Super Powereds: Year 2 (4 page)

“So what should we be expecting?” Vince asked.

“To put it bluntly: adversity,” Dean Blaine replied.

2.

“Things have calmed down a bit since your departure,” Dean Blaine elaborated. “Unfortunately, that has also given people time to truly grasp the implications of your existence. To say I received some complaints regarding your enrollment would be a significant understatement.”

“They don’t want us here?” Of them all, only Vince could be genuinely surprised by such a statement.

“At the very least, a vocal minority of them do not,” Dean Blaine said. “I, however, do. Regardless of what you started life as, you are currently Supers. You have also shown the kind of determination and talent needed to enroll in the sophomore year of the HCP. Any information beyond that is extraneous and irrelevant so far as your admittance goes. With that said, I feel you should all be braced for a far less welcoming atmosphere than you found last year at Lander.”

“We know some of our friends are sticking by us,” Hershel said.

Dean Blaine nodded. “And I’m sure more will in time. Right now you aren’t the people they knew, but rather a representation of one of the greatest unspoken fears in Super society. Eventually, some of them will begin seeing you for the individuals you are once more.”

“But not everyone,” Alice said somberly.

“No, Ms. Adair. Not everyone. In the meantime, I suggest you stay close, work together, and trust in the allies you still have. That mindset will be very important this year, but you’ll get the details on that tomorrow. Now, on to logistics. I’m sure you’re all wondering about Mr. Numbers and Mr. Transport. I’m... well, not pleased, but not angered, to report that they will be returning to Melbrook as your guardians.”

There was a general expression of pleasure and relief for the five to learn that not only had the duo survived, they were also being reinstated in their post.

“The other professors and I will be keeping an eye on you as well, for extra security. I’m afraid I have to report that despite several interrogation sessions, George has yet to divulge any information about who he was delivering Mary to, or why. That means for the moment we have no idea if you all are still in danger, so we’ve chosen to assume you are,” Dean Blaine continued.

Nick raised an eyebrow. “So you’re going to be spying on us? Creepy.”

“Now, now, Mr. Campbell. There’s no such thing as privacy in the HCP facility anyway. We’ll just be more actively watching over you five.”

“We appreciate it,” Mary said politely.

“No trouble at all. I think that outlines most of what you needed to know immediately. People are angry, you’re still assumed to be in danger, same people living here as last year. Yes, I’d say that covers the high notes.” Dean Blaine rose from the chair and adjusted his glasses. “Oh yes, one more thing. Last year you were not able to use the lifts to enter the HCP facility and instead had to rely on Mr. Transport. I’m not sure what reason he gave you for this, but the truth is that it was because I wasn’t sure any of you should have that access. I didn’t quite know what to expect of you and I certainly didn’t trust you.”

“Yeesh, thanks, jerk,” Nick quipped.

“The point I was driving at was that this year you will find them quite functional for all of you. You are free to come and go at your own leisure. Welcome to the Hero Certification Program,” Dean Blaine concluded. He exited through the front door, letting the cold steel lock shut with an audible thud behind him.

“Well, that was a real upper,” Nick said in the ensuing silence.

“Forewarned is forearmed,” Vince replied, picking up his own bag once more and heading toward the boys’ side. “I need to unpack then maybe we can all grab dinner.”

“Oh yeah, me, too,” Hershel said, hurriedly gathering his own parcels. “Where should we go? I bet the dining halls are open.”

“Of course they’re open, tomorrow is the first day of class,” Nick pointed out. “We got here a day earlier last year for freshman orientation and they were already serving up what we’ll choose to refer to as food.”

“Then let’s do that,” Hershel said as the door sealed behind him.

Nick turned to the girls. “Should I point out to him that we’re currently pariahs to a small but very powerful portion of the population, and we have to keep our abilities here, along with our HCP enrollment, a secret? You know, the sort of situation that warrants avoiding densely-packed areas of students where we’re likely to encounter an antagonizing entity that could blow our cover to purposely get us booted?”

