//------------------------------// // Chapter 1: Orientation // Story: Heroes of Harmony // by Nova Arc //------------------------------// Monday morning was typical for Sparks... except that it was Summer holiday. He got up, looked at his clock, opened his curtains to let the sun warm his tan skin, then looked back at his clock to see he was late. Luckily, a guy with super speed as one of his abilities doesn't really need to worry. He took a good shower (even with super speed, there are some things you just can't rush), brushed his teeth, and put on a bright orange sweatshirt with holes in the sleeves for his thumbs, a black sleeveless hoodie, brown khakis, and black sneakers. He looked in the mirror and decided to go with pink and orange highlights on the right side only. He put on a pair of fingerless gloves, a pair of goggles around his neck, and looked at his watch. "Twenty minutes. Ten miles. I can so make it." He grabbed his backpack went down the stairs, he dialed a number on his phone. "Hey, Joe? You open? ... Great. Can I have the morning usual to go? Lightning express? ... Thanks a billion." He hit the last floor. "I'm heading out." As he said those words, a bolt of hot pink and orange slammed into him, knocking him to the ground. "NOOOOOO!" It cried. Sparks looked up to see his 10-year-old sister, Star, looking at him with puppy eyes. She was in a pink tank top, blue jeans, and flip-flops with her ginger hair packed behind her, save for a white streak. "No.. not the eyes! Anything but the eyes!" He said playfully, feigning suffering. "Nah!" He got up and picked her up with him and walked into the living room, where his sister was standing. "So, you gonna try to stop me too?" Blaze was twenty and about an inch or two taller than Sparks. She sporting a yellow shirt, blue khaki shorts, and flip-flops with her long ginger hair tied into a ponytail, save for a streak of red which on the right side of her face. "You gonna use your normal hair color anytime soon?" she teased back. Sparks sighed as he put down Star and ran his hand through his hair. As he did, the white turned to ginger, but the pink remained. "Happy?" "A bit... Eve." Sparks jumped at the name. "Please don't call me that. The first time my class heard that name, they thought I was a girl for the first two weeks of school." "Aw, but it's cute," said Blaze. "Besides, you don't have a problem with mom calling you that." "That's mom." His watch alarm went off. "Well, now I've got to double-time it. He said heading for the door, until a weight held down his leg. He turned to his little sister. "Look, Star. I have to go. I already agreed to go." There was a knock on the door and Sparks answered, revealing two men in black suits and ties with an alicorn badge on their breast pocket. "Just give me a minute." "NO!" Star shouted. "Go away! You can't take my big brother away from me again. Her hair flared out and her eyes glowed a fierce orange. The men reached for their tazers at their sides. "If you even think of tazing my sister," Sparks said, his eyes flaring up, "Don't blame me for what happens next." He knelt to face his sister. "Hey. Stop crying." She tried to stifle her cries as best she could. "Look, I know I went away for a long time before, but this time is different. I chose to go. So this time, I can visit whenever I want. How about every Saturday and Sunday and... any Wednesday I can manage? That way, There's at least two days we can hang out. How's that?" Star wiped her eyes and nodded, smiling faintly, and the tow embraced. Sparks stood up to hug Blaze. "You know I've still got links at MLP. If you need anything, run it by me and I'll help in any way I can. Okay?" Sparks nodded. "Wow. I'm traveling the world, you're gonna help save it, Star want's to be like you. We're all doing something, huh?" "Hehe. Yeah." He waved goodbye as he walked down the porch to a black sedan parked outside. He stood next to it for a moment before saying, "Seriously?" He put on his goggles and said, "Did you forget who I am? And that I'm late?" He put on his headphones and said, "See ya... in a few years," before taking off, leaving a gust of wind and a fading, mangled steam of blue, pink, orange, and silver. The agents got into the car. "Why did we even bother?" asked one. The other just shrugged. The Alicorn, Atlantic Ocean, 12:00... Sparks stood at the docks, spying the Alicorn in the middle of the ocean. He reached into his back and brought out his retractable skateboard, which he tweaked the same way he did with the bikes. He hopped onto the make-shift hoverboard and made his way to the airship. As he approached, a platform lowered to receive him and took