“Man, that’s good thinking!” Adam said.
“Yeah, Jason is into thinking, as I am into burping and farting,” Zeke said.
“How do we win them over?” Tanya asked.
Jason grabbed a handful of nuts that were in a bowl. “Let’s hope the squirrels are like the ones on Earth and go nuts for nuts!”
I smiled. Man, Jason was smart!
Dear Diary: We’ve now met the other teams, and while they’re all interesting and impressive, I feel we can certainly compete with them. Talking with Jason and hearing him size up our competition, makes me feel much better. I really think we have a chance to win this. Truthfully, when we first arrived, I was a little scared. I thought we might have been in over our heads. After all, we are only teens. But knowing that Jason has such a good grasp on the situation makes me feel better. I don’t know why I’m surprised. Jason’s always been there for me in the past. And I’m sure that will never change.
Decisions
After the meet and greet, the boys went to Jason’s room to play video games. The girls all went to my room to talk. I thought we were going to talk about the other teams and what our plans should be.
Instead, Tanya sat on my bed next to me and asked. “So, how’s life?”
“We’re on a different planet somewhere, in what seems to be a different universe, getting ready to fight a bunch of superbeings; which means business as usual,” I replied.
“I talking about the guys?” Tanya said.
“Isn’t Zeke dreamy?” Luna beamed.
“Yeah, I guess,” I said. “If you like the greenish zombie type.”
“He’s not totally terrible,” Tanya replied. “But no, I’m not talking about him. I’m talking about the other two.” She nudged me. “I’m just wondering what your thoughts are about Jason and Adam.”
“I know their names,” I said.
“Yes, but what’s your status?” Tanya coaxed.
“I’m single. I’m kind of committed to changing the world. That takes up a lot of time. Plus, there is school, and I like to hang out with my non-super friends.”
“You’re saying that both boys are a possibility?” Tanya asked.
Luna gave me an anxious look. “You’re staying away from Zeke, right?”
“You don’t have to worry about Zeke,” Tanya said. She leaned into me and smiled. “But what are your thoughts on Adam these days?”
I grinned. “He’s cute and strong and he’s also dedicated. He’s got cool powers. He’s great in a fight.”
“Now, what about Jason?” Tanya probed.
“I’ve known him forever. He’s my best bud; the boy I’ve known since I was a little kid. He knows me well. I know him well.”
“What you’re saying is that you know him,” Tanya said, teasing me a bit with her tone.
“Yes, exactly,” I replied with a nod.
“Do you want to be more than just best buds?” Tanya pried.
“Wait? Are you interested in Jason again? You guys were already a couple once,” I reminded her.
“Nah, Jason is a bit too, well, Jason for me. He’s nice enough, and he’s kind and sweet…”
I rolled my eyes. “I can see where those would turn-offs.”
“But he’s just too good, too blah for my tastes,” Tanya replied. “Adam, on the other hand...”
“Adam is a super dedicated superhero. He’s a really good guy too,” I said.
Tanya nodded. “True, and there’s a fire inside of him.”
I thought about that for a minute. I wasn’t sure what Tanya was suggesting. I did like Adam. I liked him a lot. But perhaps Tanya liked him even more. “Adam and I are great teammates and friends!” I admitted. “But I think that’s all.”
Tanya’s smile widened. “Great!”
Luna shot over next to me. She looked at me curiously. “Does that mean you want to be with Jason?”
Her smile widened. “If it works out between you two, you can double date with Zeke and me!”
“Let’s take it one step at a time,” I told her.
Tanya grinned. “Do you think you might want to change your relationship status with Jason?”
I sighed. The force of my breath knocked them both over. “Oops, sorry!” They both looked at me from their spots on the floor.
“Does that mean you need to think it over?” Tanya prodded.
“It means I don’t know what I want!” I replied. “Sorry I knocked you guys over with my breath. Just be glad I avoided the onion dip at dinner.”
“So glad,” Tanya said.
