P.R.C.U.: An Institute For The Extraordinarily Gifted

[Stein]

By six hundred hours, Erika had been up for an hour, her breath coming in measured gasps as she finished her run. Welcome beads of sweat rolled down her exposed skin as she headed toward the academy, reveling in its dawn-ridden glory. The trumpets sounded to signify the awakening of the school and student body alike. There were times when she could think of the academy as an entity, with a circadian rhythm almost as real as her own. A giant mother to them all in some sense as well as sentinel of protection.

The behest of the horns signified the official start of a new year and Erika was rather unsure how to feel about it. But instead of wallowing in such a murky thought, wrought with potential to birth negativity, she headed to her dorm to quickly change and prepare. Opening ceremonies would be later today and she had a stop to make before that.

---

"Well, Miss Vostrum, I'm actually surprised you made it in today. You know, these things aren't essentially mandatory at this point, more like optional guidelines," Mr. Paulson commented as Erika opened the door to his office 30 minutes later, dressed in her uniform attire.

Erika nodded her head and sat down, looking at the wall. Even after a few years, speaking to her counselor and looking him in the eye took her a few moments to adjust to. Her father had always taught her that respect was looking a man in his eyes, but she had learned to look away from them when all she saw was disdain in her home life. "I apologize for my tardiness, sir."

"Ah, but that's the thing, Erika! There's nothing to apologize for," Mr. Paulson told her, leaning in his chair with a warm smile. "You're doing fine. And I commend you on even coming in today. It's a standing appointment, but you make sure to abide by it. How about we do this? How about, we lessen things to once a week. How does that sound?"

"No!" Her hands found the table and she was suddenly out of the seat she had only just sat in. Catching herself, she apologized quickly. "I mean…that's not a good idea." The morning rays of the sun filtered in from his large window, and Erika longed for a moment to absorb them and take flight. If she had more freedom, she would have done so. If only…

Unfazed, Mr. Paulson crossed his leg and laced his fingers, adopting his comfortable position. Erika knew he was getting ready to pry, but she had no way of stopping him. "And why is that? What is the problem? Is it the new school year?"

Erika stayed quiet, her eyes locked on the sky beyond him.

He smiled knowingly and Erika bristled with frustration. How did he do that? What the hell did he know? His ability was that of inducing sleep and dream manipulation. There was no way he could tell her thoughts. "It's the new team member, isn't it?" He chuckled as he tossed her an object. Instinctively, she snatched it from the air, holding the hard diamond shaped glass in her hands. His version of a stress ball for her.

She began to squeeze it, debating on speaking. She knew that he knew he was right, so there was no sense in denying it. Conventional stress balls didn't work for Erika as she tended to rip them apart. This, however, she could squeeze as much as she liked. "It's not just that..." she mumbled stubbornly.

"Then go ahead, Erika, tell me," he encouraged her.

"I've got to be better this year," she started, looking at him. "Not just for me, for them. But…I don't know why, I just know I need to. And I have to be better for my mom. She needs to see that…I'm better here, or at least that I can be better here. And that new member, Hunter, he's… vexing."

***

Erika left a little while letter, feeling somewhat better yet somewhat more raw. That's how it always was with Mr. Paulson. But Erika took a deep breath and hurried to the mess hall to scarf down some breakfast, so as not to be late for opening ceremonies.

***

As she waited for things to start, Erika couldn't help but mull over the team in some capacity. They were a stronger team in comparison, but at times they didn't feel like a fully functioning force outside of missions. But she didn't have time to think long as Aiden appeared and soon after the ceremonies began.

***

As they were dismissed to pack, Erika made a beeline for her dorm, mind already mentally cataloging what to grab and where things were. Luckily, her roommate was as neat as she was and they had a mutual respect for each other. This would be simple to do.

Bursting through her door, she set to work, grabbing her few things and rolling her clothes up to stuff them in her pack. The camping trip was a tradition, but it was an experience every year and if she was honest, she looked forward to it each time.

Finishing her pack, she rushed out of the door and made her way out to where they were supposed to meet up. She saw Emma there, surprisingly and raised an eyebrow. She waved to her and made her way over. Setting her things down and looking to the sun, she drew on its energy. She stored some and stretched out her fingers. Particles of light began to appear, bright pockets and they began to connect, forming a block floating in the air for her to sit on. She might as well practice her construct control while she waited for the others.

But she should also practice something else. Small talk. Still something she had to become accustomed to. "Hello Emma. Umm…" she faltered to find words. "Ready for the trip?" she tried.

 

[PastaSentient]

David attempted to make small talk with Mina and Erika as Emma left. He was a tad disappointed by her desire to leave, but even he had to admit her accident with the balls was a little bit annoying to the group. And quite possibly an embarrassment to her. He had a crush on her, but he didn't really know her that well. She seemed very...airy and whimsical which he supposed was attractive in it's own way, but he wished she would be a little more direct in conversation. While being all serious wasn't a good thing...being completely out of touch with reality was another.

David was about to ask a question before there was a sudden sound of thunder in the distance. He turned his attention to the soundand frowned as rain began to fall. He had hoped for a bit longer with the Team before heading back. It was no matter he guessed. The young man jogged over to grab his clothes and sports bag before making a mad dash to the parking lot. He had his license and a car, but had gotten to the beach that day with some friends. Thankfully Aiden offered him a ride and he soon found himself back at the main campus.

Deciding to stay up just a tad longer before heading to his room, David made his way to the Rec. Center to play some pool. The young man found a group around one of the tables and asked to join in. An hour later found the young man with a slightly fuller wallet. While gambling was not exactly permitted by the school rulebook, the guys tended to throw in a few bucks here and there to have a "prize" pot. Winner take all.

David made his way to the dorm and stretched his sore muscles along the walk. The day's strenuous activities would definitely result in some pulled muscles the following day if he didn't stretch. The young man crossed his arm and body in a veritable pretzel of movements as he made his way to the dorm.

Approaching the door, David grimaced at the realization that he had left his FOB in his dorm room. Looking up and at the structure of the dorm, David could see his open window on the third floor. His grimace turned into a competitive smile as he backed away from the door. He had taken to watching parkour in his free time. This would hopefully be a good litmus test of those abilities.

With a running start, David let his momentum carry him a few feet up the wall and then kicked off to the side to push his body towards the ledge above the doorway. The young man caught hold of the laminate metal jutting out with his hands and soon pulled himself up in a fluid motion. Pausing for just a moment to calculate the distance, David jumped from the small ledge towards the extended base of a window to the right. His feet would land upon the brick with his hands once more gripping the window ledge. Sweat beaded David's brow and he felt his muscles burn as he made one last desperate jump upwards. His fingers nearly missed it, but David had reached his window.

With a sigh of relief, David pulled himself up and into his room. He looked around the room and smiled. His suitcase was still on his bed and the young man knew he would need to get unpacked soon, but for now he could rest. The Juno Class Hype looked across the room and was somewhat disappointed to see a sleeping form on the opposing bed. He had been told that he would be receiving a new roommate this year, but he had hoped to have met him before Orientation. David shook his head and made his way to the showers.

Thirty minutes later found the young man with earbuds in watching the newest episode of Ninja Warrior. While he would freely admit that he enjoyed copying the abilities, the sheer enjoyment was reason enough. He winced as the competitors hit the dirt. One made it through though. The end of the episode soon came and David pulled out a little small book and wrote five names,

"Horace Gardolia
Evan Farlow
Gena Whittiker
Hari Darkoto
Mina Rolo"

He looked over their names for a brief moment and then wrote a simple two words to each of their names,

"Thank you."

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

David stood with a crispness worthy of a United State's marine. Since...technically that was where he had gotten the stance from. The morning had started off well with a good breakfast. David had been disappointed to see that his roommate had already left when he awoke, but had seen the guy's name on the door-plate. Irwin Drake.

The name reminded David somewhat of the old Crocodile Hunter show for some reason, but he had not seen the guy. After breakfast, David had quickly gotten dressed in his pressed Dress Uniform. Despite the itchiness of the uniform, David stood at perfect attention as the Canadian National Anthem played. While the young man appreciated the country that had taken his family in, a part of him felt awkward not hearing the familiar taps of the Star Spangled Banner. And considering the tune of this one...Even Dixie would be better.

David internally grimaced at the thought. He loved his Southern Heritage, but slavery was certainly not something to be proud of. He did have to say he missed country music stations. While Country was not his preferred genre, it certainly beat jazz or rap in his mind.

Standing between Emma and Hunter, David observed the two out of the corner of his eye before turning his attention back to the stage. The Headmaster gave a warm speech and David felt the smallest bit of admiration creep in. Something about the man had always seemed off to David, but he couldn't put his finger on it. Nonetheless, the Headmaster was a brilliant man and David felt honored to have him as the Headmaster.

Soon, the assembly was dismissed to gather supplies for the Camping trips. David made his way to his room and quickly dressed in more comfortable clothing. A tight black t-shirt and thick cargo pants adorned his body while black military boots covered his feet. The pockets of the cargo pants contained basic survival equipment such as a lighter and a few granola bars. The young man picked up the bag he had assembled earlier that morning and looked through it to make certain everything was good.

