Everybody Special Please Line Up

"Where were you?" Jason hissed at Miles when he showed up fifteen minutes late for lunch.

Miles and Caspar had just endured a heated lecture from Ms. Lisa. When they finally arrived at the cafeteria on the first floor, they took their normal meal seats at the table with Jason and Kane. The tables in the cafeteria were arranged by cabin, so every cabin ended up sitting together, even though there weren't assigned seats. Nothing special ever happened at meals, and they were overall pretty boring, even though the food was great.

"Getting detention," Miles muttered back.

"What?" Lilly's voice came from the table behind Miles. He and Caspar had not filled Jason or Lilly in on their plan.

"Yeah," confirmed Miles, turning to look at Lilly, whose eyes were wide in shock.

"For how long?"

"A week."

"A week!" Lilly's voice was shrill. Several people looked over and Lilly scrunched down a little, embarrassed.

"Better than Caspar's," Miles replied, turning back to his food. "He got the rest of the years worth, plus a chance of expulsion."

Miles didn't get to see Lilly's reaction, but if she was that horrified over the thought of a week of detention, he couldn't imagine her reaction to a year's worth. Miles looked over to see Caspar talking hurriedly to Kane, and they were both laughing, probably over what Caspar had said to Ms. Lisa. Punishments didn't seem to faze Caspar in the slightest, no matter how bad they got. Miles shook his head and concentrated on his food. The cardboard box he had taken out of Ms. Lisa's desk was light, but felt heavy as a rock in Miles' pocket. Miles realized that he felt guilty and tried to think of something else.

In English forty-five minutes later, Ms. Lukeson had launched into an explanation of how figurative language was important in writing and how to use it correctly. Miles found the lesson very hard to focus on, especially since he was preoccupied thinking of detention later that afternoon. What would Ms. Lisa have them do? Write sentences? Scrub the undersides of all the desks?

Then Miles had another, more frightening thought: What if Ms. Lisa was the traitor? Would she know something was missing from her desk? If so, what would she do? Miles shuddered and tried one more time to focus on the lesson, which turned out to be unsuccessful. He was grateful when class was over and everyone had stood up.

"Finish that and turn it in to me on Friday," Ms. Lukeson smiled as she waved everyone out.

Miles hadn't been listening when she had given the assignment, and made a mental note to get it from Jason later. It was also only Wednesday: the third day of school. Miles had only been in Oregon for about a week, which was pretty crazy considering all that had happened within that time.

"Oy, Miles!" Caspar came jogging up from behind Miles and slapped him on the shoulder. "Sorry about the detention, mate, ol' hag got away from me."

Miles shrugged. "No big deal. I've been in detention before, and it's only a week. You have a year's worth, and you might get kicked out."

Caspar made a big show of mocking Miles' shrug. "She'll tell the Doc what happened alright, but they won't kick me out. We're here to be protected from what's out there. There's no safer place, or at least that's what we thought. But if they want to stop Necron from threatening us, they need all the help they can get."

Caspar had a point. The whole point of Fandomania was a hidden, protected area for the people Necron was after. The academy was just a way for Lancaster and the so-called "staff" to give the kids an education and not seem like complete kidnappers.

"So," said Caspar. "Did ya find anything?"

"What?"

"Did you find anything? In Lisa's desk?" Caspar repeated.

"Oh!" Miles had almost forgotten about the small, suspicious cardboard box he had found in Ms. Lisa's desk. "Yeah, actually, you wanna see?"

Caspar looked around, then shook his head. "Later this afternoon."

Miles nodded and they walked down the stairs and into Captain R's basement class.

"Okay, class," Captain R barked once everyone had entered, not wasting any time. "Everyone line up. We are going to start working with your powers, so first I need to know what they are and create a list of them for my superiors. So, I want each of you to give me your name, power, and a way the power could come in handy. Good? Good."

Captain R watched with a bored expression as Miles' class filed up clumsily. Eventually, they were in one very crooked line.

"Right, so I'm Caspar," Caspar started, since he was at the front of the line. He turned to give a little bow. "My power is teleportation. I can use it with my hand-to-hand training to send those Necron buggers back to where they came from. I also have this weird thing where I can fry electric circuits, but that hasn't really gone anywhere."

Captain R nodded curtly. "Seems simple enough. Next!"

The blond girl that roomed with Lilly stepped forward as Caspar moved out of line. "My name is Elisa, and I can control my pitch to make it sound like someone else or maybe even make it shrill enough to rupture eardrums."

Captain R grunted and rubbed his ears absentmindedly. It struck Miles that the powers they possess made Captain R nervous, more nervous than he would care to admit.

Lilly stepped up. "Hey, I'm Lilly and I can, uh, make flowers grow?"

Captain R squinted at her and she turned red. "And... how would that help anyone?"

Lilly just shrugged and Captain R scribbled something down on his notepad, making Lilly gulp. Miles attempted a reassuring smile when Lilly passed by but he wasn't sure if it helped at all.

"My name is Ian," said the guy with glasses that Miles had met his first day. "I can control computers without actually touching them, like I'm talking to them."

"Might come in handy..." Captain R muttered.

The Indian girl who often talked to Ian stepped up and re-positioned her glasses nervously. She looked at Ian, who hadn't moved out of the line yet. Then her hands started to move, and fast. She was motioning at Ian, but why? Miles looked around to see if he was the only one finding it weird. Jason turned toward him from in front of him, sensing his movement.

"She's mute," he whispered.

Miles looked at Jason, then over to the girl. So that's what she was doing. Sign language. She quickly raised her thumb, forefinger, and middle finger and placed them behind her ear. Then several more motions Miles couldn't follow.

"Her name is Gira, and she is mute," explained Ian when she was done. "I translate for her to other students and teachers that aren't fluent in ASL. Her power is reading people's thoughts."

