Location: Hallway -> Testing Room -> Room 8

A good number of them were gathered at the vending machines conversing about their trainers and such. Eliza grabbed a bottle of juice and crackers from the machines before returning her attention to the rest of the conversation. At the mention of how friendly Sienna and Bynie's trainers were, Eliza couldn't help but feel a tinge of jealousy. She cut back in when Bailey jokes about switching trainers.
"I wish, my trainer seems to have some sort of vendetta against me, like I murdered his family or something."
She runs a hand through her hair and gives a smirk to everyone nearby.
"If any of your trainers are..."too much" for you guys I'll be happy to take them off your hands." She gives them all a small wink before turning away and walking back to the examination room.

The walk back, Eliza couldn't help but go through her mind the possibilities of why her trainer seems to hate her so much. His concerns weren't necessarily about herself but rather her family. It was more like he was cautious and expecting her to act like her family. He wasn't bad looking, and if he was running her tests, she'd rather act passive and tolerant than to give him a reason to be a thorn in her side. Eliza opens the door to see the trainer setting up a series of machines.
"Oh great. You're back." The man ushers her to stand on the treadmill next to him.
Eliza stayed silent as she sets her feet on the treadmill.
The man stands on the side of the treadmill and starts sticking electrodes on her sides, startling her.
"I could do this myself you know." Eliza snaps, taking the rest of them from him and sticking the remaining on herself.
"Oh please, I'm just doing my job, don't take it as something else." The trainer rolls his eyes as he pulls out a tablet.
"We'll do a sort of physical test on each of these machines and it'll be recorded onto this tablet." After explaining he taps a command on the tablet which started the treadmill at a slow walking speed.
"This isn't so bad." Eliza thought to herself.

But within a minute the slow walking speed turned into a power walk, then a jog. It only picked up the pace after that. It wasn't long until she was forced to break out into a full on sprint. Eliza expected for the pace to slow down but it remained at a sprinting speed for what felt like forever.
"D-don't...you..think... this... is...too...fast?!" She managed to yell in between a short bursts of breaths.
The treadmill them dramatically slows down back to a walking pace causing Eliza to almost topple and crash onto the front of the machine. She gives the man a stink eye while holding back some choice words.
"Let's move on." The man ignores her malicious eyes before stopping the treadmill completely.
The rest of the tests didn't go as crazy as the first one did. But at the end she was too exhausted to even think.
"We'll finish the rest of the tests another day. Though I'm surprised that all that money spent on personal trainers and you still did average." The man remarks but Eliza was too busy catching breathes to retaliate. Before he said another word he walks to a counter and walks back with a bottle of water in hand.
"I suggest you go rest until the evening. I'll see you tomorrow." He hands her the water which she gladly accepts as she rushes to leave the room.

Eliza wasted no time finishing the water in the bottle, surprised that it wasn't riddled with poison. She hasn't been this exhausted from physical activity since her night spent with... never mind. Eliza avoids having her thoughts drift off to unpure memories as she opens the door to her room. Covered in sweat, she undresses and hops into the shower. It was to her surprise that they even stocked the bathroom with top of the line bathing products. The hot water pleasantly hits her skin as she sings a song to pass the time.

---
@HecateProxy@CyanideSweetie@Aquanthe@SheriffLlama

Grabbing a bottle of water and a protein bar from the vending machines, Sienna shrugged at Bailey and Eliza. "I'm not sure if they'll let us switch partners. You might just have to push through it." Sienna casually explained, unscrewing the cap to the water bottle with a flick of her wrist. Lifting it upwards, Sienna chugged the water bottle effortlessly, and she finished the last drops with a squeeze, crinkling the plastic. Shifting her body towards a nearby trash can, Sienna took a moment to aim with the bottle in her hands, shooting the bottle into the bin. "Come on, come on..." Sienna muttered, watching the plastic bottle roll around the edge of the trash can as if she was on the edge on her seat.

For others, it may have seemed a childish game, but for Sienna, it was a nail-biting experience. Eventually, the bottle had fell into the trash can, and Sienna breathed a sigh of relief as she clenched her fist like the moment was something pivotal. "Yes!" Sienna exclaimed, perhaps too loudly. Her eyes darted to those nearby, and it had appeared no one noticed her grow excited over tossing a bottle into the trash, or so Sienna had thought. By then, it was time for the facility's populace to disperse and return to the testing rooms. Looking down to the protein bar, Sienna realized that she had forgot to eat something while watching the heat of the moment trash-ball game. Quickly ripping the package open, Sienna waved goodbye to those still remaining with the protein bar hanging out of her mouth.

Gnawing the protein bar like a ravenous dog, Sienna devoured it before she arrived to the door of the testing room. Gently wiping off any crumbs that might remain before entering, Sienna walked inside and exchanged greetings with Ashton once more. "Sienna, I'm going to attach these wires to your body, and we'll measure your physical fitness with them, alright?" Ashton explained after the two had exchanged a handshake. With a nod from Sienna, Ashton began to attached the wires onto her body, although he had left it up to Sienna to attach some of them in certain areas. Once the wires were attached, Ashton swirled around in his rolling chair back to his desk and picked up the tablet, with a hand motioning for Sienna to step on the treadmill.

With a tap of a finger, the speed started off slow and easy. A slow walk to begin, as if it was a warm up. However, it wasn't long until the speed increased into a power walk, which Sienna still had no problems to deal with. In order to join the air force, Sienna was required to be fit and healthy at all times, so being fat and lazy was hardly a choice. In reality, Sienna never had a problem with being overweight, mainly due to her high metabolism and the constant running she had done in the past while trying to escape from an angry friend of hers after doing something dumb and stupid. Eventually, the speed began to increase, turning into a jog and then a full-on sprint. It was exhausting and Sienna was certainly sweaty, but she knew how to control her breathing in times like this.

Finally, after what had seemed an eternity, the testing was finished. "And we're done. I'll process the results for you. In the meantime, why don't you go cool off somewhere, Sienna? I hear the pool is nice." Ashton replied to Sienna, helping her remove the wires from her body. The wires came off almost effortlessly, no doubt covered in sweat that had poured from Sienna during the jog. Once they were fully removed, Sienna said her farewells and left Ashton to his work. Deciding to take up his suggestion, Sienna made way to where the pool was located within the facility. Looking around inside the pool, Sienna noticed that there were signs of someone being inside, but fatigue was overwhelming her vision as she was unable to locate the person.