"Food-Check.
One extra set of clothing-Check
Two books on survival-Check
First aid kit-Check
My sister's copy of Twilight for fire kindling? Double Check."

With a smile, David hurried out of the room to the Quad where he would meet the rest of his team. Seeing Emma and Erika already there, David jogged over.

"Y'all ready?" He asked with a smile. His eyes turned between the two girls and a short laugh came out, "Well, I suppose that's a dumb question. Emma can bring out whatever she wants and I would sooner bet on us encountering Bigfoot in these woods than Erika forgetting something."

 

[Olissa]

Oddly mesmerized by how light seemed to become 'real' upon Erika's command, Emma watched how the older woman made herself a seat.
Emma had simply taken to sitting on her duffle bag, as opposed to 'making' or in her case, borrowing a chair.
"Man, that's handy." Emma mused once Erika was finished and opted to small talk.
"Odd isn't it, seeing the slowest of the group here first." She laughed, reacting to the quicker eyebrow that Erika had earlier displayed. "That's what you get for being a light packer. No need to bring more than clothes as I've-..."

She halted when out came David, prepared for the trip. "Hey David." She said, getting up.
"You beat me to it, I was about to say I am a light packer as I've got the whole world in my hand." She had to be mindful not to sing that last part that belonged in a Sunday school song, for the most part. Great, now she had that song stuck in her head. Oh well. The smile on her face definitely remained.
"You know, I've wondered, do people here all simply greet with a wave and a simple 'Hi', even if you haven't seen each other for a month or so?" It kind of felt awkward to ask, but she had felt off with not greeting people like she was used to back home.
"'Cause in the Netherlands, especially amongst friends or close colleagues you give the other a hug and, or three kisses on the cheek. Not to say we hug everyone, those we have a just an acquaintance? Relation? To we simply give a handshake."
She had wanted to give the people a hug, or the usual greeting of three pecks on the cheek when she had met them at the beach, but it had felt weird to just get up and do so without explaining it at least.
And last year she didn't do it because she didn't know a single one of them.
"Not that I'm pushing for that or so!" Emma quickly added, "I was just wondering, that's all."
It actually kind of was a complex system if you broke it down. Certain unspoken rules and the like. Maybe that's why they didn't do that in other countries.

 

[PlayingMonster]

At oh-six-hundred-hours, when most of the campus was only starting to wake, Tory was in the shower after a run. She'd made sure to wake in plenty of time to allow her time for a bit of a run and, more importantly, the shower. She plaited her slightly damp hair and pulled on her skirt, shirt and blazer, slipping her feet into her shoes and heading for the mess hall. Honestly, she could take or leave eating breakfast, but knew that she'd need it.

She arrived to the assembly shortly after Aiden, who was talking to Mr. Anthony Strum. She would have grinned at him, but he seemed to be pretty deep in the conversation. She took her seat and crossed her feet at the ankles. The ceremony of the assembly had seemed strange to her at first, having been to public school in America her whole life, but now it was natural to her. Six years at a school did that.

When they were dismissed, she didn't waste any time. She changed into clothes that were a lot more practical than her uniform, shoving a few changes of clothes, a torch, a first aid kit, and a few other practical essentials. She also grabbed a few essential... feminine items as back-up. Just in case. Admittedly, Emma could summon anything they needed desperately, but Tory liked to be well and truly prepared.

She swung her bag over her shoulder and headed down to the courtyard, where Team Blackjack was already beginning to assemble. As she approached, Emma seemed to be talking about greeting customs. "That seemed to be a bit more common in England. My step-mother ran to hug me, despite having never met me. Or maybe she was just trying to dispel the idea of an evil step-mother." She remarked, dumping her bag at her feet as she came to a stop.

 

[Roman]

"The only person who regularly kisses me hello is mister here." Minnie remarked as she arrived, duffle-bag slung over her shoulder and Puggles trotting beside her. He hadn't been allowed on Minnie's first academy camping trip, but after she'd tried to induce some of the wildlife for exercises and found commanding a foreign animal difficult, the board had seen fit to allow her an exception. The supervisor with antler-shaped bruises and bite-marks certainly appreciated the ruling. Since then, Minnie had been having success at reliably inducing birds, but obviously the problem was catching one. The academy's trained pigeons and ravens were one thing, but wild birds were far more flittish. And there was the touch of a non-domesticated animal mind to consider. Feral thoughts were a lot harder to interface with and command than trained ones. Or loyal ones, in Puggle's case. She regarded the trio. "We're all packed then..." she said, raising a single eyebrow at Emma's supplies, or lack thereof, "...for a given value of 'packed', at least. No offense, but you'll burn yourself out one day the way you use your abilities, Em." She cleared her throat, rethinking her comment. A tad harsh. She tried to correct. "But I suppose it's only good practice, and I know I'm only jealous. Sorry. And sorry about snapping yesterday. I had other things on my mind." She smiled slightly, trying to sound sincere. She was sorry. Her grievances with Emma were not born from her actions; they stemmed from personal demons. Perhaps she should re-attend therapy. She shook the thought off. She didn't need it. She could tough it out by herself. She was Minnie Fucking Ripper, goddamn it.

Minnie rubbed her hands together and stretched, shaking off the last of the sleep. She'd not slept well, waking and sleeping intermittently throughout the night until her alarm and the academy trumpets woke her permanently in tandem. She'd dragged herself from bed and into her uniform - blazer with three stripes and the Blackjack insignia, a crisp white shirt neatly buttoned and straining slightly as it was tucked in too tight, and the academy skirt with black tights and leather flats. She'd sat beside Aiden during the assembly, most senior member of the team but seco- she had thought of Erika and adjusted to third-in-command, Aiden having been promoted to Leader. She had no thoughts one way or the other about that. She'd led Calling Jupiter, and she was happy to let Aiden have the position that she could otherwise contest. He deserved it - Minnie didn't really feel like she'd truly accepted her status as a Hype. She'd then left, apologised to Puggles for leaving him in the dorm while she attended assembly, packed, changed into black pants and a top, and left the dorm for the courtyard to meet with her team and report to Aiden and, in turn, Strum.

She dragged herself back to the present. Others were seating themselves on duffle-bags or light-constructs, but Minnie preferred to stand. She could be at guard more easily if she remained upright. "Who are we still waiting for?" She said, pointing to each team member as she spoke their names and counted them off. "Erika, Tory, Emma, David, myself...so that leaves Aiden, our graceful commander, and..." she paused. She tried to recall the new guy's name, thinking for a minute before succeeding. "...the new guy, Hunter. Who are together, I suppose." She huffed, shuffling her feet. There was a silence for a minute or two,a nd then Minnie tried to strike up chatter again.
"So, Erika, how's SHIFT training going? I know even I missed the ARC sessions over this summer. Pretty cool thing, getting into HEAT." She paused, and then addressed another question to the group, trying to engage as many people as she could. "Anyone else know what they want to do after PRCU?"

 

[Shroud]

Hunter had been awake, staring at the ceiling in contemplative silence, long before the trumpets had sounded at six o'clock to announce the official start of a new school year. After having returned the car back to the school's garage without incident, aside from becoming lost briefly navigating his way back to the main campus, he had gone back to his dorm room immediately and laid back down. Initially intending to only lay in bed listening to music and reading, Hunter had found himself growing nervous for the following day's academic start and soon fell asleep much earlier than usual. As such, he had woken hours before the crack of dawn. However, despite already having been wide awake by the time the trumpets had gone off, he was still startled at the sudden interruption to the morning's silence and had nearly fallen out of his bed as he wasn't accustomed to such things.

In fact, there was much he wasn't accustomed to here at Pacific Royal. Not the least of which being the sheer amount of people gathered on campus at one time. Hunter was from a small village in Ohio, not even numbering a hundred people. He still remembered the first day he was brought here; even during the Summer when most students had returned home or were vacationing elsewhere there were many more people on campus than Hunter was used to, and the sheer volume of minds he was in close proximity to had momentarily stunned him. Fortunately, in the two months he'd been here, he had slowly begun to acclimate to all the additional mental chatter, even though he didn't yet realize that. A year ago, just being in range of so many people would have driven him virtually insane, but now he barely felt a tingle unless he was within a dozen feet of a group.

Movement out of the corner of his eye, and the sound of shuffling sheets caught Hunter's attention. Both Kyle, and Jamie - James Koontz, Hunter's other roommate - were getting up, straightening out their beds and getting dressed in their pristine uniforms. Kyle was all grin as Jamie talked up a storm about the prospective new year, anything from the new eye-candy that had transferred in, to the courses they had been looking forward to and could finally take this year.

Just yet another thing Hunter disliked about this place; stuffy, restrictive, uniforms that seemed straight out of a military academy. He had tried on the individual articles once, when they were given to him, to ensure they all fit properly, and even though he hadn't worn them all together, he had never felt so physically uncomfortable in his life. Just another aspect of this school Hunter knew he would never get used to.

The boys tried to urge Hunter out of bed and down to the mess hall for breakfast, but he just lay silently in bed, staring at the ceiling. He had never gone to breakfast since he had arrived here in an attempt to avoid large gatherings of people, and even skipped most dinners relying mostly on snacks and the meals provided during lunch. Before they left, Jamie informed Hunter that the opening ceremony would begin at seven and that he should plan on getting there early. Hunter was fine with this as it gave him more time to lounge around, away from people.

