Part 780: Transition

January 29th, 2021. Aevum.

It was drawing toward night-time in Aevum, so the false sun in the sky had dipped below the horizon. Due to the lack of a blue atmosphere such as the one on Earth, Aevum could rapidly darken to the level of nighttime in mere minutes.

Jerome was anxious in a way he hadn’t been for a long time. He owed Daisy an apology for exploding at her, but that was barely even on his mind. He kept looking around for his girlfriend, Farrah, and eventually he found out she was back in her dorm room.

Jerome made his way over, and eventually he arrived outside, only to stop in front of her door. He held up his fist, wanting to knock, but he stopped short. He didn’t know why she was avoiding him, but they’d been together for a full year, and they usually stuck to each other like glue. He knew for a fact she wasn’t absent by accident.

What bothered him the most was… he wasn’t sure of the reason she’d started avoiding him. Was it his fault? Or, like the Archseer said, was it personal circumstances she didn’t want to tell him? Maybe he should just give her some space?

Jerome wrung his hands together. He looked left and right down the hall, but people were still in the gym, likely training or whatever. Nobody had come home just yet. He was all alone, anxiously stepping from the left to the right, then back to the left again, unsure if he should knock on Farrah’s door or not.

At least, he thought he was alone. He happened to look back up again, only to spot the last person he wanted to see turn a corner down the hall and start walking toward him.

"Jerome?" Daisy asked, raising an eyebrow as she approached.

"Oh! Uh… shit. Yeah. Hey." Jerome mumbled awkwardly.

Daisy came to a stop several feet away. She paused, then crossed her arms and looked away.

"So, um… I wanted to apol-" Daisy started to say.

"I’m real sorry about what I said before." Jerome quickly interjected before she could finish. "I didn’t mean none of that. I mean, you clapped my ears, and that hurt like a motherfucker, but… I was slappin’ you around first. I broke the rules first."

"No, you don’t have to apologize." Daisy said quietly. "I know you were just slapping me because you didn’t want to hurt me. I got frustrated that I couldn’t win, even with my new MindCore, so I used every trick in my pocket to land a hit on you. Unlike you, I didn’t pull my punches. Err, my slaps. I’m sorry I hurt you."

"Well. I guess we both fucked up a bit, huh?" Jerome asked, smiling slightly. He fell silent after that and lowered his head.

Daisy looked up. She noticed where he was standing. "What’s the matter? You’re not going in?"

"Nah, uh, I just… I don’t know if I should…" Jerome mumbled. "Your dad, he uh, he told me Farrah was goin’ through some stuff. I don’t know if I pissed her off or somethin’. Maybe she just needs space?"

"You two live in the same dorm. This is your room as much as hers." Daisy pointed out. "Besides, Farrah likes you a lot. I doubt she’s mad at you."

"Yeah? You been usin’ your mind-reading on her?" Jerome asked, quickly shooting an accusatory glance Daisy’s way.

"…I don’t need to read someone’s mind to see something so obvious." Daisy retorted.

Jerome felt a little stupid for asking. He always acted defensive when it involved his girlfriend. "Right. Yeah. Sorry."

Another few seconds passed. Daisy bopped her hips from side to side while looking at Jerome, but he still didn’t make a move to enter the room.

"You just… gonna stand out here all day?" Daisy pressed.

"I don’t know!" Jerome hissed under his breath. "I can’t decide what to do!"

"Oh, okay. Then I’ll make it easy on you." Daisy said, before abruptly stepping forward, raising a fist, and rapping her knuckles on the door. "Hey Farrah, I brought you something!"

Jerome’s heart jumped. He felt a flash of anger, humiliation, and embarrassment. Why would she just charge up and do that?!

But immediately after Daisy said those words… foop! She vanished from the spot, teleporting away.

Jerome’s blood turned to ice. That little witch, she did this on purpose!

But he didn’t have time to react. The door opened, and… there was a young man inside Farrah’s room who Jerome didn’t recognize. He looked a lot like her. Like a twin brother or something.

As soon as the boy looked at Jerome, he froze in place. "J-J-Jer… ome?"

Jerome was taken aback. "The fuck? Who are you? Where’s Farrah?"

