Armphid
Crowned Sun
- Joined
- May 18, 2003
- Posts
- 9,831
"You're improving." Doc Blue leaned back in a chair and put his hand on a white rook, moving the chess piece forward a few spaces. "Check."
"Doesn't feel like it," Silverbolt grunted. It was his best showing yet; but he was still felt so lost. He moved his king out of jeopardy. "Uh, Doc, I don't want to sound ungrateful or anything-"
"But you don't understand why I'm having you do this," the super mathematician finished. "It's fair. Though I'd think that the strategy and critical thinking skills are good enough."
"Uh, yeah." The silver skinned youth grimaced as the older man moved his knight in a seemingly inconsequential move. "I thought it was more about teaching me patience too." He studied the board but didn't move yet.
"Partly," Doc Blue admitted with a shrug. "I also just like playing but there's another reason too. As a speedster, you need to not just know how the physics of your powers work, but one other critical thing."
Silverbolt tilted his head and then blinked, seeing what the knight could do in it's current position if left unchecked. He reached for a piece and then paused, looking over the board again. He grinned, "Ha! You almost got me." He moved away, ignoring the knight for now, to position his bishop in place to counter the strike without leaving himself open. "What's the other thing?"
Doc Blue grinned and gestured at the chess board, "Environmental awareness. You have to see the whole board."
Titan sat under a wide branched apple tree in the orchard dome. The smart phone and tablet he'd been given for his schooling were set out on the green grass beneath the tree; the tablet showing that his last assignment had been submitted.
He leaned back on the grass and looked up at the tree, his hands folded behind his head. There was a lot to think about. Not just the school work and learning he'd been assigned but all the rest of his training, Theta, his rivalry with her team, his conversation with Zenith...and so much more as well. His future. What would it be now? He'd never been sure what he wanted out of life and then things had changed so suddenly. So...what did he want now?
He felt a strange, phantom touch on his brow, as if gentle fingers were caressing his forehead and sifting through his hair. Theta was contacting him; he always felt that when she did, though he suspected she did that to let him know she was going to do so; a deliberate warning. She could enter his mind without giving herself away, he was sure.
"Correct," came her soft voice into his mind. He had a brief mental image of her kneeling behind him, his head on her lap instead of his hands and he smiled. "You've had a good day. Mine has been unsatisfactory." He didn't even have to think words, she could feel his curiosity and affectionate concern. "Shadow has been insufferable after the last prank, and overreached his boundaries concerning the changing areas of our team's female members. It has been corrected but I feel mildly distressed over the events."
Titan felt a momentary masculine impulse to go find Shadow and pound him. However, that wouldn't really help anything. "I'm sorry you had a bad day," he thought. Telepathy was still strange to him. "Maybe, um, we could meet up and have a good night to make up for it." He blushed as he thought it; knowing she was aware of the intent, feelings, and images that were in his head right now.
He could almost feel her leonine smile. "I had considered asking, but your offering...I like that. 10 o' clock, my room. Bring your belt."
"Hey, Boy Scout." He opened his eyes, not even realizing he'd closed them, to see Hotshot standing over him. She had an apple in hand with a bite out of it, her other hand on her hip. "What'cha all blushy about? Thinking dirty thoughts?"
"Something like that," he answered. He sat up, glancing up at the punk rock girl. "What brings you out here? I wouldn't think the orchard would be your kind of place."
"It isn't, but I don't mind grabbing a snack." She took another bite and chewed it, looking down at her feet for a few moments. Then she looked up at him, her eyes challenging, "I thought you might be here, okay?" She poked him in the shoulder with an accusing finger, "But don't go getting any ideas!"
He held up his hands, "I won't, honest. So...what did you want?" She was a curious girl and a lot of fun. She was tough, strong, but there was some vulnerability under it all too. "I'm not doing your homework, if that's what you had in mind."
She gave him a proud, haughty look, "Pff, if I wanted you to, I could get you to do it. But, nah." The pyrokinetic looked around and then leaned down a bit, "Look, I really want to get better, you know? So we can put those jerks on Zenith's team in their place. So I was going to go and practice and train up a little more, but you need a partner to go into any of the training domes and Pixie's busy, so..."
"So, can you do it?"
The teleporter technician raised his brows and then shrugged, "Sure. You'd need to get the right numbers first, since mass and energy both have to be conserved, but once you had that squared away, it's a simple matter of shifting the assembly pattern."
