TEAM B

On the pier, a small crowd began to corral the group of student heroes in front of the hot dog stand. A few murmured to themselves while cameras pointed at the ready for a fight. The day was beginning to grow long, the sun starting to fade down below the summit of the ferris wheel in the amusement park in front of them.

Lloyd held out an arm in front of the group as if he were protecting them. He could not believe that this school was forcing them to confront a pro-hero at such an early time in their schooling. Regardless, he knew the rules of being a hero, and he wanted to make sure his classmates were safe. With a dramatic wave of his hand, he hunched over and braced for the assault that would come from Midnight.

"Run away, classmates!" Lloyd announced. "I will take her on myself!"

James, annoyed by Lloyd's arm, pushed down on it and shoved him out of the way.

"Hell, no. I found the bomb. I get to deal with her," James tensed up and balled his fists.

Austin peered down at the arguing classmates. He was more confused by the turn of events than scared. That said, his limbs straightened up as the crowd of people began to stare and point at the students. They were already leaving a bad impression.

Adjusting his glasses, he examined the tight suit that Midnight wore. Clinging to her curvy frame, the suit had small lines that were woven or cut into the fabric. She just stood there, her mischievous smirk melting into an odd stare as they took no action.

"Do we really have to fight her?" Austin asked.

Looking back from their argument, Lloyd and James gazed up at the tall blonde man.

"You know what? You're right." James barked back at Austin. "Maybe we should just ask nicely for the bomb, Blondie."

"Good idea," Robyn patted James on the shoulder. She faced Midnight and cupped her hands around her mouth. "Hey, lady. Could we have the bomb?"

"I was being sarcastic! That's enough!"

James bared his pearly teeth like a rabid dog. Tired of the useless discussions, he planted himself on the damp floorboards and clenched his fists in a fighting stance.

Midnight lowered her whip to her side. The angry kid reminded her of a mad puppy, and he looked as intimidating.

"And why are you in nothing but dolphin boxers?" She asked.

"Did you not see me jump into the ocean?" James shouted. With a growl, his hands began to emanate a tangerine tint. "Enough of this."

James bolted towards Midnight. His face betraying a bead of sweat down his brow, he roared in excitement with furious steps trampling towards the Pro-Hero. However, right before he could get out of reach, Lloyd snagged his sleeve and pulled him back towards him. He collided into Lloyd, their foreheads clattering off of the other.

"Let go of me," James shouted while rubbing his bruising forehead. "I'll beat you to death, you worthless turkey taint!"

"Look!" Lloyd pointed at Midnight.

With a flick of her wrist, Midnight dug her sharp nails into a small line in her arm sleeve. Pulling down on the pocket, a small hole revealed itself. With the exposed skin of her forearm, a pink hue began to flow off of her voluptuous frame. The small streams of pink grew into a shimmering pool that enveloped her like a toxic cloud. It surrounded the hot dog stand, entrapping the bomb within its limits.

"That's her quirk. It will knock you out." Lloyd said.

"I know that. I was trying to hit her before she released it!" James said.

The group turned and huddled away from Midnight. They crouched down en masse with a few onlookers pulling out their phones to take footage.

"What should we do?"

"We should have just blasted her head on," James said.

"That's not smart," Lloyd said. "These things usually have some sort of trick to them."

"Yeah, like she's trying to poison or whip us."

"You seem like someone that'd be into that," Robyn chuckled in James's face.

"Shut up!"

Midnight cracked her whip onto the wood beneath her. A dark, ominous shadow cast onto the bottom of her face. Harsh sunlight obscured her with every step she sauntered towards them. "Are you four going to yap the day away or do something?"

"Anyone else think that lady is wearing some inappropriate clothes?" Austin whispered to the others.

With a roar, James shot up to his feet and sprinted forward yet again. His feet smacked the floorboards; orange again glowing in his hands.

Midnight rolled her eyes. This boy was not the smartest cookie in the bowl.

