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-“Jesus, what a plague !” The Human Kite exclaimed.-“Don't worry, Kite, we'll get you down here !” Toolshed told him, rummaging through his toolbox.
Indeed, the superhero was rather entangled : an unfortunately too strong gust of wind had propelled him at full speed into electric cables, trapping him in the air.
-“Be c-careful with the cables, he could smash on the ground in one fell s-s-swoop !”-“That's true, Fastpass.” the Raccoon admitted. “We should leave him there for the night, we'll go and get him tomorrow.”-“We're not going to let one of our t-teammates in danger !”-“Or we could call a tow truck.”-“Isn’t there any people among you who know how to fly ?!” Mysterion shouted.
A bit of silence arose, and Mosquito and Wonder Tweek flew to their stuck colleague.In his pocket, the speedster felt his phone vibrate. Without looking at who it was, he removed his red headphones and picked up.
-“JIMMY !!! TIMMY ?!” he heard from the phone, moving his ear away so as not to damage his left eardrum.-“… H-Hello ?”-“Jimmy ???”-“Who’s that ?” the Raccoon asked him.-“It’s Tim-Tim.”-“Oh, okay. It’s fine guys, it’s just his little boyfriend.”
After giving him a dark look, Fastpass hung up.
-“Well, I sh-should probably get back to the base quickly !” he declared, putting his headphones back. “The boss seems to be r-really angry with me...”-“Yes, “angry”... In my opinion, we shouldn't get back to headquarters in about twenty minutes at least...”-“Uh ? I didn’t understand…” Captain Diabetes wondered, scratching his head.-“I did.” Tupperware said, eyes wide open, looking in the distance.
But before the superhero could turn to Fastpass for an empathetic look, a flash passed in front of him, indicating the speedster’s leaving.
After about ten seconds, he arrived breathless in front of Tolkien's house. With the gate open, he slipped into the garden and entered the large building. He told himself that he and his friends were lucky to have the right to use a space as big as the basement for their superhero stuff. But it seems there’s some movement downstairs.And it was the case... The Doctor was under attack by what appeared to be a million small creatures, moving quickly on the ground. He was struggling, a broom in one hand and his head in the other. When he noticed the presence of Fastpass on the stairs, his eyes lit up a fluorescent blue.
-“Is the presence of these twenty-seven sewer rodents your work ?” he asked, mind on the lookout for any lie.-“Nooo…”-“Yes, it is, stop lying Fastpass. You know damn well that you were the one who wanted to feed them when you saw the hole in the wall !” Timothy declared. “Well, you should know that rats reproduce extremely quickly ! And I would like to point out that this is not our home, and that they were FOUR when you discovered them.”-“Well, I didn't think they'd do that f-f-fast enough !”
The team leader sighed.
-“Come on, we wouldn't want to reduce the value of the house, wouldn’t we...”
After a lot of work, the two superheroes found themselves with a bucket full of rats, which they released a little further from the house, close to the Senior Center.
-“May they don’t find the way to Professor Chaos… Who knows what he would do with them.”-“He’ll t-treat them much better than you did anyway.”-“We weren't going to leave Tup with twenty-seven rats in his basement, James.”
The rats were running in all directions. Jimmy, seated on the floor, watched them scatter, and soon there was not a single one in sight.
-“You know, I find these little critters interesting.” Timmy said. “If scientists do experiment on them so much, it is because they have a certain similarity to human beings. But of what kind ?”-“Hmm…It's like asking if, since fish breathe water, do they see the water ?” Jimmy answered.-“It's not the answer I was looking for, but at this point, you can only impress me...”-“Are you c-calling me s-stupid ?!”-“Nooo, I’m not calling you stupid, you little lab-rat...”-“Did you j-just call me a l-lab-rat ???”-“Maybe… Next time you bring rodents in the Freedom Base, you’ll be more deserving of the title, and this is a threat !” Timothy announced with a mischievous laughter.-“Oh, now THAT is a threat !”
Fastpass quickly stood up and plunged his hands into the back of his colleague's neck, drawing out-loud snickering from him. The Doctor hit him on the back, for a one-arm hug. He who had to keep his seriousness, he was less and less able to do so lately.He couldn't help but think back to the events of that summer. He had certainly drowned in punch, but also in resentment and guilt. And love also.
-“Hey, they're here !”
Alerted, they turned to the noise: Mysterion had found them, and were looking at them across the sidewalk. Other colleagues soon joined him, and Fastpass got closer to them in a flash.
-“Oh well, you m-managed to get him down !” he said, seeing Human Kite.-“Sometimes you have to remind people that they have powers, otherwise they forget.” Mysterion told him, side-eyeing Clyde and Tweek. “What were you doing ?”-“We were in the process of releasing a small armada of rodents from the Base, whose proliferation is at the origin of FASTPASS.”
The Kite jumped, frightened by the sudden appearance of the team leader.
-“You really have to stop appearing behind people like that !” he exclaimed.-“It's not very serious for a guy who is supposed to be a team leader...” the Raccoon added.-“Do not try to attract any sympathy, you'll never take my place.” Timothy said.-“Wait, there were RATS in the basement ???” Mosquito, who has been pretty silent for now, exclaimed.
Mysterion, bored, had started to make his way to the base, running at full speed. But the speedster was already at the door, holding it wide open.
-“L…L…L… Come on in.” he said after a sigh.
The team was now complete. Everyone put away their equipment, and the team leader wrote down the mission report on the computer.
-“Wednesday, November 13, 2004 : Level 3 mission. Led by almost all of the team. The abortion clinic was attacked by several strange doctors, claiming to have been sent by Christopher Reeve. Danger neutralized. (PS: Christopher Reeve is a fraud). Human Kite got stuck in electrical wires, more scared than hurt. Sewer rodents invaded the base, but the danger was quickly removed thanks to the help of Fastpass, which was the cause of the problem. Friendly by nature, he thought it would be a clever idea to take care of them.”
He turned off the computer, satisfied with his writing. But he saw in the black screen that Toolshed was all glued to the other computer. As he rolled closer to him, he saw Callgirl, their honorary colleague, making a video call.-“Oh hi, Doctor T !” she said, in a happy manner. “In my opinion, you should tell the Raccoon to calm down a little on fanboying. If he himself is an enthusiastic fan of slash, he is likely to attract the wrath of the Republicans.” she continued, this time quieter.-“But I know Callgirl, I know... And with me and Fastpass, he seems to have found a new target of choice...”-“Whaaat ? He ships you two ?! I thought he was keener on Bloodsugar…”-“…Bloodsugar ?” Toolshed interrogated.-“That’s a codename for Mosquito and Captain Diabetes.”-“Oooh ! That is pretty smart.”-“Wait, does that mean ThunderClap and PowerWind were codenames too ?! I thought it was just made-up stuff !” the hero exclaimed. “Wait, PowerWind… PowerWind… Oh no.”
At this realization, Toolshed headed for the Raccoon, determined.
-“Wait until he learns about SteelTools…” Callgirl continued, seemingly not annoyed at the fact that her boyfriend was shipped with other people.-“SteelTools ? He sure is pretty bad with codenames. I wonder who the steel part would be designating…”-“It’s Fastpass, he ships him with Fastpass !”-“Fastpass ???”
He turned his head towards the Raccoon, who was being disputed by Toolshed and the Human Kite.
-“He is so desperate that he imagines the most unlikely scenarios.”-“Why, you think that you and Fastpass is more likely ?”-“Well, in a context of pure logic and social interactions, I may understand why !” Timothy answered, trying to justify himself with broad hand gestures. “And after all, isn't "best friends to lovers" a trope appreciated by many people ?”-“Mostly by you, apparently !” she taunted him, seeing he was blushy and avoidant.-“I do NOT read fanfiction, Callgirl.”
But the call got interrupted by a sudden alarm, echoing throughout the basement. The flashing red lights were activated : it was the first time it had happened. As the heroes walked to the meeting table, the Doctor motioned for them to turn on the television, as it connected to the city's news channels. He took the computer screen with him so that Callgirl could see the TV.
-“And it is a special flash that is indicated to us at the Community Center in South Park: what appears to be a spaceship has landed in the parking lot of the building and many people have come out according to eyewitnesses.”-“Oh j-jeez, aliens ?” Fastpass said, looking at the images of the spaceship.-“Shut up, I don’t hear the TV !” Super Craig told him.-“The mayor of the city, Mrs. McDaniels, along with her two aides and the police, will go to the scene for a negotiation.”
The TV turned off, and after a silence, the Raccoon sighed.
-“All this for that, it's pitiful !” he said, disappointed. “It was just a false alarm !”-“A false alarm ???” Wonder Tweek exclaimed, hands in his thick hair. “This is ALIENS we’re talking about !!”-“You are right… Aliens are not something to be taken lightly.”
He turned to Jimmy with a knowing look, that he gave back.
-“We have to go to the scene !” Tupperware advised.-“You’re also right. Mosquito, Wonder Tweek, Human Kite, observe the Community Center from the sky and come back after establishing the dangerousness of the enemy. Be discreet.”-“I should p-probably go there too…” Fastpass said. “T-Take a look, y’know ? And c-come back quickly.”-“Yeah, we need backup !”-“No. You will be perfectly fine being three.”
He quickly placed his hand on his temple, preventing the Raccoon from opening his mouth.
-“We will assess the situation when you return. Fly away, my friends.”
The three heroes got up the stairs, when Callgirl had just arrived.
-“Hello fellow superheroes !” she said. “I understand that this is an important situation.”-“Yeah, there’s an alien invasion going on right now.” Super Craig told her.-“They are at the community center !” Toolshed added.
The heroine turned the TV back on. The news were back to normal, announcing the reconstruction of the South Park Mall. But as she was about to grab the remote control again, another news flash occurred.-“Update! The mayor has arrived on the scene and is trying to negotiate with the aliens with a megaphone, who have seemingly returned to their ship.”-“Aliens! Get out of there so we can start a civilized discussion !” she shouted, the megaphone screeching and injuring the eardrums of the crowd all around.
Seeming to have listened to her, the door of the ship opened, and a large figure looked at the mayor with red eyes. She stepped back one foot, impressed.
-“You don’t scare me ! Go out of the shadows !” she said despite.-“Oh fuck they're really aliens !!”-“Shhh ! They’re going to hear us !”
The flying heroes watched from the roof of the school, looking intently through binoculars. They saw the figure get closer to McDaniels. It was twice the size of a human, and even though they couldn't see it very well from the roof, they felt its eyes shining towards them, even if it weren’t looking at them.In the headquarters, the remaining heroes were jaded in front of a snowy TV.
