WEEK SIX

The Upstarts spent a large part of their day making posts on a variety of social media platforms expressing their thoughts about the Neutronium process, on each other and whatever was happening in the news with all posts being approved by the PR team. Da Mutt wrote a post about Kyle which read, “Hustle is salty about literally everything” while Kyle tweeted back, “Da Mutt says he’s a good rapper but he hasn’t put anything online. I wonder why?” Levison loved the drama between the two boys and encouraged them to continue. There were some tweets that were not approved, however.

“Craig just sent me a message,” Alexis stormed into the living room where Kyle, Dante and Kaley were sprawled out on the furniture, “He said I couldn’t make posts about the conflict in Columbia.”

“What’s going on in Columbia?,” Kaley asked.

“The cartels are pretty much taking over coastal towns. They have high-tech weapons and shit so the cops can’t stop them. They might have to use the military.”

“I saw something about that,” Dante added, “They think some guys in Costa Triste are selling weapons.”

“It’s not surprising,” Kyle spoke up, “They say Costa Triste’s government is really run by a criminal group. It’s crazy over there.”

“Yeah but like, the CIA were the ones who gave Costa Triste weapons to begin with,” Alexis corrected him.

“Only to fight Communists,” Kyle said defensively and then turned to Dante, “What do you think?”

“I dunno, man,” Dante said softly as he didn’t want to be involved in the argument, “I think the US just wanted their own guys in charge so they overthrew the old government.”

“Exactly,” Alexis said loudly.

“Can we go one day without arguing?,” Kaley muttered.

Da Mutt exploded into the room, waving his phone at Kyle. “Yo, you put me on blast about my rapping? You wanna know why I don’t put my material online?”.

“Because you suck?,” Kyle chuckled.

“I need time to perfect my style. Ya’ll only heard a few bars while I was practicing, that’s why it didn’t sound good. This shit takes time, bruh. Da Vinci didn’t paint the Sistine Chapel in a day!”

“Da Vinci didn’t paint the Sistine Chapel at all, dumbass. That was Michelangelo.”

“Seriously, just one day,” Kaley muttered again.

“Alexis even said you don’t know anything about rap,” Da Mutt shoved a finger at Alexis.

“Yeah, but I also said you sucked,” Alexis made another correction.

“Dante, you heard me rap,” Mutt sharply turned to Dante and waited for an answer, “Not bad, right?”

“It kinda needs some work, man,” Dante said despite once again being involved in an argument he wanted no part in.

“I like that you always agree with me,” Alexis said happily.

“Hey, I do too,” Kaley plopped down on the couch next to them and hugged them tightly.

“Ya’ll corny. When I get a recording deal..,” Da Mutt trailed off as he looked out the window and shouted, “Yo, is that aliens?”

The teens rushed to the window with Kyle reaching it first. “Are the aliens back?,” Kaley said in a slight panic. “It’s not aliens,” Kyle gave a disappointed glance at Da Mutt then turned his attention to the window again, “That is Rex Robinson.” The ship known as Hyperion’s Light hovered over the mansion, casting a large shadow that blocked the hot Californian sun. Suddenly, Craig Levison materialized in the room, “Everyone run a comb through your hair or something. We’re meeting in the foyer in five.”

Seconds later, Craig marched down the hall with a camera crew behind him and just as he got to the front entrance, the doorbell rang. He opened the door and greeted Rex Robinson happily, “Rex, how long has it been? Please come in.”

“Hello, Craig,” Rex entered and looked past Craig’s shoulder at the camera crew.

Craig didn’t notice Rex’s attention had been drawn and continued, “I just wanna thank you again for agreeing to have a little training session with the kids to test their powers. This means a lot to -“

“Craig,” Rex interrupted, “I think I must apologize. I recall having a conversation with you about this training session and I thought I asked you not to bring your camera crew and yet, they’re present. I must have forgotten to tell you that,” Rex’s eyes narrowed slightly, “Correct?”

Craig began to stammer, “Y’know, now that you mention it, I remember you saying something about not having cameras around. Who knows, right?,” he quickly turned to the crew, “Alright, people, let’s give Mr. Robinson some space. Maybe shoot b-roll stuff until we’re finished.”

“I’m not interested in a TV show. I only want to make sure the kids are in control of their powers,” Rex told Craig cautiously, “So they’ll be safe. I still have my lab in the Catskills which has an exercise facility that’s perfect for training.”

