Zythandra, Calcipher and the Professor did their usual meeting in the Professor's office commonly to talk about their plans of teaching and future methods of training the Anomalies. This is also the time where they can share information about their progress of each mentees and their Anomaly level. This is based on the effectivity of application, setbacks, combat power etc.
"What are your insights with your progresses so far?" The Professor asked the mentors as they took their seats in the his office.
"I think I'm the first to go." Calcipher said, "I can say that my progress with my class is not that remarkable yet but it's building up to something. Most are competitive with their academic standings but in terms of the use of their Anomalies, that's where we're having some kind of a challenge."
"My class, the younger batch, seemed to be handling their Anomalies quite well. However, they're having troubles keeping up with their studies. I only have the plant girl and the kid who speaks to animals who are active in their academic line." Zythandra commented on her class.
"Do you think my intervention is needed? I'm very much willing to assist you two with anything." The professor proposed.
"That won't be necessary, Professor." Zythandra declined the professor's offer. "They just need a little more push that's all. I can handle them."
"As for me, sir. I'm still having a hard time memorizing who's who may it be in my older class or in the younger one. Any suggestions on how I can keep up with their names and faces?" Calcipher asked.
"Really? You still don't know them? We're teaching them for months now." Zythandra commented.
"I know but I can't bring myself to memorize them all. I only know the names of those who are active in the class and the training sessions. I even get them wrong someone."
"You're pretty dense for a scientist, aren't you?"
"I kind of am when it comes to names and faces. I really don't know why.
"I suggest that you can put photos of the students with their names on it in your office and your room for you memorize them much easier. Or, if that will still be a challenge, make yourself used to addressing them by their Anomaly codename." The Professor suggested.
"Right. That's one thing you can do to address them properly instead of you calling with whatever name pops up in your head." Zythandra added.
"I think addressing them by their codename is doable. I'll do their photos with their names as well for extra help. Appreciate it, Professor. You're the bomb!"
"I'm glad I can help." The Professor responded.
Zythandra, Calcipher and the Professor continued their discussion. They tapped into the topics that they'll cover for the entire month and a draft of what's to be studied for the following month. They also reviewed the layout Zythandra and Calcipher proposed for the students training session for the month as well. The Professor didn't see any issues with the entire lesson and training plans proposed by the to mentors so they came into agreement of having them followed.
"So, since our talk about your curriculums are finished, I would like to ask you one more thing." The professor stated.
"Go for it, Professor." Zythandra responded.
"What are your thoughts about the Anomaly exactly? I figured that we didn't go in depth the last time I asked this question to you two back then." The Professor said.
"I'll go first." Calcipher declared. "For me, sir. As a researcher and a scientist such as myself, interacting with someone who is considered an Anomaly is really intriguing yet fascinating at the same time. Imagine that you can do something way advance compared to a non-Anomaly." Calcipher commented.
"Same thoughts for me, Professor." Zythandra agreed with Calcipher. "Also, I know that the government and also the military has a much different view towards the Anomaly but I think that if they used their Anomalous Perks right, they can do something phenomenal to humanity."
"That's pretty deep but I strongly agree to that." Calcipher added. "Have you considered Professor having our students help out the people in need? But, discreetly of course. Like we can have a few of them take on guarding duty or something."
"Guarding duty is pretty basic. I say that we can send them off to the neighboring nations to do scouting or something that is if we can get a connection with the National Intelligence Agency. When I was still a spy, our faction worked with that government agency for a long while."
"Oh, I can definitely see your point there. Missions like those sounds so cool. I wonder if I can be a part of that."
"You wish. I know you're smart and all but you don't have the guts." Zythandra teased him.
"Say what you want to say, Ms. Grumpy Pants." Calcipher commented. "Oh, I just want to ask a few inquiries since we're still in the topic."
"Go shoot."
"Before we got here, were you a stealthy spy back in Proud Russia or are you a deadly one?"
"What kind of question is that? What do you mean?"
"You know. If you're a stealthy spy, you're just in charge in espionage tactics, getting information from the enemy base and stuff like that. For the deadly one, you're infiltrating some guarded places and kill your target."
"You really want to know?"
"Yes. I really do. I want to confirm if I'll be scared of you or not."
