The Invasion

by Katrina Kahler

  The butterflies’ wings all stopped flapping at once. Each of the butterflies came to a sudden halt. Using my mind, I felt the strong grip I had on them. I smiled. These guys weren’t going anywhere until I allowed them to. Man, this power felt good!

  Oh, heck, it felt great! I just didn’t know how long I could hold them there without either hurting them or giving myself a nasty headache. I didn’t dare talk for fear I’d lose my control.

  I heard Jason coming up behind me. I didn’t risk turning around to look but I sensed that he had Carmen flying with him.

  “Wow! Awesome!” Jason said, appearing next to me. “Are you holding them with your mind?”

  I nodded my head slowly, carefully. I let myself say, “It’s hard. Please, Carmen, do something…”

  Carmen looked at the swarm of huge butterflies. “My friends, please stay away from the human cities and populations!” Carmen said out loud. Her voice had a strange tone to it. I could feel her words in my brain.

  “They want to know why…” Carmen said.

  “Tell them they are too big and they will hurt people,” Jason said.

  “You are too powerful!” Carmen told the butterflies. “The force of your wings creates damage!” she added.

  Carmen listened. She smiled. “They say they will land and stay on the ground. As long as the superhuman releases them.”

  “Gladly!” I said. I stopped myself from concentrating on the butterflies. Their wings started flapping again. Sure enough, they all lowered themselves to the ground.

  Carmen, Jason and I landed beside them.

  “Please tell them to stay there until human scientists can come and move them to a safe location,” I told Carmen.

  Carmen turned to the butterflies. She smiled. She turned back to us. “They agree. They say they don't want to hurt anybody or anything. Butterflies are sweet.”

  “Great!” I said.

  “So, ah, Carmen where’s your mom?” Jason asked her.

  “She went to an early morning pottery class,” Carmen said slowly.

  “Really?” Jason remarked. “I don’t know of any early morning classes and my mom loves pottery. So does my dad but being chief of police, he doesn’t like people to know that. He’s afraid it will affect his macho image.”

  “Did you put the tracking device on your mom?” I asked Carmen.

  Carmen hesitated. She looked away. “She’s my mom and I trust her.”

  “Well, let’s hope you trust her but you still want your trust verified,” Jason told Carmen.

  Carmen nodded. “I do and I did.”

  “You did put the tracking device on her?” I asked.

  Carmen nodded. “I’m sure she’s at the community college right now!”

  “She is not!” MAC said. “She is currently five miles north of here.”

  “There’s nothing but fields, hillsides and a river five miles north of here,” Jason said.

  “How do you know that?” I asked him.

  “I’m a boy scout. I know stuff like that. It’s a great campsite. A lot of people pitch tents out there.”

  “My mom does have a tent, a really big fancy one…” Carmen said. “Funny, I hate camping though. Just not a fan of going to the bathroom in the woods, I guess.”

  “Oh, that is so fun!” Jason grinned at her.

  Carmen and I shook our heads at him.

  Jason pointed north. “I know…let’s go find Carmen’s mom!”

  Dear Diary: I mean, wow! I held giant butterflies and stopped them cold with my mind. That makes me feel good and just a little scared, but only a little. Yeah, the power to move things and hold things with my mind is awesome. But I am much more experienced now. I can handle this power. I know I can. Surely, its usefulness is worth the risk? Plus, this isn’t nearly as dangerous as time control. This is a cool new power. I will enjoy it and use it wisely. Being one of the good guys, I can do that. Yes, sir, I know I can.

  I give Carmen a lot of credit for supporting her mom. That’s what a good daughter does, or a good son for that matter. They trust their parents. Though in this case, it does appear that Carmen’s mom is up to something. Something not quite right. But hopefully, her intent isn’t evil, just misplaced.

  I thought about calling the rest of the team to help us confront Carmen’s mother but I don’t want to overdo it. I don’t want to scare her. Plus, I feel pretty confident that Carmen, Jason and I can handle whatever situation might come up.

