The paperwork was processed before the day was even up, and Ashton was given the green light to move his base essentials into his new room. Since it was just a room and not an apartment, he would not be able to bring much, but it was better than staying in a hotel. The first thing he did once everything was settled was check his message from Summer.

“Got a new car! Good night and good luck tomorrow!”

Ashton smiled. It felt like things were finally getting back to normal. He had a new place to live and she had a new car. Now he could only hope this new job would work out far better than the last one. Not having to dress up as a tacky fake villain was an immediate plus.

The new reassurance of stability gave Ashton a fulfilling night’s sleep, and before he knew it he was off the races of his new life. During his trial period, Ashton would be joining a team led by an older man named Jared. Jared took things with the level of seriousness they deserved, which made him a great superior as he also respected their serious moments.

They started Ashton off just learning the tools of the trade.There were several levels of serum that could be administered. The first only dampened powers temporarily and the last removed them completely and permanently. As he was only a trial employee, Ashton was not allowed to handle any of them directly. There had been a recent security breach where some serum had gone missing and they couldn’t afford to take any risks.

After going over the serums, Ashton was fitted into his new uniform which doubled as safety gear. He tried not to find it too suspicious that there was already a temporary set just barely too big with his last name embroidered on the left chest. He also didn’t miss the fact that ‘Gray’ was embossed in gray threads.

Just as he finished putting all various aspects of his new uniform on, Jared got a call on the emergency line. “Looks like you are about to get your first field experience, kid,” he said, “No time to spare on this one. If we don’t act now we might forget at any moment.”

Forget at any moment? No, there was no time to ask. Answers could be gotten after the emergencies were settled. Ashton expected to be taken out through the garage, but they went through a different exit instead, leading to a special parking area for their operative vehicles. He barely had time to put his seatbelt on before the van shot forward, and the others in the team had already started prepping shots of temporary power nullification serum.

Just a few moments later, they pulled up to a building also owned by Gale Research that was meant for dealing with the populace. Ashton recognized the building as he had been there before for a consultation about his own ability. Perhaps now that the serum had been improved he might have a better shot of being approved for it.

The waiting room was full of guests but there was one man in particular who stood out. He sat at the edge of one of the benches minding his own business. It was the reactions of those around him that made him stand out so much. All of them seemed confused whenever they looked at him, and the lady in charge of greeting guests tried to give him his third waiting ticket, telling him he could not bring in old tickets to skip in line. The man merely took the ticket with a resigned expression.

“Dose him now,” Jared ordered, “His power is just as reported.”

The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

Just as the operative was administering the dose of serum, he started to seem confused as to what he was doing. Perhaps it was because Ashton hadn’t known anything from the beginning, but he remained unaffected by the strange power. That was what he thought until the serum kicked in. It was their second time arriving at this very scene, but everyone had forgotten. They had forgotten anything that had to do with that man.

“Thank you,” the man said with obvious relief. As he spoke, several of the other people seemed to remember similar experiences with the man.

Jared was relieved at their success. “I had a feeling this was a bigger emergency than it seemed, and I always trust my feelings.” The way he spoke, the word ‘feeling’ had a deeper meaning to it. It was likely related to his power.

“Please, erase my power forever before this dose wears off,” the man begged, “I cannot live like this anymore. The closer I am to someone, the faster they forget me. I cannot turn it off or stop it. Even my official documents are erased if I manage to have them made in the first place. It has been so long, I don’t even remember my own name.”

Ashton looked to Jared. Surely he wasn’t going to leave him like this, with a power that had ruined his life. To his surprise, Jared looked to him instead. “If you pass this trial period, you will be leading your own team. The dose will last for a few hours, long enough for you to learn about the consequences of both sides.”

He was leaving the decision up to him? “First, shouldn’t we go somewhere more secure to discuss things?” Ashton asked.

“A wise move. Come on, John,” Jared approved and guided the man to the door. John, huh. It was a name the man seemed used to responding to. Ashton could only imagine that his usual last name to follow was Doe.

Once everyone was safely back in the van, John included, Jared began to fill Ashton in on the logistics of the permanent removal of someone’s power. There were only two cases where permanent power removal was allowed. First if the power was a serious danger to the individual who possessed it. Second, if the power was used in a way that it was a danger to everyone around them, to the point they would have no choice but to kill them otherwise.

“This would be a case of the first one,” Ashton replied, “It might not seem life threatening now, but one day a surgeon will forget him mid-surgery. Or perhaps a driver will forget he is there while he is crossing an intersection.” Hundreds of such situations came to mind, and John seemed to agree wholeheartedly.

“You’re right. That is where the next step comes in,” Jared told him, “In the case where the power is a danger to the individual, we must first get their approval before permanently removing it. Life threatening or not, we must always give them a say. They can give their approval in written or any other recorded form.”

“And after that?” Ashton asked.

“After that comes the hard part. It is dangerous to double up on serums. However, if his power returns for even a moment, we will forget about him and he will be right back where he started.”

“So we either need to time things perfectly, or find some weakness to exploit to become immune to his power long enough to finish things,” Ashton realized. He imagined this situation would be far easier with different styles of powers, “Would your feelings help with this?”

“My feelings are vague, and they run a risk of being affected as well the longer I am exposed to his power,” Jared denied.

There was something he was missing, and Jared was trying to lead him there. A solution he should already know about. He thought back to everything they had gone over today and subconsciously patted down his own clothes. There was the smallest of bulges in the pocket under his name. A pill.

“This is…” Ashton began but stopped, “You never told me. You just said it was important for emergencies.”

“That’s right. It is something a trial employee shouldn’t know about,” Jared told him, “However, I have seen your drive in the field today, and I believe you have what it takes to lead a team. You have empathy and compassion, but you don’t lose yourself to it and make hasty mistakes. Before you make a decision, you make sure you have all the facts and you don’t settle for the options given to you if you feel there is a better way.”

Ashton frowned. That didn’t sound like him at all. It also didn’t answer what the pill was, but he knew that Jared couldn’t answer. But the pill was the solution to solve the situation. It was something dangerous that outsiders could not know about. Something a trial employee like him should not normally be given. He also couldn’t forget that John was still there, so Jared wouldn’t be able to answer regardless.

He carefully put the pill back into the pocket where it came from. There was one thought that came to mind. If power could be nullified with the serum, was it possible a similar creation would be able to give another immunity to it?