02x19: Break from the Search

The ASG decides to take a short break from their grueling search.

BREAK FROM THE SEARCH

 

     Nine o’ clock in the morning, Kyle woke up in bed. He sat up and looked to his left, Berna was still asleep. He didn’t want to wake her up. He slowly laid back down and faced her. He looked at her beautiful face, he remembered last year’s bequeathal party, he was dancing with her, the girl of his dreams, and then everything was ruined, by the Mastermind.

     He went back to reality and turned the other way. The floor-to-ceiling windows were covered by a curtain. Kyle psychically opened them. The city was covered with smog. Buildings were in every single nook and cranny. And to think one-thousand years ago it looked different.

     After a while, Kyle felt Berna move beside him. He turned around and she faced the ceiling; she was awake.

      “Hey, Berna. Slept nice?”

     “Huh? Sorry, umm… yeah.”

     “Wanna get breakfast?”

     “Sure. Let’s go.”

     They smiled at each other as they stood up and went out of the room, into the small hallway. They opened the door into their living room/ kitchen/ dining room. Patrick and Sam were already eating breakfast, five pancakes with butter and syrup all over.

     “Hey Kyle, Berna. How was tonight?” Patrick said with a suggestive tone.

     “You know, you’ve been asking that question every morning since we got here, it’s getting old,” Kyle replied.

     Janella was still asleep on the couch. She had finally been able to sleep for the past days. She occasionally dreamt of Austin blowing up the hotel or blowing up the city or even blowing up the world. She had to endure these dreams to have at least some energy for the fruitless search the next day.

     “I’ll cook you guys some pancakes,” Sam said.

     “Sure. You cook?” Kyle said.

     “Why not?” Patrick asked.

     “Nothing.”

     “You gotta taste these pancakes, they taste like they came from heaven.”

     “Patrick, they’re not that good,” Sam said.

     “Stop being modest.”

     DING DONG!

     Someone rang the doorbell to their suite. Kyle went to answer it. He peeped through the peephole. It was Ernst.

     “Ernst, what is it?” Kyle said as he opened the door.

     “Check the news, now!”

    Kyle invited Ernst to come in as he turned on the TV.

     “Hey, Kyle, do you think they’ll let me watch The Final Destination?” Patrick asked.

     “It’s R-13 isn’t it?”

     “Yeah but, I watched all the Saw Movies.”

     “Shush!”

MAN FOUND DEAD ON WEDGE STREET

     “What does this have to do with anything?” Kyle asked.

     “I checked the papers, and the news was on so I just wanted to see the video. But the news article was�"“ Ernst said before being interrupted.

     “Wait, hush!”

     “Local Man Blaine Estaquilla, found dead. There are no indications of a struggle other than a trashed living room. Investigations are still being held.”

     “Who’s Blaine?” Kyle asked.

    “He’s a Gym Leader in Cinnaba�"“ Patrick said.

     “Shush!”

     “It’s not Blaine you have to worry about; it’s how he was killed. Trashed living room.”

     “So what? Trashed living room is a pretty common scenario.”

     “The coroner observed that his internal organs have been eaten through and some even appear to have been vaporized.”

     “Oh, jeez,” Kyle said.

     “My opinion…” Ernst said.

     “What?”

     “It’s not a bioweapon. It’s not a virus. Hell, let’s scrap suicide out of the question. This is the work of a mutated human.”

     “Look, can we just say mutant?”

     “Fine.”

     “Who’s the mutant?”

     “Well, I have a few suspects. First of all is your so called Mastermind.”

     “Ernst, he’s a psychic. Psychic’s can’t do that kind of thing.”

     “Second, is the spike guy who ambushed Austin?”

     “Spikes can’t vaporize, Ernst.”

     “Well, that leaves the third, Austin himself.”

     “Who is this guy, why would Austin kill him? For all we know, some guy could’ve snuck onto our island, went in the Dome of Power and gave himself acid control.”

     “Why would anyone do that, Kyle? They have no motivation.”

     “Austin has no motivation to kill this guy.”

     “Didn’t you tell me something about Austin saying he was out of control and he had to do random acts of whatever, one of them was killing? He almost killed you Kyle.”

     “Austin knows me personally.”

     “You don’t get the point of ‘random’ don’t you? “

     “Hey I�"“

     “This just in…” The news reporter spoke. “Footage of a man disarming some guards by what looks like shooting spikes out of his arms. This man allegedly gave a confession saying that he caused the cable car crash in Woodridge Place. This man has been identified to be Spike Estaquilla, Blaine Estaquilla’s only child.”

     “Well, Kyle…” Ernst began. “There’s your motivation.”

     “Well it isn’t exactly random at that isn’t it?”

     “Well…”

     “Kyle, breakfast time,” Berna said.

     “Ok, I’m coming.”

     Patrick laughed at this comment.

     “Shut up Patrick!”

     Kyle sat down at the table beside Berna. Ernst stared at their pile of pancakes with a frown on his face.

     “Ernst, I can make you some if you’d like,” Sam offered.

     ‘That would be great! It’s not a pro�"“

     DING DONG!

     “I’ll get it,” Ernst said.

     Ernst peeped through the peephole and it was Rico.

     “Hey, Ernst,” Rico said after Ernst opened the door. “For letting me have some of your midnight snacks, me and the guys decided to make one gigantic waffle. Don’t ask how we made it, it’s bigger than the table. Don’t tell the others.”

     Ernst nodded as Rico shut the door.

     “No need to make something for me. I got hooked on a deal. Thanks anyway.”