“Oh, we have a gym here at the mansion.”

“I’m aware of that,” Rex stated plainly, “We should be back by lunchtime.”

Hyperion’s Light flew across the continental US in a flash. The teens sat in the passenger cabin which included window views, entertainment consoles at each seat and robots serving snacks. The teens mostly sat back, enjoying the snacks and scanning the entertainment consoles with one exception.

“This is dope,” Dante said as he pressed his face against the window, “I never even been in a plane before.”

“Rex Robinson is a national hero,” Kyle said, “My father once met him. Rex was addressing the entire Senate but -“

“No one gives a shit about your dad, bruh,” Kyle sneered.

“He’s a tool for Western propaganda,” Alexis explained, “Can we even trust him?”

“He beat the aliens,” Kaley reminded them, “Like by himself.”

The ship slowed down as it neared the Catskill Mountains. Rex’s lab was a tall compound built into a mountaintop with a large landing platform for Hyperion’s Light. Soon, the teens found themselves in a fortified, hexagonal room with gray robots lined up along the far side of the room and some training equipment to the side. “I use this facility to exercise but I think it’s suitable for you,” Rex said warmly, “I’d like to see what you’re capable of. Who’s first?”

“I can go first,” Da Mutt strode forward with a hand raised, “I can hear, see and pick up scents real good. I also got a boost in speed, strength and agility. Check this.” Mutt flipped forward, clearing several feet before landing on a robot’s shoulders, pressed his feet against the neck, then did a back flip that threw the robot across the room.

“You have a lot of confidence,, young man,” Rex clapped his hands enthusiastically, “So who’s next?”

“I can make portals,” Kaley raised her hand.

“Okay,, I’d love a demonstration if you don’t mind.”

She twirled a finger, creating a basketball-sized ring of sparkling energy in the air. “I’m supposed to be able to create an exit portal too but I kinda haven’t figured that out yet.”

Rex gave her a reassuring smile, “Keep trying and I’m sure you’ll succeed.”

“Sir, I would like to go next,” Kyle stepped forward in a militant fashion and unbeknownst to him, Da Mutt sarcastically mimicked his stance behind his back.

“Sure, although you really don’t have to call me, sir. Rex is fine.”

Kyle darted forward and disappeared in a blur of motion. The blur lapped the room several times, kicking up a strong wind before he came back, tripping over his feet as he tried to come to a stop, then face-planted. Da Mutt laughed loudly, which elicited a glare from Kyle.

“You have superspeed but not superhuman reaction time,” Rex stated curiously.

“They said if I had full superspeed, I’d see everything in slow motion so they just gave me this.”

“It’s an uphill battle but with enough work, you can master it.”

“I can go next, I guess,” Alexis reached out and their arm stretched across the room and then snapped back in place like a rubber band, “That’s it. I’m just stretchy.”

“Shapeshifting has benefits in a fight,” Rex told them, then turned to Dante, “Now let’s see what you can do, Mr. Greer.”

“So I absorb kinetic energy or whatever and use it as super strength,” he squatted down and slapped his palm against the floor three times. After the impact, he looked at his hand and could see it vibrating slightly like an idling car engine. He noticed a tall slab with a target at the top and pointed to it, “Can I use that?”. Rex motioned for him to continue. Dante approached the target, balled up his fist and when he struck, the slab bent in half and was thrown several feet and the padded floor. “Sorry,” Dante apologized. “Don’t be,” Rex placed his hands on his hips and smiled at the group, “I think it’s time to have a training session anyway. I doubt it’ll be the last thing broken by the end of the afternoon.”

Minutes later, the Upstarts all stood at different corners of the hexagon-shaped room with Rex at the sixth corner. The grey robots all stood in the center. The rules were simple: each robot would fly around the room and the teens would have to physically tag the robots. Each teen had a sensor on their right hands which counted the number of robots being tagged and at the end of the session, the one with the most tags would be the winner. A bell went off and they leapt into action.

Kyle dashed across the room and tagged three before they all lifted into the air, making it very difficult to tag any more. Alexis stretched their arms out, tagging two. Dante, meanwhile, stood silent and began to think since, if he didn’t absorb any kinetic energy, he wasn’t any stronger than a normal teenage boy. Da Mutt ran past him, bumping into his shoulder. “Sorry, bruh,” Da Mutt kicked off the wall and sailed into the air where he tagged a passing robot. Once knocked on the ground, Dante noticed a decent amount of energy stored inside him and felt it vibrating through his body. Kaley stood on the other side of the room, desperately trying to make a large portal.

