---

---

Ghost lazily laid in bed, kicking one leg up in the air before crossing it over his other leg. And like that he laid for several minutes, kicking his foot up and down and dangling it a little, occasionally switching the legs around in a wide circular motion. It was boring, but boring suited Ghost fine as long as there wasn't anything bad happening. But suddenly a sharp voice broke the silence outside, a voice he had not heard before. And rather than hostile, this person actually sounded rather nice. Curiously Ghost got out of bed and walked towards the door, leaning an arm on the doorway as he observed the figure. A woman with a remarkable figure, though Ghost wasn't sure why that was the thing he noticed first. It seemed.. a useless thing to notice. The discussion about the name caused Ghost to laugh - he somehow knew the meaning of her name despite not once ever having opened a book on any language. Strangely, it just seemed to be in his head already. As he listened to the rest of the conversation, more people joined in.

Once everyone was done pitching their side of the story, Ghost came up. While he wasn't smiling, he seemed to be in a better mood as he was before.


A rather vague and cryptic thing to say but how could anyone here be sure of their own name? What if their name was just a random string of letters they'd created together in their head? What stopped him from naming himself Xzlzir? Nothing, but common sense. Or perhaps their name had been implanted in their head early on, which might be the reason why he kept remembering the word 'Ghost'.


For a brief moment Ghost wondered if perhaps the scientists had given them their names based on their powers but that thought was quickly discarded when he thought of Parkinson.


He briefly raised his arm and scratched behind his head, looking up at the railing above to the upper floor dorms. He was curious to see if anyone else had come up but quickly proceeded to talk.

Friendships were being formed, animosities were already budding and the inevitable birth of a very diverse community would come to be right before the omnipresent surveillance of the ZAUD research team. The first test was complete, one serving to test their basic human functions as well as their ability to fully integrate the personalities they had been assigned. So far, even the most unstable candidate had proven to be successful.

But unfortunately, it had to come to an end, for now.

A particular jingle would echo through the entire Lockdown, a loud one too, and lasted for a good ten seconds before a brief silence would occur. The attention of the test subjects was to be captured here, as a voice would start to roar through the entire area. A deep, male's voice, completely monotone, would eerily transmit the message they would eventually grow used to considering its contents.

"Attention Test Subjects. Attentions Test Subjects. Your curfew has been activated. Please proceed to your chosen dormitories and commence resting. In five minutes, all subjects caught outside their dorms will be subdued."

The voice would then repeat itself as if it were just a recording. But the message was clear, they were to leave at once and take shelter in their respective dorms before the timer went out. If one were to feel a little bit rebellious, the collar's use would come in handy. While not exactly the lethal shock they advertised, it'd be enough to not only leave a nice burn mark but also completely knock them out cold. They'd have to grow used to this curfew, for they would abide to it every evening from this moment on.

As they would all inevitably sleep since their bodies were still somewhat worn from just being released from a stasis tube, the ZAUD initiative would find it adequate to douse them with a certain gas-like drug. The effects would be akin to sleeping gas, pushing them all to a deep sleep even if they were already sleeping. The reason behind it would only be for security, nothing more. Perhaps the first test to assert their exact personalities wouldn't have been trustworthy enough for them to rely on the obedience of the subjects on the first day of training, as such they proceeded to drug them to afterward dump them into their respective training grounds.

As such, they would all wake up, though some in different places than others. Actually, only three distinct areas would be considered in this scenario, in which randomly selected groups were placed in. They had formed 'teams' of three, with Hercules included in the mix, for this exercise.



Randomly selected? Not quite. The combinations were, but the speicic terrains weren't. Here, this first combat zone, was specifically selected for one of the three subjects. Namely, Boomi. The plethora of fauna found in this simulated jungle could only serve as the perfect playground to test the trans' abilities.

Along with her would be the other two females, Reina and Parkinson, all of which would be lying on the only metallic surface of the training grounds, the small island of real that had not been morphed into the illusion of a jungle. Everything was tangible, of course, and the climate was there too. The animals were real, as well, and behaved as if they were in a real forest.



A more urban battleground, but just as lethal nonetheless. While the wrath of nature plagued the first, the fragile and uncertain remains of a dead city built thanks to humanity's endeavors would prove to be a lot more unpredictable. Fauna and flora were scarce, the occasional stray creature and the rodent pests littering the crevices of the area give a semblance of livelihood.

It was quite dark, with only a few fires here and there on destroyed cars or barrels. No one would emerge however, and screams would only echo for kilometers only to end up to deaf's ears. The air was somewhat cold, with a slight breeze that only reeked of emptiness and death blew through the crowd. Ghost, Phi and Hal would be set in what seemed to be a plaza, or what was left of it. Multiple destroyed buildings would surround the lads, and vestiges of whats seemed to be a food market would be scattered all around them. Like the others, they would be laying on an island of metal, completely distinct from the rest of the world.



The final area, an open desert with a few hills and ruins of particularly ancient monuments. Unlike the other two zones, they were practically surrounded by open grounds, exposed to the possible threats that could emerge. But they also had easy access to a nearby tall hill in which one's specific talents could come to use.

It would be particularly hot and dry, in a time of the day where the siesta would be more than just warranted. The sun would be merciless, and the heated sand would burn even through their footwear. Yes, it was that hot. One had to fight with tropical hazards and humidity, another had to deal with darkness and an uncertain terrain. This one would simply be a completely draining open space. Frei, Nexus and Hercules would be given this field.

No instructions were given as of yet, and they would all seem to wake up at around the same time, left to figure out what was going on. Of course, none of these 'worlds' were connected, indicating they were in different training simulations. They would also feel something different in them. Their collars remain, but their powers are, as of now, completely accessible. All they could do now is wait, wait and pull their shit together for what's about to come.

---

---

Finally, rested on a bed, all alone without all these head on the wall externalities plaguing her very existence. While she'd surely exaggerated her pessimism, she did suffer from the endless amount of information she'd receive all at once, especially coming from tones that would naturally irritate the average individual. How Peaceful Parkinson was once her head collided with the cushion while she instinctively reached out for the light switch. She had no idea what it was she was doing, but the effect it yielded made her feel like she had intended for it to happen from the start. Simple common sense.