-“It's not supposed to happen with such recent equipment !” the mechanical hero said, trying to fix the problem.-“I can’t wait for the guys to come back, they must have gotten pretty solid evidence by now.” Callgirl declared, hands on her phone.-“Tweek ? Yeah honey, what’s going on ?”
The heroes turned to Super Craig, who was on a call.
-“Wait, lasers ? Holy shit. Come back quick !”
He hung up.
-“What’s going on, Craig ?”-“The aliens spotted them, and they shot them with laser beams. They are going back to base now. Oh wait, here they are.”
The flying heroes ran downstairs. They didn't appear to be injured, with the only visible damage being a hole in Kyle's kite.
-“Why’s the TV like that ?” Mosquito asked.-“I don’t know !” Toolshed answered. “It started snowing when the cameras pointed at the alien coming out of the ship.”-“Maybe they were the ones who did that...”-“It's more than likely, Tup. Aliens possess greater abilities than earthlings, and it wouldn't surprise me if the disruption of electrical devices is one of them.”
But as the superheroes discussed the hypothesis of what could have deactivated the TV, the headquarters’ landline phone rang.
-“Yes, F-Freedom Pals HQ, this is F-Fastpass ! What’s going on ?”-“Ah, Fastpass, just the one we needed !” he heard McDaniels say. “Come quickly, they said they’re looking for superheroes !”-“They speak English ?” Timothy wondered. “This is pretty uncommon.”-“Hmm hmm, all right ma’am. I'll be r-right there !” he concluded, before disappearing.The crowd was massive, and it was difficult for the speedster to make his way through it. But when he finally came out, he found himself right next to the mayor.
-“Hello miss McDaniels !”-“No time for that, now go and negotiate with him !” she said, pushing Jimmy forward with a hand on his back.-“Update ! One of the superheroes of the gang known as the Freedom Pals has shown up and will try to negotiate with the aliens !”
Their ship was surprisingly large, spreading over the entire parking lot and forcing the crowd to pull back on the road. Fastpass thought the aliens had disappeared, but immediately the door opened again, and the figure returned, more distinguishable this time. The hero recognized it at first glance: it was the alien who had attacked the camp this summer.
-“Hey ! Aren't you supposed to be dead ?” he asked, very much surprised.
No answer. Another alien got out of the spaceship, and pointed a long finger at the boy.
-“You see, that one is Fastpass !” he said to his colleague with an angry tone.-“Really ?”-“Yes ! The one you were talking about is Professor Chaos ! And even, how could you confuse them ? They don't look alike at all !”-“I’m still here, you know.”
Fastpass had caught the attention of the two aliens, who turned their heads towards him.
-“What did you want to negotiate ?” he asked them.-“We want your town !” the left alien declared, leaving Jimmy speechless.-“You will not have South Park !” the mayor said into her megaphone. “It’s necessary to establish a compromise. Take Denver, it's bigger !”-“Nuh uh, they won’t have D-Denver either !” Fastpass told her, surprised that she could even consider sacrificing the state capital. “Why do you want South Park ?”-“You see, we are slave refugees from the planet Kokujon.” the right alien explained. “We escaped to have better living conditions.”-“Oooh, that’s what Z-Zarganor said !” Jimmy remembered. “Sorry to have k-killed him by the way. It was either him or the summer camp, and frankly I prefer the summer camp.”-“This is also why we want your town, to avenge him ! He made an extremely brave sacrifice for our people, and Mintberry Crunch and his little team that YOU were a part of contributed to the repression !”-“You are all as guilty as they are !” the other alien said, pointing at the townspeople.
The people of the crowd looked at each other, as if they were looking for a culprit.
-“We weren't aware of that, sir !” McDaniels declared, looking at Fastpass.-“Hey ! We didn't kn-know they were slaves either ! Zarganor destroyed our summer camp ! It’s normal that we d-defend ourselves !” he told her.-“If we give you the kid, will you leave ?”-“What ?! You’re not gonna s-s-sacrifice me, are you ?!”-“Come on kid, tell yourself that you'll be dead a hero at least !” the mayor said.-“It is not this child that we need.”
Heads turned to the right alien.
-“If you care so much about your little mountain town, inhabitants of South Park, then deliver the psychic to us.”-“The… The p-psychic ?”
Jimmy knew what that meant : they wanted Timmy.
-“B-But why ?” he asked the aliens.-“The psychic is the most powerful one on your team. With his mind powers, he will help us restore order and recover what is rightfully ours. Our planet, and our freedom !”-“And h-how are you going to do that ? Are you going to m…mindfuck him like you did before ?! Nuh uh !”-“It is either the psychic or the town ! The choice rests on your shoulders, fast boy. Don't do the wrong thing.” the left alien declared ominously, and the spaceship door closed on them.
The mayor proceeded to grab Jimmy’s shoulders and shake him to bring him to reason.
-“I know he's your team leader, but think of the town , Fastpass ! Think of the townspeople ! They're counting on you !”
The speedster broke free from her grasp, and without a word, ran to headquarters as fast as he could.-“Fastpass ! There you are !” Timothy mentally exclaimed, getting closer to his colleague. “My god, I started to worry ! The television no longer works, no way to know how the operation was going.”-“ Emergency meeting ! Emergency meeting !”
At Callgirl's call, the team gathered at the roundtable, with each member waiting for Fastpass' report.
-“The aliens are there to take r-revenge !” he started. “They are the same as the one w-we defeated at camp !”
The Doctor had a haunted face : the Zarganor had returned. He had doubted this possibility for the rest of the summer, but his fear was now justified.
-“They said they w-wanted to take South Park to get r-retribution. But of course I said nuh uh, they’re n-not gonna have the town like that.”-“They couldn't give up so easily. What did they say next ?” Tupperware asked him.-“W-Well, that’s kind of complicated. The mayor said she could give m-me to them to spare the town, but they said they didn’t need me.”-“That’s getting tense.” Super Craig said.-“ So, we'll have to chase them away ourselves !” Captain Diabetes exclaimed, hands on the table.-“Wait, I-I’m not finished yet. They said they didn’t need m-me, but someone else actually…”-“Who ? Don't beat around the bush, dude !” Human Kite said.-“The psychic. They said they w-wanted the psychic.”
Silence. All heads turned to Timmy, who had his eyes closed and his hands clasped on the table.
-“So... What do we do ?” Toolshed wondered.-“We should give them the Doctor.” Craig suggested. “If they are looking for him so much, it's not to hurt him.”-“Are you sick or what ?! We're not going to sacrifice a member of our team !” Mysterion exclaimed.-“So we're going to let them destroy the town ???” Wonder Tweek said.-“We're superheroes, guys ! We are going to fight for our town !” Callgirl declared.
The argument continued, and Timmy listened attentively. He noticed that Jimmy was taking Wendy's side, the neutral option.
-“Callgirl is right. We will fight, and they will not have me or our town.”-“You say that because you're scared, you wimp !”-“Shut the f-fuck up, E-Eric !”-“And you, stop defending your little boyfriend !”-“Shut up, both of you! We're going !”
Almost all the superheroes headed for the stairs, but Timothy rolled towards the television.
-“Where are you going ?” Mysterion asked him.-“I am staying here. It's better not to get close to those who want to hold me hostage.”
But the immortal felt that something was wrong with him. He could see in his blue eyes the worry and fear he was trying to hide. He could not observe any longer, however, for the Doctor was shooing him away with a wave of his hand.
-“Be careful, my dear friends... Be careful, James.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

-“Update on the situation at the community center! Fastpass, the young superhero who came to negotiate, brought almost his entire team back to the scene! On the other hand, it seems that Doctor Timothy, the leader of their team and also the one the aliens are looking for, is not with them. We will inform you about the situation in real time.”
And for good reason, he had remained at the headquarters. He was a little worried about seeing his teammates in danger, but he knew that going there wouldn't be productive. Besides, it wasn't like he wanted to. He much prefers to stay here.As he watched the story unfold on TV, he couldn't stop the events of that summer from coming back to his head over and over again. Thinking about it made him very anxious : everything came back to him exactly as it had happened, seeing everything with his own eyes. This was one of the drawbacks of his super-intelligence, being able to remember things in great detail.-“Hey ! Get out of there ! We have made our decision !” the Raccoon shouted.
He didn’t agree with it, but he took this opportunity of Timmy's absence to act as the temporary team leader.The ship's door opened again, and this time an entire band of Zarganor came out.
-“Holy shit, you brought out the big guns, I see…”-“Where is the psychic ?!” the alien in the middle asked the Raccoon.
This one was taller than his colleagues, and his eyes shone a disturbing gold this time, contrasting with the red diamond on his forehead.
-“So, about that... I and my team have decided not to obey any of your requests, which means that you will not have our small mountain town, nor our colleague.” the provisory chief declared, hands joined like he was trying to sell them a house.-“You know what that means, don't you ?” the alien declared, clutching his laser gun.-“We are superheroes, we will fight for our town and its inhabitants.” the Raccoon continued. “But tell me, Mr. Alien Chief, you are seeking to avenge your deceased colleague. But in that case, why not go after Mintberry Crunch directly ? He was the one who enslaved you, so why not try to overthrow the government ?”
A silence occurred, along with a discussion between the aliens.
-“Why did you say that ?” Callgirl asked him quietly, annoyed by the fact that he is taking so many risks.-“He is not wrong, why not overthrow the government directly ?” Mysterion said.-“Because they are t-too many of them !” Fastpass explained. “Earlier, th-they said that they wanted Tim-Tim to help them make the revolution. They said it’s because of his m-mind powers or something.”-“You don't need psychic powers to make the revolution, you know what happened in 1789 ?” Tupperware said.-“Why did Doc disagree ? He could have helped them, and we wouldn't have had to fight.” Super Craig added.-“W-Well, because… B-Because…”
Fastpass was trapped, he couldn't tell them what happened at summer camp. Timmy had made him swear not to tell anyone. So, he took a step back, his eyes hesitant.
-“So, what do you say ?” the Raccoon told the alien chief, arms crossed.-“We will protect our city until death !” Mysterion declared with a fist in the air.-“Well, maybe not so far, though...”-“We have decided on a new arrangement.” the alien chief said. “We listened to your little conversation. From now on, it is either the psychic or death !”-“What ?!”
The heroes gasped ! They didn’t expect this outcome at all.
-“N-Nuh uh ! You'll n-never get Timmy !” Fastpass shouted.” I know what you want to do with him !”
He approached the aliens with a heavy and furious step, stopping in the middle, between them and his fellow heroes.
-“Know that it will n-not be like last time ! You're n-not going to get out of it that easily !” he continued, crutch pointed at the extraterrestrials.
The crowd felt the fight coming, and many people began to flee, including the mayor, who had not said a word since the beginning of the confrontation.
