by Hayes, Drew
“The hell? I’ve kept my mind empty; there’s no way you should have been able to pin down my location. You’re both working totally blind.”
But Vince isn’t. He’s drawing all the light in the room, including the miniscule amount all living bodies naturally put out. As long as he can sense the sources, Mary can read his thoughts and get our locations.
“It was a good idea; no one’s begrudging you that. The question is, will this work?” Roy was amazed at how far they’d come; however, there was still a high hurdle left to clear for Hershel’s plan to prove successful.
No clue. Not much we can do at this point either way. Mary, bring us in again as soon as you can.
On cue, Roy plummeted downward once more. This time, it was his knee that struck the professor. The next time around, he caught her with his hip. Three hits in rapid succession was a hell of a streak, one that Roy would have gladly seen continue into the double digits. Unfortunately, when Mary swung him around for the next attack, Professor Cole was waiting.
It felt like Roy had been tossed into a spider web made of cloth: the instant he drew near, dozens of tendrils closed around him. None got a perfect grip, but the lot of them caused his momentum to cease entirely and Roy became stuck in place.
“Your tactic was good, but using the same trick over and over will give your enemy the chance to adapt to it,” Professor Cole said. “You were never going to beat me with this tactic.”
“Yeah, we know,” Roy shot back. “That’s why it wasn’t my job to beat you. I just had to keep you occupied.”
In a blinding flash, light returned to the room. Roy blinked past the pain, determined to see for himself if their gambit had paid off or not. As his eyes adjusted, he could just make out the silver-haired form of Vince Reynolds, his fist pressed firmly against Professor Cole’s ribs.
“I believe the term you used was ‘hypothetical deathblow,’” Vince said. “Which means we win.”
122.
“Deathblow, you say?” Professor Cole certainly didn’t sound like someone who’d just lost a match against her students. She seemed more curious than defeated, really. “Mr. Reynolds, I know you’re generally not one to overstate your abilities; however, I’ve also seen your matches in the past. Forgive me if I’m somewhat skeptical that you could impart enough power in a single punch to put me permanently down for the count, especially with such a rapid transition from absorbing to unleashing different energies.”
Vince stared up at her, uncertainty written plain as day on his face. “Um… are you asking me to try and kill you, ma’am?”
Professor Cole chuckled, shaking Roy slightly as her tendrils moved with her. “Nothing so dire as that. As a student, you are constantly growing. I will admit that it’s possible your capabilities exceed what you’ve demonstrated in the past. That said, victory over a professor is no small accomplishment, and I can’t in good conscience allow you to take it without proving you have the power you’ve claimed. So let’s make this simple, Mr. Reynolds. I’d like you to unleash the attack you would have used to kill me on the wall. Exact same parameters as before, go from absorbing light to throwing a punch. If you can do sufficient damage to the wall, I’ll admit that I would have been knocked out, if not killed. Do too little, and we resume the match from this moment, with Roy captured and you open for a counter. Fair?”
“Hang on,” Roy yelled down from his captured position in the air. “Vince uses up his energy, you know. If he burns up power just to prove a point then he’s not going to have it for the rest of the trial.”
“Power he wouldn’t have if he’d used it to stop me in the first place,” Professor Cole countered.
“It’s okay,” Vince said. “She’s right; I’d be down however much power I used to defeat her. It’s not fair for me to claim the win but keep the energy. Managing my resources is part of what I have to keep up with in combat, so this is part of my training.”
Walking slowly, Vince made his way over to the opposite end of the room, as far from the others as physically possible. “Mary, could you put a shield between me and the rest of you? I’m going to use kinetic energy and I don’t want anyone to get clipped by debris. Also, is it clear on the other side of the wall?”
“The labyrinth’s entire structure is incredibly reinforced, Mr. Reynolds. You’d need a tremendous amount of power, more than even Mr. Daniels could manage, to put so much as a crack on the other side.”
“It’s clear, Vince.” Mary paid the teacher no mind as she made her way over, putting a barrier of mental force around Vince and his section of the room.
“Thanks, Mary.” Looking down at his right hand, still balled into a fist, Vince let out a long breath. “I’ll darken the room for ten seconds, then stop absorbing and throw my punch. Is that long enough, Professor Cole?”
Professor Cole stared at him, watching Vince’s every movement carefully. “I think that will be sufficient to recreate our scenario.”
With a nod, Vince made a small cupping motion with his left hand and the room went totally dark once more. They stood there, unable to see anything, until ten seconds had passed and the light came back in a sudden surge. Thankfully, it hadn’t been long enough for their eyes to fully adjust to the darkness, so they were all able to see quite clearly as Vince swung his fist forward and connected with the wall.
* * *
The noise was so loud Alice almost lost her concentration, which would have been exceptionally poor timing as she trailed the footsteps of a fellow student through the hall. It sounded like an explosion, which narrowed the possibilities significantly, and on instinct she tensed up. Was it another attack? Had something gone terribly wrong? Floating in the darkness, she waited for the lights to come on or an announcement to be made. After drifting there for thirty seconds, Alice finally accepted that nothing had gone too far off the rails and continued stalking her prey. Whatever had just happened, it evidently wasn’t enough to stop the trial.