Though even with her door sealed, she could still hear their voices echoing through Lockdown. They ... Weren't as irritating when from afar. They were actually quite delightful to hear, to understand certain portions of what they were saying without having every thought add an extra load to her boiling skull. She was relaxed, and her being was comfortable to the point where the pain mostly subsided. A small smile would form upon her lips. She took so much joy from simply laying down and attempting to sleep. To savor such a mundane thing would be something she would one day crave. It was clear the pain wasn't truly gone, what changed was simply her senses being calmed and her mindset completely changing.

When the announcer would talk, she'd simply grab her cushion and sandwich it on her head. He was loud, and prevented her from falling into the sleep she now coveted. At this point her long, blonde locks would would end up veiling her entire face and end up in her mouth, causing a few spits and pouts before she would return to her normal resting position. As much as she wanted to avoid it, though, she had heard the announcer's message and understood that they had curfew to follow.

Rules, those were interesting now. Ideas of taboos already popped in her mind. Murder, rape, torture, theft. The extremes. These concepts were there, and made her feel particularly uncomfortable. Rules made her think of that, laws that prevented people from doing such things. But staying awake outside of their dorm would be against a rule? How bad could that really be? Such an idea would just scare her more, as she seemed only able to compare the need for such arbitrary rules to the most obvious and shocking, even if she had never seen any of them. The fear of consequences would be a virtue quickly imposed upon her being.

---

Though despite the anxiety, the effects of the chronic pain and her overall exhausted being allowed her to slumber. Her dreams were empty of worry, though they were also empty of much content. She could only remember abstract fragments when she'd wake up on the cold, steel floor she'd be set upon. Something about walking on the back of that weird looking boy while trying to hop on one of the upper floors of Lockdown - that was the logic she remembered from her previous dream. Nonsensical, but quite thought provoking.

Nonetheless, the dream would have little relevance compared to what she was seeing now. Her golden eyes glittered in awe as she discovered the jungle for the first time in her life. A sight bloated with colors, with odors, with sensations just oozing from the air itself. Both good and bad. Many normal people would never even get the chance to experience this, so one could only imagine who amazed someone who was born only yesterday would feel about it all.

"T-this is ... A jungle?"

She didn't even acknowledge her two compatriots in the same predicament as her, her surroundings has simply mesmerized her to the point of hypnosis. Fireflies, little critters roaming the area while avoiding the metal spot. They were all new to Parkinson. The foreign feelings, they were so strong that they would make her forget the sudden absence of head pain.

Something else did catch her attention, however, something much stronger than the show she was presented. Sliding her left hand on her collar, she felt as though it had lost a large amount of relevance, as if it was just there for decoration purposes. But the stranger feeling would actually not come from there, but rather the medium she employed to acknowledge the tool. Her eyes widened as she noticed the anomaly on her member.

An oozing, black smoke would seem to envelop her whole hand, much like an aura. She felt afraid of it, not just because it was completely abnormal, but because she could envision such awful extremes as she did before he sleep the previous day. Parkinson could clearly see the monstrous effects of her 'power' without even knowing what it truly was.

"Ah ... No, No! This is weird ... Get it off!"

The blonde would seem to have trouble keeping her balance at this point. Right hand clamping her left wrist out of irrational fear for her left hand. She was clearly distressed, though not because of annoying migraines, but because of the foulness exerted by her currently uncontrolled power. Parkinson needed to calm down, her heart rate was going through the roof, and her power would never be held at bay with such so much stress consuming her.

As soon as the curfew was announced, Ψ quickly and very loudly bid farewell to all other subjects, straining his voice in attempts to make himself heard over the booming voice pouring forth from the speakers, picked up his book and retired to the holding cell. Noting with slight disappointment that he probably wasn't going to get a roommate any time, he placed his reading neatly on the floor at the arm's reach, turned off the lights and allowed himself to collapse on the bunk. Ψ was a very tall person, and as such, he fell iteratively, in a step-by-step fashion - first he stood up on one end of the bunk, then dropped on his knees and then excruciatingly slowly leaned forward, steadily accelerating in the fall until his head collided with the cushion with a quiet pomf.

Ψ didn't spend too much time wallowing in self-pity and thinking about how miserable the current - partly due to the released sleeping agent, but also thanks to remembering the words Ghost, that white-haired and seemingly angry boy spoke when they've first met. After some contemplation it was concluded that some of his words carried within them, probably unintentionally, certain grains of sensibility - indeed, things were looking grim, but by far not as bad as they probably could've been. He could probably allow himself some time to orientate himself in his surroundings and learn about the mysterious "powers" that they all ha~
At that point the subject suddenly found himself sleeping, to his extremely brief and mild surprise.

His awakening, however, was much more surprising and intriguing. His bunk somehow escaped from beneath him as he slept - as did the whole holding cell and the surrounding faculties. Instead of the mostly-sterile and sort of pleasant, if restricting and oppressive enviroment he was introduced to, Ψ - and, it seems, also Ghost and one other guy he didn't get acquaintanced with - ended up in...
"City" - Ψ whispered, still lying on cold metal and enjoying the strangely-aligned landscape. He had no idea where that word came from.
"Citizen" - next word followed shortly behind. Ψ stood up very slowly and looked around, paying little heed to the two subjects who arrived with him. The weirdness of perspective settled to acceptable levels when he stopped looking at the world side-ways. In his brain, strange, but sensible links of associations. - "Policeman. Man of the Polis. Police. But this place isn't a real city, is it?"

In addition to these daunting and wondrous discoveries, Ψ experienced something else - a strange and unusual feeling of, uh...
Freedom. In a metaphorical sense - it's not like he was really shackled in his movements before or really at any point of his still very short existence. Still, this feeling was extremely strong and very strange. He felt that right here and right now, he can go anywhere. But how? For some rason something like "by walking, you jamook" seemed like a wrong answer - everyone could do that all the time. This great sensation of absolute freedom of movement couldn't have stemmed from sudden realization of one's ability to merely walk...