As he got to the edge of the pink cloud, James dug his foot into the floor and thrusted his arm forward. Like a skilled football player, he flung a bolt of neon towards Midnight.

With a heave, she dived under the blast. The energy lodged itself into the side of the wooden information kiosk. The wood siding exploded. Splinters of wood and nails flew out of the impact.

The fumes invaded James. The pink hue started to swirl around his head. He felt like he was drowning into a sea of fatigue. His legs weakened, and the rest of his muscles relaxed. His eyelids drooped, each blink lasting longer than the next. He staggered back a step, his balance falling behind him as the world darkened like a wool blanket had wrapped tightly over his eyes.

He fell back.

Right into Lloyd's arms.

Lloyd, using his own undershirt pulled up over his nose, pulled back James's limp body back towards the group. With James's heels skidding over the pier floorboards, he dragged him back and kneeled down next to him. Lowering him to the floor like a gentle feather, Lloyd set James down with his jacket acting as a pillow for him.

"How strong is that gas?" Austin asked.

"Robyn," Lloyd dug his toes into a gap in the wood. "Try and heal James."

Wrapping her arms around James's neck, Robyn cradled his head in her lap. Looking down at the fringe of his black hair draped over his closed eyes, she brushed the strands away and focused on the energy within her. A warmth cascaded through her blood vessels, a soothing massage of heat enveloping her like a soft blanket. With a white glow, a circle opened up underneath her. The energy began to seep back into James as he started to stir.

Midnight sighed. With a crack of her whip, the conscious three kneeling around James snapped their sights on the Pro-Hero.

"You better hurry," She said and pointed at the hot dog stand. "That bomb doesn't have much longer. Ha!"

Suddenly, Robyn whipped around and stood up to face the crowd of bystanders. "Does somebody have a face mask!" Robyn looked around at the small crowd behind her.

"What makes you think we would have that?" A random lady shouted from the crowd.

"Doesn't everyone carry a face mask now?" Robyn said as she smirked at you, the person reading this.

A rotund, burly man with a man-bun raised a hand. "I got some extras in my fanny pack."

Unzipping the compartment, the man threw blood red fabric masks towards the students. Robyn snagged them from the air and passed them over to the others. They placed the masks to cover their noses and mouths, enacting a great display of good hygiene that other people should undoubtedly attempt.

James stirred. With a groan, he sat back up. He rolled his neck in a circular motion and craned it to the side. His legs felt like thick rubber bands as he tried to rock himself upward to a seated position.

"Here," Robyn hung the face mask onto James's face. "This will help."

James felt the cloth around his mouth and peered forward towards Midnight. "How did she knock me out so fast?"

"It's her quirk," Austin said. "That, and the...uh...whip thing."

"What?" James said. "Your voice is all muffled."

"Her quirk," Lloyd shouted to make his voice funnel through the mask. "It makes people fall asleep."

"Okay, so we got her now," James said. "Let's go."

James leaped forward. With the weakness in his legs, he toppled forward and slammed into the ground face first. His nose smashed into the pier, and he felt the blood rush back towards his head.

"Sorry," Robyn said down to James. "I don't think I healed you long enough."

James said something, but the fact that his face was smothered by the wood underneath it made whatever he said impossible to decipher.

"Robyn," Lloyd said. "Make sure James is healed. Austin, you come with me. I have a plan."

Lloyd took a few cautious paces forward. They were about twenty feet away from Midnight who stood in front of the hot dog stand. The bomb ticked away in one of the cabinets.

Austin followed next to him on his left. The taller boy began to roll up the sleeves of his school uniform. As he did so, four spikes perked up at his wrists awakening with an emphatic spring that extended three inches upward. The black spines shined under the powerful sun above as they approached Midnight like a showdown in the wild west.

Stepping into the pink cloud, random sparkles popped like small firecrackers in the air around them. The gas acted like a screen that obscured the world around them like water running down a window pane. Midnight's outline waved and fluttered with the swirling rose-tinted air tickling their eyes. Even with the masks on, they could feel the slightest scent of saccharine honeysuckle tickling at their noses.

