With her Blessing, June’s strength dwarfs every other member of my classroom by leagues. Her skill and willingness to cooperate? A work in progress.

  -Roger Hill’s Notes

  June woke up standing. So did the other three. They faced each other, huddled up close like a football team. Snowflakes gently accumulated on Isaac’s head, and June felt the wet ice prickling on her scalp as well. Behind him, June saw the beginnings of the ocean under a dull and cloudy gray sky. The sun peeked out from the sea, the top of its head slowly being swallowed by the deep. It would be night soon.

  She couldn’t believe it. Maybe it was a shitty joke, and they were just driven to some snowy military outpost? This couldn’t be a simulation, could it? The others clearly felt the same way. Alex surgically ran a series of stretches, while Claudius slowly ran his hands through his jet-black hair.

  “Can’t say I’m not impressed.” Alex said.

  “I agree. Quite lifelike.” Claudius smiled.

  Isaac began pinching himself in different places.

  “Oh, man. They even got my equipment down pat, too. This is actually kinda weird. Can I sue for harassment or…?”

  “There.” June said, pointing away from the ocean, towards a blocky building, peeking out from the tall trees.

  “That’s the building in the files, where they’re keeping the hostage. Let’s hurry.” She began stomping through the snow, her boots sinking down to her ankles. Once she realized she could only hear her own set of wet footsteps, she turned around to see the others hadn’t moved.

  “What?”

  “Sister June. Do you not think we should reconsider our strategy?” Claudius asked.

  “Fuck no. Why would we? I’ll take care of the bad guys and you guys get us past the things I can’t just blow away.” June said.

  “We’ll see if it works,” Alex said. “But be ready to switch it up if things don’t go your way.”

  Isaac nodded.

  “Teach said something like ‘always have a plan for when the plan goes wrong, and then also have a plan for when the plan goes wrong when the plan goes wrong’ or something?”

  “Wise words.” Alex snickered.

  “Yeah, sure. Are you coming or what?” June resumed her march. This time, the Alpha team marched together. Despite her words, an inkling of doubt spread through June’s mind. She quickly snuffed it out. Doubting herself was one thing she won’t do, especially now. So, she replaced her doubt with the contents of the folder, letting it play out once more.

  It was a Rescue Mission. Terrorists had escaped from a bloody battle with some foreign nation’s military, taken a ‘hostage,’ and were holed up in some abandoned building on the outskirts of the country. The Early Assessment would end once they secured the ‘hostage’ and arrived at the rendezvous point, which was back where they started.

  It sounded like a typical superhero job. Break in, kick the baddies’ asses, and save the civilians. All in a day's work. Between that and dealing with her annoying teammates, strategizing took no more than a minute to cover.

  The tower grew closer, and sounds of human activity grew louder with it. As they arrived at the clearing in which the building stood, the four teens peeked through bushes to confirm the situation. They definitely heard human activity.

  But these things weren’t human.

  “Oh, what the fuck?” June whispered.

  They walked on two feet, they wore baggy winter clothes, and they pressed rifles to their chests, but they were not people. Their skin was the color of shiny metal, and their eyes glowed a pale yellow. Clicking and whirring could be heard as they stomped about the clearing in too-perfect posture. Most of them acted as though they were inspecting equipment. June noticed one of them stomping towards a tree to ‘urinate.’ It wasn’t a terrorist cell, but a horrid rehearsal of one. June wondered why this was so terribly familiar to her.

  “This is freaky,” Isaac decided. “Is this supposed to be real or what? Like, are there robotic henchmen just roaming the earth?”

  “Yes and no, actually.” Alex said. There was a cat-like focus in his eyes.

  “Yes and no?” June probed.

  “There are definitely androids in use, especially in criminal organizations like Apollyon, but this is probably some sort of censorship.”

  “I see. They don’t want the burden of murder to weigh on us, possibly affecting our evaluation.” Claudius mused.

  “I just wish they didn’t have to look so freaky.” Isaac shivered.

  June shrugged. “At least I won’t have to feel bad kicking their shit in. Just gross.”

  Looking past the android monstrosities, the gate to the building was wide open. It looked like some sort of garage or silo to June. The terrorists were certainly treating it that way, with loads of armored trucks currently being herded inside.

  “They’re busy with pulling the trucks in like the sitrep said they would. Claudius, do your thing.”

  Claudius showed his typically creepy smile, and moved ahead, still obscuring himself via the nearly snow-buried bushes. Meanwhile, the other three prepared to make a move for the silo. June looked towards where Claudius was hidden, waiting. A moment later, Claudius stood up straight.

