The Hero

The Hero is the first episode of Tech 10: Star Spirit.

Episode
Since this is the first episode, I should explain how this works.

This series uses a mix of Script and Prose writing styles. Script is used for establishing shots and dialogue, and Prose is used for more detailed storytelling. The Script will work like this:

[When there is an establishing shot, it will look like this]

When: "There is dialogue, it will look like this."

When: *Someone is taking an action, it will look like this*

When:  'Someone is thinking, it will look like this.'

[We open on a large park in winter, snow covering the grass and trees. Panning to a corner of the park, two teenagers in winter clothing are sitting under a tree and talking. One is holding a raw potato.]

Teen 1: “Do you really need to carry a potato with you everywhere you go?”

Teen 2: “Need to? No. Want to? Different story.”

The first teen chuckled a bit, then leaned back and stared into the cloudy sky.

Teen 1: “Theo, do you ever feel like there’s something we’re missing? Something out there that we should be involved in, but just aren’t?”

Theo: *Pockets the potato* “Well, as long as we’re discussing deep things while bringing up each others names, Nova, I have to admit I don’t think about that kinda stuff. Simple man, simple needs.”

Nova: “Says the kid with one of the galaxy’s greatest technological achievements on his glove.”

Theo: “You’re one to talk, miss nanomachine-constructs.”

Nova: “That one’s on my dad, not me. I tell him I’m fine without some weird nanobot swarm stuck to me, but nooooo, I might need it for ‘self-defense’. Like, come on, just sign me up for martial arts or something!”

Theo: “Most people wouldn’t complain about being able to make any machine you can think of out of thin air.”

Nova: “Most people with superpowers like that don’t have their parents badgering them not to use it for superhero stuff. It’s like they’re taunting me!”

Theo: “Hey, same situation here, but you don’t hear me whining about it.”

Nova: “Yeah, but you’re lazy, so it isn’t really the same.”

Theo: “Fair enough.”

Before the two could continue their conversation, Theo’s phone began beeping. He pulled it out of his pocket and turned off the alarm with a grumble.

Nova: “Time to head home already? It feels like we just got here!”

Theo: “Yeah, but you know how my parents are if I’m out after dark.”

The two got to their feet and brushed off some of the powdery snow that had accumulated while they were talking.

Nova: “I wonder what happened to make them so paranoid. Nothing interesting happens around here.”

Theo: “There was that one scandal involving the mayor and an elephant.”

Nova: “I meant something that affects us.”

Theo: “Oh.”

Theo held his left hand out in front of him, displaying a black fingerless glove with an Omnitrix dial sitting on top of it.

Theo: “One nice thing about all this cold weather is that it keeps the Startrix from overheating so quickly. Longer transformation times, lower cooldown times.”

He pressed down on the center of the dial, causing it to sink slightly with a ‘click’, then spring upwards about an inch above the rim of the dial. The black sides of the hourglass symbol retracted, making room for a silhouette to appear in the center. Theo turned the dial to the right, changing the silhouette, then pressed down on the dial. A fast green flash later, he stood tall as a white and gray mechanical alien.

Theo/Move Along: “Alright, hop on.”

Nova: “You sure Move Along’s got enough traction on snow and ice?”

Move Along: *Shrugs* “Seems to get good traction on every other surface.”

Nova: “Eh, I’ll take those odds.”

A swirl of gold nanobots and purple energy swirled around Nova’s legs for a moment, creating large mechanical boots that went up to her knees. She activated the boosters on them and jumped into the air, landing neatly on Move Along’s back and grabbing hold of the exhaust pipes lining his shoulders.

Nova: “Ready to roll!”

Move Along: “Heading out!”

With that, Move Along suddenly activated his treads and dashed away into the snow.

[Shot of Move Along racing down the streets of the suburbs and dodging cars with ease, still carrying Nova. Suddenly, a fireball explodes in front of them from their right.]

Move Along: *Braking* “What the-”

The fireball flew over their heads, smashing into a house on the other side of the road and setting it ablaze unnaturally quickly.

Nova: “What was that?”