     “No problem, I’m still hungry anyway,” Sam said.

     “You can have my last pancake, I saved some, just in case,” Patrick said.

     “I’m fine.” Sam replied.

     Ernst left the room with a big grin on his face.

     “What’s wrong with him?” Kyle asked Berna.

     “Good morning guys…” Janella said.

     “Morning…” Berna started. “Want some pancakes?”

     “Is it okay?” Janella asked.

     “Sure! No problem!” Sam said finishing up a plate.

     Janella sat on the table between Berna and Patrick as Sam served up her pancakes. Sam then sat down beside Patrick.

     “Frankly Sam, these are delicious. Are you in the little chefs club?” Kyle said.

     “Maybe…”

     DING DONG!

     “I’ll get it,” Kyle said.

    He looked through the peephole, it was Lanz. He opened the door.

     “KYLE! YOU WON’T BELIEVE WHAT WE SAW THROUGH OUR WINDOWS!”

     “What?”

     “The other room was hoisting this giant pan on top of the other building.”

     “What the hell? What for?”

     “They’re cooking this giant waffle. Johann’s providing the ‘press’ to it.”

     “Those idiots, what if they’re caught?”

     “I don’t know, they said we can have some so who cares?”

     “D****t Lanz! Hurry, where are they?”

     Lanz led Kyle to their windows. Kyle put an illusionism over him and flew out to the roof. Cedric, Ricardo, Michael, Johann, and Joseph were there

     “What in the world went into your mind to think that this is safe?”

     “Well, this giant pan is made from Ricardo. We collected some steel over the past week and he bombarded it with supernovas and�"“ Cedric said.

     “NOT THAT! I MEAN COOKING IN PLAIN SIGHT!”

     “Oh…”

     “Get back inside!”

    Kyle put an illusionment on all of them as Cedric used his force fields to carry the pan inside. They went through the fire exit and snuck the pan through the hallways and finally into Group B’s room.

     “Lanz!”

     “Yes sir, Kyle, sir?”

     “Ease up.”

     “I think the correct term is ‘at ease’ sir, Kyle, sir,” Cedric whispered to him.

     “STOP! WHOSE CLEVER IDEA WAS THIS?”

     “Rico…, sir, Kyle, sir,” Lanz said.

     “Of course.”

     Kyle went to the first group’s room and rang the doorbell. Ernst opened the door.

     “Ernst! Was that Ricardo? His slice is getting cold,” Rico asked.

     “WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING?” Kyle yelled.

     “I was thinking of a nice big waffle.”

     “Cooking in broad daylight?”

     “What? I never thought of that.”

     “Actually, Cedric thought of that, Kyle,” Ernst said.

     “UGHH! You know what, forget it. Giant waffle my a*s”

     Ernst and Rico burst into laughter.

     “NO! I mean forget this whole situation. Get ready; we’ll go to the mall.”

 

At around eleven o’clock, they finally went to the mall. Lanz, Cedric, Michael, Ernst, Rico, and Ricardo went off to buy their movie tickets for the 12:30 show. Joseph, Ivan, Roey and Johann went to see 2012. Group C however, just went to McDonalds.

     “How do you think I’m gonna get in?” Patrick asked.

     “Come on Patrick, you’re ten, it’s R-13. And besides, they say it sucks anyway.”

     “Well, it’d be a good movie for us to watch right, Kyle?” Berna said.

     “Maybe, “

     “Why don’t you just watch Astro Boy?” Berna told Patrick.

     “No way. Not in a million years. That’s it, enough with the movies. I’m gonna eat, walk, and stare throughout the whole day.”

     “Stare at what?” Sam asked.

     Janella was very silent throughout this whole conversation, smiling and nodding when appropriate. Berna seemed to notice this.

     “What do you want to do, Janella?’ Berna asked.

     “What? Oh, nothing,” she said.

     “Come on, you gotta do something in a mall this big. Kyle and I will treat you to a movie. ”

     “No, I don’t want to interrupt your�"“

     “It’s okay. What do you want to see?”

     “You want my suggestion?” Patrick said as Janella nodded. “Don’t see Astro Boy.”

     “What’s with the hate?” Kyle asked.

     “It’s nothing I can explain. It definitely nothing you can understand.”

     “Come on, who wants a sundae?” Patrick asked. They all raised their hands.

     “Okay, I’ll pay for Sam, the rest of you go and pay for yourselves,” Patrick said with a smile.

     “Pat!” Sam said.

     “Just kidding, seriously. All of you?”

     “Sure, why not?” Kyle said.

     “Okay, anyone want to chip in?”

     “No, not at all…” they all said nonchalantly.

     “Okay, let me see how much I got.”

     Patrick checked his wallet. He had one-hundred pesos. One sundae cost twenty-nine pesos.

     “Good news and bad news. Good news, I have money, bad news, it’s good for three people.”

      “Never mind the sundaes, let’s get out of here,” Kyle said.

     “Okay, okay, you go ahead.”

     The four of them left as Patrick snuck to the counter.

 

Lanz and the other guys were sitting around the theatre lobby, waiting anxiously for twelve thirty.

     “Hey Cedric…” Lanz said.

     “Yeah?”

     “I’m thinking of two words, guess what they are.”

     “Jerk and off.”

     “No, you pervert!”

     “Look who’s talking.”

     “Give up?”

     “Okay, what?”

     “Sunbed tits.”

     Cedric remained silent while Michael laughed hard.

     “Man, I love that death.”

     “Remember in the second one with the laughing gas?” Ernst said. Everyone remained silent.