  But it wasn’t Claudius. Its movements were too jittery in some places and lagging in others. Its clothes were slightly off in its color, its texture, how it fitted to its body. Its eyes were rolled back and his mouth wide open in a mindless stupor. It’s teeth. . .

  Okay, now I get what was so familiar. June thought. We already got a freak just like that.

  “What did Claudius call this messed up Blessing of his?” June asked.

  Isaac gagged before speaking up. “He calls it ‘Dear Brother’ or whatever.”

  “Well, his Brother is doing his job.” June said.

  At her words, Brother launched from the bushes with a delayed moan of anguish. It lurched towards the androids, its limping legs making wider strides than its original self could ever manage. Brother closed the distance with an android before it could fire, swinging his disproportionately long limbs like sledgehammers.

  It caught the android with a downward swing, and then subjected the fallen machine to a flurry of whipping limbs. The sound of denting metals, crunching bones and sparking wires erupted from behind June as they snuck in. A hail of gunshots rang out less than a second later, and all was silent again.

  But the distraction was well used. June, Isaac, Alex, and Claudius found themselves in the cold, damp silo. An army of armored trucks sat in perfect formation, waiting for the rest to be hauled in. With the Brother’s distraction, it was relatively silent in the silo, bereft of android activity. The sound of leaky pipes and humming lights were their only company for now. June scrunched her nose at the musty smell of the place. It threatened to poison the taste in her mouth. She searched her pockets for her cigarette candy sticks, but felt nothing.

  “The first step of getting inside is complete! High fives?” Isaac said.

  “Keep your fucking voice down.”

  “Oops.” He covered his mouth, grinning from behind his hands.

  “I do wish there was a better option than sacrificing my Dear Brother.” Claudius’ head hung low.

  “You can conjure him over and over, right? Deal with it.” June heard a soft splash on her left, and turned to see Alex taking off his winter boots.

  “The hell are you doing?”

  Alex let his bare feet touch the floor of the silo. A frown of displeasure grew on his delicate face.

  “It’s easier to use my Blessing this way. Just didn’t want to get frostbite out there, simulation world or not. More importantly, let’s see about step 2.”

  They began to collectively creep through the silo, taking care to duck underneath the trucks at a moment’s notice of robotic footsteps.

  “What we do know is that the hostage is behind a container-slash-cell on a floor that can only be reached by using an elevator. The location of the two keycards needed to access that elevator is what we don’t know.” Alex explained as they hid beneath an unused truck.

  “Let’s split up.” Isaac said. June glowered at his shitty idea, and familiar faces of disapproval were on the rest as well. Isaac hastily waved his hands in the cramped space.

  “Nah, really! We gotta cover ground before they all come back in, right? If we pair up, we could get both keycards faster.”

  June frowned. Once again, this dumbass Isaac was applying thought. She took him for a sometimes well-intentioned idiot, but he was proving her wrong. Though, could she trust him and one of these other weirdos to not screw this up? Passing on her own isn’t an option. If even one of them fails, the class can’t be held.

  If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

  The family business couldn’t wait any longer.

  Papa couldn’t wait any longer.

  “Though it is a rash idea, the threat of these androids should not be understated.” Claudius said, “They ripped through my Brother with precisely placed shots, indeed.”

  Isaac flashed a grin full of gratitude at Claudius, and went for a fist bump. Claudius smiled and wrapped Isaac’s fist with both of his hands.

  “Uhh. . . man?” Isaac blinked.

  “Yes?” Claudius asked.

  June sighed.

  “Let’s do it. Alex, pair up with Isaac. Church Boy, you’re with me. We get the keycards and come back here.”

  Alex saluted lazily.

  “Aye aye.”

  “Am I the Church Boy?” Claudius wondered as the four slid out from their hiding spot.

  “Hell yeah,” Isaac whispered. “Agent Lopez is on the case.” He shimmied along the dull, featureless corridor wall, caking dust and grime on his back. Alex walked behind him, hands interlocked at the small of his back.

  “Agent Evans. Come in, Agent Evans! Visual contact dead ahead, over.” Isaac held his invisible walkie-talkie to his mouth while he pointed towards the end of the hall with his free hand. He looked at the pretty boy, who raised an eyebrow.

  “Play along, they’re watching our every move so we gotta be professional, man.”

  “They’re watching our every move, so you decide to roleplay?”

  “C’mon, don’t be such a ‘Fun Police’ officer like Thomas McStickUpHisButt.”

  “Well, I’d hate to be compared to that brown-noser.” Alex shrugged before holding up his own nonexistent walkie-talkie.

