Squad Support

“Taking the visor off,” Eury advised the room by habit. The 14 year-old-girl in pajamas sat on the edge of her bed and looked down at the floor. She removed her violet-crystal visor and placed it on the nightstand next to several spares. Then she slipped on her sleep mask as she lay on the bed. “You there, Abby?” She asked aloud. Her friend was the only person in the room when she gave the warning, but she might have left in the few seconds it took Eury to lay down. Or she may not have felt like talking; the real reason Eury learned to wait until her eyes were covered.

“Yeah, I’m here,” Abby called back. Eury was glad she felt like talking. “What’s up?”

“Who’re you going to be tomorrow?”

“I’m still gonna be Abby I guess. That’s a weird question.”

“NOOooo.” Eury sat up in bed and faced the direction of Abby’s voice. “It’s the first day of school!” Eury threw her hands on the bed in excitement. “The first day of a brand new school! A school just for UNIQUES! No one knows us; we can be who we want to be!”

“Oh, okay,” Abby nodded in understanding, not that her friend could see. “Yeah, I’m still gonna be Abby.” Eury groaned with frustration and threw herself backward on the bed.

“Why aren’t you more excited?”

“I haven’t lived my whole life wanting to go to school,” Abby shrugged. “I’ve already been. It’s not that great.”

“And you’re not even a little bit excited about meeting SoundCrowd?” Eury asked.

“No way. They know we’re on Ballisea’s team; I’m sure they’ll treat us like jerks because we’re the ‘bad guys‘.”

“They wouldn’t do that!” Eury replied. “Probably. Some of them might, but Dirge wouldn’t!”

“Whoever you’re pretending to be will disappear the moment the rest of the students find out we’re Ballisea’s side,” Abby said.

“But it’s my chance to be cool!” Eury whined at the ceiling.

“Eury,” Abby said with a softer, closer voice. Eury felt the bed shift as Abby sat down next to her. “You kill people by looking at them. How much cooler do you want to be?”

“I guess,” she grumbled.

“What’s wrong with Eury?” Eury recognized Lupe’s voice from the direction of the doorway and guessed the girl just walked in.

“She’s nervous about school,” Abby replied.

“I’m not nervous.” Eury faced the direction of Lupe’s voice. “I thought it would be a good time to try out a new me.”

“She thinks she needs a cooler identity,” Abby added.

“What? No way,” Lupe grinned. Only Abby saw it. Eury felt the bed shift in the other direction when Lupe joined them on her bed. “You’ve already got a cool identity.”

“I know. I kill people by looking at them,” Eury said meekly.

“Nu-uh. That’s cool too, but there’s something even better.”

“Really?” Eury sat up again. “What?”

“Yeah, what?” Abby asked.

“You too,” Lupe said. Eury got the impression she was talking to Abby.

“Us three and the boys were all hand-picked by Ballisea. The strongest Unique that ever existed chose us…,” Eury felt Lupe poke her arm to drive the point home. “…to be on her derby team. You both know the stakes; you know she really wants to win this. She thinks we’re the best shot she has.  You guys…,” Lupe stood up. Eury felt the bed pop back up in her absence.

“…we’re the B-Squad!”

Sniff Test

https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/comments/9su4wv/pi_sniff_test_inspired_by_a_removed_prompt/

“As you can imagine this arrangement is best kept between us,” Professor Woodman said. Lupe Villalobos stood in an empty class room in front of the seated, round man in a tweed suit. He pushed up his green horn-rimmed glasses, and smiled awkwardly at Lupe. “It would benefit my lessons if I’m able to use you as a sort of,…” his hands waved in the air while he struggled with the right word. “…visual-aid. I understand you may not want to reveal that side of you to your classmates,” he gave a weak, obligatory nod. “But, I could use your help illustrating differences between Unique and Zero werewolves.” Lupe’s eyes widened. The extra fluorescent light made them sparkle like emeralds.

“There’s another werewolf here?” She felt a tickling at the back of her neck; the tiny red hairs bristled up from her tan skin. The man nodded causing his neatly combed dark bangs to dip to his forehead. He used his hand to push it back up as a reflex.

“Ms. Knight teaches Balance, but I doubt they put you in her class,” he shrugged with a high-pitched chuckle. “I don’t have to tell you about werewolves, right?” Lupe breathed a sigh of relief and nodded.