With a shrug, Sienna decided to take a dip in the pool anyway. It's probably just another person being treated in the facility. Sienna thought, removing her exercise clothes to reveal a blue bikini that she had chosen to wear underneath. Sienna had half the mind to visit the pool after the testing, and Ashton's suggestion had cemented her decision. Stetching her limbs, Sienna climbed on to the diving board and walked along it until she reached the end. With a bounce and another leap, Sienna jumped off the board, landing with a big splash into the water. Finding the cool water relaxing, Sienna swam until she reached the other side of the pool, popping out of the water with a relaxed sigh once she touched the wall.

---

^{Location: Hallway -> Testing Room -> Games Room}

---

Nervously, Marcus looked up and down the hallway. Athena seemed to be growing weaker as he stood there. Maybe there was someone else in the hall that could help her-- why him? Why did he have to be here now when-- THUNK. Marcus nearly leapt out of his skin at the sound. He looked toward Athena then took a step back. She was laying face first on the ground, motionless and soundless. Without a moment of hesitation, Marcus was on the move. Seriously-- why him? There were so many other people that could have been in this position that probably should have been in this position but-- him? He had to be the one around the girl that passed out? Who wanted to be around people that passed out anyway? Who-- oh-- Doctors, nurses, paramedics, they probably did, right? Whole jobs full of people that were more trained for this mess. But no, he had to be the one here right now-- that was bullshit.

When at last he came to a halt, it was outside of his exam room. What?
Of course he didn't want to be around that nonsense-- what if she had something? Sure they were all sick with superhero malaria but what if she had like... MEGAhero malaria? What if she were contagious? Hell no he was not going to deal with that. Then there was the possibility he could be blamed for that woman passing out. How was he supposed to prove that he didn't have "make people pass out" powers? What if he actually did and accidentally used them on her? No, see, the last thing he needed was to become a criminal or something while already being held like one-- which was actually sort of disturbing now that he thought about it. BUT WAIT-- what if there were cameras that already saw him? Marcus' heart began to hammer in a way he felt was probably unhealthy-- he could feel his mouth dry out. No no, this wasn't good. He could be guilty just because he was there but... wait!

Circumstantial evidence!

Marcus had seen enough episodes of Law and Order to know that was a thing that could maybe save him-- well, depending on if they found his fingerprints on like, the underside of her shoe, or something-- the door opened before him. Again, Marcus nearly leapt out of his skin for the second time today. With a brow raised Nkiru, Marcus' trainer, asked him, "Marcus, how long have you been standing here?" Narrowing her eyes she added, "And why are you so sweaty?" Was he sweaty? Marcus couldn't tell sweat from the waves of nausea suddenly washing over him-- his chest was tightening and he swore the ceiling was probably going to collapse on him. Numbly, Marcus shook his head at Nkiru, without saying a word. Concern twisted Nkiru's expression and she seemed to become thoughtful, before shrugging it away lightly. "I hope you have hydrated, because now is time for testing. Come in and remove your shirt. I will be attaching the electrodes to your skin, in order to collect data," Nkiru told him, as they walked further into the room, "Step onto the treadmill."

He could feel Nkiru staring at him as he took his shirt off. When he glanced over at her, that same thoughtful expression was on her face, and Nkiru seemed to sense his confusion. Unprompted, Nkiru clarified her stare, "Your face is pouring sweat but not your back-- is this normal for you?" Having been practically born and raised under the sun on the farm fields, Marcus knew extremely well that him not being fully sweating, especially when his head apparently was sweaty, was completely not normal-- he shook his head in response, surely looking just as confused as Nkiru probably felt. "Perhaps it is simply a matter of clothing," Nkiru mumbled thoughtfully as she began to attach electrodes to Marcus' skin. Quite firmly Marcus knew better than that-- this was a cotton shirt and it should have been at least damp. He'd already tossed it to the side of the treadmill but he didn't recall it feeling-- Marcus stumbled slightly.

"Are you paying attention? I have told you that this will increase in speed, Mr. Bradley."

No, he wasn't paying attention but now he was. As he walked, the pace on the treadmill was slowly increasing-- he was breathing heavily-- "How are you getting tired already? You are not even jogging yet--" paper rustled as Nkiru looked through a clipboard "--you were raised on a farm, no? I though you worked the fields. You should have more stamina," she concluded in a thoughtful manner. While Marcus would have loved to respond to her confusion with even more confusion, he currently found it difficult to breathe and impossible to speak. This was just as strange to him as it was to her but Marcus felt something was off. His legs felt as if they were made of lead. Every breath felt as if it were being taken through a straw. He could hear how audible his breathing was but his steps-- they were Godzilla heavy and even the treadmill was shaking more than it... probably should? Marcus didn't know-- he didn't have any gym equipment in his house or anything, nor was there one accessible within twenty miles of his home.

A high pitched rhythmic beep began to sound and Nkiru stopped the treadmill. She hastily walked over to a few displays as Marcus stepped off the machine, then doubled over. "Your heart rate is far too high to be safe anymore-- we have to count this testing session as complete," Nkiru told Marcus. She walked over to him then thrust a bottle of water into his face-- it was half finished and must have been her personal one. Marcus eyed it then looked up at Nkiru. "Drink. You may be suffering from heat exhaustion-- though I do not know how you could have it, in an air conditioned area, but I am no doctor," Nkiru said in a tone that seemed not directed at him. Marcus took the water and unscrewed the cap with shaking hands. With expertise, Nkiru began removing the electrodes from Marcus' body swiftly. "You should go rest, eat something, and find more water," Nkiru suggested in a rather motherly tone, "You are complete with our activities today." Breathlessly, after chugging the water, Marcus nodded then exited the room.

