Chapter 10: Their Choice

Chapter 10: Their Choice

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Zephyr could already guess the outcome of this meeting. From observing each person's personality over the past few hours and noting their expressions—or lack thereof, in Conner's case—he had a general idea of what they were thinking.

Ten tense seconds passed after his words hung in the air. Emily timidly raised her hand, her cheeks flushing with a delicate blush. "I'll help," she said softly.

Just as he had anticipated.

Sam's head snapped towards her, his face a mask of disbelief and shock. "You again?" he exclaimed, his voice echoing his astonishment. "I thought you'd be the first to run from this. Why do you keep agreeing without hesitation?"

Emily's face flushed an even deeper shade of red, her eyes darting around the classroom before settling on her desk. "I... I just want to help, Captain," she murmured, her voice barely above a whisper.

Sam scoffed. "It'd be more believable if you said you had a crush on him," he retorted, waving his hand dismissively. "Whatever. I'll join too."

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"Hypocrite."

Sam's glare zeroed in on Brian, his fists clenching at his sides. "What do you mean by that?" he demanded, his voice tight with anger.

Brian raised an eyebrow, his expression calm and unruffled. "You scold Emily for agreeing without delay, yet you do so yourself. Do you still not understand what I mean?"

Sam's face flushed with a mix of anger and embarrassment. "You..."

"Now's not the time to fight," Conner interjected, stepping between them. He turned to Zephyr, his tone more measured but no less serious. "The future you spoke of—aside from your own words, there's no other proof. Even if there were, you seem to forget that a year and a half is barely enough time to master one's own abilities."

Conner's eyes swept over the class, taking in the varying expressions of uncertainty, fear, and determination. "Saving the city? You can consider this impossible," he said, his voice heavy with the weight of reality.

The classroom fell into a tense silence, each student grappling with the enormity of the Zephyr's request. The sunlight filtering through the windows cast long shadows on their faces, highlighting the anxiety etched into their features. The air was thick with the unspoken doubts and fears that no one dared voice.

Conner's words immediately brought order to the class, grounding everyone's racing minds. His statement was true. After the Great Convergence, humans awakened to special talents and attributes, allowing a wide range of impossible feats to become everyday activities. However, like any skill one could acquire in life, awakened talents had to be practiced and used numerous times for one to fully control them.

"Before you run, you should learn to crawl," Conner continued, his voice steady.

This saying, however, did not apply to Zephyr. Thanks to the system, forget about running—he could directly make everyone fly.

Zephyr stepped forward, a teasing smile playing on his lips. "What if I have a way to bypass the long training process and bring everyone to Master 4 in a year and a half?" he asked, his tone confident and challenging.

The class fell silent, each student processing Zephyr's bold claim. The sunlight streaming through the windows seemed to brighten, casting a spotlight on Zephyr as he stood at the front of the room. The atmosphere was charged with a mix of skepticism and curiosity.

"You... what?" Conner's voice was the first to break the silence, his eyebrows knitting together in confusion.

Zephyr nodded, his smile widening. "I have access to a system that can accelerate our training and enhance our abilities far beyond the usual limits. With this, we can reach levels of mastery that would normally take decades."

The classroom buzzed with murmurs of disbelief and intrigue. Eyes widened, and some students exchanged glances, unsure whether to believe Zephyr's audacious promise.

"How is that possible?" Brian asked, his skepticism evident. "No one can skip the fundamental steps of mastering their talents."

Zephyr's gaze met Brian's, unwavering. "I understand your doubt, but the system I have access to is unique. It can unlock potential and streamline our progress. I know it sounds too good to be true, but I ask you to trust me this once."

The room was tense with anticipation, the air thick with the weight of Zephyr's words. Each student wrestled with their own doubts and hopes, the prospect of accelerated mastery dangling before them like a tantalizing dream.

For a moment, no one spoke. Then, slowly, Emily raised her hand once more, her face flushed but determined. "I'll trust you," she said, her voice steady despite her obvious nerves.

"I've already said I'll do it too, so I'll do it," Sam said with a firm nod, his eyes locking onto Zephyr's with unwavering determination.

"Mike and I too!" Miles exclaimed, turning around to grab his brother's arm and raise it up as a sign of solidarity.

Mike shook his twin's hand off with a glare. "If you want to agree, then do it alone. Why'd you have to drag me into it too?"

Miles shrugged nonchalantly, a mischievous glint in his eyes. "Mom's always complaining about how we don't do things together anymore," he explained. "This counts as doing things together."

"Yeah, dying together!" Mike snapped, frustration and fear mingling in his voice.

Rolling her eyes at their neverending disagreements, Sydney raised her hand, agreeing to help as long as Zephyr's words were true. Mirabella quickly followed suit, not wanting to be the only girl who didn't. This left Conner and Brian as the only ones who hadn't voiced their opinions yet.

"This is crazy," Brian said, disbelief etched across his face. He turned to Conner. "Please tell me you're not joining all of this too."

Zephyr looked at Conner, waiting for his reply. Conner seemed almost hesitant, his hand on the table fisting and unfisting multiple times. Finally, a soft, helpless sigh escaped his lips. "I don't really have another choice but to help him," he said, his voice tinged with resignation.

"Huh?" Brian was as confused as Zephyr at the vice-captain's words. But from the way Conner's shoulders tensed and his eyes stared unblinkingly at the board, it was clear he wasn't going to elaborate.

"Brian?" Zephyr called, drawing the brainiac's attention back to himself.

Brian glared, disappointment evident on his face. He couldn't believe his classmates had agreed to something as dangerous as potentially saving the city from Marvok-knows-what so thoughtlessly. "Whatever, whatever. I'd like to see how this ends anyway," he said, folding his arms over his chest. "Just so you know, the moment someone gets hurt, I'm reporting it to an adult."

"We'll see," Zephyr said with a smile, his eyes lingering on Brian before shifting back to the class. He could feel his heartbeat quicken with anticipation, a ripple of excitement running through him as he imagined their reactions to what was about to unfold.

"Zero," he called, summoning the blue interface that flickered into view. "Please add the following people to be Sub-System-Users," he instructed, listing each of his classmates' names beneath their bewildered gazes.

Zero's response was like a bucket of icy water crashing over Zephyr's enthusiasm. An awkward smile tugged at his lips as he processed the system's reply, the classroom suddenly feeling uncomfortably alien. The air seemed to thicken with uncertainty.

Zephyr wasn't too surprised, though. From day one, he'd suspected something was amiss. His classmates were far too composed, too well-mannered to be entirely ordinary.