#kate cha

Everything was going according to plan, it was all going so smoothly that the Teen Team couldn't help but grow a little cocky.

No citizens were fatally injured, no buildings were majorly destructed, and the villain was growing tired. The team was all smiles and nasty comments up until someone unexpectedly intervened, a child none the less.

It all happened in a moment; Rex was about to throw one last explosion at the enemy to knock them down, but before the activated rubble could even make contact with his opponent, they were already knocked down to the ground by something... or more accurately someone.

Rex paused, looking at the villain, which was now writhing on the ground, in both confusion and irritation. He immediately turned to Robot, always being the first to blame the heap of intelligence and bronze material.

"I told you I had this!" He whined in his usual fashion, a grimace on his face as he glared at the guy.

"I'm not the one that knocked the enemy down." Robot insisted in his usual monotone tone, causing Rex to just grow even more irritated.

"Oh, yeah? Then who else could it be?" He yelled back, standing his ground as Robot's bike slowly lowered to the ground. Robot only hummed, watching off into the distance while he recollected data from the fight, completely ignoring Rex's whines and complaints.

"Oh." That small word seemed to confuse the team, brows furrowed as they watched Robot and waited for more context. But they didn't get any.

"'Oh' what, Robot?" Kate asked, her clones quick to approach as they observed the daydreaming Robot.

"Someone intervened." He stated the obvious, causing the rest of the team to look at him with a grimace of annoyance.

"We know that much you cheap hunk of metal! Who intervened?" Rex insulted, which resulted in a breathy and disappointed sigh from Eve. Robot paused, looking down at the team before-

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-"A kid!?" Rex gasped, looking at the base's computer while pushing Robot out to the side, leaning in closer as if his eyes were deceiving him. "A child stole my glory!?"

"I wouldn't say they stole it; they weren't even seen." Kate sighed, also in a small state of shock as they looked at the paused screen displaying a child. Their bright costume consisted of random clothing from their closet, the neon colors only making the team even more confused as to how they didn't see them.

"How did a kid manage to take down that anyway?" Eve questioned, also leaning onto Robot a little as she observed the paused screen. The villain wasn't exactly... small; they were a large target, sure, but they were also tough. How could a kid manage to take them down with one blow? The villain wasn't injured enough to pass out by a little kid's punch, so there had to be something else...

"I have a few theories." Robot intervened, gently pushing off Rex and Eve as he observed the screen for a couple of moments longer.

"We don't want to hear any of your stupid theories-"

"Rex." Eve cut him off, sending a glare to the man's direction. He could only grumble in annoyance, crossing his arms and pouting like a child. "Robot, continue."

Robot nodded, turning back to the screen for a last effort observation before spilling out the facts.

The child in question could hold superhuman abilities, which could be the explanation to the harsh punch and quick movements.

The child could have a power up agent stored under their "suit", the clothes they wore were baggy enough to be able to hide something underneath, it would also explain their strength and speed depending on how the machine under their clothes was operated.

The child wasn't human. Sure, they seemed to have the anatomy of one, but their face and general anatomy were covered enough to not cause suspicion, for all they knew the child could be from a whole other planet.

And so on and so on. Everyone stopped listening by the time he finished up with his third theory

Everyone's gaze lingered on the screen for a few minutes, trying to find any indication as to who this child could be. But their whole body was covered, not leaving anything except the color and length of their hair, and that didn't exactly help them de-code who it could be...

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"Deep breaths..." You mumbled to yourself, watching the chaos within the city as your cape, or more fittingly bedsheet, fluttered in the wind. It had been a few weeks since your last big fight with a villain; even though you threw one singular punch and fled, you were riding on that high for weeks. You helped the Teen Team; you took down a villain! I'd be thriving if I'm being honest.

With your final deep inhale, you jumped into action, soaring through the sky with a pounding heart as you sped towards the culprit's direction. One punch, two, three - you were landing hits like never before, with each contact fleeing for a hiding place before he could spot you. Though for now your punches only seem to be annoying the guy, not actually leaving a mark.

Your head shot up as you heard the familiar yells of the Teen Team, smiling brightly before speeding towards the villain's direction once more, now more confident than ever. One punch, two, three! You were on a roll!

Though, your confidence soon got the better of you, soaring through the air to land another hit, only to be caught by your cape. The villain smirked, using the machinery that grabbed your cape to fling you towards the direction of the Teen Team. You yelped in surprise, managing to catch yourself in the air before you could make contact with the concrete. Your hands were trembling ever so slightly from nearly getting your body plummeted to the hard concrete, but you quickly regained your composure.

Before you could spring back into action, someone caught you, clinging to your cape for a few seconds before turning your body and pulling you towards them.

"Kid, what are you doing!?" A panicked voice scolded you, quickly recognizing the person to be none other than Atom Eve.

