Minnewaska State Park Preserve, Orange County, New York.
On a gravel road, a black SUV swayed and jolted along the bumpy dirt track.
Wade stuck his head out of the car window, watching the dense woods blur past. "Ugh... why didn't we just fly here?" he asked, his voice trembling from the vibration. "After an hour and a half of this, I can't even feel my butt anymore."
Sitting beside him, Jordan Li turned and rolled their eyes. "You think everyone has wings or thrusters like you and Luke?"
Cate, who was leaning back in her seat touching up her makeup, added lazily, "Exactly. If we flew, would you carry all this beer and the tents? Or would Luke? When he goes full speed, he's like a firebomb; nobody would dare get close!"
"That's easy!" An image immediately formed in Wade's mind as he imagined, "Andre could use magnetism to pull the car body, I could use air currents to steadily lift it from the front, and Luke could be the propulsion from behind... that would be way more exciting than sitting in this crappy SUV."
"That's a cool idea!" Luke leaned halfway over from the passenger seat, praising with a laugh, "Shall we try it on the way back?"
"Sounds thrilling enough!" Andre held the steering wheel with one hand, a slight smirk playing on his lips. "As long as we don't get targeted by the National Guard as an 'Unidentified Flying Object.'"
The atmosphere in the car livened up.
Wade shook his legs and nudged Jordan Li. "Hey, how do you have time to come out? Don't you have work as an office assistant?"
Jordan Li, who was holding out a hand for Cate to help apply nail polish, looked up. "Oh, the professors and the Dean went to an emergency meeting... that's why Cate and I were able to sneak out."
"I see. Is there a new event being held?"
"Don't know, maybe."
Amidst the chatter and laughter, Andre pointed out the window to introduce the area. "This place is famous for its cliffs, waterfalls, and lakes. There aren't many tourists, so it's quite peaceful. My parents used to bring me here often when I was a kid."
Luke took over the conversation, his expression full of admiration. "Andre's father, 'Polarity,' is a famous alumnus of our school. There's even a statue of him in Hero Square! A true old-school hero, though he's retired now."
Andre's smile faded slightly as he looked at the road ahead, his tone flat. "That's all in the past."
Wade tapped on the car window, privately speculating: If the school leadership is having a collective meeting, could it be that the Vought Group is preparing a contingency plan for failing to find Translucent?
For example, urgently promoting the most popular, well-liked student with the best commercial prospects from the graduating seniors to fill the vacancy in The Seven?
...
At the lakeside campsite, the five of them began to divide the chores.
Wade walked to an open space and focused his mind. The scattered dry branches and fallen leaves around him seemed to be picked up by invisible hands, swirling and gathering at his feet into a neat stack of firewood.
On the other side, Luke was hammering tent pegs into the hard ground with his bare hands, creating a series of dull thuds. Andre stood by the tent, his fingers gesturing in the air, and several metal fasteners flew up with precision, locking into place with a click.
Jordan Li and Cate were busy as well, one washing food and the other brushing sauce onto meat skewers.
Ten minutes later, the campsite was looking quite respectable.
Just as Wade was about to gather more firewood, Cate, who had been looking at her phone, suddenly burst out laughing.
"Hahaha..." She held up her phone, a playful smirk on her face. "Our big star, 'Cyclone,' is already starting to taste the flavor of cyberbullying?"
Jordan Li immediately leaned over. "What happened?"
Cate swiped her finger across the screen and read, "Tsk, 'Deep Dive into Freshman Cyclone: Entrance Exam Scores Suspected to be Inflated, Institutional Background Might be a Shortcut?' The comments section is getting quite heated."
"Bullshit." Jordan Li snatched the phone and scanned it quickly. "This is pure slander. Who did this?"
Wade internally gave Harper a thumbs up. He had only given the instructions at noon, and she had already acted by the afternoon. Such efficiency.
"I... I don't know either." He spread his hands with a look of bewilderment. "Maybe I've been a bit too eye-catching lately."
Luke walked over, patted his shoulder, and smiled. "Don't worry about it. I was the same way. Having haters just means you're famous."
Andre also nodded. "Standard procedure. It's probably those people from the School of Performing Arts. They have nothing better to do than stir up hype; they'll jump on any trending topic they can find."
"It must be that bastard 'Fire Dragon' who instigated it," Jordan Li said indignantly, stuffing the phone back to Cate. "He really can't handle losing."
The campfire was lit, and everyone sat around it, the aroma of grilled meat and the smell of alcohol filling the air.
"What's the fun in just eating and drinking?" Cate pulled a large rubber die out of the tent, her gaze sweeping over everyone. "Old rules: Truth, or... Dare."
"There are five of us. If it's a six, we skip and reroll. Let's pick our numbers!"
"I'm the youngest, I'll go first. I'll take two," Wade said, quickly raising a skewer.
Luke draped an arm over Andre's shoulder, swaying side to side. "Then we'll take three and four."
