A group of five teens stood in a bare metal room, a metal gate in front of them. There was a young girl holding a teddy bear, a girl in a thin metal suit with metal circles around her wrists, a boy covered in teal crystals, and a boy covered in red chitin with two extra arms and huge blunt claws extending from his shoulder.

And Antonio, wearing a purple combat suit.

Antonio led out a sigh. The young girl tilted her head, a blue rune appearing and glowing on her forehead.

 

“It’s ok, Antonio. You don’t need to be worried.”

 

Antonio stared at her with half-closed eyes.

 

“Roxanne, can you not read my mind, please? We’ve talked about this.”

 

“I’m practicing.”

 

“Right before the test?”

 

“Is it Constanza again? She thinks of you more as a brother though, you know?”

 

“Roxanne.”

 

“Wait, you don’t want to hurt her, is it? I wouldn’t worry, I don’t think you can.”

 

The girl in the metal suit stepped over and tapped Roxanne’s shoulder and zapper her. The girl jumped with a cry.

 

“Hey!”

 

“Little psychic girl, no mind-reading teammates.”

 

Roxanne crossed her arms and looked down as the rune faded from her forehead.

 

“...I’m not little. I’m growing.”

 

Suddenly they heard a voice over an intercom.

 

“Live Combat Test: Dark Rose, Crystal Guardian, El Mantis, Little PSI, and Teslida. Begin!”

 

The metal gate opened up and the team rushed out. They entered into a large open arena, faint purple barriers shimmering in the sky. Three adults stood in the observation area but the team didn’t spare them a glance. Instead they looked forward to their opponents ahead.

Aurora Legion took up their formation. Antonio gazed at Icy Rose for a second before tearing his eyes away.

 

“Ok team, let’s do like we practiced! Wait…Little PSI, where are you going?”

 

“...I’m not little. Stupid Director. I’m not little. I’m going to beat up your favorite little team, and then you’ll have to change that stupid name.”

 

Little PSI rose into the air and flew forward, glowing runes appearing around her head. She lifted her hands and spread her palms towards Aurora Legion. Wonder Knight vanished and slammed into the far wall.

A black beam shot through the air but Little PSI moved to the side before it hit.

 

“I can read your mind, you know? See, Voidspeaker is going to shoot another beam at me, just like that.”

 

She dodged the beam.

 

“Then Icy Rose will shoot some ice at me.”

 

She held out her hand, stopping a barrage of ice midair. She flicked her fingers and the ice flew back, bombarding Icy Rose’s position.

 

“And then Chronolock will…”

 

Suddenly a chunk of ice knocked into Little PSI sending her spinning through the air. She spun around. But Icy Rose was exactly where she expected. Or more accurate, the original Icy Rose was.

Little PSI’s eyes went wide as she caught sight of a second Icy Rose, made of pink light. Who she couldn’t read.

 

“Wait, that’s not”

 

She grunted as a flash of yellow passed by her, spinning her around.

 

“O-Ok Chronolock is attacking me…then, um, then…Icy Rose next?”

 

Different voices filled her head, each planning a separate attack. She scrunched her forehead as she considered which one to focus on, only for a shadow to fall over her. She gasped and jumped to the side as Wonder Knight kicked down from above while she was focused on Icy Rose. Then a barrage of ice surrounded her as she jumped away from Wonder Knight.

 

“Duck, little psychic girl!”

 

Little PSI tripped and fell to the ground. As she did, a surge of lightning blasted over her, blowing away the ice. El Mantis rushed forward, and his pincers shot forward with a crack. They shot a shockwave that knocked into Wonder Knight, pushing him back a few steps.

Meanwhile Dark Rose sprinted forward and helped Little PSI off the ground.

 

“Are you ok?”

 

Little PSI’s eyes were quivering but she nodded.

 

“Good. Maybe stick with the team this time?”

 

A black beam cut through the lightning, striking Teslalida. She grunted and fell to one knee with a groan as the power drained from the suit’s actuators, leaving nothing but her muscles to bear the weight.

El Mantis pulled his claws back once more when Chronolock blinked past him, slapping his face. By the time he pulled his head back, Wonder Knight was already on top of him.

Crystal Guardian was pinned down by Icy Rose, trying his best to block her barrage of icicles with a salvo of crystals. But he had to grow each of his crystals from the growths on his body, while Icy Rose was simply freezing the water in the air. The two’s projectile count could not be compared. Crystal Guardian grunted as the ice passed his barrage and struck his crystal armor.

Dark Rose looked up and grimaced, grabbing Little PSI’s hand.

 

“Move!”

 

The pair just got out of the way as a pink rhino charged past them.

 

“W-What do I do? I-I can’t focus! T-There’s too many…”

 

“Stop reading minds! Just focus on your telekinesis! Simple blasts of force, like we practiced!”

 

The two ran as the rhino turned and chased after them. A wall of pink ice grew before them from the Icy Rose copy, forcing them to come to a halt.

Little PSI frowned and took a deep breath. She turned her head and held out a shaky hand at the rhino charging them. She closed her eyes and bit her lip as she pushed out on her hand.

The rhino tilted to the side as an impact hit its side. The beast was knocked off course just enough for Dark Rose to grab Little PSI and leap to the side.

 

“T-Thanks…”

 

“Just keep it up!”

 

The two ran from the pink ice wall. In the back, Pink Star frowned and furrowed her brow. The Icy Rose copy stood still for a moment, before lifting her hand, but nothing happened. Then, the ice wall slowly crumbled. Once it had finally vanished, ice balls began appearing in the air around the pink Icy Rose.

But by then, Dark Rose and Little PSI had gotten away.

 

“You help Crystal, I’ll take Tesla!”

