Alan rubbed his forehead and it quickly became clear that he had no wounds. Perception sure was a powerful thing. Brushing himself off and glancing over to see that Austin just ran off or some shit, he just shrugged and peeked his head up to get another good look at the fight.
There he caught sight of the little display going on around Gary, no doubt also being put on by Lily, all while the others seemed to keep on fighting.
“Where the fuck is Crispin? He’d love this bullshit.” Alan mused to himself as he hunkered down once again.
The Apocalyptic Rockfight
Open; set summer, 2018
Moderator: SOTF Supers Staff
-
Catche Jagger
- Posts: 741
- Joined: Tue May 28, 2019 7:40 pm
- Team Affiliation: Ben's Crabs
-
AnimeNerd
- Posts: 589
- Joined: Sun May 24, 2020 1:27 am
- Location: A place that can sustain life
- Team Affiliation: Claudia's Krakens
Inviso-Bill hadn't gotten a response out yet, but the chaos continued to occur. Joel winced at the sight of Melodie getting hit in the chest. He thought he heard a shout from Yvette, but with everything going on he could only hope that she had the sense to just run out of range rather than sit terrified. Javi was nope-ing out of the situation entirely, and Joel couldn't blame him for that. Mercedes was looking a bit better, even if he could see the shine of blood on her head. Kincaid was recovering from his beating and bolting to high ground. Moose was throwing rocks every which way, apparently wanting the discord to keep up for as long as possible. The younger guy-Garret maybe-was keeping the fight up as well if the sight of him grabbing a bunch of pebbles meant anything.
Oh, and phone guy was looking around like he was searching for something. Three guess as to what, and the first two didn't count.
Joel sighed. It was going to come up eventually, so he may as well own u-FUCKING HELL SHITS THAT'S LOUD
Looking to the water, Joel was met with the sight of Lily staying afloat while clutching an eye, looking incredibly pissed and glaring at Garret, who suddenly had a fiery skull and crossbones above him and a giant crosshair covering a good portion of him.
Oh, and the cyclone of ghost rocks had gotten even worse now.
Joel could go to phone guy and tell him what happened-that he'd picked up the device and ended up flinging it into the water after Austin decided to butt into his head. But considering what happened to Kincaid, he had a good idea of what would result from that. Plus, at the rate Lily was going with all these hallucinations, she might be close to passing out.
It was one thing for kids to get cuts and scrapes from a stupid rock war. It would be another thing entirely if someone ended up nearly drowning without anyone around to help.
And that was how Joel found himself leaving Inviso-Bill without a word, running to the water, not even bothering to try removing his t-shirt, jumping in and quickly swimming to Lily's side, giving her a small shake.
"Hey, I don't think anyone is gonna be ready to give you CPR right now," he said, his voice low. "Maybe move this to solid ground at least?"
Oh, and phone guy was looking around like he was searching for something. Three guess as to what, and the first two didn't count.
Joel sighed. It was going to come up eventually, so he may as well own u-FUCKING HELL SHITS THAT'S LOUD
Looking to the water, Joel was met with the sight of Lily staying afloat while clutching an eye, looking incredibly pissed and glaring at Garret, who suddenly had a fiery skull and crossbones above him and a giant crosshair covering a good portion of him.
Oh, and the cyclone of ghost rocks had gotten even worse now.
Joel could go to phone guy and tell him what happened-that he'd picked up the device and ended up flinging it into the water after Austin decided to butt into his head. But considering what happened to Kincaid, he had a good idea of what would result from that. Plus, at the rate Lily was going with all these hallucinations, she might be close to passing out.
It was one thing for kids to get cuts and scrapes from a stupid rock war. It would be another thing entirely if someone ended up nearly drowning without anyone around to help.
And that was how Joel found himself leaving Inviso-Bill without a word, running to the water, not even bothering to try removing his t-shirt, jumping in and quickly swimming to Lily's side, giving her a small shake.
"Hey, I don't think anyone is gonna be ready to give you CPR right now," he said, his voice low. "Maybe move this to solid ground at least?"
