Learning Asshole had replaced one of the teachers... I was not enthused.
And when he had us file out and take the shuttle to the training center, with its fake city, I was even less enthused... Mostly because that place was on the opposite side of the gym, which I still hadn't seen, and so getting from there to P.E. was going to play hell with my timing unless I figured out a way to do it faster than a shuttle that couldn't exceed 25 kph.
Which brought me back to the grommet I'd made earlier.
That jetpack can't be finished soon enough...
That was my thought as I stood around waiting with everyone else as Asshole grandstanded about how he used his powers every waking moment until he got as strong as he was today... A spiel he'd practiced on me and Fiona, with opposite reactions.
Fiona had tried copying that mentality within days of getting her powers, but all that proved was that her powers were still in flux as they wobbled up and down some unknown set of waveforms that even I couldn't figure out.
One day she'd be crushing practice dummies and lifting Asshole's weights like they were empty cans, and the next she couldn't lift a chair, fly, or heat a thimble of water to save her life. Things had only started to stabilize around the last couple of years, which seemed oddly fortuitous for her high school debut now that I...
"You..." A cold, grumpy voice interrupted my thoughts. The strange thing about it was that it was accompanied by the buzzing of insects and a small and high-pitched series of voices that also spoke.
"Xavi, right?" I reply, finding the hive mind himself staring down at me through round sunglasses. "What do you want?"
"We were told to pair up. We're picking you," he replied cooly, mist rising from his mouth. The bees also spoke at the same time, giving their voice a more than alien quality as they synced up.
"Pair up and do what?" I ask, noticing a twitch of annoyance that starts at his neck.
"Fight."
I raise an eyebrow at him before realizing that everyone's walking away to different parts of the city simulator. "Alright then... Where do you wanna go?" The last thing I want is to be within sight of Asshole. The less he knows about my powers, the better.
In response, he points up towards the roof of a charmingly colorful rendition of a space needle. I could have called him crazy, but I wasn't about to show a hint of fear. Especially since he was addressing me in a hostile tone.
"See you there," he said, and I watched a bit dumbfounded as he grew a quad of lacy wings made of ice, taking off with his swarm towards our destination.
Then I remembered I can't fly. "Ah crap," I set out at a jog. Over half a kilometer later, I throw open the roof hatch and hold my knees as I catch my breath.
"You're late," he says with a scowl, about twenty meters away.
"You try taking the stairs!" I manage between breaths. I'm about to lambast him some more when I barely catch sight of something in the corner of my eye. On instinct, I duck as an ice bee the size of my fist tries to land a hit. Turning my crouch into a roll lets me dodge the next three that slam down so hard they leave little indents in the roof as they shatter.
"Nice try!" I shout, gathering charge as I dodge more bees. "But if there's one place you shouldn't fight me, it's on a metal roof!" Simultaneously, I slam both palms into the structural steel underneath us, willing my lightning to travel towards him. I feel it as it flows towards his feet before... nothing. Of course he would know ice is a poor conductor for electricity, and arrange for some at the bottom of his boots. "Ugh, no fair!" I shout as I dodge more bees.
"Villains don't play fair. You'd know this if you listened to the rules."
"I had to listen to Crusader's 'rules' plenty, growing up." I shoot back, literally, with a haphazard lightning bolt that he dodges. "So how about you refresh me on this one?"
"Hero versus villain rules. Surely you played as a child?"
I experience a few flashbacks of Fiona asking me to play such a thing when we were six... and ignoring her to do science stuff or read. Thinking back, Kora always took care of the childish games for me...
"First one who can't fight loses," he explains as a flurry of ice bees tries to overwhelm me, only to miss as I roll underneath them. "The hero has to avoid collateral damage. The villain..."
"Gets to do whatever they want!" I shout as I decide to show off my own "boot trick." Modern safety shoes, like the ones we were issued, use carbon fiber for safety against falling objects. I replaced those with steel so I could do what I do now: Rapidly pulse a polarizing field of electricity with one foot before launching off by matching the polarity as I bring myself into a two-footed stomp.
I get a little satisfaction from the surprised look on his face as I introduce my fist to his solar plexus. Crunch.
Ah shit. He's got ice under his clothes, and the electrical charge in my fist dissipates harmlessly. Truly, this is a shitty matchup for me, and he knows it.
As his fist approaches my head at speed, I accelerate my thoughts to the max as I desperately reach into my pocket for my Plan B.