D noticed a few interesting things about the place he woke up in.
His head hurt like someone tried to hammer a nail into his brain. The black bag over his head smelled disgusting—like blood and vomit. He still had three dollars in change still in his left pocket, and there were thick metal restraints around his wrists suppressing his glow. The restraints were built into his seat's armrests, keeping him in place.
He noticed the sounds of people speaking all around him. Accompanied by the soft sounds of a plane's turbine outside. He struggled against his restraints with all his might…for around 10 seconds, then gave up.
He silently swore to himself.
what's the point of having arms if I can't even use them? I might as well be a snake.
Since his first choice of action didn't work, he thought about what to do, and the cogs of his brain were spinning. The dozens of hours he'd spent watching action movies and crime dramas played in his mind till he had an idea. To him, this was the single most genius idea anyone ever had in the history of genius ideas. He took a deep and calm breath, then said "SOMEBODY HELP ME! SOMEONE PLEASE FUCKING HELP ME!"
In response—another voice—a woman from the sound of it, responded—from D's left side and shouted. "CAN YOU STOP YELLING!"
Before D could shout again, someone ripped the bag off of his head. The sudden shock of the interior lights hit his eyes like a flashbang. Then he saw the person who ripped the bag off his head.
It was a soldier dressed head to toe in all-black gear with a combat helmet on that covered their entire face.
The soldier walked away from D—down the single file line of the plane to a wall with some sort of console. The soldier pressed a button and said, "Student #40 is awake", and then he sat down in a seat next to it.
D was in disbelief at what he saw. That soldier pressed a button and logged him into an inventory system like he a piece of furniture.
He looked around and realized he was inside the plane Spire showed him. The black interior of the plane was sleek and matte. It looked even more expensive inside than it did outside. He also noticed that there were others seated with him. Everyone sat in two rows of seats that were side by side. One row down the left side and another on the right.
D could see most of the people in the row opposite to him, but in the row he sat, he could only see two people. The person on his left and the one on his right. Some people still had black bags over their heads, unconscious. On his left side, there was a woman with light olive skin and shoulder-length black hair with red highlights. Highlights that looked like they came out of either boredom, rebellion, or both.
She wore an intricate red and black dress with a frilly skirt, and chunky red bottomed black heels. Her hands were also bound in the same restraints, and she stared at the opposite wall chewing a piece of gum.
He looked to the person on his right and flinched back as he saw him. The man on his right side was huge. Even with both of them sitting down, he was gargantuan. He wore an all-black tank top that was in a constant battle to contain his muscular frame. Luckily, the giant man had a black bag over his head and was snoring.
He turned his head as much as he could away from the giant and towards the black & red-haired girl on his left.
"Hey, can you please tell me where we are?" He asked, trying to sound as calm as possible.
She spoke while still chewing. "Are you done yelling?" She responded in a snarky tone without looking at him.
D's eyes darted between her and the soldier down the aisle as he said. "The jury's still out on that one, but uhhh, probably?"
The woman stopped chewing her gum.
She let a long sigh and said, "I don't know" without looking at him. Not knowing if he should respond, D stared at her while lost in thought. Okay…that was about as helpful as asking the sleeping giant, so here goes.
He looked over to the tall man on his right, braced himself, and whispered.
"Yo big guy, you awake?" He received snoring as a response. He looked at the person in front of him on the opposite wall. It was a woman with a bag over her head. She had on an oversized sports t-shirt with at least twenty holes in it. It looked like she used Iron Maiden as a tanning bed.
At a loss for what to do, D thought about his options.
Talk to the snarky checkerboard chick on the left?—he glanced at her—Pass. I'd rather talk to a brick fucking wall. Turning his head forward, he looked at the woman across from him.
Try to get the attention of Miss Acupuncture over there? He thought about it. Pass, a little too far for a conversation, and I'm pretty sure she's knocked out.
D finally turned to the giant on his left and had one thought. Alright then... Looks like the jury's back in.
