Episode 5: Tears of the Jolly Beetle
~Swellview City Hall~
Captain Man and Kid Danger had been asked to attend a gratitude ceremony by the Mayor of Swellview. The people of the city wanted to do something for the hero and his sidekick since they worked every day to protect them.
“And luckily, Swellview has the best crime fighters of all. And so, my fellow Swellviewians, as vice mayor of this fine city, I present these medals of recognition for bravery and community service to our very own Captain Man and Kid Danger.” The vice mayor read out his speech to the packed room, in which (y/n), Charlotte, Jasper and Piper were sat together towards the back. Henry was beaming with pride at the crowd, but Ray was busy flirtatiously looking over at Miss Swellview. (y/n) swallowed down whatever jealousy rose in her throat and tried to focus on her happiness that the two were being recognised.
The crowd applauded and cameras flashed as the politician finished speaking and Miss Swellview placed their medals around their necks.
“Oh, and please accept this coupon for one free medium frozen yoghurt.” He added at the end, passing the voucher to Ray and Henry.
“Each?” Henry asked, only seeing one coupon.
“No, you’ll have to split the yoghurt.” The vice mayor left the stage, allowing Captain Man to step forward to the podium.
“Thank you, vice mayor. And thank you, citizens of Swellview.” Ray humbly said to the crowd.
“Hey, why didn’t Henry come to this?” Jasper whispered to Charlotte as Ray carried on his speech.
“Oh, he–uh…his goldfish had babies.” She lied, which confused the kids on her left and made (y/n) raise her eyebrows on her right. It wasn’t the best lie she’d ever come up with.
“What goldfish?” Piper said. She lived with Henry, surely she’d be the one to know if he kept a fish in the house.
“I didn’t know Henry had a goldfish.” Jasper pondered.
“Well, he does and she was pregnant.” Charlotte said in a firm tone, wanting Jasper to believe her.
“Do we know who the father is?” (y/n) had to put her hand over her mouth to stop from laughing, as Charlotte just glared at him.
“And we very much appreciate these medals and the yoghurt, which we’ll share.” Ray finished awkwardly, running out of things to say.
“Kid Danger, you’re up.” He said, letting Henry take over. The crowd broke out in cheers again, which made pride bloom in his chest.
“We love you, Kid Danger!” Piper fangirled from Jasper’s side, making everyone wince at her volume.
“Kid Danger is so hot.” She stated, looking across at Charlotte, who wanted to throw up at the comment.
“Yeah, you don’t wanna be saying that.” She said, as (y/n) too felt a bit nauseous from Piper’s words. They all looked back to the stage, as Henry began to speak.
“Even though I’ve only been Captain Man’s sidekick for a short time, I really–” Henry was interrupted by loud music playing over the speakers, signalling that there was no time left for him to make a speech. Everyone got up to leave, as he sighed in annoyance.
“Wha–Seriously? They’re playing me off?” He asked Ray, who placed his hand on the boy’s shoulder.
“I think there was a time limit.” He explained, but it didn’t really make Henry feel better. Photographers lined up to get a shot of the superhero duo, but Captain Man seemed to be more interested in having his photo taken with Swellview’s glamorous beauty queen. (y/n) rolled her eyes as Henry got pushed to the side.
“Hey Captain Man, our car’s ready.” Henry said, after (y/n) had whispered in his that it was time to leave.
“Then let’s ride.” Ray said in a manly voice.
“Wait, Captain Man, Captain Man!” Jasper shouted across the room, wanting his idol’s attention.
“Yes, you in the loose pants.” Ray acknowledged him.
“Will you sign my Captain Man action figure?” Jasper requested, holding the toy up for Ray to see.
“Sure. Just bring it up here and I"d be glad to–” Ray was cut off as Jasper decided to just throw the box directly at the hero’s face. Ray held his lip in pain, making the crowd gasp and (y/n) take in a sharp breath, even though she knew deep down he should be alright.
“It hit him in the mouth.” The vice mayor pointed at Captain Man.
