Chapter 14: A New Challenge

Scene One: The Announcement

The buzz of chatter filled the classroom as students shuffled into their seats. Midtown Middle School was alive with the sounds of lockers slamming, footsteps echoing in the hallways, and the occasional shout from a passing gym class. Marshall slid into his chair, his notebook open to a blank page as he idly tapped his pen against the desk. Peter sat beside him, doodling a crude stick figure superhero in the margin of his science textbook.

Their teacher, Ms. Vickers, stood at the front of the class with a large poster board leaning against her desk. She adjusted her glasses, her stern gaze cutting through the noise. "Settle down, everyone. I have an announcement."

The room quieted quickly, the promise of something new catching everyone's attention. Ms. Vickers tapped the poster board, revealing a colorful title: "Midtown Science Fair: Innovate, Experiment, Discover!"

Marshall leaned forward, interest piqued. Peter nudged him. "You're probably already thinking about how to blow everyone away, aren't you?"

"Of course," Marshall whispered back with a smirk. "Wouldn't be me if I didn't."

Ms. Vickers continued, her voice carrying an air of enthusiasm. "This year, we're holding a science fair to encourage creative thinking and teamwork. Each group will present a project that demonstrates a scientific principle or an innovative solution to a real-world problem."

A collective murmur rippled through the classroom. Some students looked excited, while others slumped in their chairs, groaning at the idea of more work.

"Before you ask," Ms. Vickers added, raising a hand, "yes, this will count toward your final grade. And no, you can't work alone. I'll be assigning groups to ensure everyone has a chance to contribute."

Marshall's smirk faltered. "Assigned groups? That's a curveball."

Peter sighed dramatically. "Great. I just know I'm gonna get paired with Flash."

Ms. Vickers began reading out the groups, her voice cutting through the mix of groans and whispers.

"Peter Parker, Gwen Stacy, and Ned Leeds."

Peter let out a small sigh of relief, then grinned at Marshall. "Not bad. Could've been worse."

Marshall nodded, distracted as he listened for his own name. Ms. Vickers continued down the list.

"Marshall Phillips, Kevin Levin, and Billy Billions."

Marshall froze, his stomach dropping. Peter gave him a sympathetic pat on the back. "Oof. That's… quite the team."

"Yeah," Marshall muttered, staring at Kevin, who leaned back in his chair with a smirk. "Quite the team."

Scene Two: Meeting the Team

After class, the assigned groups gathered to discuss their projects. Marshall found himself standing awkwardly by his desk as Kevin strolled over, exuding his usual air of indifference. Billy Billions arrived moments later, his polished appearance and self-assured grin making him look like he'd just stepped off the cover of a prep school magazine.

Billy clapped his hands together. "Alright, team! Obviously, I'll be taking the lead on this. You two just follow my direction, and we'll crush this thing."

Kevin raised an eyebrow, his smirk widening. "Yeah, sure. Whatever you say, Richie Rich."

Billy frowned. "Do you even know who I am?"

Kevin shrugged. "Nope. Don't care."

Marshall sighed, rubbing his temples. "Okay, can we skip the ego battle and focus? We need a project idea."

Billy crossed his arms, clearly annoyed. "Fine. But for the record, I do have ideas. Cutting-edge ones."

Kevin leaned against the desk, his tone dripping with sarcasm. "Oh, I'm sure you do. Let me guess—building a rocket out of your dad's spare change?"

Billy ignored the jab, turning to Marshall. "What about you? Got any genius ideas, or are you just here to referee?"

Marshall's mind was already racing with possibilities. "Actually, I've got a few. But we need something that stands out. Something that's not just impressive but practical."

Kevin rolled his eyes. "Practical's boring. Let's build something that explodes."

Billy recoiled. "Explosions? Are you insane?"

Marshall stepped between them, holding up a hand. "How about this—we come up with a few ideas and vote on them. Deal?"

Kevin shrugged. "Whatever."

Billy adjusted his blazer, clearly unimpressed. "Fine. But let's make it quick. I have a tennis lesson in an hour."

Marshall sighed. This was going to be a long project.

Scene Three: The Brainstorm Session

The group met again during lunch, claiming an empty table in the corner of the cafeteria. Marshall had brought a notebook filled with sketches and notes, while Billy arrived with a tablet loaded with graphs and statistics. Kevin, as expected, came empty-handed.

