"The Mask of Medusa"

The Underwood Museum

The high schoolers were on a class field trip to museum. Jesse, Carol, and Sam were looking at the new exhibit, which was an old Medusa mask.

"And this is the latest acquisition to our museum," The Curator said as she pointed out the stone mask. "This ancient mask is said to have been possessed by the spirit of Medusa, and legend has it that it has the power to turn people to stone. Of course, it's purely a legend. This mask was found by Underwood's very own Dean Eliott."

"Way to go, Sam," Jesse said as he looked at the team genius. "You've gotta be proud of your dad for finding something like this."

"I am," Sam said as he looked at Jesse. "I just wish that he was going to be in town for more than a few days. He's leaving on his next archaeological dig soon. I never get to spend more than a few days every few months with him."

Carol looked into the glass case at the mask. "Do you really think that this thing is as powerful as everyone says?"

"Anything's possible," Jesse replied as he looked into the case. "Of course if the legend is true, there are a lot of people who'd do anything to have that power. Maybe we should keep an on the exhibit just to be safe."

"We'll stay after hours just to be sure," Carol said as she looked at Sam. "What about you?"

"I have to install the new computer at the Mall of Justice," Sam told them. "Then I'm going to see if I can spend some time with my Dad before he has to leave again. Just be careful, you never know who might try to steal the mask."

Later that evening

The museum had been closed for an hour, and soon after, a hole was cut into the ceiling as a rope fell through, and three people in ninja like costumes climbed down, and approached the mask. Triple Trouble, a trio of teenage thieves had arrived to steal and sell the mask.

"There it is," Joe said as he looked at the mask. "The Mask of Medusa."

"A lot of people will pay big bucks for this," Ricky replied as he prepared to open the case. Just as he was about to cut the glass, a bright beam of light shined in front of them.

"Triple Trouble, I should have guessed," Jesse said as he stepped out of the shadows with Carol.

"The Guardians!" Wayne shouted as he pulled out a laser and fired it as the two heroes.

Jesse and Carol jumped out of the way as Ricky smashed open the case and took the mask.

"Oh, no you don't," Jesse said as he tossed a fireball, knocking over a display. Ricky tripped and the mask fell out of his hands, landing on the floor.

"Get the mask!" Joe shouted as he pulled out a laser of his own and fired. Jesse flew up and used a fireball to melt the laser in his hand. Joe tossed the melted laser and started running as Jesse landed back on the ground as the two Guardians gave chase.

Wayne grabbed a rare vase and rolled it at them. Jesse jumped out of the way, then saw it was headed toward Carol.

"Carol, watch out!" Jesse shouted as Carol tripped over the vase as it rolled under her, and fell face first into the mask in front of her.

A bright light burst from the mask, and when it subsided, a woman with an olive green complexion with snakes for hair stood up and started laughing. She was wearing a long white gown and was a foot taller than Carol. The snakes in her hair were moving and hissing as the woman looked down at her body.

"I'm free!" Medusa shouted as she looked around at her new surroundings. "With my new body, I'm reborn! Now I can turn the world into my personal stone garden!"

Medusa spotted Triple Trouble and shot a powerful blast from her hand, stopping them in place as she approached. "Look into my eyes and become stone!"

The three villains immediately turned to stone where they stood. Jesse watched as Medusa turned her attention toward him.

"I'd better go and get the others," Jesse said as he flew out the window, as Medusa fired a blast from her eyes at him.

"Soon you'll have nowhere to run," Medusa said as she walked out the door. "For soon, the world will be mine!"

Meanwhile, at the Mall of Justice

Ace, Andy, and Sam were installing the new computer system. Ace was sitting at the table, creating an ice squirrel sculpture as he waited.

"Alright, now we just have to plug these two wires together, and then power it up," Sam said as he plugged the two wires together."Andy, a little power?":

"One power boost, coming up," Andy said as he put his hands on the computer and charged it up as the view screen lit up with a news report.

"Aw, I was hoping for cartoons," Ace said as the three looked up at the report.

"And the scene is mass hysteria as a strange creature is turning people to stone," The reporter said as Medusa grabbed her and hissed. She turned the reporter to stone and moved on to the next person.

"Whoa," Ace said as he stood up. "It's like something out of a horror movie. Or a really bad Saturday morning cartoon show."

"I'll say," Jesse replied as he flew in. "That's Carol doing this. She's wearing the Mask of Medusa and it turned her into... that."

"No way," Andy said as he watched the report as Medusa continued turning her victims to stone. "How do we stop her?"

"I don't know," Jesse replied with a sigh. "Aliens and supervillains are one thing, but Medusa's older and more powerful than anything we've ever fought."

"Maybe my Dad knows," Sam said as he thought about it. "He's the one who found the mask, maybe he knows how to undo the effects."

"Then you and I will go get him," Jesse said as he looked at Ace and Andy. "As much as I hate to do this, I need you two to keep Medusa distracted, but be careful, her stone gaze is powerful."

"Come on, let's go save our friend," Ace said as Andy jumped on his hoverboard. Ace created an ice slide as the group headed out.

"I hope those two know what they're doing," Sam said as they headed to the van.

"Me, too," Jesse replied. "But if anyone can keep her distracted and away from more victims, it's them."

Downtown Underwood

People were running in a panic as Medusa walked down the street, turning everyone she could find to stone. The streets were filled with stone statues of all her victims.

"There is nowhere you can run!" Medusa shouted to the fleeing people "This world will soon be a monument to my power!"

