After a short sprint, the two boys made it to Train Station 4. Train Stations in Seraph City were beyond state-of-the-art. If there was a blue sky above them, one would think they were in some kind of classy airport. Just as Jeremiah said, the L-Train was no longer accepting passengers. But it was still there, preparing to move at a speed that would put traditional bullet trains to shame. Because of the near instant velocity of these Trains, there was a bright, holographic neon red line separating future passengers from the Tram itself by a couple dozen feet.

Panting, Jeremiah looked to his roommate.

“Like… I said… It’s closed… and we can’t get on.” He huffed. “Now what?”

Jeremiah turned his attention away from Isaac and to the L-Train which was producing a shrill, elongated beep, like some kind of laser beam sound effect in an old school movie. That meant it was preparing to shoot itself through the maze-like tunnels underneath Seraph City.

“Yo, Jerry. Hold my hand.”

“What?”

“Don’t make it weird, my man.” Isaac laughed, throwing his hand out to Jeremiah. “There’s only one thing you need to do for my master plan, and it’s holding my hand.”

Jeremiah grimaced. He didn’t want people getting the wrong idea, and it also felt like this was a setup for an unfunny joke, but Jeremiah was desperate for this to work out somehow. At the edge of the safety line, just as Jeremiah grasped Isaac’s hand, the Train shot down the railway.

And so did the two boys.

Jeremiah wasn’t quite sure what was happening at first. Everything seemed like it was in slow motion, and yet the world was blurring around him. He was no longer on the Train Station’s metal floor, but on the railways itself? Jerry’s eyes, moving slower than ever, looked to Isaac first. Isaac had an even wider grin than before, his eyes were glued on the Tram that the two were somehow matching speed with. That’s when Jeremiah realized what was happening.

Isaac was keeping pace with a HardTek Train, running behind it and dragging Jeremiah with him. Afterimages of themselves were left behind in the unbelievable speed Isaac and Jeremiah maintained. Jeremiah was too scared to speak, to scream, even to move. He just squeezed Isaac’s hand and shut his eyes. What would happen when they stop? Would the whiplash from instantly stopping break their bodies apart? Is Isaac literally insane?

When Jeremiah opened his eyes, all three questions were answered. Normal sound returned to him, and the blur and afterimages were gone. They were directly behind the Train, now motionless. Isaac whooped and let go of Jeremiah’s hand to offer a high five instead. Jeremiah, still in shock, slowly raised his hand with a blank stare and an open mouth.

“Let’s go, baby!” Isaac harshly high fived his roommate and rapidly fist pumped. “These Hardy-techy Train things are sick! Way faster than anything topside!” Isaac quickly came down from his high and started scrambling to climb up the platform.

“Oh, crap. We gotta act natural, like we were on the Train, ya get me?”

“R-right…”

Isaac made it onto the exit platform and struggled to pull Jeremiah up. Just as they made it up, The L-Train doors opened. The two roommates leaned against the side of the L-Train, and as students began to exit, they awkwardly acted as if they were walking out as well, whistling like idiots. It was not as convincing as it could be, only because the amount of passengers were surprisingly small. Jeremiah noted that only nine kids and a couple adults were leaving the Train.

Either way, it seemed as if they were in the clear. Only one person seemed to notice them. Jeremiah and Isaac both tensed up under the frigid stare of a taller girl with bright auburn hair. She looked at the two of them, emotionless, and yet still somehow accusatory. Jeremiah subconsciously exhaled, while Isaac cleared his throat and laughed nervously.

“Uh, what’s up?”

“H-hi?”

“...”

The girl responded with silence. Jeremiah’s anxiousness began to spike. What did Isaac drag him into? There was no way they didn’t break a thousand rules by doing that. Was she gonna report them?

As if she could hear Jeremiah’s thoughts, this expressionless girl was expressionless no more. A sardonic smile slowly crept upon her face. With a flip of her hair, she turned away from the two and confidently continued off of the exit platform and towards the tunnel leading aboveground. Jeremiah’s fear lessened, albeit barely, and was overpowered by indignation.

“So that was your master plan?” Jeremiah whispered.

“Yup. Pretty sick right? My Blessing is that if I see something go from still to moving, I can copy it’s speed as long as-”

“Why didn’t you tell me you were gonna break a thousand regulations before that!” Jeremiah realized he was yelling as a couple of the passengers turned back, eyebrows raised. He felt himself shrink down, but still glared at Isaac.