"You're making things complicated. Regardless of that information, you should be scared of me. If you piss me off, you don't know when and where I'll strike."
"Quit messing around. I just want to know the previous job of my co-worker that's all."
"Fine, I was a deadly kind of spy. An assassin to be exact."
"Holy cow. I know to myself that I should be scared but the scientist in me makes me more fascinated."
"Get yourself together or I'll end you."
"That's funny but yeah, I'll shut up."
"You think that's scary, Calcipher? Wait 'til you learn what she does to her targets." The Professor joined the conversation.
"Really, Professor? Not you too." Zythandra reacted while obviously embarrassed.
"My bad. Both of you seemed to be enjoying yourselves." The Professor said to tease the two.
"No, I'm not. It's just probably him." Zythandra commented.
"So what do you do to your targets, Z?" Calcipher asked.
"And there he goes asking. Thanks, Professor." Zythandra reacted.
"My pleasure." The Professor said with a little tilt of his head as a gesture of agreement.
"Fine. After this, no more questions about my previous work or else I'll really end you." Zythandra declared.
"I understand. I just really want to know so that my curiosity won't kill me in my sleep." Calcipher responded.
"Okay. When taking down a target, I don't typically use the traditional weapons like guns or knives. I mostly used my poisoned needles. Once I injected it to a target, they'll die in just a few minutes. Unlike guns or knives, my needles were literally the silent killers. The targets I'm taking down are the trash of the community so the less trash, the more prosperity to our nation." Zythandra explained.
"That is so cool. My respect to you went up by dozens. I'm glad I'm in a team with you." Calcipher praised her.
"Yeah, whatever." Zythandra responded. "So, Professor. Going back to our original topic, what do you think about how having our students help out the community?" Zythandra asked.
"How did you meet the Professor, Z?" Calcipher asked. "I just got curious all of a sudden."
"To put it simple, my direct superior has ties with the Professor so my superior wants to lend my talents to help a colleague so that why I'm here. Whoever my superior trust wholeheartedly, I will do the same as well." Zythandra explains
"I appreciate it, Zythandra. I hope Dragunov is doing well." The Professor stated mentioning the name Dragunov to address Zythandra's superior.
"It's my honor, Proffesor. Shall we go back to our main discussion now?" Zythandra said.
"Wait." Calcipher interrupted Zythandra's attempt to change the subject.
"What now, Cal? Can we just proceed with the meeting in peace?" Zythandra commented with a bit of an attitude.
"Since you shared your past life, I mean your previous life before you got here, I feel like I want to share my story too." Calcipher explained.
"No one cares, Cal. Keep it to yourself, will you?" Zythandra responded.
"Let her be, Zythandra. Knowing Calcipher, he'll eventually spill his later while we're discussing the agenda of the meeting." The Professor gave permission to Calcipher to share his life before coming to the mansion.
"Fine. Tell us your story, Calcipher." Zythandra finally agreed.
"Thank you, Professor." Calcipher appreciates the Professor's deed. "Here it goes. I was once a young and promising scientist, researcher, inventor and everything in between before I got here I was pretty amazing at my job back in the facility I work with before. I was the youngest among my fellow scientist back then so I was pretty known."
"If you're pretty famous back then and your job, whatever it is you're doing, is going pretty well, why leave and work for the Professor?" Zythandra asked.
"See? I knew you'll get interested with my story." Calcipher teased her.
"Whatever. Just get on with it." Zythandra replied.
"The answer is simple. Boredom. I got bored doing the same things over and over again. When I met the Professor, I didn't know that my life as a scientist will never get more exciting!" Calcipher explains. "I heard stories the Anomaly and it's community but I consider them as myths until I crossed paths with the Professor."
"What happened when you first meet?" Zythandra asked.
"One day, while I'm driving towards our research facility, I saw a group of thugs beating the hell out of someone in a random pavement in broad daylight. It so happens that the one being beaten to a pulp is the Professor right here. Since I'm kind of a hero myself back then and I always have my baton sticks with me, I came to his aide. As expected, I knocked off the thugs and as I looked to the supposed beaten up body of the Professor, I watched him heal himself rapidly without him moving a muscle. At that time I thought: 'Is this the Anomaly I've been hearing about? It's so cool!" Calcipher explains.