Move Along swiftly turned towards the direction the fireball had come from, finding nothing. He turned back to the burning house.

Move Along: “No idea. I just hope there isn’t anyone-”

He was cut off by a high-pitched scream for help coming from the second floor of the house.

Move Along: “...Me and my big mouth.”

Nova: “What do we do? Call the fire department?”

Move Along: *Sets Nova down on the road* “You call the fire department and use Swarm 2 to deliver first aid if anyone I bring out is injured. I’m going in.”

Nova: “You’re going in by yourself? You haven’t even tested your water alien yet! It might not be able to put out a fire like this!”

Move Along: “Move Along has temperature-resistant plating and moves faster than anything else I have. He’ll do fine. No more arguing, I gotta move!”

Move Along dashed into the burning building, breaking down the front door in the process.

Move Along: *Yelling* “Is there anyone in here?!”

???: *Coughing* “Over here!”

Move Along swiftly followed the voice, coming across a teenager and two children huddled up near a flight of stairs. Knowing the danger of the situation, he didn’t pause to say anything, instead neatly scooping up the three and racing out of the building, where he set them down in the snow.

Move Along: “Is there anyone else in there?”

Teenager: *Dazed* “Th-there shouldn’t be. Mom and Dad left us home alone with-” *Eyes widening* “Oh God, the baby!”

Move Along glanced down at the StarTrix symbol for a moment, noting that the dial was creating massive amounts of steam, signaling that it was close to overheating and shutting down. Without missing a beat, he raced back into the building.

[We cut to inside the house, with Move Along racing up the stairwell.]

Move Along: ‘I’ve checked every downstairs room, so it has to be up here! I just hope the StarTrix holds out...’

He raced from room to room upstairs, slowed down by the smoke obscuring his vision. He finally began to hear a soft wailing noise over the sound of the burning house, and raced towards it.

Move Along: ‘Yes! Everything’s gonna turn out just-’

As if the universe considered interrupting people funny, the StarTrix symbol started beeping, startling him and causing him to trip, after which he was immediately detransformed and flung into the baby’s room head-first by his own momentum, landing with a painful ‘Thud’.

StarTrix: “Overheating detected. To protect this unit’s hardware, it has been shut off until cool-down occurs. Have a nice day.”

Move Along/Theo: *Frustratedly* “Seriously?! What about protecting me, huh?!”

He quickly scrambled to his feet and felt his way over to the crib, pulling his shirt up to use as a makeshift air filter. He reached in and picked up the crying baby, then began making his way back towards the door. Suddenly, the roof in front of him caved in, blocking the exit.

Theo: “Oh, this is just not my day.”

Racking his brain for ideas, there was only one way out he could think of- and it wouldn’t be pretty. Quickly making his way over to the room’s window, he took off his hat with one hand and grasped it in a way that made it fold around his fist. Summoning all the strength he could muster, he punched out the window, sending shards of broken glass exploding outwards into the snow.

Theo: *Yelling* “Nova! A little help!”

Nova turned towards him, spotting him through the broken window frame. She swiftly summoned her leg boosters and ran to the side of the house, jumping into the air and hovering up to the second story.

Theo: “Think you can carry both of our weights at once?”

Nova: *Scoffing* “Dude, if I can lift your heavy butt, an extra baby-sized weight shouldn’t even be noticeable.”

She quickly up Theo, who was still holding on to the baby, and brought them both down to ground level, where she dissipated the leg boosters. Theo walked over to the teenager and two kids, who were staring at the scene in disbelief, and handed the teenagers the baby.

Theo: “Alright, here’s the baby, safe and sound.”

Nova: *Goofily* “Now, the product itself is gonna be free, but that shipping and handling fiasco is probably gonna land a dent in your wallet.”

Theo: *Rolls his eyes* “I think we’d better jet. We’re already late as it is.”

Before the teen could react, Theo and Nova took off running down the street as fast as possible, leaving a very confused yet grateful family in their wake.

[We cut to an average suburban neighborhood at sunset, with Theo and Nova running up to a larger house that looks somewhat out-of-place. Three cars are parked in the driveway.]

