Saeva Alterra Hawkins
Sol 3UN1A Adjunct to Universe 0
Reflexis City
Cavern Medical Ceiling
Room 3398B
She opened her eyes to a white room. The ambient glow of the city above, and below, lit just enough of her bed for her to know that she wasn't home. A beige cover laid over her.
“Seta?” She said.
“Oh you are awake.” Seta replied throughout the room.
With the words, the rooms lights slowly increased in intensity. Her bed shifted from a flat to a slightly raised position. She deeply inhaled and exhaled. She was safe.
In front of her bed, the wall screen lit awake. The system instantly configured to her personal customizations and the basic Cavern Medical logo was replaced with a black Sandy Beach. The holographic landscape emanating throughout the room. A login request prompted her attention. She reflexively gestured at the screen and the display booted up her interface. On the clock was the time.
“What happened?!” She gasped. Several days had passed. It had been nearly a week. She was in a hospital wing that overlooked the cavern below. Out the window there was a sunset sky of endless clouds extending beneath her room.
The display in front of her switched to a news feed, a bright blue news automata speaking on the screen.
“In other news. This afternoon a large category 9.8734 earthquake shook the city. Sensors place the epicenter somewhere within the northeastern quadrant of the cavern base. In related news, there seems to have been some sort of attack on an Allusion Logistics transport yard. This ended with an altercation between two unknown levels within that same region. It is unknown who these assailants are or if one of them had any connection with todays event.”
Earthquake? Had she failed her exams? Quickly she went to the account page for her petition for citizen ship to the Earth-Moon Coalition. It read ‘application status denied’. Was it related to this event?
Her attention was quickly diverted to a loud swish of the main door. A large man with deep brown skin walked into the room. His name tag read Dr. Martine.
"Glad you are awake." Dr. Martine said. He looked at his clipboard. "...Saeva Hawkins." His eyes seemed to scan the page a slight disappointed look over came his face.
"From what this says." He continued. "You were incapacitated during your final exam of the AAL practical. This was caused by an unknown energy event that caused several testing Chambers to explode. Your were the only one who suffered injuries."
He took a moment to look up and met her eyes. He wasn't much older than her. Maybe half a decade separated the two of them. His face held some kind of look that seemed like bad news was on it way.
"You were denied citizenship to the Sol Conference, and in extension, the Earth-Moon Coalition. That is why you were brought here; to the upper level of the city. We are the only place in the region to accept non-citizens without visa. I’m sorry to say but your options are slim.
“You can attempt to lobby for rights to a profession trade and become an apprentice to someone in the city. They would be able to sponsor your visa. You can also elect leave and venture deeper into the basic income region or work at one of the industrial complexes. Your guardians were notified, however there isn’t much they can do. You have two hours to state your declaration or you will be arrested and deported."
His eyes went cold as he said the last few words. There were those within Reflexis that expressly disliked those who are level negative. They were deemed lesser, worthless. Without adaptation they died in most places.
Hope however, her friend who was the only other negative one she had met in her life, came from a different background. Hope's father owned a very prominent foundry operator, who was gifted with an ability to make blades and other metal materials sharper. Shielded her from a lot. Her mother was what many refer to as a siren and had abilities to make people follow to her suggestion. It only worked on those who weren't expecting it.
They were notorious in certain echelons of the city. Hope was a child who was hidden away from the world after her level was revealed. They were one of the lucky families where a child's level was revealed on a day where Hope was home. With that lucky moment, she was registered as a lesser level II, with a minor gift that would be explained away by her unnatural beauty.
She wondered. How did Hope do on her exam? Was she able to make it? There were now too many questions that Saeva did not have answers for. Things she would just have to find out in time. The doctor, having left moments before, never returned to her room.
The first hour went by as Saeva sat in retrospective thought. Her life was going to change. And she needed to know how. There was a craving for order that was somehow radiating deep down. An innate feeling that she needed to know how to put the pieces of her life back together.
Eventually, the two hours passed. This was followed by another half hour. At this point, Dr. Martine still had not returned, her guardian hadn’t made a visit. The silence of the room was her only company. Seta remaining quiet to let her brood. At the three hour mark, a visitor arrived. A woman wearing a red evening dress came into the room. Her high heels clacked as she made her way across the room. A chair materialized at the base of Saeva’s bed.
