SWNOVELXO Chapter 3: Chapter 3
Four months had passed since Aleksandr's telepathy had awakened—a secret he had guarded fiercely. Despite Dr. Orlov's relentless monitoring and invasive tests, the scientists remained oblivious to his new quirk. Aleksandr had meticulously honed his control over his telepathy during this time, turning a chaotic flood of thoughts into a wellspring of potential.
He sat cross-legged on the floor of his cell, his mind calm and clear as he practiced isolating individual thoughts among the nearby guards. One thought flickered, faint but clear: 'Two hours left on my shift. At least this sector's been quiet lately.'
Aleksandr focused, blocking out the static that surrounded it, then gently pushed the thought away, silencing it completely in his mind.
He had refined the skill through trial and error, enduring countless sleepless nights to master his new power. He could now read the thoughts of others with precision, skimming surface thoughts or diving deeper into memories if he concentrated hard enough. Crucially, he had learned to block the flood of incoming thoughts entirely, creating a mental wall to protect himself from being overwhelmed.
Today, Aleksandr found himself in unfamiliar territory: the training arena. The massive space was intimidating, its reinforced walls lined with observation windows where scientists and guards watched every movement. Aleksandr had been told this session would test his combat abilities alongside other test subjects—an unprecedented move by the facility.
He was escorted in by two guards. Across the room stood four children, each around his age, their sharp gazes meeting his. Aleksandr immediately noted the similarities between them: lean, athletic builds, and an air of heightened intelligence. His telepathy grazed their minds, sensing the buzz of curiosity, suspicion, and wariness.
The five children stood in a loose circle, their expressions a mix of wariness and resignation. The sterile training chamber hummed with the low buzz of surveillance cameras, their lenses fixed intently on the group. A voice crackled over the intercom, cold and clinical.
"Subjects, introduce yourselves and state your quirks apart from your enhanced physical status and intelligence, which all 5 of you shared in common. Proceed in order, clockwise, starting with Subject 4729."
Aleksandr's sharp eyes flicked to the others. He was designated Subject 4729, and he knew the scientists wanted more than names—they wanted compliance, observation, and control. He could sense the tension in the room. He decided to start simply, his voice steady and devoid of excess emotion.
"Aleksandr. Electricity, magnetism, electromagnetism manipulation, limited telekinesis and regenerative healing factor."
As he spoke, Aleksandr tested his telepathy, letting his consciousness reach toward the others' minds, probing gently to avoid drawing attention. He caught faint impressions—curiosity, skepticism and guarded calculation from all of them.
A girl stood with a casual, almost cocky stance. Her auburn hair was tied into a high ponytail, strands of it glinting like molten metal. Her skin had a faint bronze hue, and a jagged scar ran across the bridge of her nose. Her piercing amber eyes constantly shifted, scanning for threats. Her athletic build and the faint whiff of heat radiating from her hinted at her magma-based abilities.
"Yulia. Magma manipulation, thermal resistance, and razor hair.",she introduced herself with a casual but wary tone.
Aleksandr's telepathy brushed her mind lightly. 'How's he so calm? Bet he thinks he's better than us.' Her mental voice carried a hint of bravado, but underneath, there was a flicker of insecurity.
The next boy was stocky and broad. He was taller than Aleksandr by a head. His skin had many scars that came in all kinds of shapes: slashes, bullet shots, burns,... resulting from different weapons tested on 1 of his quirks. His black hair was cut short, and his dark, brooding eyes made it clear he was no stranger to pain. His muscular frame seemed immovable, like a wall braced for impact.
His deep voice broke the momentary silence. His words were clipped, almost dismissive. "Ivan. Kinetic absorption, adaptive hard scales skin, shockwave emission, and mineral manipulation."
Aleksandr sensed the heavy walls around his thoughts. Ivan's mind was a fortress, his focus unyielding. 'Keep your guard up as usual Ivan. Be ready for whatever's coming for today's test.'
The pale and wiry boy took turns, with an air of eerie stillness about him. His white-blond hair fell in messy, uneven strands across his sharp features. His icy blue eyes were quick, flickering to every detail like a predator calculating its next move. His lean frame gave away little of his speed and precision.
"Gervasii. Velocity absorption and acceleration, enhanced reflexes, and teleportation with a short range around 8 to 9 meters since my last experiment."
His thoughts came in bursts, fragmented like quicksilver. Aleksandr caught flashes of his tactical mind, observing everything with cold detachment.
'Wide open space. No natural cover, just reinforced walls. Ceiling's high—too high for close-quarters combat to bottleneck them. But it works for me. Space to teleport, no obstacles.Observation windows—elevated and out of reach.No visible traps or hazards, but that doesn't mean there aren't any.'