“Sorry, Captain Man!” Jasper felt awful.
“No worries, I"m okay.” Ray addressed the crowd, keeping them calm, but (y/n)’s face fell when she saw something on his face. She ran up the steps to the stage, pulling Ray to the side with Henry.
“Captain Man, I need to speak with you.” she said, hiding slight behind a curtain.
“What?” Ray asked them both. She brushed her thumb gently across his lip.
“Blood.” She said, looking at him with fear in fear eyes.
“Why’s her thumb all bloody?” He asked, looking at his sidekick.
“It isn’t! You have a bloody lip from that toy hitting you in the face.” he replied, making Ray feel his lip in disbelief.
“But.. But that’s imossible. I can’t be injured I’m Captain Man.” He couldn’t believe what was happening.
“Well, Captain Man’s lip is bleeding.” Henry said, also wide-eyed.
“(y/n).” he said in a low and serious tone, putting his hands on her arms.
“What?” She said, looking deeply into his eyes.
“I’M NOT OKAY!” He whisper-yelled to her in a high-pitched voice.
“Shhhhhh!”
“Shhhhh!” The woman and boy quietened him down.
“We don’t want all of Swellview knowing!” She put her hand over his mouth, being careful not to aggravate his bleeding lip.
“Right, calmly, we’re gonna get in our car, and go home immeadiately. We can figure this out at the Man Cave.” She explained her plan, and both Ray and Henry nodded along with her.
“Okay, let’s go."
~The Man Cave~
"Come on Gooch, how many of these tests are we gonna have to do?” Ray looked over at the Indian man, who had come down from Junk-N-Stuff.
“Shush. Now, remove your right glove, then hold up your hand.” Gooch instructed him, walking over to a gun on his table.
“This is getting on my nerves now.” Ray said as he passed his glove to (y/n), who was hating what Gooch was putting him through.
“Please don’t hurt him too much.” (y/n) said in passing as Gooch lifted the flamethrower and aimed it at Ray’s raised hand. Everyone stepped back and looked on in horror as the flames crossed the Man Cave, completely sorching Ray’s hand. He cried out in pain, making (y/n) cringe at his screams, but Henry just kept eating his fro-yo. Gooch finally ceased firing at the man and they all could see how red and burnt his hand had turned.
“Sweet cheese, I’ll get the first aid kit.” (y/n) ran to the back of the Man Cave where all her medical supplies were kept.
“Do you still feel the pain?” Gooch asked Ray.
“Yeah, I don’t get it. It’s been two seconds, the pain should be gone by now.”. He whined, still cluthing his hand.
“We need more tests.” Gooch muttered. The young woman at the back wall of the Man Cave frowned.
“No, you’ve checked enough of his body parts.” (y/n) returned to her best friend’s side, and prompted Ray to sit down so she could treat his hand with burn ointment and bandages.
“What about his butt? Check his butt.” Henry joked, wanting to provoke his boss.
“We should check your butt.” Gooch said, dashing over to his table for another weapon.
“Check my butt how?” Ray leaned over and winced, the medicine on his hand stinging, but he tried to be brave for his cute little nurse.
“Bend over and touch your toes.” Gooch said, drawinng back a bow and arrow.
“Not a chance Gooch, you’ve already stabbed his neck, poured acid on his foot, and toasted his hand. You fire that arrow and I’ll break you.” (y/n) said sternly, wrapping the bandages around the burns.
“Yeah, I think we can also assume I’m vulnerable to butt wounds.” Ray said, standing up once (y/n) was done, giving her a brief hug to say thanks.
“Hey, you guys. This is great frozen yoghurt.” Henry told them all, agitating Ray, who after all his injuries, wanted the frozen treat as well.
“Half that yoghurt’s mine.” Ray pointed out.
“What’s going on with me, Gooch? No one’s been able to injure me since I was 8 years old.” The superhero looked depressed, not understanding what was wrong with him, so (y/n) gave him a side hug. He greatfully patted her arm in recognition.