"I haven’t made my decision yet! Just give me more time!" Saeva blurted.
The hours of silence made her voice quaver. The woman continued and sat down, unfazed by the girls commotion. Her hair was stunning. Rolling curls of brown lustrous hair. In another life, perhaps even this life, she was a model plastered across arcades and malls throughout the system. She seemed to be a little older than Saeva and yet held familiar agelessness. Her eyes a deep blue, held wisdom beyond that of her appearance. She took off a wide red hat that she place on a table next to her..
"Oh, don’t worry about that." The woman said. Her voice was melodic, but serious. "You wont need to answer the doctors questions or make a declaration. I took care of that on my way in. I am Agent L-11345."
"Agent?" Saeva asked. Her voice confused, almost flustered. The woman's face softened slightly, sensing panic brewing once more.
"Don't worry…" The agent continued. "As I said, I am not here to deport you. I am a member of the Agency for the Advancement of Leveling. It is often referred to simply as its short name, The AAL. You know… the ones who organize the practical, I mean its in the name. Your case floated into my lap moments ago in fact."
"Case?" Saeva asked. Her voice calming slightly. She was confused but no longer worried. "Case for what?"
"Yes, Case. Let’s just say at this moment, I am in charge of Reflexis, in all matters of AAL. Lets just say your performance in the AAL practical drew a keen eye to some of us in this department. We haven't seen a level negative one do so well on our exams, ever." She replied. "In all actuality I don't think we have had anyone do so well overall. At least without levels. You have high scores in almost every aspect of the exam, aside from the final level ability assessment. Its subtle but it makes you a prime candidate to become an agent."
"High scores?" Those were the only words Saeva could think to reply. "H.. How?
"Ah, well you see, during your exam you were injured. Normal procedure is to hold a retest upon your recovery. Your school, not knowing of your overall performance, gave you a zero for your final level ability assessment. In doing so, they reported you as a fail. I am sure it is bias against those that have no ability." The agent said. Her eyes met Saeva’s with a solemn look. She continued.
“Out of your graduating class of 13,400, you are the only student to not pass your practical. There were a few retests, but all somehow slipped through the margins enough to come off unscathed."
Those words struck Saeva. She was the only one to not pass? Those were strange odds. Perhaps she wasn't wrong to be worried. Was this her schools final kickback to her being a level negative.
"I have an event to attend. I can ask only two things of you. Firstly, I ask you mention this conversation to no one. Secondly, I ask that you come to the AAL headquarters for this city in three hours. If you do not wish to become an agent, Saeva. You will be deported. Level negatives often do not get the chance to become an apprentice.”
The woman stood up and placed the wide hat back on her head. It slightly tilted to one side. “I wish you a good afternoon, Saeva."
With that the agent was gone. Saeva once again was greeted with the deathly silence that was the medical room. What was she going to do? Deportation? There was no where for her to go. Her home was this cavern. All she knew was this city. This was her life and she barely understood it.
“What was her problem?” Seta chimed in for the first time. “That lady was elegant as fuck.”
Quickly she got out of bed and found a set of clothes in the medical room wardrobe. She began to dress. She had a few hours to get across the city.
A few more hours later, she walked through the bleak city streets. Artificial trees gave birth to the morning animal noises. Store fronts opened up, children began to file out of their homes and off to school. It was just another day. It had taken her an hour alone to shuttle down from the ceiling district.
What awaited her now was a 15 minute walk to the AAL main headquarters building. It was located on the edge of the city. A wide brown building in the shape of an L. It was surrounded by large gardens and Tufts of Ivy that coated it's exterior. You would not think that beneath it's walls was home to some of the deadliest.
The entrance to the building was a small glass door. On it a logo read, ‘The Agency for the Advancement of Levels: Sector 10.54328, Reflexis Cavern Headquarters.’ The door slid open pinging off Saeva’s implant.
The lobby of the building was just as bleak as the entrance she had come through. This was a level of discreet that they possibly took too seriously. Her steps echoed off of a white polished marble floor. It wasn't even synthetic, it was the real thing. They had wealth for such rare materials in modern day earth.
