by Drew Hayes
A quick glance told her Nick and Will were still in starting position. Good. If neither of them had found him, then he probably wasn’t around to be found yet. Alice turned back to the food court, trying to let her gaze wander across everything. Assume he would be in a disguise: that was a fair bet. Okay, so if that was the case, how would she see through it? He was tall - unless it was an all-is-lost scenario there would be no way to hide that. He could hunch over, but that would draw even more attention. She let her eyes lift upward to only observe the highest human points before it dawned on her that he might be sitting.
What next? Professor Pendleton wasn’t a terribly distinctive man: lean frame, clean shaven face as of that morning, dark hair, all features which he could disguise with a basic stage makeup kit, some dye, and a pillow under his shirt. It dawned on Alice that perhaps he favored his non-distinctive style specifically because it made him harder to visually pin down. Her eyes darted over to Nick, clad in a generic t-shirt, shorts, and flip-flops. Except for the glasses, he was much the same as the professor. Nothing about him really stood out. In fact, if he took off his sunglasses, Alice was reasonably sure she would lose track of him in the crowd. Maybe that was the point of them: aside from masking when he used his luck, it gave him the ability to vanish in plain sight.
Alice blinked in surprise at her own realization. That was it. That was what she should be looking for. He was already nondescript, so that’s what she’d been searching faces to find. Professor Pendleton was a professional, he knew how to divert people’s attention. They’d be looking for someone not worth looking at. Alice changed her strategy, letting her eyes be drawn by bright colors or unique people.
Guy in a giant eagle jacket. Not him. Girl in light pink dress and matching shoes. Not him, but Alice wondered if the girl had gotten those heels at one of the stores in the mall. Silver painted man doing the robot as people threw change into his hat. Not him. Gentleman in a crisp business suit with an electric blue tie. Not him. Young guy with spiked hair, spiked choker, and ripped t-shirt. Obviously not... him.
It would have been easy to miss, even knowing what she was looking for, but the disinterested way the punk-styled man leaned his face against his hand did more than convey a sense of boredom. It also hid his key features without seeming like it was intended to. Alice felt her heart quicken with excitement. The lean frame, the dark hair, and even though he was leaning on the cheap plastic table, it was clear he was taller than most of the other people around him.
“Bingo,” she muttered under her breath. As if on cue, the target rose from his table, somehow always keeping a portion of his face obscured as he meandered nonchalantly through the food court. She risked a glance at her fellow test takers. Nick didn’t seem to notice anything, but with his control of body language and hidden eyes, that didn’t really tell her crap. Will was a better indicator, and despite trying to look nonplussed, his dark eyes were definitely darting in the direction of the meandering punk wannabe. Still no sign of the others, but that was enough confirmation for her.
Alice pulled down the brim of her cap and tried unsuccessfully to suppress an excited grin. Despite all the worry, despite the high stakes, despite the knowledge that there was almost no chance she would get a victory, Alice was still pumped up. Win or lose, this wasn’t going to be boring. The disguised professor was nearing the edge of the food court, heading toward an opening that led to the vast expanses of the mall’s main sector.
The game was on.
152.
For the first half hour, Professor Pendleton played by the rules of humans. He slid effortlessly through the crowd, a disguised grace that made him nearly impossible to keep up with unless most of his pursuers were willing to shove their way through the other shoppers. This was a bigger hurdle for some than others. Nick seemed to keep pace with the same inexplicable speed, and Alice was not too shy about bullying her way past people in her way (she’d been to enough designer label releases to be well at home with this concept). Will was a having a little more trouble, yet he seemed strangely unconcerned about it. The one having the biggest issue keeping up was the one who had to elbow her way through the crowd without the benefit of being seen. Britney briefly entertained the idea of going visible to make her pursuit more effective, but realized it was a poor trade off. Yes, she was a little slower than the others, but she was also the one least likely to be caught and eliminated. Besides, it wasn’t like she had to keep perfect pace with the professor. When she lost sight of him all she had to do was follow the other students taking the trial. It seemed he hadn’t really thought this through too well, or he would have realized that having them take the test all at once made it infinitely easier on them. So long as they kept each other in sight, the success of one was the success of all of them.
Britney managed to catch up to them outside an upscale men’s clothing store. They were milling about, trying hard to look like they weren’t staring at the entrance. Well, Alice and Will were. Nick seemed to have lost the trail, and of course Tiffani was even harder to find than Britney was. So logic dictated that the professor had gone inside and they were all waiting for him to emerge. Given what they sold, it seemed a fair bet that he would leave in different attire than he entered, a standard trick to throw people off one’s trail. Briefly, the idea of entering the store and watching him shop entered Britney’s mind; however, she banished it away almost as quickly. Without a solid frame of reference for how long he’d been in there, she could easily miss him and his exit, losing track of the others to boot. No, the smart play was to wait out here at a distance where she could resume pursuit safely. It was a good plan. Unfortunately, she hatched it at the thirty-five minute mark.