Nova: *Groans* “Oh crap, my dad’s car is here. We’re so screwed.”

Theo: “That’s weird, I didn’t think we took that long with the burning building. Maybe he’s just over to play cards?”

Nova: “Our parents don’t play cards.”

Theo: “A man can dream slash grasp at straws.”

The two went up to the front door and entered the house, walking down the front hallway. They got to the living room, only to find Theo’s parents and Nova’s dad waiting there with disappointed looks.

Nova: *Nervously* “Hey, what’s with the faces? We were home before dark, weren’t we?”

Nova’s Dad: “Trust me, that’s not the problem here.

Theo: “That’s basically what I said.”

Nova: *Hissing* “Not helping.”

Theo: “So, uh...what’s going on, then?”

In response, Theo’s dad simply picked up a remote and turned on the TV, which was currently on a news channel.

News Reporter: “Again, the witnesses say that their rescuers were two teenagers with what seemed to be supernatural abilities. These claims certainly sound incredulous, but the important thing is that the family got out safe. Coming up, are cyclists giving the middle-class cancer? More on that at eleven!”

Theo’s dad turned off the TV.

Nova: “Huh. What a conveniently timed news report.”

Theo: *Dismissively* “Hey, those could have been any super-powered teenagers. What makes you so sure it was us?”

Theo’s Mom: “You two smelling like smoke, for one.”

Nova: “She does have a point there.”

Theo: “NOW who’s not helping?!”

Theo’s Dad: *Sighs* “Look, we know that you want to use your abilities for the benefit of others. However, the three of us have experience in that department, and know first-hand how dangerous it can be. Well, for these two, at any rate.”

Nova’s Dad: “I used to fight crime religiously, and look where that got me.” *Pulls up his right sleeve, revealing an orange robotic arm*

Nova: “Didn’t you say that you could grow that back at any point using Swarm 1, you just decided that the robo-arm was cooler?”

Nova’s Dad: *Sheepishly* “Well, yes, but I’d still rather keep the dismemberment to a minimum around here!”

Theo’s Mom: “The point is, it’s irresponsible for you two to run around and put yourselves into danger like that.”

Nova: “So, what, you think we should’ve just let them die?!”

Nova’s Dad: “Of course not, but there are other people qualified to handle these situations much better than untrained teenagers, like, in this example, firefighters.”

Theo: “But they wouldn’t have gotten there in time!”

Theo’s Dad: “And that’s something you know for sure? Did you stick around to find out, or did you just kind of assume that the people trained to get to a fire as quickly as possible wouldn’t show up on time?”

Theo: *Frustratedly* “Well, no, but I’m not going to risk leaving people for dead just to ‘find out!’”

Theo’s Dad: “That’s it, young man! Go to your room!”

Theo: “But-”

Theo’s Mom: *Firmly* “Go.”

Theo turned and stormed off, grumbling the entire way.

Nova’s Dad: “Nova, head out to the car. We’ll talk about this later, but I have something to talk with Theodore’s parents about.”

Nova: “Ugh, fine.”

Nova left the room, heading back out the front door. Nova’s dad sighed and turned to Theo’s parents, taking off his glasses and cleaning them with his sleeve.

Nova’s Dad: “Okay, Isaac, Moranna, be honest. You only sent him to his room because you couldn’t come up with a good counter-argument, didn’t you?”

Isaac: “I ain’t looking for sass here, Napoleon.”

Napoleon: *Chuckles* “Then becoming friends with me was a really dumb move on your part.”

[Cut to Theo’s room, where he’s on the computer, looking at a news website.]

Theo: *Scrolling through the website* “‘Oh No, He’s Done It Again – Firearms Instructor Accidentally Shoots Girlfriend While Aiming at Ex-Girlfriend’? ‘Skeletons Found In People’s Bodies’? ‘Beyoncé May Have Been Stalking Humanity for 70,000 Years’? Who writes this stuff?!”

Before he could continue scrolling, his cell phone began ringing. He retrieved it from his pocket and answered it almost absentmindedly.

Theo: “Hello?”

Caller: “Hey, Theo? This is Aquadilus.”