He wandered the halls distractedly and still shirtless. His breath did not come back to him easily but he roamed around long enough to where he was no longer panting. By chance, he found himself outside a set of glass double doors, through which he could see several arcade machines, a pool table, dart board-- Marcus opened the door the stepped into the room. Anyway-- corn-hole board, shuffle board, ping-pong table, air hockey table, a small karaoke machine from the looks of it, more than enough televisions and comfortable seating chairs for a football team, and lots of lights that made Marcus feel suddenly overwhelmed-- what didn't this room have? There was so much potential to do so many things that Marcus found himself simply sinking into a recliner without thinking about it. He settled into the chair, leaned back, and put his feet up. Nearly instantly Marcus fell asleep.

Bynie shook her head vigorously as she was offered to trade trainers. "No way! He may or may not be gay but he's definitely not an asshole!" She scrunched her face up apologetically. "I hope yours lightens up on ya," she remarked to the Asian girl. As it was her turn at the vending machine she looked at the choices. When she realized that she didn't have any change she cringed. How embarrassing! Looking closer to the machine she realized that there wasn't any need, pressing C6 the almond joy dropped down without any issues. Scooping down to retrieve the candy she contemplated how chubby this new discovery wad going to make her. Turning around she realized that several members of the group had left to finish testing already. Why did it always seem like she was two steps behind everybody?

Knocking back her OJ and putting away her candy bar for later she made her way back to the little room. Felix was waiting outside the door, be pushed of the wall he had been propped against as she approached."alrighty! You ready to get this show on the road?"

Bynie smiles sheepishly," as ready as ill ever be!"

She followed him inside, he had all the tools they needed laid out. "Im going to have to place these on your chest to monitor your heart and such, they may be a bit chilly" she tried to ignore her own heating cheeks as he applied them. She tried even harder to hide her disappointment as he seemed completely indifferent to having his hands down the front of her tank top. "We will start slow, but it's going to get pretty difficult towards the end. Just let me know if it becomes too much!" Due to Bynie not exactly being the athletic type his statement made her nervous.

She stepped on to the treadmill and started to walk as it beeped into action. This wasn't so bad, she told herself. After a few minutes she was huffing, her short legs trying to keep up. "Getting to hard" she panted at felix.

"Nah. Honey, you're fine, just push through the pain." She tried, she really did, but as the machine sped up once more her ankle twisted under her painfully. "RED LIGHT!!!!" She sqwualed as she shot off the back of the treadmill, the sticky monitors were ripped violently from her chest. She groaned from her crumpled position on the floor. Felix stood looking over his clip board, eyes wide.

"Oh. Uh oh my!" He rushed over to help her up" I think that's enough for today, dear"

Bynie limped down the hall, after being examined, she only suffered from a twisted ankle and bruised dignity. Glancing up she noticed a few people playing in the pool. As much as cold water would feel amazing on her hurt ankle the last thing she needed was for the others to discover she couldn't swim. She sighed and limped on.

"Good afternoon all! Firstly, congratulations on the successful completion of your first testing sessions!" The sound of clapping clearly sounded through the intercom system, echoing oddly around the vast and mostly empty facility. "Tomorrow will be more of the same and we'll gradually ramp it up but first y'all need to rest up so the afternoon is yours! Oh, and there are a couple of new faces joining us today who took a bit longer to get here. If you see them make sure they feel at home." A long beep and the intercom fizzled out, the short announcement now delivered.

Arthur had been leaning back in his chair, still alone in the lounge, listening to the peppy researcher and letting his mind blank out from his intense focus on marking. It was something he had always enjoyed, reading through the work his students put so much effort into and helping them to improve where necessary, cheer them on where they had done well. Some small part of him had suspected the papers had been faked for his benefit, to make him feel more at home and trust the facility administrators more, but the work was recognisably that of his students; he could spot the quirks and where they had specifically tried to act on advice he had given them from their last piece.

So distracted was he that he nearly missed the odd sight of the remnants of his tea spiralling out of the mug in a form of double helix, twisting in and around itself as it rose until its structure stood nearly double the height of the mug. As soon as he noticed it, taking a double-take to make sure he wasn't just seeing things in his peripheral vision, the helix collapsed and tea sploshed down mostly into the mug, some onto the table.

Leaping to his feet, Arthur looked into the mug, picking it up tentatively and examining its exterior but there was no device, no trick set up to create such a strange phenomenon. He say down again cautiously, his mind drifting as it attempted to untangle what had just happened and produce an explanation. This time, when the helix rose again he caught sight of it immediately as well as feeling a subtle press on his consciousness. He tried to explore the sensation more but the helix collapsed again and the feeling was gone.

Unable to focus on his work anymore he gathered the papers together and headed back to his room to drop them off. As he passed the pool area he could hear the quiet splashes of swimmers and paused, considering his options, and decided to find out what was going on. It helped that there would be a large body of water, he needed to find out what was going on and see if it was related with this 'powers' tale they were being given by the administrators or whether he was simply going mad.

The pool was large, with plenty of lights under the water to illuminate it clearly should the users want to dim the other lights to cast the illusion of night swimming. From where he entered he could see a diving board to the right end of the pool and to his left there was a carpeted seating area, set back from the pool a safe distance, with chairs and tables set out and what looked like a small kitchen area behind that. In the pool he could just about make out Bailey and Sienna, apparently oblivious to one another as they swam.

Shrugging to himself, Arthur turned to the left and made his way to the seating area and laid his papers onto a table and set about finding the kettle and what supplies were in the fridge to restock his tea reserves. That small, but vital, task completed, he turned back to the pool and walked to the edge, looking down into the water and trying to grasp the illusive sensation he had detected before but it refused to be summoned again and he grunted in frustration, turning back away and sitting down at his chosen table and took a sip from his tea.

And there it was again, a niggling in the back of his mind, a curious sensation not dissimilar to when one felt like they were being watched. His eyes shot to the mug in his hand but there were no abnormalities there this time. Frowning, he put the mug down and turned towards the pool.

"Oh sweet Lord..." He stood up, as if dazed, and walked towards the edge of the pool where a towering double helix rose from the corner closest to him, almost reaching the ceiling in its colossal majesty. Each tube of water looked to be as thick as his arm and he could clearly see the smoothness of the water although it shimmered often, as if unstable and about to crash down at any moment. Calling to the others he pointed at the double helix, still maintaining its form next to him. "Just to check... you guys can see this too, right?"