  Oh, Jason is so proud of being a boy scout. He’s been so dedicated to working with my dad and helping keep the city safe that I pretty much let it slip my mind that he is still a scout. I guess that explains why every Wednesday, from six to nine, he’s busy. Jason really embraces his inner geek. I find that cool. Jason is certainly always comfortable being himself, no matter where he is or who he’s around. I have to give him a lot of credit for that. He may not be super but he always makes the best of his abilities and his equipment.

  Problem Solved

  Flying towards the campsite where we thought Carmen’s mom Wanda was, Jason asked, “Do you think we need backup? I can call Marie, Lori, Tanya or even Adam and Zeke.”

  “I’m thinking we can handle this on our own!” I said.

  “That Adam sure is good looking!” Carmen said.

  “I don’t think he’s THAT good looking!” Jason said.

  “He has his good points,” I said with a grin.

  “Does he have any bad points?” Carmen asked.

  I laughed. “He does come with Zeke. I know they aren’t attached but they might as well be…”

  “Zeke has his charms,” Carmen said.

  “Yeah, he’s annoying…” I said. Then Carmen’s words sank in. “Say what now?”

  Carmen chuckled. “Sure, he’s a little different, but aren’t we all different?”

  “That is an interesting point,” Jason said.

  “The guy eats sticks…” I countered. “He finds them yummy.”

  “I’m sure they are a great source of fiber!” Jason said. “Really Lia, I would have thought you’d understand somebody being different…”

  “I do!” Carmen said.

  “I do too!” Jason said.

  Man, both of them had a point. I thought about arguing that Zeke was annoying, which was why he’s so different. But then I realized I probably found him annoying because he was different. Oh my gosh, I’ve been acting like a mean girl, not a terribly mean one but a mean one, nonetheless.

  I raised MAC to my face. “MAC, get Adam and Zeke here for backup!” I said. That would give me a chance to be nice to Zeke and make up for me not being so nice.

  “Already done,” MAC told me. “I knew you’d want them there.”

  “Thanks!” I told MAC.

  “They will meet you there, you are much closer than they are!” MAC said.

  “Cool!” I replied.

  “Actually, the weather is 72 degrees. I would consider that more comfortable than cool,” MAC said. A smiley face appeared on his screen.

  “MAC! You made a joke!” I yelped.

  “Wasn’t a great joke!” Carmen said.

  “Still, it was a start!” I smiled at MAC.

  Carmen, Jason and I flew towards the campsite. It was situated near a winding river. There was a slight breeze in the air and just a few clouds in the sky; a nice day for a flight. Even if it was to face off with my new friend’s mother.

  “I’m sure my mom has nothing to do with this!” Carmen insisted as the campsite came into view.

  “Well, in that case, you won’t mind us paying her a visit then,” Jason said.

  “You’d be surprised what our parents can do,” I told Carmen. “I mean they are human and they make mistakes. Or they make themselves an android girlfriend to your dad,” I said. Yeah, I definitely had an issue with Hana.

  “I think that’s a pretty specialized case,” Jason pointed out.

  “True,” I said. “But back to my point…parents do make mistakes. Maybe
not as many as kids, but they can make some whoppers!”

  Jason whispered to Carmen, “Super Teen has issues with her father…”

  “I can hear you!” I said, pointing to my ears. “Super hearing, remember!”

  Changing the subject, Jason pointed to the tents below us and asked Carmen, “Do you recognize your mom’s tent?”

  Carmen nodded. She pointed to a tall yellow tent that was three times as long as the others. It had no windows and a door that was zipped shut. It also had a satellite dish on its roof. “That one!” Carmen said.

  We landed next to the tent. Some other campers noticed us and ran over to me. “Super Teen, why are you here?” one of them asked.

  “Can I take a selfie with you?” another person asked.

  “Can I have your autograph?” someone pleaded.

  “Will you fly me to town?” a lady inquired.

  “Do you have a boyfriend?” a young guy probed.

  “Can you use your heat vision to pop this popcorn?” another guy questioned.

