© 2010 by Freya
I do not own the Whateley Academy series nor am I a canon author.
Thanks to Holly Hart for editing
The boy standing on the steps of the brownstone was frowning. The weather was good for June in NYC. It wasn’t raining, there was just enough breeze to feel nice, and it wasn’t too hot. He was a little short for a boy, but he’d only just turned fourteen, so he had time to catch up to his taller friends. The black hair on his head was a chaotic mop and his black eyes stood out in a pale and serious looking face.
Rick Leitner was depressed. As he stood there frowning, his best friend, Bobby, walked up and waved a hand in front of his face. “Hey, why the long face man?”
“I got a scholarship to some school up in The Bronx,” Rick muttered disconsolately.
“Yeah? So why are you frowning? That’s good news, right?” Bobby was honestly puzzled.
“My grandparents can’t afford to send me anywhere else while my older sister is in college,” Rick said in tones of imminent doom.
“I still don’t see the problem, dude.” Bobby shrugged.
“The Mt. St. Michael Academy is an all boys school!” Rick wailed.
“That sucks, dude,” Bobby sympathized. “I know something that’ll cheer you up though.”
“Yeah?” Rick was skeptical but willing.
“Yeah! A trip to Forbidden Planet! I got some birthday money, and so do you. Where better to spend it than the Mecca of all things geeky?”
Rick finally smiled, “Yeah okay. Let’s go.” He stepped on to the sidewalk and they started walking together. They could have run the whole way; they did enough running together that a mile was not enough to make them winded. Today though they were in no hurry, so they walked to the subway and rode it into Greenwich Village, the tangled area on the southern tip of Manhattan that was home to, among many other things, the Forbidden Planet store.
The building was huge. It contained the current issue of any comic still in print, back issues of most and many out of print. It had dice, trading cards, every RPG you can imagine and more board games than you knew existed. It had miniatures, hex and square grid maps, and science fiction books in the hundreds, if not thousands. They spent hours just looking around. Each left with a large bag of goodies they couldn’t wait to take home and a large grin.
As they were heading back to the station they heard a voice say, “Don’t turn around! Put the bags on the ground along with your watches and any cash you have on you then you can go.” They heard an ominous click, and a second voice said, “Don’t even think about running or we’ll stab ya both.”
The boys took off running. This, more than the exercise, was why they ran together often, so that when they needed to they could accelerate and hold the pace as long as needed. They heard cursing as they accelerated and turned a corner at full speed. Rick sneaked a look behind and seeing two large individuals racing behind him, he gripped his bag so as not to let anything spill and sped up. Bobby sped up alongside him and they dodged around people and leaped obstacles. After about 5 more minutes they were certain they lost the two guys and slowed back to a walk. The grins came back.
“That was awesome dude! We passed a bike messenger!” Bobby was ecstatic.
“No way! Those guys ride seriously fast!” Rick was wide eyed at the thought.
“Yes, way! I saw him when you were dodging around that Village Voice kiosk. We so did it. We rock, dude.” Bobby looked thoughtful now but still happy. He walked closer and lowered his voice, “The Empire City Guard is doing free mutant testing as part of a goodwill thing. You know to promote the idea that being a mutant isn’t a bad thing.”
“So?” It was spoken with careful nonchalance.
“So they said that anyone who tests high will have a chance to join!” Bobby was enthusiastic, and it showed clearly in his tanned face and brown eyes. “Imagine us working with the Empire City Guard!”
Rick scowled at his best friend and also lowered his voice. “First, I just turned fourteen and you did the same only a month ago; we are too young to join a super team. Second, we aren’t mutants.”
“Are you sure about that Rick?” Bobby looked at him.
“What d’you mean?” Rick demanded looking up and down the street.
“I mean every time we go running you have to stop after and pour sand out of your shoe, and sometimes at school you’d shake it out of your clothes changing for gym.” Bobby sounded matter of fact.
“Yeah, so?” Rick sounded defensive.
“So we’re in freakin’ Manhattan and we run on the Lower West Side. Where does the sand come from?” Bobby leaned in, “I think you’re what they call a Manifestor. You’re making that sand.”
“Who cares? It’s just sand. You don’t see any heroes named Sand Boy, do you?” He sounded bitter now.
“Hey, you might manage more than that with training, and just that is enough for the bigots to hassle you. If you were part of a respected team, even a junior or probationary member, they wouldn’t let them bother you. I know we’re a bit young but this when you first start showing abilities and they KNOW that so I think we should go.”
“If I’m getting tested, so are you,” Rick said. “How did you hear about this, anyway? It’s not like they’d advertise openly. They’d have picket lines and Humanity First! attacks on whoever showed up.”
“Hey, I was planning on it. There might be some pretty girls there. Besides I kinda think I might be one too,” Bobby said sheepishly. “I heard about it while searching sites for info. I happened to get my hands on the IP addresses for some .mut websites. I dunno how many other ways they advertised, but if we are the only ones who show, then so much the better, huh?”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah, well I keep up with you right? Sometimes I even pull ahead; and we did just pass that dude on a ten speed. Both of us. I know that’s why we started running together, so bullies and such would get lost in our dust, but man, this was different. We left them in the dust and we aren’t even breathing hard. It wasn’t super speed or anything, cars still passed us, but those messenger dudes ain’t slow.” He smiled, “So yeah, I’m going too, and for more than the girlwatching opportunities.”
“Okay, so when is it?” Rick came off the steps and finally smiled, “The women on that team are pretty spectacular. Worth going to see all by themselves.”
“It’s tomorrow at noon,” Roberto answered with a smile.
“Want to stay over tonight? We can watch the anime we bought and decide on codenames,” Rick asked.
“I think you just want help with all the stuff your grandpa has you do as chores, but yeah, count me in.”
Later Bobby asked, “Hey, if your grandpa is the one getting paid to be the super, why are we the ones fixing this vent?”
“Well sometimes I think it’s because he is kind of old, but mostly I think he does it because he can. I’ve been learning a lot though, and I’ve been figuring I can do this for living after school. At least unless I get shot for being a mutant or something,” Rick answered.
“Come on man! Stop being such a pessimist. Think about being a superhero and in the ECG. All the girls, the fame, the girls, endorsements deals, and did I mention girls?” Bobby sounded eager as he screwed the butterfly screws back into place.
“Ha, ha, I think you did.” Rick shook his head; he never knew what to say to girls anyway, so it was just as well that they generally ignored him. “Come on let’s go watch MD Geist.”
The next day they left before Rick’s grandpa got up, so he didn’t send them to rewire a doorbell or something. Then they hit McDonald’s for breakfast. After they ate, they went over to the Headquarters of the Empire City Guard.
It was a beautiful building in Neoclassical mode with columns out front. They entered and made the short line in front of the receptionist. She smiled at them and asked, “Purpose for coming here today?”
“Uh, I uh, we’re uh…” Rick was staring. The receptionist seemed to him to have acres of cleavage, and his brain was swamped by hormones. He managed not to say what he was thinking but nothing else got out either. Bobby interrupted, “We’re here for the free testing. He’s Rick, I’m Bobby.” He smiled back and extended his hand. The receptionist shook his hand and called someone on her speed dial, “Hello? More people for testing. Two boys about twelve or so.”
Rick found his voice and interrupted to say, “We’re both fourteen!”
She smiled and amended herself, “Two fourteen year old gentleman here for testing, I meant. Yes? Okay I’ll have someone lead them back.”
A twenty-something guy led them back through a door and into a little room with lots of chairs and two girls in the corner. The girls looked up at them and giggled, then started whispering. Rick steered Bobby over to the opposite corner and they waited.
A woman came in wearing a lab coat. Rick recognized her as Doctor Thunder, the Gadgeteer and leader of the Empire City Guard. “All of you follow me and we’ll begin.” She led them deeper into the structure and down a level into what looked like a large gym, “We exercise in here and I think that here we can get a good, if basic idea of what powers you may have, if any.” She pointed to two doors off to one side, “If you need to change, the lockers are through there.” The two girls headed off to the doors and Doctor Thunder led Bobby and Rick over to what looked like a Nautilus machine on steroids.
“I’ve altered this machine so that anyone of us can use it, and it should work fine as the first test. Grip the bar and pull it up. The way it is currently set the weight will go up with each repetition; the first rep will be fifty pounds. Strength is the main determinant of Exemplar level, and easily quantified, so we start with this. If you don’t know what I mean, don’t worry. After the testing we’ll give you an overview of the basic power categories and go into detail about any that you actually have. Now who wants to try before the girls get here, and who wants to wait for an audience?”
“I’ll go first,” Rick offered. He was shocked at how easy the first pull was. He didn’t feel any real resistance until the fourth pull. He stopped after only six, but when the Gadgeteer checked, she told them he had topped out at a thousand pounds!
“Yeah!” He jumped and punched the air. Then the door opened and the girls came through. They looked like they picked their workout clothes as much for fashion as anything. One was wearing a lavender halter top and matching sweatpants and sneakers, the other was all in red, but otherwise a mirror image. She had on a well filled red sweatshirt, matching spandex shorts and sneakers of the same shade. “We’re ready!” the one in red announced.
“Okay, come over here to the strength machine so you can all introduce yourselves before we continue.” The blonde in red was Maria, and the brunette in purple was Rhonda. Then Bobby got his turn at the machine and Rick saw the look on his face as he started pulling. “How could we not notice this?” he asked the leader of the ECG. “I mean, you’d think we know, right?”
“Not necessarily,” she said. “It’s entirely possible that your extra strength was there but when it works well, you still have control of how much to use. Have either of you tried to lift or carry anything heavy or gotten into a fight?”
“We usually avoid fights. Neither of us is large, and after getting creamed a few times we made it a point to getting in better shape by running in our spare time so we could leave bullies in our dust. Yesterday though, we did that a little too well, so I agreed to come with Bobby to get tested because running faster than a lumbering hulk with no forebrain is one thing, but passing a courier on a ten-speed is something else again.”
“Definitely. Okay, it looks like your friend is finished. Let’s see what weight he finished with.” She went behind the machine and when she came out she told him he had lifted a full ton at the last. He looked shocked, and she patted him on one sweaty shoulder. “Don’t worry, this why we are doing this, so we can get emerging mutants like you proper training so you don’t injure people accidentally. If you had fought those bullies yesterday, it could have turned out badly for all of you, but fortune smiled on you as well as them.” She looked at the girls, “And possibly on these two ladies. Which one of you is next?”
While they whispered and decided, Rick thought about what that guy’s face would look like if he’d punched him with his full strength. It made him nauseous. Then he imagined the MCO showing up, and how they’d react, and felt worse. ‘Man, I’m glad the Guard had this idea,’ he thought. While Rick was preoccupied, the girls sorted out who was first and Maria was grabbing the bar.
Rick watched Maria lift. She was pretty, and those shorts looked hot on her. Then he heard a giggle; Rhonda had been watching him watch Maria. ‘Oh man!’ he thought. ‘I was totally busted, checking out her friend’s ass!’ Rick blushed and looked away. waiting for her to say something.
“Also one ton!” Dr. Thunder announced and I looked back. Maria was puffing and sweating, but still managing to look hot rather than overheated. She also looked shocked. “But I just came with Rhonda as moral support!” she exclaimed, “I never thought … I mean, I’ve out-wrestled her during sleepovers, but I never … and she said she did say lifted her brother’s barbell in one hand…” Doctor Thunder interrupted, “You are clearly a mutant, my dear, but don’t worry, we’ll get you trained properly, and once you are old enough you’ll have a place here as long as you’ve kept your nose clean and learned what Whateley has to teach you. We are going to need new blood eventually, and we should provide leadership and opportunities to the next generation, especially in the city we are responsible for protecting.”
She continued, “Speaking of responsibilities and protection, if at any time you feel the least bit odd, I want you tell me. If you feel hurt or extra hungry, or anything out of the ordinary let me know, okay?”
Rhonda giggled again, “She’s always hungry.” Maria blushed and nodded, “Lately I have been. My dad said it was just puberty. Is that like a mutant thing?”
“It can be. Energizers always eat a lot, and some other types eat more than normal for Baselines.” Doctor Thunder replied.
“Baseline? Energizer?” Maria asked.
“Baseline is the word we use for those who are not mutants. Much better than ‘Normal,’ because that implies that we aren’t.” She created a forcefield briefly, “I’m an Energizer, and forcefields like this are one of the normal things Energizers can do. Supercharging their bodies to lift more and run faster is another. Once testing is over I’ll go over all the basic power categories for you, along with more in-depth info on whatever category we decide you fit into best.” She smiled, “Now, Rhonda, I believe it is your turn.”
Rhonda started lifting, and shortly the good doctor announced, “Twelve hundred and fifty pounds. All of you are solidly past Baseline, especially for your age.” As she led them over to a treadmill she announced, “You are all hereby accepted as probationary members of the Empire City Guard. If you do well in the school we’ll pay for, you will be granted a place in our ranks.”
“Even if all we can do is manifest sand?” Rick asked.
She smiled kindly at him. “Even if that were true, yes. It isn’t however; you are solidly above Baseline in strength as well. All of you should remember there are no useless powers; even Baselines can be heroes, so no matter what your powers, you too can be heroes. Any power can be used positively if you are creative enough.”
Rick doubted that he could come up with a use for making sand appear in his sneakers, but he didn’t want to say anything out loud. He was feeling more than a little lame as they took turns sprinting as fast as they could on the treadmill.
Being the fastest, if only by a hair boosted his spirits a bit. His top speed was 40.1 mph; a top speed that beat Bobby’s by .1. Rhonda was slowest at 30 mph, and Maria was holding steady at 39 when her stomach started growling audibly. Rhonda giggled and Dr. Thunder insisted they break for lunch right then.
“We get to eat at the same place the heroes do?” Rick asked, excited.
“Yes, and you’ll get to see how much Energizers eat, too.” She smiled at Maria, “We Energizers eat like horses, but if you’re an energizer you’ll never be fat.”
‘She was definitely correct about that.’ Rick thought as he grabbed a tuna sandwich and some milk. ‘Her tray is as piled with food as could be and I think Maria’s matches it.’ Then he heard what was by now a familiar giggle, and turned to look at Rhonda, “Why do you giggle so much?”
“Empathy.” Rhonda replied, and giggled.
“She has a warped sense of humor is why,” Maria replied, “But she is also an Empath. It’s why we decided to come today. She started picking up feelings from people in school, and at first we made a game of it, but as she got better we realized it wasn’t just good guessing, so we started researching carefully and heard about this. She was scared to come alone, so I agreed to get tested too. Watch out for her. She might develop Telepathy next, and know exactly what you’re thinking.”
Rhonda poked both boys, and giggled, “I don’t need telepathy to know what most boys are thinking. That’s why I giggle. If you had to deal with all the horniness pouring off the boys, we know you’d giggle too. It’s either be amused, or start swinging.”
Laughter echoed behind them and a voice with a noticeable New Jersey accent said, “You tell’em girl! That’s the spirit!” She introduced herself as Heavyweight, the heavy hitter of the team. Both Rick and Bobby found her beautiful but intimidating; she was taller than either of them, and looked to be in much better shape.
After lunch they played games against the computer, and tried to solve complex problems with equations that were new to them. “These are only the most basic of mental tests, I’m afraid. I was hoping to learn more, but I can’t say anything for sure. Maria might be an Exemplar/Energizer, instead of just an Energizer, but I can’t be sure yet. Let’s jump straight to testing your physical endurance, then try to see if we can get you to manifest some sand dunes for us.”
“Hey, Dune might not be a bad codename, right?” Rick asked.
“I like it,” Bobby said.
“It’s short, easily pronounced, and related to your power,” Doctor Thunder said. “All good things.”
They could all jog on the treadmill for more than an hour at a steady 25 MPH. Doctor Thunder made notes and documented that none of them had a history of inventing anything. “We don’t any Psychics here, Rhonda, so unfortunately we can’t help with that at all. But on the bright side it will make you all the more valuable as a teammate once you are trained. Can you broadcast as well as receive?”
Rhonda blushed at the idea of broadcasting her emotions to other people, “No, I just receive, fortunately.”
Doctor Thunder noted the fact of Rhonda’s Empathy, then nodded, “Okay, let me set up the cameras, then we’ll have Dune try to produce sand.”
Rick leaned in to Bobby and whispered, “What if I can’t do it?”
Bobby whispered back, “It’s cool, man. You haven’t been trained yet. No reason for you to be able to do it on command, yet.”
From the other side of the room, Rhonda moved towards him, “It’s okay, Rick. I worry about my power too. If you manage to create some sand you’re doing better at control then I am, and if you don’t, then you’re no worse.”
“Thanks, Rhonda.” He was wondering what it must be like to receive emotions from people around you whether you wanted to or not. “I’m sorry if my worry was, uh, you know, bugging you.”
She smiled. “It’s okay. Just do your best at this and then we can move on to the real test. Telling our folks.”
Doctor Thunder said, “We can have some of our staffers call for you. If you think it will be bad news, they are experienced at telling unpleasant truths or talking to mutant fearing people.”
They all smiled at that. Then Rick frowned and spoke up, “My folks are dead. You’ll have to call my Grandpa.” He was pointedly not looking at Rhonda’s face as he said that. He concentrated on creating sand. The area he was in was ringed by various cameras and other sensors. There was a platform with a clear container that he was supposed to aim for. Nothing appeared in the area, so he concentrated harder.
“Hold on a moment! I’m getting error readings from some of these sensors.” Doctor Thunder called. She moved forward and opened a panel on the side of one and sand came trickling out.
Rick blushed, “Sorry, I guess my aim was off.”
“It’s fine. This happens fairly often at the beginning. I can fix them, and at least we now have proof you are manifesting sand. Alright now, it's explanations and answers time. Follow me."
She led them into another room with a whiteboard. There she told them about all the basic powers and went into detail on Exemplars, Manifestors, and Energizers.
"Any questions?”
“None I can think of right now.” Rick answered. The others shook their heads.
“Alright. I’ll get our people to call your parents or grandparents. Come with me.” Doctor Thunder led them from the room.
Rick had no trouble with his grandfather. Once the old man realized he wouldn’t have to pay anything for schooling at Whateley, he was more than happy to let Rick go.
Bobby had even less trouble with his folks. Once Doctor Thunder laid out how it was, they were committed to him learning to use his abilities as best he could and proud that he would have an opportunity to join the ECG.
The ladies unfortunately both had problems, very similar problems. Both their families were prejudiced against mutants, and refused to even let them come home at all, not even long enough to pack a bag.
The boys were shuffled out and a lawyer called in. Rick wasn’t sure exactly what happened, but both girls ended up in the care of the ECG, with Doctor Thunder and Heavyweight as their legal guardians. Rick only heard that in jumbled form from Maria. She came running out of the room crying and he held her somewhat awkwardly as the taller girl cried against him. He found himself agreeing to go with them to Whateley and to let her cry on him anytime.
“Really?” she asked tearfully. Both Rick and Bobby assured her solemnly that they’d go with her and be her moral support. Then they repeated it to Rhonda and Dr. Thunder after she brought them.
“That’s a nice thing for you boys to do.” The head of the Empire City Guard smiled at them and added, “You boys go home and pack. We’ll meet you here tomorrow at 9 A.M. sharp. Then we’ll get you all on a chartered flight.”
She turned to the girls, “In the meantime we’ll be escorting you home to pack, along with some of New York’s Finest. Grab everything you even think you may want. You won’t be back.” She paused briefly then nodded grimly to herself, “And if perchance the MCO is there waiting, let us handle them. We have the authority to do so and the power to insure they follow the laws of this country.”
The next morning the boys were ready. They appeared at the doors with two suitcases each. Bobby's parents were there to see them off, but they were the only ones. Lioness led the boys to the ECG garage and to a heavily modified H1 Humvee.
The girls showed up as they were packing, "Good things boys always pack light,” Rhonda said. She was trying for humor, but her voice was brittle, "We are going to need a lot of room." Each girl had suitcases and boxes piled near them.
"Well I'd be happy to help you put it in the Hummer." Bobby said, and Rick nodded solemnly. “It looks big enough to accommodate all of our stuff.”
“It is.” Lioness agreed, “You can also leave some stuff here. We’ll store stuff you don’t want to take to your dorms.”
The girls quickly conferred, and some of the pile was sent back. The rest was stored in the Humvee shortly after.
"We're going with you and we’re getting allowance money, so we can help," Rick added with a tentative smile, “Just in case you do forget to bring something.”
"That's so sweet!" Lioness smiled at the boys and added, "You all have an account set up at the Whateley bookstore so you can buy uniforms and anything necessary for classes.
“The girls might be a little shy of pocket money, though: at least until the semester officially starts though so I'm sure they'll be glad of a treat or two on you. The nearby town of Dunwich is small, but has surprisingly good sweet shops and restaurants, and the people are used to students like yourselves."
The girls were smiling at them, and Rick felt uncomfortably like a steak being examined by a butcher, but when Bobby spoke up he nodded. "We'd be happy to treat them as our funds allow. Maybe we can get school jobs?"
"It's encouraged from what I hear, but I don't know if they're available during the summer. The Dean of Students should be meeting us at the Berlin airport. I'm sure she'll be able to answer all your questions. Let's get you all loaded up. We're on a schedule."
After they were all seated she continued, "We'll be meeting the plane on its way back from Whateley, after dropping off another student. I won't be flying with you but there will be adults on the plane and I want you four to behave, understand?"
"Yes, ma'am." they replied in ragged unison.
When they got to the airport she parked and they walked over to the charter terminal where a plane was already waiting. A woman in a security guard uniform met them. She talked with Lioness in private briefly then Lioness led her over, “This is Wanda Barrett from Whateley security. The school has sent her and a partner, who is still on board the plane, to escort you on your way to the school. Please don’t give her any trouble. Remember you are representing us, so keep your noses clean if you ever want to be full members!” With that, Lioness hugged them all and left, misty-eyed.
Once on the plane Wanda introduced them to her partner. “Kids, this is Matt. Matt, this is Rick, next to him is Maria, and these two are Bobby, and Rhonda." The pilot then spoke, "Fasten your seat-belts everyone, we will be in Berlin before long.”
They took off and for awhile everything was calm. Rick noticed Rhonda was frowning though, "What's wrong?"
"I've just got a bad feeling about this." Rick was about to tell her not to worry when the co-pilot suddenly said, "Oh, shit! We're off course. What are you doing?" The last was directed towards the pilot who merely grinned back at him. The copilot clutched his head then, and slumped forward in his seat. The five point harness kept him somewhat upright, but he was clearly unconscious.
"We're making an unscheduled stop, I'm afraid. You see, my boss has paid me well to deliver four mutants to him, and it's always best to get them before they hit Whateley. The school protects its own quite fiercely, and after they are well trained and dangerous." He smiled a bright white smile at them, "Don't worry though, we're not mutant haters. We just want to test you a little." Then he started laughing maniacally.
The two security guards drew their sidearms. Wanda put her gun to the base of the pilot’s skull while her partner Matt checked on the co-pilot. “Asleep,” Matt said frowning.
“Put us back on course now!” Wanda shouted at the pilot.
He laughed, “Go ahead and shoot! I know Whateley Security use frangible bullets on airplanes to avoid poking holes in them, and my TK field is more than good enough to handle those.”
She shot at him as he turned to concentrate on Matt. By the time her slide locked back Matt was down as well. The four kids were unbuckling as she pulled a radio, kicking herself for not reporting earlier. The cockpit door had been left open, so they knew something was going on even before they heard Wanda's truncated report.
"Help flight is being hijacked. Pilot is a ringer! He is a dangerous mutant and has taken us off course..." That was as far as she got before the pilot sent her to dreamland as well.
As the four teens advanced on the cockpit, the pilot started tossing unconscious bodies out the door. Rhonda stopped to check on them while the rest pushed forward. He grinned at them, "You may be strong mutants, but you have no training at all in psychic defense. I can drop you all at once." He grinned wider and did just that. Then he waited until Rhonda looked at him before continuing, "You might have found me out if you were more practiced at your powers, but then that's why we grab you kids before ..." that was the last thing she heard before falling into a deep, dark sleep.
© 2010 by Freya
They woke up in a small auditorium, chained at wrists and ankles to their seats in the front row. Wanda and Matt were there and feeling just as helpless as the kids.
They were in the front row facing a stage with a podium and microphone. Rick quipped, “I usually sit in the back row at these things, so the principal doesn’t see that I have my tie crooked.” Rhonda giggled at that, and hearing it made him feel better too. He was actually relaxing when a man came striding out of the wings and up to the podium.
“I call myself Dr. Incubator,” he said. He was dressed all in glossy black, from his mask to his boots, to the high collared cape behind him. “I do that because I take young mutants and put them through a forced growth process. The ones that survive are worthy of being on the forefront of evolution.”
‘Survive?’ thought Rick and he gulped. He heard Matt and Wanda struggling in their bonds. The man turned to look at them, “I see we have two members of Whateley Security here. Even though you are Baselines, we won’t kill you. We will put you back to sleep until we are done. Then you can escort the survivors to Whateley. We approve of Whateley in principle, you know, we just don’t think they go far enough to prepare mutants for a hostile world. The training we give here may kill about one third of our “students” on average, but those that survive are the strongest and most adaptable. A few even join us in our work afterward.”
He gestured and their charter pilot came out. His face was bare, so they recognized him but he was in a different uniform now. It was all matte black with a phoenix on the chest in shades of red and yellow.
“John here was one of our sleeper agents. He joined us after surviving the worst we could do to him and was allowed to be rescued. We had two agents adopt him and surreptitiously backed his education and training as a pilot. He brought us a fine catch, and now has his choice of staying with the core group or getting a new identity and becoming a sleeper agent again.” The mad doctor then hugged John, who smiled insanely at them all.
“Time for another nap, everyone!” They struggled but one by one they went back down into a deep sleep.
In a steel cylinder set up in a special room, Rhonda woke up slowly. She was awkwardly crouched in a confined space. 'Oh my Gawd!' she thought to herself as she remembered what had happened. 'I'm going to die,' she thought as she straightened up. 'I'm in no shape to pass a hard gym test, much less some mutant 'survive or die' test.'
She surveyed her surroundings; she was in steel tube with blank insides, a grill under her feet and open tubes under that, above her were a light, a camera lens and a speaker grill. 'Oh great,' she grumbled to herself, 'I get to die on camera.' Water started pouring in from below and she started beating on the walls of the cylinder with her fists and shouting, "Help!"
"There's no one that will help you but yourself." A sinister voice called from above.
It scared her so much she jumped in the water that was now rising over her feet. "Isn't killing me enough? Do you have to humiliate me first?" she shouted back. "Are you broadcasting this you bastard? Or are you just getting your jollies from seeing me naked?"
"You need not die. Just transcend your current limitations, and you will be able to free yourself. Empathy won't save you. Reach out for more. Your companion, Roberto, is pushing his strength to the limits and may yet free himself. Of course he might just tire himself out and die faster, but if he does, he deserves it. Which are you, Rhonda McIntyre? Are you dead wood to be left behind as mutants claim their rightful place? Or are you one of the strong? Show us what you can do, or die in your watery tomb."
Rhonda had an odd feeling that she was going to be rescued but put it down to wishful thinking. She punched and kicked at the door holding her in but nothing worked until with a click it opened and Rick let her out.
In another cylinder in the same room, Bobby woke up quickly and took stock. 'I'm naked!' he thought, 'and sealed into some weird tube thing.' The voice from overhead spoke, and he listened to a reiteration of their crazy manifesto, then shrugged. If he was as strong as he thought, he should be able to batter his way out. Eventually he did break out, and when he did he was glad to see that Rick and the girls were okay.
In yet another cylinder in the same room Maria wondered if they'd done anything to her when she woke up and discovered she was naked. However after checking herself as well as she could, she put that out of her mind. 'I need to concentrate on getting out of here first.'
When the voice from above spoke, she listened, "Yeah, you tell yourself that. I don't believe it. What survival purpose does my being naked and apparently on camera serve? Never mind, I don't expect a straight answer to that. Anything else you want to say or gloat over?"
"We do have the best interests of the race at heart. You evidently don't trust us or our word, and that's fine. We aren't doing this for praise. I saw you checking yourself, and I want to assure you that no one took advantage of you while you were unconscious. We just stripped you naked and stuck you in this cylinder for the first part of your test."
She rolled her eyes and thought to herself, ‘Of course he probably means that. Irony is wasted on him, and so is sarcasm.’ The water was reaching her knees just then so she concentrated on possible ways to escape.
'Okay, if I'm supposed to be an Energizer I should have an energy blast of some kind,' Maria said to herself. 'It would be nice to have peace and quiet to try this but here goes.' At first nothing happened, and she frowned, but fortunately, on her third try a beam of coherent light speared from one finger and through the steel shell surrounding her. She shouted, "Yes!" while grinning triumphantly. It might take a while, but this would get her out of the cylinder eventually. She made several more small holes in the cylinder, each glowing red briefly as the laser drilled through and the voice from the speaker encouraged her with such seeming sincerity, that it was hard to believe he would have let her die. Then she heard Rick's voice coming from outside the cylinder.
In the final cylinder, Rick woke up disoriented. He was leaning against something cold and hard, and his feet were wet. He opened his eyes and looked around. 'I'm sealed into some sort of tube,' he thought, 'and I'm naked!' It was all steel from what he could tell, and the wet feeling was because water was bubbling up from below through a grating. When he looked up he saw light, a camera lens and a speaker grille. He tried creating sand, but it didn't stop the water flow.
“A little sand will not help you now. Reach for more power, reach for more strength, reach for a miracle. Transcend your limitations or die here.” The voice spoke the sinister words in a creepily excited tone.
“Why are you doing this?” Rick shouted. “This is wrong! No matter what your goals are, this is wrong, it’s evil!”
“The good doctor does important, necessary work, and we are his support organization. Yes, he sometimes kills people, but the end justifies the means if the end is survival. And all of us are people who not only survived one of his little tests, but found new strength from the experience, and want others to have that epiphany.” There was a pause before the voice continued, “We force mutants to realize their potential or die. We may seem evil, but the world is not black and white, and some day you may agree with us. We could have killed you all while you slept, but that is not our purpose. You will only die if you are weak or stupid.”
Rick beat on the opaque lid in front of him as the cylinder slowly filled from pipes by his feet, but it didn’t open. He pushed with all of his might, and, nothing. He panicked briefly, then forced himself to become calm. He concentrated, and more sand appeared but, not in the right place. A few more tries just produced sandy water.
“Water seeps through sand all the time, you know. You’ll need more than that to escape. If you can escape that, there is a way out past all the locked doors and guards. Freedom can be yours if you can just get this box open. Fail, and it will be your tomb,” the voice intoned.
Rick realized that the speaker was watching him and that the cylinder was probably only well lit for that reason. He imagined being trapped there in the dark and shivered. ’I have to hold it together!’ he thought to himself. ‘I need to get free and help the others.’
Rick strained his brain looking for some solution. ‘Maybe I have powers I haven’t tried yet?’ he thought. ‘It’s possible. They weren’t able to test for anything I didn’t already know I had, and some mutants have a variety of powers.’ Meanwhile, the water was creeping upward, and had made it up past his knees. He started trying everything he could think of, and hoped that Powerhouse would wake up and save them. He didn’t want to chance that, however, and furiously tried to do various things to the water. “Move!” he shouted, and concentrated, but nothing happened. He tries to call forth an energy blast, but nothing came out.
“Oh come on … You’ll have to do better than that if you want to live!” the sinister voice chided him.
Rick got angry and focused his rage on the water. He realized it was a bit irrational but right then he hated water with a passionate fury. He tried to beam that fury into the water and something happened!
The water starts bubbling, and at first he thought it was boiling, but quickly realized it was not getting any hotter. The level started dropping slightly, even though more water was coming in and Rick smelled ozone. In a flash of intuition he realized what he was doing. He was separating the water into Hydrogen and Oxygen. He concentrated and tried to speed up the process. ‘At least I don’t have to worry about air’ he told himself as a plan formed in his mind. He would later realize that too much oxygen is as dangerous as too little, and that if he hadn't been an Exemplar he would have died from the stunt he had in mind.
As he destroyed the water, more flowed in and the air pressure inside increased. Applause sounded from the speaker, “Bravo! You’ve found a new power. It may not get you free, but it looks like it will keep you from drowning.” Rick kept his smile to himself; it seemed to him that the man behind the voice was not thinking creatively enough. ‘Thank you Doctor Thunder’ he thought, ‘I just hope I manage it in time to help the others.’
After a while that seemed endless, Rick’s ears popped and he started pushing on the door while continuing to denature the water as fast as it came in. The door popped open and he stepped out hurriedly. He looked around to see who else was free. Nobody else was in the room, and all the other cylinders were closed. A closer looked showed only one of them was intact, though. The one closest to him had several small holes in it and water was pouring out of the lower ones, the next one over was intact, and the third had several fist sized dents.
A laser beam poking a new hole in the nearest cylinder, reminded him of what his first priority should be. He knocked on the cylinder, “It’s me, Rick. I’m going to try and get you out of there, so don’t shoot for a minute, okay?” He heard a muffled response, and hoping it was a yes, he stepped in front of it and looked for a way to open it. It was only meant to be secure from the inside, so he easily had it open and Maria rushed out into his arms.
He hugged her, then blushed at the feel of her nakedness against him. “I need to go rescue the others.” he said while disengaging.
“Yes, of course,” she said, equally embarrassed as she realized her condition. Then there was the groan of tearing metal and Bobby forced his way free.
"Good to see you made it out, too!" Rick called out.
Bobby raised a fist and replied, "We bad! Takes more than a few perverts and a mad plumber to kill us!"
Rick smiled at that and went to the final cylinder, "Rhonda? We're going to get this open and let you out. Don't worry about a thing!" Then he set her free and got his second naked hug of the day. 'I could get to enjoy this sort of thing,' he thought. 'However now is not the time' and disengaged gently from Rhonda. "Sorry, but we aren't home free yet."
Looking around the place he saw that in addition to the cylinders, the room had one narrow steel door and a circular hole about 4 feet in diameter opposite the door and low on the wall. He also noticed that water was still pouring from the cylinders. It was almost ankle deep and getting deeper.
The voice they'd heard in the cylinders was suddenly back and chuckling, "No, it's not over yet. Not by a long shot. There are choices ahead of you. The first is to force the locked door, the second is to take the tunnel. But you'd better decide fast, because the water hasn't stopped and the tunnel is low."
"No," the voice said chuckling again, "it merely has men on the other side pointing a heavy machine gun at it and is narrow."
"Rhonda can you check that without opening the door?" Rick asked.
"Well maybe," she replied dubiously and walked through the rising water to the door. "I can feel emotions from the other side, more than one but I'm not sure how many. They do seem eager and bloodthirsty though."
"Then I guess we should go through the tunnel. Maria you should go first."
"Why me?" Maria asked.
Rick replied, "Because you are the only one with a long range weapon. Bobby should be last because he's the strongest. He can deal with anything coming up behind us."
"If you want continued helpful narration you should go boy, girl, boy, girl."
Rick sighed then, "I knew it." He looked up towards the speaker in the ceiling, "Why exactly should we do that?"
"Well the good doctor may be doing this for ideological reasons but not all of us are with him solely because of that. I make good money selling these videos." The speaker sounded amused.
"You sell them?" Rhonda asked in a horrified voice. She tried to cover herself with her hands and her shoulders hunched.
"Yes, the action scenes go to Vegas and some of the other scenes go to collectors with odd and various fetishes. It helps defray the costs of the operation after those of us involved take our cut. The guy who brought you in has likely sold your possessions online by now." He paused as they all gasped, "Oh yes, the good doctor wanted us to give all your possessions back but he won't check. He'll just accept our word for it when we report to him what the results of his 'grand experiment' were." He chuckled at their expressions, "You are all far too trusting but I guess it comes with youth." Rhonda crouched low and hugged her knees, face burning in shame at the thought of videos of her being sold. "This scene and the one of you in the tunnel will bring a nice chunk of change from an old pervert I know who's into that sort of thing."
Rhonda buried her face against her knees and Maria squeezed her shoulder, "It's okay honey. We understand about being scared. You just ignore him and put it out of your mind. What we need to do now is get out of here."
"Yes, and that brings us back to my offer. If you go the way I suggested I will give you occasional useful hints to make it more likely you'll survive. It will also make a better video for me."
Rick sighed and patted Rhonda's shoulder, "We need to decide soon. I'm in favor. It might be embarrassing but it can't hurt and it might help."
Maria nodded, "I'll agree." She hauls Rhonda to her feet. "Hey! You can feel my emotions so you know that I am mostly angry. I don't give a damn if the bad guys scared you into peeing on camera we need you! Later we can try to find whoever has the video and get it back and if you learn telepathy you can scrub the memory right out of his brain."
Rhonda looked up and met Maria's eyes hopefully, "You think we can find it? Before it hits video shelves and everyone's seen it?"
"Yes, I'll help you and so will the guys." Maria looks at them and they quickly agree. "See? But we have to get out of here first."
Rick sticks his hand out, "I think we should make a pact. None of us will be embarrassed by anything we have to do to get out of here alive and none of us speak of this to anyone at all without unanimous agreement beforehand. Until we leave this place behind we do whatever it takes to get us all free. No one left behind and no guilt. Agreed?"
Maria puts her hand on his and Bobby puts his on Maria's. They all look at Rhonda and she hesitates for perhaps half a minute. Then she takes a deep breath and lets it out, squares her shoulders, lifts her head and puts her hand on top. "Done!" she says solemnly and looks up to the unseen speaker, "I refuse to let you make me feel degraded or embarrassed. You are the one who is the disgusting pervert and if I ever see you in person..." she trails off but her eyes are hard and angry.
The voice chuckles, "That is why I never let myself be seen. And by the time you can lead anyone back here we'll have rented another lair in another state and there'll be no trace of us anywhere. I won't even hold it against you. Well if you are going to use the tunnel you'd better get going. Tick-tock tick-tock."
Maria crouches down and moves into the tunnel on hands and knees, followed by Rick, then Rhonda and Bobby came last. Once he was all the way a thick block of stone lowered from the ceiling of the tunnel making him pull his feet in to accommodate it. As the echoes of the boom echoed through the smooth stone tunnel they waited a bit hoping for internal lights to come on. Nothing of the sort happened, darkness reigned absolute.
"You may wish you weren't right behind me Rick. I had the chili for lunch," Maria said with half a grin to lift the silence that followed as she started forward again.
Rick laughed easily, "That's the least of my problems, don't worry about it." After a brief pause he said, "If I bump into you please don't get upset. It's just very dark in here."
It was her turn to laugh, "Like you said, that's the least of my problems. If it happens I'll probably be the one at fault. I'm trying to figure out how to make a light beam that's more like a flashlight than a laser and I keep stopping while I concentrate."
"Want us all to stop while you experiment?" Rick asked, it would let the water get higher but if the good get light it would be a lot easier to navigate and see any possible traps as well.
"No, not just for that," Maria said, continuing to crawl forward.
"I have a feeling that we shouldn't stop anywhere for long." Rhonda added.
"That's why light would be useful, there may be traps ahead or cross tunnels we'll never see." Rick added.
"Okay, I'll try. Stopping now." The sound of splashing stopped as they waited to see if she managed to do it. Suddenly a brief but intensely bright light flash went off and Rick was seeing afterimages of Maria's outline dancing in front of his eyes.
"Ow, that was bright. Let's wait a minute before you try that again." Rick said wincing in the darkness.
"Yeah, I have wong afterimages dancing before my eyes," Rhonda said then giggled, "I notice Rick isn't complaining about his afterimages though."
"Once more please Maria?" Rick said, glad no one could see him blush in the dark.
Maria tried again and this time she managed something other than a laser. She started glowing all over and became immediately visible but indistinct. A softly glowing outline with two dark patches. "Eeep!" Maria squeaked and the light went out.
"Okay try one more time then if it doesn't work we'll move on carefully." Rick had found her brief exposure sexy but he wanted to get out there before trying anything romantic.
The next time there was a noise as well as a bright flash as her laser fired off down the tunnel. It was followed by a distinctive odor. Rick heard a giggle from behind and an embarrassed "Sorry" from ahead.
"Heh, don't worry about it. You did warn me." Rick was nonchalant about her breaking wind, he didn't consider it a big deal and he didn't want Maria to feel bad.
"What was that?" Rhonda said and dissolved into giggles.
"Nothing. Okay, we shouldn't stay in one place too long so let's get moving but later I'll ask you to try again. Light would make a big difference here." Rick knew Rhonda's giggling and warped humor was probably just her way of dealing with stress but he felt sorry for her future boyfriend. She'd probably drive him right up a wall.
© 2010 by Freya
The voice they were coming to hate spoke from above, "Keeping moving is a good idea. If you stay too long in one location the ceiling over you will start dropping. But you can't just rush on through either because the tunnel has been boobytrapped."
Maria stopped dead when she heard that and Rick's face bumped into her ass. As he started stammering apologies the voice from the speaker was laughing, "Oh man! That was pure gold! These nightvision cameras are great."
"Don't worry about it Rick. It's covered under the pact we made." Maria said. She looked up at the ceiling she couldn't see and asked, "What kind of traps? If we are really amusing you that much how about a little more info?"
"Well sure honeycakes, I was coming to that. The good doctor wanted all kinds of traps in this tunnel. Light triggered traps, sound triggered traps, even traps triggered by changes in air pressure. Do you how expensive all that would be? He's rich but not that rich and even with our alternate methods of fundraising we don't have enough money to do everything he dreams up. So all the traps in this tunnel are triggered by pressure plates in the floor. I don't know if you can use that to your advantage but maybe you can."
Maria sighed quietly then said, "I'm continuing forward but slowly." She started forward feeling ahead for anything suspicious.
"If you want I can go first," Rick stated, "I thought we might have to fight things when I asked you to go first but if it is just traps I shouldn't let you take the risk." He took a deep breath, "If you'll just slide over I go ahead of you. Maybe I can try the traps ahead of time with sand."
"No, I don't think it is possible to switch places in this tunnel and we'll lose the dubious but possibly necessary help of our pervy friend in the ceiling. Unless you want Bobby and Rhonda to try and switch too? No, it's not feasible. Especially since we shouldn't stay in one place too long. I'll continue and hope to find the traps before they find me." Unfortunately she found the first one the hard way.
There was a click then a loud 'ZAP' sound. Rick had afterimage of something poking out of the water and a very bright electrical arc. With his eyes closed Rick asked worriedly, "Are you alright Maria?"
"Ow, yeah mostly. I absorbed all the electricity. I didn't even know I could do that and I don't think I did it right because it hurt, but I'm not injured. I'm going to have to release this energy somehow so brace yourselves."
"Why? Oh yeah the water." Rick answered his own question. "Are you okay to start moving again?"
Maria replied, "Yeah, but I can't hold it in much longer. I hope you're enjoying the view because it'll be gone soon."
"Huh?" Rick opened his eyes. She was glowing again and perfectly visible, "Oh, I had my eyes closed before. Go ahead and blast away, I'll close them again."
He didn't quite close them as fast as he said and they were still open when a lightning bolt ripped from her down the tunnel. "Wow, that was bright!"
Maria chuckled a little, "I thought you were going to close your eyes?" She had stopped glowing and they were once more plunged into darkness.
Rick blushed unseen but his voice showed his embarrassment as he started to apologize. "I was ... I mean I'm ... yes I was enjoying the view so much I couldn't stop. I'm sorry."
"Heh, it's okay. I'll take it as compliment." She was proceeding very carefully after that and found two more without triggering them. She tried to relay exactly where they were to those behind her but Rhonda triggered one anyway despite her efforts.
There was a click, then an "Ow!" from behind Rick. "All stop," he called back. "Who got hit?"
"Rhonda," Bobby's voice called back from the darkness.
"I got shot in the ass!" She sounded hurt and angry, "I think it's still in there."
There were splashing sounds as she frantically searched herself. "Got it! It feels like a dart. What the fuck?"
"Are you feeling weird or numb or anything?" Rick called back.
"I don't feel anything," Rhonda started then paused. "My butt is numb and my leg is starting to get numb too. Crap! What do I do?"
"Don't panic, I'll think of something." Rick thought fast for a few moments then spoke, "I have an idea. It's a little embarrassing but it should work."
"Tell me. It can't be worse that what we've already been through."
by Freya
The End of the tunnel is in sight but that light they are seeing isn't sunshine.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Tell me. It can't be worse that what we've already been through." Rhonda said. Then she thought, 'Famous last words'.
"I was thinking that you can't stay and dragging yourself by the arms would be needlessly hard on you so you should get a ride on someone's back," Rick replied.
"Well unless you meant Maria's I was wrong about it not being worse..." Rhonda started, "but my right leg is already going numb and if it was a tranquilizer dart I might just fall asleep in the water here so I agree. Better to do while I still have some feeling left." She sighed, "But please can I try to make it onto Maria's back?" She paused, "Assuming Maria agrees?"
"Sure, I don't see how it's going to save any modesty of yours though since you're going to have to crawl across Rick to get to me." Maria sounded both amused and annoyed. "Maybe you should let Bobby carry you? He's the strongest of us."
"He's also ... ," she was thinking 'the boy I kind of like' but said, "a pervert and a boy. I can trust you not to take advantage and I think I can make it past Rick to you and if he tries anything I'll still have working hands to slap him with. So I'm coming over there unless you say you won't help." Her right leg was almost entirely numb and she was crawling on three limbs already.
"I already said yes. You're welcome to a piggyback ride, bad English and all," Maria said.
Rick called a temporary halt to make it easier for her.
"Bad English?" Rhonda asked as they all stopped briefly.
"Yeah, you ended a sentence with 'with' which is bad English," Maria replied.
Rhonda giggled, "Maybe you can improve my grammar during the ride."
Rick felt Rhonda climbing up his legs, "Are both your legs numb now?"
"Yeah, I'm getting a little worried. Hey you, pervert! I thought you said the tunnel wouldn't kill us." Rhonda asked as she made it on to Rick's back. Her face was blushing as she thought of him feeling just about everything she had slide across his bare back.
"Oh the poison on the dart is not lethal," the voice replied, "At least it never killed anyone before. Not even Baselines, it just makes them sleep. If you are any sort of Exemplar you'll stay awake but you'll probably be numb from the neck down considering how fast it seems to be hitting you. In fact I'm tempted to turn the tunnel lights on just to get better footage of you sprawled like that on Rick's back with your thighs around his hips and your legs so wide open." He chuckled, "But the next few traps were designed by me so I hate for you to miss them. Maria would look so much sexier with a few piercings. Right boys?" He started laughing insanely then his voice was cut off with a click.
Rhonda attempted to move on past Rick but she could barely move her arms and couldn't move her hands at all, "I'm sorry Rick I think I'm stuck here."
"No problem Rhonda," Rick replied gently, "just enjoy the ride until you are feeling better." He replied as they started moving again.
"Oh I simply can't miss this naked piggyback ride! Man, I bet this one will make me so much money I don't even mind missing the chance to see Maria pierced!" The nameless pervert watching them sounded beside himself with joy.
Rick could feel Rhonda's blush hot against his back. "You pervert! Just remember after we get free we'll be looking for you and we'll repay every humiliation back tenfold! Do you understand me?" Rick knew he shouldn't bait the man. The mysterious watcher might make things a lot worse for them if he was annoyed but he just couldn't help himself. What a rat bastard!
Their eyes adjusted rapidly to the now lit tunnel and they could proceed faster and be sure of avoiding the pressure plates under the water. They just had to ignore the sounds from the overhead speakers. First was the sound of rivers, then waterfalls, then rain. After the rain it cycled through again but he threw in the sound of a toilet flushing at random intervals and he giggled. He sounded scarily insane when he did it and that sound chilled Rick more than his threats.
Shortly Maria reported seeing the end of the tunnel. "Before you start cheering though it's blocked by fire. It looks like a waterfall only made of fire instead."
"You absorbed electricity before do you think you might be able to absorb fire too?" Rick asked. He hated putting her on the spot but she was their best chance of getting through without harm. If she could absorb fire.
"I don't know. I've been experimenting a little as we moved. I managed to absorb a little of the light when it first came on and I pulled a little heat from the water so maybe I can." She sounded scared and Rick almost told her not to even try but if she didn't, then what?
"I want you to be very careful and stop the instant it doesn't feel right but when we get to fire try it. If you can do that then we'll have a way out. Can you see anything beyond the fire?"
"I can see enough to know it's a full sized room not more tunnel. I think I saw toilets even."
"Oh, thank god," Rhonda added. All the water sounds made her want to go badly. She was still atop Rick's back leaning on her forearms. She was getting feeling back but slowly and he'd ordered her not to get off until she could feel everything down to her toes. Somewhat to his surprise she didn't even question his order, she just acknowledged it. She was still mostly numb from the waist down but she had managed to close her legs. They were still dangling behind her like dead meat but at least they were together. It was a small thing but it helped.
Soon they could all see the fire that ended the tunnel. The hated watcher finally stopped the water sounds and in an amused voice spoke, "The good doctor pretends to a classical education and as such wanted an overarching theme to his "challenges". First was the challenges of water, then earth, and now you are entering the arena of fire challenge. Good luck not becoming charcoal! I've got enough footage to sell so I won't be helping you any more unless knowing what's coming will make things worse or at least more amusing. Everyone else evacuated when you entered the tunnel and I'm bored. I hate being left behind all the time."
"Almost as if they don't like you isn't it?" Bobby said. "As if they wished they could leave you behind like an unwanted pet." He hadn't said much but he was a rock of reliability. He soldiered on and never made anything harder than it had to be. If he was taunting the voice then it must be for a good reason. Rick smiled, probably psychological warfare now that he's said he won't be helping us.
"Maria, can you check to see if you can absorb the fire now?" Rick asked worriedly.
"Okay, here goes," Maria answered and slowly extended one finger forward towards the fire.
Out of the Frying pan...
Rick held his breath as she touched it, "Are you okay?"
"Yes," Maria plunged her whole hand into the fire and when she pulled it out it was unmarked. She turned to Rick, "So what's your plan? I know you have one. You always do."
"It looks like the fire pit has a nice high ceiling. If you can absorb it you can keep it from going past long enough for us to scoot under you through the to room beyond. Then I'll help lift you free." Rick explains.
"Well as long as you don't take too long I think I can manage. No stopping to sightsee along the way though and what about Rhonda?"
Rick blushed, "No sightseeing if I can possibly resist it I promise. As fir Rhonda I'll leave her here until I'm across then pull her through. Then I'll make sure Bobby doesn't lag behind or sightsee either."
"Thank you. Okay, no time like the present right?" Maria replied.
"Hey!" Rhonda called from his back, "That looks like mesh the fire is flowing through! Pulling me across that would shred me."
"You can go face up then. I don't think Maria will worry about you ogling or sightseeing," Rick replied with a grin.
"Actually I think we should all go face up to avoid the cheese grater effect on private parts," Rhonda said grinning.
"Have you always been this perverted?" Maria asked.
"Nope!" Rhonda giggled, "But it's more fun than being shy! Well hop to it, we can't sit here all day talking. Ceiling will fall remember?"