-
Primrosette
- Posts: 896
- Joined: Wed Aug 08, 2018 1:59 pm
- Location: In Her Dark Abyss
Kaine couldn't even get any words out. This situation was almost making him feel completely stressed out.
Kaine felt like he just wanted to crawl under the rock that he was lean-
There was a sudden piercing scream that sounded like Lily and Kaine felt himself tensing up. He turned back to Joel and he noticed that he went to help Lily out. Good. Anything to stop her from making things more chaotic. Things needed to be calmed down somehow.
"Okay. Just go out there and help out Kyle. No big deal, Kaine." He muttered to himself, giving himself a pep talk.
He then slid himself over the big rock and he kept himself moving forward, making sure to keep himself aware of any rocks that might come his way. He made his way around by zig-zagging and doing his best to dodge getting hit. He was thankful for Vinnie's lessons during when they played games together at home.
"Hey, Kyle...!" He called out as he was trying to make his way towards him and Mercedes and he let out a grunt as a rock hit him on the side of his temple, ignoring that he could feel something sticky running down the side of his face. "...Hey, buddy...!"
I should have really turned invisible for this honestly.
Kaine felt like he just wanted to crawl under the rock that he was lean-
There was a sudden piercing scream that sounded like Lily and Kaine felt himself tensing up. He turned back to Joel and he noticed that he went to help Lily out. Good. Anything to stop her from making things more chaotic. Things needed to be calmed down somehow.
"Okay. Just go out there and help out Kyle. No big deal, Kaine." He muttered to himself, giving himself a pep talk.
He then slid himself over the big rock and he kept himself moving forward, making sure to keep himself aware of any rocks that might come his way. He made his way around by zig-zagging and doing his best to dodge getting hit. He was thankful for Vinnie's lessons during when they played games together at home.
"Hey, Kyle...!" He called out as he was trying to make his way towards him and Mercedes and he let out a grunt as a rock hit him on the side of his temple, ignoring that he could feel something sticky running down the side of his face. "...Hey, buddy...!"
I should have really turned invisible for this honestly.
"...-one seen my fucking phone?"
''WHOSE PHONE IS IT IN THE WATER?''
...
(''Wait, that's just a rock. I think. Maybe.'')
...
(''Wait, that's just a rock. I think. Maybe.'')
Well, this was stressful.
Mercedes was asking questions that he couldn't answer fast, having to rely on some fucking motions to try and get anything across, that's not even getting into all the billions of rocks flying about courtesy of Lilly losing her shit; he could hear a piercing wail from over there that seemed to be from her. Now he couldn't tell what was real from fiction.
On top of that, Kincaid and David were fighting, several people were screaming, Austin was asking questions inside of his head which he could add to the amount of discomforting things going on here- Kyle liked the guy, really, but whenever he started doing the voices inside your head, it was like someone doing acapella in there- and apparently someone's phone was lost. Of course, the vultures would come out to film this entire bullshit. The last thing he wanted was his parents to see him involved in this.
But I guess the choice wasn't his anymore, much like it wasn't having this for a face.
And here he was, stuck under a parasol being assaulted with rocks, squawking. Fuck yeah, king of the Eagles he was; maybe he can finally grow wings and fly away from here. That'd be great. Kyle couldn't do a god damn thing 'round here; all he could do was make motions at Mercedes trying to show that it was ok as far as he could see when he took a quick peek at her injury.
He knew that Austin and Kaine were on their way. Those two tended to have his back when he needed it. He wished that Noah was here, he was always good at reading people and helping, and he could do things that Kyle just couldn't. But maybe it was for the better that he was not here; Kyle didn't want him to be hit with any of this bullshit.
When Kyle heard Kaine approach, he quickly turned to greet his friend, but stopped and stared at him. Blood was trickling down the side of his face from the cut that was forming on the side of his temple. This was getting out of hand or it already had at that point. Whatever the point of the matter is they had to get out of there before things really got serious. He just had to get Austin and then they would bail.
He started making motions at him. His left hand reached around his head pointing at the back, lowering his head in the process to make it easier to see, before pointing towards Kaine's face where the blood was flowing while his other pointed his index finger at Mercedes. He prayed to Lord in heaven that he would get it.