“Ditto!” Luna said.
Dear Diary: I like Jason. I like him a lot. He’s my best friend. He’s always been my best friend. I also like Adam. But maybe only as a friend, which is just as well because I think Tanya might like him!
As for Jason, maybe I want to be more than friends. I’m just worried about what could happen if we become more, then we become less…I couldn’t stand not having Jason in my life!
Quiz Time
The next morning, after a delicious team breakfast, Val escorted us outside to a strange looking track. At the track, we met the other teams. They all hovered around some interesting looking six seat vehicles that looked a lot like hotdogs with windows.
“I’m guessing those car things have something to do with the first round,” Zeke said.
“Very good, Zeke,” Val said as she led us past the Amazon team. The Amazons glared at Tanya, Luna, and I. They smiled at Jason, Adam and Zeke. Of course, Adam and Jason waved and smiled back at the Amazon women.
Zeke took Luna’s hand and shuddered a bit. “They’re cute, but they scare me…”
Yep, when it came to the Amazons, Zeke seemed smarter than the two boys. Hard to believe, but true.
I stepped between Jason and Adam and said, “Don’t let those girls trick you.”
“Trick us?” Adam said.
“Trick us?” Jason repeated.
Tanya leaned in and said. “They’re playing mind games with you, to throw you off your game. They’re good. I give them that.”
“No, they're just friendly,” Adam insisted.
Tanya laughed, shaking her head. “Oh, Adam, you are so sweet and naïve.”
“Say what?” he gulped.
Jason looked at the six beautiful Amazons. He smiled. They smiled back at him with even wider smiles. He turned to me. “Oh my, they are playing with us!”
“Yes, they sure are!” I exclaimed.
“I know what they’re doing but I still kind of like it,” Jason replied. “Does that make me weak?”
Putting my hand on his shoulder, I told him, “Nah, just male.”
“Well then, yes, kind of weak,” Tanya said, mostly kidding.
The door to our hotdog mobile popped open. Val directed us inside it. There were six seats next to the six windows. Val stepped on board and cleared her throat to get our attention. We all turned to her. “The first phase of the contest is very simple. You must get from here to a predetermined point and then back.”
“Ah, Val, there’s no driver’s seat or steering wheel, or anything,” Zeke noted.
Val nodded. “The vehicle is computer powered. For you to make it move, you must answer questions about each other. The better the answer, the faster and farther the vehicle will move.”
“Oh, so this is a test of our team knowledge about one another,” Adam said.
Val nodded. “Correct.”
“I like this!” Zeke grinned.
“I like our chances here!” Jason commented.
Val smiled and walked towards the door. “The contest will commence the second that I exit,” Val said as she walked out the door.
A holographic smiley face appeared in the middle of the vehicle. Music started playing. The lights flashed.
“Oh, I love this!” Zeke said.
“Please sit,” the smiley face told us.
We all sat.
“The first question is for everyone except Lia. What is Lia
’s favorite color?”
“Red!” Adam said.
“Red and Yellow!” Jason said.
“Orange,” Zeke said, “Cause that’s red and yellow combined.”
“No idea…” Tanya said.
“Pink?” Luna asked.
“The correct answer is red and yellow!” the smiley face replied. We felt the vehicle lift into the air and move forward.
“What is Tanya’s fave food?” the smiley asked.
“What does this have to do with anything?” Tanya demanded.
“Tanya, you may not play this round!” the smiley told her.
“Ah, rice?” Jason said.
“Ah, beans,” Adam guessed.
“Ah, sticks!” Zeke sniggered. “Everybody likes sticks!” he added.
“Knowing Tanya, she doesn’t have a favorite food,” I said.
“Ice cream?” Luna guessed.
The smiley winked. “Lia is correct!”
“I knew it!” I said, jumping up and pumping my arm into the air.
The vehicle moved forward.
Looking out the window, I saw we were lagging behind two other teams.
