A Bomb?

"So you mean you can't feel anything?" Gavin inquires.

"Yeah, I couldn't feel anything after that accident" Ace says in response.

"So what exactly caused the explosion?"

"Well it's a really long story..."

"Abridged version, give us the abridged version"

"Okay the abridged version is this; My dad and I were working on a project when I was 10. But the test animal escaped its cage and knocked some test tubes containing the test samples into a container of highly concentrated chemical. I went to catch the animal without noticing what had happened and boom!! it exploded and covered my arms, causing all the sensory nerves in my arms to be damaged. Luckily, the coat I was wearing was stronger than the average lab coat so only my arms were affected"

"That's one hell of an origin story. But you did not mention the chemicals involved" [easily surprised]

"That's classified, sorry"

"Aww I really wanted to learn about them"

"Another time".

Melanie who is reading an inscription on the wall walks to them when she sees Shiro walk in.

"Where's Zarx?" She asks.

"There was an emergency so he had to leave" Shiro responds.

"Emergency? I hope he is alright"

"Yeah, it's nothing serious"

"I think we should get going now too" Ace proposes then adds "I'm hungry"

"Yeah, also he says if it be possible, he would like us to meet tomorrow 5:00 pm"

"Not a problem for me" Gavin says.

"Me neither" the others agree.

They slowly walks towards the elevating, chatting all the way there however they come to a standstill in front of the elevator watching each other.

"We would just have to ride it any, it's not like we have any other option" Shiro points out.

WELLS MANOR

1:00 PM

Zarx pulls over in front of the manor as a drone comes to deliver a letter. He picks it and goes into the garage, then into the living room.

"Oh you are back" his mom says as she notices him.

"Yeah" he says with his head down, drops the letter on the table and runs to his room. He picks a picture from the table and watches it. Tears begin to drop on picture and slowly slide across the glass to the frames of the picture.

8 YEARS AGO

THE WELLS HOUSE

9:00 PM

Lying on a mat, in the white painted room, Zarx is reading a story to his little sister.

There's little furniture in the small room, with few decorations here and there.

"Mariah, it's time for you to take your bath" her mom calls out to her.

"But mummy, Zakki is reading me a story" she replies lifting her head. Her sea blue eyes sparkle in the well lit room.

"Come on, he will read to you after you take your bath" her dad assures, walking in. Her face falls as she reluctantly gets up seeing her mom enter the living room. The front door flies open with a bang revealing 6 armed masked men who walk in pointing their guns at Harrison and Chloe. Zarx pulls his sister close and hides her face in his chest.

"Sit" the man in front barks. Harrison and Chloe sit on the floor and pulled the kids to their side.

"Take all you want just stop pointing the gun at my kids" Harrison pleads.

"Shut the f**k up" one of the men's voice echoes in the room causing Mariah to begin crying.

"It's okay, it's okay" her dad assures her as Zarx pulls her closer.

"Don't worry I would protect you" Zarx whispers trying to comfort her. Without a word, the men begin searching the house. The leader comes out of a room with a suit case.

"No no no no, you can't take that case..." Harrison protests.

"This must be it then" the leader says walking closer.

"In that case, give me the code" he adds with a gun pointed at Zarx's head.

"I don't know the code now would you please stop pointing that gun at my kid?"

"Sadly, I believe you. They wouldn't give the code to a pathetic guy like you. I'm in a good mood today, so I would let you be. But if we do meet again in the future don't you dare talk back at me, else... I will kill you" he threatens and stands. He signals his men to leave. They quickly run out but the last person's gun goes off as he crashes into the door.

"No!!" Harrison wails.

They run off as they hear people opening their doors. A warm fluid begins flowing onto Zarx's hands. His sister's shiny black hair covers his hand. He could barely hear his sister's breath and heartbeat. He slowly lifts his hand and watches the blood dripping from his hands in horror, as his hands begin to shake and eyes become blood shot. Chloe picks her as Zarx watches her run out. His dad picks him and follows.