The teenage boy stared up at Jerome with eyes mixed with all sorts of feelings. He quickly took a step back and started stammering. "Um, I, um, well, Farrah is…"

Jerome was slightly bewildered. "Wait a second… your voice… Farrah? You turned into a guy?"

Her voice hadn’t changed at all. It was one big flaw of Farrah’s that she was only able to change her face. But this time, her transformation was so physically total that it had taken Jerome by complete surprise. She looked like a wafer-thin teenage boy, a little over eighteen, but she still actually looked like a guy. A feminine one with soft hands and smooth skin, but a male nonetheless.

Tears welled up in Farrah’s eyes. "I… I didn’t know how to tell you, Jerome. I’m s-sorry. I t-t-tried changing… after I talked to Jason, but then I realized I was having a hard time changing back, and I knew you’d be all g-grossed out, so I just tried to avoid you, a-a-and…"

"Whoa, whoa. Grossed out?" Jerome asked, scrunching up his face. "Baby, you thought I’d be grossed out? You use your powers all the time. You know I love that."

"Yeah, but… I only change into other girls…" Farrah said, lowering her eyes. "And becoming a boy is… different."

"Oh. So that’s what you mean." Jerome said, resting his fists on his hips. "Man, I thought after a year of bein’ together you’d know me better than that. I love YOU, baby! If you wanna turn into a guy once in a while, that’s totally fine!"

Farrah looked even more dismal. "Well… I was thinking… I like looking like a boy more than a girl… by a lot. I don’t know how to explain it. But I also love you, and that’s, um, forbidden. I still feel like a girl, too. So now I’m all weird inside. I don’t want to be weird."

To his credit, Jerome took her words seriously. "Your parents put all kinds of fucked-up thoughts in your head, baby. We was livin’ in America! Not Iran. Where I come from, guys wouldn’t even- well… I mean, I guess most guys would still find it strange. But hey, fuck ’em! If my girl likes turning into a guy, then I like guys."

"You do?" Farrah asked, blushing slightly. "I was always told boys shouldn’t like boys, and girls shouldn’t like girls. I don’t know how that, um, applies to a girl who becomes a boy… or vice-versa."

"Man, that shit’s too complicated for me." Jerome said, waving his hand flippantly. "You’re still cute as hell, and you’re the girl- I mean, the guy… the person I love. Whaddya gotta say ’bout that?"

"You’re really okay with it?" Farrah asked. "Even if I want to look like a boy, you can still think of me as a girl…"

"Hey, for a girl, you look like a really cute boy." Jerome said with a big smile. "C’mere, I’ll show you I ain’t lying."

He took Farrah into his arms, then pulled her in for a kiss. Farrah didn’t pull away because she was too excited by his acceptance.

After that, Jerome entered their room and closed the door.

Further details will be omitted.

---

"Hey, Harold. You here?" Jason asked, as he walked into Harold and Helen’s house. He’d already rung their doorbell, but their house was a veritable mansion, with five bedrooms and three bathrooms. He figured it might take them a bit to show up.

Jason fell silent. After nearly a full minute, he heard grumbling down the front hallway. "I’m comin’, I’m comin’, sheesh, show up at a fella’s house in the middle of the damn night…"

Harold shuffled down the hallway, wearing a plaid shirt and some baggy sweats. He looked tired, but not from lack of sleep.

"Did I interrupt anything?" Jason asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Smart-mouthed punk." Harold spat, before revealing a cheeky grin. "What me and the missus do ain’t none of yer business. Don’t you be usin’ them powers to spy, either!"

"I have no interest, and I wouldn’t be caught dead doing it." Jason assured him. "Need some coffee to refresh yourself?"

"Coffee. Yeaaap. Sounds good. Let’s go yap in the kitchen." Harold muttered.

A few minutes later, Harold was grinding some coffee while Jason sat at the dining table a short distance away.

"This place really is too big." Harold said. "Not like me and Helen are gonna be having kids or guests over."

"I figured I’d leave room… just in case." Jason said. "You never know, and it’s a piece of prime real estate."

"Uh huh. Uh huh. So what’re you bargin’ in here to yap at me about?" Harold asked, as he strained hot water through the ground coffee beans into a cup.

"Well, the big battle against the demons isn’t too far away, so there’s a couple of things I wanted to talk to you about first." Jason said. "First off, when you’re ready, I’d like you to start training the kids, whipping them into shape, and so on."