-“Good luck, Freedom Pals !” she said in her megaphone while running away. “We're not going to get involved in extra-terrestrial affairs anymore...”In the base, Doctor Timothy was busy. Seeing the situation escalate, he could no longer sit there doing nothing. But he wasn't going to go there in the presence of seven mind-controlling aliens.In his secret planning corner, he had rummaged through all the drawers and found what he was looking for: aluminum foil. His hands were busy making a helmet, similar to Professor Chaos'. He had noticed that aluminum was able to repel psychic waves when the supervillain had penetrated the base with this strange kid. It will take a lot of it.Finally, the work was finished : it looked exactly like Chaos's, without the small details and much larger. At least the psychic would be sure not to reproduce the disaster of the summer. He took a deep breath, and turned off the TV.-“IS THAT MILK ???”-“Looks like it.” Super Craig answered. “Mega fist punch !”
But the blow did no damage, Craig felt as if he had hit a non-Newtonian fluid. The boyfriends were surrounded by clones of themselves, seeing their blurred reflection in the white of their bodies.
-“HOLY SHIT !”
One of Tweek's clones exploded, splashing the superhero. Fastpass found himself in front of them.
-“D-Don’t fool around, fellas !” he said, looking around him. “These are not our m-main enemies !”
As quickly as he came, he disappeared.
He had joined Toolshed and Tupperware, who were busy creating automatic turrets, under the protection of Captain Diabetes. He was somewhat in trouble, as the monsters were always more numerous.
-“Don't focus on them ! They will create m-masses of them !” Fastpass repeated. “It's the aliens that need to be sm-smashed down !”
The Doctor, hidden between Bebe’s and Kevin’s houses, watched the action from afar.
-“Tup and Toolshed are a good duo. They should work together more often.” he told himself. “And even, the team seems to be doing well without me ! Maybe I shouldn't even have come !”
In reality, he was saying this to himself mainly in order to reassure himself : he really didn't want to fight against these aliens. It was the first time he had been paralyzed by fear. The first time he was confronted with a Zarganor, he hadn't been able to feel much...The turrets were now ready, and the shooting started. Fastpass went this time to Callgirl and Mysterion: they were two against one of the aliens and seemed to have a plan. The heroine used her telephone powers to block the alien's slightest movements, and the immortal took advantage of this to make it his business.
-“Nice job, Mysterion !” she said, eyes determined.-“No time for praise, girl.”-“Oh come on, don’t play the bad boy, Kenneth…”-“Mega fist punch !”
Callgirl didn't have time to turn around as Super Craig punched her right in the back of the head, causing her to fall headfirst into the concrete.
-“Craig, what the fuck ?!” Human Kite exclaimed.-“What ? I'm just doing my job !” he declared, walking angrily towards him, fists clenched.Fastpass quickly intervened between the two boys, and his doubt was confirmed. The whites of his brutalist colleague's eyes had turned pale green, and his usual deadpan face was now choleric. As he prepared for another attack, Mysterion grabbed his hands and pressed them behind his back.
-“Don’t move !” he said, fighting to keep him under control.-“He got m-mindfucked !” Fastpass explained. “Be careful, guys !”-“How do we stop it ???”-“We can't ! We have to kill the alien who controls him !”
Craig's hands slipped away from Mysterion's, and with one blow, they went through his head, exiting on the other side with shining hate fingers.
-“Oh my God, he killed Mysterion !”-“You bastard !”-“That’s right ! Who’s next now ?!” the brainwashed exclaimed, a malevolent grin on his bloody face.-“Oh no… Oh no no no…”
The psychic had his hands pressed to his mouth. What to do, what to do now ?!
-“Super Craig ! You are not yourself. Don't obey the voices in your head, you are getting mind-controlled !” he launched in his colleague’s mind.
The voice echoed in the brutalist's head, arguing with the alien's.
-“Argh, shut up ! Get out of my head !” he shouted, hands on his temples.-“You have to listen to me ! Do not put yourself in danger, only concentrate on keeping sane !”-“Is he coming to his senses ?” Toolshed asked.-“Someone better give him a good kick in the ass for all of that…” The Kite declared.
Craig suddenly took a deep breath, before screaming at the top of his lungs.
-“HE IS HERE ! THE PSYCHIC ! HE IS IN THE VICINITY !” he shouted, then collapsed onto the floor, unconscious.
Timmy teleported a block away in an instant.
-“It worked. Oh my, it worked ! The helmet does weaken my mind powers, but not as much as I thought it would !”-“Huh? Doc’s there ?”-“Where is he ?”-“Jeez, what an i-idiot !”
Fastpass attempted to escape from the battle zone, but was held back by an unseen force, grabbing him by the back of the sweater. Pulled for about fifteen meters, he found himself trapped under the arm of the alien leader, his gun pointed at his temple and unable to move, not touching the ground.
-“Oh fuck, it's starting to go hard right now !” the Raccoon said.-“This will not look good on your digital footprint, Mr. Alien !”-“Wait, they're going to mind-control him ! They did the same thing to Craig !!!” Wonder Tweek exclaimed.-“ No time to take care of that ! We still have aliens to hold off and crime to stop !”
No time ? No time ??? The psychic had no choice, he could no longer remain hidden.
-“Find the psychic ! Find him and bring him back to the ship !” the alien chief declared.-“L-Let go of me, you leave me no ch-chance to defend myself right now.” Fastpass said.
He tried to remain optimistic so as not to let the psychic waves reach him. Indeed, he told himself that if he was aware of their presence, they would affect him less, unlike Super Craig who was fooled by surprise. But he felt his vision become blurry and his energy leave him.
-“Stop being nice ! We’re going blood for blood !” Mosquito exclaimed.-“No ! If we lose focus, we'll end up like Craig !” Callgirl said, after rising from the floor with a scratched face and a ripped mask. “We have to keep our heads to ourselves !”-“You who are so intelligent, you are really being stupid right now !”-“Oh crap. Guys, he got mindfucked.”
But before he could suck up Callgirl's blood, he brought his hands to his head and collapsed heavily on the floor.
-“Release Fastpass ! I have understood how to confront you now. Leave the city immediately.”-“Doctor T !”-“Wow man, what is that look…”
The telepath had a deceptively confident face, both hands on his tinfoil helmet. He ignored his fellow heroes who were fighting next to him: a moment of disconcentration could lead to doom.
-“Aaah, Timothy, the famous Doctor.” the alien chief said. “Zarganor told me a lot about you in his very last psychic message.”-“I am not here to talk about him. You know very well why I am here. Release my colleague.”-“Do you think it's going to happen like that ? You're not as resistant to psychic waves as you think !”-“That is what you think.” the psychic declared, a proud smirk on his face.-“Doc, w-watch out !”
Scott had snuck up behind him and was about to deliver a fatal blow to the doctor's head. But nothing was touched by his two clenched fists, for his enemy had disappeared.
-“Phew, jeez, I almost m-missed you, I was too busy admiring you from af-far.”-“Stop flirting with me, we have work to do.” Timothy said, doubting a little that he is not mind controlled.
They worked together to eliminate the aliens.
-“To defeat a mind-controlled enemy, you have to overload their brain to cause a surplus of information. This will cause the target to faint, but a fainting enemy can no longer be mind-controlled.”-“That k-kind of makes sense, but wh-what about the aliens ?”-“That, I do not know. Seems like we’ll have to do this the old-fashioned way.”
The Doctor was not as frightened as he used to be, as Fastpass had resisted the alien leader's attempt at mind control. Covered by his makeshift helmet, the protection of the city could only go well. In fact, he felt like he was gaining a little too much confidence...There were now only three aliens left, including the leader. They seemed distracted, as if concentrated in a silent conversation.
-“Have you seen, chief ? The psychic and the speedster are effective when they work together.” the left alien thought.-“That's right, the psychic doesn't seem to show as much interest in the other members of his team.” the right alien added.
They were right, though. But it was better not for Timmy to find out.
-“You can't have me anymore, aliens !” he said with a maniacal laughter. “This divine human artefact makes you UNABLE to have access to my mind !” he continued, overconfidence rising to his brain.-“Dude, don't tell them your secret weapon, are you stupid or what ?” Toolshed told him.-“Ah, but do you think that thing on your head will protect you ?” the alien chief declared. “You cannot be serious.”
An overwhelming heat surrounded the telepath's head, half a second as it melted his makeshift helmet, the aluminum now solidified into drops falling on the concrete.Stopped in his tracks, Timothy pretended to keep face, completely panicked from the inside. It was then that he felt a giant hand press against his head. There, he saw blurry.
-“Hey! Let go of my friend, you dirty son of a b..b..bitch !” Fastpass declared after a well placed hit n’run.
The alien let go, and Timothy teleported away, his eyes wide open, his gaze bleak.
-“Don't worry man, I'll c-cover you until we b-beat them !” Jimmy said to him, hands on his colleague’s shoulders.
Timmy shook his head, coming to his senses. He couldn't afford to lose focus now.
-“I understood something : if you know that your mind is going to be c-controlled, it doesn't w-work as well !” the speedster continued. “Stay focused, and d-don't worry about me !”
But it was hard not to worry about him. To see him take the blows without any problem, without ever seeing his cheeky smile disappear from his face.
-“My god, what wouldn't he do for his dear colleague...” the Raccoon commented.
After a while, the speedster could hardly stand on his crutches, tired but still optimistic.
-“Fastpass ! Stop fighting immediately. You are in very bad shape at the moment, you risk death !”-“What did I say, Doc ? Don't worry about me !”-“He's right, Jim ! Go back to the base, and bring Craig, Scott, and Clyde back with you !” Human Kite told him.-“J-Jeez, you’re not gonna t-tell me what to do, are you ?!”
He rushed towards the alien leader, dodging all the lasers in his path. But he was once again held back by an invisible force. This time, it was Timmy who was holding him back. But the psychic hindrance got interrupted.
-“You can't do anything ! Your stupid colleague is going to die because of an overdose of courage !
One of the aliens had grabbed the psychic and thrown him against the school wall in the distance, his back hitting the yellow bricks, knocking him out.
-“Doctor T !”
Callgirl ran to the team leader. He was still conscious, but extremely weak.
-“Are you okay ? No, that’s a stupid question, obviously you’re not okay…”-“Timmy… Jimmy…”-“He’ll be fine, don’t worry.”
But it wasn't going well at all. The superheroes, tired and injured, struggled to stand up to the alien leader. At one against seven, the fight seemed to be won in advance at first.A blow from the butt of a laser gun was enough to finish off Fastpass. The speedster collapsed, even if he wanted to continue to protect Timmy, his physical limitations would not let him.