The feeling of being drenched from top to toe made Thomas close his eyes. The water poured from the shower head, soaking every inch of Tommy and sending him into a slight trance. Warm water always had this effect on him, it made him relax, dulled his mind, and drowned out the world he no longer understood. "Mutant?" He muttered to himself, dragging both his hand's trough his hair as his mind worked overtime to make heads or tails of this whole situation. It just made no sense, he was just sick, not some friking X-men or Avenger character. A deep, drawn-out groan escaped him as he leaned against the shower wall, he wasn't ready for life altering event of this kind, but if the lady was to believe, there were more like him in this very building. Thomas stood there for another 20 minutes, letting the warm water cascade over him, before finally stumbling his way out of the shower. He felt weak, sluggish, but it was time to do some exploration.

A pair of gray joggers and a white t-shirt laid stacked on his bed, along with a note. "We have sent a request to have your clothes delivered here, but for now, you will have to live with what we can provide." The clothes fit, somewhat, the pants were a bit short, and the T-shirt was a bit tight in some places, but all in all, it could have been a lot worse.

"Cafeteria, gym, auditorium, games room, and a pool...hmmm," Tommy mumbled to himself as he paced the halls. This place seemed large, even if he compared it to the military base, maybe it would be too bad to be isolated here after all.

Location: Room 8 -> Hallway -> Pool

Eliza steps out of the shower, steam from the hot water lingering in the air. Much like a hotel room, there were towels stocked on the nearby racks. She grabs two rolls and proceeds to wrap one in her hair and the other around her body. Exiting the bathroom, Eliza sighs in relief as all the tense muscles from the tests relax from the shower. An announcement rings from the intercom mentioning more new people joining them. She then sat on the bed to wait for her hair to dry and turned on the TV, immediately going to the news channel.

On the news was a coverage of Nyko Corporation's newest business venture. As they were talking, Eliza's face scrunched up.
"I guess sis has her eye on bigger things now." She gripped the remote in her hand as her sister's face popped up on the screen.

"Nyko Corp. is taking a leap into another industry after acquiring a pharmaceutical company based in NY. This doesn't come as a surprise as Nyko Corp is a top leader in real estate, software, hotels, and hospitals. Many wonder why the sudden venture into the medicene & drugs industry. Nyko Crop's newest CEO is set to clarify this decision later in the week at a press conference."
The newscaster then moves on to yet another coverage about how technology is destroying society. Eliza turns off the TV and tosses the remote on the bed.

"Just another thing to rub in my face..." Eliza sighs and heads over to the closet to pick out something to wear. She thinks back to earlier when her trainer mentions about the "atrocities" committed by her family. Looking back at it, all the "business ventures" were just another way to control what goes on in NY. Evicting poverty stricken families from their homes to build condos instead and increasing the health bills and denying care to those that can't afford it at their private owned hospitals. But now they had their hand in medicine and drugs. Who knows what they could do with that kind of power. Ever since she left New York she had become much more aware of the corruption set on by her family. It hadn't hit her until the trainer's rant.
"Oh shit, I guess this is what guilt feels like." Eliza says aloud to herself. She then notices a small desk with a pen and notepad.

"I guess I can try to get on his good side and write an...apology letter?" Eliza walks over to the desk and picks up the pen. In that instant an insane jolt in her head hit her. It felt like something was trying to escape her brain. It caused her to grip the pen even tighter as she fell to her knees wincing in the sudden feeling. When she opened her mouth to scream for help nothing but gibberish escaped from it. When she tried to open her eyes, it felt like something was keeping them shut. Her mind seemed to be pulling towards the pen that was gripped in her hand. For a moment it felt like she wasn't even in her body. No drug or sex could even come close to this out of body experience. It took all of the effort she had to release the pen from her grip. Once of pen was out of her hand her eyes shot open and heavy gasps of air filled her lungs.

"W-whaaa da fffuuc!" Eliza shouted as she crawls away from the pen. A hand falls onto her forehead as she tries to go over what just happened. Was it a stroke? Was the water bottle from earlier actually drugged? She gets up from the floor and tries to manage words but they come out slurred.
"Gots toooo ffffine the othhhersss" Eliza managed as she goes to run out the door. Once in the hallway however, she notices that she is wearing only the towel that is wrapped around her.

"O ffffuuuc" She bolts back into her room and quickly throws on whatever. Before heading back out the door. She heads to the pool area where she heard the voices of the others that had gathered there. Eliza frantically runs in shouting,
"I think I just got drug!" The words were finally coming out more clear. Grammatically incorrect, but more clear But before she could celebrate that, the water trick coming out of the pool stopped her in her tracks. Not only that, but Bailey and a new guy were in what seemed to be an argument. With Bailey shouting out that he had made the new guy numb. But Eliza couldn't care less about that, her eyes were glued to the double helix made of water and the only thought that could come to her was whether or not she was still "drugged". She gripped the wall closest to her and tried to keep her balance as her knees were feeling weak from shock.
"Wha-?" Was all she could manage to say.

--
@Ornatur@Jinxer@Aquanthe@HecateProxy

---

In the gym, Cassius had spent the last 30 minutes doing dribbling drills. He had no idea what they were supposed to be doing, and that made him beyond anxious. When he got nervous, working out or training usually helped him settle down. So did drinking, but he doubted it was an appropriate time to drink, since they were going to be doing tests for the next few days. Instead, he ran through his personal dribbling routines using a football he'd found in the gym. He ended his drills with a quick flick up that he executed almost perfectly. Thiago would've been proud.

He flicked the ball up into his hands as he heard a commotion outside the gym. As he stepped out, he saw the pretty girl from earlier, Eliza if he heard correctly, staggering to the pool area, shouting for the others. "You- you okay?" He tried to say, but she didn't seem to hear him. He followed her into the pool room where there was a quite a commotion.

Bailey stood, completely soaked in his jeans beside some guy. He also saw Arthur and... a girl whose name he couldn't fathom. He heard Bailey shouting with who he thought was the newcomer that the intercom had announced, the first shouting about having caused the latter to

"What the hell is going on?" He asked in a brief break in the commotion. He saw Eliza stagger briefly, and he stepped to her, putting her left arm around his shoulder to help her stand. He had absolutely no idea what was going because no one seemed to understand either. Trying not drop Eliza, he stepped towards Bailey. "There's not way you made someone go numb, that's impossible, mate. We don't have superpowers."