In tune with its minimalistic luxury, the size of the lobby was small. It felt more like a doctor's office reception area than the main headquarters of one of the largest entities in the system. The walls were made of synth-wood. A material you would find in every home in the city. The material originally made for the synthetic trees that lined the streets outside.
The material was stained a faded off-white grey that accented the marble floors accompanied by standard ceiling tile. To her right was a small waiting area with little couch chairs and magazines. At the end of the room, was a door. It was a steel door. Something solid, it was a thick with a protecting presence. Across from the door was a small unisex bathroom that looked in order.
“Young Ma'am.” A voice called to her. She seemed to only just notice the small window that sat at eye level on the wall to her left. An old woman with grey hair sat behind a desk. “You have been synced, please have a seat and she will be here to collect you shortly.”
Saeva had no moment to ask or state her business before the window went dark. The glass slowly went from a translucent material to the same off-white synth-wood that coated the rest of the walls.
“That was rude.” Seta sighed in her mind.
Saeva proceeded to a couch and sat. After an unknown length of time, the silence of the room was interrupted by a loud clanking and whirring from the metal door. She looked up to see the agent walk out. The woman was wearing the same dress from earlier but looked as if she was several years younger.
“Ah, Saeva,” The woman chimed with glee. “I see you made your choice. I wont hold you long. Pardon the repeated outfit. The fact that one could attend a dinner party and then it's suddenly morning again.”
“Yeah. I guess.” Saeva replied.
“That’s what you reply with?” Seta chimed in her head. “This lady is too much. What do you mean pardon a repeated outfit as if your future were suddenly at stake or anything.”
“Well then.” The agent said.
She gave Saeva a glance that seemed to be aimed towards Seta’s comment. After a noticeable pause she left through the metal door she had come through. She gestured Saeva to follow.
The hallway that awaited them seemed from another time. The walls and ceiling an old grey concrete. The floor was a sythwood material that was shockingly similar to the walls of the waiting room. Lights were nowhere to be seen. The light coming from alcoves along the seam where the walls met the floor or ceiling. The way ahead seemed to curve not only to the right but also downward; spiraled in a subtle way.
The agent did not say a word. The silence was fended off by the steady sound of her clacking stiletto heels. The walk felt like forever. They came to an opening. Here the hallway widened out to a large chamber. In the center, a large chandelier hung. Glass spires and holographic lights twinkled within it's frame. The right wall was no longer concrete but a wall of thick transparent glass. Beyond its sheen was a large training room that stretched for miles. Wooden floors covered this neighboring place. The walls and ceiling there remained concrete.
To their left was a large concrete wall with a normal sized set of double doors. These were a brushed steel that corresponded with the utilitarian aesthetic. Above the door was not a logo but three large letters: A A L. They went through
Inside the same concrete aesthetic remained. It was smaller in scale than the outside. It was yet another hallway. On the left was an office suite that simply said: Administration. That was the door they proceeded into.
“What is so secret,” Saeva wondered aloud. “That we need to go through four doors to get to it.”
“It's not a matter of what, rather who.” The woman replied. Not realizing the words were meant for Seta. The woman glanced back at her for just a moment then continued.
“Don't worry,” a males voice said from the distance. “If you have as much potential as the numbers show, then you will know in due time.”
Ahead, a man leaned out of a rather spacious office. He wore a suit that was crisp and we'll fitted. He looked significantly older than the duo who approached him. His face was alight with a smile.
“Lillian!” the man said. “I see you finally found a recruit that suits your taste.” He shook the woman's hand.
“Well, she's quite special.” The woman replied. She leaned into his ear and whispered. “She aced the test, while being reported as a level negative.” As if she just remembered Saeva was behind her. The woman gave an introduction.
“This is Saeva.” Lillian said. “Save, Dr. Panelle. He is the director for this AAL branch.”
“Ah Saeva, it is quite pleasant to make your acquaintance.” The man's voice was calm and pleasant. “I bet you never imagined joining our organization. Glad for you to join us, even if it’s not ideal circumstances.”
“My original goal was to join the Arteon project. Although this one isn't far off from that.”