  “Agent Lopez, this is Agent Evans. I concur, it looks to be an inconspicuously conspicuous door. Most likely the entryway to our objective, over.”

  Isaac nodded with the approval of a sage observing his pupil as he masters a secret technique.

  “Agent Lopez, proceeding to the objective.”

  Isaac continued to shimmy a couple more yards, then he got bored of the bit and started walking normally. It was dead silent just like the silo, save for a strange constant beeping sound in the direction of the unopened door.

  “Hey, Alex?”

  “You mean ‘Agent Evans.’”

  “Riiiight. Just wondering: If there’s a bunch of terrorist murder-bots behind this door, can you. . . fight?”

  “Can I fight?” His voice was amused.

  “Yeah. If June was here, I wouldn’t be worried, but uh. . .” Isaac gestured towards the pretty boy. “I dunno if your Blessing will really—”

  “I know a couple moves.” Alex said.

  “Sheesh. If you’re that confident, screw it.”

  They stood outside of the door, taking cover on either side. Isaac tried to listen through, but the metal door did its job well. Just that constant beeping. He took one last look at Alex’s unbothered face, then he tried the knob.

  It was open.

  Isaac threw open the door, Blessing readied.

  “T.H.R.O.N.E.'s in the house! Get on the. . . ground?”

  Isaac’s Speed-Space confused him. There was nothing that went from still to moving at their entrance. But there was something constantly moving. What the heck is this?

  “Ok. . . this place is full of surprises.” Alex laughed.

  It was a freakin’ laser room. Sitting in the middle of a tight cage of bright red laser beams was a pedestal. A glass container rested on top of it. Inside laid a bright red card no bigger than a driver's license.

  “A freakin’ laser room?” Isaac held his head. “Why though?!”

  “An abandoned building unused for years. . . has a functioning laser room.” Alex rubbed his temples, soothing an oncoming headache, no doubt. “Should Dr. Hardt get checked for dementia? He is getting there in years.”

  “I mean, it’s kinda cool though, but also unfair.” Isaac mumbled. This was definitely the job for a speedster like Isaac, but the laser beams were already moving. If I can’t copy the light-speed of a laser, I’ll just get cut into cheese cubes. This is rigged!

  A dainty hand pat Isaac’s back.

  “This is definitely a test for you.”

  “Man, I can’t speed up with something that’s already moving.”

  “That just means this is a test for us.”

  Isaac scratched at his birth mark. Alex noted his confusion and continued speaking.

  “You told us that you also move with something’s trajectory as long as it’s a decidedly drastic change in direction. All we have to do is change the trajectory of these beams.”

  “Uh, how?”

  Alex shook his head.

  “With my Blessing, obviously. Get ready to do your thing when I say it.”

  Isaac followed Alex to the edge of the shifting laser beam cage. The high-pitched hum of the weaponized light threatened to take years from Isaac’s life. If it hit him, all of his years would be taken off. It’s not real, Isaac thought. Don't forget.

  Alex placed his foot at the edge of the laser beam cage, his toes threatening to sever themselves against the beam.

  “Your Speed-Space ready?”

  Isaac activated his Blessing. The invisible field blanketed him in that familiar comfort of anticipation. He loved it more than anything.

  “Yeah but—”

  “Stop when you get to the pedestal. Go!”

  The ground in front of Alex, directly underneath a singular beam, shifted upwards. It grew out of the ground like a mole in a 90 degree incline, shaped like a right triangle.

  The laser that was just pointing down had now changed trajectories, moving away from the two kids and towards the wall.

  And Isaac followed.

  Was this how it felt to move at the speed of a laser? Isaac wished it never stopped. Euphoric as Speed-Space was, Isaac’s mind becomes just as clear. All of those unfocused, meaningless thoughts are honed into as much purpose as a missile-guided rocket, and just as fast. Speed-Space doesn’t slow the world down for Isaac. His mind simply acclimates to its speed.

  For less than a second, Isaac’s mind ran at the speed of light.

  All so he would stop himself at the keycard’s pedestal instead of pulverizing himself against the other side of the cage. He lost his balance as he fell to his knees beside the pedestal. Gasping, Isaac wiped at the sides of his mouth, wetting his sleeves with drool.

  “That’s fast,” Alex commented. “I didn’t even see you get there. That was expected, but witnessing it is unreal.”

  Isaac struggled to stand back up. “It’s a lot better from my point of view.” He clapped his hands and rubbed them together as he appraised the caged keycard. “Now, let’s get to business. Do I just lift this thing or. . .?”