     “Cedric, I’m thinking of two more words.”

     “I’m guessing one of them is tits.”

     “Nope.”

     “I give up.”

     “Sunbed udders.”

     Ernst and Michael fell out of their seats laughing. Rico and Ricardo were just sipping their Coca Cola without a care of the world.

     “Don’t you think it sucks that they aren’t showing this in 3D?” Lanz said.

     “Not really.”

     Ernst and Michael were still trying to stop.

     “HAHAHA! Ermmm… okay Michael, let’s stop…”

     “Okay… compose ourselves. I am calm.”

     “So about�"“ Lanz started.

     “SUNBED UDDERS! HAHAHA!” Ernst blurted out causing Rico to spit out his Coke and drop laughing. Ernst then inadvertently released laughing gas.

     “HAHAHA! Erm… ERNST! What have you done?! HAHAHA! In pub�"“ Lanz said, trying to hold back the laughter. “Pub-pub- PUBLIC! HAHAHA!”

     The people were staring at them. Ernst tried to take responsibility.

     “No, don’t mind us�" HAHAHAHA!!! We’re just a group of dumb�" HAHAHA!! Teenagers laughing for no reason wasting your ti�" HAHAHA!!! TIME! EHEM!”

     The people just ignored them, with a look on their face that said “Shut the **** up!”

     Ernst then saw Austin sitting on a seat opposite them. He stopped laughing and tried to get Lanz to look. He can’t stop laughing. He looked again, Austin was gone. Ernst just experienced a stupid cliché.

 

Group C were all in Kidz Station. Patrick was looking at different toys.

     “Man, we really have nowhere else to go, don’t we?” Kyle asked.

     “That sucks,” Patrick said. “They didn’t put in those wrecking balls.”

     “Well, first of all, it’s not kid-appropriate, second of all, Transformers 2? Really?” Kyle said.

     “Well, the DVD just came out two weeks ago and I saw it four times.”

     “Four times?! Jeez!”

     “Wait, I thought we agreed not to talk about movies?” Sam said.

     “Yeah, sorry. Let’s get out of here,” Patrick insisted.

     A few minutes later, the guys finally got into the theatre and Group C were just wandering around the mall. When it was around 1:20, Group C went to the Glorietta 4 area.

     “Don’t you think we should whip out our identifiers, just in case?” Patrick said.

     “Good idea, Group C, whip out your identifiers,” Kyle said.

     The identifiers were this little, gameboy like device. It identified all mutants and their locations worldwide. Austin made this using spare parts on his first day of being a mutant. He made a few more for the Albay students and gave one to Kyle at the end of last year. This year however, Kyle studied the mechanics of one of his two identifiers and asked for John’s help to make them. Ernst had introduced him last Tuesday as well. They made one identifier for each member.

     They used the Identifiers and searched for “Ryan Austin Fernandez”.

     “Okay, everyone, compare readings. Are they similar?”

     They looked at their screens and it was all the same, except for Kyle’s.

     “Kyle, what’s wrong with your Identifier,” Berna asked.

     “I don’t know. Mine’s showing three locations as always: Florida, Pasig River, and outside this mall.”

     “Ours all show his house back in Las Pinas, The basement in the hotel, and our room in the hotel, Ascott, that is,” Patrick said.

     “Why is that?” Berna asked Kyle.

     “I don’t know for sure but this never happened before. But if we follow an odd one out system, he’s right outside this mall.”

     “But if we follow a majority wins system, he’s in our room,” Patrick said.

     “Smart-a*s…” Kyle whispered to himself.

     “Does it matter?” Janella said with a desperate tone. “Either way, he’s nearby, we have to get people to safety.”

     “Hey… you okay?” Berna asked.

     “I just don’t want to see him all crazy again like in front of the base last Halloween.”

     “We have to warn the guys in the cinema,” Kyle said.

    “Well, we’re the only ones not watching anything,” Patrick pointed out angrily.

     “It turned out to be a good thing.”

     “But�"“

     “GUYS! I’ll send them a message. Their movies are almost over. Then we’ll try to look for Austin.”

     “Ok, Berna. Go ahead,” Patrick said.

     Berna closed her eyes and sent a message to the guys.

 

The six guys were in a theatre showing The Final Destination.

     “HOLY S**T! HE GOT RUN OVER BY AN AMBULANCE!” Lanz said.

     “I KNOW RIGHT! What a rip-off, this is exactly like the first one,” Cedric replied.

     “SHUT UP YOU KIDS!” someone yelled from behind.

     “Guys, I think we should shut up,” Ernst told Lanz and Cedric.

     “Hey Ernst,” Michael called.

     “What?”

     “Sunbed Udders.”

     “Not funny,” Ernst said as he released laughing gas.

     They started laughing but no one in the theatre complained because everyone was laughing hard.

     “WHY ARE WE LAUGHING?” Rico asked Ricardo.

     “HAHAHA! I-I-I… HAHAHA! Don’t know. PBBBT! HAHAHA!’

     “Not funny huh?” Michael whispered to Ernst.

     “Guys, we checked our Identifiers, Austin is somewhere near here. Kyle’s Identifier is showing something different but technically, he could be near here. Be careful and stay alert. Be on guard and make sure nobody gets hurt. This is Berna, over.”

     Lanz looked at the other guys, still chuckling.

     “You, hehe…, heard that?”

     “I heard it, hehehehe…, Berna’s message?” Cedric said

     “Yeah, hehe.”

    

Group C are sitting together in one pair of benches, guarding the people.

     “Don’t you think we look suspicious?” Patrick asked.