He looked up at him and shouted, "HEY BIG MAN YOU AWAKE UNDER THERE?"
About four different voices, including the checker-haired chick, told him to "SHUT THE FUCK UP!" in annoyed unison.
D didn't know where the other 3 voices came from, so he turned his anger to the girl on his right.
"SHUT UP! I'm trying to figure out where the hell I am and what the hell's going on." She opened her mouth to respond—he cut her off.
"I wouldn't have to wake this guy up if you weren't acting like the world's snarkiest checkerboard!" Since D was giving all his attention to the screaming match. He didn't see the soldier on his right grab his rifle, stand up, and start walking over.
The woman launched into her own shout, "I DON'T CARE! MAYBE YOU SHOULD'VE READ THE FINE PRINT BEFORE APPLYING!". Before D could figure out how to respond, he heard the heavy boots of the soldier to his right. He whipped his head towards the sound.
The soldier was standing in front of him, rifle in their hands. They stood there unmoving and masked in shadow—like a messenger of death.
He panicked. "WOAH MAN!." D tried to lift his hands—only to feel the cold steel hold him down. "I only asked a simple question. Can't a guy ask what's going on-".
The soldier cut off D's words as they smashed his face in with the back of their assault rifle.
The metal of the soldier's rifle hit D's nose with a crack, and his head hit the wall behind him with a boom. Writhing against the pain, he felt a gush of blood run down his face. He closed his mouth—trying to keep the blood out. It also kept him from screaming.
After a few moments, he reopened his mouth—only to taste the blood on his lips. After a minute, the pain became more bearable. He felt pain all over his face, possibly a broken nose, and he was now covered in more blood.
D looked up at the soldier.
He looked into the black reflective visor of the soldier and got a glimpse of his own bloody and broken face. While looking into his own pained expression. He saw his eyes, and more importantly, he saw they were their natural light gray color—his contacts were gone.
The soldier stood there silent as a shadow, looking down at him. D kept looking up at him, mouth shut, but his eyes had a fire in them. These bastards reached into his eyes and took his contacts. Sure, they were cheap, and he knew how to get more, but that's not what bothered him. What bothered him was the invasion of his privacy and his body. The horrific fact he was out cold, and these people could've done anything to him.
He was sick to his stomach at the thought.
Once the soldier was sure D had stopped screaming, he turned away, lowering his gun. He began walking back when a few seconds later a loud yawn came from the sleeping giant next to D. Everyone who was awake watched the soldiers warily, as if they could feel the soldier's patience waning. The soldier got back up with rifle in hand and speed walked back over to where the man sat.
They yanked the bag off the man's head and threw it on the ground before walking away.
The man's hair was short with buzzed sides, and ash blonde coloring. His irises were a cold light blue color, and he had a long bandage going from the bottom of his ear to his chin.
He looked around as his eyes adjusted to the bright lights on the ceiling. When he turned his gaze in D's direction, he saw his bloodied face. This quickly caused his eyes went from tired to concerned.
"My goodness, what happened to you?" The blonde man asked with a look of genuine concern. The man had an accent D couldn't quite place. His accent wasn't strong, but it was noticeable.
D was looking up at the ceiling and blinking rapidly. He was trying to clear the tears in his eyes so he looked like less of a wimp. He also tilted his head back to make the blood go back into his nose.
He put on his best tough guy impression and said,"It's a bit of leakage—he sniffled—You should've seen the other guy. He didn't get off as easy as me."
The blonde man flashed a smile and the look of concern disappeared as he said "It's like my dad used to say, it's the scars that make the man, ikke sant?" (Norwegian phrase for 'Right?')
He gave a nervous smile back and said. "I have no clue what those last two or three words you said were, but regardless, you gotta listen to me, man."
He moved his head closer and whispered. "You and I are the only normal people on this whole damn plane. We gotta get out of here." He said as he glared at the soldier.
The giant was grinning as he said. "Oh, come on, I'm certain they are nice people once get to know them." He flashed another smile and continued. "In a place like this, people can be hostile, you know?"
