The Unnatural Disasters

2. Giving the cub scouts guns: Lazuli

This guy has been monologuing for five minutes. Honestly, at this point I'd prefer death.

Our rebellion against Rupert didn't last long: as it turns out, a guy with a stick and another one who can't make his mind up don't do much against a pile of indestructible marbles. In Copycat's own words: 'if I do nothing and wait hopefully it'll turn out better than if I do the wrong thing and screw up'. Real help, I know; one uncomfortable journey later, we found ourselves in the aisle of a large hall where we are now. In the seats the convention-goers sit, staring rigidly at the man on stage. 

His name, apparently, is Motherboard. He's very clear on that point. He keeps yelling, through a ski mask, about how he's 'finally got power over others' and how smart he is, coming up with Rupert (or Marblemaster 3000, which he insists on calling them) and getting all these people to listen to him.
I think this guy has a few major issues to work out, preferably with a therapist and a large amount of time.

Essentially, everything about the current situation has combined into one whole mass whose only purpose is to aggravate me. The guy on stage; the stickiness of the Rupert holding me, something that better not ruin my suit; pretty much everyone in the crowd, and that they're in harm's way if this guy decides to go rogue. I just wish something would happen, because I've tried turning my hearing aid off in order to not listen to this guy and it didn't work.

And lo and behold: something happens.

"I really should have thought of a good thing to say before I got in here!"

Somebody I recognise as being Newton bursts in through the double doors, followed by the others.

For a moment, everything is still. Motherboard stops. He turns. He looks straight at them.

"Marblemasters?" He shrieks. "attack!"

The Ruperts holding me and Cat let go.
"Not you!" Motherboard yells, but it's too late: the Stans have their marching orders, and they're rolling towards the others though hell should bar the way. Copycat runs past me, down the aisle.
I decide to join him.

It's insanity at the back of the theatre, that's for sure. I know there's 5 Ruperts in total- I counted- and all of them are either here, or getting here very soon. Six kids, versus 5 indestructible robots: I'm not the biggest fan of those odds.

Something flies just above my head, as I pass crowded rows of seats. I glance back at it; it's a large light, thrown by one of the Ruperts out of its... marbles.
"Hey! That's my light!" Someone yells from the crowd in a scandalised voice.

Wait.

I realise the whole audience is looking at us. Looking at us... the stage...

"I have an idea! Guys! Guys!" I gasp.
They can't hear me. They're wrapped up in their own issues, and fighting, and they can't hear me.

Shit.

Guess I'll have to do this alone.

"Motherboard!" I yell, storming up the steps and onto the main stage. "If that is your real name, which I'm assuming it's not."

I blink in the lights. I've never really been up on a stage before- nobody told me the lighting would be this bright. I can barely see past the front few rows of terrified audience, my team completely disappearing at the back of the stage. Motherboard stares at me, incredulous.

"Who are you?" He hisses.

"My name's Lazuli. See those guys back there? They're my team. And sir? I'd like to ask you just one question."

"Marblemasters! Help!"

"They're gone, Mr Board. Attacking someone else." I say softly. "And I'd like to ask you something. What on earth are you doing here?"

"What?"

"Look. You built massive, practically indestructible robots. You could have gone to somebody with these things. Made them robot butlers. Took them to the army. Any number of things to help people. But no! You decided to take them to a back end of nowhere convention centre in order to play Simon says with a bunch of influencers. Tell me sir. Really. Why?"

He fumbles backwards: being confronted by a thirteen year old, no robots, nothing to his name but a ski mask and sweater, mustn't be fun. I wonder what he's feeling right now.

"I- I-'' Motherboard blusters. "It was foolproof! Nobody was going to know!"

"Look around you! Everyone's filming! Everyone knows!"

And he looks out into the audience, as the world receives live-stream footage of a villain unhinged. A sea of lights and cameras.

"I told them! I told them to hand me their phones!"

"And you think they listened?" I stare the man in the face. "You didn't have power. All you had was a crowd of scared people. How many do you think called the police? How soon do you think they'll take?

"Call off the monsters, sir. It might lessen your jail time."

I'd love to say that the police show up at this exact moment in time.

Unfortunately, I guess they don't care that much about timing; it takes about five minutes for them to show up, storm in, and arrest Motherboard. In all that time? The rest of the team get the convention-goers to leave in a not-exactly-orderly-fashion. The Stans were shut off, total power off command thankfully working. They're sitting in the corner right now- like the sorry result of a child's old toy collection.

And me?

Theoretically, I was guarding Motherboard. Not like he was doing much: I doubt escape's the biggest thing in your mind if you're re-evaluating all your life choices so far. No. Mainly, I was thinking about how insane this whole situation is. Everything that just happened, the stuff with Smoke last week, the caves...
Is this it? Am I officially part of a superhero team now?

I've gone insane. I'm sure. I'm wearing a fake suit, I just got kidnapped by a pile of sentient marbles with a guy wearing daisy dungarees who just happens to be able to turn into other people. I'm thirteen! Surely this sort of thing is supposed to wait until you're 23, at least. Getting kids to fight villains feels weird- giving the Cub Scouts guns.

But really? I wouldn't change it. I wouldn't change any of it. And as the police arrive, as Luda says her congrats, as I'm sitting on an Underground train and staring at an ad for hair removal cream, I'm only thinking about one thing.
I think I'm having fun with this.