Throughout the world, Power Uppers are the hottest drug on the market. A single pill allows any Normie to obtain the power of a Super. The drawback? They're also highly addicting and the cause of most financial ruin.
Tayla wants nothing to do with s...
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Tayla watched the disk vanish inside the reader sitting on the corner of Corin's oak desk. A screen rose from a tiny sliver in the wood, displaying Danika's message she saw what felt like an eternity ago at Kimber's. Tayla linked her hand with Max's to keep herself from reaching out and touching the image of her mother. It didn't matter what Corin said, Danika was her mom. She listened to her voice, ignoring the words she'd already heard. Ash extinguished her fire and turned her attention to the screen. Corin and her watched in silence until the 'for Corin's eyes only' message popped onto the screen.
He looked over his and said, "Ash please give us the room."
She rolled her eyes but slid off the windowsill, leaving Max and Tayla alone with Corin. Corin closed his eyes and sighed. Tayla wasn't sure if he was fighting off tears or preparing himself for what stayed hidden on the disk. One hand brushed against the smooth wood before he pushed away from his desk. In his true form, he was nothing like Nicron, the lanky teen, or the deaf April. He wasn't tall, Max stood taller, but Tayla still felt short beside him. She felt short beside almost everyone.
"Touch your hand to the desk," Corin said. "The computer is built inside the wood."
As Tayla reached for the sliver projecting the screen, Max grabbed her hand. "If you get a headache, a nose bleed, hell if you get so much as a sniffle, I'm stopping you. Understand?"
"I'll be fine, Max. Mom would've never given me something that could harm me even with my powers blocked."
Her fingers touched the smooth wood, the tips slipping through the flickering transparent screen. It disrupted the blinking message for a moment before the image solidified around them. She closed her eyes and released a breath, dragging the tips of her fingers against the sliver. Her mind pictured the blinking 'for Corin's eyes only,' watching as it faded and returned to visibility. The blinking sped up with each of her breaths. Energy burned through her mind, pulsing as the marching numbers spilled from her fingers and filled the desk with the glowing green codes of her power.
Danika's form shimmered within the screen for a second, replaced again by the message for Corin's eyes only. One's and zero's marched into the screen, Tayla's army of green swarmed every letter. The numbers shifted and rotated, changing their order with every full rotation around the letter. It didn't take long for the pain to throb in her temples, pulsing with the beats of her heart. Even the numbers brightness changed with every pulse. She did her best to keep her face neutral, not wanting Max to see she was already hurting. While she made a promise, she knew she wouldn't improve if she gave up the second it hurt.
Tayla released a breath, drawing it back in slowly. Her numbers shifted again, the blinking text fought for dominance against a series of menu options. Tayla pulled her hand away from the desk and opened her eyes when the menu won the war. She stumbled backward, barely able to stand up right.
"Why does it kick my ass so badly?" she asked, leaning over to steady herself.
"I already told you, because you're new at it and you're pushing yourself farther than you should be while learning. Are you okay?" Max helped her stand up right.
