Mage Among Superheroes

Ultimately, Locate Object began to pick up the warded Jerome about the same time I saw his sneakers poking out from behind a tree. In short, Nondetection served its purpose well enough as a protection against something that otherwise was no contest. It did require manual effort, after all.

“Found you,” I said.

“That definitely took longer,” Jerome said as he came out from behind the tree. “Oh, hello Ceira.” She waved, and Bun walked up to Jerome, wagging his tail. Jerome reached down to scratch the dog’s head. “And who are you, boy?”

Ceira and Jerome had met once or twice recently, given that I’d ended up on an unexpectedly long trip to another plane for Ceira and Jerome was my apprentice. I’d had to save Jerome from portal related shenanigans as well, but that was a much shorter duration endeavor.

“So you were talking about a spell…?” Ceira said.

“Indeed,” I nodded. “I don’t know if it’s a thing druids can learn because… well, I didn’t even consider that I would need to know in the past. It’s called Nondetection, and protects you from divination magic. Though it might be irrelevant because I wouldn’t expect that much magic to be involved.” Then again, Doctor Doomsday had technology that interfered with my magic. Why not the same in reverse?

Ceira’s eyes focused on something I couldn’t see for a moment. “Yeah it’s on there,” she said. “The list of what I could learn, I mean. It’s… poorly organized.”

“I don’t think it was organized,” I said. “I think it just is.” Probably.

“So you think I should spend the points to learn this?”

“I’d prefer to try teaching you first,” I said. “If nothing else, we can discover if you can learn from mages. We might do things differently,” I shrugged. Certainly, most of her magic I was certain I couldn’t replicate even if I vaguely understood what might happen. Mainly stuff involving plants and animals, which was most of what she had. “Jerome, Midnight, and I can alternate demonstrations.” That way none of us would drain ourselves so quickly.

“I can’t,” Jerome shook his head. “I’m low on mana.”

Oh right. His earlier practice was already all of what he had. I was once again thankful for my level providing a significant mana pool.

“The two of us, then,” I said. “I’ll start. Watch carefully, and be aware that the final result doesn’t feel like much… which it shouldn’t.”

On her first attempt, I felt something from Ceira. It was certainly different, but it seemed like it could become something instead of simply being failed mana manipulation. “It’s weird,” Ceira said. “Definitely different, but I think I can do it.”

Midnight demonstrated next, replacing the previous casting upon us with a new one, not that it had degraded to any noticeable extent from when I’d first cast it.

Ceira frowned, then attempted to repeat it. I could feel she didn’t quite manage it.

“One more time?” I asked. “Do you have enough mana?”

“Just barely. But I don’t think I need another demonstration. I should be able to do it.” I felt her gather her mana and turn it into a spell. Being insubstantial, I couldn’t tell if it was particularly different from the magely version once finished- it felt like pretty much nothing. Plus, I was distracted with her passing out.

I grabbed Ceira under her shoulder to hold her up. Her consciousness flickered back a moment later. “Mana exhaustion,” I said. “So apparently you didn’t have quite enough.”

“Weird,” she said. “That was… 7 mana? And I should have 21.”

“A minute or two of passive regeneration isn’t necessarily enough to get above an extremely low threshold,” I said.

“Eh, it should have been almost half a point,” Ceira said.

I furrowed my brow. “I don’t see how. The ambient mana here is… maybe 1.2 or 1.3 times average. That’s over 10 minutes, which means 2 minutes would net you .26 mana.”

“Sure, but this is a park,” Ceira said like that meant something.

Ah. Right. “How much faster is your recovery here?”

“About twice.”

“Twice of the normal 1 per ten minutes or twice the 1.3…?”

Ceira shrugged. “Don’t know. Either way, the point is I should have had… enough to not pass out. Probably.”

“Maybe it’s higher level for you?” I surmised. “No, you wouldn’t have completed it that way.”

“No idea,” she admitted.

“I can’t think of anything either,” Jerome shrugged.

Midnight just looked at her dog.