“Once you show your feral side, that can be the extent of it. I have various demonstrations in mind,” Mr. Woodman paused. He opened the top drawer of his desk and pulled out a palm-sized, jingling, black leather sack. The sharp sound of the silver clinking together was enough to ring in Lupe’s ears. She took a step back.

“Oh, sorry,” he apologized in a hurry. He carefully put the sack down and closed the drawer again. “I didn’t know you were that sensitive to silver.” Lupe forced a smile and shrugged.

“I didn’t either, there wasn’t much silver on my Earth.”

“Well, that’s what I was going to explain anyway. Once you demonstrate to the class how you turn, that’s already your earned ‘A’. There are other demos that I’d like to pair with lessons about different Unique aspects, but the choice is yours for each one.” He knocked on the dark-wood desk. “We obviously won’t do the silver one. If you agree, you’ll have to change next week at the latest. And if you like, I’ll let you use the classroom privately to show your friends before you show the class.” Mr. Woodman smiled at Lupe and pushed his glasses up again. Lupe giggled to herself when she saw them start to move down again the moment his finger stopped helping.

“Wow thanks, Mr. Woodman. I’m definitely interested in the grade, but my friends already know,” Lupe shrugged.

“Jerome what’s the-oh.” A female voice came from the open doorway. Lupe turned to see a short athletic woman with pink hair standing at the door. A sharp, heavy scent brushed Lupe’s nose. She grimaced at the woman and stepped back while trying to contain a growl in her throat. The woman smirked and stood up straighter.

“Something bothering you, pup?” Though she was not any taller than Lupe’s 5’5″, she somehow managed to look down on the tall girl. Lupe clenched her fists and fought back rushing adrenaline. Professor Woodman jumped out of his seat and rushed to close the door the second he saw the woman. However, she planted her foot to keep the door open. The rotund man’s weight was no match for the strength in a werewolf’s leg. Lupe bared her teeth at the woman with a forced smile.

“Not at all, Zero,” Lupe spoke through gritted teeth. She turned to Mr. Woodman, still leaning against the door. “I’m in, we’ll sort the details later.” Lupe gripped the straps of her grey canvas backpack and walked toward the door. Her knuckles grew whiter as she approached the woman.

“I already forgot why I was here,” Ms. Knight shrugged then cleared the door before Lupe reached it. Lupe visibly relaxed when the woman disappeared down the hall. Color filled her knuckles again.

“She likes you,” Mr. Woodman chuckled and patted Lupe on the back.

Registration

Lupe sat atop a green pleather examination table in a cramped waiting room. Flutter, an eight-foot-tall pale woman with bright red hair that matched Lupe’s, sat in a wooden seat across from her. A sudden knock at the door called their attention, but a nurse walked in before either of them could answer. The blonde nurse carried in a clipboard and paused when she stepped in the room. She looked at Flutter, then at Lupe. After a moment she looked back at Flutter through squinted eyes.

“I give up,’ she tossed her arms up with mock exasperation and smiled. “Who am I here to see?” she asked. Flutter pointed at Lupe and the nurse nodded. She walked to the girl and introduced herself.

“I’m Fernie,” the nurse offered Lupe a hand and Lupe shook it with a smile.

“I’m Lupe.” Fernie nodded and smiled. She clicked her pen and started reading from the clipboard.

“How long have you been a lycanthrope?” Fernie asked.

“As far back as I can remember,” Lupe replied. Fernie looked surprised.

“Really? I guess you won’t be able to recall who bit you, right?” Fernie asked. She drew an ‘X’ by the next question, then drew several more ‘X’s on the next few questions. “Those are all about your symptoms when you turned, but if you don’t remember…” Fernie paused then she looked at Lupe with wide eyes.

“Wait, were you born a werewolf?” she asked. Lupe nodded. Fernie sighed. “Oh, that doesn’t happen here. You’re not from this Earth are you?” Fernie turned and gave Flutter a long look up and down. Then, she turned her attention back to Lupe.

“No,” Lupe said.

“I need a different set of forms.” Fernie headed to the door. “Be right back,” she smiled and walked out.

“Does she know what you are?” Lupe asked Flutter. The woman shook her head.

“She can see I’m Fae, but she can’t tell what,” she smiled at Lupe. In less than a minute Fernie entered the room carrying a different clipboard and a small black case. She set the case down and clicked her pen again.