Jordan Li glanced at Cate while flipping a skewer. "I'll take one, then."
Cate looked at Wade with an exceptionally bright smile. "You! No using air currents to interfere! Otherwise, it counts as cheating, and you'll have to take a penalty." With that, she immediately tossed the die into the air.
The die landed on the ground, showing a single red dot.
Cate pointed at Jordan Li with a giggle. "What were you and Wade doing behind closed doors in the dorm last week? Tell us! If you don't, your dare is to go into the water and catch a fish with your bare hands—no superpowers allowed."
"You and your damn mark! Can't you already sense what I'm thinking?" Jordan Li cursed through gritted teeth, looking toward the lake. "I was discussing the principles of superpowers with Wade back then..."
Luke and Andre clapped and cheered, jeering playfully:
"Right, right, right. 'Discussing,' was it?"
"I'd believe that—if I were a toddler."
"Huh?!" Wade spat out a chicken wing bone, blinking innocently. "But it's true! I really did go to ask about the principles back then."
"Fine, you don't look like the type who would lie." Luke finally let it go and tossed the die.
The die landed, showing four blue dots.
He looked at Andre with a wicked grin. "Spill it. Where did you run off to while I was fighting in the arena last time? You were supposed to be my sparring partner!"
Andre stole a glance at Cate before looking away, instinctively tightening his grip on his beer bottle. "It was nothing. I just had something to take care of."
"Liar! That kid Translucent said you went back to the dorm." Luke walked to the side, picked up an unused metal grill tray, and handed it to Cate. "Step on this. Let Andre manipulate it to lift you fifteen meters into the air. If you fail, the penalty doubles."
Cate's eyes widened, and she spat out a mouthful of beer. "Why me? Isn't it his dare?"
"Look at those two, they're tough as nails, and so are Andre and I." Luke looked at Wade and Jordan Li. "If we don't pick you, where's the challenge?"
"Hehe... exactly." Andre stood up and wiped his hands. "Cate, hurry up and get on. I can do it... there are so many people here, we won't let you fall to your death. Don't be afraid!"
Cate bit her lip and stood on the iron plate, covering her eyes. "You better be careful! If you mess up my makeup, I'm not finished with you!"
Luke leaned over behind Andre, stifling a laugh. "Hurry up, don't go easy on her."
With a conflicted look, Andre raised his palm. His fingers trembled slightly as the iron plate slowly rose, steadily leaving the ground.
When she was only about five meters up, Cate squinted her eyes to peek, her voice trembling. "Andre, is that enough? Hurry it up!"
The iron plate began to wobble and sway. Andre shouted anxiously, "Hey, don't move around!"
"Ah—I hate you guys!" Cate's feet slipped off the iron plate, and she screamed as she fell from ten meters in the air.
Just as Luke's eyes began to glow with golden light, Wade stopped him. "Senior, don't burn her clothes. I'll do it."
He raised his hand slightly. Cate's body was supported by an air current, shifting from a tumbling position to a standing one, and she landed smoothly.
"Thanks." Cate wobbled for a couple of steps. Two streaks of tears were running down her face, ruining her makeup.
Slap—Slap—
With a dark expression, she gave both Luke and Andre a slap. She then grabbed Jordan Li and walked away. "If I ever talk to you guys again, I'm an idiot!"
Luke and Andre clutched their faces and remained silent for a moment before looking at each other and grinning. "Hehehe... Hahaha!"
A few minutes later, Andre gave Luke a look. Luke understood and picked up a few of the most perfectly grilled meat skewers.
The two of them approached Cate, who was complaining to Jordan Li, one on each side, offering beer and apologetic smiles.
"If you ever do that again, I'll throw you both into the lake!" Cate took a fierce bite of a skewer and glared at them, but the atmosphere had already softened.
Wade tended to the grill alone, brushing on sauce from time to time. He felt that the relationships among those few were truly complicated: 'A love triangle? Or...'
Jordan Li tactfully walked back to the camp, shifted back to their male form, and sighed helplessly. "They're always like this. You'll get used to it."
Before long, those three were huddled together again, whispering and laughing.
The sun set, and in the blink of an eye, night had fallen.
Wade picked up two cans of ice-cold beer and walked over to Luke, who was flipping the meat and controlling the temperature, and handed him one.
"This environment is pretty nice." Wade watched the dancing flames and clinked cans with him. "How about we practice a bit? It'll help digest the food, and no one's watching anyway."
"Sure, my hands have been itching for a fight." Seeing Andre and Cate chatting warmly nearby, Luke called out to Jordan Li, "Lee, come help watch the fire. Don't let it burn."
Jordan Li put away their phone and looked at both of them. "Are you guys crazy? One uses wind, the other uses fire. What if the whole forest burns down?"
"It'll be fine." Wade was the first to fly into the air, pointing at the lake surface below. "Isn't there water right there? We'll fight over there."
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