Chapter 6

Thursday, just one more day until Friday, Gabriel thought as he got up. He did his exercises and got ready for school. Just as he got his cross necklace on he heard his Dad calling for him. Gabriel got out of his room and walked with Michael to the living room. In the living room was his parents and he saw that Major Zhang was there with his parents. "Kids, you all remember Major Zhang from last month, right?" Their Dad asked. "Yeah," Michael said, "I was hoping we wouldn't have to see each other like this again." "I know the feeling. But after the Purifiers' message yesterday we can't take chances. There are teams already checking your schools, we'll take an alternate route to them, and we'll have two SWAT teams for each of you," Major Zhang told them.

"Is that really necessary, I mean we're not exactly helpless," Gabriel said and made his hand glow with ectoplasmic energy. "This IS necessary, Gabriel. We wouldn't have asked for police protection for you kids if it wasn't," his Mom told him. Gabriel put his hand down and sighed, "Man." Major Zhang then said, "I give you my word that we'll try our best to not ruin your social lives, but your life is our top priority. If you miss a date with your girlfriends, well, that's life. If they really care then they'll understand." "Alright," Gabriel said then Major Zhang tapped his headset. "The schools are all clear, and the vans are coming, let's go," he told them. "What about Mom and Dad?" Anna asked. "We have our own teams checking the Lab and Office now, once they're done, we'll be heading to them," their Dad explained, then had all of them gather in a circle and he prayed, "Lord, You have always been with us in everything we've done. Now we need Your help more than ever. Protect us all as we go out today, and give us the strength to overcome those who seek us harm. Amen." "Amen," they said in unison and went out to the vans.

The teams led Michael, Gabriel, and Anna to separate SWAT vans and they all went. Gabriel couldn't help but feel nervous as they went, there were no windows, and he had been warned not to text or call his family during the ride. This isn't right, I'm a superhero! I fight monsters from another dimension and send them home crying! I'm not some victim that needs police protection! One of the SWAT officers put his hand on Gabriel's shoulder. Gabriel could see that the guy was young, mid-twenties at most and he could see that one of his brown eyes was cybernetic, you could tell by the octagonal iris if you looked closely. "You feeling alright Big Guy?" he asked. "No, this sucks, I'm a superhero, I can handle myself just fine," Gabriel told him. "I know the feeling, but no one is invincible, I know," the SWAT officer told him, indicating his cybernetic eye.

Gabriel remembered his Grandpa Danny telling him something like that when he decided to follow in his footsteps, Grandpa Danny had stripped down to his underwear and showed all the scars he got in his decades of ghost fighting. Michael had gotten scarred over the summer when they helped at Amity Park after the Second Pariah Dark Invasion, sheer luck was the only reason he had gotten by unscathed. "Yeah, you're right, but it still stinks," he told the SWAT officer.

Eventually they made it to his school and the SWAT officers escorted him in, and he saw Michael made it as well. As soon as the twin brothers were in two of the officers said into their headsets and said, "The Princes are in the Castle." The SWAT teams then escorted Gabriel and Michael to their first class where two officers went in with them while the rest stayed out of the room and watched the door. Everyone was silent and even Mr. Fayed was nervous as he taught the lesson for today. Gabriel even noticed that there were quite a few kids absent from class. Eventually Michael and Gabriel headed for Mrs. Grant's class. There were even less kids there than Mr. Fayed's, and Mrs. Grant was even more nervous, she stumbled over the words from the cyber textbook and kept looking at the SWAT officers in her classroom. She actually sighed out loud when Gabriel and Michael left the room.

"This sucks!" Gabriel told Michael. "What can we do? We have no idea when or where the Purifier's will strike," Michael said. Gabriel just gritted his teeth at this and kept on walking. They eventually made it to the Cafeteria where everyone stopped and looked at them. And as if right on cue it started to rain as well. "Oh come on!" Gabriel complained as he got his Lunch and sat down with his friends while Michael did the same, with their respective teams surrounding the tables. "Whoa," Lucas said when he saw them. "This stinks," Lacy said and Stacy said, "What a way to eat, surrounded by a bunch of guys with guns." "I think my appetite just hid in a hole," Mike said, pushing his food away. "I'm sorry guys, if I could change this I would, but Mom and Dad insisted on all this," Gabriel told them, then noticed that Abby wasn't there.

Lisa saw his face and told him, "Her parents called her out of school and are going somewhere until this whole thing blows over." Damn it! Gabriel silently cussed as he ate his lunch. "Everything's going to be alright Gabriel," Lacy told him as she put a hand on his shoulder. Just then the ceiling exploded, sending debris tumbling down! Gabriel and Michael went Ghost as soon as they heard the explosion and raised an ecto-energy shield to protect everyone from the debris. "Everyone out!" The SWAT officers yelled and kids screamed as they ran out of the school. Gabriel looked up and saw four people in black Halfa Suits like the design stolen from his Dad only with blue helmets flew down from the hole in the ceiling. "Halfas Michael and Gabriel, your very existence is a danger to the Human Race. Submit to your judgment now," a female voice sounded from one of them.

"Get out of here boys!" a SWAT officer yelled as they opened fire on the Purifiers. Their bullets forced the Purifiers back, then an energy shield activated over them, and the bullets ricocheted in all directions. Michael and Gabriel went intangible to avoid the bullets, but three SWAT officers were hit by stray bullets. Gabriel and Michael charged up their ghost rays and blasted at the energy shield, and it dissipated under the combined assault. The Purifiers didn't show any surprise as lasers from their suit's arms blasted back at them and the SWAT officers, who upturned tables and dived for cover just as two more officers fell. "Officers down! Officers down! We need backup at Castle Alpha now!" Gabriel heard an officer yell as the Purifiers flew at him and Michael. Gabriel blasted an ice ray at one and a ghost ray at the other that came at him, and they both dodged. Michael had a little more success with his lightning and managed to slow down his attackers. Gabriel formed an ecto-energy shield to block his attackers' lasers and made a copy of himself.

Gabriel and his copy returned fire with electricity and the two Purifiers dodged the blasts then they both formed energy shields and the electricity was sent into the hole in the ceiling. Michael was also having trouble with one whose energy shield was still operational while the last one hit him with a laser. The SWAT officers fired away but the Purifiers ignored them and charged at the brothers. Gabriel and his copy had a green aura around them as they punched at their attackers. Gabriel hit his and the person was sent flying back through the walls while the one that attacked his copy grabbed his copy's fist and pulled him into a punch that made his copy disappear when it hit its solar plexus. "Oh man!" Gabriel yelled as he barely dodged a kick from his remaining attacker and tried his own kick, only for it to be blocked. The Purifier punched Gabriel right on his chin and sent him through the ceiling.

Gabriel saw his attacker coming just in time and blasted him with electricity, slowing him down long enough for Gabriel to grab his helmet and slam it into his knee then throw him down into the school. Gabriel followed his opponent through the hole and saw that he was laying on the ground next to the one Gabriel had punched. "Had enough?" Gabriel asked him. The one that fell through the ceiling said, "We will never submit!" then punched his own chest and the one on his fallen companion. Their chests glowed red and Gabriel tried to form a shield.

KADOOOOOMMM!