes as the vat of toxic waste bubbled beneath her. She visualised the cloud overhead, the striking of electrons and neutrons in the air to create small bolts of lightning. She needed something bigger than that though, and drew on more molecules in the air. Eventually, Heidi had enough gathered electricity to create a lightning bolt. She waited until she knew Wendy was ready and waiting, and then directed the lightning to her precise location.
Unfortunately for Heidi, the super that had captured her wasn't the kind to insulate his lair properly. The lightning struck the building, reverberated throughout the warehouse, and zapped along the metal rod that kept Heidi dangling above the vat of toxic waste. The lightning fed into Heidi's body, and with her seated on a metal chair and her rubber-soled shoes already fallen into the vat some time ago, there was no escape from the high electrical voltage. It continued to flow through her, head to toe and back again without stopping.
Had Heidi been anyone other than herself, with her power to control electricity, being hit like this would have proven fatal. Heidi had practised on others - mainly Zach - and while she had more knowledge about the human brain than most people, she still didn't know every little part. She simply knew that she had to redirect the electricity running through her body so that it wouldn't continue to flow through her, and in a moment of lucidity - or perhaps there was nothing but pain - Heidi decided to redirect it to her own brain as a series of electrical pulses. They could combine with the ones already in her body and be used safely, she was sure of it. Well, at least 75% sure; Heidi wasn't completely certain over all of the screaming.
The first few electrical redirections worked, Heidi's body shaking in its confines of the various zip ties and metal chair. She tried to keep control as she redirected more, a little more each time, and Heidi thought she managed it all right. Then, as the zip ties began to melt with the intense heat from the lightning, she slipped. Her focus disappeared in the same instant, and Heidi redirected the remaining electricity straight into her brain. Heidi vaguely thought she was still screaming, though she couldn't hear the noise itself, and as the last of the zip ties melted into useless plastic globs, she slipped off the metal chair completely, falling straight down into the vat of toxic waste.
Wendy arrived just as Heidi fell, her sidekick's mouth open in a soundless scream, though her eyes were screwed shut tightly. Wendy practically decimated the building, the super dead as all oxygen was pulled from his body a second later, and she ran for the vat, hoping that Heidi's outfit would have protected her somewhat. The metal vat creaked ominously as she approached, the wind tearing through the building and ripping into the metal like it was nothing more than a wet paper bag. Wendy created a tornado to suck out the toxic waste, a gentle cirrus cloud lifting out Heidi from the vat gently. When Heidi was free, Wendy dumped the toxic waste back into the vat, and knelt by Heidi's still form, sobbing as rain poured around them. She reached out for Heidi, aware of the electricity that still crackled around her, her suit eaten away by the toxic waste in most places, her bone showing without the suit's protection.
Zach arrived with Ethan, Layla, and Warren. Simon was carrying Honey, and they came to an abrupt stop, Honey gasping for air.
"Use your vines. Now, Layla!" she called, and Layla didn't hesitate, several vines popping out from cracks in the warehouse floor to cover Heidi completely.
They dug into her body, tearing away the last remnants of her suit, and Wendy could do nothing but watch as Heidi continued with her soundless scream. She couldn't watch, but couldn't look away either, and Wendy saw where the vines replaced skin and exposed bones were covered by green.
"It's only temporary, Wendy. You need to let go so we can get Heidi help," Honey said, her hand on Wendy's shoulder.
She hadn't even realised she'd taken hold of Heidi's arm, and as she let go, Wendy saw the lightning strike scars webbing up Heidi's skin, the scars mottled with green. Simon gathered Heidi in his arms and sped away at Honey's instruction. Wendy was vaguely aware of Zach and Ethan leaving via jet pack to follow after them, and then Layla and Warren helped her stand and guided her over to their car with Honey following.
The next time Wendy saw Heidi, the vines had been replaced by liquid metal, silver shining where green had been. Whatever had happened to Heidi - before the toxic waste, during, or even after, Wendy wasn't sure - had taken all of her ability to speak and hear. The hearing aids she'd once worn were now useless, and Heidi was completely mute. Her hands trembled a bit, still crackling with electrical lightning now and then, but she managed to communicate by sign language.
Due to the other super's death, Wendy owned the territory he'd held, but the victory didn't feel very victorious.
...
Heidi knew that Wendy was no longer comfortable with her as her sidekick, but didn't really know why. Not a whole lot had changed, besides the talking, hearing, and her skin. She liked it though, it made her feel like the Terminator, and she briefly considered taking that on as her super name.