Mercedes was asking questions that he couldn't answer fast, having to rely on some fucking motions to try and get anything across, that's not even getting into all the billions of rocks flying about courtesy of Lilly losing her shit; he could hear a piercing wail from over there that seemed to be from her. Now he couldn't tell what was real from fiction.
On top of that, Kincaid and David were fighting, several people were screaming, Austin was asking questions inside of his head which he could add to the amount of discomforting things going on here- Kyle liked the guy, really, but whenever he started doing the voices inside your head, it was like someone doing acapella in there- and apparently someone's phone was lost. Of course, the vultures would come out to film this entire bullshit. The last thing he wanted was his parents to see him involved in this.
But I guess the choice wasn't his anymore, much like it wasn't having this for a face.
And here he was, stuck under a parasol being assaulted with rocks, squawking. Fuck yeah, king of the Eagles he was; maybe he can finally grow wings and fly away from here. That'd be great. Kyle couldn't do a god damn thing 'round here; all he could do was make motions at Mercedes trying to show that it was ok as far as he could see when he took a quick peek at her injury.
He knew that Austin and Kaine were on their way. Those two tended to have his back when he needed it. He wished that Noah was here, he was always good at reading people and helping, and he could do things that Kyle just couldn't. But maybe it was for the better that he was not here; Kyle didn't want him to be hit with any of this bullshit.
When Kyle heard Kaine approach, he quickly turned to greet his friend, but stopped and stared at him. Blood was trickling down the side of his face from the cut that was forming on the side of his temple. This was getting out of hand or it already had at that point. Whatever the point of the matter is they had to get out of there before things really got serious. He just had to get Austin and then they would bail.
He started making motions at him. His left hand reached around his head pointing at the back, lowering his head in the process to make it easier to see, before pointing towards Kaine's face where the blood was flowing while his other pointed his index finger at Mercedes. He prayed to Lord in heaven that he would get it.
A bike skidded to a halt just above the quarry. Crispin leaned over his handlebars, tail swishing back and forth.
Rock war?
Rock war.
Crispin saw Alan down there, and figured he *should* get involved. And get involved he would, but- A tornado of rocks, a call of duty kill marker floating above Gary's head, a shitstorm of a pebble storm.
"Aw hell nah, fuck this I'ma be back with the godamn artillery."
Crispy turned his bike around.
He'll be back.
Rock war?
Rock war.
Crispin saw Alan down there, and figured he *should* get involved. And get involved he would, but- A tornado of rocks, a call of duty kill marker floating above Gary's head, a shitstorm of a pebble storm.
"Aw hell nah, fuck this I'ma be back with the godamn artillery."
Crispy turned his bike around.
He'll be back.
Catche thinks my squirrel is Fisk so here's my daily reminder that he is not.
-
DerArknight
- Posts: 682
- Joined: Thu Feb 18, 2021 9:47 pm
- Team Affiliation: Jewel's Leviathans
As it turned out, antagonizing someone strong enough to create a tornado of rocks was not always the best option.
Fortunately the cross and skull forming around Gary told him one thing: that the girl's power was not physical, meaning that the storm couldn't hurt anyone.
Unfortunately there were still a good number of real stones flying.
And even more unfortunately, he was now literally marked for death.
In other words, it was time to say goodbye to the water and get out of this place.
Gary quickly assembled his stuff while the stones flying in his direction grew in number as people saw the skull and cross. One hit him at the shoulder and another one in the back, almost making him fall over.
Finally he was ready to sprint away, which he instantly tried to put into motion. But between getting away, dodgin stones and thinking about how to explain his dirty clothes if his parents noticed, he oversaw something important.
Namely that there was a person directly in his way.
By the time he realized, it was already to late to stop the collision.
Fortunately the cross and skull forming around Gary told him one thing: that the girl's power was not physical, meaning that the storm couldn't hurt anyone.
Unfortunately there were still a good number of real stones flying.
And even more unfortunately, he was now literally marked for death.
In other words, it was time to say goodbye to the water and get out of this place.
Gary quickly assembled his stuff while the stones flying in his direction grew in number as people saw the skull and cross. One hit him at the shoulder and another one in the back, almost making him fall over.
