"Damn." Calvin could only mutter a curse at the beautiful sight in front of him

Somehow Ina was holding up against Lightspeed.

She dashed in unpredictable fleetness, spun in beautiful arcs. Her two batons whipped and stabbed, making the air whistle from the force, aiming directly at empty air where Lightspeed will eventually appear.

Her swings were forceful and free, but they neither felt imprecise nor uncontrolled. Like butterfly wings that danced around, forming beautiful patterns in the air above a particularly sweet flower.

Unfortunately, Lightspeed took the flow of the fight back from her, literally overpowering her with his superior physique. He forcefully shoved the batons heading his way, making Ina bound back towards the far corner of the circle.

Ina flipped and rolled, breaking the force as she landed. Immediately throwing her batons to the side, she raised both her palms in the air.

"What are you doing?" Lightspeed asked, the tone of his voice ringing a pitch lower.

Ina smiled slyly, "I surrender?"

The corner of the hero's eye twitched lightly. He breathed deeply for a moment before nodding, "who taught you to fight?"

"My teacher." She shrugged with nonchalance.

His eyes sharpened, a hateful glare came from the hero. "You don't need my advice, do you?"

Ina grinned ear to ear, giving him silence as an answer before walking out of the circle.

All eyes of the group were on her as she walked back and sat beside Calvin, a deceivingly innocent smile on her face as her eyes went down to her subtly trembling hands. Her attention was drawn by Calvin giving a small sound of amazement.

"What?" She asked, seeing his eyes scrutinize her.

"That was badass." He admitted, giving her a thumbs up. 'And incredibly cathartic. Fuck that guy.'

"I am badass." She nodded, a genuine smile returning to her face.

He nodded. "How'd you do that?"

"Practice." She gestured helplessly. "Besides, he went easy on me."

"It didn't look like he did."

"Even if I tried my best, I'd only be able to bruise him even with a heavier weapon. You saw what he did with that last attack. I'm not a super, so unless I have tinker tech there wouldn't be a scratch on him." She explained. "Plus, he wasn't attacking. Not before that last shove."

'It looked more like he couldn't attack.' He thought to himself. "Still badass."

"I know." Her grin grew wider again.

As the two talked, Calvin noticed Lightspeed walking over to them from the corner of his eye. Calvin tensed up. He lowered his head, slightly regretting that he didn't take Quinn's offer to wear her cap.

'Damn kitty cat hat.' He cursed.

"Ina." He read her name tag. "Are you interested in joining the Vanguard Internship program? I can act as your sponsor."

"Recruiting before power awakening is frowned upon, Mr. Lightspeed." Ina frowned. "And I don't need a sponsorship."

"I'm sorry, seeing your talent I had to mention it at least." He gestured helplessly. He reached hand forward, a piece of paper appearing in between fingertips he offered to Ina. "Just in case you change your mind."

Ina stared at the paper for a moment before deciding to take it. "I'll think about it."

"That's all I can ask for." Lightspeed nodded. He then turned to Calvin which made the latter want to shrink further into a singularity. "You okay there?"

"Peachy." Calvin answered.

"Have we met?"

"I don't think so."

"Are you sure?"

"Really sure."

"It's rude not to look while talking, you know?"

"Your suit is pure white, sir. I have really sensitive eyes." He turned to the side to hide his face, glancing briefly at Lightspeed towering over him.

Lightspeed squinted suspiciously. "Come to the ring, I'll teach you how to punch."

"I'm sure I'll get to learning that some other time." Calvin shook his head vigorously.

"No time like the present." Lightspeed argued.

"I'm more of a 'fashionably late' kind of guy."

Calvin couldn't see it, but he could practically hear the man's eyelids twitching in annoyance. Thankfully, he said nothing more and left him alone, walking towards another teen to inevitably harass.

"You avoiding him?" Ina asked when Lightspeed got out of earshot.

"Was it obvious?" He smirked underneath the mask. He glanced towards Lightspeed, finding him paying attention to another teen, "it's... complicated. Let's just say we're not good friends."

"Even Queenie could've guessed that." She shook her head. "What'd you do?"

"Maybe I'll tell you some other time. Just not here."

Allen Prime woke up from his mini-nap, looking like he was lost in a different timeline. The man's eye bags seemed to grow every week.

"Alright, are we all done? Because I really only reserved this place for around three hours and we're about to run out of time." Allen Prime asked the two heroes who nodded in affirmative. Seeing that, Allen waved his hand and took out a long table filled with snacks. "Get some food in you while I make some announcements."

If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

As he said that he began pocketing some cupcakes into his surprisingly spacious pants.