“Ah the Arteon Project. The quest to explore the universe. We are not ready for that you see.” His voice conspiratorial. “We established this organization 400 plus years ago. Long before the colonization of Venus and Jupiter. All for the very sake of understanding our predicament. I will tell you this. It is a precocious one.” The man spun around and leaned into his office.
Through the blurred glass he reached into his desk and pulled out an object. He returned to the two people and showed it to them cautiously.
“This,” he said. “is the reason we are here.”
“That's just a standard data orb.” Lillian said. Her face smirking. “Those are everywhere.”
“No. Not the damn orb.” Dr. Panelle replied. His head tilted as his temperament rose a little. He took a deep breath then continued. “It isn't the orb but the data. It is holographic footage from the interaction with the only vessel to leave the system. The same vessel that had been reported missing those few hundred of years ago. It was recovered by the founding member of AAL. It is the entire reason this organization exists. 7.5 billion people, one goal. Understanding the case of humanity’s current condition, and understanding how we can make ourselves better through it.”
“That's one speech you got there.” Lillian replied. “But we already have her paperwork. She's set to start training.”
“Ah you don't understand, Lillian.” The man replied. “We want her spirit and determination, not just another person to join our ranks. Especially if she was as aspirational to seek out the Arteon’s”
“Now Saeva, do you want to accept our goals as your goals?”
The director turned to Saeva looking her in the eyes. His gaze was focused, brows lowering to his eyes. Saeva could sense an energy growing within him. She could feel layers churning within the words he said. She could sense something within him. Something within herself.
“Do I have a choice?” Saeva replied. She knew this was her only path. This was her only choice in life. It was either make it here and become stronger. Or be plunged into the tunnels forced to labor for any step ahead. She had to make do with what she had. Her goal was to get out of this Cavern. To see the surface of this Earth she called home and to explore the stars beyond. This was going to be best means.
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“Do you? Do you have a choice?” Dr. Panelle said after a few moments. Laughter rolling out of him. “Oh she definitely passes. I can sense motivation and focus inside of her. That's my ability btw. I'm an empath. I mean it's not the greatest in some circles but I find it's ideal for my circumstances. I mean I am hyper intelligent already, what more can a man want?
He was fulfilled on some level. She could sense it. Saeva could feel his emotions, she felt the same drive within herself.
“Well. We best be off.” Lillian chimed in. “We gotta get you to your bunk.” The director returned to his office and as the door closed Saeva felt a weight release from her shoulders. She sighed audibly.
“Yeah he's a bit intense.” Lillian said. “Some people just have radiant energy and ability.” At this point they were a good many turns away from the directors office suite.
“Yeah. Is it always like that?” Saeva replied. She placed her hands on her upper arms.
“What do you mean?” Lillian’s gaze sharply settled onto Saeva.
“You mean you didn't feel that pressure? The energy churning behind his words. It felt like there were layers of truth and other emotions within him. Like he was forcing something back.”
“No. I haven't felt that.” Lillian replied. “The pressure thing yeah. The rest, not so much.”
Lillian suddenly stopped outside a room.
“Here's your bunk room. Your bed is the last on the left. You will share it with about nine other recruits. Your bathrooms are at the end.” She started explaining. “They should be at breakfast already in the mess hall. Usually no one is in here throughout the day so you should be able to get some rest.”
Lillian opened the door to an empty room. In it we're 10 beds made of an extrusion printed metal of some kind. The decor was concrete all around with a strip of lighting material down the middle.
“Lillian,” Saeva said as the woman turned around. Shock on her face that she knew the woman’s name now. “Thanks, without your intervention I don't know where I would be.”
“How did...” she replied. Then realization lit her. “Oh right Dr. Panelle, there goes my mystery. Don't worry. You won't be thanking me come tomorrow.”
With that Lillian walked away. Her high heels echoed down the otherwise silent hallway. Saeva sulked to her bed and lied down. It had been an overwhelming day. Or what felt like a day. To her it seemed only short while ago she was nervously taking her practical. Now she had signed up to work for the organization that made the exam. This was happening quick.
With so much on her mind and the trek from the medical wing to the recruitment center taxing. She faded off to sleep. The last thing on her mind were the events to come.