By the time seven o'clock came around, Hunter was been dressed in the stuffy little dress uniform - after having initial difficulties in putting it on correctly - and seated next to David at the assembly. As the yearly event began, and the various speakers took the stage, Hunter tried his best to sit up straight and pay attention. It wasn't easy, what with the boy two rows behind him thinking, very loudly, about the bacon he had just eaten, or with the faculty member across the aisle mentally chastising every student she noticed not focusing on the Dean as he spoke. But he did manage to listen closely enough to catch the bit about the upcoming camping trip.

Camping? Hunter thought, slightly panicked. He knew nothing of a camping trip. It hadn't been mentioned to him before. He glanced around at all the other faces lit up with smiles, clearly excited for this trip, and clearly expecting it. Now Hunter was getting angry.

Why wasn't I told about this? Is this some trick on the new guy? Am I not invited because I'm new? Why didn't Strum tell... Oh.

Hunter suddenly remembered a conversation he had had with Strum two weeks ago. Or, rather, a conversation Strum had; Hunter was zoning out, not really focusing entirely on the words directed at him. He did, however, seem to recall now a mention of some kind of camping event...

Hunter cursed at himself. Because of his own stupidity, he was now unprepared for and unknowing about this trip. So, what, we all go on a huge, Kumbaya, hand holding adventure? Am I supposed to bring something? I don't even have anything...

The ceremony ended, and Strum began to give out his orders - which involved no electronics on the trip, something Hunter was not pleased with- and Aiden, their squad leader, dismissed them. Hunter made a mad dash back to his dorm room, intending to change quickly out of his uniform and find a clever hiding spot for his MP3 player so as to sneak it along on the camping trip. Unfortunately, by the time he had dressed back in his regular clothing of jeans, white tee, and hoodie, Aiden was knocking on the door. Hunter didn't know why the older boy had followed him, he just knew that Aiden was ruining his plan to sneak away his music.

Opening the door for Aiden to enter, Hunter started to throw what clothes he had with him into a duffel bag, hoping he'd have a chance to slip the device in among them.

"Yeah?" He asked Aiden.

"Strum wanted me to check in on you. Make sure you know what to pack, and what not to pack." Aiden replied with a small smirk.

Alright, thought Hunter, that's actually good.

"Can you tell me about it? The trip. I don't know what to expect."

"Oh that's easy. Nature hike, probably some sort of physical games and some lessons on survival but nothing serious. You won't have to build shelter or forage for food." Aiden said with a laugh. "It's meant to be a team bonding experience. Get to know them, let them know you. We'll all be spending a lot of time together after all."

Hunter wasn't too pleased with that last aspect. Emma, and he supposed Aiden and Minnie would be okay to hang around with, but David and Erika would likely give him one of his psionic headaches. Still, though, it could be worse.

"How long is it? What do I need to bring?" By this time, Hunter had finished shoving his clothes into the bag, and was just waiting for an opportunity to slip the MP3 player in.

"Just two days, one night. Bring a spare of clothes in case. Aside from that everything you need..." Aiden paused pulled a military backpack out from under the bed. "Is in here. Freshmen are provided a packed bag. This has your tent, your fire starter kit, first aid, shovel, hatchet, knife and so on all packed for you. Keep it and you'll be set for several years."

Two days, I can handle that. But not without my music...

While Aiden was gesturing at the provided pack, Hunter grabbed his player and stuck it into the duffel, just underneath one of his only pairs of shorts.

As Aiden turned to leave, he paused just inside the door frame as he turned his head back to Hunter. "Oh, you also might want to remove that MP3 player from your bag." With a knowing smile he left to attend to his own packing.

Hunter sighed in frustration as he took the device back out and tossed it on his bed. Wonderful, he thought. Grabbing his duffel and slinging the backpack over his shoulder, Hunter headed down to the courtyard to wait for Aiden.

 

[PastaSentient]

David mentally laughed as the girls interacted. When he had first been added to Team Blackjack two years ago he had found the females to be a little intimidating. Even now he still felt somewhat awkward around all of them, but he had learned to push past the insecurity and at least interact normally with them. None of the girls back in Raleigh were near as attractive as the girls on Blackjack. Thank God for Aiden.

David was not quite sure what he would have done without the older guy. Certainly the guy wasn't the most intelligent or the most driven, but Aiden had that type of charisma about himself that just really got people to become better than they already were. It was that trait that David believed had given Aiden Captain-ship. Mina might be more experienced and Erika might be more driven or more intelligent to lead, but it was Aiden who inspired. If Mina was an advisor and Erika a manager...then Aiden was a Leader. David aspired to be like the guy.

David's internal thoughts shifted as he listened in interest to Emma and the others as they spoke about difference customs, his head nodding slightly in acknowledgement at the right moments. A simple smile rested on his face.

"In North Carolina, a simple handshake is usually how people who are just meeting greet one another. Side-hugs are for those who are closer. It can be a bit of a pain with members of the opposite sex because you don't wanna move too quickly to give them the wrong idea. Especially with frontal hugs. Kisses of any kind are between relatives or romantic partners."

He paused as the conversation continued. The young man internally frowned as Mina criticized Emma somewhat scathingly. He wasn't quite certain what had cause it nor was he entirely sure about Mina's reluctance over her abilities. That said, he really did not consider it his place to ask and mentally gave approval as Mina apologized and then began conversing. He listened in interest to Erika's answer before answering Mina's question,

"I'm not 100% certain what I want to do after I graduate. I definitely want to join SHIFT for a time being, but beyond that I'm not quite certain if I would make it a full career or pursue something else. I mean, I could do anything physically I wanted to, but honestly I don't think I would enjoy a career that I got from plagiarism if that makes any sense? I'll use my abilities to protect others and for fun, but not for money. I really don't want to do anything regarding math or science, but wouldn't not mind becoming a writer perhaps one day. Meh, no matter what I do I'm gonna be the best at it or I'll die trying. Or cause my brain to turn to mush. One of the two."


David laughed and looked at the others for their responses.

 

[Lord Wraith]

L

eaving the stage, Commander Killian O'Bran followed behind Winter Caspian as they were joined by Jonas Lehrer. Making their ways towards the administrative building, the trio entered an elevator and heading into Lehrer's office. Closing the door behind them, Killian turned towards the other two as Winter broke the heavy silence.

"Were you able to resolve the situation in Winnipeg?" She asked, motioning towards the decanter sitting on the nearby cherry wood parlour. "Would you mind Chancellor?"

"By all means help yourself, that's a fifty year old scotch." Lehrer replied as Winter nodded her thanks and poured herself a glass.

"Ice?" Lehrer asked walking towards the parlour before being stopped by a shake of Winter's head as she swallowed her first sip.

"I prefer it straight, thank you Chancellor. Anyways, sorry Commander. Winnipeg?" Winter asked again turning back towards Killian.

"The crime in question appears to be the work of at least two Hyperhumans. We're assuming a Saturn and an Atlas at this point as there was no evidence available at the scene. For all the mess they made, they were able to keep it surprising clean, in fact too clean which is why the pair of fingerprints we did find is rather concerning." Killian said, pouring himself a drink before continuing. "Several pairs of fingerprints belonging to former Agent Anthony Strum were found at the scene of the crime. However, we're well aware that Strum is not responsible for them, they're planted and Strum has an alibi that checks out. Someone was either trying to frame Strum or let us know that they've infiltrated the school."

"If they wanted to let you know they've infiltrated the school why not just use my fingerprints?" Lehrer asked as he began to pour himself a drink.

"If they used your fingerprints, they'd know we'd lock down the school. Strum however could be a personal attack, could be an attack on S.H.I.F.T. or an attack on the school. All that we know for certain is that someone wanted our attention and we have reason to believe there's a terrorist sect of hyperhumans building out there somewhere." Killian finished as he drained his drink.

"What's your next move Commander?" Winter asked as she too polished off the drink in her hand.

"We increase the patrols at the school, go through all new student files and redo our background checks on the current staff. The last thing we want to do is panic the student body. Chancellor, would Miss Christianson be on Campus today?" Killian said as he turned towards Jonas and placed his empty glass on the parlour.

"Of course. She's a couple floors down in the technical services office, I can..." Lehrer stopped as Killian held up a hand cutting him off.

"No need I know my way, have an excellent day Chancellor." Killian said, shaking his head before nodding to Winter. "Director." With that, the tall man departed the room.

"No harm will come to your students Chancellor, O'Bran is the best we have." Winter added before leaving herself. Slumping down at his desk, the Chancellor sipped away at his own drink before realizing he probably shouldn't be drinking scotch at nine thirty in the morning.

---

H

aving helped Hunter get packed, Aiden quickly made his way across campus. Despite having not spent much time with the younger boy, Aiden was still surprised he had managed to get that many words out of him. In all honesty, it wouldn't surprise Aiden if when Hunter was comfortable with his abilities he ceased to talk altogether and simply communicated mentally.

