The entire squad was here. Matt, Inez, Jackie, Slyder, and Digit. It felt like everything was almost the same.
Almost.
Slyder stared at his live creation as it stare back at him with bright green eyes. His brow raised as Slyder's stare prolonged.
"Slyder, do I uh, got somethin' on my face?" As Digit touched his human face. Then he froze. Slyder rubbed his chin.
"How you feel buddy?" Matt asked. Digit, the avian-hybrid, began to levitate with flapping his wings and stared at himself at the mirror. He touched all his limbs, his face again, and then pinched himself. Digit was then able to process everything that happened.
"YIKES!" Digit skyrocketed as his head hit the ceiling. He landed back on his bottom, rubbing his head. He groaned. Inez ran over to check up on him.
"Are you alright Digit? You seem distracted..." Inez asked.
"Sure I am! I mean, look at me!" Digit clawed his face. "I'm practically human! No-" He flapped his human arms. "No wings-"
"On your back..." Jackie smirked. The hybrid realized this as he turned around and saw his smaller wings attached to his back. The wingspan was about 5 to 6 feet, reflecting a darker shade of his pale violet skin.
"Boy this is allota taking in!" Digit landed on his feet as he collapsed due to not being used to human legs. Inez and Slyder held him up by the arms and sat him in a chair.
"Trust me, you think this is a lot." Matt shook his head as he rotated his shoulder. Digit met his glance.
"Before we uh, get into the whole filling me in on what's goin' on, I just wanna say somethin'" Digit announced. The rest of the squad looked their way.
Digit smiled as he realized that the earthlings grew before his eyes. He shouldn't be surprised because it has been four years since then. He was sorry for not being able to say goodbye to Mother B and Marbles officially...seeing how things went downhill. Now that he was back, he had to carry out new duties as a stronger person. But above all, he seen the earthlings mature not only physically but also intelligently.
"Slyder, your father would be proud for what you've done. It feels good to be back!" Digit stretched his arms getting use to his human limbs...for a second before stumbling. "But again, I'm gonna need a few practice rounds before you try to send me on errands!"
Slyder nodded. "Sure Digit."
"So are you ready for the longest story of your life?" Inez asked. Digit groaned.
"Can't I get a break around here? I just woke up from a four-year slumba'"! Digit got comfortable in a leather sofa; worned but still usable.
"Back on Earth, there's a place called New York; the city that never sleeps." Jackie smiled.
/
Max was buried seven feet under debris as he was blown away by Atreides's counter tackle to the ground; roughly the fourteenth level. Max's vision cracked as to send his nerves on edge.
"Lyros? Lyros are you online?!" Max growled.
The AI responded, "Sir, your power level is down to 20%, and he broke the 2nd barrier of your armor. One more major blow and I will have to set you to hibernation mode."
"Where is he?" Max growled immensely. The AI hesitated.
"He's standing roughly 230 feet above us. You only have enough energy to move t and teleport to the safezone." Lyros reported. Max grimaced. He knew he would be screwed if Atreides won him as a prize possession. And the confidential file he had on him would destroy any chance of him or those earthlings of saving their worlds. He remembered how all the electricity as cut off from the world and Earth's orbiting satellite had fallen from its usual rotation.
Now the temperatures were dropping and things we're going to get even worse when Hacker got here.
"Command sequence, Lyros offline." Max shut his eyes as he shut his AI off as left the survival to him. He didn't want Lyros to put into hibernation; although he is very close to being destroyed by Atreides's bare hands.
Max's eyes glowed as he blasted upward through the debris and surface, levitating by his boosters from the heels of his feet. Atreides, crouching on a breaking beam snapped his head in his direction. He growled mercilessly.
"Time to die!" Atreides growled as he lifted a giant, broken cannon about 30 tons into his hands like he was holding the sky. Max's defenses blared.
"Wait for it..." Max held his ground as Atreides reeled back to throw the cannon; everything going in slow-motion for him. He squinted his eyes as his hand hovered over his wristwatch. He slowly began to turn it.
As Atreides swung and released his grip on the lethal debris torpedoed to Max's head, he quickly twisted the rim of his watch and teleported, only to suffer mild damage as a piece of the debris made it through with him.
Through the vortex between Atreides's location and his destination; he knew it was going to be a rough fall, and would need to brace himself. The vortex opened the other side as he returned to the City of the Wicked; the same clocktower that read less than three days before the invasion. Max lifted himself up before the rest of the debris crashed into him and the other buildings, pushing the 5 ton pile until he could lift it up with his dangerously fractured arms and throw it five miles from where the city was.
He panted, realizing his engines pumped rapidly, almost overheating. His clothes sizzled and burned as his jacket and pants were battered; overkilled with burned holes everywhere. Max ripped off his shirt and burned it with a single zap from his finger. He began to walk, but his energy was so depleted he stumbled and fell at his knees.
He tried for the jet boosters, but they sputtered and coughed. No use; his energy level was at 18%. That was the lowest yet. He was damn near not waiting for those two percents to put him to sleep.
He crawled to a cool spot, hoping that it will help his body from overheating. He brought his wrist to his other hand as he contemplated on calling the earthlings.
No, they would take too long to get here. I should call her.
He pressed the button to speed dial the witch; which was all that was needed to tell her something happened to Max as he sank into a deep sleep.
/
Jenna was flying over the City of the Wicked after escorting more civilians to Magneto Isle. She only tolerated of doing that since Hacker would always have her by his side like a champion prize possession. Jenna gritted her teeth and gripped her wand.
It vibrated and blinked; indicating something or someone was trying to contact her.
"Reveal." She casted the spell. The signal was traced back to Max; an SOS.
"What now..." As Wicked veered her direction as the broomstick followed where the signal was coming from. Through the deserted town, Wicked almost missed the havoc she used to raise upon the civilians. Now she felt sorry that Hacker has grown more power that now there's nothing for the rest of the villains to do but abide to his laws.
It won't be this way any longer. At least, I hope not.
She looked left and right, getting worried that the signal was dying from her wand and the broom began to sputter like a dying engine. She tapped her old broom and she began to manually pilot it.
"Where could he be?" Wicked looked. Gaining level up to where the clocktower was, she search from above for any sign of Max. Then she spotted something.
Wicked lowered back to the ground and picked up the burnt jacket of Max; dark blue and worn. Something was wrong. She tapped her wand on the jacket and was able to get a breadcrumb trail from her magic as to where Max had stopped. His struggling footprints appeared. By the step, she followed the trail outside the town along the wall, where it was dark and much cooler. The trail stopped about 30 feet from where Max was laying, sparks flying from him. He remained motionless.
Jenna the Wicked got on her broom and made a haste move to get beside Max. She knelt and examined the damage.
"Atreides..." Jenna's jaw tighted. She though for a moment of whether she should move Max or just do her work here. Yet that would risk them being seen and Jenna could only work under less pressure.
"Come on." Jenna casted a spell to make Max lighter, as she hoisted him with an arm around her shoulder. His head lolled and rested against the crook of her neck; grimy face and torned skin revealing the metal underneath. The broomstick helped out as it supported Max with a blanket.
"Broom, take us back to my tower." Wicked glanced backward at Max as he leaned against her back with low breaths.