The next time Wendy visited her in hospital, Heidi signed to her about their plans for defeating another super in a region close to the one she'd just secured. It would expand their territory even closer to Westville and Maxville itself. Wendy shook her head, interrupting Heidi's plan abruptly.
"You're fired, Heidi. I can't... I can't have you as my sidekick. I can't see you get hurt again. I just... I can't," Wendy said, her words ending on a sob, and she ran from the room with tears in her eyes.
Heidi frowned at Wendy's words and sudden departure. Wendy was just overly emotional about the things that had happened; she'd come around, surely? Heidi hoped that was the case as she settled down to sleep. In the morning, Wendy would come back and they'd talk more about taking over the next region.
Wendy didn't come back the next day, or the next, or the next five days after that.
Heidi looked from Zach to Ethan as they looked between each other, obviously working up the courage to tell her something. Heidi clicked her fingers to get their attention, then waved for them to just get on with it.
"Layla and Warren secured region 2 last night; Wendy's decided to go inactive and become a carer instead," Zach said finally.
Region 2 housed the Maxville Super Penitentiary, and Heidi had no doubts as to why Wendy had gone inactive: Royal Pain.
The words lit something within Heidi and she felt electricity surging through her, or maybe it was anger, perhaps both? She shorted out the machine she was hooked up to, and the one in the next room, and the next, all of the machines in the hospital turning off one by one until the hospital plunged into darkness.
Cautiously, Zach started to glow to provide temporary light until the backup generators kicked in. Heidi was no longer in her bed, and Ethan approached the window with a frown on his face.
"I think Heidi just took out the whole city," he said, darkness enveloping every street as far as he could see.
Zach moved to stand by Ethan, staring out at the dark city. No street lights were on, nor house lights, and even cars had stopped in the street. It was like an EMP had run through the city, wiping everything out completely.
Heidi left the hospital, determined to prove that she was still useful, that Wendy didn't need to go inactive because of her, that she could get the other regions with or without her hero. Darkness followed her as she gathered electricity from every streetlight, building and home, and vehicle that was in the city.
...
Bolt appeared the next day. She proceeded to drain the whole state of its electricity, her eyes glowing and crackling with lightning as she took every region that hadn't yet been secured, and then some.
It caused utter chaos and anarchy. People looted; destroying things and each other for the most basic of necessities; hospitals had to organise police to guard their doors, people desperate for light and electricity; out in the oceans, several submarines sank to the bottom of the ocean with limited air for those trapped inside; planes were diverted to other states, while some fell from the skies entirely.
The next day, electrical surges created fires in homes. Any houses that were too close to others started to burn those as well, until entire streets were in flames. Fire departments tried to get to each of the houses, but without phones to alert them to the emergencies or working firetrucks to get there, it was nearly impossible for firefighters from other states to get to the numerous fires in time.
By the third day, the generators in the hospitals had started to die, and on the roads, people died as well. They were attempting to leave the state, people fighting over bicycles, scooters, and even skateboards as a faster means of transport. Others simply started walking, but with the state line almost three hours away by car alone, not everyone was prepared to walk for two straight days to get help, and most people gave up after the first day, collapsing in the nearest building without a care for the lack of electricity.
On the fourth day, Chaos took back control. It had been a long three days of arguing and fighting between them and the other tiers. Zach was convinced he could get through to his sister where others had failed, but Ethan was terrified that Bolt would kill him without a second glance. Honey couldn't see anything, too many possible futures overwhelming her, and then darkness-darkness-darkness.
Warren put out all of the fires that were still burning; Layla created lines of ripened fruit trees and vines along the highway to ensure everyone would eat; Ethan and Mr. Medulla worked together to create a generator that ran on pedal-power rather than electricity; Zach lent his glow to several thousand torches and Simon distributed them among those that were left in Maxville and the surrounding towns.
When the people were placated to the best of their ability, Poison and Fire went to the electrical power plant where Bolt was draining the state's energy, and working on getting the rest of the country's electricity as well.
Bolt had found that with every watt she gained from the power plant, she needed more still. By the time Chaos had arrived, she had literally connected herself to the power plant's mainframe, cords and wires sticking out of most of her body, blood trickling in the places where she'd clipped some wires to the parts of her skin that weren't covered by liquid metal.