Walking swiftly, it seemed everyone else had retrieved their belongings as he almost had to attempt parkour to get through the throng of students moving in the opposite direction. Finally making his way back to the university dorms, Aiden paused to catch his breath for a second before rushing up the stairs to the third floor. Bursting into his room, he was almost surprised to find that Chuck's desk was empty until he remembered that the camping trip was mandatory which meant the gamer would have to actually venture into the outdoors he so loathed.

Thankfully, Aiden had actually packed his bag before the weekend knowing of course when the camping trip would be. Checking it over, he ensured he had his own rations, sleeping bag, a spare change of clothes and so on and so forth. Slipping out of his uniform, he grabbed a tanktop out of his dresser and jumped into a pair of jeans he had hanging on his own office chair. Scrambling through his closet, he pulled out a black 'P.R.C.U.' hoodie and threw it on, hoping the day wouldn't get too hot as he grabbed a 'S.H.I.F.T.' ballcap and put it on his head backwards before leaving the room as he pushed his sunglasses on.

By the time Aiden made it back to the quad the whole gang had already arrived. Eyeing them all up, Aiden looked over their attire to ensure they had changed into 'hiking' appropriate clothes. Fortunately uniform wasn't enforced so long as the guys had a shirt on and the girls were wearing more than bikini tops. It looked like everyone was fine, Tory was especially fine but Aiden couldn't think about that too much right now.

"Alright Blackjack, sorry to interupt but let's get this show on the road!" Aiden yelled as Strum watched his new team Captain take charge over the squad. "Line up! Bags open and step back!" As the squad did as they were told, Aiden went down the line checking each pack to ensure it was properly packed with the appropriate supplies. Coming to Tory's pack, he took a deep breath as he rummaged through it, a few hygiene products made his ears burn slightly and he felt his hand brush against her underwear which no doubt turned his cheeks almost as crimson as his eyes beams. They probably flushed even darker when he saw them, nothing overly fancy, just a practical pair with a little bit of a lace trim to make them flirty. Moving on quickly, Aiden gave his head a shake to clear it, rubbing his cheeks as if to will them to stop being red. Moving through the rest of the squad with haste, Aiden turned to Anthony upon his completion and having found no other violations or complications.

"All clear Sir! Team 21 is ready to move out!" Aiden said with a salute as Anthony took a step forward and turned Aiden's hat around.

"Well then, what do you say we get this show on the road." Anthony smiled as he dropped his stern demeanor and turned to lead the way. With a bit of a cheer, the team fell in behind Strum as they picked up their packs and slung them onto their backs, following closely behind their team commander.

---

T

he camping trips always took place around the campus in the artificially created woods. Strum led the team North for a few kilometers until they emerged just outside the woods onto a plateau overlooking the ocean below. The view was breathtaking as Aiden looked over the rocky edge and stretched his arms out to let the warm wind off the Pacific wrap itself around him. The smell of the ocean lingered in the air and in the distance Aiden saw a pod of orcas happily breaching the water. Turning back to the squad, he listened as Anthony gave out the orders for them to each erect their single tents in a circle. Within the hour, the team had the campsite completely set up as they sat down around the cooking pit Anthony had just finished building. Looking down at his watch, Anthony stood up, dusting himself off before tossing each of the team members a sandwich and a bottom of water from the cooler he had brought.

"Get those into you and then let's hustle. We're meeting Team 1 and Team 69 for a game of capture the flag. Team against team, against team. So you guys ready to bring your A-Game?" He asked with a smile, his pearly white teeth almost seemed to glow in contrast with his dark skin.

"You know I'm ready!" Aiden said as he tossed his hoodie and sunglasses into his tent before biting into his sandwich. It wasn't anything special, just basic meat, cheese, lettuce and bread. Maybe a bit of mayo, Aiden wasn't sure as by the time he was truly thinking about it the sandwich was gone and he was washing it down with water. There was some light conversation throughout the quick meal, Aiden had obviously chose to sit beside Tory who surprising laughed at some of his cornier jokes while Minnie and Erika simply rolled their eyes. He could have swore he even saw the faintest glimmer of a smile creep out of the corner of Hunter's mouth. Though that could have been because of Emma who Hunter seemed more interested in than the rest of the team, would it be cruel for Aiden to ask Emma to help break Hunter out of his shell using her feminine wiles? Probably, not to mention cruel, Aiden noted as he thought better of it.

Standing up, Aiden waited for the rest of the team to finish their lunch before they moved out, 'Capture The Flag' was almost guaranteed on these trips but this would be the first time that Aiden had participated in a game where there were three teams involved. Leaving the campsite, the team ventured back into the woods as they moved towards another clearing, though this one had a large rock in the middle. The rock in question had to be well over fifteen feet tall, jagged and full of crags and crevices, it would have been great fun to climb and Aiden noted it's location for a later time. Though from the looks of it, the rock would mark 'No Man's Land' during their game meaning it could potentially be a great 'Sniper's Nest' for him.

"The area we just walked through is ours guys." Anthony said breaking the silence as Team 69 emerged into the clearing. "There and there," Anthony said with a point to two areas on opposite theirs, "Those are the territory you'll be infiltrating for the 'flags." Anthony held up an egg shaped object, it glowed as he held it and sent off a beam of blue light into the sky. "Naturally, most of you know this is our flag. As soon as it has been removed from its base it emits this tower of light. That not only serves as a warning to the defender that their flag has been stolen but it also alerts the other teams to the fact a 'flag' is on the move. You're free to employ your abilities to stop the other team however lets not kill anyone. Only use your abilities while in control of your emotions, we don't need a repeat of the scalding of 2012." Anthony said as he turned to Aiden who merely smiled and shrugged.

"Well well, what have we here?" A man's voice called from behind the rock as Robert Priest Jr. strolled around to face Strum with Team 69 trailing behind them. Looking them over Aiden recognized a few faces, the first that caught his attention was Desiree Menzies whom he had spoke to at the beach yesterday. The team captain was Tara Stroud, she had been a University Junior last year and Aiden had made the mistake of underestimating her. As a Neptune, most people overlooked her almost immediately forgetting that while common, not all Neptune's manipulate air, water or fire. Tara possessed geokinesis, and could easily dominate the field. Aiden recognized a few other returning faces, primarily the 'Gruesome Twosome'; Gwen Knochen, a Juno with bone manipulation and Vlad Serkan a Vulcan who created constructs out of his own blood. Other familiar faces included Phoebe Baudin who was able to manipulate fear, whether to increase it or take it away. This made Team 69 or Libra as they had been dubbed particularly reckless. Rounding out the rest of the team was Rosalind Benbow, an Orcus able to shift her body mass allowing her to stretch and contort her shape, Kyle Flynn who shared a room with Blackjack's own Hunter and had the ability of flight and John Stark, an Atlas able to lift up to ten tonnes. Overall, the team was rather well rounded.

"Good to see you Priest." Strum said extending a handshake before seeing Bobby's reluctance to shake as the man rubbed his gloved hands before extending a fist for a bump. Returning the gesture with a raised eyebrow, Strum motioned towards his team.

"We're the team that's going to take you down." Anthony said with a smile as Aiden nodded towards Tara who merely rolled her eyes and looked away. Bobby wasn't much better as he swatted a fly away.

"Yeah what ever, where's Demetrios, let's get this over with." Bobby said as the snapping of twigs alerting the two teams of the arrival of Bulltrue.

"Looking for me? Did you want to speed up your own inevitable defeats?" Theron said with a smirk almost as arrogant as Aiden's on his best days. Behind him stood his team's Captain and Aiden's friend Bruce Craig, who like Aiden was a Mars Type Hype. Unlike Aiden however, Bruce had the ability to charge potential energy and then manipulate it kinetically whether to boost his own body into explosive movements or to cause objects he comes into physical contact with to explode. Beyond Bruce was another familiar face, Shark or rather Kai Alto, their water manipulating friend. A girl with what looked like green hair stood behind the two boys, though as Aiden looked closer it appeared it wasn't hair on her head at all but small vine like tendrils. Thinking, Aiden realized that she must be Chloe Shute, the girl he had heard about with chlorokinesis. Standing beside her were the 'Bash Brothers', two Atlas members of the team, Jared Carlisle who had superior strength and durability and Leonard Borelli who was able to remain invulnerable so long as he held his breath. Beyond that was a girl with red highlights dotting her head who had to be Nina Hayes, a fiery pyrokinetic and beside her was Xiang Yoshida, Bulltrue's secret weapon. Better known as Lucky, Xiang was a Fortuna type who had the ability to alter probability. She was a real pain to try and hit with his optic beams Aiden recalled as he turned his attention to the final member of the team. A younger member, Aiden believed might have been fairly new to the school, a boy by the name of Irwin Drake who if Aiden recalled correctly he was an Orcus who was able to change into animals with an equal or lesser mass.

"Well if you're both that confident, then we'll throw down." Strum said as he placed a device on the rock in front of him. Immediately it lit up, red lines shooting out of it as the device created guidelines to where Blackjack's territory started and where it ended. Demetrios and Priest followed suit, each placing a device in front of themselves as it performed the same procedure. Looking around, Aiden couldn't even see where any of their zones ended through the thick trees, this was definitely going to be an interesting match.