D looked at him—shocked he could say such a thing. "Dude, all I did was ask where are we, and where are we going and that got me this wonderful piece of art," he said as he pointed to his nose with eyes.
The woman with red and black hair cut into their conversation with a scoff as she said.
"The screaming, the bitching, the second round of screaming, and worst of all, the fucking smell".
D was mentally preparing to start another screaming match with her—when his nose throbbed like it was telling him to shut up. Before D could figure out something nasty, he could say to her that wouldn't get him hit, or worse.
The blonde man calmly turned his head to her, smiled, and said.
"It'll be okay if we're all stuck in these seats till we get there." His eyes briefly flicked over to the already annoyed soldier.
"I don't know you two that well, but I know we'll get through this together."
D stared at the man and saw how genuine he seemed. For a few seconds, D tried to think of some nasty thing to say, but the blonde man's words had gotten to him a little.
"I got to agree with you with Tank-top. Our best bet for surviving this shit show is to work together." The blonde man looked around slightly confused.
"Who's this tank top you keep talking about?" he cut off as he finally glimpsed his shirt. The blonde laughed a hearty laugh. "Ohhh, you mean me. Well, that is fitting, but my real name is Max." He instinctively attempted to move his arm over to shake D's hand, forgetting it was bound.
D offered a small smile back. "Well…Max it's nice to meet you. I'm De-". He cut off, his tongue caught on a painful memory, as he thought about his father's disgusting blood still staining his arms. "I'm D. It's uhhh nice to meet you, Max."
"It's nice to meet you too," Max said as he looked over D at the woman chewing her gum and said.
"How about the lovely miss? Does she have a name?"
She stopped chewing her gum, but still not looking at them as she said. "Roxanne" and went back to chewing.
"D, Roxy, and Max!" Max said triumphantly.
D and Roxanne, in unison without realizing it, side-eyed Max in a way that showed they thought the same thing.
This guy might be crazy.
Wanting to move past the idea of being 'friends' with the devil woman on his left.
D changed the subject of the conversation back to information gathering. "So, Max, do you know where we're going?"
Max tilted his head, and a slightly confused expression appeared on his face. "Wait, is this not the transport to Blackthorn?" He looked around at the other people, an edge of concern shone in his eyes.
D, even more confused, stammered. "Ummm I-"
Roxanne cut him off "It is."
She said, finally looking over at the two men with her bored, and half-open eyes showing pinkish-red irises. Finally getting a good look at her face, and particularly the glow in her eyes.
D's mind had what he thought was great a realization.
"Ohhhh I get it now." he threw his head back in realization. "this must be how they do prison transport for Glowers, duh everyone in this thing has powers."
D looked over to Roxanne, a cool and confident (dorky) grin plastered on his face as he asked. "So, what'd you do to get thrown into 'BlackThorn', Roxy?"
She turned to him, a look of disbelief, disgust, and disdain on her face.
"One, call me 'Roxy' again and I'll sew your mouth shut. Two, the same thing everyone else did, I got noticed or applied"
"Applied?" D asked, thinking it was a part of some joke. "Who applies to go to prison? Yeah, let me just walk up to a police station and say 'I'd like twenty to life please'?"
"Prison?" Max and Roxanne both said in near unison.
Roxanne swallowed her gum, sick of chewing it, and said, "Who said anything about prison? I mean, if you get homesick easy I guess it's a prison." She shrugged.
Max joined in, "I bet it will be fun, and four years goes by faster than you think."
D sighed and looked up at the lights lining the ceiling of the plane. "You're lucky you got four years. I'll be lucky if I don't get the damn electric chair."
Max, once again confused, said, "Right, yeah, hopefully not but y-".
A loud buzzer came from the plane's intercom system.
"ETA 30 minutes."
The other quiet conversations on the plane grew louder, and D felt his stomach drop. A mix of fear and adrenaline were the only things keeping fear away, and he was out of both. The reality of spending the rest of his life behind bars was dreadful.