  Isaac didn’t wait for a response as he began to remove the glass container from the pedestal.

  “Hey, wait!” Alex mustered what little urgency he felt into his voice.

  “Let me use the laser to—”

  As Isaac removed the container, a deafening siren rang throughout the base. It sounded like a nuclear warhead was seconds from impact. Isaac froze like a raccoon caught in the middle of raiding a dumpster.

  “—remove the glass.” Alex finished. He shook his head, sighing. “In case of alarm.”

  “So uh, was that me or did the others just mess up at the same time?”

  Alex cupped a hand around his ear.

  “Wait, shut up. Do you hear that?”

  Isaac swiped the keycard and threw the glass into the lasers, watching as it was sliced cleanly before falling to pieces. The keycard had a slight heaviness to its feel.

  “Nah, not really. My simulated ears are going deaf from this simulated siren.”

  “Footsteps, Isaac. They’re on their way.”

  “It’s no big deal, I’m all over it!” Isaac said. “I’ll just use my Speed-Space to dodge all their bullets. When they gotta reload ammo, that’s our chance to kick their butts.”

  “What about me, idiot?”

  “Uh, stay out of the way?”

  “And how will you dodge when you’re stuck in a laser cage?”

  Isaac’s lips folded inward. Oops, Isaac thought. The thought of euphoria he would feel from weaving through bullets at the speed of a bullet had clouded his judgment a teeny bit. Jeremiah mentioned something about speedsters being famous for losing control when using their Blessings. But for Isaac, it was the opposite. He was at his best, his most reliable, his most comfortable, when he was in the Speed-Space.

  Alex sighed again.

  “Whatever, I got a better idea. Take cover behind the pedestal if this goes poorly.”

  Isaac preemptively went behind the pedestal. “What are you trying to do, man?”

  Alex began sizing up the door they used to enter the laser room. He began tracing the ground with his exposed toes. He tilted his head, deep in thought.

  “Hello?” Isaac said. “Man, don’t tell me you’re one of those genius types that forget how to speak when you’re focusing!”

  “Sorry to disappoint.”

  The footsteps were apparent, even with the alarm. Isaac’s steadily calming heartbeat regained its fervor. Alex is a smart guy, Isaac thought. Can’t be so chill if you don’t got something up your sleeve.

  But what was it?

  The door swung open, and from behind the pedestal, Isaac watched as a multitude of those freakish armed terrorists began to push in, weapons trained on the small blonde kid. Isaac covered his mouth before he could shout.

  Not a single shot rang out.

  Instead, Isaac’s ears picked up a new sound.

  The terrible sound of synthetic meat being torn and singed, all at the same time.

  There was a laser in the chest of the first terrorists, as well as the one behind him, behind that one, and so on. Isaac looked to Alex, more specifically where he was standing. He had used his Blessing to shift the ground. Instead of making the right triangle he used to clear a path for Isaac’s Speed-Space, a low angled incline was made out of the ground below a laser beam. And now, the laser’s found a new path that went through the chests of the first guard and beyond.

  “Giving me a laser room was a bad move, devs.” Alex smiled. “Let’s call this beta testing.”

  He changed the angle twice: lowering it and raising it. This made the laser move up and down. Alex may as well have cut them vertically with a giant, extra-sharpened knife. The guards stayed in their state of standing death, before their halves peeled to the side. They fell into clumps. In a strange effort to minimize the violence, their organs were replaced with wires, capacitors, and other components. However, there was quite a spray of bluish-green blood beginning to pool on the ground. Alex’s toes were quickly being consumed by the muck. He stared at it with muted disgust.

  “Gross.” Alex commented.

  Isaac stood up. Trying not to gag at the violence he just witnessed, he decided to focus on his genius ally.

  “Man, not gonna lie, that was sick. Remind me to be friends with you.”

  “Not doing that.”

  “But for real, that was so sick!” Isaac’s relief finally hit him. “When I heard you could change the ground, I thought it was lame and kinda unspecific but, man! Did you really just eyeball the perfect angle to hit these guys?”

  “First of all: it’s not changing the ground. I replace the ground with whatever shape as well as its properties I want within a five foot radius.” Alex shrugged. “And second of all: yeah, I guess I did.”

  “Can I get an autograph?” Isaac asked.

  “You should be asking me to free you. Let’s go, we better hope the other two are as successful as us now that you kicked off the alarm.”

  “Oh yeah, that too.” Isaac shivered. “Hey, could you maybe not tell June I set off the alarms and put the whole team’s enrollment in jeopardy?. . . Alex, why aren’t you saying anything? Alex, I’m begging you, man!”