Once again, Athena had found herself fluttering her eyes open to see the pristine white ceiling. A groan escaped her lips as she reached up to a slow throbbing in her head. All she could remember was that a young man had come up to her, asking if she was okay, and then everything had became distorted, and quickly everything went black. 'I must have fallen on my face..'

"Miss Wilson! You're awake, finally!" The deep voice of Athena's trainer filled the room, unexpectedly. The young woman quickly tried to sit up but was greeted with a wave of nausea. "Please, Miss Wilson, take your time. We should have known that this would happen. Before you woke up, earlier today, we had drawn a decent amount of blood from you. My apologies. I should have made sure prior to fetching you." Athena glared at her trainer as she lay motionless. "Well, I'm alive. I'll be fine." Her voice was weak but she still managed to spit out some sarcasm. Taking a few deep breaths, she slowly got up from the small hospital like bed that she was on. The spinning wasn't as bad, which was a good sign. A few deep breaths more and everything seemed to be okay. "I think I'm fine now. I'm sure all I need is some food in me and maybe some sleep, on my own accord." She spoke to her trainer, fairly confident for someone who had just passed out. "Well if you think so, I say go for it. We will continue the physical aspect of the research another day when you're at one hundred percent."

Athena nodded at her trainer, and offered him a small, genuine smile. He returned the smile and escorted her out of the small room that they were in. He nodded in acknowledgement to her before closing the door and leaving her to go on her own. The face of the young man that had tried to help her appeared in her mind. She had to thank him for trying to help, since it was none of his concern really.

The brunette made her way down the hall, her eyes checking every room as she passed by them. She finally came to a corner and began to hear the commotion of the others. With a newfound purpose, Athena began to walk towards the noise. Had others been told something that made them upset? Had someone been hurt? The questions raced in her head as she made herself worry.

Upon getting to the door of the room where the majority of the people were in, Athena's eyes slightly widened as she tried to understand what the hell was going on. No matter which way she looked at it though, she still couldn't understand.

"Guys, I made him numb!"

"What?" Athena mouthed to herself as she looked at Bailey, and then at the other person. 'Another new face?' There was absolutely too much to understand. Did they really all have these so called abilities, and they were now experiencing them for the first time? They all needed to calm down a bit and get an understanding at what was happening. There was no way that they all had these abilities. Right?

"Do... Do you all have something different?" Athena asked out loud, still looking at Bailey and his hand.

The pool water was refreshing, like a sweet tea on a warm day. Sienna felt the water as a nice change of pace from standing out in the blazing desert heat, only occasionally floating around in a discount plastic pool for kids or guzzling down a water bottle in order to fight heat stroke. Almost serene and in a few strokes, Sienna had sunk down to the bottom of the pool and began to float around, taking in the cool but solitary atmosphere when the intercom began to buzz. The woman's voice was muffled underneath the waves, but by the time Sienna swam to the top, it had gone silent.

Flicking water everywhere, her braids were now undone and matted with the rest of her hair as Sienna went to lay against the poolside. Plucking a clump of hair that was blocking her sight, Sienna moved the wet hair aside, noticing Bailey once her vision was free from interference. "I decided to wear my swimsuit underneath my clothing. We were given free time, so I thought to visit the pool right after the testing." Sienna explained, noticing the clear vibrantly red blush Bailey was now sporting on his cheeks. "What? Do you find something interesting about me, Bailey? Sienna commented, giggling as she jested. In the same fashion as the water, Bailey's reaction was a change of pace from the usual stares of her comrades clearly not hiding their attempt to admire Sienna.

However, before Bailey could answer to Sienna jokingly although openly flirting with him, someone else had entered the pool room. Arthur, the newcomer, quickly called out to the duo floating in the pool, his voice clearly surprised and curious. Tilting her head towards Arthur, Sienna was forced to do a double-take, blinking as she stared at the water helix formed from the water. Bailey quickly ran off to drag someone to see the helix, but Sienna was genuinely curious, instead choosing to approach Arthur and the wonder that had been created. Speechless, Sienna tried to figure out how to explain such a possibility, but was at a loss of words. Sienna could explain each and every part of a plane, even how to fly one, but there was no possible way that she could think of a reason of how the helix formed.

Eventually, while in her thought-drunk state, Bailey came back, yelling something about having made someone numb. The others around him were at a loss, some even openly defying that his power to make people numb was a lie. Still, the helix was the center of her attention, and therefore Sienna paid little attention to the conversation that was happening between the rest of the group she had met a day before. Reaching out to touch the water creation, Sienna leaped backwards when a sudden, although not large by any scale, bolt of electricity shot from her fingers and sliced through the helix, the lightning splitting it in half. "Whiskey Tango Foxtrot!" Sienna exclaimed, almost shouting military jargon while rubbing her now sore bum after smashing into the ground in surprise from the sudden appearance of electricity. Everything was all confusing, yet it still happened albeit shockingly, even more so in Sienna's case.

---

Interacting with: @Aquanthe@wolverbells @SheriffLlama @KimmiNinja @HecateProxy @Ornatur @Jinxer

"Powers ma'am?" Eli asks as he stares down the young asian woman seated before him, the buzz of the PA system barely registering in the back of his mind as it announce his presence and others. "Its Doctor Childs." She responds, her cheap office chair squeaking in rebuttal as she leaned back. "But yes. In so far as we can determine, the illness you contracted developed as a symptom of a yet to be understood genetic mutation." She says, casually jotting down notes as he jogged on the treadmill.

Eli bit back the urge to comment of the novelty of a woman holding a doctorate. He'd made a similar comment to a mechanic once and was summarily decked for his troubles, and was in no hurry to agitate a a woman of similar disposition. "I..see." He finally manages to say, not even really convincing himself. And even if he did, the rapid pace she'd forced on him kept any chance for rumination on that fact summarily squashed.

"If such is the case...then why...?" He manages between huffs as the speed picked up once again, nearly tripping over himself. "Base line physical exam. You having powers means squat if we don't know to what extent your body is changing. Nothing you need to strain your brain too hard on squirt." She answers curtly, never once looking up from her notes.