"Right, right. That was already in the plans." Harold said, as he pulled out some milk and sugar and started doctoring his coffee with a strategic mix to get the flavor he wanted. "Now that me ‘n the missus are all set, whatcha need?"

"I’m a very busy man." Jason explained. "I’ve been training the kids by having them spar, but they’ve gotten rough and hurt each other’s feelings a few times. I’m not sure if I’m going about this the right way."

Harold scoffed as he walked over, sat down, and took his first sip of coffee. "Hurt feelings? What’re you tryina do? Train elite soldiers, or raise some mamby-pamby little sissy-bitches?"

"Well… train soldiers…" Jason said slowly.

"Izzat so?" Harold asked. "Well, here’s the thing, kid. You’ve really gotta think about what you actually want out of mah trainin’, ’cause there’s a difference between trainin’ soldiers, warriors, and generals. Soldiers are grunts that go out and storm the battlefield. They’re cheap and expendable. The higher-ups don’t really care if a bunch die. It’s no big deal. Warriors are elite soldiers, trained to go out there and kick real ass. It takes a lotta time ‘n investment. If one dies, it’s a big loss to the bigwigs."

Harold continued. "Then there’s generals. You can’t really teach a man to be a general. It’s gotta be in their blood. You can teach ’em theory, you can teach ’em strategy, all kinds of other stuff. But then all you end up with is a fella who does everything by the book. Predictable, easy for the enemy to out-think."

Jason nodded. "So what’s that have to do with anything?"

"Well, son, I can’t teach any of these kids how to be generals." Harold admitted. "I was a dog of war. They sent me out to kill the unkillable. I know about soldiers, and I know about warriors. I can train your kids how to be either one. That’s why I’m askin’ you now what you want them to be!"

Both men became quiet. Jason fell into thought as he pondered Harold’s words.

"It has to be warriors, then." Jason said. "Humans with powers are rare. They’re not expendable. They need to be aces in the hole we can use in a pinch. They need to be rock solid in combat and not falter when the going gets tough. Losing even one of these kids would be a huge loss."

"That’s what I thought you’d say." Harold said. "The thing is, soldiers need to be trained to follow directions. They’ve gotta be drilled, drilled, drilled until they operate on instincts. You order them to charge to their deaths, they do it. Warriors, those are sorta similar, but they need to be more free-thinkin’ and creative. They solve problems. They need to be smart and quick-witted, as well as havin’ the minds of killers. You sure these kids are at that level?"

Jason grimaced. He wasn’t sure of that, not at all. Aside from his daughter, the teenagers in Aevum were lackadaisical, had little in the way of survival instincts, and were definitely part of a generation that had grown up with technology that made their lives infinitely easier than their predecessors. Sasha had complained multiple times that the time differential meant she couldn’t chat with her friends back on Earth, just as one example.

Jerome was probably the ‘hardest’ of the Lowborn, since he’d led a tough life. He’d been in plenty of scraps, and he knew how to fight. That was more than the rest of them could say. But even he hadn’t taken another man’s life. Only Daisy had, and under her uncle’s direction, she had ended many…

"Well. Not really." Jason eventually admitted.

"Good." Harold said, taking a metaphorical step back. "It’s good you can admit that. Look, you see these kids with special abilities, and you think that means they should all be wizards ‘n witches, out there slingin’ voodoo and shit at the demons. I get it, that’s the obvious choice. Maybe that’s even what a smart guy would choose, but truth is, you’re a fighter by necessity, not by choice."

"I’m not a fighter?" Jason asked, directing a strange look Harold’s way. "I’ve killed… a lot of demons. Among other enemies."

"Right. But you ain’t done anything involving killin’ ’cause you liked it, and that’s the difference." Harold said. "Nothin’ wrong with a leader who only fights when needed. But the thing is, everything you’re doing is ’cause you think it has to be done, and it goes against your instincts. Since you lack those instincts, you’re full of blind spots only outsiders can see."

Harold sipped some more coffee, swishing it around his teeth. It seemed he really liked the taste.

