"I have come here to give you the results of your aptitude test." The man checked the clipboard he was carrying. "Congratulations Mr. Chambers, you have been selected as one of the few A+ ranked talents chosen this year.

Rather than being shocked, Reed was happy that he met up to his expectations. The same couldn’t be said for his mom however.

“W-what? Did I hear that right? A+ level talent?” His mom stuttered.

“Yes ma’am. Your son is exceptionally talented. We had fairly high expectations of him before the test, but he exceeded them by a large margin.”

“Excuse me sir,” Reed cut in, “but I thought that the talent level only went up to A?”

“Well that is usually the case, however there are times when we decide that someone exceeds those with A level talent by a margin large enough to be placed in a separate group.”

“Then what’s the difference between them? Do I get better initial career opportunities than the A level talents?” Reed questioned.

“Not quite. You are given the opportunity to join a government funded academy for Players for the next four years to prepare you for… cooperation with interstellar activities.” The man carefully chose his words.

“I see… can you give me time to think? Also, what is a Player?” Reed didn’t want to make a split second decision about his future.

“Yes. You have three days before I need to hear your answer. In the meantime please go meet with your test supervisor to get the direct results of your test, she should tell you more about Players. Here’s my number, please use this to contact me when you have made your decision.” The man nodded towards Reed’s mom and left the room.

“Honey, I knew you were talented but I didn’t know you had this much potential. This… this is your decision to make, however please know that no matter what happens you will always have a home to return to.” His mom embraced him for a moment. “I’ll leave now so you can think in peace.”

Left alone, Reed didn’t know where to begin. Before he sat down and thought too deeply about whether he would attend the academy or not he decided to head down to the test center and get his results from the test supervisor, Amanda.

Soon after putting on his clothes his phone vibrated.

Ema: Hey dude

Ema: you up yet?

Ema: Let's meet up!

He smiled.

Reed: ya sure

Reed: Lemme get my test results first

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Reed: Where do ya want to meet

Ema: Let’s meet down on mainstreet. There’s a coffee shop that’s pretty good.

Reed: Got it, I’ll head down when I’m done.

Putting his phone away, he felt refreshed. He hadn’t had someone to talk to like this in years. It felt good to have peers to talk to.

After the short walk to the test center and the troublesome body search to be allowed in, Reed found himself in front of Amanda.

“Reed, you’re here. It’s good that you’re up and moving now. I was worried something bad happened after you passed out in the mental test.”

“No need to worry, I’m perfectly fine. I was just a bit tired after the test.” Reed dismissed her worries.

“Well, enough with that. You’re probably here for your test results. Here take this.” She handed Reed a sheet of paper.

Name: Reed Chambers

Age: 18

Talent: A+

Strength: F+

Stamina: E

Speed: E+

Mental Strength: A+

Player Ability: ???

‘My strength, stamina, and speed are all probably higher than that now after I absorbed that energy.’ Reed thought, ‘but even then I’m not even close to A rank am I?’

“Um, excuse me, but what is a Player Ability?” Reed was bewildered by the question marks.

“It is your innate characteristic. It’s something like a fingerprint, in that it is something that differs depending on the person. You see, every human has one dormant inside of them. However, only a select few can access them. This is because in order to awaken your Player Ability you need the assistance of technology that we humans appropriated from the extraterrestrials.”

‘Then… does that mean that my player ability and that energy in my body are two different things?’ Reed was only getting more confused, ‘am I somehow different?’

“How do I become a Player?” Even though he was confused it was clear that in order to become stronger Reed needed to unlock his.

“Well for you… you would need to join the academy. All the potential players are sent there to be nurtured into the strongest they can be.”

“Ah, I see. Thanks for telling me all this.” Reed thanked her and took his leave.

‘Joining the academy would make me stronger, but still… I don’t know if I should leave my family all alone for so long.’ He was still indecisive about it. ‘Maybe Ema will be able to answer some of my questions.’

____________________

Reed arrived at the coffee shop and entered. Its fresh aroma tickled at his nose. The decorations on the wall and choice of furniture made the place appear very homey.

Looking around he noticed Ema already sitting in the corner of the store, waving him over.

“Heya Reed, how’re you feeling?” She asked. “Nevermind, you got here so you’re probably fine.”

“Yup, I was fine after I woke up. I was just a bit overstimulated after the test.” He responded, smirking a bit at her attitude. “By the way, why’d you call me over here?”

“Two reasons. One, because I wanted to know if you got invited to join the academy. Two, because we’re friends asshole.”

“Oh. Are you actually a big softie behind all that cursing?” Reed teased.

“Shut up already, did you make it into the academy or not?” Her face went a little red from embarrassment.

“Yeah I got the invitation. I haven’t decided whether I’ll go or not yet though. I’m not sure if I should leave my family.” Reed told Ema about his dilemma.

“Shouldn’t you just go if you want to? Your family is self-sufficient, they don’t need you.”

“Eck. Even though you’re right it still hurts when you say that.” Reed cringed.

“No, I mean seriously. You should make your own decisions for your future and go to the academy. Personally I’m going! It would be nice to have a friend go with me.”

Now was Reed’s turn to be embarrassed. Brown haired and green eyed face turned a light shade of pink.

“Oh, then… Then I think I’ll go. You’re right. My family should be alright even if I’m gone. Unlike a few years ago, I can contact them with my phone as well. I’ll do it.” Reed made up his mind. Like he thought, meeting Ema and hearing another’s perspective on the issue really helped him make a decision.

“Welp, now that you’ve made up your mind let’s go have some fun!” Ema declared, standing up from the table.

“Wait what? What fun?” Reed, swept up in Ema’s excitement, followed along and walked outside the coffee shop with her.

“There’s this movie I really wanted to see, but going alone would be weird so I thought I should bring someone I know.” Ema told him while dragging him down the road. “You’ll see it with me right?”

“Urgh, well…” Reed looked at Ema’s eager face. “...sure.”

For the first time in a while Reed enjoyed himself with a friend.