Theo: “Oh, hey. What’s up?”

Aquadilus: *Apathetically* “With me personally, not much. I’m calling on behalf of someone else who doesn’t want your parents to find out they’re talking to you.”

Theo: “That sounds...suspicious. You sure this whoever it is can be trusted? And why didn’t they just call from someone else’s cellphone or something?”

Aquadilus: “They didn’t want your parents investigating any suspicious numbers they might find on your phone if that happened. As for their trustworthiness, I can personally attest to the fact that the worst they might want to do is piss off your dad, which is something I’m always up for myself.”

Theo: “Alright, what did they want you to tell me?”

Aquadilus: “Head to the abandoned cement factory near downtown tomorrow at two PM. Bring Nova with you. Once you’re there, they’ll be able to explain what’s going on.”

Theo: “The abandoned cement factory? You mean the one that shut down like a century ago because their workers kept getting crushed and mutilated by unsafe machinery?”

Aquadilus: “That’s the one.”

Theo: “...How stupid does this person think I am?”

Aquadilus: “Debatable. I didn’t get any details other than that, but I do trust them.”

Theo: “...I make no promises.”

Aquadilus: “Okay, I’ll tell them. See ya.”

Before Theo could reply, Aquadilus hung up. Theo stared at his cellphone for a few minutes before shrugging and putting it down.

Theo: “Oh, please. There’s no way I’d ever be stupid enough-”

[Cut to the next day, with Theo and Nova standing outside an abandoned cement factory.]

Nova: “You know, this is pretty stupid.”

Theo: “I know, I know. I just need to find out what’s going on.”

Nova: “Then enough lollygagging. I don’t want to be around this place any more than I have to.”

The two began making their way towards the entrance, peeking inside of the factory.

Theo: “What, do you think it’s haunted or something?”

Nova: “I was thinking more along the lines of ‘rotting building with multiple health hazards’, but sure, ghosts work too.”

They slowly entered the building, carefully making their way onto the factory floor. Massive machinery loomed ominously above them, the dark rust giving off an unsettling atmosphere.

Nova: “If the person we’re supposed to meet isn’t here and we came to this stupid place for no reason, I’m going to smack someone. Probably you.”

Theo: “Gee, thanks.”

???: “If you two are done with the banter, maybe you could get a move on. I don’t have all day.”

Theo and Nova looked around in an attempt to see who was talking, but couldn’t see anything.

???: “You’re not going to see me, I’m talking over a speaker. About ten feet to your right, there should be a bolt slightly sticking out of the wall. Go over to it and push it back in.”

Nova: “And why should we listen to someone who didn’t even bother to show up in person?”

???: “I’m here, you just aren’t in the right area yet. Push in the bolt.”

Theo and Nova exchanged a suspicious look, then walked over to the right and found the bolt sticking out of the wall. Giving each other one last nod in case something went wrong, they pushed in on the bolt. Nothing happened for a few seconds, but as soon as they began to let their guard down, the floor beneath them suddenly shot down into the ground, taking them with it. After a few more seconds of moving down at high speed, the floor piece suddenly slowed down, knocking them onto the ground.

Their platform finally made contact with its destination, sinking into a specially-designed hole in the floor.

???: *Muttering* “We really need to get that thing fixed...”

Theo and Nova quickly pulled themselves to their feet, taking a look at their new surroundings. They were in what appeared to be the main area of a massive underground base. It was full to the brim with advanced alien technology, with computer screens and consoles practically taking up the entirety of the walls. Standing in front of them was a somewhat tall, white synthetic with long blue ‘hair’ and a green uniform. Though it was somewhat hard to notice in the well-lit area, she was constantly emitting a small amount of white light.

???: “I believe introductions are in order. This is Plumber Base UT1. My name is Alpha.”

[Cut to an overhead shot that switches to a side view after zooming in a bit.]

Theo: “Wait, this is a Plumber Base? What’s a Plumber Base doing under a freaky abandoned factory in northern Utah?”

Alpha: “The Plumbers are currently in the process of building a base in every state. Given the United States’ previous heavy involvement in alien activity, the higher ups deemed it a strategically wise option.”