Finally he was ready to sprint away, which he instantly tried to put into motion. But between getting away, dodgin stones and thinking about how to explain his dirty clothes if his parents noticed, he oversaw something important.
Namely that there was a person directly in his way.
By the time he realized, it was already to late to stop the collision.
-
almostinhuman
- Posts: 641
- Joined: Sun Jul 12, 2020 7:06 pm
So apparently Austin just couldn't have anything today.
As he made his dash for Kyle, another boy - the one Lily was tormenting - slammed into him without warning. He reflexively shoved the smaller boy away as he came to a dead stop and only barely kept his balance. That pause was opportunity enough; among the fake rocks sailing at him came a real one, the size of a golf ball, colliding with his left eye. He fully tipped over, clutching the injury as it quickly began swelling.
For a bit, he laid there, in pain, feeling incredibly fucking stupid.
As he made his dash for Kyle, another boy - the one Lily was tormenting - slammed into him without warning. He reflexively shoved the smaller boy away as he came to a dead stop and only barely kept his balance. That pause was opportunity enough; among the fake rocks sailing at him came a real one, the size of a golf ball, colliding with his left eye. He fully tipped over, clutching the injury as it quickly began swelling.
For a bit, he laid there, in pain, feeling incredibly fucking stupid.
-
MurderWeasel
- Posts: 3431
- Joined: Mon Aug 06, 2018 9:56 am
- Team Affiliation: Jewel's Leviathans
As the chaos surged around her, Yvette continued her trudge towards the shore. She took everything in as the storm of illusory rocks abated and then, following a shriek from Lily, redoubled.
A lot of people were getting hit by stones. So far, few of the real ones were going Yvette's way, and her bag had been lucky too, so that was something at least. She could see her classmates clutching at heads and hands and eyes, and what went through her at that moment was a mixture of confusion and concern and yearning.
But there was no time to dwell. She'd made it far enough now that the water was lapping at her thighs only a little above the knee, and the grit and twigs mixed in among the smooth stones between her toes spoke to the approaching shore. At least the splashes weren't reaching her face so much now, so her makeup was safe. Now she just had to protect her belongings.
Unfortunately, the boulder her things lay near was closer to where the heart of the madness had shifted. Ahead in her path, she saw Kyle and Kaine huddled together, and she saw two other boys colliding, one marked as the target of Lily's ire. Lily herself was behind Yvette now, being tended by Joel, and maybe it would've been better to turn back and help her too, but Lily could handle herself with her illusions. There were others, too, batting away the barrage with parasols and cloth hoops, scrambling up rock walls to safety, and otherwise trying to protect themselves or to rain vengeance down upon each other.
Yvette just hoped that she could stay uninvolved, scoop what she needed up, and get out.
A lot of people were getting hit by stones. So far, few of the real ones were going Yvette's way, and her bag had been lucky too, so that was something at least. She could see her classmates clutching at heads and hands and eyes, and what went through her at that moment was a mixture of confusion and concern and yearning.
But there was no time to dwell. She'd made it far enough now that the water was lapping at her thighs only a little above the knee, and the grit and twigs mixed in among the smooth stones between her toes spoke to the approaching shore. At least the splashes weren't reaching her face so much now, so her makeup was safe. Now she just had to protect her belongings.
Unfortunately, the boulder her things lay near was closer to where the heart of the madness had shifted. Ahead in her path, she saw Kyle and Kaine huddled together, and she saw two other boys colliding, one marked as the target of Lily's ire. Lily herself was behind Yvette now, being tended by Joel, and maybe it would've been better to turn back and help her too, but Lily could handle herself with her illusions. There were others, too, batting away the barrage with parasols and cloth hoops, scrambling up rock walls to safety, and otherwise trying to protect themselves or to rain vengeance down upon each other.
Yvette just hoped that she could stay uninvolved, scoop what she needed up, and get out.
