Slush Invaders: The Series

First Day

"In other news today, a freak fire broke out in New Ellet. Experts believe that it's linked to the same one caused by the fugitive in Shawville. A light blue individual was sighted stealing one of the fireproof suits and diving right into the flames, and neither him nor the fugitive were found when the fire was cleared."

An orange hand turned off the TV.

"Boy, you sure made a mess out there, Hang."

"My name's Hank."

"Whatever."

"Are you two still watching that broadcast?" A dark grey man asked as he came by the couch the two sat on.

"And are you gonna be done anytime soon?" A yellow one interjected, following the grey one.

"James, Pedro, cool your jets. You'll get to play your Smash soon enough," Kyle replied. "Come on, Hang, let's go do something else."

"Are you seriously using that nickname Thomas gave him?" James probed.

"Unfortunately, yes," Hank, or rather Hang, sighed. With that, Hang and Kyle got up and decided to watch some more of their friends play poker.

"So, first day, how's the place?" Kyle nudged his new buddy.

"Well, it's really cool, but it's just... so different. I never thought you could fit so many people and so much stuff into one college clubroom."

"We make it work." Just as Kyle said that, a sandbag with a hole in it flew across the room and landed right behind the two of them.

"OH NO, IS THAT ANOTHER BUSTED HEAVY BAG?" The unmistakable voice of Thomas rang out across the room, gloating in its clear sarcasm. "Bri, go get me another from the supply room." Bri wordlessly left the clubroom.

"That's another thing. The people here are really colorful. In more ways than one. It... kinda scares me," Hang explained, lowering his voice for the last part as to not let anyone else hear.

"It's cool, I was nervous too when I first joined the S.D., but you'll get over it faster than Pedro runs the hundred meter dash," Kyle assured him with a pat on the back.

Just then, something happened that drew their attention back to the card game. Luke pushed all his chips into the pot, confidently glancing around the room. Omar and Corey both folded with clear contempt while Ben, already out of chips and now leaning against the wall, tried to keep a straight face as he watched to see what Tucker would do. To everyone's surprise, he met Ben with a steely gaze and the rest of his chips. The two then flipped over their cards to reveal Luke with three of a kind and Tucker with a measly pair of sixes.

"HAH! YOU THOUGHT I WAS BLUFFING!" Luke gloated as he raked in his new haul, "SUCKS TO BE YOU! HA HA!" Tucker stared dumbfounded before leaving the table.

"He's almost as bad as you, Kyle," Ben remarked.

"Nonsense, nobody's as bad as me!"

As a very amused Sean dealt the new hand with teleported cards, Omar stared at Kyle.

"Do I have something on my face?"

"The new kid."

"Yeah, he's right next to me, what about him?"

"When's he going to take the entrance exam?"

"Hold on, entrance exam?" Hang interrupted, "I'm not enrolling in his college, am I? I can't afford it!"

"Don't worry, the entrance exam is just a rite of passage for getting into the S.D. We don't let just anyone use this sweet room and knock heads with us regularly. You gotta pass the exam before you're officially one of us," Kyle explained. Hang's worry was visible. "It's not too bad, I promise. Only, like, two people have ever failed it. And with your powers, you should do just fine."

"Alright alright, I think I just... need some fresh air," Hang told him and left the clubroom.

"Yo," Someone from behind him said almost the moment he left. Hang jumped in surprise and pointed both his hands coated in fire at the person. He quickly saw it was the light blue man from earlier, Andrew.

"...You know, that's the second time you've almost burned me today."

"Sorry, but you scared me! ...Wait, how long have you been outside listening?"

"Relax, walls are thick, I didn't hear a thing. Well, except for Thomas but you know how he is."

"Oh. Then, can you explain to me what the entrance exam is?"

"It's tough, that's what it is."

"Look, can't you give me a straight answer? I need to prepare for it if I'm gonna pass! You said I could stay here with you, and I have nowhere else to go, remember?!"

"I said you could stay, but I never guaranteed you'd get to be a Defender," Andrew cooly explained, "I'm sorry but you have to earn that privilege, just like everyone else in that room did before you."

"And just like them, you won't know what it is until it happens. Just know that even if you fail, you're still welcome here, you'll just have to stay out of our little missions. Now if you need me, I'm going to get something to eat," Andrew finished and walked off.

"Wait-" Hang reached out but stopped himself, knowing it futile. He just shrugged and went back to the clubroom, more worried than ever.

"Hey, champ, you feeling better?" Kyle heartily greeted him.

"Yeah," Hang lied, "But I'm a bit tired now. I need to rest.

"Oh, that's right, you don't have a dorm, what are we going to do about your sleeping situation? Maybe we could have Waqas and Stewart fix something up for you. I'm sure Stewart would like one last big project before he graduates."

"Nah, it's fine, I'll just..." Hang slumped against the wall, prompting Marc, Dan, and Eric who were having a conversation nearby to move out of his way.

"What's the new guy's problem?" Marc asked nobody in particular while moving.

"Dude, you good?" Kyle questioned, Hang's view of him getting blurry as sleep overtook him.

"Yeah, I'm fii..." Hang drifted off into sleep mid-sentence.

Hang dreamt of being at the table with his parents. He was small and they were large. They were eating smoked brisket with a small dish of pomegranate on the side. Hang picked at his food restlessly.

"Hank, dear, is there something you want to tell us?" His mother questioned with a bright smile and a cheery voice.

"No, mom, I don't have anything to tell you."

"Hank, dear, is there something you want to tell us?" His mother questioned again with the exact same tone.

"Mom, I told you, I don't have any problems, I'm fine!"

"Hank, do you have any plans for the future?" His dad asked between bites of brisket. He seemed to be sweating. Hang noticed an increase in the room's temperature.

"I... Well... I wanted to be a singer or a rapper or something like that, but after what happened today I lost my motivation. I just... don't think I'll ever be good enough, y'know?" Hang felt relieved to finally get that off his chest, but the pressure quickly came back as he felt the temperature rising more, enough to make him sweat.

"Hank, dear, is there something you want to tell us?" His mother asked as her body melted like wax. Everything was melting. The room was on fire. Everything was on fire. Everything was fire. Hang was falling through the fire. Hang landed with a thud.

Hang woke up and saw the blue morning sky above him.

Hang took a few moments to collect himself and take in his surroundings. He quickly realized where he was. He stood up and looked down from the top of Slusher Tower. Right in front of him a portal opened up and Andrew crawled halfway through.

"Welcome to the entrance exam, Hang. Good luck."

"You'll need it!" Sean shouted as Andrew dropped back through the other side and Sean closed the portal, leaving Hang alone on the tower roof.

The End.