More Trouble!

by Katrina Kahler

  My super hearing suddenly picked up on a sound and I turned away from Zeke and Janitor Jan. It was a voice that rang urgently in my ears. Having super hearing can be a pain. You have to train yourself to ignore every little sound and noise.

  But this was different. I honed in. I heard a woman say, “My baby! My baby!”

  I heard Wendi say, “What’s wrong, ma’am?”

  “My baby! My baby!” the woman shouted louder.

  “Ma’am, please take a few breaths,” Brandi coached.

  “What’s wrong?” Patti asked.

  “My baby! I just let go of his hand for a moment!” the woman screamed. “Now he’s gone.”

  “I’m sure he’s around here somewhere,” Wendi said.

  I focused on the pool. I tried listening for any unusual sounds. Concentrating, I pushed all other sounds out of my mind. I heard a thrashing going on deep inside the pool. It could have been nothing. But no way would I take that risk. I raced from the bathroom, almost knocking the door from its hinges. Honing in more closely on the sound, I dove into the pool. There, struggling for his life, was a little dark haired boy. He stopped thrashing. His face began to turn blue.

  Diving down, I grabbed him, wrapping my arms around him. I kicked up to the surface and pulled myself and the boy from the water. I then laid the boy down on the pool deck.

  The boy’s mother kept screaming frantically in the background, “My boy! My boy!”

  “I have him!” I shouted back.

  I quickly used my x-ray vision to check out his lungs. They were clear of fluids. It appeared he had swallowed a lot of water but it was only in his stomach. I gently turned the boy over. I pressed down lightly on his lower back. Water gushed out of his mouth. The boy coughed and his breathing became steady.

  “You’re going to be okay,” I murmured gently to the child. Turning toward his mother who was racing over, I reassured her, “He’s going to be fine.”

  She reached her son and bent down to hug him. “Oh, my Markie, my Markie.”

  “I’m okay, Mommy,” Markie said, looking up at his mom.

  The woman hugged him again. A tear formed in her eye. “How can I ever thank you!” she asked me.

  “Just doing my job, ma’am,” I said.

  “Actually, she should have been,” Patti pointed to Wendi before Wendi cut her down with a quick elbow to the stomach.

  When Mrs. Trompe, who was on the other side of the pool realized what had happened, her mouth dropped open in horror.

  She raced over to us. “Mrs. Jordan, I’m so sorry that happened.”

  The boy’s mother took a step back. “No, I should have kept a better watch on him. I just turned my head for a second and he was gone.”

  Mrs. Trompe put her hand on the woman’s shoulder. “You did nothing wrong. No parent can watch their child every single minute.” She glared at Wendi, Patti, and Brandi. “That’s why we have lifeguards.”

  Wendi, Patti, and Brandi all lowered their eyes, unable to meet Mrs. Trompe’s glare. Mrs. Trompe pointed to me. “Thank the stars Lia was paying attention. Even though Wendi, you made a poor choice of judgment making one of your lifeguards clean the toilets.”

  “Um…” Wendi said. “I thought it would teach her how to be humble.”

  Mrs. Trompe rolled her eyes. “Yeah, well, from now on I want all my lifeguards on the grounds where they can easily see the pool. It’s a miracle Lia heard what was happening and responded as quickly as she did.”

  “Just got lucky, Mrs. Trompe,” I said.

  “Nonsense, you did a super job!” Mrs. Trompe told me. “I doubt Super Teen herself could have done as well.”

  “Super Teen is way overrated,” Wendi added.

  “I wouldn’t talk about overrated if I were you, Wendi,” Mrs. Trompe said.

  “Wow, burn!” Zeke shouted.

  Wendi shot him a glare.

  “Well, it was,” Zeke insisted.

  I tried not to smile. But I failed.

  Dar Diary: It felt great saving little Markie Jordan. Almost as great as it felt having Mrs. Trompe tell Wendi off. I suppose I shouldn't be so petty but I can’t help it. Wendi seems more dedicated to making my life harder than even Paula. Truthfully, Wendi is my real arch nemesis. It feels good to see her put in her place.

  Yeah, I might be a superhero, but I’m still human!