"Hey," Ψ inquired, turning to Ghost and the other guy who he didn't really knew. "Good... morning. Do you feel... anything strange?"

It wasn't long until another fellow joined them in the study which meant there was only the headache girl and Reina who weren't present. Oh, and also Hercules, but he somehow felt that the leader was way above them. At some point in Ghost's talking, he zoned out and struggled not to yawn at all the blabbering until he heard his name. Perking up, a dreamy look dawned on his visage. He smiled and propped his chin upon his hands. Wow, that'd be so awesome! Visions of sparkling explosions flashed into his mind, dissipating in colorful arrays. He was about to speak up when he was suddenly cut off by a loud male voice speaking through the intercom.

"Oopsie. Looks like that's our cue for bed time. Too bad we couldn't celebrate," he said with a pout. "It was nice to meet you all. Good night!" Boomi bid cheerfully as he dashed to the men's bathroom to take a piss. After relieving himself, he sped to his dorm rooom upstairs before the timer hit zero. Swiping a bead of sweat rolling down his forehead, he pounced onto his bed and stuffed his face into his fluffy pillow. It didn't take long before Boomi completely knocked out into a deep slumber and dreamed of blowing things up and fireworks.

~~~~~

A delicious scent filled his nostrils and he reached out to grab it, bringing handfuls towards his nose. "Gahh, smells so good," Boomi sighed contently before blinking his eyes open. Realizing that he had a handful of Reina's hair in his hold, he immediately let go, hoping she hadn't noticed. "C-crap, that was close" he whispered before getting onto his hands and knees, touching the cold metal floor. "Where the heck is my b-" His field of vision was focused on a beautiful sight. Glowing things floated over the glittering water and flowers of differing hues sprouted up from every which way. Mouth agape, he took in the surroundings before a panicked blondie bumped into his chest. "Oomph!" He backed away a bit until the girl finally turned around and his eyes widened as he saw the dark wisps encircling her hand.

"What the heck is that!" He gasped slightly horrified. Catching the terrified expression the poor girl had plastered across her face, Boomi felt the urge to help her in some way. T-the water! Stepping forward, he wrapped an arm around her waist, picked her up, and grabbed her left wrist. Walking to the edge of the metal island, he dunked her infected hand into the murky stream completely submerging it. "Stop struggling please. I'm trying to help you," he coughed out.

---

So, Sir Spindlylimbs was “Psi”, and the little cutie was “Boomi”. Much like Psi, Boomi also seemed pretty excited to see her. Quite a contrast to the other two in the room, who looked to be considerably more disinterested. Frei got excited at the prospect of the group having a birthday celebration. While she wasn’t sure what that entailed, the word “celebration” was enough to get her blood pumping. Another voice came from behind her, prompting Freischutz to turn on her heel to meet the male who was standing in the doorway. Learning that his name was “Ghost”, Frei listened as he elaborated on what her name meant. ”Fufufu~. I guess that means my name is pretty cool if that story’s anything to go by.” she mused, feeling a bit proud of herself despite having no part in the process of coming up with her name.

As Ghost spoke further, he brought up an interesting point about what their names might have meant. While Psi appeared to be a possible counterargument to the idea, Frei couldn’t help but wonder exactly what it was she could do. She wasn’t left to think for long, though, as a voice blared over the facility’s intercoms, signalling that the subjects were to return to their dorms within the next five minutes or suffer some consequence. Thinking back to the electric shock she received earlier in the day, the silver-haired woman figured that it had something to do with that. And perhaps it was even worse when you violated curfew. ”D’aww, man, that’s pretty lame.” she remarked, disappointed that the group’s celebration would have to be postponed in favor of their curfew. Waving to Psi and Boomi as they left, Frei noted that only her, Ghost and the other two were left over. Boomi had mentioned that everyone should find roommates, so it looked like they were the only ones unsorted. Although, she wasn’t aware of whether or not Psi was rooming with anybody, it didn’t really seem like the gangly man much cared. The other two, who Frei would later learn went by “Hal” and “Nexus”, seemed like they would get along well enough, so she turned to Ghost. ”Yo, Ghost! Wanna share a room?” she suggested, not really giving him much of a choice in the matter before grabbing him by the arm and dragging him out of the study.

Soon enough, Freischutz was was hanging out on her bed, still a bit too excited to fall asleep of her own accord. However, with the assistance of the gas that was pumped into the room, she too was placed into a deep slumber, one that she would be glad she had received due to the challenge that would be ahead once she awoke. Frei was assaulted by a wave of heat as soon as her eyes opened, groaning as she got to her feet and observed her surroundings. She gasped, confused by the sudden change of scenery. Hadn’t she just been in her bed? Where was she now? As she looked around, she realized that she wasn’t alone, seeing that two of the others were with her. Albeit, one of the two was unfamiliar to her. ”Look at the muscles on that guy!” she thought, sizing the man up as he came into consciousness with Nexus. Now that she thought about it, Dr. Yukishima had mentioned that a subject by the name of Hercules had given the rest of them a tour before Freischutz woke up. Perhaps this was him?

”Either of you two know what’s going on?” she inquired, shielding her eyes from the sun as she looked around once again, spotting a nearby hill from which they could get a better vantage point. As she did so, she noted the fact that she was being fed information on the surroundings, most notably the temperature, which almost made Frei more uncomfortable just from reading the numbers. ”If I could make a suggestion, I think it’d be a good idea to climb that hill over there.” she remarked, turning to look at her two compatriots once again only to see that they were promptly marked with a pair of silver-blue smiley-faces on center mass, a visual which would only be apparent to her. ”Huh.”

Hal had a sort of lonely night to himself, while others were making friends he simply tried to learn as much as he could. He was curious about the world around him, what he was born into, and had so many questions he had left unanswered. All of them would not be answered, and some answers would just leave to more questions, but Hal simply decided that he would learn in good time and it was best not to panic. However, learning was always a good thing, and he decided to read some science books before picking up an interesting comic.

"The Green Lantern" it was called, and flipping through it he seemed to enjoy the comic very much. It seemed rather, fictional, but then again it seemed very real in a way. The Green Lantern himself was the same name as his, Hal. It was interesting, and somewhere in the back of his mind he knew that maybe this was the person he was named after. A fictional superhero? How was he related to him at all? They looked similar he guessed, besides the eye and hair color, but what interested him was his powers. He could create objects out of thin air from his ring, able to preform various feats. Hal looked down at his hand, opening and closing it. Was that his power?

Hal shook his head and closed the comic, holding it and a few of the next issues as he went to the gym. In his final hours before curfew he lifted weights, stretching, getting his muscles used to working and testing his own strength. It was above average, so he assumed, but it wouldn't be enough and he knew he had to work on it. During a bench press the alarm sounded and he knew he had to go back to his dorm. He decided to get an empty one, across from where most of the others stayed as he layed down in bed, lost in his thoughts. What would the next day bring? He would find out shortly, and the release of sleep came over him as he passed out.