"Is that it?" Zythandra asked making herself sound like she doesn't care about the story anymore.
"Then, I didn't noticed that one of the thugs is still conscious and has a gun with him. As the thug's about to shoot in the back, the Professor stood and blocked the shot using his own body. I cam he was hurt by that shot but he managed to swing a punch to the shooter making him completely knocked off. He basically saved my life even though I initially plan to save his. Not too long after, I resigned then work here to learn more about the Anomaly and its community. Don't worry. I won't snitch or anything. This is something that makes me really happy so I devote my everything to whatever it is we have right now." Calcipher ended his long story.
"That's good to know then." Zythandra acknowledged her co-mentor's resolve. "Shall we go back to our main agenda, Professor?"
"Surely. I genuinely understand where you two are coming from and I greatly appreciate the great outcomes you can think our students can offer but as I mentioned before, humanity is not ready for them yet. Things that are unknown to mankind can easily be mistaken as a threat which is actually happening right now. However, I truly believe that our goals can be reached if we play our cards right." The Professor explained.
"Very well said, Professor." Zythandra agreed.
"Amen, sir. Amen." Calcipher agreed as well.
"So tell me." The Professor was quick to think of another topic. "How are your impressions with the students? Are they behaving well?" He asked the two.
"For starters, they're all getting along pretty well. It's hard to admit but they seem to be like real brothers and sisters here knowing that Pandora and Beast are the only ones who were technically siblings by paper." Zythandra commented.
"Yeah. There are occasional misunderstandings but they can fix it themselves and in a well timely manner too. It's kind of cool of them to witness." Calcipher added. "That brings me to a question, Professor. Why is that the Russian girl and the African boy are the only ones you legally adopted?"
"That's very good question." The Professor said. "But to make it clear, I didn't legally adopt both of them. The three of us made it look like they were adopted by me due to their circumstances the time. They were just used to call each other brother and sister to make it more believable. He explained.
"Well that's a shocker." Calcipher commented.
"That's interesting. Is there anyone else knows that they're fake adopted aside from you three?" Zythandra asked.
"Yes. There are a few who knows that information. We have Medusa, Glass and Kitty." The Professor stated.
"Who is Kitty? I haven't seen or heard that one around here." Zythandra responded in confusion.
"Yeah. Doesn't ring a bell. Who is this Kitty person?" Calcipher asked.
"You'll know soon enough." The Professor responded.
"I wonder. This Kitty person is probably an Anomaly too if I'm not mistaken." Calcipher exclaimed.
"That's one way to put it but we'll never know until we meet this Kitty person." Zythandra finally remembered. " Anyway, we can thank Pandora and Glass for keeping peace and harmony in the mansion. They are like the leaders of the pack if you know what I'm saying." Zythandra said.
"If you put it that way, I can definitely agree to that." Calcipher commented. "Glass is the fun eldest brother and Pandora is the demure eldest sister. Both have authority. It's pretty cool of them."
"I don't know if you've noticed Cal, but I can say that Medusa and Beast are the next chain in command among them." Zythandra said.
"I do actually see your point there. Even though Medusa is kind of the fashionista-bratty type, some of her peers look up to her as a reliable teammate and for Beast, he's a man-of-few-words but very reliable too. Also, both have commendable combat abilities. I like those two." Calcipher stated.
"Then, there's the Banshee sisters. They're both the shy types but I like that about them so I have no problems with those sisters. That Swift kid who always runs around and talks way too much. I respect that mannerism of his but I hope we can help him tone it down a bit so everyone can understand him." Zythandra said.
"Blast! Don't forget about that mischievous brat. He always finds a way to do pranks to his friends. It's bearable most of the time but it's kind of annoying too you know." Calcipher said.
"Just hope that he's not going to be on my bad side." Zythandra said.
"It's nice to hear your honest thoughts about your students. How about our latest students? Reaper and Sprite?" The Professor asked.
"Oh, those two." Calcipher responded. "I still see Reaper as the awkward one that can't effortlessly control his Anomaly. His Anomaly is great as it is but it's useless if he can't use it. However, he takes pride in his studies so I'm good with that kid."
