Martin narrowed his eyes, for just a moment he saw it even if it was hidden a bit behind that sparkling spray-on she was wearing. Her throat tensed, and not in a frightened way, it was like it pressed as soon as she opened her mouth. His frown deepened, Did she… did she literally just choke on her words? What was she about to say? He thought, trying to gauge her rea. It was incredibly strange, her poker face was immacute, that same rexed-if a bit smug-smile, but he could almost feel that momentary fre up of tension. It wasn’t something just anyone could pick up on, it only came after years of experience as a detective.
Sonya coughed behind her hand, clearihroat a little, “I apologize, looks like I choked a little, do we have any water?” She asked.
He blinked and gnced around, he spotted the small water bottle refrigerator set out for the VIPs and got up to grab her one. He brought it bad she took a sip while he examined her face, “Did you get carried away during the speech or something?” He asked, “You seemed almost… angry.”
Sonya cleared her throat again, “Excuse me,” She coughed again and then turned a radiant smile towards him, “Wouldn’t you be fired up? After what happened in Dharan, all those people…” She said solemnly.
Is she really on the up and up? He thought, trying to pierce through the front she utting up. Was she stalling for time? She set dowtle and and o him, “Thank you for the water, now as for your question I-”
The door opeo the VIP box and Iroepped inside. Martin flinched, Damn it. His partner looked down to see Sonya looking up at him with a curious expression and a small hint of a smile. “Miss ovna? Here you are, the Overseer was w where you’d gotten off to, where is your security?”
Sonya bli him, “Oh, I apologize, I wanted a little quiet time and happened upo Fuller here, my security is nearby, I’ll have them e over if you’re worried, but having a of the ittee is just as good, isn’t it?” Sonya asked pyfully.
Martin forced his fato passivity and refused to ch his fists, she was calling him out ily. He’d basically attempted to interrogate her and she could have easily made a ent that he’d made her feel unsafe. With her influe was as easy as calling the Chairman to have him fired. Sonya met his gaze and gave him an easy smile. He g Ironsides who gave him a skeptical look. I handle security detail, don’t look at me like that!
Sonya shrugged, “As for your earlier question, Agent Fuller, Yes, though I do have a rather etric teopath as a chief stist who likes to browse strange pces oer.”
Right, Amos Carter, the man who i with teology with his mind. Teically an ex-criminal, but no one is willing to go after him because of his e with ASTA and the products he is produg for the world, Marti out a breath, It’s a fair enough statement, but I ’t help but feel like she’s hiding something. It’s not enough to prove, though, just my gut.
“Martin,” Ironsides grunted, “A word?”
Here we go again, Martin groaned inwardly, “Right. We’ll speak again aime, Miss ovna.”
“I’m sure we will,” Sonya said with a smile as he stepped out of the viewing box.
—
SHIT SHIT SHIT SHIT SHIT, SON OF A BITCH! Sonya had to trol herself from not grabbing at her heart and heaving out a breath of relief. She’d spotted Ironsides approag the box through the gymnasium and opted to buy for a little bit of time. Fortuhe man olite in other ways otherwise he would have pressed her harder. It hadn’t taken long to e up with the statements, they were all factual, the trick was the delivery and the order in which to say things to create a misleading response.
Making it sound like an out of hand dismissal was the best option, she reasoned. Still, that man is clever and he was watg me like a hawk. He’ll be trouble, but dealing with him would cause more problems. It’s better if he’s on the ittee’s leash rather than running around freence. She paused, Dead is also an option, but I don’t like the idea of his partner pig up where he left off out of loyalty.
She took another sip from the water bottle a out a sigh, More things to deal with, oh well.
She crossed her legs and leaned ba the seat, looking out at the gymnasium. The stands were starting to fill up with curious observers who wanted a view of the testing. Most of them had beeted to be there because they were going to get tested themselves, waiting for their turn, but there were civilians and press as well. She spotted a man in a cap and sungsses walk in and focused on him, his posture and gait were familiar. She focused on him and his name appeared, she smiled, There you are, Razor. Curious about the petition? I knew you’d e, though I’m surprised you didn’t try anything during my speech. I uimated your patience.