~~~

Groaning, Hal grabbed his head and looked around at his surroundings. It seemed he was laying on a metal surface, and as he stood up, he looked around to find a destroyed city. A fire burnt in the distance over a car, some buildings were crumbled to bits, and some noises were heard in the distance but faded quietly. Where was he?

As he looked around it seemed Psi, the very creepy and lanky individual, along with Ghost, whom he barely spoke with, was with him as well. The two of them were the ones arguing he remembered, and hopefully wouldn't continue that. He felt as though this was some kind of test... A challenge. Hercules had said something about a simulation room, and he assumed he was in one. As they were deemed living "weapons" it only seemed right that they were tested in a way. But against what? Some kind of enemies. They would surely find out shortly.

"Yes, I do feel differently... I'm assuming they activated our powers. Whatever they are, I'm sure we're to find out shortly. This seems like one of the simulation rooms, so I would get ready for a fight." he stretched a bit, looking over at his two companions before laughing a bit. "I hope you two have some useful powers. At this rate, especially you creepy spider looking guy, ya don't look like the fighting type to me."



Hercules stood up, shielding his bright blue eyes from the sun and brushing the sand of his suit as he looked at the surrounding area. Desert wasteland, pretty barren, besides a hill and a few crumbling statues. This was a familiar simulation environment, and would be a breeze for him at this level of difficulty. He would let his two companions, Nexus and Frei, do most of the work and intervene when he had to. Hercules wanted to see what his team was made of.

"I hope you two are ready, they aren't gonna go easy on you your first time." Hercules said casually, laughing and he flexed a bit and stretched his arms and legs, looking over at the hill. "So, I see you're very observant. Good idea." He grinned, and in a few moments he was already there, a blur going by as sand flew gently behind him. Sitting down casually he yawned, laying down and seeming to bask in the sun, not nearly as affected by the weather as he should be. "Oh god it's nice to have my powers back. If I were you I would figure out your powers too, both of you. It won't be long until they arrive. And I'm not bailing you two out, so I hope you're ready to fight. If not this is gonna be a long day. Either way though, I think I'm gonna get a nice tan."

---

---

When curfew was announced, it was something which simply pierced through the thickness of Nexus' brain which had been tuning out a variety of things in the room. Of course, he couldn't completely ignore the conversation taking in the room which was simply impossible by who was in there. Even the well-defined walls and cover of books could only build a barrier to block out so much surplus noise in what was the library which was no place for... conversation to say the least when people are reading. With his eyes peering above the pages of his book that he was reading and beyond the wall of books that he himself created, there those who were holding the conversation were to be found. It at this point of time would be impossible to concentrate on the books that were littered around him with those voices distracting him, so he placed down the book and decided to listen, to watch.

He sorted those who were conversing into two different section, those who were happy and those who weren't, cause it was simply easier that way with the four who were there. Ψ, the strange one out of the trio was simply that 'strange' which was the least that could be said about him and the nicest that could be summoned from his mind. Boomi was the cheerful one and was similar to the one also known as Frei as both could be easily labeled as obnoxious to him. The three of them were all-in-all if he could wrap them into a single package and label them was 'annoying' so far with their tones shifting ever inappropriately for a library where silence was preferred. The two from what he could see from here and now, they would get along quite well with their personalities nearly matching each others. however, the one who was interesting, to say the least, was the fourth, the last to be saved and the best to be quite frank as well who called himself Ghost. His story or what pieces he knows of it is interesting enough to look into it once this group was out of the study. Perhaps even if it was interesting enough, Nexus would tell it to the other should they run paths again.

Reviewing what he heard of them in the room, he knew more of them and in reverse nothing about him which mattered little to him. Picking up several of the books that he had in the corner and began burying himself as deep as he could within it once more. Droning out their conversation once more as it faded into a soft buzz in the back of his mind which he forgot. Then back to the present... The announcement of curfew was now the moment, he recalled as he stood up causing the wall of books around him to tumble down. Taking a book or five with him as he walked down into one of the rooms, peeking into the solitary room which he wished to have, he entered it and locked it before settling down on the bed. Soon sleep would overtake him as even the book slamming on his chemically induced sleep would fail to wake her from the deep slumber he was in

---

---

'Its... hot?' Was the first thought that arose from his memories as the heat soon blasted his senses uncomfortably with his hands shooting up to cover his eyes from the harsh ray of the sun that touched him. Outside the fact that his hair was uncomfortable to say as he ran his hands through it. A little jolt of static electricity onto his skin which also messed up his hair, he ruffled it for a few moments before it went back to normal.