The smiley grinned. “Next, what is Luna’s shoe size!”
“Oh… six!” Zeke said. “And her feet never smell!”
“Six,” Tanya agreed. “I have an eye for shoes.”
“No idea…” Jason and Adam both said.
“Seven…” I said.
“Good job, Zeke and Tanya!” the smiley told them.
Zeke smirked. “I know my gal!”
“What is Jason’s favorite food?” the smiley asked.
“Fried chicken!” Tanya, Adam, Zeke and I all said at once.
Luna shrugged. “Sorry, except for Zeke, I never pay that much attention to what people like to eat.”
“Wow, is it that obvious?” Jason asked.
“Yes,” Tanya, Adam and I said.
“Now, what is Zeke’s middle name?” the smiley asked.
“Bart!” Adam and Luna both shouted.
“No idea!” I said.
“I’ve got nothing, sorry, man,” Jason said.
“Annoying?” Tanya said.
“Oh, I like that one, cause it’s unique, but no, it’s Bart!” Zeke said.
We felt the vehicle move again.
Luna looked at Tanya. “Tanya, I understand you like to joke, but I must admit I get offended when you refer to my Zeke as annoying.”
“Sorry,” Tanya said. “It was a joke… mostly.”
Luna crossed her arms. “Well, I, for one, did not find it funny.”
Zeke got up and stepped between the two girls. “I did. I love Tanya’s sense of humor. I laugh when she makes jokes about other people or me. I don’t mind if she does it!”
Luna sat back in her chair. “Well, I do!”
Luna’s reaction was unexpected. She happened to be the most mellow and friendly person I knew. Well, she was an elf, and elves are known for being nicer than nice. But now I could see she felt aggravated around Tanya. Still, it seemed out of character.
Tanya rolled her eyes. “Fine. Whatever!” she said, turning away from Luna.
“Look at me when I am scolding you, young lady!” Luna said.
Tanya shot her head back towards Luna. “What did you say?”
“I may look young, but that’s because we elves age slowly. I’ve been around for a while. I know RUDE when I see it!”
Well now, that might have explained some of Luna’s attraction to Zeke.
Zeke held out his arms. “I can’t believe I’m going to say this, but please don’t fight over me!”
“Actually, they’re fighting about you, not over you!” Jason corrected.
“Hey, be nice to my best buddy!” Adam said, pointing at Jason.
Jason activated his armor. Adam turned his arms into beams of energy.
Their reactions were really out of character.. Sure, the two boys could be competitive, but never violent with each other. Something happened to be downright amiss. I closed my eyes and started breathing in deeply. I needed to concentrate. I wanted to see if I could pick up anything strange; anything that was out of whack.
Tanya and Luna both stood up and were crackling with energy. Jason and Adam grabbed each other like they wanted to squeeze the life out of the other person’s arms. I had to stop this and fast.
Inhaling and exhaling, I heard a voice. No, many voices. They were all chanting… You will fight. You will fight. You will argue.
I thought back at those thoughts. No, no, we won’t! I don’t know how I did it, but I concentrated on pushing those thoughts out of our vehicle. I grabbed them with my mind and flicked them outside.
I heard even more thoughts. This time, they were chaotic… Hey, how did you do that? You shouldn’t be able to do that. Nobody has ever done that to us before!
“Well, folks, or should I say, brains, I’m different!” I said.
The thoughts that were bombarding our vehicle, stopped.
I turned to my friends.
Jason and Adam stood looking awkwardly at each other. Luna and Tanya both dropped back into their seats.
“Sorry, I should be nicer to Zeke!” Tanya said.
“I’d appreciate that!” Luna replied.
“So would I!” Zeke agreed.
“What happened?” Jason asked.
“We were under some sort of mental attack,” I told them. “I believe it was the brains, but I can’t be sure.”
Jason turned to the smiley face. “Do you have any idea who did it?”
