I, Immortal

Chapter Eleven

I tapped my sweaty hands against my knee, listening to the nervous, rhythmic pat. The moment had finally arrived. Our group of superhumans, along with our mentors, sat in the green room to await our long-expected reveal in the auditorium.

We were dressed in grand costumes, each fitted to showcase our powers. I wore a uniform much like the one from the filming - a white coat crossed by a gold sash, white pants and black dress shoes. Cassandra's outfit was a floral jumper made of stretchy material, completed with a set of high heels. How she could run in those, I didn't know. Lumberjack was ironically dressed like a lumberjack, though updated to look more dapper. Dima had donned a trench coat as dark as the catch in his eyes. Brynn's sleeveless dress gaped in the back to allow for her wings. Cy's implants matched his black bomber jacket, black slacks and knee boots. He looked like a German pilot from the Old Wars.

Triumphant music suddenly blasted into the room, and we watched the TV screen in silence. Cheering erupted from the auditorium just outside as the reveal video appeared. A deep, booming voice sounded with each five-second clip of the nine superhumans.

"Speed...Flexibility...Augmentation...Flight..." The crowd gasped as Brynn's showstopping wings spread as wide as the smile on my face. "Fire...Immortality...Night vision...Invisibility...Strength."

The last clip featured the eight of us balancing on Lumberjack's shoulders. Flames erupted behind us on the screen. We looked like conquerors of the world, the paladins of the future. Roaring pounded from the auditorium, accompanied by chanting. The screen faded to black; the music ended dramatically as the master of ceremonies, Liev Gladwell jumped on stage.

"Ladies and gentlemen! Meet. Your. Superhumans!" He drew out the last word, which only further excited the crowd.

Our mentors shooed us to the stage door, doing last-minute primping to our hair and clothes before we each walked onto the stage into the sight of the roaring auditorium. Our rehearsals the night before had not prepared me for the reaction of the crowd, the madman yelling and screaming bursting in my ears. Bright spotlights lit us as we lined up along the apron of the stage. In perfect unison, the ladies curtsied, then we men bowed. As if the noise wasn't tremendous enough, the crowd yelled louder, clapped harder, whistled and praised us.

When the noise finally died down a good few minutes later, we took our seats beside the emcee. Brynn had a bit of trouble relaxing into the chair with her wings pressed against her back. A larger-than-life smile spread across Liev's face as he leaned slightly forward in his chair. He spoke slowly, comfortably.

"Well, this is such a momentous occasion, am I right?" More clapping. "Never before has the world had real-life comic book superheroes to call their own. You, my friends, have made history."

He leaned back again, raised his eyebrows dramatically as he looked at each of us. "So, tell me. How does it feel?"

"Like I can take on anything and anyone," Cassandra piped up; a devious smile played on her lips. She turned and looked straight into the camera closest to her. "I'm talking to you, Chesley Hutton."

The audience hushed to an eerie silence.Chesley Hutton. The name sounded familiar, but I couldn't quite place the name. Chesley...Hutton. A light bulb suddenly came on in my mind. Chesley Hutton, American runner, twenty-four years old. She broke the world record time for the 100-meter dash in the Summer Olympics two years before. The millisecond she passed the line, every runner across the world lost hope of ever breaking her record. Her time? 7.39 seconds. Some called her inhuman; others called her a cheat, saying the whole thing had been faked. But no one had the speed to beat her.

"Do I hear a challenge?" Liev smiled devilishly.

Cassandra straightened in her seat. "Oh yeah."

I imagined Chesley Hutton watching the television in a fancy, comfortable mansion, choking on her protein shake.

"Well then..." Liev gazed out into the crowd, then at Cassandra, "We'll see what Miss Hutton has to say soon enough, I'm sure. Next question, though it seems Cassandra has already answered this one. What are some goals you hope to accomplish with your newly acquired powers?"

"See and record things for science that would otherwise be nearly impossible." Answered Sunshine. She blinked her eyes, which I noticed were strangely reflective. "And I won't have to worry about stepping on LEGOs at night anymore."

Laughter rippled through the audience, and Lumberjack remarked how jealous he was of that fact. Liev chuckled, then turned to the rest of us for an answer. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Cy watching me, waiting for me to speak.

"Um, I would..." I cleared my throat. All those eyes staring at me. Was I really going to go along with Cy's idea? "I would like to be a model for Forever 21."

Suddenly the auditorium went wild with applause, laughter and whistling. Flop let out an impressed "Ohhhhh!" and high-fived me. Cy shot me a thumbs-up. I grinned as Liev Gladwell jumped from his seat to shake my hand.

"Clever! Such wit!" He chuckled emphatically, bouncing my hand up and down.

I grinned and stared out into the sea of people watching me, listening to my every word and applauding me like I was the coolest person on earth. One thought stood clear in my mind.

Oh yeah. I could get used to this.