Safari leaned back and nodded, crossing his arms over her chest. "And you'd need those models too, right?" The tech nodded. "All right, man. I'll be in touch."
"Doesn't feel like it," Silverbolt grunted. It was his best showing yet; but he was still felt so lost. He moved his king out of jeopardy. "Uh, Doc, I don't want to sound ungrateful or anything-"
"But you don't understand why I'm having you do this," the super mathematician finished. "It's fair. Though I'd think that the strategy and critical thinking skills are good enough."
"Uh, yeah." The silver skinned youth grimaced as the older man moved his knight in a seemingly inconsequential move. "I thought it was more about teaching me patience too." He studied the board but didn't move yet.
"Partly," Doc Blue admitted with a shrug. "I also just like playing but there's another reason too. As a speedster, you need to not just know how the physics of your powers work, but one other critical thing."
Silverbolt tilted his head and then blinked, seeing what the knight could do in it's current position if left unchecked. He reached for a piece and then paused, looking over the board again. He grinned, "Ha! You almost got me." He moved away, ignoring the knight for now, to position his bishop in place to counter the strike without leaving himself open. "What's the other thing?"
Doc Blue grinned and gestured at the chess board, "Environmental awareness. You have to see the whole board."
~~~~~~~~~
Titan sat under a wide branched apple tree in the orchard dome. The smart phone and tablet he'd been given for his schooling were set out on the green grass beneath the tree; the tablet showing that his last assignment had been submitted.
He leaned back on the grass and looked up at the tree, his hands folded behind his head. There was a lot to think about. Not just the school work and learning he'd been assigned but all the rest of his training, Theta, his rivalry with her team, his conversation with Zenith...and so much more as well. His future. What would it be now? He'd never been sure what he wanted out of life and then things had changed so suddenly. So...what did he want now?
He felt a strange, phantom touch on his brow, as if gentle fingers were caressing his forehead and sifting through his hair. Theta was contacting him; he always felt that when she did, though he suspected she did that to let him know she was going to do so; a deliberate warning. She could enter his mind without giving herself away, he was sure.
"Correct," came her soft voice into his mind. He had a brief mental image of her kneeling behind him, his head on her lap instead of his hands and he smiled. "You've had a good day. Mine has been unsatisfactory." He didn't even have to think words, she could feel his curiosity and affectionate concern. "Shadow has been insufferable after the last prank, and overreached his boundaries concerning the changing areas of our team's female members. It has been corrected but I feel mildly distressed over the events."
Titan felt a momentary masculine impulse to go find Shadow and pound him. However, that wouldn't really help anything. "I'm sorry you had a bad day," he thought. Telepathy was still strange to him. "Maybe, um, we could meet up and have a good night to make up for it." He blushed as he thought it; knowing she was aware of the intent, feelings, and images that were in his head right now.
He could almost feel her leonine smile. "I had considered asking, but your offering...I like that. 10 o' clock, my room. Bring your belt."
"Hey, Boy Scout." He opened his eyes, not even realizing he'd closed them, to see Hotshot standing over him. She had an apple in hand with a bite out of it, her other hand on her hip. "What'cha all blushy about? Thinking dirty thoughts?"
"Something like that," he answered. He sat up, glancing up at the punk rock girl. "What brings you out here? I wouldn't think the orchard would be your kind of place."
"It isn't, but I don't mind grabbing a snack." She took another bite and chewed it, looking down at her feet for a few moments. Then she looked up at him, her eyes challenging, "I thought you might be here, okay?" She poked him in the shoulder with an accusing finger, "But don't go getting any ideas!"
He held up his hands, "I won't, honest. So...what did you want?" She was a curious girl and a lot of fun. She was tough, strong, but there was some vulnerability under it all too. "I'm not doing your homework, if that's what you had in mind."
She gave him a proud, haughty look, "Pff, if I wanted you to, I could get you to do it. But, nah." The pyrokinetic looked around and then leaned down a bit, "Look, I really want to get better, you know? So we can put those jerks on Zenith's team in their place. So I was going to go and practice and train up a little more, but you need a partner to go into any of the training domes and Pixie's busy, so..."
~~~~~~~~~
"So, can you do it?"
The teleporter technician raised his brows and then shrugged, "Sure. You'd need to get the right numbers first, since mass and energy both have to be conserved, but once you had that squared away, it's a simple matter of shifting the assembly pattern."
Safari leaned back and nodded, crossing his arms over her chest. "And you'd need those models too, right?" The tech nodded. "All right, man. I'll be in touch."