Captain R looked between Gira and Ian for a moment, then nodded and said, "Next!"

Ian and Gira stepped out of line and the short new boy stepped up.

"Hi," he muttered softly.

"Speak up!" demanded Captain R, making the boy's face flush red.

"I'm Owen and I haven't really discovered my powers yet?" the boy said it like a question.

"Haven't really discovered your powers?" Captain R relayed back.

Owen gulped, opened his mouth, closed it, then nodded.

Captain R wrote something very long down on his paper, making Owen even more nervous than before. Then, he swiped for Owen to get out of line and beckoned the next person in line forward.

Miles watched as Kane stepped forward. Jason turned from in front of Miles and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Hey," Jason whispered. "Wanna switch places?"

"Um, sure," Miles replied, a little confused. They switched places and Miles focused back on the front of the class.

"...can turn into steel," Kane was explaining.

"Steel?" Captain R seemed surprised. "As in..."

"Magnetic, bulletproof steel," Kane finished proudly.

"Well I know many ways that that power will come in handy. Next!"

It hit Miles that he was the next in line—it was his turn. He stepped up under Captain R's unwavering gaze and he seemed to shrink a few inches before him.

"I'm Miles and I have super-strength." It was the first time Miles had really thought about it that way... weird.

"Right," said Captain R. "And it seems you have experience dealing with Necron first-hand, yes?"

Miles looked at his feet. It was bad enough that everyone in the class looked at him differently after that event—as if he was experienced or any less clueless than any of them—and now Captain R would expect him to be top of the class, something that would most definitely not happen. Miles wished he could tell everyone that it was just luck that he took out the Necron man and beasts, and that he was just a skinny kid that was trying to be normal and was stuck with powers he didn't know how to use. He wished he could tell them that Caspar did all the work, a believable story, and one that was already half-true. But no, Caspar had made sure that everyone knew that Miles was the one that insisted they fight back against the beasts and that Miles was the one who took out the soldier controlling the beasts.

Miles couldn't blame Caspar, though. He was being surprisingly modest and a good friend. Miles just didn't want to inevitably let everyone down.

Captain R stared a moment longer, then called for the next person to come forward. The new girl stepped up and cleared her throat. Miles realized that Jason had moved to as close to the back of the line as he could. He currently was talking to Dawn, most likely trying to convince her to give up her position. Surely Jason knew that there was more than enough class time to get through everyone, but his efforts to get as close to the back as possible were about as subtle as a train wreck.

"Hello, my name is Quinn," said the new girl. "My power is kind of confusing..."

"Get on with it," Captain R barked.

"Well I think I can kind of shapeshift..."

Captain R rolled his eyes. "You think you can kind of shapeshift?"

"Sometimes, if I think of someone... I can accidentally turn into them," Quinn's eyes flickered upward for a second. Captain R noticed this and raised his eyebrows.

"Someone like Mr. Caspar over there, for instance?" Captain R asked the question innocently, but Quinn's face flushed bright red.

Caspar, who was contently fidgeting with a piece of rubber from the floor, looked up at the sound of his name. "Hmm?"

"I suppose so," Quinn mumbled, suddenly finding her shoelaces very entertaining.

"Look at me," Captain R said roughly. "I want to know the details of your power, it could come in quite handy. So don't try to lie to me. Did you or did you not transform yourself into Caspar?"

Caspar's eyes widened, suddenly very alert as to what was going on in the classroom. He looked between Quinn and Captain R, his face mirroring the same bewilderment that everyone else in the room wore.

"I did, but it was an accident. I don't know how to control it!"

Captain R nodded. "That is what this class is for. Next!"

Caspar looked one more time at Quinn and Captain R, then looked down at his rubber piece again and shrugged, going back to his fidgeting and ignoring what was going on in the class.

The scowling girl Miles remembered from the first day of school was next. She was no longer scowling, but had no more of an approachable look upon her face.

"My name is Fiona," she said rather quickly. "I can turn invisible and I'm a really good fighter. I can get behind enemy lines quickly."

Captain R nodded appreciatively. "Short and to the point. I like it. Next."

Jason trotted forward, obviously unsuccessful at getting Dawn to give up her spot at the back.

"My name is Jason and my power…" he faltered for a moment. "Well so far all I can do is occasionally spit fire..."

"Spit fire? As in fire breath?" Captain R's eyes widened.

"No not- not exactly," said Jason, shrinking a little. "I mean, I literally sometimes spit and fire comes out. It burns..."

Miles could tell some people in the class were trying hard to fight back and stifle laughter. Miles found himself grateful for this—Jason had become a friend and Miles knew how nervous he must have felt. Miles had felt a little nervous talking to Captain R with the rest of the class watching, and his power was strength.

He was interested in Jason's power, though. Miles had noticed he'd declined to tell him when he'd asked on the first day and it had been on his mind ever since. Sure, spitting fire wasn't much but it wasn't anything to scoff at either.

"I see. Well, I'm sure we can deliver some ice to your cabin for you to suck on. Next!"

Miles winced. He wished Captain R hadn't made that last, unnecessary comment. Jason was already embarrassed enough of his power.

Dawn stepped up. "My name is Dawn, and I can manipulate people's emotions. I can use it to make the enemy scared, tired, or very passionate about the art of peace and kindness."

Captain R squinted at her. "Are you using it now, on me?"

Dawn smiled a little. "You wouldn't know if I was."

Captain R hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "Okay class, now I know each and every one of your powers. I want to remind you that your powers are subject to change and grow and in the coming weeks and months here you will learn to more effectively use and control them. I will have activities prepared for you tomorrow based on your power. This was a short class, but there is nothing more we can do now. You are dismissed."