-
Primrosette
- Posts: 896
- Joined: Wed Aug 08, 2018 1:59 pm
- Location: In Her Dark Abyss
The side of his head was starting to sting and Kaine realized that he really needed to have it taken care of. He should really go and get his sister as well, but Sherrie knew how to take care of herself and she wasn't as fragile as most people thought she was. Kaine just had to make sure to get his friends together and then they could get the hell out of this chaotic mess. His moms were not going to be happy to see either of the siblings with injuries, but Kaine would take responsibility for it if he had to.
He noticed that Kyle was making some hand motions and his vision blurred for a few seconds, making him feel a bit dizzy on the spot. He needed a moment to breathe and try to focus on Kyle in front of him. He wasn't good at ASL at all. But he could just about tell what Kyle was trying to point out to him.
Kaine touched the side of his own head and he winced a little, lowering his hand and seeing the blood on it. "Y-Yeah. It's fine. I'm alright, Kyle. I'll get it taken care of." He was trying to reassure his friend with a small, friendly smile and then he glanced at Mercedes. "Okay. Are you able to move, Mercedes? Because we really need to get out of here and get our injuries seen to."
He glanced around to see if he could see Austin around.
His heart almost leapt out of his mouth when he finally saw where the other boy was.
"Oh, crap...." He gritted his teeth for a moment and he turned his attention back to the other two he was still with. "Austin. We need to go and get him before we can leave. It looks like he is badly hurt."
There was pain present in Kaine's voice as he spoke.
He noticed that Kyle was making some hand motions and his vision blurred for a few seconds, making him feel a bit dizzy on the spot. He needed a moment to breathe and try to focus on Kyle in front of him. He wasn't good at ASL at all. But he could just about tell what Kyle was trying to point out to him.
Kaine touched the side of his own head and he winced a little, lowering his hand and seeing the blood on it. "Y-Yeah. It's fine. I'm alright, Kyle. I'll get it taken care of." He was trying to reassure his friend with a small, friendly smile and then he glanced at Mercedes. "Okay. Are you able to move, Mercedes? Because we really need to get out of here and get our injuries seen to."
He glanced around to see if he could see Austin around.
His heart almost leapt out of his mouth when he finally saw where the other boy was.
"Oh, crap...." He gritted his teeth for a moment and he turned his attention back to the other two he was still with. "Austin. We need to go and get him before we can leave. It looks like he is badly hurt."
There was pain present in Kaine's voice as he spoke.
-
Pippi
- Posts: 1118
- Joined: Tue Aug 07, 2018 6:32 pm
- Location: I'm Pip!
- Team Affiliation: Stephanie's Buccaneers
Okay. Alright. There was still a ton of shit going down out here, so she just needed to take a breath, take a quick second to focus, and only try and absorb the information that was immediately relevant to her situation, rather than the hundreds of screaming classmates and flying rocks.
She was still feeling dizzy and kinda like she was about to puke, but that seemed more like repercussions from the scorching heat and the initial impact of the rock beaning her in the skull than anything else. She was pretty sure that Kyle was trying to let her know everything was okay. Like, 70% certain. She made a quick mental note, once again, to actually check out that YouTube video on ASL she’d bookmarked a month or two ago.
Kaine, the invisible boy, had scampered his way over here as well, and Mercedes briefly thought it odd that he wasn’t using his gift in a shitstorm like this, but then again, if he did, there was every chance he’d end up taking a rock to the mouth without anybody realising it. He was sporting a head wound that made Mercedes’ own flare up in sympathy, and she gave a short, subconscious nod as she gave it the once over. It looked bad, with blood streaming down his cheek, but the actual cut was pretty thin and shallow, and if hers was in any way alike then they’d both need nothing more than clean water and a bandaid to patch it up.
She flinched and gave a little cry of alarm as another swarm of rocks came barrelling through her parasol, but as soon as they all phased through her rather than turning her into swiss cheese, and as soon as she saw the bright red crosshairs and flaming skull surrounding some poor dude who’d just ran full throttle into someone, the penny dropped. Right. Of course. Lily was here, wasn’t she? Lily was in the pool, and someone had ticked her off real badly. Trust her to grab the spotlight regardless of the situation.