He tilted his head up and their eyes met. She couldn’t help herself, she tilted her sungsses down and looked him dead in the eyes with her own glowing orbs and smiled.
Tick tick tick tick tick
–
Her eyes were really glowing, hot pink and nearly bzing in the differentiated light of the viewing box overlooking the gymnasium. Beyol forced himself to keep lookie meeting her gaze, she’d smiled at him, she knew, but she’d dohing. It was a warning and a challenge rolled up into oure. A cat and mouse game and it wasirely clear ho in this situation. He felt his blood move through his veins faster than ever arained an eager smile. This is turning out to be a bit more fun than I’d expected.
He walked up the bleachers and found a spot he back where he could see but wasn’t out in pin view. He settled in and slipped his hands into the pockets of his hoodie, keeping his head down and his face obscured as best he could. Security was ridiculously tight at the doors but there were so many people i was easy to get lost in the crowd. He he men and women in suits stationed around the floor of the gymnasium, standing at intervals. These must be the test proctors that were mentioned. All light touched. I wonder what my tier is?
He’d heard the expnation oiers from one of the staff members as he was walking through. Mundane, on, Unon, Rare, Epic, Heroic, Mythic, there were seven ratings that were assigo light-touched abilities. Mundane abilities were those that had very little fun and seemed almost etic, there was a shog number of people who’d actually obtained mundane abilities and not even realized they had them even after the fsh because of how low-key they were.
From there, each stage arently expoially more powerful with Mythic being the most. He tried to imagine what that eve but he didn’t have any real way to measure the scope of it except knowing that Sonya possessed an Unon-rating ability and the details were publiowledge. She could see great distances even in the dark, piiails, see a person’s name if she focused on them, and if she touched them she could learn the name of their ability. That was a solid amount of funality for one ability. parable to his own.
Is my ability Unon? It has bat applications, maybe it's Rare.
As he sidered it, the doors opeo the gym and a small number of people with badges on their chests strode ihe first group of test takers, this is happening all over the world right noarently. He thought and looked at each of them in turn. There was the four heroes who had joined Sonya at the senate hearing as well as her bodyguard-maid. She wore some kind of armored maid outfit straight out of a cartoon while the others looked like hoo-goodness ic book heroes. What is with that ridiculous cospy? He thought as he skimmed over the st couple of faces. Nothing to write home about.
The test takers made their way towards the proctors and he could make out some of what was being expio them. They had to meet a bare minimum benchmark in order to be sidered for field work as a hero. Shouldn’t be hard for that Firestuy. He thought and crossed his arms to watch.
“Firestorm!” A proctor called, cheg his clipboard, “Heroic-tier, offeype,” He took a step bad held out a hand and within seds a thick sb of stoed from the grouween him and the young man. “Demonstrate please.”
Firestorm stepped out in his red and e suit and poiowards the sb with a single finger. Fire collected on his fiip and in a fsh it nced out in a thin stream. There was a bright light and a few people shouted in surprise. A momehere was a sm hole iohe proctor looked like he had pissed himself, “F-firestorm, pass!”
The proctor stepped up, “Lifesaver, Heroic-tier, support type!” The woman stepped forward and ferred with the man in the eborate white coat and pgue doask. After a few words she took a knife from her belt and cut herself, extending her arm to him. A few people murmured unfortably before a green glow surrounded her wrist and the blood and injury simply vanished. She examined her arm and nodded, “Lifesaver, pass!”
“Bandit, Heroic-tier, offeype!” Another proctor called and the hooded young man stepped forward. He looked nervous and even a little fused. Did he not know his own rating? Perhaps he didn’t realize his power was this great and was surprised by his rating. Iing. Maybe I’m a higher rating than I realize. The young maed several arrows out of some manner of bck smoky substand fired them at targets that crumpled on impact. “Bandit, Pass!”
