The floor disappeared, and darkness shot up, consuming the participants.
This again!? Zero thought.
When the darkness disappeared, Zero was standing on a white, large, circular platform. Everything else around him was black. At the borders of the white platform, gray barriers shot up.
"ALL OF YOU HAVE NOW BEEN TRANSPORTED TO A WHITE RING EACH! YOU WILL NOW FACE A TYPE 2 ABERRANT! BASED ON YOUR PERFORMANCE, THE EXAM OVERSEERS WILL DECIDE IF YOU PASS!" The examiner said.
In front of Zero, something started materializing.
It was a two meter tall humanoid aberrant, its body was like a mirror. It had no face.
"Alright… doesn't seem that bad!" Zero said.
Zero stood there, waiting for the aberrant to make its move, but it just stood there.
"It's not… attacking?" Zero took this chance and ran toward the aberrant. When he got close enough, he prepared to kick its stomach.
"Got you now!" Just as Zero was about to land the kick, the aberrant stepped to the side. Zero immediately backed away.
But then, the aberrant ran towards Zero.
"Huh?"
The aberrant then kicked Zero in the stomach with insane speed, knocking the wind out of him and sending him flying back.
The aberrant then stood still again.
"—ngh!" Zero clutched his stomach on the ground. "Dammit! That stung!" Zero struggled back onto his feet.
Zero then charged toward the aberrant again, trying to hit it with his shoulder.
But it dodged to the side again.
Zero fell, but the moment he got up…
The aberrant hit him with its shoulder, knocking him away.
Air rushed out of Zero's lungs, and he went flying back again.
"Damn it…" Zero forced himself upright.
Zero then rushed toward the aberrant again, aiming to land a punch.
But… just as before… the aberrant dodged.
The aberrant's fist struck Zero in the jaw with an amazing amount of speed, knocking him unconscious for a second and making him dizzy, causing him to stagger.
Then it stood still again.
Damn it… focus! Zero recovered a bit from the blow, regaining his ability to focus.
Every time I attack… it dodges and does the same thing! Wait… An idea appeared in Zero's mind.
Zero stood in front of the aberrant, and lightly tried to tap it with his finger.
The aberrant dodged it, and then tapped Zero with its finger.
That's it! It dodges and copies the attack it dodged! So I just need to hit faster than it can dodge, and dodge faster than it can hit! But how do I do that..?
Zero took a few steps back, preparing to go as fast as he can. Then he immediately closed the distance, aiming to hit a knee strike. But it was no use…
The aberrant dodged.
Fuck…
Zero felt a sharp pain in his chest as it got hit by the aberrant's knee, knocking the wind out of him and making him fall.
Blood spilled from Zero's mouth as he coughed.
Zero then got back up again, his breath heavy. He backed away.
Damn it! This thing is too fast!
Suddenly, Zero felt the sensation he felt after getting flicked by the white figure.
Before he knew it, he ran toward the aberrant at an incredible speed, black and red sparks appearing beneath his feet.
He jumped and kicked the aberrant in the face, his foot leaving a trail of sparks.
The aberrant was knocked back, cracks appearing on its mirror-like head.
What the hell? What are these these things!? They're black, red, and they look like sparks of electricity… Zero looked at the sparks beneath his feet.
He didn't have time to fully analyze them, as his attention immediately turned toward the aberrant.
The aberrant's head spinned around like a blur before finally stopping. Two mirror-like horns appeared on its head, pointing upward.
Huh?
It then closed the distance between them, aiming a punch toward Zero's gut.
Shit! It doesn't need to copy me anymore!?
Zero didn't know what he was doing, but the sparks appeared again, on his arms.
The mirror-like fist was about to collide with Zero, but Zero grabbed the aberrant's arm. Zero then leaned back.
Zero came forward with a strong punch, hitting the aberrant's face.
It was supposed to get knocked back, but Zero's grip didn't let it.
Zero then punched its head again.
Then he did it again.
Again.
And again.
The aberrant tried using its free arm to block, but it shattered after several hits.
Zero then continued punching, eventually sending the aberrant's head flying off its body, shattering after hitting the white floor.
"I… did it!" Zero celebrated his victory.
But before he knew it, he was pulled into unconsciousness…
"That was the first time you used it! Good job! How'd it feel?" The white figure that flicked his forehead stood there.
Zero was back in that dark place.
"Hey! Who are you!?"
"It's still too early for you to know that! But since you managed to use it for the first time, I'll tell you something else!"
"Okay… go ahead."
"I'll tell you how to use those powers at will!"
"I'm listening…"
"Since you had your activation already, just think about it and they'll come out!"
"Is that all? Could you maybe explain a bit more?"
"Nope! That's all you have to do!"
"No catch? No special words? No body language?"
"Nope!"
"Alright…"
"Well! Time's up! Goodbye now!"
"Hey, wait!" Zero suddenly got flicked again, making him regain conciousness.
"Huh? Where am I?"
"Participant Zero! You have been accused of obtaining fragment powers illegally! We saw everything! How do you wish to defend yourself?" It was an old woman's voice.
"What the fuck..?"