"So," Marshall began, flipping open his notebook. "Here are a few ideas I came up with: a self-sustaining hydroponic system, a portable air purifier for urban areas, or a drone that can deliver emergency supplies."

Billy leaned over, inspecting the sketches. "Hmm. Not bad. The air purifier has potential. Very marketable."

Kevin snorted. "Marketable? What are we, selling gadgets now? Let's build something people actually care about."

Billy glared at him. "Like what? A punching bag that insults you back?"

Marshall interjected before the argument could escalate. "Alright, how about this—we combine ideas. We can make something innovative and useful, but with a bit of flair. Something that'll impress the judges."

Kevin leaned back, smirking. "Fine. But if it doesn't have at least one cool feature, I'm out."

Billy rolled his eyes but nodded. "Agreed. Let's start with the purifier and see where we can take it."

Marshall jotted down notes, feeling a small flicker of hope. It wasn't perfect, but at least they were moving forward.

Scene Four: Checking In on the Launch

Later that afternoon, Marshall and Peter huddled over Marshall's laptop in his room. The Subway Surfers app had officially launched that morning, and the results were already coming in. Peter refreshed the analytics page, his eyes widening as the numbers updated.

"Marshall," he said, his voice full of awe. "We've got over 10,000 downloads. And it's only been a few hours."

Marshall grinned, leaning closer to the screen. "And the revenue?"

Peter clicked to another tab, revealing a steadily climbing graph. "Looks like we're already pulling in a few hundred bucks. If this keeps up, we'll hit a thousand by the end of the week."

Marshall leaned back in his chair, a wave of satisfaction washing over him. "Not bad for our first launch."

Peter smirked. "Not bad? Dude, this is huge! We're officially app developers. Next stop, billionaires."

Marshall chuckled, though his mind was already jumping ahead to the possibilities. The success of the app was just the beginning. With enough funding, they could expand their operations, develop new projects, and take their think tank to the next level.

"Alright," Marshall said, closing the laptop. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves. We've got school, the science fair, and about a million other things to juggle."

Peter grinned. "True. But for now, let's enjoy the win. You up for a quick game?"

Marshall nodded, grabbing a controller. For a moment, they set aside the weight of their responsibilities, just two kids playing video games and dreaming big.

Scene Five: The Knock at the Door

Marshall's house was quiet as he sat in his room, reviewing the sketches for their science fair project. He was excited to merge his ideas with the feedback from his reluctant team members. A self-sustaining air purifier, but with features that could turn heads—literally. His notebook was full of annotations, detailed schematics, and a few sarcastic comments written in the margins about his teammates.

A loud, obnoxious knock at the front door startled him out of his focus. He sighed, already guessing who it might be. Closing his notebook, he made his way to the door, bracing himself for the chaos to come.

Billy Billions stood there in his typical polished style, a tablet tucked under one arm and an air of superiority radiating from his smug grin. "Marshall, if you're going to be late to your own meeting, I'm docking you ten points for unprofessionalism."

Marshall blinked. "First of all, this isn't a meeting. Second, we don't even have points."

Billy waved him off and strolled inside. "Semantics. Let's get to work. My time is precious, you know."

Before Marshall could retort, another knock came, this one heavier and almost impatient. Opening the door, Marshall was met with Kevin Levin, leaning against the frame with his usual air of indifference. "Am I interrupting the billionaire's club?" Kevin said with a smirk.

"Come in before you start another argument," Marshall replied, stepping aside.

Kevin shrugged and walked in, taking a seat on the couch with an air of disinterest. Billy shot him a glare, clearly annoyed by his casual demeanor.

"Well, now that everyone's here," Billy began, "let's get down to business. Marshall, I assume you have a plan?"

Marshall sat down, pulling out his notebook. "I've got the basics sketched out. Let's refine it."

Scene Six: Shaping the Project

Marshall spread out his notes and sketches on the table, pointing to a rough diagram of the self-sustaining air purifier. It was a compact design, small enough to be portable but powerful enough to make an impact. The purifier's selling point was its ability to charge itself through solar panels, with an added feature to detect and neutralize specific airborne pollutants.

