Taylor stood in the middle of the cleared floor of the basement.
The day seemed to have passed agonizingly slowly after she had discovered the Flight power that morning. A part of her felt like she's back in kindergarten again, impatiently eager to get home to eat her favorite home cooked food (that reminds her, maybe she should cook that lasagna for her and dad soon...). A Flight power! She could finally fulfill her childhood dreams of flying like Alexandria! With her minor Brute powers, she's already an Alexandria lite!
Another part was... puzzled. Why did the Flight power only appeared to me now? Not about 4 weeks ago (huh, it's only that long ago since the locker? Nearly into five weeks?) with the Hardlight Shield power? What's the difference between the two? Am I a Trump? Coming up with new powers like Eidolon? Or is it something else? Certainly isn't instantly like him...
Taylor had raked her brain throughout her classes, trying to tease out the differences. She tried to remember as best as she could at events before she became aware of the powers.
'Is it because I saw Glory Girl? I copied her powers?' Taylor mentally questioned, absentmindedly ignoring the barbs Emma threw at her as she exited her last class (and nearly mowing down Madison who attempted to block her path). 'No, I saw Panacea as well, but I didn't get anything related to healing others. What was I thinking of at the time...'.
Taylor blinked, before taking a right to avoid an incoming Sophia (itchy right ear lobe!). 'I... had wished I could fly like her....' Taylor thought, finally exiting Winslow High. 'It couldn't be that simple, right? But the Hardlight Shield power came unprompted.'
'Did it? Way back then, I hoped for something to defend myself...'
'But why it didn't appear when I tried to fly the first times?'
'...did I actually asked my (suspected Trump) power for it, or did I jump straight into attempting to fly with the powers I already have at that time?'
Thoughts like these ran round and round Taylor's head as she quickly made her way home.
Now, alone in the basement of her house, with her dad still at work until evening, Taylor focused on the main event of this afternoon. She tried to calm herself down, took a deep breath, and internally feed her 'energy' into the Flight power like how it felt when she fed it into the Hardlight Shield power the first time she managed to get it right.
This time, the 'energy' surged in and the new power activated with a mental 'ping!'.
On Taylor's back, three teal coloured translucent 'petals', each about a foot-long and looked like narrow triangles appeared, arranged in an inverted triangle with their points equidistant around a foot wide teal coloured halo that was centered right between her shoulder blades (For some reason, a pair of wings and a tail comes to mind). Immediately, she could feel the Flight power 'thrum', ready to move and fly. She let out the breath, took another, and willed herself up.
And as easy as you please, Taylor was hovering a foot off the floor, in the middle of the basement. A wide, beaming smile broke out on her face.
For the next half an hour, she zipped, pirouetted and flipped all over within the confined space of the basement, a joyful, giddy laughter bursting out. This Flight power incredible! She had an abstract idea of what it can do, how ridiculously fast and agile, how it swerve and stop on a dime, how much it can carry (maybe up to about two or three adults, she'll have to work on her arm strength and/or her telekinesis). But to actually do it, it was amazing!
She wanted to try it outdoors, in the open sky. To really let things rip. To see if she can really go supersonic like the power matrix suggested she could...
...Oh. But people might recognize her if she go outside. And... she did say to herself that she'll tell dad about her being a cape if she had something impressive. And being able to fly with this speed and agility counts as impressive...
....
...a quick test flight first couldn't hurt, right? Just to reassure herself that what she 'read' from the power matrix is accurate, right? No one will get hurt or can get a good look at her if she's very high up, right?
...costume. She'll need a costume. And a mask. To protect her identity.
Tomorrow's Saturday. She can ask for extra allowance tonight and head to the Broadwalk and the Lord's Street to pick up stuff for a costume. A simple one will do. Slacks, Top, a cheap wetsuit and a mask. Maybe a trenchcoat? Easy, right?
**************************
The next day, Taylor's mind wandered back to the maybe Trump power issue as she got off the bus and walked towards the Broadwalk.
'Is it really that simple?' She wondered, crossing the road. 'Just... ask my power for another power?'
'I need to test it.' She determined. 'What to ask for?' She looked around for inspiration as she reached the marketplace proper. Her eyes fell on a computer parts and supplies shop. Specifically, a couple of posters in the window showing the in game footage of a strategy game and a shooter game.
'...awareness. I got something.' She paused and think inward. 'I want a power that's like a Real Time Strategy game map or First Person Shooter game map, that can show me,point me and alert me, in a large area around me, things or people of interest, enemies, hostile intent, weapons, treasure and so on.'
For a moment, Taylor thought nothing happened. Then, now she's focused for it, she felt it. A sense that a part of her within her brain (?) started rummaging and sorting.
'Guess it wasn't instantaneous.' Taylor thought as she started to browse the market stalls.
Taylor had picked out a set of slim jeans and a cheerleader skirt ('the better to show off your legs, darling!' a part of her suddenly declared, surprising her. Where that come from?). As she browsed, her eyes glanced over a nearby bench, where a effeminate, casually dressed boy engrossed in his gameboy sat next to a blonde freckled face girl (why did she reminded Taylor of a fox?) that's enjoying her ice cream-
[QUEEN ADMINISTRATOR: INVOKING ADMINISTRATOR PRIVILEGES: DATA REQUESTED!]
-when she saw those two suddenly grimaced, dropped their gameboy and ice cream respectively and rubbed their heads in pain, like they had abruptly suffered a sudden intensely painful migraine. Shrugging off the odd sight (and the sudden surge of giddiness she usually get when reading something like a new research paper or two), Taylor continued her shopping, spotting a vest and top that might work...
**************************
Taylor settled into bed that night, satisfied with her purchases. With some new options and work, she'll have a decent costume for her test flight. Maybe use the long sleeved jumpsuit as a base, add some pockets or belts or the vest on the emsemble and an old Halloween mask to be reinforce later with goggles (with her prescription lenses in them) and scuba gear straps, and she'll be ready to go. May take a few days to sew and modify everything together....
As she laid her head on her pillow, she felt it. The sense of satisfaction of a completed project and a new power settling next to the others.
Variable Wide Area Mapping with Objective Intention Determination Personnel Identification spell matrix, with Integrated Predictive Battlefield Analysis and On Time Assisted Targeting.
....she'll call this new power Radar.