There were two more of note in the first group, “Bluestar, Heroic-tier, universal type!” Called a proctor. A few people murmured at that, Universal, what does that mean? The woman in a blue gown stepped forward and spoke briefly with a male proctor who nodded and stepped away. He held out his hand and the woman muttered something before a blue dome formed around her. Needles made out of some kind of gss smmed into the dome to no effect. She then responded by dropping the dome and firing several darts of her own at a pane of thick gss that he created, it shattered. “Bluestar, pass!”
Very impressive, but what about the maid? She’s my main .
“Handmaiden, Mythic-tier, offeype,” The proctor called after a moment of quiet. There was a sudden susurrus as the woman stepped forward and Beyol leaned in to watch more carefully. She spoke with the proctor for several mihey seemed to be arguing. A few of the other proctors stepped in and spoke with her and the argument tinued until they seemed to relutly accept whatever it was the maid was insisting on. Two proctors stepped in and the murmuring rose as a third stepped up to the audience.
“This test will involve aremely violent act, please be advised,” He said quickly and walked back to the test. Huh? What does that mean?
First, the stone wielding proctor created aremely thick sb of rock, it had to be at least tehick. The maid approached it and pulled her fist back before creating a deep crater in it and crag it in half. The room fell silent as she stepped away and o the proctor who looked uneasy. The gss wielder held up his hand and fired a single needle at her head! A few people hopped to their feet, including Beyol as the needle of gss struck her dead ter between the eyes and she dropped.
A few shouts rang out, one person screamed, then an eerie silence began to e over the crowd as the maid simply reached up and pulled the needle out of her head and got slowly to her feet, brushing herself off and even taking the time to wipe her bloody face with a handkerchief. Beyol stared in disbelief, Not even my regeion is that good. What the hell? Somewhere in his peripheral senses he barely heard the proctor indicate that Handmaiden had also passed the test.
He sat down, hard, She has an unkilble bodyguard? He bit his thumb and gnced up at Sonya who was staring right back at him, surrounded by a few more vips that had shown up. He met her gaze and her smile turned unbelievably smug. You wanted me to see this and wao see my rea, didn’t you? He turned his eyes back to the maid who politely curtsied to the flustered looking gss wielder. I’ll have to catch her alohat woman ’t be around her all the time.
He got to his feet as soon as he spotted a few of the etting ready to leave the testing area, he pulled his hat down a little bit more over his fad started to walk out. For now, I gotta get out of here. I’ll watch her movements and pick the time to attack. He thought as he worked his way through the crowd, keeping a for anyone looking at him. It was as he was sing his surroundings he spotted something odd. More than one person wore a white queen pin on their pel or had a shark tattoo somewhere on their body.
Beyol frowned, No way, they ’t be serious… He thought hurriedly and began moving a bit faster. Are they really thinking of doing something like that, here? He moved faster, nearly pushing through the crowd now. I gotta get out of here-
BOOM!
