Path to power
At ten o’clock on a warm Friday morning, sunlight streamed through the dusty classroom windows, illuminating rows of restless students. The air smelled faintly of whiteboard markers and floor polish—the familiar scent of another school week dragging on.
Near the front of the second row sat Theo Krizma, hunched over his math notebook. However, his eyes weren’t focused on the numbers; they were miles away, drifting through the whiteboard as if searching for another universe behind it.
To Theo, the classroom wasn’t a dull box with peeling paint and tired students; it was a warzone. Desks became fortified bunkers, pencils transformed into gleaming swords, and his classmates morphed into covert agents, alien infiltrators, and android assassins.
Theo ducked behind his math book just as an imaginary laser streaked through the air, humming past his ear. His heart thudded with the thrill of battle—until reality crashed back in, sharp and unwelcome.
“Krizma... Krizma!” The teacher’s voice sliced through the fantasy like a thunderclap.Theo blinked hard and sat upright. The battlefield dissolved into linoleum floors and fluorescent lights.
“What was the last thing I said?” she demanded.
Theo swallowed. “Um... ‘what was the last thing I said?’”
A ripple of laughter scattered across the room.
“About the topic, Theo.”
“I—I don’t know,” he admitted, heat rising in his cheeks.
A boy behind him snickered loudly.
“Probably thinking about that invention of his,” Sam called out. “The one that turns broccoli into chocolate!”
The room erupted again in laughter.
The teacher slammed a hand on her desk. “Enough. I want complete decorum.” She leveled a hard stare at Theo. “Detention. After school.”
Theo wilted into his chair, wishing he could vanish.
**Detention — 4:45 PM**
The detention room was quiet, except for the low buzz of flickering ceiling lights. Theo sat in the front row, tapping his foot, while three older boys sprawled across the back seats like they owned the place.
Max nudged Casey with his elbow, not bothering to whisper. “See that kid? You wouldn’t last two seconds in his brain—it’s all cartoons up there.”
Casey smirked. “Not just cartoons. He’s also plotting how to defeat alien ninjas and killer squirrels.”
Theo clenched his jaw. “You know I can hear you.”
“And so?” Casey stood up, approaching Theo with casual menace. Max and Sam followed, forming a loose wall behind him.
“What are you going to do about it?”
Theo’s voice wavered. “I—I’ll tell the teacher.”
Sam mimicked shock. “Oh no, Krizma’s gonna tattle! He’s gonna tell on everything we do to him.”
Casey leaned forward, eyes narrow. “Pathetic.”
He shoved Theo, knocking him off balance. Theo hit the floor with a muted thud, dust rising around him.
The door creaked open.
“Back to your seats,” Mr. Oliver barked, stepping inside with a folder under his arm. “Unless you want more detention.” His eyes flicked to Theo. “Get up.”
The bell rang, sharp and freeing.
Casey stretched. “Finally.”
Sam sneered as they passed Theo. “Later, twerp.”
Theo dusted off his shirt, muttering under his breath, “Delinquents.”
**The Ride Home**
His mother’s car smelled faintly of coffee and fabric cleaner. Theo slid into the passenger seat, sighing.
“You must learn to pay attention in class,” Mrs. Krizma said as she pulled away from the curb.
“I’m trying,” Theo muttered, though even he didn’t fully believe it.
Five minutes into the drive, flashing lights blocked the road. A police officer raised a hand, motioning for them to stop.
“Sorry, ma’am. This area is on lockdown. You’ll need to take a different route.”
“No problem. Stay safe,” she replied, turning the car around.
Theo stared out the window, watching city streets blur past.
“Do I really have to go to school with supervillains on the loose?”
“Just because the city is unsafe doesn’t mean you stop your education.”
“Can’t I just be homeschooled? Or do online classes?”
“No,” she said firmly. “End of discussion.”
Theo groaned, sinking into his seat.
**Home**Their small bungalow sat at the edge of a quiet suburban street, framed by a creaking fence and an overgrown yard. Theo stepped out of the car, backpack slung lazily over his shoulder.