Alright. She’d taken stock of the situation. The majority of the flying rocks weren’t real, so they should be safe under her parasol. Her and Kaine’s head injuries were painful and unsightly but nothing more than that. And Lily was about to rain fresh hell upon whoever had, literally, cast the first stone. Great. It was still a lot to take in, but the solution was totally manageable at least; stay under the umbrella, pick up Austin, and get the hell outta here.
Mercy couldn’t stop herself from scowling at that second goal, though. She wasn’t the world’s biggest fan of either Greene sibling, and although Austin wasn’t as bad as his bitch of a sister, all that meant was that he’d stepped over a bar that was so low it was subterranean. She considered for a second, a real long second, just striding past him and leaving him to fend for himself on the ground. But the frenzy of the initial rock throwing contest had turned into panic, and there was a real chance he’d end up getting trampled if she left him there.
And better yet, he’d definitely owe her a favour for this. Maybe she’d use it to force him to put Jenelle through obedience classes.
“Yeah, I can still move,” Mercedes said. Her heart was still pounding, and her throat felt like it was about to seize up, but her voice was as measured and steady as ever. Putting on a mask of calmness was just as good as actually being calm sometimes. You could fool near anyone; even yourself.
“Not very fast, though. Otherwise I might, well, um. Die. So, uhh…”
She glanced at the two boys, before marching her way over towards Austin.
“Powerwalk, let’s go!”
She was still feeling dizzy and kinda like she was about to puke, but that seemed more like repercussions from the scorching heat and the initial impact of the rock beaning her in the skull than anything else. She was pretty sure that Kyle was trying to let her know everything was okay. Like, 70% certain. She made a quick mental note, once again, to actually check out that YouTube video on ASL she’d bookmarked a month or two ago.
Kaine, the invisible boy, had scampered his way over here as well, and Mercedes briefly thought it odd that he wasn’t using his gift in a shitstorm like this, but then again, if he did, there was every chance he’d end up taking a rock to the mouth without anybody realising it. He was sporting a head wound that made Mercedes’ own flare up in sympathy, and she gave a short, subconscious nod as she gave it the once over. It looked bad, with blood streaming down his cheek, but the actual cut was pretty thin and shallow, and if hers was in any way alike then they’d both need nothing more than clean water and a bandaid to patch it up.
She flinched and gave a little cry of alarm as another swarm of rocks came barrelling through her parasol, but as soon as they all phased through her rather than turning her into swiss cheese, and as soon as she saw the bright red crosshairs and flaming skull surrounding some poor dude who’d just ran full throttle into someone, the penny dropped. Right. Of course. Lily was here, wasn’t she? Lily was in the pool, and someone had ticked her off real badly. Trust her to grab the spotlight regardless of the situation.
Alright. She’d taken stock of the situation. The majority of the flying rocks weren’t real, so they should be safe under her parasol. Her and Kaine’s head injuries were painful and unsightly but nothing more than that. And Lily was about to rain fresh hell upon whoever had, literally, cast the first stone. Great. It was still a lot to take in, but the solution was totally manageable at least; stay under the umbrella, pick up Austin, and get the hell outta here.
Mercy couldn’t stop herself from scowling at that second goal, though. She wasn’t the world’s biggest fan of either Greene sibling, and although Austin wasn’t as bad as his bitch of a sister, all that meant was that he’d stepped over a bar that was so low it was subterranean. She considered for a second, a real long second, just striding past him and leaving him to fend for himself on the ground. But the frenzy of the initial rock throwing contest had turned into panic, and there was a real chance he’d end up getting trampled if she left him there.
And better yet, he’d definitely owe her a favour for this. Maybe she’d use it to force him to put Jenelle through obedience classes.
“Yeah, I can still move,” Mercedes said. Her heart was still pounding, and her throat felt like it was about to seize up, but her voice was as measured and steady as ever. Putting on a mask of calmness was just as good as actually being calm sometimes. You could fool near anyone; even yourself.
“Not very fast, though. Otherwise I might, well, um. Die. So, uhh…”
She glanced at the two boys, before marching her way over towards Austin.
“Powerwalk, let’s go!”
Just as Crispin rode into the distance, a gaggle of goths arrived on the same ledge overlooking the quarry. The four of them stood, staring quietly.