 

Little PSI nodded and the two separated. Little PSI breathed and held out her hands.

Crystal had his eyes closed and his teeth clenched together, trying to endure the barrage of ice. He had stopped firing crystals entirely at this point, focusing on repairing his armor.

 

But suddenly the impacts stopped.

 

He opened his eyes. The ice stood still in the air, the pieces vibrating. Little PSI and Icy Rose both narrowed their eyes as they pushed on the ice. Little PSI grit her teeth.

 

“Move!”

 

“R-Right!”

 

Crystal Guardian sprinted away from the ice and Little PSI dropped her arms, letting the ice rush forward into the now empty ground.

Meanwhile Dark Rose ran across the field towards Voidspeaker, pulling a small metal disk from his suit. He tossed it at the boy, the disk flying through the air.

Then there was a yellow flash and the disk vanished.

 

And something slammed into Dark Rose’s face.

 

He could barely catch a glimpse as Chronolock blinked around, punching him in the stomach and the back. He dropped to his knees, gritting his teeth.

Sure, you can join the hero academy, they said.

We can train you, they said.

You don’t need to have powers to become a hero, they said.

He pulled a purple sphere from his pocket, placing his hand on the button.

He waited until he caught a yellow flash from the corner of his vision.

He pressed the button.

A sphere of purple light surrounded him in an instant and blasted out in a shockwave. Chronolock cried out as she was blasted into the air.

Dark Rose smiled. Constanza may have talked too much last time. He knew Chronolock had developed some new power. From what Constanza said it seemed she had learned to stop time on herself in a way that still allowed her to move, allowing her to blink around the battlefield in a way a normal person couldn’t track or react to.

But he had done his homework, his time as an ILS intern paying off. The thing about Chronolock’s powers were…whenever she froze something, nothing could interact with it.

So, it was reasonable to assume she couldn’t interact with anything while stopping time on herself. And would therefore be vulnerable at the moment she attacked.

 

“Chrono!”

 

Voidspeaker’s eyes glanced to the side as he heard Chronolock cry. He quickly turned back to his target, keeping up the drain. He trusted his team, and his girlfriend. So he kept up his job, knowing they’d be fine.

But he still couldn’t help dropping the beam for a split second.

 

And that was all Teslalida needed.

 

She quickly activated the suit’s insulation mode, just before the beam struck her again. And then she stood up.

After having his suit drained and deactivated twice, Tesla Titan had come up with some improvements to the design. Designs that had gone unused since he retired.

 

Until Lida Valerianovna appeared with the lightning powers necessary to operate the suit.

 

The new suit had two separate power systems, one connected to the internal actuators and systems, the other built into the external armor and powering the weapon systems. The suit could disconnect the two systems, isolating them from each other, such that if some external force disrupted the outer system, the inner could still remain operational.

In other words, Teslalida could move her suit again, even under Voidspeaker’s drain.

She ran straight towards the boy, arm pulled back into a fist. Voidspeaker frowned and floated into the air to escape from the metal fists aiming at him.

Wonder Knight ducked and weaved as the huge claws flew past him, grimacing from the shockwaves the mighty, lightning fast claws could produce. But his training had paid off and he had read the trajectory of the claws correctly, both of them failing to touch him. He took the opportunity and stepped into El Mantis’s guard, planting a fist into the boy’s chitinous chest. El Mantis let out a cry and flew back. Wonder Knight glanced around, and fell back as he saw his own team regrouping. El Mantis landed among his team with a grunt, his team moving to help him up.

Aurora Legion and the new squad both separated from each other, each team regrouping and gathering their breath as they prepared for a second round. Dark Rose glanced around at his team.

 

“Ok, this time we do it together.”

 

And this time, the whole team nodded.

 

---

 

Up in the observation deck, three adults watched the fight. The new squad was putting up a good fight, but they were slowly being driven into a corner by the more experienced Aurora Legion. They would eventually lose…but this test wasn’t about winning.

As for the adults, there was a woman taking notes, a large muscular man in a suit, and a thin man in silk robes. The muscular man crossed his arms.

 

“Looks like they’re not ready.”

 

The thin man shook his head.

 

“I disagree, Mr. Espina. They are far better trained and equipped then I was when I faced my first mission.”

 

Mr. Espina…the man formerly known as Icy Falcon, narrowed his eyes.

 

“Your experience wasn’t exactly ideal, Mr. Wu. Most of your fellow disciples died on those first missions, didn’t they?”

 

Wu Zhengkang nodded his head.

 

“That’s true, but that’s not the point. The point is, from what I can tell they have the tools and teamwork they need to survive. Look at how they’ve recovered. Most of them kept their cool, and Dark Rose is bringing them together as we speak. They are reaching the limit of training alone.”

 

Mr. Espina grunted. Wu Zhengkang let out a sigh.

 

“I know you are very protective of our students, but sometimes we need adversity to grow. Trust in them, Mr. Espina. Dr. Ueda, what’s your analysis?”

 

Dr. Ueda looked over her notes and glanced at the team.

 

“Well as far as the combat goes, I’ll leave it to you experts.”

 

Mr. Espina and Wu Zhengkang exchanged glances. Dr. Ueda knew everyone was aware she’s a ninja at this point, right? The shinobi were public knowledge already, after all.

 

“As for their mentality, I agree with Mr. Wu. They are at the stage where they should be tested in the field. We will need to follow up to see how their mental state develops once they do. I am somewhat worried about Little PSI given her age but she will not agree to being held back, so we will simply need to ensure she has sufficient care and support.”

 

Mr. Espina grunted again, rubbing his chin. Finally he heaved a sigh.

 

“Fine…they pass. I’ll let the Director know…the Nova Guardians are ready for their first assignment.”