  The Sand Creation

  I walked home feeling very different to the way I’d felt the day before. I was really proud of myself and my job. I had saved a young life as Lia Strong, not as Super Teen. Sure, I used my super hearing to help find the little boy in trouble. Sure, I used x-ray vision to make sure his lungs were clear, but the actual saving was done without any superpowers. I really loved the idea that Lia, not just Super Teen, can be a hero.

  Plus, as an added bonus, Mrs. Trompe told off Wendi and Patti. It’s a rare event when Wendi gets what’s coming to her. I liked Mrs. Trompe, she saw through a lot of Wendi’s tricks.

  “Ah, Lia, I detect you are in a good mood,” MAC announced.

  “Yep,” I said. “I sure am!”

  “Hmmm, sorry to crush your chill!” MAC said. “But I have Hana online for you. She has a problem…”

  “Put her through and please never say ‘crush your chill’ again,” I replied.

  “Gotcha!” MAC said.

  Hana appeared on my watch interface. “Lia, get here immediately!”

  “Ah, hello to you too,” I said.

  “No time to be pleasant,” Hana frowned. The camera panned to show the lab grounds. “We are under attack! All the humans have fallen asleep and lots of the Androids have been smashed….”

  I spun and activated my suit. I flew up into the air. I streaked towards the lab. I could have sworn Hana sounded scared. I’d never heard Hana sound afraid before. I guessed this was why Jason hadn’t contacted me yet today.

  Zooming through the air, I saw Zeke also flying towards the lab. I easily caught up with him. “Zeke, did you hear what’s going on at BMS Labs?”

  “Ice cream?” Zeke asked.

  “No,” I said.

  “Darn, it’s never ice cream,” Zeke sighed.

  “The lab is under some sort of attack. All the humans are asleep. Some of the machines have been smashed!” I told him.

  “Man, that’s like the opposite of ice cream!”

  “Yeah, that’s why I am rushing there now!” I told him.

  “Good thing I’m here for backup!” Zeke said.

  Sadly, I kind of had to admit that having Zeke as a backup was most likely better than not having any backup at all. Zeke had experience with all sorts of creatures. Additionally, he was way old so he must have some knowledge. And just like Zeke says, if nothing else, he makes a great decoy.

  We landed on the grounds of BMS Labs. An eerie calm and quiet filled the air.

  “It’s quiet. Too quiet,” Zeke said. He grinned. “I’ve always wanted to say that!”

  A few security people dotted the ground but they were all fast asleep.

  “Hana, where are you?” I asked.

  “I’m locked down in bunker 3B, three levels below the basement,” she responded. “The door is made of the strongest metal and the room is airtight since I have no need to breathe. I think I’m safe in here.”

  We heard a pounding at the door.

  “Okay, maybe I’m not so safe in here,” Hana said.

  Moving at super speed, I raced into the main BMS Labs building. I zipped through the hallway, dashing so fast, the wind I created knocked signs off the walls. I reached the metal door to the staircase leading down to the sub-basement levels.

  “Password, please,” the door said.

  I kicked the door open.

  “Okay, never mind,” the door responded.

  Instead of taking the stairs down, I just jumped. I did a classic superhero landing to the bottom of the staircase, three levels down. At the end of the dark hall, I saw what appeared to be a sandstorm pounding on the door. Rushing d
own the hall, I reached the sandstorm. It had a vaguely human shape.

  “What the heck do we have here?” I asked.

  The sandstorm, shaped like a human, stopped pounding on the door. It spun towards me, engulfing me in dust. My eyes felt heavy. I wanted to sleep. Holding out my arms, I spun at extra super speed, propelling the sand off me. The sand hit the side walls and the door to the room where Hana was hiding. The sand sprinkled to the ground and rolled across the floor. The sand then grew and molded into the shape of a girl. At first, she looked like a sand statue, but then the sand shifted and became a much more solid brown material.

  “Hello, human, you may call me Stormy,” the sand shaped being said. “Glad I finally get to meet you, Super Teen. I mean you and your people no harm.”

  Pointing at her, I said, “You have a funny way of showing it…putting people to sleep and smashing machines.”