"Those masks won't last long," Midnight said. "And you won't be able to get past me. Unless either of you can fly."

"No need to," Lloyd said. With a blink, he pointed a long finger right at Midnight. "You have endangered countless civilians by conducting this dangerous business. Who do you think you are?"

"You are such a wet blanket," Midnight said. With a lick of her lips, she raised up her hand with the whip grasped in her reach. "Time to go to sleep."

With a flick of her wrist, the whip extended it's length to cover the remaining distance over to the pair. Due to her expert agility, Midnight worked the whip in a circular pattern, neither of the two in front of her predicting where it would go. The whip uncoiled like a striking snake and screamed towards them. With their vision obscured, Lloyd held his hands out at the ready.

Austin gasped when he saw the whip heading right towards his face. Midnight had aimed for his face mask, and the thick rawhide leather whistled through the contaminated air.

Just as it was about to smack Austin, Lloyd lunged towards it.

With a yell, he grabbed the end of the whip and clasped it with both of his hands. He squeezed it with all of his might. In a flash of silver and black, the rawhide disintegrated into a thick rope of silt and flecks of leather. Degrading further, it dissolved into nothing but a loose-formed string of dust.

Lloyd pulled back on one hand, commanding the dust towards his body. It held together into a thick ball right in front of him. Manipulating the shape into the sphere, Lloyd pushed on the sphere and hurtled it towards Midnight. The ball of dust collided with her. While the impact barely knocked her a smidge backward, the rope of dust encompassed around her, tracing an outline of her figure in a graphite grey.

In a dramatic swish of his hands, Lloyd clapped his hands together in mid-air. The crash followed with the dust pasting itself onto Midnight's body. Bound standing by the dust, Midnight wrestled her arms and shimmied to break from the prison to no avail. She was stuck.

Lloyd Thomas! Quirk: Ash Storm! He can turn inorganic objects into ash by touching it with both of his hands. He can also manipulate the dust at will for small periods of time.

"Austin, incapacitate her!" Lloyd said, his clasped hands starting to tremble. The stress of holding the dust together and Midnight fighting it off would soon cause the remnants to dissipate, allowing Midnight free again. The amount of dust collected from the whip would only be strong enough for a few more seconds.

"What?" Austin asked.

"Incap...I mean, stab her with your wrists!"

Austin ran forward. He blinked, trying to focus on the potency of the toxin inside him. The outline of dust that hugged Midnight started to thin away and evaporate. Midnight moved more, her elbows jabbing through the tight cloud around her.

Just as Austin reached her, she punched one arm out of her restraints. With Austin's momentum, she surprised him by taking a swing right at his face. She could still knock the mask off and have him knocked out.

Austin, despite his height, was still somewhat flexible. He bent his knees and leaned backward. The punch sailed just inches over his nose. Sliding on his knees over the wooden floorboards, he took his right wrist and swatted at Midnight's side like a ferocious cat.

The spikes in his wrist slit three thin cuts right into her abdomen. With a sharp gasp, Midnight broke out of the dust prison completely. The remnants evaporated into the sky appearing flecks of silver that sparkled like glitter in the bright California sky.

Midnight tried to step forward, but she found her limbs were stone. Losing her balance, she became the one to fall and face plant forward onto the ground. All she could control was her face as her cheek smacked onto the ground. She rolled her eyes upward. Austin stood over her, the tips of his wrists coated in small droplets of Midnight's blood. The pink cloud of noxious gas dissipated along with the remaining flecks of dust.

Midnight was completely immobile, only her face betraying any hint of conscious movement. She peered upward at them.

"Not bad, guys," she said with the hint of a smile. "Lucky your quirks matched up so well."

"Luck...has...nothing to do with it." James said from behind Austin. He was currently being dragged forward by Robyn. His arm wrapped around her shoulder, he staggered as strength was still being built into his limbs from the poisonous gas. He had to admit that he was slightly embarrassed by how he had performed. However, he could easily chalk this up to his head hitting the ocean floor and not being in the right state of mind.