“But now we’re on time thanks to your boy, so it’s all good.” Isaac bragged. “And you looked sad when you said you were gonna be late and stuff, so I figured I would pay you back for waking me up.”

Jeremiah sighed, and it felt like his anger was leaving with his breath.

“Forget it. I appreciate your help, but just tell me what you’re thinking before you do it.”

“Jokes on you, I don’t do thinking!” Isaac laughed, wrapping his arm over Jeremiah’s shoulder.

“Somehow, I feel like you aren’t joking.”

“Hm? Who’s joking?”

“Let’s just meet our Instructor, Isaac.”

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

Downtown Seraph was as divorced from Jeremiah’s home as possible.

He was far from home to be sure, but the urban environment could convince him he was on another planet entirely. Jeremiah felt like an invasive species, moving from a real jungle to a concrete counterpart. Somehow, the smell hasn’t changed. Jeremiah frowned. The city was dense, sprawling and dizzying. It felt as though there was a shiny skyscraper for each head in the ambling crowds surrounding him. Like gaps between window blinds, large blimps went in and out of sight behind the buildings. Like the skyscrapers, they shared the same glossy surface, shining in the sky.

“Yo, Jerry.”

“It’s Jeremiah. What is it?”

“Still upset about my master plan?”

“Don’t remind me. That was definitely illegal, by the way.”

“Yeahhhh, probably.”

Jeremiah sighed, “What were you going to ask?”

“Oh yeah,” Isaac perked up. “What’s with these buildings? They’re all glossy and stuff.”

“They’re screens. For emergency announcements and warnings.”

Isaac stared at his reflection in one of the buildings.

“For Adversaries, right?”

Jeremiah nodded.

“You’d have to be a pretty dangerous Adversary to show up on the big screens, but that’s correct.”

Jeremiah almost started a lengthy lecture on the Seraph Police Department’s casualty control response procedures, but was brutally interrupted.

“Yo, there’s the spot!” With an excited whoop, Isaac shot a finger toward a dense patch of green in the distance.

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Jeremiah’s stomach churned.

First impressions, Jeremiah thought. Way scarier than an Adversary.

Instructor Hill waited for them right where he said they would. Sitting on a bench just outside the evergreen Hunting Park in Downtown Seraph. The two boys slowed their pace a bit as they approached him.

What a weirdly normal guy!

The baggy turtleneck sweater and square glasses made him seem plain in an extraordinary way. The sweater couldn’t exactly hide his built physique, and the glasses couldn’t obscure the bold and resolute focus in his eyes. He sat with a mixture of leisure and alertness. Relaxed in posture, but his eyes tell a different story. This is the plain man who bumps shoulders with retired Dominion Agents in the jewel Principality of T.H.R.O.N.E. without a single Heroic Deed to his name.

It doesn’t matter. Jeremiah thought. If he became a Major Instructor, that means he earned it somehow. Merit was all that mattered in Seraph. Nepotism and bribes can only take one so far in this district. If this place cared about merit more than anything, that means they’ll look past Jeremiah’s… everything if he could just prove himself. A small smile appeared on Jeremiah’s face, a symptom of his excitement.

As long as he could keep up, this Instructor would teach him great things.

“Yo Teach, we made it!” Isaac said. He ran up to Instructor Hill and threw his hand up for a high five. Jeremiah tried not to gawk. Why is Isaac acting so familiar with him? To Jeremiah’s doubled horror, Instructor Hill returned the gesture instantly.

“You certainly have, Isaac.” Instructor Hill replied, his eyes melting into gentle warmness. His voice was soft and friendly. Something like an elementary school teacher, and not a mentor to future superpowered soldiers.

“You say that as if arriving here was an accomplishment, though. Why is that?”

Isaac started scratching his birthmark, obviously a nervous tic.

“W-well, uh, I mean.” Isaac stuttered. He looked at Jeremiah and quickly threw an arm over his shoulder again.

“My man Jerry here ain’t used to Seraph so I had to help him out! Yeah!”

Jeremiah gave a weak smile in concurrence.