     “No, I do�"“ Kyle started but he was interrupted when he suddenly jerked forward. He was in a vision: The area west of them blew up and everyone was engulfed by the fire.

     “KYLE, YOU OKAY?” Berna was shouting.

     “GUYS!” Kyle shouted as he sat back up. “I got a vision of the part over there…” He said, pointing to the left side, “… it’s gonna blow up!”

     “These visions always came true.”

     “Right Berna, Patrick, come with me.”

     “Okay, but that’s disgusting.”

     “Not that meaning, this is no time for jokes, let’s go!”

     Patrick and Kyle rushed to the left part of the mall. Kyle went to the middle of the small bridge in the center.

     “ATTENTION EVERYONE! Please step away from this area of the mall,” he said.

     “Why should we?” a random man asked.

     “You really think they’d believe you like that?” Patrick asked.

     “Because, this place is about to blow up.”

     Murmurs surrounded them, most consisting of “he’s crazy” and they just continued their lives.

     “PLEASE! GET AWAY FROM THIS AREA�"“ Kyle went blank and stared into the distance.

     Austin was flying outside the mall. He formed this purple orb in his hand and hurtled it towards the mall.

     “KYLE! SNAP OUT OF IT!” Patrick yelled.

     The purple ball hit the side of the mall but it just went through. It zipped through the mall’s floor like a ghost. It rested in the middle of the bridge. Then he saw himself running towards that part.

     “KYLE!”

     Kyle went back to reality as Patrick charged towards him, turning his body into fire and gripping Kyle’s arm.

     “Patrick, what are you doing?”

     BOOM!

     Kyle was engulfed by the flames but he wasn’t hurt because his body was now fire. Patrick transferred part of it to himself. The explosion was unusual. It started like a normal explosion but ended up like a fiery sphere extending outwards in a horizontal, circular manner. It cracked some glass and burned some stores but the worst part, some people were on fire. The explosion stopped after covering a radius of about three meters.

     Patrick let go of Kyle and he turned back into his normal, fleshy, self. He faced the burning people and absorbed the fires that were still on them.

     “What are you?” the random man from awhile ago asked.

     “That’s not important, what’s important is I saved your a*s. Call an ambulance, some of these people are suffering some third degree burns.”

     The man remained silent but stared at Patrick angrily. After a while, he got out his phone and it was fortunately unharmed. He called.

     Kyle stood up and followed Patrick. He faced the random man.

     “By the way, you’re forgiven.”

     He caught up with Patrick.

     “Kyle, I sensed the heat going up in your area, I’m sensing like, eleven more of the same heat signature around here,” Patrick said.

     “He gave me a vision; he’s screwing with my head.”

     “Kyle, calm down. Look, screw the theatres, call the girls. Split them up. Send one of them to the theatres, I sense one near them.”

     “On it.”

     BOOM!

     One more went off near them. Patrick focused on it and absorbed all the fire in his hands before it could do any more damage.

     “I need to get rid of this heat in my hands, I can seriously hurt someone.”

     “You didn’t hurt me.”

     “I produced that on purpose. This was from another source. It’ll burn you.”

     Berna, Sam, and Janella ran towards them.

     “You called?” Berna asked.

     “Yes. I need someone to go to the upper floors, Pat sensed one near the theatres.”

     “Janella, you should go, you have fire powers too. Just focus on the fire and absorb it into your hands. You can use your ice powers to freeze it off. In fact can you help me a little here?”

     “Sure,” She said while sending an ice beam at Patrick’s hands. He released a flare and the ice melted.

     “Much better, thanks.”

     “I’ll go now.”

     “Go.”

     BOOM!

     Janella faced the explosion and absorbed it in her hands. She then shook it off by encasing her hands in ice.

     “You’re pretty good at that.’ Berna said.

     “You’ll do well up there. Hurry, we might be too late,” Patrick said.

 

In the theatre, everyone stopped laughing. The six guys were on guard but were still enjoying the movie.

     “Man, this is worse than the first three movies,” Michael said.

     “I know,” Lanz agreed.

     “BYE-BYE SUCKERS!” the man in the movie the characters of the movie they were watching said as the bomb in the movie-within-a-movie blew up. The theater in the movie blew up as well.

     “Oh, the irony…” Lanz said.

     BOOM!

     The front of the movie theater blew up as a fiery sphere extended. It was a stronger explosion than the one downstairs as it engulfed the whole theater. Cedric tried to contain it in a force field but he got overwhelmed by the force and got thrown back. The theater was on fire along with some of the people, including the six members of the ASG.

     “WHAT THE **** WAS THAT?!” Lanz yelled out.

     The fire then sort of went towards the right opening of the theater.

     “What?”

     “Lanz, it’s Janella!” Cedric yelled.

     She absorbed the fire in her hand and she encased it in ice. She shook it off as she ran towards the guys.

     “I’ll explain later, get all these people to safety,” Janella said.

     “Does anyone have a cellphone?” Ernst asked the audience.

     “I do,” a woman said.

     “Please call medical support or something!”

     “You could’ve just said ambulances, smart-a*s,” Michael said.

     “Everyone, follow me!” Janella said, lighting up the way.

     They exited out of the theatre. Rico, Ricardo, and Cedric went back in, looking for injured people to carry out. There only about seven.

     The theater lobby was fully-packed. Other theaters felt the explosion as well.

    “Group B, go to the bottom floor, just get everyone out of there. Ivan, your super speed will come in handy. Do it before the explosions go off. Ambulances are headed here now, get them out of here. Hurry!” Janella said.