him to the top, where he was surrounded by jump jets, gunships, fighter jets, and more. He headed for the entrance, waving to agents and pilots that passed him. Once he was in, he followed a series of hallways filled with agents in flight suits and body suits, working, chatting, and going about their lives. He made his way to the main office just a few hundred meters from the brig. The sliding doors had a golden sun motif covering the front. He knocked. "Come in," said a reply from inside. He walked into the bright room. The silver walls reflected the sunlight coming in from the large glass wall behind a mahogany-brown desk. A young woman with flowing hair of pink, blue, and green sat in the chair. She was wearing a light brown jacket over a white shirt, cream dress pants, and brown shoes. "Ah, Sparks. Right on time." She gestured for him to come in and have a seat. He chose to stand, though. "You wanted to see me? By the way, thanks for the weekend." "I'm sorry it was so short and we had to call you back so abruptly, but I need your help." Those were words you didn't hear from her everyday. "I'm assembling a new team. I was hoping you would be part of it." "Sure thing," said Sparks. "I'm always up to help any way I can. Plus, teamwork is my thing." "I should warn you though," Celestia added, "You may not get along with everyone." "We'll see about that. So, what's up?" "The sky." Silence. "Sorry, couldn't help it," she added, giggling. She handed him an MLP ID card. "You remember where the briefing room and armory are?" Sparks nodded. "Then that's where you're headed." The briefing room was kept simple. It was a circular room with a rather large table in the middle, which was actually a computer. There were several screens lined on the silver, gold, and blue walls. In the room, Sparks and Sunset, who was wearing a white shirt with a sun motif, pink capris, and orange sandals, were chatting as they waited for their new teammates. "I'm just saying," Sunset said, "If you put a phoenix and a dragon in a room, the phoenix is the only thing that would survive. It's immortal, as in, it can't die." "True," Sparks replied, "But a dragon's scales can only be pierced by another dragon. Beside, dragons breath fire and phoenixes are practically made of fire. There'd be no winner." As they continued, the door opened. In walked a woman clad in a black cloak, black body suit with white trim, and light gray boots. She had dark brownish-gray hair, orange-brown eyes, and fair skin. She looked around the room, holding a tablet. "So," she said, "You must be Sparks and Sunset?" They nodded. "Hi. My name is Raven. I'll be debriefing you on your mission." "Cool. Nice to meet you," Sunset said, shaking her hand. Sparks did the same. "Now, this mission will serve as an orientation test. You won't be sent into a firefight or Everfreed situation just yet... even though you tend to do that on your own." She dropped her tablet on the table and a 3D image of a boy with hair black on the left and white on the right. "Your mission is to recruit this boy. Double Digit. He's 16 years old and a late bloomer." "Meaning?" Sparks asked. "His powers didn't appear during the Event, but much more recently. He's a Breakout." "Okay. So what can he do?" "Besides having a brain that works like a super computer, he has the ability to self-replicate by absorbing energy to increase the rate of cellular regeneration. Once enough energy is absorbed, it's ejected with the excess cells and is formed in his image. Ease of destruction varies." "So he's a genius and a multiplier. Anything else we should know?" "He's stubborn, reckless, and has trust issues." "Then this should be easy," Sparks said as he and Sunset left. "Why's that?" He looked back as he steeped out. "Because you pretty much just described me." Los Pegasus Outskirts, 13:00... Sparks and Sunset were in the quiet neighborhood Double Digit was said to be living. "Nice, quiet... I should move here," said Sparks. "I though your neighborhood was already nice and quiet," replied Sunset. "Yeah, well, I'm looking for something new." They approach a house and knocked on the door. "So apparently, he lives alone here. His mom's an alcoholic that's usually out most of the time at who-knows-where doing who-knows-what." The door was opened by a teenage boy with spikey black and white hair, divided in the middle and blue eyes wearing a red sweatshirt and blue jeans. "Double Digit?" He stared at them for a while before shoving Sparks into Sunset and darting back into the house, slamming the door behind him. "Well, this just got interesting." "So, what now?" Sunset asked as they got up. "Now, we chase." Manehattan, Private