Mother Alternate

Ellay Saga Chapter 3: The Complete Team

Once again the streets came alive with the sound of screaming. The sound came from nowhere, yet it was everywhere at once. The atmosphere practically reeked of anguish and fear; of what, no one could be certain. But it was there, and it scared people.

The only people immune to this fear were a group of four children who were currently racing towards the source of the panic, and not away from it as others did. The children, Julian, Peel, Joshua, and Vee, knew they were both the cause and the solution to the terrible problem. Thus they showed signs of both bravery in light of the screams, and guilt because of them.

The kids screeched to a halt when they finally reached the destined spot, the spot where the cause of their agony was. They saw them: three humanoid figures, covered in a seemingly-liquid armor of metal, black visors covering their eyes, or rather replacing them.

“So that’s a Starman…” Vee contemplated from afar, knowing full well that drawing their attention unnecessarily could spell out instant death. People whizzed by them at a blinding pace, not questioning the four children, or even caring why they weren’t running for their lives. As Vee watched in a sort of perverse wonderment Peel pulled down her goggles over her eyes, while Joshua clenched his fists nervously and Julian simply watched impassively.

Julian’s confidence was somewhat shot. He knew he could take on one Starman; he had done so several times. But three was too much—attacking them directly was definitely not a good idea. He turned to Peel and asked, “How many bombs do you have left?” Peel checked her pack and grimaced slightly. “Two.” she answered. “Plus a bottle rocket I’ve been saving and some rust promoter.”

This didn’t look good at all. With Peel low on ammunition, the chances of being able to come out of this situation while avoiding direct confrontation were slim. They were going to have to do this very carefully. Julian looked around, scanning the landscape. The place they were in was a small green area, with a few rows of bushes circling it and a couple of benches. A plan began to form in his head. “Okay, we’re going to have to be careful.” he said aloud, more to himself than to his companions. “We need to take out at least two of them, so we can fight the third one head on.”

Joshua looked to the leader of the group anxiously. “We…have to make sure they don’t hurt any of the plants.” he said, concerned. “How are we going to do that?”

“Don’t worry about that right now.” Julian reassured him. “Now, listen up…”

***

Of course, the Starmen were too busy firing beams of energy at the innocent bystanders to notice a small monkey scampering around behind them, placing small circular objects on the floor. Kir was too small and too weak to be picked up as a threat, but his speed allowed him to sneak around the robotic aliens and plant the two mines a few meters behind them. When he finished he scampered back and up a nearby tree, where Joshua was waiting for him. In the meantime Julian and Peel circumvented the outer edge of the park and ducked down behind a row of bushes, conveniently obscuring them from view. Vee, having no practical knowledge or experience when it came to Starman-slaying, remained hiding behind a bench on the sidewalk.

<Once I pop up, jump down and get them from behind, okay?> the short telepathic message ran from Julian’s mind into Joshua’s, quick as lightning. When Julian received confirmation of his message, he turned to Peel. “Be careful.” His tone was both pleading and parentally commanding at the same time. Peel nodded and her grip on her wrench tightened, turning her knuckles white. She was too scared to realize that Julian was saying this to himself more than to her. After steeling himself for a moment, Julian sprung up and used a small bit of telekinesis to propel himself over the hedge, then to gracefully flip over forwards and land with a small thud behind the three attackers.

The Starman nearest Julian noticed the movement to its side and stopped its mindless destruction for a moment, drawing the attention of its companions. Starmen were never known for their intelligence outside of battle, and it took them a few seconds to realize that the human they were searching for was right behind them and firing a blast of PK Freeze in their general direction. The blast hit the Starman furthest to the right, damaging it heavily but not destroying it. Immediately the androids fell into a pre-programmed attack formation and began charging forward. Three steps later, however, Julian turned away and yelled. “Now!” Behind the rose bush Peel flicked a switch on her home-made remote control and the mines Kir had planted previously exploded. Two of the Starmen managed to foresee the attack and whirl to the side. The damaged Starman did not, and it blew up in several pieces, scattering its metallic remains over a radius of a few meters. The other two, however, remained, a little scratched but none the worse for wear.

Joshua hopped down from his hiding place and ran to where the battle was taking place. He extended his hands, and instantly a wave pyrokinetic energy sprouted forth, consuming the two Starmen in a labyrinth of flames and allowing Julian to dash to the side. “Peel, now! The bottle rocket!” Julian barked hoarsely as he ran. Peel acknowledged his call and sprung forward, holding a large, oval-shaped container, with an open end that was stoppered and clogged with tape. She laid the contraption on the floor gently, then, aiming as reasonably as she could, brought down her wrench on the stoppered end. After that she took out a box of matches, quickly lit one, and placed it inside, inducing several chemical reactions within and effectively activating the device. The bottle rocket hissed and flared, whistling through the air and striking one of the two remaining Starmen in the shoulder. The thing was unable to react due to the oppressing flames that were shorting out its vision circuits, and took the blow head-on.