Maria gave her a nasty look then smiled, "I'm glad you're coping. And you're right so I'll just get on with it but remember not to dawdle, this won't be easy." She leaned into the fire and soaked it in, eventually her body made an arch from one stone lip to the other with fire raining down on her back.
"Slide off my back as I crawl forward," Rick said over his shoulder and started forward on his hands and knees as fast as he could go. He didn't look at all because he knew he'd stop if he did. He tried not to even think about how he was between her legs right this minute. He gulped and closed his eyes to help him ignore the wonderful sight passing above him. He was panting and wished she didn't smell so good. He couldn't close his nose! Then one hand touched empty air. His eyes flew open then closed again and he pulled himself out into the next room. The back of his head brushed against one breast as he did and he was glad she couldn't see his erection. He made sure he was facing away from her as he did a quick scan of the room.
"Thank you for being a gentleman," she said and he swallowed before answering. "N-no problem. I'll turn to help Rhonda in a minute. I'm ... making sure the coast is clear and the room is safe." He was blushing, sure she knew exactly what he'd been thinking. He gulped and looked around. The room was lower than the floor of the tunnel and had nobody in it. It had four toilets in a row along the left wall and and two doors out. There was nobody in it but him and the cold air was helping with his ... problem. "I think it's safe,' he said and turned around.
AS soon as he saw her looking at him he sprang back to full erection. He blushed again and started stammering an apology. She gave a strained smile and said, "Right now I don't care! Just get them both into the room with you fast because I can't keep this up for much longer."
Rick shook his head and reached in to grab Rhonda's hands. He flipped her over on bto her back and said, "Grab her ankles Bobby. The express train to freedom is leaving now!"
"I'm on!" Bobby called.
Rick heaved as hard and fast as he could and Rhonda flew from inside like a cork from champagne. Bobby let go as soon his arms were free and dragged himself out and to his feet. Rick put Rhonda down gently and turned to help Maria.
"Don't touch me, I'm hot," she said as she slowly climbed out of the tunnel.
Many jokes presented themselves but neither boy said them. Maria was glowing and heat rose from her skin as if she were a Franklin Stove with a roaring fire inside. She stretched and held her hands out facing the tunnel and said, "You all might want to back away and close your eyes. I'm not sure how well this will work."
"Be careful Maria!" Rick shouted as he helped Rhonda move back. "I ... care about you."
"I'll try to be careful but I need to let some of this out and I'm only mostly sure how to aim it." Trickles of fire were twining along her arms and the stone under her bare feet was sizzling.
"We're all clear. Let her rip!" Rick called to her.
A huge ball of fire flew from her fingers and boomed down the tunnel turning the water into steam and melting the metal mesh entirely. Rick snatched her backwards as a cloud of steam and molten metal started to expand into the room.
In the Break Room between challenges, but can any room designed by these lunatics truly be relaxing?
The blast blew him to the floor with Maria on top and together they slid across the floor until they reached the far wall.
"Is everyone okay?" Rick asked. He couldn't see anything because Maria's hair was covering his face.
"Yes," Bobby replied.
"Yes, and thank you," Maria said.
"Anytime Maria," he said as he could hear Rhonda giggling he asked, "I guess you are okay too Rhonda?"
"Yes, but I think I'll need help to get to a toilet, my legs are still numb," she said.
"You were giggling because of that?" He asked confused.
She giggled, "No, I was giggling at the sight of Maria sprawled naked across with her legs wide and your boner visible above her thighs."
Rick blushed bright red. He hadn't thought it was visible! He figured if he ignored it while checking on everyone it would be gone by the time Maria got up and only the two of them would know. Rick sighed, 'So much for that plan.'
Maria blushed too then closed her legs fast, forgetting how much stronger she was these days.
"Ahhh!" Rick shouted in pain.
"I'm sorry!" Maria quickly opened her legs again and sat up. "I've taken first aid, let me see if," she paused then continued with a different word, "if I can help." She gently examined him and found he wasn't really damaged but he wouldn't be having sex anytime soon. After telling him that in a clinical voice her face softened, "I'm sorry Rick. I didn't think."
"Don't worry about it. No permanent harm done and I know exactly how you felt. I was embarrassed too. This is exactly why we need our pact." He turned his head and pointed to where Rhonda was trying and failing to stand, "Bobby, pick her up and put her on one of the toilets. Check it for for any obvious traps first." If he concentrated on something else he didn't notice the pain and besides the group needed him. As Bobby picked up Rhonda he continued, "Are you sure you're okay Maria? That was a LOT of effort you expended and you haven't eaten for many hours. If you need help or to be carried it's okay, you've already saved us all from the fire. We ... I can carry you the whole rest of the way and still count myself in your debt."
She started to talk when suddenly there was a loud PSSSHHHHH sound. They both looked over at Rhonda. She was bright red, "It's amplifying the sound!" They could barely hear her over the sound of peeing, it was so loud. "This is not how loud I normally am!"
"Obviously!" Rick shouts back, "There's probably a microphone concealed in the bowl." He turns back to Maria who is still sitting on him, "You're too tired to get up aren't you?" he says using the sound as cover so that only she can hear him.
"Not quite but too close for me to want to move unless I have to," Maria replied. "Do you need me to get off? I'm not too heavy am I?"
"Not at all! You can stay there as long as you like. I wasn't kidding about carrying you either. Soon I'll get up and I'll lift you in the process then we can look for some food. If I'm hungry you must be starving."
"Oh hell yes," she replied.
"Alright, try to slide over so you are sitting sideways on my thighs, then I'll sit up and we'll proceed from there to me standing with you in my arms." Rick saw that Bobby was whistling but he couldn't hear it. As Maria carefully shifted position he kept his attention on her. Then he sat up and lifted her into his arms. She leaned her head into his shoulder as he carefully stood up. "Now let's go see if we can find some food huh?"
Maria blushed a bit, "Umm, actually I think I need you to take me to the toilet first. I hope they don't all come with microphones." She sighed, "but they probably do."
"Okay, no problem. I'll go look for food in the meantime and if you need for anything before I get back just call out and I'll come back. I'll be able to hear you now." That last was a reference to the fact that Rhonda was finally finished peeing.
"Not once I start. Can you wait until I'm done?" she asked still in my arms. "Or maybe Bobby can go?" She looked at him and he smiled and nodded, "I'm willing."
If she wanted me close to her I was happy to stay, especially since Bobby could search as easily as I could. "Sure! Start with the door to the right of where we came in." The one across was like a Vault door. There was probably another stupid test behind it. He decided they needed to be as ready as possible before they opened it.
He nodded and moved towards it as I lowered Maria down on to the Toilet seat next to Rhonda. As soon as her butt hit the seat I could tell this toilet had a different surprise. The wall behind the toilets rose to reveal a huge High Definition screen with a picture of Maria, a video feed rather, from a lens looking up from inside the toilet bowl. She looked so relieved when the sound of her pissing wasn't amplified that I almost didn't have the heart to tell her but I did.
After looking over her shoulder she sighed and said, "I'm glad Bobby is looking the other way."
"I'll keep looking this way until I exit the room and stay gone until one of you ladies gives the all clear or until someone calls for help," he said as he exited the room.
As Rick turned away from the screen, he saw Bobby leaving while staring straight ahead. He looked down at his feet, "I am really starting to like you. All of you insides as well as outsides. Is that okay? Could you ... Can we be ... more than friends after this is all over?"
She smiled and took my hand, "I think we already are more than just friends, but yes it will have to wait until we are out of here, mostly at least." She grinned as her stomach rumbled, "I hope Bobby finds some food!" They were both glad of the subject change.
"As soon as you are done I'll open the door and see what if anything he's found. I hope he's found food too."
"Why wait?"
"I'd hate to imagine what kind of surprises are rigged in the last two toilets and I have to go too." When he went a few drops of blood came out first and it burned like hell to start with but soon he was done and they all went to the door to see what Bobby had found.
Maria winced, "I'm sorry."
Rick reassured her, "No apologies are necessary." He continued, "Are you ready for you ride milady? Your chaffeur awaits you?"
She nodded and he lifted her into his arms and carried her through the door.
Bobby had found both what looked a shower room and a room with food set out buffet style. They all agreed that nobody should try the shower because it was likely altered by the same crazed pervert who had done the toilets.
"I hope we can trust the food, I'm starving." Maria said from Rick's arms. He was making good on his promise to carry her.
"I guess one of us should try it and see if it affects them in any way," Rick replied.
"Already done," Bobby announced holding up an empty bowl.
"Are you okay, Bobby?" Rhonda asked looking him over.
"Sure," he answered laconically.
Rick looked over the foods available, all but one in a catering tray with a burning can of sterno underneath to keep it hot. There was a meaty chili that smelled good, cheese covered Enchiladas, a three bean salad, Refried beans, Yellow rice with bits of something red sprinkled on it, and last a tray of nachos covered in shredded pork, tomatoes, jalapenos, shredded cheese, sour cream, and guacamole. He turned to Maria, "Do you sense a theme here?"
She smiled, "I think I do but fortunately I've always liked Tex Mex."
"So what would you like to start with?" he asked wondering how they'd eat while she was in his arms but reluctant to put her down.
"Well I think what we do to start is ask Rhonda to make up a big plate with enough for both of us and then I feed us or you can put me down on the floor and I'll feed myself."
Rick grinned, "How could I pass up a chance to have to you feed me?"
"Good because the floor in here doesn't look clean enough that I'd want to sit on it naked," She replied and looked at Rhonda.
"I hear and obey, O Mistress of the World," she bowed with her hands out front palms down. "Your wish is my command." Then she stuck out her tongue and grabbed a plate to start filling it up.
Soon we were all eating and talking, "If he is going by the Classical Elements there should only be one more." Maria observed between bites of chili.
"If he's using the Eastern version there will be five," Rick replied.
"What are the five Eastern ones?" Rhonda asked.
"Water, Earth, and Fire are the three common to both and we've already seen all of those. The remaining two are Metal and Wood. If he's staying Classical then it's got to be Air next."
"That fits," Bobby added in, "The other door was like airlock. I hope it's not vacuum on the other side. We're pretty tough but we still need to breath." He was frowning in thought.
Soon all but Maria were finished eating. As an energizer who had expended nearly all her reserves she soaked up calories like a sponge until the table was bare. On the plus side her metabolism was fast enough for her to be standing on her own two feet and feeling much better by the end of her nosh.
"Well I guess there is no reason not to see what is behind that last door," Rick says and the others nod.
Maria agrees, "It's time to finish this."
Everyone ready for the Challenge of Air? Will they get to go free after this?
Read and Find out!
Rick steps up to the door, “This time I’ll go first.” He spins the wheel unlocking the door and pulls it open with a pop. Through the doorway they see a large empty room with a similar door at the far end and holes in the floor.
“I don’t like the looks of this,” Maria said and frowned. “Then again, there’s no way I would like it regardless of what it looked like.”
Rick steps in and they all follow one at a time. Once they are all in a wall drops down from above and seals to the floor behind them with a hiss.
“Welcome to the challenge of Air,” says the voice they have come to hate.
“You must get to the other side and open the door before all the air in the room is removed.”
“What? You frigging bastard!” They were running for the far door as soon as they heard he’d be evacuating the air.
“Of course I might be persuaded to stop halfway if you can make it worth my while,” he said with an unnatural eagerness.
“I doubt we’d enjoy whatever you have in mind,” Rick said.
There came a nasty chuckle, "Oh you might. It depends on what you like."
"Keep your mouths open," Bobby said. "If not the pressure difference might damage your lungs." He was clearly ignoring the bastard above them and the others decided he had the right idea.
Their run became a jog about halfway there and then a walk with about a third of the way to go. Suddenly Rhonda staggered and fell to her knees. Rick didn't waste breath asking her how she was he just helped her up and put her arm around his shoulder and together they walked on. Bobby came up and put her other arm around his shoulder and she smiled.
"Hey Maria? Come join us. All for one and one for all," Rick gasped out. She nodded and soon they were all linked and supporting each other.
"No one will take my offer? You don't even want to hear it? Too bad. Well if you make it out that door you're free of the test and out of our clutches. However you'll still be naked and have quite a long walk to the nearest town. Maybe you want to make a last deal? I would love a video of some foreplay." He snickered sleazily, "Anyone up for that?"
They all ignored him and walked closer to the door.
"You don't even want to know what information I'd give?" The voice was distorted and hushed because of the thin air but the nasty, teasing tone still came through.
Finally they reach the door and Bobby got it open helped by the air pressure on the other side once the seal was broken. They were free!
Well there was actually a smooth tunnel leading upwards to Daylight but it was large enough to stand in and not too steeply sloped. They staggered out of the airlock still gasping and the door shut behind them.
As they wearily walked up the slope the air kept getting warmer and they felt odd sensations now and then, as if their surroundings were moving but the floor under them seemed solid. When they finally got to the mouth of the cave they received a shock.
"Well now we know what info he wanted to sell us," Rick said.
"If I ever get my hands on that bastard I'll squeeze his neck until his head pops off!" Bobby's hands rose in front of him and squeezed in demonstration.
"Oh, I'm so there with you man," Rhonda added. "Before you kill him I want you to hold him up while I kick his balls repeatedly."
Before stretched desert and behind them rose a stone ridge. The opening they'd walked out of was already gone.
"That must have been some sort of teleporter or something. It's probably why nobody has caught the damn bastard yet. We will find him though. I will look for him each summer until I graduate or find him. Are you with me?" He stuck out his hand and the others each put theirs on top. "One for all and all for one!"
"Just like the four Musketeers!" Rhonda said smiling.
"I recognize this place," Maria said looking around. "It's Furnace Creek, inside Death Valley National Park. My mom is half Timbisha Indian. I've been here often to visit Grandma during Christmas but never in the summer. It can get to 120 degrees here in the summer!"
They are out at last but surviving mother nature can be the hardest test of all.
Rick has been searching the horizon, "Hey, is that a mirage or is that some sort of hotel or something peeking up over that ridgeline?"
The others all looked, "I think it is!" Rhonda squealed happily.
"Yeah, but we still need water before we go because it looks several hours and a hard climb away and they say you should hydrate every 20 minutes in the desert." Maria replied with a frown, "As Exemplars we might get away with every hour or even longer but a hike through this desert with a climb at the end could still kill us if we don't have water. Anyone see any springs?"
"In the desert? I thought deserts had no water?"
"Not really. All deserts have some and Furnace Creek is known as an Oasis of sorts. There are hot springs and even occasional rains here. I'm worried that the building has drained the local water table to supply it's guests. If we are where we think we are it's the Furnace Creek Ranch and Inn. Depending on which location that is it might even be open but first we need to get there and that means water and shelter and traveling by night if at all possible."
They spread out a little and were looking to see if the ridge they were on had any caves or anything that might even suggest water. "Travel by night because it's cooler?" Rick asked.
"That and because otherwise we'd fry. Rhonda will get it worst but all of us will sunburn if we stay in the sun for long enough," Maria replied.
"Yeah, I think I'm a lot more likely to fry." She looked down at her milk pale skin, "I used to try to tan every summer with Maria up on the roof or out at Orchard Beach but I burned even with SPF 30 on." She frowned, "I hate to think what I'll look like out here without any unless we find shade soon." She wiped sweat out of her eyes, "and water too."
"I'll think of something to do Rhonda. Don't worry, I'm on it," Rick called to her.
Rhonda replied from off to the right, "Actually I think we should go this way." She was pointing off to the right and down, "I'm not sure why but I do."
Rick looked at her, she seemed oddly confident, her arm was pointing with not even a little wobble. He said, "Is this like the bad feeling you got just before our plane got hijacked? I mean I'm for taking the chance anyway but if these feeling keep being right then we have found another power that might help us."
Rhonda looked startled, "Man that feels like so long ago now." She paused then nodded, "Yeah I think it is the same feeling. How weird is that?" She started walking again and the others shared a look then followed behind her.
About 10 minutes later she led them to a cave hidden from above by a shadowed overhang. It would have impossible to see from above and was even hard to see from as little as ten feet away. Getting out of the sun was a blessing but they were dog tired after everything they'd been through. They all picked a relatively smooth rock and sat panting. The brutal heat making everything an exertion, even walking.
After a few minutes though Rick stood up, "I'm going to explore the cave. If we're really lucky there might be water back there instead of hungry bears or killer bees."
He started walking and Maria called, "Wait up, I'll come with you. It'll get dark in there soon. I want to see if I can manage the flashlight trick. If nothing else I can ..." She paused, about to say 'protect you' she changed it to, "keep you company." She didn't want to call attention to the fact that she was stronger and had powers better suited to combat. She was worried he'd hurt himself but doubted he enjoy hearing that or having his girlfriend protect him. She wasn't even sure he'd want to hear her calling him her boyfriend.
Rick smiled, "You are always welcome to accompany me anywhere Maria."
As they walked back farther in to the cave they made small talk. He learned about what it was like going to public Grammar and Middle Schools that go from grades 1-6 then 7-9. She learned about going to a Catholic school that had eight grades. They were both faintly surprised that there were two ways of doing it.
"So you're a year older?" he said.
"Yeah but we'll both be Freshman at Whateley. Whenever we get there," she frowned.
"Hey, we will get there. Never doubt it," Rick put a hand on her shoulder, "We got this far didn't we?"
"I wasn't frowning at our chances, I was thinking it's gotten dark enough to try making light again," she sighed. "You'd better move back a little and close your eyes. I'm not sure how well this will go."
Rick put his hand back at his side and stepped two paces away to the other side of the tunnel. He kept his eyes open though, "I bet you get it right this time."
Maria smiled, "Thanks. Here goes nothing." She lifted her arms to shoulder level palms forward, closed her eyes, and concentrated. She started glowing all over at first like she had in the tunnel and Rick was wondering if he should say something when things changed. The light started to reced upwards from her feet and grew brighter as it did so. As Rick watched fascinated on several levels the light slowly continued receding upward and after it passed her knees it started receding from her head down. The light stopped moving down shortly after it passed her shoulders but continued moving up past her hips until it all pooled on her chest. It was as bright as a strong flashlight, more than good enough to allow them to see their footing and notice any tunnel branches or dangers. She breathed out and opened her eyes, "That's as concentrated as I can get it."
"It's good light," Rick said, "But have you noticed ..." his voice trailed off as he searched for the right words.
"Yeah, I know," she said smiling. "I think I might be losing my ability to be embarrassed though because I mainly just think this is funny." She chuckled, "At least now boys have a good reason to call these 'headlights'."
Rick blushed, "Boys used to say that to you?" He couldn't imagine walking up to a girl and saying something like that. A couple of guys in his old school might have but they knew they teacher would send them home if they tried it.
"Well not to my face but I've heard it said about me." Maria looked at him, "You can't be too surprised. I know boys have all sorts of names for breasts and even if you and Bobby are nicer than most you must know them."
"Well yeah, but we'd never say them in school or to any girl," he shrugged. "I guess you think we're lame huh?"
"No, I think you're awesome and he's pretty nice too," she kissed his cheek. "Now let's keep looking for water."
"Okay," he started walking again and told her about being on the track team and getting Bobby to start running with him as a way to stay in shape and get away from bullies easier. She told him about being taller than all the girls in her class and most of the boys. The cave was longer than they expected and had been sloping down so when they reached the back of it they were well below the sand and it was cool enough that they were hopeful of finding water.
"Some caves like this have pools below because moisture in the air condenses out as it gets cooler and rolls downhill to the bottom." Is the way Maria put it so they kept walking further hoping to find enough to drink and maybe even bathe.
When they finally reached the far end of the tunnel however the water they found was just a trickle running down the back wall. She looked at him, "Not very useful is it? I think I have an idea that will help though."
"Go for it. Need any help?" Rick asked.
"Nope," she placed her palms on the wettest part of the rock and absorbed as much heat as possible. When she stepped back ice was filling all the cracks and glittering in the light she cast. Then she released all the heat she'd absorbed from the wall and elsewhere in a single blast. The ice turns to steam and the sudden temperature differential cracks off bits of stone. She does that several times and each time the water flows a bit faster and with a bit more volume until it reaches a point where it looks like a water fountain and stops there. She drinks thirstily and steps back, "It takes less energy to do that if you can absorb some first but I hope we can find food soon."
"Now that we have water we can head for the resort by daylight. There must be food there." He smiles, "I've even come up with a way to keep the fair skinned Scot from sunburning." He stuck out his tongue, "She might not enjoy it but it's her own fault for being born so pale." He bent to drink himself, it was warm and had a lot of minerals but it was very welcome.
Maria giggled, "Yes, I have a Timbisha grandma and my dad is from Spain, your dad might have been German/American but your mom was Japanese, and both of Bobby's parents are from Peru so she was clearly delinquent in her choices. Let's go back, I want to see the look on her face when you tell her whatever you have in mind."
After everyone had their fill of water he explained his idea to Rhonda. "I don't see how sand will keep me from burning," she said.
"Well while you and Bobby got your drinks I practiced and I can manifest it where I like now as long it isn't too far away and in line of sight. It should stick to the sweat of which we're all producing copious amounts and you can't get a sunburn through it. It blocks the sun completely like zinc oxide. I wouldn't even try it if we had food but we don't so we need to go where we can get it. If you really hate the idea then I guess we could try to wait until night but I think it will work."
Rhonda sighed and nodded, "Well I've had sand in my suit often enough to know how it'll feel and it's better than sunburn everywhere so I agree." She turned to Maria, "But you know how I suck at climbing. How many times over the last nine years of gym class have I made it to the top of the rope or the wall?"
"None. I'll help you all I can. I know that Rick's mostly worried about me and my fast metabolism," Maria replied.
"That's not your fault and I happen to agree with him that potential starvation is worse than a sandy buttcrack," she grinned at them, "but you still owe me a piggyback ride. You got out of it last time but this time I'm holding you to it." She gestured, "If we are going up that ridge across the sand out there I'll be riding up on your back. Otherwise I'll fall and it won't just be a few feet to the gym floor this time either." She frowned briefly, "You can manage that right? I mean I know you're strong enough but will you have the energy?"
"Sure!" Maria said brightly, "I can absorb some from the sun and the heat of the rock face. Don't worry about me I'll be fine."
Rick saw she had her fingers crossed behind her and almost said something then decided against it. He'd just keep an eye out and carry them both up if necessary.
Rick coated Rhonda thickly with sand everywhere but her face at a distance. He manifested a big handful more and gave it to her, "I'm hoping that if you keep your head down you'll not burn much there. Fortunately your hair is long enough to block the sun from your head and neck. But you can put this anywhere you worry about. If it slides off anywhere else just tell me and I'll add more." He smiled, "You'll be better protected than us! We might get red despite any protection we get from from our ancestry and then you can laugh at us."
Bobby added, "Yeah and we'll probably end up just as sandy by the time we make it in."
With that they took off into the brutal heat and fierce sunlight and started walking to the next ridgeline. They reached it panting and sweating and arranged themselves for the climb.
"Your grandma lives here year 'round?" Rick asked Maria incredulously. He found it hard to imagine an old woman moving around in this desert.
She smiled and nodded, "Yup! She doesn't even bother with air conditioning either. It wasn't available when she was growing up and she never bothered to add it in after. The tribe has been here since time immemorial and are fully adapted. The younger generation usually does get A/C but I doubt they use it as much as I would. I just wish we'd had something to carry water in when we left the cave. With proper water and food I'd bet we could walk right through the National Park the long way."
"Well I'm glad we don't have to," He looked up at the sloping ridge, "It doesn't look too steep but if any of you get in to trouble just call out. The others will come help." He looked over to where Rhonda was hanging from Maria's shoulders. "That goes extra for you as you'll be off balance with Rhonda on your back. Let me know if you need any help at all."
"I will," Maria promised. Rhonda nodded tiredly, she seemed to need the ride for more reasons than one. "Let's get started," Maria said, "Sooner we get going the sooner we finish."
"True. Alright, let's move out," Rick said.
A Very Eventful Summer
Chapter 11
by Freya
They survived everything so far so how hard can a little rock climbing be?
Bobby turned to the smooth rock and punched it at head height. *crack* Once he cleared out the broken stone he had a handhold. He lifted himself up by it and punched higher. In this fashion he slowed ascended. They would climb single file of necessity.
"You next Maria. I'll go last," Rick gestured her ahead of him. She nodded and started climbing.
"If we fall and you try to catch us you'll most likely end up falling yourself," she was concentrating on her footing but couldn't help worrying about him and about Rhonda on her back.
Rick shrugged, "I guess I'm busted. I thought you'd just accuse me of wanting to go last so I could ogle."
Maria chuckled, "I doubt I look that appetizing at the moment and I smell even worse, besides I've gotten to know you and you feel responsible for us even though we're older than you, even Bobby by a month or two, and you don't have any more experience at this than we do."
"Well I am responsible for you if I'm in charge," he replied, "That's one thing I learned from my dad before he died."
"I am sure he'd be proud of you Rick, you're doing a great job." She chuckled, "And if you can climb well enough to ogle while you climb I won't even complain."
"What?" he said startled.
She laughed, "You're fun to tease." She started to shrug then thought better of it, "I told you in the cave I think I'm fresh out of embarassment where you guys are concerned." Her voice took on a teasing tone once more, "As long as it's me you're ogling and not Rhonda and her big, white, sandy butt." That got protests from all three of the others and she laughed again.
"Her butt isn't fat!" Bobby called down, "It's just right, J. Lo quality at least. Even if it is pale it's..." he trailed off and Rick was sure he was blushing as well as his complexion allowed.
Rhonda giggled, "Thank you. That's quite a compliment."
They continued climbing in the hot sun and Rick had to replace the sand on Rhonda a few times but it seemed like his makeshift was working. As they neared the top though he noticed Maria's arms were shaking as she climbed and for the last few steps her legs were too.
Rhonda noticed and once they'd reached the flat ridgetop she said, "I shouldn't have asked you to do that. Now you might not have the energy to get yourself down." She was frowning, "I'd offer to switch but unless the trip down is much shorter than the trip up I don't think I can."
Bobby had been lying flat on the smooth rock but at that he rolled up on to one elbow, "It would be my honor to carry you down Rhonda. May I?" He was looking her in the eyes as he said it so he saw her blush a bit as she nodded.
"I'll agree but please don't tease me because while Maria may have run out of embarrassment I've still got a whole bunch. Okay?"
Bobby nodded, "I won't tease if you don't. Deal?" He sat up and stuck out a hand.
"Deal," she replied and shook on it.
Rick sat up, "Maria? May I carry you down? I am glad you helped Rhonda but I think she's right in saying you'll need help getting down."
She stayed laying down but looked at him and raised an eyebrow, "You can carry me down?"
"Yeah," he replied, "I may not be as strong as Bobby but I'm still far stronger than a baseline. I can carry you easily and it will be my pleasure. I won't promise not to tease though. You've got some teasing coming." He smiled though to show he was mostly joking about that.
Maria gave a tired chuckle and held out her hand, "Deal."
Rick shook it with a smile on his face. "We'll rest here a bit I think then go down. I'll go check to see if we'll need Boby to make handholds down like he did on our way up." Rick got up and walked the few paces to the place where the ridge started sloping down.
"I hope not, Bobby replied, "it'll be harder to do going down."
Rick called back, "Well my friend you need not worry. This side has natural handholds all the way down to the Inn's back fence and it evens out to a walkable slope halfway down."
"Good," called Maria. Can you see if the place is open or closed for the summer?"
"I can," Rick replied, "It's open. I see people by a big pool but I can't make out too much from up here. Let's get down and get this over with hopefully by tomorrow we'll be at the Academy or back in NYC at least and dressed."
"Oh man, I so want a shower. I smell like a goat and I can't wait to get all this sand off," Rhonda said as she climbed on Bobby's back.
"We all smell like goats Rhonda, it's okay." She turned to Rick, "How do we do this? I mean with me being taller."
Rick thought briefly then replied, "I think you'll have to lift your feet until I'm over the side than it shouldn't matter anymore. At least not until we get all the down."
"Alright," she wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned her weight forward then lifted her feet off the floor, "I'm ready."
They started climbing down but soon they switched to walking down the sandy slope. Bobby had no trouble switching but Rick needed to use a fair bit of dexterity. He ended up with her arms still around his neck and a hand under each of Maria's knees as he walked down the slippery slope to the back fence.
"We could break in but I think it's best if we just follow this around to a door and ask to be let in. We can pay as long as it's not an astronomical amount so there's really no reason they shouldn't let us stay until Dr. Thunder can send someone for us." He started around the fence to their right, "Come on. We're almost to showers and room service!"
When they reached the doors they caused a huge commotion. the others let Rick do the talking, "We can pay," he panted. "I have a credit card number to give you but we need a phone, a meal, and a room or two. We need to call our guardians to come get us."
Arms helped them to seats in the lobby and a bellhop brought them all glasses of water clinking with ice. "Bless you for this," Rick said after draining the glass in one long drink.
The people clustered around had been asking questions rapid fire and he used the time he spent drinking to think. He also noticed that he and his friends weren't the only ones naked. The staff was dressed but the patrons weren't. Oh, most had sunhats and a few had shoes and fannypacks but none had on clothes. 'This will make it both better and worse,' he thought. He didn't want to mention mutants if he didn't have to but he didn't want to make them suspicious with a story that couldn't be checked out either.
"Maria's grandmother lives nearby and we were visiting during the summer. We'd heard of this place and wanted to come see it," not technically true but hopefully they'd give Maria a chance to talk to her Grandma before they asked her anything. "We were driving a dune buggy and it turned over but we knew we were much closer to here than there so we walked in."
"You could have been killed you crazy kids!" seemed to be the gist of what everyone was shouting but at least nobody was shouting for the cops, or worse the MCO. Once Rick gave them a credit card # that checked out and signed for a two bedroom suite they were allowed to go and rest. They did have to promise to call Maria's grandma before they fell asleep and Rick truthfully promised they would.
They moved up to the two bedroom suite where Bobby and Rhonda headed for the showers while Maria and Rick headed for the phones. Rick called the ECG from one bedroom and Maria called her grandma from another.
The Empire City Guard was shocked but pleased to hear from us. The guards had been thrust also naked through a different one way portal and landed in Denali National Park in Alaska two days ago. They'd fortunately landed in sight of a Ranger station and were fine now but they'd assumed the teens had landed in the same park but further away. There was a large search going on both near where the plane was found and in the Alaskan park. However after two days of no traces found and no contact it was assumed they'd perished in some particularly brutal test.
Rick was surprised two whole days had passed. He was suddenly feeling much more tired knowing that. He told Dr. Thunder the basics of their situation and she agreed that not coming out and announcing they were mutants was a good idea. She sighed at the fact that they were in a nudist resort but agreed they'd had little choice. She okayed his use of the emergency funds and told him he could use it further as necessary but to be ready to explain each purchase. She would send actual cards and some clothes by fast messenger to the resort and asked that they stay there until collected. She wasn't planning on taking any further chances with transportation. She was planning to drive the ECG's specially Hummer to get them personally but there was a current crisis the team had to take care of first. Since they were safe it would be best if they stayed at the resort incognito until the team could collect them. He had a sudden flash of them getting on a Greyhound bus and finding John the traitorous pilot behind the wheel so he agreed to wait right where they until someone from the team arrived to collect them.
After his talk with her he took a cold shower to keep himself awake long enough to eat and head back to the main room with a towel around his waist. Maria was just entering wearing a larger towel wrapped to cover her from cleavage to mid-thigh. She smiled as she hung up, "I ordered food for all of us from Room Service. My grandma is willing to cover for us but I'll have to give her the whole story this Christmas. She offered to come pick us up but I don't want to get her any more involved in this. Those bastards are still out there somewhere. Did you get through?"
"Yeah, I did. Dr. Thunder is shipping us some clothes and some credit cards. We can charge things to the room until then but only necessary purchases please. I'll have to account for them when we get back to New York. She is coming for us in person and says it may take a few days so we should sit tight until then." He thought about telling them there was a crisis but he decided they had enough to worry about without adding to it.
After a huge meal they all slept about twelve hours, the girls in one bed, Rick in the other and Bobby on the couch. The girls giggled at them but neither boy felt comfortable sleeping naked in the same bed.
The next morning after breakfast they hit the gift shop looking for anything to wear or at least some sunscreen. They found lots of sunscreen but no actual clothing. They ended up getting SPF 45, and four sets of sun hats, flip-flops, fannypacks, and cellphones with the resort's logo on them and charging it to their room. Attired as well as possible they went and explored the resort for the remainder of the day. The promised cards and new clothes arrived the next day via express courier and they were happy to see them even if they couldn't wear them yet. Something else arrived that day however that they weren't happy to see, not at all. Criminals intent on robbing the resort!
A Very Eventful Summer
Chapter 12
by Freya
Criminals attack the resort!
As he stepped into the lobby Rick saw three men with guns pointing them at Bobby. Rhonda was crouched down behind him. She looked relieved when she saw him. Rick put a finger to his lips and she nodded. Rick slowly sidestepped to the wall looking around for Maria. He was happy was he saw she wasn't involved. Her only offense was entirely too obviously a mutation and she wasn't as tough as either Bobby or Rick. He slowly stepped along to the wall towards the men as Bobby spoke.
"You've got everything we have already why not just leave?" His voice sounded weary rather than angry and Rick shared that sentiment. If they gunmen left now he could safely leave them to the reservation police. However the next words out of the criminal's mouth dispelled his hope along any chance of peaceful resolution.
"Well she may not have any money but she still has something we want," the leader said leering at Rhonda. The others chuckled nastily and grinned as Bobby frowned and clenched his fists.
"I won't let you harm her," he declared. It was a very real threat but the three men didn't know that anymore than they knew Rick was sliding slowly closer along the wall. He was concentrating on filling the guns with sand but was unsure as to how well he was succeeding if at all so he continued to slowly inch closer as Bobby continued to hold their attention.
"Think you can stop us boy? You ain't got no weapons at all and we can tell," the leader laughed at his own humor, followed shortly by his cronies. "That's why we picked this here resort, because we could be sure that no one but the guards would be armed and there ain't many of them. By the time they get here I'll have me some hostages and the boys will be having fun with your friend there." He gave a grin that would have matched any supervillain for pure evil and said, "You might as well just give up since we hold all the power here."
Rick was almost even with them now and debating when he should step away from the wall to be closer still when he heard a female voice, "There are many types of power villain."
Everyone looked towards the voice and there was Maria standing with legs well braced and her fists on her hips. The leader laughed again, "That pose is less effective when you're nekkid you know. If you're trying to scare us then I'm afraid all you've done is add yourself to the list after the blonde there." He gestured with his gun and suddenly noticed Rick stepping quietly forward. He pointed his gun and said, "Nice diversion kid, if you'd had a gun it might even have worked." Then grinning maliciously he pulled the trigger; unfortunately for him the trigger barely moved and that with an audible grinding sound.
Rick smiled, "Sand in your gun? How could that have happened?" He and Bobby stepped closer and the other two goons found their guns likewise fouled as they tried to shoot. After that the hardest part was not hitting them too hard.
The manager thanked them and comped their stay, refunding everything they'd spent in gratitude. Then he asked them to meet him in his office before the police arrived. "Although I am grateful to for your help and I'm sure the tribe as a whole would be proud of Maria for her part in things it has also come to my attention that you four are mutants. Now I'm not going to call the MCO on you and wouldn't even if you hadn't just saved the resort. I'm Timbisha myself and enough of a student of history to see parallels between how our tribe was treated and how people treat mutants today. However I am going to ..." he paused briefly as if searching for the right word, "expedite your travel to your destination."
Seeing suspicious looks on their faces he hastened to reassure them, "I only mean that it would be in the interest of both you and me that you not meet the police and that we cover up your part in things. I've arranged for my driver to take you to the nearest Amtrak station in my limo. I'm not sure you should head back to your rooms even once so with your permission I'll send my assistant her to pack your belongings and bring them down here. We can take the service elevator to the garage and meet her at the limo." He gestured to a cheerful blonde in a teal suit, "If you'll just hand her your keys?"
Rick frowned and thought for a bit, "Well I can't fault your logic however little I like it so we'll agree to go." He handed over his keycard and the others followed suit, "Thank you for not charging us for the stay and not calling the MCO. This might have ended better but it might have ended far worse too." Rick shook the manager's hand and followed him to the service elevator. Once at the limo they dressed and Rick pulled out his new smartphone. "I'll see if I can book us on a train going to Dunwich," he smiled, "Who knows? Maybe a train will be safest after all. I know I'm not anxious to get on another chartered plane."
The others agreed with that. With a train at least to could get off early if you had to without needing a parachute. By the time they arrived they were all dressed and had four tickets and two sleeping compartments waiting for them.
"I tried to get one sleeping compartment for us all," he started then blushed, "for safety's sake only." Rhonda snickered and he blushed darker then continued, "But they won't do it since we are underage. So we have two sleeping compartments right next to each other and we'll sit together in the dining car. Good enough?"
"More than good enough," Maria kissed his cheek, "You're doing great. When does it leave?"
"Three o'clock. One hour away, it was the soonest I could find one going our way."
An uneventful hour later they were on board storing their meager belongings. When the train arrived it was more full than they'd expected and less luxurious but they were still happy to be getting on and happier still when it pulled out on time with no problems. They gathered in the boy's sleeping compartment to talk. "I'm glad I stored my sentimental stuff back at ECG headquarters," Maria said and Rhonda nodded. "Yeah," Rhonda added, "otherwise we would have lost it all. As it is we have little enough. I never knew being a superhero would be so hard on the clothes."
They chatted about possible costumes and codenames and relaxed. It seemed that their eventful detour would be over soon and they were already imagining what life would like at school. Eventually they wound down and headed for the dining car.
"I'm sorry Maria but if we are going to stay under cover I don't think you should go back for thirds," Rick said frowning and whispering. "I know you're still hungry but people nearby are already whispering about us and I don't think we can afford to stand out. Let's head back to the rooms and I'll go see if they have any place to buy snacks." He hated the thought of her going to bed hungry when there was food but if she ate like a hungry energizer on the train it might lead to much worse.
"It's okay Rick," Maria replied. "I shouldn't have asked. Don't look so worried I'll be fine with two plates full. I could eat more but I don't have to." She smiled, "Thanks for watching out for us."
That night there was some discussion, in both rooms, about whether to sneak over to the other bedroom but, brave as they were, none of the four were audacious enough to risk the rejection that might come. it was even for the best as they would need to be well rested for what came next.
Just as the sun was rising the train was forced to make an emergency stop. All the crew and passengers were throw from their beds or off their feet. In the boys room Rick picked himself off the floor unhurt, "Are you okay Bobby?"
"Yeah," Bobby got up and stretched. "Let's go make sure the girls are okay."
"You took the words right out of my mouth," Rick spared a thought for the fact that they were both in boxer shorts but he figured anyone they met in the hallway would be either just as badly dressed or not give a damn.
The door to the girl's room was only steps away but they passed a few people trying to make their way forward to see what had happened. Rick was curious too but he wanted to be sure the girls were safe first. Reaching the door he knocked, "It's us! Can we come in?"
"If it's just you two you can come in. We're not dressed," Rhonda's voice came back. Rick and Bobby went and Bobby locked the door behind them. Rick saw Rhonda still wrapping an ace bandage on Maria's ankle and shouted, "What happened? Can I do anything to help?"
"I'm okay Rick. I just twisted my ankle falling off the top bunk. Rhonda has it wrapped up and its feeling better already. I'm just sorry for her because she got to feel the pain too." She did look mostly okay Rick thought. The red nightshirt she was wearing reached to her knees so it might be hiding bruises but, except for her left leg, she was wasn't moving like anything hurt.
"Yeah, " Rhonda took up the story, "for awhile after we fell I thought it was my ankle that was twisted. I'll be glad when I learn to block this it gets in the way of helping. I also should take some first aid courses too. At least if I can treat wounds I won't feel quite so useless."
Rick turned to look at her, "You're not useless!" He started to say more then he saw she was wearing just a pair of white silk panties and his tirade faltered. He was getting set to start again when she giggled.
"Why the blush Rick? I'm flattered by both the emotion you started out with and the one that replaced it but you've seen it all before and I know how you feel about Maria," she paused to giggle again as both and Maria blushed, "so why would did me being topless throw you?"
Rick just shrugged, "It was different at the resort. I'm not sure how but it was."
Bobby answered for Rick who was unable to articulate his thought, "I think it's because you girls are in bedclothes of your own choosing. We didn't have much choice at the resort and we had even less choice before but knowing that all you sleep in is a scrap of white silk is ... sexy. To me too by the way." He smiled at her and Rick nodded, "I guess that's true." He turned to Maria, "Not that you don't always look great! I just ..." he trailed off.
She raised an eyebrow, "We'll go in to this wandering eye of yours later. For now do you know what happened?"
"No, we came straight here," Rick said. His stomach dropping, he wasn't looking forward to that little talk. Maybe by the time they could talk she'd have forgotten it? He decided it was worth a shot, "Bobby and I can go look but you should stay and rest your ankle and Rhonda should stay to guard you."
"Ha! You mean the girls should stay behind and let the manly men take care of things!" Rhonda looked genuinely upset.
"NO! You can sense people before they are visible and point them out to Maria before they get into the room and she can zap them if they're hostile but without you they might surprise her and even if they don't she won't know they are around until they come through the door or the window. You really are an important team member and I want you here to guard her because you're the best person for the job. We'll go forward because nobody will find anything unusual in that and we might learn something. I'm hoping we don't need to use our powers at all but I'm afraid our luck is not that good."
Rhonda smiled again, "Wow, these switches from fearless leader to gawking bashful boy and back are getting faster. You'll have to pardon me if sometimes I can't keep up." She stood up and said you know given our luck so far as a team you should practice developing tactics while staring." She started to shimmy making her breasts wobble in intriguing patterns, "Who said 'All war is deception'?"
"Sun Tzu, and stop trying to get me in trouble with Maria," Rick replied then winced when Maria corrected him.
"You mean 'more trouble'. If we're going to be dating I can't have you gawking at her nipples," Maria said then frowned, "especially if our luck for the past few days holds and we end up walking home naked or something."
"Right, well I'm just going to go check with the conductor. I'll be back." Rick left looking flustered and Bobby went with him. They met the conductor in the dining car. He looked scared and nervous and he was hiding it badly. "I have an announcement to make here then I'll go and make it to following cars." He cleared his throat, "Please remain calm. The train is not damaged, it has been stopped by robbers." There were gasps but before anyone started shouting or anything he held up his hands for silence and continued, "There is still no cause for alarm! They have said they plan to harm no one, they just want loot. Their leader states that as long as no one resists no one will be hurt. Please cooperate and the corporation will assist you in filing any insurance claims and take care of the police reports. One of them will be coming through shortly with a bag, please return to your staterooms and be ready to put your cash and jewelry in the bag. Please do not try to attack him as there are four more and they are all powerful mutants. They call themselves 'The Royal Flush Gang' and attacking them will just get us all hurt." He waited a beat then ended with, "That is all."
Rick and Bobby left the group who were all standing around asking each other things like "did he say mutants?" and "What can we do?" They headed back to the room and Rick knocked, "Are you decent? It's Rick and Bobby."
"No we aren't. Come in anyway!" Rhonda replied with a giggle.
They entered and told what the conductor said, "I think we should do it. There are more of them than us and they have more experience. We should just pretend to be baselines and hand over our cash and watches. We can replace them and we won't get kicked off the train for starting a superpowered fight or worse. That's what I'm planning and I hope you all agree."
Bobby agreed right off while looking at Rhonda, she argued a bit but agreed that Maria was in shape to run and then they all looked to Maria. She said, "I'm willing to pretend but I want us all in one room when he gets here. I worry about you guys just like you worry about me. So go and dress and grab your stuff and be back before he gets here okay?"
"Sounds fair to me," Rick said and Bobby agreed. As they rushed off to get dressed and grab their cash Bobby asked, "Do you think she'll still be topless when the supervillain comes by?"
"I dunno man. I'm trying not to think of it. I just hope we get to Whateley in one piece. Getting to school shouldn't be this hard!" Soon they were dressed and had all their spare cash in their pockets, returning to the girl's room Rick gestured for Bobby to knock.
He knocked once, "We're coming in." Then he opened the door and headed on in. Rick followed relieved the girls were dressed.
Rick said, "Now we just wait," but they didn't have to wait long.
Shortly a man wearing a bodysuit festooned with gear and carrying a weird gun in one hand and a bag in another appeared in the doorway. The body was mostly white with black symbols resembling the card suit of spades all over it. In an electronically filtered voice he said, "Put your hands up. IF you cooperate you will not be harmed. This gun fires sleep rays not bullets, you will wake up in four hours poorer but unharmed unless you give me trouble."
Rick lifted his hands over his head and the others followed suit. The man shot Maria first, the beam was a pale yellow and caught her directly in the chest. Nothing happened and he shot her again. Rick frowned and leaped towards him and the man dove back out of the room. "Ten here," the man voice sounded as he ran back towards the front of the train firing wildly behind him, "ran into mutant opposition."
Bobby slammed the man's head into the wall stopping him from giving any further specifics but the damage had been done. Maria limped up leaning on Rhonda's shoulder, "What do we do now?"
"Necessary change of plan. Bobby and I will try to pick them off one by one while you two guard sleeping beauty here." Rick looked Maria in the eye, "You can't sneak on that ankle," he looked at Rhonda, "And you can spot someone approaching even through a wall. So you two hold the fort here unless you'd rather go back to the room."
"No, I'd rather be out in the open, better chance of spotting people coming and maybe we can at least make these people comfortable," she gestured at the sleeping forms sprawled around the dining car.
"Alright," Rick looked up at Bobby, "you okay with this?"
"Yeah, I agree it's the best thing to do," he put his hand on Rick's shoulder. "If we're going we need to go now."
Rick nodded, "They'll be expecting us so let's try to do the unexpected." He opened a window and stuck his head out looking both ways, "We can climb up out here and maybe catch them by surprise."
"Good enough," Bobby nodded and soon they were creeping along the ground towards the head of the train.
As they were creeping along the side of the train they saw a shadowed figure outside speaking to someone inside the engine room. "I think that's one of them," Bobby whispered.
Rick nodded and taking careful aim fired the strange ray gun he had removed from Ten. There was a soft zap sound and the figure collapsed revealing itself to be a woman with butter blond hair and pale skin dressed as if she was the Queen of Spades. Her crown had fallen beside her and rolled away striking a rock with a sharp ringing sound.
Both boys winced at the sound, looking around to see if anyone noticed. From the engine room of the train raced a man wearing another crown. He was running towards them as fast as a racehorse gallops with his hands in fists. Rick managed to shoot him with another pale yellow ray from Ten's gun before he reached them. The man, obviously either King or Jack, fell to his hands and knees but stayed conscious, mostly. He was shaking his head and blinking a lot as Bobby walked up to him. Rick tried to shoot him again but the gun started to get hot and smoke. Rick tossed it away as Bobby punched the villain hard in the back of the head. The man slumped down but any chance of stealth disappeared as the gun exploded with a loud bang.
Rick and Bobby hurried forward and stepped into the engine room. Inside were only sleeping men in train uniforms. "Looks like we're not going anywhere soon even if we defeat all these clowns," Rick said.
Bobby went to look down the other side of the train and found a forcefield blocking the open doorway. He rapped his knuckles against it making *tap tap* sounds. Rick frowned and checked the door they'd come in by and it was blocked as well. "I'm going to see if I can overload it. If I can't but nothing bad happens then you can try next," Rick said.
Bobby frowned in return, "Let me try first. We might not get more than one crack at it and I'm stronger."
"True. Okay, but be careful," Rick replied.
Bobby planted his feet and punched as hard as he could at the invisible barrier blocking them in the engine. The forcefield made a *tung* sound and a rainbow of colors briefly outlined the otherwise invisible barrier but nothing else occurred. "Well no boobytraps at least. I'll give it a few more whacks. Maybe you can find a hammer or something? My fists will probably start hurting soon."
"Sure," Rick said starting to look around the engine room. Shortly he walked over to Bobby with two things, a knife and a ballpeen hammer. "It's no sledge but I found a hammer," he shrugged, "the knife might be better though. It'll concentrate all your strength on the point which might help you crack this thing."
"Don't strain yourself," an unseen man called. "I'll only keep you pent up until Ace can deal with your girlfriends and get back then you'll be free." He chuckled nastily, "Free to be beaten up and maybe worse but free! So just settle back and wait, hitting my forcefields will just make you more tired later."
Bobby took both and Rick turned back and went to the PA system, "Watch out girls! They are sending someone codenamed Ace to get you and we're stuck up front for now." Warning given Rick turned to nervously watch Bobby stab at the forcefield with the Bowie knife.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The girls heard the warning as they were arranged the sleeping bodies in the dining car more comfortably. Rhonda stood up and looked around then closed her eyes as she concentrated.
"Can you detect anyone?" Maria said as she looked out the windows.
"Yes, there is a guy broadcasting very clear anger and malice and he is getting closer fast." Rhonda pointed with her eyes closed towards a section of wall with no windows, "He is that way."
Maria pulled in sunlight darkening the car as if it was twilight, "Let me know if he suddenly changes course. I can't see anybody out there but for all we know he's invisible."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
When Bobby hit the forcefield it became briefly visible as concentric rings of color spread through it from the point of impact like ripples in a pond. Bobby then gripped the handle in both hands above his head and drove the point forward with all his strength. The field held but the heard a loud cry from outside and the forcefield shuddered visibly as pastel colors washed back and forth across it.
A man dress as the Jack of Spades stepped in to view as Bobby was pulling back for another blow. The man was bleeding from the nose and put his hand on the other side of the forcefield. "Damn your unnatural hide boy; I will not let you through. If I let myself get beat by some high school kid my rep is gone."
Bobby just drove the knife forward again without saying anything but Rick chuckled, "We already beat three of you already isn't your rep already trashed?"
The Jack just growled and did not reply. Everytime Bobby hit the forcefield it shook like jello and more blood poured down the man's face. Soon the pastels were no longer fading back to transparency in between blows. Rick decided he could help best with his mouth since there wasn't room for two in the narrow doorway. He chuckled again on purpose and tried to make it sound nasty, "Man you must be hurting Jack and all for nothing. Whoever you sent after the girls will fail, now that they are warned they'll kick his ass. If you keep this up you'll have a stroke or heart attack even before he gets through your forcefield and if you don't ... well imagine the field falling and the knife hitting you as hard. Do you think you'd survive that?"
That last comment made was unwise as it made Bobby stop and back away instead and the villain got a much needed breather. The Jack of Spades smiled through bloody teeth, "I think your scare tactics just backfired on you boy but it wasn't a bad try. Too bad your friend here is as gutless as he is strong."
Bobby dropped the knife and started pounding the forcefield with his bare fists. "I'll get through your forcefield anyway and this way it will be that much more satisfying when I do finally break through."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Meanwhile, Maria was waiting with glowing hands for Rhonda's word to attack. Rhonda stood with her eyes closed concentrating hard when suddenly she pointed. Maria didn't question it she just blasted where Rhonda was pointing.
