Meeting a cheeky force

Ch 12 (E)

Shaded light leaked through a small window, illuminating the large well-decorated classroom. A couple of dozen teenagers sat, poised at attention as all listened to the Professor.

"This job is extremely dangerous for the simple fact that a Radigrade decides whether or not it likes the host weapon. If not, they blow themselves up along with the equipment without so much as a warning"

"For a being without a brain, they are very selective and temperamental when it comes to hosts and or host objects."

Lucas was giddy with excitement as he thought about the implications.

"This is what makes Academy 0 so special. Currently, we have a set of onsite Rad-smiths that forge each one of our students a custom weapon catered to their combat style"

Students' ecstatic whispers flowed through the class as they quietly discussed the possible power they could gain from this.

"Radweapons are fairly new and haven't been fully implemented into all parts of the military. It's safe to say that training here will give you an insurmountable upper hand on the battlefield"

**

Time slipped past as Brill talked about different types of weapons and the ability that best suited them, it was all very intricate and thorough for only being discovered a couple of years ago.

A loud bell echoed through the halls, signifying the end of the day as Lucas cautiously made his way out of the class, Allison closely following him.

"Oh, Lucas! please wait," The professor called out.

"Yes sir?" Lucas respectfully responded.

"I forgot to mention, keep a level head when you meet with her, she might seem scary at first, but I have a feeling you two have a lot more in common than you may think."

"Um, thank you, sir" Lucas didn't quite know what to say, was the professor trying to comfort him?

As Lucas was about to head off, he turned to Allison,

"let's separate here, I'll meet you back at our door as soon as I can," Lucas said.

"We should both go, even if they just called for you," Allison said desperately.

"I also know the way!"

"Fine, but don't blame me if we get points taken away because they only asked for me"

They both walked down the hall, avoiding the students who were returning to their rooms and those off to practice their abilities.

Around ten minutes passed before they found themselves in the largest hallway Lucas had seen, four distinct levels climbed up the walls of the rock face, closely resembling a mall Lucas had been to before.

A large plaque stating 'Director's office, Commander Eclipse' was bolted onto a large double door.

Lucas and Allison opened the door to find a waiting room with a receptionist, frivolously typing on her keyboard.

"Hello Lucas, I'll let the commander know ya here" Her thick Boston accent made her sound like an old-timey cartoon villain, Lucas couldn't quite manage to remember the reference.

A buzzer sounded as the receptionist instructed Lucas to enter another double door.

Allison tried to follow but the receptionist stopped her,

"You have to wait out here missy"

Lucas nervously grabbed ahold of the doorknob as he nervously ran a hand through his hair and then down his shirt, straitening his uniform's creases.

The oak door creaked slightly as he stepped inside.

A large window backdropped a tall commanding woman sitting atop a big metal desk, screens littered the room, each displaying a different map, graph, or number.

"Why hello, Lucas" Commander Eclipse said her voice carrying authority.

Having the full brunt of her attention fully focused on himself Lucas realized that what he felt back at the orientation was nothing compared to now.

Lucas managed to squeak out a response,

"Good afternoon, Commander eCL." his poor attempt at a greeting was cut short as he bit his own tongue.

As Lucas prepared himself for a swift death, he heard a small chuckle.

"pfft- hahaha"

"No need to be so tense Luke," The atmosphere turned light-hearted as she stood up from her imposing desk.

Her heels clicked on the granite floor as she briskly walked around, pulling over a chair for Lucas.

"Sit, please," she insisted, pushing the chair a little too close to the desk before making her way back to the other side.

"So, where shall I start? Hmmm," She tapped her cheek as she thought.

"First let me ask some questions so I can understand how much you know," She pulled out a small red notebook labeled 'Lucas'.

To say Lucas was extremely confused would be a huge understatement. To start, Commander eclipse laughed at him, then called him Luke.

Something no one has ever called him before, and lastly, she has a sizable notebook with his name on it.

This wasn't going to be good, was it?

"How much do you know about the god race?"

"…" Lucas still had no idea what to say.

"Oh man, this is going to be a lot more explaining than I thought. Your parents really didn't teach you anything did they?"