"Mariah you are okay, you are okay, you are okay" she keeps saying all the way to the hospital.

PRESENT

WELLS MANOR

Zarx is sitting on the bed head bent, tears slowly slithering down his cheeks. His mom knocks on the door and opens it slightly. She peeps in before walking in. She walks over and sits by him.

"Son, are you okay?"

He buries his face in her laps.

"I miss her so much. I couldn't protect her. I was too weak to protect her" he says with a shaky voice. "Just what did she do to deserve this? What wrong did she do? She was so pure and innocent. Her smile…" His mom takes the picture from him and pulls him closer in an embrace.

"It's okay son, it's okay" she comforts him trying hard not to shed a tear as well.

ACE'S APARTMENT

1:30 PM

Ace picks a test tube from the rack in front of him. He fills it with a brown like solution and clamps it over a burner to boil. Then picking a conical flask containing a white powdered chemical he adds a clear liquid chemical from a beaker and stirs until the white powdered chemical completely dissolves. He coughs and leaves it on the table putting on a mask immediately before he continues stirring until the content of the flask becomes viscous.

He removes the test tube from the burner and drops the crystals left over from the evaporation into the beaker realizing the test tube has cracked.

"I guess I should have used an evaporating dish for that" he thinks out loud.

The content of the flask begins to fizz and it losses it's viscosity. A pith black liquid is dropped in it resulting in the content of the flask becoming blue almost immediately. He withdraws some of the blue serum and injects it into a small container and opening a small chest at the extreme end of the table, he slides it into an empty slot. The monitor on the wall displays the information. He removes his gloves and mask letting out a sigh just as Melanie walks in.

"What's with the face? Oh let me guess; it failed again"

"Yeah" he mutters in frustration.

"So, this is like test 490 right?"

"501"

"Wow, someone hasn't been sleeping. Well cheer up, I have come bearing gifts". She lifts a blue and a black briefcase.

"Gifts?"

"Yeah, come on. This is just what you need".

He walks towards her as she opens it. "

Wow" he exclaims.

"Made from the combination of aramid fibers and Polybenzoxazole. This suit is completely bullet proof and does well against sharp objects. Very, very sharp objects".

Ace lifts the jacket from the case while carefully examining it. "Never seen anything like this before. The design is so beautiful and slick"

"One more thing" she draws his attention handing him a box.

"Matching shoes, this is great. Is it also, like... bullet proof?"

"Are you expecting someone to shoot your feet?"

"You know… …just to be safe. But what's in the other case"

She opens the case with a giggle

"Wow, siiiiccckkk!" he yells picking up the owl mask atop the suit and puts it on then says after clearing his throat "Hey, I'm Tawny Owl…" trying to mimic her. She pulls at his cheek.

"Take it off"

"Aww, okay, okay"

She lets go of his cheek as he rubs it.

"Hey, do you have any idea why Zarx left all of a sudden?" Melanie enquires inquisitively.

"Kind of been wondering about that. If anything I thought, you would know"

GAVIN'S HOUSE

2:00 PM

Loud clanking sounds echo all around as two figures clash with each other.

"You keep looking down on me all the time. You would lose miserably today, if you look down on me" Gavin warns his opponent.

"You say that all the time, yet you continue to lose to me. Maybe you should take this a little bit more seriously" his opponent barks back then followed by his speech is a series of clanking sounds, then the sound of flesh being slashed and cut continuously by a sword. Blood slowly dripping to the ground as one collapses to the ground.

"Come on man, did I just loose again?" Gavin utters as the body of his avatar lumps to the ground.

"You sure did" Gideon replies. "Hey, Gav have you heard?"

"Heard what?"

"The obstacle course has been shifted from 31st December to 2nd November"

"What? Why all of a sudden?"

"I have no idea. Maybe they want to host another activity in December… …probably."

"Well maybe"

"You going?"

"Yeah totally, you?"

"I'm not too sure we should go."

"And why is that?"