"Alright, let’s get serious a bit. I know the powers these kids have. I did a lot of readin’ up on their files. If need be, I can whip any of ’em into competent fighters, even great ones. But that’s a waste of talent. This Sasha girl, I bet we could come up with all sorts of creative uses for her powers, once she masters ’em. If you wanna kill demons, that’s what the boys in green are for. That’s what guns are for. You’ve got a one-of-a-kind creative talent in Sasha! Why have her be one of a million grunts when she can be on the backlines, supporting the meatheads?"

Jason nodded. A similar thought had occurred to him before. "You think her Alchemy powers are wasted on the frontlines? I’m sure she could do more damage than even a thousand soldiers."

"So can a nuke." Harold scoffed. "But y’know what’s even better than putting a little girl out there who can fight Demon Emperors? Having her use her powers to make a million men fight Demon Emperors. Y’see what I’m saying?"

Once again, Jason nodded. Harold’s logic was sound.

"Take a lookie here." Harold said, reaching into his back pocket. He pulled out a folded piece of paper and handed it to Jason. "Been chewin’ on this a few weeks now."

Jason opened the paper. Inside, there was a short list of all the teenagers in Aevum, including Daisy, listing their abilities and the roles they could be good at. They were also assigned grades, like they were in school or something.

Daisy Hiro: Telekinesis (A), Healing (?), Teleportation (A+), Animal Reflexes (B), Enhanced Body (F)…

Special skills: Assassination, counter-terrorism, athletics, hand-to-hand combat, gunmanship…

Best roles: Hunter-Killer, Silent Assassin, Decapitation Striker.

Jason scratched his chin. He already knew most of this stuff, but Daisy’s background skills were a little new to him. He’d naturally spoken with his daughter many times, but she was always somewhat evasive regarding her childhood. It seemed she didn’t want to tell her father exactly what she’d gone through. Jason realized this was either because she didn’t want to make him sad, or she didn’t want to enrage him. What little he’d seen from the flash of her memories had nearly driven him insane with fury. He could only imagine how he’d react if he knew the rest.

"How’d you learn all this about my daughter?" Jason questioned.

"She told me." Harold said. "Actually, no. She told Helen, who told me. She seems to like Helen a lot."

"I see." Jason said quietly.

He moved further down the list.

Jerome Nguyen: Enhanced Strength (B), Growing Power (A+), Enhanced Durability (C-)…

Special skills: Street fighting, hand-to-hand combat, thievery, scrounging, makeshift repairs…

Best roles: Assault Squad, Base Assault, Elite Takedown Ops.

To Jason, all of this looked about right. Jerome and Daisy’s roles lined up exactly with what Jason imagined they would be good at. He read through the rest of the info on all the other teenagers as well.

Brian Bozzard: Flame Manipulation (C+), Flight (F).

Special skills: Diplomacy, fine dining, brewing tea.

Best roles: Metallurgist, Energy Producer, Airspace Assault.

Nadia Chasky: Extreme Intelligence (A+), Big Brain (A+), Very Smart (A+).

Special skills: Thinking hard, using her brain, martial arts.

Best roles: Inventor, Predictions Analyst, Elite Teacher.

Farrah Lapis: Shapeshifting (D+), Cooking (C).

Special skills: Baking cookies, entertainment, giving compliments.

Best roles: Infiltration, Spying, Special Agent.

Sasha Popov: Alchemy (?), Tailoring (A+), Fashion Design (B+?).

Special skills: Designing clothes, fashionista.

Best roles: Armorer, weaponsmith, special materials creator, deep-earth miner.

Marco Kamau: Making Time Bubbles (B?).

Special skills: Cowardice, running away, hiding.

Best roles: Olympic Sprinter? House Robber?

…

Jason read through Harold’s evaluations of the teenagers with approval. Aside from Marco, who Harold didn’t really seem to have much understanding of, he had pretty good ideas for all the rest of them.

"Airspace Assault for Brian?" Jason asked.

"The kid can fly, and he can shoot fireballs… but I don’t think his fireballs are all that impressive." Harold grumbled. "Better to give that boy a sniper rifle and train him to pop a head from a click off the ground."

Jason shrugged. It wasn’t a bad idea at all. But unlike Harold, Jason had known Beelzebub. He believed Brian could reach the same heights as mankind’s once-fiercest enemy.