This was called a desert from what he read and saw in the book that he skimmed briefly to see anything interesting. Either way, the temperature, and environment while despicable but his attention was turned to the other two who were there with him as well. Frei, the jolly girl, the role model Hercules and then himself 'Nexus'. Hercules could probably solve or complete easily with whatever was the situation at hand easily as he was here the longest. So this also extends to his advice, meaning that he should be prepared for whatever it is that was coming from Hercules' warning. Nodding simply to Frei as he began thinking to himself silently.

Reina stirred in her sleep, feeling rather uncomfortable. Her dorm was nice and cool, so why was it so hot and humid right now? She felt something on her face, and she wiped it off with one of her hands. Whatever it was, it was wet, but sticky. It appeared to have been produced by her own body. "Ugh... sweat..." she thought as her eyes slowly opened.

She began to process the world around her. She blinked a few times, taken aback by this strange, new environment. This jungle was the opposite of their previous location. It was filled with color and life. There was a lot of sensory input and it was overwhelming her. The bright sunlight hurt her eyes when she looked at it directly and the loud chirping sound was giving her a headache. She pushed herself up and saw that her two companions were already running off, doing their own thing. Not wanting to be alone, she made her way towards Boomi and the blonde girl whom she did not know yet. Once she got closer to them, she noticed that the blonde girl had a strange black miasma or something around her hands that didn't seem to go away even when they put water on it. In fact, it seemed that the thing was actually getting rid of the water instead. "What's wrong with her?" she asked, probably coming across harsher than she intended to. She didn't mean to be rude, but the girl's hands were rather freaky.

"And where are we?"

There were no sign of civilization anywhere. There were only trees and trees and then some more trees. Maybe if they somehow returned back to the Lock Down, the girl could be treated for whatever was wrong with her. She looked like she was in a whole lot of pain. As Reina tried to find something that would help the girl, she wondered what had happened and why they were in a place like this in the first place.

Then as if right on time, a voice coming from the sky began to speak. "Good morning and welcome subjects to your first training exercise. We will be testing your powers in this jungle environment. Please take this time to discover your powers and demonstrate what you are capable of. Your only task for this exercise, is to survive."

Reina looked up to try to figure out where the voice was coming from, but it was no good. She then turned to the blonde girl who was freaking out and said, "Did you hear that? They said that we are discovering our powers. Maybe that thing is your power."

"Sucks for her though," she could not help but think. "That power did not seem very fun."

On the other hand, at least the girl had a clue of what her powers could be. Reina and Boomi would have to figure it out on their own. Anyways, their task was to 'survive'. That implies that something will be putting their lives in danger but it was still too vague of a task. Not knowing what to do, she looked to her teammates to see how they would react and if either of them would know what course of actions they would need to take.

---

While Hercules didn’t exactly answer her question directly, he’d at least given enough information to let her know that this was something being done to test the group. On the other hand, there were some things that he mentioned that were pretty ominous. Namely the ”they” that she and Nexus would have to prepare for. At her suggestion of taking the hill, the muscular man had immediately scaled the slope with impressive speed, causing Frei to let out a whistle as she tracked his movement. While that was pretty cool and all, Frei couldn’t help but think that Hercules might’ve, y’know… Forgotten something? She and Nexus were still at the bottom of the hill! ”You couldn’t have at least offered to bring us up there with ya, Herc?” she called up to him, figuring that the man wouldn’t mind the nickname too much. She had a few questions still, but they’d have to wait until they’d scaled the dune before them.

Turning to Nexus, she grinned and pat him on the shoulder. ”I look forward to workin’ with ya~!” she stated, giving Nexus a thumbs up before starting her trek up the face of the hill. Much like the air, the ground beneath her feet was also hot, practically multiplying the discomfort Freischutz was already feeling. Just how the hell could Hercules just function in these conditions like they were nothing? Hell, the guy was laying on the sand! Frei was determined, however, her eyes focused on the summit as she wiped the sweat from her brow. ”You hangin’ in there, pal?” she inquired, aiming the question at Nexus. At the very least, she wasn’t suffering through the climb entirely on her own. But talk about being thrown to the wolves, huh? She’d only been born yesterday! Though, her current situation only made her curious as to what the other six subjects would have to deal with.

Finally, Frei made it to the top of the hill, panting heavily and directing a pained smile at Hercules. ”Piece of cake.” she remarked, flashing an OK sign at the well-built specimen laying down on the sand. From what he’d mentioned, this wasn’t exactly his first rodeo. And, judging by the fact that he hadn’t exactly helped them yet, there may have been a good chance that he wouldn’t put in effort for the rest of this training session, barring extreme circumstances. ”Well, looks like now is the hard part. As far as I know right now, the only power I’ve got is to read the temperature and a bunch o’ stuff. Oh, and I guess I put some kind of marker on you guys somehow.” Frei stated. She was beginning to catch her breath, so she turned to look out over the desert from the new perch that they’d taken, scanning for any other signs of life. As she did, she thought about the story Ghost had briefly told about the origins of her name and the possibility that their names had something to do with their powers. Frankly, she wasn’t sure if whatever she had going on now wasn’t exactly as flashy as she’d got her hopes up that her powers would be. But was that all she could do? Maybe she also had some kind of secret gun powers or something? Guns were pretty rad, right?

Sighing, Freischutz crossed her arms under her chest as she became lost in thought. She’d have to figure out something before whatever it was the researchers were going to put them up against finally showed up. However, the burning in her feet, and the general discomfort brought about by the heat of the environment as a whole made it a little bit difficult to not be at least a little distracted. ”Think, Frei-Frei, think. What the hell can ya do? You might not be some magic bullet-packing gunslinger, but you’re something.” she thought, miming a gun with her hand as her opticals picked up the sight of a rattlesnake in the distance and marked it with a different symbol than that which Nexus and Hercules had been labelled with. It was a shining platinum crosshair with a pulsating four-point star at its center. Interesting. So there were the smiley faces and the star crosshairs.A differentiation between friend and foe, perhaps?

Focusing in on the rattlesnake further, Frei kept her fingergun trained on it, taking a deep breath. ”I want to hit it. she thought, sticking her tongue out of the side of her mouth as she stared down the distant reptilian. She hadn’t exactly been given a gun or something to test out her aim, so what did they expect her to do? Stare whatever would come after them to death?