Eli begins to retort before the treadmill (from hell, he decided) once again increased its speed. An uncomfortable silence, save for Eli's wheezing, fell over the two for the next ten minutes before, mercifully, DR. Childs leans forward and flicks the machine off. "And donezo. Buzz off for a while so I can write these results up. I'll send someone if I need you again." She slurs, only half paying attention as she waves him towards the door.

"I...Uh. I mean, what sort of changes should I remain alert to?" He asks as he recovers his breath. An agitated sigh escapes the woman's mouth as she looks up from her notes for the first time in their session. "Oh you'll start growing hair in funny places and start thinking about girls!" She says, voice saccharine and mocking. "If I had any useful info for your case, I'd share it. But I dont. So buzz." She adds, finally returning to her beloved note pad. Eli begins to interject, but decides against it. Leaving the...frankly shrewish woman to her own devices as he escaped into the hall.

He quietly wandered for a few moments looking for an idle distraction to loose himself in, wondering if the doctors attitude was common place. He hoped not, he had barely exchanged ten words with her and yet already he felt exhausted. The prospect of a whole room of such...bold persons was more than he was willing to bear. Shouts echoed from down the hall, disrupting his train of thought. He considered ignoring them for a moment before deciding to, reluctantly, follow them to an indoor pool area.

A slew of people near his own age were gathered, in various states of duress as a helix of water sprung forth from the waters surface. A few were marveling at the helix, while others were shouting about...drugs and numbness? Seemed weird to be concerned about medical side effects when the literally impossible was happening before them.

He stayed quiet as he approached the spiral, only to be beaten to the punch by a blonde woman who was...Why was she in her underwear? Panic immediately set in, his sensibilities attempting to override his fascination from the aqua structure. Should he look away? That is the proper thing to do right? Right. It would insult her chastity to take advantage of her undress while everyone was, clearly, not in their right states of mind.

He was about to make a quick exit when again the impossible began, the blonde arcing electricity through the helix and air before her as she screamed gibberish. His eyes widened as he watched the sudden flash flutter out of existence, its origin now planting herself posterior first into the tile floor in shock. "Thats...A miracle!" He says kneeling down next to her, former anxiety seemingly forgotten in the face of presumed divinity. "Please excuse me miss...Foxtrot?" he says, hazarding a guess at her name. "I do not wish to be rude, but do you think you could be so kind as to do that again?"

Caebyn -Bynie- Danvers

---

Caebyn sat in her room munching on her almond joy. She had her ankle propped up on a bunch of pillows, impatiently flipping through channeles. She didn't really understand why she felt so restless. She spent a lot of time on her own, reading books or binging on tv series and she was happy to do so, but all of a sudden she felt really discontent being alone. Its not that she didn't have the books or access to her shows. She had been generously accommodated; her bookcases filled with all her favorite authors and unlimited access to any show she could think of as well as her favorite stations.

Maybe it was because all those fantastical adventures seemed much too real now. She was the girl whose life was about to change, for better or for worse. She was going on an adventure of a life time in the form of this sickness and it was going to make her great, or it was going to make her dead.

She sat up, swinging get legs over the side if her bed. She winced at the throb if her ankle but got up anyway. The only thing that had a good chance of distracting her from her anxious thoughts would be some good ol human interactions with her fellow mutants. Standing she stretched, and smoothed down her hair. She had showered earlier and hadn't bothered to dress past her undies so she hobbled over and donned alacey floral romper, leaving her feet bare as to not irritate her ankle farther.

The second she cracked open her door she heard the commotion. Limping quickly to the pool she slipped inside. The pretty asian girl was being held up by the new guy from breakfast and there was a swirly thingy and a few faces she didn't know, one of those looking confused and pissed at Bailey the other hunching down very near the army girl with near worship in his gaze. She took a few steps from the chaos and bumped into someone. "Oh, I'm sorr- oh sweet baby Jesus" even with every thing going on Bynie felt her face flush a florescent red as she made eye contact with the girl she had accidentally walked in on while she was changing. She tucked her chin into her chest and dashed away. Forgetting about her ankle it caved mid escape, she desperately tried to regain her footing. Just when she thought that she was good she slipped in a puddle and tripped over the boy next to Sienna, gracefully belly flopping into the pool.

There seemed to have been something in that whole spiel about everyone being mutants because this didn't feel right, it felt wrong. The closest thing Thomas could compare this strange numbness to was local anesthesia, but he could still use the affected parts of his body, there was just no feeling in them, and this kid was to blame. This wet, brown-haired dork that seemed to no grasp the concept of personal space, and hadn't he heard the shouts for him to back the fuck off? Had his mutation also affected his hearing? Or was he simply too high on a power rush to notice anything around him? If so, it was time to change that.

"Ey!" Thomas shouted, his voice booming through the room as the anger began to bubble inside him. His fist began to clench, his knuckles whitening as he resisted the urge to lash out. There was no questioning if he was angry, it was more a question of if he was dangerous. A long shaky breath escaped him as Thomas tried his best to ignore the voice flooding his mind, the voice demanding violence or some form of payback.

Anger management had never been a strong suit for Tommy, but he always tried to deny it, claiming that he always had control even as the pile of evidence against that kept growing larger. He didn't want to admit that he had issues, he wanted to sweep them under the mat and ignore them, but his inner demons never stayed silent for long. Throughout his schooling, Tommy had a habit of getting into fights and arguments, but he never ended up badly hurting or injuring anyone, and with age, he has gotten slightly better at calming himself down. However, a recent episode of his almost cost him his place in the military, but his officer had just made the excuse that Tommy could get a bit intense once in a while and that there was no point in forcing him to withdraw when there only were a few months left. He has no idea of why the officer chose to go out on a limb for him, to give him a 2nd chance, and he had gotten sick before he had had the chance to ask.

"I told you to let go of me, but you dragged me in here and did something to my wrist. I told you to stop, and you still think its funny to go ahead and use me as some test dummy? What if this is permanent?" Thomas gazed down at his hand, watching as his fingers moved while he felt nothing. Everything worked, so why couldn't he feel it? What had this idiot done?