Loud thunderous booms echoed through the bunk room around her. It was loud but not so loud that furniture moved or items fell out of line on shelves or tables. The lights pulsed with each boom.
“Daisy…” A males voice drone from two beds down. “We talked about this.” The man stood up and walked over to a bed on the opposite end of the room.
“She’s still asleep, Rob.” A woman’s voice called out. “Just wake her up.”
The sound stopped, followed by a chorus of sighs from various voices in the room. As the lights stabilized and winked off, Saeva was able to make out who shared the room with her. Wait. She paused for a second. She could actually see in the dark now? The gloomy room which should have been pure black, now seemed dim but not cast in an invisible wielding darkness.
There were nine others with her. A woman about her age lay in the bed next to her. The bed next to that was empty. Across the room she made out a man a few years older than herself sulking over to one of the various doors opposite the entrance.
“Hey newbie.” The girl next to her said. Her voice was a little too cheerful for what felt like three or four in the morning. “Glad to finally meet you. We were all a little excited when we walked in and saw a new person laying in your bed.”
She hopped up, black pants and a training bra was all she wore. Her hair was let loose, untied and flowy. It hung past her shoulders stopping just shy of her elbows. She proceeded towards one of the doors but quickly turned around before she got to far.
“I’m Mel” The faintly green woman quickly said. “How new are you exactly?”
“Um, Pretty new. This morning I came in with Lillian.” Saeva replied. “When I got in I just went to sleep.”
“Ahem, its been a day.” Seta chimed in her ear.
“Wait, what do you mean this morning?” Mel asked. “When we got here last night you were already asleep, and it's morning now. You must’ve slept all day then.”
“I guess I was still recovering.”
Mel, giving up on the conversation out of what looked like pure boredom, walked over to one of the doors. She stepped through as if it didn’t even exist.
An hour later Saeva found herself once again in the administrative suite of the recruitment center. Lillian was wearing a sleek white dress this time and black heels. She was explaining the bases security system.
"The general gist is," Lillian began, “simply walk to a door, if you have access the nearby trim with glow green, you will then be able to enter. A yellow flash means temporary restricted access and a red flash means access is denied.”
"That's pretty straightforward." Saeva stated calmly. Lillian nodded.
"Why else does the system do?"
"At the dining hall you will be automatically dispensed food of your choice after sync, one moment.”
A display appeared before the woman and she began tapping. After a few moments her attention returned.
"As I thought," she said. "You are as healthy as one can be. Prime condition for training and growth. Your schedule will be synced over in a moment."
“Got it.” Seta said in her ear.
"You can be the best you could ever be because you made the right choice, Saeva." Lillian gave a sincere look. She placed her hand on her shoulder "Today is the start of your new life. Your new chapter."
With this there was a tinge of tingle in the air. A wave of some sort energy. Something clicked inside her. Cogs that felt like they were slowly turning a pressure that radiated. For a moment the world was still, Saeva’s mind seemed elsewhere. Eventually, what felt like minutes, sure to be seconds, the pressure had disappeared as well. Lillian was gone.
Coming to her senses, she shook her focus back together and began to find the way to the training room where the first session would start.
"Welcome newbie." Mel said with a smile. She was in a tight training uniform that appeared easier to move in. A logo appeared in one corner of her chest, three roman numeral Is. On the opposite side read the name Melanie Baker. The eight others crowded around. Their eyes holding a sort of excitement and fire.
"So what's your level." A boy said. His face was thin and awkward. He had a chunky build and thin brown hair that dropped either side of his face. His words had a sense of child-like curiosity.
“Whoa, whoa.” Mel said. “Have a sense of care, Ranul. She literally just got here.” She stopped dead in front, her eyes looking Saeva up and down.
“I mean, has your training gone to waist?” Mel Continued. “Like did you not pay attention, these past few months? As free agents of the system, we must be able to read people on the dime.”
A powerful aura radiated off her. Her eyes were now staring at Ranul. An expression that read serious, yet calm.
“You lot! Get back to your training.” An older voice seemed to boom from the room itself. “You aren't fed and cared for to just mope around.”