The smiley face kept smiling. I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised. “I am only allowed to give questions and receive answers to my questions. I find the less I think, the better,” the smiley said.
Glancing out the windows, I saw that we were now further behind the two lead vehicles. I figured there was no use trying to work out who had just attacked us. We needed to concentrate on answering questions.
“Next question,” I asked the smiley.
“What is Zeke’s favorite food?” it asked.
“Fish sticks!” everybody except Luna said.
I got a feeling that the smiley had just thrown us a bone. I guessed that it wanted to give us an easy one.
“Actually, it’s sticks that are in any form,” Luna said.
“Nice!” the smiley said. “That’s one point for your team. Great job!” The smiley paused and then blurted out, “What is Lia’s favorite power?”
“My favorite power?” I asked. I wasn’t even sure I knew what that was.
“Super strength!” Adam said.
“Well, definitely not her super farts,” Tanya said. “Maybe her command voice.”
“Man, I was going to guess farts,” Zeke sighed.
“Frost breath?” Luna said. “Cool is cool!”
“Flying,” Jason said calmly.
Oh my gosh, he was right. I loved flying. It might have been one of my subtler powers, but nothing, I mean nothing, made me feel freer than when I was in the air flying with the feel of the wind in my face. I didn’t have a care in the world when I flew. Flying was heaven to me. Jason knew this.
“How did you know?” I asked Jason.
Jason shrugged. “I see your face when you’re in the air. You look so happy. Just like the first time you ever beat me at a video game when we were little kids. I can’t ever forget that.” He smiled.
I took Jason’s hand. I smiled back.
During the rest of the trip, we continued to answer questions about each other. When we landed, we learned we were in third place behind the brains and the bots. I guess, considering how things went, that wasn’t too bad of a showing.
When we landed, I saw the brains floating toward the main building. I decided to give them a piece of my mind. I moved to the brains at super speed.
“Yo, brains!” I said, standing in front of them. “What the heck?”
The brains hovered in the air.
Excuse us, flesh creature? o
ne of the brains thought to me.
Pointing, I said, “How dare you try to play with our minds like the way you did on the ship!”
Once again, please excuse us, flesh creature! We have no idea what you’re saying. We won because we know each other mentally, and very well.
By now, the rest of the team had caught up with us. “Oh, come on, I know you were trying to mess us up by getting us off-side with each other,” I scoffed.
The brains shuddered. We do not need to do that. We know we can win. We don’t lose mental events. We don’t consider you a threat at all.
“Then who would do it?” Jason asked.
“Yeah!” Zeke demanded.
We heard laughter at our feet. Gazing down, I saw a couple of squirrels rolling around on the floor giggling.
“Oh, these humans are so fun to play with!” one of the squirrels chuckled.
“Yes. Such little human brains,” the other squirrel snickered.
The brains pointed to the squirrels. You’ve found your culprits. Now, if you don’t mind, we’d like to freshen up and relax.
The brains floated off.
Looking down at the squirrels, I asked. “What’s the big idea, squirrels?”
“We just like making you all a little nuts!” one of the squirrels twittered.
“Why?” Jason asked.
“We’re cute little squirrels. We like having fun! Surely you’ve heard the saying… squirrels just want to have fun?”
With that, they ran off.
Dear Diary: Okay, not the best start for the team, but all in all, we did alright. I think my mental powers are growing. It felt pretty good forcing the squirrels’ thoughts out of our heads. Of course, I thought they were the brains at first, but now we’ve learned these squirrels are very tricky.
Still, the most amazing thing is that I’ve finally noticed how much Jason knows about me. He knows me so well. That makes my heart sing. Then again, he’s known me forever, so I guess he should know me pretty well. But heck, I don’t know me that well. Though I’ve realized that Jason might actually like me. I like that idea. Now I just have to decide if I want to change our relationship. We’ve been good friends forever. I don’t want to risk ruining that. But if Jason wants more, can we be more than friends? Man, life is tricky!
Love Battle Page 4