     BOOM!

     One big, fiery, explosion went off in the middle of the theater lobby. Janella quickly absorbed part of this but soon blacked out because this explosion was too big.

     “D****t! Group B, get down there!” Ernst said. “Group A, me included, will take care of this top floor.”

     Group B jumped down to the ground floor.

     Ernst crouched down to Janella.

     “Is everyone okay?” Joseph asked, lighting up the whole lobby since the explosion took out the light.

     Some people were running around burning. Rico and Ricardo were busy putting out the fires. Some people were unconscious on the floor, probably from shock.

     “No offense, Joseph, but that was sort of a stupid question,” Ernst said.

     “Sorry.”

     “Janella, wake up. It’s not a good situation here!”

     She remained unconscious.

     BOOM!

    An explosion went off in the opposite end of the top floor.

     “Rico, burn the walls. Check if the ambulances are there yet. Let’s get these people down.”

     “That’s really stupid,” Rico said.

     “At least check if they’re there!”

     Rico turned his arm into acid and hurtled a big chunk at the large wall on the left side of the lobby. He ran towards his hole as people stared at him.

     “They’re not yet here!”

     “What are you people?” A man asked.

     “Don’t worry about that now. We’re not the bad guys. We’re here to help.”

     “Maybe you’re causing this!” A woman yelled.

     “Well one of us is.” Ricardo said quietly.

     “I heard him say something. One of you did it. Someone call the cops.”

     Some of the security guards who were tending to the injured people stood up.

     “They’re not doing any harm. There is no use to call the cops,” one of them said. “Just continue what you’re doing.”

     Patrick then flew up from under the building. He absorbed all the still burning fires all over the place.

     “Where’s Janella?”

     “She’s unconscious,” Ernst said.

     “Well, she absorbed too much heat didn’t she? It’s her first time doing this.”

     “And you?”

     “I practiced. Look, stand aside.”

     Patrick gripped Janella’s arm softly and turned both of them into fire. She woke up and he let go.

     “It’s like static shock only, it’s caused by fire. All it needs is a good spark, or flare, in the chest.”

     “That’s really cheesy,” Ernst said.

     “Everyone remain calm and stay clear of this area,” Patrick said referring to the area near the wall Rico burned.

     He went through the wall Rico burned and shot large fireballs at the remaining wall, blasting it completely. Patrick flew back in.

     “The ambulances are here. Who wants to get out? Hang on to me.”

     Lots of people pushed and shoved towards Patrick.

     “CALM DOWN! Let the kids go first. “

     Two kids climbed on Patrick.

     “Just close your eyes and don’t look.

     “Take care of them,” their mother said.

     Patrick flew down slowly and gave them to the ambulances.

     “Three ambulances? Trust me, you’re gonna need a lot more.”

 

Group B arrived at the ground floor. Ivan quickly went in each store and drove everyone outside rudely. They all remained quiet, probably due to the fact that they were rudely pushed out of a store by a fast running 12-year-old.

     “Cedric, do the honors. I’ll get the others,” Ivan said.

     Cedric nodded as he contained everyone in a force field. He led everyone out of the building. He was extremely slow.

     “Michael, get up here now!” Kyle said in a psychic message to Michael.

     “Guys, Kyle’s calling me. I’ll just go.”

     “Then go!” Lanz said.

     Michael left. Ivan pushed out a few more people. Cedric got everyone out. He went back inside and put the others in force fields.

     BOOM!

     Cedric was forced back as the forced fields disappeared and some of the people were burned but not directly affected by the explosion.

     “Everyone, make an orderly exit out of the doors. Make a straight line!” Lanz said.

     No one listened and everyone rushed.

     BOOM!

     Some of the disobeying people were blasted outwards and were suffering burns to the face. They were unconscious on the floor.

     “Jeez! Roey, bring out your cards. Get something that can help,” Lanz said.

     “Go, Absorb!” Roey shouted as he threw the card titled “Absorb” into the air. All of the fire was absorbed by the card as it was set on fire.

     “NOOO! My card!”

     “Roey, it doesn’t matter,” Lanz said.

     BOOM!

     “REFLECT!” Roey said as he threw the card. It absorbed the explosion sphere and it redirected it into one giant beam towards the sky.

     “Nice work Roey.”

     “Wait, I found something to bring back Absorb. RESURRECTION!” Roey said while throwing the said card. The burnt “Absorb” card slowly fixed itself and went back to one piece. Roey picked up his cards as he approached Cedric.

     “Hey Lanz,” Ivan said.

     “Yeah?”

     “Hate to break it to you but, Roey might be the most useful one here.”

     “POTION!” Roey said, pointing the card at Cedric. He opened his eyes and stood up.

     “Ced! Get them out of here,” Lanz yelled.

     “Will do!” Cedric said, wrapping everyone in a force field, bringing them out.

 

Kyle, Berna, and Sam were running through the right side of the middle floor. They had rescued the left side already.

     “Why’d you send Patrick to the top floor?” Sam asked Berna.

     “I felt Janella was in trouble.”

     “Why? What happened?” Kyle asked.

     “She got knocked out or something.”

     “EVERYONE! AN EXPLOSION MIGHT GO OFF AT ANY SECOND, PLEASE STEP OUT OF THE STORES AND APPROACH THE NEAREST FIRE EXIT!” Kyle shouted.

     Lots of people went out and ran towards the fire exit. It was somehow locked.

     “It’s locked!” a man in the crowd said.

     “What?” Kyle asked.

     Kyle approached the door and there was a faint purple field surrounding it.

