4.12

Silas stood up and watched as his two teammates waved like awkward people searching through a crowd.

Turbo spun and retrieved something from his pocket. He flicked his hand out and Jimena dodged just in time as a miniature projectile sped by her and exploded into a building.

“Oi, you made me lose my car!” The taxi driver yelled.

“This isn’t your fight, you better get out of the way,” said Hunter. The taxi driver slammed a fist into her open hand. Her neck cracked as it turned, and she rotated her shoulders.

“Name’s Nakamura Aiko and this is my fight. My car is destroyed, and I’m not covered.”

“Can you fight?” Jimena asked.

“Tsch, yeah.” Nakamura pulled on fingerless leather gloves.

“Sweet.” Hunter opened his flasks of dust and watched as Turbo flicked another projectile toward them. Jimena launched a slimeball and as the slime enveloped the projectile, it exploded.

“Huh. Small cars?” Hunter asked.

“Small cars,” said Jimena.

“Oh its on!” Nakamura ran forward a few steps and took a great leap forward toward Turbo. She brought her fist back ready for contact but suddenly twisted and brought her foot down into the ground. Some jagged rock flicked up and two mini explosions smashed into the rock.

“Is this even our fight now?” Hunter asked.

“I dunno.” Jimena rushed forward and let her slimeballs fly at Turbo. Turbo expertly dodged most of Jimena’s projectiles and the few that hit him seemed to do nothing.

Turbo retaliated by sending a few more of his tiny cars at Jimena and Nakamura. Jimena turned herself into slime and Nakamura split the ground with her fist and slipped down into the crack.

“This hardly seems fair. Four against one, I think I need to even the odds a little here.” Turbo started to laugh.

Silas launched himself toward Turbo and in one swift movement, Turbo spun and put his heel into the side of Silas’s head, sending him flying away.

“You three looks like you’re a buncha kids. That one in the leather jacket seems like the only good fighter among you.” His voice had a stretched, grating quality to it.

“Whatever.” Hunter said to himself. He circled the conflict, his dust javelins circled around him.

Something sliced his shoulder and exploded just behind him, sending him forward.

“I don’t think so. Hey, I think its time you showed yourself and helped out.” Turbo looked up at the buildings and Hunter watched as a figure in the shadows jumped down onto the street.

This newcomer looked sickly thin and had a fringe that covered one eye. Their clothes were baggy, and they were barefoot.

“Do I have to?” the voice was a sombre song that echoed through the night.

“Of course. Do you think they’re playing fair?” Turbo asked. As he was talking to this new arrival, Nakamura jumped up from the crack she had been hiding in. She launched herself forward at Turbo, but the newcomer intercepted.

The newcomer tapped Nakamura on the shoulder, and she was instantly sixty feet on the other side of Turbo.

“What?” Nakamura spun around, took a few bounding steps, and launched herself at Turbo once again. Turbo’s ally tapped her again and this time she was thirty feet behind them.

“I’ll stop the new one,” said Jimena. She shot a few slimeballs and Turbo’s ally easily dodged each one.

Silas came flying in once again, rocketing toward Turbo. Turbo readied another kick but at the same time, one of Hunter’s javelins swept Turbo’s other leg from beneath him.

Silas rammed into Turbo and the two collided into the newcomer. The three tumbled and turned through the air.

Nakamura leapt through and grabbed Silas and separated him from the other two. Turbo and the other one slid across the road and collided into a tree. Turbo pulled himself up, laughing.

He flicked out more explosive cars at them and they all had to scatter. Just as Hunter pulled himself up from hiding, a normal sized car came speeding toward him. He dodged but it exploded behind him, sending him falling forward.

Turbo pulled his friend up and the two of them looked at the three heroes and the taxi driver.

“I’ve certainly had enough fun for now, haven’t you?” They made a break for it into the twisting streets. Silas made to go after them, but Hunter stopped him.

“We need to help anyone left here. We’ll get them another time.”

“We can’t just let them get away with this.”

“Michael and Traffic Control are onto it.”

“But?”

“Silas, its okay.” Jimena joined them and Nakamura was behind her.

“Few people here look like they could use some help.” Hunter turned to see an older teen with curly red hair and a large straw hat was assessing the scene.

“Yeah, can you do anything?” Hunter asked.

“Well golly, just hope I got the right seeds and herbs.” The teen looked through a hessian bag that hung from his shoulder.

“That’s Green Thumb, from Power Teens. One of Smileys teammates,” said Silas quietly.

“And he can help?”

“Should do. Has powers with nature. Excels growth, brings plants to their fullest potential. Think he can speak to them too.”

Hunter, Jimena, Silas, and Nakamura watched on as Green Thumb pulled a seed from his bag. He pushed it into some dirt in the ground and the seed immediately erupted into fully grown, drooping tree.

Succulent red fruit burst all through the tree and Green Thumb grabbed most of them. He sliced them open and grabbed some herbs from his bag and mixed them in with the fruit in a small, stone mortar and pestle.

“You lot think you can help out? There’s a mighty amount here and I can’t get to all of them.”

The five of them worked together, getting through the crowd of bodies. Even the few believed to have perished were brought back.

“Luckily none of them had been dead for too long. If I was much later, even my powers wouldn’t have worked.” Green Thumb rubbed the back of his head.

“You ever thought of joining the fight?” Hunter asked Nakamura.

“Aww nah. I like driving too much. And if I wasn’t doing that, most of you lot wouldn’t make it in time. Now I gotta go build me a new one.” Nakamura bid farewell and disappeared into the night.

The three teens returned to the treehouse, exhausted.

“I want a holiday,” said Silas.

“Excellent timing, I was going to make a trip to the Elder Tree,” said Stick.