  Part of the problem with being a superhero is that it’s hard to do anything without being noticed. Normally, I kind of liked the attention but when I wanted to sneak up on somebody, this attention could be a pain. Plus, people asking me to do things for them could be a bit of a pain in the butt.

  “Sleep!” I ordered the people.

  They all fell asleep on their feet.

  “So cool!” Carmen said.

  “You’re getting awfully good with your super command voice,” Jason commented.

  “Yep,” I said. “It comes in handy. They won’t even remember we were here.”

  “Let me go into the tent first,” Carmen said.

  “Of course,” I replied. “If you need us, Jason and I are right outside.”

  “And we are here too!” Adam said, landing beside me.

  “Yes, the day is saved!” Zeke said, appearing right beside Adam. He looked at the sleeping campers and remarked. “Wow, camping really is boring. See, Adam, I told you!”

  Adam smiled and shook his head.

  Carmen unzipped the tent door. She walked in.

  We waited outside.

  “Nice day, isn’t it!” Zeke smiled. “I think I’ll wander around and look for some sticks to snack on. Anybody want some sticks?”

  Adam, Jason and I all shook our heads. Zeke smiled. “Great! Your loss. That means more for me.” He skipped towards the nearby woods.

  I looked at Adam. He shrugged and said, “He grows on you…”

  My first thought was yeah, so does fungus and I wouldn’t want that. Instead, I said, “I guess so.”

  “He is amazingly honest,” Jason said.

  “Too honest at times,” Adam replied. “Yesterday he told the mayor her breath smelled like she had drunk from the toilet.” Adam sighed. “She didn’t take it well.”

  “Was her breath that bad?” Jason asked.

  “Like I said, Zeke is honest to a fault. Of course, in his defense, he probably meant it as a compliment. Zeke thinks it’s cool that dogs have a constant water supply in the toilet…” Adam laughed.

  “Let’s not talk about Zeke for a bit,” I suggested. “I’m trying to use my super hearing to listen in on the conversation between Carmen and her mom.”

  “How’s it going?” Jason asked.

  “The funny thing is, I can’t hear anything except a buzzing sound…”

  Adam tilted his head towards the tent. “Funny, that’s all I can hear too.”

  Jason pointed at the tent with his gloved hand. “I’ll use my sound amplifier to listen in…”

  We all heard the sound…BBBBBZZZZZ ZZZZZZZ BBBBB ZZZZZZ!

  “There is some sort of sound jammer in there,” Jason said. He adjusted a knob on his wrist. “Trying to fix it now…”

  The buzzing slowly turned into words… “Mom! Why did you create giant butterflies?”

  “I did no such thing…”

  “Really?”

  “No, I took regular butterflies and improved them…”

  “Mom, why?”

  “So you could be special, honey! You have a gift and I want the rest of the world to appreciate your gift. Look at how people treat Super Teen. They rush up and kiss her feet.”

  “Nobody kisses my feet,” I said.

  “Yeah, they’d pass out long before they got near enough to them,” MAC responded.

  “MAC!” I said.

  “Just stating a fact,” MAC said. “I’m a computer, it’s what I do.”

  “He does have a couple of good points there,” Jason told me.

  “I’ve smelled your feet,” Adam said. “I’m nearly invulnerable but your feet could topple me…”

  “Okay, let’s stop talking about my foot odor!” I said.

  Zeke came back, munching on a stick. “Should we talk about your BO?” he asked. “Because, wow!”

  “No!” I said.

  “Your farts?” Zeke asked. “You did drop a herd of rhinos…”

  “Let’s not talk about me!” I pleaded. “Let’s listen to the conversation…”

  “Eavesdropping is fun!” Zeke said.

  “We’re not eavesdropping; we’re trying to solve a mystery!” I insisted.

  “If that makes you feel better,” Zeke said.

  Turning our attention back to the conversation between Carmen and her mom, we heard their voices continue. “Mom, you have to tell people what you did, and stop making giant butterflies…”

  “Honey, I do not and I will not. Besides, I am not making them. I am using my technology to grow them.

