Acceleration

Chapter 10: Overgrowth Part 1

Erin led his friends into the theater, weaving through the crowd.

"Back row, back row," Lisa hissed, already halfway up the stairs.

Erin took the cue and headed to the very top. Liz sat next to him, and Tommy dropped into the seat on his other side. Erin's heart did a backflip as Elizabeth's arm brushed his.

He reached into his bag, carefully navigating around his wadded-up supersuit, and pulled out the candy stash everyone had requested. He handed Liz a 3 Musketeers bar.

She raised an eyebrow. "How'd you know I liked these?"

"I asked your grandpa," Erin said with a grin.

Something shifted in her expression. Her usual stone-cold demeanor melted into something warmer—softer. Erin could swear her eyes almost watered.

"Did you silence your phone?" she asked.

Erin pulled out his phone. It was already on silent—but a notification caught his eye.

News Alert: Massive plant overgrowth at Everman Prison.

"Son of a—"

"You okay?" Liz asked, noticing the change in his tone.

Erin quickly shut off the screen. "Yeah. Just... need to pee. Be right back."

"You went before we got here."

"I drank a lot of soda earlier," he lied.

She grabbed his hand gently. "Hurry back."

Erin gave her a nervous smile and nodded before slipping out.

***

Blue lightning ripped down Main Street as Hypersonic bolted toward the outskirts of town.

"Anything yet?" he asked through the comms.

"All I've got is giant vines ripping up the prison," Jess replied in his ear. "Like Jack and the Beanstalk level nonsense."

"Better be magic beans and not another supervillain," he muttered.

Erin arrived at Everman Prison in a blur of light. One of the collapsed cell blocks groaned beneath the weight of vines and branches. He stopped long enough to pull a man from beneath the rubble.

"Okay, you weren't kidding—it's fairy tale mayhem in this place," he mumbled.

Thick roots wrapped around walls and doors like tentacles. One vine—easily the width of a car—smashed through the roof just feet from him. Erin leapt back instinctively.

A scream of pain drew his attention. The Raptor—still in his torn orange jumpsuit—was pinned beneath a vine.

"Did you break out of prison?"

"SAVE ME FROM THIS DISGUSTING ACTIVIST, HYPERSONIC!" the old man howled.

Erin looked up to see what the Raptor was pointing at.

A figure descended from the broken roof, cradled in an elegant weave of tree branches.

He was young—or had been once. Now his torn cheek exposed part of his jawbone, stained green with moss. His right eye was gone, the socket crusted over with decay. His white lab coat was shredded, stained brown and green. Cargo pants hung from his waist, held up with belts. Most disturbing of all, his right arm was replaced by four writhing vines that mimicked fingers.

"Hello sir!" Hypersonic called up. "By any chance, are you a supervillain?"

"I'm trying to save this planet," the man muttered.

Erin felt something slither around his ankle.

"Oh come on, don't—"

The branch yanked him off his feet and slammed him into a wall. Concrete cracked around him.

"Yeah... totally about to throw me," he groaned.

Blue lightning exploded from his body as he charged. He barely made it five feet before a twig caught his boot. He crashed into the dirt, only to be immediately seized by a web of vines.

"Do not get in my way, Hypersonic."

Erin squirmed, coughing, as branches wrapped tighter.

The villain turned to the Raptor. A long root shot into the man's mouth. Raptor screamed in horror before being swallowed by a cocoon of twisted bark.

A tree stump erupted beneath the villain, closing around him like a coffin. Then everything—vines, roots, trees—receded into the earth.

Erin collapsed as the bindings released him.

"...Crap."

***

"I'm just saying," Marlin said, sipping his drink as they exited the theater, "bringing John Wick back through necromancy was a terrible call."

"The movie is literally called John Wick: Resurrection," Lisa replied. "Did you not expect him to come back?"

"Why kill the namesake character in the first place?" Elizabeth asked.

The group turned to stare.

She shrank into her jacket. "I've never seen a John Wick movie..."

Tommy dropped back beside Erin as the rest of the group bombarded Liz with recommendations.

"You alright?" he asked quietly.

Erin rubbed the massive bruise on his lower back. "That guy was smart. Put a ton of trip hazards all over the ground. I couldn't run without stumbling."

"So what's the move?" Tommy asked.

"I spend as much time with Liz as possible," Erin whispered, "and next time, I watch my step."

"So!" Lisa clapped her hands as the group walked under the parking lot lights. "Anything else you guys wanna do this week?"

Elizabeth raised her phone. "There's a flea market downtown Tuesday. My family's running a booth."

"I'm free after school," Tommy said.

"My mom's working Tuesday," Erin chimed in. "If I get a ride, I can come."

"Of course," Elizabeth said softly. Erin's heart almost skipped.

"We have finals Friday," Lisa reminded them.

"Why would you say that?" Marlin groaned.

"Because you're the one who needs reminding," she snapped, smacking his arm. "We should plan a study day."

Everyone nodded, and they began to split up.

Erin walked Elizabeth to her car.

"Thanks for coming with us to the movie," he said.

She shrugged. "It was okay."

Something about her voice was colder than before. Erin squinted, unsure of what had changed.

She looked at him as she buckled her seatbelt. "The flea market—I can get you a discount if you want."

"That'd be nice. Thanks."

Without another word, she closed the door and drove off.

Erin stood in the dim parking lot, blinking at the taillights.

"...I do not get women."