"I don't know. I just feel like something bad is gonna happen"

"What? Don't tell me you are scared of just a little obstacle course race"

"It's not that, it's just… … I have a really weird feeling something bad is going to happen. I have trusted my instincts so many times and it saved me. This is no different"

"Come on, don't worry nothing is going to happen. Trust me" Gavin beckons

"If you say so, but don't say I didn't warn you"

"What? Are you Spiderman now with Spidey sense or something?" Gideon laughs just then, Gavin receives a message. "Tomorrow's meeting is canceled" he stares at the message for while with a frown.

"Let's play another round"

"Okay".

WELLS MANOR

SAT. NOV. 2

5:30 AM

Zarx is awoken by a sudden noise and lifts his head quickly resulting in the rocking back of the chair upon which he sits, causing him to fall.

"Aww" he lets out a painful groan. He lets out a sigh and stands. "I can't believe I fell asleep here again"

"Good morning sir"

"Good morning Alex. How long have I been down here?"

"For almost 24 hours"

"Well that's new. Alex, let's do our daily scan for anomalies city wide. I would be back soon" Zarx says walking out.

"Yes sir".

GARVIN'S HOUSE

5:45 AM

"Gavin, you still sleeping?" Gideon yells as he rushes in. He jumps up from his bed with clenched fists searching around.

"Oh, it's just you. Maybe next time don't yell like that. You scared me"

"Yeah sorry. It's almost time. We gotta get going"

"Time for what… OMG" he alarmingly shouts then rushes into the bathroom. Gideon picks two skateboards from a corner and heads for the living room. Gavin runs out and gets dressed.

"That was quick" Gideon says as he hears him approaching.

"Yeah, let's head out".

The cold wind blasts against their faces as the door shuts behind them.

"It's chilly out here. How about a little race for warm up?" Gavin proposes.

"No, let's not tire ourselves out" Gideon suggests. Gavin could feel how tensed he is from the way he spoke.

"Still not feeling good about this are you?"

"No, I'm not"

"Come on, you got to relax. We are going to be fine. Last person to reach the course field does the laundry" he speeds off leaving the trail of his voice behind.

"Come on. I just said no racing" Gideon protests and follows.

OBSTACLE COURSE SKATE PARK

6:15 AM

Gavin and Gideon make a screeching noise as they descend into the park via the railing.

"This is quite the crowd" Gavin draws his attention to the people gathered there.

"Yeah. Didn't think this many people would show up considering the sudden change in date".

"Hey!! armatures are not allowed here" comes a voice from behind them. Gideon turns and glares at the owner of the voice. "You know; you should have just stayed home rather than come here to humiliate yourselves" the person continues.

"Gav did someone just speak?" Gideon asks.

"No, didn't hear anyone speak at all" he replies. "You know; just a duck quacking" he adds with a hand gesture.

"Hey you better watch your mouth" Tyler barks rushing forward. A firm hand grabs him by the arm from behind. He turns and sees a huge figure behind him. He struggles a bit but manages to pull his arm from the firm grip causing his arm to redden. He staggers back and walks away.

"I'm gonna kill that bastard…" he murmurs to himself as he grabs his reddened arm.

"Yo, Hunter what's up?" Gavin asks with a fist bump.

"Watching you bro"

"You in for the race?"

"Not today, I think I would pass"

"Well why not?"

"It's just a leg injury, that's all and also got a few errands to run"

"Where's your crew?" Gideon asks.

"I left them out on this one"

"Planning on going solo?"

"Yeah for a while. By the way what's up with Tyler"

"Dunno, he probably woke up at the wrong side of the bed"

"Huh, well then, I will catch up with you later"

"Alright bro; see you around".

They fist bump and he leaves.

"Do you think Tyler is going to be fine?" Gavin asks as he turns to Gideon.

"Yeah, probably"

"Alright, come around, come around" comes a voice from a nearby speaker. People march off to their seats in the stadium like park.

"Look there's an empty seat over there" Gideon says. They grab seats in the second row.

