(CHAPTER 1)

"HEY STEVE!"
"STEVE, YOU CAN'T RESPAWN!"
"I HATE YOU STEVE!"
"I DON'T WANT TO BE YOUR BROTHER!"
"YOU ARE JUST AN NPC!"
"STEVE... WAKE UP!"

Steve wakes up slowly in his house. He finds Shaun in front of him.

"What the..." Steve mutters. He tries to get up but fire strings pull him back.

YANK! BAM!

"Relax, kid. It's temporary," Shaun says.

Steve looks horrified. "What do you mean temporary? I can't be left with my own thoughts!"

Shaun chuckles. "You and Bradley fought, remember?"

Steve's expression changes to anger.

A pancake hits Shaun. A paper hits Shaun. A toy hits Shaun.

"Did you release the rage?" Shaun asks. Steve nods silently.

"Where are the others?"

Shaun scoffs. "They left. Because of your 'murder,' they all ran."

John enters in a bathrobe with cucumber glasses.

"Kid's doing better?"

Shaun scans him. "You look like you're from making love."

"Shut up, Shaun. You failed your architecture degree for an indie band that shut down after 9 days."

Shaun's eye twitches.

Steve looks up. "So the group fractured?"

John sighs. "Bradley was in bad shape. There was a vote. A lot of people wanted to leave. We're also banned from Rita's."

Steve's eyes become watery. Tears stream down his face.

"Hey, relax. Everything's gonna be okay," John says softly.

Shaun says, "So, kiddo has hit rock bottom."

John turns darkly. "SHUT UP."

Steve stands up. "I think I need some alone time." He walks away.

Suddenly, the doors bust open. BAM!

John shouts, "What the hell was that?"

Shaun opens the door and finds Rejji Vasquez cracking his knuckles.

REJJI VASQUEZ
AGE: 26
POWERS: MUSCLE, SUPERHUMAN STRENGTH
WEAKNESSES: PREDICTABLE ATTACK MOVES

Shaun gasps. "Oh my god. It's you, Rejji Vasquez. My idol."

Rejji cracks his knuckles. "How do you feel about a superstar kicking your ass?"

BAM! Shaun gets slammed into the wall.

John reaches for his katana. Rejji grabs it and crushes it.

"No, no, no! Not my katana!"

Rejji headbutts John. BAM! He flies toward the wall.

Rejji dusts his hands. "A little weak for a guy whose father was a top-ranking hero."

John is shocked. "You knew my father?"

"Donald Schneider. That badass swordsman. He was worth 4 diamonds."

John cuts him off. "Don't you ever talk about my father's death."

Rejji laughs. "Oh, and John. You will never be like Donald Schneider."

Rejji walks away. John reflects on those words.

(CHAPTER 2)

At Rita's, Rita sips coffee. "Another day, another fat L for this place."

She smashes her mug. "WHY?!"

Tiffany watches, creeped. "Uh, are you alright?"

"Do I look alright?"

Bradley walks in, holding his hammer. "I'm so glad we left Steve. I just want to kill any girlfriend he has!"

Rita's wings spring out, blocking his hammer.

"Don't you even start!"

Bradley shouts, "You think I don't know how it feels to lose someone you loved?!"

"Of course I do. My brother George was killed by some guy with a hammer!"

Everyone gasps.

Rita sighs. "G.A.E 9 used to have 9 people. Bradley was good friends with Dave. Dave and George killed each other. That's why John shut the group down."

Bradley scoffs. "Every person that understands me gets killed!"

Paul shares looks. "Is it me, or is this so convoluted?"

"Shut up, Paul!"

Rosie stands. "I was also one of the 7 guardians. George deserved to die."

Rita becomes angry. "What are you saying?!"

"He broke all the rules. The leader was going to execute him anyway."

"Then why didn't you stop him?!"

"George deserved to be executed!"

Bradley throws his hammer on the ground, tearful.

"So, you're gonna end Matthew like how Steve ended Jennifer? I won't let you!"

Blue light shines on the building. They look up and see a spaceship.

Tiffany forms pink crystal bubbles and shoots them. Rita shoots yellow bullets.

The spaceship abducts them like a vacuum.

"I hate this world!" Rita shouts as she gets taken.

Back at Steve's apartment, John and Shaun face Rejji.

JOHN AND SHAUN VS REJJI VASQUEZ
FIGHT!

John pulls out his red bandana and ties it on his head. He runs at Rejji with two shiny swords.

Rejji throws a punch. John jumps to the wall. Shaun forms a fireball and shoots it at Rejji's chest.

John's swords catch fire. "Spin-Spin Dash!"

SWOOSH! THWACK! A small cut appears on Rejji's neck.

"You will pay for that, small Schneider!"

Shaun shoots another fireball. Rejji's abs bounce it back. Shaun burns.

John's eyes turn green. "It's noodle time." He pulls out green noodle strings. Rejji slurps them and spits out a web, capturing John.

"You guys are just supporting characters for Steve."

Rejji turns and finds Steve near the door.

"Leave my friends alone, you predictable muscle-head!"

Steve's hair turns yellow. "Yellow bullet blast!" Six crystal bullets shoot from his hair.

Shaun forms a large fireball and throws it to John. John spins his sword. The swords propel them fast at Rejji.

WHOOSH! HISS!

BOOM! The apartment explodes.

Steve gulps. "Bradley is gonna be pissed."

A dark green diamond flies toward Steve.

DIAMONDS COLLECTED: 5/7
ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED.

Shaun dusts his hands. John unties his bandana.

"Donald must have had fun defeating that guy."

Steve points to Marla walking toward them.

John aims his sword. "Steve, what do you think you're doing?"

"She saved me. She's joining our crew."

John holds the sword. "I'm not happy with that."

Steve asserts, "Well, I'm the leader. People deserve a second chance."

Marla clears her throat. "Hi, uh, John. Nice to meet you."

John shakes her hand. "Don't mess things up."

At Rita's, Steve, Shaun, John, and Marla enter. No one is there.

Marla picks up a letter. "They were abducted. To Cyber City."

Steve looks up. "I'm not leaving without them."

Meanwhile in Stan's studio, defeated enemies sit on chairs. Sophie, Elijah, Marie, Jennifer, and Rejji in a wheelchair.

Sharon points her microphone. "The biggest enemy group has been defeated by G.A.E 9?"

Stan breaks his coffee cup. "They are getting too comfortable."

Rejji coughs weakly. "They will be the first in history to get the Diamonds of Egress."

Stan's screen flickers red. "Luckily, they are gone to Cyber City. No one survives that place."

He grows bigger, wires springing out. "The Show Must Go On!"

He plays a piano.

"So, Steve and his group have proven their worth...
No one escapes the Otaku Brothers,
No one escapes Cyber City."

Back at Abel's lab, Abel watches the spaceship on TV with Lil Bot.

"We are gonna stop this system once and for all."

Lil Bot nods. "Let's hire troops."

TO BE CONTINUED
IN VOLUME 6