"There's no prize for anything today, just the experience of having been advised by two legitimate heroes and, of course, yours truly." He bragged humbly. "Of course, the fight wasn't just so you could get some pointers or punching heroes, your powers and current skill will also be analyzed by the nerds in the nerd department so that we can give you recommendations for schools, personal trainers, or even apprenticeships."

"Apprenticeships?" Calvin asked Ina in a whisper.

"Some powers are very similar. Some are even the exact same." She explained simply.

'So can people apprentice under supers with similar powers. Makes sense. I wonder if anyone has the same mighty pebble?'

"As some of you may know, or may have noticed, things are happening in the headquarters. Next week, there's a delegation arriving from Steel City, or Cold Steel Empire as the pricks like to be called," Allen heard a cough from Lightspeed which he entirely ignored, "anyway, it doesn't matter to us, so the schedule is unchanged. It might get a bit cramped in the elevator, so just in case I recommend you all to know where the stairs are."

Allen walked to the snack table and started pocketing some cupcakes into his surprisingly spacious jogging pants.

"Anyway, that's all. See you all next week." He turned to the two heroes, sending them two thumbs up. "You guys can leave or eat some snacks, I'll send a confirmation to the handler. Good job."

"Thank you, Instructor Allen." Lightspeed nodded.

"Eugh, no. I told you, it's just Allen." He shriveled, hearing the word 'Instructor', before running away and out of the room.

"Ina!" Quinn came bounding back into Ina's embrace. "Let's go out! There's this new place in the square-"

While Quinn was talking, Calvin sneakily glanced towards the two heroes, itching to go out of the room. Unfortunately they were too close to the exit, and he felt Lightspeed was too suspicious of him not to ask questions.

He saw the speedster glance his way before whispering to his partner who also started looking towards him, albeit more blatantly.

"-really good, with butter and lobster and-"

"Can I come with?" Calvin asked, nervousness overpowering embarrassment.

"No, Ina and I haven't hung out together for so long."

"We were literally together this morning." Ina pinched Quinn's cheek. "Sure. You can tell us the thing."

"What thing?" Quinn looked confused.

Not bothering to weigh his options, he agreed with a nod. "Let's go?"

"Why not." Ina nodded, placating Quinn's glare with a pat on the back.

On the way out, Calvin didn't forget to stash some of the untouched snacks in his newly-upgraded pocket. Last week barely any of the food was taken, so he unashamedly took enough until next week.

'Eggs, salt, butter, vanilla, pistachio, and rosewater. Damn. No wonder he always pockets a few of these' He smelled the cupcake before stashing it.

"Stop stealing food and let's go." Ina grabbed his wrist and dragged him to the exit.

His plan was to use the two as a shield, so that he wasn't isolated by the two heroes. He'd stand at the far end of the group as they walked through, like a proper introvert.

Unfortunately, as was said by some military leader back on Earth he didn't know the name of, no plan ever survives first contact with the enemy, nor the idiocy of the planner. He was noticeably taller, and was wearing a red jacket.

"Calvin, can we talk to you for a second." Lightspeed immediately zeroes in on him.

'Fuck. Plan B.' He cursed internally. "Uh, we're in a hurry, so-"

"It'll only take a second." He grabbed his arm quite tightly and pulled him closer.

"Hey." Ina tried to get in between them but Lightspeed was a super.

"Lightspeed." Frostbloom warned him from behind with a soft tap of his shoulder. "We just need to see your face, Calvin. Just to confirm something."

"What's this about?" Calvin asked, secretly pulling on his power at the ready.

"Just take the mask off before I do it." Lightspeed frowned.

He frowned. 'Fuck, I hope this works.'

Calvin unlatched the ear strap and took the mask off, showing his face to the two heroes. Quinn and Ina looked at him incredulously, Quinn stifling a laughter after a moment of quiet. The two heroes looked at each other before Lightspeed let him go.

"Sorry, we thought you were someone else." Lightspeed bowed slightly.

"So that's why he was wearing that..." A trace of pity and shame was on Frostbloom's face as she muttered an apology.

Calvin said nothing, looking blankly at the two of them before he put the mask back on. His heart beat a drum solo in his chest, and he wasn't about to show the two heroes how nervous he was.

The three of them went out the door in silence, and walked through the hallway with only the echoes of their footsteps filling the void in the air. It wasn't until they were alone in the elevator that Quinn burst into a fit of laughter.

"Ha! What was that? A pencil moustache?!" She managed to ask in between laughs.

"Yeah, yeah. Laugh it out." Calvin rolled his eyes, reverting the colors on his face.

