THE MOMENT
"I thought we were going to practice...," Crystal was confident that the ruined city she stepped out into wasn't derby practice. For one thing, Keys was the only team member around and he was the one that led her there. It was the middle of the day with the golden sun hanging in a clear blue sky. Keys began walking forward and Crystal followed him along the sidewalk. The buildings all around them were compromised if not outright destroyed. Despite the wreckage around them, Crystal still saw people hiding away in dark corners and peeking through closed curtains.
"We are," Keys nodded. "But, there's something I wanted to check first."
"I haven't been to this Server before," Crystal said. "Is it always like this?"
"Yeah," Keys nodded. "They have a lot of Supers here so there's usually a battle or something going on somewhere."
"Oh, okay," Crytal nodded. "So, is it going to take long?" she asked.
"Are you in a hurry?" Keys asked as he turned a corner onto a new sidewalk. Crystal followed.
"We should be practicing take on Spider," she said.
"We met up to practice on Sunday; you were busy then," he replied.
"I was busy!" Crystal went on the defensive immediately.
"Yeah," Keys nodded. "I'm just saying don't be in such a rush all the time. I know Surge and Alis are missing; but, this whole derby match is to get them back safely, right? They'll be fine until then."
"I know...," Crystal nodded. The truth was, she'd already made that decision; but, it was hard to break some habits. The entire reason she took time for herself on Sunday was due to that decision. She knew her friends were alive and 'fine' for the moment, even if perhaps they weren't uninjured. She realized she was putting too much unnecessary stress on herself and all she could do was try her best. She took a quiet day to herself on Sunday to process her current life and the things happening around her. She didn't feel like explaining any of that to Keys and planned to let the subject drop.
"Busy doing what?" he asked.
"It was my birthday," Crystal answered.
"Oh, nice. Happy belated birth-," Keys stopped walking. He turned and looked down at the slightly shorter girl with golden double-plaited braids. "You were an NPC before you Woke up," he said. "When did you get a birthday?" Crystal sighed. She hoped to keep her answers light and she didn't realize that he would know that about her. She didn't remember telling him; but, she might have accidentally mentioned it in passing without realizing. The fact that Keys remembered did not go unnoticed as her stomach began to flutter nervously.
"I gave myself one," Crystal answered. Her birthday was her way of finally accepting her new life. When she first Awakened, everything was new. She went from situation to situation passively while trying to keep her wits about her. Everyone threw new information at her and all she could do was take it in and analyze it later. But, she'd had enough of that. She spent Sunday comparing everything she thought she knew to everything she learned. It didn't take long to see how wrong all her preconceived notions were. She took a step forward to get him to move again and he did.
"Okay," he nodded. "Then, happy belated birthday," he added.
"Thanks!" Crystal replied. They reached the end of the block Keys stopped again.
"There he is," he said. He nodded forward and Crystal giggled. A tall, orange and green plastic T-Rex marched along the street away from them. He looked silly from behind; but, then he turned around. Crystal saw a small mesh square on the T-rex's chest with what looked like a face behind it.
"Is that a costume?" Crystal asked.
"Of course it's a costume," Keys nodded. "He's a Supervillain," he said.
"But.. that's just like... a Halloween costume?"
"Tech-Rex is an A-tier Supervillain on this Earth," Keys said. "You may think he looks silly, but don't judge a book by its cover," he added.
"I know!" Crystal couldn't help but sound exasperated. That was the exact habit she was trying to break. For his part, Keys didn't seem to care that she snapped at him.
"Well, just be sure you don't underestimate him," Keys added.
"...are we fighting him?" Crystal asked.
"Not exactly," Keys shrugged. "YOU are," he said.
"Huh?"
"Molly asked me to check you out," he said. His face flushed as red as the rest of his outfit; his wording wasn't lost on him. But, he didn't react other than to clarify. "She asked me to see how well you did in a fight so we can know what needs improving," he said.
"I've never fought anyone before...," Crystal said.
"No one?" Keys asked. "What have you been doing in the AlterNet all this time?"
"Exploring!" Crystal answered. "There's so much to see! And, it's super easy to not start a fight," she said.
"Oh," Keys tilted his head at her. "Do you have all your Ability slots filled at least?"
"Not all of them...," Crystal admitted.
"How many?" he asked.
"I haven't needed more than one...," Crystal answered.
"Okay," he nodded. "Then, I guess we're going to do things a little differently," he took a step off the sidewalk towards Tech-Rex. The costumed stranger noticed Keys. The dinosaur's head leaned back as the man inside yelled at the sky. Then, he charged forward at Keys.
As he dashed forward, mechanical, metal armor emerged from the orange and green plastic. Whirring gears guided the armor into place. Then, it leaped into the air, boosted by jet thrusters. A recorded, lifeless roar filled the air as Tech-Rex aimed to land on Keys. The pale teenage boy with coppery red hair looked up at the dinosaur and drew his rapier.
[Lightning Stab] A deep voice filled the air when Keys thrust his sword forward. Lightning struck the blade at the same moment it pierced Tech-Rex. An explosion rocked the street as pieces of metal were sent flying in all directions. Once the smoke cleared, a pale, portly, bald man fell to the street wrapped in burnt plastic. Keys left Tech-Rex's body there and went back to Crystal.
"That quest is done, let's move on," Keys said. He threw a black card onto the sidewalk and opened a portal.
"Practice?" Crystal asked as she stepped onto it. Keys shook his head as he joined her. Then, they began to sink into it.
"Nah," he said. "You're kind of useless to the team right now, we need to get your build organized first. Let's go shopping," he said.
"For Abilities?" Crystal asked. She would have her answer on the other side of the portal; but, her curiosity needed to know everything as soon as possible.
"Nah," Keys shook his head and smirked at her. "For your birthday."