Soon enough the trio regrouped and watched anxiously. More out of fear than anything else, they kept their guards up, dreading a possible confrontation with two Starmen. Julian found himself sweating a little more than usual, if only because he knew, or rather he thought he knew, that two Starmen were too much for him. One of those things was bad enough, but two would be a nightmare…

It was a nightmare soon to become reality, as when the flames died down the robots were still standing. They were far from all right; one had several dents and holes in its armor, exposing damaged circuitry and making the thing convulse. The second had lost the use of its left arm, and the appendage dangled loosely, very nearly ripped out of its socket by Peel’s bottle rocket. All of this notwithstanding, they remained standing, their black visors exhuming nothing other than apathy. They didn’t feel pain, or fear, or anxiousness. They were there to destroy, and nothing else.

“Targets sighted. Eliminating.” the low rumble of the Starman’s robotic voice rang in Julian’s ears, sending wave after wave of cold, brutal fear through his body. His plan had failed; things were supposed to turn out better than this. The fire, the mines…they should have been enough to take the Starmen out. They should be in pieces by now…

But they weren’t. And as the crippled Starmen fired a beam at Joshua, striking him in the chest and sending him sprawling backwards, Julian couldn’t find the courage to move. Not even his wail of pain managed to induce him to act. This isn’t happening…this isn’t happening! Julian yelled inwardly. All sounds were drowned out by the deadly silence that permeated his mind. Another beam was fired, aimed at him this time. Unconsciously Julian raised his hand and materialized a dome of translucent green around himself, deflecting the laser, but doing nothing else. One of the Starmen, the one in better shape, ran towards him. His jaw dropped and his insides cringed, but otherwise he remained inactive, even when Peel stepped in front of him and was promptly swatted away like a fly. Then Vee stepped into his field of vision, who directly ignored Julian’s previous order and tried to detain the Starman. She could actually hold her ground pretty well, and managed to scuffle with it for a moment before the other Starman caught up and flung her away as well. The Starman with one arm approached Julian and used its good arm to slowly grab Julian around the neck and hoist him up. “Terminating primary target.” once again the Starman spoke, horribly devoid of emotion. As Julian felt his airways close forcibly, and darkness washed in, he repeated one thing over and over in his mind. I failed…I failed…I failed…

Suddenly, quick as lightning, everything snapped out of slow motion and he began to hear again. His throat was free and he had dropped to the floor, lying on the ground limply. His eyes widened and began moving around, trying to find the source of…well, the source of whatever happened that made the Starman let go. He found it soon enough, towering over him, with his back turned.

He was a tall, muscular man. His jet-black hair was slicked back with generous portions of hair gel, and he wore equally black sunglasses over his eyes. He wore a worn, black leather jacket, and underneath he had a red shirt. His ripped blue jeans were tucked into his boots, which were very thick and covered with patches of metal in several places. In his right hand he held a sword, the sheath of which was strapped to his back. Altogether the man looked incredibly aggressive, and even when he turned and stooped down, trying to help Julian to his feet, there was an aura of darkness that seemed to sprout from him.

“You okay, kid?” the man, at least, was helpful. Julian staggered to his feet, knees trembling, and looked up at the man, who was a good two feet taller than he was. “Who…are you?” he rasped meekly. The man let out a chuckle, and Julian got a waft of very strong colone, making his nostrils flare. “You wanna know who I am?” the man asked playfully. “That’s easy, I’m—”

“Teddy, look out!!”

The man cut himself off immediately and flung himself to the side, dragging Julian along with him, and barely missing a giant beam of energy aimed directly at his back. The beam whizzed by and hit a nearby car, incinerating, but not much more. The strange warrior managed to take Julian to the side, moving with a cat-like agility and grace unseen by Julian previously. Deftly the man set Julian down on the ground, then turned and brandished his katana sword, the tip of the blade pointing directly at the approaching menace. “I’m not getting any younger, Four-Eyes! Get over here!” he shouted to someone, who was presumably the one who gave him the heads-up earlier. He then proceeded to block the advancing Starmen gracefully with his sword, parrying a couple of blows, then leaping back to give himself space when necessary. After a few seconds of skirmish, a second figure came into the fray. This second person was known to Julian...very well, in fact.

“Nicholas...”

He hadn’t changed much, physically speaking. Those were the same round eyeglasses, the same silver hair that swayed gently with every movement of his head. He wore the same white shirt, and he sported the same lanky figure that made his movements seem clumsy and awkward. But he was different: his usual, don’t-look-at-me expression was replaced with a steely, seemingly rude countenance. He held in his hands a massive, cylindrical device resembling a shoulder-mounted bazooka. Out of the back of this navy-blue artifice came a thick cable that connected the weapon to a large battery, held up by a strap that ran over his opposite shoulder. “The kids are all right. The little one has a nasty wound in his chest, but he’ll live.” The large man with the sword nodded. “Good.” He croaked. “Let’s go!”