There was a scream and a man wavered in to visibility, sweating and gasping. He was ghostly looking still and gave Maria a scared look then jumped right through the wall like a ghost. She had the time to take a second shot but was too shocked.
"Thanks," she stammered to Rhonda once he was gone. "You were dead on target."
Rhonda's eyes were open now, very wide open. "You're welcome," she gulped, "I should keep checking. He might be back." She took a few moments to before she was calm enough to search again but she managed it.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Back in the Engine compartment Bobby's punches were too much for the weakened forcefield and when it collapsed so did Jack. As he lay on the ground gasping and bleeding from the nose, and ears Bobby jumped out to guard him, "Should I try to knock him out? He doesn't look so hot now and I might hit him too hard. Still he might recover if we just leave him alone and make more mischief for us later."
Rick looked around for makeshift restraints, "We can tie him up long enough to go help the girls then decide what to do with him." Finding nothing else Rick used pieces ripped from Jack's own uniform to tie him up. "Now let's go help the girls."
Rick and Bobby took off running back along the train, trying to get back to their companions in time to help.
By the time they got to their friends the girls had triumphed over the Ace and he was lying unconscious by the Ten. "Why didn't you tie him up like we did the Ten?" Rick asked.
"He can walk through walls, I doubt ropes would hinder him at all if he was awake," Maria replied.
"Did you boys defeat the other three?" Rhonda asked.
"Yes," Rick replied. "I'm just sorry we didn't get back in time to help."
"You did help Rick," Maria said. "You gave us a warning. Thank you," she smiled, "besides this way Rhonda and I learned what an awesome twosome we make!"
"We've always made a great team Maria!" Rhonda said giggling, "We just stepped it up from shopping and homework to defeating supervillains!"
"True," Maria said with a grin, "and the boys are keeping up very well at the hero stuff so maybe we should take them shopping with us when we finally get the chance to hit a mall?"
"As much fun as that would be," Rick said, looking as if he'd rather do almost anything else. "We have another small problem to solve first. All the crew are sleeping and we don't know if they or the villains will wake up first."
"For that matter," Bobby added, "we don't know if they called for help first or not and if the help they called will believe our story or not." He frowned, "They should but I've heard many stories about well meaning mutants getting arrested after helping or even worse. I'd hate to discover some of those rumors are true."
"So we have to vote on staying or going," Rick said. "Staying might be best after all since if we leave it will be 'leaving the scene of a crime'." He shrugged, "I think you girls are in less danger than we. We might or might not convince them we are probationary junior members of the Empire City Guard but you two have members of the ECG listed as your legal guardians. Anyone looking to make a few mutants disappear quietly won't want to bother you."
They went back to the girls' room to discuss it and then voted to stay and call the authorities. The Kansas state police were cooperative and helpful once they'd checked with the Guard. They had brought a specially reinforced vehicle and took custody of the royal flush gang. Paramedics checked over the sleeping crew and passengers and pronounced them to fine except fror a few bruises and bumps they got while falling. Eventually everyone woke up and the train continued on. It reached Grand Central Station around 8 A.M. the day after it should have arrived but without further incident.
However once they got off the train they spotted another problem, and worse it was looking for them!
Rhonda had a sudden bad feeling and looking to her left she saw the evil man that had taken over their chartered flight and started this nightmare. Fortunately he was looking away from her at the time. She gripped Rick's arm and hurried him along. He looked at her face and saw she was serious so he made for the steps at the fastest walk he could manage without causing a noticeable commotion in the crowd. The others followed them and soon enough they were outside and her feeling went away. She let out a shaky breath, "Let's keep walking away and I'll tell what happened."
They headed north on Park Avenue and she told them who she'd seen. They all gasped then Bobby wanted to head back and pound the guy's face in but Rick vetoed it. "We don't know all his powers and we do know he laughed at bullets fired at him from point blank range. They might have been hollow points instead of armor piercing but they still would have at least hurt most mutants. If you go back he'll just put the whammy on you again or you'll end up fighting in the midst of that huge crowd. We may be more experienced now than when he first took us but he is major league bad news and I doubt we are up to taking him down yet. We'll catch up to him someday but sorry, that day is not today."
Rick looked around at all of them, "Anybody know of a good place to hide around here? We need a place where we can hole up for the whole day if necessary and where we won't be visible to passers by or just anyone who wanders in off the street. When that guy realizes he's missed us he'll be looking all around. I don't know how much data they have on us so we should probably avoid any place any of us visits a lot and our homes as well as ECG HQ. At least until they are back from their current mission."
Maria suddenly smiled, "I think I know the perfect place! We can stay there all day, they don't let people past the front lobby unless they are clients and they have security because their clients include occasional celebrities and famous heroes. I know where it is because Rhonda and I always wanted to go and it's not too far." She shrugged, "It's also not cheap but it's definitely an emergency right? So hand over the credit card and I'll call to make a reservation as we walk there."
Rick handed over the card asking, "What is this place?"
"Don't worry, you'll see it soon. Now shush, I've got to call them before we arrive and set things up." She pulled out her phone and dialed a number from memory, "Hello is this the red door?" The others could only hear her side of the conversation but it made Rhonda grin like her favorite Birthday wish was coming true.
Rick tried to follow her comments and shortly he was wondering if he shouldn't have just suggested they just lose themselves in a huge store or something.
Meanwhile Maria's half of the conversation was going something like this, "Yes, I would. The VIP room. Two men and two women. No, that is fine. I assure it is not an issue, we have just com from a week at the Furnace Creek Inn. I'm glad you've heard of it, so you see... Very well my guardian's phone number is," and she then rattled off a phone number, "Why yes that is the phone number for Dr. Thunder. I guess she must be a good customer if you recognize it. I doubt she'll thank you for the interruption but if you insist on checking with her I can't stop you. Proof? Well the credit card I have is issued by them will that do? Ah, excellent. Here are the numbers, now can you accomodate us or not? Good, you'd have lost quite a lot of business otherwise. Oh, of course that was not a threat. We'll want the Ultimate Indulgence package for all all four of us. Yes, the whole day. Ending at seven p.m.? Just perfect. We're almost there. Shouldn't be more than five minutes or so. Thank you, I am sorry if I sounded harsh. I know you need to be careful, it's one reason we picked your establishment. It has a reputation for discretion and safety. Yes, we'll see you soon. I'm looking forward to it!" With that she hung up the phone and beamed a smile at them all.
Bobby groaned, "Do we have to get facials and all that frufru stuff?"
Maria said, "You'll love it if you try it. You can't possibly not love a spa day and besides the bastards will never find us there. By the time we leave we'll be rested and refreshed and we can call to see if the Guard are back yet. If they are we can wait inside for them and if not well then we'll be able to decide what to do next with clear heads. Right Rick?" She fixed him with a look that said clear as day that he'd better agree enthusiastically if he ever wanted to get back on her good side.
He couldn't quite manage enthusiasm but he did agree, "She's got a point Bobby. It is the last place anyone would think to look for us and it does meet all the criteria I outlined. I just hope they feed us." He looked at Maria.
"Oh yes," she replied. "Spa cuisine is included in the price and they already know we are mutants so they won't be shocked if I eat more than a normal teenage girl and they even have Exemplar masseuses so they can get at knotted muscles of Bricks like you and Bobby but I better not catch you ogling them mister! You are still on thin ice with me."
"I promise to ogle no one but you," Rick said with a smile.
Shortly they reached their destination and walked through the eponymous red door. "Hello and welcome to Elizabeth Arden's Red Door salon! Did you have an appointment?"
"Yes, I made one over the phone. We are booked for the vip room for the Ultimate?" Maria responded as they all waled up to the desk. There was soothing music being played and the walls were done in soothing pastels. Off to one side were a small cluster of chairs for people to wait in but they were currently empty.
"Ah yes, I see that here," the woman beamed a professional smile. "Please follow Jane here," she pointed to a younger woman in a pink smock, "She will show you to the room and get your food orders. Please tell her if you need anything or have any allergies or special requirements. I hope you enjoy your day with us!"
The pink smocked Jane led them through a door that cut off all sound from the street and looby. Inside it was hushed and the lighting was dimmer, the floor had deep and plush carpeting that absorbed the footfalls without a sound. Rhonda sighed and relaxed, "Ah, this is so nice. Soothing on many levels."
"Well if you're relaxed then I'm happy," Rick said. It was a reference to her premonitions of danger but their guide smiled back at him, "Aren't you just the sweetest boy? Always thinking of your friends."
Rhonda giggled a bit, "Yes, that's him in a nutshell! Too bad he's taken huh?"
The woman shook her head, "He's a bit young for me in any event but I am not surprised he's been claimed early."
Bobby chuckled at the look on his friend's face, "Yeah, all's that left is for them to get matching tattoos."
Rick rolled his eyes, to show what he thought of that idea but said nothing and soon they arrived at a set of double doors.
"Here we are," Jane said entering. "Over here are the lockers for your streetclothes and inside each is plush robe to wear when you are not on the massage beds. You can tell me what you would like to eat and we will have someone bring it in and set it up on a table here," pointing to a section of bare carpet, "and then take it away when you are done. We will consult with your Aestheticians to make sure we bring it between one treatment and another so you'll all be free to enjoy it." She stopped and faced them, "So do you all know what you'd like to order or would you like our healthy breakfast special?"
"I'd prefer ham and eggs with toasted bagel and waffles. Bring jam for the bagel and syrup for the waffles and I'll be a happy boy," Bobby said and Rick agreed that would be a great breakfast.
Maria looked a bit embarassed, "Do you have an Energizer special?"
The woman smiled, "Yes we do. Don't worry, it's covered under the price of the day. I'll have them send it up." She looked at Rhonda, "And you young lady?"
"I think I'll try to the healthy breakfast special. I need to watch my wait more than these other three," Rhonda replied.
"I see we are in the same boat then," the woman replied. "We have exemplars on staff and they can eat anything it seems and still look beautiful." She looked wistful for a moment then continued briskly, "I'll go put in your orders. When you are undressed please get under the top sheets of the massage table and your aestheticians shall begin. Have a very pleasant stay." Then she gave a little bow and left.
They had no longer had any qualms about undressing in front of each other although Rick made sure he was not looking at Rhonda and so missed her humorous attempt to get his attention. He sighed though as he took the robe out of his locker and, after clicking the locker shut, laid it on a nearby chair.
"It'll be fun Rick," Maria said. "Please just go with the flow and try to enjoy it okay?" She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him, "For me?"
He had to smile, "Okay, for you I'll do my best to enjoy all the silly frufru things we'll be doing today."
"Thank you," she climbed up on the first massage table and he took the second. Bobby meanwhile turned to Rhonda, "Do I get a kiss if I promise to be good too?"
"Do you want one?" Rhonda replied, "I'm pretty sure you'll be good anyway so I wasn't going to bother, but if you ask nicely I might consider it."
He grabbed her waist and kissed her. She wrapped her arms around his neck and returned it then quickly broke off and stepped back, "We'd better go get under the sheets unless you want them to find you like that," she pointed down to where an erection was rising then giggled merrily and slipped off to slide under the sheets of the third massage table just as there was a discreet knock on the door.
He managed to ask for a minute in a normal sounding voice and was lying face down on the last bed when they came in.
They were massaged and exfoliated. They then ate like kings and queens and afterward were given facials and mud wraps. The boys were even convinced to get manicures and pedicures alongside the girls once they were assured that there would be no nail polish used on them.
Eventually they'd done everything and were dressing again. Rick was rushing in the hopes of leaving first but he had to stop at the front desk to discuss gratuities and sign the receipt so Bobby was actually the first one out.
Rick actually left last and when he got outside he was shocked by who he saw waiting for him, "Wow, I didn't expect to see any of you before tomorrow and then only one or two." He was looking at four members of the Empire City Guard. Dr. Thunder, Lioness, Heavyweight, and Captain Quantum were all standing on the sidewalk in front of their heavily modified stretch Humvee.
Dr. Thunder said, "We finished the other crisis early and decided not to take any chance of something else happening to you before you get to Whateley. Once there you'll be safe and you'd be covered under the 'hands off rule' even when not off campus as long as you are students there. So we're picking you up and driving you there ourselves."
"I think she might also want to avoid any more emergency expenditures before that credit card melts," Heavyweight added with a chuckle.
"I take full responsibility and I'm able to justify the reasoning behind each purchase," Rick said gulping a bit as realized exactly how much they'd spent in the last week or so. "If you disallow any I'll repay you for the amount from whatever campus jobs I can pick up."
Dr. Thunder smiled, "I see you've learned some of the basic lessons of leadership Rick, I'm proud of you. Now get in before another supervillain team attacks you."
Captain Quantum opened the back door and they all filed in one at a time, "Now you can tell us the story of your very eventful summer. We know the high points but now we've time for the full version."
"Yes sir," Rick said, "I'll start at the beginning and the others can take over or add things whenever they feel like it." He started off with discovering he was a mutant and proceeded from there.
Dr. Thunder aassured them that the insidious villain who'd kidnapped them was certain to be caught soon. "He's been staying under the radar but this incident has brought him into the light. Now that we know about him and have your descriptions of him and his chief minion we can circulate both through the paranormal community. He WILL be caught and if he's lucky it will be by a hero."
"What do you mean?" Maria asked.
"Well some of the children he's kidnapped might have been children of supervillains. If they find him first it will go much worse for him." She saw their faces, "I don't blame you if you want that to happen but try to rise above it. You have the making of true heroes and it would be a shame if you let him drag you to a lower level. You want to take the high road always when at all possible."
"Yes," Lioness agreed. "You can do a lot more good as a hero future generations can look up to than as a vigilante. It may seem like Vigilantes can get more done but it's an illusion. Law Enforcement does not trust them and while they may turn a blind eye to their actions, mostly, they also deny them the sort of resources acknowledged heroes can use. Which may make the difference between saving and losing lives."
Captain Quantum nodded, "Also the haters and bigots use vigilantes as "proof" that even the good guys are dangerous. Don't be another weapon in their arsenal, they don't need any more."
All four teens solemnly responded that they would let the authorities deal with Dr. Incubator and his henchman John.
When they finally arrived the staff also assured them of their safety at Whateley Academy and an upperclassman showed them the campus while the adults completed paperwork and discussed things. They were very impressed with the tour and were happy when they met their patrons for lunch in the Crystal Hall.
Dr. Thunder told them, "You'll all be stationed in Melville until the end of August. They close down most of the dorms during the summer and for reasons we won't go into now it wouldn't be appropiate to put you in Hawthorne or Poe." Seeing their smiles she added, "Enjoy it while it lasts. Once Summer Term is over the boys will be moving to Emerson and the girls to Dickinson." She gave each of them a stern glance, "And there will be no discussion on this subject for at least a year." Her expression softened, "I know you've all gotten to rely on each other and are used to being together 24/7 but you need to expand your horizons a bit so the boys are going to an all boys dorm and the girls to an all girls dorm. You'll get first pick of rooms being here already and you can at least get each other as roommates but aside from being cheaper than rooms in Melville it'll be good for you too. Otherwise you might not socialize with the rest of the students much and lose valuable contacts and experience."
"Yes, Dr. Thunder," all four chorused.
"Good, if next fall you still want rooms in Melville we'll consider it. No promises though! You'll see each other quite enough as it is I'm sure."
"You can sign up as a training team together," Heavyweight added. "You seem to work well together and trust each other. That's very important for teammates, and this way you can continue to learn how to make your powers mesh as well as possible."
After lunch the four members of the ECG left and the four teens settled in to their rooms. "Well I guess that's the end of our adventures," Bobby said.
"At least until Winter break," Rick replied. "I don't trust our luck. Or rather I trust it to be bad." He grinned ruefully, "Something will happen I'm sure."
This the sequel to A Very Eventful Summer. It follows Bobby, Rick, Maria, and Rhonda on their Winter Break.
A Very Unusual Yule - Chapter One
“I asked you here so we can talk strategy as a team,” Rick said.
“You have a plan for our Combat Finals?” Rhonda said. “I hope so because I’m worried. They keep saying it’s completely random who you get matched with and with our luck I’ll be up against that brick girl who is a psychic null. I’ll get pounded into paste and fail on top of it.”
“No that won’t happen Rhonda,” Rick replied confidently. He held up one finger, “First she’s a senior so even if it was completely random you’d have no chance of facing her. First two years only fight each other remember?” Then he held up a second finger, “Second from what I’ve been able to find out I seriously doubt it really is random. Sort of random maybe but they have to be fudging a little or they have no common sense and more luck then an Odds Mangler.” He grinned, “Sensei Ito is involved in the process along with Gunnery Sergeant Bardue. You’ve been taught by both of them, do you think that description fits either of them?”
“Well no, of course not,” Rhonda had to admit.
Rick continued before she could think of what else to say, “So the match-ups are rigged at least well enough to prevent anyone from getting killed outright or there being a danger to the people watching. I hear that if your power is too lethal you fight in the sim where you can get to go all out without worrying.” He held up a third finger, “Third the matches are ‘graded on a curve’ so to speak. The difficulty of the opponent is taken into account. Failing to achieve the objective doesn’t mean you get an F, although if you just assume you can’t win and do nothing then that would be one.” He raised his pinky finger, “Fourth, you have come a long way since we all met. You’ve learned Basic Martial Arts and the basics of pistol shooting so you can do more than mind attacks. Not to mention that one of your oldest tricks still works. To wit, using your tk to bolster your strength like you did on the day we met. Even if you didn’t realize you were doing it then.” He reached over and squeezed her shoulder, “You’ll do fine Rhonda. I’m sure we all will! We’ve been working on butts off on getting better and we have experience that most students don’t. In fact I’m so confident you’ll do well that it isn’t what I called you here about. Although I’d be willing to discuss it with you later if you really want.”
“So why did you call us together Rick?” Maria asked. She thought she knew but wanted to be sure.
“I called you all here because it’s almost Winter Break and they still haven’t caught that perverted bastard!”
Bobby looked surprised, “I thought we were going to let the pros handle it?”
“I was willing to do that but the only time they even got close they let both Dr. Incubator’s Chief Minion get away. They are no closer to capturing him then they were when we got here! I think we should take a stab at it ourselves but I wanted to be sure you all feel the same. If not I’ll wait another semester at least and see if they’ve caught them by Spring Break.”
“So is this a secret ballot?” Rhonda asked.
“Sure, why not?” Rick emptied the candy bowl and put it in the middle of them as they sat in a circle on the floor. Then handed out pieces of paper ripped from a notebook, “Write yes if you agree we should go look ourselves and no if you’d rather have a quiet Christmas.”
Bobby grinned, “But not too quiet. My folks are going to Aspen for Christmas and I invited Rhonda to come along. That is if we are going to be trying to be normal. I can always tell them I have a project to finish if we decide to do this.” He wrote on his slip and after folding it, tossed it in the bowl.
Rick asked Maria to read the votes. She pulled them one at a time from the bowl and read them silently then said, “That’s three nos and one yes so it looks like you’re going skiing. Rick is coming back to Death Valley National Park with me for Christmas with my grandma, my family wants to meet him.”
“Yeah, my grandpa is still trying to decide if he’s coming or not but I’ll be there.”
Bobby smiled at Rhonda, “You’ll look great on the slopes.”
She smiled back but it was a little forced. She had a bad feeling suddenly and hoped it was just indigestion. “I’m glad you think so but remember your parents will be there and it will be cold so I’ll be wearing lots of layers. You’ll be lucky if you see any skin at all.” Then she telepathically added, *If you’re good enough you might get extra snuggles for Christmas* with a mental picture of the two them snuggling under a blanket.
Maria pretended to ignore Bobby’s reaction to what had to be silent teasing from Rhonda and said, “The detentions for purposely finding them just to get our revenge would be epic but if I thought we could do it I would have voted yes.”
Rick replied, “We’ve all taken a semester of Martial Arts and range safety classes. We don’t know everything but we know more than we did when we beat the Royal Flush Gang. I think we’d have a chance.”
Rhonda shook her head, “I’d be the one trying to protect us from that mental whammy and I’m still not sure exactly what he used so I can’t say whether or not I could protect myself much less all four of us. I hope we have a very uneventful holiday.”
“Getting our asses kicked by him again would really suck even if we did manage to escape again and I suppose we have to consider that we might not,” Rick frowned then sighed. “You’re right, I guess I’m letting my frustration get the better of me.” He took a deep breath, “Okay so who wants to discuss possible tactics for combat finals?”
“I do,” Maria said, “if afterward we discuss what Rhonda’s going to wear on her skiing trip. Neither of us have ever been skiing.” They talked for awhile then went back to their respective dorms.
Two weeks later after both combat finals and academic finals Rick and Bobby were packing and chatting, “I kinda wish I was going with you Bobby, is skiing hard?”
“Not really,” Bobby replied. “As long as you don't want to get fancy like skiing through a forest or doing jumps you can learn to go down a gentle slope in a few hours at most.” Bobby smiled, “Probably less since you're an exemplar as well. I'm looking forward to seeing if I got any better now that I am one too.”
“Since you're one of the 'Mighty fives' and you could ski well before, I bet now you do all the James Bond stuff now,” Rick said. “Too bad they ban mutants from the Olympics, imagine how badass the games would be if they let exemplars in?”
“I just hope I don't have to do any of that,” Bobby said frowning. “It's one thing to be attacked when it's just us but my folks will be there this time man.”
“I'm sure it'll be a normal holiday Bobby,” Rick reassured him. “There's no reason for anyone to attack us in either place. Our one enemy loose doesn't know our last names or have any way to track us down. It should be completely safe.” Rick grinned, “That's why you picked it right?”
“Yeah, I guess,” Bobby replied.
Over in Dickinson Dormitory the girls were also packing. “Are you sure about an all white ski suit Rhonda? I think you should some color so people can see you on the slopes,” Maria looked at her friend, “You might get run over by a skier who doesn’t see you or something.”
“Am I that pale?” Rhonda replied. Then she pulled some of her butter colored hair forward and noticed her hair was still darker than the hand that held it. “Well maybe I am. I’d offered to switch for your skin tone but I don’t think you fit in my skin and yours would be too baggy on top.” Rhonda cupped her hands in front of her to show exactly where it would be baggy, then grinned.
Maria rolled her eyes, but said nothing. She was too used to her friend to do more, “Since the suit will be covering you it doesn’t matter how pale or dark you are; it’s a snow white suit. You should have listened to me in the mall, but I think I might have the solution.” She fished in her dresser and came up with a bright red scarf, “Here! Where this with it and at least any skiers behind you will know there is somebody in front of them.”
“Thanks Maria!” Rhonda hugged her and packed the scarf. “Hey, did you ever in your life imagine either of us would be going skiing in Aspen?”
Maria grinned, “Nope! I never imagined any of the stuff that happened in the last six months but I’m happy that things seem to be going well now. I could use a few weeks of nothing but rest and recreation.”
“Yeah and it was nice of the boys to chip in on our shopping spree,” Rhonda added. “Although I think my telling them that we needed the extra to buy bikinis helped.”
Maria giggled, “You have such a suspicious mind Rhonda. I think they would have helped anyway; they are nice boys.”
Rhonda nodded, “Yeah, did you know Bobby gave me to permission to use his mind for telepathy practice? I was worried that he’d get stolen by one of female exemplars and he did it to reassure me. He didn’t say that but I’m sure that’s why he did it.”
“Well there are some amazingly good looking students here but I doubt he’d dump you after everything we’ve been through so far,” Maria said as she finished packing.
“Maybe I shouldn’t worry but I’m the only non exemplar of the four of us. We all thought I was at first but that was just my TK field boosting my strength.” She frowned, “I worry sometimes that I won’t be able to keep up with all of you. That Bobby will go find a girl who never gets zits or has baby fat.”
“You kept up with us so far! How many of those girls you mention have helped friends escape a supervillain’s lair or walked naked across a desert? Most teams would love to have a psychic of your abilities on staff! You are a PDP with telepathy, empathy and tactile tk as well as occasional bursts of precognition; you’re an asset to the team and Bobby is lucky to have you as a girlfriend!” She smiled. “I think he knows it too, that’s why he’s allowed you to practice telepathy on him. So you won’t get too close to any of those pretty boys in your class with whom you already have common ground.”
“Really?” Rhonda asked.
“Really!” Maria agreed. “In fact I bet some of the other teams try to recruit you next semester once your abilities become better known and your performance in your combat final will only enhance that. I’m the one who got a C remember? You got a B+.” Maria reaches over and pokes Rhonda’s belly encountering firm muscle under slight padding, “See? After a semester of Basic Martial Arts and coming on jogs with me you are great shape. You can’t compare to Bobby but then most vehicles aren’t as tough as Bobby so why should you be?”
Rhonda blushed a little, “Okay you convinced me. I’m the best thing since sliced bread. Happy now?”
“Yep! Now let’s schlep all this down to the gate. Bobby’s folks are coming to give us all a ride and we don’t want to be late.”
Bobby’s parents were waiting at the gates next to their minivan. The two of them had a strong resemble to Bobby of course with dark hair and eyes and light brown skin. “I’m Roberto Gonzalez senior and this is my lovely wife Inez,” Mr. Gonzalez said as he held out his hand. They all shook it as Bobby loaded their luggage.
“I’m very pleased to meet you at last,” Rhonda said, “You look exactly as I pictured you from our phone calls.”
“Well time waits for no man so let’s get aboard and get going,” Roberto Sr. said after shaking everyone’s hand. “Is all the luggage packed Bobby?”
“Yes dad,” Bobby replied.
“Good! Let’s roll.”
Soon they were on their way to Berlin airport and Inez turned around in her seat to say, “Oh we were so scared when we learned you were taken Bobby! And so happy when we learned you escaped! I don’t know how the mothers of superheroes do it.”
“It’s done and over with Querida. He is safe and with us for the holidays. We should be concentrating on the fun we are going to have and on keeping the kids from having too much fun. He grinned at them in the rearview mirror, “I’ve made sure that our room is between Rhonda’s room and Bobby’s room just in case.”
“Roberto!” his wife protested. “He’s a nice boy, he wouldn’t do anything like that!’
He laughed heartily, “Oh of course not Querida! Good boys never would want anything like that. Still I think I’ll leave it that way just in case.” He looked briefly over his shoulder, “Are you all excited about skiing?”
“I am,” Rhonda answered, “but I’ve never done it before so I hope they have good instructors.”
“Well I’m not sure how good they are but they are definitely prettyboys,” Roberto Sr. replied. He nudged his wife, “Si, mi amor?”
She answered, “You should stick to English dear and I would say the instructors are competent because of how few accidents they have there. I can’t say I noticed their looks.”
“Really? Then I guess you don’t mind that your favorite instructor, the guy who was that exemplar who was kicked off the Olympic team, has quit.”
“Oh, I barely remember him. How did you find this out anyway?” She asked.
“They told me when I made the reservations. Apparently he said he was being groped too much by female clients.” He paused and asked slyly, “He was your instructor once wasn’t he?”
She blushed and slapped his shoulder, “Stop being bad Roberto! You should set an example for the boys.”
They drove to the Berlin airport where their two separate flights were waiting for them. The teens had to show their MIDs at the gate but it went fairly quickly.
Code Name:
Roughhouse
Ratings::
Exemplar 5, Regen 3
Martial Arts: Basic, Introductory Firearms Pistol course
NOTE: Skin even tougher than normal for his Exemplar level
Techniques:
Hand to hand
Weak vs.:
Magic and Psi
Backup/Team affiliation:
Sponsored by Empire City Guard, member of training team “Junior Guard”
Code Name:
Dune
Ratings::
Exemplar 3, Manifestor 1c (sand), Regen 1, Warper 1e (Disassociates water into Hydrogen and Oxygen)
Martial Arts: Basic, Introductory Firearms Pistol course
Techniques:
Clogging mechanisms with sand, Hand to hand, pistol
Weak vs.:
Magic and Psi
Backup/Team affiliation:
Sponsored by Empire City Guard, member of training team “Junior Guard”
Code Name:
Path
Ratings:
PDP 3/2/3 (Empathy, Telepathy, non-ranged TK)
ESP -1 Occasional Precognitive episodes(Both start and end are uncontrolled and near in space and time)
Martial Arts: Basic, Introductory Firearms Pistol course
Note: TK is non-ranged but not a shell or forcefield, no protection provided
Techniques:
TK assisted Hand to hand, Telepathy, Empathy
Weak vs.:
Magic, Normal human weaknesses
Backup/Team affiliation:
Sponsored by Empire City Guard, member of training team “Junior Guard”
Code Name:
Shockflash
Ratings::
Exemplar - 3, Regen - 1, Energizer 3(mixed), Martial Arts - Basic, Introductory Firearms Pistol course
Note: Able to energize strength up to EX-5 levels
Note: Can absorb and project Solar and IR energy as well as Electricity
Techniques:
Hand to hand, Taser shot, Lightning Bolt, Blinding Flash, Heat Beam
Weak vs.:
Magic and Psi
Backup/Team affiliation:
Sponsored by Empire City Guard, member of training team “Junior Guard”
They were a little nervous because of the last flight they’d taken but this flight was uneventful and soon they were at their respective destinations.
Upon arrival Maria and Rick were met by a short woman with grey hair and a lined and weathered but smiling face. “Abuela!” Maria shouted and went to hug the tiny woman who hugged her back.
Rick followed with the bag she had dropped. When he reached them the old woman, who couldn’t have been as much as five feet tall hugged Rick as well and with surprising firmness. “You must be Rick,” she said then continued on in another language.
“He only speaks English grandma,” Maria said.
“You must teach him our language child. But for the moment we will go home and talk there. Have you more luggage?”
“I do but he does not,” she replied.
The old woman smiled, “Good for you! Too many possessions way a man down although too few and he becomes flyaway like the wind.”
“I shall try to keep a good balance then,” Rick replied. “How may I call you?”
“My name is Kimama but you will call me Abuela or Grandmother. It is a title I earned and I am very proud of it.”
“Yes Abuela,” Rick answers.
They picked up Maria’s luggage and went outside where there was an old four-wheel drive being driven by a man who jumped out and came over to take charge of the luggage.
“Hey cousin,” he said kissing Maria’s cheek. Then held out his hand, “Hi, I’m Cameawhait, but you can call me Cam. You must be Rick?”
Rick put a bag down and shook, “Yes, I go to school with Maria. She invited me and I’d love to get a better look at the area.”
Kimama laughed, “You were too distracted by Maria to enjoy the other scenery eh?”
Rick blushed and so did Maria. Cam looked from one to the other, Maria said, “Long story. I’ll tell you later if Abuela says it’s okay.”
Cam shrugged and put the suitcases in the back of the 4X4. Rick followed with his bag and two of Maria’s and added them to the pile in the back.
“You always bring so many clothes. I never see the point,” Cam said as they got in.
“That’s because you are a boy Cam. Rick is the same way. I bet half his suitcase isn’t even clothes, it’s ‘just in case’ supplies. I brought my shower kit and my makeup bag as well as clothes for both desert day and night and for dressy and casual and sleeping and just sitting around the house. It takes up a lot of room.”
“Just in case supplies?” Cam asked.
Rick said, “You know, like a compass, a good folding knife, a map of the National Park the reservation is in, lists of edible and poisonous flora, my Swiss army knife which they wouldn’t let me bring in my pocket, stuff like that.” He shrugged, “Nothing special, Maria just likes to tease me.”
She held his hand, “I do. I’m glad you’re prepared but it makes you easy to poke fun at. It’s like dating Batman.”
“I didn’t think your dad would let you date yet. Speaking of that, where is he?” Then he received a look from Kimama and shut up for the rest of the trip.
Once they were within the reservation Kimama said, “I will tell you what I know but it goes no farther than the tribe and use your discretion even there Cameawhait.”
“I will Grandmother,” he said seriously. “What has happened?”
“You know my daughter went off to New York and married that stupid Spaniard. Well he has disowned Maria and is not coming here because I told him my granddaughter was always welcome in my home.”
Cam started swearing, Rick didn’t speak the language but he could tell it was swearing.
Maria looked sad and leaned against Rick, “I’m glad you still want me Abuela.”
“I’ll always want you. Your father is a fool and your mother is one for letting him do this. I told her she should put her foot down but she stopped listening to my advice long ago. Let that be a lesson to you both. Always heed the advice of your elders.”
All three of them answered, “Yes Grandmother.”
They eventually pulled up to a one story stone house surrounded by bare earth. There were other houses nearby but no hint of crowding. Cam parked the car and they all got out.
“Once we are all inside I’ll bring out food and then I think you have a long story to tell. Right Maria?”
“Yes, Abuela. I’ll tell you all about it just as I promised,” Maria replied.
Rick and Cam brought the luggage in and Maria helped Kimama serve lunch.
During lunch Maria told the tale of meeting Rick and Bobby and their eventful summer. It took quite awhile to tell especially with two of them asking questions and Rick trying to be modest but eventually it was done.
“Thank you for that tale child,” her grandmother said. “I knew there must be a good reason for you to be at that silly tourist trap. I am even gladder to have helped now that I know the full story.” She gestured, “Why don’t you take this nice young man and introduce him around? From what you tell me he’ll want to get a feel of the terrain, just in case.”
Rick blushed because it was true. He had made mental notes of all exits and large windows while assisting in lunch and the clean up after. He had also mentally placed the house on the map he’d memorized and would be happy to walk the neighborhood a bit, just in case.
Maria stood and smiled at him, “Come on Batman, let’s go increase our tactical awareness of our surroundings. Maybe we can even find a spot or two to kiss and act like teenagers in love.”
Rick smiled and took her hand, “Whatever you wish Maria. I’m completely at your disposal for the entire time.”
This needs a serious rewrite. I'm leaving it up until I can fix it but if you haven't started reading it don't, wait until I've revamped it. I also need to find a new title.
Thank you
Freya
Well it's been rewritten but I'm still not happy except maybe with the title. Read at your own risk. :-P
Freya
The first thing she did after getting back to her dorm was shower. Spending a night in a hospital, even one as nice as Doyle made her want to shower when she got back home and right now the E. A. Poe dormitory was home. They'd taken blood several times during the night and again just before she was discharged but all the punctures were healed now except the last and that vanished by the time her long shower was over.
'It's nice not to be in a rush to finish,' she thought to herself as she finally left to dry off. She usually showered in the morning when there was a line and anyone lingering unnecessarily was harangued. She'd just gotten back to her room when her phone rang.
"We have results from your blood tests Miss Stein. You may want to sit down for this." Oh that is not a good sign, she thought and sat on the nearest bed. The voice on the phone was female and might have been one of the nurses or one of the doctors she'd met but she couldn't place it.
"Okay, I'm sitting, what's the bad news?"
"Well there is some good news as well," the woman said as if trying to make up for the scare she'd just given Rachel. "As the night went on your skin and tissue became firmer and tougher until this morning when we had to use the adamantium needle. You are no longer simply an Exemplar two. We'll have to retest you to find out exactly where you rate now but if there were no other processes at work then you have jumped to either being a high end three or a low end four. Also given the general enhancement of your appearance your stated goal of modeling seems assured as long as they don't have a policy against paranormals."
"Uh huh. Now could you get to the bad part? Drawing it out is just making it worse."
"Well it's like this...," Rachel at first didn't understand what they woman meant by "elevating hormone levels" and "associated behavioral urges" then she did and her stomach dropped. She heard the woman asking her questions but couldn't bring herself to reply, nodding uselessly at the phone.
"Mis Stein do you understand the implications of what I've said?" The voice pauses briefly, "We would like you to come in for further observation. Such wide variance in hormonal levels can't be good for anyone, even an exemplar." After a pause the woman continued, "And we may be able to help with the associated side effect if we have enough time to research it."
She'd eventually convinced them to wait 30 minutes to allow her to try to calm herself down. She snorted with humor, "Euphemism use must be contagious." Rachel put the phone back on the charger and dropped her still damp towel in the hamper. She went into the closet to look at herself in the full length mirror there. The person she saw was not the same as the one she'd seen the day before she'd had a sudden collapse in English class. She was now six feet even instead of 5'8" and her skin had no trace of the tan she acquired from outdoor sports this spring. In fact it didn't even seem to have pores anymore. Her hips were a little wider and her breasts had grown enough larger that she'd need a new bra but if they were right about her EX level she shouldn't have to worry about sag or back problems and really d cups weren't too huge right? Her abs had gotten flatter and harder which was good and her hair was now the color of cornsilk instead of black. All in all she was very lucky considering what might have happened.
They'd told her it was a burnout episode and that her fever had gone quite high while she was unconscious. They'd watched her body alter itself and rushed to provide it with enough calories so that she wouldn't starve. When they fever broke and she awoke they'd been very relieved. In the morning she'd felt fine but they didn't release her until early afternoon and had continued taking blood samples every hour. Now she knew why and as she looked around for something to wear she knew the woman had been right. She should have left as soon as she hung up. All the clothes around her and for the first time in her life she wanted to wear none of them.
The room had started out as a normal wardrobe but her roommate was a devisor and bending the laws of physics until they cried uncle was her stock in trade so they wardrobe looked like it was no more than a foot deep from the outside but inside it was a full walk in closet complete with vanity table and a full length mirror. Most of the clothes in here were Rachel's. She shook her head, when Betsy had done that in their Freshman year it should have been a clue that she had a bit of a crush on Rachel but Rachel had been awfully closeminded back then.
More laughter escaped her but it had little humor in it. Closeminded wasn't the word really, she'd been snotty and mean. It wasn't even that she didn't like girls; she'd just thought she was too good for the rather plain looking Betsy. She'd apologized since then but she still felt bad at how she'd acted, especially since she was pretty sure Betsy still had a crush on her. Well if the eggheads couldn't fix things then Betsy might get her wish after all.
It should be alright either way but it would be better if her roommate didn't show up until she was done and had left for the med center. Just as she thought that she heard the room door open.
"Rache? Are you in here?" her roommate was short with mousy brown hair and only mildly curved. In her favorite clothes, jumpsuits, hoodies, and coveralls she could pass for a boy to most. She had never looked better to Rachel.
"I'm here, Betsy." Rachel answered and stepped out of the closet naked. She could smell the other woman clearly, a mixture of oil, girl, and soap. She must have been trying to get all the grease off but her nails were still black and she had a smudge on her face.
"You look amazing." Rachel breathed and walked towards Elizabeth.
"If that's is a joke it's not funny. We've been roomies for over two years and you've never made a pass before. Why would you want me now that you're even hotter looking?" She sounded angry with hurt imperfectly hidden underneath.
"Oh, but I do want you." Rachel stroked a hand across Betsy's face and shutting the door. "And you can have me if you want." She was tall enough that she could brush a nipple across Betsy's lips easily.
Betsy shuddered, and pushed her back against the closed door. She'd daydreamed this so often she wondered if this was one of them. Her lips felt hot and she was panting. She shook her head and tried to get her brain, both their brains, working again. "Does this have to do with you going to Doyle yesterday?" Her voice trailed off as her thoughts took a different turn, 'oh god she's so lovely, and soft and Focus!' Betsy shook her head, closed her eyes and tried again to be the voice of reason. "I mean if this is some meds they gave you... I... you don't need to do this. Painkillers can make you act funny sometimes you know?"
Betsy remembered carrying Rachel into the campus med center sweating and moaning but she was sure the other girl hadn't been aware of who'd carried her so this couldn't be some sort of thank you. Betsy had found out she was discharged when she went to see her and so she'd stuffed food for two in her backpack and come here to see how Rachel was and ask if everything was okay. She really hadn't expected to find Rachel naked and apparently willing.
"I just got a call from Doyle. They just finished the tests on the blood they took this morning and they say my hormones are on overload. I don't know if they're right about why but I need, well bluntly I need sex." She stroked Betsy's face again and leaned in for a kiss.
Betsy would have floating on cloud nine except for one thing, "So it's not me then? Any girl or boy who walked in would get the same offer?" She was gasping a little from the kiss and her nipples were hard but her brain was in control. You learned that sort of control at Whateley with all the beautiful girls about or at least most did.
"I'm so turned right now that if Peeper had walked in with a camera crew and asked if I wanted to do a porno with him I'd say yes even if I did kill him afterwards." Rachel acknowledged. "But I'm glad it was you. We have time but not a whole lot. I got them to wait 30 minutes before expecting me but if I don't show up they'll probably send someone to find me." She trailed a fingernail across the hard nipple visible through the dirty coverall and grinned at the reaction she got. "So can you think of something we can do until then? I was just going to masturbate some more but it's much more fun with another person."
Betsy was making disjointed sounds like "uh", "guh", and "wha" then she gave up trying to speak and started kissing the breasts she'd been dreaming of. She told herself it was a bad idea but she did it anyway.
Rachel started undressing her and put the backpack aside. "I can smell the food and I'm sure we'll be hungry later but first I need a different hunger sated."
She was losing her self control fast and Betsy was here. That she was a friend made it easier for her to give in. She soon had her friend naked as well despite the kisses they shared along the way. She flopped down on her own bed, "I'm on the bottom because I'm not sure of my new strength yet." She wrapped her hands around the wrought iron pattern of the headboard and spread her legs wide. "We'll do whatever tickles your fancy. I'm game for anything right now."
Betsy's eyes popped at that, "guh uh wah?" So much for the brain always being in charge, a small part of her thought, my hormones are making me sound as dumb as any drooling idiot. It was only a small part though as the rest of her focused on the task at hand.
As she was happily nuzzling Rachel's flesh, a small bit of her brain that was always stuck in science mode was wondering about things like pheromones and mind control. Was she really making this choice or was it being made for her? Eventually she just said to hell with it and decided to enjoy the moment to the fullest and worry about pheromones and free will later.
Rachel lay there moaning and writhing as she had several rapid orgasms over the course of five minutes. 'Oh gods, what's happening to me?' was one thought she had between orgasms. The other was, 'If I'd known she was this good with her tongue I'd have jumped her bones back in our first semester.' She writhed in pleasure but somehow kept from bucking or squeezing her legs together. After the sixth orgasm she felt a bit more in control. "Bets? It's your turn now."
Betsy had heard her and lifted her head all sweaty and slick, "My turn?" She grinned, "Okay."
Rachel released the headboard and started to sit up when Betsy said, "If that's what you do to iron though you're still going to be on the bottom."
She turned to look and saw a crushed lump instead of the fancy pattern it had been before. She looked at her hands and winced then nodded, "Yeah, I guess so. Are you still game? I think I'm over the hump, so to speak. I can wait until they get here now. I mean I owe you but I can see how you might want to leave or something."
"Don't be silly! I'll be in less danger than I was before and I'm not about to pass up my turn! So just lie back and relax because here I come."
The paramedics from Doyle Medical Center found them in a sixty nine position some time later and had some trouble at first in making their presence known.
They were both examined at the medical and tests were done. Eventually, they were called into the doctor's office. "Hello, I'm Dr. Hakima. I'm talking to both of you because it affects both of you as long as Betsy continues to be your roommate." He turned to Betsy, "Elizabeth Hand, am I to understand that you wish to remain her roommate?"
Betsy blushed but nodded, "Umm, the lab guys said there was no medical reason for me to be worried. You know nothing toxic or addictive. I, um, well, I wasn't coerced or anything."
The middle aged man in white smiled at them gently, "It's okay. I know the secret of Poe and I have no problem with it. In fact it will make things much easier in this case if you both enjoyed it." He paused and looked at Rachel, who nodded vigorously.
"If I'd known how good she was at..." He held up a hand, "No need to elaborate Miss Stein. In that case things will be simpler as I said. First I'll explain what we know then I'll list options." He took out a folder and opened it but he wasn't looking at it. He was looking at them as he continued, "As you know Miss Stein had a Level Three burnout incident last night. She is fortunate you brought her in, she might not have survived otherwise." Rachel grabbed Betsy's hand and Betsy squeezed back. "What you may or may not know is that the more serious the burnout the more likely it is that great changes occur. If the person survives that is." He frowned, "I'm not saying this to scare you. I just want you to appreciate the seriousness of what happened and that regardless of any changes you are still luckier than most." He held up a report, "This contains your blood tests from last night, early this morning, just before we released you and today when we brought you back in. Your hormones spike in the morning then continue to climb. We have seen enough of this to realize you probably had very little control left when we called you and it was only the fact that you were still quite rational seeming and the, ah, nonlethal nature of the desires you were experiencing that convinced the person who called to agree to wait even 30 minutes." He pointed to various parts of the paper but neither could make heads or tails out of it. They nodded anyway just to show they were listening. "However when we brought you in your blood levels were perfectly normal again. From these data we are highly confident in making a short term prediction. However we have also scheduled you a meeting with Powers Testing for Monday morning. This will allow us to confirm our guesses and make long term predictions as well as categorize any other changes that have gone unnoticed."
"She's much stronger now." Betsy told him. He made a note, "Thank you and if either of you notice anything odd please call me immediately." He handed them business cards, "That has my cellphone on it. I'll answer it day or night, so don't hesitate to call me if necessary. I'll give it to your house mother as well. Well I hope you'll forgive me for being blunt but I can think of no other way to say this. You're going to be waking up horny every morning and it will get worse until you actually have sex. If you don't give in eventually it will erode your control until you will have sex with the nearest person. So we hereby suggest you have sex as early as possible each morning and if possible before you leave your room." He removed a sheet of paper and handed it to Rachel, "This is an exemption from the no sex on campus rule and as you see Betsy's name appears on it as well. This is so neither one of you get in trouble for what happened earlier today and should you wish to change the second name on the exemption you may do so either here or through your house mother. You are also hereby warned that if you, being aware of this, should willfully ignore this advice any complications or problems resulting from any subsequent loss of control on your part will be held to be your fault unless you can prove otherwise." He looked Rachel in the eyes and asked, "Do you understand this warning fully or would you like me to go over it again?"
Rachel swallowed and looked serious, "I think I understand but let me repeat everything back to you to make sure. I'm going to be like this every day for the immediate future. I will wake up desiring sex and that desire will grow if not sated until I can no longer restrain myself. If I do lose control because I have willingly neglected to have sex that day and I cause any harm due to my loss of control I will be held responsible for all damages incurred. This permission slip exempts me from the Campus rules against students having sex with other students. It also seems to imply that another person is required though and I wanted to ask why later but it's true masturbating brings no relief. At the moment the designated significant other is Betsy but I can change that if I want through the Center here or through Mrs. Horton our house mother. It's requested that I fuck Betsy silly every morning before class so that I can think clearly and don't act like some crazed nympho in a porn movie. Is that a fair restatement?" She gave a twisted smile and Betsy patted the hand that held hers.
"Yes, and I can see why you'd be upset. With more complete testing we may be able to fix the problem but as you are an Exemplar and this has all the earmarks of being BIT related so it would be unfair to get your hopes up for any long term solution and as I said before, on the whole you are lucky. You have no GSD, you are in even better health than before aside from this requirement and it seems you may even have found love through this misadventure. I wish you both the best of luck. All of your teachers have been contacted about your absences today and Rachel's teachers have been informed of her appointment with Powers Testing on Monday. Don't forget to show that exemption to your house mother and have a good weekend."
Clearly dismissed they left and walked slowly back to Poe hand in hand.
I want to thank Lilith for taking the time to help me refine this story and for letting me post as a canon author.
Three Cheers for Lilith Langtree!
Maria was at a party but she wasn’t having any fun. No one was paying any attention to her. Or rather no boys were paying attention to her. She wasn’t usually happy getting attention, it made her nervous, but this once she’d been actually hoping to be noticed. Her friends had all chipped in and paid for her to visit a dermatologist as a birthday present. He had told her that what she thought was either acne or a persistent rash was actually eczema. He given her a skin cream and a list of common irritants that might be causing the flare-ups.
Her dad had tried to get her to one but he was a single parent and barely making ends meet so he could never quite afford it. She was going to school free because he taught at the school and he made sure she had the basics but she was sure she was the poorest person in her class. That plus the eczema is why she normally didn’t want to be seen.
She sighed, it looked like even when she wanted to be noticed she was invisible. After her skin had cleared up her girlfriends had convinced her to go to Janie’s sweet sixteen party. They’d given her a makeover and loaned her a dress and everything and she’d arrived halfway hopeful only to find nothing had changed. Boys occasionally started towards her but as soon as they got close they seemed to lose interest and went to talk to some other girl. She eventually went to the bathroom to see if something was wrong.
Looking at herself in the full length mirror she sighed. There was nothing wrong with her makeup, it was applied better than she could manage and she hadn’t smudged it nor was there anything wrong with her dress or her shoes. So it must be her. She was simply too bland. Brown hair, brown eyes, and an average figure. A little too hippy and her thighs could use more work but the dress hid that.
She sighed again, “I must be too plain to even bother talking to.” She only realized she had spoken out loud when a voice answered her, “Is that why you’re hiding in the bathroom?” She looked and her friend Briana was standing in the doorway. “If it is, “ Briana continued, “then you need to leave because that is SO not true.” Briana grabbed her hand, “Come on,” and pulled her out of the room and on to the dance floor.
While dancing she forgot her troubles with boys, ‘I wish I was gay,’ she thought. I’d have no trouble dating someone as nice as Briana or any of my other friends. As they danced several boys watched them but she didn’t notice any of them and if she had she would have been convinced they were looking at her friend.
After a few dances they left to go something to drink and a boy came over and asked Briana if she wanted to dance. She smiled at the boy but answered, “No, I’m going to sit out the next few but my friend here still has energy. Maybe you should ask her?”
The tall boy looked over at her and she made herself meet his eyes hoping her luck was about to change but fearing it wouldn’t. He gave her that up and down look that guys do and then met her eyes. Her emotions spiked and then he just wandered off not even bothering to say anything.
Maria was crushed and Briana was livid, “That was just terribly rude! I’m going to go set him straight. He can’t just dis my friend like that!”
Maria mumbled something about it being okay but Briana stalked off after the boy leaving her alone. Maria went to get some punch but it smelled alcoholic so she passed. As she left the table she decided to leave the party too and walk home. She’d come by car with her friends but it wasn’t too far to walk, not really. She grabbed her coat without anyone seeing her and started for home.
She was so absorbed in her thoughts that she didn’t notice the women walking up behind her until one of them spoke, “You are lucky we found you. It’s not safe for a girl to be wandering the streets alone at night.”
Maria spoke over her shoulder determined not to stop walking, “You’re from the party? I’m not going back, it’s just too embarassing. I’m going to go home and put on my own clothes and eat a pint of chocolate ice cream.” Her voice was bitter but determined. She was also planning to skip school the next day and possibly forever.
“What happened?” said the voice. She couldn’t place it which was weird but it had to be somebody from the party right? Why else would they care?
“I got ignored by the boys as usual,” she sighed. “I swear it’s enough to make me wish I was gay!” She blushed because it was the first time she’d said that out loud. But the girls behind her didn’t react badly, they just sped up until they were walking on either side of her then one of them said, “Or enough to make you wish you were a guy?”
“Heh, yes. Then I could show the assholes how to do it right!” They passed in front of a house with motion sensors and she got a good looking at the two girls. They might be about the same age but she’d never seen them before, either of them. She stopped, puzzled but not scared; they hadn’t harmed her or anything. “Who are you?”
“I’m Lili and this is Heather,” the girl who’d been doing all the talking said pointing to the other girl.
