[Siphoning Complete: Acute Hearing]
"Bloodcode," I whispered.
STATUS WINDOW
Name: Zero | Surname: Bloodcode
Core Abilities:
* [Bloodcode]: Grants access to internal stats and sub-categories.
* [Bloodlust] (Passive): By consuming the blood of another being, you can permanently siphon one of their abilities.
* [Bloodlock] (Active): Ingesting a target's blood allows you to induce total paralysis. (Effectiveness scales with the target's willpower/power level).
* [Bloodcontrol] (Active): Allows you to accelerate your own blood flow for enhanced physical output. (Note: Requires mastery to improve).
Copied Abilities:
* [Acute Hearing] (Passive): Allows you to hear the heartbeats of others to detect lies or map your surroundings via sonar.
"Useful," I thought.
I looked around; I was surrounded by blood and the sounds of people sobbing,but a specific scent drew me in—the metallic tang of fresh blood.
[Do not absorb it. It is too risky. They know you possess a power, but they don't know its nature; let's use that to our advantage,] Bloodcode cautioned.
When only six people remained standing, the doctor pressed a button on a remote. I felt a searing shock at my neck, a brand of pain unlike anything I had ever experienced.
[You will have to grow accustomed to suffering,] Bloodcode said, his voice ice-cold.
"Fine. Now that we are finished, I will explain how your stay here will work. Your names will be..." she pointed at me, "...Zero." She continued to my right, "One, Two, Three, Four, Five."
"Each of you is a mutant, and you will be trained to serve Hydra."
"Five, step forward. Tell me your power."
I turned to look at Five: he was a mountain of muscle, the classic brute. He took a heavy step forward and spoke with a gravelly voice. "I have the muscle mass of two men."
And so it went. Four could manipulate their shadow, Three could walk on walls, Two could control water, and One could reshape their own face. Finally, it was my turn.
"Zero, step forward. State your power."
"I can accelerate my blood flow," I replied curtly.
"Excellent. Now follow the guard down the corridor. You're going to enjoy yourselves."
We followed the guard through several armored doors until we reached a room dominated by a massive screen bearing the Hydra logo. A propaganda video began to play.
"Welcome, Hydra recruits. Here, we protect people..."
[This is a brainwashing video. I can pull you into the Mindscape to protect your psyche. Do you accept?]
"Do it," I agreed mentally.
Two hours later, the doctor re-entered the room.
"Did you enjoy that? From now on, you will watch it every day until the end of your training. Now, move out. Your language professor is waiting."
The following hours were spent in language and history classes; it felt almost like being back in school. Finally, we moved on to combat training. Only then were we returned to our rooms—or more accurately, isolation cells.
[Free training, food, and lodging. We just need to learn everything they can teach us, then we make our escape. Easy, right? :)] Bloodcode remarked.