“Sorry, Britney, I’m afraid you’re out,” said a familiar voice just as a hand landed on her shoulder. She turned around to find Professor Pendleton looking down at her. His gaze was a bit off, which made sense when she realized he couldn’t see her face. She was right that he’d changed clothes: now he wore a button-down and a blazer, but that didn’t explain how he’d managed to circle back on all of them. Of course, even that wasn’t the most pressing question at hand.
“How did you find me?” Britney realized her voice was thicker than normal. She was glad no one could see her: from the warmth cascading over her skin she knew she was blushing fiercely.
“I chose an outdoor mall for a reason. For one thing, there are puddles from last night’s rain storm, which still splash when you walk through them. For another, lots of open spaces where shadows can be seen. Didn’t you ever notice?”
Britney looked at the ground, very confused. She didn’t cast a shadow while invisible, she already knew that. As her eyes bore into the ground, she did actually notice something. There was a very minor shimmer, like a heat distortion, in the spot where he shadow should be. It was something she’d never caught before, given that it was so subtle she could only barely see it now.
“Invisible people don’t cast shadows, but they aren’t completely translucent either. They cause a small disruption in the light, almost impossible to find unless you know what you’re looking for,” Professor Pendleton explained. “Which, obviously, I do. Still, good effort.”
“Why come after me? You can clearly see the others, so why target me first?”
“Because they know they can be seen, so they are paying extra attention to their surroundings in case I try to approach. You trusted in your ability too much and let your guard down as a consequence.”
Britney started to protest then realized he was right. She was so certain she was safe that she’d only focused on following, not on watching out for him. It had been a mistake, and Britney wasn’t a captain because she was too stupid to learn from her failures.
“I guess I did. Can you tell me how you managed to get out of the store without us noticing at least?”
Professor Pendleton gave her a comforting smile. “Sorry, no can do. A magician never reveals his tricks.”
“Well, do me on
e favor then.”
“What’s that?”
“Make sure I’m not the only one to get eliminated this way. That would be humiliating.”
“Now that much I can certainly oblige,” Professor Pendleton assured her.
* * *
Nick looked down at the professor seemingly talking to empty air from his hiding place a few floors up. Either his teacher had gone off the deep end into crazy, or Britney was now out of the running. Not surprising; she’d hardly been discreet as she punched her way through the crowd, leaving a trail of confused faces behind her. She’d likely assumed they wouldn’t notice one more body amidst the crowd pressing in around them. That false theory had made her exceptionally easy to track, at least as far as her general location. Add in that Alice was jerking her head around every few seconds, making her look insane but also rendering her nearly impossible to catch unaware, plus Will’s easy manner which indicated he had something up his sleeve, and the rest of them had been far more difficult targets.
Not that Nick was under any misimpression that Britney would be the last one tagged out. The others were doing well, but from Professor Pendleton’s disappearing act, it was obvious he’d decided to step things up a level.
That was fine with Nick; he’d been getting bored anyway.
153.
Dean Blaine forced himself not to look at the clock on his desk, slowly counting away the minutes. He was also unwilling to give attention to the phone, which he thought he heard ring at least twice every half hour. It would be fine. Nothing would go wrong. The proper permits had been filed, the proper response teams were on standby, and the parameters of the exam had been clearly outlined. This was Sean Pendleton he was talking about; there was a time when Blaine would have trusted that man with his life in the span of a heartbeat.
Of course, things had changed a great deal since then. Others he would have laid down his own life for were now barely willing to speak with him. Sean was far from the idealistic young man he’d been at their graduation. Blaine himself had done things he’d never expected when donning that white cape and looking out at his family, eyes brimming with pride. So much had changed since then, and that was without even counting the most unexpected curveball of them all.
* * *
“Nervous?”
Blaine stopped fiddling with the clasp on his cape to look up from his chair and find Phil’s smiling face beaming back down at him. His own cape was fastened perfectly, of course, the rest of his outfit crisp and stylish enough for a job interview. Phil never had to deal with things like stains or cleaning. Everything he wore was always perfect. It was just one of the hundreds of real world applications his ability came with, ones that people like Blaine and Gerard didn’t have.
“That obvious?”
“We’re all nervous. Sort of funny when you think about it. We had to get through four years of training, torture, and testing to make it to this moment, and now the idea of being up on stage is causing more fear than most of us felt during our final trial.”
“Public speaking is the number one fear in the world. Comes in ahead of death. No reason why we should be immune, I guess.”
“A very valid point. Would you like some help with that?” Phil gestured to the clasp, still hanging crooked and only partially fastened. Blaine looked around the room to find the other eight graduates all had theirs on already, though he hadn’t paid enough attention to know if that was because of Phil or their own skills. Either way, the time to start was drawing up fast, and Blaine would like to get at least one thing right today.
“Please.”
“My pleasure.” A moment passed and nothing happened. “Um, if you wouldn’t mind easing back your field a bit, I can’t seem to help as it is.”
