Kite yawned as he stepped into his homeroom class, his black hair tousled and his typically vibrant blue eyes dulled with fatigue.
"Damn, Kite, you look like a zombie!"
Kite squinted at the remark.
"It's eight in the morning on a Friday, William," he muttered, slumping into the desk beside his friend and dropping his duffle bag to the floor. "I'm tired, dude."
"Aww, did poor Kite not get his precious eight hours of sleep?" William teased in a baby voice, brushing his silky brown hair out of his eyes as he glanced up from his phone.
Kite rolled his eyes and said slowly, like he was out of breath, "No. No, I didn't."
William chuckled softly. "Why? Were you up playing that online card game that always gets you raging?"
"I wish. That would've been better than the awful dream I had," Kite replied, making a face as if he'd tasted something sour.
William frowned. "So, a nightmare?"
Kite shook his head. "Nah, it wasn't scary. Just… weird, I guess…" His voice trailed off.
"And what happened in this dream?" William leaned in, now visibly intrigued.
"My memory's a bit foggy, but I was in this strange dimension filled with swirling colors and shapes," Kite began, pausing as he tried to recall. "And then there was this giant robot-like thing that kept saying bizarre stuff."
"Like??" William prompted.
"Something about destiny and 'Reality is a shadow cast by the void.'"
"That's… unsettling. Maybe you've been watching too many of those scary 'true story' videos. Dreams are just scrambled up memories—stuff we've seen or heard before," William reasoned.
"Maybe…" Kite sighed, lowering his head onto the desk. "Either way, I'm gonna try to catch up on some much-needed sleep."
William chuckled and turned his attention back to an article on his phone. Just then, the door opened and more students began trickling in.
"What's up with this sleepyhead?"
William looked up to see a girl with reddish hair and striking green eyes standing before him. She wore a pink hoodie and black cargo pants.
"Hey, Ava," he greeted, waving. "Kite barely slept last night, so excuse him for being an even worse version of his usual self."
Ava giggled softly, then turned to Kite and nudged his leg with her foot.
"C'mon, sleepyhead. Wake up."
Kite frowned as he lifted his head slightly to see who had kicked him.
"Oh. It's just you," he muttered, eyes still squinting.
Ava smiled warmly and waved. Kite stared at her blankly for a moment, then rested his head back on the desk.
Ava gasped dramatically. "Not even a nod?! No 'Hello, Ava'?" She pouted.
"Oh no! Please, don't make me third wheel again," William said in an exaggerated tone.
Kite lifted his head and shot William an evil glare. "I will smack you."
About thirty minutes passed as the trio began discussing the upcoming trip.
"Mr. Carson didn't say where we're going, right?" Ava asked.
"Nope. He just gave us a form for our parents to sign. It mentioned a trip, but didn't specify a location," Kite replied. "Unless he told them privately, because I doubt any parent would just let their kid go on a mystery field trip—even if it's school-related."
"I mean, this is an Astrogeology class, so it's probably a planetarium," William offered.
At that moment, a man in a brown suit with short, slicked-back black hair entered the classroom.
"Class, may I have your attention, please?"
The room fell silent and everyone turned to him.
"Now that I have everyone's attention, you all know I've been planning a trip for you," he began. "I gave you the permission slips with most of the details—except the destination—because I wanted it to be a surprise." He paused, letting the suspense build. "We will be going to Laurel Creek." He paused for a moment, "To visit Mount Laurel."
Kite's eyes lit up as he turned to William, who looked equally thrilled.
"Isn't that the mountain with all those space rocks?!" Kite asked.
Mr. Carson smirked. "Yes, Mr. Connors, it indeed is." He said reaffirming Kite's thoughts
Excitement erupted across the classroom as everyone began discussing the trip. Once the students had calmed, Mr. Carson outlined the itinerary and escorted them outside to board the bus.
Kite climbed on the bus, with Ava and William following close behind. He chose the middle seat in a row of three; Ava sat by the window, and William took the end seat of the aisle.
"Dude, I can't wait! I mean it's—Mount Laurel! Not only is it like the greatest mountain in the world." He paused for a moment, "That's also where Shockwave got his powers!" William said, nearly bursting with excitement.
"I know, right? What if one of us gets superpowers or something?" Kite said.
Ava chuckled. "I doubt it," she replied, before putting on her headphones.
"Can't a guy dream?" Kite quipped.
Ava rolled her eyes and began scrolling through her music playlist looking for a song to play.
"Alright students," Mr. Carson announced, "The ride to Mount Laurel will be a long one. We should arrive around 4 p.m. Don't worry—we'll stop at gas stations along the way."
As the bus began its journey, Kite turned to William and whispered, "Dude, we've gotta explore the mountain at night."
William nodded. "Yeah, I've seen pictures. The stones glow at night—it's incredible."
After a bit of chatting to William, Kite eventually turned to his phone, and began watching an old video of Shockwave stopping some crinimals. As the video carried on Kite felt his eyes getting progressively heavier with fatigue. He tried to stay awake but it was futile as he slowly drifted to sleep.
He opened his eyes and found himself floating in space, surrounded by numerous shimmering stars and planets that resembled Earth and Saturn.
"Kite…"
He jolted at the sound of a deep, resonant voice. Turning around, he saw a massive, sleek robot with a smooth black design and blue accents.
"Who are you?!" Kite shouted.
"Reality is a shadow cast by the void," the robot intoned. "Are you ready, Knight?"
Kite frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Reality is a shadow cast by the void," the robot repeated, it's voice progressively becoming more distorted overtime.
Before Kite could react, the robot reached out and grabbed him.
He awoke with a gasp, shooting upright. Ava and William jumped in their seats. The bus fell silent.