Anya was the smallest of the group, her delicate appearance belying a core of resilience. Her dark, flowing hair framed her round face, and her deep brown eyes carried a haunted look. Her skin had a faint, damp sheen, as if she had just emerged from water. She stood apart slightly, her hands clenching and unclenching as though bracing herself for what was to come.
Anya spoke last, her voice fragile but clear. "Anya. Water generation, water breathing, and healing dandelions."
"Healing dandelions?", Yulia raised her eyebrow with curiosity at this special quirk of Anya.
Ivan and Gervasii looked at Anya, expecting for her explanation as well. While Aleksandr stood still without reaction.
"There's a …..special type of Dandelion-looking flower that grows out of my head's skin. When it releases the flying pollens that can heal your physical wounds.", Anya said, almost whispering.
Her mind was a swirl of anxiety and grim determination. 'Why this? What do they want us to prove now?'
"Huh, interestingly rare, but undeniably useful.", Yulia commented.
All four shared the common quirks of Enhanced Strength and Enhanced Intelligence, like Aleksandr. Yet Aleksandr, with his eidetic memory and unmatched analytical mind, stood out as the sharpest among them according to the assessment of the scientists.
Aleksandr stayed silent, his sharp gaze flitting from one face to the next, reading their body language as much as their minds. Everything they had said, their names, their quirks, was all accurate to what he had read from his mind. Not to mention, Aleksandr even gazed briefly into their memories when they used their quirks in the experiments, thus enabling him to fully grasp the full functions of them in just seconds of moment.
Yulia decided to pick up a new topic, her voice sharp and cutting through the sterile air as she picked up the person she seemed the interesting in this room.
"So, Aleksandr, huh?" she said, crossing her arms and tilting her head, her auburn ponytail swaying. "You're the big deal they've been whispering about. Sooo, how come our "most favorite lab mouse" ended up murdering 2 guards a few months ago?".
Her voice filled with sarcasm.
"I didn't know I was such a celebrity," Aleksandr said, his voice flat, his eyes unwavering.
"Having some gossip is a rare form of entertainment found in this god forsaken place, what can I say?", Yulia shook her shoulders.
Aleksandr's expression didn't waver. "I didn't have my control at that moment due to a very shitty headache. So none of those deaths was my intention." His voice was quiet but firm, the weight of his words pressing down on the air between them.
"Didn't say you were wrong." Yulia took a slight gaze at the scientists observing them and turned back her attention to Aleksandr:
"Just wondering if it felt good. Even a little."
Aleksandr didn't answer immediately. He studied her for a moment, letting the silence stretch. Then he spoke, his tone cold and precise. "They are observing and might as well be listening to us right now."
"I know, they heard me clearly. And what are they going to do about that? Punish me? Scold me as if they are my parents? Oh wait, I don't have parents anymore, AND they've already forced me to live through hell! What else can I lose? Just like you guys.", Yulia with a clear intention of provoking this facility.
"Then I felt nothing.", a curt response from Aleksandr.
"No pleasure in venting your anger on the people who harmed you?", Yulia asked.
"Those guards technically weren't the ones who harmed me.", Aleksandr replied.
"But they worked for those bastards who did. And they felt completely fine to suck off money for themselves from doing this fucking job!"
Yulia's smirk faltered and her face expressed pure anger, just for a second, before she shrugged, her stance relaxing.
"At least you actually made them think twice. Can't say I wouldn't have done the same given a right opportunity."
Before Aleksandr could respond, Ivan's gruff voice cut through the tension. "Alright, that's enough. We've all got scars. No need to compare them."
Yulia glanced over at Ivan, then back at Aleksandr. She gave him a final, lingering look before stepping back with a shrug. "Just making conversation."
As Yulia spoke, Aleksandr let his telepathy drift toward her mind, skimming the surface of her thoughts and emotions. Beneath her sarcasm and bravado, there was a fierce, smoldering anger—a fire that seemed to fuel her every word. Fragments of memory flickered in her mind, vivid and raw: a cold, sterile room; the sharp sting of needles; the molten heat coursing through her veins during her first test.
Her thoughts shifted, and Aleksandr caught a brief ripple of something deeper.
'At least he had the nerve to act. They deserved worse for what they've done to us.'
A trace of respect mixed with her curiosity about him, though it was buried under layers of skepticism.
But under all that defiance, Aleksandr sensed a fleeting moment of doubt.
'Would I have been able to do it? Or would I have frozen, just like before?'
The thought came and went quickly, almost hidden even from herself.
When Yulia mentioned having no parents, a sharp pang of bitterness and pain cut through her mind—a fleeting image of a man and a woman, whom Aleksandr guessed were her father and mother, blurred and distant, followed by a hollow ache she quickly suppressed.
As her words turned toward provocation, Aleksandr felt a pulse of stubborn determination.
There was a flicker of something more—a faint, guarded hope.
'If someone like him can fight, maybe I'm not as alone in this as I thought.'