"Man, I just hope the food isn't that bad, y'know?" D said as he continued staring at the ceiling.
"My mom said it was decent when she was here, but that was a while ago," Max said, looking directly at D.
"Hmm, I bet man," D replied, not listening. Max was eager to see what D was looking at on the ceiling also for a few moments before asking with a straight face.
"So, what are your guy's powers?" D made a mocking gasp. "You can't just expect me to tell you that after we've just met, so scandalous, at least take me out to dinner first."
Max looked back at him sincerely and said.
"It is not a big of a deal. I have been friends with a few other supers and we told each other our powers." Max looked over to Roxanne, an idiot's grin on his square face.
"Nope." she said, not even looking at him.
He looked back to D. "Come on friends, I will tell you mine of course. I would show you but.." he looked down at the nullification cuffs holding down his wrists.
D sighed and looked at him. His face was full of exhaustion. "Yeah…alright look, you tell me yours and I'll THINK about telling you mine, deal?"
Max was practically jumping up and down in his seat. "Deal!" Max moved his head slightly closer to D so he, and maybe Roxanne, if she was listening, would hear. "I call it meta-matter, well my mom came up with the name. She was always the one who helped me with it."
He smiled slightly, a fond memory passing over his eyes. "It allows my body to change into any type of solid as long as I keep touching it."
D looked at Max up and down, as he tried to measure out how much he weighed. "Mhm, mmm, okay. Does it work with gold?"
Max's eyes rolled up as he scanned his memory and said. "Yes, it works with gold actually, a few years ago for Første juledag my dad had gotten me-"
D cut off the story before it got any longer as he said, "Hold up, hold up, I have the greatest get-rich-quick scheme ever, and all I need is one of your limbs."
They looked at each other for a long moment, trying to keep straight faces, till they both busted out into laughter. For D, it had been a long time since he'd shared a genuine laugh with another person. One that wasn't at his expense or theirs. The joy was so contagious he even saw Roxanne out of the corner of his now teary eyes crack a smile.
"Ahhh, so she knows how to smile after all," D said, fully expecting her to tell him off or hurl some insult. Instead, she made a smile too wide to be genuine, turned to him and looked at him fully, possibly for the first time.
She then said in a voice mocking his joy, "Yeah. let's share our most precious secrets to everyone on the plane for wannabe villains." Her false smile vanished from her face.
D, not backing down, turned to face her. "I ain't no villain, yeah I technically did a bad thing, but that doesn't mean I want to do it again or anything like that."
Roxanne looked at him, bewildered. "So we're 20 minutes away from the number one place on earth at teaching super villains, and now you suddenly change your mind? Sure."
D grinned and put on his mocking voice—"You're making this place sound like a real 'villain' learning experience, huh?"
Roxanne countered "Duh. Why else would you go to a university FOR villains?" D stopped grinning—his mind stood still, his face unmoving, and he said nothing for more than a few moments.
The two others looked at him.
They hadn't known him long, but he rarely was this quiet or still. He slowly turned his head towards Max, his eyes frozen, only his lips moving as he asked.
"Max…how old are you?"
Max, feeling something was off, answered seriously.
"Oh, I just turned 19 this past May. Why?"
With no sign of recognition, D immediately looked at Roxanne. His mind was too distant, too distracted to ask his question again.
So he let his eyes convey the question for him.
His deathly look made her feel slightly uneasy. It was like every piece of annoying energy zapped out of him at once. She
stammered for a second.
"I-I turn 20 in a few months." She said. D turned from her, his eyes frozen in front of him.
He was staring at nothing, but he also looked at everyone else seated in the restraints on the plane. All their eyes, all their faces. Not a single one looked any older than him, and not a single one looked any younger, either. He saw their eyes as well, all some sort of unusual shade, the same as his. Some were too bright, some were too different from the color of the average person.
His eyes fell to the floor. Every word he heard on this flight. Every moment of his life since he got thrown into that police car. Every moment since he became a murderer. Every moment mixed in his mind.