Airfield, Unknown Location, 13:05... "So let me get this straight." Relay was still trying to wrap her head around everything Zecora had told them. She had given them a place to stay for the weekend and promised she would explain everything once she had "cleared protocol". They were now at a private airfield, waiting for someone. "You're part of an organization that protects the world for metahumans and monsters, using schools and front to look for promising metas and using another school, that I can't find, to train them to used their powers to protect the world AND you existed as a standard peace-keeping organization before all the craziness. Did I just about cover it?" Zecora nodded. "And Frost," she added, punching his shoulder hard, "Was a junior agent who was called in at times he was needed?" Another nod. She looked to Frost. "Study partners, huh?" Frost shrugged. "He was sworn to secrecy in order to ensure your own safety," Zecora said. Suddenly, her phone rang. She picked the call and walked a few feet away. "So... secret hero-agent... what do I make of that?" she asked, turning to Frost. Frost shrugged and smiled. "That I'm awesome." "You know you could've told me." "Yeah. But it was safer not to. Just in case the guy didn't go down for good." Zecora came back and asked, "How would you like to be a part of our training school... for a start?" The two looked at each other. Relay shrugged. "Not sure if my job or my classmates would care if I went missing for... forever," she said. "Besides, it'd be cool to be able to use my powers without caring who's watching." Zecora's phone beeped. "Our flight has arrived. Time to decide." Frost thought for a moment. He had never really used his powers on other metas except when he was called by MLP. "Meh. Why not," he said, finally. "Might as well be part of the whole thing." Los Pegasus Outskirts, 13:20... "Dang! This guy can run," Sparks said as he and Sunset chased after Double. The boy may have looked scrawny, but apparently, that just streamlined him. They had left the neighborhood and were now in a forest. Sparks had decided not to use his super speed to avoid getting lost. "Where is he?" he asked as they stopped to survey the surroundings. "There!" cried Sunset as a blast of teal energy left her hand and curved behind a tree, knocking the boy out from behind it. "Gotcha!" As they approached, the boy's body shimmered, then dissipated into what looked like bright blue pixels. "What the-? It was a clone!" Sparks looked around. "You can't run forever. Sooner or later, you'll have to fight us off." "What are you doing?" asked a confused Sunset. "Riling him up. It's what MLP did to get me out of the plasma shield I was in back in Manehattan. How do you think they got me? Come on! At least show us that you can handle yourself!" "I CAN!" They turned and saw him standing behind them. "Wow. You fell for that?" Sparks zipped behind him, cutting off his likely escape route. "Dude, you'll need an army to take on us." "Don't you know," Double said smiling, "I am an army!" With that, a swarm of copies split from the original and surrounded him. "Saw that one coming," said Sunset, taking a fighting stance. "But did he see this coming?" Sparks shot past the swarm, punching, pushing, and jumping his way through the growing sea of clones. Some tried to grab him, resulting in the loss of his hoodie, but he reached the central on and tackled him to the ground. He held him up as Sunset shot a sleep spell at him, which struck his chest. He collapsed on the ground. "Something isn't right..." "What?" asked Sunset. "If he was the prime, shouldn't the others go down, having no central command to control them?" They saw the small army chargin towards them, then looked down to see the body they caught dissipated. "He must be in the crowd," Sunset said, as they fought off the copies. "It's the last place he'd expect us to find him." Sparks thought as he fought, looking for the one that seemed to keep his distance from the action, but they were all swarming in. Then it hit him. "He's not here," he said, flinging one clone into a group with a kinetic blast. "He's still in the house!" "Wait... What?!" Back in the house, Double was packing as much of his stuff as possible into a rather large duffle bag. "First was mom, then the government, now this?! I really need to leave. Actually, I should've left years ago." He picked up his bag and ran down the stairs. As he opened the front door, he was knocked back by an invisible force with a pink shimmer. He was lifted up by another and looked down to see himself wrapped in what looked like teal mist. "Dude... we just... wanted... to talk," Sparks