"This is the base concept," Marshall explained. "But I was thinking we could add a visual element—something that grabs attention. Maybe LED indicators that change color based on air quality."

Billy raised an eyebrow. "Interesting. Very marketable. But we'll need a good power management system for the LEDs and the purifier.

Kevin leaned back, studying the design. "What about the shape? It's too plain. If we're going to impress the judges, it needs some edge."

Marshall frowned. "What do you mean by edge?"

Kevin smirked. "Make it look cool. Like something you'd actually want to show off. Not just a box with lights."

Billy scoffed. "Oh sure, let's make it look 'cool.' Because that's definitely the most important part."

Marshall sighed, raising a hand to stop the bickering. "Both of you are right. It needs to be functional and visually appealing. How about we design the outer casing to resemble something sleek and futuristic, while keeping the tech efficient?"

Kevin nodded. "Now you're talking."

Billy adjusted his tablet, jotting down notes. "Fine, but we'll need quality materials for the casing. Nothing cheap. We want this to look professional."

Marshall grinned. "Agreed. Let's list out the components and figure out what we need to buy. Once we have a solid design, we'll divide the tasks."

Scene Seven: Progress and Frustrations

The trio spent the next few hours brainstorming, sketching, and debating every detail of the project. By the end of the session, they had a rough plan:

• Marshall would finalize the schematics and oversee assembly.

• Billy would handle the software for the air quality sensors and LED indicators.

• Kevin would design the outer casing and ensure the final product looked polished.

"Alright," Marshall said, leaning back in his chair. "We've got a solid start. Now we just need to actually build the thing."

Billy checked his watch. "Unfortunately, I have a tennis lesson in thirty minutes, so I'll have to leave the heavy lifting to you two for now."

"Big loss," Kevin muttered, smirking as Billy grabbed his bag and headed for the door.

Billy paused, shooting Kevin a glare. "Try not to break anything while I'm gone."

As the door closed behind him, Kevin turned to Marshall. "How do you deal with that guy?"

Marshall chuckled. "I have a lot of patience."

Kevin shook his head, his smirk softening. "You're better than me."

Scene Eight: The Launch Check-In

Later that evening, Marshall sat at his desk, his laptop open to the analytics dashboard for Subway Surfers. The numbers were climbing steadily, and Marshall couldn't help but feel a swell of pride.

Peter called him on video chat, his grin filling the screen. "Dude, we're at 125,000 downloads. This is insane!"

Marshall leaned back, grinning. "And the revenue?"

Peter flipped to another tab, revealing a jaw-dropping graph. "We've made over $25,000 in just the first day. If this pace keeps up, we'll clear six figures by the end of the week."

Marshall's eyes widened. "That's… way better than I expected."

Peter nodded, his excitement barely contained. "Right? We're basically a sensation now. People are already leaving reviews saying it's the best endless runner since Temple Run."

Marshall chuckled, his mind already racing with possibilities. "This changes everything. With this kind of cash flow, we can fund the science fair project, upgrade our equipment, and start planning our next app."

Peter grinned. "Or we could retire and live like kings."

Marshall smirked. "Tempting, but no. This is just the beginning. We're going to reinvest every cent into our think tank."

Peter raised an eyebrow. "You mean your think tank."

Marshall shook his head. "Our think tank. This is a team effort."

Peter grinned, clearly pleased. "Alright, boss. What's next on the agenda?"

Marshall closed the laptop, his expression determined. "Tomorrow, we focus on the science fair. But tonight, let's celebrate."

Peter grinned. "Celebration? What are we doing? Pizza? Video games?"

Marshall grabbed a controller. "How about both?"

Scene Nine: Wrapping Up the Day

As the night wore on, Marshall and Peter played round after round of their favorite games, the glow of the television casting a warm light over the room. For a few hours, they let themselves be kids again, laughing and joking as if the weight of their responsibilities didn't exist.

But as Marshall glanced at the Omnitrix on his wrist, a familiar unease crept in. Kevin's presence in his life was a wild card—one that could either help or complicate things. And with their science fair project taking shape, he knew it was only a matter of time before the stakes got even higher.

For now, though, he pushed those thoughts aside. There were bigger challenges to tackle, and he was ready to face them head-on.

To Be Continued…