Super Hero Academy

by Simon Archer

  Andie chuckled and ruffled her hand through Eric’s hair.

  “You’re adorable.” She grinned.

  “Am not!”

  “Are too!”

  Aylin smiled at the two of them and nodded as well.

  “Starlight is a raja.” At our blank looks, she explained, “A... natural general? One who is born to lead.”

  I blushed at the notion, but Triton nodded at this as if it were common knowledge.

  “Ms. Johnson,” he continued, looking at Kara. “Your power allows you to be offensive and supportive in many ways. Your weakness, of course, is your mortal disposition. Mr. Meyers is much the same.”

  “I’m an ordinary boy,” Eric said with a nod.

  Andie rolled her eyes. “Mortal, yeah, but there’s nothing ordinary about you, kid.”

  “Ms. Baker, your power leads you to a variety roles, but largely you should play defensive and protect the group. I’ve noticed you’ve already done this in the past.”

  Andie shrugged. “I play a lot of tanks in MMOs,” she said casually.

  Eric’s eyes grew wide as golf balls. “You play—”

  “You’re not the only nerd around, you know,” she cut him off. “We’ll talk later.”

  “Thank you,” Triton sighed. He was a man of infinite patience, but it was clear he was getting tired of the constant interruptions. “Ms. Ajlal—”

  At his attention, Aylin cleared her throat and stood a little straighter. “Yes?”

  “You are the only one who can fly consistently, offering a lot of mobility the group doesn’t otherwise have. To that end, your duty is to provide that level of support. Scouting, baiting, and range are your greatest assets.”

  “I understand,” she murmured.

  Triton smiled patiently. “Good.” He turned his attention back to me and looked me up and down with a critical eye. “How soon can you recover?”

  I bit my lip and pondered the question. I felt like I really wanted a nap, more than anything, and it was a struggle to stand, let alone practice. “At least another ten minutes,” I conceded, after a moment’s debate. “It’s really bad this time.”

  Triton nodded patiently and then gestured for the others to form a line. “Ms. Baker, you are teamed with Ms. Johnson.” The two girls nodded. “Ms. Ajlal, you are teamed with Mr. Meyers.” They too nodded in kind. “I want you to practice against each other for the next ten minutes.”

  He turned from them a moment later. I sank down on the ground and put my head in my arms. I felt Triton join me a moment later, and I heard the sound of battle rush off the roof, towards the rubble in the city.

  “Your power is quite devastating, Mr. Gateon. I am proud to know that you’ve managed such control for so long.”

  I couldn’t help a small note of pride sink deep inside of me. Looking up from my knees, I met Triton’s eyes with a quirked brow. “If I’m this drained after all that, would I be in serious danger if I really pushed it?”

  Triton’s frown was troubled. “It is possible.” He nodded. “We’ve checked your readings in the past, and while there is no outward health risk to your exhaustion, it is possible that an extreme output will demand an extreme payment.”

  I met his frown with one of my own. “You mean... a coma?”

  “Have you ever fallen unconscious before, after one of these sessions?”

  I shook my head. “No. Do you think it’s possible?”

  “Anything is possible,” he said quietly. “Your limits seem boundless, but do not forget that your body will pay the price. Do be careful in the future, Mr. Gateon.”

  He was deathly serious as he looked me up and down, and I frowned, wondering when I would be forced to expend so much energy that I’d fall into a coma. That seemed like such a waste. I nodded back to him, and promised, “I will.”

  He smiled and gently clapped me on the shoulder. “Your final is tomorrow, my dear boy. Rest. You will need it.”

  Chapter 28 - Triton

  Many years ago, I’d lost my wife to a madman. My high school sweetheart, who I’d sworn my life to in a moment of lust. Efraim had been the one to hunt down the man responsible, and after the villain had been found guilty by the courts and then sentenced to death, it was Efraim who consoled me in the aftermath. I was very young, then, barely a sprout out of high school. Inferno was hardly a thought in anyone’s mind at the time, and I was only just barely blossoming with power of my own.

