Freeze Frame

Chapter 3

Lillian's pov

I mostly tried to stay in the alleys instead of the fabricated larger streets that had people rushing all over them. I was dropping robots faster than I ever imagined I could, and I was actually having some form of fun. It was satisfying to scale them, rip the wire out, and watch them fall. I was sweaty, and not really keeping track of how many of the things I was managing to take down, but it didn't matter. At least I was doing something.

I'm sort of afraid to cross the street, but I can see another alley right across from me, which makes me want to. I know there's bound to be more robots ahead. Most of the ones lurking in the narrow alleys are the small ones that are only worth a point, but they're easy to take down. I've taken down some others, too, but they have trouble fitting into the small spaces. That isn't necessarily a bad thing.

Feeling confident, I rushed across the street, making a run for it. Only I froze right in the middle of it, right on the yellow line that separates the lanes. I didn't almost ram into something, and I didn't do it to dodge an attack. 

A boy was lying on the ground, his ankle twisted at an odd angle. A robot had its arm raised, ready to bring it down on him. My eyes widened in horror at the look of pure terror on his face as he cried out, raising his arms just like I had when I encountered by first robot. Without thinking, I froze the scene in front of me.

I wasted no time racing over. I feel exhausted, and really just want to nap. I don't doubt the periods of time for which I can freeze things are getting shorter as well, which means I'm on a timer. And I really don't know what that timer's set to. I don't think I want to find out, either.

Third person pov

The Judges monitoring the exams watched with interest as the short, somewhat meek-demeanored girl they'd seen running around alleys and easily taking down robots with her unique quirk dragged the boy out of the way. She struggled with it, clearly lacking the necessary upper body strength, but she managed. They watched as she carefully positioned his hurt leg so it wasn't bent at an odd angle anymore before rushing towards the robot. It was one of the larger variety. 

She climbed up one of its arms, struggling to pull herself up and onto its shoulder. With as much strength as she could muster, she pulled the thickest wire she could spot out before sliding down its neck. She then dropped off its shoulder, rushing back to the boy's side before unfreezing the robot. It fell immediately.

"W-What?!" The boy sputtered. She crouched down next to him.

"Are you alright?" She asked, sounding worried. Stunned, he nodded. "O-Okay! Sorry!" She turned and ran into the alley she'd been aiming for.

The judges raised their boards, awarding her with hero points for dragging the boy out of harm's way. Her quirk was fascinating to watch in action. They would watch as she'd simply freeze what was in front of her without raising a finger, and then rush over. Her red and sweaty face told them she didn't have much training, either. If she really harnessed that power and practiced, there was no telling what it could do.

They barely had time to put their boards down before she stopped again. 

"Ack!" She cried out, freezing the two robots in front of her. A cowering girl, hunched over like a scared turtle, was frozen as well. Lillian sputtered in surprise, not having realized what was even happening. Panicked, she rushed over and pulled the girl out of her turtle position and dragged her a safe distance away. Behind her, one of the robots twitched just slightly. A few of the judges leaned forward. Her and the boy with the exploding hands were more than just a little promising. 

She turned around and rushed towards the robots. She faltered when she saw one twitch, but then looked back at the girl. Making a decision, she rushed up the robots. The one closest to her was shorter, so she was able to get on top of it faster. Panting, arms shaking from exhaustion, she tugged the wire out. It detached with a pop.

She then jumped to the next one, almost falling, but managing to swing one leg over the robot's shoulder. It began to move slightly, so she scrambled over to the neck, hurriedly shoving her hand between the metal plates. She didn't have time to look for that familiar thick cord, instead grabbing a handful of colorful wires and yanking. 

Suddenly, the robot began to fall. She let out a shriek, and it froze again just before it hit the ground. The judges raised their boards again to give her more points for her heroism. It probably took a lot for a person who's quirk caused immobility to run towards a nearly-active robot, let alone climb it. They were impressed.

"H-Huh?" The girl sputtered. Lillian, before she could answer, spotted something else. It was another girl in the way of a robot! It was coming from behind her!" 

"S-Sorry!" Lillian panted. The scene froze before the girl could get hit by the robot and Lillian disappeared again, off to save the other girl. But before she could make it, the timer sounded. Lillian nearly tripped as it was announced that their time was up. Despite that, she still rushed over and pulled the girl away from the robot. Once she unfroze it, her hands still on the girl's arms, the robot fell. It would have most definitely landed on the girl Lillian had grasped.

"Thank god." Lillian let go of the girl. "Sorry." She felt to tired, sitting down on the ground. The girl she'd saved stared wide eyes as she leaned back, lying on her back right there on the street. Within seconds, she was dead asleep.