He withdrew from her thoughts as Ivan's voice broke the moment, leaving Aleksandr with a clearer picture of Yulia—her fire wasn't just anger. It was survival, pain, and an unrelenting will to resist the forces trying to crush her.
"They're watching how we interact during battles," Ivan pointed out.
Yulia rolled her eyes. "Obviously. What else do they want, a group hug?"
Ivan confirmed. "No. Only cooperation."
"I know, genius. It was just a joke.", Yulia let out a chuckle.
"Not the right time for jokes."
Gervasii glanced at Ivan, his expression unreadable. "Do you always play along so easily?"
Ivan met his gaze evenly. "Sometimes it's better to give them what they want. Saves energy."
Anya didn't join the banter, but her dark eyes lingered on Aleksandr for a moment. She seemed to be assessing him as much as he was assessing her.
The sterile voice of the lead scientist crackled over the intercom, echoing across the training chamber.
"Attention, subjects. Today's combat test will be conducted against an automated army of high-performance combat robots. These units are constructed from advanced ceramic and carbon fiber composites, designed to resist significant force. They are armed with an array of heavy weaponry capable of simulating fatal damage. Each of you will wear a sensory device secured to your head. Should you sustain a fatal injury or if your device is destroyed, the system will register you as 'out' and remove you from the exercise.
Your objective is simple: survive as long as possible. You will have three minutes to discuss and establish your strategy as a team before the test begins. Good luck."
A small drone flew towards the group and delivered 5 sensory device straps for them to wear.
Yulia's voice cut through the tense silence before anyone else could speak. "Alright, let's not waste time. We need a plan that keeps those things off our backs while hitting them hard.
Ivan raised up his hand, "You heard about my quirks, tanking the damage is my ideal role so I volunteer. I believe I can hold them off, but I'm not invincible. You better have some good countermeasures when they begin to swarm me."
Yulia turned to Aleksandr, her eyes sharp.
"You. With your whole set of electricity and magnetism stuffs, you can straight up mess with their internal systems and shut them down right? And perhaps even turn their own weapons against them?"
"They are robots, as long as they have circuitry, I will turn them into tin cans. And if their weapons are made from metals, then this test will be over soon.",Aleksandr's expression remained unreadable.
"Got a confident one here don't we? What about your telekinesis?"Yulia asked.
"It's still a very limited quirk of mine. It's not suitable for combat right now.", Aleksandr explained.
"Alright, maybe the first one should be enough." Yulia turned to Gervasii next.
"You, "runny and teleporty". Flanking and drawing their attention away is your job. Hit them fast, keep them distracted, and don't—
"I will have to stop you right there.", Gervasii interrupted Yulia.
"First of all, since when did you become the one who commands me and even these 3?"
"Well, about 1 minute and a half ago. I analyzed your quirks and already built up the plan. What's your problem?", Yulia scolded.
"Taking orders from those pigs in lab coats is already terrible enough for my life. I will do my own things, and that leads to my second appointment: I don't use my velocity quirk for close quarter combats, so don't try to force me into your whatever plan.", Gervasii snapped back.
".....Fine, be on your own. 3 minutes are almost over. Don't waste our time more."
Yulia's gaze shifted to Anya, her tone softening just slightly. "Anya, you will be in a defensive position and find the opportunity to heal us in case things do not go well. You can try to ruin their circuits with water if possible but most important of all, don't overexpose yourself.
And Aleksandr, are you going to do well with your self- healing quirk?", Yulia asked.
Aleksandr simply nodded back.
"Alright Anya, you are going to prioritize on healing on Ivan first so he can defend us for as long as possible. When he's good, shift your attention to me and yourself, got it?"
Anya nodded wordlessly, her dark eyes flicking briefly to the floor before returning to Yulia.
On the other hand Gervasii stepped far away from the group, not wanting to follow Yulia's lead. No one else wanted to waste their time arguing with him either.
"And I'll handle mid-range attacks. Simply put: they will be melted down if they pass over our boundary. " Yulia said confidently.
Ivan grunted. "Sounds solid. But what if they overwhelm us? These bots aren't gonna play fair."
Yulia cut in, "If so, we regroup. Prioritize staying mobile. The robots may adapt—if one strategy isn't working, we need to change it fast."
She glanced at the countdown timer on the wall. "One minute left. Anyone else want to add anything?"
Aleksandr spoke up, his voice low. "Aim for their weak points. Joints, sensors, or anything that looks critical."
Ivan cracked his knuckles. "Got it. Let's get this over with."
The voice over the intercom interrupted. "Prepare for combat. The test begins now."
Aleksandr's mind shifted gears. He pushed the noise of their thoughts to the back of his mind, focusing instead on the immediate task. Whatever trust—or lack thereof—existed between them would have to wait. They had a battle incoming.