"Sprite. How do I see her?" Zythandra said and thinks. "She's great in her studies too so I was amazed about that considering what happened to her before she got here. The only problem with her right now is that she can't seem to know how to interact with others. She's way troubled on that aspect than the Banshee sisters."
"It's a good thing though that the ani-voice kid seems to be always with her if Reaper is not around to talk to her." Calcipher added. "They could become a cute couple after some years." He jokingly said.
"Here we go with your nonsense again, Cal." Zythandra reacted sarcastically.
"Sorry. It's just me and my big brain." Calcipher explained.
The three of them finally came to an end of their discussion but just before they bid their closing remarks to each other, the mentors felt an unknown aura closing in. That feeling of something's going to happen but they're not sure what it is. Zythandra was the first to feel the unexplainable sensation so she immediately catch Calcipher's attention.
"Calcipher, the Professor!" Zythandra alarmed her co-mentor and he was quick to react to the command. She and Calcipher took a defensive stance to prepare themselves of whatever or whoever it is that's coming.
"I commend your reflexes you two but I think you need to calm yourselves down." The Professor stated.
"Sir, we don't know who or what that is. We must keep you safe." Calcipher said.
"Be on your guard, Cal. The door is opening." Zythandra said as if she didn't hear anything the Professor said.
The Professor and the others heard someone knocked then they witnessed the door slowly opened and revealed whoever is standing outside. It was Fiona Goodchild or Kitty as the Professor and the others call her. The one that has the Anomaly of Adaptive Muscle Memory. It turned out that the two mentors haven't met Fiona until that moment due to her engagement to the outside world.
"Kitty, welcome. How have you been?" The Professor asked while gesturing Zythandra and Calcipher to lower their guards down which they eventually did.
"I'm very well, Professor. I appreciate the greeting." Kitty said.
"Excuse me, who are you?" Zythandra asked.
"No way!" Calcipher reacted as if he saw a ghost. "You're Fiona Goodchild! Hello, I'm your biggest fan. Holy cow I can't believe this." He then walked towards Kitty, went for a handshake then hugged her.
"Hi, nice to meet you too. Both of you actually." Kitty responded and she was kind enough to hug Calcipher back but was interrupted by Zythandra.
"Are you for real, Cal? Don't forget you're a mentor here. You don't get to be a fan boy all of a sudden. Contain yourself." Zythandra stated.
"Yeah, you're right. Sorry. I'm just overwhelmed." Calcipher agreed and smiled generously as he goes back to his seat.
"Okay." Kitty reacted. "I'd like to introduce myself again but formerly this time. I am Fiona Goodchild but you can call me Kitty here in the mansion. I am an Anomaly like the rest of my friends here."
"You're an Anomaly? Wow!" Calcipher reacted. "That's mind-blowing."
"How come we haven't read her files before we assume our roles here, Professor?" Zythandra asked.
"You only read the files of those who're living in the mansion. She's been living outside so her files weren't included in the ones you've read." The Professor explained.
"I see." Zythandra commented. "I have so many questions about it. Like, why is she living outside wherein Anomalies like her is highly in danger due to the hyped military activities? What if she's caught? Worst, what if the military killed her the first thing they realized she's an Anomaly.
"Just let it be, Z." Calcipher said. "Don't make this too much of a deal."
"Ms. Zythandra, the Professor and I talked about that ages ago so you don't need to worry yourself too much. Relax or else you'll age faster." Kitty commented.
"Nice burn." Calcipher whispered to himself and chuckled.
"I'm starting to dislike you now but since I'm a good, professional and understanding woman, I'll let you slide this time. Zythandra responded.
The Professor knows Zythandra won't stop until she gets the information she wants to know. He explained the nature of Fiona's Anomaly. He pointed out that her Anomaly can easily be considered as talent and it's her dream to be an idol so she made her way into the entertainment industry. No one knows she's one of us aside from me, the other Anomalies and the two mentors. Most importantly, they need ayes and ears outside just incase an event occurs that will greatly damage the image of the Anomalies to the eyes of the non-anomalies.
"It's a hard pill to swallow but I'm understanding the thought." Zythandra started to grasp Fiona's situation.
"So what brought you here, Kitty?" Calcipher asked.