Nova: “And the abandoned factory part?”

Alpha: “Nobody ever comes around here except for the odd paranormal investigation groups, and it’s not like any of them are smart enough to figure out we’re here. It was simply prime real-estate.”

Theo: “So this place definitely isn’t haunted then?”

Alpha: “...Sure, let’s go with that.”

Nova: “Why did you call us here anyway? We almost didn’t come because of how sketchy the whole arrangement is.”

Alpha: “Yes, I apologize for that. Follow me, I’ll explain in a moment.”

Alpha began walking away, prompting Theo and Nova to follow.

Theo: “Are we the only people here? It seems empty.”

Alpha: “For the moment, yes. This base will not be fully operational for another month or so. Until then, I am the only one permanently stationed here, mainly to oversee construction.”

Nova: “Do you ever get lonely down here?”

Alpha: “I am a synthetic, not a human. I have no ingrained need for contact with the outside world.”

The three finally stopped walking as they reached a particularly large console, with a monitor specially mounted to distinguish it from the rest.

Alpha: “This is the central surveillance system. Every public location in the valley is scanned by our camera AI constantly, ensuring that we are alerted to any possible threats.”

Nova: “And the idea of observing the populous ‘Big-Brother’ style didn’t strike anybody as weird?”

Alpha: “Believe me, it’s far less intrusive than what your Earth governments were already doing.”

Theo: “This is all very impressive, but what does it have to do with us?”

Alpha turned to the console and pressed a few buttons, pulling up multiple video feeds of buildings being hit by random fireballs and catching ablaze.

Alpha: “Incidents such as these have been occurring for the past few weeks. We’ve been trying to cover them up as freak accidents, but people are starting to get suspicious. The truth is, we believe this to be the work of an arson with fire abilities alien in origin.”

Nova: “Hey, that’s the exact kind of fire we encountered yesterday!”

Alpha: “Correct. The system caught you on camera, and given your performance, I decided to bring you two in on this investigation.”

Theo: “Hold on a second, you said the cameras are equipped with AI designed to identify threats like this. How have you not caught this guy yet?”

Alpha: “It is was an alien, he would be relatively easy to identify. Giant walking fireballs are fairly recognizable. Unfortunately for us, there’s been an alternate option as of late, which has made our job much more difficult.”

Nova: “What ‘alternate option’?”

Alpha: *Sighs* “There’s a new store hidden away in the industrial zones run by the infamous Xr. Nullamor, who specializes in genetic modification. If I recall correctly, he even contributed to the construction of the device on your hand.” *Gestures to Theo*

Theo: “The StarTrix?”

Alpha: “I still stand by my opinion of that being a stupid name for it. Regardless, he’s developed a process by which he is able to give any random human that walks in the door and passes a quick background check incredible alien superpowers.”

Nova: “That sounds so cool!”

Theo: “That sounds wildly irresponsible.”

Alpha: “You’re both right to a point.”

Theo: “Have you tried asking this Nullamor guy for business records or something?”

Alpha: “Yes, but fire abilities seem to be a popular request of his. In the time it would take to comb through every suspect, half the city could be burned down.”

Nova: “None of which explains why you brought us here.”

Alpha: “Right. I’ll get straight to the point. You two are quick responders, able to mobilize faster than I am alone. I want to bring you two in as temporary Plumbers to help catch this arsonist.”

Nova: *Excitedly* “I am one hundred and ten percent up for that!”

Theo: “Hold on a second. You apparently know my father, but you called me through Aquadilus last night to keep him from finding out about this. I’m guessing that means you know about our parents’ decision about us crime fighting.”

Alpha: “I recognize that your parents have made a decision, but seeing as it is a moronic decision, I have elected to ignore it.”

Nova: “I like your style!”

Theo: “...Eh, sure, why not.”

Alpha: “Good. Now that I have you both on board, I already have a plan for dealing with this mystery arsonist of ours. By centralizing their area of operations and tracking their patterns, I believe I know where and when they’ll strike next.”

Nova: “Well, what are you waiting for? Spill the beans and we’ll head out!”