Kyle darted to one side of the room, braced himself and ran across, running up the wall at high velocity before kicking off to tag a passing robot, then he tried to leap to the next wall and run down. While he made the jump, he didn’t quite gain the traction needed to run vertically and began to fall, “Shit!”. Rex ran across the room, then jumped and caught him.

“Thank you, Rex,” Kyle said as he caught his breath.

“It was a clever move but you probably shouldn’t try something like that without protective gear.”

Dante crouched down, gathering as much strength as he could, then threw himself into the air with a superhumanly propelled leap. He tagged a robot but was immediately clipped by a second one and spun back to the ground where he took a hard landing on his back. “Are you okay, Dante?,” Rex asked. Dante stood up, feeling a surge of energy inside him, “I’m… great!”

Kaley created a one-sided portal in the air in hopes of trapping a robot. “Okay, now the exit,” she thought to herself and twirled her free hand, creating another portal across the room. The view from inside the portals paralleled each other, creating a passage from one side of the room to the next. A robot flew into one portal and passed out the exit on the other side of the room, which sent it hurtling into a wall. Once it hit the floor, Kaley quickly rushed to it and tagged it, “I got one.” Above, Alexis had latched onto a flying robot and was flailing behind it as it flew; their elongated legs flapped in the air as it looped around the room. Finally, they let go and while in freefall, began to make themselves rubbery in order to absorb the impact. They hit the floor and bounced at a strange angle. Kaley was hit and they both tumbled over with Alexis on top. As they laid on the floor, they looked into each others’ eyes and smiled.

Nearby, Dante launched himself into the air again to tag a robot. This time, he hit it too hard, causing it to shatter. Dante landed on the floor and what was left of the robot hit the farthest wall. “Damn, sorry,” Dante said apologetically. Da Mutt ran past him, “This is too easy!” As a robot flew in low, he tried to make a move toward it, but Kyle ran into his path to tag it first. All three collided and rolled along the ground just as the final buzzer sounded.

“That’s the end,” Rex called out and took a look at his tablet, “It seems Kyle had the most points at six. Da Mutt had four and Alexis had three.”

“You knocked me down, dumbass,” Mutt shouted as he rose to his feet.

“You got in the way,” Kyle shouted back.

“That’s enough you two,” Rex warned.

“Hey, second place’s not bad,” Kyle said with a smirk, “At least you’re better at this than you are at rapping.”

“Gonna make you swallow your teeth!”

Da Mutt threw a punch but Kyle jerked his head back at high speed. Da Mutt followed through with a shoulder thrust that sent Kyle sliding along the floor. Rex calmly placed his tablet down and approached. Mutt ran to Kyle for a follow-up attack but Kyle got to him first and hit him with a punch that sent him flying to the other side of the room. As he continued to run, Rex caught Kyle by the ankle and flipped him on his back. Da Mutt shot to his feet and made a long jump across the room, but Rex snatched him out of the air and put him on his back next to Kyle. Both teens remained quiet on the floor, looking up at Rex who crossed his arms over his chest, “Both of you go for a walk… in opposite directions. Come back when your heads are cool.”

Rex later sent them home. For the most part, they were quiet and when they arrived at the mansion, they shot the footage Craig asked them to without saying much about their training session. That night, Rex stood on the roof of his Catskills lab, drinking a hot cup of tea. Soon, a flying car appeared on the horizon and made its way to the small landing pad on the roof. Once it came to a rest, Ryan Bennings emerged.

“So how’d they do today?,” Ryan asked.

“You’re right to be concerned,” Rex sipped his tea, “They’re young and certain behaviors are expected but they aren’t battle ready. I’m afraid the government is being careless by funding this program and I suspect it has much to do with Senator Jackson’s political aspirations for his son.”

“Meanwhile, Levison is more concerned with a TV show. Maybe the kids will be lucky and not have to fight any major threats in the near future.”

“The Upstarts Program is partially government funded. They’ll use them eventually.”

“So what’s the plan?”

“I think you should keep an eye on them. Even if it means going behind Levison’s back.”

“Protecting child celebrities while doing something Levison doesn’t want me to?,” Ryan scratched his chin, “Yeah, I can do that.”