“Ah, yes. Jeremiah. I’m Roger Hill. Feel free to call me what you like.” Instructor Hill stood up, revealing an imposing height. He towered over Jeremiah and extended a large, rough hand. Jeremiah took it, and the ensuing handshake nearly tore his arm off.

“I read the examination on your Blessing! It’s quite exciting to meet another student with a power brimming with such potential!”

“Uh, thanks?” Jeremiah said. The image he had crafted of the Instructor was obliterated in a single exchange. His Instructor smiled wide like a child seeing their favorite Agent. All for someone like Jeremiah. You don’t have to patronize me.

“No, thank you!” Instructor Hill quickly replied. He let go of Jeremiah’s hand, still smiling like an idiot as he plopped back onto the bench seat.

“And now, we wait for Ashley.”

“Ashley didn’t show up yet?” Isaac asked. “I didn’t see her come out of the train.”

Does everyone know each other but me?

“We took the last train for another thirty minutes, so… she might be late.” Jeremiah said. Roger frowned a little, but shrugged.

“It’s nothing I didn’t expect. We can wait thirty minutes, can’t we?”

Ashley showed up over an hour later.

“Sorry I’m late~! I was too busy with my makeup and couldn’t make the train♡!”

Jeremiah knew for a fact he had never seen Ashley at the dorms. After all, how could he forget a sight like this?

This girl was vibrant to say the least. Her blonde hair was clearly dyed, with multicolored tips at the end. The amount of loose colored bands on her wrists should be an impossibility at worst, and uncomfortable at best. Jeremiah’s seen this kind of fashion statement before, but didn’t really believe it was something girls actually fell for. But at the same time, she wasn’t gaudy enough to be unsightly. Her pink lipstick didn’t make a mockery of her lips, but accentuated them. The eyelash extensions looked heavy, but brought out her green contacts. It was a bit much, for sure, but she was a tasteful kind of-

Jeremiah realized he was staring. So was she. He made an indiscernible sound and snapped his head toward his shoes. From his peripherals, the fashionista was still looking at him. Jeremiah slowly craned his head back towards her, preparing a line to recover his chance at a good impression on a classmate he’ll have for years.

“Umm… Sorry about that, I was just surprised by how you look—not that you look bad! You look good, it’s just that…” He trailed off as the girl slowly raised a finger, pointing a long, acrylic nail at him. She smiled wide and pleasantly.

“Froggy~!”

The color drained from Jeremiah’s gawking face. He returned his gaze to the ground, gritting his teeth. What was he thinking? Of course she was staring at him because he’s a freak. What could he even say to make a good first impression when his face does all the talking for him?

“No, Ashley.” Isaac said with a mocking sternness, like scolding a kid. “His name is Jerry. Not Froggy.”

“I know, he just looks like one.” Ashley chuckled.

“Wrong again, Ash. He definitely looks more like a toa-” Isaac caught himself when he noticed Jeremiah’s glare. Jeremiah suddenly realized he disliked everyone here. He turned towards Instructor Hill, who tugged at his turtleneck sweater like a nervous boy, waiting for a chance to break the ice. He’s the one I dislike the most, Jeremiah realized. He’s the least honest.

As if he could hear Jeremiah’s thoughts, Instructor Hill cleared his throat to speak.

“Now that everyone is here, we can begin our first day of Waiting List Training!” It seemed like Instructor Hill’s enthusiasm returned with those words. He pulled a small notepad from his pocket and began flipping through pages.

“Miscellaneous Agents are few and far between, even in a Principality like Myriad High. This means Miscellaneous classes are just as rare. As you all know, you’ve had to wait some time before a suitable class can begin, but time is a commodity you’ll want to make the most of.” He smiled and held his arms out in pride.

“But you three already knew that. It’s why you are here, ready and willing to make the most of your time on the Waiting List! For that, you three have my respect.” Instructor Hill bowed slightly. Jeremiah looked to his two peers. They both shrugged and smirked. He’s always like this, they seemed to say.

“For now, let’s start with introductions, then we can—Oh?” Instructor Hill looked to see a small child scampering up to him. The little girl tugged at his slacks, so he kneeled down. A single eyebrow raised as the child whispered something in his ear. After a moment, he smiled and stood back up. With a single adjustment of his glasses he spoke, his voice deep and monotone.

“Small change of plans. Opportunity strikes.”