"You all have five minutes to take your 'flag' and place it behind your lines. Hide it well and guard it, then it's game on. Capture your enemy's 'flag' and deliver it back to here. First team to three will win, best of luck, may the odds be in your favour and all that fun stuff." Demetrios yelled to the three teams as Strum handed Aiden the glowing blue egg, the other teams followed suit with Bulltrue recieving a red egg and Libra a yellow one.

"Go!"

Aiden didn't even take time to register who yelled go as he tore back through the brush, flanked by the team on either side he began to issue orders as he attempted to work out a plan.

"David, Tory and Hunter, you're on offense. Hunter see if you can use your ability to locate the flags and then guide David and Tory to them. Erika and Minnie, I need you two on defense, Emma you're in charge of the flag." Aiden said as he passed the egg of to the blond woman. "I'm going to see if I can't get on the rock and hold down No Man's Land." Looking around, he saw a fallen hollowed out log nearby. "There!" he said pointing towards it. "Hide the flag in there and then let's move it." He paused for one last second as he turned to address the whole team again.

"Any objections to this plan, or concerns?"

 

[PlayingMonster]

The camping trip was her favourite part of the year for so many reasons. As they ate, Aiden sat beside her and cracked some terrible jokes. Some of them were bad enough to actually make her laugh as opposed to just groaning and slapping his arm. Everyone just seemed in high spirits. Even Hunter, who had seemed slightly miserable every other time that Tory had encountered him, seemed to be lightening up. When everybody was finished, they headed out to No Man's Land, where Anthony Strum explained the rules once again. Tory nodded as she tightened her ponytail, making sure that her hair was fully out of her face. Capture The Flag was an annual tradition now, and she'd taken part every year since she'd turned up at the school. She knew the rules like the back of her hand.

The other teams approached, and Tory folded her arms, staring them down. She just raised an eyebrow as they attempted to intimidate them, biting her tongue. She'd gotten floored by one of Bulltrue in last year's match, and was still holding that grudge. They'd tackled her, and she hadn't had time to try and phase through them. This year, she wasn't letting that happen. Mostly because she didn't plan on letting them catch her.

She followed Aiden as they ran with their flag, phasing through trees and bushes to keep pace with them. She listened as he instructed them, nodding. Of course she was going to be offense. Her power was of no use when it came to defense. She was a runner, anyway, not a fighter. "David, Hunter, when we find the base, if you guys provide some sort of distraction, I'll be able to just run in and get it." She suggested as she started to run.

 

[Roman]

Whatever back-and-forths Minnie had been enjoying were cut short by Aiden and Hunter's arrival, and Aiden's subsequent falling into step as the team captain. Perhaps a little enthusiastic, Minnie thought, but necessary. Aiden had big dreams, and the academy had hopes for him. God knew she did too. It made her want to smile, watching the man who was effectively her little brother assume the role of the leader, issuing commands and taking on that tone of voice. And damn if it didn't suit him. She set down her bag for Aiden to rifle through, smirking as he rubbed his cheeks with a free hand to dispell the blushing he'd gotten from Tory's. Honestly, the boy was a flirt, but useless when it came down to brass tacks. Not that Minnie was better. At least Aiden flirted. He finished the search quickly and, with Strum satisfied, they moved out, hustling single-file due North. It took a couple kilometres, but they got to their site, the ocean below. It didn't take them long to get set up.

After the tents were up, there was a brief respite. Minnie eagerly chewed through her sandwich, tearing open a tin of dog chow for Puggles and, when he'd cleared it out and licked it clean in less time that it had taken for Minnie to tear the lid off, she cracked open her bottle of water, filling the tin for Puggles to drink and sipping away half of what was left, pocketing the bottle in the back pocket of her pants once she had. Rationing had stuck with her the first year. Then, as quickly as they'd sat down, they were back up, trekking to a large central rock to meet with Teams Libra and Bulltrue for - and Minnie had known this old gem had been coming - Capture the Flag, Hype style. Of course. If Aiden ever did get that teaching job, she hoped he'd think of something slightly more original. There was a rustling, and Libra appeared. New rivals to Bulltrue's old. She waved half-sarcastically. They were a reckless, peculiar team, but Minnie liked most of them. She related somewhat with Knochen and Serkan, another two Hypes judged by their powers slightly more harshly than others. In a way, Minnie was Blackjack's 'Gruesome' Hype. There was just something about Juno's that weren't healers that gave people, even Hypes, the creeps. And most of the time, healers were only using half of what they could do. She got a wave back from the Gruesome Twosome, and the three shared a sincere smile. Team rivalry, sure, but personally...

And then Bulltrue sauntered in. Strum played up to the competitiveness with his jibes, but Theron was straight-up arrogant. In fairness, against Blackjack, he had right to be - they'd been beaten before. But it rubbed Minnie (and Strum) up the wrong way. She didn't like Bulltrue - but that may have been her personal issues with Fortuna's. After all, there's only so gracious you can be in defeat when you're squaring off against someone who's power is cheating. Or an 'imbalanced advantage', as 'Lucky' liked to call it. And there was Bulltrue's signature duo, too, the Bash Brothers, Atlases both. Invulnerability had helped last year, when Puggles had bitten and scratched and tackled. Not so much when Puggles had landed on top of him and winded him. She'd noted down that loophole for later use, and judging by his nervous glances at both Minnie and her pug, he remembered just as well as she did. She smiled serenely, a vicious bent in her eyes, and he stopped glancing at them, opting to stare straight ahead instead. Okay, so there were some pros to being one of the 'gruesome' Hypes.

She'd been too caught up in her own thoughts to listen to the commanders - not that she needed to, she knew how to play Capture the Flag, and understood how the light-eggs worked - but she usually used the brief truce to prepare Puggles, maybe scout out a bird nest. She hadn't, and now they were hauling ass through the trees deep in their 'territory', Minnie having to scoop Puggles into her arms and run with him so he wouldn't be left behind. Aiden shouted defense at her and she nodded, smirking at Aiden and winking as she hunkered down behind the log they'd just hidden the egg in, setting Puggles down in front of her and placing her hands on both sides of his face, smushing it slightly. She gathered thoughts and prepared to focus her power as the others voiced any concerns and tore away, leaving just Minnie, Erika, and Emma alone. She cleared her throat, her voice rough as her power began to work and Puggles grew still.
"Just a heads-up, you two: I'm gonna need slightly more than five minutes to get mister here up and running for a decent length of game-time, so be a pair of dolls and cover my ass until I've got my Monster." She cricked her neck as the psychic link began to set in, and Puggles began to show physical changes. "Oh, and Em? Keep track of birds. Might be handy for you to grab one in a pinch." And with that, Minnie pushed herself into inducing Puggles as he began to grow bigger, uglier, and meaner. Honestly, defense. She was so wasted on anything that wasn't large-scale destruction by Monsters.

 

[Olissa]

Multiple times Emma had wanted to respond to things that others had said, but either someone else walked in to add to the conversation, or the subject got changed before she could get a word in. It didn't matter, it hadn't been important. Plus, no one seemed to think of the subject matter anymore.

That cringing feeling of yesterday returned to twist around Emma's stomach. It wasn't as bad as last time though, so she didn't feel that need to run away. But it was there, fading quickly upon Minnie's explanation. To not want to venture out on the subject, Emma had simply shook her head with a bit of a smile and a wave of the hand, as indication that it was alright. There was no way Emma would burn out from borrowing a shovel, flashlight, pillow and a towel.
To be honest, when Minnie had questioned what they wanted to do afterwards, she had no idea how to answer. She wasn't a great fighter, or tactician, she was just... a backpack. Even though she was only a second year, maybe it would be a good idea to start thinking about what next. How she could be of service with what she had.

The time following Aiden's arrival till the start of the game passed swift, and roughly the same as it did last year, except this time Emma managed to not be overwhelmed by it all. Last year, her first year to camp, and first year she used her powers publicly. She had had no idea what to expect, and apparently neither had the team captain at the time for putting her on offense. Summoning things right in the heat of 'battle'? Yeah she hadn't been the greatest offense choice. Defense would have made far more sense, but this year, it was football, or egg guarding duty.
In football you put the fat, useless kid as the goalie, same would apply for capture the flag, Hype version or not. The one that can do the least, stays put and is yelled at when something goes wrong. Okay yelled at may be a bit over exaggerated, it simply was the short end of the stick where you couldn't do much good.

Taking a deep breath Emma put on her game face. She had to make the best of it, let no one down and find out how she could serve the team best.
She crouched down and summoned a bunch of devices of which she honestly didn't know the names, just their functions. Even the tracking devices had a fancier name, but she kept forgetting it. Her head wasn't meant for storing names.
"Guys if we keep these tracking devices on us it'll be easier to figure out where-" By the time she turned around it seemed that half the group was already making a head start.
"GUYS!" She called after them. Seriously, couldn't they wait two seconds till they were certain everyone was fully capable of following the plans and there weren't any other things to discus? She picked up the tracking devices and a bunch of thingies that she had simply called 'chips'
"Tracking devices! And chips!" The chips were mainly to try and plant on the other team. That way, if they succeeded on getting chips on the others, everyone would be able to know when someone of the other team was in their general area.