  I could not doubt Efraim’s value to the world, nor his wisdom in the many years he’d spent as a hero on behalf of Alexandria. He would always be a very dear friend to me... but in the years since I’d come to Valcav to work as a tutor, the things I had witnessed pushed us toward a rivalry as well.

  I was still a young man when I first began my career at Valcav, but I’d started early enough to see the Fire and Ice boys grow into the heroes they’d later become. As now, Efraim was one of the primary staff to take on personal mentorships at the time, and he saw the potential they had just as anyone else did. At first, I was eager to see how the two grew in Efraim’s legendary grasp, but then... cracks began to form.

  Nicholas became reckless and desperate to please an impossible master, and Jasper became reclusive, prone to self-loathing and personal bitterness. I would not dare to presume that Efraim caused the later spiral that consumed the world, but it would be foolish not to acknowledge his part in it.

  History was repeating itself with the young Matthew’s recent dips into madness. Before the eve of the final, I invited Efraim to dinner, eager to learn if anything had changed on that merit. I was not keen to witness Matthew’s explosion, but if he suffered one, I would be quick to intervene.

  This pattern needed to end.

  We ordered our meals with pleasantries and mutual nods of respect. The cuisine was the best this restaurant had to offer, and Efraim complimented the meal we were delivered with hardly a glance down at his plate. I didn’t pay any attention either, too focused on the tension between us.

  There was a lot of history traded in the quick glances we granted each other. I would be forever grateful for the impact Efraim had on my life, but my debt to him had long been paid. He knew that I disapproved of his methods and that I desired to do something about it. It was only because I respected him that I’d done nothing thus far, willing to give him a chance to do better.

  Not that he agreed there was something wrong. He wanted to prove that his methods worked, and this was why we’d instigated a minor competition in the first place.

  “Tell me,” I sighed, breaking the eye contact to glance down at the steak I’d ordered. “How are the twins fairing?”

  “Quite well,” Efraim muttered. His sour look betrayed the lie, and I frowned at that.

  “Is it the girl?” A natural assumption. Jack was too dull to offer much resistance, and Brad, too eager to follow along. Matt was already wrapped firmly around the man’s finger, so it had to be her. “Kristen, wasn’t it?” An unknown entity, even now.

  “She’s petulant and disregards authority,” he spat, knowing I’d spotted his lie easily enough. “A real talent to be sure, but not one that can be controlled.”

  “You’re admitting defeat? The final is tomorrow, Efraim.”

  “I have admitted nothing,” he said with a glare. “I’ve simply given her the extended leash she wishes. If she weren’t so determined to hide behind her brother, she’d be the better leader for them both. She is... protective of them, and far more capable the three combined.”

  “Oh?”

  Efraim tipped his head in answer.

  “You can keep your secrets if you like,” I offered, “but I admit to some curiosity. Kristen is a nut that I have not been able to crack myself. She is quiet and enjoys her mystery.”

  “She’s mastered using Matthew’s abilities,” Efraim admitted easily enough. “Even Matthew hasn’t been able to do that.”

  “If she’s so capable, then she could really give Nick a run for his efforts. It’s a
wonder you haven’t arranged the two of them to bicker.”

  “She’s better than your precious Nick,” Efraim spat and gave me a pointed look. I knew full well he was arranging the tension between Matt and Nick, at least in part. But he would never admit to that. “She won’t fight him.”

  That was news to me. “Oh? Why not?”

  “She doesn’t agree that he is a problem.”

  “Then she’s smart.” I nodded in approval. “I do like her, she sounds wonderful.”

  Efraim rolled his eyes at me. “Don’t be so smug, Douglas. As I said, she hates authority. You’d have just as much difficulty—”

  “Sometimes, one needs a gentle hand,” I interrupted. I began cutting my steak with a little smile. “You cannot take a knife to everything in life.”

  “I don’t—”

  “You do. Much as you may will it, the black and white world you live within has plenty of gray in it.”