“Hey, everybody. Come look at this.” Charlotte beckoned them over to the supercomputer.
“What’s up?” Henry asked here.
“Watch this news footage from the award thing yesterday.” Charlotte opened up a video on the screen, but no one could see what she was pointing at.
“Here, I’ll play it in slow motion.” They watched as a woman ran across the stage as Captain Man was talking to an old lady.
“You see that? You see that woman with the perfume?” Charlotte pointed at her.
“She intentionally sprayed me!” Ray exclaimed.
“But perfume wouldn’t make you lose your powers.” Henry replied, confused.
“True, perfume wouldn’t.” Capatain Man agreed with his sidekick.
“Only the tears of the Jolly Beetle.” (y/n) breathed out, realising what had happened.
“Jolly what?” Charlotte remarked, clearly not knowing about the rare insect.
“Here, let me show you.” (y/n) switched places with her, sitting down at the computer. She typed ‘beetle’ into the search bar and began to scroll through the various results.
“Look, the jolly beetle, it’s one of the rarest and happiest bugs on Earth.” She informed the kids, showing them the rundown of information.
“So, you guys are saying that a jolly beetle can take away Captain Man’s powers?” Charlotte asked the adults.
“Not the beetle itself.” Ray told her.
“The beetle’s tears.” Gooch added on, before (y/n) finished with the sciencey bit.
“Y'see, when they cry, their tears contain an enzyme, like an acid that breaks down molecular density. And molecular density is what makes Mr. Muscles here undamageable.” She explained, her hand pointing to Ray.
“And you guys think that lady’s perfume…” Henry therorised.
“Contained the tears of a jolly beetle.” Gooch confirmed, nodding his head and stroking his chin in thought.
“But, they’d need dozens of beetle tears to fill a whole perfume bottle. And they would all have to be crying.” (y/n) indicated, knowing that getting the rare bugs was a challenging task.
“But if those beetles are so jolly, what would make them cry?” Henry wondered.
“Maybe like a really sad movie?” (y/n) answered in a hesitant voice.
~1 hour later~
The alarm was going off in the Man Cave, but Ray was nowhere to be found. Henry was all suited up and ready to go, but he could leave without his boss.
“Captain Man?!” He called out, as (y/n) was busy at the supercomputer.
“You still not found him?” (y/n) turned around to see Henry shaking his head in frustration. Letting out a long sigh, she picked up the intercom microphone and called for Ray.
“Captain Man to the Man Cave, Captain Man to the Man Cave. Ray, get your ass out here.” She said, not liking how slow he was being in the emergency. Suddenly, the camera link to Junk-N-Stuff opened up and a worried Gooch came up onscreen.
“Hey, why haven’t you left yet? The tiger roams free.” He asked Henry in an urgent voice.
“I’m waiting for Ray.” Henry replied indignantly.
“We don’t know where he–” (y/n) started, but she was interrupted as the man in question shuffled out of the sprocket in a load of protective gear.
“I’m coming.” He struggled to walk with the shin pads on his legs, but he managed to stumble down the stairs.
“What are you wearing?” Henry examined him.
“Just, you know, some extra protection.” Ray explained, walking down to where Henry was stood. (y/n) looked him up and down and couldn’t help but giggle at how stupid he looked.
“You don’t need extra protection, you’re Captain Man.” The boy gestured to him.
“But I can be injured now.” Ray reminded him.
“You’re still a great fighter.” (y/n) smiled at him, trying to get him to toughen up.
“Tigers can be vicious.” He said at her in an obvious tone.
“Maybe this one’s nice, I mean, come on. Let’s not stereotype all tigers.” Henry sarcastically said, desperate to leave.
“Do you know last night I went across the street, a bee stung me? And now I got a red bump.” Ray shuffled passed him, and (y/n) rolled her eyes when she remembered him whining at her.
“It was one bee sting. He wouldn’t stop complaining, even we were eating ice cream.” She told Henry, starting to feel annoyed with her friend too.
“Did you provoke the bee?” Henry asked him.