Bolt greeted Chaos with a mouthful of wires, more held in her hand to try to quell her insatiable quench for more electricity, more energy, more of everything. Electricity crackled over her body as she attacked Chaos, first together and then individually. Their electrical impulses were affected easily by her full-strength power, and before her, Chaos were nothing, they were useless. Bolt had more power than either of them put together, and she knew in that moment that she could reign over the world itself.
Poison and Fire struggled to get away from Bolt to recover, and it took them almost a full hour of fighting to discover that they could use their own powers to block Bolt's. Fire and Poison had been at full strength themselves for years longer than Bolt, and as such, both had complete control over their powers where Bolt's control was sporadic like a flickering light bulb.
A shield of flames appeared before Fire when Bolt's next attack came, and he continued forward without being affected. Inspired by Fire's success, Poison used several large vines to protect against the electrical pulses that Bolt sent at her.
They overcame Bolt shortly thereafter, wrenching her free of the electrical system she was still draining. Poison used a vine to ensure that Bolt wouldn't be able to unleash her full power ever again. Despite knowing that she no longer had a voice, Bolt could have sworn that she heard herself screaming when Poison's vine burrowed into her body.
An hour later, electricity was fully restored to the state, and Bolt was led back to the Lab by Chaos.
...
Despite the restoration of electricity to the state, Bolt was publicly demonised. Too many people had died for her to be forgiven by the public, and the citizens demanded retribution. After dealing with picketers for almost three days straight, Craig offered a solution: by posing as Bolt, he could be 'killed' and then revived when he returned to the Lab. Poison and Fire presented the idea to Bolt, who would then be put under house arrest, not to be seen in public ever again. Remorseful for the things she'd done, Bolt agreed.
Wendy came to see Bolt before her permanent exile, hand-in-hand with a little brunette girl that could only be Royal Pain. The girl introduced herself as Gwen, and then bluntly asked if Bolt was a robot, her brown eyes as curious as her words. She shook her head: robots didn't have feelings.
When Craig was killed on live TV wearing her form, Bolt left the Lab's apartments and headed to her new accommodation, where she'd stay for the rest of her life. Until that curious young girl challenged Bolt's position on the hierarchy.
...
Standing in the arena, Bolt looked out to the crowd. Most of the people within the Lab already knew she was alive - it was difficult to be hidden while basically exiled to the backyard, after all - but no one had seen her fight since her blowout several years ago. The arena seats were packed, those within the Lab walls curious to see what would happen in a fight between Bolt and Gwen, and not content to watching it on their TV screens. (Bolt didn't really blame them; Gwen had accidentally broken the cameras in her first fight.)
Bolt had been practising with her power since her exile, and while her own arena was far smaller than this one, it was enough for her. She just hoped it would be enough to keep her position on the hierarchy.
On the other side of the arena, Gwen was watching and assessing Bolt carefully, looking for weaknesses. She was curious as to whether her power would affect Bolt's liquid metal skin, but as it was a part of her human body and not actually a bionic limb, she doubted her power would do anything. Still, it couldn't hurt to try.
The buzzer sounded a moment later, a timer starting to count down the five minutes they had to best the other. Bolt waited where she was, gathering electricity in her palms until the crackle could even be seen on the large screens on either side of the arena.
Gwen tried to use her power on Bolt, but as she had suspected, nothing happened. Bolt's body, despite being metal in places, wasn't bionic at all. She cursed under her breath (not too loudly; the microphones were surprisingly sensitive, and Aunt Wendy hated it when she swore), and reached into her hoodie to take out several pieces of metal. In a second flat, she was armed with a ray gun.
Bolt sent the first bolt of electricity towards Gwen, hoping that the gun she had would be melted, or at least affected in some way. She had seen the array of different ray guns Gwen could produce, and if it was a freeze ray, then Bolt knew she would be in trouble. If she didn't win first, of course.
Aiming for Gwen again, Bolt sent another bolt of electricity towards her, and another to the direction she hoped Gwen would jump to avoid it. Gwen rolled on the ground, somersaulting and just getting singed by the second bolt instead. She was on her feet in a second, aiming and firing her gun. A blast of air pushed Bolt back a few steps, and the electricity on her hands fizzled out. Gwen had created an air gun strong enough to counteract her electricity, Bolt realised.