  Stormy smiled. “It was my way to draw you out. I’ve come to challenge you!”

  “Come again?” I said.

  “I’ve arrived from a distant world,” Stormy replied. “My people discovered some of the probes that your lab sent out to search for life on other planets. I am the answer. I am my planet’s greatest hero. I am here to challenge you to see if you are worthy of contact with us.”

  “Why me?” I asked.

  “You are this planet’s greatest hero,” Stormy explained.

  I shook my head. “I’m not too sure about that…”

  Stormy nodded. “Yes, there is that Tanya girl who has control of time, but she is still vulnerable and you can push yourself through her time control. Plus, her power is dangerous. Marie can change the form of matter, but she could never touch you. You are far too fast. You could melt her from a distance.”

  “I would never do that,” I insisted.

  “No, but you could,” Stormy told me. “The one called Adam is truly powerful, but he has reached the peak of his powers. Your powers are still growing. Yet, you still have amazing control of them. You were literally born to be the hero of heroes.”

  “Man, no pressure there,” I said.

  Stormy smiled. “See, you don’t even feel pressure where others would.”

  “I was joking,” I said.

  Stormy laughed. “You even tell jokes in the face of battle.”

  “Don’t worry! I’m here!” Zeke shouted. He ran up to us, panting. He smiled at Stormy. “I don’t believe we’ve met.”

  “We have not. I’m from another world,” Stormy said.

  Zeke straightened his hair. “That means you haven’t heard of me?”

  “You are Zeke, Adam’s side-kick,” Stormy told him.

  Zeke flexed his muscles. “And best buddy,” he said. “Why are you here?” “To challenge Super Teen to see if you Earth people are worthy of interacting with my people,” Stormy said.

  “How did you get here?” I asked.

  “My people are advanced. We can teleport great distances through space,” Stormy said.

  Something about this girl seemed off. I couldn’t figure out what. She didn’t really seem alien to me, not that I’m an expert on that or anything.

  “Hey, I’ve seen you around the lab!” Zeke insisted.

  “No, no you haven’t!” Stormy countered.

  “I have! I wander around a lot and get into places I shouldn’t. I never sleep, you know!”

  “Let’s see about that!” Stormy told him. Her arm turned to sand and the particles flew out at Zeke. They surrounded him. He sneezed. Zeke waved at the sand around him.

  Pointing to his brain, Zeke puffed out his chest and said, “See, my brain is different from being undead and stuff!”

  “MAC, can you identify Sandy?” I asked.

  “She is not in our official database. But her general description matches that of an orphan girl who signed up for Doctor Gem Stone’s original superhuman experiments,” MAC said.

  “Oh, darn it!” Stormy said.

  Hana’s voice sounded through the door. “I’ve been trying to help her! I learned about her while searching through Doctors Gem Stone’s database. I found her and brought her here. I thought I could teach her to improve her powers. But I still have some work to do…”

  “Do ya think?” I said.

  Stormy slammed a very solid foot on the ground. “That’s why I broke out!” she insisted. “I do not need fixing! I like me just how I am!”

  “You are kind of cute!” Zeke said.

  “Thanks!” Stormy replied.

  “You’re welcome!” Zeke said.

  “So, why the alien story?” I asked Stormy.

  “I always felt like an alien. Hana told me to grasp that; really explore that part of me!”

  I shook my head. “See, that’s what you get from taking psychological advice from a machine.”

  “Actually, it makes me feel better about myself,” Stormy said. “Do YOU ever feel like an alien? I mean, you’re as different as I am.”

  Truthfully, I did kind of feel like an alien at times. After all, I had powers that made me different to 99.999 percent of the people on the planet. Of course, I had met aliens and I was nothing like them either. I had pretty much learned to accept that everybody is different and everybody feels like an alien now and then.

  “I do feel that way on occasion,” I admitted. “But I still don’t go around knocking everybody out and destroying machines.”

  “Surely you’ve been tempted. I remember that time you knocked out the mall with foot odor!” Stormy coaxed.

  “That was an accident!” I said.

  “Was it?” Stormy asked.

  “Yes,” I insisted.

  “Some people say there are no accidents,” Stormy replied.

