Season 1, Episode 5 - The Boxtops XXX - "The Secret Origin of Mackenzie (Last Name is a WIP)"
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Isaac kept sprinting, able to detect Team Blue’s flag ahead of him in the distance. He had readied himself for a hot pursuit by Babs, but instead, it seemed like she had headed in the opposite direction. As for Mackenzie and what must’ve been Dan, they slowly picked up the pace toward the flag as well. However, given the speed Isaac moved at, maintaining that Rddhi sensing grid proved quite a challenge, and ultimately had to drop it.
But that’s alright. I just have to make it there first.
As for getting the flag back to his own team, Isaac hoped that Mackenzie’s blast took a lot out of her. And as for Dan - Isaac liked the guy, but even he had to admit that Dan wasn’t exactly athletic. Or motivated.
If I can just blow by them and make it back…
Yes, maybe Isaac wasn’t exactly following the plan of encircling Team Blue. But never look a gift horse in the mouth. And it’s not like he was doing it for personal glory, either. Or driven by an emotional outburst. A few months ago, his decision to go for the flag might’ve been for those two reasons. But right now, he was doing it because he wanted his team to win, and this present opportunity seemed like the best chance possible (and, okay, maybe rub it in Babs’ face a little afterwards).
Just as Hanai said, he could feel the flag ahead of him. He clamored up a tree and moved forward through the web of branches that made up the forest. With the flag close, he came to a stop, just for a moment, to scope things out, both in the Rddhi grid and with his other five senses.
Alright, I can’t sense or feel anything here. Nobody’s near the flag. And what’s that? Only one person is approaching me now. The other person must’ve gone in the opposite direction, too.
Liking his chances in a 1v1 - if it even came down to it - Isaac burst ahead, moving through the branches, until finally dropping down into the clearing. As he landed on the ground, no attacks came, no traps sprung. The blue flag of the enemy team fluttered in the breeze ahead of him.
Isaac frowned. This is actually going to be annoying, carrying this whole thing back.
He reached out for it-
Of course, a ring of waves shot out toward him. They felt weak, only enough to make Isaac feel a little sleepy as he reached out for the flag. As soon as he touched it, he heard someone scream, and saw Mackenzie emerge out of the forest, arriving on the other side of the clearing, a frustrated, tired look on her face.
She placed her hands on her knees, panting. “I had to start sprinting back…all because Babs left the flag when I specifically told her not to…hey!”
Isaac went to pull the flagpole out of the ground, but another round of waves hit him. Since Mackenzie was closer now, the waves pushed Isaac back, the flagpole just escaping his reach.
The waves only lasted a few seconds; once they subsided, Isaac went to grab it again, but Mackenzie sent another ring of waves at him while she moved to close the distance. With each attack, red Rddhi sparked through her entire body, suggesting that the waves came out of her person as a whole, rather than her directing them at a particular place with a particular body part.
And I've been calling them rings, but they're really more like…I don’t know, I’m not a geometry guy. A bubble? The ring goes out in all directions off of her.
Spherical! Her waves move outwards like a sphere.
The blasts came rapidly. Each ring of waves knocked Isaac a little further back, and any ground he made up for in-between each ring was reversed by the next one. Recognizing the deadlock, Isaac sent out two clones - one appeared right in front of him and headed straight for her. Isaac hoped this clone would distract her from the other clone forming in the air above her.
Instead, the next sphere of waves just battered away both clones, the strength of the blast disintegrating both of the clones. Isaac frowned as once again, Mackenzie’s powers knocked him away from the flag.
Changing tactics, Isaac created two clones directly ahead of him, hoping that they would shield him from the next sphere as they all advanced on the flag. To better his chances, Isaac had the first clone send out a line of Rddhi right as the wave approached, hoping to create a clone on the other side. Instead, the wave stopped the line in its tracks before a new clone could appear, and then struck all three of them down like a bowling alley - the clones disappeared, and Isaac still found himself at an impasse.
Deciding to regroup, Isaac dropped his assault on the flag, instead opting to move away from it, disappearing back into the thick woods and trees surrounding the clearing.
She’s a Class 3, so no doubt she can track me moving through the woods here, especially since I’m so close by. But the woods should shield me from her attacks. I just need to move around and stay in here for a moment while I think about how to attack.