“Yeah Henry, I was flirting with the bee’s girlfriend. I was all 'zzz zzz’ and she was all 'zzz zzz’.” Ray mocked him, causing (y/n) to look at him with a glare.
“Hey, it’s your job to protect Swellview.” She pointed her at both Henry and Ray, but the older man just looked distraught and took off his helmet.
“Oh, face it, guys, I’ve lost it. I can’t protect Swellview. I couldn’t protect a duck from Chinese restaurant.” He moaned, sitting down on the Man Cave steps. (y/n) knew that he was in a bad place, and that he would need all her support to get him out.
“You go on without me. Go on now, get!” He shouted at Henry, walking off to the back room behind the computer. (y/n) turned to the boy.
“I’ll talk to him. Go get the tiger.” She told him, patting his shoulder. He looked up at her with fear in his eyes, not wanting to face the big cat alone.
“I’ve called animal control, you won’t be completely alone.” She reassured him, which made him perk up. Giving the woman a confident nod, he turned around and exited the Man Cave via a tube, leaving her alone to deal with Ray.
~2 days later~
(y/n) was at the end of her rope. Everything she had said to Ray about his superpower not defining or limiting him just been ignored. Speaking of Ray, he was sprawled out on the couch in the Man Cave, not having been bothered to get dressed for days.
“Henry fights every day without superpowers and he’s just a boy!” She said, pacing around, but the man just grunted at her and dug his fork back into his can of Shia’s La Beef.
“And will you please stop eating that stuff? It smells like dog food in here!” She shouted, irritated that he wouldn’t listen to her.
“I can’t eat anymore.” He groaned, having all ready eaten about six cans, but just as (y/n) got her hopes up that he was feeling better, he decided to eat some more.
“Oh yeah, I can.” The tube came down, signalling Henry’s return. The two adults looked over at him as he walked down the stairs.
“Hey kid, where you been?” Captain Man said through a mouthful of beef.
“I was pulling a big foreign lady out of a swamp! By myself, alone! Like I’ve been doing with everything. ” The boy shouted at him, annoyed that he had given up so easily.
“You want some meat?” The large man offered his sidekick, but (y/n) was quick to intervene, not wanting Henry to smell the same way.
“Don’t give him that! It’s glorified dog food!” She pointed at Ray, a warning on her face for him to put the can down.
“No, I don’t want your canned meat!” Henry declined, agreeing with the young woman that it smelled awful.
“I want you to get off your butt and get back in the game! I want Captain Man.” He scolded his boss and (y/n) nodded along with him enthusiastiaclly.
“Amen to that!” She shouted.
“Sorry, say hi to Captain Couch!” Ray said, slamming the meat down and gesturing to where he was sat. His comment made (y/n) snap.
“Raymond! I’ve just about had enough of you!” She shouted, causing Henry to jump since he’d not seen her loose her cool before. Normally, Ray would have apologised because he hated when she was angry or upset because of him, but the prospect of having no powers filled him with an overwhelming grief. He just shrugged his shoulder and that was when Charlotte came falling down in the elevator.
She got up off the floor and brought her PearBook over the table.
“You guys, I found something.” She exclaimed.
“You have?” Henry looked at her with hope.
“Okay, Ray lost his power because he got sprayed with tears from a jolly beetle.” She began, but Ray rudely interrupted her.
“Yeah, yeah, I think we’re all aware of what’s happened up to this point..” His comment made (y/n) slap him upside his head from her place behind the couch.
“Just tell us what you fou–” Henry was cut off by his phone ringing in his pocket, which made Ray groan.
“Ugh, What now?” Henry answered, his sister on the other end of the line.
“What?”
“Where’s Mom?” She screamed at him.
“I don’t know, but I can’t talk righ–” She interrupted him with another scream
“I AM NOT OKAY!"
"You’ve never ever been okay.” Henry replied, not wanting to do this with her now. As she listened to them argue, (y/n) perched herself on the back of the couch and ran her fingers through Ray’s floppy, chocolate brown hair, smiling down at him and wondering at its softness. His head fell back to her leg and he began to relax for the first time in two days. Charlotte smirked at them from across the room, knowing that the two were completely oblivious to one another’s feelings.