"Mr. Connors, are you alright?" Mr. Carson asked, concerned. Kite nodded slowly.
"Aww, poor Kite had a nightmare!"
Kite turned to see Mason—a boy with a buzz cut, brown eyes, and a sports jacket—grinning.
"Crazy how no one laughed at your joke. Your jokes are just as sad as your life," Kite snapped, as he sat back down in his. Laughter rippled through the bus, "Me personally Mason, I wouldn't take that disrespect!" One student said in between his laugher.
"Shut up!" Mason said, his face red with embarrassment.
William chuckled beside him. "You didn't have to go off on him."
Kite shrugged. "Eh, too late now."
"Anyway, look at this," William said, handing Kite his phone.
The screen showed a video of a man in a sleek black superhero suit with red accents and minimal tech. He also had a black high-tech helmet that was made out of primarily a manta black glass that displayed two glowing red eyes. The footage, though grainy, captured him stopping a bank robbery.
"A new hero was spotted downtown, well he's not exactly new but like, you get the point," William added.
"Damn, that suit looks sick," Kite said, examining the design.
"Apparently, he's got frequency-based powers, and his suit turns into different weapons." William noted.
"Similar to Shockwave, besides the morphing suit of course. I mean Shockwave uses EM waves right?" Kite raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah he does but this guy is different. Seems like he turns the frequencies into energy. But there's barely any info on him, so it's just speculation." William replied.
"Still, that's impressive." Kite said, "Honestly he might be better than Shockwave."
Hours soon passed of the duo talking about superheros and other mundane stuff. When they arrived, the bus pulled into the lot of a modest motel.
"Alright, everyone," Mr. Carson addressed the group, "Boys will be on one side of the motel, girls on the other. Just to prevent any suspicious… activities during the night."
"Damn, I wonder who's getting busy at night," Kite muttered under his breath.
"Oh, and we won't be going up the mountain today," Mr. Carson added.
A wave of disappointment swept through the group.
"What happened?" Ava asked.
"They didn't give me the details, but all I know is that we cannot go onto the mountain today," he replied.
Kite frowned but said nothing.
After distributing the room keys to all they students they eventually went to their separate rooms—split into groups of either three or two. Kite and William made their way to Room 42, which was at the far side of the motel
"This motel isn't half bad," Kite said, tossing his bag onto the bed by the window.
"I wanted that one!" William groaned.
"Too bad," Kite said, opening the curtains to let the golden evening light flood the room.
"So, are we still sneaking up the mountain tonight?"
William sighed as he unpacked. "Honestly? I don't think we should."
"What, you scared?" Kite teased.
"No, but Mr. Carson said something was going on up there. It might be dangerous, or what if the cops are there or something?"
Kite smirked. "Uh-huh. Sounds like you're scared. It's fine—I'll just go by myself."
William sighed. "There's no stopping you, is there?"
Kite shook his head.
"Fine. I'll come. But only to make sure that if one of us gets hurt, the other can get help," he replied. "And I don't want my best friend ending up in a casket," he said under his breath.
Kite chuckled, "Yeah, Yeah, well the sun's about to set so get ready, we're moving when it's dark!"
As dusk settled, Kite and William snuck out of their rooms and made it to the base of the mountain.
"So far, so good," Kite whispered.
"We haven't even stepped foot on the mountain yet! You can't say that," William replied quietly.
As they ascended the trail—faint sparkles began to appear on the ground.
"Whoa… it's starting!" William said.
"Also—how did Shockwave get his powers again exactly?" he asked, pocketing his flashlight as the stones began to glow and light their path.
"Gamma rays," Kite replied with a straight face.
William stopped and gave him a look. "Dude… be serious."
Kite chuckled. "The stones he found power his tech. But I think it enhances his base strengths and stuff."
The higher they climbed, the brighter and more colourful the stones became—until a brilliant blue light caught their attention near a small cliff.
"Whoa, what's that?!" William gasped.
They moved closer to see a glowing blue stone resting on a lower ledge.
"Dude, that's incredible," William said, crouching down to get a better view of it.
"Yo, William," Kite said, tapping him.
"Huh? What's up?"
"Hold my phone." And without warning, Kite leapt off the small cliff, landing on the ledge below with surprising grace.
"KITE!" William shouted.
"All good," Kite replied, giving a lazy thumbs up to William.
"Dude, at least give a heads-up next time, you gave me a mini heart attack," William muttered.
Suddenly, the stone began shining even brighter, forcing Kite to shield his eyes. He crouched and reached for it. When he grabbed it he covered it with both his hands stopping the light from pouring, but after a while of holding it, he felt an overwhelming warmth.
"Shit—it's warm!" he exclaimed, letting go of the stone. But instead of falling, the stone just hovered, motionless in midair.
"Uh… William! Do you see this?!" he called out as he looked up—but William was gone.
Kite slowly turned his attention back to the floating stone.
"Kite!" a voice called out.
He looked at the empty space around him, even below the ledge but he found nothing. Eventually his gaze settled back onto the stone.
"No… it can't be…" he said as he took a step back, leaving just enough room behind him so he didn't fall off the ledge.
The without warning, the stone rocketed toward him, striking him in the chest and knocking the wind out of him, but because of the momentum it had generated—it also sent him tumbling off the ledge.
"Ahhhh!" he screamed as he fell, the stone still embedded in his chest as it began glowing ever brighter.
Then—light. Kite shut his eyes as a blinding blue light engulfed him entirely.
When the glow faded, Kite opened his eyes slowly.
"WHAT THE—"
He said once more and he found himself in that same colourful dream-like place again.
"Kite… we've been waiting for you…"