A Bit More Clear

“Blink... Have you ever done this before?” Aaron asked.

“That’s not my name! And… I don’t know.” Blink shook his head. He opened one of his yes to take a peek at what was going on around them and notice each of the smirkers slowly moving toward them. He quickly shut it and the smirkers immediately froze.

“Let me guess, intense stress, you close your eyes, things get quiet, and when you open your eyes, thinking danger has passed, thus momentarily lowering your stress level, things are back to normal. I take it you also run away.” Aaron shrugged.

“Well, yeah. I don’t typically get in trouble, but that sounds about right. I don’t like to stick around in those situations, either.”

“Which is why you don’t really get to test your powers. Most interesting.” Aaron smiled. “I need to see if this is affecting anyone else. Keep your eyes closed.” He used his telepathy to probe the campus, ‘listening’ for any minds which might be active. He noticed the smirkers each becoming a bit more active, and voices slowly coming alive in his mind.

“You know those guys are moving again, right?” he asked Blink, eliciting a gasp.

Clues

“So, what do we know so far?” Aaron asked into his phone.

“Well, two people have tried attacking you and have suddenly disappeared after you miraculously kicked their asses.” Campbell responded.

“Not miraculously, but yeah. Anything else?”

“The holo-thing you made with Miche showed an image of a guy who looked remarkably like you, only confirmed by the fact that Breaker called you Captain. You don’t like to lead anything.”

“I surely do not.” Aaron had just left his class for the day. He had decided to take a trip across campus, and took the opportunity to help get things in order with Campbell. The attacks over the past few days had him confused, but envigorated. He wanted to try to piece together as much as he could.

Raging

Aaron braced himself for the oncoming impact. As he attempted to firmly plant himself while slowing down the tree, he had an idea. He threw his forearms up infront of his body to block the blow. As the tree made contact, he tried his best to make an edge with his telekinesis. Luckily, it, combined with the force Rouge used in swinging the tree, was successful, cutting its way through the trunk. Though it took significant strain, Aaron was ready to go.

“Nice try, Rouge!” he yelled, grabbing an edge of the splintered tree. He propelled himself onto the trunk and ran toward Rouge. In anger, she quickly dropped the tree and launched a couple of fireballs his way. Aaron smirked, side-stepping each one, before dropping down to do what looked like---

Planning

As Aaron made his way across campus, he noticed people being a bit more brooding than usual. He smiled and nodded at some people and they just looked forward and as though they had a permanent scowl on their faces. When he sat down with Miche and Campbell to go over the planning session, he couldn’t help but relate his experience.

“And everyone seemed so pissy!” he exclaimed at the end of his story.

“Maybe you’re just thinking too much into this.” Campbell responded.

“Yeah. The weather isn’t perfect today.” Miche added.

“But how can that many people be having such a bad day?” Aaron wondered.

“Babe, are you just upset that people aren’t acknowledging you today?” Campbell squinted at him.

“…No…” Aaron responded, turning to look out the window.

Notes

So, hello there reader(s)! I wasn't sure whether do do stuff like this or not, but I figured, "Why the hell not?!"

I am really excited to work on Battle Jeans. Whether it picks up and gets another reader(s) or whether no one reads it, I like having this project. It gives me space to work on something I've always wanted to do through the best way I know how. That being said, I wanted to let you in on a few things:

I typically write every story to a certain song. I'll start letting you know what the songs are (and possibly providing a link) so you can check them out yourself.

I want to start doing illustrations, at least of the characters, to give you some insight into how they look.

I definitely have a plan of where I want this to go. There's a major story to unfold (I hope you like it!), so stay tuned. There are definitely some parts I'm very excited to write, but I must be patient and tell my story.

I try to be mindful and intentional when I use my characters. If you ever see anything remotely sexist, racist, homophobic, ablelist, ageist, or what have you, please let me know. I want to write a story that is deliberate, inclusive, and free from bias. Only you can... Help me eradicate these various isms, one Battle Jeans issue at a time :)

I think that's everything I wanted to say!

-A.

A New Challenger Appears!

“So, why is everything black and white?” Aaron asked the woman telepathically.

