Colortopia

Orange You Glad

I am floating inside a giant bubble.

I have never said that sentence before because it has never happened. But Blue and I are floating inside of a big blue bubble hovering over Hueville. Blue is using her hands to steer the bubble, making it go in the direction she wants. And I am in the passenger seat, bewildered as Blue steers us to victory... potentially. I notice that she is deadly focused on driving this bubble, not breaking her gaze for a second... probably because this is her first time driving a bubble...

And she doesn't want to accidentally pop it, sending us plummeting to our dooms...

Me: Um... You okay over there...?

Blue: K-keep looking straight... Keep looking straight...

She's fine.

I am holding Blue's phone, going over the locations Orchid gave us. I can't believe this is what our life has come to, playing some twisted scavenger hunt to reclaim our friends. But there's something that tells me there's a lot more to it. 

Me: One of the locations here is the HueMart... You know where that is, right?

Blue: N-not really...

Me: Well, it's okay, because I do. I think we're close, actually...

Blue: D-Dom... I-I'm feeling sick...

Me: O-oh, well, uh... lower us down and let's take a minute.

Blue clutches herself as we slowly descend to the ground. The second the bubble hits the pavement...

{POP}

I grab Blue by the hand and bring her over to a bench... before she races over to the trash bin and starts heaving. I catch up to her and rub her back, bracing myself every so often in case she pukes.

Me: Blue, what's the matter?!

Blue: I-I'm just... s-scared... I-I've never fought anyone before... Wh-what if I freeze...? Wh-what if I die...?

I grab her shoulders and turn her so that she's facing me.

Me: You are not going to die. Not on my watch. Our top priority now is to head straight to the HueMart. And I'll say it again and again... I'll be right here the whole time, guiding you.

She wipes her tears and nods slightly.

Me: Now say your catchphrase and activate your I.A.S..

Blue pulls away and closes her eyes.

Blue: In the silence... I find my voice...

Blue's glow returns and she feels her abilities scrolling in her mind.

Me: Do you feel it?

Blue: I do... Wh-what are my powers again?

Me: Soul Sync, Water Whisper, Hydro Morph and the bubble one.

Blue: Bubble Bloom... Right... Lead the way...

Blue digs her hands in her pockets as we start to run... until we see a bystander staring at us with wide eyes. 

Colortopian Bystander: Oh my...

Blue lifts up her hood, hiding her face in embarrassment.

Me: U-uh, I know this looks strange, but do you happen to know where the HueMart is?

Colortopian Bystander: Uh... Y-you're standin' in front of it...

We look up and see that we are, indeed, in front of the store.

Me: {to the bystander} Um, thank you.

Colortopian Bystander: Wh-what are you two about to do?

Me: Try to thwart some villains.  

Colortopian Bystander: Well, good luck, I guess.

Me: Thanks. {to Blue} Let's go.

Blue and I race up the steps and swing open the doors.

The store is ruined.

Walls cracked.

Shelves smashed. 

Products scattered all over the floor, destroyed.

Registers robbed.

Blue: O-oh no...

I am not as distraught as I know who caused this.

Me: Villains...

We notice that the emergency exit at the back of the store is left wide open. It seems that the villains must have made their getaway through there. 

Me: C'mon...

Blue creeps behind me as we go through the door, finding ourselves in the back alley.

Orange: Mmm! Mmm!

We jolt and freeze at the sight of Orange, tied and gagged inside a garage. He's screaming at us, but the bandana around his mouth makes it impossible to hear. Without hesitation, we race inside the garage where I RIP the bandana off.

Me: Orange!

Orange: No! I'm a trap! I'm a damn trap!

Me: {eyes widen} WHAT?

{SLAM!}

I fly out of the garage and collapse to the ground. I clutch my stomach as I look up and see Saffron holding Blue in place by her collar. He emits a hearty cackle as he glares at the two of us.

Saffron: What kind of rescue party is this, eh? Here I am, expectin' somethin' better, and THIS is the best you can do? 

Blue is whimpering and trembling in Saffron's grasp, too afraid to resist.

Me: S-Saffron... Y-you have no idea who you're messing with... Blue is stronger than she was before... J-just let her go and we won't have to fight...

Saffron: {smirks} Like you could ever take ME in a fight! I'm not called the brawn for nothin', y'know! 

Orange: Yeah?! Well, why don't you let me go and we'll see how tough you really are!

Saffron: Quiet! You're not going anywhere! No one is!

Me: What are you talking about?!

Saffron: This was all a trap! You didn't really think we were gonna GIVE your friends back, did you?!

Me: I... guess I did. Looking back now, I realize how stupid that sounds.

Saffron: So there's no way I'm letting any of you go. Besides... It's not every day I find fresh meat like her...

Saffron says as he tightens his grip on Blue.

Me: Y-you can't be serious...

Her trembling grows louder as she struggles to speak.

Blue: P-p-please... 

Saffron: Oh, quit your whining! Once you look past my brutish exterior, you'll find that I'm quite a catch! 

Blue: I-I c-can't...

Saffron: {smirks} Sure you can... and you will! Don't worry, I'll make sure you enjoy it!

I glance around, trying to figure out how to get Blue out of this situation. Bubbles won't help and I don't know what Hydro Morph is... Then I realize Blue also knows Water Whisper. Which is a fancier name for Hydrokinesis. The ability to control water.

But where am I gonna find water...?

Saffron pulls Blue closer to his ugly face, his breath hot on hers. She tries to break free as hard as she can, but he doesn't budge.

Blue: P-please s-stop...

Saffron: It's no use trying to fight back, dollface.

His hands SQUEEZE down on her sides.

Blue: {GASPS} P-please...!

She tries to move but he pins her arms above her head and leans in.

Blue: D-Dominic...! H-help me, please...!

I feel something wet underneath me. I move out of the way and see a manhole cover. 

Me: That's it...

I grab the manhole cover and THROW it to the side.

Me: Blue! Water Whisper!