The group dispersed to their own vices. Ranul and another kid began to run in circles around the insanely sized practice room. Their speed increasing slightly by the second. A woman much older than Saeva stood near a tank on the ground, she sat there freezing the liquid and then letting it unthaw. A young girl, about the age of 9, sat next to her watching intently. Mel had seemingly disappeared. Saeva searched around for a few moments, only to see her pop back into view from nothing right after.
Three more of the group began a sparring match. They were practicing some unknown form of martial arts. Each member seemed to hold their own. One of them, a woman. Was short and a bit thicker than the rest of the group. Her neck had a few gills and her skin had a opalescent hue to it. She seemed reinforced by some old level III traits. Her hair flowed around her, thick and volumous her black locks seemed to hold around her. Her curves and physique setting her apart from the norms of the cavern.
The woman’s sparring partner, a man a little older than Saeva was equivalently as stunning. His jaw was soft along the chin but sharp and square along the back corners. His look of determination. His muscles were sharp and well defined, his lightly tanned skin seemed to glow. They complimented his sharp bright blue eyes and medium brown hair that formed a perfect poof at the top of his forehead.
The third of those sparring, was another man around Saeva’s dage. He weaved in between the two here and there his body seeming to morph around the various attacks thrown his way. He was of a darker tone, his facial features, deeming him of a mixed ethnic origin. His dark brown hair, curled in short tufts that were of medium length. His face was lit with a bright smile.
The Last person that caught Saeva’s eye was the man from this morning. He was older than her but not the oldest by far in the room. He was of a white complexion, almost pale. He was attractive but not as stunning as the duo sparring. His eyes had a mix of seriousness and playfulness as he looked her way. The eye contact lasted for a moment before he went back to blasting a wave of steam vertically towards a turbine. A holographic display hovered slightly in front of him with a number that seemed to fluctuate based on the amount of steam he produced.
“Tough crowd.” Seta chimed in her ear. In all the hustle of the morning, Saeva had forgotten about her life long companion.
“Makes me wonder what kind of training I’m going to be getting up to.”
“Well that’s simple.” The young girl next to her said. Her voice was way too mature for her age. She appeared as if she should be in primary school. Should she even have a level at the age of nine? “For now you will be assigned to learn combat training. After a few weeks of that and they figure out your full adaptation list, they will assign target goals for improvement.”
“Who is this girl.” Seta chimed.
“Who are you?” Saeva asked.
“I’m Daisy.” Daisy said. “You know like the flower. Well the now extinct flower, but there are enough simulations of them, you should know what they are.”
The girl stood up and walked over to a massive weight room Saeva just not noticed off the left wall of the training room. And after she disappearing inside, Saeva was alone again. Until a large burly older man approached from across the room. He had just left out of a ridiculously small office given the scale of the spaces around them.
“Ms. Hawkins. I expect the best of your effort in the coming years.” He began. “I am instructor Abraham, you can call me Instructor. I wont be too serious all the time but don’t expect day care conditions, young lady.”
“Yes. It is nice to meet you.” Saeva replied. “I feel like I have a big gap to cross. I don’t have any experience in combat. Was preparing for a more scientific role.”
“Well good, that makes my job easier. Easier to sculpt, and easier to mold. Also saves me the torture of jamming knowledge into your skull. I swear” He said. He gestured a thumb behind him. “These trainees, heck half of them are children. Coming up from families with ties to the agency. They are apprentices and deadbeats a good even mix of both. You however are the first we have from one of the academy’s. Not many choose this path.”
“So what am I to do today?”
“Well you at least have the minimum required physical fitness given that your are a level negative.”
The room went silent. The only sound being the turbine slowly spinning a breeze throughout the room. Mid action, some in the middle of getting up after being knocked down in a spar, they all looked at Saeva. There were a mix of reactions. Raised eyebrows, agape jaws, and one man who was glaring. The Instructor turned around.
“I said get back to training, Dammit!” The man exclaimed. “ This ain’t a stage show.”
Everyone except the glaring eyes went back to what they were doing. However the vibe had shifted a little more hostile. Saeva could hear murmurs throughout the room, but nothing she could make out.
“As I was saying.” The Instructors voice was a little more polite than before. “You have the minimum physical fitness, so we will start you with spars today. Everyone will be made aware your lack of ability and we will walk your through the general combat moves step by step. However, you need to experience everything, including the pain first had. Its painful to fight. Whether you are the one receiving or throwing them out.”