“I gotta get used to that…” She responded. “I was watching an old movie last night.”

“How old? And why are there Japanese men with swords?” Aaron was still a bit lost. He was lucky that Breaker was just as lost.

“If you have telepathy, how are you even asking these questions? And what was your ‘damn good idea.’”

“Now look sassy pants--!”

“Aaron, whatever this is I am not amused.” Breaker interrupted Aaron’s outburst.

“Don’t even wanna know how you know my name.” Aaron hid behind what he figured was a bush. He still wasn’t sure what was the illusion and what wasn’t. “Creeper.” His eyes began to glow as he put his plan into motion. “Okay. Miche, is it? I need to connect with you. More than just on a communication level.”

“Right. And good job putting that telepathy to use. I see your head is more than a hat rack. What do I need to do?” After she finished her statement, she felt an odd surge in her head.

Vs. Breaker

Dodging both Breaker and his attacks was no easy feat for Aaron. He was immediately put on the defensive, trying his best to evade any sort of damage. He tried zig zagging his way toward Breaker in an effort to move around any bolts sent his way.

“I see I’m going to have to try a different method,” Breaker said before fading from Aaron’s sight.

“No,” Aaron stopped. “Not good!” He looked around.

“No, it is not,” said Breaker behind him. Aaron tried his best to move away from the attack, but Breaker grazed his arm, briefly incapacitating him. The slight shock made it difficult to dodge the next attack as well.

“You said you wouldn’t make this easy,” Breaker said, clasping his hands together, electricity sparkling around them. He swung at Aaron, this time making more contact and eliciting a groan from his opponent.

“I’m trying not to!” Aaron angrily shouted, his eyes glowing, sending a psychic wave straight for Breaker’s head. It swung back violently, causing Breaker to stumble. However, his mental protection was stronger than Aaron had counted on.

Scout

Aaron left his building to run an errand for his advisor. It was a fair, cool day outside. Aaron enjoyed getting away from the department every now and then, so he had no problems running errands across campus. The manila envelope under his arm, he made his way to one of the far corners of campus to make a delivery. As he walked outside he felt a sensation. He crumpled his face, trying to shake it off, but it wouldn’t budge. He looked around before he continued his trek, finding nothing.

The sensation did not go away. Aaron tried his best to keep from making faces as he walked to his destination. Unfortunately, a couple of passersby caught his strange expressions and gave him odd looks, prompting him to adopt a much faster pace. As he was passing one of the dorms, he felt as though he had been shaken. He quickly whirled his head around, his eyes glowing, as he unleashed a mild psychic wave. He barely caught sight of a large blur out of the corner of his eye. He started toward where he thought he saw the blur, until he heard a sound in some nearby bushes.

A Skinny Beginning

“I wonder if these skinny jeans are going to mess up my fighting…” Aaron spoke into the phone.

“Since when do you fight?” his boyfriend, Campbell asked.

“You saw me fight the day we met… I fought someone yesterday! You were there!” Aaron raised his voice into the phone.

“Ow… Aren’t you in public?” Campbell replied. Aaron looked around and noticed a couple of staring faces.

“Yes. Yes I am…” he quickly ducked down an aisle in the grocery store. He had just left class and had decided to go to the grocery store for a few quick items. “Anyway, yes I do fight. You know this.”

“Yeah, I remember now. You could use some work,” Campbell laughed into the phone.

“Ha. Ha.” Aaron looked forward, annoyed. To the passersby, it looked like he was concentrating much too hard on which pasta sauce to buy. “I’m actually decent,” he replied, resolute.

“Right babe,” Campbell began his next sentence, but Aaron didn’t notice. He was distracted by a commotion toward the front of the store. He turned his head to the source of the noise.

“All of the cash. NOW!” He heard someone demand of a cashier.

“Looks like I’m gonna get a chance to prove you wrong. Looooove yooouuu,” Aaron said sweetly into the phone before he hung up. He pulled his scarf up over his mouth and his hood over his head before he crept to the front of the store. He caught sight of five men, taking cash from registers. From under his scarf, he made a smirk, getting ready for his assault.