call on

1 - 2

Ezer's phone vibrated against the polished surface of his desk, a stark interruption to the stillness of his room where textbooks lay in regimented order. The screen flashed with an alert that set his pulse racing—a message from HDCRD headquarters blinking with urgency.

"Citywide increase in high-dimensional creature sightings. Proceed to rendezvous point immediately."

He leaped up, shoving his glasses up the bridge of his nose, their lenses catching the gleam of the setting sun filtering through the window. Ezer's mind raced with thoughts of Aunt May, who'd expect him home for dinner, not out chasing interdimensional threats. He could already hear the echo of his parents' admonishments on the importance of studies and the future they had meticulously planned for him. But there was no time for hesitation; Jay was waiting, and the city's safety hung in the balance. 

Summer air, thick with the day's heat, greeted him as he bolted out the door. His backpack, weighted with hastily grabbed gadgets from HDCRD, thumped against his back with every stride. Ezer navigated the familiar streets of Riverdale with practiced ease, the fading daylight casting long shadows across his path.

The designated meeting spot was a secluded corner of the schoolyard, away from prying eyes—where the aroma of fresh-cut grass lingered and where the laughter of students once filled the space during lunch breaks. Now, it was deserted, save for Jay's imposing figure leaning against the trunk of an old oak tree, a sentinel awaiting his comrade.

"Jay," Ezer panted, his academic endeavors no match for the physical exertion required in moments like these. "I came as fast as I could."

Jay's white hair, half-bleached by some quirk of his powers, seemed to glow in the twilight, and his tall frame straightened at Ezer's approach.

"Good," Jay replied, his voice calm yet carrying an undercurrent of tension that belied the gravity of their task. "We have work to do."

Ezer nodded, the weight of responsibility settling on his shoulders alongside the warmth of camaraderie. Together, they would face the unknown, their unlikely friendship forged in the fire of shared battles and summer's relentless surge.

3 - 4

Jay's eyes, sharp and discerning, scanned the horizon as if he could see beyond the fading light and into the heart of the city itself. His lips parted, not with hesitation but with precision, as he delivered the news.

"More sightings, Ezer," he said, his voice steady. "Downtown, the industrial district, even the suburbs. This isn't random—it's a pattern."

Ezer's mind, usually so attuned to the theoretical puzzles in his textbooks, now raced with the reality of their situation. He pushed up his glasses, his gaze locking onto Jay's.

"Any idea what they're after?" Ezer asked, his curiosity a beacon amidst the uncertainty.

"Nothing tangible. But we can't afford to wait for them to show their hand." Jay's hand went to the device at his belt, a compact piece of HDCRD tech that glinted ominously. "We need intel, and we need it fast."

"Split up?" Ezer suggested, already sifting through the mental map of their city, plotting trajectories and intersections. "Cover more ground?"

"Exactly." A nod from Jay was all the confirmation Ezer needed. They stood side by side for a moment longer, two silhouettes cast by the same relentless summer sun that had baked the schoolyard concrete beneath their feet.

"Be careful," Jay added, an afterthought that didn't quite mask the concern threaded through his words. It was the closest thing to an admission of fear either of them would allow.

"Always am," Ezer replied, a wry smile tugging at his lips. It was a dance of words they'd rehearsed before, each step familiar yet no less meaningful.

With a plan hastily formed but rooted in mutual trust, they parted ways—Jay towards the outskirts where the unknown awaited, and Ezer to the pulsing heart of Riverdale, where every shadow held potential danger and every cry for help carried the weight of their sworn duty.

The evening air cooled as Ezer moved through the streets, his thoughts drifting briefly to Aunt May's expectant dinner table, to the German phrases left unrecited. Yet those rhythms of daily life paled next to the thrumming urgency of his current mission—a mission that spoke to the very core of who he was becoming.

As the sun dipped below the skyline, casting long, intricate patterns across the pavement, Ezer felt the summer's breath on his neck, urging him forward. The laughter and camaraderie of high school seemed distant now, replaced by the gravity of the task at hand. And yet, within that solemnity, there was a profound sense of connection, a thread that tied him to Jay, to the city, to a world that was far stranger and more wonderful than any he had dared to imagine.

5 - 6

Ezer's sneakers slapped against the heated concrete, the rhythmic echo slicing through the hum of downtown Riverdale. Sunlight waned, surrendering to the encroaching dusk that painted the city in hues of orange and indigo. Skyscrapers loomed like silent sentinels above, their windows reflecting the fading day. He moved with purpose, eyes darting between alleys and rooftops, each shadow a potential hiding spot for things not bound by the familiar dimensions.

His breath came in steady puffs, his mind clear and focused, despite the gnawing anticipation that tugged at his nerves. The HDCRD communicator buzzed against his wrist, a constant reminder of the urgency pulsing through the city's veins. Ezer had always excelled under pressure—his parents' lofty expectations had seen to that—but this was a test beyond any academic challenge.

"Come on," he muttered under his breath, as if coaxing the creatures into visibility. His gaze fell upon the familiar storefronts, now empty as shopkeepers herded the last customers out, their faces etched with concern. Riverdale High School was only blocks away, its halls now devoid of laughter and youthful exuberance, replaced by an eerie silence that resonated with Ezer's pounding heart. 

