The Clock hits Midnight

K.J's sleep went almost without a hitch, if not a soldier coming to his room and awakening him up. "Wake up, something happened, and we need you on standby— Where is your friend?" He said something along those lines. Good thing Spencer and James were sleeping, otherwise they would inquire why they needed him on standby. 

Then K.J had to get out of his bed, put on shoes, and go follow him to the outside. A few soldiers are there too, alerted but trying to not show it. "I think." Something happened, but what happened? 

The soldier failed to give any useful information. If anything, he at least gave a useful notification: "Cain hasn't come back yet. Where did he go?" His gut tells him that he struck his nose in another problem, but his friend can't be so careless, can he?

Whatever happened, it is dire enough for them to hand the sword back. "Better have a possible bomb rather than not, huh?" A wry thought blooms, even with the possible instability of the sword, they rather have him use it.

"Oh, so did they call you." A familiar voice called him from a few meters away. A brunette walking towards him, in a military uniform. For some reason, her face looks familiar, but he can't tell why.

The only two people here he had memorized their faces were Anthony and the Lieutenant Colonel. Who is this person? Did she mistook him for someone else? "Do we know each other?"

The soldier blinks in surprise. "Yes, I was sitting right beside you in the truck, don't you remember me?" Right beside him— Oh, the soldier with elf powers.

"This is awkward. I didn't recognize you, you were using more equipment there." A harmless lie. "I wasn't paying attention to you guys at all." While "caring" for their lives, he couldn't tell that who they were behind their gear mattered that much. 

The soldier sighs. "Fair. Do you know why we are called here? You even got your sword too. Something is going on." Despite her casual approach, she is attentive and alert. A soldier's discipline truly is something. Could he even note those fine details without enhanced senses?

"Don't know. They just called me here. Guess it is the same for you. Can I get your name? I think you already know mine, but it is not polite to, well… name is Kyrie Jensen." Knotting the tongue for a moment, K.J takes a moment to breathe and continues.

The soldier gives a small laugh. "Oh? My name is Mary Smith. Good to know ya, Kyrie." Her tone changes to a more polite one, while her attention once again goes toward the sword resting against his shoulder.

"Did the veins of this thing get thicker?" She pointed at the sword, a genuine curiosity in her voice. Holding the sword before him, pointing upward, the young man tries to see what she means.

The "veins" of fire in the sword indeed increased in size, appearing like veins pumping fiery blood through it. Just what is wrong with this thing, anyway? "Yeah, this sword is strange. Hope it isn't anything important."

A tired sigh leaves his lips. Mary gives a sympathetic smile. With great power comes great and unexpected hindrances and problems. Cain had said it is a catalyst, although. Can I use it to control my powers?"

Given how dangerous they are, any testing should be done far away from the base and far away from people. If it goes out of control, then nobody, except him, would get hurt by it just exploding.

"Strange, where is your friend?" The question of the century. Cain hadn't come back to the dorms at all, not even the soldiers knew where he was. 

The only hope to be had is that he is okay, or close enough to okay. "Dunno, but knowing him, he will be safe. Must be slacking off somewhere, or just hasn't been notified yet." Her face sours a bit at the mention of "slacking off".

Something displeased her, but what— "You know, if you slack off in a time like this, God knows how many people may die until you get in the field, or how many of your comrades will fall before your help comes. "Slacking off" is too reckless. Is he irresponsible?"

A tone swift, disappointed, and worried. She is not a "civvie" like he or his friends, no. She is a soldier. Slacking off as one can truly be dangerous or put others at risk. Worse, they have superpowers. 

Slacking off, as she said, can put others in danger. "Cain…" Kyrie whispers. Things should solve themselves before they need him, hopefully… 

Mary snapped her fingers. "Hey, don't think too much about it. You and he just came out of a "normal" life as to speak. We can overlook someone slacking off once or twice, just don't make it a habit, okay?" 

"Truly kind and encouraging words." Another wryly thought. To Cain, if they overlook him or not doesn't matter, the same to Spencer. If Cain's actions are anything to go by right now, he doesn't give a damn about what they will think or do, he will just act as he sees the best for him.

While not a good thing for them, who knows how it may branch out to the civilians and the rest of the base. "Say, your elf powers do make your vision better or something like that?" For some reason, a feeling of deja vu breezes through him.

Mary raises her chest, looking prideful. "Yeah, although not as showy as your or your friends' powers, I have heightened senses. I can pinpoint a needle in a haystack." There is nothing to prove her words, yet there is no reason to not believe them as truth.

James ripped monsters bare-handed, the big, the small, relentlessly. If she and the redhead are anything to go by, powers can manifest themselves subtly like enhanced physical prowess. "Cool. My powers are kind of bad, I barely can control them, so I just go and hope my brute strength is enough to cover the difference." 

An uncomfortable silence lingers. Maybe he said too much, revealing he can't control his powers and she will step back? Fear him? Or she is thinking he is complaining with a full mouth? "Hey, did you ever learn to swim?" 

What a strange question… "No, but I learned how to bike. Why do you ask?" What does learning to swim have to do with any of the things happening lately? It doesn't make any sense.

"Everyone can learn to swim it is a function in our bodies, babies do learn how to swim a little. Just because almost everyone can learn, doesn't mean they do. The same thing goes for biking. You have the capacity, but it is just that: The capacity if you don't train and nurture it."

Then, it clicked. Just because he has the pówers, doesn't mean anything because he has no practice or understanding with them. It is there, but is only that: there. The potential. He just has to train it, which loops back to his main worry: he has nowhere to "train" his powers.

Either way, her words were helpful, even if a little. "Thanks for the analogy. Guess I should look the gifted horse in the mouth…" Mary gives a thumbs up. She is truly nice. Well, "Tom" is nice too, but he is a pain in the ass with his carefree persona and gets on his nerves.

"I still have to learn how he can read my mind, I can't possibly be that easy to read—" Before the thought could be finished, Mary cut him off, staring blankly at him.

"You are that easy to read, like, it appears all over your face. I'm sure you couldn't lie to another adult even if you tried." Outrage blossoms all over his chest. Are they serious? How could this be? It must be a superpower all soldiers have—

"Haaahaa. You are easy to tease like Major Anthony said. It is a joke. I can't read minds like him." "Tom" had given how to bait him— She did admit he reads minds. His former theory still holds weight!

Their stress-free moment is ruined when alarms flare, announcing a telltale of the incoming danger. "Shit." 

(A few minutes ago)

Something isn't right, he knows it. A soldier came to the room and woke up K.J. He could just ignore it, like he did earlier today, but this time Cain hasn't come back either. Instincts screaming something is off.

For all accounts, doing what he is going to do is stupid, but James can't help himself but be stupid right now. Getting up from the bed, he sneaks out of the room. However, the shadows or traces of K.J and the soldier are nowhere to be seen— trailing alone until finding what is wrong, or the north to it, are the only available choices.

Going out to the base, it is eerie silent, without a single soul around. Very suspicious considering how many people were here today. Many of them are civilians like them, so sleeping is the highest probability, while soldiers patrol the area.