TheBroker
Vilin TierEndoles,Miyuki Irie (Realtime6),daphne asaf,???? ????,SirToyJet,Dantalia,Dabwiso Mazumdar,Gerald,Billy Jay Pagsuyoin,Lazy MiheUnbroken,Janis Nasis,Tyler Kimball,Pancho,Aine,Ismélio Cori,Cody Swab,Samuel,Victoria,Pixie,BeeRusty,Levi_Athan,mbe9,Fra - Pig Lord,Harrison Brown,Robert,TrueMrwolfe,MeanOldMathMan,Ragedrop,Grotvision,Myra,Benjamin Powell,EnigmaEmmy,Kamerad Kait,Nait02,Sam RusICK CALIXTO COSTA SILVA,Curdin,Christian Winther,Dallin Bckburn,Bruce Creager,RegurRept,Shwa,fosfor,VeryBadBunny,Alessi Helminen,Han363,Noldere,LazzaroSpalnzani,Cullen Langford,pie pie,Tomfoolry,Arthur Meyer,Benjamin Dixon,ASupremeTab,Apache27,xXGwim erXx,Marcus Pehan,Arno,swwu,Haydn Nitzsche,K. William Kassen,Joshua. M,Ulsar,Rasmus Sj?kobb,Gnabster,scott kostuik,RottenTangerine,Ken Williams,Akasha kruznik,Messe,MrAcerulez,Seth Thyme,John Zupke,itisaparty,Caerwyn White,Simca,Patrick Morales,Paratus,don,Some BS Deity,AvaArisu,Adam Curtaz,Drekin,Ga?tan 'Nimitz' Vansteene,Oakenbear,Devlon Stapleton,Adrian,Tristan Howard,Shatteredneon,Pius Isaksson,Cassie,Dec,masterowogway,p,Husinay,ghost 21,Zimmy,Aaron Nagy,Haly404,Ronnie Rivers,Kathleen Jagers,Busky,Athena Alexandria,Kaywye,Kooooomakimi,David D,Tea Bot,Milo,M. Gunnarsson,Kriden,S. Nutter,SomeRandomGuy,David,Arroril,Joseph,unstah,Haettun,Hollowlce,Matt M,SpinRift,Filip Nowicki,Tynga Kpandang,Astral Huntsman,Oxylus,OminusWind,Skrubstar,Mod3rn Py3r,minion,TerrorSpirit,IJustWannaRead,Erkki Parkkuinen,Samuel McCarreian Danielzik,Traikkel Poulsen,........,Bob,Gemiae,Kittora,KeyLimeChild,Extra7,Enaz the great,Ant1h3ld,magub,AnonymousPtypus,Davvy chappie,Muspellsheimr,TheShadowOfge,kbgb,Mistythread,Jonny,Ovl,Dsunier,Me,William Davidson,Gavin Turlock,it's me,Rayaface,Igloo15,Nallos,Dustin panga,jeff,DuskDeadman,Dakota,CrazyWatermelon,Allen,Erik,TurmRIC,JP Koenig,Llosa,Ryo5678,VorpalKitsune,Liv Dell,Zikarioa,Eric,agent,Baris Baykan, Greany,Jordon Wong,Joshua Derpinghaus,RayvenRay,Michael Laswell,Frederik,BirdsofPrey,Dougs Norton,mohd hisyam,Acrs1,tien,anitai,Jonas,Cody,Aaron Obialero,Thransk,Luis fuentes,Non Nivison,Olof Dahlstr?m,Abdiaziz Ali,anonymous,BoadBoad,StrikebackXIII,TCO,Grosbilljunior,Tooshar,ERRATIersen,Thorsten,Grant M,Metal(Liz)ard,Cody Bloxham,Nick Warner,Justin Drake,Dragon98765,OBS,Jake Pellegrini,Mustafa Said,The Architect,Zarapor,RekoOne,James Clifton,Bffey,Itbeme12321,Sister Carmil,battlinggaxy,Jayem,Alpenmann,ObsidianShiv,mh,Keith Kindall,Hugo,Seeker,Darklink,RackOfLife,Akyu,Almighty Nubs,DobbyIII,Poke,TihsIsMe,Nichos Stone,Ifeanyichukwu Emeagwali,Grimizen,dotAlice,CHoobler,Taylor Wilson,Darastrix,Andrew Eliason,TheFoud3er12,xIron Gamerx,Zach Duhon,Falxie,Alex,QuakDoktor,Floyd Ziegler,Nicoe,Zerovoid,Table Top,Tehd11,Atoll,Jortless,Isley,Parice
Schemer TierCaptain Papa,Trojan H2,FumiXi,Julia Lockett,Reuben Edwards
[colpse]