Alpha: “Your enthusiasm is appreciated, if not necessarily your planning skills.”

[Cut to evening in the middle of a quiet suburban neighborhood. A hooded man is seen strolling down the sidewalk, carefully looking at each house he passes by. After some time, he finally seems to settle on one and hides behind a nearby bush.]

???: *Muttering to himself* “Alright, just gotta line this up.”

The hooded man pulled up his right sleeve, putting his arm up into the air with his palm facing towards a house across the street.

???: “We’ll be good for the night in three...two...one...”

Right before he finished his countdown, he was suddenly blasted out of the bushes by a beam of yellow light. Scrambling to his feet, he found himself confronted by a hovering, yellow, star-like humanoid alien and a teenage girl with strange hair.

???: “Who the hell are you?”

Nova: “The name’s Nunna. As in Nunna ya business!”

Theo/All☆Star: “I dunno, All☆Star, I guess? I haven’t fully decided on a name for this one yet.”

???: *Notices the StarTrix symbol* “Hold on a second, are you that Ben 10 guy?”

All☆Star: “What? Nah, we’re not associated with that guy. We’re strictly small scale.”

???: “Wait...you calling me ‘small scale’?”

All☆Star: “Um...yes?”

???: *Angrily* “You just made a big mistake!”

Before All☆Star or Nova could react, the hooded man suddenly exploded into a pillar of fire, which faded to reveal a man with a very stereotypical ‘greaser’ look that was creating fire from his palms, elbows, chest, ankles, and head.

???: “My name is Pyros, and I’m gonna fry you like an egg!”

Pyros swiftly launched a stream of fire at All☆Star, who simply hovered in place without reacting.

Pyros: “What the hell?!”

All☆Star: “Really? Pyros? That’s probably one of the most cliche names you could’ve come up with.”

Pyros: “You shut yer yap!” *Increases strength of the fire stream* “Gah! Why isn’t this affecting you?!”

All☆Star: “All☆Star’s species live inside the middle of a sun, dude. How far were you expecting to get with this?”

Before Pyros could reply, the StarTrix suddenly began sounding a warning beep.

Pyros: “What is that?”

All☆Star: *Sighs* “That is the sound of my ego getting the best of me."

All☆Star suddenly put his hands up to his head and created an immense flash, temporarily blinding Pyros and sending him stumbling back, cutting off his fire stream. He took the opportunity to jump over to Nova and press the StarTrix symbol, detransforming.

Nova: “So it turns out sticking your overly heat-sensitive superpower thingy directly into a stream of fire wasn’t such a good idea, huh?”

Theo: “Sue me.”

Pyros finally recovered, rubbing his eyes and blinking them a few times before catching sight of Theo and Nova.

Pyros: “So, heat is your weakness, huh?” *Laughs maniacally* “You really picked a fight with the wrong guy!”

He launched a stream of fire at the two, but before it could hit them, Nova quickly stepped in the way and summoned an octagonal golden shield in front of them, redirecting the flames.

Nova: *Stressfully* “How long do you think it’ll take that thing to cool down?”

Theo: “Given the environment?” *Picks up some slush from the ground and piles it on the StarTrix, causing a hissing noise* “About thirty seconds.”

Nova: “Well, you can’t just go in guns blazing again! He knows where to aim!”

Theo: “Right...but what if it wasn’t me that was going out?”

Nova: “Excuse me?”

Theo: *Ignoring her* “Let’s see...All☆Star’s too focused on protecting civilians...Rolling Stone always avoids violence...I haven’t even tried this with Move Along or Over The Rainbow yet...I guess the only fire-resistant alien that leaves would be...”

Nova: “Stop muttering to yourself and hurry up!”

Theo: “Okay, okay, fine!”

Pyros slowly began moving closer, intensifying the stream of flames.

Pyros: “You can’t hide behind that shield forever, you brats!”

Theo: *From behind the shield* “Point taken, jerkweed!”

Before Pyros could react, a green hourglass symbol appeared in the air in front of him, swiftly followed by white energy expanding outwards in an almost pixelated pattern until it created a roughly humanoid shape, disappearing with a flash to reveal a bronze-armored alien that bore a heavy resemblance to old diving suits.