“They’d get themselves thrown out too,” Alice pointed out.

“Not if they were smart about it. Besides, even if they did, I’ll bet you money one of the other colleges would take them in. They’d be hailed as legends for keeping the name of Hero pure by knocking out people like us,” Nick said.

“Maybe so,” Mary agreed. “But I for one refuse to spend the rest of my time here shaking in fear of what some jerk may or may not do. I’m going to live my life, and if anyone decides to interfere with that... well, I suppose at the very least we can make them work for it.”

“Easy for you to say,” Alice noted. “You can actually follow through on that threat. Nick and I are somewhat less able to take a toll on any would-be attackers.”

“Speak for yourself. I plan to curse anyone who tries to drum me out with terrible luck at sex for the rest of their lives,” Nick said.

Both girls turned to look at their sandy-haired companion.

“Can you actually do that?” Alice asked.

Nick shrugged. “Sex comes from confidence, and if someone thinks they’re cursed, they’ll sabotage themselves. So sort of, I guess.”

“Seems a bit roundabout for you,” Mary said.

“I’ll think of something. I guess I’d better since it seems you folks are set on going about business as usual,” Nick said.

“That we are,” Mary agreed. “So let’s go help the boys and then get ourselves some sloppy joes.”

Alice groaned audibly as they headed out of the common room, her stomach already protesting its impending culinary assault.

3.

“Feels strange to be wearing grey,” Nick commented as the Melbrook students filtered into the large lecture hall alongside the rest of the non-freshman HCP students. The black-uniformed newbies had gone through their meeting the day before; this morning had consisted of their battles for initial ranking. Evidently watching those fights was quite the spectator sport for the sophomore and older students, but the quintet had decided that it was best to avoid such condensed crowds until they had a better grasp of where public opinion was leaning.

It hadn’t taken long to answer that question. Just in their journey from the surface to the locker rooms for changing into uniforms and now into the hall, they’d lost track of the number of dirty looks and furtive whispers buzzing about. There had been the occasional outright glare, as well as the all-too-rare supportive smile. It seemed the overall consensus was that no one knew quite what to make of them. For the moment they were being regarded with the same apprehension one showed the bearded woman at a carnival: curiosity, disgust, and superiority, but not outright malice. It was actually much better than it could have been.

All five sat near the top of the stadium-style seating arrangement, unsurprised to find the once occupied spots around them quickly emptying. They were near the end of the procession, so the abandoners had only moments to relocate before Dean Blaine stepped to the podium positioned in the center area and addressed his audience.

“I’ll keep this brief,” Dean Blaine began, adjusting his glasses without noticing. This was not a speech he looked forward to giving, but it had to be done. “Normally you are all only called together like this for emergency announcements. I want to put your mind at ease and assure you we are not under any imminent threats. This meeting is to discuss the replacement of two of our staff.”

A quick buzz whipped through the crowd; the majority of them had only heard garbled rumors about George and Persephone, even if most claimed that they were privy to knowing the “real deal.”

“I’m certain that all of you are at least partially aware of the situation, and I want to apologize that it is only now I can tell you something concrete. Due to the delicate nature of this scenario, a full investigation was warranted before any statements of certainty were issued. That investigation has been concluded, and it is now my duty to inform you that both George and Persephone attempted to kidnap one of the freshman female students last year.”

The buzz spiked in both tempo and volume. Many glances were tossed around, though it was only the sophomores who threw most of them at the five students sitting near the top.

“I won’t be going into the details, predominantly because so many of them are still yet to be fully verified, but you all deserve to know that piece of truth. They committed a crime, betrayed the trust placed in them as educators, and have been replaced. You will meet your new teachers in their respective classes; they’ve requested I allow them to make their own introductions rather than trot them out in front of you all. I realize that this is difficult news, as many of you have grown to trust and respect your teachers over the years. To that regard we are offering counselors on site for the next few months. Should any of you feel the need to talk, their services will be freely available upon request.”