Robyn still tried to heal him, the light circle moving with their footsteps. With a small grin, she supported him as the color returned to his face.

Around them, she had just noticed the gaggle of people that were still staring. Suddenly, a few of them broke out into smatterings of claps. Then, some more. The circle of bystanders crescendoed into an appreciative routine of applause. The student heroes stood there basking in the received attention. Some people in actively cheered as if they had witnessed a really good magic trick.

"Hope you liked what you all saw" James said, trying to strengthen his voice for the crowd. "Because you'll see much more of that from me."

Robyn waved like a fairy tale princess at them. "Thank you. Send your tips to Class 1-A at USAHS!"

Austin heard the groaning of the wood a few feet behind him. Turning around, he noticed Lloyd wasted no time in hustling over to the hot dog cart. He flung open the metal door and came face-to-face with the bomb. He stared at the large clock with the three sticks of dynamite. He twitched his fingers around the bomb, trying to find some sort of device or button that could turn it off.

The other three stepped over Midnight and crouched down behind the cart. Their faces all smushed together, fighting for space to look at the incendiary device. The clock showed only forty minutes left before the countdown ended.

"Does anyone know how to disarm this?"

"Maybe we should ask the crowd?" James rolled his eyes.

"Great idea," Robyn said as she looked over the top of the hot dog cart towards the group of tourists. "Hey, any of you know how to disarm a b-."

James pulled on her shoulder to hide her from the people. "I was sarcastic!"

"Your sarcastic voice is the same as your regular one," Austin said.

Lloyd gritted his teeth, the muscles in his jaw as tense as steel. The green and red wires twirled about into impossible knots on each end of the sticks of dynamite. Untangling them would surely cause the whole thing to explode. He sneaked his hand around the wires and felt the side of the clock.

"Anybody have pliers?" Lloyd asked.

"Dumbass," James said right into Lloyd's ear. "Can't you just use your quirk?"

Lloyd blinked.

"Make it turn to ash or whatever?" Robyn added.

Lloyd blinked again.

"I...I guess I could do that." Lloyd said. "Yes, I will disarm this bomb!"

Lloyd gave his group a corny thumbs-up gesture. Robyn and Austin returned it, although the blonde less enthusiastically. James smacked his face in disbelief at being stuck with these dorks the entire time. Clearly, the were the most embarassing part of this, and he was the one almost completely naked!

Pride swelled in Lloyd's stomach, his chest puffing out like he just won a marathon. He could just imagine the throngs of fans behind them cheering on their quest to make the world a safer place. What a way to welcome them to their new school!

Lloyd smashed both his hands onto the bomb.

It then proceeded to explode.

TEAM A

An elevator stood by itself in the middle of the new room.

The aluminum walls gave off a very space-age vibe to the revealed side room of the sterile white basement. The hum of a wall of machines behind the metal enclosed structure hummed and whirred with buttons flickering in different colors. Multiple levers and gauges were placed within the control panels that jutted out from the walls. There were computer monitors built into the metal panels of the walls, but they were absent of any image. Based off the thick coating of dust on the panels, this part of the basement had not seen anyone in a few months.

Moxie had been the first to get to her feet after the raucous rumbling had ceased. Smoothing out the wrinkles on her pants, she stepped over the edge of the regular white room into the baby blue tiles that marked the section with the gadgetry.

Anton crawled forward, worried for any aftershocks that may take place from whatever had just happened. With a rough grunt, he laid on his elbows and gazed up at the sight of the wall of machinery.

Leo decided it was best to cower by the lever pedestal. He hunched over and covered his head, cocooned into a little ball. His breathing was erratic like a running hamster on a wheel. He sunk his head down between his knees and did everything he could to shrink up into a safe ball.

Moxie stepped forward. She stood in front of the metal doors of the elevator. Only a simple red button next to the metal doors blinked, as if it was telling Moxie to press it.

"What is all this?" Moxie asked. "Is this like a cloning machine?"