said between breaths. "Why'd you have to go all killer instinct on us?" The boy remained silent. "Okay, my friend here's gonna put you down, as long as you promise to not run and hear us out... and actually think about what we say. Deal?" The boy remained silent for a while. Finally, he said, "Deal." Sunset let him down slowly. He didn't run. Instead, he went into the kitchen and grabbed a soda from the fridge. "So, what're you selling?" he asked as he drank his soda. "If anything, a chance at a better life," said Sparks. "My life is fine." "Dude, not to pry into your personal business, but no it's not. It's anything but fine. When's the last time you actually slept in your bed?" Double looked confused. "What are you talking about?" "After your powers came up about two weeks ago? The first time people saw what you could do? They came here and tried to attack you. So you used a clone instead and stayed up all night trying to keep it present so they'd think they'd gotten rid of you. Then you'd pop the clone to make it seem like it was over after a few of their raids. But you're still too scared to lie down on it, aren't you?" Both Sunset and Double looked at Sparks, the latter expressing his shock a bit more clearly. "What, are you psychic? Or have you been stalking me? Bugging my house?" Double said angrily. Sparks chuckled. "No, no, and no. I've just been in your position. The only difference is that my case was everywhere I went for the next two months after I got my powers. Even now. Actually, I was attacked by my own classmates a few days ago." "D'you kill 'em?" "Nope." "Why the hell not?" "Because that would prove to them I was a monster and that I didn't have a place here. Plus, it's bad for publicity," he added jokingly. "At least at this new school, I can use my powers without being judged about being different. Plus, I can use them whenever I want... mostly. It is a school." "If your selling school, I ain't buying," said Double. "We're not selling school," said Sunset, "I'm not selling anything. If anything, we're telling you that there's actually a place where you won't be seen as a freak by anyone. You'll be... normal there." Double thought for a while. He was tired of having to hide from mobs and his drunk mother and using his clones to protect himself. He was tired of just managing when he knew there was something better. He was tired of living in a shell. "Where is it?" "Are you in?" asked Sunset. Double sighed. "Why the hell not? If it's better, I'll take it from another meta. But if you try anything funny-" "You'll crush us with an army of you. Yeah, we got that," said Sunset, stretching her arms. "Not a fan of the idea." "Cool. So, when do we leave?" "No time like the present," said Sparks. "You've already packed, apparently," he gestured to the duffle bag. Suddenly, there was a bag on the front door, followed by a loud CRASH. "DOUBLE DIGIT, YOU LITTLE SHIT! HOW MANY TIMES HAVE I TOLD YOU NOT TO LOCK THE DAMN DOOR!!!" "Crap! It's my mom. And she. Is. Smashed!" Double panicked as the plump woman made her way into the room. "Boy, who the hell are these?" she asked with a slight slur. "You know what? I don't care. Now get the hell out of my house! I need to speak with my son." "Um... are you... oaky, ma'am?" asked Sparks. "Maybe you should-" "YOU TELLING ME WHAT TO DO IN MY OWN HOUSE! GET OUT BEFORE I GET VIOLENT!" She ran to the cupboard and pulled out a hunting rifle, cocked it, and aimed it between Sunset and Sparks. "GIT!" "Sunny?" signaled Sparks. Sunset whipped her hands up and shot a bolt of magic at the woman. On impact, she slumped to the ground, snoring. "Okay, let's take advantage of this, shall we?" said Sparks as they headed for the door, which was now lying across the ground. "Sorry about your mom," he said to Double. "Don't worry about it," he replied. "Better than what I would've done." 32,000ft above Sea Level, 13:30... "We'll be arriving in half an hour," said Zecora. "Till then, why not tell me how you came about your powers?" "Well," Frost started, "There isn't much to tell. During the Event, I was at home. I went to the fridge and saw the blast from the window. I fell unconscious and when I came to, the ground beneath me was frozen, both my parents were standing over me worried, and my skin felt unusually cold. They took me to a hospital and the doctor said I was fine... except that my body temperature was in a constant state of flux, going from normal to below possible and back in minutes. Next day, I was discharged and everything I touched froze over, so I had to wear gloves for a while. A few days later, we go back for a checkup to see why I keep freezing stuff. Doctor