The glass dome was square shaped, and it was designed in such a way that one couldn't see what was happening inside. The only thing that was visible were the aftereffects of power displays and light discharges. It was obvious to Axel that abilities of different sorts were being used. It was part of the test.
Axel and Rick stood together, watching alongside the other first years.
"Hm. I wonder why we can't see the inside," one of the students said, his fingers on his chin.
Axel turned to get a good look. A boy stood beside him, he had striking facial features. Blonde haired, a sharp jawline, a well bridged nose, and blue eyes that Axel was sure would make the girls go crazy.
To top it off, his body was well built, chiseled, muscular, and paired with intimidating biceps. Axel instantly knew this guy worked out a lot, unlike himself, who could barely lift his own weight.
"Maybe it's an ability, don't you think?" the blonde haired boy asked, turning to Axel.
Axel glanced around him, trying to figure out if this person was actually talking to him. "Me?" he asked, pointing at himself.
The boy chuckled. "I don't see anyone else here. Well, except for Mr. Awfully Quiet over there." He pointed at Rick, who had no idea he was being acknowledged.
Axel wondered why someone who looked like that was talking to someone like him. That has never happened before, not unless he was about to get the good old ass kicking
"Yeah, maybe it's an ability," Axel finally replied.
The boy studied him for a while, long enough that Axel started feeling that familiar uneasiness he always got when someone stared at him too long.
"I'm Ares, the most powerful guy you'll ever meet," he said.
Axel raised a brow before replying. "Axel."
The boy known as Ares's face almost lit up. "Cool, we've got A's in our names." He then snapped his fingers at Rick, who seemed lost in space, causing him to flinch.
"Oi you! What are you thinking about? The candy you left at home? What's your name? Please tell me it's Alex or Apollo or something."
Rick, who was clearly caught off guard, could barely form the words. "I-I… uh… I'm…"
"That's Rick," Axel came through for him.
"Oh," Ares said in an almost disappointed tone. "You sure you don't want a new name? Anyways, what's your ability?"
This was the second time Axel had been asked that question. He felt that the fewer people knew, the better, it wouldn't draw attention when he eventually got a different ability from his system.
Suddenly, he remembered what Rick had told him earlier. He hadn't had access to his ability since he was five.
It was safe to say Rick didn't have an ability at the moment. That gave him an idea…
"Uhm… I haven't been able to tap into my powers since I was like seven years old, I barely remember what it was." Axel lied.
Ares's face twisted into something unreadable, then he said, "So basically, you don't have an ability? What about you, Quiet?"
"Uhm, I… I haven't been able to use my powers since I was five," Rick answered nervously.
Ares groaned and planted his palm on his face, letting out a weary sigh.
"Great, I've got two weirdos with performance issues. What a bummer," he said.
"Luckily, you're gonna be seeing a lot of me from now on. I'll kick both your asses so bad you're gonna awaken in no time," Ares said with a huge grin fixed on his face.
Just then, the glass dome opened, and some sort of gaseous substance seeped out, hanging in the air for a while before dispersing. The five students who had walked in earlier to take their test stepped out. Two of them had happy looks on their faces, one had a satisfied expression, and the remaining two? They had disappointment written all over their faces.
"Ay ay ay… Lumina 1. That's the lowest score one could get," Ares muttered. That was the score displayed on the uniform collar of one of the students with a disappointed look.
****
After countless battles with the Skravvens, the Oval Academy and other academies alike were formed. These academies were created for the purpose of training mutants to unlock their full potential.
A common belief was that there was no limit to how strong one could become, and as such, not everyone could be as powerful as the next. So, a power sequence was formed.
Every mutant with an ability was ranked based on the level of mutation their cells had:
Lumina, Spectra, Nova, and Apex.
These four power sequences were further divided into five levels each, Level 1 to 5.
A Lumina was considered the weakest of all, while an Apex was the strongest.
Although only a few people had ever reached Apex, they were among the most powerful individuals in the world today.
****
"Alright, next batch," Sergeant Cross said again in a loud voice. He called a few more names, and five students walked forward and stepped into the glass dome.
The usual happened, no one could see what was going on inside. Instead, they saw obvious displays of power and energy flashes through the frosted glass.
"Take a look at that! Bioluminescence!" Ares exclaimed geekishly. "Light manipulation."
"Wait, how can you tell?" Axel asked, wondering how he could possibly identify an ability through the glass dome.
"I can feel the static. Ahh, what a wonderful feeling. Feels like I'm floating in the clouds," he sighed, smiling like he was high on something, except in this case, he was high on 'light'.
'What's this guy's deal?' Axel wondered as he stared at Ares, who was still enjoying whatever he was feeling.
"What's your ability, Ares?" Axel asked with genuine curiosity.
Ares just smirked but didn't say anything. Axel could have pushed further, but he decided not to ask any more questions.
It was better to just stay quiet and focus on the test.
After a while, the group that had gone inside came out, the usual gas like substance escaping once again as the door opened.
This time, all five students wore satisfied expressions on their faces. That meant they'd all gotten good scores.
"Lumina 4, Lumina 3, Lumina 5, Lumina 4 again…" Ares called their scores out loudly, completely unbothered by the fact that he was drawing unwanted attention.
People glanced in his direction, wondering who this loud guy was and why he was announcing other people's scores.
Ares didn't mind the stares, but Axel and Rick, on the other hand, felt uncomfortable.
"Spectra 2! Wow, that's impressive, take a look at that!" Ares exclaimed, then a smirk tugged at his lips. "Impressive, but not as impressive as I'll do."
"You sound really confident," Axel pointed out.
Spectra 2 was a pretty high score for a first-year student. Some third years were only at Spectra 1 or 2. It was safe to say that that first year student who had gotten a Spectra 2 was already competing with the veterans of the school, and Ares had just boasted that he could do better.
That made Axel wonder if he was just arrogant, or if he was truly as strong as he claimek.
"Next up!" Sergeant Cross barked again. "Ares Godson, Kinsey Kit, Nile Reed, Rick Mobius, and Axel Vaelon."
"Make your way to the testing tube."