Although she was quite curious to know what had made such a noise, Alice had other concerns to deal with first. She wanted to get her score as high as possible before only the tough opponents remained.
* * *
No sooner had she heard the noise than Camille knew the source. True, there were technically others who could have caused it, but she had no doubt in her heart that it was Vince. Only he was foolhardy and determined enough to end up in a situation where that much power was necessary. Really, she just hoped he hadn’t gone and gotten himself disqualified by using too much force, though that seemed unlikely. Strong as he grew, Vince never seemed to revel in causing others pain. At least, not unless they deserved it.
With an ear tilted upward to hear if there would be an encore, Camille resumed her trek through the labyrinth. It seemed a good bet that Vince had just done something that would make standing out much more difficult for everyone else, so she needed to rack up all the points she could.
* * *
Dean Blaine was out of his seat, knuckles white as he stared at the television screen. They’d missed much of the battle—Vince had been absorbing even the light that night-vision cameras registered—but what was displayed on the screens now more than made up for it. All around him, he could hear the chatter of the watching Heroes, normally stoic fronts all abandoned as they excitedly discussed what had just happened.
If there had ever been any hope for these students to escape the nickname Class of Nightmares, Vince had just smashed it into pieces.
* * *
Light streamed out from the room into the previously dark hallway. Vince pulled his hand back and uncurled his fist, staring in dumbfounded shock at the massive hole he’d just punched in the wall. Pieces of concrete were smashed and embedded on the other side of the hallway, a few causing cracks in the previously smooth surface. Turning around, he put on his best unassuming face and looked Professor Cole in her unusually wide eyes.
“That took pretty much every bit of kinetic energy I had. Was it enough?”<
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Slowly, Professor Cole began to nod as she lowered Roy back to the ground. “Yes, Mr. Reynolds. I can say without any shame whatsoever that a punch like that would have certainly overcome my defenses. Your deathblow stands, and you are officially the winners of the match. But where on Earth did you get so much kinetic energy?”
Smiling with relief, Vince pointed over to Roy, who was slowly getting his bearings as the cloth tendrils released him. “I’ve got a very strong sparring partner. That was really just a bunch of Roy’s punches being thrown all at once.”
Professor Cole looked from Vince, to Roy, to Mary, and back to Vince again before shaking her head. “Well, I did ask you to show me how much you’d all grown. I must say, you didn’t disappoint. As one of your educators, I am filled with pride at the fact that you three managed to score a win over me, no matter how strange the tactics you used were. Congratulations to all of you. Now, get back out there while I go help myself to some catered food, and perhaps a well-earned drink.”
123.
It was a split second of distraction. The boom that echoed through the labyrinth was unexpected; however, everyone in the cell was well-trained at keeping their focus. Their minds were drawn away for a span best measured in heartbeats. Still, that was somehow long enough.
No longer was a contained ball of cloud floating in the corner of the room. In its place was Professor Pendleton, once more corporeal and ducking nimbly out of the way of one of Shane’s shadows as he rolled across the floor. He was bare-chested, his shirt fluttering to the ground in two pieces as his bare feet slid along the concrete. If Chad was working under the assumption that the clothes couldn’t shift as well, Professor Pendleton had been carrying them around within the fog. It must have taken considerable effort, given all the shadows slicing around him, and struck Chad as somewhat curious. Before he could dwell on it further, their opponent spoke.
“Careful, Shane, that’s a lot of sharp shades to be swinging about. Some might even consider them to be a deadly amount of force against a flesh-and-blood opponent.” Professor Pendleton was smiling, in spite of how close they’d managed to get to victory. Even with emotions kept in check, Chad still managed to feel a bit irked by that.
“Alex, same plan, smaller target. Keep him solid and elevated. Shane and I will stay close by in case he tries anything.”
“Not the worst idea I’ve come up against,” Professor Pendleton said. “Unfortunately, Chad, your usual failing has struck yet again.” He reached into his pocket and produced a small silver device, pressing his thumb onto a blue button near the top before anyone could react.
Chad could hear the crackle, even before Shane and Alex dropped to their knees. Before the HCP, he wouldn’t have recognized it quite so easily, but years of classes with Vince and learning from Professor Fletcher had ingrained the sound of electrical discharge deep in Chad’s mind. Both of his teammates were breathing heavily as they struggled to stay upright, still conscious but incapable of doing much more than gritting their teeth in pain.
“You assumed I was fighting in a straightforward manner, like you were, trying to knock you out with physical blows. But students aren’t the only ones allowed to bring in tools. I snuck a few remote stunning devices onto your friends when I first spread out. Nifty little gizmo; the harder I press, the stronger the current. Don’t worry, though; it can’t do any serious damage to them. At the most, it will knock them out.”
The words hung in the air between them, interrupted only by the occasional fresh wave of electrical current surging into Shane or Alex. Chad knew he wasn’t as adept at dealing with people as, well, pretty much everyone else in class, but not even he was able to miss the threat that had just been leveled. If Professor Pendleton knocked them both out, they’d be eliminated from the trial. Plus, one on one, it was highly unlikely Chad would be able to defeat someone with Professor Pendleton’s ability. It was an easy victory… so why hadn’t the professor taken it yet?