Applied...
Powers...
Soldiers...
Same ages...
Cops killed...
University…
the beat of the plane's engine was growing distant, the voices distant, his own voice…distant.
"So h..w ol.. .re you?" A voice asked.
"wh-what?" D said as he snapped back into the moment the surrounding sounds, back to their natural rhythm.
A familiar female repeated, "Um, hello. I asked how old are you? You can't be the only one asking questions."
"Oh… I'm 19 too." he finally looked up from the floor and over to Roxanne. Panic was overtaking his voice, as he said. "This isn't a prison transport, is it? Everyone here is the same age, and they all have powers, and this weird sword chick abducted me. Listen, man, I am NOT hear of my own free will. I didn't apply, and I thought this was some sort of new HALTECH transport system, but it's not. Roxanne, please, please tell me where are we going?"
Even with how much Roxanne did not like D, her intuition told her that this was not some bit or some start to a practical joke. No, he was serious, dead serious, and he was panicking.
Something about that panic, that helplessness, she saw in his eyes, lit a small fire in her somewhere deep down in a place she'd forgotten about so long ago she didn't even know the fire was there, but she felt its small warmth.
She sighed and looked at him, her red eyes piercing him. "You seriously don't know where we're going?" His eyes, just as grave as hers.
He shook his head. "No, I don't." Max leaned into D, rapidly bumping him with his shoulder to bring some life back into him.
"ooo can I explain it?" Max asked, absolutely ecstatic at a chance to help his beaten and confused friend.
Roxanne glared at him and sighed like an exhausted teacher calling on her least favorite student. "Go ahead…"
Max's wide smile widened. "Okay, uh, where should I start?" He innocently asked Roxanne.
She scowled at him. "You asked to explain it. Your choice."
"Okay, okay," he said, looking confused himself as he said, "Dad always told us to just retrace our steps if we got lost, so let's start at the beginning. D do you know which parent your glow comes from?"
"My ma' is where it came from, but they both had powers before I was born." Max's eyes widened slightly at D, a slight look of shock and assessment on his face as he said.
Max nodded and said "My mom always told me two people with the glow having a kid together was rare." He smiled as he thought about his mom. "I remember the only reason she told me that is because I didn't I want to take this girl, Sofie, to the school dance cause she wasn't-".
"AHEM", Roxanne said to cut off the incredibly long tangent as she said. "You're explaining, remember?"
Max looked down. "Sorry. Did your mom or dad ever mention where they went to college? Or maybe where they learned their trade? Or-"
The buzzer of the plane's intercom cut him off as it said "ETA 5 minutes" and then cut out.
Roxanne groaned, growing impatient with Max, the interruptions, and the entire conversation. "Ugh, I don't have time for this," she looked at D and Max, both of them silent. "Let's make this simple. I ask. You nod or shake your head." She said, waiting for D to nod silently, and he did.
"Do you know what a regular college is like?" He nodded. "Do you know what a super-criminal is?" He nodded. "Well, the place we're going is like that for super-criminals. Any questions?"
He nodded aggressively, and she pretended not to notice. Before D could ask another series of questions, they all felt the plane shake a bit. All the students could feel it changing altitude—it was getting lower fast.
A voice broke out from the far back end of the plane—one other soldier standing up. He was holding onto a handle hanging from the ceiling. "Attention all students! We will arrive at our destination shortly! When we land, you wait until I call your designated number. When I call your number, your latches will release, and you will walk down the ramp that will lower to my right!"
The soldier tapped the still-sealed access ramp with his hand and he continued.
"You will walk onto the platform where we will assign your designated testing area. We will also assign your living quarters!"
The students felt the plane beginning to lower,
Max chimed in and said, "There is nothing to worry about, I'm certain we will find plenty of ways to have fun."
The plane came to a stop with a soft thud coming from under their feet. Both soldiers stood up—silencing the excited conversations between all the students.