As he jumped from branch to branch, Isaac took a moment to look at his fist.
And this isn’t the only way I can attack…
Though it left an unpleasant taste in his mouth, Isaac decided to add a new weapon to his arsenal - fighting with his words. It seemed promising, since Mackenzie could get rather…emotional, at times.
“Hey, Mackenzie,” Isaac yelled out, shifting between the treetops. He felt Mackenzie standing there in the clearing, near the flag, catching her breath. “Where’s Dan? I thought he was coming with you.”
“I sent him to reinforce Babs,” Mackenzie explained, her breathing haggard. “I like our chances better if it's four of us versus four of you guys out there.”
“But that leaves you in a 1v1 with me,” Isaac countered.
“I like my chances here even more,” Mackenzie answered, managing to grin. “No offense, Isaac, but I don’t plan on letting you leave here in a conscious state.”
“Feeling’s mutual!” Isaac yelled, anger growing in him, but then he caught himself.
She’s doing it right back at me!
Think, how did Babs get under our skin so well? I’ll take anything that improves my chances of winning here. I need to make Mackenzie fight sloppily…
I need to say something personal.
Isaac wasn’t used to trash talk, so he tried his best. “Hey, Mackenzie…you’re our Class Rep and all…but you really suck at it!”
Mackenzie’s reaction wasn’t worth the dirty feeling Isaac had in his stomach, but he did produce results.
“Shut the hell up!” Mackenzie yelled. A blast of Rddhi involuntarily exploded outwards from her, sending fireworks into the sky. “I’m doing the best I can! Have you seen the people in our class? I love all of you guys, but everyone here always needs a push! That’s why I’m the Class Rep - because the class needs someone who can give them that push!”
Even from the forest, Isaac could feel the heat radiating off of her. He tried to think of another insult. “Well, you know-”
“I said quiet!” Mackenzie screamed, energy flailing from her. “I get our class organized, I lead us in the independent study time, I bake people cakes! Cakes! Do you even know how Alfie got into our class? Because I keep him up to speed! I make sure he does all the work and stays on top of things! He’s one of us, I helped make sure he would be integrated in our curriculum!”
“You know, I think I kind of helped with Alfie-”
“I don’t do it for myself, Isaac!” More flares of energy came out of her. “I do it because it’s the right thing to do!”
“Uh-”
“Because I owe people! I used to be lonely and all by myself, back in Pennacook!”
“That’s-”
“But then people helped me come out of my shell! They made sure I wouldn’t be alone! They helped me move forward, and now, I’m going to do everything in my power to make sure my classmates can move forward!”
“Okay-”
“And for Lynn most of all!” Mackenzie’s voice still carried the fire, but there was a hint of soft reflection mixed in as well. “Without her, I’d still be stuck all by myself back home. She always says she’s doing things for me - but it’s the other way around. I’m doing it for her.”
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“Please stop-”
“It all started one day, back in Pennacook…”
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Five years ago, Mackenzie trudged down the stairs of her family’s Pennacook mansion, her head facing the ground, her shoulders hunched over, the sad piano music played by the family’s butler trailing behind her. Patios and gardens, hedgerows and fountains, songbirds and statues surrounded the stairs, yet Mackenzie felt all alone.
Mackenzie used to think being the richest kid in town was the best - she could have everything she could ever want. Except friends, that is. You can’t buy friends. She did, at one point, pay people to be with her. But those kind of people are just there for the money - once her allowance for the month ran out, so did they.
She had maids and butlers, but they were servants of the household, not friends. They were incredibly nice to her, giving her candy and the time of day, every day, but ultimately, they were adults and Mackenzie just wanted someone her age to pal around with. She could see the kids in town playing, out through the glass windows of her bedroom, high up in the mansion.
And as for her parents - well, her mother was always out at social events, and her father was always out at political events. By age 11, Mackenzie slowly realized that her parents weren’t exactly popular, either. There were whispers about the things her father did to become the Mayor of Pennacook, and they didn't exactly fit the virtuous image Mackenzie had in her mind of him.
In fact, based on the balls and galas, it seemed like her parents had the same issue she did - they didn’t have friends, just people bought with money. But unlike Mackenzie's mere monthly allowance, they had all the money from both Pennacook and their own private mills and factories at their disposal. So, they were always out, and Mackenzie was always in.