Lucas looked down in dejection.

"I was never very close to my parents," Finally mustering up the courage to say something.

"Aah, I see how it is. Then this makes a lot of sense," she flipped through the thick book.

"Okay, to start off, in the beginning when you and your brother were just children your parents opted to be a part of a secret military program." She only skimmed the first few pages as if to reassure herself of the knowledge she already knew very well.

"You and your brother, being from a normal family as well as being twins were selected as a so-called control variable. The rest of the kids selected were from high-standing backgrounds or had parents with profound power"

"This program was later named the god race project. A total of ten infants were in the project, only six are still considered a part of the program."

"I can't go into detail about the procedures and experiments conducted on the ten of you during the three years you were in the military's care." She looked at Lucas as he sat in the comparatively small chair.

"But the six kids who are still considered a part of the god race attend this academy, unfortunately, you are not classified as one of them,"

"Unlucky for you huh? If you thought the special treatment you've received thus far is a lot you should have seen those spoiled brats. When I met with them earlier today it was a train wreck, hahaha."

"Still just kids and they already think they own the world; I remember those carefree days." Commander Eclipses' eyes glazed over as she reminisced.

Still taking in all the information and wanting more. Lucas asked a question,

"So, what your saying is that my brother and I were the experiments failures…" Lucas couldn't imagine he was a failed product, especially because of his newfound ability.

"Well…" She flipped the page once again.

"Your brother was actually a success, and in order to keep a control variable between the two of you, you were pulled from the program and were barred from attending the yearly transplant that the current six god races students have to go to in order for them to still be considered god race."

"This brought the remainder down, other unforeseen events such as the kidnapping of number one. And the death of your brother, number nine. As well as the tragic suicide of number eight, brought the total remaining, to six"

"And to sum up your disposition, according to this book at least. You have no way of maintaining the power gained during the experiments and therefore are back to being a normal ability user. Making you, number ten, obsolete." She said with a hint of sadness.

"Wow…" Lucas's stared off into space as he froze.

"But…" Her bright orange eyes looked deeply into his, bringing him back to attention.

"You got lucky,"

"Very, very lucky." She added.

"This book I have. Is the only remaining

"This book I have is important. One of a kind actually, you're fortunate I was the first one to find it buried in that creepy old place." Her lips parted as a pure smile broke through.

"So, does that mean that I'm going to be kicked out of the academy?" Lucas asked, already accepting his fate.

"Oh no, quite the opposite actually."

"What do you mean by that exactly?" Suspicion in his eyes, was she aware of his ability? Would she try to use him? Aliyah did say that he could be used as a power source, although probably not in a human way.

"Come on… don't play stupid with me. Don't pretend like your ability is normal in any way shape or form. I can feel it, the power leaking off of you. I felt it yesterday during the orientation and today-"She inhaled deeply as her eyelids fluttered.

"Dear god it's intoxicating" she exhaled. Lucas shifted in his chair; this situation was getting rather uncomfortable very quickly.

Commander eclipse looked back at Lucas's worried face, as a hint of fear broke through. Her demeanor quickly changed.

"Oh sorry… Well anyway. That's why I called you here, whatever your ability is, I don't need to know. But I highly recommend you get it in check before people start to notice things, especially if they look into your past."

"Thank you, commander. But I don't really even know what my ability is, and since the last time I activated them, I've felt Different, and not in a subtle way" He wasn't kidding, his body felt more energized and alive than it ever had before.

"Hmm. Well… unless you're willing to share your ability with good old trustworthy me. Then I guess there really is nothing we can do. I'll just have to help you behind the scenes to keep powerful people away from you." Her voice rose and fell as her point got across to Lucas.

Thus far she didn't seem like a bad person. If she had ulterior motives, she could have easily locked him up or killed him way before he even had a chance to realize what had happened.

There really wasn't anything Lucas could do at the moment, if a powerful person wanted to know his secrets, he couldn't do anything to stop them. So, he took a calculated risk,

"Umm… I think I'm comfortable with that."

"Superb decision! I feel like my knowledge of powers could really benefit you. So… what are we working with here." A curiously sly smile spread across her face.