diagnoses that my body emits a unique type of plasma that suck up heat instead of emitting heat. I try to stretch out after the tests, and a bolt of energy shoots out of my hand and freezes the door shut. Took over an hour for them to chip through the ice." Zecora listened intently to his story, then said, "You must have been scared at the new discovery. How about the recovery?" "Well, for a while, I was too scared to even leave my room, which had turned into a winter wonderland, and too scared to touch anything... or anyone. But then I saw some metahuman who saved a bunch of people from a collapsing construction sight. It was cheesy, but it gave me the courage to actually get out and try to do something useful with my powers. During a heat wave, I was the neighborhood hero. Then, there was a fire in our neighbor's house. I got in, saved the family, and stopped the fire. Even managed to freeze broken supports so the house wouldn't just collapse. Things just moved on from there." Zecora nodded. "Many understand what you have felt." She turned to Relay. "How about you? How was your hand dealt?" Relay sighed. "Well... I was kinda orphaned since I was 5. My parents didn't feel like they were up for the responsibility and they weren't entirely sure about putting me up for adoption. I got gifts and letters from them occasionally, though. Like on my birthday. One time, they sent me a camera. During the night of the Event, I saw the lights and wanted to take a picture of them, but we were a bit far. So I snuck out and took a train to Canterlot City, since it wasn't too far. I attached my camera to a toy drone and hacked a nearby Wi-Fi signal with my phone to try to boost the range." She paused. "Bad, but impressive. So I saw the rainbow, but something hit the drone. When went I picked it up, the blast hit me while I was holding it. When I woke up, I was suddenly able to see into the drone and camera, both of which had gone bust. But the weirder thing is that knew how to fix it and what I needed. Just for amusement, I scavenged some parts from behind a toy store. To my surprise, I was actually able to fix the drone. The next day, I kept hearing odd, high-pitch sounds and I kept seeing these bubbles attached to each other by a series of... streams, I guess. When I tried to wave them off, they expanded into pictures, videos, internet pages... I was freaking out. Many of the kids at the orphanage called me weird because of that. A few days later, our caretaker decided to take me to a hospital. She was nice. Managed with what we had. The doctor ran some tests and said that, somehow, my brain was reading electromagnetic signals. The noise was me picking up the frequency and the bubbles were my brain's way of identifying the signals and accessing them... like a Wi-Fi or central operating system in my head. I was able to use these signals to interact with electronics telepathically; switch on, switch off, download, upload, intercept calls and messages... then came the day when I discovered some of the bubbles actually let me see through electronics with cameras, be it on a cellphone or on a traffic light. I decided to help out the orphanage, so... I sorta kinda maybe took a job working with a growing gang? I helped them hack traffic cams, security systems, and radios to help them with their "business transactions." She sighed. "Not one of my proudest moments, but two good things came out of it." "And what would these happen to be?" asked Zecora. "Well, I was able to help out the orphanage and I met Frost," she said, gesturing to the boy. "Two months ago, we wanted out, but the gang leader, Capo, wanted me to help him build explosives; small enough to fit in his pocket, strong enough to take out a house. I said no. He didn't take too kindly to it. I wasn't ungrateful, or anything. I, and some others in the orphanage, were still able to afford to go to school because of the money he gave me for the orphanage, but I already felt guilty. So we left. I got a job at an electronics store... then lost it about a week ago when my jerk-of-a-boss got on my nerves about selling the wrong brand. I blew a fuse... along with all the fuses in the store... and the merchandise... and then he fired me. So I just started a repair service in the apartment we bought with thug money and managed from there." "You knew what you were doing was wrong, and stepping away from it is what makes you strong. You are both no different from many I've met, so you'll get along fine in the school, I bet. But we'll find out in a while, we'll be landing in just a few miles." The two looked out the window and saw they had arrived at their destination: Canterlot City.