  “Don’t patronize me. I have a handle on her, and as I said, things are going well. They’ll win the final tomorrow, and you’ll finally drop this silly notion of yours.”

  “Of course, Efraim. My apologies.”

  “I said don’t patronize me.”

  I smiled at him and put a bite of the steak into my mouth. It was divine. Efraim stabbed his own with a glare.

  After I swallowed, I asked, “Something wrong?”

  “You’re infuriating. It’s a wonder I even like you,” he spat.

  I chuckled softly. “Try to remember that tomorrow, after I win.”

  Chapter 29

  On the day of the rescue finals, Matt’s team and mine met in the gym. City Master was waiting in a chair beside Triton and Judgment, who each nodded to their teams in turn. They spoke quietly to each other in soft tones, but I could see the tension in both their shoulders. It was obvious that City Master sat a little further away to avoid their discussion, whatever it was. Both Triton and Judgment held great respect for each other, but to call them friends was a stretch of the imagination.

  I wondered if Matt had progressed to respect for me. If his menacing sneer was anything to go by, Matt and his cronies were still sour about the incident at the movies. So it was doubtful. He’d been largely silent since then, busy with Judgment’s harsh regime.

  According to the girls, Kristen was hardly seen at her dorm of late, disappearing early in the morning and arriving only very late at night. She, Matt, and the others had still been seen in class, but their focus was clearly elsewhere. They huddled in dark corners, whispering to each other in secret languages and trading notes back and forth.

  Matt had some passing comments about Fulgurite’s second attack in the halls the last week or so, but when I ignored them, he didn’t persist. Like before, he believed me responsible for her assault. Perhaps I was, on some level of existence, but Triton’s words sang clear in my head. I had to stop apologizing for being Inferno’s son. And once I did, Matt had nothing to use against me.

  Normally, our courses were hidden behind a wall when we entered, but this time, it was plain for us to see.

  The course had obviously been constructed in Hell because I saw buzz saws, a pit of boiling acid, killer robots guarding a series of vault jumps, lasers that triggered a nearby turret, and a wall climb that soared up to the very top of the ceiling.

  Adelaide was sitting peacefully in a cage where she dangled over the edge. It was hard to tell from this far away, but I was pretty sure she was playing some sort of game on her phone.

  Matt’s group was gathered a bit farther away, and I could see them eyeing the course with nervous, but hungry eyes.

  The girls and I traded confident glances. To keep the numbers even, Eric had been assigned to fight Elianna and had already done the course earlier in the day, so he was only here for moral support.

  “You got this.” He clapped me on the back, smiling wide. “I scored pretty high earlier. It’s not as rough as it looks.”

  “Really?” I quirked a brow at him.

  “Uh, well... alright, it is,” he caved and scratched the back of his head nervously. “There are a few surprises. Can’t spoil, of course.”

  “Of course.” I nodded, a little bit amused. I glanced over and saw Matt watching us intently. No doubt he thought Eric was giving me pointers.

  “For our villain run, I plan on pissing him off,” I said, jabbing a thumb at Matt. “Works every time.”

  “Yeah,” Andie agreed. “Good plan. Kristen will hold back to either argue with him or defend him.”

  “And of course his two lunkheads will join in,” Kara said. “It’ll be a wonder if they finish the course at all.”

  I balled my fists while I eyed the course. Powered, the whole thing was going to be easy. But unpowered, I’d have a time of it.

  “I won’t power up until our hero run,” I said. “I want to conserve it.”

  The girls nodded, and then City Master stood from his chair and demanded attention with a raised hand. Both groups quieted immediately and focused on him.

  “Welcome to the final rescue course. Due to the special nature of this event, you will each share your total scores as two teams. You will also be scored by your mentors,” City Master gestured at Triton and Judgement. “They will debate a total for each group in each match and announce the victors. If there is an extended debate and that cannot reach an agreement, I will interfere as a third party. Gateon, your group will be villains first.”

  We all nodded in recognition.