     “Sam, punch this out.”

     “On my way!”

     She positioned herself in front of the door and she prepped her arm. He extended it forward but quickly retracted it. A shockwave extended from the area she punched but she was yelling in pain.

     “Sam! You okay?” Berna said as she rushed for Sam.

     “Do I look okay to you?” she said angrily.

     “Berna, call Michael,” Kyle suggested.

     Berna closed her eyes as she sent the message. Soon, Michael was climbing the rails.

     “You called?”

      BOOM!

     There was an explosion below. It didn’t reach them.

     “S**t! Michael, hurry. One should be going off here soon!”

     “What will I do?”

     “Shoot this door with the strongest projectile you have!”

     “Okay.”

     Michael turned his hands into missile launchers. He pointed it at the doors.

     “Everyone, stand back!” Kyle said.

     Michael shot the door. It still didn’t work.

     “What the hell?!”

     “Berna, let’s try weakening the field with our minds. Then Michael will shoot.”

      “Okay.”

     “Michael, shoot the door in ten seconds. You count.”

     BOOM!

     There was another explosion below.

     “****! Berna, let’s focus!”

     “I’ll start counting now!”

     “GO!”

     Kyle and Berna closed their eyes.

     “Ten!”

     “Come on Berna, we have to do this…” Kyle silently murmured, focusing on the door.

     “Nine! Eight! Seven! Six! Five!”

     BOOM!

     The explosion on the left side went off.

     “AHHH! I lost my focus,” Kyle yelled in frustration.

     “I still have it. Just help me!” Berna said.

     “I’ll continue from five!”

     “Go!”

     “Four! Three! Two! ONE!”

     The purple field was forcefully retracted as Michael fired at the door. It was blasted out, with a large explosion to support it.

     “Everyone go!” Kyle yelled.

    BOOM!

    Another explosion went off downstairs.

    The people rushed to get out. Kyle and Berna just stayed on guard. Kyle looked to the right and in the far distance, Kyle saw Austin standing there. He turned around and phazed through the walls. Kyle flew out and followed him.

     “Kyle, where are you going?” Berna said.

     “I saw Austin.”

     “I’m coming with you!”

     “Sam!”

     “What?”

     “Stay on guard! You too Michael.”

     “Yes sir, Kyle, sir!”

     Kyle and Berna flew out. They shot a few psychic orbs at the wall in front of them until it was a hole big enough for the two of them, they then flew out and Austin was waiting for them.

     “Hello my favorite pair of lovebirds.”

     “Austin, you’re full of s**t you know that?” Berna said.

     “I never knew that.”

     “This isn’t funny Austin! People got hurt,” Kyle reprimanded him.

     “That’s not good enough.”

     Austin snapped his fingers.

     BOOM!

     The explosion on the left side of the middle floor went off.

     “STOP IT AUSTIN!” Berna yelled.

     “Make me. The group making the most progress is Group A with Patrick and Janella. They rescued one whole floor already.”

     “Austin! Janella can’t bear the thought of you being like this. Please stop,” Berna said.

     “Berna, Kyle, your whole group is consisted of idiots! Especially you two. You finally catch me after a week of wild goose chases and you won’t even go for me and capture me?”

     “You’re not the Austin I know,” Kyle said.

     “**** the Austin you know. This one’s a lot more fun.”

     “Austin!”

     Janella flew up to the scene.

     “Stop it, please,” she said desperately.

     “Nah, it’s too much fun. Too bad all the bombs have gone off.”

     Kyle saw Group B, Michael included, exit from the bottom floor.

     “Austin, it’s me, Janella. Please.”

     “So what? Am I supposed to care?”

     Janella was shaken by this statement.

     “Janella! It’s not him,” Kyle said.

     “It’s not you. At least for now,” she said. She fired an ice beam at him as he froze. The frozen Austin still floated in the air. The ice melted and he flew higher. The three ASG members followed. Kyle saw Group A exit from the hole Patrick and Rico made.

     “Looks like no one’s left in the building.”

     Patrick flew over to the scene.

     “Kyle! What are you waiting for, catch hi�"“

     Austin shot multiple explosive orbs at the mall. It was engulfed in explosions.

     “AUSTIN! What have you done?” Kyle said.

     “Holy s**t! Kyle! Did you see Sam get out?” Patrick asked.

     “Whoops, I forgot she was still in there. Oh, well.”

     “SAM!” Patrick said as he flew back in the mall.

     “Austin! What is wrong with you?! Why are you doing this?” Janella said. Tears started to flow down her face.

     “Ask Berna. She already explained. I’m not me. Or am I?”

     “STOP IT!”

     “Okay, fine. See ya later.”

     Austin flew in the other direction. Kyle, Berna, and Janella chased him through the city. They didn’t even care about the illusionism. Austin then charged up two of those ghost fire bombs. He went in the middle of an intersection and shot it at the left and right roads.

     “There are three of you. I don’t like being followed by too many people so how about you save those people and let one of you follow me.”

     “I’ll go for him. Clear those roads!” Kyle told the two girls.

     Berna went at once but Janella seemed to be hesitating for a while but eventually went to the left road.

     “Well, Kyle. You know me; I was always slow when it came to chasing. I was always it. But I’m not me remember?”

     Kyle charged for him but he zipped towards Kyle. Kyle dodged him as he charged straight for the mall. He followed him at full speed. He was too fast and it was nearly impossible to catch him.

     When he was in clear sight of the mall, he sprayed what seemed like a thousand of those ghost fire bombs towards the mall.

     “Oh my goodness. WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!”