---

Panicked, Parkinson felt her body go somewhat numb - a massive contrast to her perpetual state of pain - developing a form of vertigo as she stared deeply into the abyss that would be the miasma coating her member. It was pitch black, with malevolent feel to it, as if it were sucking all the life and joy of everything around her. It was certainly foul, and yet when she tried to comprehend it, she would not be overwhelmed with the repulsive sensations brought upon by the aura. No, the more she stared into the darkness, the more she could envision a concrete idea of what death would be. The ending of absolutely anything, whether living or not. A depressing thought indeed, but one she'd be stuck with until ...

A wild Boomi appeared to dunk the blondie's hand into the nearby small river. The shock would snap Parkinson back into reality and free her from the sickening thoughts. The sudden contact with another individual, while she couldn't process it correctly, left her somewhat uncomfortable. Her skinny frame having little to no strength to withstand the force of the trap's intervention, she truly felt vulnerable despite understanding that this initiative would only have occurred out of pure concern and benevolence. Concepts she still had a hard time to deal with even in sure a dire situation, but there'd be no time to ponder.

While Parkinson did stop struggling, there'd be good reason for Boomi to do so after what he'd witness. The water, the vegetation, the stone, the mud, all of it would seem to start vanishing. Almost as if the water had unnaturally evaporated in that small area, the surrounding water in which the taller female's ability had not grasped yet would attempt to fill in the emptiness, only to end up filling the deep cavity formed by Parkinson's aging power having spread toward the muddy bottom and even the bedrock. The border of the river would also seem to be evaporating, thought he phenomenon would seem a whole lot different. Portions of the earth and vegetation would appear to disintegrate into specs of dust flying away until their completely broke down to invisible levels. The process was fast, and would take a very efficient eye to see the matter's stages of decomposition before it disappeared into nothing.

All Pakinson could envision at that very moment would be the 'death' of all these things she came into contact with. More precisely, when they would die. When they would inevitably succumb to the hazard that is time in an imperfect environment. A thousand years? A million? A billion? She could see it all, the morbid effects of her ability if she were to will such absurd accelerations. Parkinson had accidentally applied an overwhelmingly strong leap in time on what she had just touch, and eventually, it spread like gangrene to what surrounded it. Heck, even a small portion of their small metal island would be devoured by the corrosive nature of the concept she wielded.

As such, with the rotting spreading toward the two feminine individuals, the blonde would stumble backwards out of reflex, fearing she'd infect herself if she were to have contact with any of this. Boomi would be greeted with the girl falling backwards in attempt to have both of them pull away.

"Ugh ... Sorry ... I- ... Oh no."

That same hand, still coated in that gloomy torch of blackness, would be slapped on her very own chest. Jumping forward to avoid having Boomi suffer the fate of these poor inanimate objects, she quickly inspected her attire and was ready to get rid of it before it some how killed her. But some how, nothing was happening. Was it because she didn't will its application? Or was it because she couldn't affect herself, and by extension, her clothes? Nonetheless, her heart was pounding in a rate far higher than the average person's should be.

"Hmmm ..."

Survival? Can't say we're doing a good job at that so far.

By then the eerie voice had finally given them some instructions. While Parkinson didn't quite know what to make of it, Reina's addition to the whole thing only get the blonde to squint right at her, eyes narrowed with a dull look.

"No kidding."

A comment directed to the idea that the bizarre event they had just witnessed would have something to do with Parkinson's power. Though it was indeed thought provoking. Now somewhat afraid of her very hand, the curly haired blonde would appear to keep her hand extended a certain distance from her body while the other would grasp the corresponding wrist, as if she were afraid her hand would have developed some sort of sentience.

"I ... Really have no idea what this is. When I think of powers, I think of flying, super strength, turning invisible. Something simple and fun. But this? What is THIS?!"

She didn't seem to be addressing anyone in particular, but she did present her hand to the group of 'females' she'd be involved with. The girl was confused, unsure what to do concerning this power she had absolutely no understanding of. Sure, she had a few hints regarding everything's 'end', but that'd barely qualify as a clue to someone who had JUST been born. All it entailed, for now, was fear painted all over her expression.

---

---

Ghost was interrupted rudely by the alarm that signaled the closing in of their curfew. As he looked over at the area where the sound came from, Frei made a passing comment about sharing rooms. Ghosts' eyes widened, as he looked back quickly. A questioning 'huh?' escaped his lips before he could answer her properly, but by then it was already too late. They were roommates now. As he entered the same room he had originally come from, he proceeded to lay down on his bed again. As luck would have it, Frei managed to pick the bed that he hadn't been laying on moments before he left the room. He wasn't sure about having a roommate, but at least she wasn't overly annoying..

like that big black .. thing. Ghost was unsure if that 'thing' was even normal. On one hand something told him that the monstrosity was barely human, but on the other hand, Ghost had no collection of what 'a normal society' looked like. Sure, the scientists looked like him and the rest, but maybe that was why they modeled them after themselves? Maybe the rest of the world was filled with black monstrosities like Psi. Maybe they were the monsters.

These thoughts filled his head quickly and it would've been a restless night if it weren't for the fact that the gas forced him to, more or less, go to sleep. It was a welcome sleep at least since he was mentally and physically exhausted from the day. Being born was.. hectic. Especially when you had the mental capability to process everything and overflow yourself with information. Right before he passed out, some words escaped his mouth.



The next morning he was rudely awoken by the voice of Hal. That man he didn't know the name of. But, regardless, Ghost turned around and continued sleeping. Wait a moment. Why was that guy in his room? Promptly he sat up and looked at Hal, completely disregarding that he was no longer in his own room.



His relatively fast speaking was interrupted by him looking around and finding himself out of the comfort of his bed - and by extent, out of the comfort of 'what was known'. For what it was worth, Ghost maintained his cool relatively well. Unexpectedly, perhaps, since Ghost was otherwise somewhat of a worrier. He found ways to worry about everything, but somehow contained it in his head, driving himself insane but keeping the others out of those questions.