Hearing Minnie's remark about the birds, Emma raised her eyebrow. Now how in the world was she going to catch birds? She couldn't 'borrow' them. First of all there's the fact that the 'outdoors' is one room, secondly, birds were alive.
Then again... you don't need magic to catch a bird if you have a trap. Right, that would be the next thing she'd do. And then set up a proper defense system.
"Anyone need anything they don't have on them right now, that could be handy?" She called around. If they were too far off, their problem. But to those that would be around and had any requests, she'd be here. She wouldn't be able to borrow anything from anywhere, and there was a fair chance she would wear herself out before the end of the match, but as long as that wasn't the case, she'd go and try to figure out what her limit would be.
And she'd probably get scolded again by security for 'apprehending' these electronics. Again. Well if they didn't want her to take these things, they should just move them to a different spot.

 

[Stein]

Erika regarded the group with a raised eyebrow as they spoke about family customs and the like, opting not to participate. There wasn't really much to speak about in the realm of family interactions from back home. A nodded head conveyed acknowledgement of your presence and that was about it. But Minnie surprised her by asking about her summer in some capacity. Erika simply looked at her for a moment before speaking.

"It's rigorous," she stated, trying to produce and apt way to describe. "My body still hasn't adjusted fully to it, but I can't complain. It's definitely not for the faint of heart to attempt." She listened as a few of them stated what they wanted to do post PRCU. To be honest, she wasn't the most certain what that would be for her. The easy and most apparent option was SHIFT. But, was that really where her passion resided? She'd be trying to deduce that as of late.

She nodded to Aiden as he walked up and duly noted Hunter's presence before turning to her pack and shouldering it before they headed out and conversations continued.

Their conversations petered out as they began to head to their camp destination. Once there and settled, food was had. During the time, David and Erika talked. Though, it was mainly David talking and commenting and Erika listening. At one point, Erika found her face feeling ever-so-slightly flushed. Immediately following it, her face hardened and she wiped her smile away. Now wasn't the time for frivolous feelings.

Before long, they were headed on their way to the time-tested Hype tradition of capture the flag. Honestly, Erika could do with a change of pace. But there was something to be said for a sense of routine that she could get behind and appreciate. She had been through this before and not much surprised her. She turned her head as the first team appeared, raising a wary eyebrow at Desiree. Desiree in turn snickered at her and gave her a sarcastic wave. Erika had history with the Minerva-class hype, after foolishly falling for her illusory traps. However, Erika had resolved to get better from last year and hadn't paid her much thought since. Looking at her now, Erika looked away with lazy concern, completely disregarding the other female. It was enough to set Desiree off. Erika could feel her bristling with anger and relished in the moment. This time, she would put that bitch in her place.

Her jaw set as team Bulltrue came on to the scene, eyes narrowing on Leonardo Borelli. The pig had the nerve to wink at her as he walked up, hands slightly down his pants in an attempt at macho bravado. He vexed her to no end, the simpleton he was. But he was smart with his abilities, always using it with surprising accuracy. He'd made numerous passes at her in his objectifying way, and each time she had simply walked away. At the volleyball game yesterday she had humiliated him in front of everyone and she was certain that he wouldn't forgive that, though he had tried to get back at her with his ball spike. She didn't even bother getting frustrated at the Fortuna hype. That was one thing that she and Minnie always agreed on. They were driven women and saw his powers as cheating and her arrogant attitude as if she'd actually put in effort with her abilities as purely insulting to their hard built skill. The bitch made a spectacle of herself and Erika couldn't wait to wipe her face in the mud.

Soon they were taking off through the woods, Erika keeping pace with Aiden easily. She took in the scenery around her, thinking of what would hinder her and what would help. As assignments were given out, she nodded dutifully, saving any reservations for another time. Now was not appropriate. Team Blackjack had to redeem itself from last year, or she personally wouldn't forgiver herself. Sure, it was only a game, but it spoke volumes about how the team could handle itself. As everyone took off, she nodded to Minnie and turned to Emma. "Can you get me a few flash grenades?" she asked, not bothering to explain herself.

"Also, give me a few minutes to try something. I'll take to the sky and monitor directly above the flag. If I see someone coming in, I can erect a dome that will either keep them out or hold them in. Either way, the hindrance will provide some time for us to launch a full attack."

She took a deep breath, focusing on the existing light and generated a touch of her own. As it fell around her, enveloping in a golden aura, she concentrated on the bending aspect of light. She bent it to her will, wrapping it around her again and again, focusing on her hands and using that as an anchor. Soon, her hands began to disappear. Slowly her entire form shimmered from existence, yet she still stood there, only invisible to the naked eye.

"There we go."

The invisibility held for a moment and then she released it. Now that she'd warmed herself up, it would be a much faster process to become invisible again at a moments notice. If things boded well for the team, she might even be able to fly out and survey the rest of the team since they had dispersed so quickly.

 

[PastaSentient]

David smiled as Aiden approached and got the team moving. He was looking forward to the Camping Trip. The past two years had been fun if somewhat annoying in their losses against other teams. Hopefully this year would be different. He really did not care for the members of the other teams. They all tended towards arrogance for the most part, but David attempted to be kind anyways even if he really did not feel like it. The young man nodded as Aiden checked everything, a knowing smirk on his face at the Captain's flustered looks. He felt some sympathy to the guy, but not enough to prevent ribbing later.

David enjoyed the meal and talking to Erika. She was a good listener. He tried to talk about things that might be of interest to her as he had long since found that the girl preferred to just listen as opposed to answer any deep questions. Erika would share things if she felt ready to; otherwise you were best just talking and keeping her interest. He noticed her face was a little red and wondered if the heat might be getting to her, but said nothing of it.

David paid close attention as the other teams entered the area and found his eyes drawn to Irwin. The guy seemed alright. He really did not know much about the guy just from the brief observation, but hopefully they would be able to mesh well after the camping trip. The Camping Trips had a tendency to create rivalries, David had noticed and he really did not want to be in enmity with his roommate.

As the game started and Aiden gave orders, David felt himself a tad exasperated. While Aiden had the ability to inspire, his plans left a lot to be desired. Those tactics were about as simple as you could get. He was greatful as Emma offered her devices and soon took off after Tory and Hunter. He nodded as Tory spoke, but asked to the younger guy,

"Hunter, if we find someone and I shout really loud asking where there flag is...can you enter their minds to find the location? It will be difficult for them not to think about it."

 

[Shroud]

The walk to the camping spot wasn't as far as Hunter had expected, having imagined a brutal day hike that would lead them far away from P.R.C.U.'s campus as opposed to the actual relatively easy walk that led to a small clearing only a one or two miles into the woods surrounding the school. Erecting his tent was similarly as easy, given it was a pop-up tent, and he didn't require any help with it as he thought he might with this being his first camping trip ever. Once the tents were arranged in the appropriately instructed manner, and after a quick break for sandwich and conversation - during which Hunter couldn't help but smirk at some of Aiden's blatant attempts to 'bond' with Victoria - it was already time for the trip's first event.

Hunter wasn't sure what surprised him more, how soon an event was starting, or the fact that it was a game of capture the flag between three teams. Hunter had played capture the flag often while in school before the manifestation of his hype-gene, but never had he heard of a three-way game. He had already had his reservations given it's nature as an ability-based game, but with this added twist Hunter was beginning to worry he would be more of a burden than any sort of asset. Which was why, after the rules had all been explained, Hunter was genuinely shocked that Aiden had put him, the only mildly athletic newbie, on offense and in charge of grabbing the enemy teams' egg-shaped 'flags' with Victoria and David.

Aiden seemed to be under the impression that Hunter could simply search out the flags locations with his abilities. That would only work if the others on Teams 1 and 69 were thinking of where the flags were at the moment Aiden were to read their minds, and the likelihood of that was slim. And Hunter was still hesitant to do even that much. Before he could voice his objection, though, Tory was already suggesting a plan of her own for the three offensive members and running away from the clearing and into the trees.

Whatever. I'm not taking the blame when we lose this, wasn't my idea. He said to himself.

"Guys," Hunter heard Emma call out from behind him. "If we keep these tracking devices on us it'll be easier to figure out where-" Her voice cut out as she noticed Tory had already left and Minnie was off doing her own thing.

Hunter quickly went over to the Dutch girl and grabbed a tracking device. He smiled at her, feeling bad that almost everyone had seemed to ignore her efforts. "Thanks," he said, before taking off after Tory with David right behind.

"Hunter, if we find someone, and I shout really loud asking where there flag is," David began, quickly taking the lead with Hunter trying to keep up. "Can you enter their minds to find the location? It will be difficult for them not to think about it."

It was a solid idea, one that Hunter had assumed someone would mention, though he was somewhat surprised it had come from David. It was possible to do, relatively easily if it was a strong thought at the front of their mind, but that was assuming they would know the location. Still, Hunter wasn't thrilled about the idea of willingly taking information from someone's mind, especially one he wasn't familiar with as he could make a mistake, just like back in Ohio...


"I'd rather not." Was all he said in response, just loud enough for both David and Victoria to hear.

He would try and figure out a way to be of help without using his abilities. Without hurting someone.

