Nanofibre Weave armour could be resized to fit another wearer. Anne’s suit fit her snugly.

The only issue was that she couldn’t summon it to encase her the way I could. And a few other - practical - considerations.

“How do I pee in this thing?” Anne asked.

“You hold it,” I explained. “I don’t have a decent catheter design.”

“That’s going to be a pain. Why can’t I summon and unsummon it like you?”

“You need to unlock Inventory for that.”

“When you unsummon the suit it goes into Inventory?”

“Depends. If I’m in the workshop it goes onto the table. If I’m in the field I can stash it in Inventory.” I’d discovered this little feature through an awkward experiment in the garden. “Leaves me in my underwear, however.”

“Let’s avoid that. Can I wear normal clothes under this thing?”

“You’ll melt in the heat.”

“Crap. Why can’t I see Inventory anyway?”

“You get Inventory at Level 4.”

“Double crap…. It took you months to get to Level 4.”

“Actually…. It’s a question of fights.”

“Fights?”

“You gain XP like crazy in a fight. Combat seems to get rewarded.” I paused. “Although I wouldn’t recommend it for you just yet.”

“Obviously not. I’ll want to get some control of my powers first. Hey, this is pretty heavy.”

“Your suit weighs about twenty kilos, while mine weighs thirty-four.”

“Yeah but you’ve got a strength of 18 and I’m at 7. That means I can carry less than you, right?”

I sighed. “You’re right. No point in getting you slowed down and pinned. I’d still feel better if you were in a suit, though.”

“So would I.”

“So that means …. strength training.”

“....Seriously?”

“Yes, seriously. Tomorrow onwards? You’re taking gym.”

“I hate gym. All those girls keep looking at me like a leper.”

“You’re an ultra. The opinions of petty mortals are beneath you.”

“You know, that’s the most villainous thing I’ve heard you say.”

“Focus. Anyway, that’s the armour. I’ll also make you a laser rifle. Just in case.”

“Aren’t I supposed to be controlling nanobots?”

“Nanoscale robots, yes.”

“Nanobots is cooler. I should be energizing a cloud of nanobots….. Hey, I like that.”

“What?”

“I just thought of my superhuman name. Nanocloud.” Anne grinned expectantly. “Because I’m controlling a cloud of nanobots…. Nanocloud and Belessar, Dragonfly team.”

“Sounds cool. Did you get a quest?”

“No, I didn’t get a quest. Why? Should I have?”

“I don’t know. It’s just that, whenever I get to some deep insight, I either get a +1 to Wisdom or get a new quest.”

“Not happening here. I don’t even have a Quest Log like you.” She shrugged. “Maybe I’m supposed to get one when I become a hero on my own, not a sidekick.”

“You’re not a sidekick.”

“Oh? So you’re going to let me bust down doors and go head-to-head with Grunters?”

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

“.... you’re a sidekick.”

“Cool! And as a sidekick, I should be doing a backup and support role. For which I need nanobots.” She frowned. “Which we still haven’t figured out how to make….”

“I have an idea on that front.” I pulled out a square cardboard box of sand and put it on the table. “Can you focus on the individual grains? See if you can feel them?”

“With my mind, you mean?”

“With your mind.”

Anne squinted at the box of sand.

Seconds passed.

Nothing happened.

More seconds passed.

Nothing happened.

Anne frowned, then gave me an irritated look. “That was supremely useless.”

“Patience. We need to keep trying, figure out how to trigger your power.”

"You're not going to make me go wax-on, wax-off are you?"

"What? No, this isn't Karate Kid."

"So what now, O Great Trainer?"

"Keep trying, I suppose?"

"Or, I could take a break until you come up with a decent idea." Anne sniffed. "I'll be in my room."

"I'll... think of something."

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

Half an hour later, I was stirring my latest creation when Anne wandered by. "Why are you pouring the jam into that saucepan?"

"It's not jam, it's batter," I replied, pouring the mixture gently into the hot oil. "I'm making jalebis."

"Nice. Aren't they, like, ridiculously sweet?"

"They're meant to be." I stirred the mixture gently counterclockwise, watching carefully as spirals of golden-orange fluid spun outward from the centre. "It's like a blissful summer sweetness that melts in your mouth."

"Sounds like you were a fan. Something from your past coming back?"

I shrugged. "Maybe. I just felt like jalebis."

"Maybe it's a clue about your past life? You could be a jalebi fan!"

"Worth checking out. Maybe I lived near a jalebi store?"

"Let's check." Anne frowned and pulled out her tab, typing rapidly. "Huh."

"What?"

"There are no jalebi shops in Tanisport. You can get them in California, New York and Detroit, but not here."

"How do you know that?"

"SweetAmerica.com has a tracker. You name the product, they'll tell you where to find it."

"That's useful to have."

"You know.... my grandma never moved to a town unless they had a place that sold Indian sweets. One of the reasons Mom came to Tanisport was because she knew Grandma would never, ever settle here."

"Sounds like they had a troubled relationship."

"You have no idea. Dad told me some of the screaming matches they used to have…. I don't remember Grandma Sangeeta much, though."

"What happened to her?"

"She was in Detroit during the 2067 attack. Didn't make it out."

"I'm sorry to hear that. What was she like? Do you remember?"

"Not much. She was half Indian from her dad's side. Worked in software development. Mom moved out when she was eighteen and came to Tanisport. Met Dad and got married soon after."

"That must have gone over well."

"Dad told me once that they didn't talk much. She left us some things in her will, though. Some cash that Mom used to pay off the house, a bunch of old furniture - the guestroom stuff, actually - a whole bunch of data files, and her college programming textbooks."

"Are those helpful?"

"Yeah, the textbooks cover a ton of programming concepts. It's strange but I'm actually finding them easier to understand now…."

"Did you try them before?"

"A couple of years ago, and they went over my head at the time. Now, though, it's a lot easier to understand them. Could be the skill."

"Could also be the difference between seventh and ninth grade."

"There is that. Check out what I made." She held her palm up.

"Am I supposed to see something?"

"It's a nanobot. Okay, granted you can't see them, wait…"

A tiny light began to flicker in mid-air.

"I can make them glow."

"Is that a flying bot?"

"Yeah. It's tiny enough that basic wings let it float. Cool, right?"

"Absolutely. What's it made of?"

"Wood. I got it to self-assemble. It taps into power and can move on its own at roughly walking speed."

"What materials have you tried it with?"

"Soap and wood. The soap one didn't last very long."

"What prompted you to try soap?"

"I was in the shower and the soap bar slipped out of my hand. Got a bit irritated. A piece chipped off when it hit the floor and I sort of ... projected my anger at it."

"You yelled at soap chips?"

"Some curse words were involved. The piece of soap dissolved into these tiny fragments which went all over the place."

"Your first nanobots."

"Which lasted up until the hot water hit them. For my second try I decided to try a less water soluble material. Went to the garden, broke off a twig from the bush, and my second nanobot got created."

"Did you have to yell at it?"

"Thankfully not. My powers work when I'm calm too. I'll try different materials and see what type of bots I can make."

"And the power source?"

"Cloud energization. Apparently it's pulling power from somewhere, maybe my body. I'll take this and practice... ow!" She pulled her hand back.

From the hot plate of jalebis.

I gave her a stern look. "I'll get you a plate when they cool."

"Fine," she pouted, "but they better be good."