"It's an elevator to Steve Buscemi's sex dungeon," Anton spat out. His voice was hoarse, and he had to cough out some dust that was now sprinkled about. "What do we care? Let's get out of here."

However, Moxie enraptured herself with the blinking of the elevator button. It appeared to speed up and slow down at random, as if some sort of message was being told by it. The beeping of the machines betrayed no other sense of urgency or thought. However, Moxie felt a strange pang in her heart. This elevator led somewhere, and the curiosity was hammering at her brain until she could deny it no longer.

"Maybe the bomb is in here," Moxie said. She reached out for the button.

"Don't do it."

Anton scrambled up to his feet, his thin legs buckling under the new pressure. Without a moment to waste. he reached into his pocket and flicked a switchblade. He placed the blade right onto his skin, the edge of the cool metal sinking its serrated teeth right at the top of his epidermis.

"I'll send my Pathogen to attack," Anton said.

Moxie twirled a strand of her hair in a slender finger. "You wouldn't do that."

"You don't know me, lady," Anton said. He pressed the knife further.

"But what if it's the b-."

"It's not," Anton said. Like a robber holding a hostage at gunpoint, he slithered his way closer to Moxie. "There was no bomb from the beginning. Not at this place. I went with you all in everything you've said and where has it led us?"

"Here," Moxie said. "In this basement. And this elevator which goes somewhere."

"You made us break into someone's home," Anton shouted.

At this point, they were within arms length of each other. Anton, being shorter, glared upwards into Moxie's grey eyes. He could see his green reflection in them, and his face seethed as he reached a breaking point.

"We're here for a reason," Moxie said. "You might not think that, but somebody does. And that's enough for me."

"Don't give me any of your lectures," Anton said. "If we were smart, we'd leave right now and hope we aren't kicked out. You know, I don't know where you get off thinking you can just be reckless with other people's future, but it won't happen to me."

Moxie stared back at Anton, his words soaking into her.

Then, without another word of debate, Moxie whipped around and slammed her fist into the red button.

Before Anton could make another move, the doors screeched open. Jilting to the side, rust slowed the movement with every creak that revealed the inside of the elevator.

In fact, the inside was just as stark white as the larger part of the basement. White tile floors with matching walls. Only the metal panes and fluorescent lighting of the ceiling above broke up the monochromatic scheme. Despite it's lack of use, the inside was immaculate. Free from any cobwebs, the elevator was fully revealed in front of them.

Nothing was inside it. Moxie poked her head through the entrance. It seemed like any other tiny room she had confronted before.

Except for the object that rested on the linoleum floor.

It was a simple ruby crystal with a golden chain that hung around it. About the size of the small rosary pendant around her neck, Moxie stared down at the scarlet sheen the glistened under the harsh white lights. The crystal was in a diamond shape, and Moxie could see her own reflection in the pure gem.

"It's a necklace," Moxie said.

"Oh, thank God. It works!" A strange voice bellowed.

Moxie spun around on her heels. At the entrance to the basement stood a man that looked unlike any other person she had ever met.

It was Steve Buscemi!

"Oh my God," Moxie gasped. "It's you."

"You're right, it's me," Steve said with a deep, toothy grin. Wearing a fancy three-piece navy suit with a matching fedora, he waddled over to the side of his basement with the devices and peered into the elevator. Brushing past Moxie, Steve grabbed onto both sides of the elevator door and leaned into the small transport room.

Gasping at the crystal on the floor, he grabbed it and rolled the jewel in his thick hands. "I can't believe it actually worked. This is exciting."

"What the hell is going on here?" Anton said.

"How do you do, Green Boy," Steve tipped his fedora at Anton. "And I take it the other kid is with you also."

Leo took the opportunity to stand from behind the lever, his eyes peering over the switch. He would rather not get in the way, and he felt that if something was going to kill or eat them, he would be safer in that spot.

"What is all this?" Moxie asked.

Steve turned and lifted his hands up like he was praising the machines as God. "You're school sent you here, right?"

"Uh...sure." Moxie gave off a nervous chuckle.