The buzz had dulled to a simmer, the initial shock of finding out such outlandish rumors were true giving way to the reality of what was being said. Two of their coaches had gone rogue and had tried to steal a student away in the night. After the first wave of disbelief passed through them, many of the students were hit with the terror deep in the pits of their stomachs as a uniform thought echoed across the landscape of their minds: “It could have been me.”

“I want to assure you that we’ll share more information about this incident with you as we obtain it. For right now, that is all. The sophomores need to report to the gym for this year’s orientation. Juniors will have theirs in three hours, and of course seniors already know what to do with their day. If you have any questions about this, please take note of my office hours and know that my door is always open to each of you,” Dean Blaine concluded. “You are now dismissed.”

“That wasn’t so bad,” Vince said. “I wonder why they didn’t have the freshmen in here too.”

“Kind of a ‘duh’ on that one. The dean just had to admit two of his own staff went off the reservation big time. The last thing the new kids need to hear at their welcoming is that the staff they’re supposed to be trusting with their lives have a recent history of kidnapping and treachery,” Nick told him.

“They don’t, not the ones that are left. The only two who were guilty are gone,” Alice said.

“You’ll forgive me, but until I know for sure what the motivation behind that fiasco was, I’m going to just go ahead and assume everyone here has a motive for wanting us kidnapped or dead,” Nick replied.

“That seems like a cynical overreaction,” Hershel said.

“Not really,” Nick shrugged. “I pretty much assume that about everyone anyway.”

“Well, Nick’s advocacy of paranoia aside, he has a point,” Mary said. “First year is already scary, the last thing they need is someone tossing on yet another thing to be afraid of.”

“Yeah, between the masses of people being drummed out, the mystery of what the classes are like, and the challenges for rank, there is already plenty to keep a freshman on their toes,” Vince agreed.

Nick snickered. “You don’t see the humor here, do you? We’re in the exact same boat. We don’t have any idea of what this year’s syllabus of examinations will be like. We’re no better off than the freshmen.”

“No, there is one big difference,” Hershel corrected. “We know we can make it through a year. We know we’ve got what it takes to survive the cuts.”

“Pretty trivial difference,” Nick said.

Hershel smiled at him. “Everything is trivial, right up until you need it. Now let’s go see what fresh horrors this year has in store.”

4.

The grey-uniformed population of the gym had thinned slightly from its black-clad incarnation. Though Vince recognized all of his once-friends amidst the sophomores, there were definitely some faces missing. Faces of people whom he’d seen struggling and working and fighting right alongside the rest of them. Faces that wouldn’t be seen again in the HCP. It was a solemn reminder that there was a long road ahead, with plenty of opportunities to wash out. Vince shook his head and focused on the task at hand. There were six individuals clustered with Dean Blaine in the center of the room, all of them quite distinctive and unfamiliar.

“Today, we are going to talk about majors,” Dean Blaine announced once everyone had gathered within range of his voice. “Freshman year is used as a trial by fire. We drum out those who can’t cut it and get those who can into shape. From sophomore year onward, things will be working a bit differently. For starters, we’re going to be having only a single hour of gym together each day. The rest of your time will be spent in your respective classes. Here at Lander, as well as in all schools participating in the HCP, we offer six distinctive courses designed to evolve you into field-ready Heroes. I’ll let the professors introduce themselves and their courses in a moment; right now I just want to touch on the program as a whole.”

“This year you will each be enrolled in three of the six courses. These were chosen by determining the areas you can best grow, as well as your performances in last year’s final exam. Come your junior year, you will be allowed to continue in the two areas you show the most promise, and in your senior year you will devote all of your energy to a single area of focus. This final area is considered your specialty, or major, in the HCP. It will help determine what sort of Hero you’ll be and give you a good idea of where you should apply for internships.”

“Internships?” Vince whispered to Alice with a raised eyebrow.