"I'm helping!" You exclaimed, a bright smile grazing your features as you basked in the attention, happy that Atom Eve was speaking to you.

"You have no idea what you're getting yourself into! This is dangerous!" She continued to scold, but she stopped herself as she heard citizens yelling in horror. Both of your heads snapped, looking over to see a woman trying to get out of the rubble.

Eve was about to intervene, but you were far quicker. You fled out of her grasp, ripping the bedsheet which you know your guardian will scold you for later on, quickly crouching next to the woman with a little bit of panic coursing through your mind. You took another deep inhale to ease your nerves, grabbing the rubble and lifting it with great effort, just enough for Dupli-Kate to grab the woman and rush her to safety. You let out a sigh of relief as you set down the rock, rubbing your sore forearms for a moment before returning back to action.

You landed one kick from behind, flying up into the air before plummeting back down with gritted teeth as you braced for impact, landing another kick with the cost of the villain grabbing you once more and throwing you into a nearby building. You couldn't catch yourself this time, the air being knocked out of your lungs from the harsh impact as you felt your eyes tear up. But you wouldn't give up now, you couldn't.

You managed to get your strength up quickly, searching around for a moment before spotting a conveniently placed laptop charger cable, in a coffee shop. 'Bad day for that laptop owner' you think to yourself.

You grab the cable without a second thought, untying the makeshift cape before quickly flying towards the villain. You didn't try to hide, wanting to be seen by the criminal, and you succeeded.

The sly smirk of the criminal told you all you needed to know, increasing your speed slightly towards him, and as he lifted his hand to grab you, you managed to change your course in a split second, stumbling in the air for a few seconds before regaining your composure and rushing behind him.

You threw the bedsheet onto his head, tugging him back with enough force for him to stumble momentarily. As his hands instinctively went up to take the bedsheet off, you used the cable to tie his hands to his face, his wrists pressed up against his neck tightly as you quickly flew a little farther back to observe your work. It wouldn't be enough to stop him fully, but it was just enough for the Teen Team to set their punches and finish the guy off.

You smiled proudly as the villain fell to the floor, exhausted and too injured to continue fighting. But you didn't fly off. Instead, you sheepishly went to Robot's side. You didn't say anything... just handed him a sheet with your information.

It was supposed to be a mockery of a job application, it had your name, phone number, simple details and past experiences of saving people (aside from the criminal you took down last week and now, the only things listed were saving cats from trees and helping the elderly cross the street, just simple good deeds). You knew that you wouldn't be able to properly introduce yourself without being a stuttering mess and embarrassing yourself even further.

Robot took the sheet of paper, skimming through it briefly. But you had already fled the moment the piece of paper was out of your hold, nowhere to be seen.

"... You've got to be shitting me." Rex groaned, grabbing the paper as he skimmed through it as well, laughing at what was supposed to be a job application. "This is golden!"

"Well... they did show that they can be useful." Robot hummed, causing the rest to look at them in shock.

"Robot, you can't be serious!" Kate protested, her protests being backed up by Eve with cheering agreements. "They're a child!"

"Pre-teen." Robot corrected, not making the situation anybetter.

"Still! They don't know the horrors of this job, of being a hero." Eve sighed, looking towards the direction they saw the child fly off.

They were all left in silence after that, pondering on the animosity of the new hero in the city and the mysterious 'job application' now in their possession. Robot couldn't help but wonder what would happen in he dialed the number on the page...

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You were doing your homework in your room, slumped over the table with a grumble as you lazily wrote the answers in your notebook.

A week, a full week has passed since you handed that stupid job application and you couldn't help but grow more and more worried. As you had expected, your guardian was pissed about the ruined bedsheets, even more so when they noticed the growing bruise on your back from being thrown into a building. You were grounded for the time being, not being able to go out and be a hero like you wanted until you were fully healed, until you collected enough money to buy new bedsheets and until your guardian was sure enough you could go back out. It was stupid, really stupid.

Your train of thoughts was cut off as your phone began to ring, looking up from the page you were working on to stare in confusion as an unknown caller showed on your screen. Being a weary teen, you hesitantly denied the call, sighing as you turned back to your homework.

The phone rang again, causing you to grumble in annoyance as you grabbed it and stared at the screen for a little while longer, debating whether or not you should answer. That curiosity hit in again and, with a deep inhale, you answered the phone.

"Hello?" Your voice was hesitant, setting the call on speaker as you intently stared at the number.

"You want to be a hero, right?" The voice called out, causing you to furrow your brows. A sliver of hope entered your mind as you remembered the job application, still not getting your hopes up too high in case it was a prank call from one of your classmates or friends,

"Who are you?" You questioned, excitement coursing through your veins as you heard what you were desperately hoping you'd hear for the past week.