Bolt couldn't help but stare for a moment, surprised at Gwen's weapon of choice. A freeze ray would have been faster, but as she'd seen over the last month or so, it was difficult to guarantee a hit on the first shot. The air gun gave a broader scope, it seemed. However, as Bolt stood there staring, she noticed another thing: the air gun took a long time to get working again. She had no idea how it worked, not being a technopath herself, but Gwen still hadn't fired a second shot, and seemed to be waiting for something.
Well, she certainly didn't have that problem, and Bolt gathered enough electricity to send four bolts at Gwen in quick succession. She could have waited a bit longer to create balls of electricity, not unlike Fire's fireballs, but Bolt wanted this to be over sooner rather than later. While she couldn't hear the crowd, she could feel everyone watching her, and Bolt actually missed her seclusion.
A bolt hit Gwen's leg, but it didn't make much impact, the electricity flowing down to the ground harmlessly. Bolt frowned, trying to determine what Gwen's outfit was made out of. A moment later, she realised that she recognised the style of it, and cursed herself for not seeing it sooner. Gwen was wearing Wendy's old outfit; with a few modifications in colour and the cape removed, of course. Wendy's outfit had helped her to conduct electricity, and in doing so, required an extra layer of insulation. Bolt needed to hit Gwen's bare skin in order to win this, which meant hitting either her hands or her head.
Her head was obviously the easier target, but Bolt knew what an electrical surge to the brain could do, and she didn't want to permanently harm Gwen over this. The hands were smaller targets, but the safest option. Unless she forfeited entirely. Bolt mused over this dilemma for a fraction too long, another blast of pure oxygen pushing her back to the edge of the arena.
Well, she needed to practise her precision skills anyway.
Bolt gathered electricity quickly, but took a moment to aim before letting it loose. As that bolt flew through the air, she concentrated on making several balls of electricity, sticking them to the metal parts of her body to keep them ready. So long as she avoided being hit by Gwen's gun, they would stay there for as long as she needed. Bolt threw one of the balls of electricity, Gwen dodging out of the way. A second, third, and fourth ball were thrown, the third coming closest but still only hitting Gwen's foot, the electricity drifting off the rubber shoes harmlessly.
With one hand, Bolt created smaller balls of electricity, and with her other, she began to throw them. Gwen darted around the arena, trying to dodge them. While Bolt's aim was actually quite good, and a few landed on her, most of them hit Gwen's clothes due to her movement. Bolt saw the air gun's light change from red to green and knew that she'd have to start running around herself soon enough. Gwen seemed to notice that her air gun was ready a moment later, and aimed it towards Bolt.
Bolt grabbed her balls and ran. Instead of running away or to either side, she ran directly towards Gwen. Her opponent seemed surprised at the move, but fired the gun anyway. Bolt dodged the oncoming blast of air, only losing a few of her balls that were on her leg. The ones on her right side were still fine, and Bolt continued to run towards Gwen. She threw some of the electricity balls to herd Gwen back to where she wanted, distracting her. The moment she was certain of her shot, Bolt pulled her arm back and threw her final remaining ball of electricity, aiming straight at Gwen's head.
As she'd predicted, Gwen raised her arms to block herself, and the ball hit her hands square on. Unprotected against the electrical current, Gwen fell to the ground, her body spasming slightly as she lost her challenge.
Bolt went over to Gwen, touching her cheek gently and drawing the electricity back out carefully. There was no point in wasting good electricity when she'd already won, after all.
In the arena, the buzzer sounded, the crowd cheered, and the cameras focused on the victor. Blaze and Tempest both left the stands to enter the arena, impatiently allowing the medics through first.
Bolt blinked in surprise at her brother's presence, signing at him that she was fine, that Gwen was fine, and she'd taken the extra electricity out of her. The medic nodded in understanding, but still had to check Gwen's vitals, and signed this to Bolt in response. Tempest stayed back while the medic looked over Gwen, her gaze flicking from her adopted daughter to her former sidekick.
When the medic moved away, clearing Gwen as needing rest but otherwise fine, Bolt stepped forward, tugging Blaze with her. She could have done this with Gwen's electrical signals in her brain, but she was tired after their fight, and didn't want to add any extra stress to either of them.
Congratulations, Gwen. You fight well, Bolt signed, nodding for Blaze to translate.
To her surprise, Gwen started to sign back before Blaze could say anything. Thanks. So do you.
You know ASL?
Aunt Wendy taught me, Gwen admitted.
Bolt blinked in surprise, looking from Tempest to Wendy.
Tempest gave a half-smile and shrugged. I wanted her to talk to you when she met you. When you were ready to see us, Tempest added.