"Yeah, about that. I called the Professor few days ago about a possible lead regarding the mysterious message you got from that Viper person so he asked me to drop by." Kitty stated.
"Really? What are those leads?" Zythandra asked.
"Awesome. It's just been a few weeks and you already have something." Calcipher commented.
"Cal don't interrupt." Zythandra scolded.
"Fine, I'm sorry." Calcipher responded.
Kitty started to explain her piece. On the day the Professor and the rest of the group received the malicious message from Viper, the Professor contacted Kitty to asked help if she can tap into whatever information she can get from the outside which she did. She used her connections as an performer to gather any information that may be connected to it. Luckily, she got a lead from a military event she was invitation to perform at roughly a week after her transaction with the Professor.
During all the festivities of the military event, Kitty took the liberty to interact with the organizers and in her surprise, the name Viper was brought up during one of their conversations. Kitty tried to dig deeper about the context but the organizers and some military heads are giving half-faced answer then quickly change the subject. Kitty didn't hover around the topic even further to avoid any suspicions.
It turned out that the military event that Kitty and some other artists performed at was actually a welcoming event for new recruits. Due to it's success, the organizers are once again planning to stage another event for the same crowd in the most luxurious Infinity Lounge. They booked the club there for the event and artists are once again invited to perform which includes Kitty.
"That's a lot of information." Calcipher commended Kitty.
"Now I understand we need someone who works outside." Zythandra stated.
"What's your next step, Professor?" Kitty asked.
"While I do appreciate all the efforts you've exhausted in the assignment, the threat of you being spotted by the enemy is increasing the more you get yourself into this mess." The Professor said. He obviously is thinking of some way that won't jeopardize Kitty.
"I'm one of you, Professor. I'm already into this mess and whatever it is I need to do to keep us safe, I'll do it." Kitty declared.
"Send me in, Professor." Zythandra stepped in and volunteered herself to come to the event. "All we need to do is to gather information about that Viper person, right?"
"It's true that we need information about our adversary but how about the students?" The Professor asked.
"Professor, we all know that this day would come. If you want a mentor that's 100% engaged in teaching the students, you could've gotten the best teacher or coach out there. Besides, I worked alongside the National Intelligence Agency before. Spy work is like a walk in the park for me." Zythandra explained.
"I understand your point." The Professor agreed. "So here's what I want things to go down, Kitty will focus her efforts in performing that everyone will be occupied by her talent while Zythandra will gather in the crowd and do her magic to gain information about the enemy."
"You laid it out very straightforward, Professor. I like that." Zythandra commented.
"Are you sure you want to do this, Zythandra?" The Professor asked.
"Of course, I am. It's been a long time since I got an assignment. I'll do it perfectly. No one will ever noticed that I've ever been there." Zythandra declared.
"That's great. I'll just get a ticket for you so you won't have any hard time entering the event." Kitty said.
"I appreciate that." Zythandra responded.
"Can I say something?" Calcipher asked.
"Go ahead, Calcipher." The Professor responded.
"I want to be included in this assignment too, Professor. Please let me join them." Calcipher stated.
"I agreed to sent out one mentor to an assignment. I think it would be best if one will remain don't you think?" The Professor declined his request.
"I think having him in the team would be beneficial, Professor." Zythandra said.
"Explain." The Professor responded.
"I heard that the club in the Infinity Lounge is spacious and having a spacious means it'll be crowded as hell. We need to have eyes and ears in there and that's where Calcipher comes in. If I remember it right, He's been working on a communication device that can't easily be detected by common radars. It will be a huge help if Kitty and I can communicate from the inside." Zythandra explained.
"If you put it that way, I totally agree with him being in the team." Kitty agreed to the mentors' proposal.
"Yes, I completed my tinkering of those earpieces and it's functioning very well ass per my very recent test. I can also give you some of my micro speakers which you can put to an individual so even though you're not even near that person, the speaker will still record every conversation he or she will have. We can use my van to get there." Calcipher said.
"Fine. I understand where all of these are coming from. I'll approve you three going to the event but, I want no word to be shared with the students. I'll come up with an excuse to make it seem that you two have an emergency outside that you need to attend to." The Professor finally acknowledged the idea of having the three of them doing the assignment. "Kitty, do you have the specific date of the event? We need to plan this thoroughly."