The soldier next to the door entered something into a pad on the wall, and there was a loud hiss as the door unlocked. Natural light finally peeking through. The first bit of natural light D had seen in what felt like an eternity. They folded outward from the plane, the sounds of the outside filling the space.
The trio's eyes were all glued to the door as it finally lowered to the outside ground with a thud. The soldier stepped out and onto some kind of landing pad. With everyone leaning forward trying to see what was outside, D couldn't even get a good look.
That's when the soldier inside called out. "Alright freshman number 001!" D heard a faint click of metal towards the front of the ship and someone's footsteps as they walked outside.
After a short while, they called out the next number. Another student got up and marched out.
D tried to remember what number the guy said he was when he took the bag off his head. It was, uh, 40 right, or was it 50?
He looked to his right side, looking a little past Max, who was also trying to recall what number he was.
"What number were you again?" He whispered to D.
D whispered back, "I'm pretty sure I was number 40. I guess that would make you Roxanne number 39 and you number 41."
"You've got that wrong, dreads." A voice said to him.
D turned to look at Roxanne as he said "Oh, so we're doing nicknames now, Roxy? Nice to know."
She didn't take her eyes off the door and the students at the front being called as she spat, "That wasn't me, and do NOT call me that."
That's when D noticed the girl across from him was not only awake but staring at him.
"Yeah, you've got the number thing all wrong bud. It's not numbered by row. It goes back and forth, so the goth is number 38, I'm number 39, and your number 40, and so on."
D blinked at her. She had dark red eyes, at least a few shades darker than Roxanne's. Her hair was long, straight, messy, and an unnatural shade of white. Her face was soft and round, but her teeth were longer and sharper than normal. Now that she was awake and moving, her shoulders seemed wider than his, and the holes in her shirt gave a view of a toned and lightly tanned body.
She stared at him, and he nervously avoided her gaze. "Oh shit, really? Thanks, I guess."
She smiled slightly and replied, "Don't mention it." The number of students now in the seats were to half as the soldier called out, "Number 38!"
Roxanne's cuffs instantly unlocked and she rubbed her uncomfortably numb wrists as she stood up and dusted off her frilly skirt.
Before walking ahead, she said, "See you on the other side." She didn't look back as she walked out down the length of the plane, heels clacking.
A few seconds after Roxanne stepped off, the girl across from D was called up. Standing to her full incredible height, she grinned with excitement. She threw her long muscular arms over her head in a carefree stretch.
She looked down at D and Max and said, "Yeah what the goth said," as pointed forward before she strode down the aisle.
Both Max and D's eyes followed her as she walked from her hair down to her toned backside.
Max then asked, "Do you know her?"
"Nah, but I'd like to," D said—his eyes still glued to the spot where she disappeared from view. A few moments later, the soldier called his number and his shackles unlocked. Lost in his thoughts about the mystery woman he'd forgotten, he was next.
His tone was a mix of nervous and serious. "I'll see ya in a bit man," he said as he stood up.
He took a slow few steps, his mind wary, when a dangerous thought popped into his head for a second. With his shackles off, if he could get a bit of power, he should run.
Fear soon suppressed the thought as he remembered the back soldier's gun against his teeth. I'd need to tap one of these people somehow and I'd have enough glow to blast out of here, he thought. He kept walking closer to the blinding light of the outside. He could only see the top of the white-haired woman's head as she walked down the ramp.
The thoughts of escape grew louder. She could get me outta here, but I only know Max's power. I'll wait for him to walk out. He'll definitely be somewhere near me.
As D got closer to the exit, he kept his eyes on the floor, as he felt a pit of fear in his stomach. He could hear the sounds of people talking. There were also the sounds of birds and the wind. He was finally at the open door. An expression of dread covered his face as he saw the soldier standing at the side of the open door.
The soldier nodded. He could see the fear written on D's face. D heard a man outside the plane shout, "NEXT!" The order caused his legs to move forward despite his fear. Still holding his head down with his eyes closed, he stepped down the ramp till he felt stone under his feet. He raised his head and what he saw brought his jaw to the floor.