“Hi!” Heather waved at her with a bright smile, “I’m sorry you’re upset but soon you’ll get a whole new start! Cool huh?”
“Heather, let me explain please?”
Maria groaned, “All this day needs to be perfect is for me to be kidnapped by some freaky cult or something.”
She would have continued but the first girl interrupted, “No, this is not a kidnapping. We just want to explain something to you. Are you hungry? We could buy you something to eat.”
“Good, then you can buy the ice cream. There is a place up ahead that’s still open. But I know the owner so if you try anything there...”
“Perfect!” Lili replied, “Let’s go.”
Once there she ordered the biggest, gooiest sundae on the menu. It wasn’t like she needed to watch her weight anymore. If she never had a boyfriend then she could indulge and spend more time studying. This was a good thing she told herself. She missed the most of Lili’s speech trying to convince herself until one of them said, “... and intersexed.”
“What?” How could they know that? Her doctor had promised never to tell! “How did you find out?” she whispered urgently as the guy behind the counter frown at them. Maria smiled at him and he went to cleaning up.
“We are all were born that way. Haven’t you been listening?”
Maria blushed, unwilling to admit she hadn’t been, “Well it’s just two unimportant bits. The doctor was worried they might interfere with puberty but they didn’t so who cares.” She paused to eat some minimarshmallows covered in caramel and chocolate. “I’m going to die a virgin anyway. Can you tell me one thing that’s more important than that?”
They did and she fainted face first into her sundae. Things might have gotten sticky then but Lili telepathed the sitch to Ray who managed to divert the 911 call from the ice cream place and he and his team were the “EMTs” that showed up and carried her out into a very realistic looking ambulance.
Looking down at the unconscious girl Heather said, “Look on the bright side! Now we have the perfect cover for her disappearance!”
“Well that is true and at least I think she’ll be listening when we explain this time,” Lili agreed. “Let’s get going. If she comes out of it before we get to the Center I’ll restart my spiel. If not someone else can do it. I don’t why you had me come along on this one anyway.”
“It’s because of her power. When she’s scared she disappears,” Ray replied.
“Invisibility?” she asked.
“Not really, according to Dani she just seems to make people stop noticing she exists. It’ll triggered by fear at first but maybe we can get her to do it at will. If she can learn that she’d be a great asset. Kris figured a good telepath would be immune so you got to make first contact, being our best telepath and female.”
“That might also explain what she was so depressed about,” Lili added. “If every time she got scared people forgot her then whenever a guy she liked came close he’d forget she existed and that would just make her more scared and nervous the next time until it snowballed.”
“Oh god,” Heather replied, “that would royally suck. I hope we can help her get a handle on that.”
“We’ll do our best,” Ray said.
She came to as they were parking in the Center garage, “Man I had the weirdest dream.” Then she noticed she was strapped to a gurney and glared around at them.
“It was no dream, you have manifested a psychic power and will soon become a boy,” Lili said. She started to add something when she noticed that Kris had been right as usual, the others were acting like the girl wasn’t here. “Hey!,” she said, snapping her fingers in front of their faces, ‘Help me get her down from here.” Seeing their faces as they realized what happened was pretty funny.
“We are going to need a way to defend against that,” Ray said frowning and purposely not looking at her.
“Duh,” Heather replied, “just don’t meet her eyes.” She shrugged, “It can’t be that hard. People do it in vampire novels all the time.”
“Alternately we could just try not scaring her,” Lili said. Leaning over to look at Maria she said, “We are taking you to the infirmary. You’ll be safe there and after your change someone will come to help orient you.” With a lopsided smile she added, “If you think you can pay attention I’ll give you the basics on the way. Are you willing to listen now?”
“Yeah, sorry about before,” Maria blushed again.
“There was a water bottling facility on a river once. It closed around seventeen years ago. Well upstream from this bottling plant was a company called Genetech. Both are also no longer in business. The company got hit by a group of fanatics. The group’s name is not important but among the other damage they did was dumping test tubes down the sink. The sinks emptied in to a lake and the normal filters while good enough for their purpose were not good enough to filter out what was in those test tubes. The lake fed in to the river and the river into the bottling plant. Are you with me so far?”
“Yes, am I going to die some of horrible disease?” It would be just my luck Maria thought.
“No, but as you may or may not have known your mother drank the water from there while pregnant and in a nutshell that is why you have to come with us.”
“So that’s why we all have this power and why we all have … extra bits?”
“We don’t all have the same power. It’s always psychic but it varies greatly but otherwise you are correct. I used to be a guy once, so did Heather if you can believe it, and Ray was a girl once just like you.”
Maria looked at Ray and couldn’t quite believe it, “So by this time tomorrow...” she trailed off.
The boy nodded, “Next time you wake up you’ll have male genitals.” He patted her shoulder, “These ladies will take good care of you and I have to head back to my room and start writing the report.” He waved at Heather and Lili and he took the next left while the rest of them went straight. “Don’t worry, I’m sure you’ll fit in fine.” He called over his shoulder. As they went the two girls made sure she knew the basics and by the time they finished she was in the infirmary.
A nurse walked over with a syringe, “This will put you out while you change. You are lucky you have a subtle power otherwise you’d be in the bunker and much less comfortable. Now before I give you this shot I’ll tell you a few things that might help. If you have a positive attitude going into the change it will help and if you have a mental image of what you would like to look like that might influence things as well.”
“Might?” she asked.
“It depends on how hard you imagine it we believe. Also I should caution you not to over exaggerate the image as you will be living with the consequences. If you can’t settle on a good image then don’t try.” She gave Maria the shot then unstrapped her and assisted her in removing her clothes and jewelry. As she helped the increasingly sleepy girl into the hospital bed she said, “I’ll be monitoring from the next room. If the shot wears off or you need anything just call out, okay?” Maria nodded sleepily and the nurse kissed her forehead before leaving.
Maria awoke and looked around confused, wondering where she was at first. Then as it all came rushing back to her she tried to grab her crotch with both hands but discovered herself restrained. She called out as struggled against the straps, “H-hello? Could somebody please untie me before I start screaming?” As she struggled she felt something flopping around between her legs. She was afraid she knew what it was and just as she was about to scream the door opened and a boy walked in. Maria’s scream became a startled peep as she saw him.
“Hi, I’m Christopher. I would have been here sooner but when you were transitioning you apparently zapped the nurse on duty a good one because she forgot she had anyone here and went to bed. I’m sorry about that. Once you learn to control it the power should be useful but in the meantime only empaths like me and strong telepaths are immune. I’ll introduce you to some of them later if you like.” He smiled as he walked towards the new boy and started unstrapping him.
“Can you tell me why I was restrained?” Maria asked.
“To keep you from hurting yourself as you changed,” he said.
Given that fresh reminder and having her hands free she grabbed herself with both hands then blushed as she remembered she was not alone. “It’s okay,” Chris soothed, “Everyone does that. I did it myself.” He released the last of the straps and came over to the front of the bed. “It does get easier as time goes along and you will have a lot of support. We’ve all gone through it too so we know what it’s like and we’ll help.”
“Wow, you’re so different from the boys at school,” Maria marveled.
“The fact that we’ve all gone through it ourselves makes us tolerant.” He frowned briefly, “Well most of us. I hope you’ll be tolerant with those who are having a harder time than most and the premenstrual.”
“I’ll sure try, I know how it goes,” she, now he smiled. “I guess I’ll need a new name, Maria just doesn’t fit this body.”
“Hmm, come stand in front of the mirror and we’ll see if we can come up with one you like,” he said.
He got out of the bed with a steadying hand from Chris and walked slowly over to the mirror. The mirror showed a very tall boy with shoulder length black hair, black eyes, and a sharply planed face with a square jaw. He removed the paper gown, wanting to see his new body fully. He now had an athlete’s body, all streamlined muscle and very little body hair on his bronzed flesh. He was surprised to find he looked Native American now.
“What the freak?” he said then flinched at the bass voice. He wondered if that was really what he sounded like.
Chris smiled reassuringly, “Yes, that is what you sound like now and it is a good voice, trust me on this. As for the ethnic change, we don’t know why that happens sometimes but it’s harmless at least. You’ll see people of all sorts here at the Center. Two dozen of us now and I think all ethnicities are represented.” Chris took a deep breath, “Now before I go get you some clothes and take you to get oriented I have one last delicate matter to advise you on. Hey, are you listening?”
She, no he, hadn’t been, he’d been staring at his crotch. It looked huge ungainly, and vulnerable. He noticed with some satisfaction that his new complexion hid blushes better. “Sorry, is it just me or this larger than normal? I mean I’ve never seen one close up but it looks too big.”
“It’s proportionate to your height don’t worry about that but my advice concerns it,” Chris grinned. “In no time at all you’ll be wishing it was larger by all accounts. Listen up now though, you will probably have to pee soon if you are like the rest of us new guys. I’ll leave you to go in peace while I scare up some clothes that fit well enough to leave the infirmary in but I warn you if you try to go standing up and make a mess the nurses will make you clean it up yourself! So sit until you get the hang of things.” He leaned in and whispered conspiratorially, “We usually practice in the bathroom of the boy’s locker room since the janitors are responsible for that one and they can’t pin it down to any one person. Just don’t tell anyone,” he grinned again. “It’s our little secret right?”
Maria snorted, “If you say ‘Bros before hos’ I’m going to hit you.”
He broke up into laughter, “Nope! Not going to say that.” When he finally got the laughs under control he continued, “The other piece of advice is that you will get erections. Don’t feel bad about it but don’t flaunt it either. There are some ways to deal with the problem and we’ll share them with you but it will probably take you a little while to master them. If a girl is upset just apologize sincerely and that will usually be all that’s needed. In fact you may not even need to do that, as I said, we are a pretty tolerant bunch here because of our circumstances so as long as you aren’t trying to be offensive or flagrant nobody should get in a huff.”
“Thank you but I can’t imagine...” he paused remembering yesterday. She had been wishing she was gay and now she was a he so he couldn’t rule it out. “Well let me just say thank you.”
“You’re welcome! I’ll just go get those clothes now. Be back in a jiffy.”
Soon he was back with button fly jeans and a muscle tee. “Sorry,” he said sincerely. You’re pretty tall and this was all I was sure would fit until we get to wardrobe. At least there is no zipper to worry about.”
Soon Maria was dressed and as they were leaving he said, “Mark.”
“What?” Chris replied.
“I decided I look like a Mark,” he answered.
Chris smiled, “That’s a good name. Come on Mark, let’s go get you some clothes and find you a room. Once we’ve done that we’ll go get some lunch. Sound good?”
“Sounds good yeah,” Mark replied. On the way to wardrobe he discovered he had a type. She was tall and slender with black hair and dark blue eyes. Her skin was pale and shining like fine porcelain and her lips were very red. He actually stumbled over his feet he was staring so hard.
Chris looked back, “Are you okay?” Then he smirked a little on realizing what happened.
Mark blushed, “I’m not used to being this tall yet.” He said thinking it sound plausible.
“Sure, whatever you say. We’d better you some looser pants soon though,” he repied his eyes going down then back up to Mark’s eyes.
Mark blushed again as he followed Chris, it was true his pants felt a few sizes smaller just then but he hadn’t realized it was so obvious. Fortunately embarrassment worked as well as any cold shower and by the time they reached wardrobe it wasn’t a problem.
Inside were enough clothes to start a store. “Wow,” he said. “I get to pick from all that?”
“Okay chuck that junk and we’ll get some uniforms that fit and help you pick some other stuff,” Chris said. Another boy came up from inside the stacks. The new boy was about 5’6” and a sandy blond with watery blue eyes.
“Hi, I’m Anders. Still got the shopping bug?” He held out a hand and Mark shook it.
“Never really had the chance to indulge before,” Mark replied.
Anders smiled, “No problem, you can now. Let’s start with boxers. Later you might get be able to switch to briefs but at first it’s boxers and sleeveless tees.” They led mark to a set of drawers they contained a large variety.
“The boy’s uniforms are rather … plain,” Chris said. “Either black or gray with white shirts and tee shirts so if you want to express your style on school days it will have to be with these and to a lesser extent your tie.”
Mark nodded and chose several wild prints. The only one that was black and white had peguins sipping martinis on an ice shelf. The wildest was four colors and had tiki idols in aprons making waffles in a giant kitchen.
“Wow, I love them! I would never have the stones to wear them but I love them!” Anders said and they all had a chuckle.
The boy’s uniform turned to be white shirt with mandatory tee underneath, “As a guy you can show your nipples when topless but not through your shirt,” Chris said shrugging. “Not sure I understand it but them’s the rules.”
The trousers were slacks in either grey or black, the shoes were black loafers, and the ties were black, white, or grey but a pattern was allowed as long as it followed the color scheme.
“Surely not all boys are this boring?” Mark asked.
“Not at all. This is merely the uniform. We have considerably more leeway in our leisure time,” Anders looked at Chris and started to say something then stopped.
“What?” Mark asked.
“I’ll tell you later,” Chris replied. “Now let’s see if we can find you some Hawaiian shirts to match those boxers.”
“Sure,” Mark nodded. He also got some solid colored polo shirts as well. Along with sneakers and some shorts he was set.
Chris said, “It will get sent to your room once you pick it except for the outfit you wear out of here. Since it’s Sunday you can wear whatever. Once you’re dressed we’ll head off to lunch and I’ll introduce you around.”
Mark ended up wearing a shirt with tropical birds on it and cargo shorts over sneakers as they left for the cafeteria.
They grabbed some food and Chris pointed him towards the Salisbury steak, “You’ll need a lot more food than you were used to Mark. And more protein to feed the new bod. Try to eat at least some meat with every meal until you check with the docs. If you’re a vegetarian then they are other things you can eat but if you eat like you used to you’ll be malnourished and always hungry.”
Mark nodded, “I think you’d be surprised at how much I used to eat but it makes sense that I’d need a bit more to fuel this Zongor the Barbarian body I have now.” He smiled as he saw Chris try to figure out who the heck “Zongor the Barbarian” was. Mark tended to make up these names and drop them in conversation as if they were famous, it was a bit odd but his friends got used it and it gave them a source of in jokes that never died.
“Hey, can I ask you something?” He said reminded of his past life, “Do you know if they’ll let me check the news from home? I’m wondering how things are going and if my friends are alright.”
“The news? Sure. These days you can get most national papers as hardcopy in the library and most others electronically. You can’t surf the web without permission and you can’t go visit them but you’re not cut off entirely. The Colonel who runs this place and his second in command, Kristyn, are good people. She’s actually one of us so she knows what it’s like.” He led us to a table with several kids our age and made introductions, “This is Dani, she’s an empath too and a precog. She’s actually a stronger empath than I am and she can project too. Lili you know and Heather too. They brought you in. That’s Ray,” he continued.
“I’ve met him before,” Mark added. “He was there when Lili and Heather brought me in.” I nodded to everyone, “Hi I’m Mark and my power is apparently to be forgotten.”
“Good name,” Heather said. “I like it.” She frowned then, “Your power is cooler than that! You could be a ninja or something once you control it because nobody would remember you being there.”
“Thanks,” he smiled at her and she grinned back. He blushed suddenly wondering if this was flirting and was glad when Chris started talking again.
“Well after this I’ll take you to your room. You get to relax for an hour and set stuff up how you like it. Later someone will come get you and take you to testing.” He smiled, “Don’t worry, it won’t be like a cartoon ‘danger room’ or something. It might be a bit strenuous but you’ll be fine.”
As he was taking his tray up a guy stepped right in front of him and glared sticking his face just inches away from Mark’s and looking right in his eyes . Mark felt scared, he was a big guy now but he wasn’t used to it yet and besides most guys in here must really know how to fight right? So he was expecting to get beat up on his first day when the guy suddenly looked blank. His pupils were huge and his face was slack as he pulled back and wandered off. As Mark turned to walk in the opposite direction he saw Chris standing there, “Did you do that? Thanks! I thought I was going to get beat up on my first day.”
Chris shook his head, “I was going to help but that wasn’t me it was you.”
“Me?” Mark’s bass was a bit too deep to squeak but it tried.
“Yep, you. I can’t wait to find out what they say your power is officially. It’s a new one on me and I’ve been here forever. How about I come get you for dinner?”
“Sure,” Mark put his tray in the alcove. “You said we were going to my room first? Do I have a roommate? You mentioned there were two dozen of us so I guess I do?”
“Nope! You lucked out. There may be 24 of us but you are the eleventh guy so you get a room to yourself. Even when we get another guy you might get to keep it. We have plenty of space right now. Eventually you will have a roomie I guess but not anytime soon unless you want one.”
Mark picked an empty room and soon was putting his stuff away. Before he finished there was a knock on his door and a woman stepped in. “I’m Ms. Fine. I am head of security here. I’d like to welcome you personally and state that if you experience any problems with the other students you can bring them to me or to any of my people.” She gestured, “Now unless you do have a complaint I’d like to escort you to testing.”
He goggled at her. The head of security came to escort him? His thoughts must have shown on his face as she chuckled, “It’s true that normally I don’t do this but I’ve heard about your apparent power set and I wanted to get a good look at you while I still can. It might help me see through your invisibility.” She grimaced, “Or help me describe you if you go rogue and manage to give us the slip.” She stepped back and held the door open, “Come on, you don’t want to be late for your first appointment here do you?”
“No,” he answered and followed her to a room with Chris and an adult in it but nothing else. The guy’s name turned out to be Steve. There he tried to reproduce his ability consciously and failed the first three or four times before getting it right once.
Chris snapped his fingers by the guy’s ear and snapped him out of it.
“Wow,” the guy said. “That is a wild one but I have an idea as to what it might be.” He smiled at Mark, “Tell me are you adjusting well?”
Mark replied, “It’s pretty freaky alright but I’m trying to just roll with it. Shit happens, you do your best to deal, then you move on right?”
Steve grinned, “Right! Now if you’ll just follow me we want to get a few blood samples and to hook you up to an EEG. Do you know what that is Mark?”
Mark followed him out of the room and down the corridor, “Nope.”
“It stands for electroencephalograph. What that means is that it records brainwaves, not what your thinking but what synapses are firing. We’ll see if we can get you to use your power while hooked up and from your pattern and the patterns we’ve already collected we’ll learn something and usually enough to place your power in an already established family of similar abilities. Once we know that we can help you train your ability better.” Steve led him into a lab with a big comfortable chair in the center.
There was a woman on either side of it in a labcoat, “Hi, we’re going to be testing you but don’t worry it won’t hurt.” They both smiled at him and he smiled back. Steve went and got a few vials and a finger stick, “I’ll be drawing a bit of blood first but it’s just a pinch. You’ll barely notice it.”
Mark felt like saying that he wasn’t sure of that but something in him didn’t want to admit fear in front of the two women so he just sat down in the chair and tried not to wince while Steve filled two small vials with his blood. After they hooked him up though he got to practice his talent on Steve again and he got better at it. After about fifteen minutes they seemed satisfied at the results and he was back in the corridor and on the way to someone they said would explain the results.
He ended up in an office across the desk from a middle aged man in a three piece suit. “I’m Doctor Thripp. I will be your counselor while you are here. I am a psychologist and I’ll both explain the results of testing and answer any questions you might have about today. Naturally given the nature of this place all of our student are assigned counselors that are either psychologists or psychiatrists.” He waited for objections or questions and hearing none he continued, “You are what we are calling an “anti-dominator”. The Dominator powerset is able to control other minds and make them do what the dominator wants.”
“That’s horrible!” Mark said, utterly revulsed.
“Yes,” Dr. Thripp agreed, “it is and it one reason we bring all the children with powers here until we know what they can do and get a feel for them as individuals. Some people with powers go nuts and some turn their abilities to selfish or malicious ends. We call them rogues.”
“I’d hate to run into a dominator that’s for sure,” Mark said and shivered.
“Actually I think you might be safe from going rogue if not from the rest Mark,” Dr. Thripp said.
“Because of being and Anti-dominator? It means I’m immune?” Mark asked.
“Because of your power yes. At least if my theory is correct then anyone with your powerset will adjust rapidly and well to the changes involved in emergence. I hope that while we help take full control of your power and get the most out of it you will also help us understand all talents better.”
He smiled at Mark, “Now why don’t we get to know each other a little better?”
After the session he was guided to the gym where he started learning what his new body could do and how to use her old skills in his new body. Afterwards he showered and redressed and was reading some of the textbooks they had given him when there was a knock at the door. He called out, “Come in!”
“Hi,” Chris said, “I was going to head to dinner. Want to come along?”
“Sure,” Mark agreed. When they got to the line he wished he hadn’t. The girl from the hallway walked up to them.
“Hi!” she said with a little wave as Mark’s face turned red. “I was hoping to see you here. I’m an Empath too so I heard about you before we … passed in the hall.”
Mark tried to say something but what came out of his mouth was pretty incoherent until she raised a hand and stopped him mid-stutter.
“It’s okay. All part of being an empath. I can’t hold it against you and in fact I’m flattered. You’re a good looking guy, once you get a bit more used to,” she smiled, “things. Come look me up. We could maybe eat somewhere semiprivate or watch a dvd together.” She waved again and walked off.
Mark looked at Chris and finally got a word out, “Wow.”
Chris smiled, “Wow indeed. I’d say your luck has definitely turned. Now let’s go eat.”
He’d been watching friends play beach volleyball and reading manga in the sun when he suddenly felt a wave of nausea and went weak at the knees. He tried to stand and shake it off and ended up face first in the sand. His friends carried him into the shade and poured cool water on face to wake him up. When he woke up he felt fine but decided to stay in the shade and gladly accepted the sports drink he was offered. “I must have gotten dehydrated,” he said and he believed it then.
He felt fine for a few hours then when his folks picked him up he was started to feel bad again. This time he was sore all over and his folks took him to the family doctor. The GP said it as likely mild sunstroke and for him to drink more water and get a good night’s sleep. He went home unaware of the great change in direction his life was about to take.
That night he awoke screaming from severe abdominal pain and his parents rushed him to the hospital. He ignored most of what the doctors were saying to his parents as he lay curled up into a ball on a stretcher. They gave him a painkiller and took him to a room. He passed out as his body started to reshape itself. The staff strapped him down because his limbs were jerking randomly and they worried he might hurt himself. They made calls to the nearest superteam and the DPA and alerted one of their psych staff that the patient would probably need counseling when he awoke as a she. The team advised the psychologist that they knew of a “special school” used to such students and would send a member to help explain things.
He woke up in the dark wondering what had awoken him. Then he noticed that the power was off in the hospital. He could see the faint glow of emergency lighting under the door and a quick glance out the window showed that the power was on outside. “Damn, this looks bad,” he said. then frowned. ‘What’s up with my voice?’ he wondered. He could hear people rushing back and forth as if looking for someone and decided that must be what woke him up. When he tried to sit up he noticed he was strapped down. “Can this get any worse,” he said.
He received his answer when the door opened and a lithe female figure slipped in and then locked it behind her. She was dressed like a girl in a video game, revealing clothes in weird colors but then again if she were a video game character she’d be armed and she wasn’t. The woman had very pale skin and red eyes that seemed to reflect every stray glimmer of light in the dark room. Her hair was so dark that it stood out as a darker patch in the dimness and her teeth were very white as she smiled.
“Awake? Good, I prefer my prey aware and knowing what is to come. It spices the blood most tastily.” She smiled wider and fangs showed. Akira struggled to get out of the restraints and she chuckled, “Why have they trussed you up like turkey awaiting the pot girl?” The woman asked, “Not that I mind the help, but I’m curious.”
He stared at her and shouted, “I’m not a girl!”
“Ah, crazy then,” she said with a smile. “It’s nothing catching I hope?” She walked up and brushed hair out of the way and while he was wondering how his hair got so long she bit him right in the neck and started drinking his blood!
Shortly though she stopped and took a few steps back, “Damn girl! What are you? Your blood tastes like lightning and gives a stronger boost than any speed pill I ever popped before I changed. So other than nuts what are you lady?”
‘Why did she keep calling him a girl?’ he wondered. “I think you’re the one who is nuts pretending to be a vampire. If you tell what you are then maybe I’ll tell you what I am but one thing you get for free, I am a boy not a girl!”
The woman pulled the covers off and shredded the hospital gown when she couldn’t remove it whole. Then she lifted Akira’s head to show him how his body had changed, “Not a girll huh? Then are these?” She grabbed his chest, or rather as he now knew her breasts and played with them a little. “I’d do more but you look a little young to me.”
As Akira fell back in stunned incomprehension the woman, the other woman her brain added, brushed her hair away from her neck and bit down slowly then started to drink her blood again! Akira just lay there hoping this was all a dream.
After a few more gulps the vamp stood up licking her lips, “If I drink anymore I’ll end up draining you dry and I do try not to kill anyone on these little jaunts of mine. I just get so … thirsty since I changed.” She smiled, “I know I’m a mutant but I figure if I crave blood and I see in the dark and burn in direct sun even if it’s not to ash then I might as well call myself a vampire. Right?”
Akira nodded numbly and she went to the door, “I think the coast is clear. Keep your chin up dear! If they don’t let out by the next time I get thirsty maybe I will if you’re of a mind to come with me.” Then there was a loud banging on the door and a voice shouting, “Miss Kagurazaka! This is the DPA. Open this door at once! We must determine if you are safe. There is a known mutant felon reported to be attacking this institution and if you are harboring her you are a danger to this hospital!”
“Open the door!” Akira called out. “I don’t want them to shoot me or anything.”
“Nope! Not until I see if I can get out that window there. I don’t want them finding me here. Don’t worry, they’ll see you are strapped in tight and know you had nothing to do with it.” The strange woman said as the men started pounding on the door again.
“This is Agent in Charge Robert Spaulding, is someone in there with you?” The voice shouted.
“Yes and I’m strapped down. Help!” Akira shouted.
The vampire shushed her, “If they come in now, they’ll see more than the straps.” She gestured to Akira’s now naked form. “If you stall them until I get this blasted window open I’ll put the sheet back on.”
Akira was about to tell her to go to hell when the agents broke the door open. They looked around the room; seeing a bleeding woman strapped naked to the bed and a wanted mutant criminal at the window they pointed their guns at her. “Freeze!” the lead agent shouted as simultaneously the woman shouted, “Frak this!”
She jumped as they opened fire and landed behind them. “That’s no way to greet a lady!” she said drawing a sap from somewhere in her brief attire and swinging with great speed at the rearmost agent’s head. He managed to avoid enough of the blow to stay conscious but still staggered into the others as they tried to turn around.
For what seemed like an eternity Akira watched as the agents tried to shoot her or strike her and she leaped and dodged among them like a weasel on speed. He, or rather she now, desperately wanted to get off the bed and help although whether that was to stop them from firing before they accidentally hit her or to assist them in capturing the criminal would have been hard for even her to say right then. Perhaps she just wanted very much to be free to leave the room. Regarding of what spurred it her desire was strong enough to activate her Manifestor talent.
A sword appeared in her right hand and laying across her body, despite her limited range of motion she managed to bring it in contact with the strap holding her left wrist. The sword cut it like a it was warm butter and she was able to grab the blade in her left hand and cut the the other straps too.
As she stood up on the bed a bullet grazed her shoulder. She shouted, “Stop shooting damn it! It’s not hitting her, you’re just trashing the room.”
They stopped shooting temporarily and the vampiric mutant dropped into a squat panting.
“We can let her get away miss. You should stay down and let us handle this,” one of the agents said. Another nodded, “I’m sorry if you were injured miss but you should leave the area if you’ve gotten free.” The one who had lead the way into the room added, “And if you find any of the police or the super team that is supposed to be on the way tell them what room this is and to get their asses in gear!” The fourth agent was sitting in a corner trying not to throw up and experiencing double vision so he said nothing.
Those were all fairly reasonable suggestions but Akira took none of them, “She bit me! I’m so going to kick her ass. Just don’t shoot me while I do it!” She jumped off the bed toward the the other woman and her sword flickered out as she lost concentration so she landed between the mutant and the agents unarmed but seething in not entirely rational anger.
The self proclaimed vampire was just catching her second wind and would have paled if she could, “Oh frak! Hey wait a minute girly. Don’t do anything rash.”
Akira kicked her hard enough to send her out the still closed window of the fourth floor room. Sticking her head she shouted “You freaking bit me!” She had a lot of shocks and stresses since waking up and here was an outlet for all her anger and frustration. “Watch this Y’all!” she said and jumped out the window.
“Is she nuts or what?” One agent said.
The lead agent replied, “She might just be that pissed off or in some sort of fugue state. She’s had a lot of shocks just recently. Let’s go down and make nobody gets killed. If we can.” He lifted a hand to the compact earpiece and microphone combo and activated it, “Do we have an ETA for that hero team that is supposed to be coming?” He talked for a few minutes as they made their way down to the ground in the more mundane way.
“Great, base says the press will be here at the same time as the local super team and the engineers say it’ll take at least an hour to repair what was done to the power lines. Only good thing is that the hospital has enough emergency power to ensure no patients will die from lack of it.” He sighed and lead them out the front door.
Outside Akira had her opponent in an Aikido hold. She turned to the agents and called out, “Don’t worry I won’t let her get away. I’ll subdue her and then you can take her in!” She gave a rather bloodthirsty grin, “I’ll just be doing my civic duty! You can fault me for that right? I can kick her ass in your name?”
The lead agent shrugged, “As long as you don’t kill her I have no problem with it. Self defense if nothing else.” He wasn’t sure he could stop her even if he should so it was an easy enough call to make. He was also thinking that if she calmed down enough afterward maybe the agency would sponsor her education in return for her joining them after graduation.
The vampire wannabe chuckled and strained against the hold even though it was clear that it hurt, “You really going to fight me naked girly? While the boys watch? I think either I should have tried mind powers on you or drunk all your blood and killed you.” She pulled a maneuver that showed her to be double-jointed and slipperier than an eel. The two of them faced off and started fighting.
“What should we do? Just stand and watch?” One of the agents asked.
“No, of course not,” he told them. “You should go and tell the police that are still wandering the halls what’s happened and take charge of them. We need a perimeter around this area to try to stop any civilians from coming on to this grass or the adjoining parking lot. You two go and get started on that. If you can keep the press out I’ll buy you a steak dinner but I don’t expect miracles. Just keep people away until one of them wins and keep an eye out for both the armored prisoner transport that’s supposed to be on the way from the state troopers and the local hero team. I’ll sit Joe down and make sure he doesn’t slip out of consciousness.” Then he sat on a bench with the agent that had been hit with the sap and opened a small first aid kit. He started a chemical coldpak and held it against the rising bump on the back of Joe’s head while he watched the fight.
As Samantha Craft, the wannabe vampire, fought Akira she taunted the younger girl and tried to get her mad enough to make mistakes. She had realized that her opponent though much younger was actually better than she and stronger as well so she taunted her hoping to distract her. Unfortunately without any real knowledge of her opponent she was stuck with generic barbs and so far her opponent’s focus was admirably tight. She had a slight edge in speed and agility but knew she’d eventually lose.
“Hey!” she called out. “If we are going to be providing the boys such fine entertainment perhaps I should get naked as well? If you’ll stop a moment I’ll strip down, and maybe we can even find some mud to roll around in?”
That got a response! It was not perfect, Akira switched from hard strikes and attempted joint locks to grabbing handfuls of Sam’s clothing and tearing it to shreds. Oh well it gave her a little breather and allowed her a chance to finish healing the bruises and pressure cuts from glancing blows. Once she had caught her breath she kicked off the last thing she was wearing, her shoes, and laughed. “Well? Like what you see? Or should I get the mud so we can titillate the men? Not to mention the press that the nice policemen are holding back for us.”
Akira stopped dead and her eyes widened as she noticed what she had missed while focusing solely on her opponent. They were surrounded by a semicircle of cops holding back the curious and the press. There were many cellphones and cameras and two actual news crews filming her. “Ahhh!” She screamed, hating how girly it sounded and covered her crotch with both hands. Then she remembered that wasn’t enough anymore and wondered if everyone watching could tell she didn’t used to be a girl. Then she heard her opponent’s laughter and her anger overtook her embarrassment.
Samantha stopped laughing when she saw that murderous expression, “Oh frak!” she said. Then they were back to the fight and she was slowly losing again. Nothing else seemed to work and soon she was in a headlock out of which no tricky joints or agility would get her. Akira forced her over to the bench, “Hurry up and handcuff her Agent Spaulding, before she slips away.”
He stood up and used a pair of brick restraints to secure her wrists and ankles, then said in a loud voice, “Thank you citizen for assisting us in apprehending the felon who stole your clothes. I’m sure the media will show the good taste or at least common sense not to show too much of a minor after editing. If only to save themselves the possible lawsuits.” After he restrained the vampire-wannabe he gave Akira his jacket. It was long enough to cover everything important and she put it on gratefully.
With the captured felon between them he led her over to the armored police wagon. “Sorry,” he said in a more normal voice. “The super hero team we were expecting was delayed. We really do owe you thanks and I have a lot of things to tell you, both things I’m required to inform you of as well as things I think you’ll like to hear. Can I trust you to stick around until I can see “vampirella” here off to jail and get agent Lopez some first aid?”
“Yes, agent Spaulding. I’ll just go back to my room and get dressed okay?” Akira replied wondering if his old clothes would still fit.
“Good, I’ll see you back down here in 20 minutes then? We can go to an all night diner I know of nearby. I’ll need to make a few phonecalls too but don’t worry we’ve done this before and we’ll take care of everything.”
Akira found that she could fit in to her old swim trunks and the black tee with her favorite manga on it but they were uncomfortable and tight in new places. She grimaced, “Maybe my little brother can use my old stuff because for sure I’m gonna need new clothes.” She headed off to the stairs and sighed at the looks she was getting even in the dim light from the staff as she jogged by, and the feeling of her breasts moving on her chest. As she went down the stairs she discovered that if she tensed her chest muscles she could keep them steady but only until she relaxed or was distracted. “I need a bra,” she said to herself, “no doubt about it. I wonder what size they are?” She shrugged and exited on to the ground floor, that was a worry for later. She had more important things to worry about right now.
When she got down to the ground floor Agent Spaulding was waiting for her just outside the stairwell. "The news media and a lot of onlookers are still outside," he said by way of explanation. "The police are keeping them outside but the front of the building is glass and they can still see in through the and film what goes on. Agent Whitfield has gone off with the state troopers to take that fake vampire to the nearest federal detention center rated for mutant criminals of her calibre and agent Smith is staying with agent Lopez until the docs can make sure he doesn't have a cracked skull or something. In the meantime I've contacted your mom and she will meet the two of us and someone who has gone through her own mutant manifestation and will be able to give you her perspective and maybe help you deal with things better." He grins, "There won't always be super-villains around on whom you can take out your frustrations."
"Let's go then. I ... well I really want to see my mom right now."
"Understood," he nodded and we headed for a side entrance far the circus out front. There was a beat up brown sedan parked at the curb and Akira had to ask, "Is this it?"
He smiled back, "Hey, it's not mine. It's government issue," he shrugged, "I guess somebody decided black was too cliche."
They got in and soon they were at the diner set just off the main road out of town. Akira looked at her watch, ill fitting like everything else but still working, "It's three A.M. are you sure this place still open?"
"Yeah, it's open and empty. I checked with the owner before we came. As soon as everyone gets here Iris will hang out the closed sign and lock the doors. She'll probably lose a little business, this place normally runs 24 hours a day, but she's an old college friend and she has other reasons to help." He smiled and led the way inside.
Inside it was like any other diner, formica tables with anodized metal tops and cheap looking chairs, an opening in the far wall where you could see the kitchen and from which the food would come. A waitress in a pink and white uniform with a nametag that said "Jo" walked up to us. She looked normal for a diner too, until she opened her mouth that is.
"Iris said to seat you and take any food orders then go take a break in the back until she came to get me. I dunno what's going on but she's a good boss and it's a paid break so I'll do it." She looked at Spaulding in his black suit and shades and frowned at him, "I hope you don't plan on making any trouble for her. She's a great boss and a nice lady regardless of what else she may be. The cook and I'll be in the back but we'll still be able to hear if she screams."
Akira gaped at the waitress in shock, and the woman stopped frowning and pasted a fake smile on. "Well I guess you won't be doing nothing too bad with a kid around and I don't want to go spooking her so I'll just do as I'm told." She walked to a booth in the back and laid down some menus. "I'll give you a few minutes to decide if you're hungry before I go." With that she walked off to sit a few tables away.
Akira looked at Agent Spaulding for a clue, but he just shrugged and picked up his menu so she did the same. Quickly deciding on a four egg omelet with bacon, cheddar, onions, green peppers and tomato along with hash browns and sausages she signaled the waitress and ordered adding, "and a glass of orange juice."
"Very good." the woman turned to the government agent. He smiled and said, "I'm not sure I should order anything, from the way you greeted me you might put something in my coffee."
"Like I'd want to be arrested for poisoning the MCO," she scoffed.
"I'm not the MCO," he said and showed her his badge. "See? Department of Paranormal Affairs. We're one hundred percent American. I'm here to help this young lady and help her and her mom do some planning. Iris agreed to help as well because she trusts me and because she knows how hard it can be to be in this girl's shoes."
The waitress' expression cleared up fast and a real if small smile appeared on her face, "Oh, then I owe you an apology. I'm sorry if I jumped to conclusions." She patted Akira on the shoulder, "Don't you worry honey. I'm sure Iris will help you. She's been real good to all of us."
Spaulding smiled, "In that case I'll have a tuna on rye and a cup of coffee." Then he gestured towards the door and added, "the kid's mom is coming and might be hungry so can you stick around a bit after you give the cook our orders?"
She shrugged, "Well I'm supposed to get everyone's orders first so yeah I can. How many are you expecting?"
He shrugged, "Just one more." He turned to Akira, "It's just your mom coming."
Akira nodded swallowing, "I think I understand."
Jo traded a compassionate look with Spaulding and said briskly, "Well I'll get these orders in and go sit until she gets here then. You'll like the food, people come here from all over just to eat." Then she walked off to put their orders in.
Before the food came her mom did. She was a petite asian woman named Mihoshi Kagurazaka and dressed in an oversized sweater and sweat pants. The waitress went to switch the sign to closed and Akira got up and waved.
"Is that you honey?" her mom said in a small voice.
"Yeah mom," Akira nodded and they shared an awkward and hesitant hug. "It's quite a shock huh?"
"Yeah, I mean they called to tell us but seeing it is ... different." She hugged Akira tightly, "I'm just as glad to have a daughter as a son though." She pulled back and looked her over, "You're going to need new clothes."
Akira nodded, then seeing her mom sort of staring at her shirt blushed and added, "And a bra I know."
Her mom smiled, "Yes, but I what I was just noticing is that you look like her almost exactly." She was pointing to character on Akira's shirt. It was Asuna from his favorite manga Mahou Sensei Negima.
"Really?" Akira asked. "I haven't really looked in a mirror yet."
"Well let's sit down and I'll lend you one," Mrs. Kagurazaka said.
As they made their way back to the table Akira noticed that the waitress was gone and was glad. She didn't really want anyone watching this reunion. Spaulding sort of had to be there she guessed but more was definitely not merrier.
Once they sat down her mom handed her a compact. "I guess I'll need to buy one of these soon," Akira said.
"One thing at a time baby," her mom said. "Look first."
When she looked she saw her mom was right, she looked like the spitting image of Asuna. "Wow," she said, "you are what you read I guess."
"Not usually," agent Spaulding added, "but there is still some argument as to why exemplars end up looking like they do. You're not the first to end up looking like a different ethnicity. You're not even the first to end up a different gender."
"I'm not?" she said surprised.
At that an older woman stepped in from the kitchen with plates balanced along one arm and in her off hand and said, "Sugar, you ain't the first from this county!" She put down the food they'd ordered and offered her hand, "I'm Iris, the owner of this place but I was born Adam. I graduated Whateley in 1987 and didn't think I could fit back in my home town and I didn't have the power or the inclination to be a superhero so I went to college for restaurant management and opened this place with some money I got from my family. I get to stay close and make some money and they have a reason to visit and chat with a stranger that no one back home would recognize."
"I met her in college and we dated a bit. After awhile we shared life stories," Spaulding said as she sat down next to him in the booth.
"I was worried what he'd say but I couldn't keep it from him. I'm only an Ex-1, En-1 ..." She was interrupted by Akira.
"What?" he asked confused.
Iris said "I'll explain later sugar but the important point is that he could have kicked my ass even before he got all his secret agent training and I was worried he might."
"Oh," Akira nodded. "Sorry to interrupt."
"No huhu Lulu, as we used to say. So I screw up my courage and tell him and he doesn't mind. In fact even after we broke up we stayed friends because he's a nice guy."
Spaulding takes it from there, "What talking to her showed me was that not all mutants are powerhouses flying around in primary colored spandex. A lot of them just want to be normal citizens no different than anyone else. They deserve the same rights as the rest of us and many have special challenges but also unique things to offer. She is the reason why I wanted to work for this agency in particular." He smiled, "You've seen part of what we do when we caught that woman attacking the hospital. This is the other side of the coin, helping mutants find the training and assistance they need to be productive parts of society."
Iris nodded, "And I'm here to tell you how I did it and about a school that helps all mutants learn what they can do and how to do it." She then told Akira and her mother about Whateley and about Poe cottage with asides and extra info from Spaulding. Akira ate while listening and asked occasional questions. Her mom just listened until they were done and then asked two questions, "Will my baby be safe there?" and "How much will it cost?"
"She'll be safer there than hiding at home and pretending to be a cousin or something while trying to learn to control her powers. Especially after the news footage," Spaulding said.
"I saw that," she grimaced. "I couldn't sleep so I was watching tv and I saw it but I didn't realize at the time it was my ... child on the news." She pressed on hoping nobody had noticed the pause. "I agree it's the best place for her but what does it cost?"
"It is expensive," Iris said, "but there are extensive scholarships."
"Actually that is the next point I wanted to make. The DPA is one of the funding sources. The federal government helps fund it and our budget is one of those that is tapped for such funds. We get information through normal official channels and we also get information through informal channels such as through people agents know or meet such as Iris and we hire some of the graduates of course but we haven't ever put a student through ourselves. At least not as long as I've been with the agency. We do have the option though. We're allowed and do send the occasional observer but that's not the same as seeing from a student's viewpoint."
"You want me to be a spy?" Akira asked.
"Nothing so dramatic or glamorous I'm afraid." He smiled, "We want you to be a high school student. Just one who occasionally, say once or week or so, calls this number." He dug out a business card and handed it to Akira, "That number reaches a phone that is always within reach. If we sponsor you to Whateley will you call me every week and tell me what you've been seeing? We don't want you prying or poking mind you. That would make you both less safe and less effective. Just give us the view from the ground floor, so to speak. If you do happen to see something we should know and it's urgent you can call me anytime, we'll get you a phone with a built in scrambler, but please let me stress that you are not to go looking for any danger nor are you to hang around any that comes your way solely for us. We have other sources as I've said and we won't be able to get there fast enough to change anything in most cases. If something big or dangerous happens you call Campus Security first and if after that you run away and call us from under your bed I'll not say anything about it other than thank you."
He grinned, "Of course we're hoping nothing of the sort happens so I'll tell you about the good stuff next. We'll pay all of your tuition including any lab fees and book costs. We'll also buy you the new wardrobe you need, send you a bi-weekly allowance, and provide you with the MID you'll need. We can also issue new regular ID to fit your changed circumstance, even under a different name and do it legally. If you want to come back during Christmas Break and pretend to be a cousin from out of town you'll have the documents to prove it and they'll stand up to scrutiny because they'll be official and real. Now I'll go to the other side of the diner and catch up with Iris while you discuss it with your mom." Then he and Iris stood up and went off to far table bringing their coffee mugs with them.
As soon as they were gone Akira’s mom turns to her and says, “Are you okay honey?”
“Not really mom,” Akira replies. “When I first woke up … like this, there was so much going on that I was able to put it aside and concentrate on other things.” She chuckled softly, “That’s the real reason I helped them. It was either curl into a ball and break down sobbing or beat someone up and there was a supervillain conveniently nearby.” Her voice broke with a sob, “But I don’t think I can keep it up much longer.”
Mihoshi hugged her, “It’s okay to cry honey. You need to let it out and I’m here for you.”
Akira cried on her mom’s shoulder and carefully hugged her. She wanted to hug her fiercely but having ruined a steel fork while eating she was leery of her new strength. “Aw mom, I’m not even Japanese anymore!” She said after several minutes of sobbing, “Am I still me?”
Her mom hugged her as hard as she could then pulled back to look her in the eyes, “Yes! You are still you and still my child whatever you may look like. Who you are is more than your outside. We all change as we mature. If I met myself from twenty years ago I have no doubt she would be surprised at some of the turns her life has taken but I am still me and I will remain me as the years roll past whatever life may bring. You have changed more than most people but you are still you inside. Remember that and stay true to yourself always and this change becomes no more than a challenge. It will be a mighty challenge perhaps but you can defeat it and it will leave you all the stronger for it.” Suddenly she smiled, “I have a lot more ancient wisdom and proverbs if you need them. Momwisdom has no end you know.”
That got a smile from Akira, “Thanks mom! I’ll call as often as I can. Maybe by the time Christmas comes around we can work out a cover story so I can visit?”
“I’m sure we can. He did say they would set you up with a new identity, and I’m sure it’s as easy to make you a cousin as anything else.” She gave her new daughter a searching look, “It might have to be a distant cousin but you will be a well loved one all the same.” She smiled, “And over the summer we can do those things I’ve always wanted to do with a daughter. You’ll love it I promise!” She pulled Kleenex from her purse, “Now dry your eyes and blow your nose. I’m guessing you agree with me that this school and this job seems like the best choice available? If you want the school but the job we’ll find some way to send you.”
“Thanks mom, but I think I’d like the job as well. If it’s as he describes I’ll be doing good work and I think I can trust him. He and his men seem to be on the side of right, you know?”
“My baby, the federal agent! I’m sure you’ll make me proud. You’ll have to get good grades in high school and college but if you put your mind to it I’m sure you can do it. They’ll be lucky to have you.” Hana dried her own tears and waved the others over. “You can come back now and if I could get a cup of coffee that would be great.”
Once Iris had brought her a mug she poured more for herself and Robert Spaulding, Mihoshi told him that they would take him up on his offer.
“Excellent,” he replied. “We’ll get started on the I.D. right away and once we get that done we can all get some sleep.”
“Okay, we decided that I’d be a cousin of mom’s, far enough away to explain the difference in looks but still kin,” Akira said.
“Okay,” Spaulding nodded and brought out a notebook, “What was your maiden name Mrs. Kagurazaka?”
“Hinato,” she replied.
He writes that down and gets her to draw the katakana and kanji versions, “Okay, now what about a first name? It will help the masquerade if that changes too or people may wonder why you have a boy’s name or even wonder if there is a connection between the Akira that died in the hospital and the cousin they are seeing for the first time.”
Akira winced at the thought but nodded at the logic, “Okay, and a perfect choice presents itself. Considering that I look so much like her, I’ll call myself Asuna.” She holds her mother’s hand under the table and feels a reassuring squeeze.
He adds that in the same way and asks, “One last thing, where is Asuna from?”
“Seattle, Washington. We used to live there before moving to here and mom is from there originally,” Akira, now Asuna, replied.
“Perfect! I’ll get them started on this tonight. By tomorrow Asuna Hinato will be a legal citizen of these United States. Do you two want to spend the night at a motel on me, or rather your Uncle Sam, or would you like to stay with Iris? She volunteered while we were catching up and you could talk to her more about Whateley and stuff.” Spaulding didn’t want Akira heading back home for even one night until he’d got all the details squared away but didn’t want to come right out and say it. He’d seen her crying and didn’t want to start her off again so he was trying to think ahead about what would cause the least stress in the long run.
She gave him a sickly smile, “I guess I can’t share a room with my brother like this. So what do you think mom?”
“Well, I would like to talk to Iris some more,” she replied.
“And I would be happy to have you over. I’ll make you a real 4 star breakfast in the morning, I promise!”
“Okay, that sounds fine by me too,” Asuna replied.
“Alright, I still have some work to do but I’ll be there in the morning to pick you up and start outfitting Asuna,” agent Spaulding said as he got up.
They all shook hands and started heading for the door. As they drove off following Iris’ catering van in Mihoshi’s car they saw Agent Spaulding standing by his car and talking animatedly on his phone.
Once at Iris’ house Asuna stripped off her uncomfortable and ill-fitting clothes and quickly fell asleep in a guest room while Mihoshi and Iris talked in the kitchen.
The next morning Asuna was the first up. She took a long shower exploring her new body and seeing a full length mirror in the room when she came out she tossed her towel in the hamper and stood in front of it examining her body in the light of the summer sun. What she saw in the mirror was a tall girl with red hair down past her shoulders pale skin without a freckle or blemish, strong features, one eye blue as the summer sky outside and one as green as any emerald. She flexed her arms and legs, they were slender but toned and there was visible muscle there, and the rest of her was in good shape as well. “Pretty good,” she said softly to herself, and then she heard her mom’s voice agree.
“Yep, you could have done lots worse.”
“Mom! I’m naked!” Asuna cried, covering herself with her hands.
“So? I’m your mother and we’re both girls. Besides after that stunt in front of the hospital I’m surprised you are being so modest.” Her mother closed the door and walked up to stand next to her at the mirror. “Not exactly lush but that’s overrated anyway. You’re pretty and you’ve got presence. You’ll never fade in to the background with this hair but you won’t have to deal with the sort of drooling idiots the more endowed girls do.”
“Thank god for that!” Asuna said with feeling.
Her mom smiled, “You might not always feel that way and either way is fine by me. I experimented a little before I met your father. If you still like girls I won’t be shocked.”
Asuna blushed deeply, “Please can we talk about something else mom?”
Mihoshi smiled, “Sure.” She ran a hand through Asuna’s hair, “This really is lovely hair. I hope you take good care of it.” She gathered a section of it in one hand, “Want me to braid it for you? So it will stay out of your way?”
“Sure mom,” Asuna said and sat in a chair while her mom braided her hair.
They were almost done when there was a knock on the door, “Breakfast is ready. I came up here to tell you and see if you needed me to wash anything. You didn’t look you had much when you came last night. If you like you can eat in breakfast in a bathrobe while I wash your clothes so they’ll be fresh and ready to where when Rob comes to pick you up.”
“Thanks, can I just pass the clothes through the door?” Asuna asked.
“Sure hun, and I’ll pass you the robe afterward,” Iris said. “I remember how it was. It took me a while to get used to how girls do things as well.”
“I’m almost finished braiding her hair,” her mom said. “If both of you can wait a minute,” A short pause later, “There! Now you’ll all set.”
Asuna gathered up her old clothes and cracking the door open a little she passed the clothes out and pulled the robe in. “Thank you,” she said as she closed it back.
“No problem dear,” Iris replied, “Come on down to breakfast as soon as you’re ready.”
Asuna put on the robe and looked at her braids in the mirror, “Pretty nice but it’s missing something.” She grabbed the ends of the two braids and concentrated, there a brief soundless flash and the braids had little silver bells tied to the ends.
“Wow,” her mom said.