-“Jimmy !” Timmy exclaimed before grabbing his head in both hands, feeling his strength diminishing.
The alien leader then did something rather unexpected : he took Fastpass and carried him on his shoulder, then raced back to his spaceship.
-“Stay here, doc ! We’re gonna get his ass blasted !”
In a last-ditch effort, almost all the heroes tried to catch up with him. But the alien ship disappeared in a flash of green light, which blinded the remaining Freedom Pals.In an instant, it was gone. Fastpass was gone !
-“Oh Jesus ! He's screwed ! He will be tortured and then executed !” Wonder Tweek shouted.-“Goddamn green bitch !” Tupperware said.-“How are we going to get him back ?”-“The answer is simple, Kite. We’re never going to get him back.” the Raccoon declared, not a hint of sadness in his voice.
The heroes heard the sounds of running in the distance : Mysterion had risen.
-“What happened ?! Where’s the alien ship ?!” he hurriedly asked.-“The alien leader has gone in ! He took Fastpass with him before leaving in a flash !” Callgirl explained to him.-“…Fastpass ?”-“Yes ! That’s weird, because I thought he wanted the Doctor, and Jimmy isn’t the one he…”-“But… Fastpass is right over there !”-“What ?!”
The heroes ran in the direction Mysterion indicated them, and here he was : Fastpass was lying, passed out and his headphones broken, at the foot of the school wall.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

-“Huh ??? What the hell is he doing here ?!” Wonder Tweek asked.-“Oh no, Doctor...”
The heroine looked up in the sky, to where the alien ship went.
-“Let's go back to the headquarters, Freedom Pals. We have to get to the bottom of this.” the Raccoon declared, before running away.-“Hey ! We have people to transport, I remind you !” the Kite shouted at him.
The passed out were placed on the chairs of the meeting table near the TV. At the other table, the superheroes were debating.
-“How come Jimmy is here, but Timmy is gone ?”-“The answer is quite simple, Toolshed.” the Raccoon started. “The Doctor swapped places with Fastpass at the last minute.”-“He was at the end of his strength ! He would have been unable to use his psychic powers in this situation !” Callgirl said. “I know, I was there !”-“It's true. But do you know the properties of adrenaline ? It is released in large quantities in the body during intense exercise or a moment of great stress. It is said that people would be able to lift cars when they have a burst of adrenaline.”-“…That’s a myth !”-“And given that the subject in danger was someone the Doctor particularly cares about, the adrenaline charge must have been particularly strong, allowing him to use his psychic powers.” the Raccoon continued, completely ignoring his colleague.-“That's not how it works !” Kyle exclaimed.-“What are you all talking about ?”
Heads turned towards the meeting table : Super Craig had woken up, very confused and questioned.
-“Craig ! Man, you had gone completely crazy ! You smashed Wendy !” Tweek exclaimed, shaking his boyfriend by the shoulders.-“Oh, calm down ! I didn't touch Wendy !” he said, not understanding the facts of which he was accused. “What the hell happened ?”
After reaching the meeting table, Craig understood what had happened to him.
-“Ooooh. Oh fuck. Sorry Wendy.”-“Don't worry, it wasn't your fault.” she answered. “But I still have a big bruise on the back of my head now.”-“So the aliens are capable of mind-control…” Tupperware concluded. “It must work like Timmy's. If we put on aluminum foil helmets, we won't be able to be brainwashed !” he deduced.-“Besides, where is Timmy ?” Craig asked.-“It's a long story.”-“What long story ?”
The two other mind-controlled heroes woke up in turn, and the story was told once again.
-“Is he stupid or what ?”
Mosquito asked. “Why did he do that ? He knew that the aliens were looking for him, why did he surrender ?”-“It's not very heroic of him...” Captain Diabetes said.-“Trust me, it's more so than you think...” the provisory leader declared.-“…Will you stop it with that ?! We're fed up with your fucking innuendos, you deep moron !”
Annoyed by the commotion, Fastpass woke up with a violent headache. His colleagues didn't notice him, so he took the opportunity to examine his injuries. He was in a particularly bad state, his body still aching from battle. The long scar on his brow was covered in gauze. Then he noticed something : next to the computer, near the stairs, was Timmy's wheelchair, empty.
-“Wh-Where is Doc, fellas ?”-“I am not telling the story a third time.”-“You almost got abducted by the alien leader, but he swapped places with you at the last moment, and he was the one who got abducted.” Cartman said all in one breath.
The speedster stopped in his tracks.
-“What ? He did what ?! Why the fuck did he do that ???” he babbled. “It m-m-makes no sense ! He is the one the Zarganor w-wanted in the first place ! He's s-smarter than that !”-“That's what I thought, too, Jim. But it seems that he did it for a good reason.” the chief told him. “God, these people are crazy, I understand why Bradley's family enslaved them.”-“Okay, Fastpass ! Do you know what we're going to do ?” Callgirl declared after slamming her hands on the meeting table, startling the speedster. “You fought one of the aliens at your summer camp, right ? You're going to tell us everything you know about them, so we'll know how to eliminate them and save the Doctor !”
The heroes got busy. They unrolled a sheet of paper, on which they wrote down information and sketched plans. But only one question was yet to be answered.
-“ How are we going to get to Kokujon ?” Tupperware asked.-“Didn’t you keep in touch with Bradley, Jimmy ?”-“I think so, Mr. Immortal. We were f-f-friends before he learned he was an a-alien.”
The speedster took out his phone.
-“Jeez, you can't be TH-THAT busy...” he sighed, wondering why he didn't answer.
But a phone was heard vibrating on the stairs. Bradley had arrived without anyone hearing him !
-“Someone’s looking for a minty hero ?”-“Oh, Crunch ! How did you c-come that fast ?”-“You never call me. When you do, it’s for something important !”-“Ind-deed.”- I see that you are all here. A nice little team ! But wait, where's your boss ?”-“That's wh-why we called you, dude. He was ab-bducted by your... alien slaves and they have gone to your planet !”
Mintberry's eyes became frozen. By rage or fear ?
-“What ?! A REBELLION ???”
By rage, apparently.
-“I understand them a little. I wouldn't like to be a slave to a guy like Bradley.” Super Craig confessed.-“No one would like to be a slave !” Mosquito said.-“They must be stopped AS SOON as possible !” Crunch added. “They will surely convert your colleague to their cause !”-“Actually, th-that’s what they said they would do.”-“WHAT ???”
The alien hero took a deep breath.
-“Come with me. We have a lot of work to do.”
The team followed him, but Mysterion remained seated in his chair. He had to get to the bottom of the matter that was in his head. As Jimmy was about to climb the stairwell, he called out to him.
-“Wh-What is up, dawg ?”-“Sit down for a moment.”
He did so. What could Mysterion possibly want from him ?
-“I have a question for you, man. But you have to be one hundred percent honest, okay ?”-“Sure, what’s up, dawg ?”-“…What happened at summer camp ?”
Jimmy was taken aback.
-“Nathan and Mimsy brought p-people to k-kill the counselors and ruin the vacation, and then Z-Zarganor came in and destroyed the camp. Why are you asking me that ?” he said, eyes wandering.-“Your story is not going well. Zarganor was there to kill Bradley, why would he have destroyed the camp ?”-“I d-don't know, I wasn’t in his head !” Fastpass justified himself.-“Timmy looked terrified of facing the aliens ! He has literally made a helmet out of aluminum foil !” Mysterion said louder, feeling that the speedster was hiding things from him.
The latter rose from the chair, and turned away from the immortal.
-“It was Timmy who destroyed camp.”
Mysterion gasped, expecting anything but that.
-“But why ?”-“He got mindf-fucked by Zarganor.” Jimmy continued, not turning around.-“But so did the people from our team ! They weren't strong enough to destroy an entire summer camp.”-“It was… d-different. He made him s-so tall that he c-crushed the Mess Hall under him. He destroyed the camp with his own hands ! He grabbed B-Butters and threw him into the forest ! See the s-scar on my face ? He was the one who did that !”
Mysterion rose up as well and took the speedster into his arms, feeling him spiral.
-“That's why he seemed afraid... He didn't want it to happen again...” he realized.
He finally let go of his colleague, who took a breath. Jimmy felt like he shouldn't have told so much.
-“Y-You know, when he woke up after the weekend, he felt ex-xtremely guilty...” he continued. “He often asked me if I was m-mad at him after that. He got mindfucked, obviously I wouldn't be m-mad at him !”-“You don't seem to be able to be mad at him for anything...” Mysterion said.-“But wh-why did he leave with the a-alien leader ?” Fastpass wondered, ignoring his fellow hero. “If he’s s-so scared of being mind-controlled, why did he do that ?”-“He knows what it feels like. He surely didn't want that to happen to you.” the fellow hero declared.
A silence filled the headquarters. At the thought that Timmy was able to confront his biggest fear just to save him, Jimmy felt all warm and fuzzy inside. And apparently, it was visible outside too, because Mysterion sneered.
-“Come on, stop being gay and let's join the Pals. We’ve got a psychic to save.”
Fastpass put the hand that had ended up in a perfectly strange way on his left cheek back on his crutch handle, and the two superheroes left.-“Woaaah…It’s sooooo cool…”
Craig was in total awe at the sight of the interior of Mintberry's spaceship. He could see very well that it was his, due to the almost overwhelming presence of green and pink. The brutalist followed the stripes in the walls with an index, they were shining with fluorescent colors. He could almost get lost in this technological blue.
-“Hey ! Careful where you walk !” Toolshed told him, after Craig bumped into him.-“Sorry.”
Joined by Kenny and Jimmy, the superhero group found themselves in the captain's cabin.
-“I've already used too much fuel to get here as quickly as possible.” Bradley announced, pushing levers and buttons. “We'll have to go to the petrol station.”-“What kind of fuel do you use ?” Super Craig asked him.-“Unleaded 95.”-“Oh.”-“Come on, dear colleagues ! To the petrol station !”
When the ship took off, the Freedom Pals wondered what they were going to do once they arrived on Kokujon.
-“The aliens' ship is the same as Bradley's. A spaceship thirty-feet high looks pretty hard to hide.” Callgirl constated.-“We should go around the planet until we notice the ship !”-“Clyde, you can’t see a thirty-feet high object from space.” Tolkien said.-“Anyway, Kokujon is not even their planet to begin with.” the Raccoon started. “The ships belong to Brad’s family, so there can’t be that many of them.”-“What ??? They stole a ship from me ???”-“Well yes, how do you think they arrived on Earth ?”-“Well there !!!”
The minty hero let go of the gas pump and ran back into his ship, regaining control as fast as he could. The door would have almost remained open if Super Craig hadn't forcibly closed it with Scott's help.