  “Look, Stormy. What you are doing now is wrong and I am going to stop you!” I told her, cutting through the small talk.

  Stormy smiled at me. “Well, you are welcome to try, honey!”

  Stormy’s arms turned into large cement blocks. Extending her arms, she stretched them out, smashing into my head and stomach. The blows stung me but seemed to do more damage to Stormy herself as both blocks shattered on contact.

  The dust sprinkled to the ground, floated over to Stormy, and reformed as arms. Stormy laughed and flexed her newly formed arms and hands. “Impressive.” She sneered, “But it will take more than that to stop me!”

  “Lucky for the good guys, I have more!” I said, racing towards Stormy at super speed. I hit her with a good old-fashioned punch to the gut, shattering her into thousands of particles of dust.

  The dust swirled around like a swarm of angry bees. The dust then reformed into Stormy.

  “Wow, cool power and cool girl!” Zeke gushed. “Too bad she’s kind of weird…and coming from me, that means something.” Zeke shook his head. “I mean, I know weird, and girl you are weird!” He smiled. “Still, I like weird.”

  Stormy walked past me to Zeke. “I’m not weird, I’m different!”

  “Isn’t that kind of the same thing?” Zeke asked.

  Now I saw what Adam saw in Zeke. Zeke could be an incredible distraction to the bad guys and girls. Stormy was so fixated on him, she wasn’t bothering with me. Apparently, she didn’t think I could do anything to stop her. So far I hadn’t given her any reason to doubt that. She had recovered from all the attacks I’d hit her with. Fighting her was like fighting a dust bunny; a really nasty dust bunny.

  “You are a really cool girl,” Zeke repeated. “I can easily deal with the weird, but being evil may be a deal breaker for me.”

  Stormy lifted Zeke off the ground with a finger. She flung him across the room. “Well then, maybe I’ll just break you!”

  Zeke crashed to the floor. He smiled. “Cool banter!”

  Zeke certainly liked using the word ‘cool’ a lot. That word triggered something in my brain. Stormy might have been able to turn herself into sand at will, and sand was durable. But here’s the catch. Sand can be heated up and turned into glass. That might have been too cruel. After
all, I was a good guy. Still, glass could also freeze. The trick now would be to concentrate my icy frost breath on Stormy, ideally without turning Zeke into a zombie-popsicle.

  Zeke, though, wouldn’t move away from Stormy. In fact, if anything, he drew even closer to her. Well, I felt pretty certain that freezing Zeke wouldn’t really hurt him. He might smell a bit after being unfrozen, but that gave him a chance to use his new cologne. I couldn’t let Stormy escape my grasp, actually my breath. Still, I didn’t want to freeze them together. I had to do this before Zeke touched her.

  I thought cold thoughts…walking through the snow without shoes, ice cream headaches, frozen icy poles in the winter. I took a deep breath, filling my lungs with as much air as possible. I then thought more cold thoughts…freezers, icicles, and living in an igloo wearing just underwear. Exhaling and moving my head up and down, I coated Stormy with frosty breath. The breath froze on her, freezing her in place. Of course, Zeke froze too.

  The door to the room where Hana had been hiding popped open. Hana walked out with an iPad in her hand. “Good job, Lia, you passed my test. Plus, as an added bonus, you froze Zeke. It’s kind of tempting to leave him like that, at least for a while.”

  “First, I kind of agree on the Zeke thing but we do need to thaw him!” I said. “Second, no way you brought Stormy here just to test me. My dad would never have agreed to that.”

  “Lia, honey, your dad runs a huge organization. He can’t concern himself with every little detail. In fact, he can’t concern himself with any little detail at all; he is a big picture kind of guy.”

  I fought back the urge to freeze Hana with my breath. “Pretty sure my dad doesn’t consider me a little detail,” I told Hana.

  “No, of course not. Your power is far from little,” Hana said in a cool calculated tone.

  “Plus, I am his only child,” I added.

  “There’s that too,” she grinned. “For now…”

  Man, I did not like the idea of my dad dating a super Android. But I really, really disliked the idea of Dad having another child with an Android as the mother. Was that even possible? I felt confident Hana was just playing with me.