“Okay, let’s restart the interview. Are werewolves common on your Earth?” Lupe shook her head.

“I think I’m the only one.” Fernie nodded.

“Are you a Unique?” Lupe glanced at Flutter, but the tall woman’s only response was an encouraging head nod.

“#47, La Corona.”

“Perfect! This’ll be easy,” Fernie said. She opened the black case and pulled out a white, lemon-sized stress ball. “Have you ever knowingly, or un-knowingly turned anyone?”

“No, I’ve never bitten anyone.” Fernie handed the ball to Lupe.

“Bite this, please.” Lupe put the squishy ball in her mouth and bit as hard as she could. “That’s enough,” Fernie said. Lupe released her jaw and looked at the ball that Fernie held. Instead of the white stress ball she expected, red fur covered the surface of the ball. The nurse shook the ball until all the red strands fell out and it became smooth and white again.

“Well, you’re definitely infectious,” Fernie began to explain. Lupe’s heart pumped faster. Her fists tensed up into balls, she worried about what Fernie might say next. She looked at Flutter, but the woman seemed perfectly relaxed. “But that’s easy enough to manage with a prescription,” she scribbled something on the form. “How do you change?” Fernie asked. Lupe shrugged.

“I dunno, I just do it,” she replied.

“Oh, you can change any time?” Fernie wrote something on the form. “How does the moon affect you?”

“It doesn’t,” Lupe said. Fernie reached into the black case and pulled out another white ball. This one glowed with soft blue light when she squeezed it.

“Focus on the light,” Fernie moved the ball slowly in different directions to watch Lupe’s reaction. After several movements, Fernie turned the ball of light off with a squeeze, then put it away.

“You’re right about moonlight. No effect. What’s your experience with silver?” Fernie asked. She reached into her case again.

“Never noticed anything,” Lupe said. Fernie pulled out a large silver coin and showed it to Lupe.

“Hold your hand out,” Fernie said. Lupe extended her hand and held it palm facing up. “I’m going to drop a silver coin in your hand. If it hurts, drop it.” Lupe nodded. “Three,” Fernie began a countdown.

“Two. One.” She dropped the coin. Lupe yelped the moment it touched her skin. She felt intense burning pain eating at the palm of her hand. Lupe jerked her hand away to let the coin fall to the ground, and she massaged her wounded hand. “Major silver allergy,” Fernie commented to herself as she wrote on the form.

“Okay that covers all the important stuff,” Fernie said. “You’ll be registered in our multi-verse system if that’s okay?” She asked Lupe. “It helps us keep track of the werewolves that travel through universes.” The girl nodded.

“Yes, please. I was going to ask about that,” Lupe smiled with excitement.

“Really?” Fernie’s eyes grew. “Wow, you’re the first, ‘yes’ I’ve ever gotten,” Fernie shrugged then gave Lupe a sly smile. “We have to add you either way, but we’re also required to inform you. And you want to be added? Why’s that?” Fernie asked.

“I can’t enroll in school unless I’m registered,” Lupe smiled.

B-Squad (6-29-18)


[WP] You have lived on earth your whole life. One morning, you wake up in the center of a modestly sized crater, as you look about you see fields of violet-tinted grass, a faint red sun in the sky overhead, and two moons in *much* closer orbit than our own. [Link to post.]


Lupe Villalobos standing around in a crater would not answer any questions. She reached up one of the sides gripping the violet grass around the upper rim of the hole. The texture of the violet grass felt the same as the green grass on Earth. The girl’s coppery hair shimmered under the moonlight that she was making a point to ignore. She scanned the large field, turning slowly and staring out along the grassy plain. 

“Whoaaaaa,” Lupe whispered to herself. Despite the situation, she marveled at the beauty of wherever she was. The sight encouraged her to face the two moons she purposely kept at her back. She turned around and found that she could still feel surprised. 

“Hi.” Underneath the two giant moons, she saw a beautiful, giant woman at least twice her size. The woman’s pale skin glowed in the blue moonlight and Lupe noticed a long red braid hanging over the front of her shoulder. She sat on a rock several feet away. The strange woman smiled at Lupe when she spoke. Lupe took a step toward her, then paused. 

“Hi,” she replied. “Where am I?” The woman chuckled, then turned her head to glanced at the twin moons. After a second she focused on Lupe again. 