-“Shablagoo, you asshole aliens !”Meanwhile, someone had just regained consciousness. He was also regaining consciousness of what had happened what seemed to be days ago.
-“Oh my... What a story... Oh, but what a story ! With all my heart, I hope you are well, my friends...”
He looked around him. To his left, hospital beds. To his right, hospital beds. But not only that : he noticed that a catheter had been placed in his arm, connected to... nothing. At least, that's what he thought at first, because the tube led to an air duct in the wall.
-“Hmm, that's particular...” Timmy told himself. “What are they trying to do with this ? In any case, nothing positive, I suppose.”
With an infinitely careful gesture, he removed it and pressed his sleeve against the hole. It was better not to suffer a hemorrhage in such a situation. Wait, he still had his sleeve ?”
-“Hey ? In such a setting, I would have thought I was wearing a hospital gown. This is an example of precarious conditions.”
No one else was in the room, but the psychic could hear noise in the room next door. A meeting ? But there was no way to be sure, as he was unable to move.
-“And my hands are not tied ! They left that to me, at least.”
He pulled one of the beds to him, which creaked as its feet scraped the tiles. The loud noise startled the psychic, who turned his head to the door.
-“No little wheels, then…” he thought, disappointed.
But then, how to get out of there ?
-“Maybe I should wait... One of the aliens should surely arrive at any moment. After all, it was me they were looking for...”

Slowly, he realized.
-“Oh, what an idiot I am ! I basically gave myself up to them ! Now they're going to be able to accomplish what they want !” he understood, hands pressed against his ears. “What a mistake, Timothy, what a mistake !”
But just as the boy began resenting, the door opened wide.The alien leader stood there, and the two looked into each other's eyes for a moment.
-“…Mister Doctor.”-“Timmy !” he exclaimed, placing his hands on his head back again.-“Oh, calm down, I won’t hurt you !” the leader said. “At least, for now. If you follow the plan properly, nothing will be done to you at all, and you will be brought back to your little planet.”-“I find this is pretty hard to believe. What does your plan consist of ?” Timmy asked, without abandoning his defensive posture for all that.-“We were just going to discuss it with the team. Come on.”
Timmy had no idea what the next room looked like, so he awkwardly teleported to it, and landed on the floor.
-“I should have expected that.”
But he suddenly got caught below the shoulders and placed on a chair.
-“Behold !” the alien chief declared. “We have on our side the best psychic on planet Earth ! This boy will help us topple Mintberry Crunch and his dirty family, and get our well-deserved revenge !”
Timmy realized that he was at the end of a meeting table, where about ten Zarganors were present.
-“Timmy…” he blurted out, with an awkward wave of hand. “Oh my, what a screwed-up business have I gotten myself into...”
Since these aliens all had the same name, he decided to give them numbers in his head. It will be easier to find your way around, for you and for me.
-“Are you sure it's him ?” Number Five asked. “The legendary Doctor ?”-“Legendary ?”-“Of course he is ! It is said that if he has such a big head, it is because he stores all his powers in it !” Number Two told his colleague.-“Well, I can't think of anywhere else where I could store them...”-“Quiet ! Let's summarize the plan.” Number Three declared.
The alien leader uncovered a video projector, which projected a PowerPoint on the only empty wall in the room. Timothy, intrigued, looked intently.
-“If some of you are STILL wondering why we need the psychic here, it's because Crunch's father is able to counter our psychic waves, but not his !” he started. “Therefore, he cannot counter him ! And thanks to this, we will be able to assassinate him !”-“His father ?
I doubt that a man who can hold so many aliens in slavery could be defeated by someone like me.”-“First, you will have to get the attention of the army. We will burn the main cotton berry farm !” he continued.-“And after we’ve done that ?” Number Ten asked.-“After that ! After that, we're going to destroy the city with our state-of-the-art invention !”-“Yes, but that's if Zarganor agrees to place an emergency battery in the robot !”-“…The robot ?”
Two of the aliens began a raging debate over the battery.
-“This plan has no possibility of failure ! At least, if our guest decides to cooperate...”
Timothy glared at him, taking the threat to heart. He liked Bradley, and thought it was a shame to have to do this to him. Anyway, if the aliens were mad at his father, they probably wanted to kill him too, so he wouldn't be alive very long to see that...
-“But tell me, I have a question.”
Everyone turned to him, and he regretted his speech a little.
-“No, nothing. Forget about that.”-“Very well ! Prepare the armament ! We are going to attack now !”-“Timmy ???”
The doctor was once again caught and transported to the outside of the building. He tried to teleport again, but the leader put his hands behind his back.
-“TIMMY !!!”-“Chief ! Look !”
He accompanied his subordinate and saw something he hadn't expected anytime soon : another spaceship.
-“Crunch ! He found us !”
The door opened.
-“You were right, Bradley ! Kokujon has w-way more than just one sun !” Fastpass exclaimed.-“If the Earth had more than one sun, I'd be sooooo happy.”-“Where are they ???”
Mintberry Crunch was enraged at nothing at all. Indeed, the aliens went back inside the abandoned hospital before he could see them.
-“I'm sure they're in there !” Mysterion said.
Scott kicked down the double doors, and the team faced an empty meeting room.
-“What ? But their ship is right there !” Mosquito exclaimed.-“They must not have gone very far.” the Raccoon said. “They are not hard to see. Let's separate, we will be more efficient this way.”-“No ! We all stay together ! And if one of us gets mindfucked, we give him a big slap in the face !” Callgirl declared, before running away.
Fastpass quickly followed her. At least he knew that Timmy was not far away.Meanwhile, the aliens had escaped through a secret tunnel under the building, and were rushing towards their ship.
-“Retreat to emergency localization ! Immediate execution of the action plan !”-“Timmy !!”
He hadn't had time to do anything: his friends had come with Bradley, and he hadn't even had time to tell them anything that he got taken on board and put aside. He had hoped for a moment that he was finally out of the woods, but that wouldn’t happen for a long time.Before the ship took off, he spotted Jimmy, who was returning to the meeting room. His face was worried, poor boy...
-“Jimmy…”-“Guys. They're gone.”-“WHAT ?!”
The superheroes ran outside, but the ship had already left.
-“Je-esus Christ, we were a-almost there ! On the v-v-verge of it !” Fastpass shouted. “Go f-f-fuck yourself, you green b-bastards !”-“Yeah, fuck y’all.” Craig added, middle finger in the sky.-“We have to find them quickly !” Mysterion said.-“You're right, who knows what could happen to Timmy...” Cartman said, thinking. “We have to look for clues inside.”
The Pals complied, searched the meeting room from top to bottom. Callgirl and Toolshed then stumbled on the "hospital room".
-“Wow... That's weird...” Callgirl said.
She took many photos and selfies in the room, which she posted on Instagram with the caption : “First day on a planet other than Earth, and I feel like I'm at home... That's not a compliment.”
-“Where do you think they went ?” Toolshed asked her. “And please, don’t post that one.”-“I find it even stranger that they disappeared like that. But if the aliens have psychic powers, I wouldn't be surprised if they could teleport.” she answered.-“And Timmy ? Why didn't he escape by teleporting ?”-“He was surely restrained. Or mind controlled.”-“Dude, a mind controlled Timmy would be pretty scary.”-“S-Sure he would.”
Stan jumped and grabbed Wendy’s arm in fear.
-“Dude, don’t do that !”-“Come on, we found something rather d-distasteful, very much.”
The two superheroes went back into the meeting room, to the Raccoon presenting a PowerPoint.
-“Apparently, they're planning to kill your father, Bradley.” he said, pointing towards the PowerPoint. “And also, they plan to use a giant robot that works with psychic waves to destroy the capital of the planet.”-“Psychic waves ? It's useless ! Their powers are nothing compared to the greatness of mint and berries !” Bradley proudly said, hands on his hips.-“They have planned for that too. That's why they captured the Doctor, it's written there that his psychic powers can affect you and your father.”-“Does that mean they're going to put Timmy in a giant robot ???” Tupperware said.-“He will n-never agree to do that !” Jimmy declared. “He's not stupid, he's bound to f-find a way out of there !”-“You know, he's not immune to mind control.”-“I-I know that !”-“What tells you that they are not doing it right now ?!” Human Kite said. “Maybe they are already burning the cotton berry farm !”-“In that case, we have to go there right away !”-“No, Tweek. Looking for a fight now is a very bad idea.”-“Are you s-sick in the head ?! We're not going to let Tim-Tim get m-mindfucked and destroy an entire city !”-“We should have left a long time ago already.”-“Let's go ! We are not going to let them reduce to nothing what makes the richness of our beautiful planet !”
Mintberry ran outside, turning the engines back on. The superheroes followed, anxious. And the speedster was also perplexed. He was on the verge of finding his colleague, and now he was even further away than before. What was going to happen now ?
-“I find this story of a giant robot dubious.”
the Raccoon mumbled. “How would a species of aliens who has been enslaved have the ability to build something of this scale ?”-“I would like to point out that slaves are not necessarily all stupid...” Kite added.-“I know, Kyle. But it's still interesting to note...”-“Buckle up, folks ! We're going to shoot down rebellion !”
The ship took off at full throttle, and hurtled through the sky, circling the small planet several times.
-“Dude ! You're going too fast ! We're gonna miss them !” Toolshed exclaimed, trying to get Bradley off the controls.
But the young hero was blinded and deafened by rage, and could not even see where he was going. He wanted to see them dead, all of them ! And it doesn't matter if the Doctor died too, he was a traitor, a collaborator !An explosion was heard at the rear of the ship : the engine had overheated and exploded. The mechanic rushed there, followed by the influencer. Alarms went off, illuminating the ship in green and pink.
-“SOMEONE STOP HIM, DAMN IT !”-“Mega fist punch !”
Mintberry flew to the left under the blow of Craig, who took the controls.
-“Guys, we’re gonna crash down ! Get prepared and take cover.” he announced, surprisingly serene. “To all the units, prepare the landing strip ! We are going to make an emergency landing !”
The young brutalist took his role as captain very seriously, and he was pretty good, as if he'd been doing it all his life. The number of documentaries and cartoons about space and its conquest that he watched were finally somewhat useful to him.After a long descent in a rickety ship, the superheroes landed near the entrance of the berry mines.
-“It looks like they haven't arrived yet.” Mysterion constated. “We must quickly warn the population and have them evacuated !”-“Hey, I thought you would be dead.” the Raccoon said, surprised.-“Me too, dude, me too.”-“Let’s get moving ! We won’t let innocent civilians die !”
So they rushed into the city, uncertain. The threat was great, too great for them.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

The superheroes had split in two: Kenny, Jimmy, Wendy, Scott and Tolkien were in the capital, warning the inhabitants of the coming disaster. Bradley had insisted on accompanying them, in order to protect his father.