 

[Lord Wraith]

N

o one seemed to object to his strategy, at least not outwardly Aiden noted as the team was split apart. Emma took off with the egg as Minnie and Erika both moved into defensive positions. Aiden had debated putting them both on defense, Erika especially as her aggressive demeanor made her perfect for going on the offense. Add to that the idea of Minnie making Puggles into a 'mount' and riding him into 'battle', they could be a rather formidable team together, a pair of 'Bad Bitches' even.

Running back to the neutral zone, the sound of snapping twigs alerted Aiden to the prescence of others as he turned just in time to be tackled to the ground by one of the 'Bash Brothers'. Hitting the dirt hard, Aiden gasped for breath as he looked up to see Jared Carlisle running away alongside Leonard Borelli. That could only mean that Bulltrue had chose to target Blackjack. Either that or due to their superior numbers they had split up.

"Hey!" Aiden yelled as he pushed himself up from the ground. "I've got a new name for you two, how about the 'Crash Brothers'." Opening his eyes wide, Aiden let loose a steady beam of concussive energy as he slammed it into Leonard hopefully winding the invulnerable Hype as he bent the beams to direct Leonard skyward. Ducking, Jared managed to avoid the flying body as Aiden scowled.

"Sorry, did that go over your head?" He released a blast from his eyes as Jared charged towards him, slamming the other 'Bash' into a nearby tree. "Stay away from my team." Aiden spat as he turned to run only to walk straight into a wall of rock and fall to the ground dazed as he watched Tara and John rush past him. Tara raised her hand encasing both Aiden and the Bash Brothers before making a beeline back towards the where Aiden had sent Emma.

"No!" He growled as he struggled to regain his senses, at least in the A.R.C. that had some form of armor. Out here he had a tanktop protecting him. This game wasn't going well so far.

---

C

rouching with their flag, Phoebe Baudin and the 'Gruesome Twosome' stood guard watching for any movement as Phoebe held onto the 'egg' while modifying her partner's fear levels, removing them as she released a different toxin into the area which would increase the fear of anyone who inhaled it.

Picking a rock up from the ground, Vlad held his arm out and broke open the skin in three slits before doing the same to the opposite arm. Blood began to leak out as he took control of the substance and began to bend and shape it to his will. Smilling he looked at Gwen who returned to look as she cracked her neck and began to produce bone plates over her body. A sudden breeze blew through the area as the small plants on the ground suddenly began to grow. Alarmed, Vlad and Gwen began to attack the rapidly multiplying plants only for vines to begin to wrap around them. Fireballs flew through the woods, hitting the vines which burst into flames as Nina, Xiang and Chloe emerged into the area. The breeze had disrupted Phoebe's toxins allowing the Bulls to remain basically unaffected as they charged the group. Releasing spores from her plants, Chloe slowed the two heavy hitters as Nina intimated Phoebe with her 'fireworks' while Xiang seized the dropped flag before the trio bolted for the neutral zone, a beam of yellow signaling their path.

At the same time, Bruce and Kai had elected themselves to guard Bulltrue's flag while Irwin was acting as the lookout. The sound of a bird song ringing out notified the team that someone was nearby. Reaching out, Kai felt the moisture in the air as he drew it in and formed of a swirling ring of water around himself. Turning, he nearly wet himself as he came face to face with a grizzly bear. Forcing the water forth like a geyser, the bear disappeared into nothing as a fist extended from behind a tree and Rosalind stepped out. Catching both Kai and Bruce off guard, she snatched the flag away as she stretched her arms out and tossed it into the air as Kyle flew down and caught it. Suddenly the flag released a blast of energy causing Kyle to not only drop the egg but also to plunge towards the ground himself as Bruce ran forward to retrieve the flag only for it to pass through his hands. Looking up he saw Desiree suddenly appear as she ran for the neutral zone. The beam of red illuminating the sky above.

 

[PlayingMonster]

She listened to David's plan, which was actually a good one. Hunter was new, they wouldn't necessarily know about his capabilities. They'd think that David was just trying to distract them. "Oh come on, Hunter. They wouldn't hesitate to use their powers against you if they got the chance!" Tory yelled as she passed through a tree and out the other side. As she ran, she kept an eye on her surroundings, looking for the tell tale light of a flag. After a few minutes, a red column of light shot into the sky, and she grinned, skidding to a stop. "Eight o clock!" She called, letting the boys know the location of the flag. She started sprinting in it's direction. The fact that she didn't have to slow to weave around trees and such meant that she had a bit of an advantage when it came to speed.

The column of light made it relatively easy to pinpoint the egg's location. She allowed herself to slow a fraction so she wouldn't be miles ahead of the others. Running straight into them without backup wouldn't be her brightest idea. She just hoped that instinct wouldn't cause her power to kick in when she tackled them, especially as she'd been phasing in and out for the entire duration of the game. It had happened before, but unfortunately not when the Bash brothers had tackled her last year. She caught sight of Desiree sprinting through the trees, the egg in her hands.

Tory picked up a little speed and launched herself at the other girl. She collided with her, and Tory scrambled for the egg. As soon as she picked it up, she allowed her power to kick in so the girl couldn't physically touch her until she stood up. "Thanks." Tory grinned, before scrambling to her feet and taking into a sprint, heading for the neutral zone. "Cover my back!" She yelled to the boys. As she had physical contact with the egg, it phased when she did. Both fortunately and unfortunately, the same didn't work for people.

 

[Stein]

As Emma handed her the flash grenades, Erika turned away with a quick nod, her mind set on the task before her. She took the flash grenades and set the first one off, moving quickly. She knew they didn't have much time. Throwing it on the ground, Erika erected a dome of yellow light around the grenade. As the device went off, the light it emitted would have blinded a regular individual looking at it for a few moments, but not Erika. She stared directly at the blast and used her dome to absorb all of its light. The blast faded away and in a way most wouldn't have believed, sucked like water down a funnel from her dome to her hands and spread throughout her body. Relishing in the sensation, Erika let out a sigh. She followed suit with the others, doing two at a time and then three.

Being 'charged up' she turned to her two fellow Blackjack members, an idea hitting her. "Minnie, if we got you a bird, would you be able to induce a mutation and guide its flight pattern? I know wild animals are a bit more difficult, but if we can get that bird to work for us we can either keep an eye on the competition, or better yet, get those walkie talkies to everyone." For Erika, that was most she'd said in a sentence in ages. Competition livened her in that sense.

"Let me know what you need, or if you need me to do anything to help get the birds at all. In theory, I could create a dome around a large area and retrieve one for us. I'm talking to the sky now, though." With that, she focused on the remaining light waves in the air, their particles becoming visible to her. She might be able to fly on the light waves on her own, but she could at least levitate on them. She felt the gentle tug as her feet left the ground and gravity pushed against her, but it would fail this time. Steadily she rose, until she made it above the trees. By that time, her invisibility had taken hold again and she was an unseen force guarding their area. It wasn't long before she saw the first light and then the second light of eggs go off, no doubt alerting all of the other players. She just hoped her team had their hands on one of those eggs.

The air was relatively still where she stood and she took in the light around her, focusing them into her eyes, careful not to blow her cover, she could see more clearly. For a moment, everything seemed at peace, much more than it should be. It almost fooled her in to a false sense of security. But, she was better than that. More trained than that. These were the moments that presented the most danger. That's when she finally saw it, a rustle at her three o' clock.

She looked down at her teammates and fired off an orb of light that would explode above their heads. She was certain Minnie at least would recognize this as her symbol for an approaching target. She'd used it before in various training missions. She didn't have time to rally the troops or even erect a set of wings, she just had to hope for the best. Angling herself down, she shot off, rocky in her pattern at best, and dove through the trees. She tackled the first body she met head on. What met her though, was tougher than she expected. It was the Libra Atlas! Her invisibility served her well in the element of surprise, but Erika couldn't level herself on the light waves to carry him back and faltered, planting a foot on the ground. The shift in concentration was enough to break her light bending and reveal her.

John was fast, he picked up her body and spun her around, chucking her to the side. Erecting a square of light to meet her, Erika brought her feet up and positioned herself to kick off of it, launching herself back at the pair again. With a battle cry she brought up an orb of light and fired it at John, who guarded himself with his arms. Tara ducked to John's side and shot a small boulder at her. "Not this time, Vostrum!" she yelled out.

Erika only had time to bring up an aura of light around her before the rock hit her and knocked her down mid-air. The blow winded her as she hit the ground and gasped for air. Suddenly, she was in the air again, lifted by her arm, coming face to face with John.

"Hey, Razzle Dazzle," he grinned.

"Go fuck yourself."

"C'mon John!" Tara told him impatiently, glancing over her shoulder. "Others are bound to be in this area, we gotta move quick."

"Nah, this won't take long, just putting her out of commission. Go on ahead, I'll catch up" John told her before bringing up his fist and turning to Erika who had just found the time to breathe properly. Tara cursed him and headed off, in search of their flag.

Fear wasn't the first thing that crossed her mind as she saw the fist. It was opportunity. He tossed her up and swung at her as if she were a baseball and his arm was a bat, which with him, the comparison was somewhat accurate. His arm came for her and she erected a barrier of light, pouring her concentration in the split second she had. The fist connected with the barrier and shattered through it, but the brunt of the impact was absorbed by the barrier of light and she caught the rest of the hit, guarding with her arms. Landing on the ground, her palm shot up, hitting him in the nose. She didn't have to hold back due to his durability. It was enough only to knock his head back, but it was all she needed. Gathering her light in her other fist, Erika grabbed what little hair he had, glistened with sweat though it was and pulled his head down, shoving an explosion of light into his face. The blast was equivalent to a flash grenade and it was all his.