Saeva was used to the treatment she received once people knew of her status. It was rare she told anyone, but once someone knew the gossip spread on it own like wildfire. She had grown a custom to dirty looks and shady gestures. So she just focused up and knew this was her chance to get past the general sentiment of her society.
Between the events during the day of the exam, and the increasing appearances of Level III adaptations, Saeva knew her time was coming.
“I will let our best fighter sort you out today.” Instructor said. “Jonathan!”
She was shocked to see that the boy who had been glaring at her for the past few minutes was the one who came over.
“Do I have to help her?” Jonathan said as he approached. He had a sneer in his words.
“Yes. We have to service everyone in this society, abled or not.” Instructor said. “You better shelve whatever thoughts you are harboring, or you will find yourself out on your keester. Now you have plasma abilities, and lack any strength or extraordinary level III adaptations. You are the perfect opponent for her. Abilities aside you will have comparable affects within hand to hand combat.”
“I’m not like her.” Jonathan said. The Instructors words had caused some sort of damage to his pride.”
“I’ll make it easier for you, young man. Either teach her, or you will find yourself deep down below this city tonight. Being kicked out of the AAL means you don’t have but hard prospects.”
“Oh I’ll do it.” Jonathan said. His eyes not showing his change of heart.
“Good. You can go to the area near the hallway, I’ll make sure the others activities wont get too near you.”
Jonathan and Saeva walked over to the open area near the floor to ceiling windows. Jonathan reluctantly showed her the basic moves and principles. After a few hours he recommended she sparred with him to get a good understanding of it all.
“Are you sure you should?” Seta said. “I mean even if he’s mellowed out a bit, that gleam in his eye is giving red flags.”
“Seta, set parameters to defense beta three.” Saeva said.
“What did you say?” Jonathan asked.
“Oh that wasn’t for you.”
“Are you sure this level of force is necessary.” Seta said. “Just be careful.”
“I have to bridge the gap somehow.”
“You can’t bridge this gap on day one. What do you think you are, Null’s aren’t something special. In fact you are human. What we used to be as a species. Left to be a walking reminder…”
“I’m filtering this guy out for a minute.” Seta said. “He’s annoying.”
“Okay can we just get on with it?” Saeva said.
Without response the man lunged for her. She reacted barely in the Knick of time jumping back as his sideways slice of his hand whizzed past her nose.
“I detected plasma eruptions from the back of his hand.” Seta chimed in.
Saeva tried to duck and roll like they had trained but fell flipping feebly around onto her back. As she got up slowly he kicked her legs off from under her.
“That was actually not bad.” Jonathan said. He let her get back to her feet and they resumed their stances. “More than I expected.”
Saeva this time quickly stepped forward the augmentations in her legs hurtling her towards the opponent with a single movement. Normally people with augmentations could only do so much, but with the integration of Seta into her thoughts and the augmentations throughout her body. It gave Saeva a slight boost in the usability. Instead of clunking around only using the enhancements as support to bridge the gap of power, she was able to channel every bit of energy into her normal movements.
She landed a hit as the man did not expect her to be so fast. Her palm slamming right into his cheek. The smack resounding throughout the room. He stumbled back, his neck red. Everyone had turned.
“All you did was smack him.” Seta said.
In moments he was back upon her. She barely dodged without fluidity, surviving alone on the calculations from Seta within her mind. Saeva was stuck on the back foot, lacking the actually combat experience and skills to make use of her movements. The man was getting more and more frustrated as he barely missed her time after time. He started to use parts of the martial arts he hadn’t showed her. Sliding and flipping around, his jabs coming from more and more unpredictable angles.
In a burst, his elbow a lit with plasma and he locked his arm back. Saeva tried to dodge but her back hit the concrete wall, hard. She felt pain radiate from her skull and down her spine. Their fight had drifted a good ways from where to had started. As his fist accelerated a shield manifested in front of Saeva.
It was transparent and a bright, as if sunlight had coalesced and solidified. She wasn’t entirely blinded by the brightness, although she was sure if this had appeared in front of her a week ago, she would not be able to see until she visited a doctor.