While Hal seemed to be perfectly capable of controlling his power, Ghost was somewhat of a different story. He lacked the proper finesses and know-how of his power to control it properly, and while the other peoples' powers might have been situational, contextual, or required some sort of.. physical activation, Ghosts' power was much less physical and more so mental. And.. as a result of him not knowing what his power was, this meant that he had no control over how he used it. Or rather.. how he was forced to use it.

Pf, zt, pf, zt, pf, zt. Those were the sounds it made as he poofed in and out of existence using his power. It was a rather strange feeling, Ghost had to admit, and he had no idea how to stop it at all. To make matters worse, besides constantly seeing Ghost appearing and disappearing in a matter of seconds, evaporating in thin air, more or less, they would also feel a strange feeling overcome them mentally as they somehow forgot all their memories of Ghost, before these memories being returned to them the moment he re-appeared.

Perhaps setting loose stray test subjects without any explanation as to what their power was was a bad idea, but Ghost was less concerned with whether it was a good idea or not and was more concerned with whether they were really in any danger, and besides that, how to stop this god damn power from activating all the time. It seemed to be relatively out of his control, and so he was left waiting for something, or perhaps someone that would require him to suddenly focus and shift his attention, allowing him to learn how to use his power.

But as of now, he was just shifting from nothingness to reality and back again. A strange sensation for both Ghost, and the two spectators.

Huffing a sigh of relief once he felt the blondie end her flailing, his state of calmness was short lived as he went wide eyed upon seeing what was happening to their surroundings. All organic matter within a couple meters of her hand seemed to experience decaying. The running water dried out and the flowers and vegetation went limp before crisping up and disintegrating. Everything was quite literally dying. Putting the girl down, he backed up a bit once rust began to build up on their little metallic island. Hearing Reina comment on what was happening, it was only then that he noticed that she had woken up and at a good time too.

Only able to watch as the poor girl suddenly slammed the hand onto her own chest, he was about to scream, but only an airy squeak escaped his lips as he braced himself, wondering if she was going to turn into a pile of soot before their eyes. Trying to peel his eyes from the threatening horror, a static voice sounded around them and stated that this was in fact just a test and its purpose was for them to discover their abilities. A rush of excitement flared up in his system, but the last part about survival did worry him a bit.

"Yeah, your power is sort of odd, but at least you have an idea of what it is now and it seems to have no effect on its weilder. I haven't got a clue what mine is yet..." Boomi was in a sort of dazed state, turning in slow circles as he pondered what his powers could be. Biting his lip, he suddenly straightened up and flicked his pointer finger as a light-bulb came on. "Maybe I should start with the basics then. Element manipulation!" Cupping his hands to form a sort of bowl, he scooped up some water and proceeded to fling it. Frowning after a few minutes of splashing around, he shook his head. "Guess it's not that. Fire!" Visualizing a flame, he was trying to conjure one in the palms of his hands, but without success. Picking up some dirt, he focused on it, staring intently on the brown muck until giving up and washing his hands off. Elements out of the window, he tried to punch a nearby tree only to yelp in pain. He was trying to test if he had super strength.

"Ugh!" He exclaimed in frustration. Shouting up at the ceiling, he threw his hands up in desperation as he'd tried every super power he could think off. Sulking, he plopped down on the edge of the metal platform. Kicking at the water, he noticed a koi fish swimming happily along not too far from where he was perched. Cautiously slipping into the stream, he approached it, careful in his movements as to not scare it off. Finally hovering over the unknowing fish, his hands darted out and he hoisted it up and out of the water. "Wow guys look at this! It's so pretty!" Boomi said cheerfully. Keeping a tight grasp on it, he lowered it back underneath the water's surface somehow knowing it needed the water to survive. Studying it's form with a curious eye, the girlish boy didn't notice that gills were beginning to form at the sides of his neck and a fish like tail was sprouting from his tail bone. A pair of whiskers branched from the side of his lips and his arms and hands began to fan out into transparent fins. Gasping as he noticed the mutations, the koi wiggled free from Boomi's hold as he fell back and flopped into the stream. Holding his breath on instinct, he was shocked to find that he could actually breath.

He got back up on two feet, hopping up and down as he waved two fins at Reina and the blondie. "Guys I'm a shape-shifter look!"

Reina sighed as the girl still seemed to be upset about her powers. She wanted to do something about it, kind of, but she didn't know how to comfort the girl. "Yeah... weird," was all she had to say about that. Talking to other people seemed to be more of Boomi's specialty anyways. Reina would probably only make it worse.

Speaking of Boomi, she was trying really hard to determine what her powers were. It was somewhat amusing to watch and Reina could not help but chuckle when she flung water around. But it didn't take too long though for her to discover her true powers. Reina's eyes widened as she watched her teammate transforming into a fish. Well, at least partly transform into a fish. "That's pretty cool, Boomi, Reina said with a gentle smile.

So they had a shapeshifter and a girl with death for hands. "So what can I do?" Reina wondered to herself.

---

---

Meanwhile, there was a large creature that was waking up from its rest. It has been asleep for a very long time and it was hungry. It had sensed something unusual in its home, and it smelled delicious.

It jumped down from its nest and landed softly on the ground. It stands at about 7 feet tall, but its length reaches about 10 feet. It had many eyes that weren't good for seeing details, but could sense movements. However, it relied more on its sense of smell to track down its victims. It quickly crawled over smaller trees and shrubs, in search of its meal.

---

---

It was weird. The jungle that was filled with the sounds of birds and other living things, was now silent. Well, except for one sound. There was the sound of rustling coming from the trees to their left. "D-did anyone hear that?" asked Reina, taking a step back. She really hoped that it was just the wind. But the rustling continued and seemed to be getting closer. And perhaps it was her imagination, but it seemed like something was approaching them, something that must have scared everything else away. And she didn't want to stay there long enough to find out.