Mackenzie did have one thing, though. Something highly, highly important to her. And that thing was currently missing.
She spent the whole day searching, and recruited her servants to help as well. But despite their best efforts, they never found it. So now, as the sun set over Pennacook, Mackenzie walked a lonely walk down those steps, because that girl was there again.
Lynn. A few days ago, Mackenzie did what her servants taught her to do - stand up for those who were worse off than you. At the hands of Frances, Lynn would certainly be worse off, so Mackenzie stood up for her. And that was that.
But Lynn kept following her around, and ended up taking her out for some weird ice cream thing you put in soda. It was fun. But then Mackenzie did what her parents taught her to do - avoid getting involved with those who were worse off than you. Lynn followed Mackenzie back to the mansion gates that day, but Mackenzie decided it was time to tell her that they couldn’t see each other anymore.
“I’ll be back tomorrow!” Lynn exclaimed before Mackenzie could answer, then dashed off back into town.
Tomorrow came, and from her bedroom window, Mackenzie saw her standing out, all smiles. Mackenzie herself was all frowns, because surely this working-class girl was just after her money. That’s what her parents taught her, after all.
Lynn stood outside the mansion gates all day, only retiring at sunset. Mackenzie felt bad, but that was the paradox - having no friends felt absolutely lonely, but making friends with those lower in status would be even worse.
Nevertheless, Lynn did the same thing the next day. She stood outside the gates, unaware of all the chaos going on inside the mansion. Mackenzie and her servants looked high and low, but her prized possession was nowhere to be found.
After a long day of looking, Mackenzie arrived back in her bedroom. She looked through the window and saw Lynn still standing there, but the sun was starting to set behind her.
She’s poor…but she’s still someone my age who wants to be with me.
And in that moment, Mackenzie realized that feelings of friendship cut across class lines, no matter the difference in net worth.
Mackenzie slinked down her mansion steps, wanting to catch this girl before she left, but not sure what to say to her. Before she could figure out how to greet her and all that, she suddenly arrived at the mansion gates, Lynn on the other side.
Lynn, currently licking an ice cream cone, smiled as she approached. “Hiya, Mackenzie!”
Mackenzie tried to speak, but instead, only anxious gasps came out.
“My…my…my toy train!” Mackenzie exclaimed, bursting into tears. “I lost my train, Lynn! My train!”
Lynn finished her ice cream. “Oh, I see. Well, that’s easy, then. I’ll help you find it.”
Mackenzie managed to get a glimpse of Lynn’s face through the tears. “You…you will?”
Lynn gave her a thumbs up. “Of course! I hate when I lose things, too.”
Mackenzie rubbed her eyes, wiping away the tears, and smiled.
…
Resting on a tree branch, Isaac found himself scratching his head. “That’s it?” he asked before he could catch himself. He knew he was previously trying to insult her, but making fun of somebody right after they spilled their life story to you rubbed Isaac the wrong way.
But to Isaac, Mackenzie’s backstory had a clear “that’s it?” quality to it.
…a toy train?
“What?” Mackenzie questioned, too confused to even fume.
Isaac motioned with his hands. “Well…I don’t know. I’m sure it meant a lot to you, but as a listener…she helped you find a toy train. It’s nice, I’m glad you guys are friends, but I don't know. I guess I expected something grander.”
Mackenzie jabbed a finger at the woods. “Not every backstory needs to be some huge sob story! Not everybody suffers through war or high-stakes drama or career-ending injuries or doomed home planets!”
Her voice softened. “Sometimes, just somebody being there for you is all it takes for a person to grow. Sometimes, it’s just a missing toy train that gets you moving.”
And speaking of moving…
Isaac cracked his neck, because he was ready for his next phase of action.
While Mackenzie monologued, he had gathered up all the information he had on Mackenzie’s powers.
She’s tired, and can currently only send out her spheres of Rddhi at the moment. It’s not like the continual blast at the start of the match - if I can just get to the other side of the ring, I’ll be home free.
But getting to the other side will be tough, because the waves sent out in each sphere are powerful enough to disintegrate my clones and force me backwards. No matter which direction I approach her, I’ll be caught by the sphere.
Except for one direction, potentially. And she seems to have a time limit between each sphere.