-“Everyone, go into hiding or flee the city ! You're going to get attacked !” Mysterion shouted at the top of his lungs to the townspeople.-“Yeah ! Be careful though, avoid falling down.” Callgirl added.-“We have to go to the family castle !” Mintberry declared. “My father is in it !”-“Wait, you have a castle ???” Fastpass exclaimed, rather surprised.-“If they can afford to have slaves, they can certainly afford to have a castle...” Callgirl said.
And you could see it from afar : not by its architecture inspired by Gothic cathedrals, but by its flashy colors that contrasted with the gray and blue city.
-“Is that a drawbridge ? That's some high-level architecture right here.” Tupperware said wide-eyed as the group entered the building.-“Gok-Zarah ! But where the hell did you go ?”
Mintberry's father was running towards the group, who were glaring puzzled at each other.
-“I didn't think he would l-look like that...” Fastpass whispered to Scott, who nodded in agreement.-“Father ! The situation is serious : the Zarganor have escaped, and threaten to kill you, and destroy the cotton berry mines !” Crunch told him. “You have to get to safety !”-“If that's all there is to it... I've already repressed rebellions before, son...”-“It’s different this time ! They have captured an ally of ours, a psychic, who can control anyone's brain ! Even yours !”-“D-Don't underestimate the Doctor's abilities, sir.”-“We sent the rest of our team to delay them in the first part of their plan !” Callgirl said. “Now, we must hope that they succeed...”Well, they’re not really succeeding. They were confronting the aliens at the entrance to the cotton berry mines, lost in the flames. No matter how much rain Tweek was making, the fire didn't stop dancing.
-“We’re going to get a hell of an ass-kicking !” he shouted.-“We don't care about his cotton berries !” Craig told him. “The main thing is that we save Timmy !”
And to the Doctor’s rescue, Toolshed and the Raccoon were rushing into the mine, looking for the giant robot.
-“It must be in there !” the provisory leader explained. “If there's a place to hide something this big from your slave master, it's in these big ass galleries !”-“Yeah, well it's not ideal... Caves have quite high humidity levels, so it's not great for storing metal, it causes rust...”
As they ran, they heard a noise, which grew louder and louder, heavy footsteps. They hid behind a wall, listening.
-“TIMMY !!!”-“My God, shut up ! Are you that noisy when you do your job ?!”-“TIM-MY !”-“Dude, it’s them !” Toolshed constated.-“We must follow them, right now !”
The two superheroes took a nearby gallery, separated from the alien leader and Timothy by a wall of ore. Never spotted, they listened to the angry and aimless conversation of the other two.At last the steps stopped. The sound of an iron door was heard, leaving and then returning to the ground with a thud.
-“Okay, draw the blowtorch, tool-man !”
He made a hole in the armored door a little too easily for his liking, and they rushed to the other side.There, they faced the impossible : a gigantic room, in which the slightest noise could be echoed for miles. But most impressive was the machine that was in the center. It had an atypical shape, its center composed of a huge square of armored metal, strangely smooth. As the mechanic wondered how such a machine could be moved, he looked down : he observed a total of eight legs, like those of a field spider, and wired in the same manner.
-“Oh. My God. That thing is awesome !” the Raccoon exclaimed. “Timmy is very lucky.”-“Are you kidding ?! We have to get him out of there !”
The stairs were very numerous, and it seems that the heroes were a little late. The alien leader was gone, and so was the psychic. When they arrived on the roof of the giant robot, they looked for any entrance, without success.
-“Damn, this thing is super smooth.” the leader constated. “It must have taken them a while...”-“It is at least a hundred feet high, and thirty wide !” Toolshed added, impressed. “There's no way Doc is going to drive this thing !”
But as they were about to go down to continue their search, a violent tremor forced them to return to the roof. The cube beneath them was lighting up with neon green streaks, which formed squares with hellish reflections. And above, the ceiling opened in two, showing the almost nocturnal sky and hoovering the smell of the flames.
-“Man, if we don't get off there, we're screwed ! We're dead !” the mechanic shouted, grabbing his colleague’s shoulders.-“Don't worry, Toolshed. We'll get out of this.”
He grabbed the mechanic and jumped over the hatch, landing a little further from the mine entrance. The Pals were extinguishing the rest of the berry farm, seemingly having fought back all of the aliens.
-“Guys ! He's in the robot ! It's fucking crazy, you guys !” the leader shouted while running to his teammates.
When he reached them, another violent tremor struck the ground this time, causing the heroes to turn around. There it was, and they had the impression that it was looking down at them ominously.
-“Holy shit, they didn't mess around talking about giant robots !” the Kite exclaimed.-“What the hell is THAT, even ?!” Mosquito asked.-“Yeah, it looks like a bunch of nonsense put together with tape.” Super Craig added.
The bunch of nonsense put together with tape suddenly stopped glowing green for a moment, but quickly went back to its state and moved forward at full speed as if it knew where to go. Indeed, Timmy knew where to go.
-“He got mindfucked, you guys.” the Raccoon declared. “He's screwed.”-“Not if we stop him in time !” Toolshed said.
The mission began, the heroes followed closely behind the infernal machine. Kyle, Tweek, and Clyde watched it from all angles from the air, looking for an opening. The heroes on the ground struggled to keep up with the pace, quickly exhausting themselves.
-“He’s going too fast !”-“We're never going to reach the city in time !” Stan said.-“Toolshed, don't lose hope !” the leader told him. “Use your sand blaster, dude !”
He did, but instead of using it to propel himself to the top of the structure as the leader thought, he propelled himself forward, far past the machine and hurtling toward the city.In the city, the other heroes could feel the ground shaking beneath them.
-“It's nothing, probably a small earthquake.” Tolkien said.-“There are no tectonic plates on Kokujon, it's one and only continent !” Crunch declared. “This is no normal behavior !”-“Uh, guys… You might want to see this.” Callgirl called out to them from upstairs. “Oh God, I can’t believe I just said that…”
The boys joined the heroine, who was at the top of one of the castle's towers.
-“Look in the phone !” she added, going into the Photo mode.
There, she zoomed in : zooming in so much reduced the image quality, but the heroes could see what was coming.
-“They didn’t stop him !” Mysterion exclaimed. “This thing is getting dangerously close !”-“You shall not lay a finger on my capital, you metal monster !”-“He'll see, I'll send him straight to the scrapyard !” Scott declared, fist in hand.
They rushed to the stairs, ready for action. But Jimmy was still up there, watching the approaching enemy bug-eyed.
-“He's in there... It's l-like last summer...” he said, frozen.-“Jimmy ! Jimmy, we’re going !” Kenny told him, grabbing his arm.
He followed suit, giving the machine one last look, seeing it glow green.Once at the entrance, they saw a face-down Toolshed.
-“There you are !” he exclaimed after standing up. “We’ve got a major problem !”-“We saw that, Stan !” Callgirl told him. “What are we supposed to do ?” she added, grabbing him by the shoulders.-“I don’t know !”-“Well, we get into the machine, and we blow his face off !” Scott suggested.-“They found no entrance ! It’s basically just a cube !”-“You guys ! You guys !”
The Raccoon was running towards them.
-“Did he stop ?!” Toolshed asked him.-“He did !” his colleague answered. “But I think there’s something wrong with the robot… Looks like it’s flickering…”
And it was : the lights in the cube changed rapidly from green to black. But they soon regained their flashy color, which seemed stronger than before.
-“Don't worry guys, we've seen worse than this before !” the Kite said as he arrived with his colleagues.-“It’s gonna be a piece of cake.” Craig added.-“Come on, friends ! Let's take down the enemy !” Mintberry declared, finger pointing to the robot.-“CRUNCH.”
The voice resonated a little in the superheroes' minds. They recognized it, but there was something different to it, an echo that almost all of them did not yet know.
-“NOTHING CAN PREVENT THE DESTRUCTION OF YOUR MISERABLE CITY, THE DEATH OF YOUR MISERABLE FATHER, AND THE END OF YOUR MISERABLE EXISTENCE.”-“I am afraid he ate you up, Brad.”-“Oh ? Oooh, is that Callgirl that I hear ? I didn't expect you to be there. Does this mean that the Freedom Pals are all together ? You are loyal to your friends, it's nice to hear.”-“Shut up, Timmy.”-“We’re gonna blow your head off this robot, Doc !” the Raccoon declared, fist in the air. “Your pseudo-reign of terror is over !”-“I'm not trying to achieve the reign of anything. Surely my colleagues must have another goal. In any case, there won't be much left after our success !”-“They’re n-not your colleagues ! We a-are your colleagues !” Fastpass told him, having been too silent for a moment. “Pull yourself together, d-damn it ! You're getting mind controlled !”-“Am I ? I'm afraid I know about this, James.”-“You son of a bitch ! Get out of your cube and face us like a man !” the leader shouted.-“Oh but I'd love to, Raccoon, I'd love to, but this thing has no visible entrance or exit, the only possible breaches being well-machined hatches on the sides and-”
The machine shone even brighter, the green becoming almost blinding, and the ground shook again.
-“And why am I telling you all that, even ?!” Timothy resumed. “If you want to stay alive, feel free to leave the city right now.”
He was right after all : the hatches that opened progressively at the faces of the cube transformed it into a war machine, unleashing various giant versions of laser guns based on those of the aliens.And as if that wasn't enough, they made their return near Mintberry Castle.
-“This time, you're finished, Crunch !” the alien leader exclaimed.-“Holy shit, you’re still here ?!” Wonder Tweek shouted.-“We're not all going to stay here !” Mysterion decided. “Fastpass, Toolshed, Callgirl and Mosquito, come with me ! We're going to stop Timmy from destroying town !”-“Heeey, you're not the one who makes the teams !” Cartman whined.-“Shut up !”The psychic seemingly took time to get to grips with the lasers. Indeed, it's not as if he has received training. They charged slowly, and when he managed to fire them, he didn't hit anything at all, the shots ending up either in the ground or in random houses, nothing interesting.
-“Ah ! You’re lame !” Clyde scoffed.-“Mosquito ! As annoying as a real one, I see…”
All the lasers focused on him, following him from the viewfinder.
-“I cannot follow you, but they can !”-“Good to know, Doc, thanks !” Callgirl said.-“At least the lasers are n-no longer a danger !” Fastpass added.-“You think so, boy ? To kill a mosquito, you only need one swatter !”
The left laser changed its focus, and aimed at the speedster. He dodged all the shots, changing places in half a second.
-“He is heading straight for Bradley’s house !” Toolshed said.-“If he finds his dad, it's over !” Mysterion constated. “Jimmy, go and tell him !”
