Category Archives: Book 07: Compound Kids

Arc 7.3: Entry Assessment

Entry Assessment: Part 1

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On Saturday morning, we gathered at the compound’s athletic fields. They had two football/soccer fields with tracks running around them. The first year students gathered in the middle of one and the second, third, and fourth years gathered in the other.

The first years seemed to take up most of the middle of their field, but that wasn’t really true. It wasn’t just them. Adults in costume (both superhero and medical scrubs) were scattered throughout the crowd.

I recognized what they were doing from last year—entry assessment. The program was getting a baseline of their abilities. They’d set up a walled room on one end of the field. I wasn’t sure of the material, but from here it looked like stone.

I didn’t know what kind of powers they had to work with, but an awful lot of powers had the potential to kill if they weren’t contained.

Continue reading Entry Assessment: Part 1 →

Arc 7.2: Fame

Fame: Part 4

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“No kidding?” I shook my head. “Well, I guess we heard her telling him that he needed to get to know well known supers. We’d probably qualify for that even if we hadn’t done much of anything ourselves.”

She glanced toward where I assumed that they were. It was too dark for me to tell at that point.

Haley frowned. “I get it. I heard her too, but isn’t it messed up? People are worth more than how useful they are to you.” Continue reading Fame: Part 4 →

Arc 7.2: Fame

Fame: Part 3

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Haley said, “No.” Then she stood up to pick up her shoes from where they had fallen. She’d obviously been in a hurry. One lay next to the bench. The other hung from a bush about two feet away from the bench.

Her ears looked a little red around the edges.

Well, at least they hadn’t caught us in the middle of anything.

Diva’s smile hinted that she likely understood what they’d interrupted. She didn’t let the moment stretch into an embarrassing silence though. She said, “Pardon me, but are you Nick?”

“Um… Yeah.” I wouldn’t have chosen to tell her that.

She walked closer to the bench with her son following a little behind and looking uncomfortable.

Continue reading Fame: Part 3 →

Arc 7.2: Fame

Fame: Part 2

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I could see that. Haley always had been worried about her powers. The fact that she shapeshifted into a version of herself with fangs and claws probably didn’t help.

It wouldn’t be like discovering you could fly. It wasn’t a cool power. Fangs and claws just said monster.

The combination of that with strength and poison filled dewclaws that were still there even when she hadn’t shifted couldn’t have made her childhood easy.

Actually, I knew it hadn’t been.

Continue reading Fame: Part 2 →

Arc 7.2: Fame

Fame: Part 1

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After dinner, people had options. The schedule showed a dance in the room where we’d eaten, and that there’d be movies in the auditorium. We also had the option of going down to the shopping area on the second level, or even wandering around the ground level where people lived.

That last option came with a warning to be respectful, remember that we were guests in the compound and to stay off people’s property.

It didn’t say that we’d get in trouble, but reading between the lines, it seemed likely.

Continue reading Fame: Part 1 →

Arc 7.1: Fresh Meat

Fresh Meat: Part 5

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“No way,” I said, wondering how he’d gotten his powers activated. It wasn’t exactly a casual thing. The League had the first known working device to do it. It hadn’t been hard for me to make it work, but I’d had the benefit of my grandfather’s documentation.

I knew that the government had their own devices. From the news and personal experience, I knew that criminal organizations also had them. I wasn’t aware of anyone outside of those two groups owning any, but almost everything they needed was available on the internet now.

Corporate devices couldn’t be far away if they weren’t already out there.

Jaclyn’s mind obviously went along the same track mine did. She put down her hamburger, and said, “He can’t still be using power juice his uncle brewed. It’s illegal, and they wouldn’t allow him into the program, would they?”

“He’s not,” Courtney said. “I asked him.”

Continue reading Fresh Meat: Part 5 →

Arc 7.1: Fresh Meat

Fresh Meat: Part 4

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Haley’s brow furrowed. “Maybe I shouldn’t have said that.”

She took a piece of steak and a spoonful of a salad that appeared to be a mixture of corn, tomato and avocado.

“I had no idea. How did you know?” I kept my voice a little lower than normal. No need to broadcast this. Well, more than it must have been already. Haley wasn’t the only person with enhanced hearing, and Daniel couldn’t be the only person with telepathy or clairvoyance.

Hopefully everyone would be too occupied by eating and meeting people to eavesdrop on us.

Just ahead of me on this side of the buffet table, Jaclyn grabbed food without saying anything. I wondered if she was deliberately ignoring us. In her position, I would have. Continue reading Fresh Meat: Part 4 →

Arc 7.1: Fresh Meat

Fresh Meat: Part 3

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“It’s not impossible,” Jaclyn said. “But, I can’t say I’m excited to find out whether they’re ultimately more loyal to humanity or themselves. Lee’s deal with the Cabal gives us a year where they’ll leave us alone.”

Haley bit her lip. “That was last June.”

Jaclyn nodded. “Do you think they’ve been counting down the days?”

Haley sighed and her eyes darted between the two of us. “I hope not. I don’t even know what day it was. Do you?”

I looked over at Jaclyn and she shook her head.

“No,” I said, “but I’m sure I could figure it out. Anyway, I bet one of us knows.”

Jaclyn nodded. “Even with their descendants here, I’m not that worried about us, but Marcus and Sydney are still in Grand Lake. Even if they weren’t, all of our parents are.”

Continue reading Fresh Meat: Part 3 →

Arc 7.1: Fresh Meat

Fresh Meat: Part 2

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Isaac switched to another card, frowning for a moment as he paused.

“With that said, it’s time to talk about this year. In the past we’ve done extended training in the summer, but only for students who are already enrolled. From now on, this will be new students’ introductions to the program.

“Additionally, in the past, the Stapledon program would pay for any college or university in the United States, we are now limiting that to specific universities or colleges within a certain distance of those universities. That still represents a wide selection of educational institutions.

“The reason for this is that we’ll be instituting daily training, and don’t want anyone to have to travel too far.

Continue reading Fresh Meat: Part 2 →

Arc 7.1: Fresh Meat

Fresh Meat: Part 1

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Reed showed us to our rooms, let us drop off our luggage, and led us to the cafeteria before leaving us to meet the buses.

“Find a table,” he said as he opened the door to walk out, “the buses are here. You’ll be seeing all your friends in minutes.”

I believed him. Except for us, the room was empty of students, but it was full of staff. The tables had been set. The staff were placing food on four different tables that barely seemed to have room for more.

On the stage in front of the room, a man said, “Testing, testing?” into the microphone on the podium until someone called him on the phone. Then he said, “Good,” and left the stage and room. Continue reading Fresh Meat: Part 1 →