Jamie, the new Superboy, helps residents of a community that is stricken by a hurricane. |
âSo you finally got your flu shot?â Jake asked. âHeâs all set⌠He wonât get the flu. I can assure you thatâŚâ Jenny said to him, as Jamie passed in front of the two adults. âGood⌠That means; I donât have to chase him around the shelter anymore.â Jake answered. âNow you see, young man? That wasnât so bad after all, was it?â âNo sirâ, Jamie chuckled. âIt wasnât so bad after all. I didnât feel a thing!â âThank you, Nurse Jenny!â Jamie winked, before turning to walk back to his classroom, where Greggy and Carrie were patiently waiting for him to return. Greggy and Jamie just continued to read and play video games, as the hurricane slowly passed over the area heading north. Eventually, the howling winds had died down, leaving just the sound of rainfall on the school house roof. When the residents were finally given the âall clearâ, Greggyâs family quickly returned to Gulf Breeze in order to inspect their grandmotherâs home and business. Several shingles had been peeled off the roof of Estherâs small grocery store although all the windows were boarded up and the plywood had held up well. But given the intense rainfall and roof damage, water had gotten inside to cause considerable damage to the interior and contents. There was standing water in the store. Herb and Amy had decided they would remain in Gulf Breeze long enough to help Grandma with her cleanup and repairs. The weather was still an issue. Although the worst of the storm had passed, strong thunderstorms continued to flare up, and there was still a tornado watch in effect for the stricken area. After helping with the cleanup and repair of Grandmaâs store, Jamie and Greggy went out to see what they could do to help with cleanup of the surrounding areas. Jamie wore his Superboy costume and a power ring and heâd given Greggy a power ring as well. âWe need help cleaning up this placeâ said. âLetâs see if Wes can help usâŚâ âDo we really have to?â Greggy sighed, as he rolled his eyes. He was often at odds with Wesley, because they frequently had their differences of opinion. âYes, Greggy, we need all the help we can get!â Jamie assured his best friend. âDonât worry; Wes will come here to help us. Let me deal with him. Donât say anything to him, besides just âhelloâ and everything will be OK, I promise!â Jamie drew his cell phone out the pouch in his cape and dialed Wesleyâs number. Within minutes, Wes showed up, and joined Jamie and Greggy in their effort to help out those in the community with property damage. The three super boys worked together clearing fallen trees and branches, telephone and power poles and debris. They started with the roads and streets to clear a path for relief workers and the power companyâs repair crews. And they moved on to homes and businesses, doing what they could to effect temporary repairs to protect property from further rain damage. They worked as quickly as they could, taking advantage of the limited time between rainfalls. When the rain started again, although most people sought shelter, the three super boys remained outside working tirelessly to help the community with the cleanup efforts, even though they were obliged to work in the pouring rain! Finally, Wes broke their silence. âGuys, weâd better get inside! This weather has gotten a lot worse.â There were loud thunder claps and flashes of lightning visible in the clouds overhead. âItâs a thunderstorm! We need to get inside!â Jamie agreed. âNo way! We still got way too much left to do! We can still work in the rain, canât we?â Greg pleaded with the two super kids. The three boys had just removed several trees that had fallen against a number of mobile homes in a trailer park just outside of town. Greg was about to take off, when he spotted an odd-looking stone, lying in the grass all by itself. âHey, Jamie, come take a look at this rock! Itâs glowing. The glowing rock was reddish amber on one side, and bright green on the other. âWe need to get inside, Greg! Just bring that thing along with you. You can check it out once weâre safe inside. âGuys,â Wes called again. âCome on! We need to get inside, now!â When neither Greg nor Jamie moved to comply, he trotted over to join them. âDo you think this could be a meteorite?â Greg wondered out loud. Jamie and Wes moved in for a closer look as a flash of lightning suddenly struck the rock with a loud crash, shattering the rock into many tiny fragments. As the lightning struck, all three boys turned away and shielded their eyes. Momentarily, they recovered from the shock. Then, they were surrounded by the strange glowing green and amber metallic fragments. âI feel really sick right nowâŚâ Jamie mumbled, as he sank to his knees, and toppled face first into the grass! âZyrtonium⌠Itâs ZyrtoniumâŚâ Jamie had passed out and then so did Wes. Greg was alone with his two unconscious friends amid the debris field from the shattered meteorite. Momentarily, he was completely flummoxed. âHow could the two most powerful boys on the planet just keel over and pass out?â âSure, we worked really hard but theyâre super boys. They just donât GET tired that easily. Theyâd hafta go for DAYS at that pace before they even STARTED to feel the least bit tired. But with this ring on my finger, I shouldnât feel tired or sick either, but I DO. Iâm really feeling weak and sick. Why?â Greggy pondered out loud. Then it registered. âThose meteorites! My God! Itâs Kryptonite AND Zyrtonium! What are the odds? My ring! I donât just get Jamieâs strength, Iâm getting is weakness too! I gotta get this ring off my finger!â To be continued My website contains my works of science fiction and fantasy. Check out my website at http://www.superfantasystories.com |