  City Master sighed and gestured toward the course. “As usual, heroes will be scored by time. The faster you rescue the target, the better your score will be. Because you are doing this as a group, you will also receive bonus points for acts of heroism... in other words, saving your comrades from harm, or holding back the opposing team while another performs the rescue.”

  Matt raised a polite hand, and City Master quirked a brow at him. “Yes, Mr. Barbur?”

  “Who decides what qualifies as an act of heroism?”

  “Your mentors, of course,” he said, gesturing at the two still seated. Both Triton and Judgment nodded in kind.

  Matt retreated back into the safety of his group, and City Master waited a moment to see if anyone else had a question. When they did not, he continued, “As usual, villains will likewise be scored based on time. The longer your heroes take to perform their rescue, the better your marks. Likewise, you will receive bonus marks for acts of villainy. This includes successfully working as a team to stall the heroes, incite them, and distract them. As before, your mentors will decide what constitutes an act of villainy.

  “With that said, the villains will enter first as always, and set whatever traps they desire. They will be given privacy and a five minute grace period.”

  City Master gestured for us to approach. When we did, he pointed toward the starting line. “Once you walk past the starting line, I’ll erect a wall that will lower again in five minutes.”

  As soon as we crossed the line, City Master was true to his word, and a simple white wall came up to shield us from Matt’s group. I gestured up at Adelaide.

  “It’s likely that even if we distract Matt, Kristen is going to keep heading toward Adelaide,” I explained. “Aylin, you can fly. You’re on duty to stall her, okay?”

  “It will be done.” Aylin nodded confidently.

  “Thanks,” I said then turned and grinned at Kara. “You bring anything fun for the fight?”

  “You know me so well,” Kara replied as she handed me one of two small devices. “Turn it on and put it in your pocket.”

  When I did as she asked, a gentle blue energy field flickered around me. She did the same in kind.

  “Matt’s not going to hold back,” she explained, “and for that matter, neither will Brad.”

  That surprised me. “Wait, what does Brad even do?”

  “He’s a telepath,” she said dryly like it should have been obvious. I lifted a brow in surprise, and she seemed troubled. “You know... mi
nd reading, control, and general fuckery...?”

  I hissed. “He can do what now?”

  “Wait, you didn’t know?” Kara asked as she looked at each of us in turn.

  When we all shook our heads, Kara sighed, looking a little disgusted. It was an expression meant for Brad.

  “Of course you didn’t,” she spat. “Brad’s hidden it too well over the school year and has been careful not to tell anyone outright. I’m sure the instructors are aware of it, but... Nick, his powers are invisible, and that makes him extremely dangerous. I think Brad’s been more involved than you realize. He can manipulate people, turn them against allies or other enemies... sound familiar?”

  I gave her a blank look, and she tsked at me. “I’m saying that I think he’s been secretly doing it to Matt the entire time, enhancing his aggression toward you. It only just occurred to me. Hell, he might have even been doing it to you, too. In other words—”

  “You think Matt’s beef with me isn’t even his?”

  “Oh, it most definitely is,” she nodded, “but haven’t you noticed that he’s been pretty ridiculous about it? It’s one thing to hate your family, another to blame you for every mess in the city. You should take Brad out first because if he’s manipulating Matt, making it worse...”

  “... then I can’t get through to him,” I followed along. “But we’re villains this time, Kara, I don’t want to get through to Matt.”

  Andie swore softly, disgusted by the notion, but it was Aylin who looked angry.

  “Mind control is wrong,” she spat. “Our people learned that the hard way. If this Brad is manipulating his comrade, then Matthew Barbur should know of it. If you don’t tell him, Starlight, I will.”

  Kara nodded in agreement. “The twins probably aren’t even aware it’s happening, Nick. That’s the thing. Brad’s a telepath, so he probably told them that he can talk to them in their minds and not much else. And that’s true, I’m pretty sure he has been communicating with them silently. He likely coordinates for them. I’m sure they think he’s got a weak power set, and that’s also probably why Matt called you a bully for threatening Brad way back when. He doesn’t realize Brad can defend himself.”