"Good morning, students!"
The higher-pitched, brightly enthusiastic version of Night Woman, or Lilith as I preferred, greeted us in Class-A's Homeroom.
I was considerably less sunny considering my executive swivel chair hadn't come with instructions, so I had a blast spending all night putting it together, only to realize I'd spent all night putting it together and still had extra parts.
I forgot to rig the alarm on the fire escape... I realized as Lilith wrote her name on the board. She was looking far more professional today with an only slightly scandalous outfit over her signature body suit.
The rest of us are in the school uniform. A dark blue blazer top with a crest over our hearts, white shirts with ties or tie-tabs, paired with skirts or pants (I choose pants!) in one of three exciting colors. Black, grey, and a slightly lighter shade of grey. Naturally, those with heteromorphic body traits have uniforms customized to fit.
"For those of you who don't remember me, I'm your homeroom teacher. You can call me Teacher, Instructor, or Ms. Stern."
Lilith Stern... I don't know why I find her full name funny. I just do.
"Let's start the semester with introductions! Going alphabetically, we have Aislin Carver. Please tell us your name, what Talents you have, and something you enjoy." There's a pause while I let the instructions sink in. "Miss Carver?"
"Oh. Yeah." I yawn and approach the front. Thankfully, P.E. doesn't start until Wednesday, so I'm not too thoroughly exhausted. "I'm Aislin. My Talent is electricity, registered name as Shock." It's pretty much the standard name for an only slightly rare Talent that tends to hone into something more specific over time. I don't want to reveal it's more like electromagnetic manipulation at this point. Emphasis on the electro. "And I like getting shit done. Sleep too."
The crowd deadpans me. Except for Fiona on the opposite corner of the front of the room, who claps rapidly and gives me a tiny "Woo!"
I notice Tala in the back wagging her tail at me, though. So that's nice. We didn't get to hang out during the weekend, but I saw her running outside a couple of times.
There are sixteen of us by my count, so I'll keep this brief.
Me: A-named at birth to forever spend my time at the front of the alphabet.
Basil: Talent name: Sprout. He can grow plants and control them, their shapes, and even their biochemistry to some degree. Kinda cool, but it only works in sunlight. He likes trimming bonsai and making pasta.
Blaze: Talent name: Heart On Fire. The power of his flames grows with his emotions. In other words, he's a big, bright emo kid. Also, he likes swimming and pirate movies. Kinda odd.
Fiona: Talent name: (Sigh) Strength of Justice. Everyone knows the score, she's just like Crusader, but a girl, pretty much super strong and invincible, and she flies. And don't forget the heat beam eyes. She likes ponies and dress-up and eating all the sweets I can't, and Doing The Right Thing!
After her sunny introduction comes:
Liyu Lian: Talent name: Eightfold Heavenly Swordless Slice. She can pretty much make weapons out of condensed air. And not just swords, though that is the signature style of her martial arts school. She likes cooking, especially since her Talent uses a lot of energy. I make a note of her self-admitted weakness.
Makoto Nagano: Talent name: Fisherman. He can make any combination of hooks and lines, even a giant hook for a weapon. But more than that, he considers his strength, agility, and speed factors to be his greater talents. He likes historic warriors, particularly those from Japan, which explains why he's wearing a ninja mask along with his uniform. The metal on his headband blinds me during his clipped introduction, but when he finally takes a seat, I notice he has the school crest on the headband's front.
Mel Mallard: Talent name: Hold'em. Pretty standard pocket dimensional storage Talent. She supplements it with weapons she customizes herself, mostly making sure she can store them as "singular objects" since her Talent has an item limit. She likes shows about old men smithing like it's the 1900s and cowgirl westerns.
Naomi Nagase: Talent Name: None. Despite lacking a specialized talent, she introduces herself as a generalist, martial artist, and mechanic (The middle of those draws Makoto and Liyu's gazes). Since her grades on the entry exams were comparable to mine, I make note of her potential as an academic rival and/or ally. She likes taking things apart and putting them back together, Cajun cooking, and forensic investigation shows.
Olivia Ross: Talent Name: Landscaper. She's a long-ranged Talent user who can imagine objects into existence if they're far enough away from her. She can't "paint" living things, and she hopes to be able to overcome her weakness of only being able to add one thing at a time. She likes watercolor painting and oil painting and charcoal sketching and animation, and really anything to do with visual arts. By the way, she takes commissions. I make a note of her self-admitted weakness.
Quill Andrelle: Talent Name: Quell & Quarrel. She's a psychic who can read and dampen or enflame people's emotions. She does so by manifesting an ephemeral bow and shooting people with arrows, yes, like Cupid, but way more dangerous. She likes coffee, telenovelas, and dating sims. I make a note to stay way the hell away from her. Oh shit she looked at me...
Stephany Stoefer: Talent Name: Rewind. She can force the position of any object within a "frame" to prior positions and states, including injuries. It doesn't actually turn back time, just physically moves things. Time travel, after all, is pretty much the one thing no one has. Because her Talent is too intensive, she gets knocked out for one hour with every five seconds she uses it. It comes with a tiny amount of prescience, which makes me realize she's definitely the more dangerous of Fiona's roadies. To me, at least.
Tala Randelle: Talent Name: Werewolf. She's a werewolf. Just not the shapeshifting kind. Also, she has above-average strength, hardening, and regeneration factors for her age. She likes working out and fighting and wants to learn new tricks. I mean things. Tricks are for dogs. And she is not a dog. She is two meters of midnight black and muscle and claws and teeth and fluff...
(I never said this before, but I really wanted a dog as a child. Both times. Never got one.)
Victoria Newage: Talent Name: Keratin. She can grow out claws and manipulate the keratin in her body. What I thought was hair is actually long strands of pure keratin that she can use to slice with. And the implication of her skill means her skin is basically a defensive weapon.
William Pena: Talent Name: Miner. He can swim through the ground and manipulate blocks of dirt and stone to some degree. Also, he can fly. What a disjointed Talent set. He likes constructing things and hopes to build a house for his parents. Such a nice boy.
Winona Vetinari: Talent Name: Lightbender. Her powerset is completely light-based, meaning she can make beams, go invisible, and even create hard-light constructs provided she's in contact with them at all times. She's a fan of pirate movies too, and I instantly sense Blaze's interest in her. That or maybe a bug flew into his flaming hair.
Xavi Eisenhart: Talent Name: Bee Cool. They can make bees. Out of ice. That is so cool. Apparently, they also share one mind, so I have many questions about that. Their hobbies are herbology and hanging out in cool, dark places. (Hey! Me too on that last one!)
Night Woman, or Ms. Stern, rather, clears her throat as Xavi sits. "Alright, so that's everyone that's here. Has anyone seen-" To answer her question before it's asked, the four who live around my room chose that moment to appear. "You're late," our teacher notes.
"I prefer fashionably late," their leader says, tossing her hair, which sparkles like diamonds. She has all the attitude of someone with money and a high opinion of herself.
In other words, a would-be Queen.