Thomas took a quick step forward, his eyes narrowing as he looked into those beautiful blue eyes. "Oh he made me fell numb," Thomas chuckled as he answered the newly arrived male. "My hand feels like a dead piece of meat, and he is shouting about it like it's the fucking coolest thing ever." Thomas reached out, catching a few fingers into one of Bailey's belt hoops, preventing him from retreating. "Fix, me," he commanded but was cut off as some blond twirp told him to calm. He didn't want to calm, he wanted to punch Bailey, but sadly, the guy had a point. Tommy didn't know what his power was, but if just a slight touch from Bailey was enough to numb him, then what could he do? Who could say that the punch would prove fatal. Thomas groaned, biting down on his lower lip, unclenching his fist as he let go of Bailey. "You are safe...for now."

Location: Pool ->

Eliza felt her left side slightly lifted and the weight of her body suddenly being shifted to someone holding her up. Her eyes briefly met the handsome man who had caught her eyes earlier. His name didn't come to her since the day moved so fast but with what was going on in the pool area it was the least of her worries for now.
"Th-thank." Was all she could muster as he walked her with him towards the rest of the commotion. And as the man addressed what Bailey was going on about, Eliza's eyes still fell to the shaped water helix dancing out of the pool. It looked like something you'd see in a Hollywood blockbuster film with CGI effects at work. But the past two days have been centered around one thing and now it was all coming to confirmation - powers. Athena walked in and asked them if they had all felt something different. Eliza rolls her eyes and turns her head at her while also nodding towards the pool.
"Guuessh." (Guess)

Sienna was the one who got closer to the helix and raised her hand towards it. Before Eliza could warn her about the dangers of touching crazy water magic, something sparked from Sienna's fingertips splitting the helix right in half. Eliza's eyes widened, her body felt numb and her head started to spin. It was fortunate that there was someone holding her up.
"I-I don't feel so good." Eliza's body involuntarily leaned more towards the guy, almost falling in on him.
There was way too much going on at the pool now, 3 more faces showed up including one of the new ones mentioned before. Then it all seemed to reach its peak when Bynie flips into the pool. Then there was more yelling coming from Bailey and the new guy he "numbed". Eliza was pretty sure Bailey was going to get the lights punched out of him. It all seemed like a conflict in a bad sitcom.

When Arthur helped Bynie out of the water and suggested they calm things down and talk it out, Eliza sighed in relief. She had no clue what was happening to her, what was happening to everyone else for that matter. It had only been a few minutes since what felt like a stroke hit her. Her mind was rattled which seemed to take an effect on the rest of her body. Her legs felt like jello - and not from something good. Eliza felt frustrated, she wanted answers. There was a possible number of scenarios she could think of on what was happening to her. On the top of her list was her being drugged by her ass of a trainer. The other option was her "powers" manifesting like some of the others. But whatever her power is, it must suck.

As people started to head out, Eliza looked to the man supporting her and placed the hand that wasn't wrapped around his shoulder on the arm closest to her. From her touch, she could tell that he was well-built like a sports athlete. The athletic clothes he wore also highlighted it.
"Thanks again, I honestly don't know what's happening with me..." Eliza tries to give him a smile but her lips trembled from shock. It was a good thing that her words were finally coming out not slurred and grammatically correct (for the most part).
"I feel bad not knowing the name of the man who is helping me out?" Eliza thought back to the time in the auditorium earlier and remembered why she was trying to avoid him in the first place. Her eyes shot away from him and head turned to the floor.

"We should probably head to the lounge now, mind helping me get there?" Eliza asked with her gaze avoiding his.
If he was wealthy, he'd know who she was- who her family is just by stating her last name. If he followed the social media scene or the party scene for the 1% - he'd also recognize her face if he tried hard enough. The last thing she wanted was for that side of her life to be known to the others - and if they reacted like her trainer did, her chance of ever getting away from her family name would be ruined. It was a blessing in disguise that no one else connected her to the Nyko Corp. But if it was brought to light she was associated with the people who made money off the blood and lives of others- who knows how they might see her. So she hoped that this guy wouldn't realize anything about her past life, or hopes that she can keep him quiet about it.

She shook her head at the worrisome thoughts. They should be the last thing on her mind. Right now it should be about potential powers. Eliza made a mental note to focus on solely that, it would make it easier for her to get away from her past life if she ignored those thoughts in the first place.

---
@wolverbells@SheriffLlama
@everyoneelseatthepool

---

Cassius had seen a lot of crazy things in his life. He'd been to some ridiculous parties that had ended up in chaos. He'd even been high enough before to see some things that definitely weren't there, but this... This was no hallucination. This was real, Cass knew that for sure. What he didn't know, however, was how this was real. The sight of the helix figure above the pool, supposedly formed by one of the present people, the sight of Sienna splitting the helix apart with some sort of electric shock, and Athena's confused ramblings... They all told him that this was happening, completely inside reality and not the effect of a drug, but Cass couldn't fathom the things he saw before him. None of it should have been possible by any stretch of his imagination. Regardless, he swallowed the massive lump that formed in his throat, trying to mentally gather himself enough to be able to function in the current situation.

As Eliza seemed to come to her senses, Cass looked down at her, but she still seemed to ramble a bit. She mentioned not feeling well again, and she almost crumpled to the floor. Fortunately, Cass was more than capable of supporting her weight. The guy named Arthur seemed to be the first to fully gather himself and make some sort of sense of the situation. He mentioned the idea of everyone meeting in the lounge to "discuss rule" and regroup. He wasn't sure what the man meant by that, but Arthur seemed to have a solid head on his shoulders.

The young man looked down as Eliza touched his arm, speaking intelligently again as she asked his name. "Uh, I'm Cassius Williams." He said, glancing down at her. "Eliza, right?" He said. A quick look at her face sent a tiny hint of familiarity through him, and he could've sworn he'd seen her face before. He could name the place, so he just chalked it up to coincidence. He'd known, met, partied with, and slept with plenty of girls. Much of his life was spent around beautiful young women, so it was no surprise that her face reminded him of someone he'd met along the way.

