Exes and Superher-o's

Part 11

"Holy hell." Taehyung lets out a low whistle. "Do that again."

Embarrassed, Katie glances at the titanium cuffs which lie at her feet. For the past hour, she's demonstrated her ability to resist titanium metal. You're forced to admit, the results are enviable.

Even from here, you're able to feel the pull of the cuffs; that slight dampening of superpower which runs in your veins. It's the reason handlers always carry their cuffs tucked safely away. Simply being around the metal is enough to hinder your abilities. This doesn't seem to be the case for made supers.

You can count on one hand the number of times you've been subjected to the full effects of titanium, but each instance was hard to forget. Especially last time, when you were forced to your knees in an alley, blinded and cuffed as your superpowers were drained. Until Seokjin stepped in and saved you, that is.

Shaking the memory away, you glance sideways at Jungkook. He pants, chest rising and falling from the exertion of fighting Katie. Today he pulled the short stick and is the one in the ring – the literal boxing ring attached to the side of Namjoon's lake house.

Jungkook and Taehyung are handlers, which means they're humans trained to fight alongside superheroes. Jungkook has been paired as your handler since the Academy, just like Taehyung and Namjoon were assigned together.

Namjoon, also known by his superhero alias, Brainblast, has seated himself crisscross on the lawn, scribbling on a notepad he holds. Twenty minutes ago, you asked what he was doing, only for Namjoon to mumble something about forces and trajectory before descending into jargon you couldn't quite follow. This tend to happen a lot when talking to Namjoon, whose power of knowledge absorption usually makes him the smartest person in the room.

Knowledge absorption is both awesome, and overwhelming. Simply brushing a book allows Namjoon to understand the fundamentals of string theory. Hugging his mom could translate to knowing a perfect kimchi soup recipe. Lately, Namjoon has been turning the full power of his knowledge absorption on helping Katie.

Namely, helping her control her powers and figuring out how Katie differs from other supers.

Katie was the product of a plan hatched by ISA (International Superhero Agency). Usually, ISA simply trains new supers and matches them to take down villains. Operation Made was a secret program which took normal humans and gave them superpowers. Katie was normal before she entered the program and now, well – she's not.

Gifted with superspeed, telekinesis and teleportation, Katie is the most powerful among you. She's also able to resist titanium, a metal considered kryptonite for most supers. You and Namjoon used to work for ISA, until – well, Namjoon still works for ISA. It's just you and Jungkook who are currently on the run.

Pushing himself to his feet, Jungkook dusts off his thighs.

He's been sparring with Katie on and off all morning, testing how she reacts to various weapons. The cuffs on the ground used to be on her wrists until Katie snapped them off with telekinesis.

"Huh." Tilting his head, Jungkook stares at the metal. "That's new."

Continuing to write, Namjoon turns the page of his notepad. "It is." He frowns, staring at the page. "Katie, do you think you could return the cuffs to their previous state?"

Katie looks at them, dubious. "Maybe?"

Gathering her concentration, she sticks out a hand and – nothing happens. Frown deepening, Katie tries harder, but the handcuffs only crumple further.

Her expression sags.

"Why... don't we take a break," you suggest, standing up from the ground. "We've been out here for a while. Jungkook didn't put on enough sunscreen for this."