"In that case," Steve pointed in double finger guns at the elevator. "This be the future, miss!"

"What?" Anton asked in disbelief.

Steve held up the crystal in front of him and showed it off to the room. "You all have been sent by the school to test my machine. And it works!"

"Did I ingest acid by accident?" Anton asked as he flicked his switchblade back to an inert position. He pocketed it, his face twitching with annoyance.

"This machine," Steve said. "Is a special top-secret project that has been created by your new school. None of you were supposed to know about it yet, but I guess you all found it out."

Anton frowned. Leo slithered his way around the lever and cautiously stepped over to the other three.

"Is this like a time machine?" Leo asked.

Steve barked out a terse chuckle. "Time machine. Like those have been invented yet. No, this machine is a dimension machine."

"A what?" Anton guffawed.

"It travels across dimensions," Steve said. "I don't know how it works, but your school paid me a good amount of money to store it here. If it goes wrong, there is enough room to where it will only swallow up my place and not others."

"So, you allowed a machine that travels to other dimensions in your house for money?" Anton said.

"Well, I was the only volunteer. I also wanted to go to the dimension where I was in Pulp Fiction instead of Reservoir Dogs," Steve shrugged. "But I was told that would take too much energy for a test run."

Moxie flashed a bright smile and placed a hand on her head. "I can't believe it. Other dimensions! I knew they were real."

"I can't wrap my head around this," Anton groaned out. "We were just looking for a bomb. Other dimensions? How is that even possible? Why would our school do an experiment like this?"

"This is a good thing," Moxie said to Anton. "Maybe we can use it one day."

"Are you serious?" Anton shouted. "What machine can travel dimensions? Are you telling me we are the first people to witness inter-dimensional travel?"

"Sadly," Steve tapped on an orange gauge built into the control panel. "It takes quite a while for this to recharge. I was going to practice on myself, but I will have to wait about a month."

"Man, I feel a little bad then," Moxie said.

Steve patted Moxie on the back. "Don't worry. We made history. First object transported across dimensions."

Anton was wondering just what the implications of this discovery was. However, all of his questions would remain unanswered as he shook his head in resignation.

"Forget it," Anton said. "This day was a waste."

As Anton headed for the staircase, Steve handed Moxie the necklace. "Here. You deserve it."

Moxie felt the ruby crystal in her hand. When it landed, it held a strange glint to it that she had not noticed before. In fact, she could feel the blood pumping in the veins of her hand with the hard surface of the crystal shining brighter in the center. Squinting, it seemed like the gem was fading in and out of brilliance, as if a weak lightbulb was dimming at soft intervals.

"I...I'm not sure if I should," Moxie said while staring down at the gem. It was almost like a strange heartbeat was thumping inside.

"Trust me, it isn't real ruby," Steve said. "Whatever dimension this is from screwed us over with fake jewelry. Besides, you can wear it and let me know if anything crazy happens."

Moxie was unsure, but decided not to show that to anyone else. Whatever this object was, she would be able to handle it.

Plastering on a grin, she nodded in gratitude.

"Thanks, Mister Buscemi," Moxie chirped. She placed the ruby necklace in her pocket.

"By the way," Steve said. "I know you guys came in a car outside, but can I go back to school with you?"

TEAM D

Hovering over an empty spot on the roof, Drake dropped Megan and Blake from both of his talons. They landed on their feet, Blake stumbling and hugging onto a light pole in order to regain balance. Drake landed on his own feet, the talons disappearing back into his hands. The wings extinguished into a thin cloud of smoke that evaporated into light mist.

"Here we are," Drake said.

Blake looked up at the black-and-white color scheme of the large tower. They were on top of a square building with ivory bricks. On the edge of the large intersection, a rectangular spire rose up from the roof's surface. On all four corners of the spire, the giant hands of a clock moved with every passing minute.

"The Santa Monica Clock Tower," Blake stared up in awe. "A place where time is revealed and shown."

