" UCK!" Ian cursed.
Julian smirked and invited the Kingmaker inside so that they could all chat.
" Now, then. What is it you all desire?" Kingmaker asked once again.
" Nothing! I want nothing! Count me out of this deal." Sooraya exclaimed.
" Me too, I'm not getting involved in no freaky mephisto mumbo jumbo. I read the stories. I know how these things turn out." Ian explained.
" Come on, Ian. Sooraya. Everybody wants something. Remember, you Hellions called me here. I've told you what I can do. One wish each. Your heart's desire and the Kingmaker will make it happen. For some of you, your wish is already clear." The Kingmaker stated. He picked a small flower and placed it on Kevin's face and watched as the flower withered away. " Mr. Ford... Kevin. Don't you wish you could turn off your powers? Make contact again?"
" H-How did you know?" Kevin asked.
" You left your names... I do my research before I take on new clients." The Kingmaker explained to the boy. " Time is money, come on. You all have something you want. I can give it to you."
" And of course, you will want something in return. Things like this are never free." Sooraya exclaimed.
" Of course, it's not free. What kind of businessman do you take me for?" The Kingmaker asked. " My clients form a vast network. They help me grant your wishes, and in return you will help me grant theirs. Everybody wins."
" I am still wary." Sooraya exclaimed defiantly.
" Then I'll leave. But in the future don't waste my time with prank phone calls." The Kingmaker stated.
" Wait! What about the rest of us?" Santo asked.
" It's all or nothing, Mr. Vaccarro. You called me together." The Kingmaker stated.
" What if he could give us a demonstration, guys. At no cost. Just a sample. We make him prove he's as good as he says." Julian spoke up.
" That's completely workable." The Kingmaker replied.
" I... I do not know." Sooraya replied
" Come on, that's totally fair. We test it... No strings attached." Julian told the two teens.
" I guess we can always back out, I guess." Cessily spoke up.
" Sooraya, you don't have to do this if you don't want to... You can say no." Ian told the girl.
Sooraya looked back and forth between Ian and the others and eventually she relented. She did not want to do it. But her friends did.
" So long as we can back out." Sooraya replied.
" Excellent! Who's first?" The Kingmaker asked.
" Uh, okay, I got this." Santo replied.
Santo told the Kingmaker his wish and the Hellions followed him to where his wish would take him.
" Wow! It looks like this Rockslide is the real deal! He's got strong arm helpless!" The ring announcer shouted as Santo lifted his opponent over his head.
" I can't believe this is what Santo wished for." Julian stated.
" I can." Ian replied.
" This is a wrestling league for hyper-powered individuals. His strength will be respected here, and his appearance is not so outlandish. He'll have his shot at the title before the summer is over and he'll be a legend." The Kingmaker explained.
" Hey, Julian., I thought wrestling was fake." Cessily asked.
" Not this one. This is real street fighting for supers. It's Santo's favorite. Who knew the Kingmaker had access?" Julian stated.
" Hey, Kingmaker. I think I know what I want." Brian told the man. He leaned close and whispered something into his ear.
" Brian, my dear boy, I think you can do better." The Kingmaker replied.
" So, Sooraya. Ian. What do you guys think?" Kevin asked.
" I think perhaps Santo does not have the troubles we have, Kevin. I would never have wished for this. I am still not sure I will wish for anything." Sooraya replied.
" Agreed." Ian stated.
" One! Two! Three! We have a winner!" The announcer exclaimed.
" Everyone, give it up for.... Rockslide!" The referee shouted as he raised Santo's hand to sky.
" Rockslide! Rockslide! Rockslide!" The crowd chanted.
The Kingmaker looked back at the others and Smiled.
" All right, who's next." He asked.
" Me." Cessily spoke.
" And what do you wish for my dear?" The Kingmaker asked.
Cessily leaned in and whispered in the man's ear.
The next day. Portland, Oregon.
The plane landed down in Oregon, and while Cessily was being taken home to her parents, Ian stopped the Kingmaker to have a little private chat.
" So, Ian. Are you ready to tell me your wish?" The Kingmaker asked.
" No, and frankly I don't want a wish. But I'm gonna warn you, if anything happens to Cessily or Sooraya or any of my friends I promise you, I will snap you like a twig." Ian told the man.
" Oh, my. What is a man going to do when someone threatens him?" The Kingmaker asked. " Listen, Ian. I've heard it all before. Some tough guy who thinks he can get over on me. But you gotta understand, I only want to make your friends happy. And just look at that girl. Her parents are finally treating her with care and love. Do you see how she's smiling? Do you really want to take that away from her? And what about Sooraya? I can find her mother; will it be hard? yes. But I can do it. Are you gonna stop me from making them happy?" The Kingmaker asked.
Ian grit his teeth as the Kingmaker grinned at him because they both knew Ian wasn't gonna do that. Ian looked over at Cessily who was being welcomed home by her parents and just sighed.
" Fine. I'll play your game, Kingmaker. But remember what I said." Ian told the man.
" Ah-ah-ahhh! Remember my dear boy... All or nothing." The Kingmaker stated. " Now then... What is your wish? My boy?" Ian looked at the man and spoke his wish to the Kingmaker who didn't look all too pleased. " What? You don't like it? Oh, well. That's too damn bad. That's my wish. If you can't make it happen, then this deal is off." Ian told the man.
" Fine. A deal. Is a deal." The Kingmaker spoke. He then walked away, leaving Ian to watch over Cessily, alone.
" Yeah, as if I'm going to trust you." Ian pulled out his phone and dialed a number. " Yeah, hello. Yeah I need your help. But you can't interfere with what I'm about to say. I'll give you another call if things get out of hand and I can't control it anymore. Can I trust you to keep this a secret?" Ian asked. " Okay. Here's what's going on!"