"Good morning ladies and gentlemen, I welcome you all to the 15th Skateboarding obstacle course race right here in Camcot. I am your host the undefeated, skateboard racing king Scott 'Speedy' Ryan".

A roar of cheer explodes from the audience.

"And I once again welcome you all to this outstanding event. First of all, we would like to apologize for any inconvenience caused as a result of the shifting of this event from the 31st of December to today the 2nd of November. You know, I wake up every day and ask myself, when is this event going to take place, isn't it time for the event yet? Well it's finally here, and I want to promise you one thing. This is going to be the most exciting and the most awesome event ever hosted in this part of the country".

Another cheer comes from the audiences. "Because today, for the first time in history, the best skateboarders from all the regions are gathered here for this wonderful event". Another round of applause comes from the audience. "Without wasting much time, let's proceed. Today's race is 1600 meters long. We would be having 6 participants for each race. And we have a total of 120 participants for today's race. The race starts in 10 minutes. Participants in the first set, please move to the waiting area. Good luck to you all, and once again, good morning" Scott Ryan concludes.

WELLS MANOR

7:00 AM

Zarx comes in through the dark tinted front door with a towel and a headphone around his neck.

"Sir we've got a problem" Alex's voice echoes through the headphone.

"Wh… …what is it Alex?" he asks running into his room. He pulls the lever in his wardrobe, shifting the clothes to one side as the elevator door slides open. He steps in and begins descent.

"Sir it appears a bomb has been planted on the obstacle course skate park a few miles from here and Gavin is currently at the skate park. It appears there is a competition being held there at the moment" Alex says as Zarx steps off the elevator into the workshop and turns on a holographic screen in the middle of the room. The information on the bomb is displayed as Alex speaks.

[Bomb name: GT 1673 OC

Weight (Approximate kg TNT equivalent): 455

Explosive type: Octogen

RE factor: 1.70

Detonation velocity: 9100 m/s

Lethal blast radius: 60m

Serious injury blast radius: 530m]

"Scans have indicated that the bomb has been set up explode once anyone crosses the finish line. Everything was set up manually and that minimizes our chances of remote deactivation. I'm working on evacuating the place now"

"Okay you do that and contact Gavin for me" Zarx says picking his armor (backpack) and heading out.

OBSTACLE COURSE SKATE PARK

7:15 AM

Gavin feels his phone vibrating. He removes his phone from his pocket and checks it.

"Eleven missed calls? Why would Zarx call me this many times?". The phone rings again and he answers.

"H..."

"Gavin I need you to get out of there right now" Zarx's voice echoes through the phone.

"What? it's too loud out here I can barely hear you" Gavin replies.

"I said get the hell out of there. Right now. There's a bomb planted there and once someone crosses the finish line it goes off. So I need you to get out of there right now. And get as many people as you can out of there"

"What? a bomb?"

"That's what I said, a bomb has been planted there you have to leave there now. Once the finish line is crossed, you could die from the explosion"

"Then what I should be doing is stopping the person from crossing the finish line. That way the bomb doesn't go off and nobody gets hurt"

"Gavin just get out of there, Alex is already working on evacuating the area. Get out now"

"No I'm stopping that bomb. No matter what it takes"

"Gavin, get out of there, and that's an order"

"Order" he says with a laugh. "Since when did I start to work for you?"

"Gavin…"

"You are not to boss me Zarx" he says and disconnects the call. "Gideon, get as far away from here as possible" he says and leaves without explaining further. He goes to the start line and begins descent as Gideon watches on in confusion.

"Looks like someone just…" the voice of the host booms in the speakers.

***

"Shit, this guy's gonna get himself killed" Zarx says out loud. The wind blasts against his helmet as he races through the always busy streets.

"Alex how long till we get there" Zarx asks.

"About 15 minutes"

"Okay, how are we doing on the evacuation"

"Am afraid they are a bit hesitant to order the evacuation"

"Override all their systems and order the evacuation. If they won't act, then we would just have to force them to"

"Yes sir"

"What the hell is all this?" he thinks out loud.