"Let's get out of here!" she shouted in a deafening high voice, already breaking out into a sprint and possibly leaving the others behind. She didn't know where she was running to but anything was better than staying there.

---

A dull stare was thrown toward Boomi, prompted by both her attempt to seeing the 'bright side' in Parkinson's discovery of her rather devastating powers but also that the childish attempts in experimenting on his own capabilities. What a silly sight to behold, but one that eventually invited a giggle out of the blonde's usually distressed being. At least the kid wouldn't be caught off guard by his own powers anytime soon. In frustration Boomi seemed to give up, only to be distracted by one of the various lifeforms inhabiting this simulation.

"Gaaah ... Watch it!"

Parkinson exclaimed in annoyance as the fish's struggling caused quite the splashes. Cheek puffed, she glared at the frigidity critter, unsure what to make of it as she had never really seen such a thing before. Well, 'fish' would be what traveled through her mind, but seeing one in real and how different it was to the only other living beings she had seen somewhat mesmerized the blonde. Enough to make her forget about her lethal hands. Head tilted, she focused on the fish that would soon be returned to the water. A small smile followed, feeling somewhat happy that the creature could swim freely again, wherever it wanted to. How vivid and swift it was to reclaim it. It really made her wonder what exactly this 'freedom' thing was, as it had just now popped into her head.

But such a dangerous thought would be cut short as Boomi exhibited very strange symptoms! He was turning into something weird, his body metamorphosing into something unlike she had ever seen. Parkinson backed up and physically cringed at the sight. As it progressed, it seemed clear that Boomi's power was one of shape-shifting, in which he'd confirm with glee. A great moment for Boomi, sure, but quite odd for the spectator as the transition to a more homogeneous look wasn't exactly the prettiest thing to witness.

"Huh?"

It seemed Parkinson hadn't been paying too much attention to the noises, as the shadow hand and the animal shifting ladyboy had her mental capacity quite occupied at the moment. Scratching her head with the non-affected hand, the blondie wondered just what the heck was going on. Rustling of bushes would normally be quite the red flag at this point, but it would take Reina's screams to have Parkinson dashing a second after. No, in truth, even the scream wouldn't be enough, only the sight of the monstrosity summoned by their endless blabbering would pushed her to swiftly snatch the kid big his wrist and drag him into a speedy sprint.

"Huff, huff ..."

She remained silent, too frightened and panicked to actually formulate anything consistent in her mind. Her free hand, the one imbued in the same miasma of death she couldn't purge, would smack against multiple obstacles such as trees and vines, causing most to collapse behind them and possibly slow down the mighty beast.

---

The three heroes stranded in the merciless desert built solely to train their capabilities would have thought it wise to climb the nearby hill in hopes to have some kind of vantage point. No warning had been given, not like in the Jungle area. Something was definitely up, and the deafening silence in such an open area would leave many wondering just what they had in store for them. Though one with a talent for ken observation would notice the minuscule, partial traces of something that moved nearby, and recently. Unconcealed boot prints to be exact.

Though as the ever vigilants would notice this detail, another less subtle one would force their attention toward a smaller hill about a kilometer away from their position. A ray of light reflected on a glass or metallic object would come to swipe their eyes before a loud, thunder-like 'Boom' could be heard. The same rattlesnake Frei would have focused on would be completely obliterated, deleted from existence, from what seemed to be some form an anti-material rifle.

Not a second later, multiple shot would be fired at their direction, each one completely breaking down large portions of tones around them. Shards of rock flung all of the place and dust ruled their grounds as if there had been an explosion. They were clearly warning shots, but of course had to goal to make them aware of the threat while putting them at a disadvantage.

Indeed, there were snipers, and not the normal kind. Ones that would hold weaponry worthy of what one would expect from people capable of creating super beings. From absurd distances, they could reach with precision their target, all the while remaining well hidden in the distance. Perhaps a couple had given up their spot with the initial shots, but ti was clear that they were dealing with more than a little rink dink group. They were most likely surrounded, and the objective would still not be announced. Would they attempt a stalemate and risk dying from all this heat? Or would they fight back and displayed their powers as they would naturally be urged to.

Eventually, their surroundings seemed to get eerily quiet. What was once a forest full of the harmonious chorus of nature turned into something deathly quiet. A nearby crowd of trees and shrubbery shook and Boomi could feel the water surrounding his feet begin to quiver. Before he knew it, Reina was sprinting away and Parkinson had grabbed him by the arm, practically dragging him across the forest floor as she made a mad dash behind Reina. The boy watched in horror as everything in their path began to die and cripple, but it only smoothed the path for whatever the hell was coming after them. The blonde had a firm grasp on his collar and he was struggling to keep up with her while peddling backwards. Then there it was, the monster had revealed itself through the thick greens of the jungle: a humongous spider-esque beast.

"Oh my gosh!" He yelped, finally swiveling around to face forward, he snatched Parkinson's left wrist and since he was able to run faster than her it was his turn to haul her along. Pressing her hand to the trunk of a giant tree, he made sure that the black miasma would eat away at the base. I sure hope this works! He was beginning to bite his lip as the stomping arachnid got closer and closer as they stood there beside the aged oak. "Alright let's get outta here!" Boomi shrieked as he threw Parkinson over his arm and continued to speed away after Reina who had already disappeared into the brush.

Meanwhile, the time warping power was taking a hold of the affected tree trunk and it wasn't long until it ate all the way to the core. The hundred thousand year old tree swayed and wobbled until eventually tipping over onto its side just as the spider monster crossed its path. Toppling and crippling the hind-legs of the insect beast, it let out a blood curdling cry and snarled, seemingly now fueled by anger as it scurried after the smell of its victims.

A sharp pain shot up ladyboy's leg as he felt a sharp thorn slice through his calve, opening up a large gash and trailing blood for the hungry creature to follow. "Owwwww," he whined as he continued to hobble along. Putting Parkinson down, he could no longer bare the extra weight and they continued to run along side each together, using the short girl for support.