“Who’s that?” Ray grumbled.
“Just my dumb sister.” Henry shared a look with Charlotte when he saw the two on the couch but quickly put his phone back to his ear when Piper started screaming again. She started to describe some irrelevant misdemeanour that had happened to her, irritating Henry further.
“Oh no.” He said in a monotone voice, not caring about what his sister was saying.
“Wow, tell me more.” He said, slamming his phone down when Piper started ranting.
“Okay, tell us what you found out..” Henry looked at his friend.
“That jolly beetles only eat one thing."
"What?”
“Japanese fish flakes.” She revealed.
“And two weeks ago, 100 pounds of them were shipped to a warehouse right here in Swellview.” Charlotte said, telling them about what she’d discovered.
“A load of fish flakes that big would feed dozens of jolly beetles.” Ray thought out loud.
“And who would need to have that many jolly beetles?” Charlotte prompted.
“Someone who needed a lot of jolly beetle tears. Enough to spray Captain Man.” (y/n) nodded along. Henry had to pause for one moment when he heard Piper shouting through his phone again.
“She did? No way, then what happened?” He quickly said, before putting the device back down.
“Where’s the warehouse?” Henry asked Charlotte.
“Downtown, Abbey Road.” She stated, letting him think up a plan of action.
“Ray, let’s go.” He tried, but Ray still felt vulnerable.
“No. I can’t fight bad guys in my condition.” He whinged, shooting up from the couch, making (y/n) get up and circle around it.
“Is he serious?” Charlotte looked at the woman next to the large man.
“He’s afraid now because he can be injured.” She explained, making Ray glare at her.
“Well, who wouldn’t be afraid?” He said to her sharply.
“How about Henry? He’s your sidekick and he’s been helping you do all kinds of dangerous stuff, and he never had any superpowers. He can be hurt and he’s still a child.” She reiterated her point from earlier, and this time Ray was listening. Henry looked at her thankfully, glad that someone close to Ray was on his side.
“Which is why I pay him $9 an hour.” He retorted.
“I’ll be back.” Henry said, still looking at his boss with hard eyes.
“Where are you going?” Charlotte asked him.
“To do my job.” He said in a loud voice, so Ray would feel his irritation. He heard Piper on the speaker again, grabbing his phone.
“Yeah, yeah, Marla’s bad and you’re amazing.” Was all he said before hanging up the phone and walking to the tube area.
“Well, go with him.” Charlotte looked back at Ray.
“I can’t.” He groaned, looking at Henry by the tubes.
“You mean, you won’t.” (y/n) corrected him.
“Have you seen my bee sting?” He shoved it in her face, making her swat his hand away.
“Just forget it. I don’t need Captain Couch.” He hissed at Ray, slapping his belt buckle and departing up the tube.
“Look the bee hurt me.” He showed Charlotte, but like (y/n) she just thought he was being a baby.
“Please, follow Henry, he needs you.” (y/n) turned to him as Charlotte left to go back to Junk-N-Stuff. Ray sat down on the couch, looking at his bee sting.
“I’m afraid.” He said, feeling safe enough to share his vulnerability with her. (y/n) smiled sympathetically and sat down next to him. She delicately put her hand on his knee.
“I kinda guessed that. And it’s alright.” She murmured, but he was still looking at his hands.
“We all get scared sometimes, it’s what makes us human.” This time he looked up.
“But I’m Captain Man.” He emphasised his name, feeling the most exposed he ever had. But he had his closest friend by his side and she always knew exactly what he needed to hear.
“Even Captain Man is allowed to be scared.” Ray smiled at her words.
“Your sidekick needs your help.” Ray patted her hand on his knee and stood up, feeling confident again.
“Then I’m gonna go help him.” He said in his hero voice, making her beam with pride. She passed him his gum tube, as she ran to the computer. He felt his heart swell as she moved away, not knowing what he had done to deserve her.