“Yeah,” Asuna smiled, “Cool huh?”
Her mom said, “Well let’s get down to breakfast. It looks like you have a big day ahead of you and you’ll need it.”
When they got down to the table they saw Iris coming in with a pitcher of fresh orange juice which she placed on the table to complete the lavish breakfast spread, “Your clothes are in the wash and should be done soon.”
“Thanks,” Asuna said.
On the table were several plates; one piled high with blueberry pancakes, a little jug of maple syrup nearby, one with eggs scrambled with cheddar, also french toast, sausage patties, and hash browns. “The syrup is from maple trees in Vermont and the cheddar I used in the eggs is from there too. The blueberries in the pancakes were picked locally. I don’t cook at the diner much theses days and living alone I don’t get to cook for others here too often anymore so I want to thank you for the chance to stretch my culinary muscles.”
“Everything smells wonderful,” Mihoshi said, “but don’t mutants have to worry about cholesterol?” She sat down and took only a piece of french toast.
“Exemplars generally don’t and even low powered energizers never have to worry about getting fat,” Iris said while serving herself a healthy portion of everything. She smiled, “I guess we didn’t cover that last night while we were talking.”
Asuna was hungry so she grabbed some of everything too, “You guys talked last night?”
“Yeah baby, we did,” Mihoshi replied. “I was half asleep by the end though so maybe I missed a bit.”
“Well I should repeat for Asuna anyway,” Iris said. As they ate she talked about the main categories of powers and gave examples of heroes in the news to illustrate the points. “I’m not current on the latest theories behind the powers but you’ll get that from the school I’m sure,” she said as she finished.”
“So, if I understand you correctly, I’m an Exemplar because I uh changed and a Manifestor because I created a sword and these bells?”
Iris nodded and then made a waffling motion with one hand, “Well probably. Avatars can change gender too but I’d think you’d know if you were sheltering a spirit. Also manifesting can sometimes make you change but that is more gradual and you already looked like that before you made anything right?”
“Right,” Asuna said.
“So you are most probably an Exemplar and Manifestor. Now you should be careful until you get tested and only try new powers in a safe setting like the testing areas I described to you but you had no trouble when manifested those bells right?”
“Right again, there was just a small flash of light.” Asuna replied. “So?”
“They look and sound like silver. I’d like you to produce another set and try to hand them to me. Some manifested matter disappears away from the manifestor and some disappears after a few hours but if you can create silver and have it stick around that would be a significant source of income for you.”
“Wow, you think that’s possible?”
“I know it’s possible at least. Whateley will even help you sell it if you like but first we need to check to see which type of manifestor you are,” Iris said.
Asuna created another set of bells and leather ties then tried to hand them to Iris but they disappeared as soon as they left her hand.
“Too bad honey,” her mom said. “That would have been a nice way to add to whatever stipend the feds will be giving you.”
Iris nodded, “Yeah, Manifestors who can create things that stay are usually well paid by one industry or another. My old roommate from Whateley makes a nice living creating copper for a German company, something Farbenwerk. Maybe with more training you can manage it. I know you’ll be working for the DPA after you get out of college but that won’t be forever and even if you decide to stay a little extra money never hurt.”
Mihoshi nodded, “That’s very true.”
By then breakfast was over and Iris went to go put the clothes in the dryer. “I’ll be back in just a minute. You two just sit there and chat, I’ll clear the dishes when I get back.”
Asuna stood to start clearing as soon as she left and her mom smiled,” I’m proud of you honey. Let’s see how much washing we can get done before she comes back.”
They had cleared the table but not actually started washing things when Iris found them. “Hey now! You’re guests. Unless you want to make me a poor host you’ll scoot over and let me do that.” She said while making shooing motions.
“Can I at least dry for you?” Asuna asked.
“Nope, and I’ll show you why in a minute,” Iris replied. When she had finished washing a dish she held in up in one hand so the other two could see and then her hand glowed red. The water on her hand and plate dried quickly and she handed the plate to Asuna.
“It’s dry! Dry and warm,” Asuna said. She started looking for a place to put it.
After directing her to the right cabinet Iris says, “Yup, one thing I learned is that when your power isn’t strong creativity counts more.” She smiled and continued washing dishes. “Something you should remember even if you have ended up with a strong power Asuna.”
Asuna nodded putting away another plate, “Seems like everyone is in the mood to educate me today. I appreciate it though and I'm glad I got to see your power. I was wondering if your name meant you made rainbows or something.” Then the dryer *dinged* and she went to go get dressed leaving the robe on top of the laundry basket. She was trying to cinch in the waist of the swim trunks somehow as she re-entered the kitchen because it was loose at the waist but ended up leaving them alone since they didn't seem to slipping any lower and she had no belt to go with them.
“Nope, I picked the name because having switched sexes I figured I had just became a member of the rainbow coalition. My energizer power is to put out infra-red or heat energy but not a lot. I can light a cigarette or dry a plate but that’s about it. I can surprise the hell out muggers but I’m not quite a superhero.” She looked at Asuna fiddling with her clothes and added, “I’m sure Rob, that is agent Spaulding, will see that you get a new wardrobe that fits but it will probably be a bit conservative. If you have any favorite shirts from back home you can have your mom send them to you at Whateley.” She gestured with a soapy hand, “That shirt still fits well enough. If you wear a bra under it then you can keep wearing it.”
“It does? My belly shows a bit and most of my other shirts will be even shorter. This one was a little long on me when I bought it.” Asuna said, passing a hand across her navel.
“Grew a few inches did you? Well showing a little belly is fine for girls and you have great abs. Of course there is such a thing as too short for shirts as well as skirts so I guess your mom will have to decide which shirts will be decent and only send those. You’re lucky in that. Girls can wear boy’s clothing with nobody bats an eye. If you’d switched the other way you’d really need a new wardrobe.” Iris thinks a bit then adds, “Do you know what your measurements are now? I could loan you a bra until you can get your own. Just bought a few so it’d be new but I don’t know if it would fit you.”
“Oh, that’s okay,” Asuna started to decline.
“Hey I’ve got an idea,” her mom interrupted. “Do you have a tape measure? I should really get an idea of her sizes now if I’m gonna decide what clothes to send and for presents and such. We could also get an idea if she is close enough to your size for your bra to fit. Although bras that aren’t sized for you never fit quite right, maybe we can get as close as an off the rack bra gets.”
Asuna decided it was time to put her foot down before she became like a lifesized barbie doll for them, “No, absolutely not! I am not standing around in my brand new birthday suit while you two measure it and make comments about pink taffeta and lingerie. I’m sure Agent Spaulding knows a perfectly reputable tailor and once I’ve been professionally measured I’ll send you the results as long as you promise not to go overboard with it. Let me get used to seeing myself like this before you attempt any makeovers okay?” She looked from one woman to the other, “One day I may end up striding around in high heels and makeup but that day is not today. Fair enough?”
Her mom sighed, “Fair enough. I guess I was getting a bit over enthusiastic. You go at your own pace and don’t let anyone push you into anything, not even me.”
Things might have gotten a little teary then but they were saved by the doorbell ringing. “That must be Rob,” Iris said.
“I’ll go let him in,” Asuna said.
He was wearing a black suit identical to yesterday’s minus the damage from the fight with the renegade metahuman. “Hello ladies.”
“I’m glad to see you,” Asuna said. “Just let me get my sneakers on and hug my mom goodbye and I’ll be ready.”
“That’s fine,” he shook Mihoshi’s hand while Asuna wedged her feet into her old sneakers. “It was a pleasure meeting you Mrs. Kagurazaka.”
Then he kissed Iris, “It was nice seeing you again Iris. Keep in touch.”
“I’ll do that,” she replied.
Asuna hugged her mom, “I love you mom! I have to go now but I’ll be back. I promise!”
Outside the same poo colored sedan from yesterday sat parked, “You really need a better ride dude. If this is standard issue I think I’ll be buying my own when the time comes.”
“It gets me where I want to go and gets good gas mileage,” he replied. “That’s enough for me.”
They drove to an ordinary looking office building in a corporate park. Outside on the grass was a big stone rectangular sign with the words “Department of Paranormal Activity - Branch Office”.
“We’re here, remember to sign in as Asuna Hinato,” Agent Spaulding said.
They walked in through glass double doors and up to the reception desk.
“Good morning Agent Spaulding,” the man behind the desk said. “Please show your I.D. and have your guest sign in.”
After they did so they made their way to a bank of elevators and rode up several levels. They ended up in what looked like a conference room but there was only one person there. She looked middle-aged and solid. She lifted her glasses and looked out at them and smiled.
“You must be the girl who helped our agents capture the woman who has been attacking hospitals and blood banks all across the state. It was a feather in our cap that we caught her before local or state law enforcement. Thank you for that.” She pointed to the paperwork she had been reading, “I just have a few things for you to sign. Please do read everything first and ask questions about whatever you do not understand.”
Asuna accepted the papers and read through them. The first was the formalized agreement that the DPA would pay for her High School and an undergraduate degree and that after school she would work for them for at least eight years. It stated that she must check in with Agent Spaulding or his designated alternate at least once per week and that she must maintain at least a B average each semester. It also delineated the fairly generous allowance or stipend she would be paid biweekly and that room and board would be included in tuition along with any necessary books or materials. She signed that one having no real questions and moved on to the next one.
That one was an security agreement stating that she was not to tell people she was being sponsored by the DPA without a very good reason and to be prepared to explain that reason if asked. She was to tell most people only that she was on a government scholarship. That would be left to her discretion though and Whateley’s senior faculty had been informed. It also outlined the penalties for discussing any sensitive or top secret information she came in to possession of with anyone not authorized. All such information was to be passed through appropriate channels only. She signed that one too.
After she handed them back, the woman thanked her again and handed her a third document, “Once you sign this one you’ll take it with you to get your new I.D. cards. Welcome to the department.”
“Thank you ma’am,” Asuna said. The third document said that she was Asuna Hinato and she was coming to pick replacement identity information after a fire had destroyed her originals. To her it was the scariest of the three. She looked up at Robert Spaulding, “So the old me is legally dead?”
“Yes, he is listed as dead in the attack. Your immediate family knows different but they have agreed to go along with it. There will be a closed casket funeral and that will be the end of it. When you return it will be as your mom’s cousin. Your little brother is excited to see you.” He smiled, “He seems to think all this is really cool.”
“And my father?” Asuna asked.
“Well, I’m sure he’ll come around. Your mom seems like a very determined woman,” Spaulding replied.
Asuna tried not to wince.
The woman caught it anyway and added, “Most fathers do come around eventually. It just takes them longer. If he can accept the mutant thing he can accept the other.”
Asuna nodded and took a deep breath then signed the last paper. “I’m ready.”
They were walking down the corridor when Spaulding handed her a box with the Fossil brand on it, “I know it’s not your birthday but I got you this.”
Asuna said “Thanks,” but looked a little puzzled as she took the wallet out of the box. It was pretty nice and already had a little money in it.
“You’re going to get some I.D. next and some of that should be kept on you and it’s good luck to add some money to a new wallet. Most of what you’ll get will be paid for by Uncle Sam but that’s just from me,” he said.
On impulse she hugged him, “Thanks!”
“Oof! You’re very welcome but next time could you squeeze a little less hard?” he said.
She giggled then put a hand over her mouth, “Darkness, that sounded girly.”
“Consider it a sign you are adapting well,” Spaulding replied wondering to himself if BITs could change personalities as well as bodies.
Soon they came to an unmarked door and Spaulding walked in, followed by Asuna. The room inside ended with a wooden waist high partitioned. It looked like a high tech print shop on the far side of the partition and as they walked up to the partition a man looked up and smiled. He grabbed a sealed accordion folder and walked up to his side of the partition.
“You gave us a good challenge Spaulding so I decided to handle this one myself,” he looked at Asuna then back to Spaulding. “Is this her to your sure and certain knowledge?”
“Yes,” was all Spaulding said.
“Great!” the smiling man enthused.
Spaulding turned to Asuna, “This is Agent Zero, in charge of creating documents and new identities. We found him forging money so realistic that we only caught him because he told his girlfriend and she ratted on him after she caught him cheating on her. I’d introduce him by name but I have no idea what his real name is. In fact I’m not sure anyone other than his mother knows what she named him and maybe not even her.”
Zero smiled and held out his hand, “I’m nobody, pleased to meet you.” After Asuna shook his hand she handed him the form she had signed. Then he grabbed a clipboard from inside the wooden partition and handed it to Spaulding, “Sign here.”
Spaulding signed and returned the clipboard, “I hope you did your usual excellent job?”
Zero grinned and nodded, “From today on there will be no person anywhere who will be able to prove that she was not born Asuna Hinato in Seattle. She has full records going all the way back, and unless someone goes to Seattle and talks to the people who were there nobody will ever think she is anything other than a teenage girl from Seattle. Even if they do go there and do that they won’t be able to prove anything. School records, paper as well as electronic will be in place and the local city hall will have records as well. It’s a little easier when the subject is this young but it was still a masterpiece which you should appreciate like the work of art that it is.”
Spaulding grinned, “Okay, you’re an artist, a Michelangelo even, and I’ll buy you a steak dinner next Friday. Now can we see some of this art?”
The man grinned wider and held up the sealed document folder, “Of course!” He placed in on top of the wooden partition then looked at Asuna, “That internet video doesn’t do you justice. Are you really fourteen?”
Asuna blushed and said “Yes.”
Spaulding said, “None of your business how old she is. She is really a minor though so we better not catch you watching that video at work.”
“Oh, you won’t I promise you. Working here is the best gig I ever got. Much more interesting than forging boring old money, and the tools are excellent!” With his manic grin still on his face he opened the folder, “You should keep them in here and someplace safe once you leave, this case only looks like leather and it should protect them from most things but no reason to take chances.”
He pulled out the first document, “Your birth certificate from Seattle General. Treat it like an original but we do have master copies here for emergencies.”
She picked it up, “It looks real.”
“It damn well should,” Zero replied. He took it back and pulled out the next, “This is your diploma from your grammar school.” As he continued to remove documents he named them, “School transcript, you had a B average most years, a class picture so good I bet it would even fool you, your new social security card,” Asuna took that and put it in her wallet. He frowned briefly then grinned again, “You shouldn’t treat art so roughly.”
He handed her another card, “Library card, it’ll work too, family photos, beach pics,” at that last he started to say something then looked at Spaulding and decided against it. “Next, hand me that visitor badge and put on this.” He handed her a clip on badge with her picture on it that said “Asuna Hinato - DPA Consultant” and had a magnetic stripe on the back.
She stated to hand him the visitor badge but Spaulding took it, “I’ll just hand this back in myself.” He put it in his jacket pocket and asked, “What clearance did you give her?”
“The standard for consultants and subcontractors, Green two,” Zero replied. Then he pulled out one last thing from the folder, “Last but not least I went the extra mile and expedited your payroll.” He handed her a card, “This is your official USG Visa card. Your pay gets deposited on here every two weeks but it will also act as a no limit credit card if needed. However anything you purchase over a certain amount will need to be explained.” He shrugged, “You’d normally get this in two or three weeks but I figured you could use it sooner. All part of the Waldorf service,” he ended with a laugh. Then he put all the documents back in the folder, sealed it, and handed it over to her.
As they left Spaulding said, “You’re going to need more clothes than just what you’re wearing and us shopping for teen girl clothes together would be funny but not particularly effective. Fortunately we have people who do this sort of thing.”
“The government employs personal shoppers?” she asked surprised.
“Not exactly, or at least that’s not all she does. She also helps when a twenty-something agent needs to look like a teen. She has been briefed on your situation and should be able to help you get adjusted. I am sure if you treat it as challenge you’ll rise to it.” He punched her shoulder lightly, “You’re tough where it counts kid. You’ll be an asset to the agency.”
“I think I got here just in time,” a new voice said. “Next thing you knew he’d be taking you to get a drink at a strip club.” The newcomer was about 5’6” with dyed blond hair and unlike everyone else they passed she wasn’t wearing a black suit. She laughed and stuck her hand out, “I’m just kidding. I’m Special Agent Carter, here to help you purchase an appropriate wardrobe that won’t make you stand out and help you acclimatize.”
Asuna shook her hand, “Yeah I guess I have to get used to all that suff sometime. Bring on the hot pink, high heels, and makeup.”
Agent Carter laughed, “Just because you are a girl doesn’t mean you have to like all that stuff. You’ll have things to learn but you don’t have to prove anything. Even in your old clothes no one would mistake you for a guy so if you want to be a tomboy you can. We can decide that at the shops later. You have testing first and I get to be your chaperone. We can chat on the way and get to know each other a little before we start trying to create a look for you.”
“Are you coming with us Spaulding?” she asked. “And what sort of testing?”
Spaulding nodded, “I’ll walk you there but unfortunately I have work piling up on my desk and things I have to do today. Carter here is a good woman and I know you’ll be safe in her hands. You can trust her about anything but jokes.” He smiled and gestured, “Testing means determining what level Exemplar and Manifestor you are and seeing if you might have any other abilities. They can’t test for everything but it’s a start. Once that’s done you’ll have a MID and be all set on the ID card front. Then you can go and get some clothes and gear.” He turned to Carter, “Zero expedited her payroll so she has her card. Get her everything she might need and I’ll get it authorized.”
Asuna hugged him again, “Thanks! You’re much nicer than any MIB on the TV.”
He blushed a bit, “SOP is all. Just making sure you have the tools to do the mission.” He shrugged, “Now let’s go.” He started off and the other two fell in beside him.
“So what’s your story?” Agent Carter asked. “We’re going to be spending the next few days together at least so I want to know more than the bare facts I got when I was briefed.”
“Well how about we start with first names agent Carter?” Asuna said as they entered an otherwise empty elevator. She held out her hand again and said, “I’m Asuna, formerly Akira, and you are?”
Carter looked faintly embarassed, “I’m sorry. It’s just I’ve taken a lot jokes and teasing because of my name so I’ve gotten into the habit of using either just the first or just the last and inside here it’s easy to just be ‘Carter’.”
Asuna nodded, “Well I can empathize with that. I used to have people shouting my name out in very dramatic fashions whenever I met Anime fans or geeks in general but I really would like to know you a bit better before I tell you my life story.”
Carter nodded back, “Very reasonable, and you are young enough that you might not get the joke. My full name is Linda Carter.”
As she was half expecting, Asuna laughed, “I may be too young to have seen Wonder Woman when it aired but I’ve caught reruns. There is a whole channel devoted to those old shows now you know. If we do end up hanging out together I’ll get you a copy of the anime with my name on it, my old name I mean.” She looked thoughtful, “Although I guess I should stop doing that now. It might give too much away.”
Agent Spaulding nods, “You’re right. On the bright side, nobody will be worrying about you blowing up Tokyo or confusing you with Tetsuo.” He smiles, “There a bright side to everything.”
“True, I won’t have to hear anyone shout Akira at me ever again,” she smiled. Once the elevator stopped they got out and again Spaulding took the lead while Carter hung back to chat.
“So your job is to keep up with pop culture and fashion so you can help people pretend to be teens?” Asuna asks.
“Mostly,” she replies back. “I also get called in to help Zero sometimes. I know about past cultures and fashions too so I can help his people keep things straight for older pictures. I also babysit VIP kids sometimes although my boss calls it ‘research for the next generation’.”
“I’m a big trivia buff, especially if it involves Anime, Manga, or old Warner Brothers cartoons. I can read and speak Japanese as well as English and I have been learning martial arts at dad’s dojo since I was five or so.”
“That will come in handy at Whateley,” she replied. “You’ll have a leg up on most of the others.”
“Martial Arts is part of the curriculum there?” Asuna asked surprised.
“Yeah, it’s optional but I’d definitely recommend taking it,” she replied.
“Oh I would have anyway. I’m just surprised,” Asuna replied. “Any other courses you’d recommend?”
“I’ll show you the course list later and we can talk about it, but I don’t remember everything off hand,” she replied.
“We are at the door,” Spaulding interjected, “and now I have to go. I hear my paperwork calling me and I want to call and find out how Lopez is doing.” He nodded to each of them and then left.
The door said “Main Testing Lab” and inside was a room with a small battered couch and three doors. They said, “Men’s locker room”, “Women’s locker room”, and “Lab” respectively. Carter threw an arm around Asuna and started steering her towards the correct locker room when she was stopped short by Asuna suddenly freezing as still as if she was a statue.
“That’s the girl’s lockers,” she said with eyes wide.
Carter stroked Asuna’s arm, “You’ve been doing so well I forget how new this is to you. Or were you just putting up a front with Spaulding?” She was thinking that maybe with Spaulding she’d been able to ignore her situation enough to function rather than actually dealing with it.
Asuna turned to her, “Can’t I use the guy’s room just this once? I promise I’ll use the ladies lockers next time!”
Carter shook her head and spoke in a soft voice, “No, I’m sorry but I couldn’t let you do that. Small steps are okay but backward steps are not. This is who you are now and if you don’t deal with it you’ll break and that won’t be good for you or anyone around you.” She stroked Asuna’s arm again, “It’s not that bad. I promise you I won’t bite.” She smiled, “Haven’t you ever wondered what a girl’s locker room looked like?”
“Yeah, I think every teenage boy has wondered,” Asuna replied.
“Well now’s your chance,” Carter said and grinned, “You can even peek if you want.”
“What?” to Carter’s well hidden amusement that seemed to do the trick and get through to Asuna.
“Yes,” she answered. Steering her towards the door again she continued, “I’ve lost any body modesty I had over the course of my missions and if it helps you deal then you look all you want. After all we’re all girls here right?”
Asuna followed along and stammered out, “D-Do girls u-usually...” she trailed off.
“Do we usually walk around naked in front of each and all the rest of the things teenage boys hope for?” Carter guessed.
Asuna nodded and blushed.
“Well yes and no,” Carter replied as they entered the locker room and she steered them to two lockers side by side. “Girls are a bit more complex than boys but in general they don’t care what another is wearing or not wearing unless, a) there are guys around, b) it’s a fashion disaster, or c) they have just met.” She opened both lockers to reveal something white and shapeless hanging on a hook. “Before I continue with that, these are standard testing suits. You aren’t allowed to wear anything under it and they are a pain to put on but they are state of the art.” She held one up and Asuna could see it looked like a unitard. All white with short sleeves and legholes at the bottom. “They are fireproof up to temps that melt steel, electricity proof up to full lightning bolt, don’t get brittle in extreme cold, stretch well enough to fit anyone from four foot to seven foot tall and are guaranteed to look equally ugly on everybody. They also have many sensors woven right into them that help the docs figure out exactly what you are doing.” She laid the both on the bench in front of the lockers and looked Asuna in the eyes, “We are both going to put them on and I’ll stay with all through your evaluation. We need to get it done as soon as possible to be aware of any possible problems but afterwards you’ll have a week or so to get used to things and I’ll help you all I can, okay?”
Asuna took a deep breath and nodded, “Okay.”
Carter grinned, “Good!” then she sat down and started unlacing her sneakers. “One of the good things about this job is that I get to wear pretty much anything I like to work. The infiltrators I train have to wear the usual black suit or black dress and heels when they are here but I’m one of the few who get to be comfortable and my feet thank me for it.” She put them in the locker and winked at Asuna who was doing the same, “I’ll show you how to walk in heels but I won’t require you to wear them much. You can get away with being a little awkward in them and in my opinion they should be avoided whenever possible. High heels do terrible things to your feet.”
She tucked her socks into the sneakers, “When I started here I wore a black suit and flat work shoes like the men. It started rumors that I was gay but I didn’t care. As long as you are good at your job they don’t give a damn about your home life here. You’ll eventually have to decide for yourself whether or not the pain of heels is worth fitting in to expectations but as young as you are you have years yet.”
Asuna nodded, “Thank you.” She had pulled off her shirt and hung it on a hook and now she slid her swim trunks down trying not to look at the woman stripping next to her. If someone had told her she’d be given a chance to see a beautiful woman strip and would try not to look … well knowing how shy she was she probably would have believed them. She was snapped out her introspection when Carter said, “No underwear at all?”
Asuna blushed, “These are the shirt and swim trunks I wore to the beach.”
“I thought you’d been asleep when you changed?”
“It started hurting long before,” Asuna said hanging up the trunks. “I passed out at the beach first and thought it was too much sun. The doctor sent me home and told me to drink lots of fluid and get lots of rest. I pretty much just passed out on the bed when I got home and was still wearing this when I got taken to hospital. Sorry, it’s all I have to wear.”
“No, I’m sorry. It’s fine, I was just surprised.” She gestured around, “So is it different then a boy’s locker room? Now that you’ve got a chance to see it?”
Asuna smiled, “No, not really. It just smells better.” She tried looking away as Carter unhooked her bra but her eyes kept coming back. Finally wanting to do more than just stare she asked, “How do you know what size bra to wear?”
Carter smiled, “Well most girls just try things on until they find something that sort of fits and go with that. A tape measure can tell you some of it but breasts vary a lot more than the numbers show. Most women wear bras that are ill-fitted but you're lucky, we'll get you a proper one. Even aside from the fact that most people don’t measure them right there are only 4 or 5 cup sizes on the rack in most stores and there a lot more than 5 sizes of breasts.”
“What? Why don’t they make more realistic sizes?” Asuna asked.
“Economics I guess, it would cost more to make more different sizes. Some women think it’s a conspiracy but I think it’s plain old fashioned greed,” Carter replied.
“Yeah, come to think of it when you get a cup for sparring practice they are only three sizes and that’s just as silly,” Asuna said.
Carter folded her panties and put them on top of her folded bra then turned to Asuna, “Okay, if you’re ready it’s time to put on the suits. The v neck in front helps you squeeze into them.” She grinned, “Or at least that’s they tell me.” She picked hers up, “Just do what I do and tell me if you’re having trouble. You might not since exemplars are generally well coordinated as well as strong.”
Once they got into the suits they walked over to the mirror on the wall. “This is something else that’s different, no mirror in the boy’s locker room,” Asuna said. “It’s nice to be able to see yourself before you go out.”
“Yes, and as you can see these things support but don’t conceal a damn thing,” Carter said and she was right. Every curve and muscle was clearly visible through the suit. “Whenever I have to wear one of these I wonder if the designers were just indifferent to possible embarrassment or if they were perverts.”
Asuna laughed, “I vote for perverts. I look more naked wearing this then I do naked.” She smiled at her companion, “Thank you for getting me over that hump Agent Carter.”
“You’re welcome and please call me Linda,” she replied. “Now let’s go get you evaluated.”
This is where Asuna gets evaluated. I hope everyone enjoys it.
When they entered through the lab door Asuna saw three older men in lab coats standing among a large collection of gear that looked like a cross between a gym and a research lab.
“Welcome to the main testing lab,” the middle-aged man in the center said. He did not offer to shake hands but gestured off to his left, “If you’ll step this way we’ll get the basics out the way.”
He led them over to what looked like a normal exam table except that it had a lot of hardware hanging from the ceiling right above it. “Please sit,” he said as he and his fellows picked up instruments.
Asuna started to feel like a race car being serviced by a pit crew as all three men crowded around her. One guy was peering into her ears while another shined a light in her eyes. She flinched when the third started drawing blood and when they started to complain Linda came to her rescue.
She shooed them away and put an arm around Asuna, “Gentlemen! Try to remember you are working with human beings not guinea pigs. If you poke needles at her without warning it’s only natural she’ll flinch. This sort of thing is why we have to send chaperons even with the males you test.”
“Well we have to get the data and it is most efficient if we are all working at the same time. If subjects would just do as they are told and nothing else …”
She interrupted him, “Then they wouldn’t be teenagers. Or humans for that matter. You must always take in to account the quality of the material you work with! You wouldn’t treat tin like steel or lead like lithium so why do you insist on treating people like robots?”
“We had a robot girl in here once,” one of them said.
“Yes, and even she said you were “a bunch of cold fish”. Now I know you want to rush through the basic exam to get to what you call ‘the good stuff’ that you will inevitably write another monologue on but you will have to do it one procedure at a time and let her know if it will hurt.” She smiled at them, “Trust me, it get you better, faster results and you won’t have to worry about her sticking her manifested katana anyplace embarrassing.”
Asuna giggled at that and the man seemingly in charge of the others looked sour, “Fine, but if I’d known how much interference I’d get in my own lab I would have held out for more money.”
“A point you are free to raise when you current contract runs out,” Linda said.
The man nodded, “Smith you go check her ears again.”
The man on the left nodded and did so, “Normal,” he said and checked a box on his clipboard.
“Jones, you may attempt to draw the required vials of blood from her … again. The subject is advised that this may hurt.”
In this manner they proceeded eventually revealing that she outwardly appeared to be a normal fourteen year old girl. The lead scientist, whose name Asuna still hadn’t heard, spoke all results into a personal recorder ending with, “As subject has apparently switched genders we will now commence ultrasound examination to see if internal organ structures common to female Homo Sapiens are in place already, still forming, or not in evidence.”
Asuna, who had been hoping it was all over, asked, “Can you do that through the suit?”
“No, the subject will please disrobe and lay back.”
Linda frowned but nodded at her, “If it helps any they won’t get any jollies from seeing you.” She winked at Asuna, “So don’t even consider them as men. Pretend they are not very well programmed androids or an Emergency Medical Hologram from Star Trek.”
That got Asuna smiling and she winked back as she handed the suit to Linda then lay back as requested, “That’s a good idea Linda. Proceed EMH.”
Smith proceeded to smear gel across her abdomen then Jones ran the sensor wand over it while their boss looked at the images and directed them. “Enough,” he eventually said. Picking back up his recorder he added another note without looking at her, “Subject has incompletely formed uterus and ovaries are currently detached and undersized. Follow up ultrasounds and a regular gynecologist visit are recommended.”
Asuna looked a question at Linda while she took the suit back but didn’t bother to ask one of the researchers.
Linda helped her back into the tight garment, “It’s not uncommon in exemplars changing sex according to the literature. If things go as normal, everything will link up eventually but until then you won’t get to experience the fun of menstruation.” She smiled, “Consider it a windfall. Or Mother Nature giving you a little breathing room.”
The lead researcher was frowning at them, “If you two have finished with the emotional display might we move on?”
They were to what looked like a barbell on two brackets. “It looks like a weight bench without the bench,” Asuna said.
To her surprise the lead researcher answered her and with a glimmer of actual excitement in his voice, “This is a devise to test strength. It interacts with gravity so that each dyne of force you exert upwards is exactly balanced by a downward thrust and this screen here gives us exactly how much force you are exerting. From this we can calculate the maximum weight you can lift and this helps us place where you fit on the Exemplar scale.”
Asuna was thinking that he was even creepier when excited than when he acting robotic. A look at Linda confirmed that the impression was mutual. She winked at Linda then walked up to the bar. She gripped it and noticed that it offered a good grip. She started off slow and watched the inset screen but soon she had to concentrate solely on lifting. She was concentrating so hard on lifting as hard as she could and trying to make sure she was pulling up only that when the bar made a *ping* sound it took her completely by surprise and she let go and fell back on to the floor.
“Very good!” Jones said.
Smith nodded, “Excellent data!”
Asuna lay on the cool stone floor panting and sweating until Linda offered her a hand up. “Thank you,” she said taking the hand but being careful not to pull too hard.
Linda smiled, “That was pretty amazing. I’ve chaperoned a few others down here but watching someone use telekinesis isn’t the same as watching you do the same with pure muscle power. You were straining so hard that I’m half surprised you didn’t leave footprints in the stone floor!”
“Nonsense!” The lead researcher retorted. “This floor is up to a compressive strength of 100 Megapascals. It would take many tons of force to make such an impression and she only exerted 903 pounds of force, well within the limits of both the floor and the devise.” He gestured, “Subject will now proceed to the test of hand/eye coordination.”
Asuna spent the next 30 minutes tossing progressively smaller spheres through progressively smaller paper circles at a fixed distance. She found this very boring but Smith and Jones both told her it was “good data” at the end.
Next they had her sprint on a treadmill and she could tell they were confused by the fact that didn’t run faster but she thought a 25.4 mph sprint was awesome herself.
Her endurance was described as “anomalous”.
“What do you mean by that?” Asuna asked.
“It will be covered in the summary at the end of testing,” was all she could get out of them.
The mental testing was a little disappointing, she was apparently no smarter than before. Finally the three of them just went into a huddle over a computer and ignored both women.
Linda shrugged, “That’s how they say thank you for participating. C’mon let’s get out of these suits and go get something to eat. When they are ready to reveal their results they’ll call me.”
So they went back in to the locker room and tossed the suits in a large hamper. “I’m going to go shower, I’m all grungy from sweat.”
“Sure, I’ll wait for you outside,” Linda said while changing.
Asuna found some lavender bodywash in the shower and decided she liked it. The honeysuckle shampoo was nice too. Drying she frowned at the clothes in the locker, “I think I’ll be happy to go shopping. I never thought I’d hear myself say that but it’s true.” She was quickly dressed again and walked out to find Linda waiting for her.
“Let’s go eat and we’ll talk about getting you some decent clothes after we hear back from the docs,” she said holding the door open.
“Sounds good to me. I am going to try to enjoy shopping,” Asuna said. “They call it retail therapy right? Well I could definitely use a treat after that.”
If anyone is wondering, I based her MID after Mule's as shown in his combat final.
The office cafeteria was pretty standard, Asuna grabbed a tuna on rye with chips and a coke then joined Linda at a table.
Linda gestured with her sandwich, "This isn't my favorite place to eat but it's good enough and it'll keep us in the building just in case they are finished early."
A thought struck Asuna and she asked, "Where am I sleeping tonight?"
Linda frowned, "I'm sorry, I thought you'd been told. You're with me until you leave for school. I know you've been bounced around a lot and I'm sorry you can't just go home but think of it as an extended sleepover. Once this summer is over you'll be living at Whateley and can spend your holidays wherever you wish."
"It'll be good to spend more than two days in the same place," Asuna nodded. "And having something to wear besides this will be good too."
They chatted about what would look best on her as they ate and shortly before they finished Linda's phone rang. She answered, "Uh huh. I understand. We're still eating. We'll be there when we're finished. Bye." She hung up the phone and shook her head, "Take your time finishing. A little frustration might help him realize how he makes others feel."
When they finished she lead them to a conference room near the testing lab. There five men inside, the three researchers and two more human seeming sorts. The new guys were a fair bit younger and dressed in black suits and one was holding a cane or walking stick topped with a small crystal sphere.
The lead researcher rose and spoke in his toneless voice, "Now that the subject is present we may commence the summary and final overview of results." He indicated the two new guys, "These are alternative testers codenamed Heimdall and Frey, a psychic and a mage respectively." Ignoring Asuna's surprise he turned and started a two hour long powerpoint presentation. He spoke in the same monotone for the entire two hours and even though she knew how important this information was she was barely able to stay awake.
The gist of it was that she was right on the cusp between Exemplar three and four but they were going with three officially. She had only the physical package and not the mental. She had not noticed either the telepathic or empathic broadcasts from the psychic that they had arranged at varying intervals from another room and the psychic had noticed no significant degree of shielding. However she had also not been affected by any spells from the mage and he had experienced significant difficulty even scrying her from the nearby room. This meant that she'd have to schedule further testing to determine what talents she might have in that area.
"More testing?" Asuna had said.
"Don't worry," said the agent with the walking stick. "It need not be here and you don't have to wear the testing suit. It might even be best to wait until you hit Whateley. They are more experienced at testing and have mages much more skilled than I am and with more power than any baseline mage such as I." He handed Linda a card, "If you two decide on in house testing give me a call."
"If I may continue?" grumped the researcher. "We have enough data to create an MID for you now. It will be based on the MCO model but the data will reside in our database and be accessible only to those with proper clearance. There will be a phone number on it you can point out to them if they give any problems. If the subject has a codenamed chosen I will add it now." He stopped and glared at her as if she were holding back information on purpose.
She actually had an answer to this question and after rolling her eyes she said, "Subject's codename should be Reimei." Then she spelled it out and added, "It means twilight."
The still nameless lead researcher gave a sour nod and made an entry on a laptop. "Jones, go get the card that just printed and give it to the subject." After Jones got up and went he looked at the mage, "I presume you will keep me informed of any finding so I might accurately record them?"
The mage nodded, "You need not remind me of my responsibilities Clarence. I am well aware of them."
'So that's his name!' Asuna thought. 'I was beginning to think he really was an android.'
Shortly thereafter Jones returned and presented her with a card. It had her new name and the codename she just gave along with a picture of her face but all the rest just said classified.
Name: Asuna Hinato
Codename: Reimei
Powers: Exemplar
Level: Classified
Wizard: Classified
Manifestor: Classified
Techniques: Classified
Weak vs: Classified
Backup/Team Affiliation: Department of Paranormal Affairs
Linda said, "Everything but name and codename is classified on all our cards. The colored border indicates you are a student. The magnetic stripe on the back holds the information but can only be accessed with the proper codes. I believe the military does the same. It is still valid picture I.D. however as it does have your full name and a picture of you."
Asuna nodded, "Thank you, I was wondering."
Linda stood, "I believe we are done here." She lead the way out of the conference room and out in the sunlit parking lot.
Here's the shopping trip and I hope you like it.
As they drove to the mall Linda said, “We’ll be going to stores I’ve used before and the management knows not to ask questions but some of the help might. It’s best if you can say nothing but in some cases that will be more suspicious than almost anything else so we have a cover story just in case. I’m your aunt and I’ve recently gotten custody of you. As to why try to be vague and say you’d rather not talk about it but either whatever incident or accident happened left you with nothing but the clothes on your back and you were obviously a tomboy before you came to me so you are not used to girlier things but as your aunt I want to make a proper lady out of you and thus am buying you a ‘proper’ wardrobe.”
“I think I can remember that,” Asuna said.
Linda nodded, “Good, but if you get put on the spot try to ad lib loudly enough for me to hear and I’ll just roll with it. I’ll be near the entire time so don’t worry. I’m sure things will go smoothly so just try and enjoy yourself.”
They pulled up to the mall and Linda led her straight to Victoria’s Secret. Asuna was half glad and half disappointed when she saw that it had most of the shutters down and a sign on the door saying “Closed for private viewing - Please come back tomorrow.”
Linda walked right up to the door anyway, “Don’t worry, we’re the ones it is closed for. I wanted you to be able to buy what you need without worrying about other women.”
Once they were inside the door was locked and the final shutter closed. “You are now private as you requested Agent Carter and may I say you are looking lovely as ever?” The manager was a man of middle age with a faint accent wearing an expensive suit. He kissed Linda’s hand and added, “Not to worry, I shall be excusing myself forthwith and leaving you in the capable hands of my two best employees. They are experienced bra fitters and are blessed with excellent taste as well as complete discretion.” He gestured them to come forth and introduced them as Cynthia and Maryellen then left through the back.
“Is he really gone?” Asuna asked.
“Yes,” Cynthia said. She was a tall brunette in a pantsuit that hid most of her gentle curves, “The back has an employees only door out of the mall. If you like I can go lock that as well but no one should be coming in through there.”
“I’d feel better if you did,” Asuna replied. “This is all rather new to me.”
“Certainly,” Cynthia said nodding and left.
Maryellen walked up and held out her hand to Asuna, “Hi, you can call me Mimi. Don’t worry, we do this a lot. We should first start by measuring you. If you’ll come with me to the showroom, we have a fitting station with all the right equipment.”
Asuna took a deep breath and followed her while Linda came right behind. The show room had a pedestal with a three way mirror, several dress forms and lots of cloth swatches and lingerie.
“Are we needing to take a full measure,” she asked Linda. “Or just a bust measurement?”
“The full measurement please and if you could give us a copy, that would be great,” Linda replied.
Asuna sighed and took off her clothes, “Go ahead and measure me wherever you need to. Should I step on the dais?”
If Mimi was surprised at Asuna’s lack of underwear she didn’t show it and by the time Cynthia was back Mimi was using the tape measure so she just sat with Linda until the measuring was done.
“Okay we’ll make some to order for you and send them along to Agent Carter but for now I think a pair of 34B will fit best off the rack,” she wrote that down on a piece of a paper then continued measuring. “Nice flat abs and a 26 inch waist. I wish I had that,” she smiles and writes that down. “Last but not least the hips!” After measuring she says, “Only 33 inches? Just enough to have a curve.”
Cynthia stands, “So, we’ll go get you some to look at. Just so you know, if you try them on while naked they have to be bought. Alright?”
Asuna shrugged, “Fine with me.”
“So what colors do you want to see?” Mimi asked.
“Well I mostly just need stuff to replace lost wardrobe so I guess plain white,” Asuna said.
Linda said, “I think you should a few really nice things now. Every girl should have few pieces that aren’t strictly utilitarian and everything you buy today is on us.”
“Well let me start with the basics then we’ll see what else we can get. Okay?”
After she was wearing plain white cotton she was willing to to get a bit more adventurous. Of the ten sets she bought one was black lace and one was a french cut bottom of white silk with a bandeau top. They offered her a lot of things she doubted she’d ever wear but instead of saying that she to emulate her mom and aunt, polite and soft spoken but extremely firm.
She said, “No thank you, I believe we are done considering lingerie and would now like to move to sleepwear.” When what she was thinking was more along the lines of ‘Thongs and fishnets? Are you insane?’. It seemed to work, they put away the more extreme things and moved on.
She ended up buying two long sleepshirts with anime characters on them, “The blue-haired girl is Rei Ayanami, from Neon Genesis Evangelion,” she explained to Linda, “And this is Belldandy from Ah! My Goddess.”
She kept the shirt she wore in but traded the trunks for a pair of denim shorts. “It’s good to have pockets again,” Asuna said, “even if not as many as my old cargo shorts.” They were also shorter as she was uncomfortably aware but they fit much better than the trunks and she was assured they looked good on her.
Before they left the store Linda gave her a professional once over, “You look fine. No one in the mall will think anything odd about the way you’re dressed but I predict you’ll want to burn that by the time we’re done.”
“What? Why?” Asuna asked.
“Every salesperson and teenage boy looking for something to say will point out that you look just like her,” Linda said. “But you can always say that’s why you bought it.” She nodded once, “We’re ready for prime time, let’s go finish our shopping.”
“How many more stores are we going to visit?” Asuna asked as Mimi unlocked the front door and let them out.
“As many as necessary,” Linda replied. As they walked she leaned in close and said softly, “Remember I’m your aunt and let me pay from hear on. The credit card I’ll use doesn’t have USG printed on it.”
Asuna nodded and over the next few hours she learned a lot about buying women’s clothes. “Why isn’t an 8 the same size in all brands?”
“Oh don’t get me started,” Linda replied. “The sizes are just basic guides, you’ll need to try on everything to see if it will fit. At that you’re lucky and most stores will carry things in your size. Some grown women have to shop in the kid’s section and the really tall are often stuck with either ugly clothes or men’s clothes. Remember that feeling though and you’ll be able to join in the gossip authentically.”
Asuna was thinking of getting only unisex tees in black but Linda was persuasive and she ended up with six shirts that could have been worn by either sex in white, black, and a bright red that closely matched her hair. She also got four other shirts in softer colors, a powder blue shirt with a scooped neck, an emerald green v-neck, a pink knitted croptop, and a plaid shirt with buttons.
She also had switched into a black polo shirt. Linda had been right about the salespeople. And the boys as well to Asuna’s embarrassment. She found that ignoring them worked with most and Linda shooed the rest away. She didn’t want Asuna losing her temper with them.
“It is still early July so we are only doing summer shopping today. Before you leave for the academy in New Hampshire we’ll go shopping again,” Linda said as they were trying on pants. Since she was paying this time, and because it would add to their cover, Linda was doing a little shopping too.
In the end the only things Asuna didn’t end up enjoying were shoe shopping and the boys. She bought just two pair, both sneakers and ignored anything male with a sneer of disgust.
Eventually they were done and on the way back to the car laden with bags. As the reached the car Linda’s cellphone went off and she stepped away to answer it while Asuna put their spoils of mall warfare in the trunk.
“That was my little sister,” Linda said when she hung up the phone. “She’s about a decade younger than I am and wanted to know if she could stay with me this summer like she did last summer.”
“I guess it’ll be good practice for me,” Asuna said uncertainly.
Linda smiled, “It certainly will help. You can tell her about your situation if you want. She won’t out you. She manages to keep secrets well despite talking non stop and she thinks mutants are cool. I won’t suggest you emulate her but she is a living, breathing, hyperactive example of teenage girlhood so you can certainly learn from her. By the time school rolls around you’ll be letter perfect.” She got in the car, “We have to get going though, she called from my house phone and we need to get before she finds the espresso machine.”
Asuna gets in, “She called to ask if she could visit from inside your house?”
Linda snorted, “Yeah, she can be a handful but I love her dearly.”
Soon they entered a quiet suburb full of tree lined streets and lush lawns.
“Very nice,” Asuna said. “You must get paid well.”
“Well enough,” Linda replied. “It’s the expensive accounts that allow me to save a lot really. I don’t spend too much of my own money normally.”
As they pulled into a graveled driveway a short blonde missile rushed out to greet them. She reached the driver’s side window just as the car stopped and knocked on the window three times before Linda could lower it. She was only a few inches above five feet and showed a definite family resemblance except for the fact that she was practically vibrating in place.
Bouncing up and down she leaned in to hug Linda and chattered non-stop, “Hi! I’m so glad you let me stay. I love you! Who’s this? Hi, I’m Kimberly! You brought her from work? She looks too young but you could be the reason for that I know and I can’t think of any reason you’d be bringing a real teen home with you. I got here early so’s you wouldn’t have to help me unpack. I’m all set up in the guest room but I can move my stuff to your room if she needs the guest room. Not that I mind sharing, ooh we could have a sleepover!” She said all that in a single breath that ended in a squeal.
“I see you found the espresso machine?” Linda replied shaking her head. “You know you aren’t supposed to drink coffee much less espresso.” She gestured to Asuna, “This is Asuna. She is a coworker. You are right about her age though, she’s a year younger than you.”
Asuna leaned over to stick a hand out the window, “Hi, I’m Asuna. Pleased to meet you Kimberly.”
Kimberly shook it in time to her bouncing, “Hi! I’m Kimberly but call me Kim. Wow, you’re pretty; how come you’re working already if you’re only fourteen? Are you staying over tonight? That would be awesome! Linda is a great sister but it would rock to have another teen in the house. We could have sleepovers every night! She’s no fun sometimes and she’s rarely home during the day but she has a great house and an Espresso Machine! She even has mocha syrup to go with it. I love espresso but nobody will ever buy me any because it makes me a little hyper, you know?”
Speechless, Asuna just took her hand back and nodded.
Linda said, “If you are good and help us bring in the packages I’ll tell what’s going on but you have to swear to keep it to yourself, okay?”
Kimberly nodded, “Sure! I’d be happy to help.” She reached the trunk before either of them got out of the car and tossed it open. “Ooh! You did a lot of shopping! I wish I’d been there; I love shopping! Wow, it’s like you bought a whole wardrobe; next time you go you simply have to take me!” She gathered up a double armful of bags and rushed inside the house.
Asuna started to take everything else but Linda said quietly, “Be careful not to show too much strength. It shouldn’t matter here but it’s good to get in the habit.” So the split the remaining bags and made their way inside.
“I’m going to put these in the guest room,” floated down to them from the staircase. “You’ll like the guest room, it’s got a queen sized bed so we can fit on it for sleepovers and girltalk. Oh, I’m so happy you’re here! This will be the best summer ever!”
Linda started for the staircase after closing the door, “Don’t worry it’ll wear off soon. She’s much more tolerable when she doesn’t have caffeine rocketing through her system.” She sighed as she climbed the stairs, “I’ll have to hide the espresso machine. I’m going to miss it but if she keeps drinking it she’ll drive us both nuts and this can’t be good for her either.”
In the guest room Asuna dumped her bags on the bed and was suddenly hugged from behind. She blushed as she felt the other girl’s breasts press against her back. She started stammering something but didn’t manage to even get the first word out before Kim let go and started chattering again.
Asuna listened with half an ear and nodded in the brief pauses as she put her clothes away then practically swallowed her tongue when she turned around and saw Kimberly with her shirt on the bed and taking her bra off.
“What is it? I mean like you did say I could borrow one of your shirts right? I mean it's so cool and all I just love it. So why you giving me the face?” Kimberly said all in one breath.
“N-no, you can wear whatever,” Asuna stammered a bit but got the words out. “I was, um, just surprised that you're,” she waved a hand at the bra now hanging from Kim's hand.
“Oh, well this black bra just won't go under that ubercool pink croptop. It'd show! And I know some girls like that look but I think it looks skanky on a fifteen year old you know? Don't worry, nothing will show through the knit so no boys will be will be getting any more of a show than I want to be giving them.” Kim then raced off on a high speed fashion lesson and Asuna did her best to remember it all because, well for two reasons. One, she was still learning to be a teenage girl and regardless of how good Linda was at her job she wasn't one and Kimberly was. The second reason was that it kept her from staring and drooling. Kimberly, unlike her sister, was close to Asuna's age and someone Akira would have been happy to date.
“All done, you can look now,” she heard.
Blushing Asuna asked, “Am I that obvious?”
“Maybe I'm just that perceptive,” Kim grinned. “Either way, totally cool, at least by me. You need to get over that though or you'll totally out yourself.”
“Huh?” Asuna asked confused.
“Stammering, blushing, and looking away are not things straight girls do,” Kim said. “I suppose a hardcore prude or something might but if so she'd also be complaining about it or something.” Kim stuck her head out the door, “Hey sis! Make sure she knows not to look away from bare boobs if she's doesn't want to out herself! I thought you would have said all this to her already?”
Linda came in and saw Asuna beet red with her hands over her face and her sister in one of Asuna's new shirts with her bra on the bed next to her old shirt. She sighed, “Okay, so tell me why you were flashing her?”
“That bra would show through this shirt,” Kim said shrugging. “So I took it off after she agreed to loan it to me. Although I am guessing she was tuning me out and just agreeing without listening because when she turned back to get more clothes to put away her brain sort of seized up and she started stammering. If she wants to stay in the closet she'll have to learn to take things in stride.”
“Well on the plus side at least the espresso has worn off a bit,” Linda said. “If you think you can help her put away the rest with stripping I've got a pizza coming and then I'll tell you what the deal is. Okay?”
“Deal!” Kim stuck out her pinky and the two sisters pinky swore. “I guess espresso with the pizza is out of the question?”
“Definitely!” Linda said. “When you are finished come on down.”
When she was gone Kim closed the door, “Okay let's kick this into high gear. I want to find out why the DPA is hiring 14 year old closet cases.”
Asuna sighed, “Okay but seriously, if you expect my brain to function right don't show me that much skin. Even if I have the same bits it's not the same right?”
Kim just grinned, “You are such a darling, just like a geeky boy in a hot body. Don't worry, I have your back.”
They soon finished putting the clothes away and as they headed downstairs they saw Linda paying for two pizzas.
"Two?" Kim said, "Are you hoping the extra weight will slow me down?"
"Nope, just two hungry exemplars, Asuna burned a lot of calories today," was the reply.
"Oooh! So you're a super like big sis here?" Kim said excitedly as she brought out paper plates and grabbed a few slices.
