••••

Once Prof Jane is fully presentable, I lean into her ear and whisper, "I expect you to keep teaching. You won't regret it."

She looks me deep in the eyes before blinking and seeming to come back to herself.

"I expect you won't miss any of my Math Club practices, Mister Smith?"

I smile as the professor façade returns. She's going to be all right, I thought. I wish her the best of luck and leave her office. I get a few glances from some of the students, but am quickly forgotten when there is a commotion outside the classroom. Running out, I grab someone to find out what's going on.

"Something's happening outside," is all the response I get before I'm swept along in a tide of students heading for the exterior doors.

The sun hits my eyes, and combined with the white snow all over the ground, I'm momentarily blinded as a communal gasp sounds around me. Blinking to clear my eyes, I start looking around to see what the fuss is about.

And almost shit myself.

Floating a few feet off the ground are a couple of older teenagers, maybe eighteen or nineteen, one boy and, from the familial resemblance, I'm guessing his sister. In one of his hands is a floating fireball. She is scanning the crowd, and her eyes look odd, as if… yes, her eyes are the color and reflectiveness of chrome. Around each of their necks is a necklace that appears to be made of some type of clear gemstones, each one about the size of my thumb. They both have on white shirts and white pants, with matching shoes. Her hair is red and tied back into a ponytail, his dark brown and cropped close to his head.

The girl's eyes land on me, and I shiver. It's almost as if I can physically feel her gaze. Her hand lifts and she points at me, and then both siblings are looking at me, and there is no mistaking the sensation that spreads across my skin.

They land softly on the ground and start walking toward me. The smile that graces their lips would look peaceful if not for the flickering glow of the man's fireball reflecting off them.

There is no possible way that even I could predict what they do next.

"Prepare for trouble," says the girl.

"Make it double," the boy follows up.

I groan as the rest becomes predictable.

"To protect the world from devastation,"

"To unite all people within our nation,"

"To denounce the evil of truth and love,"

"To extend our reach to the stars above,"

"Jessie,"

"James,"

"Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light,"

"Surrender now or prepare to fight,"

I stumble mentally when I did not hear the final line delivered by 'Meowth'. That can't really be their names, can it?

"Pokémon?" I ask, trying to keep the derision out of my voice. "Really?" I can tell they're dangerous, and likely another one of the alien's experiments.

"We've been given God-given powers to cleanse the world of evildoers like you," James snarls at me. I try hard not to laugh at the way he worded that statement.

Jessie fingers the necklace around her neck before saying, "Each of these is a fallen soul. Each one is someone who's gained their powers from the devil."

Great, I think. They're both religious fanatics.

"Submit to us now, and we will make your death painless," James spouts, and I realize these lines are rehearsed. If what they said is true, and each clear gem on their necks is another person with the gene that the aliens were activating, then they've already taken out quite a few people.

Only now do I realize that there is a large gathering surrounding us and that I'm no longer on the edge of the group. People are looking from the Rocket twins to me and back again. Most of them likely think this is some performance being put on by the drama department. They all don't know the danger they're in. Before I can think to warn the crowd to get away, Jessie speaks up.

"Answer our demand now, or we will assume your response."

I start to form a switch in an attempt to turn off their abilities, but the girl with the strange chrome eyes shouts, "Watch out, brother—he's attacking!"

Without any further warning, James throws the fireball he's been holding at me, and I have to dodge to the side, landing hard on the snow-packed ground. I also lose the switch I'd been preparing.

The crowd "oohs" as a tower of flame goes up where I'd just been standing. Don't they understand the danger? I can see that those closest to the pillar are backing away uncertainly, shielding their faces from the heat.

"It's not too late to come to the light," James informs me, and I can see him preparing another fireball. It occurs to me that these must be the two who have been burning some of the other experiments Dennis had told me about.

Just to be contrary, I shout, "No thanks. I prefer the power of the dark side."

Okay, so I'm no James Earl Jones, but by some of the snickers in the crowd, my humor isn't completely obtuse.

I attempt again to make a switch, this one smaller, intending to turn off the boy flame, and once again his sister calls out, and I'm scrambling to get away. This time I'm not quite fast enough to escape completely, as flames start licking up my right leg. It only takes a second to put it out on the snow, but the heat had been intense!

I did not even bother trying to make a switch this time. I'm not sure what exactly the redhead is able to do, but those chrome eyes seem to be capable of seeing beyond normal sight.

It takes me a moment to get my feet under me, and I can already tell that my leg is badly burned.

I'm surprised that they're giving me the opportunity to stand, until I realize that they don't really fear me.

They know before I can attack, they can act quicker than I can. In fact, they're just standing there, waiting for me to either give up or attack again.

What is the deal with these two? Flying, superhuman sight, fireballs… Wait a minute…

Vage, I send to the alien I know is always watching, how do they have more than one ability? I asked.

Thankfully, the siblings did not attack while I'm communicating. The girl probably can't see the transmissions from the nanites.

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