He had manipulated the color on his face to look like he had a pencil moustache, along with a small piercing and a scar mark to complete the look. He also discolored his skin a little bit, adding some shading and contouring here and there to change the overall feel of his face.

'All those make-up tutorial rabbit holes were somehow worth it.' He thought, thanking beauty creators.

"You have a power?" Ina looked at him with furrowed brows.

"I'd call it more of a party trick." He shrugged. "Thanks for not blurting out anything."

"You looked so funny! Ow-"

Ina flicked Quinn's forehead. "Since when?"

"Believe it or not, last week." He chuckled, actually telling the truth this time. "A day after the workshop."

"I was with you then."

"I got it at night, a few hours after the fight club thing."

"How convenient." Her words were full of doubt, but she let it go.

"What's your power? Moustache growth? Ha!"

"Yes, and if you keep laughing I'll have you grow a very large and bushy moustache." He waved his fingers like a magician towards her.

Quinn shut up, covering her mouth immediately with fear in her eyes.

----------------------------------------

"How are you two going to finish that?" Ina asked, looking at the incredible amount of food in front of both of her friends.

"Happily." Quinn answered seriously.

"With relish." Calvin added.

The two had found kinship in an unexpected love of food. Although Calvin was mostly taking advantage of Quinn saying it was her treat, surprisingly the girl had approved of his overly-indulgent order.

"So, can you tell us now?" Ina asked in the middle of a meal. "Why you were avoiding them?"

"Yeah, and what was that in the entrance? Why were they looking for you?" Quinn added after swallowing a lobster roll. "Are you a secret villain or something?"

"Yes, I give moustaches to people. Evil moustaches." He rolled his eyes. "No- I just, sorta, kinda... knocked him on his ass a few weeks ago."

"What?" The two of them paused their eating.

"I knocked him out, I think? I don't know, but last I saw him he was on the ground." He recalled the events of the elevator.

"How'd you do that?"

"I introduced a rather immovable piece of rock in front of his face as he dashed towards me."

Ina squinted at him. "You mean a wall? You made him dash into a wall?"

"More or less." 'A lot less than a wall.' He shrugged.

"Why were you fighting?" Quinn asked.

"I wasn't. I was defending myself. He just suddenly pinned me to a wall, I broke out, tricked him, then voila." He summarized with as little detail as possible.

Seeing as he wasn't going to provide more, Ina continued eating and let it go. "That's why you had to disguise yourself?"

"He seemed like the vindictive type. Did you see his face after you kicked his ass?"

Quinn looked at Ina. "You kicked his ass? Aw, did you take a video?"

"I was too busy watching her smack his stupid golden egg head." He smiled, reminiscing at how she danced around him earlier. "You're not surprised?"

"You've known her for a week. I've known her since we were born." She stuck her tongue out at Calvin.

They finished the giant mountain of food in front of them, satisfaction plastered on the face of the two gluttons. Ina almost left the two in the restaurant but thankfully Quinn had latched on to her waist before she could stand up.

"Never eating with you two again." Ina muttered, carrying her friend on her back. Quinn had passed out from a food coma.

"I thought you knew her since you were born?" Calvin asked.

"We've been friends for a long time, but I'm not an enabler like you." Ina grunted.

She took out her holowatch and called up a car again. The fast gray car appeared in front of them in a flash, its engine purring a sweet sound as it idled and opened the doors.

After stuffing Quinn snugly in the back seat, Ina walked to the front and got in.

"See you next week." Calvin nodded before turning around.

"Where are you going? I'll give you a lift." Ina offered, patting the front passenger seat.

"You sure?" He asked.

"Just come in."

"Okay." He shrugged. "You can just drop me off at your restaurant."

Ina turned to him with a sly smile. "What? Afraid I'll find your villain lair?"

"Secret underground villain lair." He corrected, twirling an invisible moustache.

Ina scoffed and started pressing buttons on her holowatch. The car turned on automatically, its engines started to roar as the vehicle accelerated to the speed limit. Surprisingly, Calvin felt nothing despite the speed.

"Cool." He muttered, looking at the 'driver' that was still on her watch. 'Autopilot. Of course there's autopilot.'

"So." Ina looked at him. "What's your actual power?"

Calvin decided to just show her and change the color of his attire into all blue. "Ta-da"

"Huh. Color change?"

"Pretty much." He reset the colors.

Calvin turned to look at her when she didn't reply. He could see her eyes were already hazy, and he could only guess that she was already daydreaming about all possible applications his power has. Just like every time she saw an interesting power or power usage.

He smiled, watching her mumble to herself.

"Hey, want to learn how to fight?"