The speedster rushed towards the castle, and found Bradley's father in the hall.
-“M-Mr. Crunch ! What are you still doing here ?!”-“I am trying to control the Zarganor with my psychic waves, but it doesn't work !” he said, hands on his forehead.-“Well, that’s weird. But you probably sh-shouldn’t stay h-hidden here, since they are looking forward to your death.”-“Those damn slaves ! How did they escape my mental force ?!”-“Sir, you really should be m-moving by now…”
Indeed, the infernal machine was approaching the castle, and a fatal shot blew up one of the walls, hiding the two in a cloud of pink dust. The two found themselves against the back wall, their hands on each other's shoulders.
-“Dude, you r-really should be taking cover !” the speedster told Crunch’s dad again, his voice reduced by the sounds of combat. “If I hadn't been here, you w-would have died !”-“What is this technology ?! How can they be so advanced ?”-“That's not the question, go hide !”-“Oh no... Oh no, I know... Poor kid...”-“Wh-What ? What’s going on ?”
The father pointed at the robot.
-“When we enslaved the Zarganor, they used their psychic waves to keep us at bay. But we have developed an invention to combat their abilities : brainwashing.”-“B-Brainwashing ?”-“We have installed a chip inside of their bodies, in order to restrain their powers.” the man continued. “If they managed to escape from Kokujon, it’s because they got aware of their existence. That’s what happened with the Zarganor that attacked your summer camp.”-“You know about that ?!” Jimmy asked, surprised.-“Gok-Zarah told me everything. He was furious, and I was afraid he would be even more if he knew the reason. They have certainly reprogrammed their boss's chip and implanted it in your friend's body, in order to do to him what we did to them, for their own benefit.”-“Oh jeez... It's w-worse than I thought !”
The speedster grabbed his head in his hands, panicked. It was worse than the situation at summer camp ! The chances of having his best friend back were even lower !
-“If you manage to get him out of the machine, you will have to remove it from him, otherwise the mind control will not cease.” Bradley’s father explained. “If they did as we did, it would be found between his two collarbones, in the hollow they form.”-“That’s a p-pretty weird placement…”-“Indeed, on a child of his size, it is more difficult to reach. Either way, good luck kid, you're going to need it-”
As he finished his sentence, a thud alerted the two : one of the robot's laser guns had detached and hit the roof of a building, creating dust and chaos as it collapsed. It eventually fell into the open hall, which the two left at full speed, joining Mysterion's group.
-“Callgirl ! Wh-What’s new ?” the speedster asked her, who seemingly was not busy.-“Stan is trying to unscrew the legs of the structure so that it can't move !” she answered. “Mosquito is still distracting Doc, and Mysterion doesn’t do much.”-“I’m doing more than you, at least ! I'm trying to find a way to get into the cube !”-“I told you, Mysterion ! There is no way to get into the cube, the only possible breaches being well-machined hatches on the sides…” Timothy repeated, getting the cables from the right side of the cube inside of it.-“We know, bitch ! That’s what we’re trying to find !”-“Why does he tell you all this ?” Mr. Crunch asked.
The machine lit up again, and the ground trembled. It seemed to be something that recurred.
-“Stop asking me for logic ! I don't know, I don't know !” the psychic declared, voice becoming stronger and louder with each word. “Who are you to want to know what is going on inside of my head ?! You are nothing but repressors, rebel stoppers ! YOU are the bad guys they talk about on TV !”
Silence of the entire town.
-“ Okay, we have to get him out of there quickly, he's going crazy.”-“Crazy ?! Ah ah ! Who are you to call me crazy, clever girl ?!”
The machine went faster and faster, and Mysterion understood something.

-“Cartman said that the robot worked with Timmy's psychic waves.” he started. “This means that he is at least a bit conscious, because he told us how to enter the robot !”-“R…Really ?”-“It seems. And every time he says something that suggests resistance, the machine fights against that !”
The boy's heart warmed: there was a chance to find him, at least. However, he quickly remembered the chip.
-“Wh-When we’ll get Tim-Tim out of there, we’ll have to do some k-kind of… chirurgical stuff on him.” he told his team.-“That’s if he lets us do it- wait, move !!!”
The lasers resumed, and this time aimed at the immortal, never letting his guard down. And the destruction of the city resumed, the robot fled in all directions, and the heroes followed it as fast as they could.
-“You took my right arm, Mysterion, now I will take your life !”-“What do you mean, “right arm” ?!” Toolshed exclaimed.-“The boy is probably connected to the cables.” Mr. Crunch said casually. “If you destroy a part of the robot, it will break a part of his body. Here, his right arm.”-“… Wh-Why didn’t you say that sooner ?!” Fastpass shouted.-“I thought… I thought it would be irrelevant.”-“At least he’s weakened !” Callgirl declared. “So, you can't unscrew the robot’s legs, otherwise his will break !”-“ His legs aren't the most useful part of his body, honestly.” Mosquito said, looking like he had waited for this moment his whole life.
Their discussion was interrupted by the arrival of Bradley.
-“Psychic! I am giving you an ultimatum.” he declared, empty-faced. “Either you immediately stop what you are doing and surrender...”
He got closer to Fastpass, and placed a hand on the side of his head after removing his headphones.
-“Or I give a minty shock to your friend, sacrificing him on the spot !”-“What ??? You will not k-kill me ?!”-“That’s the only way, Freedom Pal.”-“You’re not doing that, Brad !” Callgirl said, grabbing his arm and trying to get Jimmy away from him.
The infernal machine stopped. Breath cut short, the heroes waited for a word.
-“You’re willing to sacrifice members of your team to satisfy your dominance ?”
Silence.
-“You know very well that I don't want to do that ! If you hadn't attacked the city and contested the current system, we wouldn't be here !” Crunch declared, held down by the vigilante.-“…Ah ? I did this ? I attacked your capital ? DAMN YES, I DID ! And I will destroy YOU AS WELL if you don’t leave the speedster alone !”
Another sincere word, and another flash of fluorescent green. Mintberry escaped from Callgirl's hands and flew at full speed towards the machine.
-“Bradley ! Don't touch the cube !” Jimmy said, hand holding out for the already far away hero.-“ The cube must not be damaged !” Mr. Crunch declared. “It corresponds to the child's head, and even the strongest superhero will not survive a completely shattered skull... Gok-Zarah, you’re going too far...”-“Go and warn the others ! From now on, the robot must be protected !” Mysterion said.
And rushed the messenger towards the group of other fighters. Only the alien leader remained.-“G-Guys ! We're in sh-shit ! We have to save Timmy from Bradley !”
Everyone turned to him, even the chief of the Zarganor, who was astonished.
-“ Finally ! You understand that Crunch is the real enemy !” he said.-“We’re not talking to you !” the Raccoon told him.-“Does that mean we have to kill Bradley ?” Wonder Tweek asked.-“Thank God, he is unsufferable.”-“N-No ! Just stop him ! Come on, I’ll t-tell you on the way !”
They followed suit, avoiding the legs of the machine that roamed the city in pursuit of Mintberry Crunch. Arrived behind the walls of a bank, the other part of the team was there.
-“ Okay, we are reunited.” the provisory chief declared, hands on hips. “What do we do now ?”-“We break Timmy’s face.”-“Nope, Craig, we’re not supposed to damage the robot.” Toolshed said. “Our plan is to unscrew the legs. Or blow them up.”-“If we do that, he's going to be injured in his legs !” Scott wondered.-“It's not important! The main thing is that the cube is as little damaged as possible.”-“Okay ! The operation: “save Timmy by taking him out of the robot, prevent Mintberry Crunch from killing him and avoid breaking his skull in the process, and also find a shorter name for this operation” begins !” Tupperware declared joyfully.
Everyone looked at him strangely. Even the fight stopped for an instant.
-“Mmh. We’re going.”-“Oh my, how embarrassing…”-“Shut up, Timmy.”The two mechanics of the team joined forces again, transported by Fastpass all over the city.
-“Pass me the wrench, Toolboy ! That bolt is loose !”-“God damn it, it’s Toolshed…”
Their objective was to install turrets, a rather classic technique. But the manufactures were not ordinary : they were made to shoot heavier and… stickier as well.
-“If I put it like this... And that we connect the two... There you go ! Load up the cannons ! Yo oh oh !” Tolkien exclaimed.
Three shots in a row... and three missed shots.-“W-Well, you should be working on that.” the speedster ironically advised them, before leaving.
The flying heroes were trying to stop Bradley's minty fury, which he accompanied with berry blasts. Decidedly, even in this critical situation, he did not give up on the idea of the foolproof crunch.
-“Dude, stop your thing there !” Tweek told him. “You’re literally blowing up right now !”-“Yeah, you’re becoming weird.” Clyde added.-“I'm doing what it takes to protect my planet !” he declared. “Timothy's betrayal saddens me too, but now he is our enemy !”-“If you hadn't done your sacrifice thing, he wouldn't have gotten so angry, and he would surely have stopped his dumbassery !” Kyle said.-“Dumbassery ? What's next, tomfoolery, shenanigans, silliness, nonsense, horseplay ???”
But as Bradley tried to cite as many synonyms as possible, a stickybomb shot hit two of the robot's legs, causing it to lose its balance and destroy another building that it hit cube-on.
-“Aaah... This is how you want to play... Breaking my ankles this way, you will end up breaking yours...”-“Man, your lines suck !” Craig told him.-“Yeah, w-we can tell that you're p-possessed.”-“Was that a compliment, James ? In any case, your little flattery won't change much to the outcome of all of this.”
The last laser charged at full blast, aiming at Wonder Tweek.
-“SMOKE THE FAG !!!”

But another stickybomb exploded on the two opposite legs, decimating much of his ability to walk. The thunder man shouted loudly to expel the fear.
-“Don't worry Tweek, Timmy is British, over there the word means c-cigarette butt !” Jimmy said. “And after that b-blast, you would probably have been smoked, very much.”-“I CARE MORE ABOUT THE FACT THAT HE ALMOST BLASTED ME IN HALF !”The heroes on the ground couldn't do much, except almost break their necks while looking up. It seemed like a argument had started…
-“Gok-Zarah ! It’s already over !”-“But father ! As we have seen before on the planet of Zarganor, peaceful negotiation never works !”-“We have noticed that, Mr. Colonizer !”-“Cease lying ! We are not colonizers, we are explorers ! We discovered their little planet !”-“You cease lying first !”-“He doesn't realize it, but he's doing a great job !” Callgirl said. “Keep doing that, Brady !” she told Mintberry this time.
Indeed, the words of the minty hero distracted the psychic, making him focus on him rather than the city. Too distracted, even. He hadn't heard the third and final stickybomb clinging to one side of the cube.
