Part 20~

"Go!" Shade yelled to the girls below. Leopard's leopard ears twitched rapidly as a bullet whizzed by her head. Shade flew down, grabbed her, and flew back up.

Leopard growled. "Let me go! I'm the best fighter out of all of you!"

Shade grunted. "It doesn't matter! The Pacman street gang will hold them off."

"I wasn't aware that that combination of words could ever make sense to me," Keira yelled, creating a bubble of psionic energy around herself and Abigail, "I mean, 'Pacman street gang' isn't a term you hear often."

"Less talking, more letting us cover you," Clyde barked from up ahead, where a horde of blood-hungry dachsunds descended upon two unfortunate agents.

Shade nodded, understanding. Keira floated Abigail and herself out through the window, with Leopard unceremoniously thrown out after them. Saint, Booksy, and Owlgirl (carrying Balea) flew afterwards.

Abruptly Blinky teleported next to Shade. Her knees were rubbed raw, and she looked not too happy about it.

"Stay here a moment," Shade said. She kicked an agent's gun out of his hands as he raised it to fire at Blinky. Blinky glared. "I coulda stopped it."

Shade smiled. She ducked as a burst of pink light soared abover her. Pinky giggled as two agents reeled, tripping over dachsunds and creatures that seemed to be made of living ink.

"How are we lookin', Pinky?" Clyde barked.

"We look fabulous, dear," Pinky said, blinding a man point-blank, "like, we're kicking their tails, but we're not really trying. We're effortless."

"Less bragging, more blinding," Inky snapped.

Pinky flipped his hair. "Sheesh. It's true."

Inky rolled her eyes as a pony made of ink majestically ran over five guards.

Shade ascended into the air, and her heart sank. The Battalion was hardly exhausted, and her friends were really in no condition to fight. Maybe Leopard could fight, but the Owls, Keira, Abigail, and Balea were not ready.

And Somebody-

Somebody? Peter?

Shade looked around urgently and saw Somebody hugging Peter behind a potted plant. Peter's chest was shuddering, and an agent, seeing where Shade was looking, began to pick his way towards the plant.

Shade berated herself and dove. She pinned the man to the wall, knocking him out almost immediately.

"Go!" Shade yelled. Somebdy began to run, but Peter stayed.

"Petey!" she yelled.

"Duck!" Peter screamed.

"We're listenin' to a pipsqueak?" Clyde called.

Twin scarlet wings ejected from Peter's shoulder blades. They were oversized, massive.

"DUCK!" he yelled.

Shade, Somebody, and the Pacman street gang listened.

The agents didn't.

Peter's wings exploded in a burst of flame, knocking the agents into walls with force. A hissing noise filled the room as the walls caught fire.

After Peter's wings had burned themselves to ash, only twenty agents were left standing.

Two dropped to the ground. Eighteen looked at each other and ran.

"Thanks," Clyde said, looking impressed. The dachsund horde vanished. The smoldering walls and burned-to-ash roof looked like ancient, weathered ruins but for the fire. One or two Forbiddens sat awake in the cell, the only standing structure, looking dazed. Their vials sat in the dust, and Somebody quietly handed the vials to them.

The girls hugged each other and shook hands with the Pacman street gang. Rain began to fall, washing soot from their faces.

As they spoke quietly, Peter grabbed an extra syringe from the pile of ash. He put a spurt of flame onto it, praying that would clean it, and took the vial that the not-bad-Curio from his dream had given him.

He slipped the prismatic True Name into the vial and injected it into his right wrist, below Phoenix.

"Whatcha got there?"

He whirled to see Somebody. "I, ah, found a syringe," he said.

He drew Somebody's True Name out of his left wrist and handed the syringe to her.

"Thanks," Somebody said, smiling.

Peter watched her walk away as he rubbed his right wrist. 

Who was the dream Curio?

What was real? 

AAAAAAACK I am DYING to know what the true name from the vial that he put below his true name is. What does it say? TELL MEEEEEEEEE........Oh, I hope it isn't a trick!

Oh dear... CURIO WAHT DID YOU GIVE HIM?!?!?! *Starts strangling Curio with hair* I WILL FIND OUT IF ITS THE LAST THING I DO!!!!!

Welp, I have writer's block, so the next part will come tomorrow instead of today.

TOODLES 

Has your writer's block gone away yet??????????

Part A of Part 21~

Somebody had known things wouldn't get easier, but she hadn't expected this.

She held the form of a Battalion Agent who she had knocked out and joined the fray, shooting other Battalion Agents instead of her friends.

An hour ago, a Battalion from the west (Battalion 13, if the giant '13' painted on their uniforms was any clue) had poured in, firing darts at the Forbiddens. Saint took a dart for Booksy, and Booksy was fighting with a vengeance for her sister's honor.

Thirty minutes ago, after about half of the 13th was out and Saint was waking, another Battalion arrived.

Then another.

Owlgirl was flying in and out of the clouds with Shade, dropping rocks and books as missiles; Leopard weaved in and out of the fight gracefully, snarling. Keira hid behind a forcefield created by writhing psionic tentacles, lashing out.

Peter was in the bubble with Keira. Thank heavens.

Clyde didn't use dachsunds, he used a gun with deadly accuracy. Somebody winced as he claimed another victim.

Pinky blinded people. Inky's tattoos attacked people. Blink grabbed people, teleported into the sky, and then teleported away without them. They fell to their deaths.

Somebody turned to Keira and her heart went cold; Keira looked faint, exhausted. She was no longer lashing out but simply trying to keep the wall of energy up.

Somebody saw Peter say something to Keira.

No. No, he couldn't.

Keira was shaking her head.

Peter asked again.

Keira sighed. Peter grabbed her awkwardly, as she was much older and taller, but she was petite and his wings were powerful.

He carried her away.

At least-

Somebody almost screamed when he flew back, in range of tranquilizer darts.

She then lost her footing on spilled ink (Inky's fault) and felt something prick her shoulder.

She sat up, strangely dazed, and saw that she had landed on a tranquilizer dart.

She collapsed. 

Oh my goodness, the suspence!

Why are you so AMAZING at writing, Brook? Teach me your ways!