“Well, we should probably get Jerome back home,” I said. “And the two of us to work. It’s just afternoon training, but that doesn’t mean we can skip it.” I waved to Ceira, “Don’t forget my recommendation.”

“Yeah, I’ll… consider it,” Ceira said.

-----

Midnight and I strode into HQ, passing through security and into the elevator. I pressed the button for B7, since we would be hitting up the gym. As it turned out, combat involved a lot of running and physical exertion even when you were only attacking with magic.

It was a lonely ride, with just the two of us, but it wasn’t that unexpected at the time we came in. The Power Brigade didn’t have a strict nine-to-five workday, but there were still general times people came in and out most frequently. We just happened to be in an off time.

I stretched in anticipation of physical exertion. Then I yawned slightly. “Elevator’s slow today,” I commented.

“That’s odd,” Midnight agreed as the floors ticked by slowly. “Usually they’re quite speedy. We should report this to maintenance.”

“Good idea,” I said, sending a text to Khithae.

“... that’s not an official report, Turlough,” Midnight commented.

“Eh, she’ll remind me later.”

We stepped out into the hallway leading up to the gym. Empty… or was it? There was something…

A door opened as we passed by, and I turned to see a man with a fist insignia emblazoned on his chest. “Oh, good afternoon Captain Punch.”

“And to you as well, Mage. Familiar,” he nodded to each of us in turn.

Then we stood there awkwardly for a few moments. I was never good at smalltalk. “Well,” I said. “We’re off to the gym. I assume you were just there?” Great Girl could benefit from workouts that were more or less standard equipment, but I wasn’t certain about someone with powers like him.

“Just in the morning,” he said.

“Okay.” I sensed someone else behind me as I turned towards the gym. It was the feel of super tech. “Oh. Swiss Arms,” I waved. “Were you using the gym?”

“What do you think?” she asked.

“Well, I’m uncertain if it’s useful for you given you’re mostly cybernetics. Do you have a heart and lungs that need cardiovascular training?” I tilted my head. For some reason, Midnight was feeling nervous. Should I?

“He certainly seems… genuine,” came the voice of Calculator from further down the hall, drawing my eyes to him.

It was weird. Usually I would hear sounds of the gym by now. “Is the gym closed…?” I muttered.

Calculator walked closer, standing near Swiss Arms. “Mage. What was the name of the first villain you fought?”

“...Rodentia?” I guessed. She was certainly one of the first.

“Before you joined us.”

“Some street thug,” I said. “I don’t think I learned his name.”

“After that,” Calculator said. “In the warehouse.”

“Oh, Handface? It’s not like you to forget something like that. Isn’t it written in some database somewhere anyway?”

Calculator folded his arms. “Very convincing.” Swiss Arms nodded. I couldn’t tell if Captain Punch nodded, but I could feel he was still there.

“What are we convincing them of, Midnight?” I asked.

“Umm, I think-”

“Familiar,” Calculator interrupted. “You need to go with Swiss Arms.”

“But I-” Midnight protested.

“That’s an order.”

I frowned. I was pretty sure I didn’t like this situation. But I also trusted these people. Especially Calculator. “You should probably do what he said,” I scritched Midnight behind his ears and then lowered him down from my shoulder.

“What’s going on?” Midnight asked.

“We’ll tell you in a moment,” Swiss Arms said. “This way,” she said, leading him into a room down the hall.

“We’re going in here,” Calculator gestured to the room Captain Punch came out of.

“Okay,” I said. “You know, I don’t remember this room at all,” I said as I opened the door, revealing a stark room. Almost an interrogation room. Hmm.

I felt a gentle hand prodding me forward, and I walked inside. Calculator came through first, then Captain Punch closed the door behind us with a click. “What’s wrong?” I asked. Clearly, there was something weird going on.

“That’s what we’re here to find out,” Calculator said. “Sit there, if you would.”

“... I didn’t know we made seats this bad,” I said as I sat on the metal fold-out chair. “Don’t let Francois see this room.”

Calculator chuckled. “Oh, don’t worry, he stays far away from this place.”

“So?” I prompted. “I assume you want to ask me something.”

