Kid Sensation #10 Excerpt

Kid Sensation #10 (working title: Expiation) is still in the works, but I wanted to share another excerpt. (And the usual caveats apply...)

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My father floated up into the air, preparing to speak. Behind him, Mouse and I stayed on the ground, staring out at the scores of people in front of us – all supervillains.

I telepathically opened a channel to Mouse. <Lot of bad guys here.>

<I know,> he replied. <I don’t think I’ve ever seen this much villainy in one spot.>

<I have,> I declared, reminding him of one of my prior escapades.

Rather than reply, Mouse stayed silent as Alpha Prime began to speak.

“Thank you for coming,” my father began, his voice booming. “I think you all know why you’re here, so let’s skip the formalities and get down to business. First and foremost, this is not an offer of amnesty. What you do on this project isn’t going to earn you clemency, a pardon, or a clean slate. You can’t be arrested or detained for your crimes while you’re here–”

“Alleged crimes,” someone in the crowd shouted, to much laughter.

“Fine…alleged crimes,” Alpha Prime said with a slight grin, but then turned somber. “But when this is over, you all retain your criminal status. That means you go back to being wanted, public enemy number one, or whatever felonious standing you had before.”

“Next,” he continued, “you’ll be working side-by-side with people you probably hate or despise, but let me be clear: this is not the time or place to settle rivalries, feuds or vendettas. Anyone who forgets that – on either side – will face the consequences of their actions immediately.”

My father waited a moment to let that sink in, then went on, saying, “Third…”

Already aware of the general gist of what he was going to say, I asked Mouse, <Any particular reason Alpha Prime is giving this speech and not you? I mean, you are the leader of the Alpha League.>

<Yeah, but that’s not a well-publicized fact,> Mouse acknowledged. <Besides, your old man is the face of the League and the greatest hero on the planet. He’s either respected or feared – or both – by every supervillain alive, so our position on this is more impactful if it comes from him. That said,> he added, mentally smiling, <I may have had a hand with the speechwriting.>

<I figured as much. But still...working hand-in-hand with bad guys, most of which probably want us dead? Are you sure that’s a good idea?”>

<Well, you have the luxury of being able to move to a different planet if Earth gets blasted to a cinder, but most of us are stuck here. That being the case, it seems in our best interest to try to save the world – even if it means strange bedfellows.>