“Bye, honey,” his mother called, already reversing. “Heading back to work.”
“Bye,” he echoed.
Inside, the house felt still—almost too still. Theo tossed his bag aside, grabbed a blue plastic hanger (his makeshift prop for heroic adventures), and collapsed onto his bed.He raised the hanger dramatically. “Electro-ball!” His imaginary hero blasted enemies across a fictional skyline.
Suddenly, something crashed outside.
Theo sat up.
**The Battle in the Yard**
A gust of wind rattled the windows. A white, humanoid creature—thin, pale, and sharp-edged—tumbled into the yard, landing awkwardly in the grass.
“There’s nowhere left to run,” it growled.
Theo’s pulse kicked into overdrive. He crept toward the window, his heart hammering.A girl in a sleek black suit stood outside, pinned between three menacing figures, that looked like goblins. Glowing pink lines pulsed along her armor, tracing technological patterns across her limbs. A helmet concealed her face, but her stance radiated fierce defiance.
Theo whispered,“Is that... some kind of Power Ranger?”
Without thinking, he rushed outside, clutching his hanger like a sword. “You’d better back off!” he shouted.
One of the Goblins snorted. “Look, a little dreamer.”
Another lifted a hand, and heat shimmered in the air.
“Let’s give him a dose of reality. Fireball!”
The girl raised her palm, and pink light flared—then the fireball froze midair, suspended like a burning orb trapped in glass.
She didn’t look at Theo. “Stand back, kid. I don’t need your help.”
She lifted cars lifted off the ground and hurled it at them.
One of the goblins raised an earth wall blocking the cars.
Wind howled, and metal creaked a swirling tornado was conjured by a Goblin. The girl struggled, caught in the vortex.
Something small broke free—a crystal pendant—and spiraled downward. Theo instinctively lifted his hanger to shield himself.
The pendant struck it, then exploded in a burst of yellow light.
Energy surged up his arms, buzzing like electricity. The hanger crystallized, gleaming.
A voice filled his mind, calm and ancient.
“Call the name of one of your heroes.”
Theo swallowed, his voice trembling.
“R-Reptilian Hero!”
Light roared upward. Smoke curled. A creature—human-like yet monstrous, scaled yet majestic—emerged, towering over them.
Theo stared, his jaw slack. “No. Freaking. Way.”
The summoned beast snapped its tongue forward, grabbing the girl and yanking her from the whirlwind.
The Goblins exchanged tense glances.
“That’s the last crystal object,” one growled.
“We must report this to the V.L”
They vanished in a cloud of dark smoke, leaving the yard scarred and quiet.
**Aftermath**
The girl dusted herself off, her helmet retracting with a soft mechanical pulse. She studied Theo, her expression unreadable.
“So... you had the last crystal object all along.”
Theo blinked. “The last... what? And how did I summon that Reptilian Hero?”
“There are seven crystal objects. The villains have five. I had the sixth. I was trying to find the seventh before they did.” She gestured to the glowing hanger. “Now that it’s bonded to you, it can’t be used by anyone else—unless you die.”
Theo’s stomach dropped. “Oh. Cool. So what do they actually do?”
“They grant powers suited to the person. Yours seem tied to imagination.” She eyed the mutated beast. “Or nightmares. Hard to tell.”
“Hey,” Theo protested weakly. “How do I make him go away?”
The voice returned, echoing inside his mind.
“Say: ‘I release you from your existence.’”
Theo looked around. “Who keeps saying that?”
He exhaled. “Fine. I release you from your existence.”
Light flared—and the creature disappeared in a cloud of yellow smoke.
Silence settled over the yard.
“Why didn’t the crystal react earlier?” Theo asked, rubbing his arms.
She shrugged. “Ask the Guardian. They’ll explain everything.”
“The Guardian?” Theo repeated. “I am completely lost.”
“Then follow me.”
She tapped a device on her wrist, and a portal shimmered open—bright, humming, alive.
She stepped inside.
Theo hesitated for only a moment—then followed.
