And the oppressive sun. The trees wafted the hot breeze. There were no promises of fall this August."Nothing as bad as you in Bermuda shorts." Victor snorted and rolled his eyes grinning."I'm going to go change." He said and trudged to one of the large stalls and disappeared. He bit his lip. "Me too." He said grinning. The adults were keeping company with the kids in the paramecium pool. Victor shoved a tuft of sand. The grass looked scanty and dry. Teen slid on a mat covered in oil and they tried to beat each other's speed record. He cleared while one sailed into a tree groaning. He wondered where Maks went. He stayed by a pine tree with a fibrous rope around it and sloped."Boo!" He appeared with his human face, the body of a squirrel and cute antlers.Victor fell over and his expression dulled while he chuckled. "Too much?" He said. Victor sighed. "Nice try, but I refuse to be terrorized by one wittle creature." He gave him one affectionate chuck under the chin. "Touch me l
Polymorph touched his face and ran over to the distance he split up ten times over. Each with elemental and sub-elemental powers. He wouldn't get lazy. "I need more." Reyna, their leader with firepower bounded in shooting projectiles at them. He escaped and she rushed over to where Streak lay. Her eye watered at the bloodstain on her stomach. "Why does this always happen to me?" She said in a strained voice.Her chest heaved. "You're a soldier, it's what you signed up for...Artemis, don't do anything rash."Her lips thinned. "They're gonna get to P.A.S.S. Who knows how many people he's cloned.""We'll figure this out." The other lookalike Huli jing, the youngest in the group lurched after him, drawing water. They made simultaneous hand motions and the waves swerved and caught them in a sphere. Polymorph struggled in the current. The first clenched her fists and the water toughened up like cement. "Any time now." She said to the second who lifted them off the ground. He grew gills
The awakeners stepped away while the glitchy ones came after them. "Enough already." The impatient one said and they paused. "We can't fight back.""More for us." Martha said with brown tails. Maya held up gallons of river water by her side. "It's those little demons again.""We just met." They flinched while the water drilled past them to the polymorphs. The awakeners fought back and a guy conjured pieces of metal and turned the sharp edges firing into several of them."Don't let them touch you." Maya said."Screw this!" He conjured destructive power and they went out of him like razor-sharp rings. Beheading others.... Maks detected the hunks of flesh moving amidst the crowd splitting, he witnessed two of them replicate a melee fighter and he shot at them before they shuffled, they roared and slid on the grass smoking up to nothingness. He nocked two arrows and shot at the gooey creatures. He found a blind spot where the girls used to sit."Huh?"He paused when he saw a co
"Yeah, me too." Artemis said. They had little time left before they would become goddesses and their tasks would be over soon."That's good." She added. ... He could not overlook the minor patients that were making a lot of commotion at the ward, he would have to be patient, he read to a bunch of three year olds. The others jumped over beds, fought on chairs with rubber tubes like pirates and they made snappy comebacks, trying to suppress each other, he wondered where they were getting all that energy from. The nurse opened the door and fumed at them."As much as I'd prefer you bubbly little bugs, right about now but do you mind!?" She looked around when they paid no heed."QUIET!""You're no fun." One of them said and they giggled at him.Her lip pursed. "And get to bed, it's almost time for your siesta. If you want to get stronger, you kids may as well sleep right so your conditions don't get worse." They muttered their protests retiring from their squabble and Maks chuckled."T
Galaxy studios. They said the owner gained a reputation when he took larger space and took students into his studio. It was a reminder of his roots, he was pleased to be putting up with more of them."You know, I'm glad I listened to my dad for once and went to college." Erin chuckled while they shuffled through the halls. They ogled at the images of musicians that they endorsed on the columns and walls. Irma folded her arms. Mark Stone appeared with the other two. The girls squealed unable to hold in their excitement. Irma held her hands together flustered while they flocked them."Not exactly as impressive as they look on the cover but who cares?" Lucy said. "Pleased to meet y'all." Erin shook their hands."You guys, we're in a studio this enormous. I'm never going to live it down." Kendall said."Juice?" Mark offered her a glass of juice and Kendall took it. "Thanks." "Girls, we have the gadgets covered. Just get in your positions." She downed her glass and dropped it."Th
"Thanks for keeping it warm for me, Victor." She tore up the book. "Unlike you, I can boldly foretell that one of you three will die." They were dismayed by the fact that she just tore up the chronicle. Their only chance to uncover what was happening to her. They also knew that she was able Mark as a tool to write a portion of a grimoire to summon herself back into the real world. That was the kind of spirit they were dealing with."Tell me you have a plan.""I don't know, I did not remember enough details to cover up...""WHAT?"He tapped his temple and reimagined the pages. "She's...possessed, it's an enchantment spell. It foretells about death so she must be a banshee...who has the ability to possess the living. There's also the part where she can't talk so she's lending a voice.Artemis paled. "You can tell about death too, does that make you a banshee?""That's not the point." Victor said."You knew one of us was going to die." Maks said."She's just playing mind games. Just ta
"That...wasn't your fault." Maks said. That coming from him was surprising. Victor didn't want to sound patronizing. He shoved his hands into his pockets. However empty he felt, he hated to pretend that nothing was amiss, he agreed to cut ties with her_but he was glad that she was safe and sound and this was over. He glanced at Elvis in the background watching them keenly. He owed him a treat. "Are you kidding?" Artemis said. "You literally tried to fry our brains ow_" She held her shoulder. "Bruh...I mean it's good to have you back, blondie." She added when Maks nudged her. Her lips twisted in a sneer."Brute." She mumbled. Irma wiped her eyes. "Thank you." She said stiffly to Victor. She owed him that much after he was willing to give away generations' worth of heirlooms in exchange for her life during Ping's ploy. She hugged her arms walking out the door....Hours before the expulsion. Rider listened to the girls' songs on his headphone singing in a falsetto while he drove hi
The herald blew his trumpet and shouted that the King was dead. The news warranted momentary silence and gasps from the crowd and he blushed and announced again that the King was 'here'. They cheered while they had the grand opening and then they went about their businesses. Playing games, preparing for the jousts and the play. "So, where are we off to now?" Irma said in a black Led Ze**elin shirt, jeans and sneakers. Artemis straightened the puffed sleeves of her dark green tunic, brown leather gauntlets, long brown skirt and boots. "Not my style but I'll take it." The merchants were offering a 70% discount on their products. They picked out essentials and jewels. Artemis bought a pouch with a wyvern on it. "Yes." She hung it on satisfied with the snugness of it. It had a nice grip. Irma put more jewellery into it and then tried on a black headband on her short hair. The people felt cheated when Artemis picked out most of the quality merchandise."These are awesome." Irma said t