"By Ocean and Ocean," Drake said. "We're right by Ocean Avenue and the actual ocean."

"I assume the numbers were like coordinates or something," Megan crossed her arms over her chest. "34 and 118."

"So, what did the rest of that riddle mean?" Blake asked. "Is it just trying to be poetic?"

Drake thought back to the riddle. It said that the past had already happened. Does that mean they were too late? What about it continuing with you? Did the bomb need one of their specific skills?

He dug his shoes into the tiles on the floor. There was nothing else up on the roof with them. The clock spire behind them ticked away the time. Flying past it earlier, nothing was on the clock itself. Over the edge of the rooftop, the streets below crawled with cars and pedestrians that scurried about like busy mice.

He examined the top of the roof, the rectangular building more long and running eastward away from the ocean. The soft wind was tinted by the salt of the sea as it flowed through Drake's red hair. Facing away from the breeze, he saw Blake pacing around like a drunk fly babbling about the bomb. Megan stood to herself, her hand uncosciously rubbing at her thigh were she was pricked earlier.

"This has to be it, though," Blake said. "There's no other place I could think of."

Drake stared down at the tiles on the roof. Scooting his heel to a crack between two tiles, he dug back into it. The tile moved upward, the edge of the concrete scraping with the surface of the concrete underneath it.

Drake crouched down and grabbed the rough edge of the tile. He lifted it up all the way and discarded it to the side. Only the grey surface of the concrete roof was revealed underneath. However, when he looked back up, he saw the rest of the tiles and squinted.

"I think the numbers were like coordinates," Drake said. "This building is a rectangle, right?"

"So, the 34 and 118 numbers," Megan crossed her arms again. "Those point to a specific part of the roof?"

"Let's count," Drake pointed at the edge closest to the clock tower. "Row 34, column 118."

"But what if it's column 34, row 118?" Blake twirled around in a circle to view the roof.

Megan waved her hand at the clock tower. "What time is it right now?"

Drake looked down at his golden wristwatch. "Almost three."

"Look at the clock up there," Megan stated. "The clock that faces north is an hour behind."

Sure enough, Drake turned to face the clock. The face that stood above them on the roof facing them was ticking towards two o'clock.

"So, that's the starting point," Drake said.

The three of them ran to the base of the clock. Placing their backs on the foundation of the clock spire, they faced northward.

"Now, we count up to 34." Blake said.

Counting out loud, Blake led the way and hurried himself across the roof. He paced his way over the tiles. Ten. Fifteen. Twenty. Thirty.

Right at the edge of the roof, Blake stepped on the thirty fourth tile. With an assuring nod, Drake and Megan joined him. They were at the very corner of the roof. When they all arrived at the tile, they looked to the right and hustled down the next long row of tiles.

After the long hike, the made it all the way to the very end of the roof. Right at the corner diagonally opposite the clock tower, they stopped before a tile that was just ever-so-slightly tilted. Drake gazed down at the tile. Crouching like a snake stalking prey, he noticed the sliver of black that showed there was something underneath the tile.

Just as he was about to raise up the tile, Blake heard the tinkle of broken glass crack from behind earshot. He twisted his head back. The air had suddenly chilled to the point of his breath evaporating into a thin mist.

"Look out!"

Blake pushed Drake out of the way.

When Drake fell onto his back, the next thing he saw was a furious river of ice barreling towards them.

Megan had nowhere to go, and she could only capture a glimpse of the ice wave before it collided with her. The ice crawled over her body and enveloped her into a sarcophagus of light blue. Her arms cast out in front of her, she was rendered into a statue.

Blake, on top of Drake, sat on the man's stomach as he rolled up to see their assailant. From the other side of the roof, a man walked over to them. Half of his body was coated in ice, but it did not effect his movement at all. His eye glowed a deep red, the chinks and twinkles of the ice glistening in the sun. The other side of his body had steam that hissed off him.

"You guys went the hard way," his low, dulcet voice murmured. "I'm impressed. But fun time is over."