~Rigby’s Cannery~
Henry peeked through the window of the door, hearing voices on the other side. He saw a man and his assistant standing around many cylindrical tubs, all containing crying beetles. Their tears were being collected through tubes and Henry noticed that if he sneaked in he could hide behind a large pile of boxes.
He sneaked in and gently closed the door whilst the mad scientist and the woman were looking at the movie being played for the beetles. Seizing an opportunity, he broke out from behind the boxes, hoping he would have the element of surprise.
“Okay, nobody move.” He said, looking around the lab. The man and woman looked at him with wide eyes.
“Who’s that boy?” She asked, feeling uneasy from the intrusion.
“Easy, don’t get nervous. It’s just Kid Dumpster.” The man replied, glaring at Henry.
“That’s Danger.” Henry corrected himself, feeling offended.
“I know. I was being disrespectful.” He shot back just to annoy Henry.
“Allow me to introduce myself.” The scientist said with an air of mystery.
“Yeah, I know who you are, Doctor Maniac. ” Henry didn’t really care, he just wanted to get the beetles and get out of there.
“It’s Minyak.” The doctor corrected him in displeased voice.
“I know. I was being disrespectful.” Henry was proud of himself for that joke.
“It’s over. I’m taking you and your hot nurse to jail.” He said pointing to the flattered woman.
“Goons!” The doctor yelled. His men jumped on Henry, restraining him before he could fight back.
“And now I think I’m gonna have to teach you some manners.” Dr Minyak snarled at him, creeping closer. Suddenly, Captain Man dropped down from a shaft in the ceiling, ambushing the villain.
“Why don’t you teach me?” He quipped, making Henry grin at the sight of him.
“Captain Man!” Henry was so relieved to see him in the suit again.
“You are handsome.” The nurse couldn’t help but say.
“And you are… correct.” Ray said, pointing back at her, but not wanting to flirt back.
“He may be handsome, but he can be hurt now, just like any man.” The doctor chided his assistant, who was still staring at Ray. He looked to one of his goons.
“You, hold the boy. You, hurt Handsome.” He hissed with hatred for the superhero. The goon in a yellow shirt stepped forward holding a baton.
“Oooh, I’m so scared of your little club. What do you do with that thing, spank hamsters?” Ray sarcastically remarked, pretending to shake in fear. The goon pressed a button on the side of the weapon and it extended, making Ray drop his smile.
“Oh, now it’s bigger.” He said, gearing himself up for a fight.
“Get him, Captain Man!” Henry encouraged, struggling against his captor.
The henchman struck out at Ray with the baton, who stepped to the side to avoid it. The thug was quick with his blows, but Captain Man was able to keep up with him., grabbing his arm and elbowing him in the face. He pushed the man back, before giving him a swift kick to the chest that sent him flying back into some plastic jerry cans. Getting back on his feet, the henchman kicked a can before swinging out at Ray. Ducking, Ray punched him hard in the stomach and the back. Another kick to the back of the knee forced the goon to the floor, Minyak and Nurse Cohort looking on in shocked terror. Seeing that he was close, Henry kicked the henchman in the face, but the guy holding him lifted him up.
“Well come on, I had to!” He said in his defence.
Using Henry as a distraction, the yellow-clad goon beat his baton across Ray’s face, making him clutch his nose in pain. He gave him a brutal punch to the face too, making him fall backwards through a table. Ray laid on the floor for a few seconds, as the henchman prepared to hit him.
“Captain Man, watch out!” Henry called out to him in panic, allowing Ray to dodge another swing of the stick just in the nick of time. He got up on his feet and the thug swung again, but this time, Ray grabbed his arm, twisting it back so the bones crunched.
“Careful, these are dangerous.” He quipped, referring to his fists as he karate chopped the man’s throat, kneed him in the face and threw him to the ground, disarming him in the process. Captain Man chucked the baton away, as Henry smiled from the sidelines.
“Yeah! That was awesome!” He complimented.