“You didn’t put one on me.” The realization hit Chad immediately, and as it came so too did the logical extension of what that meant. “You wanted to face me alone?”
“Things can be done for more than one reason,” Professor Pendleton said. “In this case, I didn’t put any on you because as tough as you are, there was a good chance it wouldn’t be enough to stop you. And with your awareness, you’d almost certainly have noticed me try to put it on, which would have tipped my hand. No, Chad, I left you untouched mostly due to my own pragmatism. However, once I realized the team I’d be facing, an idea did form in my head. That’s why your friends are distracted, but not unconscious. I am, after all, an educator, and this was a chance I couldn’t let slip by.”
From the corner of his eye, Chad could see Shane lifting his hand, slowly trying to reach around to his back. There was no telling where Professor Pendleton had placed the devices; in his fog form he’d been all around them. The spine or neck did seem like prime areas, though. If Shane could peel his off, and Chad could reach Alex, they might still be able to turn things around.
Unfortunately, Chad wasn’t the only one who noticed the movement. Professor Pendleton tightened his grip slightly, causing Shane and Alex to both spasm and flail their limbs.
“Stop it! Torturing them is not acceptable for a simple test.” Chad could feel his annoyance and anger rising, despite efforts to keep them both carefully contained.
“You’d be surprised how important it is to endure pain as a Hero.” Professor Pendleton’s face darkened for a moment, some part of his past reaching out, making itself visible in a pinched and tired expression. It was gone as fast as it came, but Chad knew what he’d seen. “But that’s not what’s happening. While this is messing with their nervous systems, it doesn’t hurt any more than our usual sparring sessions. I should know; I had each one of the devices used on myself before I ever brought them into combat.”
This time, it was Alex who moved, and there was no delay before the spasms began anew. “Listen up, you two. If either of you tries to pull off the electrodes through any means, I’ll drop you both. Chad, if you try to take the devices off, I’ll knock your friends out before even you can make it over. If you try to attack, I’ll go into fog only a few seconds after taking them both down.”
“So what am I supposed to do, then?” Chad asked.
“Easy. Knock yourself out.” Professor Pendleton reached up with his free hand, blood from the missing fingertip dripping down his wrist, and tapped lightly on his own temple. “You’ve got the ability, and we both know it. Send your brain into sleep mode, and I’ll drop the controller. I won’t pick it up again, either. Your friends will be free to continue the fight, but you’ll be eliminated.”
“I… I don’t understand. Two against one is a greater threat. Why not take them both down and fight me? None of this makes sense.” As much as Chad turned the situation around in his mind, it didn’t add up. Why would Professor Pendleton be willing to make that trade? Chad wasn’t even the most pertinent threat in this fight; Alex was by far more essential.
“And see, that is exactly the lesson you’re going to be learning today: not every enemy takes actions that make sense. Some people are illogical, or so emotional they can’t think straight, or just flat-out dumb.” The remote never wavered in Professor Pendleton’s hand; his thumb kept a constant pressure even as he spoke. “As for me, I just want to see the way you think, Chad. You’re a strong Super, no one can deny that. But you lack the ability to think outside the box well. So, I want to see what you’ll do when really pushed to the edge. Sacrifice yourself, and your score, for people you’d have to fight anyway, try and take me on alone in a fight we both know is pretty much unwinnable, or find a way out of the situation. Sometimes, being a Hero means making hard choices in the heat of the moment, decisions you can’t take back. If you can’t find a solution, then you have to make do with the shitty options in front of you.”
Slowly, Professor Pendleton extended his arm, holding the remote a p
recious few inches closer. “You’ve got until the count of ten to make your choice, or your friends finish their exam here and now. Let’s see if you can surprise me.”
124.
He hadn’t known how, but Dean Blaine had been certain from the moment he agreed to let Sean take part in this year’s exam that he would regret it. Staring at the screen, watching as the professor pressed Chad into a seemingly winless situation, it took all he had to keep the exasperation from showing on his face. Of all the match-ups possible, this was probably among the worst conceivable. Chad knew how to fight at a level virtually none of his peers could match, but his thinking had always been predictably linear. Sean, on the other hand, was as wily as they came. Wisp hadn’t been a legend among Subtlety Heroes without reason.
The worst of it was that, annoyed as he was, Dean Blaine couldn’t dispute the merit in what Sean was doing. Although they weren’t daily occurrences, sometimes situations occurred in the field where pure victory was impossible. In those moments, a Hero had to determine the best course forward and live with the consequences of whomever they failed. It was a harsh truth, but a truth all the same. One day Chad might find himself in just such a predicament with far more than mere exam points on the line.
Around him, the crowd was interested—no small feat, given how much chatter there had been after Vince’s display. Most of the eyes in the room were focused on Chad’s screen, anxious to see if he would sacrifice his friends or himself. For his part, Dean Blaine was hoping that somehow, no matter how small the chance might be, Chad would find a way to yank a fragment of triumph from the situation.