Bolt smiled, thinking that Honey had been right all along in telling her to visit her former Hero.
Can we invite Bolt over for lunch tomorrow? Gwen signed, looking between Bolt and Tempest eagerly.
Tempest looked to Bolt, who smiled again and nodded firmly.
Great. See you tomorrow, Tempest signed, then helped Gwen out of the arena so she could rest and recover.
Poison and Fire were waiting at the arena's exit, Hourglass standing beside them. Bolt was glad that they signed rather than talked; she was tired and couldn't concentrate on reading their lips right now.
Well done, Bolt, Poison said with a smile.
It was a good fight, Fire added.
She thanked them both. Blaze promised that he and Molten would visit soon, and that he was proud of her. Hourglass smiled and led Bolt out so she could take her to dinner, as promised.
An hour later, the old power plant was drained of its remaining electricity, and Bolt felt much better. Hourglass knew better than to touch her after she'd consumed so much electricity, and stayed a few metres away as they walked back to the car. When they were back at the Lab, Bolt thanked Hourglass for taking her out for dinner. She wouldn't need another meal like that for at least a month.
Now that it was safe to touch Bolt again, Hourglass hugged her firmly, and then told her to visit when she next had the chance. Bolt agreed with a nod, and when Hourglass had left to return home to Speed, Bolt gratefully collapsed on her bed to sleep.
...
The next day, Bolt went to Tempest and Gwen's apartment building. There were a few children running around outside, and she could see where plaster and paint were obviously used to repair a child-shaped hole in one of the walls.
As she entered the building, Bolt saw a young couple with their child, trying to get the infant to fall asleep or calm down, she wasn't quite sure. By the expression on the child's face, Bolt was suddenly very glad she couldn't hear the child's wailing. The mother was wearing noise-cancelling headphones, and the father looked as though he understood everything his own parents had ever suffered through with his own childhood, so Bolt wondered if the child's super ability was related to noise.
She stepped past them and took the elevator up to the ninth floor, ringing the doorbell for Tempest's apartment. The door was opened almost immediately, Gwen greeting her with cotton balls stuffed in her ears. Once Bolt stepped inside, the door was shut firmly, and Gwen used a burst of power to shove as much technology between the door and them as possible.
To block out the noise, she explained, then winced as she took the cotton balls out. Aunt Wendy is serving up lunch. Want a tour?
Bolt nodded, suddenly feeling nervous about being inside of Tempest and Gwen's apartment. It was very different to Blaze and Molten's apartment, with various bits of technology sitting on pieces of furniture, a miniature terrarium with its own lightning cloud inside, and most of the colours in blue, silver, and white.
Blaze and Molten's apartment was a mix of black, white, and gold, with a few bright colours thrown in. It shouldn't have worked, but for them it did. Bolt supposed the colours matched their powers and personalities, and the same was true for Tempest and Gwen.
She saw a vase sitting on the dining table with two perfect yellow roses sitting upright, and knew that they were from Poison. Bolt had received a pale pink rose from Poison for her twenty-first birthday, and even now, four years later, it still looked just as perfect as it had then.
Gwen showed her the lounge room, dining room, bathroom, kitchen (Tempest waved a greeting from the stove), and her workroom. Bolt smiled at the amount of technology the room housed, and was tempted to turn things on just to see what would happen. Gwen tugged her sleeve to get her attention, then signed quickly and with a broad grin.
Want to see how it all works? she asked.
Bolt nodded and smiled in response.
After a few minutes, Gwen stopped demonstrating a modified GameBoy where the screen showed 3D images of whatever game was playing (a small Mario figurine jumped nimbly towards the end goal, coins falling from actual bricks, and little mushrooms moving towards Mario and the abyss behind him).
Aunt Wendy called. Ready for lunch? Gwen asked, setting the GameBoy aside.
Bolt nodded and followed Gwen back out to the dining room. Tempest was already seated and waiting, but smiled at both of them and indicated for them to sit down.
Did you have fun? Tempest asked Bolt.
She grinned and nodded. Gwen showed me her workroom.
The junk room, you mean? Tempest replied, grinning over at Gwen, who had her mouth and hands full and couldn't respond. Well, if you really enjoyed that, you have Gwen as a friend for life.
Across the table, Gwen grinned at her. Bolt grinned back, thinking that Tempest was right, and that Gwen had a friend for life now, too.
...
The end.
Thanks for reading. I hope you liked it!