"Yeah, I'm uh, what they call an Exemplar and a Manifestor. I also have to get checked out by a mage but I'm not sure why," she looked at Linda who nodded. "Uh, there is one other thing. I was an Asian boy last week." Asuna stopped and cringed, expecting to be called a pervert and a fraud and a peeping tom. She looked up when she heard giggles.
Kim patted her arm, "Aww, don't be afraid. If you were still a boy I'd be upset but you aren't the first gay girl to get a look see. One of my BFFs is gay too and if she didn't have a girl I'd so be trying to hook you up with her." Kim giggled, "You can let your freak flag fly while you're here!" She looked over at Linda, "So that explains the wardrobe. I still want to go shopping with you guys. Is she going to school here in fall? That would be rad."
"No," Linda said. "She's going to a special boarding school in September. I hope she comes by for a visit around the holidays but she'll be living there during the semesters." Looking at Asuna she said, "If your dad is still a pain by December you are certainly welcome here. I'm sure we'll be great friends by the end of summer."
"Thanks! I may take you up on that," Asuna said. They ate most of both pies and stuck the rest in the fridge for tomorrow or midnight munchies and went to watch some TV.
The next morning Asuna awoke to happy chatter and a bouncing bed. She opened one eye and looked at the grinning Kimberly, “Are you sure you are fifteen and not five?”
“Yes! Breakfast is ready and I’m hungry! Rise and shine it’s after eight!” Kim said with such a happy look on her face that Asuna found it impossible to be upset.
She tried though, “You mean it’s eight o’clock on a Saturday morning and you want to get out of bed?”
“Yes! I’m hungry and in this house we don’t eat until everyone is at the table. It’s a cruel and heartless rule but it’s unfortunately very firm. So if I want to eat you have to get up and go downstairs!”
Asuna knew that normally she’d be barely coherent this early and she rather missed her morning fogginess but apparently her body had other ideas. Her stomach growled and she gave in, “Okay, I’ll get up. Get out while I get dressed and I’ll meet you downstairs.”
The covers were pulled off her and she shrieked a shocked protest as she scrambled to make sure her sleepshirt hadn’t ridden up in the night.
“Oh c’mon! You weren’t naked under there I checked first!” came the incredibly cheerful admonition.
“You checked!” Asuna didn’t want to believe her ears and wondered how long it had taken to wake her up. She tugged her shirt down more and blushed.
“Oh please!” Kim rolled her eyes. “You saw more of me yesterday and I was a good sport about it so you owe me. Besides I was curious to see if you’d fully switched from AC to DC. Now are you getting out of bed or did you want me to starve?”
Asuna was afraid to ask but did so anyway for some reason, “AC to DC?”
Kim grinned, “You know, from Mars to Venus? Plug to outlet? Zucchini to …”
Asuna interrupted hurriedly, “I get it! Not that it’s any of your business but I’m all girl on the outside I just haven’t finished developing all the … umm, … internal parts.” She sighed, “You found the espresso machine I guess?”
“Nope,” Kim frowned, “that’s still hidden but I did get a cup of Kona with lots of sugar and heavy cream so I’m good for a bit.” She grinned, “Hopefully long enough for you to get your newly female butt downstairs.”
Asuna got out of bed, “Okay Svengali, you’ve convinced me. Lead the way.” She made a mental note to start locking her bedroom door at night. As she walked down behind Kim she wondered if the girl had been really worried about Asuna having boyparts. Kim had changed in front of her and might conceivably be worried about sharing the house with a “he” of some sort. The last thing she wanted was to make her uncomfortable in her own home so she decided to talk to her and try to put her at ease, well as soon as she could figure out what to say.
Before she could think of anything good they were at the dining room table and Linda spoke, “I see she got you up. I hope she didn’t bully you or anything?”
Asuna shook her head and Kim spoke up, “Bully her? I never bully anyone I just share my enthusiasm! Besides she’s a superhero, how could I ever bully a superhero? I’m going to get another cup of coffee.” Kim wandered off to the kitchen and Asuna sat down smiling. It was very hard not to like Kim.
Linda had cooked a Spanish omelet and sausages along with some ready to bake biscuits, “Wow! This look great. Thank you Linda.” She started to serve herself as Kim came back in with a huge mug of coffee with some guy’s face on it.
She noticed Kim only took a small piece of omelet and one biscuit, “You should eat more breakfast. I’m sure you’ll burn it off by the end of the day as fast as your metabolism seems.”
“I’d love to be able to do that but I just got into shape for swimsuit season and I’d hate to bulge in the wrong places. You may not want to attract male attention but I sure as heck do and a padded belly in a bikini is not the way,” Kim said.
“I’m sure some guys are that shallow but I wasn’t and neither were my friends. Don’t go starving yourself just for some vain prettyboy,” Asuna replied.
Kim grinned and her eyes sparkled, “Ooh yeah, I’ve got an expert on boy thinking right here and beholden to me.” She looked to her sister, “Do you two need to do anything today or can we go do the girltalk thing by the pool?”
“Nothing scheduled until Monday when the mage will get here to test Asuna but she might not want to do that you know.” Linda looked at Asuna and said, “We have a computer with a T1 connection and all sorts of videos as well as the TV if you’d rather stay in. I’m going to swim a few laps to work off breakfast then get some paperwork done. It is a nice day out but don’t let her bully, alright pressure, you into anything.”
Kim took Asuna’s hand, “It’ll be fun! We can work on our tans and I’ll paint your nails and I’ll tell you about how girls think while you tell me about how boys think. Okay? Fair deal?”
Asuna nodded, “Yeah, fair deal. Besides this new body seems to want exercise so I guess I’ll be swimming laps too but sharing info is fine. I want you to be at ease with me being here and I need to get used to this sort of thing before school.” She shook Kim’s hand, “You’ve got a deal. I’ll go change after I eat and help your sister with the dishes.”
“You do dishes too? Awesome! Now I won’t need to worry about ruining my manicure with detergent!”
Linda shook her head, “I like that you’re thinking ahead but I hope you actually take time to have fun as well this summer.”
“Don’t worry sis,” Kim enthused, “I’ll make sure of it!”
After the dishes were done Asuna showered, then headed back to her room to change. She was planning on locking the door while she changed but Kim was already inside and frowning at the one piece suit Asuna had been planning to put on.
Asuna grinned and decided to tease a bit, “Are you sure you’re straight? You seem to be taking a lot of interest in seeing me naked.”
Kim snorted, “I came to steal clothes not ogle and I find granny suits.” She held up the black one piece, “This is too old for Linda much less you! I could see your mom buying it for you or maybe a maiden auntie but you actually bought this for yourself?”
“I wanted something that covered everything,” Asuna replied. “Besides I’ve seen girls where suits like that before.”
“Yeah and did you notice anyone paying attention to them? Male or female?” Kim replied. “I thought not. You want to be popular don’t you? New start and all that? Then you need to be fashionable. I’ll help you, don’t worry. I refuse to be seen with anyone frumptastic so I’ll make sure you are made of awesome whenever you dress.” She balled up the suit and chucked it at the trashcan. Shrugging when she missed she pulled a bikini off the bed Asuna had made. “Try this on Sue!”
“Hey!” Asuna protested. “Why are you chucking my clothes? Who made you the boss of me? Sue?”
Kim giggled, “You are getting the hang of that!” She tossed the bikini to Asuna who caught it automatically. “After a month with me nobody will be able to tell you from a born teenager girl! To answer your questions in order, because they’re ugly, I did, and it’s a nickname.” She grinned at Asuna look, “It’s a good nickname! It fits you and even teachers can’t screw up the pronunciation of Sue. So put that on. I’ll even wait outside if you’re really worried I’ll ogle.”
Asuna sighed , “I guess there is no chance you’ll let me walk out of here in that one piece?”
Kim shook her head, blonde hair flying, “Nope! Now get changed, the pool awaits!”
Asuna shrugged and dropped the towel, “Look if you want to, the video is all over the internet apparently.” She tossed the top back on the bed and put on the bottom.
Kim blinked, “There is a video of you on the net? A naked video?”
“I was fighting the vampire who attacked the hospital,” Asuna explained. “She ripped off my hospital gown and bit me then dodged the gunfire of the DPA agents and jumped out a window. I jumped out after her and we fought out front. I didn’t notice when the news vans arrived and they broadcast live footage of me fighting her … naked.” She sighed, “When I went to pick up my new ID I found out that not only was it news it’s apparently gone out on the internet. So I’m out of the closet, as a super at least, and any perv with an internet connection can see me naked if he wants to and looks for it.”
“Aww, that sucks,” Kim says. “Maybe it’s just the supergeeky types that can find it? I mean anybody who mentioned it to you while you were getting your official stuff has to be more than just your average ‘net perv so maybe it’s classified or some junk and he just had to clearance to see it?”
Asuna perked up at that, “Yeah maybe, I’ll have to check with Linda, see if she knows but thanks. That helps.” She struggled with the top briefly, “Aren’t there any ways to keep these things put? If I move wrong I’m showing.”
“You didn’t tie it tight enough,” Kim said. “Here let me help you.” She went around behind her and fixed things. “There now you should stay in unless you cannonball in to the pool or something.”
“I guess I’m as ready as ever then let’s go,” Sue led the way down to the backyard and gingerly slid into the pool when they got there.
She was still swimming laps when Linda came out and sat by her sister, “How did you get her into a bikini?”
“The old fashioned way,” Kim said and winked. “Peer pressure. She wanted to ask you something though. About how many people saw that video of her fight outside the hospital. She’s worried it’s gone viral on the internet.”
Linda nodded, “That would be bad for more reasons than her modesty. Fortunately we were on the ball and did what we could.” She shrugged, “We couldn’t save her modesty but everyone thinks she’s just a really well trained martial artist and we recruited her for that reason. Governments will know better and so will NGOs with sufficient juice but because she’s signed up for Whateley more than anything. I’ll tell her the deal when she gets out of the pool. You just make sure you’re careful anytime you two are out of the house. I don’t want anything happening to you because you got careless but I honestly think it won’t be a problem.”
“Because if you did then you wouldn’t let us out of the house?” Kim asked.
“Exactly,” replied her sister.
Asuna climbed out of the pool feeling good, her new body seemed to revel in athleticism and she couldn’t wait to start sparring again to see what she could do going all out. It would have to wait though, she thought until she found somebody in her current weight class. She didn’t want to accidentally injure somebody. She shook her hair out of her eyes and walked over to the other two who were stretched out on nearby deckchairs, “Early wakeup call notwithstanding, I think today is turning out to be a good day.”
“Well I have some news to help that along,” Linda added. “The agency has made sure that the news services believe and say that you are “just” an excellent martial artist and concerned citizen. Zero’s team also reports that nobody who is blogging or reporting seems to think you are a mutant so your cover is safe. No one is looking for “Asuna Hinato - Mutant” as far as we know. Being on the Whateley rolls, and you will be by Monday, will give you some protection in exchange for the major players knowing you exist. Everyone knows not to bother the family members of Whateley students so yours will be safe.” She smiled, “It’s the one thing all Alumni agree on, families are not to be touched. The villains support it as much as the heroes and the faculty looks after the students themselves so you’ll be fine.”
Kim giggles and adds, “So your modesty may be long gone but at least your secret identity is safe!”
“Better than I was expecting,” Asuna replies. “Thank you so much Linda!”
“You only thank her?” Kim says in mock indignation. “What about all I’ve done for you?”
Asuna raises a single red eyebrow, “And what have you done for me?” She smiles as she says it.
“I’ve given you excellent fashion advice, let you see my boobs, and of course the incalculable value of my company,” Kim replies. She pouts and continues, “I was even going to make sure you put on sunscreen but now that you’re being so mean I should just let you burn.”
Asuna caves and apologizes profusely while blushing.
Kim tries to keep her pout going until Asuna is done but halfway she starts laughing until she falls off her chair. “Oh wow!” She says breathlessly. “You’re even more fun to tease than Lindsay!” After she gets more breath back she adds, “I flashed you remember? And I’m trading my highly valuable fashion advice for cool clothes and the promise of mall shopping in the future.” She winks, “You do remember promising to buy me a few things right Sue?” Giggling again at Asuna’s face she holds up two sunscreen bottles, “You do need sunscreen though, otherwise you’ll burn and it would be a shame to ruin your first real tanning session that way. Although watching you squirm as I rub in the burn cream everywhere would be fun I am not that mean.”
Asuna takes a bottle and pours some out but Kim stops her before she puts it on her face, “No that one is for the body, the other one is for the face.”
“What? Why?” Asuna asks.
“To keep you from breaking out,” Kim replies. “Well I dunno if superheroes get zits but I sure do if I use anything heavy on my face. The stuff in the other bottle is more expensive and I don’t think it covers as well but it doesn’t make me break out. Most girls do the same.”
Linda nods, “Consider it part of your cover. I doubt you’d break out and truthfully I’m not even sure you can get sunburn since you’re nearly an EX four but you are a fair skinned redhead so you might and other girls will notice if you don’t use any and don’t burn. They might just think you are lucky but you don’t need the hassle either way.”
Asuna nods and starts doing her legs and feet.
“I’ll assume you don’t need any help rubbing your front,” Kim starts giggling at Asuna’s reaction. “But after you’re done with that we can do each other!”
“Oh gods,” Asuna said. “Is it possible to die of embarrassment?”
“If it is,” Linda said. “You might find out this summer.”
Asuna lay back after she was finished with both lotions and sighed, “Sometimes I think I’m adjusting too well to all this stuff.”
“What do you mean?” Kim asked.
“Well Iris said that exemplars have this template thing, a blueprint that determines what they end up looking like and that it helps you deal with the new body. You get used to the new height or arm length and don’t have to relearn things like playing an instrument, or painting and she suspects it may help those who swap genders get used to that as well as the rest.” She sighs again, “I hope so, because otherwise I guess it means I was always a girl inside and never knew and I'm not sure I could take that. It might be one shock too many.”
Kim hugged Asuna, “I’m sure you were very manly before. I’m thinking this is a good thing though. If you are adjusting well that has better than being a basket case right?”
“Thanks!,” Asuna hugged back, “That does make me feel better.”
“Hugs are strong medicine,” Kim replied. “I might tease but I really do like you and I’m sure as I get to know you better we’ll become BFFs.”
“I think I’d like that Kim,” Sue replied smiling. At least until Kim asked, “So do you think you could rub lotion into my back without molesting me or should I be ready to defend my honor?” She sputtered and turned red, “What?”
Giggling Kim said, “You are really far too easy to tease!” She rolled over and untied the straps of her top, “You do my back and I’ll do yours agreed?”
Asuna shrugged, “Sure.” She grabbed the bottle with the body lotion and started rubbing it being careful of her new strength and of where she put her hands. Once she was done with Kim’s back she started on her feet and massaged lotion into them.
Kim groaned, “Linda you have got to feel this!” She turned her head, “You are really good at massage Sue! I can hardly wait for you to do my calves, they’ve been tight.”
Asuna took that as a hint and moved up to them, “Okay, just let me know if I start rubbing too hard ok?”
“Sure!” Kim replied seemingly lost in bliss.
Saturday passed in sunshine and smalltalk, eventually they went in for lunch and then dinner. Afterward they watched a dvd and Asuna asked if there were any shops nearby for anime or manga.
Kim nodded, “Yup, they are in the mall I'm taking to you to tomorrow, so we can get some while shop for other stuff.” She giggled, “I guess once a geek always a geek?”
“Yup!” Asuna replied. “It's in the bone, or maybe deeper.”
Sunday started the same with Kim all but dragging Asuna out of bed and Asuna helping Linda with the breakfast dishes. She heard the doorbell while still washing the last dish and headed towards the living room after she finished and gave herself the once over. She was wearing jeans and a tee shirt with a j-pop band on it and hoped that would be nice enough for whatever Kim had planned for the day. She looked at her bare feet and wondered if she should have let Kim paint her nails.
She took a deep breath before entering the living room, then pushed open the door, “Hi,” she said waving. “I’m Sue. I’ll be staying with Kim this summer. We’re sorta related.” Linda had suggested that she say she was a cousin staying with them while her parents vacationed.
All three new girls waved back and Kim jumped up to hug her, “Come on, I want you to meet the three bestest girls in the country if not the world.” She steered Asuna over to the first girl who was about Kim’s height. She had brown hair, blue eyes and sunglasses perched on her head. “Sue, this Gwen. Gwen this is my cousin from the west coast, Sue. She needs some new clothes and some local friends so I figured we could take her out to the mall for the day.”
“Hi Sue! I like the hair ties,” Gwen said hugging her. “Where are on the west coast are you from?”
“Seattle,” Asuna said hugging back carefully. “I’m just here for the summer until I head to a boarding school in the northeast.”
“Well that explains why you need clothes,” Gwen said. “Summer here must be very different than Seattle or the northeast.”
“You can interrogate her later Gwen,” Kim said moving Asuna along. “I want to intro everyone first.”
“This is Maddie,” Kim said as they stopped in front of a taller brown- eyed brunette. She giggled, “She usually isn’t though. Unless I am teasing her.”
Maddie rolled her eyes and hugged Asuna, “I am glad to meet you. How are you getting along with this hyperactive crazygirl? She can be a handful even when she means well.”
“Oh yeah,” Asuna said. “She gets me at least twice a day. Apparently I’m her new favorite person to tease.”
“Then I should thank you,” says the last girl. She was a grey eyed blonde about Asuna’s height and she held out a hand to shake. Kim pouted as they shook and said, “This is Lindsay. I’ve mentioned her once or twice.” She grinned mischievously, “I think you should hug her. She absolutely gorgeous and totally already taken so you’ll never get a better chance to grab you some.”
Both girls turned crimson as she snickered and Lindsay slapped Kim’s shoulder. “Keep your voyeuristic thoughts to yourself and please try to be more careful. I don’t want everyone to find out and I doubt she does either.”
Kim hugged her and replied, “Aww hon, you know I’d never out you in public! I just tease you in private.” She smiled, “So where is the old ball and chain today?”
The blonde rolled her eyes but her tone was affectionate, “My soulmate is working today. I’m hoping to find her a birthday present actually so if you want to make it up to me you can help me find a great gift for her.”
“Soulmate huh? You two are so cute! Sure I’ll help, I also need to get Sue outfitted for at least one summer here so I’ll be working hard and I’ll expect compensation,” she said with a grin.
“I am not kissing her in front of any boys!” Lindsay said, and apparently she was dead on target because Kim pouted.
“Aww, c’mon! It got us both a date last time and straights do it all the time too. It really grabs a boy’s attention.
“I don’t want a boy’s attention,” Asuna and Lindsay said in chorus.
“Well fine,” Kim said, still pouting. “You can buy me lunch instead.”
“You find me a great gift for Mary and I will,” said Lindsay.
“Cool!” Kim was all smiles again. “I’ll just go get sis to drive us. You guys talk, I’ll be back soon.
Asuna tried to listen more than she talked but ended answering a fair number of questions before Kim came out with Linda. Soon they all piled in the car and after a short but slightly cramped ride they reached the mall.
Kim hung back a little and whispered to Asuna, “Okay, just don’t get nervous and do what we do right?”
Asuna nodded, “I can handle this.” She soon found herself having fun somewhat to her surprise. She noticed that the boys tended to stay further away when she was with the group and that made her happier. She also noticed that her taste in clothes wasn’t as “old” as Kim was telling her, or at least some of the girls agreed with her fashion choices. She was cautioned that summers in town got very hot and humid compared to Washington state and she should stock up on shorts and tank tops until she got used to it. Not able to say that she had actually moved here years ago she just nodded and took their advice.
Kim snickered, “Cargo shorts? And in camouflage patterns? I thought you were going for fashionable?”
Asuna blushed but held on to them, “I like cargo shorts. These fit better than those spandex things you found me and they have pockets. Geek girl remember? I don’t wear anything without pockets.” She couldn’t help a glance over at Lindsay who gave her a quick thumbs up.
“Okay fine but couldn’t you at least find one in hot pink?” Kim asked.
“No,” replied Asuna. She grabbed a forest green t-shirt and a few black tanktops and proclaimed herself done. “Let’s go look for Mary’s present now.”
Kim grumbled but couldn’t keep it up. Soon she was smiling and bouncing and full of a hundred ideas for birthday presents, at least half of which were very naughty.
“You guys are no fun,” she said when they shot down her last idea. “If you won't buy her a see through thong then how about a Victoria’s Secret gift card? She can buy her own.”
“A gift card isn’t a bad idea,” Gwen said. “They sell some nice things there. That could a good gift from the rest of us but Linds needs to get her something more personal.”
“I’ll chip in on the card, “ Asuna said. When they protested that she didn’t have to she added, “You all have been so nice I feel like I fit in already. So if I’m a friend I should chip in right?”
“Sure!” Kim said. “I just knew you’d fit right in. Okay so we get the gift card then we can continue shopping.” She gestured and they realized she had somehow manage to herd them to the front of the VS store.
Asuna sighed as she walked in, “You aren’t going to let me leave until I have bought something are you?” she asked Kim.
Kim smiled wide, “Nope!”
An hour later Asuna’s jean were in a shopping bag and she was wearing grey shorts with “Love Pink” on the back. “How does she do it?” She asked .
“I don’t know and I’ve been her bestie since first grade, “ said Gwen. “At least we've gotten the gift card and Linds bought her some cute pajama bottoms.”
“So what now?” Asuna asked. “We heading home?”
Gwen smiled, “Tired already? Well you'll need to build up your shopping endurance if you want to hang with us. We're just getting started!”
Chapter 14
The next morning was Monday and the wizard was supposed to be by early so Asuna had set her alarm for 7:30 A.M. She managed to get up before Kim came in to wake her but she didn't manage to avoid her entirely. She wandered into the bathroom in her sleepshirt yawning and stretching and ran into Kim toweling off from a shower.
“Oh! I'm so sorry!” Asuna blushhed and turned away, “I should have knocked or something. I figured it would be locked if there was somebody in here...I'm really sorry.” She opened the door carefully so as to slip out without showing too much of Kim when the fact that Kim was laughing registered.
“No worries, girlfriend! If I really minded I would have locked the door. Go ahead and shower, I'm just going to dry my hair before I leave, don't want to be walking around with wet hair right?” She grinned at me and tossed the towel in to a hamper and bent over to dig a blowdryer from under the sink.
Asuna stared then blushed and shut both her eyes and the door, “Is this some sort of hazing ritual for your circle of friends? Are you trying to make me explode from frustration? Or is this really how you are normally?”
Kim giggled as she plugged in the blowdryer, “What if I just said yes? Really, you have got to relax. It's just skin Sue, nothing to get all excited about. Unless you are trying to tell you have a crush on me?”
Asuna stammered and stuttered and blushed as Kim turned away and started using the blowdryer. She finally stopped unsure what she would say even if she could get her voice sorted out. She just sighed, dumped her nightclothes in the hamper and went to take her shower.
She was almost disappointed that there was nobody in her room when she went to dress but only almost. She dressed in slacks and a polo shirt then went down to breakfast.
Linda had made another good breakfast, “I'll be here today at least until the wizard is here and done. Anything special you wanted to do today?”
Asuna asked “Well I was hoping to get in some sparring but I'm afraid I'll hurt anyone who isn't super. Do you know any agents I could spar with and not worry about accidentally injuring them?”
Linda nodded, “I'll ask around. I'm sure we have somebody, for that matter I'll ask the wizard. He might have a spell for that. Keep in mind when dealing with mages that they can mimic any power and most tech with the right spell and you never know what spells they might have available at any one time.”
Asuna nodded, “Okay so what's their weakness?”
“Generally either time or energy,” Linda said. “Baseline mages don't have to reserves to cast many spells back to back and even most mutant mages need time to cast or they have to set things up beforehand. The other limiter on them is knowledge, most wizards are secretive and don't share spells so while any mage you meet might know any spell there is a practical limit to the number. It's one of the advantages of being a DPA mage. They get access to more spells and if necessary superior numbers in return for helping police their own.”
“I'll remember,” Asuna said then the doorbell rang.
“I'll get it!” Kim said and ran for the door.
She brought in the mage Asuna had met at the testing. He introduced himself again, “Hello, I’m Wallace Malleus, the wizard you briefly met at your initial testing?”
Asuna smiled and shook his hand, “Yes I remember you. You and Linda seemed to be the only reasonable people there.”
He smiled, “I try.” He was of average height, which made him a few inches shorter than her and had brown hair and eyes. The only thing that separated him from being completely ordinary was the cane with the crystal on top and even that wasn’t terribly unusual.
“I’m surprised you don’t look more...” Asuna trailed off.
Wallace chuckled, “More magical? A lot of people expect me to wear a pointy hat or robes with odd symbols on them. However blending in is part of my job so I try to appear as normal as possible.”
“You do a good job,” Kim said. “I’d never guess you were a mage. I was guessing accountant with a limp when I saw you.”
He nodded, “So I’m here to test your magic resistance. Do you have any place you’d prefer?”
Linda nodded, “Why don’t you go out back by the grill? It’s all brick and open. I’ll move the lounge chairs so there won’t be anything breakable nearby.”
The nondescript wizard nodded and they all moved outside, “Okay, first thing to say is I’m a Baseline mage. That means I have less access to the power and will tire faster than a mutant wizard all things being equal. I did bring a few power sinks with me to make sure I can do a full job but be aware that there are wizards much more powerful than I am. This testing only gives you, and the agency, a general idea of your resistance. Even if nothing I do affects you that does not mean you are immune. Are we clear on that?”
“Yes agent Malleus,” Asuna replied.
He nodded, “Good. I don’t want you to be caught unaware in the future.”
Once the area was clear he held up his cane, “The first type of spell I’ll be casting will be detection spells. The ones I tried before failed hard so I doubt these will work but they should be tested thoroughly.” The crystal on the cane glowed as he waved it in an intricate pattern. He nodded, seemingly to himself and traced a second pattern, then a third, “Okay, Location spells and diagnostic spells are being blocked.” He made a note.
“The psychic could pick up your thoughts so I’ll try a telepathy spell next.” He waved his cane in a new pattern and thought a question to Asuna.
She answered out loud, “Yes, I can hear you.”
“Good,” he replied verbally. ‘Communication spells are so useful in general that it’s worth it not to be resistant. Let me try the Far Whisper spell next. I’ll just walk to the other side of the yard and you tell me if you can hear me.”
Asuna nodded and he walked about 25 feet away. He cast the spell but it didn’t work. He tried several other long range communication spells but only the ones that mimic psychic abilities seem to work. He made another note, “That is very interesting. Only the spells that act like a psychic power work on you.”
Asuna shrugged and he smiled, “Well okay, just food for thought. The next few spells are spells for restraining someone. Wait a moment while I pull out a power sink.”
“A power sink?” Kim asked.
“It stores power for later use,” Wallace replied. “I can only hold so much at a time and it regenerates after use. Since I do not often use it I store in objects to use when I need extra.” He held out a small jade statue of Ganesh, “Different things work for different people but I generally use Hindu statuary.”
“Cool,” she replied.
Holding the statue in his left hand he uses his right hand and cane to cast the spells. After casting ten or so different spells he put the statue away, wiped sweat off his forehead, and sat down, “I need a break for a bit. Can I get a glass of something cold?”
“Sure,” Linda replied. “Lemonade good?”
“That will be fine,” He replied.
“Kim?” Linda asked, “will you go get it?”
“Sure!” she said and headed for the kitchen.
Agent Malleus looked up from his notebook and spoke, “That seems fairly conclusive. All the spells directed against your body hit resistance and fail, at least at my power levels. Those that are directed at either your mind or the space around you succeed. It is fortunate that you are strong enough to break ropes but you might have trouble with chains. Also remember there are alloys meant specifically to contain bricks and those you will certainly not be able to break. Although I am given to understand you can create a sword?”
“Yes,” Asuna said.
“Then perhaps it can saw through a chain. I don’t know any iron conjuring charms unfortunately. If I need handcuffs I use the ones I’m issued and normally I stay far away from those with superstrength.” He accepted a glass of lemonade from Kim and sat back.
Linda said, “I have a pair of cuffs I can spare and I’d like to know if you can cut them. If I go get them can you manifest your sword?”
“Sure! Or at least I think I can,” Asuna said.
Soon Linda was back out with the cuffs, “Okay, I’ll just leave these on the brick floor here.”
Asuna concentrated and the sword reappeared, “Cool!” She smiled at her success and took a tentative swing at the cuffs. The chain was scratched by not cut.
“Try a harder swing,” Linda suggested.
Asuna gripped the hilt in both hands and swung. With a sharp metallic sound the chain was cut. The sword was also slightly damaged but when she banished it and summoned it again it was as whole and sharp as before.
“Kickass!” Kim said. “You’ll cut your way of restraints in no time.”
“If I can reach them,” Asuna agreed.
In an hour or so the mage declared himself recovered and asked, “May I attempt some direct damage spells? I won’t use enough power to do any real damage but it would help to know if, as seems likely, these are affected by your resistance as well.”
Asuna shrugged, “Just don’t damage my clothes.” Then realizing how that may have sounded she added, “I just bought them and I don’t want to end up naked again.” She blushed, “I mean not that I end up naked a lot...”
Kim started giggling like a fiend as Asuna trailed off, “Aww c’mon Sue! You do your best work naked!”
The wizard smiled but thankfully didn’t laugh. He held up a hand to stop her protests, “I think I can just aim at a hand or something if you’ll stick one out to the side?”
Asuna nodded, still blushing, and stuck her hand out. The wizard pulled out a small statue of Shiva and started casting. Again spells that created real things, such as lightning or fire and sent it at her hit but those that were more arcane in nature such as pain spells or spells designed to cut with pure magical force were blocked.
He stood and gathered his things, “That is a very useful and impressive ability you have there Ms. Hinato. I thank you for letting me test you.” He shook everyone’s hand and Linda walked him out.
Kim walked over and giggled a bit, “Just don’t damage my new clothes? You’re well on the way to being a normal teenage girl! I’m proud of you.” She hugged Asuna then, “Seriously though that was a pretty amazing display. Even if you didn’t get naked for it.” She giggled some more, “Sorry, I couldn’t help myself.”
Asuna hugged her back, “Help me get the lounge chair back in order and we can lay out and tan some more.” She winked, “That way you’ll at least get to see me in my bikini.”
Kim smiled and said,” That’s the spirit! You’ve a long way to go of course before you can flirt like I do but you’re getting there!” She headed inside instead of helping though, “You arrange the chairs though and I’ll call the girls over. After all you’re the one with the superstrength.” She was grinning as she fled inside to make the call.
She was starting in on that when Linda came back out and said, 'I'm thinking of heading in to the office to deal with any new paperwork. Are you two going to be okay by yourselves?”
“Yeah,” Asuna replied. “We're just planning on getting some sun, maybe pizza for dinner again?”
“Sure, I'll pick one up,” Linda replied and left.
Chapter 15
Asuna moved the grill back into place on the square of fired brick set into the soil of the back yard and wiped sweat off her forehead with one long sleeve. It wasn’t that the grill was heavy, it had, along with with the deck chairs and tables felt as light as the towels she had draped on the plastic lounges by the pool. “I think the girls were right about my needing to dress lighter,” she said to herself. She’d been in jeans and boots and a polo shirt over a long sleeved tee and a bra for the testing she had just completed but just moving around in the hot, humid summer afternoon had raised a sweat. She started to sniff her herself then worried about who might be watching. Shrugging she headed off to shower before changing into a bathing suit.
She left her boots in her bedroom and grabbing a towel headed to the sole bathroom. As she dumped her sweaty clothes in the hamper in the bathroom she remembered running into Kim here that morning, “Was she flirting? I mean I’m the one who walked in but if she was naked in here I think she should have locked the door.” She groaned as she remembered how good the short blonde girl had looked. Once the water was warm she stepped in and tried to put it out of her mind. It didn’t work and soon she was all worked up at the memory. She sighed, “Well at least I know what to do when I get all horny over a girl I can’t have.” Once that was taken care of she was able to think a little more clearly and decided Kim wasn’t as straight as she was saying she was and wondered if Kim was aware of that. She resolved to ask one of Kim’s friends if she got the chance.
She dried off and carefully tied the towel under her armpit, “At least I’m getting better at this stuff, now if I could just figure out the relating to other people stuff.” Then she laughed and realized that she wouldn’t have been any better at it as a boy. She brushed out her wet hair and wondered if Kim would waiting inside her room for her and how she should be reacting to these visits. Naturally enough she had reached no firm conclusions by the time she finished so she just shrugged and headed for her room grateful that at least she had her own room. Not that a closed door seemed to stop Kim, she thought to herself. However she realized that as she never locked the door she was might be seen as giving tacit permission. She sighed and asked herself, ‘Do I really want her to stop?’ Receiving no answer she opened the door to her room and was unsurprised to find Kim already there.
“Hi!” Kim said. She was bouncing up and down in her excitement and Asuna couldn’t help but notice that her breasts were almost bouncing out of her bikini. “The girls are already here and out back, quick put this on.” Kim held out a red bikini that seemed to be mostly string.
“That isn’t one of mine,” Asuna said.
“Nope! It’s my second favorite thong!” Kim replied. “I’m wearing my favorite see?” She turned around to show that the suit she was wearing had a string back. When she turned back around Kim said, “Although if you really like this one better I’ll take it off and you can wear it instead.”
Asuna gulped, “No, I’ll … umm you … I guess this one will be fine.” She sighed at having lost control of what she wore so thoroughly but obediently dropped her towel and tried to put the suit on. After separating out the top and tossing it on the bed she tried to figure out the bottom, it seemed to be just a diamond of silky red fabric and straps. “How do you put this on?” she asked confused.
Kim started bouncing again as she tried to describe how to thread the strings so the diamond covered everything it needed to and Asuna, already confused to start with, got distracted halfway through the explanation by the bouncing breasts behind the waving hands. Kim giggled, “Well since you can’t take your eyes off my boobs long enough to listen how about I put it on for you?”
“What? Maybe I should just wear something else,” Asuna said.
“Hey don’t you want to look your best for the girls? Mary came today and you want to make a good first impression right?” Kim replied.
“And barely covering my groin will be a good first impression?” Asuna asked.
Kim giggled, “Yup! It’ll show that you are confident and at home in your skin. Nothing sexier than that or more beautiful. Besides if I let you pick you’d wear that old maid suit and stand out like a sore thumb among all the bikinis. Trust me, I’m an expert!”
“You aren’t, that’s your sister,” Asuna said. Then she shrugged, “But you do do know more about being a teenage girl than I do so I’ll take your word for it. Now how do I get this on again?”
Kim just walked up and took it back, “Never mind I’ll just do it for you. You’ll have to spread your legs a little wider for me though.”
Asuna froze blushing bright red as Kim pushed her legs open wider then threaded the strings through loops in the fabric and held it against Asuna. Grinning a mile wide she took Asuna’s left hand and slapped it over hers, “Now just hold that there while I move my hand and I’ll tie everything in place so it won’t move.”
Asuna was stuttering and blushing as Kim tied everything so that it ended in a bow in the back. “There!” she said grinning. “See? Easy wasn’t it?”
“You groped me!” were the first coherent words Asuna got out.
“Nuh uh,” Kim replied. “I helped you. You asked me how to put it on and I showed you because you were too busy ogling my breasts to listen to my explanations.” Kim swatted her ass, “Now hurry up and put your top on we have guests waiting.”
“Hey! You just spanked me,” Asuna protested.
“Yeah,” Kim replied. “So? Get your top on and let’s go.”
“I’m like ten times as strong as you are so aren’t you worried what I’ll do in retaliation?” Asuna replied. She was trying to look scary.
Kim just spanked her again and said, “Nope! You’re just a big pussycat. Now do you want help with the top too or are you scared I’ll touch you again?”
Asuna just looked at the small blonde in the pink thong bikini then sighed and shook her head. Picking up the triangle top she put it on making sure it was tied tight, “I still think you’re the one in the closet Kim but let’s go.” She left her room quickly to avoid any further swats to her mostly bare butt.
As she walked out the sliding door to the backyard she saw Gwen, Lindsay and a brunette girl she hadn’t met the day before. Then the new girl called out, “Isn’t that Kim’s suit?”
Asuna nodded, “Yes. Hello, you must be Mary. I’ve heard nice things about you and yes Kim strapped this thing on me. She wouldn’t let me wear one of mine for some reason.” Seeing the others look at Kim she decided she’d ask her questions now rather than wait until she got one of them alone. “That reminds me of a question I’ve been meaning to ask you ladies. Is Kim in some sort of transparent closet?”
The girls laugh and Lindsay asks, “What has she been doing to make you ask that?” After a brief pause she adds, “Other than strap you into her thong that is.”
“Well every morning but one that I’ve woken up so far I get woken by Kim jumping on my bed and every time I come back from the shower she’s in my room and doesn’t leave until after I’ve dropped my towel and gotten dressed,” she noticed they were all looking pretty surprised. “That’s not even counting the fact that the first time she woke me up she told me she’d been peeking under the covers to see if I was dressed. So is it just me or does she do that to you all too?”
The answer was a unanimous “No.” Lindsay said, “If she did that to me now Mary would kick her ass but she's groped me or kissed me a time or before then. It was always in public though and she said it was to attract the boys that were watching. Then Gwen put in her two cents, “We did play doctor and practice kissing when we were younger but then we both started noticing boys so I chalked it up to experimentation. Then again maybe she stopped because the one time her mom caught us she was pretty upset.”
Kim was hiding her face under a towel from behind which she said, “I can’t believe you told them that! I had perfectly good reasons for everything and I told you what they were!” Her face was bright red as she threw the towel at Asuna, “I like boys I told you!”
Asuna grinned at her, “I believe you like boys too,” she said emphasizing the last word. She was feeling a little guilty but mostly feeling like this was payback for all the times Kim had made her blush. “And for the record you did gave me a reason,” she said as she sat down next to her, “but I didn’t find it very convincing.” She grinned at Kim’s expression. “Especially after how you groped me when you strapped me into this tiny suit.”
Kim gaped at her, “I can’t believe you just called me out like that in public.”
“Well I’d originally planned and asking one of your friends in private but that was before you spanked me and told me to spread my legs for you.” She grinned at the gasps she heard from the others, “That made me feel I needed answers and well just a wee bit of vengeance. I also notice you were lying about nobody else having a one piece suit so why don’t we call it even on the embarrassment front and I’ll rub some lotion on you? You seemed to like it last time.”
Gwen stated, “There’s nothing wrong with being Bi or Bi-curious Kim. At least not since Sue doesn’t seem to have minded your efforts.”
“I still say there was nothing sexual in anything I said or did,” Kim replied. Then she took the lotion from Asuna and said, ”You can rub me later I’m going to do you first.” She ignored the laughter and gestured for Asuna to roll over.
Asuna laughed with the rest but rolled onto her tummy when Kim gestured and wiggled her butt, “That’s fine by me.”
Chapter 16
Author's Note: In this chapter somebody reacts stressfully to being caught with someone of the same gender. I thought it neccessary as part of the story but I do not want to bring back bad memories for anyone so I'm writing this caution. I hope I'm writing this in vain and being melodramatic.
Thank You for reading this note - Freya
The next morning she again awoke to a bouncing bed but at first her brain was too fogged by sleep to remember her plan. When the covers were pulled off and she heard a soft feminine “eep” she remembered. She opened her eyes, sat up, and hoping her morning breath wasn’t too bad she kissed Kim right on the lips. This actually went rather well until Linda came in to see what was keeping them.
“What’s keeping … oh sorry,” Linda said.
Asuna blushed and leaned back from Kim but before she could say anything Kim virtually erupted into a flood of denials and excuses, “I didn’t do anything! I was just teasing! Nothing happened! She grabbed me, I’m innocent! I was doing it to entice a boy!”
Asuna started giggling at that last one.
Linda looked pointedly at Kim’s hands which were still on Asuna’s breasts as she spoke, “There are no boys anywhere near here Kim and it certainly looks like you were an equal participant.”
Kim followed her eyes down then looked absolutely horrified briefly before running out the door very fast.
Asuna’s eyes widened, “Oh crap!”
Linda sighed, “Yeah, I didn’t think she’d react like that either.”
Asuna shook her head, “No, I mean that as she exited the room she was moving faster than anyone I’ve ever seen except TV footage of supers.” As she was saying this a loud sound of breaking glass was heard from inside followed almost immediately by a loud splash through the open window to the backyard. Both of them started running for the backyard.
Asuna passed Linda by leaping over the banister and dropped down to the last step before taking off again at full sprint. One pane of the sliding glass doors had been destroyed and there was blood on the some of the shards littering the floor. What really made Asuna’s heart want to stop beating was the sight of Kim floating face down in the pool with red seeping out in to the chlorinated water.
Hoping this was the result of suddenly going too fast to stop rather than a deliberate act Asuna turned her momentum into a leap and jumped into the pool creating another giant splash. She reached the bottom then came up under Kim with considerably more gentleness and carried her from the pool. “Do you know CPR too?” She asked Linda as she set Kim down on a lounge chair laid flat, “I’m worried I might break ribs being this strong.”
Linda just nodded and started in on it. First she pushed on Kim’s back to get water out of her lungs then rolled her on her back to check her airway and start chest compression. “You can breathe for her while I pump safely,” she said.
Asuna was glad to help and soon Kim was coughing weakly and groaning, “What happened?”
Asuna blushed and stepped back, “I’ll just go get the first aid kit for those scratches.”
When she came back she started with Kim’s feet and moved upward, checking for and removing glass, cleaning and disinfecting cuts and bandaging them. “I’m sorry,” Asuna said. “This is all my fault. You took me in and I repaid you by almost getting your sister killed. As soon as I’m finished here I’ll go unless you want to arrest me. I’ll come quietly if you do.”
Immediately after saying that she got a bloody hug from one and a swat from the other. “You shouldn’t say things like that! It’ll give you a guilt complex,” Linda said. Then she turned and hugged her sister, “You don’t get to feel guilty either! I could have handled that a lot better and I’m the adult here so any guilt should be mine. I guess I just thought you knew it was okay. I mean you’re a very tolerant person so I thought you’d find it easy...” She sighed, “I’m sorry I scared you but please never do that again!”
Asuna nodded, “I was so scared you were dead! I swear I’ll never touch you again if you want. Just don’t ever do that again.”
“Ouch,” Kim said as Asuna started up first aid again. “What happened anyway? I was running then suddenly I’m hurt and something hit me in the head.”
“I think you manifested as a mutant,” Asuna said blushing. “My stupid stunt made you want to get away so badly it gave you super-speed and it being your first time you couldn’t control it and smashed through the glass doors then hit your head it and fell in the pool. Or fell into the pool and then hit your head. Either way you have about two dozen small cuts and a bump on your head.”
“Go get an ice bag for her head Sue. I’ll take over the first aid,” Linda said.
Asuna nodded meekly and went to go find it. As she was putting ice in the bag she saw the two sisters whispering to each other and briefly considered not going back out. She decided that would be too cowardly. Besides she would need to make sure Kim was fine first anyway. Squaring her shoulders she took the full ice bag back out, “Here’s the ice bag. Are you feeling any better Kim?”
Kim was actually looking pretty healthy as Linda placed the ice bag gently on the bump on her head. Her body as a whole was looking much more toned and her legs in particular were now well muscled with thick tendons standing out at the ankles. Her wrists had also gotten thicker but she was still very feminine looking in Asuna’s opinion. “Wow,” Asuna said then covered her mouth. “Sorry,” she said.
Kim started to giggle then winced, “Thank you. Maybe you should go put some clothes on before we talk about this though? You’re very distracting naked.”
Asuna felt like her whole body turned red as she realized she was still as naked as she’d gone to sleep. She made a sound like a squeak and ran back to her room to get dressed.
When she came back out Kim waved her over. “Just so you hear this from me,” Kim said blushing but looking determined. “I'm not angry and you didn't do anything wrong or anything I didn't enjoy.”
Linda nodded, “I think it would have happened whether you were here or not Sue, and if it had been one of her other friends it might have been much worse. You kept your head and helped with the CPR. I do know it but not only did you get to her first and pull her out of the pool another girl might have gone hysterical and made the situation worse.” She smiled even if it looked a little sad, “So what I'm trying to say is if this had to happen this way then I'm glad it was you. Thank you for your help.”
Asuna blushed, “Anytime. I can offer moral support as she learns her powers and maybe help her learn martial arts once I've gotten fully zeroed in on this new body. Are you going to offer her a job too?”
Linda shook her head, “No, I doubt they will. But I can get her tested at work and save her the hassle of dealing with an MCO testing center.” She looked at Kim, “You'll need to be tested and get a card soon in any case. Would you like to get tested at my job and then we can all go out to eat?”
Kim smiled as she held the ice-bag to her head, “Sure, I'd love a dinner out on you but just not right now.”
“Oh, of course not!” Linda replied. “Tomorrow at the earliest. Just don't leave the house until we go, there are bastards who'd love to pick you up and arrest you for not having an M.I.D. just so they could get back at me or take a poke at the agency. Not sure how they'd know but it's not worth taking the chance.” She looked thoughtful, “Kim I have a school to tell you about. I think it'll be best if you go there and learn all about your powers including how and when to use them. Even if you become a business woman or an artist knowing how to defend yourself and get the most out of any abilities will help. I'll see if I can't get the tuition paid by Uncle Sam.” She smiled at her sister, “No worries though, I can afford it if not. No need to burden the folks with the cost or with any detailed stories of today either.”
“Thanks sis,” Kim hugged her. “I really appreciate that.”
Asuna said, “I guess we'll need more supervision.”
Linda smirked, “At least I don't have to worry about you getting her pregnant.”
Asuna blushed furiously, “I'll just go … get her some juice! She lost blood and needs fluids.” She stepped carefully over the broken glass, “After that I'll sweep this up and hose down the tiles.”
“Thank you Asuna,” Linda said. “If nothing unusual happens in the next hour I'll go in to work and start a few balls rolling. You make sure she doesn't exert herself.”
“I will Linda,” Asuna called from the kitchen.
“And make sure she doesn't eat for a few hours,” Linda called out. “She might be nauseous after that knock on the head.”
“I will Linda,” Asuna agreed.
“And at least try to keep her off coffee until after the testing as it hits some speedsters oddly and some exemplars too come to that,” Linda said.
“Hey!” Kim protested. “No coffee until tomorrow afternoon? That's cruel!”
“Sorry,” Linda said. “But until you get your blood tested you're off stimulants of all kinds. You don't want another incident like this right?”
Kim pouted but agreed, “Yeah.”
“I've dumped the pot that was made,” Asuna said. “Do you want me to hide or dump the rest?”
Linda sighed, “Dump it. I'll buy more when we know it's safe.”
“Done,” Asuna said and grabbed the broom and dustpan. “I'll just start on the glass now.”
Asuna was just finished cleaning up all the glass on the floor when the doorbell rang, “Who could that be? Do you think somebody heard the glass shatter and called an ambulance or something?”
“I hope not,” Linda said. “I’ll go answer the door, you keep an eye on Kim.”
“Done,” Asuna replied. She tossed out the box of broken glass she’d collected and went to sit next to Kim. “How are you feeling?”
“Stupid and embarrassed,” Kim replied. “You don’t have to sit with me. I’m not going to jump up and do something crazy.” She paused then sighed and added, “Something else crazy I should say.”
Asuna debated with herself briefly, “I’m not leaving you until Linda is back but I guess I can rinse the blood off the tiles while I watch you. If it gets dry, it’ll be much harder to remove.” She had just started when she saw Gwen and several girls stop and stare from inside.
“What happened Kim?” Gwen asked. “Did you get attacked?”
Kim just blushed so Linda answered, “No, Kim did this herself. Be careful stepping out. I’m not sure Asuna got all the glass and the tiles are wet.”
The girls, Gwen, Maddie, and Lindsay, rushed out to hug Kim and looked horrified at all the gauze bandages taped to her.
“Seriously Kim what happened?” Maddie said. “Why did you break the glass and why are you suddenly all buff under your bandages?”
Gwen nodded and Lindsay held Kim at arm's reach and said, “Your boobs are perkier too and I think they got a little bigger too. Or maybe they just match now.”
“What do you mean they match now?” Kim screeched.
“Well the left was a wee bit bigger than the right before,” Asuna said while coiling the hose. Seeing the look on Kim's face she hastily added, “but it totally looked cute so don't worry about it.”
“My boobs are lopsided?” Kim asked folding her arms over them. “Is that the real reason you were staring at them?”
“Not even close,” Asuna said with a blush. “You were right about that from the first day. I was mesmerized by your incandescent hotness. That's why I planned that little surprise for you this morning, remember?”
Kim blushed and nodded and Gwen stood up, “Okay, somebody needs to tell me what is going on or I'm going to go nuts on all your asses!”
“I think it should be up to Kim to tell you her reaction but I'll tell about what I did,” Asuna said. “I expected her to jump on bed and yank the blanket off me as usual so I went to bed naked.”
Gwen and Maddie blushed and Lindsay whooped, “You figured you'd find out if she really liked you huh?”
Asuna nodded, “Then when she woke me up I kissed her.”
“Pretty gutsy move,” Lindsay said. “But I don't see how it could lead to her smashing a glass door.”
Asuna said, “Well the rest is for Kim to say if she wants. It's her secret.”
The three looked at Kim who held out a hand towards Asuna.
Asuna took her hand and sat next to her, “If it helps you can tell them anything about me that you like as well.”
“Well from the hand-holding I can guess some of it,” Lindsay says. “And I'm happy for you both but I'm still worried about these bandages and the icepack on your head Kim so please tell me what happened?”
Kim took a deep breath and squeezed Asuna's hand hard, “Okay, here goes. When Sue kissed me I just went along with it without thinking, well at all really, until Linda came and pointed out that there were no boys around and that I was, uh, obviously ah, um,” she looks at Asuna.
“A 'full participant in the proceedings' is how I believe she put it,” Asuna replied through a blush as everyone else looks at her too.
Kim blushed as well, “Yeah, that and I looked down at where my hands were and all of a sudden it hit me and I did something stupid.”
Asuna hugged her, “Nope, it wasn't stupid at all. It must have been a nasty shock. I can relate.”
Lindsay hugs her next, “Yeah, I was a mess after my first full makeout session with a girl and I never got caught like you did. So what did you do?”
“I ran,” Kim said. She took a breath and looked up at her oldest friend momentarily unable to continue.
Gwen hugged her too, “I may not know what you went through but I'm here for you. Whatever you did, I'm just glad you're okay.”
Maddie nodded, “Yeah, who knows? Maybe getting some will mellow you out.” She smiled showing it was meant to be humor.
Kim giggled, “Well I think I can give a new meaning to the words 'a quickie' now. You see as I ran I manifested as a mutant. That's why I look so much more muscular and my thighs are now huge.”
While the other three gape in astonishment Asuna says, “Your thighs are just perfect! Stop worrying, you still look hot.”
“So you didn't smash the glass on purpose then?”
“No, I couldn't control my speed, smashed through it. Then I hit my head and fell in the pool. Sue fished me out and she and Linda did CPR to revive me then bandaged all the cuts I got from the glass and gave me this ice-bag. If not for them I'd be dead now.”