Pyros: “You don’t scare me, kid! I know your weak point!”

Pyros launched a fire stream at the StarTrix symbol on Holy Diver’s chest, who simply stood in place, taking the attack. Confused, he intensified the attack, still not getting a response.

Pyros: “What are you, stupid? I keep hitting this symbol for too much longer, and you’ll fry like toast!”

Theo: “Well, that would certainly be an issue if it was me you were hitting.”

Pyros: “What the-” *Looks around, spotting Theo and Nova standing a few meters away* “How the hell-?!”

Theo: “It’s called a Projection Transformation. The StarTrix you’re hitting is just a solid projection, not the real thing.”

Pyros: “So that means this alien is...” *Trails off and switches his aim to Theo*

As Pyros was about to launch another stream of fire, the bronze-armored alien in front of him suddenly reacted, punching him in the face.

Theo: “Oh, no, the alien part’s totally real. It just runs on an AI instead of my brain when it’s being projected like this. This AI in particular is designed to protect me at any cost.”

Pyros recovered and tried to hit the alien with a flame-covered fist, but was too dazed to land a proper blow. It reacted by retracting the fingers on its right hand and summoning a drill out of the hole on the end of its arm, slamming the drill into the ground below them and breaking up the cement, sending Pyros even more off-balance.

Theo: “I call this guy Holy Diver!”

Before Pyros could recover, Holy Diver stomped up to him and conked him on the skull with the blunt side of its drill, knocking him out. Theo breathed a sigh of relief and pressed down on the StarTrix dial, causing Holy Diver to dissipate into energy and be reabsorbed by the StarTrix itself.

Theo: “Well, that went better than expected.”

Nova: “Dude, we almost got fried!”

Theo: “Like I said, better than expected.”

[Cut to the next day at Plumber Base UT1. Theo and Nova are speaking with Alpha.]

Nova: “So what did you do with the guy once we brought him in?”

Alpha: “I placed him in one of the base’s holding cells. He’ll remain there until his trial.”

Theo: “You sure it’ll hold him?”

Alpha: “Trust me, those cells were designed to hold much more than a pyromaniac on a temper tantrum.”

Theo: “If you say so.”

Nova: “Come on Theo, lighten up! We got the bad guy, didn’t we?”

Alpha: “Actually, I wanted to talk to you about that.”

Theo: “If this is about the damage to the cement, that was the AI’s fault, not mine.”

Alpha: “No, it’s not that. I want to keep you two on for more than just this one case, if it’s alright with you.”

Nova: “I’m game.”

Theo: “Well, if you need us, but what’s going on that you’d need our help with?”

Alpha: *Sighs* “I admit that I’m not entirely sure of the full breadth of the situation myself. Suffice it to say for now that there are bigger fish to fry.”

Nova: *Chuckles*

Theo: "..."

Nova: “...See, it’s funny because we almost got fri-”

Theo: “I get it, Nova.”

Major Events

 * Theodore Logical and Nova Eldridge make their debuts.
 * Move Along, All☆Star, and Holy Diver make their debuts.
 * Napoleon Eldridge, Isaac Logical, Moranna Ceres, Aquadilus, and Alpha make their Star Spirit debuts.
 * Pyros makes his debut.
 * Theo and Nova begin temporary work for the Plumbers.

Protagonists

 * Theodore Logical
 * Nova Eldridge
 * Alpha

Neutral

 * Isaac Logical
 * Moranna Ceres
 * Napoleon Eldridge
 * Aquadilus

Antagonists

 * Pyros

Aliens Used

 * Move Along (Debut)
 * All☆Star (Debut)
 * Holy Diver (Debut)

Trivia

 * This is the first Tech 10 episode to come out on New Year's Day.
 * This is the first time Alpha is listed as a protagonist in an episode.
 * This is also the first time Isaac Logical and Napoleon Eldridge have been listed as anything other than protagonists.
 * The factory featured in this episode does exist in real life, but has been turned into a Halloween attraction.