Nodding to himself, Isaac raised his fist into the air. Lines of energy exploded out of it, and two other Isaac’s nodded at him. Rallying himself, Isaac led his clones across tree branches, bounding through treetops, until they all jumped out of the forest, into the clearing, down towards Mackenzie, his two clones leading the vanguard Isaac right behind them.
Mackenzie acted as expected - she sent out her spherical attack, waves blasting out of her in all directions. His two clones disintegrated - but that’s alright, he only needed them to give himself enough time. Because right before the sphere hit him, he aimed his fist down at the ground and fired off a Rddhi line directly into the dirt.
The sphere passed over that spot of dirt - and a clone burst out of the ground, on the inside of the sphere, Mackenzie in his sights.
The real Isaac focused as the sphere blasted him back across the air.
Now, to beat the time limit-
Mackenzie’s eyes widened, but sure enough, she failed to emit another sphere due to her cooldown period. To seal the deal, the clone punched the air directly in front of it - another line of Rddhi shot out of the fist, covering the distance towards Mackenzie in record time.
Isaac grinned, because a new clone coalesced directly in front of Mackenzie, its fist already prepared to strike.
But then Mackenzie did something unexpected. Isaac felt so distracted by her waves that he forgot that she herself could do other things, too. As the clone punched her across the face, Mackenzie punched the clone across the face.
The clone’s fist was far stronger than Mackenzie. She managed to stay on her feet, but the punch made her skid away, an angry bruise quickly appearing on her cheek. Isaac knew his fists were strong enough to punch his opponents too far away from him, so he planned on keeping his clone on her, following her after the punch, but her punch kept the clone in place.
The clone raised its fist, intent on sending another line out, but Mackenzie moved faster. Another sphere exploded out of her, smacking away both the line and the clone. The original clone shot a line into the dirt, intent on getting underneath the sphere again, but this time, Mackenzie’s Rddhi destroyed the clones both above and below ground.
And as for Isaac himself - he had used the opportunity to snatch the flag, but as soon as this wave hit him, he collapsed to one knee. In fact, he would’ve collapsed to his stomach, but he used the flagpole as a, well, pole to keep himself up.
What’s this feeling? The early waves made me feel just a little sleepy, but I’m ready to pass out after this one.
Mackenzie approached Isaac. “Remember when Reed had the bright idea of spray painting my name across town? I sent out a sphere back then - it only made you, Audrey, and Lynn feel tingly, but Reed almost threw up. I have more control over my waves than just blasting them out.”
Isaac raised a hand and tried to send a clone out, but instead, he involuntarily yawned and collapsed into a sitting position.
Mackenzie nodded at the ground. “I’ve been focusing my Rddhi on the areas above ground this whole time. They’re stronger that way. But if I want, I can send them below ground, too. It takes a lot out of me, but I can destroy any clone down there. I can destroy anything you send at me.”
Mackenzie wiped a coat sleeve across her nose, a red stain appearing on the fabric as she dropped her arm back to her side. She then stood over Isaac, who could barely maintain his grip on the flagpole.
“And as for what I’m doing right now,” she said. “I told you, I can get creative with my waves.”
Another sphere burst from her, hitting Isaac at point-blank range. He tightened his grip on the pole, but he could barely keep his eyes open.
“I hope you’ve been paying attention in class,” Mackenzie reminded him. Her voice almost sounded gentle now, a teacher-like quality to it.
She must think the match is over!
Isaac tried to swing with his free arm, but instead, he collapsed onto his back, his hand sliding down the flagpole.
“According to the leading scientists of today, getting hit by pure Rddhi makes a person sleepy,” she explained. “They’re not sure why yet, but there’s evidence for it. I decided to help the Rddhi out here a little. The strongest part of my waves is hitting your hypothalamus. That’s the part of the brain that controls sleep.”
Mackenzie crouched down next to Isaac. He frowned, but couldn’t resist as she gently took his hand off the flagpole and laid it down next to him.
“Sleep a gentle sleep, Isaac,” she cooed. “Just think, when this is all said and done, we’ll be getting ice cream.”
Isaac tried to fidget and squirm, but Mackenzie sent out one more sphere of energy.
When it struck him, a new sensation overtook him, the nail in the coffin. Isaac felt like he was falling, tumbling through the air, drifting through white clouds and calm waters, and closed his eyes.