“Thanks,” Ray said, slightly out of breath.
“But it really hurt my knee.” He revealed, bending over and holding his leg.
“I’m going to see to it that more than your knee hurts.” Doctor Minyak spat out. Ray looked at the bench behind him where the beetles were, and grabbed a cup.
“Take your hands off my coffee mug!” The doctor yelled, but Ray didn’t care,
“No.” He smiled, looking at Henry.
“Kid Danger?"
"Yeah?” Henry was wondering what the older man was thinking.
“Count your toes.” He said huskily. Henry did as he was instructed, allowing Ray to throw the mug at the other henchman who was holding his sidekick. The guy fell back on the door, sliding to the floor unconsciously. Wanting to do something too, Henry pulled the man’s boot off and slammed it down on him. They both turned to Minyak and Cohort.
“Now, Kid Danger and I are going to take these beetles back to my headquarters and figure out a way to get my power back.” Captain Man told the two villains, but Minyak glared back at him.
“You’ll have to catch the first.” He said as he grabbed the shelving unit that housed the bugs and pulled it off the table. The glass cages smashed on impact, making the beetles run all over the floor and the nurse call out in shock. Ray pulled the young boy backwards, out of harm’s way, so they didn’t squash any of the rare insects. Minyak shoved the remaining cages onto the floor, before pressing a button on the wall and pulling Nurse Cohort by the wrist.
“Ta-ta! Cheerio! See ya!” He waved goodbye at the superhero duo, as a white gas began to filter into the room. He dragged his assistant to a secret elevator and they both made their escape.
“I shall recur!” The doctor yelled, leaving Henry and Ray with the beetles.
“Come on! We gotta go after them!” He tried to run after the criminals, but Ray stopped him.
“No! No! That’s yokonium gas! It’ll destroy the beetles.” He told Henry as he held his upper arms.
“So?” Henry didn’t want Minyak to get away with what he’d done.
“We need the beetles to get my power back. We can’t let them die.” Ray informed him, walking to where the smashed cages were, but in doing so, he accidentally stepped on one.
“Oh no, the gas already killed this one.” He said, pretending it wasn’t his fault.
“Wow, (y/n) is right, you are clumsy.” Henry joked at him.
“Just pick up the beetles.” Ray said, grabbing some containers.
~Back at the Man Cave~
(y/n) and Gooch had set up a similar shelving unit in the Man Cave, with the beetles all connected to one jar.
“So, how does this work?” Charlotte asked as she looked at the fancy tubing.
“Y'see when the beetles watch something funny, they secret euphoric acid.” Gooch started to explain.
“And we can use that to reverse the weakening effect from their tears. In theory.” (y/n) carried on, holding a large syringe. She was nervous, what if this didn’t work? What if it hurt Ray? She looked at the man who was laughing along with Henry to an old sitcom. The funny show also made the beetles laugh, and they started to secrete the acid.
“Classic.” The two supers said as the young woman behind them loaded up the syringe.
“Okay, I’m extracting the acid.” She said, so Ray prepared himself, glad she would be the one to use it on him.
“So this happy bug juice is going to fix Captain Man?” Henry asked, still not sure how it all worked.
“We hope.” Gooch looked on.
“It better.” Charlotte agreed.
“Come on. let’s do this.” Ray clapped his hands, but (y/n) still looked at him in worry.
“You sure about this?” She asked him, holding up the acid-filled syringe. Ray put his hand on her shoulder, looking deep into her eyes.
“I trust you.” Nodding, she stepped back and sprayed Ray’s upper body with the acid. It made him writhe around and groan as it began to take effect. His eyes glowed blue, and (y/n) felt like she couldn’t breathe at the sight of him in pain.
“That’s interesting.” He shakily commented, still moaning in pain. It took a few seconds for his density to return, but he stood up straight when the pain numbed. He let out a sigh.
“Did it work?” Henry asked sceptically.
“Only one way to find out.” Gooch said, running to set up a laser gun.