Eliza suggested that they head to the lounge, and Cass nodded. He put his right arm around her lower torso, offering as much of his support as he could. He turned and they made their way towards the lounge. He took a right turn into the lounge and helped Eliza sit on one of the couches. As he set her down, he turned to look around the room. It was decorated with modern furniture and art on the wall. He spotted a bar on the far side of the room and felt a little bit of thirst in his throat. "I could use a drink." He muttered to himself.

He walked behind the bar and grabbed the first drink that caught his eye, a bottle of Crown Royal Whiskey. He normally preferred softer drinks, but he was okay with a bit of Whiskey right now - hard and calming. He wouldn't mind taking the edge of at the moment. He placed the bottle on the counter and knelt down, trying to see the labels for the different compartments. He looked for light switch, noticing a couple of metal flick switches arrayed across the top of the bar. He picked one and flicked it, but instead he saw a rack of fancy lights lower from the ceiling with the whirring of a motorized system. "What the f-"

Out of nowhere, the lights burst on with a blinding beam of purple and blue as the house lights gave way to the reflection of a disco ball. Cass swore as the lights filled his vision, completely blinding him and piercing his nerves. Almost immediately after the speakers in the room turned on and the sounds they emitted hit Cassius like a brick wall. He crumpled to the ground, his arm knocking the bottle of whiskey to the floor beside him with a loud crash. The sound of the music pounded against Cass' ears like pure waves of force. He let out a loud cry of pain as he squeezed his eyes shut and put his hands over his ears in futile effort to block out the horrible onslaught of his senses. The overwhelming force was enough to keep him on the ground. "TURN IT OFF!" He shouted as loud as he could, not realizing that the music was a normal level for anyone else in the room. He moved his hand to flick the switch but his exposed ear simply couldn't handle to berating sound. "SOMEONE PLEASE TURN IT OF!" He roared again, hoping Eliza or anyone else in the room would come to his aid.

Athena had watched with wide eyes as everyone in the room seemed to lose control of just about everything. 'Have they never experienced their so called abilities?' The woman stepped to the side as people began moving about. She had managed to remain in the doorway, wanting to keep her distance from the water that had turned into a double helix. With this many people around, she wanted to be as far as possible from any place that screamed danger.

'The doctor said that this would happen. That the others would get stronger, but he never said that they had never even known what their abilities were.'

Her head tilted slightly as Arthur suddenly spoke up and began to move everyone to another room so they could go back to being calm. Athena stepped a bit more to the side and watched as people began to follow, as if they were a heard being led off. Without asking another question, she walked among the group, keeping her comments to herself. She knew that if she opened her mouth again, she'd be greeted by some type of degrading sarcasm.

Her steps were slow as she fell to the back of the group, her eyes on the ground as many thoughts raced around her mind. It slightly felt as if she was being housed with teenagers instead of adults. Athena bit her lips as she became a bit worried with the way things were heading. Her head turned up as she realized that they were filing into a room, in which Cassius was shouting. The woman flinched at the sound of pain in his voice, making her feel a sense of purpose as she glanced around the room for the light switch. The others seemed to be either more preoccupied with themselves or Cass's shouts that they didn't move quick enough. Athena had quickly walked over to the opposite side of the room and hit the switch to turn all of the lights. She hoped that it would offer some type of relief to whatever pain he was experiencing, although it didn't seem as if it would've been as easy as turning off some lights.

Instead of voicing her concerns, once more, Athena had turned to look towards the door before making her mind up and leaving the room. Too many emotions were running wild, and the last thing she needed was to activate her useless abilities. She had caused too much grief to others by "bewitching" them and it was something that she did not want to see in any other eyes.

^{Location: Games Room -> Hallway}

---

Marcus' own snoring woke him up. He rubbed his eyes tiredly and it did nothing to clear away the thin blurry film apparently on his eyeballs now-- what was that sutff anyway? As he continued to rub his eyes, Marcus reasoned it must be that gunk that makes eye crusties. Sure, that seemed a viable theory. Maybe he would go downstairs and ask mom what she thought of it. Weird... Marcus couldn't smell her morning coffee brewing and well, the house seemed a bit too quiet for this hour. Did she miss her alarm? Stretching himself once more, Marcus rolled over, then stood out of the-- chair.

He had been sleeping in a chair.

Looking over his shoulder, Marcus stared at the comfortable recliner as if it had offended him. It was in that moment that reality began crawling back to him, tired and angry with him-- how dare he forget it? How dare he forget that this was a strange room in a strange facility in what was probably a strange country? How dare he think he were back home, comfortable and normal, with the people he cared about and longed for? An empty feeling settled into Marcus as he stared into the large room, decked out in all it's various forms of entertainment, it's unused chairs and sofas, all trying their hardest to ease him into a false sense of comfort.

It was as if the room no, the whole place, were shouting, "Look-- we have everything you could need-- why not feel fine here? Forget what else you need or want-- we have everything to keep you occupied and happy." A deep sigh escaped Marcus. Sure, the facility had "everything" in a literal sense but, there would never be anything here close to what he wanted. A plate of eggs scrambled by his mother, the wet lapping of his dog's tongue against his face, the satisfaction of a hard day's work, and a sunset over a field he'd helped plow himself... Again he took to rubbing his eyes and for what? It wasn't as if them being clear would wipe away the hospital white reality of the hallways, the clean scent of sterile air, or the harsh taste of blue medicine on his tongue that was doing God-Knows-What to him.

Uncomfortable with the room all of a sudden and simultaneously realizing he was shirtless still, Marcus turned then headed for the doorway. He exited the room and softly closed the door behind himself. Staring at the ground for a few moments, Marcus tried his best to pry his mind away from his sorrow filled thoughts. Truly, he gave it his best shot. When he finally looked up and toward the end of the hall, he saw Athena again. Marcus' eyes grew wide and his posture rigid-- he stared at her. Were she to look his way, all he would do is continue staring.

Did she remember? Would she remember? Would she be mad? How would she react? No-- no he shouldn't even mention it-- should he? No. Don't say anything. Marcus continued to stare at Athena in silence, anxiously grinding his teeth as she neared him-- she hadn't seen him yet? Had she seen him yet? Marcus pressed his body into the door behind himself then fumbled about to find the door handle-- WHERE WAS IT? His hand was scraping against the door making quite a ruckus as he kept his awkward wide-eyed stare on Athena.

^{Interaction: @wolverbells}