"There she is!" Ace shouted as his ice slide flew over her.

"How do we keep her from turning us to stone?" Andy asked as he flew alongside Ace on his hoverboard.

"I have an idea," Ace quickly thought about it as they ducked into a drugstore. They came out wearing a pair of dark sunglasses.

"She can't turn us to stone if she can't look into our eyes, right?" Ace asked as Medusa saw them.

"Prepare to be turned to stone!" Medusa shouted at them.

"How do you prepare for something like that?" Ace asked as Medusa fired at them. Ace jumped on his ice slide and and covered Medusa in a thick block of ice. The two heroes approached her cautiously. "Well, that was easy."

"Now, you know better than to say stuff like that," Andy replied as he saw cracks in the ice. "Because then stuff like that happens!"

It was then that the ice started to crack as the block exploded, sending Ace and Andy flying back onto the ground, where Andy's glasses fell off.

"You think you can trap me!" Medusa shouted as she approached them. "Look into my eyes!'

"Nice try, lady," Ace told her with a laugh. "But we've figured out how to avoid your little trick. Right Andy? Andy?"

Ace looked over and saw Andy had been turned to stone. "Uh oh."

Medusa fired a blast of energy at Ace, who jumped out of the way and hit the ground. Medusa picked him up by the collar and knocked his glasses away. Her snakes hissed at him.

"Lady, your snakes need some breath mints!" Ace commented as Medusa turned him to stone.

The Eliot Home

"I hope my Dad's still here," Sam as he rushed inside the house with Jesse right behind him. "Dad?"

"Right here, son," Dean said as he read the paper. "What's wrong?"

"It's the Mask of Medusa," Sam told him. "It really works, and our friend is wearing it. How do we reverse the effects?"

"Someone's wearing the mask?" Dean asked as he stood up. "I'm not sure if the effects can be reversed. I'll have to do some research from the text I found on the tomb where I found the mask."

"We'd better hurry," Jesse told them. "I don't think Ace and Andy can keep her distracted for long."

"You'd better go help them," Sam said. "I'll be there soon."

Jesse flew out the door and headed toward Downtown.

"Let's look through the text," Dean told Sam as they headed for his study. "These are the pictures of the walls around the tomb where I found the mask."

"Ancient greek," Sam said as he looked at the pictures. "I picked that language up pretty easily about a year ago."

"I never realized what a genus you are," Dean told him. "I've missed out a lot. I'm sorry."

Sam was about to say something when he translated the text. "That's it! I've found out how stop Medusa!"

Meanwhile, Jesse arrived Downtown and found Ace and Andy had been turned to statues.

"Oh, no," Jesse said as he landed in front of them. "Don't worry, guys, help's on the way."

"But not soon enough to help you, I'm afraid," Medusa said as she approached him. She fired at him, but he flew into the air.

"Come on, Carol, you can fight this," Jesse said as he avoided the blasts as he flew through the air. "Don't let the mask control you!"

Medusa hissed as Jesse created a firewall around her to keep Medusa contained, but she simply walked through it.

"Fool, I am a God! You can can not contain me!" Medusa shouted as she fired at the wall behind Jesse, which collapsed on top of him, pinning him to the ground. "Now, become stone!"

Medusa looked into Jesse's eyes and turned him to stone as Sam and his father arrived.

"Don't worry, we've translated the text and we know how to stop-," Sam said as he looked around. "Uh oh."

"Fools, you are too late!" Medusa told them. "Nothing can stop me!"

Medusa headed for Sam, but his father pushed him out of the way as Medusa grabbed Dean and turned him into a stone statue.

"Dad!" Sam shouted as Medusa turned her attention toward him. Sam pulled out his bo staff and leapt over her and rushed into the department store.

"You are trapped!" Medusa shouted as she followed him in. "There is no escape!"

Medusa looked around and saw Sam headed toward the dressing rooms. "I have you now!"

"That's what you think," Sam said as Medusa approached him as he backed into one of the dressing room mirrors.

"Now, be turned to stone!" Medusa shouted as Sam jumped out of the way as Medusa stared into the mirror, her gaze reflecting back at her. "NO!"

Medusa used her own gaze on herself, turning the mask into stone. It fell to the ground as Carol returned to normal and fell to the ground..

As soon as Medusa had been defeated, all the stone statues had returned to their normal human form, including Ace, Jesse, Andy, and Dean. Sam helped Carol out of the store, with Sam holding the mask in his hands. He rushed forward and hugged his dad.

"You did it, son," Dean told him. "I'm proud of you."

"Carol, are you alright?" Jesse asked.

"Yeah, but that's one fashion accessory I never want to try on again," Carol replied as Dean looked at the mask in his hand.

"This mask is far too powerful to kept out in the open," Dean told them. "We have to find a safe place for it."

"One safe place coming up," Jesse said as he took the mask. He created a fireball and around it and flew into the air. He wound up and pitched the mask as hard as he could, sending it flying into orbit.

"You know, after all this excitement, I think I'm going to need some time off," Dean said as he looked at Sam. "What do you say you and me spend some father and son time together?"

"I'd like that," Sam told him as they saw Triple Trouble trying to sneak past them.

"Well, let's go round them up," Jesse said as he looked at his friends.

"You guys go ahead," Sam told them. "I'll catch up with you later."

The three villains started running as Jesse, Carol, Ace and Andy rushed after them. Sam smiled as he walked with his father.