The Peterson's backyard drew closer, as Gren swung from a nearby tree. The boy was deep in thought, focused on the figure he chased. That had to be Percy. Who else could it have been? After gracefully landing on the snow, Gren picked up the small present on the bench press seat and slid open the back door. "Guys, I think Penelope has one more present," he said with a smile. However, the smile was traded for a confused expression at the missing sight of his friends. "Where is everyone?" Kurt relaxed in the recliner, watching TV as he answered, "Gone. Didn't you get the message on your watch?"
Gren inspected his watch and panicked. How could he have missed a robbery alert? "They left without me!?" he shouted with a hint of anger. Before the mentors could calm him down, the boy ran out the house, dropping the gift on the floor. Little Penelope looked at it in awe and began to tear the wrapping paper to shreds. "Oh wowwie!" Inside was a stuffed monkey doll, which immediately was hugged and cherished by the five-year old. "Who gave you that?" asked Dove. Her daughter slowly read, "Happy. Birthday. Little P. Love. Daddy!" Everyone looked in shock, especially Dove. The pregnant mother nearly fainted on the couch, relieved that her husband lived. "He's alive!"
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Traffic on the highway wasn't as busy during the middle of the day. A woman with bright, green hair jammed her favorite music in her car, humming along with the tune. Remaining vigilant, she checked her rear-view mirror, however, something strange caught her attention. A speeding hauler truck quickly approached and honked its loud horn. Both lanes were filled, so the woman was forced to take extreme measures and run her car along the sidewall. The truck shoved her out of the way with immense force and speed. It might have been her mind playing tricks on her, but she thought she saw someone hanging off the rear bumper.
Komo holds on, scraping her knee guards against the pavement with sparks. Finally, she's able to pull herself up and jam her shield into the back of the trailer. Using the hole she made, Komo takes hold and bashes another opening for her other hand to grab. After much effort, the shield maiden reaches the top of the trailer. However, someone was waiting for her. Wearing an expensive, black and white fur coat, the masked Pamda giggles and shouts, "BamBOO!!"
The bamboo staff swings down, nearly smashing Komo's fingers, but she quickly avoids and climbs up to a fighting stance. Pamda attacks relentlessly, striking her opponent's legs and back. Having had enough, Komo deflects the staff with her barrier, then grips the end of it in her other hand. With all her might, the shield maiden swings Pamda around in circles. "WEEEEEE!!" After the tenth rotation, Komo lets go, sending the masked girl over the edge, however, she isn't out yet. Pamda jabs her bamboo into one of the holes Komo made, leaving her dangling from the back of the trailer.
Ellia flies in, gently placing Delle on the truck with Komo. "Look out!" screams Delle. A bolt of lightning strikes the shield maiden, forcing her to drop to a kneel. The witch aims her magic stick at Vik, but the crafty sniper says, "You gonna shoot fire at me? Go ahead. You'll blow up the truck and every unfortunate driver around us."
The cunning sniper's words cause Delle to lower her weapon, while he raises his. "You're useless, loser!" Vik's crystal gauntlet glows brighter, but Komo rises again. With determination she tackles forward with her barrier. Vik ducks low, causing her to leap over and slip off the truck trailer. In the style of an 8-bit arcade game, Komo lands on the highway and dodges incoming traffic. Having rolled to the highway's sidewall, she lies on her back to catch her breath. "Shouldn't have...ate so much...oog!"
Now Delle stands alone in the direct line of fire on the truck trailer. Vik returns his focus to her, but not for long. An arrow from above nearly lands in his foot, piercing through the thin roof. The pixie touches down on the trailer, wielding her bow like a baseball bat. Swing and a miss. Another swing, this time colliding with the crystal gauntlet. Vik throws a punch; Ellia avoids by ducking low. The two teens continue their dance, while Delle watches from behind, unable to use her magic at the risk of hitting her friend.
Unaware of what's behind, Pamda climbs back up the trailer and sweeps the pink girl's legs with the bamboo staff. Delle falls on her rear, and the masked acrobat jumps on top of her, holding the staff against her throat. "I don't have a lullaby, but I'll put you to sleep real soon!" A swift strike with the bow lands in Vik's stomach, but he doesn't go down. The sniper counters with a back hand to Ellia's face, then kicks her away. Pamda leaps off of Delle, and the girls tumble into each other.
With quick thinking, Ellia grabs her friend and attempts to fly. However, not enough height leads them both to hit the pavement. The teens roll to a stop, beaten but alive. The stolen truck speeds off in the distance, and Pamda waves at her victims. "Bye bye!" Seconds later, Komo runs over to her friends, extremely out of breath. "Ugh...woo...I'm gonna hurl..." The pizza filled girl's cheeks swell, and she rushes to lean over the highway's guard rail. Rainbows violently spew from her mouth, causing Delle and Ellia to turn slightly green themselves.
Late to the chase, Gren swings from a street sign. His feet skate across the slippery road until slowing to a stop in front of his friends. "You left without me!?" he shouts. Just as before Delle's face sinks into her coat hood. "We thought we could handle it," she says in shame. "And look how that turned out! You could've caused an accident!" The witch wanted to cry, but something began to change inside. Fires of anger enter her eyes; fists clench by her side. No longer did she hide in her fluffy hood. With a loud voice she yells, "SHUT UP!!"
The unusual outburst stops everyone in their tracks. Gren backs up from his taller friend, even more so when purple fire begins to ignite in her left hand. "YOU THINK I'M NOT TRYING TO BE HELPFUL!?" Delle screams. As flames spread up her sleeve and burn the fabric away, Gren quickly draws his shuriken. Pulling in snow from the side of the highway to make water, he swings it in front of him. Freezing water douses the flames and snaps Delle out of her rage. All of her friends give her concerned, almost fearful looks, causing her sadness to return. "I'm sorry...let's just...go home."
One by one the apprentices began to walk down the side of the highway, but someone was watching. Atop the five story building, a strong figure in armor stood between two others. The right was massive in width and height with a horn on its head, while the left appeared skinny in a flowing, white dress. "The gang that escaped. They seemed well equipped to handle these Symbiolics," the middle woman said. The others nodded, and their leader spoke again. "Perhaps we can recruit them..."
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