The two leaped to either side and placed themselves on either side of the Starmen, deftly dodging any beams or physical attacks aimed at them. Nicholas hefted the huge weapon onto his shoulder and held it steady, aiming it at the crippled Starman. When he pulled the trigger on the small handle attacked to the bottom of the thing a yellowish sphere of energy burst forth. It hit the Starman in the chest, and while it didn’t blow it up, it did disable it completely, and the robotic abomination crashed to the ground. The swordsman had a slightly harder time with the other Starman, and while he did manage to slash it a few times, the tide of battle was turning towards the alien android.

Nicholas rushed over to Julian, his gargantuan gun still trained on the Starman, and grabbed him by the collar, heaving him up and placing him forcibly on his feet. “Don’t just stand there. DO SOMETHING!!” he screamed. Julian was still too dazed to react, but slowly he managed to support his own weight and make himself infinitesimally more useful than before. When he saw that Julian was up and ready, or at least just up, he called over to his companion. “Teddy! Get out of the way!”

Teddy reacted in less than a second. The Starman’s reflexes were far from fast enough to notice that his enemy dodged to the side barely a second before a huge ball of plasma-like energy slammed into its back. It reeled; Nicholas let his gun drop to the ground, as the thing was apparently out of energy. Immediately after the attack Teddy threw his sword lightly into the air, flipping it around and changing his position from an over-hand grip to an under-hand grip. A shrill shriek was followed by a leap into the air, and Teddy drove the blade into the Starman’s head vertically, placing his feet on the robot’s shoulders and using his own weight to bore into the robot. He then switched his hands around and pushed off with his feet, slashing upwards and effectively slicing the Starman in half from the inside. He landed softly a few feet away, then sheathed his sword in one smooth motion. The Starman crackled and fizzed for a moment before it fell to the ground, exposing its cybernetic interior.

Nicholas slung his gun over his shoulder as well, then went over to Julian. “You and I need to have a little talk.” He commanded, pointing his finger at Julian and waving it. Julian followed Nicholas’ finger with his eyes, but said nothing. Nicholas shook his head, heaved a sigh of exasperation, and waved his hands in the air. In the meantime Teddy walked over to Joshua’s prone form and picked him up, holding him like a baby. Joshua’s size, when held in contrast to Teddy’s, was microscopic.

“Who...are you people?” Vee clutched her side painfully as she staggered to her feet, placing one hand on her knee to steady herself. “How did you—aggh!” the pain she felt from her injury stung her and made her grimace. But it was nowhere near as bad as Peel, who had just managed to prop herself up on a nearby tree and sat there, helpless. When she spotted Nicholas she tried to call out to him, but she was too busy rubbing her arm and nursing the wounds on her head to make her presence known. That’s Nicholas... she thought to herself. Where did he come from?

Teddy checked his surroundings and called Nicholas over. “Yo! The news and the cops are here! We’d better beat it!” Nicholas looked over to Teddy, concern clearly washing over his face. “Wonderful.” He said sarcastically. “We need someplace to put the kids down, fast.” Instantly his face brightened and he whirled towards Vee. “You!” he called. “You live here right? Where’s your house?”

Vee winced and her hand tightened over her side. “About ten minutes walk from here.” She said weakly. “But I can’t walk…”

“There’s no need.” Nicholas cut her off and turned to Julian. “You’ll carry her.” He said. This order caught Julian off-guard, although in his current state that wasn’t very difficult to accomplish. “I’ll what? I can’t carry her!” Nicholas rolled his eyes and waved his hand frantically at Julian’s face. “Do you have psychic powers or not?!” he screamed. Julian threw his head back defensively and looked at Vee. “Right…right, hold on.”

Vee felt an invisible force suddenly grab hold of her body and gently, but firmly, lift her off the ground. The upward force of Julian’s telekinesis and the downward force of gravity twisted her body slightly and made her gasp as she felt a needle-sharp pang of pain from her side. Still, she took it in stride, although she had never been levitated before and she didn’t like the idea of someone picking her up just like that. With her free hand she pointed towards a street on the other side of the park. “That way.” She then clamped her eyes shut in pain. “Ay, mi costilla…”

As the group trudged off, Teddy carrying Joshua, Nicholas carrying Peel, and Julian carrying Vee—in a matter of speaking, anyway. Julian’s head was still swimming way too fast for him to do or say anything other than hold Vee and swivel her around every now and then. He knew very well that in the end things turned out okay…but he couldn’t explain this sensation that held him in a vice grip. Even as he began trying to talk again, he could feel that there was something wrong.

In the distance, a figure watched from his hiding place nearby. As he watched Julian and his friends make their way to safety. He was haphazardly leaning on his cane, and using his broad-rimmed hat to shade his eyes from the sunlight. He couldn’t help but chuckle despite himself, even when the battlefield was filled with policemen and news crews, swarming around the place. Everything was, after all, playing exactly the was he had conducted it. Honest Iago, indeed.

“Such is fear, little one. Such is fear…” he whispered after coming out of hiding and began walking in a general direction, heading to a destination known perhaps only to himself.

Author’s Notes: Gah. Lots of stuff happening. Just in case you’re wondering, Vee is complaining about her rib. A direct translation would be, “Ow, my rib…”