     “Remember my favorite movie of 2008, Kyle? The one with the guy who dresses up like a bat?”

     “NO!”

     Austin snapped his fingers as multiple explosions went off in the mall, then a thousand small fire sphere grew in size until the spheres collided with each other, causing a chain reaction creating other, smaller but more powerful, spheres to go off. The mall was engulfed in a fiery storm and soon Austin twisted his fist. The fire all ceased. There was nothing left but rubble. Any structures still standing fell and caused a cloud of rubble.

     Kyle saw Patrick and Sam outside the mall. Sam was in an ambulance.

     “Kyle, game’s not over!”

     Kyle charged for Austin. He quickly zipped through the air. Kyle chased him at full speed. He was slowly catching up. Austin then made a sharp turn left. Kyle followed but lost some distance. He caught up after a while. Austin then started heading downward, towards the road.

     “YOU’RE CRAZY!”

     “Willing to follow me?”

     Austin’s went for a steeper angle. They were now fast approaching the ground.

     “CLEAR THE ROAD!”

     Kyle tried to send a psychic message to all the people below but none were following.

     “AUSTIN! STOP!”

     He didn’t listen. Kyle forced the cars out of the road with a psychic field. He continued chasing Austin.

     “Kyle?”

     “What?”

     “I was right. You are an idiot.”

     Austin disappeared into thin air. Kyle tried to stop but he gained too much momentum. He smacked at full force onto the road, making a gigantic crater in the middle of the road.

    

Patrick was tending to Sam in her ambulance.

     “It’s gonna be okay. Just a few burns. Can’t you transform into someone else to cure them?”

     “Whoever I transform into, I’ll still have the burns.”

     “Patrick, hurry, we need your help absorbing the fire here.”

     “Sam, I’ll be back. Berna’s calling.”

     “Why?”

     “They need help.”

     “Don’t leave…”

     “I’ll be back ASAP!”

     Patrick went out of the ambulance and fired himself into the air.

     Some of the filled ambulances already left.

     He rushed towards the intersection. Patrick got ready by propelling himself higher into the air.

     After a few moments, the bombs finally went off, the roads were empty, the buildings were empty. The biggest threat was property damage and the two girls getting hurt.

     He focused on the two spheres and absorbed them as hard as he can. Janella was also absorbing part of it. Berna was psychically routing it towards Patrick. Soon, Patrick couldn’t take it anymore and he blacked out and fell eighty-six feet.

     Berna flew towards Patrick. She caught him with her mind and set him on one of the roofs. She flew towards Janella.

     “Janella! Can you take it?”

     “Yes, I can!”

     She rose higher into the air.

     “You sure? Because I’m gonna reroute the sphere from the other side to you. You have to absorb the remaining fire.”

     “Go! I’m ready!”

     Berna guided the sphere on the other side towards Janella. It wasn’t just fire; it was being guided with this sort of ghost like power. It resisted her psychic fields and started to ricochet. It gained so much force that it shot like a missile towards Berna. She got knocked out. Janella was screaming loudly. Her whole arms were fired up.

    “BERNA! No, I have to do this. I can do this!”

     Her eyes fired up. She turned her whole body into a fiery mass and all the fire went towards her like a vortex. She calmed down after absorbing the last flare. She turned back to normal and froze up herself. She expelled all the heat and the ice surrounding her melted. She picked up Patrick and Berna and flew back to the mall.

     She set them down on the gurneys. She held Patrick’s arm and turned him into a fiery mass. He woke up and she turned him back.

     “What happened?”

     “The tables were turned. This time you blacked out.”

     “Berna?”

     “Got hit by a fire.”

     “You absorbed everything?”

     “Everything else at least.”

     “I practiced more than you. How’d you…”

     “Motivation. Two of my friends were knocked out.”

     “AHHHHH!” Berna yelled behind them.

     “What’s wrong?” Janella asked.

     “Kyle! He’s unconscious somewhere. Look for a crater in the middle of the road. Please, get him for me!”

     “Okay. I won’t be long.”

     Janella flew into the city.

 

She searched the roads and found this road with a crater. Kyle was in the middle, faced down, and unconscious. She went towards him and turned him over. His face was bloody but not what you’d expect from someone who hit the road with full force. She laid him on a bed of ice and flew to the mall using a path of ice.

     She arrived and put Kyle on a gurney. Berna approached him.

     “He’s still unconscious.”

     “He hit the road full force?”

     “It looks like it.”

     “He must’ve made a psychic field around him before hitting the ground.”

     “Of course, otherwise, he’d be…” Patrick started but kept quiet when Berna gave him a look that said “stop talking.”

     They brought Kyle in an ambulance as they all left for the hospital.

 

Kyle was still unconscious from the crash. Berna was standing outside his room with Janella and Ernst on guard.

     “I just don’t understand…” the doctor began. “How he could crash into the road at around a hundred miles per hour and still have his face in one piece.”

     Berna had to try and explain without mentioning the superpowers.

     “Okay, doctor. I cannot guarantee my trust in you but I’m gonna need a lot of faith on your part. I have been lying to you for the past few minutes. He did crash into the pavement but he’s in one piece because…” Berna said before taking a deep breath. “…he’s a mutant.”

     “What?”

     “He’s been mutated. Fifteen of us are. We saved most of the people from that mall.”

     “Mutant? What like X-Men or something?”

     “Not exactly. They were born with powers. We gained this.”

     The doctor remained silent for a while.

     “Doctor?”

     “HAHAHAHA!”

     “What’s so funny?”

