VARSITY 9 | BL

TWENTY-ONE | THE AGC

Wen had never felt so peaceful. His eyes were closed, and everything was calm as he floated in the AGC. He could hear his fellow classmates playing about as they, too, floated in the massive cylinder, however, Wen easily blocked out their giggles and laughter and let himself be entranced by the peaceful weightlessness that engulfed him.

The AGC was large enough to fit ten students at a time, and Wen was part of the last batch that had the opportunity to try out the AGC for the first time, so he was not in a rush to leave the cylinder before his time was up.

"Alright, everyone," Major Chaka's voice brought Wen from his quiet peace as his instructor spoke into his earpiece. "Now that you have a good feel for how it feels to move around in the AGC, Instructor Chase is going to link you to the cylinder and activate the Arlex Simulation."

Each group of students was given ten minutes to acclimate to the AGC before their devices were connected to the cylinder and their simulation began. The AGC was able to simulate the abilities of any xaiyon type by tapping into the participator's bloodstream and accessing their dormant xaiyon genes. As each xaiyon carried all seven types in their DNA before presenting, the AGC had the ability to tap into any of the seven types to replicate a phantom of that type's power.

Wen's eyes snapped open as a needle that was embedded into the device looped around his ear pricked him. The nine other students also reacted to being pricked with varying expressions. Some showed little to no expression while others winced and furrowed their brows while sucking through their teeth in pain.

Kicking his leg down and moving his arms in a fluid motion, Wen turned himself upright from his horizontal position as he felt himself connect to the AGC.

"Okay, you guys should be connected now," Chase informed as he lowered the tablet in his hands. "I want each of you to turn around and face the glass of the AGC, so your backs are facing the others. This way, if something goes wrong, little to no damage is done to your classmates. The AGC is made of material that absorbs the energy that will be flowing out of you in the form of wind, so no one should get hurt today."

"In future sessions, however, when you will be channeling the powers of a kyro and raikyn, whose abilities are volatile, you will need to practice extreme caution to ensure the safety of your friends," Chase warned before continuing, "Now...you will feel a slight chill as the AGC activates and begins creating a shadow of the arlex abilities from your DNA sample."

As Chase spoke, a series of chills rippled through Wen causing him to shiver. However, as quickly as the chills came, they were gone just as fast. And what replaced them was an incredible amount of energy. Wen's senses immediately sharpened, and his heart rate elevated slightly as his body coursed with vibrant energy. It was like he had chugged ten energy drinks and performed extensive warm-up exercises. He was extremely alert.

"Your arlex abilities have been activated," Chase stated before providing instructions on how to manipulate them. "Hold your hand palm-up and-"

Chase fell silent as his eyes turned to the brown-haired boy floating in the AGC. All the students who had experienced the cylinder in previous batches also moved their focus to Wen, who was in the center of a swirling wind.

As soon as he felt the rush of energy, Wen sensed a power growing within him. It was overwhelming and intriguing. He had never felt anything like it, and he wanted to experience it as quickly as he could, so he did.

Wen could not explain how, but he had immediate control over the arlex ability that had been activated thanks to the AGC. The students and two instructors watched Wen with wide eyes as he spun in the swirling wind and shot up to the top of the cylinder.

Chase was shocked by how quickly Wen had called forth the arlex abilities. Usually, students needed a small tutorial before they could use the powers of the air element. However, Wen had unlocked them in an instant and was already manipulating the air around him.

"Well done, Kaihan," Major Chaka praised, breaking the silence that had settled as everyone turned to watch Wen fly up to the top of the cylinder. "Now, for the rest of you," Chaka said as she addressed the other nine in the cylinder. "Instructor Chase will walk you through the steps on how to do what Kaihan is doing right now. Listen well if you want to learn well."

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Wen was in a daze hours after the training session had concluded for the day. He was sitting with the other six in the lounge area on the fourth floor of their residential building, and his gaze was fixed on his hands that were resting in his lap. Everyone except for Wen and Lay were engaged in light conversation with each other as they described their experiences with the arlex training.

While the others conversed among themselves, Wen could not stop thinking how freeing it had felt when he harnessed the power of the arlex. Never in his life had he felt so focused and calm yet hyped at the same time. Using the powers of an arlex felt so natural, and Wen wondered if the other types would be just as easy or if they would be more difficult.

"You good, Wen?" Toma's voice brought Wen from his daze thinking about his time in the AGC. Looking up from his hands in his lap, Wen nodded in response.

"You sure?" Toma checked again as he took a sip from the energy drink in his hand. "You've been pretty quiet since training."

Kean, who had been talking with Liyam, stopped for a moment and turned his head slightly to look at the brown-haired. He had seen Wen's performance in the AGC during their session and silently wondered how he had been able to use the arlex abilities so well on the first go. What do you have up your sleeve, Kaihan? Are you getting extra training?

"Did flying around too much shift your brain?" Stryke asked in a jab, earning him an elbow in the stomach from Toma.

Wen smirked dryly at Stryke's comment before returning, "I'm fine. Thanks, guys." Stryke's comment normally would have caused Wen to scowl, but being around the jock these past weeks made Wen realize that he was not so bad. Though he surely loved his jabs and taunting comments, Stryke was good at heart, and Wen was beginning to appreciate the jock's strange sense of humor.

"Okay, then. If you say so," Toma shrugged before drinking out of his Gized can. A ding on Toma's wrist caused him to lower his can and check his holowatch. As Toma read his new message, the other's watches also dinged with new alerts.

Turning his wrist over and looking down at his holowatch, Wen read the message that had been sent to each student at Azari.

TITLE: TRYOUTS FOR JV TEAM
Expand message if interested.
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Tryouts for Azari High's Junior Varsity team will be held over winter break! The team will have ten members and will compete against JV teams from other PHAs in the spring semester. If you are interested in trying out for the team, please plan to remain on campus during winter break. More information to come. Be on the lookout for further messages regarding tryouts for JV.

"Omo! Wow! What?! Hey, guys! D-did you see this?! Read the new message!" Toma waved one of his hands in excitement as he gestured to the holowatch on his wrist.

Wen looked up at Lay with excitement upon seeing the announcement. He had been waiting for the time to come when Azari would announce the JV tryouts. This was the reason he had chosen the life of a xaiyon. It was the first step to earning a spot on a varsity team.

I have to ace this. I have to win!