After a few seconds, one of them, a tall pale boy with a wavy hairdo, broke the silence. He had little vampire fangs that stuck out from under his upper lip, and he talked with a minor speech impediment, but nobody really minded any of that because he'd been born with them. His name was Jared. He wasn't a vampire; he just had fangs.
"Man, shit, since when was like - since when's other people coming here, man? It was just us last year. They're fucking blowing up our spot, man."
"Damn, gentrification really be hitting different now," snarked Sarah. She was very short and had long dark red hair. Her power was that she was really good at imitating bird calls.
"I bet Craig narc'd," she continued.
"No you," interjected Craig. Craig was just some generically nerdy-looking guy who wore a lot of flannel. His Gift wasn't a visible thing, and he never really talked about it, so nobody was actually sure what it was. Similarly nobody was really sure why he'd just kinda started hanging out with the goth kids at the beginning of high school.
A few seconds passed.
"I mean, like, we can just go hang out at Blockbuster like always, I guess," he said.
"Fine, whatever," Jared muttered.
"Mmm, hey, wait," said Astrid Millar, who was always the final goth to be introduced. She had a pixie haircut and big black globes for eyes. She paused the music she was listening to and pointed down at a giant flaming skull & crossbones levitating in the quarry. "That's pretty cool."
"Oh, woah, hey, there's a tornado thing too." Craig said.
"Hey, there's Lily," Astrid said.
After a few seconds, one of them, a tall pale boy with a wavy hairdo, broke the silence. He had little vampire fangs that stuck out from under his upper lip, and he talked with a minor speech impediment, but nobody really minded any of that because he'd been born with them. His name was Jared. He wasn't a vampire; he just had fangs.
"Man, shit, since when was like - since when's other people coming here, man? It was just us last year. They're fucking blowing up our spot, man."
"Damn, gentrification really be hitting different now," snarked Sarah. She was very short and had long dark red hair. Her power was that she was really good at imitating bird calls.
"I bet Craig narc'd," she continued.
"No you," interjected Craig. Craig was just some generically nerdy-looking guy who wore a lot of flannel. His Gift wasn't a visible thing, and he never really talked about it, so nobody was actually sure what it was. Similarly nobody was really sure why he'd just kinda started hanging out with the goth kids at the beginning of high school.
A few seconds passed.
"I mean, like, we can just go hang out at Blockbuster like always, I guess," he said.
"Fine, whatever," Jared muttered.
"Mmm, hey, wait," said Astrid Millar, who was always the final goth to be introduced. She had a pixie haircut and big black globes for eyes. She paused the music she was listening to and pointed down at a giant flaming skull & crossbones levitating in the quarry. "That's pretty cool."
"Oh, woah, hey, there's a tornado thing too." Craig said.
"Hey, there's Lily," Astrid said.
David found his phone.
Nora leaned in for a closer look at the mark on Melodie’s face. It looked bad. A scratch, sure, but still worrisome.
She let go of the embroidery hoop when she realized she was digging her fingers into the fabric. Nerves. Nerves. Breathe. It’s just nerves.
But oh! She flinched when she heard Melodie shout about the phone in the water. Nora couldn’t help but think about all the property damage, all the ways people were getting hurt, all the… everything. There was a skull and crossbones above someone’s head, there was a cyclone of rocks, people were fighting and shouting, there was a group of weirdly-dressed people watching them from a ledge, and it was pure chaos.
Nora felt another rock sling past her arm, causing her to cry out in pain and drop the hoop.
“Please…” she whimpered, curling into herself for a second. “I wanna leave.”
She let go of the embroidery hoop when she realized she was digging her fingers into the fabric. Nerves. Nerves. Breathe. It’s just nerves.
But oh! She flinched when she heard Melodie shout about the phone in the water. Nora couldn’t help but think about all the property damage, all the ways people were getting hurt, all the… everything. There was a skull and crossbones above someone’s head, there was a cyclone of rocks, people were fighting and shouting, there was a group of weirdly-dressed people watching them from a ledge, and it was pure chaos.
Nora felt another rock sling past her arm, causing her to cry out in pain and drop the hoop.
“Please…” she whimpered, curling into herself for a second. “I wanna leave.”