The four of them continued to set the layout of their plan through out the event. Basically, Kitty is in charge of the distraction, Zythandra is in charge of the information gathering and Calcipher is in charge of the surveillance. As Calcipher said, he'll do the surveillance work from his van that he'll park near the location. He'll hack the Infinity Lounge's circuits for him to connect to all the camera's in the club. Zythandra will maximize her talent in espionage to mingle with the guests.
"I'm liking the plan. It's pretty solid if you ask me." Zythandra stated.
"Our tasks were laid out neatly. I'm so excited. It's my first time being in an assignment as you call it, Z." Calcipher commented.
"I know it's too early to say this but I appreciate the help." Kitty said.
"Don't mention it, girl. My hands are just itching to do what I'm best at." Zythandra stated.
"Don't mention it, Fiona. I mean Kitty." Calcipher responded.
"Don't forget. Anything we've discussed will stay in this office. No word should go out about it. Understood?" The Professor declared.
"Yes, Professor." Kitty and the mentors responded.
Kitty went downstairs to surprise everyone with her unplanned visit. Due to being a celebrity outside the mansion, she doesn't remember or doesn't completely know some faces she sees roaming around the mansion. Good thing her batch mates, Pandora, Beast, Glass and Medusa are quick to fill her in with all the details she missed. Kitty declared that she'll be living in the mansion for some time as a vacation but in reality, she and the mentors will just prepare for their assignment that will take place in the Infinity Lounge.
Kitty met Reaper and she immediately recognized his face as she saw her once in the Infinity Lounge's bowling alley with Pandora, Beast and some other classmates. She learned about his Anomaly and his story before he eventually live in the mansion with the rest of the Anomalies. She came across Sprite as well. Surprisingly, Sprite is also a fan of Kitty so that's huge help to boost Sprite positive aura.
One weekend, Kitty and the rest of the gang prepared a small concert at the mansion's fields. As expected, Kitty performed very well. She performed some of her songs live with all the props and the setup. Thanks to some of Calcipher's help. After Kitty's first few performances in that mini concert, she surprised everyone as she called upon the Banshee sisters to sing. No one heard the sisters sing before let alone talk more than 5 sentences combined.
At first, the sisters were not coming up the stage probably because of being extremely due to the fact they're too much unwanted attention towards them but eventually Kitty was able to persuade them. At this point, everyone just sees to girls standing still on the stage without any of them doing anything. Then finally, the music starts. In everyone's astonishment, the sister's are about to sing a classical song base on classical music they're hearing. Everyone is on the edge of their seats as they anticipate what's going to happen. The Banshee sisters started to sing their hearts out with their own take of the Flower Duet composed by Léo Delibes. Everyone is in awe during the whole performance. No one knew The sisters sound so angelic. Kitty shared that she once heard the sisters singing while gardening. All of them did a standing ovation after the sisters sing.
Next, Kitty invited the Zythandra on stage to perform. Everyone was hyped up once again. No one would thought that their strict mentor will perform in front of them out of nowhere. But, Zythandra went up the stage without a trace of embarrassment and full of poise and confidence to herself. Little did everyone know, Zythandra was a trained ballet dancer. She performed one of her greatest routines and everyone saw a different side of her. A Zythandra that's calm, gentle and peaceful. Raging applause is the only thing being heard after that performance.
Finally, Calcipher was invited to perform. Everyone has high expectation since the Banshee sisters and Zythandra set the bar high with their performances. Calcipher went on the stage places his equipment and asked everyone to stand up. Calcipher showed his mad DJ skills. From the strobe lights to the head smashing mixes. Everyone's going wild. The only thing missing in that performance of his is alcohol which is not allowed since most of the students are minors but Pandora and others prepared a lot of juice and snacks to go along with it so everything going so well.
The night ended with a bang. Everyone was extremely happy and seemed to got closer to each other. Most of them asked to have the Professor perform as well but they couldn't make the head of the mansion do anything. The Professor simply said that he's not talented as the rest of them. Even though the Professor didn't sing or dance much in that event, everyone can tell that he had a great time as well.