“Earth,” she said with a smile. Lupe shook her head. 

“I’m from Earth.” She spread her arms wide to gesture at the field of violet grass. “It’s nothing like this.” 

“You don’t have grass?” She asked.

“Yeah. We have grass, but it’s not purple,” she said. Lupe reached down and grabbed a handful of grass blades and tossed them into the wind. Violet glimmers floated away on the breeze. 

“It’s violet,” the woman corrected her. 

“No, my grass is green. This isn’t Earth, so where am I?” The woman’s lack of hostility encouraged Lupe to step closer and she felt relieved when the stranger did not move. She decided to close the distance completely and kept walking. 

“Earth,” she repeated, then shrugged. “Just not yours.” Lupe stopped walking. Her eyes went wide and her mouth dropped open. 

“Huh?” She looked around again, then stared at her. “No way, it has to be a different planet. Earth doesn’t have two moons and pur-violet grass.”Why am I here? It has to be you because you seem to know a lot and there’s no one else around.” The woman smiled. 

“Technically it is a different planet, but it’s still the Earth of this universe. You’re quick, that’s part of why you’re here.” She cocked her head behind her. “C’mon meet the others.” She stood with easy grace making sure she did not scare the girl away, then began walking in the direction she suggested.  

“You’re special,” she began to explain, but Lupe interrupted her. 

“How do you know that? Actually, how do you know anything about me?” She asked. The woman must have heard her footsteps halt in the grass because she turned to face Lupe. She sat again, in the grass, to put the girl at ease. 

“We brought you here to have a talk. That’s it. If you’re not interested we’ll put you back on your Earth, and go our separate ways,” she said. “We didn’t talk to you on your Earth because this way makes more of an impression. We’ve been watching you for a while, and you’re pretty quick to change. I put you in that crater to distract you with questions we have the answers to and force you to listen.” 

“You brought me to a parallel universe just to talk to me?”

“Alternate, not parallel,” she said. The smile remained on her face and Lupe found herself becoming more at ease with the woman.

“What’s the difference?” she asked. 

“Proximity I guess? It’s not exactly that, but that’s the best way to put it. If we were parallel with your Earth, the grass would probably still be green.” She looked up. “There’d definitely be only one of those. The further you are from your home universe the bigger the changes.” The woman’s focus dropped to Lupe again. “But that’s not why you’re here. Although If you do stay you’ll learn all that stuff.”

“Okay. You said I’m here to listen, so I’m listening.” Lupe walked to the woman and sat in the grass next to her.

“We want to invite you to a private high-school next year,” she said. Lupe burst into laughter. 

“You’re kidding! I’m in an alternate universe because I won a scholarship???” Her laughter died down as she took in the violet field again. “It is beautiful though. I guess thanks for not just sending a letter.” The woman stood again, with less care this time. Lupe felt comfortable enough with her that the tall stranger did not need to measure every movement. She walked away again, and Lupe scrambled up off the grass to keep up with her large steps. 

“This is just where we train,” the woman said. Lupe realized she led her towards an encampment in the distance. She recognized an orange glow and saw several figures seated around the fire. “I thought it’d be a good idea to show you where you’d spend a lot of time if you decided to join up.” The woman said. Lupe made up her mind during the walk. Once the pair entered the orange glow Lupe saw a group of four kids her age, two boys and two girls. Each of the girls wore a glassy visor on their faces. One solid black on a dark haired girl, and the other translucent purple on a blonde girl. 
As they approached the four kids stood from their seats and greeted Lupe and the giant woman. 

“I’m in.” Lupe blurted out when she saw the friendly faces gathering around her. She felt a hard slap on her back from the tall woman. 

“Great to hear!” she said. The four kids stood before Lupe. The tall woman stepped forward, turned, and extended a hand to Lupe

“My name’s Flutter,” the red-headed giant said, then she turned to introduce the rest. She pointed at the blonde girl, then worked her way down the line. “Purple visor is Eurys, black visor is Abby. Green board shorts is Todd.” She gave a dismissive wave towards the fourth boy standing at the end. “And Felix.” 

“Flux,” Felix said and stepped forward to offer Lupe a handshake. #46, El Sol.”  Lupe shook the boy’s hand but looked at him with confusion.

“46? What?”  She felt a reassuring pat from Flutter on her back. 

“We’ll get to that. By the way, you’re #47, La Corona.”