“Sorry,” Blaine said. A brief moment of focus reigned in the aura emanating from his body until it ran across the surface of his skin. He could neutralize it entirely if he wanted - if he couldn’t control it he would have been a Powered, after all - but he usually only did that when he needed healing. Blaine was accustomed to a world where he was the exception to every rule regarding Supers, and he didn’t let that go without very good reason.
“There we are,” Phil remarked as Blaine’s clasp unhooked in the air and then reattached in the correct manner. “If you want, I can make you feel a little more relaxed too. Joshua and I have been practicing with the chemical balance in brains.”
“Wouldn’t that only work while I was near you?”
“No more than your cape will come undone if I walk away. Sure, your brain will start to go back to its normal levels, but it isn’t an instant process. You’d at least feel good through the ceremony.”
“I appreciate the offer, but I think I’ll pass,” Blaine replied.
“Understandable. So who all is coming to see you today?”
“My parents and my grandmother,” Blaine replied. “You?”
“From outside the program? Just my mother. My dad died when I was very small.”
“I’m sorry,” Blaine said on reflex.
“No big deal. He was... let’s just say I don’t miss him. I might have been tempted to invite a few friends, if not for the family only rule.”
“Yeah. It’s a pain, but I see where they are coming from. We’re getting our Hero names without wearing any masks. That could be dangerous down the line.”
“No, no, I wasn’t saying I disagreed, just talking about what I’d do in a perfect world,” Phil corrected. “On the subject of names, thanks again for letting me have the one you came up with. You sure it’s okay that I use Globe?”
“Positive. It fits you better anyway. Besides, Zero has grown on me.”
“I always liked that one for you. It’s smart, and it makes it easy to underestimate what you can do,” Phil said. “There will be a lot of criminal Supers who regret making a snap judgment about the Hero named Zero.”
“I’ll do all right. I’m good, but I’m not in the same class as people like you or Joshua or Clarissa.”
“That’s where you’re dead wrong, Blaine. I admit our abilities are a bit more flashy, and they do come with more fringe benefits, but those are just perks. What’s the main purpose of Heroes?”
“To neutralize criminal Supers with as little collateral damage as possible,” Blaine recited automatically. It had been the mantra of their senior year, a credo that was a question on every exam, be it verbal or written. This was not a mission statement to be ignored: this was a binding contract each Hero swore their lives upon.
“There you go. The rest us can stop Supers, sure. But you do exactly what we’re all aspiring for. You neutralize them.”
“You can do that, too,” Blaine pointed out.
“Ah, but only if they are close enough, and stay in range, and don’t possess an ability like yours or Joshua’s that overpowers my own. I’m good, but as far as genuine stopping power, you’re better. You take away the very thing that makes them such exceptional threats. All of us are just working to get a little bit closer to what you can do naturally. You are the ideal Hero.”
“You were doing good, then you pushed it too far,” Blaine told him. In spite of his serious face, there was an undeniable hint of humor in his voice.
“Ah well. Can’t blame a guy for trying. Need help with anything else?”
“I’m set. Thanks, Phil.”
“Anytime.” With one last smile he moved on, walking over to a stuttering Victor who was fumbling with a set of cue cards. They had to make a speech at the ceremony, each new Hero giving thanks and stating what they hoped to accomplish in the coming years. This was more troubling for some of them than others. And for one of them, it didn’t appear to be a concern at all.
Blaine didn’t buy that; he’d known Phil for too long. The guy hated being the center of attention. Giving a speech would be something he dreaded far more than fighting villains. He worked his way amidst the others, giving encouragement or help as needed, always focused on taking care of everyone else�
�s concerns. It didn’t mean he wasn’t scared, in fact it meant the opposite: helping others was how Phil dealt with negative feelings. His natural reaction to something bad was to reach out and make the world better.
To Blaine, that made Phil the ideal Hero. Not that he would ever say such a thing out loud.
154.
By the time it was ten minutes to eight, Tiffani had been taken out and Will seemed to have completely lost the trail. Alice still didn’t know how Professor Pendleton had seen through Tiffani’s illusion of a large business man blundering amidst the crowd, especially since she was sure that man hadn’t been around for more than a few minutes. If she’d kept the same illusion then it would have been one thing, but Tiffani was smart. She’d obviously been changing it regularly so that no one person seemed to be tailing the professor along with his students. He’d still caught her, and with no sign of Will in the past fifteen minutes that meant it was down to her and Nick.
Whatever Professor Pendleton’s power was, it definitely lent itself to rapid relocation. He’d hopped between stores multiple times, changing outfits with each movement. It was only luck, frantic searching, and keeping one eye on Nick that had allowed Alice to stay in the game this long. She couldn’t figure out how he always knew when to walk off to a new area, or always seemed to see right through the professor’s disguises, but she was willing to bet that knowing their instructor’s ability didn’t hurt. So far her money was on teleportation, even if that seemed like a long shot. There were teleporters that became Heroes, but they generally had to be exceptionally powerful to make the cut. Something about Professor Pendleton just didn’t strike her that way, however at the moment she was at a loss for any better explanations.