A sudden scream shattered the stillness, and Ezer's head snapped toward the sound. Like a tide turning, a wave of people surged around the corner, their expressions wild with terror. They streamed past him, a blur of motion and fear. And behind them...

It emerged—a distortion in the air, a shimmering silhouette that twisted the light into grotesque shapes. The high-dimensional creature stalked forward, its form flickering between semi-transparency and a nightmarish solidity.

"Hey!" Ezer shouted, stepping forward. Instinctively, he reached within himself, summoning the courage that lay coiled beneath layers of scholarly discipline and quiet introspection. He darted towards the creature, waving his arms, a beacon of distraction.

"Over here! Look at me!" His voice was firm, more commanding than he'd ever heard it in the classroom or at the dinner table where his aunt's gentle questions about school awaited answers.

The creature paused, its many eyes—a constellation of malice—locking onto Ezer. With a roar that seemed to bend the very air, it changed course, barreling towards him.

Adrenaline surged, propelling him into motion. He feinted left, then rolled right, leading the creature away from the civilians. It was like the dodgeball games in gym class, but the stakes were infinitely higher. Every move, every breath was calculated, honed by years of fulfilling familial expectations with precision and dedication.

"Keep moving," Jay's voice echoed in his head, a reminder of their plan, of the bond they shared as defenders of a city caught between worlds.

Ezer glanced back, ensuring the path behind him was clear. The creature followed, relentless, but he was faster, more agile, weaving through the maze of parked cars and street vendors' abandoned stalls. Heat from the summer day radiated off the concrete, mingling with the cold sweat on his brow.

He couldn't lose focus, not now. Not when lives depended on him, when his connection to Jay, to Aunt May, to every soul in Riverdale tightened around his chest like a vice. 

"Come on, you interdimensional freak," he taunted, a wild grin breaking through his fear. It was a dance of survival, one he was determined to lead.

7 - 8

Jay materialized in a blur at the edge of the city, where suburban sprawl gave way to unkempt fields and forgotten structures. The summer air clung to him, thick with the scent of overripe fruit from nearby orchards now shadowed by the threat of another realm's chaos.

He paused for only a moment, allowing himself the briefest respite to acclimate. A bead of sweat traced the line of his jaw—a stark reminder of the human element within him that still played by Earth's rules. Jay's white hair, a stark contrast against the darkening sky, betrayed not a single sign of disarray despite the humidity and his rapid movement.

With precision that had become second nature, he tapped into his power once more, vanishing and reappearing in successive leaps that carried him closer to the source of disturbance. Each jump was metered by the pulse of danger that vibrated through the city's veins, a rhythm Jay had learned to read as fluently as the silent language of expectation spoken by parents back at Riverdale High.

The HDCRD's intel had been clear: a high-dimensional entity, one of considerable strength, had been wreaking havoc on the periphery of their protected zone. His duty was etched into every cell of his body, an obligation that ran deeper than the rigorous demands of academia that shaped his peers. Here, instead of grades and accolades, the stakes were survival—nothing less.

As he neared the source of the disturbance, the atmosphere shifted. The background noise of crickets and rustling leaves fell away, replaced by a silence so heavy it pressed against his eardrums. Jay's heart thrummed quietly beneath his ribs, its steady beat grounding him as he approached a deserted warehouse, its derelict walls a canvas for graffiti artists' vibrant defiance.

Stepping inside, the change was immediate—the charged air prickled against his skin, raising hairs on the nape of his neck. Dust motes danced in the jagged beams of light piercing the gloom, each particle seemingly suspended in time.

Then, there it was—a creature borne of a reality that defied physics as they knew it. Its form flickered inconsistently, edges blurring as if it couldn't quite decide on a shape. But its eyes—those were unmistakable. They glowed with an intensity that spoke of otherworldly malice, fixated on Jay with unnerving focus.

"Let's see what you're made of," Jay murmured, his voice barely rising above a whisper. Despite the weight of anticipation, his tone remained even, betraying none of the adrenaline that surged beneath his calm exterior.

The creature hissed, a sound that seemed to bypass air to vibrate directly within his chest. It moved first, a lunge that was both impossibly quick and agonizingly slow in the strange temporal distortion of the warehouse.

Jay sidestepped, his movements fluid, a dance he had practiced in countless simulations back at the HDCRD training center. He didn't need to look to know that behind those glowing eyes lurked a mind driven by instincts alien to this world. Yet here, amidst the dust and decay, a connection sparked—an acknowledgment of two beings caught in a battle neither truly desired.

"Come on," he coaxed, the words slipping out amidst the action like leaves caught in a summer breeze. "Show me your pattern."

He needed to understand it, to predict its next move. Only then could he signal Ezer, only then could they stand together against this encroaching darkness. In this moment, under the relentless gaze of those luminescent eyes, Jay felt the unspoken bond between them, a friendship forged in fire and solidified in the shared resolve to protect their city.

Awareness tingled at the back of his mind, a reminder of the HDCRD's mission, of the countless lives oblivious to the delicate fabric of reality tearing around them. With every evasive maneuver, every calculated risk, Jay honored that silent covenant.

This was his battlefield, as much as any classroom or meticulously set dinner table. And he would defend it with every ounce of his being.