  “Mom, please stop. My friends are here and if you don’t stop they will stop you.”

  “They can try! But I’ve already summoned some bees here to help.”

  “Say what?”

  “The satellite on the roof of my tent…I can broadcast to insects and get them to obey me. I have a swarm of bees coming to attack the other campers. But don’t worry, you can stop them.”

  I had heard enough. “Stop this, right now!” I ordered, bursting into the tent.

  “Ah, so the amazing Super Teen has shown up!” Carmen’s mom laughed. “Good! Because not even you can stop those bees!”

  “Please, I could stop them any number of ways!” I said.

  Carmen’s mom crossed her arms. “I’ve summoned thousands of honey bees. The world needs honey bees. If you harm them, you harm the ecology of the world!” she laughed.

  “Mom this is so wrong!” Carmen said.

  “It’s not wrong because you’ll be able to stop them and tell them to go back to their business of pollinating flowers and all. I’m just a mom who wants her daughter to be all she can be!”

  Adam, Zeke, and Jason ran into the tent. Jason’s mouth dropped open when he saw all the equipment inside the tent. “Wow, great entomology mixed with communications lab!” he gushed.

  “Thanks!” Carmen’s mom said. “I did it for my daughter.”

  “Guys, why are you in here?” I asked.

  Adam spoke up. “There is a massive swarm of bees heading this way!”

  “That would be my doing!” Carmen’s mom said. “For my daughter.”

  We all walked outside. The countryside was full of bees and they seemed angry.”

  “Ah, I do good work,” Carmen’s mom said.

  “Mom, that’s so many bees!” Carmen said.

  “I know,” her mom smiled. “Exactly what I wanted.”

  “Carmen, you have to turn them around!” I said.

  Carmen looked up at the swarming bees. She concentrated. “Go back home,” she said.

  The bees kept coming.

  “Get air bound!” Zeke said. “They can hear you better!”

  “That’s a great point!” I said.

  Carmen flapped her wings. She flew up towards the bees. She locked her eyes on them. “Go home!” she said. “Go home, please!”

  The bees stopped. They turned around. They flew away, dispersing as they flew.

  “We
ll, that was certainly easy!” Zeke said.

  We all nodded our heads in agreement.

  Carmen landed next to us. Her mom ran up to her and hugged her. “I knew you could do it.”

  “Mom, you have to promise me you won’t ever do anything like that again!” Carmen said.

  “Why? I didn’t break any laws. Well, maybe a couple of laws of nature but that’s not illegal. All the research was mine. Nobody got hurt…” she insisted.

  “Because of those giant caterpillars and butterflies, a lot of farmers lost their crops and there was a heap of damage to the city!” Jason said.

  “Oh, yeah, I didn’t think about that…” Carmen’s mom said. “Oh, that could be bad. I guess my research is cool but it isn’t all that practical. I kind of did it out of love for you, Carmen.”

  I thought about what she had said. Luckily nobody was hurt. Really, all Carmen’s mom needed to do was pay for all the damages. Of course, that would be hard for most people.

  “Tell you what, Carmen’s mom…”

  “Please call me Ms. Perez…”

  “Tell you what, Ms. Perez. I know the folks at BMS Labs pretty well. How about I get you a job there again? I bet you can continue your research safely and they can help you pay back what you owe.”

  “You would do that for me?” she asked.

  “No, but I would do it for Carmen!” I said.

  “Will you call Carmen if you have an insect emergency?” Ms. Perez asked.

  “Sure, but better yet. I’ll call Carmen my friend!” I told her.

  “You have a deal!” she told me.

  Dear Diary: Wow! It’s amazing the lengths some parents, heck, most parents will go to for their children. Wanda Perez isn’t evil, she just wants her daughter to feel special and useful. I can’t really blame her for that since we all want to feel useful!

  The Usual Type of Normal

  The next few days went fairly smoothly. Dad not only hired Wanda Perez but he also brought Carmen to the lab to help her perfect her powers. Dad also agreed to cover the cost of the damages that Wanda had caused. Like I said before, parents really do want what’s best for us.