~
“Setting to intensity five.” Gooch turned up the power on the weapon, as Ray stood in front of it, (y/n) dapping some antiseptic on his cheek. His fight with Minyak’s goon had left a nasty cut on his cheek.
“This will probably scar you know.” She said as she finished up, packing up her medical supplies.
“Even Captain Man is allowed to have scars.” He mimicked her words from earlier, which made her smile and look down.
“Do you really have to get blasted by that thing?” She looked up at him again, feeling afraid that if the euphoric acid didn’t work, he’d be killed. After all, how could she live without him?
The alarm unexpectedly went off, cutting him off before he could comfort her.
“Emergency!” Charlotte exclaimed. Kicking into action, (y/n) ran to the computer and turned on the video link. The security camera showed Jasper stumbling across Swellview Park, in pain from his jeans.
“It’s the bucket kid.” She said, turning the Henry and Charlotte.
“Somebody, help me! Please! I can’t get these jeans off!” The two teens looked at each other in annoyance.
“You hear that? There’s a boy wandering through Swellview Park trapped in his own pants.” Ray said to Henry.
“Swellview needs you.” The boy agreed with him.
“Okay, Gooch, time to check my density. Let’s see if I got my Captain Man back.” Ray said to the other man, standing in front of the laser.
“You realise if the beetle’s acid didn’t work…” (y/n) reminded him, walking across to him from the computer.
“You sure, Ray?” Henry asked, seeing how distraught the woman was, as Charlotte pulled her behind the machine.
“Blast me.” He said, not afraid anymore. Gooch fired; the blue laser hit Ray in the chest causing him to grunt in pain. He screwed his eyes shut, (y/n) doing the same, not bearing to look. Charlotte kept her arms around her waist, so she couldn’t run to him and get herself injured. Falling to his knees, Ray endured the pain for a few seconds, before falling backwards as Gooch ceased the fire.
(y/n) broke free from Charlotte’s arms and took a few steps forward, looking at him lying there. The smoke cleared and she began to tear up, thinking the worst. However, Ray suddenly flipped himself back up and smiled at them all.
“I’m okay!” (y/n) was speechless, so she just ran towards him and leapt into his arms. He spun her around and laughed with him, before putting her down so he could hug Henry and Charlotte. He gave Gooch a high-five as he pulled (y/n) to his side and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. They all took a minute to calm down, but Ray remembered they had an emergency.
“Kid Danger..” He addressed Henry, but then the phone in Henry’s pocket rang. He answered it with a groan.
“Ugh, it’s my little sister, Piper.” They all groaned with him.
“What, Piper?” She began to scream at him down the phone, as he wandered over to the computer.
“Wow, please tell me all about it.” He said flatly before putting his phone down and walking back to Ray.
“Let’s go.” They both ran to the tubes.
“Call it.” Ray said.
“Hey, I don’t want to be stuck down here with that racket!” (y/n) shouted at them, not wanting to listen to Henry’s whiny sister as she cleaned up.
“Up the tube!” They both shot upwards before they could answer, making (y/n) drop her arms and huff. Charlotte and Gooch just left her and went back upstairs to the store.
~(y/n)’s PoV~
I started wheeling the laser into the back room, wanting to get everything tidy before Ray returned from the park. To say I was relieved was an understatement. The thought of him dying made bile rise in my throat so I focused on the task at hand.
Walking back out into the Man Cave, I could still hear Piper screaming and shouting about some girl on social media and it was driving me insane. I continued to clean for a few more minutes when I had had enough of the shrill voice and decided to do something about it.
Walking up to the computer, I grabbed the phone and put it to my ear, wincing from the girl’s noise.
“Hello? This is Henry’s boss at Junk-N-Stuff. He’s not allowed to use his phone during working hours, so please speak to him when he gets home, thank you.” I told her, finally shutting her up.
“WHAT? LISTEN TO ME, LADY! I AM NOT OKAY!” I hung up before she could deafen me, and sighed at the quietness, hearing nothing but the machinery around me. Peace at last.
