Novels2Search

Flower Power

The light came from a small second sun that hovered above the road. The heat from it almost knocked Jade down, but the suit quickly cooled itself off. Lightning hit nearby, shaking the entire truck. Jade looked frantically for Jim's car, but couldn't find it. The streets were littered with debris and shattered glass, but none of the buildings seemed to have structural damage.

Suddenly, the driver of the truck opened the back window. "Get in, get in!" he yelled, grabbing at her armor to force her into the front seat. He tucked her head into his chest and covered it with his own. A tornado crossed the street about a thousand feet from the truck. The sound was deafening. The vortex sent a shingle through the windshield, a broken plank into the truck's hood, and something that might once have been a cinder block into the bed. Finally, the chaos was over.

"Are you okay?" the other hero asked.

"Yeah, I'm good. Thanks. You?"

The man assessed himself for a second. "I think so. We must be close to the source. C'mon."

He opened the door and ran out in the direction the tornado came from. Jade got out and tried to get a bearing on her surroundings. The First Bank of the James was... there, just beyond where the tornado hit. The Spencer Event Center should be a mile to the right. Jade guessed the tea party was going to be held there. She broke off from the driver once she reached the bank. "Where are you going?" he called to her.

"I was just coming to pick someone up."

"We have supersuits," he yelled incredulously. "We have to do this! With great power and everything!"

Almost out of sight, Jade called back, "Have fun with that!"

She ran passed the Shell gas station, the furniture store, and finally, the event center was in view. She released a breath she hadn't realized she was holding as she ran to the doors.

"Heads up!" a voice yelled in the distance. Jade didn't bother looking around- she was so close. With a heavy thunk that took Jade's breath away, she hit the ground and realized she did need to pay attention.

The girl who'd fallen from the sky quickly leapt off Jade and brushed herself off. "Sorry, tried to warn you. I'm glad reinforcements are here, though. I'm starting to struggle just the tiniest amount," she said, huffing. Jade sat up and saw that the other girl was under-exaggerating. She was bleeding from her lip and nose, with cuts across her arms and legs. Unlike Jade and the boy driving the truck, this girl had very little coverage armor-wise. She had a strange-looking exoskeleton that seemed to burrow in her skin, but other than that, she only had a helmet and knee-pads over a yellow unitard.

"You've been fighting in that?" Jade asked.

The girl seemed to just register the lack in her protection. "Huh. Well, it gives me super-human abilities, like super-speed and strength. Maybe that makes up for it?"

"I guess," Jade said hesitantly, turning her attention back to the event center where Felicity should be waiting for her.

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She had just grabbed the door handle when another voice rang out. "Oh ho ho, a newcomer? And you're running so soon? You are wise to fear me!" Jade internally cringed. This girl sounded like a corny villain in a comic book or a bad voice actress for a video game.

Sighing, Jade turned to face her new "foe." The girl's appearance surprised her. She was small in height and weight, with a large ballgown on over her own purple armor. The suit resembled Jade's own armor more than her "teammates'" did. "How many people are there with this stuff? Like, really, what's going on?" she asked the girl in yellow.

"Hopefully there are more people on our side, right?" the girl replied.

The Ballgown Girl clapped her hands, sending lighting in the direction of the others. Jade ran towards the other girl and shoved her out of the path. Jade's armor protected her from the blast, giving her nothing but a slight jolt. She quickly jumped up and charged the assailant. In response, the ballgown girl spun with her arms akimbo, creating dark clouds and rain. The rain became a torrent that washed Jade back to where she was.

"We can even get close to her," the yellow girl lamented. "Trust me, I've tried."

Jade bit the inside of her lip, thinking. The ballgown girl laughed hysterically. "This really is fun!" she cried. Jade thought about the debris earlier. There was plenty destruction, yes, but no buildings were permanently damaged, and no injuries were reported on the news. As a foster kid, Jade knew all about lashing out for attention- not that she engaged in it herself, but some of the other kids she's lived with acted similarly. She could deal with this.

Jade forced a demeaning laugh. "She won't let us get close to her because she knows we'd cream her."

"Well, yeah, obviously," the ballgown girl retorted. "I'm not stupid. You won't get me into a fist-fight by attacking my ego."

Jade shifted her feet, trying to decide on a new direction. "So what should we attack? What are your weak spots, oh foe of mine?" stalling by engaging the girl in her strange supervillain fantasy, but she would be loathe not to take credit.

The ballgown girl pretended to think. The yellow girl decided to use the opportunity to charge the villain, who sent her sprawling with a gust of wind. "I have none. I'm perfect," the ballgown girl replied. Was Jade imagining it, or did the girl have some acid talking about her own perfection?

The boy from the truck tackled the girl in purple from behind. She screamed in distress as the girl in yellow used her super-strength to pin the villain down. Jade jogged to join the group.

"Good job," Jade said awkwardly.

"Good distraction," the boy replied. "I'm glad you came around."

"Red Girl, go get the police," the girl in yellow ordered. With one last glance at the event center, Jade nodded and ran as fast as she could. She'd barely turned the corner when she heard someone scream, "Girl! Red Girl!"

Turning on her heels, Jade saw the ballgown girl not a foot behind her, the girl's purple hand raised in some threatening way. Jade gasped and fell backwards, trying to protect herself with her arms. A crack and a boom rang out, but Jade felt nothing. She tentatively opened an eye to see tree branches broken in front of her. The magnolia tree next to her had been contorted to protect her. The violet villain stood looking frustrated, but not shocked. The villain quickly clapped, sending lighting into the tree and killing it. "No more help for you," she growled, actually sounding dangerous. She raised her hand, causing Jade to flinch. Jade had felt this before- the panic, the failure, the confusion. I didn't do anything wrong this time.

"Why are you doing this?" Jade yelled desperately. The other girl hesitated, one hand hovering above the other, allowing the yellow girl to tackle her. This time, the boy grabbed her arms and the girl in yellow grabbed her legs. The villain had no means of escape.

A noise like a trumpet or bugle rang out. The girl in purple smiled and said, "Remember this as the day you met the Disaster and lived!" She then managed to touch two fingers from opposite hands together and shoot herself with lighting. The impact sent the three heroes flying, and by the time they returned, the girl was gone.

"I've got to admit, the name suits her," the boy in green said.

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