John reeled back, a roar of anguish escaping his lips. "FUCK! I'm blind! I'M BLIND!" He raged around, swatting at anything in his way. Though he didn't know it, Erika knew he wouldn't stay that way. If anyone knew light, it was her. However, she heard a rustle in the woods behind her and took off. Whoever that was, they could choose to deal with John if they wanted. She had to catch up to Tara. She fired off three beams of light in the air, flare style. Hopefully that would draw some attention from her team as the beams of light could only come from her.

This night had officially gotten interesting.

 

[Roman]

Seven eyes. That was new. Puggles had grown extra tails, legs, claws before, he'd had spines erupt from his back, he'd had plating turn him into more an armodillo than a dog - but he'd never grown extra eyes before. Minnie looked at four of them, and then moved her head to look at the other three. Minnie had heard Erika's idea about the birds, and it would work to an extent, provided they wanted a quick divebomb from some bird-thing onto whoever was carrying a flag, but right now she was too distracted by the seven eyes on two heads. Oh yes. Two heads. He'd never grown extra heads before.

Two heads (all fangs and drool), four legs, a longer tail with bony spikes just sprouting from the end, and about the size of a Great Dane. Thick, shaggy fur covered Puggle's torso and there were small, hidden, thorn-like extrusions within the muss of fur. Oh, boy. Her power was weird. And yet...she lifted her hands, put one each on each head, and then, after a pause, pushed them together and rubbed up and down.
"Are you mummy's little monster? You are? You are, aren't you! Mummy Minnie's Monster, you adorable oaf!" She nuzzled between the two heads and then shot her gaze up, looking above her and Emma as an orb of light exploded. Erika's signal. Nothing fancy, but she knew what it meant - she'd used it enough. Incoming tangoes. Alright. Time to get messy.
"Okay, you magnificent horror," Minnie said to Puggles and she raised herself to standing and reinforced the psychic connection, ensuring she had absolute command. "Let's go chew on some morons."

Puggles ran ahead, directed by Minnie but mostly free-willed for now, and she set off after him.
"Emma! Keep an eye on the flag, make sure you're aware of it and where it is at all times. Erika needs support and I'll be damned if she doesn't get it - so please do your best to keep your head tuned and take care of that flag!"
She didn't wait for a response, instead bounding into the forest after Puggles, using the psychic link to keep track of his heading and try to use any sensory input he was getting to her advantage. She managed it when Puggles' right head saw some dust burst forth from a brush while his left was glaring ahead, and Minnie commanded him to fake a duck and jump backwards. A rock sailed past both heads just as he did so, and Minnie caught up as Tara emerged, already pulling more stones and rocks from the ground, unearthing worms and bugs as she did so.
"Tara." Minnie said as Puggles got in between the two and started to growl, Minnie and Tara circling around him. "Did they really send you alone? At least I've got someone to talk to."

Tara sneered. "And they put you on defense? You don't even control your...things, you just point and hope they eat the right people." She gestured with her hand and sent a few pebbles rushing through the air, but Puggles batted them down easily.

"Exactly. Better chance to eat the 'right people' if they're running towards my little darling here." Puggles barked, heads slightly out of sync, and the reverb effect coupled with the monstrous sound created a rather unnerving effect. Minnie stepped forward with one booted foot, and Puggles did the same. Tara stepped back.

"You don't have a chance anyway. You can't do anything, he's easily distracted, and Erika's taken care of by my Atlas. So you're outnumbered 2-to-1. Give me thirty more seconds and-" she was cut off as John's swearing erupted from the woods not too far from either of them.

"...and you'll realise you're full of shit and that my baby's looking mighty hungry?" Tara eyed the beast, nervous now, and Minnie took another step forward. "It's a shame they sent you, really. Two mouths, and you're so skinny."

"M-Minnie, come on now. You know what your things can do..." Tara stammered, bringing up a rock and throwing it in a quick movement. Minnie ducked and Puggles swang with his tail, sending the stone sailing away far into the air. Minnie stayed down, knelt on one knee, protected by Puggles' bulk, and then looked up, smirking viciously, looking right at Tara.

"Puggles?" She said, almost whimsical. One head looked round. "Sick 'er."

Minnie passed Erika as she ran after Puggles running after Tara, and stopped for a split-second. "Good job on the Atlas. I've got the Neptune. Emma's with the flag, could probably do with a hand." There was a double-bark and a scream a little way ahead of them, and Minnie swore. "And that was...Tara's shoulder. Shit." She ran again, shouting verbally as well as mentally. "PUGGLES, OFF."

 

[Olissa]

Off in the distance the first light signal went off. Well that was faster than expected. She had barely given the flash grenades, and summoned a few things of her own by the time it went off. The second flare soon following.
"Kut.1​" A mild curse escaped her lips. If it hadn't been for those damn limitations on her powers, the three of them here could finish this game and be done with it. But alas, they had to go through the entire ordeal.

Looking back over her shoulder she saw Minnie, with her disheveled version of Cerberus. If that wasn't creepy, then she wasn't quite sure if she wanted to know what the better representation would be of that word. It also didn't help that she didn't like dogs in general. A monstrously large one only made it worse.
Luckily, she wouldn't have to face it. And hopefully never would.

Tending to her own needs, Emma took note of the light, and did her best to calm down. Freaking out over a potential opponent and forgetting to bring out something vital would be a very bad idea.
Just one more thing would need to be conjured up, and she would be just about set for whatever came their way, one thing, had Minnie not hit a nerve with her words.
"Alsof ik dat nog niet weet!2​" She called after the girl and her dog monster. Gawd seriously, did she have to point out that Emma was to remain put and keep watching that damn football? There was a whole list of things she had wanted to yell, but what good would that do anyone. Right now she was better served in setting up 'camp'

Quick as she could Emma focused her energy. The one problem with being outside was, everything outside being in the same 'room'. The key way to get around that problem was, build your own room. Luckily there weren't specific rules as to when something was or wasn't a room, and honestly, she had been stretching the limit a bit lately.

Bringing in a bit of wood, a green/brown blanket and a few pillows made it possible for Emma to make her own Pillow/blanket Fort. A fort she had practiced making in her room.
Picking up all the stuff Emma had conjured, she went inside her little fort. The opening in the front had a perfect view over the location of the egg, and surrounding area.

Considering the sounds that Emma heard in the distance, she figured any additional defense props would have to wait on the pile she had created so far. Mostly consisting of nets, a shovel, goggles. Oh wait, she could use those now. All set Emma hurried to the fortress.
The fort was low, so she had to crawl on her belly to get in and take position next to the tranquilizer rifle (or Night-Night Gun) that she had acquired earlier.

Out in the distance she could hear screams, crashes, voices calling out, enough to keep her on constant alert.
Any moment now someone could slip past the defense team and head her way. Though honestly, they'd have to be darn good to get passed Monster Puggles and Erika.

Now for a final touch, Emma looked at the hiding spot of the egg and smirked. "Let's play a little game of hide and seek." She said to herself, and borrowed the egg.
Crawling out of her spot, Emma placed the egg into it's original location. If she couldn't protect the egg for being taken, she was darn well certain to make sure they didn't keep it.
Now back to her waiting game.

1​=Literal translation: Cunt. Meaning: Shit.
2​=As if I don't know that yet!

 

[Lord Wraith]

The formation of clay nearby molded itself around Tara just in time as the first head of the grotesque beast bit down on her shoulder. Shattering the armor, Tara screamed in shock at the force of the bite as she manipulated the clay to hold the teeth away from her flesh as she quickly launched a rock into the jaws to prevent another bite. Rolling out of the way of the second head, Tara slammed her hands to the ground as she called upon her powers to launch a pillar from the ground beneath the creature that knocked up into the air and back enough that she had time to summon a wall of earth to at least slow the freak and her beast down.

"Damn woman is going to get someone killed out here with that monster." She spat as she rubbed her sore shoulder. Deciding it would be best to regroup with John, Tara backtracked towards where she last saw him, planning to take Erika out with the element of surprise. A little sinking sand shouldn't be too hard to manipulate in the moist forest.

---

As Tory ran, the trees all started to look the same around her as she suddenly found herself on the edge of the nearby cliff looking out over the ocean below. Somehow she had ended up running the wrong way as the sound of footsteps on crunching leaves and snapping twigs echoed behind her. Riding a wave of manipulated water, Kai came flying out of the forest only to see the cliff and come to a less than graceful stop as he fell from his wave and rolled across the ground, sliding across leaves and dirt as he started to slip over the edge.

"Help!" He cried as the dirt he clawed at in a frenzy continuously fell away loosely as he struggled to pull himself up to no avail. Hearing his teammate's cries, Bruce made a move to run to Kai only to find himself tangle in a mess of rubber like limbs as Rosalind pounced on him. Not far away Kyle and Irwin struggled back and forth as the two boys had each other jersey'd and spun around blinding in the forest. Looking towards Tory, Kai pleaded for her help.