The ice dissipated off of him completely. With a stomp of his foot, a river of fire shot out from under Shoto Todoroki, the angry flames rumbling towards them.

TEAM C

Taking the bus to the clock tower, Martel drummed on the window sill. He sat in the very back of the bus by the window. Hunter sat between him and Synaes. In the row in front of them, Katsu stood and held onto a red aluminum pole. Hunter was asleep, and Synaes might as well have been with her dark shades on and her head resting on the scorching glass of the window.

There was very little they could do at this point. None of them had much better transportation than simply walking. Santa Monica was not far away. However, the traffic from the main highway forced the bus to inch forward like a lazy centipede over a concrete log. The hot glare of the car next to them shined a beam of sunlight right at the window.

With little effective air conditioning, the inside of the bus was like a greenhouse. Beads of sweat dripped from the tips of his hair. Even the plastic on his seat fried them, the hot surface stinging the back of his thighs. The other commuters on the bus waved rolled up magazines and newspapers for air.

Martel took out a small electric fan from his void space. Flicking the switch, the small fan wafted cool air into his face. He held it right in front of his eyes.

"Anyone know what time it is?" Synaes asked.

"It's almost three," Katsu said. "School is gonna be over soon."

"We're still a ways from the clock tower," Hunter said. "I bet we could have walked and made it at this rate."

"Welcome to California, I guess," Martel said. He waved the fan around the top of his head to cool down his hot hair.

Hunter wiped some of the sweat off his brow. He stretched out his arms and rested them on the back of the seats behind Martel and Synaes. "Well, maybe we won't get there in time, but we did do something else."

"Dig up our teacher's painful memories?" Synaes chided.

"We got to learn about each other," Hunter said. "Strengths. Weaknesses. That's worth something."

The bus lolled forward again. Another screech of the breaks as it stopped in the middle of the road. Horns honked around them in a sea of hot metal and a symphony of radio waves trickling out of open windows. Katsu sighed, his arm wrapping around the pole and staring out at the traffic. Just some more minivans. The occasional bus. An orange Dodge Charger slipped through the thinnest of cracks like a mouse escaping a cat and followed right next to them.

Wait.

Dodge Charger!

Katsu knocked on the window of the glass. "Moxie!"

No response.

Katsu looked back at the others. "That's Moxie in her car. With the other group."

Martel climbed on Hunter's shoulder to look out at the door. Synaes remained in the same spot. Katsu felt for a latch at the top of the window sill. Smacking it with his finger, he unlatched the window pane allowing it to slide upward.

"Moxie," He shouted into the thick, smog-ridden air.

With the windows in the car open, Moxie bowed her head over Anton's lap. "Hey, Katsu! Where you all heading?"

"We're going to the bomb," Katsu said. "I think it's at the clock tower in Santa Monica."

"Oh, really," Moxie asked.

In the car, she turned towards the back row. Steve and Leo sat on the leather seats. "Anyone wanna get rid of a bomb?"

"Sure," Steve said. "If you can erase me from every Adam Sandler movie."

Moxie looked back up at the bus. "We'll see you there!"

She gunned the engine and whipped around an ice cream truck in front of them. They disappeared through the jungle of metal that surrounded them.

Katsu held his hand on the pane of the glass, closing the window. He stared down at the road, the connection to his brain slow and foggy.

"Did you just tell them where the bomb was?" Synaes asked with a hint of mirth dripping off her voice.

"Most importantly," Katsu stroked his chin. "Was that Steve Buscemi?"

It's here!

So, I want to thank you all for your patience. The days have turned into years for many people, and I am no exception. It is always important to keep yourself excited about your writing, and this project I'm working on just drained me.

But I reckon a two week or so cliffhanger to leave you all on was a decent place to stop for a second. I will make sure to be much more steady this time!

So what do you think? We may have one more chapter for this story. I hope you are still entertained? Are you? ARE YOU ENTERTAINED?

Let me know what you thought. Reviewing is key for me, and I want to keep writing for you.

Keep reviewing! Keep sending people and submissions.

Thank you. See you soon!