Asuna kissed her forehead, “It was the least I could do.” She frowned, “Actually I was so scared my little surprise had gotten you killed that I'm still surprised you forgave me.”
“I told you it was my issues that did it not yours,” Kim replied. “Linda also told you that if it hadn't been you it would have been somebody else and maybe somebody who would have been no help or worse a hindrance due to hysteria. So stop beating yourself up about it or I'll pout.”
Asuna smiled, “Okay, anything but that.”
Kim looked at the other three, “Sue is a mutant lesbian too.”
“Could say that the other way around please?” Asuna asks as the girls giggle.
Asuna tells them all about her powers and demonstrates both the sword and the bells, “I may be able to make other things but I haven't found out yet and so far everything only last as long as it's touching me.”
Linda clears her throat, “I know none of you want to make trouble for Kim but please remember her powers are secret and her orientation is a lesser but still important one. Okay?”
The other three girls swore not to tell anyone but Mary and Lindsay swore up and down that she was sure Mary wouldn't rat on either girl, “She's never said a bad word about mutants and didn't change a bit after she found out you were one Linda. I'm sure she's safe.”
“Okay,” Linda replied. “Just remember this could be a matter of life and death.”
Lindsay nodded, “For both secrets. I know all too well.”
Asuna then recruited the others to help keep Kim from drinking coffee until the doctor okayed it and to keep her from exerting herself until she was all healed. The girls readily agreed although Gwen asked, “Do you know how cranky she can be when she hasn't had coffee in too long? I think we'll be finding out just how patient a girlfriend you can be.”
Asuna smiled, “I plan to be very patient but incredibly stubborn. No stimulants until we know it won't harm her. Well none except a little making out.”
“That can be pretty stimulating,” Maddie agreed.
Gwen looked at her funny and said, “Am I the only one of us who grew up to be straight?”
Maddie snorted, “No, I was thinking of a boy silly. You can do that sort of thing with a male you know.”
“Just checking,” Gwen said. “If you do have any revelations, now is the time for them.”
“Nope,” Maddie replied. “No secrets here. I'm boring compared to the rest of you.” She smiled, “So now tell us all the juicy details of your first makeout session. You mentioned before 'looking at where your fingers were' and freaking. So just where exactly were they?”
Gwen added, “And are they sticky now?” then giggled.
“Well I think that's my cue to head in to work,” Linda said. “Call me immediately if anything happens or she needs help.”
The girls all assured her they would and Linda went off to work shaking her head at twists and turns of fate.
Chapter 18
Kim's bump went down rapidly and she didn't develop any nausea or blurred vision so Asuna decided to show off her grilling skills for lunch and fed everyone while they were waiting for Linda to come back.
“So is your sister going to separate you now?” Gwen asked. “I mean my mom would never let my boyfriend spend the summer with us.”
Asuna shrugged as she chewed her cheeseburger. Swallowing she answered, “I dunno yet. She hasn't said really.”
Kim had already eaten two burgers and was assembling her third when she answered, “She didn't seem horribly surprised though and I know she's supposed to be keeping an eye on you until you leave for school...” Kim stops for a minute and since she was obviously thinking everyone gave her some time. “I think that's it. We are both going to be going to this place in the northeast and living there during the school year. And while I'm sure they separate the boys from the girls, I doubt they separate the girls from the girls.”
Maddie giggles, “Imagine if they tried!” Affecting a deeper voice she continues, “Okay, everyone who likes girls and is a boy in that dorm, and every girl that likes boys go to that one, now all the rest of you in to that dorm and we're going to make sure every gay girl rooms with a gay boy ...” she breaks into giggles.
Kim shakes her head, “Even that wouldn't work if you were Bi.” She giggled, “Anyway I bet we'd find a way if we needed one and she knows it too. So why come down hard on us now? She'll have to trust us come September anyway? She even said that at least she doesn't have to worry about Sue getting me pg.”
Gwen smirks, “So lesbian sex is the safest sex of all? Maybe they should teach that in all the schools then.”
Sue says, “Actually I hear they do have a separate dorm for LGBT students but I'm not sure how they hide that. At least I hope they hide it, it would be pretty awkward otherwise.”
“Ask Linda when she comes back,” Gwen replied. “Great burgers by the way.”
“Thanks,” Asuna said. “And yeah, I guess worrying about that now is a bit silly.” She finishes putting together Kim's burger, “Here, you need to replace all those calories you just burned up healing and building up all that muscle.”
Kim blushes but bites into it, “Thanks, I feel like a cow for eating this much but I can't deny I'm still hungry.”
Asuna grins back, “And as you always tell me, you're too pretty to starve.”
“Wow,” Lindsay says, “you've been flirting hard.”
Kim swallows and argues, “I have not been flirting! I've been seduced by her cooking and flattery. It was never my idea!”
“You took you top off less than thirty minutes after meeting me!” Asuna replied.
“Ha!” Kim said triumphantly. “I knew you had a crush on me at first sight! You should have kissed me then you big coward instead of waiting a week.”
Asuna just gaped at her then sighed, “Oh, just eat your burger Kim.”
“So when are you making me steak and lobster?” Kim asked. “And what about jewelry?”
“If you can convince Linda to buy steak and lobster I'll cook it. As for jewels you'll have to wait until I start getting paid at least. Are you the high maintenance sort?”
The other girls laughed and nodded, “Yes!”
Kim pouted, “Why? Tired of me already?”
“Never,” Asuna said hugging her. “I'm just wondering how much of my salary I'll need to budget for you. I'm sure you're worth it regardless.”
“Still too easy to tease but you're growing on me,” Kim said leaning against Asuna's arm and sighing. “Save my life a few more times and I'm yours.”
Asuna put an arm around Kim's shoulders, “I hope I never have to do that again but that's okay I can think of a few other things to try.” She kissed Kim's forehead, “I'm glad you didn't change like I did. You're perfect just the way you are.”
Gwen nodded, “Yeah, most mutants at least get an eye color change. You apparently had a very stealthy manifestation. If you hadn't been in a bikini I don't think even we would have known.”
“Really?” Kim said perking up. “I look the same? Lopsided breasts notwithstanding?”
Gwen nodded, “I've known you as long as either of us can remember and in a suit or school uniform I doubt I could tell.”
Kim pumped a fist in the air, “Woot!” She started doing a victory dance and blurred then fell over.
Asuna caught her as she fell and plopped her back in her chair, “I think, until you get the hang of that, you'll have to start moving more carefully.”
Kim giggled, “That's two! One more save and you get another kiss.” She was clearly planning on ignoring the advice.
“Yeah?” Asuna asked rolling her eyes. “The way you're going I'm not worried but just hypothetically, what would you do if I stole one?”
Kim wrinkled her nose, “Well as long as you make sure you don't have morning breath I might approve. You'll just have to try it and see.”
Asuna blushed, “Oh god, I hope my breath didn't stink. It wasn't too bad was it?”
Kim just giggled.
“Couldn't have been,” Lindsay said. “Or she would have pulled away earlier instead of after being caught.”
The five girls chatted as the coals slowly die in the barbecue grill and as the sun starts to set Asuna gets up, “Stay seated Kim. I'm just going to see what I can make for dinner. I want to have something ready for when Linda gets here.”
A voice comes out from inside the house, “A nice idea but a little late. Any burgers left over from the barbecue I smell?”
“No, sorry. We ate them all,” Asuna replies. She walks in and whispers, “I think we might have to go shopping more often if Kim's appetite is going to stay like this but try not to mention it please. She's a bit sensitive about it.”
Linda nods, “I can call for pizza. How many do you think we'll need?”
“Make it four if the girls can stay for dinner,” Asuna replies.
“Okay, you go ask them. I'll tell you all my news once I've placed the order.”
Later over pizza Linda explained, “I'm sorry but I'll need privacy for a bit after dinner. Security and all you know. I'm sure Kim will call you when she gets home tomorrow and we can eat dinner together again and gossip. Sorry if it seems I'm giving you the boot. Do any of you girls need rides home?”
They all agreed they could use one since it was now dark out and Linda drove them all home while Kim and Asuna talked and decided that Linda must have gotten testing scheduled for tomorrow.
Linda confirmed that when she came back, “Kim you've been okayed for testing tomorrow starting at eight a.m. And you'll be getting a federal scholarship to Whateley. The official reason is to make sure you learn enough control so that you aren't outed as a mutant and possibly interfere with my ability to go undercover.” She shrugged, “That's not how it actually went but we needed an official reason to put on file.”
Asuna nodded, “I can see it. If you are known to have a sister who is a mutant then it would be harder to pretend you have antipathy towards them for a job.”
Linda nodded, “Technically yes, but if I was undercover they wouldn't know she was my sister anyway. I called in a few favors.” She shrugged again, “It's not like any of them wouldn't do the same for their families so it didn't take any real arm twisting. Just make sure you are awake and ready to go on time and remember not to flirt with Zero.”
Asuna giggled, “I remember him.” She looked at Kim, “He's the one who was watching internet video of my naked fight with the wannabe vampire and recognized me from it. He was very helpful but more than a little freaky.”
Kim made a face, “Ugh! I gotta deal with pervy geeks?”
“No,” Linda said firmly. “I'll be with you so you won't have to deal with him and I'm sure he'll be on his best behavior.” She didn't sound especially sure of that last part but Kim cheered up some.
“Um, I know you'll be chaperoning but between Zero and the creepy lab guys maybe I should come too?” Asuna asked. “As moral support if nothing else. Unless that's not allowed or something. I can just hangout here by myself and watch TV I guess.”
Linda replied, “Well if you want to come along I have good news then.” She smiled, “The 'creepy lab guys' want you back for another ultrasound scan. They want to see how far developed your new uterus and ovaries are and if they're attached to anything else yet.”
Kim looked surprised and Linda blushed, “I told you not all of my plumbing was hooked up yet. I'm not even sure I want it to be. The idea of having a period is pretty scary to tell you the truth.”
Kim hugged her, “Yeah it was for me too. I'll help when the time comes. Trust me, I've got your back.”
Asuna hugged back, “Thanks!”
They spent the rest of the evening watching Tenchi Muyo DVDs then went to bed early.
Chapter 19
by Freya
Asuna woke up to her alarm and sleepily grabbed her shower stuff and headed off to the bathroom. She waved to Linda as she went by and yawned, “Morning, I’ll be downstairs soon as I shower and dress.”
Linda smiled at the sight, feeling proud both of her efforts and Asuna’s adaptability. Seeing Asuna in her thigh length sleepshirt with her little plastic bag of personal shampoo, conditioner, moisturizer and the metal file with diamond dust in it that incidentally, was the only thing they’d found that would work on her nails, you’d never guess she hadn’t been born a girl. “Okay, I’ll go start breakfast. Kim’ll need something in her stomach before we go.”
Asuna yawns again and nods, “Yeah, in fact I think I’ll stick a few of those energy bars in my pockets so she can eat just before we change and just after. I know I was hungry afterward and her metabolism is faster than mine now.”
She was moisturizing after her shower when Kim walked in, “Morning sleepyhead! I left you some hot water but don’t take too long. You’ll want to eat before we go.” Kim grinned at her but though she felt like covering her various bits Asuna refused to give in to that impulse and went on rubbing in the moisturizer as calmly as she could. At least until Kim goosed her.
She yelped and turned towards the other girl glowering but Kim was already in the shower grinning, “Now now, no time for that! I’ve got to shower and get ready you said. No time for fun and games.”
Asuna pointed a finger at her, “I’ll get you for that!” She capped the moisturizer, “But I'll do it later. You do need to get ready before we eat all the breakfast.” She grinned, “And no shortcuts now! You wouldn’t want the doctor to think you’re a dirty girl would you?” Laughing, Asuna ran out the door with her stuff as Kim sputtered. Once back in her room she made sure to wear her cargo shorts so she have many pockets to stuff energy bars in then headed downstairs to eat.
Breakfast was quick but tasty and as she and Linda pile the dishes in the sink Asuna manages to fit a dozen energy bars in to her pockets, “I guess we should talk purses soon. Gah, this is becoming a very full summer.”
“Thank you for thinking of her,” Linda said. “You’re being a good friend and I appreciate it.”
Asuna blushes, “It’s pretty easy to do. I think about her a lot anyway and it feels less wrong if I’m also thinking of ways to help.”
Linda pats her shoulder, “Just remember that liking her isn’t wrong, okay? You’re both young and it may or may not work out but there’s nothing with you liking her.” Linda grinned, “In fact you’re already better all her previous boyfriends. Want me to tell you about them?”
“Hey!” came Kim’s voice from the other side of the door. “Is this what you guys do while washing dishes? Gossip about me?”
Asuna giggled, “No, only when we can tell you’re eavesdropping.”
“Yeah,” Linda agrees, “I heard your big flat feet coming and thought I’d teach you a lesson little sister. Don’t try to spy on a pro.”
Soon the dishes were done and they were all in the car heading back to the regional branch office. Asuna made sure to clip on her badge before entering. The guard scanned their badges and nodded at Kim, “Is she with you?”
Linda nodded, “We have an appointment downstairs.”
The guard nodded and held out the log book, “Sign here miss.” Once Kim had signed, he nodded again, “Have a good day ladies.”
Linda led them down several floors and through corridors toward the testing lab. This time Asuna headed right for the women’s lockers Linda noticed approvingly. ‘She really has come a long way,’ she thought to herself.
The sensor suits were not a problem for Kim, “I still think my hips are too wide but I like this suit. It tightens everything up and supports too while making you nakeder than naked! “ She grinned, “Can we get one of these to take home?’
Asuna laughed, “I can just see you using this as your costume! We’ll call you The Flasher instead of the Flash.”
Linda shook her head, “I’m glad that you can’t have one because I don’t think you’re kidding.”
Kim assured her that she was quite serious while Asuna laughed.
Before closing her locker Asuna holds out an energy bar, “Here eat this first. That way you won’t get too hungry while you’re being tested.”
“Thanks, Sue!” Kim said and the bar was gone quickly.
Asuna took a deep breath before entering and was still horribly surprised by the researchers. They came rushing forward with instruments in hand and wide grins only to stop short when a startled Asuna stepped in front of Kim and manifested her katana.
“Gentlemen!” Linda said. “I believe we have talked about this previously? Your zealous pursuit of knowledge is a virtue but please remember to consider the feelings of your patients!” She grinned, “Especially when one of them is more than capable of sticking her sword up your ass … point first.”
The men took a large, unanimous step back, “We remember your admonitions Agent Carter. We are merely eager for new data.”
The lead researcher points at Asuna, “If test subject one will disrobe and get on the table we can proceed with our work. Unless she wants to threaten us some more first?”
Asuna smiles and lets the sword drop, knowing it will disappear once out of her hand, “Of course I will Clarence. I know how eager you are to see me naked again.” She walks up to him and pats his cheek, “And you're such a dear, sweet, boy that I just can't bring myself to refuse you.” She winks at Kim and walks slowly towards the table controlling her breathing so nobody will know she's still nervous. Trying to get into a good teasing mood she makes sure to move her hips a lot more than necessary. Reaching the table she looks over her shoulder at Kim, “Oh Kim? Would you be a dear and hold this thing for me while I'm being probed by these gentlemen?”
Kim grins, “Anything for you lover!” She sashays slowly towards Asuna and does her best to focus every eye but her sister's on her walk.
Asuna has the suit off by the time Kim gets there and whispers, “Thanks for going along!”
Kim takes the garment and whispers back, “No problem! I love to tease and they sure look like they deserve it. Besides it's better than you chopping off their heads.”
Asuna giggles, “Well, less messy anyway.” She hops up on the table and says out loud, “Remember to tell me what you are going to do first and I reserve the right to refuse anything I consider too invasive.”
The lead researcher scowls but nods, “Any changes you'd like to report?”
Sue shakes her head, “Nothing's different from last time.”
He nods and makes a note, “Very well we'll proceed with the ultrasound.”
One of the lab guys comes forward with the gel and Asuna grabs it from him, “I'll spread that on by myself.”
The lab guys all study the ultrasound carefully then the lead states, “Note in her file that ovaries seem to be full sized and may be putting out hormones but are still not connected to anything. Uterus is still growing but has extended fallopian tubes. It is not connected to the cervix but seems to have migrated towards it by 2.5 cm since last visit. Need blood test to determine hormone levels. Recommend at least one more visit with ultrasound.”
While Asuna cleans up the gel Clarence tells her, “We'll need to take a blood sample to check your hormone levels.”
Asuna nods and holds out her left arm. An assistant quickly draws two vials of blood then hands her gauze to hold over the wound. “Are we done now?” she asks.
“We are done with you Subject One,” he replies. “You may get dressed now.”
Asuna takes her sensor embedded garment back from Kim and slides back into it. Meanwhile Linda has guided Kim to a seat on the table and is holding her hand as they start the mundane part of the initial check up.
Once she is dressed again Asuna moves to stand next to Linda and does her best to look as protective as she can without actually threatening them. They definitely noticed but said nothing about it.
“Next we shall draw blood,” they said then did it. Asuna held the gauze so Kim's hand was free to keep holding Linda's hand. “Next we shall test the reflexes in your legs,” one said holding up an odd looking hammer.
“I'd advise you to not be standing directly in front of the leg you test,” Linda said.
The man nodded, “I will be careful.” From that test, and a few others, they determined that her reactions were four times as fast as normal. They recorded her height, weight, eye color, and hair color.
After checking the reading from the sensors in the suit the lead researcher states the following while an assistant copies it down, “Subject Two is 5' 3”, 110 lbs, has blonde hair and grey eyes. She has a greater electromagnetic field surrounding her than a baseline. This supports the theory she gains her speed from being an Energizer. Subject Two may also be an Exemplar as significant muscle mass was gained during manifestation. We shall proceed with the necessary tests.”
They tested leg as well as arm strength and found that while her arm strength was enough to suggest her as an exemplar it was fairly unremarkable for one at 217 lbs. Her leg strength was more than double that though and topped out at a very respectable 500 pounds.
Hearing how fast her cuts and concussion healed they also tested her for regeneration, which was distinctly not fun.
Her top speed was just short of 100 mph but that was at a flat sprint and she wobbled dangerously off balance when she briefly reached that speed. Her hand-eye coordination was now excellent though so the researchers theorized that any coordination problems involved in running should resolve themselves in short order. She managed to spend fifteen minutes running at 75 mph before tripping and being caught by Asuna.
The lead researcher also asked to see her back in two weeks for a follow up visit to see if her problems had resolved themselves. Dismissed they headed back in to the locker room to shower and change back in to normal clothes.
“Need another energy bar?” Asuna asked, holding one out.
“Thanks!” Kim said smiling. It was gone fast and then Kim showered while the other two waited.
“Cafeteria next? I'm a bit hungry too and we have to wait for her M.I.D. Right?” Asuna asked.
“Right,” Linda replied. “So yeah the Caf is fine by me.” She smiled, “You are doing great by the way. Thanks for catching Kim out there when she tripped.”
Asuna blushed at the praise, “Thanks, it's my pleasure though. I don't mind it at all.”
Once Kim was showered and changed they head for the cafeteria to await the findings.
Kim gets her test results!
Again the testers were ready with the results before the girls were finished eating. Kim was surprised at how much she ate for lunch but the other two encouraged her to eat until she was no longer hungry. “While you eat,” Linda said. “Try to come up with a codename.They’ll need one to put on your M.I.D. and while it’s possible to change it up until your eighteenth birthday it’s not easy. Also the name you use your first year at Whateley is generally the one that sticks.” She grinned, “Just ask the poor guy known as Power Pork.”
Kim giggled, “Oh, oh my. Well I think I can do better than that.” She looked at Asuna, “What’s your codename?”
“Reimei,” Asuna replied.”It’s Japanese.”
“Well I’d like to complement that but I don’t speak the language,” Kim said.
“Probably best not to do so,” Asuna said. “It might highlight the relationship between us and we should keep that quiet at school I’m thinking.” Asuna thought that very reasonable but when Kim gave her a hurt look she backpedaled, “If you aren’t worried though neither am I. My codename means the border between night and day so the complements would be either ‘shogo’ or ‘yahan’.” She looked down at her plate, “I was just trying to be safe.”
“I know,” Kim said. “But we can always say we are planning on teaming up after school or something.”
After they ate they went to the briefing room and found out that Kim had been classed as Exemplar one, Energizer three (internal), and Regen three. Since she wasn’t working for the DPA her M.I.D. showed more information than Asuna’s but not her real name and the department was still listed under Backup/Affiliation since her sister was an agent.
“I hope that will help keep you safe if necessary but call me if anything goes wrong at school,” Linda said.
“If she doesn’t I will,” Asuna said.
Linda smiled, “Good.”
“So I’m dating miss responsible?” Kim asked.
Asuna blushed and looked around at everyone around them in the cafeteria but answered, “Yes.”
The head researcher asked, “What codename should I enter for the subject?”
Kim rolled her eyes, “I’m surprised you don’t just use numbers for everyone.”
He replied in his steady monotone, “I suggested that but was overruled. Codename?”
“Shogo,” Kim replied.
He nodded once and typed it in, shortly thereafter one of his assistants handed her a M.I.D. card. It had a picture of her and the following information.
| Codename | Shogo |
| Powers | Ex - 1, En - 3(i), Reg - 3 |
| Techniques | High Speed Maneuvers |
| Weak vs. | Psi & Magic |
| Enemies | None |
| Backup/Affiliation | DPA |
She stuck it in her purse, “Not the best picture of me but better than some of the driver’s license photos I’ve seen. Can we go now?”
“Yes,” Linda said. “We’ll need to come back at least once but we can leave now.”
They went shopping again and Asuna was amazed at how enthusiastic Kim could be about clothing, especially shoes. She only stopped when she got hungry again.
They picked up Chinese food on the way home and chatted while they ate. “You could go into fashion as a career Kim. You’d be a great salesperson or fashion consultant and maybe you could even become a designer.”
“You really think so?” Kim asked smiling.
“Sure!” Asuna replied. “You are really knowledgeable about it and your enthusiasm is very contagious. I know you don’t want to the hero thing so this is a viable alternative.” She looked over at Linda, “Do you know if Whateley has any classes on this sort of thing?”
Linda replied, “Well there are classes on creating costumes and how to make sure your costume says what you want it to say at least and I know a few graduates have gone into modeling so I wouldn’t be surprised. You may not get to take them at first though. You’ll have to take all the usual high school classes and a few geared to helping you control your powers so there may not be any free time for electives Freshman year.” She smiled, “Don’t worry though, I’m sure you’ll have found time to take whatever electives they have by the time you graduate and if you still want to do more in that line after you graduate the folks and I can find you a university with a fashion degree program.”
Kim hugged her sister, “Thanks! You’re the best sister in the world.” She refilled her plate and burbled on happily in between bites about how she’d dress various celebrities if she was in charge of their wardrobe and about emerging fashion trends and fading ones and those she thought should fade but were still going strong.
Asuna mostly just smiled and nodded, happy that Kim was happy. When Kim started talking about costumes worn by various mutants she asked Linda, “Are we going to need costumes for school? I mean I figured I would just be wearing a school uniform and maybe a black suit if I had to do anything official.”
Linda smiled, “Yeah, you may never wear it again after you graduate but you’ll need one for some things at Whateley.” She frowned and looked serious, “And please remember you are supposed to be observing only while there. With luck you should never have to do anything official the entire four years and if there is an emergency you are to report it to the agent on duty from a place of safety. We are not sending you to be James Bond. We want to know what everyday life is like there, the inside story if you will.”
She looked over at Kim, “That goes double for you. If you see trouble coming you run the other way as fast as your legs will carry you. I’m unhappy enough about them making Sue a “special consultant” and she’s been taking martial arts since she was five and has already taken down her first villain. You are to keep your head down and avoid conflict if at all possible, understand?”
Kim nodded as she finished off the last of the lo mein, “I promise Linda.”
Linda sighed, “I guess that’ll have to do.”
Linda had been given a list of food and drink Kim should avoid until her blood tests came back and thus started the longest three days of Asuna’s life. When Kim read the list she became the very picture of sorrow. She wailed and moaned and cursed her fate.
“Chocolate is on this list!” she said in a shaken voice. “How am I supposed to live without chocolate?”
“It’s only for a few days,” Asuna said, trying to reassure Kim.
“You don’t know that!” Kim wailed. “That’s just when I get the test results back. I might never taste chocolate again!”
Over the next three days she pouted, whined, wheedled, even threatened dire consequences if she was not let have something with caffeine in it. While Linda was at work it all fell on Asuna. She resisted them all, if just barely sometimes. The worst was Wednesday afternoon, Gwen and the other girls left early and Kim started to add to her arsenal promises of a carnal nature that would have made the taller girl boggle even under better circumstances.
Then relief arrived Thursday morning when Linda called with the test results. “Hey, I’ve got good news,” Linda said.
“Oh thank god,” Asuna said. “Please tell me she can eat chocolate again.”
“She’s cleared for the whole shebang,” Linda replied. “Feel free to grab the credit card and restock the pantry before I get home and thank you. I realize it’s been the hardest on you since you’ve been listening to her whine all day long without a place in which to escape.”
“Well I won’t say I’m not ecstatic about the news but I still think your sister is having the hardest time,” Asuna said sighing in relief.
Linda snorted, “Hah! Three days without caffeine is probably good for her. If the tests hadn’t cleared her I might feel sorry for her then but everything up until now has just been a diva’s melodramatic performance. I know her too well to fall for it and you shouldn’t either.” She chuckled briefly, “You should get a medal for your patience but you’ll have to settle for retail therapy. By yourself something nice when you go out and don’t let her eat herself sick. I’ll see at the usual time tonight.”
After Asuna hung up she called out towards the pool, “Hey Kim? Good news! Get dressed to go out we’re going on a coffee and chocolate run. That was Linda calling to say it is okay.”
Kim was getting the hang of moving at high speeds because she managed to get from the pool all the way across the house to Asuna without damaging any doors or injuring herself although a baseline might have been injured by the collision if not the hug that followed it.
“We can? Wow! I wanna go to Starbucks first! Yesssss my preciousssss, soon we shall have tasty espresso!” With that she ran up, dressed, and was waiting by the door before Asuna even made it up the stairs once. “Well? I’m waiting! What are you moving so slow for?”
Asuna was back with her shoes on and all her necessities soon enough and they headed for the Starbucks. Fortunately it was within a reasonable jogging distance because Kim was in no shape to wait for a bus. She barely managed to keep herself to speeds a baseline could manage and only her lack of stamina kept her from running the whole way at a sprinter’s pace.
As they walked up to the coffee shop Asuna said, “You’re going to need to work on your stamina.”
“Sure! Anything! Just buy me my favorite drink and I’m yours forever and ever,” Kim replied.
Asuna shrugged, “I should have known better than to mention it now.” They went in and made the line and shortly Kim had a trenta caramel frappuccino with three extra shots and extra caramel syrup and three fudge brownies and Asuna drank a strawberries and cream with extra whip. She whispered to Kim, “Just remember that we have to spread the spree around so we don’t become too obvious. We’ll take a few of those to go and head off to the bus stop saying we’re bringing them for friends. Those should hold you until the bus gets us to the mall.”
Kim stopped eating and drinking long enough to sigh happily and respond quietly, “Then we can hit all the stores that sell chocolate or coffee?”
“If you need to,” Asuna replied warily. “But remember not to make yourself sick please?”
“Oh sure,” Kim replied blithely and continued eating.
Asuna called Gwen and her side of the conversation went like this, “Hey, it’s me. Nope! Thank all gods large and small she got the all clear. We’re in Starbucks now but heading to the mall soon, want to join us? A coffee and chocolate run mostly but we might grab a thing or two more and I’ll grill more burgers for lunch. Great, tell the others to meet us there if they want to come along. Thanks, bye.”
They met Gwen, Lindsay, and Maddie at the mall and came back with coffee, several different sorts of chocolate and five pounds of chopped meat to make burgers.
“These would be better if I’d let them marinate but I think I seasoned the meat well enough and we have plenty of fixings to add on top,” Asuna said as she brought the patties out to the grill.
Lindsay had volunteered to help and was carrying the utensils and the bottle of bbq sauce, “I’m sure they’ll taste fine.” She giggled, “If the rest of us get a chance to try one before Kim eats them all.”
“Hey!” Kim protests, “I heard that.”
“Aw, you know we love you Kim,” Lindsay replies.
Kim goes back to being her usually sunny self and doesn’t eat too much chocolate, or all the burgers. Asuna also makes sure dinner is ready by the time Linda gets home.
“Thank you for cooking Sue but I hope you don’t feel like you have to help,” Linda said.
“Nope,” Asuna replies. “I just seem to have lots of excess energy and these days and it feels good to be doing something useful. I just wish I could get in a good spar but any normal dojo is out obviously.”
Linda nods, “I know. If you can hold off another few days I’ll arrange something.”
“Thanks!” Asuna said.
By the end of the week they had a stable routine established. Breakfast together early before Linda left for work, then a PK Brick who was also a black belt came and would start off by teaching Kim and then moving on to sparring with Asuna. He would alternate between them until noon then eat lunch with them and give suggestions as to how to improve. After lunch he’d leave and they’d call over any of their friends who weren’t working that day to spend the afternoon by the pool or hunting for bargains in the mall until around four. Then the girls would head off to their own homes and Asuna would start dinner. Occasionally Linda would bring home pizza and the girls would stay to eat it with them and once Gwen slept over. Normality, such as it was, established itself.
The last week before Whateley started with Asuna waking up grumpy and out of sorts, “I hate these damn bras!” she said as she accidentally broke the straps on one. “It’s not like the damn bastards won’t see everything anyway.” They were heading for their last check up with the DPA researchers and Asuna thought it was reason enough to be grumpy.
Kim nodded, “True. So if you don’t want to wear one don’t.”
Asuna scowled, wanting to argue but seeing no good reason tore the bra to shreds then put on her softest shirt. Her breasts were extra tender today for some reason.
Kim looked at her oddly, “Are you feeling okay Sue?”
Asuna scowled harder for a bit then sighed, “No, I am all out of sorts. I’ve been getting angry for no reason.”
“Did you sleep okay?” Kim asked.
“No,” Asuna replied. “I was tossing and turning all night and it took forever to find a position comfortable enough to drop off in.”
Kim hugged her, “That’s probably why you’re irri -err feeling bad today.”
Asuna was about to snap that she wasn’t irritable then realized it was true so she just stomped on down the stairs to breakfast. She could tell that Kim was making signals to Linda as they both entered the kitchen but she missed them and suddenly found it hard to even care much.
“No food today,” she told Linda. “Just coffee please.”
Once there the researchers took a good look at her and were, strangely for them, respectful. They reported that Asuna’s “plumbing” was all hooked up and that she could expect her first period in a day or two.
Asuna punched the metal table, “Oh that’s just fucking great!” Then she looked at the dent in the table and scowled, “Make yourselves useful for once and tell me why I’m feeling like biting people’s heads off today?”
The researchers conferred and seemed to come to a consensus but none came forward to speak. Linda started snickering and Asuna looked at her, “Well, care to share the joke?”
“They are afraid to tell you this is probably PMS,’ Linda said still chuckling. “They, even they, seem to know that saying that to any woman in a bad mood is a generally a very bad idea and that you are not fond of them on a good day so they’ve all gone chicken.”
Asuna scowled harder, “You do know that ‘biting your head off’ is just an expression right?”
“Not necessarily when a mutant says it,” the lead researcher opined. He took a hesitant step forward, “Based on your hormone balance I’d say Linda was correct. You may not get dressed and you are not required to come back for further testing.” He stepped back, “We would like to test subject two now but we can see her some other time if that is more convenient.”
Asuna chuckled and heard it come out darker sounding than she had planned, “You mean that you’d rather do it sometime when I’m not here to stand guard over her. Well I’d say now was very convenient for me so let’s finish this farce so none of us have to come back here and visit you damn ghouls ever again.”
With Asuna scowling at them they occasionally fumbled a bit and she almost apologized but eventually settled for trying not to glare too hard. Eventually it was over and they offered to email all final results to Linda through secure servers and dismissed them all.
Back in the changing room Asuna did apologize, “I’m sorry guys. I’m trying not to let it get away from me but I’m not used to feeling like this for no good reason.”
“It hits some harder than others and this is your first time,” Linda said. “You haven’t hit anyone or broken anything so you’re doing pretty well.”
“I broke a bra this morning,” Sue replied.”I got frustrated and just tore it.”
Linda nodded, “Okay then, that explains why you aren’t wearing one. We can pick up some things for that on the way home. We would have to stop at a drugstore anyway.”
Asuna’s eyes widened then she started crying but trying to hide it as she got dressed.
Kim hugged her, “It’s okay. We’ll get you through it. The pills will help and we’ll show you how to use the um stuff.”
When they left Asuna had definitely shifted from angry to miserable and it got worse when she saw what they were buying. “I think this is all coming home to me now,” she said. Then scowled again, “I hate not knowing what is me what is the product of some stupid hormone!”
Linda sighed, “I hate to say it honey but try to contain yourself until we get home and you can take something. Even then it would be best if you learn to deal with this without needing anything too strong. I’ll explain why in the car. Why don’t you too go to the car now and I’ll go pay for everything?”
Asuna nodded, she knew that someone as strong as she was needed to stay in control, “Yes Linda. I’ll be good.”
On the drive home Linda explained that at higher exemplar levels drugs lost much of their effectiveness. This could be both good and bad since it meant that while painkillers and other helpful drugs had limited use it also meant that it was very hard for bad guys to knock an exemplar out with one or keep one out for long.
Once back home they gave Asuna a hot water bottle to hug and two pills to take and then she curled up in her bed while they explained about pads, tampons, other etcetera.
“You mean you just stick it in?” Asuna asked looking nauseated.
“Yes,” Kim replied.
“Then you just leave it there? Inside?” Asuna said as odd expressions flitted across her face then settled once again on nausea.
“Until you need to change it yeah,” Kim replied.
“And it just stays there inside of you soaking up blood and and tissue?”
“Well when you put it that way it sounds gross but yeah,” Kim nodded.
“It is gross,” Sue replied.
“Well then you can use the pads,” Kim replied.
Asuna looked ever more nauseous, “Then I’d have to see it when I changed them and worry about leaks and ugh!”
Kim hugged her, “Well yeah you’d have to worry about leaks more and it showing more but unless you close your eyes you’ll see stuff either way. Sorry.”
“Can’t I just let you do it?” Asuna asked.
“This time maybe but next time it happens we’ll be at school. You’ll want to be able to do it yourself by then,” Kim said. Then looking at Sue’s face she sighed, “Okay I’ll do it the first few times but no more complaining about me being a pervert okay? If I’m going to be doing this for you even once then it means we are past any modesty issues for all time. Agreed?”
Asuna sighed, “I might regret this but yes I agree. I’m completely in your hands for the next few days.”
You Are What You Read
Chapter 23
by freya
Asuna woke up the next morning with Kim snuggled up to her back and a water bottle held to her belly. She tried to get out of bed without waking Kim but found she was already awake.
“Good Morning!” Kim said brightly. “I hope you’re feeling a little better this morning?”
“Emotionally at least,” Asuna said.
“That’s a start,” Kim said and pulled Sue to her feet. “Let’s get you into the shower. The hot water will help and feeling clean will help too.”
Asuna let herself be guided into the shower. It did help her come out her fugue a little, and by the time they got back to her room she was feeling almost normal. At least she was until she saw some red spots on the inside of her towel. Then she looked for where it came from automatically and when she saw she just froze staring for a long moment until Kim noticed and guided her back to the bed.
“Don’t worry Sue,” she said in a much more soothing voice than her usual. “I promised to help and I will. Just lay back and let me get it. This time at least.”
Asuna winced at the ‘this time’ but otherwise just closed her eyes and let Kim help. She hugged her afterward, “Thank you! This totally makes up for saving your life. I mean it!”
Kim smiled and hugged her back, “I don’t think so but I won’t argue. So are you ready to get dressed? I think it’s supposed to be sunny today so I’ll get out your swimsuit. You can lay in the sun and be waited on hand and foot. Sound good to you?”
Asuna shrugged, “Okay.” She knew she would normally object to the skimpy bathing suit Kim was tying her into but it didn’t seem worth the effort today. She just moved as directed and let Kim strap it on then pull a pair of shorts over the bottom. Kim kept up some happy chatter but Asuna wasn’t really registering it and didn’t say anything until she got to the breakfast table.
“I’ve canceled the last martial arts lessons,” Linda said. There being only one week left before we take you to school anyway. So you have nothing to do but rest and recover.” She slid a plate in front of the red-haired girl, “I know you don’t feel like eating but you need to eat something so try to eat this buttered toast and juice and we’ll see after that okay?”
Asuna nodded, “Thanks, I’m sorry if I’m a bother.”
“You are no bother at all,” Linda said.
After breakfast she lay out by the pool and slept some more, waking up about noon to be greeted with a mug of hot chocolate by Kim, “Here, hot chocolate always helps me so I made you some with real melted chocolate!”
Asuna had to smile at the enthusiasm in Kim’s voice and accepted it, “Thanks, I vote you the world’s best girlfriend. I just wish I had a little more energy; do you think this will be over before we leave for school?”
“It should be but remember, it’s a monthly thing,” Kim said eliciting a groan from Asuna. “I brought the pills out, do you want to try a different brand or did these work for you last night?”
Asuna nodded and said, “Thanks, those helped last night. I should have thought of them this morning.” She took the bottle from Kim and swallowed two with a drink of hot chocolate.
Kim shrugged, “Well you aren’t yourself just now. I’ll try to remind you and we’ll see if the campus store has these.” She smiled, “Don’t worry if they don’t though. We’ll just have Linda send us some along with the cookies and whatnot she’ll be sending anyway.”
Asuna hugged her, “The world’s best girlfriend! It’s official.”
Kim giggled, “I should get a t-shirt that says that.”
Asuna slept most of that day and was sluggish but awake the next but on the third day she was feeling mostly normal again and while she didn’t feel like leaving the house still she invited the girls over and they grilled outside and talked and the others sympathized with her reasons for not wanting to socialize over the past two days.
“Oh don’t worry Sue,” Gwen was saying, “we all know somebody who gets it worse than usual. We’re not going to hold it against you. I’m just glad you’re feeling yourself again.”
“Thanks,” Asuna said.
The last few days of summer vacation flew past and it was suddenly the morning of their trip to Whateley. Asuna had gotten used to be woken up by having the covers pulled off but still had trouble understanding Kim’s hyperfast chatter first thing so she just smiled and hugged her as she grabbed her shower stuff and headed out of the room.
When she got back she vetoed Kim’s choice of clothes, “A leather mini and a halter top? I can’t go to school in those Kim!” She put them back along with the red lacy thong and put on a plain white cotton bra and panty set. “You can stop pouting because it won’t work today. I’m not running around New Hampshire in a halter and the school uniform includes a skirt so I’ll take this last opportunity to wear jeans and comfortable clothes.”
Kim pouted more, “You can wear pants on the weekends there.”
“Only if I can resist your pouts,” Asuna replied.
Kim giggled, “Okay fine. I guess my work here is done. You can dress yourself in the mornings. It probably would be weird if people knew I was heading to your room to dress you in the mornings.”
Asuna smiled, “Yeah, that might be a little hard to explain.” They went down and saw Linda had made waffles for breakfast.
“Wow,” Asuna said. “If you wanted to make it special you really succeeded. These look heavenly.”
“Yeah,” Kim agreed, already eating her first with fruit and powdered sugar on it.
Asuna helped Linda do the dishes and thanked her again for everything, “If I get a chance I’ll come visit. I’ll want to see mom at Christmas but if … if I can’t see her at home maybe we can meet here? If not I think Iris might be willing...”
Linda stopped her, “Of course you and your mom are welcome here if your dad hasn’t got his head out of his ass by then.” Linda assured her, “You can stop by anytime you’re free and I hope to see you at least some time before next summer.”
“I’d like that Linda,” Asuna said. Then there was a knock on the door and Asuna went to answer it.
Chapter 24
by Freya
When Asuna opened the door she saw a familiar face exiting an old fashioned station wagon with fake wood paneling on the sides. “Spaulding!” Asuna shouted and ran to hug him.
“Oof!” he said. “Watch the ribs please but I’m happy to see you too.” He grinned, “You seem to be settling in.” He lowered his voice, “If I didn’t know better I’d say you were born this way.”
Asuna smiled then sighed, “Yeah, we’ve all noticed how fast I’m picking this up. Linda’s sister living with us has helped but I have a theory that the change came complete with a mental package as well to make it easier on me.” She shrugged and frowned, “Linda does not agree. She says it doesn’t work like that.”
Spaulding decided Asuna needed to believe in an outside agency, “Well you can tell her that nobody can be certain what a Body Image Template can do so your idea is as valid as hers.”
Asuna smiled again and hugged him more gently this time, “Thanks! It’s great to have to you around.” She threw an arm around his shoulders and lead him towards the house, “Come on! Kim is still packing so we’ll have time to catch up over some coffee. Linda keeps Kona in the house. I’ve discovered I love that Hawaiian coffee.”
Agent Robert Spaulding was glad she was dealing so well with life’s little curve ball and was willing enough to chat but he’d hoped to do it on the road. “We are on a schedule but I did allow for some time slippage,” he said. “So we have time for one cup but most of our chatting will need to be on the way, sorry.”
Asuna sighed a bit, “I understand. I know you are a very busy man. I was just so happy to see you and wanted to tell everything that’s been happening.”
“I want to hear it all but the train won’t wait for us and you have a connection to make,” he opened the door for her and saw her grin and enter in ladylike fashion.
Then once inside she shouted in a surprisingly loud voice, “Kim! Move your shagging ass! The agent is here to pick us up and he’s wondering why the speedster is the one holding up his schedule! If you aren’t ready by the time we leave I’m going to throw you over my shoulder and carry you out of the house whether you are ready or not!” She winked at Spaulding and giggled quietly then shouted, “So make sure you are at least dressed by then or the whole neighborhood will see your bare ass as I throw it in the backseat!” She looked like she’d wanted to continue but she was laughing too hard.
Spaulding shook his head and grinned as a blur raced down the stairs and slugged Asuna's shoulder then raced back upstairs. A single word floated behind the blur, “Meanie!”
“That should get her down in time if anything will,” Asuna said. “And I owe her a little embarrassment still.” Still chuckling she led the way into the kitchen where she poured two mugs of Kona and started adding real cream and cocoa powder and topping it with a sprinkle of cinnamon.
“I’m surprised you can still taste the coffee,” Spaulding said. He was drinking his black.
She grinned, “I’ve been corrupted by the decadent ways of the Carter family. I used to not care but now I’m a coffee gourmet in training and a chocolate aficionado.” She sighed theatrically, “I’m even starting to enjoy shopping.”
“That’s good,” Spaulding said. “I’m also glad that you managed to keep your head down and not make the news again. You’re taking the train as that is the most common and least conspicuous way and you both, along with others like you, will be met at the Dunwich train station by the Dean of Students, Mrs. Shugendo.”
Asuna looked at him, “When you say ‘others like you’ do you mean mutants?”
He shook his head, “Standard Freshman intake is Monday but there is always a group that get brought in on Sunday. Those whose applications indicate they are what Iris calls ‘members of the rainbow brigade’, that includes both of you if I was informed properly.”
Asuna giggled, “I’m sure you were. How is Iris doing these days? I called her a few times this summer along with mom but I haven’t seen her since I left her house with you.”
Spaulding nodded, “She’s fine. Still running the best diner in the state and we’re dating when I can get a few days off in a row.”
“That’s great,” Asuna said. “You two make a cute couple and I think everyone should find love.”
“Yeah, speaking of that,” Spaulding paused to sip his coffee, “I hope you are being careful?”
Asuna giggled, “Going to give me a box of condoms?” She sobered a little then nodded, “We aren’t being demonstrative in public and we are be careful who we tell.” She giggled again, “Actually I think we were the last ones to figure things out but nobody other than Linda and Kim’s closest friends know we are girlfriends and even her friends don’t know I used to be a boy.”
He nodded, “Good, but go slow and be careful. No matter how tough you are physically emotional pain still hurts the same.”
Asuna nodded and the conversation turned to lighter things, she told him about how sparring practices went and demonstrated a few new counters she had learned. He asked how it had gone with the mage and she described that afternoon.
“Being even partially resistant to magic can be a big asset,” he said. “It’ll work best if you don’t mention it though. It won’t stay totally secret but no reason to advertise to the enemy right?”
She nodded and was considering another mug of coffee when Kim zipped into the kitchen. Once she’d got the hang of moving at high speed she rarely moved at any other inside the house. Outside she moved normally almost always but inside never, she said she was trying to improve her stamina but Asuna figured she was just too impatient to move at normal speed when she didn’t have to do so.
“I’m all packed!” she said and stuck her tongue out at Asuna. “Disappointed you won’t get the chance to flash my ass to the neighbors?”
Asuna grinned, “Yes, I wanted to show them what they’ll be missing.”
Kim slugged her arm again and pouted, “Man I wish I was stronger.”
“If you were you wouldn’t hit me quite so often so I wish you were too,” Asuna said. “Anyway, if you’re finally ready let’s get the stuff in the car.”
It turned out Kim had six suitcases and a backpack in contrast to Asuna’s duffel bag and backpack. “Wow, I didn’t know you even had this many clothes,” Asuna said. “You do realize how cold it’ll be up there right? I mean by the time it’s warm up there we’ll be headed back here.”
Kim nodded vigorously, “I know! This is just my fall and winter stuff.”
Asuna goggled at that but Linda nodded so she just shrugged and grabbed a few suitcases and started ferrying stuff to the car. It went quickly with everyone carrying something and the station wagon had ample room for it all. Soon the four of them were at the train station.
“Did you bring the phone we issued you?” Spaulding asked before they got out of the car.
“Yeah, I’ve got the special phone,” Asuna replied. It was a gadget that looked like a normal smartphone but it worked even if there was no cell service and included subspace encryption as a hidden option. “Your number is programmed in as speed dial #1 with the encryption enabled for all calls to that number. Mom is #2 and Linda is speed dial #3. I’ll keep in touch and let you know if I see anything funny.”
Linda nodded, “Good, also keep an eye out for Kim. She’s not as tough or as strong and superpowers do not bring out the best in everybody.”
“Of course I’ll protect her!” Asuna said. “I’m sure Whateley has the same sorts of creeps as any high school. We’ll be careful I promise.”
Linda added, “Also remember to get off at Berlin station and switch to the Miskatonic shuttle to Dunwich. Once you’re at Dunwich wait at the station until Mrs. Shugendo comes to collect you.”
“We’ve both got it Linda,” Kim said. “We’re not little kids or anything you know.”
“I know,” Linda said. “I just worry,” she said and then got out.
They both got out and hugged her; then they all unloaded baggage. Walking through the station Kim was amused and Asuna annoyed at the boys who offered to help them carry things. Neither of them had been on a train before and were surprised that they had a small room to themselves.
“It’s called a sleeping compartment but you don’t have to use it for that,” Spaulding said. “I just figured it would be more comfortable than sitting in a seat the whole way there.”
Asuna thanked him and that started a round of hugs and cheek kissing then Spaulding and Linda left and Asuna dropped down on a bed, “Wow, we’re really on our way.”
Asuna and Kim reached Berlin without incident and transferred to the Miskatonic Shuttle to Dunwich. Kim talked a few boys into helping her with her luggage despite Asuna frowning at them and they settled in for the last leg of their trip.
“I don’t know why you wanted those boys to help us,” Asuna said grumpily.
“Your jealousy is cute,” Kim said, “but you need to keep it in check out in public or you’ll out both of us.”
Asuna realized she was right and sighed, “I’m sorry. I’ll try to do better in the future.” She closed her eyes and did a few of the centering exercises she’d learned in the dojo. When she opened her eyes Dunwich was the next and last stop and the train car they were in was nearly empty. She looked around and most of the remaining people were about her age. “Hey Kim have you noticed?”
Kim nodded, “Yeah, while you were slaying the green eyed monster I was noticing that the cars behind us are empty and everybody left is about our age. I bet they are all going to the same place as us.”
Asuna nodded but said, “Well the ticket guys might be back so let’s keep quiet anyway.” She did take a good look around since she might soon be living with these people. There seemed to be few boys and only one seemed to notice her looking. He smiled at her then went back to his reading. There was a girl with green hair that Asuna would have have assumed was dyed back before her own transformation but now she wondered what powers went with green hair or whether it was just a random mutation.
The last stop came quickly and Asuna took a chance by throwing the strap of her duffel over one shoulder and gathering up all of Kim’s suitcases before exiting the train. Nobody said a word as they all trooped into the main part of the station.
There was an old man behind a desk reading a newspaper. He looked briefly and smiled, “Whateley?”
“Yes,” several of them chorused.
He pointed to a rather battered wooden door to his left, “Whateley students can wait in there until the Dean comes to pick you up at four.” He looked pretty calm about having almost two dozen mutants in the room with him but did raise one white eyebrow, “You all together? Usually they straggle in by ones and twos during the day.”
“We aren’t all together,” Asuna said. She put an arm around Kim’s shoulders, “I’m with her but that’s it.”
The old man nodded, “Alright. You got about an hour to wait. There are pop and candy machines in there as well.” With that he went back to reading his paper.
The teens wandered on through the indicated door. Once through a girl said, “Um I think I’m why we’re all here now. Weird coincidences tend to happen around me ever since ….” She trailed off, “Umm if we’re all going to Whateley then we’re all …” she trailed off again.
“Mutants?” Asuna said. “Yes, and since we’re all here on Sunday we should all be LGBT.” She shrugged, “Or so I was told.”
The girl smiled, “Oh good. I am probably still the weirdest freak here but at least none of you is going to try to beat me up for it right?”
“Right!” Kim said. “We’re on a government scholarship my big sis the civil servant finagled for us. I’m Kim and the jealous wench with the red hair is my girlfriend Asuna.”
Asuna sighed, “Sorry, I’ll try not to be clingy, jealous girl. Oh and you can call me Sue everyone.”
“Hi Sue,” the girl who had first spoken said. “I’m Bob, uh I guess that should be Bobbie now.”
Asuna smiled, “You too? I used to be a Japanese boy.” She didn’t give her old name and hoped Bobbie didn’t ask.
“Holy shit!” A boy said. “I thought it just me!” He took off his sunglasses and his eyes were solid bands of color like a rainbow. “I also got taller, blond, and these eyes. I seem to be something called an Avatar. I’m an odd one though so maybe I have Bobbie beat for freakiest person in the room. I can suddenly speak Old Norse too and I’ve been having the weirdest dreams you ever saw. I got tested by the official superhero team of Louisiana and they are the ones who said I’m unusual even as Avatars go and that I should get retested at Whateley. I have vision powers that I can’t control well yet and I’m stronger and tougher than normal but they weren’t sure if that was because of being an avatar or not.”