Calculator glanced at his tablet. “Still nothing,” he said. “Amplifying sensors.”

“You… don’t want to ask me anything?” I tilted my head.

He tapped a few buttons. There was definitely something happening. I felt a pressure around me. And then… a veil was sliced away.

“How about it?” Captain Punch asked from behind me. It was going to be very hard to talk to two people like this.

“... Everything is reading normally now.”

“Is anyone going to explain?” I asked. “What sensors?” I looked down at my jacket, twisting my neck to try to see the back. “Did I get bugged or something?”

“We have no indication of that,” Calculator replied, straightforwardly for once.

“Good, because I just got a new thing that I was hoping would help me avoid stuff like that. Though I don’t know if it would work against stuff someone put on me.” Something clicked into place. That was what had broken. But why? “Actually, I’m not sure if it would work against technology at all.” Another click. “We should probably test-” The last piece. “Oh. I figured it out.”

“Did you?” Calculator asked, raising an eyebrow.

“I got a new spell,” I said. “Nondetection. To resist divination magic. And I’m betting it works against sensors. But why didn’t I get stopped at the security station?” I could answer the question as well. “Because they couldn’t stop me. Or might not have been able to. And it was easier to send me to a basement floor where I couldn’t get out if I was a bad guy. So…” I waited a few moments. “When can I go? Because I’m me.”

“Hmm. You certainly appear to be. But you could be a very impressive fake,” Calculator said.

I thought about that for a few moments. “Yeah, I don’t like that line of thought. Because it could easily spiral into me never getting out of here. So how about this, I cast whatever spell you want to prove myself.” I thought of an issue there, of course. If I could convincingly appear to be me, I could also convincingly fake a spell. Probably.

“I think that will be unnecessary,” Calculator said. “I have a plan. It won’t take long.”

“Okay, so…?”

“We wait,” he said.

Boring. But waiting it would have to be.

After four or five minutes passed, during which I mostly listened to the nearly empty room and projected calm towards Midnight who seemed nervous still, there was finally a knock on the door.

“Keep your eyes focused on me,” Calculator said.

I looked at him. “Am I not supposed to see them?”

“That’s right.”

“Okay but I’ll still be able to feel their power.” Maybe I shouldn’t have reminded him, but the words had been said.

“We’ll have to accept that risk,” Calculator said. “Captain Punch, get the door please.”

A grunt of acknowledgement. The door opened. I felt someone vaguely familiar. I couldn’t quite pick it out, and after the door was closed the feeling went away. But I still remembered it and was trying to figure it out. “Oh, Antagonist, right?” That guy could copy powers and stuff. Did it work on people like me? We’d somehow never gotten around to that. Calculator didn’t respond. “So… more waiting?”

“More waiting.”

“Got any books?” I asked.

“Not that you can have access to. Sorry.”

I waited. Calculator got a message. “I’ll be back in a bit,” he said.

Then it was just me and Captain Punch. “Can you not stand menacingly behind me?” I asked. “You could stand menacingly to the side or something.”

Instead, he sat across from me. “Eh, it’s fine. I think we’re pretty much done here anyway.” The man was entirely different when relaxed. “Personally, I’d say we were done half an hour ago. But you know how Calculator is.”

I sighed. This was kind of my fault. At least we got a blind test of Nondetection and sensors, so that was something.

The door clicked open. Calculator’s power didn’t have a strong feel to it, but I could still tell it was him before I turned.

“Well,” he said. “That’s it. You’re free to go. But please do warn us if you walk around with new magic.”

“I was going to…” I shrugged. I supposed I would have to make sure I didn’t have it on when entering, in the future. “Sorry about wasting your time.”

“At least we know our security is worth something,” he said. “Though I wouldn’t expect such an odd response as you. No feedback at all. In a way, it was almost more obvious.”

I shrugged. “That’s just how it worked. So, what was it that convinced you that we were us?”

“Everything, really,” Calculator said. “But if I had to pick one thing… tuna.”

“Tuna?”

“Tuna.”

I had to ask Midnight about that.