-“Bradley, move !”
But listening only to his mind, he did nothing, and the bomb exploded.The centerpiece of the city collapsed as the robot crashed into it, drowning the heroes again under a cloud of dust and an electric noise. Mintberry also crashed a little further away, in the bank where his allies-turned-enemies had earlier hidden. The Raccoon team headed towards Bradley, while Mysterion's team rushed towards the broken machine.
-“Fortunately he fell on that side !” Toolshed said as he sawed through the cables.-“Be careful not to h-hit the cube...”-“Don’t worry, fast boy, he’s an experienced mechanic. No one is better than him in this field !”
But even the best makes mistakes : the saw skidded and sliced into the black steel. The green reappeared, but also the electric cables, targeting the speedster.
-“Let him go, we’re trying to save you, dammit !” Mysterion exclaimed, grabbing all the cables with one hand.
The efforts were in vain, the speedster was coiled in the steel snakes and dragged into the trapdoor, which closed in a split second as Callgirl held out her hand to him.
-“…Oh shit.”-“Is that normal ?” Mosquito asked.-“Probably. I think there’s a reason why the cables took Jimmy in particular. After all, that’s Timmy who controls the robot.” Toolshed said while wiping his forehead.-“Oooh, you’re not going to get into that too !”Jimmy fell face down. When he got up, he got very confused : the world in front of him was electric blue. He felt like it had no limit, no floor, no ceiling, no walls. At last he turned round, and the vision froze his body.In front of him was a chair on wheels with a large back, seeming to watch over a whole apparatus of buttons and levers, like Mintberry's ship.
But the most disturbing were two cables that seemed to have no end, going up to nothing at all. The boy got closer, steps trembling.
-“T-Timmy ?” he asked.
The chair turned : it was Timmy, indeed. The two cables were attached to both ends of his forehead, and his eyes were blank, staring at the speedster.
-“Fastpass.”-“Tim-Tim ! We’re going to g-get you out of there !”
But as he tried to get closer, an unseen force pushed him back, sending him farther than he had been before.
-“You should get out of here.”
Green flash.
-“Wh-Why are you saying that ?!” he said as he stood up.-“If the machine is too damaged, a self-destruct protocol is triggered. You should get out of here.”
Green flash, then red flash.
-“A-All the more reason, you dumb ass !”-“I cannot leave, and I do not want to. The cables attached to my head suck my powers into a kind of fuel for this machine. You should get out of here.”-“Sh-Shut your f-fucking mouth !”
Red flashes. Jimmy ran to Timothy and this time, he did not get pushed back.
-“You know I'll never be the same as I was before, right ?” he said, as Jimmy removed the cables.-“Y-Yes you will, Bradley's father told me about the chip.”-“He knew ? Very understandable.”
Untied, the cables went into nothing at all at full speed. The speedster grabbed one of them with his free arm, and the two flew away with them.After what seemed like an eternity, they found themselves above the surface, thrown into the air, and the first thing the doctor smelled was dust.
-“Run the fuck away, guys ! That thing is going to e…explode !”
The Kite caught up with the duo and pulled them away from the impending danger. And the machine self-destructed, creating dust and chaos, but also comfort in Jimmy's heart, comfort in knowing that his very dear friend was safe.
-“Oh my God, that was close.” Scott said, impressed.-“YOU ! You are a traitor, a rebel !!”
Bradley had recovered and was running to the psychic in Jimmy's arms. He was soon held back by Mysterion and the Raccoon.
-“Son, the menace is eradicated !”-“Timmy !!!” Timothy exclaimed, bringing his only valid hand to his temple.-“Oh fuck, the chip !”
Fastpass pinned Timmy to the ground, undid his tie and then the buttons on the top of his dirty white shirt.
-“Oh boy ! Holy shit balls, cover your eyes !” the Raccoon said.-“Shut your b-big mouth, asswipe !”
The psychic struggled, pressed his hand on the speedster's face, but he was stronger than him, and above all less tired. The latter grabbed a screwdriver that the team's mechanic handed him, and sharpened it against the uneven ground at the speed of light.
-“Sorry my man, it's g-going to hurt.” he apologized in advance, holding the sharpened tool in both hands.
He stabbed his colleague right between the collarbones, extracting a scream that was quickly muffled from him.
-“I don't have a choice ! It's either that or you die !”
After a few screwdriver stabs, hands pushed away and tears drawn, the chip was removed and dropped on the ground. The doctor immediately stopped moving, his gaze blank again.
-“Oh jeez… Oh jeez, I k-k-killed him !”
Blood flowed like water from the hole between the bones, but Callgirl intervened with the first aid kit.
-“Superheroes often forget that they are human... Well, some of them are...” she said as she whipped out gauze and disinfectant. “Don’t worry, Doctor T, you’ll be physically fine, but your mind will be pretty scarred. That’ll make interesting internal conflict.”-“Oh boy…”
But while the heroine was fixing the gauze, the psychic suddenly straightened up, completely stunned. He saw Fastpass and Callgirl and could hear Bradley arguing with his colleagues. He brought his hand to his mouth, his face decomposing.It happened again. Destroyed buildings, internal conflicts and injured colleagues had reappeared.He regretted having had such a moment of weakness in front of his colleagues, but he sobbed, once again, his eyes aching and wide open, seeming to drown in his own tears.
-“Don’t cry dude, don’t cry
!” Jimmy started, hands all over the psychic’s face. “Y-You’re alive, we’re all alive, and a city can be r-rebuilt !”
But it was hard for him not to cry too, the pressure of the day suddenly took off. Everyone had turned to them, looking at the three colleagues from an uncertain angle.
-“I'm in a lot of pain, Jimmy...”-“I know, you l-l-literally have a hole in your chest !” he said, trying to be funny, but also to distract the psychic from his remorse.
And it worked : he looked down and saw the gauze covering his upper torso, then the screwdriver that Callgirl held in her hand.
-“You’ve been a big pain in the ass to beat, dude.” she declared. “You should integrate aluminum foil in your costume, it would help to avoid reproducing this kind of scenario...”-“Did you stab me ?!”-“I didn’t, he did !”-“You STABBED me ?!”-“I didn’t have a ch-choice, man !”
The psychic squeezed the collar of the sweater with one angry hand, and brought the speedster closer to him. He looked into his eye for a long moment, their noses almost touching, trying to see if he was telling the truth. Then he remembered why he had a hole in his chest in the first place.
-“Indeed, I understand. Sorry for the sudden grab.”-“N-No problem, you've already done w-worse than that anyway !” Jimmy said, appreciative but ironic, before laughing.-“Ah, you ! You who laughs when I have destroyed an entire city ! People will wonder if you’ll laugh as much when it is you who will be destroyed by my hands...” Tim retorted, trying to be ironic as well, but falling back into his old ways way too fast for his liking...
Jimmy sighed, and took his colleague in his arms. Very much, his head fell on his shoulder. The tired team leader smelt like plastic, blood and rubble.Callgirl, who had watched the scene silently from the beginning, stood up, feeling something going on. “I’m gonna leave, I feel like I’m interrupting something…” she thought.
-“The goal of a superhero team is to h-help each other, you know. I-In addition to fighting crime !” he said with a soft voice, hand rubbing against the psychic’s back. “You couldn't do much in your p-position, but you still did s-something. B-Better than last time.”
At least that’s something… But that little something had hit Timothy right in the head. Caught between the shock of events, the pain between his collarbones and the warmth between James' arms, he exploded again as he got away from his best friend.
-“Oh my, oh my... Oh my dearest... Oh my very dearest friend… You’re always so kind… I love you, I love you so much…” he declared between sobs, hand trembling heavy on his forehead.-“Wh-What ?” Jimmy said, giggling. “Y-You’re not being g-gay in a m-m-moment like this, are you ?”-“I think I might be… No, actually I do. I’d like to have time to recover from the events.”
He drew nearer, and kissed the bridge of the speedster’s nose. This kind of thing had been common to them since last summer, when they both fell asleep at the gas station near their summer camp.He would have liked to give him another, perhaps somewhere else this time, but his hand flew up his chest in a hiss of pain. “Damn chip, why did you have to be placed in such a… place ?” he thought, annoyed.
-“Y-Yeah, I really think you n-need time to recover.” the speedster declared, seemingly determined.
And he did what the other hoped he would do, leaving him frozen, stuck between surprised, traumatized and excited.They looked at each other again, astonished at themselves. Jimmy laughed, reassured. Timmy was difficult to understand, and himself was not very good with social cues, but he saw well through this time.
-“Oh Jimmy, did you do this because you wanted to bring me back to my senses, or because you love me as well ?”-“…I think a bit of both.” he answered, a giddy smile on his face.-“This is an explanation I can accept, and understand.”-“S-Stop being so serious all the time !”-“Hah ! See ? I told you !”
Cartman was pointing fingers at everyone, thrilled with the conclusion of the event.
-“Ha ha ! FastDoc is canon !”-“F-FastDoc ?!”-“It is a matter of code names. I'll explain it to you when we get back onto our planet.”-“Nuh uh, you’re not going back on your planet YET !”
Mintberry walked with heavy steps towards the two, and stopped short.
-“Mister Doctor.”-“…Yes ?”-“Don’t act innocent ! You know what you did !” the minty hero said, grabbing the psychic’s tie and bringing him to him.-“H-Hey ! Careful !”-“Shut it James, he is right.”-“You supported a rebellion, and betrayed the people of Kokujon ! What do you have to say about that ?!”-“I believe that the population of the city has been evacuated. Regarding the rebellion, you are surely aware that I was not conscious at that time. But you are still deserving of a sincere apology, Brad, and I’ll be glad to do anything to pay it back to you.”
The alien looked at Jimmy.
-“Not that.”-“Hmm. Well, I have an idea. You and your small team of traitors will rebuild the ENTIRE city, all by yourselves !”-“We'll get paid, at least ?” the Raccoon asked.-“Of course not !” Bradley answered joyfully. “Since you killed all of my workforce, I don't think you deserve more pay than they do !”-“That’s fair.”-“However, I w-want to get a little rest, dude. We’re literally almost d-dead.”-“Nuh uh ! Let’s go, construction workers !”
The team collectively sighed. At least, they were not going to be hit by a minty, yet with a satisfying tasty crunch, gust.Elsewhere, someone was entering a report.
-“The rebellion failed. I have lost all of my faithful comrades. I'm starting to believe that there is no hope of success. Crunch colleagues totally ignored me, seeing me as an inferior opponent. He has surely indoctrinated them with his belief of hierarchy of individuals.”
Know that nothing has been decided yet, Crunch. Out.