“I am glad I’m not the only one too,” another boy says. “I used to be a girl named Sara until some girls at school decided it would be fun to jump on my way back from the library. I manifested and flew away but then I started getting these horrible cramps and passed out in mid-air. I got rescued by a hero thankfully and when I woke up I was a he. She didn’t have any testing equipment but she thinks I’m what she called a mid range exemplar. My folks freaked out and are refusing to believe I’m me which sucks but I did get a scholarship and supposedly we can all get campus jobs for pocket money.”
“I wish I was done changing,” someone said. Looking over Asuna couldn’t tell if it was a boy or a girl. The person continued, “Every time I use my powers I change a little more towards female but it’s going freaking slow. At this point I don’t which sex I end up as long as I get there soon.” He or she sighed, “Just call me Pat for now.”
It went on from there with people telling at least their name and usually something about themselves and why they were going to be in Poe. Eventually a tall middle-aged Asian woman came in to the room and introduced herself as Mrs. Shugendo. She made a short and obviously well rehearsed speech then asked if there were any emergencies.
The blond boy with the rainbow eyes raised his hand, “I just need somebody to guide me when we go out to the buses or vans. My eyes are locked on microscopic vision so I might as well be blind. It should pass in ten or fifteen minutes if it’s like the last few times but I don’t want to hold things up.”
This did not faze the woman she just nodded and pointed to another boy, “Will you help guide him?”
The boy nodded, “Sure.”
She nodded, “Good, then please gather all your belongings and follow me outside.” Once outside she stopped by the first bus and produced a clipboard, “As I call your name please come forward and board the bus. If the first bus is full we’ll move to the second otherwise it will follow us.” She started in and soon everyone was on board.
Asuna ended up next to the guy who was slowly changing, “I agree that it sucks for the change to be slow but once we are there you can start using your powers more often and change faster. I’ll help if I can. I’ve looked like this for two months now and had my first period a few days ago.”
The boy looked a little green at that last but held out his hand, “Thanks, I’m John by the way.”
“Nice to meet you John,” Asuna said. “So how do you think they’ll do the rooms? I mean boy/boy and girl/girl would be taking chances if you know what I mean?”
He nodded, “Yeah, but they can’t do it the other way without spilling the secret so I bet that’s how it’ll go.”
“Can I ask what your powers are?” Asuna said. “Mine are making swords and bells as well as being fast, strong, and tough.”
John shrugged, “Sure. I create darkness but don’t freak out, it’s not like evil darkness or anything. I can make a shell of it around me so I become stronger and tougher and I can make it just, you know, dark.”
“Cool, can you see in the dark too?” Asuna asked.
He nodded, “Yeah, that part is sweet. No more fumbling about looking for a switch and I don’t need glasses anymore either which I love.”
Soon they were parked at Whateley and again they were called by last name and checked off on the clipboard. They were led up to a recently renovated building and given another well rehearsed speech about keeping the secret of the house even if you decide to come out personally, being tolerant of other students in the house, and about what the flag color codes mean. She ended up by saying, “The ancient seeming facade of the building is just that, a false seeming. A student who wishes to remain anonymous has paid for various renovations and upgrades to the cottage over the summer. Whereas at this time last year it was the case that all the other dorms had been more recently renovated Poe Cottage is now the most recently renovated of all the dorms. We are trying to keep that quiet however so please help us by not mentioning the upgrades. Consider it part of the secret of Poe. If people think it has the best or most recently upgraded accommodations they will either complain or try to transfer in and that will endanger the real secret so just pretend it is old with bad plumbing and ancient furnishings okay?”
Everyone agreed and she lead them into a surprisingly beautiful lobby with three older teens lined up at one end with clipboards, “These three students will each lead a group of you on a tour. Please step forward when you hear your name called and once again, welcome to Whateley.”
Asuna briefly hoped to go on the tour with Kim but then she saw that the girl who was lovely, black-haired, and presumably a senior had called only women to her line and her male counterpart had called only men and looked around for the third person. She found a girl who had John trailing behind her just as the girl found her, “I guess I’m on your list?”
She got a quick smile for her deduction, “Correct. Beltane used to do this but she is all wrapped up in her senior projects and so I managed to persuade administration to let me do the orientation.” She gathered them all to her and checked them off her list without shouting their names out and lead them towards the door, “We’ll go somewhere private to chat and come back here later to choose rooms then hit the crystal hall for its generally adequate food.”
She led them out on the grass and under a large oak, “First let me activate this thing I got from my teammate Nikki. It will keep anyone from hearing us or accidentally walking into our group for the next hour.” She produced what looked like a lavender gemstone and tapped it three times. It set out a pulse of colored light that briefly became a pale purple globe enclosing them all.
The girl nodded once and put it away, “Alright, as at least one of you has figured out everyone here has shifted gender or is shifting gender. I myself only look female due to a rather twisted B.I.T. or body image template. Where it counts I’m a guy and prefer to be referred to as he. We transgendered are a minority within a minority and traditionally we all band together to help each other out. At lunch I’ll introduce you to my teammates who are all TG too. If you need help or you are at your wit’s end and really need to talk to somebody who has been through it we’ll help.”
He smiled, “Naturally we hope you all become friends and make enough other friends to help you through things, but if you need somebody we’re here. Zenith is what they call the “dorm fixer” which is a bad name in my opinion but traditional. She helps smooth over rough patches and always knows which staff member to contact for any problem. She is one of us but she does her thing for the whole cottage so while she’s always willing to help she’s pretty busy. I’ll introduce you to her later so you know what she looks like. We should all introduce ourselves and tell something of ourselves. Don’t share anything you feel you need to keep hidden but remember we are all in the same boat here.”
He took a deep breath, “I’ll start. I’m Ayla Goodkind. I was one of those Goodkinds until they disowned me for becoming a mutant. I now own AJG Inc. and I’m a major stockholder in Marvel so those of you who were also disowned and/or kicked out take heart. You can use the experience to reinvent yourself stronger and better than before. I am an Exemplar, and a density warper. You’ll learn exactly what those classifications are in classes but basically being a density warper means I can make myself heavier and lighter and when I’m heavy I’m stronger and harder to hurt and when I’m all the way light I can walk through solid objects. My being an Exemplar aside from meaning I have a B.I.T. to cause my body woes means I’ve gotten stronger, tougher, faster, and my memory is better.”
She pointed to the boy on the far right, “Why don’t you go next?”
The boy Ayla pointed to shrugs, “Okay, as I said in the train station waiting room I used to be a girl named Sara. I was a pudgy girl with glasses and bad skin. The boys ignored me and the pretty girls picked on me. I generally managed to keep to myself and not get it too bad until this last summer. I was walking home from the library when I ran into a group of girls from my class. I swear they’d been drinking or something. They were all hanging on each other and giggling at nothing. One of them pointed at me and started whispering and then they all attacked me. They pushed me down and started tearing at my clothes saying they were no better than rags and calling me an ugly cow. When I saw they meant to strip me right there in the street I started fighting back and they all started hitting me.”
“I hope they’ve all been arrested since then,” Asuna says.
“No, they almost had me arrested because I started manifesting then. I threw them all off me and flew upwards,” he smiled. “Flight is still a very awesome feeling. I love it.”
“What happened after you flew away?” Ayla asked.
He continued, “Well I flew straight up for the longest time then I started getting the most awful cramps, like the worst period ever was coming. I passed out at about 15,000 feet. Fortunately our city has a hero who flies named Kestrel, she noticed and caught me. She took me to her HQ as she could see I was still mid manifestation and I woke up the next day in the little do it yourself clinic in her place and I looked like this.” He shrugged, “I’m sort of used to it now. She was great! When the girls told the cops that I had attacked them she gave evidence that I had obviously been the victim from what she observed and manifested in response to their attack. She agreed to take custody of me when my parents refused to believe I was actually me. She told me about this place and is paying my tuition. Kestrel is the best!”
“Thank you dear,” Ayla said. “I’m glad you found someone to help you out.” She pointed at the other boy, “Why don’t you go next?”
The boy with the rainbow eyes nods, “I’m Bobby now but I was born Roberta. One morning in July I woke up and my eyes had changed color. Not to this,” he lifted his shades and showed his current unusual eyes, “but from brown to light blue. After freaking out I told mom who took me to our G.P. He ran a set of standard eye tests and found my vision had gotten better. I had been 20/25, not bad enough to need glasses but worse than average. I tested out as 20/10 in his office. He did a more general check up and then gave me a referral to an eye specialist. The specialist had heard of this happening as a precursor to developing mutant powers and advised us of what might be happening. Another small freak out later, this time with my mom joining me, and we had handouts to read and were told to expect more changes.”
He gestured to his body and grinned, “I think this is a bit more than what he had in mind. Well fortunately for me Santa Fe is big enough to have it’s own hero team and they have a website with a contact number. It took a while and we had to convince several layers of assistants but eventually mom and I got to meet them in person. By then there were a few more changes and they confirmed that I was manifesting mutant powers. At first they were saying exemplar and esp but after I described to them the dreams I was having they decided I was some sort of avatar as well and the dreams were my spirit trying to communicate with me. The telepath confirmed that I had a spirit when I gave her permission to read my mind. Apparently avatars are easily detectable that way and my spirit provides me with some inbuilt protections from mindbendery which is cool. I used to wish it was a female spirit but after a few months of dreams I now mostly feel this body is right and normal. I just want to get a handle on these powers. I’m stronger, faster, and tougher like you mentioned Ayla but I can also speak and read Old Norse and have greatly enhanced senses, especially sight.” He sighed, “I can control the others so they do not overwhelm me but the vision powers still get away from me sometimes. I have telescopic and microscopic, I can see magic in use sometimes, and once I had something like x-ray vision and embarrassed the hell out of myself. I’m hoping that here I can learn how to use my vision powers or at least turn them off when they are getting in the way. I hope the spirit will get better at communicating with me because I’m told that the closer I am to it the more controllable the abilities should become. I am thinking of using the codename Heimdall if it isn’t taken because I like the sound and I wonder if perhaps there isn’t somehow sort of possible that the spirit started the legend. I do speak Old Norse now and the dreams have a Norse sort of feel to them too.”
“Thank you for sharing Bobby,” Ayla said. “If it does turn out to be the original Heimdall come talk to me, I have a few people you might like to meet.” She points to Asuna, “You're next.”
Asuna says, “I'm Asuna but you can call me Sue. I used to be a Japanese boy until early this summer. I'm like Bobby I've gotten mostly used to this body now and I like it. I even have a girlfriend now which I never did before. I can speak, read, and write Japanese and I've been learning martial arts from my father's dojo since I was about six. I'm an exemplar too, I'm guessing we all are, and a manifestor.” She created a set of silver bell hair ties and held them up to show everyone. “I can also do a sword and it feels like I should have one more but that may be because the Manga character I look like can make a large metal fan as well as a sword.”
“You look like a manga character?” Ayla asked.
Asuna nods, “One from Mahou Sensei Negima.”
Ayla smiles, “You won’t be the only one in Poe. I’ll introduce you to Tennyo after the tour. Now let us pass on to the next person.”
John nods, “Hi, I’m John. Well that’s not what my I.D. card says these days but I’d still rather you call me that. I live with my mom and three sisters. My dad is in prison, mostly for being a stupid asshole but technically for assault, battery, reckless endangerment, wanton property damage, and resisting arrest while on a drunken tear. He hasn’t had custody since the last time that happened but he used to have visitation rights.” John gives a mirthless smile, “I’m not sure if the townspeople are more upset at him beating on us or that his doing so has made two of us manifest.”
He shrugs, “I’m probably being overly cynical. My oldest sister graduated from here two years ago and is a policewoman there now. The Mayor even has an initiative going to get more exemplars on the force. The city is paying my tuition and in return mom and I signed an agreement that I’ll join the police and stay for ten years at least.” John pauses for a dry cynical snicker, ”He was a little put out when I started turning female but my sister managed to convince him it wasn’t a plot to make him look bad. So now all my I.D. shows I’m female and I have a new name. My two younger sisters are entirely too happy about things if you ask me but mom says they mean well and Mary, the eldest, says that as I’m going to be a cop I can forget all the girly stuff they are trying to push on me if I want.”
Ayla nods, “I know what that’s like. You know, even if you weren’t going in to law enforcement you don’t have to act girly. You can wear slacks instead of a skirt with your uniform and etc. If you have any problems along those line come see me.”
Asuna raises a hand, “Um, actually I still need to buy uniforms. I hope there is somewhere I can buy them today? I didn’t have the opportunity before.”
Ayla nods, “Yes, I will be pointing out the campus store and they do sell uniforms but that’s for later.” He turns back to John, “What are your powers John?”
John replies, “Um, well, they aren’t sure if I’m an exemplar or not because they say my change might be due to something called MATD. I manifest a what they call a “shell” and that shell gives me enhanced physical abilities and I can also create darkness. I can also “see” in the dark but they weren’t able to find out how since I can see even when there isn’t any light at all. The shell is very definitely female and I’m slowly changing to look just like it.” He shrugs, “Here I’ll show you.” He concentrates briefly and shadows flow out of his skin to form a matte black covering. It was so deeply shadowed that it was hard to see individual features except in outline. The outline was definitely that of a curvy woman though. “I might as well stay like this until the changes finish since they say there is no way to go back and being stuck halfway is worse.”
“Well you can do that today, as it is a green flag day today but tomorrow is a red flag day and there are far more of those,” she pauses and looks around. “Did you all get the flag color speech already?” Then she shrugs and goes through again, “So although I certainly sympathize with you, remember not to do that tomorrow. Okay?”
John and the others all nodded.
Ayla checks her watch, “Alright, one last origin story then we can go and see the campus without bumping into the boys and afterward you can pick rooms without bumping into the girls while the boys chat in private.”
The last girl nods, “Okay, I’m Steve, at least until I find a better name, and my “event” was triggered by my own idiocy. I almost got myself killed. My parents took me and my brother to the Grand Canyon for summer vacation. We were riding down on the burros and I was teasing my brother because he was scared of falling off. So just to be a showoff I stood up on the saddle of my burro right when it stumbled slightly and I fell off. I screamed and cursed and then suddenly I stopped falling and just hovered for a while. I couldn’t figure out what was going on or how to get down. Fortunately the Canyon Park Rangers have a flyer under contract to save idiots like me and he rescued me. He also told me I’m a mutant and about this place. Fortunately my parents are cool with it and can afford this place. I’m not sure what powers I have other than floating and when the Whateley application came in the mail I was already mostly female so I put that in and here I am. I want to become a hero if I can learn to control my flight and save people who aren’t as lucky as I was.”
Ayla smiled, “Paying it forward huh? An excellent idea I think and you might want to write to that ranger and ask him about job opportunities for when you graduate. You can help people that way even if you never manage to do more than float.” Ayla stands up, “Okay, next stop is the Homer Gallery to see a few bequests from Alumni.”
Ayla showed them the painting of Lord Paramount and the Guzman gold as well as some of the other trophies then from there they went into the tunnels, “Oh, one last thing, TGs room together since there are five of you that means one of you gets a single. You should discuss it while we walk so it gets solved before we get back and choose rooms. “
“To show a united front to the others, you mean?” Asuna asks.
“Yeah,” Ayla nods. “Not that anyone would rag on you for it.” She pauses, “Well nobody but Sharisha anyway. She’s like our very own Oscar the Grouch.” She shrugs, “It’s just that I don’t want my first tour group to end up arguing in public or even semi-public. “
Bobby looks at the other boy, “I guess it’s you and me then?”
The boy formerly named Sara nods, “I guess, especially if the other boys on the floor are gay. I’m not really ready for anything like that in this body.” He shrugs, “Not that I was ready in my old one but, well, you know.”
Bobby nods, “Yeah.”
The girl still known as Steve says, “Uh, if I could get the single I’d be happy.”
Asuna says, “I can room with either of you. Do either of you mind leaving the room for a bit if I want a little snuggle time with my girlfriend?”
John shrugs, “I wouldn’t mind that but you might mind changing in the same room as me.”
Asuna shrugs, “You don’t have anything I either have now or have had before and it’s not like you’ll be flashing right? You aren’t a nudist or anything?”
“No, and no,” John replies chuckling. “You have a deal then.” They shake hands and smile.
Steve smiles too, “Cool, a single.”
“It will only last until the next TG gets here,” Ayla says. “We usually get one or two before spring semester.”
“I’ll enjoy it while it lasts then,” Steve says.
Ayla nods and shows them the workshop, then takes them back up and points out all the different dorms along with Administration and security. “Next will be the campus store and after that we’ll grab rooms then lunch. If you are new to buying clothes for your gender please ask for advice.”
Asuna bought uniforms for herself and Kim and made a mental note to come back here for more shopping later, “Is there a guideline for things we can do with our rooms? I ask because it seems like they have a lot of cool things I’d like to get.”
Ayla nods, “You can personalize in a lot of ways and they’ll deliver the heavier stuff but anything other than simple additions should be cleared with the house mother first.”
New purchases in hand they returned to Poe Cottage and picked rooms along the short corridor between the girl’s side and the boy’s side. Asuna dumped her purchases on one bed and went to go grab her duffel when Kim found her and gave her a big hug and a big kiss.
“I missed you! I wish we could room together but we can’t and I told the others we’re dating. I hope you don’t mind but some of those wenches move fast and I had to stake a claim and I hope you got a cool roomie. Mine seems cool. Can you help me carry my suitcases upstairs? You can meet her then. I’m starving, can we go to lunch soon?” Kim finally stop to take a breath and looked at Asuna with big puppy dog eyes.
Asuna smiles, “Yes, I’ll carry your bags up and yes we can go to lunch after. I also bought you some uniforms, they are up in my room. You can meet my roomie then too.” She grabs all the suitcases and her duffel and wearing the backpacks carries everything upstairs following Kim.
When they got to Kim’s room she dumped most of it and looked around, “Mine looks the same. Nice but bland. I was thinking later we’d go to the campus store and get some shelving and stuff as well as snacks and drinks for the little fridge. Sound good?”
“Sure! Hey this my roomie Karen,” Kim introduced a slightly pudgy brunette of average height. “She a telepath! Isn’t that cool?”
Asuna shakes her hand hand, “Hi, I’m Sue. I hope you don’t peek when she you’re not supposed to?” She blushed a bit then because she realized it was a rude question, “Sorry, I didn’t mean to sound rude.”
Karen waved it away, “It’s okay. A lot of people are worried about that. I never peek on purpose but I’m not great at shielding yet so sometime I pick up on surface thoughts. Don’t worry though, I know how to keep a secret.”
Sue nodded, “I guess it’s something we all learned. Come on Kim, let’s head over to my room where you can grab the uniforms I bought for you and meet my roomie. Then we can go eat.”
“Sure!” Kim enthused. She’d managed to put all her clothes away while Sue was talking.
When they got to Asuna’s room John was still in his darkness shell. “Kim this is John. John, this is my girlfriend Kim. She’ll be coming to lunch with us.” She lifted the smaller set of uniforms, “These are yours Kim.”
“Hey! How come mine have skirts and yours have pants?” Kim asked.
“Because you like them and I don’t?” Sue replied.
“Well, actually I just wore them to get your attention. I’m going to want some slacks as well. Especially when winter hits,” Kim replies.
“Okay,” Sue says. “We’ll go back after lunch and get you some pants too. Now come on,” she grabbed Kim by the hand and started tugging her toward the stairs. Ayla wanted to walk us to the cafeteria and introduce to some people. I’m sure she won’t mind you coming along.”
Chapter 28
by Freya
Author’s Note: I’m assuming that Chou will be back to sitting with TK by fall of ‘07 and that Nikki will still be with Bunny at least some of the time.
When Kim and Asuna got outside they found Ayla waiting, “I see our little group has grown by one. This your girlfriend?”
Asuna blushed but nodded vigorously, “She asked to come along. She knows all about me anyway and she’s a speedster so she’s hungry.”
Ayla smiled, “Fine by me but if you hold her hand everywhere people will get ideas.”
Kim giggled, “Let them, it will keep me from having to turn down boys in person. Not to mention how Sue reacts.”
“I haven’t hit anyone,” Sue replies.
“Yet,” Kim says. “Anyway I’m starved, can we go?”
Ayla smirks at them and leads them all to the crystal hall, “This was recently upgraded. It now has a lot more seating. Normally you’d eat on the bottom level with the other freshmen but today I’ll bring you up to my table on top and introduce you around after we grab our food.” She doesn’t come out and say ‘to other TGs’ and is glad that nobody else says it out loud either.
Asuna finally lets go of Kim’s hand to grab her tray and she notices Ayla gets brought something special from a chef but doesn’t mention it. When they all have full trays Ayla leads them up two flights of stairs to a full table that seems to have only one boy. As they approach Bobby mutters, “Suddenly I feel a lot more rare.”
The most beautiful redhead any of them have ever seen gives a silvery laugh and says, “Hey Hank, you finally have company.” She makes a graceful gesture and they are enclosed in another privacy spell.
Ayla nods, “These are the new TGs in Poe plus one.”
Kim waves, “I’m Sue’s girlfriend so she dragged me along to feed me.”
Asuna blushes, “Sorry, I didn’t know, um, well she was a lot of help, and she never judged, just flirted a lot, I mean helped me buy new clothes and she’s in Poe too so it’s not like she’d tell and”
Another girl cuts her off, “It’s cool. Don’t worry. Sit down and take a deep breath we don’t bite.” As she guides Asuna towards a seat she introduces herself, “I’m Chaka or Toni . If anyone harasses you or you need help you can to me or any of us really.”
Ayla nods, “That’s why I brought you all here. So you’d know some people who went through what you’re experiencing and can help you. Let me introduce everyone.” She gestured to Asuna, “This is Asuna, Ex and Man, who ended up looking like an Anime character. Tennyo can tell you which anime fanatics to avoid and you can cry in each other’s beer about having become incandescently hot.”
A blue haired girl sticks her tongue out at Ayla and Sue realizes she looks just like Ryoko. Sue says, “You can't call me hot when I'm sitting across from the perfect example of what a hot redhead should look like.”
Ayla snorts, “You can't measure yourself against Fey or you'll get a complex.” She continues, “Sitting next to Sue inhaling food is her girlfriend Kim the speedster. This is Bobby who is an unusual avatar that has been having dreams that you might want to talk to him about Fey, at least once he stops drooling in your presence.”
“Sorry,” Bobby said closing his mouth. “Is there a reason I keep getting the idea you are royalty of some sort?”
Nikki looks surprised then nods at Ayla, “I think you may be right.” She turns to Bobby, “Picked a codename yet?”
“Heimdall,” he replies promptly. “If it’s not taken.”
“Show her your eyes,” Ayla says.
Bobby removes the sunglasses and shows his rainbow eyes. Fey nods and says, “Bifrost. We’ll definitely chat later Heimdall.”
He gets a goofy grin on his face and nods, “Thank you your majesty.”
Nikki frowns, “Try not to call me that.”
Toni adds, “Yeah her ego is big enough as it is.” Which gets her a tongue salute too.
Ayla points to the next boy, “This is Sara who needs a new name. Just don’t ask Hank. We let him pick his codename and he picked Lancer.” She pauses while several girl giggle then continues, “Sara can fly and seems to be an exemplar but we don’t know what else he can do yet.”
The boys sit down and start eating while Ayla gestures again, “This is Steve who also needs a new name. She can float and probably other things but has not explored her powers yet. She wants to be a park ranger after graduation. Last but not least this is John who is still changing under all that darkness and wishes it would hurry up.” The last two sit down and Ayla introduces Team Kimba plus Bunny, Chou, Molly, and Sara.
Asuna looks over at Tennyo, “I can do some of the stuff my manga character can. How about you?”
“I can do it all just about,” Billie replies. “I don’t have any power gems but all the rest yeah.”
After seeing what Billie was eating Kim didn’t feel bad about going for seconds or thirds. She also complimented Molly on her clothes which started a fashion conversation out of which Asuna tried to stay. So she turned to Ayla and brought out her schedule, “Can I ask your opinion on my classes?”
Ayla look happy to have a reason not to enter the discussion about which shades of pink went best with which skin tones and gave Asuna an in depth analysis of the classes available.
Eventually they all finished eating and wandered off in two groups, one discussing courses and career paths and one discussing fashion, team wondercute, and how best to keep a girlfriend’s attention.
This is the sequel to You Are What You Read. It follows Asuna and her girlfriend Kim now that they are at Whateley.
Asuna woke up on her first day of class and shut off the alarm. She sighed, missing Kim’s happy chatter in the morning. She wouldn’t have believed that if you’d told her even a month ago but she had gotten used to Kim’s unique way of waking her up. Looking over at the other bed in the room she saw that John, or Joan as his new id said, was still sleeping and nodded to herself. She had decided she’d try to shower early each day and be dressed and ready by the time her roomie was awake. Not that she was squeamish or excessively modest but she figured it would make things go smoother.
The shower was empty so early which she guessed was a bonus, at least she wasn’t tempted to ogle any of the other girls and didn’t have to worry about whether or not Kim was watching. As she dressed she looked through the window and saw people start doing Tai Chi out front. She dressed in a hurry but kept her feet bare then went out to join them, “Can I join in?”
“Sure!” came the response from the girl out front. “I met you at lunch yesterday. You’re Asuna right?”
“Right!” Asuna said. “You are Chaka right? Are you leading?”
“Well I wouldn’t say I’m leading,” Chaka said.
Both of the other girls snorted. “We would,” said the taller one. “I’m Boudicca, and this is Bladedancer. Chaka here is better than all of us so we follow her but she’s right about not being officially in charge.”
Asuna nodded, “Well I’ve done it before so I’ll just follow along if that’s okay?”
The others nodded and Asuna took her stance and followed Chaka when she restarted. She decided the other girls were right about Chaka’s skill and just did her best to follow her flowing motions. She felt relaxed and at peace at the end and went back inside to her room. John was out, presumably showering as her books were all still there. As Asuna puts her socks and shoes on she wonders if Kim is up yet.
She gets her answer just as she’s finished packing her backpack for the day’s classes as the door flies open and Kim runs in and hugs her, “Good morning Sue!”
“Good morning dear,” Asuna replies and hugs her back. Are you ready? We can head to breakfast together.”
Kim nodded, “I’m all ready and hungry too but I have BMA first so I’ll get all grungy first thing and I hate going to classes all sweaty. What class do you have first? In fact can I see your schedule? I want to know how many classes we have in common, I hope it’s a lot so I don’t have wait until meals to see you!”
“I missed you Kim,” Asuna said. “I have BMA first as well. We can shower afterward I’m sure. I have Powers Theory and then English, lunch, algebra, bio, and Powers Lab last. I hope we share a lot of classes too but we can study together and hang out the rest of the time if not.”
Kim pouts, “We only have four classes together. Oh well I’ll bear it somehow, let’s go to breakfast.”
Asuna shoulders her backpack, “Sure, but you should probably knock next time. I do have a roomie and she might be changing or something.”
“Oh poo,” Kim said. “She’ll probably make the room all dark when changes and I won’t see anything anyway. Besides who would ever mind having me in their room?”
Asuna smiles, “I dunno, somebody might. Just an idea though. Let’s go eat.”
After breakfast they hurried over to the dojo because Kim had never worn a gi before and wanted help putting it on for the first time.
Senseis Ito and Tolman walked out and introduced themselves then separated the group into beginners and those with prior experience at fighting. The beginners, including Kim went off to one side with Tolman and a smaller group stayed put and gave their names and powers.
Sensei Ito looked at Asuna oddly when she gave her name, “Asuna-san, perhaps you have a parent who is Japanese?”
In Japanese she replied, “I have two and looked it until this past summer. This body is the product of my mutation.” She wasn’t sure if he’d know about Poe but just in case she added, still in Japanese, “Now I reside in Poe but I still have nine years experience learning in my father’s dojo. I think I’ve worked out most of the kinks of this new body but I realize I still have much to learn.”
Ito nodded and continued asking names and known powers. After he had learned them all he gestured and another student walked up, “This is Chaka whom some of you may have met already. She is a TA for this class and I am going to ask each of you to spar with her first so I can gauge your ability.” He pointed to a red painted metal cage on the edge of the mat, “That is known as the capture cage. It is a gimmick, to represent anything that can neutralize you in combat. Assume it can restrain you and stop you from using any power. Your mission is to stay out of the cage and you may use any powers you but once you are in that cage you have lost. Understood?”
We all agreed and he both he and Chaka smiled. “Very good,” Ito said. “Asuna-san you shall go first.”
She nodded and stood, “Hai, Sensei.” She stepped onto the mat and took a stance. She lasted a minute only. She was immediately forced on the defensive and only made the first blocks through exemplar reflexes and muscle memory. Then suddenly she was in the metal cage and Chaka was whispering, “Don’t worry. You did better than most.”
As she took her position again and watched the others she could see that Chaka wasn’t just being nice. Most of the others ended up in the cage faster. After the last one landed inside Asuna clapped, “Wow!”
Chaka bowed with a grin, “Thank you. I’ll be helping Soke teach some of you but I think we are out of time now.”
Ito grinned, “My assistant is correct. You are dismissed.”
Asuna took a quick shower and changed back into her uniform then walked to Powers Theory with Kim. Karen, Kim’s roomie, was taking it as well and they helped each other stay awake. Kim had a different English class because she was a year older but they met outside the building for the short walk to the crystal hall.
They had lunch on the bottom level with Karen, John, Steve, and Bobby. Asuna told them all about sparring with Chaka and how she was looking forward to the class. “Ito has actually created his own school of martial arts. That’s so cool!”
The others had it fourth period, right after lunch and were now looking forward to it. After lunch Asuna and Kim were separated again as Asuna took Algebra and Kim had Geometry. They met again in Bio class and went from there to Powers Lab together. They found Karen, Steve, John, Bobby, and Sara walking up from the other direction and waved.
“Are you guys ready?” Kim said. “I think this class is going to be where we show what we can do.” She grinned, “I am so ready. I feel the need, the need for speed.” She said, quoting top gun. “I can’t wait to get someplace where I can really accelerate.”
Disclaimer: I don't own any part of the Whateley Universe.
Author's Note: I'm trying to get back into the swing of this story. My muse went off to play on Twisting the Hellmouth for a bit but I think I managed to get her interested in finishing this off as well. I hope you like this admittedly short but completely new chapter.
Chapter 2
They all got to cut loose a bit in Powers Lab. Asuna was impressed with Karen’s tk and John’s strength when in her darkness shell. Heimdall turned out to be about as strong as Asuna to his surprise. Kim got to show off her speed and was fastest in the class but all the other speedsters had more stamina. After class John elected to shower back at Poe but the others showered in the gym and changed back into their uniforms, “So what do you guys want to do now? Too early for dinner and we don’t have any homework yet.”
“Let’s walk around and get to know the place better,” said Karen. “There is a lot to see and it will keep us from getting lost in the future.”
Everyone agreed and they started slowly walking around and trying to get a feel for where everything was. They noticed the back of the cafeteria dome had an order window like a fast food place but much better called the bistro, where you could order from a small menu and outside tables. Sue bought Kim a snack to hold her until dinner and they moved on.
As they walked slowly back to their dorm someone approached and Kim squeaked out, “Demon!” Then she blushed because she noticed the uniform and realized it was just a student with GSD. It wasn’t too surprising a mistake though as the boy had red skin, ram’s horns curling from his head and what looked like black talons in place of fingernails.
“Oh shit, I think he heard me,” she said as he started toward them. “I’m sorry,” she started when he got close but he overrode her apology.
“Oh joy!” he said sarcastically. “More pretties to look down on me and call me names. Just remember that it could happen to you too! More than one girl entered here pretty then suffered a burnout and ended up looking like this or worse!” He sneered and showed his teeth were all pointed, “Not to mention Jobe and the Goodkind. Word has it that she can shred your BIT and make you hideous along with all the other shit she can do just by being that fucking rich and well connected.” He shrugged off the glares he was getting from the others and chuckled nastily, “Jobe is our very own horseman of the Apocalypse. He’s turned a guy who thought he was Ares, god of war, into something that’s not even sure it’s human anymore. I hope you piss him off barbie doll because I’d love to see what he does to you.” With that he sneered again and walked off.
“Never mind him,” Asuna said hugging her. “He’s just angry about being fuggly and taking it out on you. If he gets near you again I’ll kick his teeth in. I would have done it today but it’s our first day and we don’t how these things work. Let’s go ask Ayla about the best way to deal with idiots like that. I’m sure she knows.”
When they got in Ayla wasn’t in and her roommate was too nasty for them to confide in. Looking about a little they found Chaka and told her what happened.
“Well, mostly you were right Sue,” Chaka said. He’s probably just hurtin’ because of how he looks. I understand how it could be a shock to see him the first time and you did try to apologize.” She smiled, “I wouldn’t worry. He’ll probably calm down and realize you didn’t mean it. As for Ayla, she can shred BITs but doesn’t. She really hates that she even has the ability. Not annoying Jobe is good advice though. Becoming female hasn’t made him any sweeter.”
“Jobe used to be a boy and changed? Why isn’t he here then?” Asuna asked.
“He was already here and switched publicly so if they moved him here after that it would blow the cover. Also nobody wants Jobe near if they can help it so he got moved to the dorm with all the other obnoxious people,” Chaka grinned after that last sentence to show them not to take too seriously. “If demonboy does become a nuisance come tell me and I’ll challenge him to a match at the dojo.”
This led to a discussion of sparring and sanctioned duels and from there to Sensei Ito and the martial arts programs available and ended up with Asuna agreeing to spar with Chaka. “After dinner though,” Asuna said. “I’m hungry and I bet Kim is too despite her snack.”
“Sure!” Chaka said. “Hey, why don’t you come eat with me and my peeps tonight? Most everybody will leave you alone if they know you’re friends with Fey and Tennyo, and of course, yours truly.”
Asuna smiled, “Thanks! I think we’d like that.” She turned to look at the others, “Right guys?” The others nodded including John who’d joined them in time to hear what happened.
“If we do end up having truly with that guy let me know,” John added as they went downstairs to their floor to change for dinner. “We’ve all got to stick together. Anyone who threatens one of us is a problem for all of us.”
“I agree,” said Heimdall. “Just like the Musketeers, one for all and all for one.”
“Thanks guys!” Kim said. “You are all the best!” She hugged each and every one of them then went off to her room to change.
Disclaimer: I don't own any part of the Whateley Universe.
Author’s Note: I hope this isn’t too confusing. I know I’m not good at fight scenes but I figure if I don’t try I won’t get better.
The week went by pretty peacefully after that until Saturday. Asuna was coming back from a run and saw the demon looking kid from before Kim backed up to the side wall of Poe with an arm to either side of her head. She started jogging towards them but trying to keep calm telling herself that Kim could scream and get all kinds of help from Poe and that while she didn’t look happy she wasn’t looking scared either. When she was about a hundred yards away Asuna saw Kim lash out with a flurry of super speed punches that had no effect. Pushing her tired legs into a sprint Asuna shouted, “Leave her alone!” and “Call Security!”
A few seconds later Asuna was tackling the boy to the ground. “Get inside and round up help,” she gasped at Kim as she struggled to restrain the boy with her arms.
Kim ran into Poe at top speed and looked around for help. She saw Nikki coming down the stairs and ran over to her and explained the whole situation. Unfortunately her explanation was at too high a speed for Nikki to understand. Realizing that she grabbed Nikki’s hand and started pulling her towards the door.
Nikki couldn’t understand the girl but could definitely feel the fear and panic rolling off her. She let the girl pull her towards whatever was happening while over the spots she updated the others. Hank and Toni were on the way as backup with the others waiting for word.
Meanwhile outside Asuna was fighting with the demonic looking boy and a girl who had jumped into the fight on his side. It was clear she was the best trained of the three and the strongest but the two of them were fast enough to keep her hopping. The girl had four arms and dark blue skin. When she grinned it showed all pointed teeth like a shark. John, Bobby, and Karen were keeping four others from joining the fight but were unable to do more than that as Kim and Nikki rounded the corner.
John had his shell up and a tentacle of dark matter wrapping up a girl with long, inky black hair, very pale skin, red eyes, and fangs. Karen was using her telekinesis to lift two other girls into the air. One was a redhead who was beautiful if you overlooked the horns, bat wings, and a tail ending in a flat diamond shape. The other looked as if she’d been shaped out of clay but the sculptor had gotten bored before finishing. She wore a female uniform but had only what looked like mittens for hands and the only clear features on her face were her eyes which glared at the pretty young girl who held her suspended in the air. Bobby was gripping the forearms of a scaly, reptilian girl who was hissing at him.
Nikki pulled her hand free from Kim and shouted, “Auxiliary security! Stop right now. If you do not stop I’ll put you all to sleep and drag you into Kane Hall.”
Karen, hearing that, relaxed her telekinetic hold on two of those trying to get past her. John removed the dark matter tentacles from the third and Bobby let go of the fourth. Asuna dropped her katana and it vanished but she had to keep dodging as her attackers seemed not to have heard Nikki. The bat winged girl leaped at Karen as soon as she was on the ground again. Bobby jumped in between them and she grabbed him with glowing hands.
He felt her draining something from him and tried to pry her hands off unsuccessfully. Nikki seeing that cast her sleep spell on everybody. All but two people dropped asleep. Asuna stood there panting and sweating and Bobby stood there yawning and blinking his rainbow colored eyes. All the others were asleep as Toni and and Hank arrived with security.
“Nikki, can you tell me what happened here?” said Security Chief Delarose. “I came personally because I thought this was someone attacking Team Kimba but I don’t recognize the apparent victims here.”
“Well they are new Freshmen in Poe and two of them had reported getting flak from Dybbuk,” Nikki pointed to the boy who been harassing Kim. “Although they didn’t know his name the description matched. I didn’t see the start but Kim came and got me a little ago and was too upset to speak clearly so I let her bring me out here.” She gestures to the area, “Once we got here I saw two people attacking Asuna and three of her friends trying to keep four more from joining the fight.” She frowns, “Two on one wasn’t enough for them they were trying for 6 on one. When I saw that I identified myself as a security auxiliary and told them to stop or I’d hit them all with a sleep spell. The two attacking Asuna didn’t stop so she had to keep dodging but she stopping attacking back and her three friends, Karen, John, and Bobby, also stopped. The girl with the wings jumped forward at Karen with her hands glowing and Bobby, the boy still standing, jumped in front of her and took the hit whatever it was. Then I hit them all with the sleep spell. You guys showed up right after that.”
"So Heimdall and Reimei both resisted your spell?" Chaka said surprised. "I know it's not full power when spread out like that but that's still impressive."
Delarose looked at Kim then Nikki, "Do you want to vouch for her or should I ask if she minds a truth spell?"
Before Nikki could answer that Kim said, "I don't mind a truth spell!"
Delarose nodded and Nikki cast the spell on Kim.
Kim took a deep breath, "The boy you called Dybbuk cornered me when I wasn't paying attention. He kept saying I should date him and that if I didn't I was a bigot. I tried to tell him I don't like boys that way but he didn't seem to care. He had a hand on either side of my head and was looming over me and flashing these nasty pointed teeth as he kept telling me that I owed him one date. I tried telling him to leave and he wouldn't so finally I started punching him and it didn't do any good. His skin is too tough for me to hurt him no matter how many times I hit the same spot. I don't think he really wanted a date. I think he just wanted me scared and disgusted. Well anyway he was running a hand along my face and I was hitting him and trying not to break down and start crying when my wonderful girlfriend Sue saved me by knocking him off me. She was trying to restrain him and he was shouting something about oppression when she told me to go get somebody to help so I ran inside and I saw Nikki. I was nervous and scared so I was talking way too fast I guess if she didn't understand me but she came out with me and she told you the rest."
"Well that's harassment plain and simple," Delarose said. "I'd like to know how the rest got involved but for that I'll ask one of the others."
Heimdall sat down against the wall while he told his story. He said, "I'd been walking back to Poe with Karen and John when I heard Asuna calling for help. We rushed toward the shout and when we got there we saw her being attacked by two people. As we moved up to help we saw four more people closing from the other end of the building. Once we saw those people were planning to attack her too we blocked them. Then Nikki arrived and you know the rest."
Delarose sent a security person to go with Heimdall to be checked over at Doyle Medical, "We know the girl who grabbed him with glowing hands. She's called Succubus and she drains energy. Too much and the person can die. The docs at Doyle have found that her victims have extremely low sugar levels in the blood. Back when she couldn't control it they used to give her victims glucose either orally or, in more extreme cases, intravenously until they could eat a normal meal. He would probably be fine on his own but let's make sure. Between the drain and the spell however he shouldn't be walking alone though so I'm sending Jackson to help guide him there."
Nikki said, "Well I'll help get our people inside the dorm if you can handle the rest? They should stay sleeping for at least an hour."
"I'm sure we can manage," Delarose said. "Thanks for your help." As his men started carrying the others off he added, "If I find out anything you should know I'll tell you."
Nikki smiled, "Thanks chief."
You Are What You Read Part II Chapter 4
Disclaimer: I do not own the Whateley Universe.
At first Chaka wanted to challenge all six individually to matches to show them not to attack her friends but Asuna convinced her to set up a match between them and her friends in the dojo. “If you beat them they’ll just look for a time when you aren’t around but if we beat them then they’ll know we can defeat them whenever they attack.”
“Well alright then,” Chaka said. “We’ll just have to make sure you challenge them and win!”
Ayla helped them sign up as an official training team, “You worked well together and already watch each other’s backs so it’s reasonable. It will also allow you to challenge as a team and you’ll get to practice together in the simulations and generally refine your teamwork.” She smiled, "It will also get around that you are in a team and that will make you less of a target for bullies.”
Bunny gave Kim a set of barrettes, “I invented these. They will help if you ever cornered like that again. Press like this and they will flash in a way that will make most dizzy and nauseous. Plus they look totally cute and can conceal a tactical radio. Once your team gets its communications gear bring it to me and I’ll conceal a set in here for you.”
“Thanks Bunny!” Kim hugged her. “You’re the best!”
“We girls have to stick together,” Bunny said. “I’m happy to help any Poe girl keep herself safe.”
Hank introduced John to his girlfriend Lily and together they went over with him good tactics to use with his darkness and his ability to see with no light at all.
Nikki talked with Bobby and gave him tips on getting in touch with the spirit inside him and telling him stories of meeting the original people that are considered the mythical Norse gods now.
Chou sparred with Asuna and gave her sword-fighting tips and Chaka showed her a few new martial arts moves.
Before they could be an official team they all needed to be evaluated. Steve and Sara wanted in as well but there was an additional problem with them, “Steve, you and Sara need to pick new names,” Ayla said. “I can certainly understand the trauma that entails but you need to have names that fit you and don’t draw unwanted attention. You also need codenames for your evaluation but that’s a bit less urgent.”
Steve looked over at Sara, “Hey how do you feel about swapping even?” When she looked confused he elaborated, “I mean you can be Steve and I’ll be Sara. That way we’ll fit our names. Unless you think that’ll be too weird?”
Sara laughs, “I think that would be weird and I’d turn every time somebody called you which wouldn’t be good.” He smiles, “Besides you look more like a Beth.”
She nods, “Okay, I can live with that. What about Mike for you?”
He nodded, “I can live with Michael.”
Ayla smiled, “Okay, I have contacts in the administration. Come with me and we’ll get you sorted out officially in no time and you can spend the weekend getting used to your new names.”
John agreed to start going by her legal name of Joan to avoid confusion. She also spent the weekend inside Poe so she could keep her shell up the whole time regardless of the red flag days. Jade brought her food from the cafeteria.
Shroud talked to Karen about all the fun things one can do to an opponent with telekinesis. Nikki talked to her about how to use empathy in a fight.
At the end of the week Tennyo asked Chaka, "You think they can win? The other guys all have at least a year's experience on them."
"I think they will," Chaka said. "They've got the determination and heart and they have already proven they can handle the others. We've also given them all the advice they can use in such a short period of time so I'm optimistic of their chances."
When she stepped out into the dojo with her team Asuna was surprised by the number of people in the stands. She asked Chaka, “Are all these people here just to see us fight? I mean most of them don’t know us from Adam.”
Chaka smiled, “Not knowing you doesn’t mean they don’t like watching a good fight! They are hoping for some entertainment mostly. It’s an unwritten rule. Just below ‘don’t forget to duck’ is ‘enjoy the show - as long as its from a safe distance’. Since this match has sponsors and a referee it should be safe to watch and that draws people out around here.” She shrugged, “Some will be looking at it as getting information on possible opponents and/or rivals, and some probably have had bad experiences with some of your opponents and want to see them get pounded, but most just want free entertainment.”
“Bread and circuses and we’re the circus?” Asuna said. Then she nodded, “Right, like the old days of gladiators.”
“Sort of I guess,” Chaka said. “Don’t worry about the audience though, just worry about your opponents. They have been at the school longer and even with Kim added in they have one more person on their team than you.”
Asuna nodded, “Understood.” She looked at her team, aside from herself it consisted of Kim, Joan, Bobby, and Karen. All of them in the standard white gi they used when in class here. Then at the other team, in their custom designed uniforms, Golem, Succubus, Kali, Dybbuk, Obsidiana, and Ophidia. She took a deep breath and turned to her friends, now her team mates, “We beat them when they ambushed us so we should be able to take them now as well. Don’t get overconfident though. Watch out for Succubus and don’t let her get her hands on you. Karen, I think its best if you lift her and Golem like last time but don’t be too surprised if they are expecting it this time. How long do you think you can you hold them?”
Karen shrugged, “I’m not sure but at least ten minutes or so. Should be plenty of time for the rest of you to win this.”
Asuna nodded then turned to the next person, “Kim, do you think you can keep the four armed girl busy while I deal with Dybbuk?”
“Sure!” Kim piped up perkily. “I may not pack much of a punch but I can bob and weave with the best of them!”
Sue nodded, “Okay then. Bobby? Can you take the scaly one or would you rather fight the vamp wannabe?”
Bobby smiled, “I think I’ll be able to handle Ophidia. I’m stronger than she is and tougher. I’ll do my part then help whomever needs it.”
Sue smiled, “I was going to say that last but yeah, anyone who gets free early go help somebody else and let’s all make sure they don’t get to Karen because she’ll be concentrating on holding up her two targets. Okay?”
The others all agreed and Joan added, “I guess that leaves Obsidiana to me. Shouldn’t be a problem.”
Sue nodded, “Good! Let’s go and do it then.” They walked up to the mat, bowed, then stepped toward the center where Sensei Ito was waiting.
“This is an official and sanctioned match between team Demon and team Rainbow,” Sensei Ito spoke. “Before I go over the rules I will ask one time if you are willing to talk this out instead.”
Asuna nodded, “I am willing to talk it out. It would be a shame if eleven people fight because one boy refuses to apologize.”
“You are the ones who need to apologize!” Kali shouted. “There has been enough talk. Now we will punish you for your lies about my boyfriend!”
Sensei Ito nodded impeturbably, “In this case I shall go over the rules and let you start your fight. This will be honorable combat. You may use any power that affects one person at a time and all melee weapons. You fight until all of one team are knocked out or a team leader surrenders. Do you both understand these rules?”
“Hai Sensei,” Asuna said.
“Yes,” Kali replied.
Ito nodded and stepped back, “Very well then, Hajime!”
Because of the restriction on affecting one person at a time Karen lifted Golem first then stretched another telekinetic “hand” towards Succubus.
Succubus took the air immediately though and flew at her, “You won’t get me this time!”
Bobby saw that and stepped in front of Karen. He didn’t want to hit such a pretty girl but he remembered how she had drained him last time and that was after security got there! So he swung his best punch straight at her jaw.
Asuna manifested her katana while running at Dybbuk. Kali tried to intercept but Kim sprinted at full speed and tackled her, sending the four armed woman flying.
Joan found her confronted by the reptilian mutant and the vampire-like Obsidiana. She managed to create a shield to hold off the reptile girl while she attacked the other but Obsidiana was good at dodging Joan’s shadow tentacles.
Golem struggled futilely while held aloft by Karen.
Bobby’s punch missed the chin of the flying girl and hit her in the forehead, snapping her head back and stopping her forward momentum. She gave him a nasty glare but landed, apparently unhurt. She was reaching out to Bobby and Karen with glowing hands when Karen grabbed her telekinetically just before Bobby connected with another right. Bobby’s strength was insufficient to knock her free from Karen’s telekinetic grip but she was unable to roll with the blow and became dazed by it.
Asuna swung the flat of the blade at Dybbuk’s head hoping to stun him right off the bat. He blocked the blade with his left forearm and punched out at her with his right. She blocked the punch and let go of the sword. It disappeared as soon as it left her hand. He grinned, “Unless you’re willing to cut me you won’t win and if you do you’ll get a violent rep. Besides I doubt a pretty like you has the guts.”
Joan had stopped shielding the reptilian girl and wrapped her up in shadow matter tentacles but was having less luck with her other opponent. Obsidiana had avoided all her tentacles and was now charging Karen.
Bobby was going to hit Succubus again but then he saw Obsidiana charging and tackled her instead. The girl and he rolled several times and somehow he ended up on the bottom.
Asuna was able to hit Dybbuk and block his attacks in return but his toughness meant even her best bare handed strikes were doing little to no damage. Her opponent was shrugging off her attacks so she switched to throws hoping he’d become disoriented and be unable to continue the fight.
Golem was still struggling futilely in Karen’s telekinetic grip but Succubus shook off the last hit and was flapping her wings hard trying to take to the air. Joan tried to grab the Bobby’s opponent off him with a shadow tentacle but they were too far away.
Kali was back and Kim was busy dodging all six limbs as Kali punched and kicked at her. She was too busy to strike back and knew she would tire fairly soon at this pace. She was hoping one of the others would soon be able to help her.
Bobby managed to roll closer to Joan who scooped Obsidiana off him with her shadow tentacles. He stood up to see who needed help and was attacked by Succubus. He fought off a wave of fatigue as she grabbed his right arm and started draining. He punched at her with his left but it took three shots to remove her and he was panting with exertion by then from the drain.
She grinned at him, “Draining you is better than a quadruple espresso. What the hell are you anyway?”
“None of your business,” he panted. He watched her warily as he slowly found his second wind. She had been distracted by watching the other fights. Between them Joan and Karen were holding three of her teammates aloft. Kim was still dodging Kali. Asuna was slamming Dybbuk around like he was a ragdoll but he kept getting back up.
She spent a little too long watching. Having put him to sleep before she didn’t realize just how much stamina Bobby had. He surprised her from behind with a haymaker that knocked her off her feet and three feet away. He then charged Kali, knocking her clear of Kim who was then able to sit down and catch her breath.
When she had her second wind she went up to Asuna and said, “You go help Bobby, I’ll go keep him busy.” When Dybbuk laughed at her she hit him with a super fast leg sweep, “I’m not against a wall now you ass.” She wasn’t as good as Asuna but she was much faster. This meant Dybbuk hard a very hard time staying on his feet and was able to do nothing else while Asuna helped Bobby with Kali until she yielded for her team.
Sensei Ito called out, “Yame! The team led by Kali has yielded. The match is over.”
Asuna bowed to Kali, “I truly wish none of this had happened.” Kali frowned but said nothing in return as she bowed back. Joan and Karen lowered their captives and stepped back warily but there were no further hostilities. After bowing to Ito the four girls and one boy left the dojo to head back to Poe.