     “You’re a crazy little girl, that’s what’s funny.”

     “You want me to prove it? Fine.”

     “You’re adorable when you tell stories of your ‘mutation’. You have an extremely vivid imagination. Where’s your parents. Do they know about this?”

     “No. I’m gonna make that flower vase float over to us. Hopefully, it won’t trigger another cliché when I do.”

     “Cliché like what?”

     Berna focused her mind on the flower vase on the other side of the hallway. She pulled it with her mind as it zipped through the hallway and into her hand. Luckily, no one was in the hallway. She took out the flowers and handed them to the doctor.

     “Flowers, doctor?”

     “Holy crap. You’re freaks!”

     “That’s the cliché I’m talking about. Can’t you just help my friend in there?”

     “I’m calling the government.”

     Berna put her hands on the doctor’s shoulders.

     “Calm down doctor.”

     “Don’t touch me freak.”

     “I won’t do you any harm. If I do, go ahead, call the government.”

     “You people don’t keep your promises.”

     “Look, have you heard of Elizabeth Seton School? How all its students just disappeared and no investigations were held just because we so cleverly disguised the school?”

     “Yes.”

     Berna took out her old school ID.

     “I’m a student. Well, not anymore but last year, the year the incident happened, I was.”

     “Okay. I’m calm now. I can think straight. Can you make something weird happen again so I can test myself?”
     “Don’t panic okay. Just imagine how we felt last year. We were more scared than you. We had this freaky curse. But it’s not a curse. It actually helps.”

     Berna psychically retrieved the flowers from the doctor’s hands and put them back into the vase. She zipped the vase back to the table.

     “You okay doctor?”

     “Yes. I’m sorry for my behavior. Okay. So help me understand. How’d he survive?”

     “He put this psychic field all over him a few seconds before impact. Lessening the force but the strong force still weakened him, causing him to retract the field, causing this ‘minimal’ damage.”

     “So, in that case, basically, I should treat him like someone who was in a car, which was dropped from one-thousand meters up in the air. And just before it hit the ground, a malfunction caused the airbags to go off but he went straight through the airbags and still hit his face into the ground.”

     “No doctor, I think if that happened, the person would be dead.”

     The door opened and Ernst was there.

     “He’s awake!”

     The doctor and Berna went in. Janella was asleep on the chair.

     “Hello Kyle, how are you feeling?”

     “Painful.”

     Berna went over to his ear.

     “I told him about our, ‘situation’ “

     “How’d he take it?”

     “Well.”

     “Okay, Kyle. So did you really form a psychic field before you hit the ground?” the doctor asked.

     “No, I didn’t do that.”

     “You didn’t?!” Berna asked in surprise.

     “No.”

     “Your face should be mush by now then!”

     “But it’s not. Why?”

     “Any thoughts, doctor?” Berna asked.

     “No, not really.”

     Kyle jerked forward. Austin was forcing another vision into his mind. But it was different. He could control himself.

     He was in a white void. Austin was sitting on a table, drinking his orange soda.

     “How did I survive that?”

     “You just did,” he answered.

     “That’s impossible!”

     “No, it’s very possible. You see, I didn’t want to kill you, so I planned ahead.”

     “What do you mean?”

     “I was just playing with you. But in order to enjoy my little game of tag, I had to kill Blaine Estaquilla.”

     “You killed him!”

     “You can find out how when you get back to your suite. But right now, let me explain. Killing him led to this chain of events. Someone got depressed and put a spike through his chest. Someone else got depressed and decided to help you. Since his whole plan was ruined by the man who put a spike through his chest, he went to plan B. Keep you alive, kidnap you, possess you like he did Ivan, fix me, and he can take me and you would’ve never had a choice. I’d be careful if I were you. Now this guy, I don’t like him. He’s too smart, smarter than me probably. So, I’m gonna help you out.”

     Kyle didn’t understand. He was part of a plan B? He was in danger.

     Austin grabbed his arms and healed his bloodied face.

     “Goodbye Kyle, and be careful. Don’t let old Double M kidnap you and make you kill me. I hate genocide, homicide’s more fun.”

     Kyle started to drift out of this world.

     “Wait!”

     “Bye Kyle!”

     Soon, he was back in the hospital.

     “Kyle, your wounds healed in an instant!” the doctor said.

     “Long story but I’m fine doctor. Berna, let’s go back to the hotel.”

      “I’m afraid I can’t let you do that. You need to rest.”

     “I’m aware that you know what I am capable of, Doctor. I won’t harm you if I don’t need to. Now please, get out of my way.”

     Kyle pulled out all the stuff attached to him and they healed instantly again. The doctor stepped aside.

     “I apologize on his behalf, doctor,” Berna said.

     “It’s okay. Just keep me updated on his condition.”

     “Okay, Ernst, let’s go!”

     “Okay.” Ernst said. “Janella wake up!”

     “Huh?” she said dreamily.

     “We’re going.”

     “Okay, I’m up!”

 

Kyle quickly unlocked their room. Patrick and Sam were still in the hospital. Kyle found a package on his bed. He opened it and inside, there was a CD and a letter.

 

OUR ALLIANCE ONLY EXISTS UNTIL PLAN B EXISTS. THIS DOESN’T MEAN I’LL BE PLAYING NICE THOUGH…

    

     He put the CD in the player. It started to play.

     There was an old man reading a newspaper. The doorbell rang. When he answered it, there was a policeman.

     He said, “Good morning, Mr. Estaquilla. I’m here to discuss your son, Spike.”

     Kyle watched the rest of the tape in horror.