She watched as Jonathan’s fist slammed into the shield. His face alighting with pain as the smell of burnt air permeated the space around them. Then as if she had always been standing there, Mel flashed into existence.
“Jonathan, that could have killed her.” Mel said. She dissipated the construct.
“You saw her. She has to have augmentations. At best she would have just went to the infirmary.” Jonathan replied.
“It doesn’t matter. You need to back off. Ill take care of her training from here on out.”
“That is enough, Ms. Baker.” Instructor said appearing out of his office. “I am under the impression that Ms. Hawkins here would have made it through, even if a little scratched. Still it was a learning opportunity. Mr. Holloway, be away that the entire reason you got here was due to your fathers reputation amongst the upper parts of this city. And your behavior even if excused by the norms of our society, will not reflect favorably on him.”
“She’s a null, what use will she even be if she cant stand up to people as weak as me. Heck I’ve only been here a few months. She needs powers!” Jonathan replied.
“That is not for you to decide.” Instructor said. He turned to Mel. “Thank you Ms. Baker, I agree that you will handle all future training with Ms. Hawkins here. Please be more careful that your peers. Mr. Holloway, go back to what your regiment says.”
“He isn’t even going to acknowledge you?” Seta said after both men had walked away.
“I don’t know why he didn’t. But he clearly doesn’t harbor I’ll will if he knew I was a null and was polite to me.” Saeva said.
“Um. Who are you talking to?” Mel gave Saeva a skeptical look.
“Oh sorry. Seta can you project yourself so our new friend here can see you?”
In a glittering of light a starry nebula appeared, lights flickered at random from star to star forming an ever changing constellation.
“That is pretty wicked.” Mel said. “Also even though that was your first fight, you did amazing out there. The way you kept dodging him. I mean it wasn’t the cleanest of dodges and you looked absolutely ridiculous out there. But still to be able to avoid a lot of hits, that’s pretty considerably if you are a null.”
“You seem like you are okay with that idea.” Saeva replied. “Not everyone wants to keep talking to me when they find out my level.”
“Nonsense.” Mel replied. “I had a great uncle who was a null. Funniest guy I ever met. But you must be modded to the nines if you even survived against him. He wasn’t using his powers entirely at first, but towards the end he definitely was using them to produce more strength and speed. And still he only caught you cause you hit a wall.”
“She has some upgrades.” Seta said. Saeva swore the cloud of stars smirked. “I designed them myself. She can survive a deadly encounter for the most part. Not sure if she is up for the cataclysmic category if the earthquake incident wasn’t a sure enough tell.”
“You mean that big earthquake that shook the city?” Mel asked. “Were you one of the two assailants. Is that why they let you join even though you don’t have any levels?”
“No.” Seta replied. “She was taking her AAL practical examination in a sub basement of the academy. There were explosions caused by said earthquake event, I’m sure it was some ability. But she was injured in the collapsing wreckage. I had to do so much work to keep her alive. And yet I never got a thank you.”
The cloud of stars angrily glared at Saeva. The girl on the receiving in the of the glare just slumped.
“So much had happened.” Saeva said. “Thank you. Sorry I didn’t say so sooner.”
“You better be sorry. While you were subconscious I had to hack into the schools systems and order an ambulance call. Then I had to find a hospital that would take you. And on top of that I was awake for the entire week. Including the sleep for the past day.”
“Hey I said sorry.” Saeva replied.
“Guys. Im still here.” Mel said. “And what exactly is this cloud? Some sort of AI? I didn’t think they were sentient yet.”
“Damn well close!” Seta chimed in the lights brightening aggressively.
“We don’t know where she comes from. Most AIs aren’t even near her level of capability. Even the Automata need regular programming maintenance and input. Seta is something based off of me we think, but she has other personality tendencies to be more than just a copy of my mind.”
“You don’t know? Don’t this things have like info sections?” Mel asked.
“Well like I said she’s different. She’s a neural network like most AIs but there some magnitudes of sophistications that make her something more at the same time. Idk I think my parents my have made her or something. But after fifteen years of having something, you get used to it.”
“I get you.” Mel said. “Hopefully me and you can get along better than that halfwit who almost killed you.”
“You and me both."