He looked at the list again. "Deep-earth mining for Sasha?"

"I dunno. It just seemed sensible to me." Harold said dismissively. "I’ve gots a good feeling about that little lady."

"No ideas for Marco, though?" Jason pressed. "None at all?"

"I… don’t really get the boy’s power, and he’s too quiet for m’liking." Harold replied. "I told you mah list wasn’t finished yet. Maybe I’ll add more for him later."

"No, that’s fine." Jason said. "I have my own ideas."

One entry on the list really caught Jason’s eye. "You wrote here that you think Nadia would make a great teacher. Why, because she’s smart?"

"Smart people don’t always make good teachers. But Nadia’s special." Harold said with a smile. "That pretty little lady’s good at ‘comprehension’. Any ninny with a two-bit tutorin’ book can teach a fella how to count numbers. But she actually gets everything she learns on a deep level. You should be havin’ her teach others, ’cause she’ll know how to dumb stuff down to their level."

Jason was skeptical. "Nadia’s talents are so beyond the ordinary, she should be inventing powerful technology all the time. That’s the most effective use of her time."

"Having one smarty-pants is good, but if she can teach a hundred others, that’s way better, innit?" Harold asked.

Jason slowly nodded. He had to admit, Harold was making a good point. It would be better to have 100 Nadias accelerating Aevum’s progress than just one.

But… still. Asking her to spend time teaching others, after what she’d been through? Jason wasn’t about to do that. Maybe later.

Jason chatted with Harold. After the two of them talked about the teenagers a bit more, Harold lightly slapped the table.

"Alrighty, then! I’ll start training them once you’ve finished putting those mind-thingies in their heads. Maybe once these kids are a bit smarter, they’ll be able to follow directions a little better."

"That’s all I ask of you." Jason said, smiling. "I’m sure you’ll do a great job, Harold. And also… there’s, uh, one last thing."

"Yeah?" Harold asked. "What’s that?"

"It’s about the upcoming War in Heaven." Jason said, his smile slipping. "I… I don’t think I’m going to deploy you. Or any of the teenagers."

"You’re not??" Harold asked, bewildered. "Wait, wait, wait. Ain’t that why you gave me this super-strong body? To kick demon ass?"

"Yes… but now isn’t the time." Jason explained slowly. "Right now, I’m trying to play a long, elaborate trick on the demons. I call it Project Great Deceiver. I won’t go into the specifics, but basically, I need the demons to think we humans are a lot weaker than we really are. They already know we have two Trueborn Heroes. What do you think they’ll do when the legendary Captain America comes back from the dead? Even just seeing you will spike their alarm levels dramatically."

"Ah… I see. Yeah, that makes sense…" Harold muttered. "So you’re keepin’ me in the back pocket in case of emergencies?"

"That’s right." Jason said. "In fact, I need to get Helen outfitted with a MindCore as soon as possible. Your wife will be assisting the Daughter of Heaven, building stuff for her. The sooner she has her MindCore, the better."

Jason had already spoken to Helen about her MindCore previously, and had presented her the options. As expected, she had chosen the GenesisFrame, like him and Sasha. That meant once all the MindCores were installed, there would be two more people with MindCores similar to Jason’s… well, except theirs would be way more advanced. Jason would need to upgrade his or risk falling way behind.

"I’ll install Helen’s MindCore, then Sasha’s right afterward." Jason said. "The two of them picked the same one, so I might as well. After that, I’ll do Brian, then Farrah, and finally… Marco."

"Marco." Harold repeated, shaking his head wryly as he took a sip of coffee. "Let’s hope that kid finally amounts to somethin’ with a bigger brain boosting him. Right now, he just ain’t worth talkin’ about."

"I guess not." Jason said, not entirely comfortable badmouthing a kid who wasn’t even present with the two of them.

He concluded his discussion with Harold, then vanished from the spot, leaving the old man to finish up his coffee.

After a few minutes, Harold had drained his cup.

"Shit." Harold cursed. "What was I thinkin’? Now I’ve got all this energy and can’t git back to sleep. Hmm, maybe the missus is in the mood to get frisky, eh? Heh heh heh…"

Harold darted back into the bedroom, knowing soon he and Helen would have to part ways, at least temporarily. Might as well make some new memories while they still had the chance.