The aircraft carrier had landed them on top of a facility. Further beyond he saw other buildings. Some of them modern and architecturally advanced while some were brick boxes that looked older than his grandmother.
But beyond the buildings, the fields, the small patch of trees was water, nothing but water. They had been taken to an island in the middle of god dammed nowhere.
The passengers of the aircraft who had come out before D were in a long line shoulder to shoulder. He tentatively stepped into line and looked ahead and saw 3 people standing in front of a makeshift podium. There was tall gray haired man wearing an all black open button suit.
Next to him was a roundish brunette woman who was almost as tall as the man in a gray pencil skirt and striped blouse. She was looking down at a clipboard and seemed to be mentally preparing for whatever they were planning. Lastly there was a slim black haired girl in a black and red uniform with a sword sheathed on her hip. That sword, that's the chick who knocked me out
His hands clenched into fists and his fingers dug into his skin at the sight of her. At the same time, as if she knew he was staring daggers at her, she looked at him and gave a slight smile. Not a friendly smile, but a smile of conquest and confidence.
"Woah there are way more people here than I thought, can make a guy feel a little nervous" Max said as he strode up next to D.
"Yeahhhh definitely the people and not the fact we're on an island in the middle of nowhere" He said to Max.
"Oh it's not so bad you're at a place most of the world will never see, and if you are worried about the weather don't be, mother told me they simulate the seasons using some sort of technology.
Before D could respond the older man at the podium began to speak.
"i would like to thank you all for a mostly problem free transportation, trust me when i tell you the transportation we have now is much better than when i was your age". He chuckled as if he expected his audience to laugh with him, they did not. The man continued,
"This day is a very important one ladies and gentlemen, as it is the first day of your successful future careers". The full-figured woman, who had put down her clipboard, clapped and Spire did the same.
"Now first things first we will be administering your student identification bracelets. These will allow you to enter and use the facilities on campus for students".
The man glanced over at his watch and realized he was behind schedule, so he continued. "Afterwards we will be breaking you up into groups for your aptitude tests, these tests are split between physical and written sections. Your proctor will lead you down this facility to the testing area".
"Trackers? Why the hell would grown adults need tracking devices?". D whispered to Max.
"At a place like this it would be weird if they didn't have a way to keep track of a group wannabe crooks, criminals, and mercenaries.".
He thought about what kind of person would willingly want to be those, as most of the ones he knew had done it out of necessity. He snapped out of this thought as he saw two staff members of the school working their way down the line of students with tracking bands.
D looked around for somewhere to run, somewhere to hide. The only things on that barren roof were the aircraft, the podium, and a door behind said podium. With spire and the other two blocking his only exit his eyes darted to the edge of the building.
Definitely too high to jump his breathing became more frantic as the proctors approached.
Max looked over at him and said "Hey man are you alright? You keep looking around. everything is going to be fine, if you're here you're here for a good reason".
D stuck his hands into his pockets and leaned his head back.
"Yeah, yeah I'm chilling dude just uh first day nerves y'know.".
With his hands in his pockets he felt what he'd forgotten he had in their this whole time…coins. He fidgeted with the few silver quarters in his pocket, soon fidgeting turned to thinking, and then plotting.
He looked over to Max and smiled a fiendish expression.
"Your glow lets you copy any material right? Even if it's a small amount right?".
Max, slightly confused, replied
"Oh yeah, as long as it stays in continuous contact it doesn't matter how small it is, why do you ask?.".
"Oh no reason dude I'm just super excited for the next four years man.". He raised his arm up.
"Up top my dude, high-five!". Max immediately returned the gesture with a strong high five, and the moment their hands touched D took off in a sprint towards the buildings closest edge.
A guards shout rang out
"STUDENT! RETURN TO YOUR ASSIGNED POSITION!". D already had the coins in his hand and his foot on the edge and with a desperate plea he called on his glow, closed his eyes, and leapt head first off the side of the building.