Alan gazed at the tablet screen kept in front of him . He looked around and saw a similar sight all around him . Each student had a similar screen placed in front of him . The tablet screen demanded a scan of his palm and Alan complied . Only after it had confirmed Alan's identity did the test reveal itself . The test had four sections , Mental aptitude ,Ethics and Morals , History of Heroes and Sciences with each section consisting of fifty questions . Each correct answer awarded 5 marks and each incorrect question resulted in negative marking of 1 mark.
The faces of most of the students paled after seeing the test paper and Alan couldn't help but pity them. The theoretical paper of USDHA was on par with toughest ivy league tests but most of the general public and the rebellious teens thought that all you needed was cool powers and you could be a great hero when reality could not have been more different .
However Alan had a calm smile on his lips . Mr.Simmons knew about the tests at USDHA and had disciplined Alan from a young age and besides he grew up alone most of the time so he would seek solace in books too. He finished his test half an hour earlier and looked around in boredom when suddenly he made eye contact with Sapphire Sorceress . She was surprised lightly that a student had finished the exam quite early but then she also thought that maybe he left most of the test blank .
The test ended and few more Heroes stepped inside . There were total ten Heroes now including Sapphire Sorceress and then she addressed all applicants present there .
"There is a total of eight hundred of you present here today at this hall so we will be dividing you into groups eighty students and each of these ten groups will have a hero present to ensure safety measures."
She then switched on a large holographic screen and it displayed the groups and the Hero responsible for them . Alan looked at the screen and found out he was still in Sapphire Sorceress' group. The participants lined up in front of their respective Heroes went away to their respective locations . Sapphire Sorceress led her group into large room which was labelled as 'Battle Hall 9 ' They entered and saw a large training ground like room enclosed by metallic walls on all sides . It also had a energy barrier maintained around the hall.
"This part of the examination tests an individual's strength and control over their abilities under a time limit. See those dummy bots there and that large target . You have to aim your attacks on them and they will give us a reading which will be a direct measure of your power ",explained Sapphire Sorceress .
Alan looked around the training ground . He counted 18 dummy bots and 1 main target and a few spare targets . He thought for a while and looked around at the examinees near him and almost all of them looked confident and Alan realized that these guys were strong or either very confident in their abilities . Sapphire Sorceress cleared her throat and brought all the attention towards her self.
"I will be calling out the names now and these students have to tell me their powers before they start the test .... David Fletcher , please step forward ."
"Everyone looked at the person called and almost everyone knew that boy . He was the son of the current strongest Hero and the claimed third strongest Hero of all time . He belonged to a lineage of very powerful heroes and he was highly popular among girls as well . "
A boy of around 16 years and a height of around 6'2 stepped up . He had red hair and cocky almond eyes and a very bulky build like those professional body builders and his muscles bulged through his custom built combat suit which his family had provided him .
He grinned arrogantly and went in front of Sapphire Sorceress ..
"David Fletcher and my ability is to harden my muscles and bones which gives me a boost in strength , endurance and speed . "
Sapphire nodded while looking at her tablet noting down each and every detail . A kind of scorecard in front of her which revealed his marks in the theoretical paper .A hint of smile came on her face as she gestured to him with her hand . " Please proceed ahead , David . "
David puffed his chest and went towards the dummy bots . For a moment he stood completely still and then his body expanded and increased its size . Most of the students gasped involuntarily and even Sapphire sorceress had a visible smile on her lips . David turned for a second to look at their faces and smirk while running head straight towards the Dummy Bots . The Dummy bots suddenly woke up from their slumber while charging towards their assaulter .
David smirked and brought forward his fist at the nearest bot's face at a blinding speed . The Bot's skull got crushed but David's fist pushed through and the entire bot's body hit the ground creating a shockwave. The other bots got temporarily stunned by this maneuver and David took that opportunity to make short work of them. Parts of the Dummies flew here and there as the fight continued . As David tore off the skull of the last bot , he gazed at the target ahead .He massaged his knuckles and ran straight ahead . At just 10 meters before the target , he leapt into the air at a height of almost two stories and with a loud roar struck the target . The target shuddered under the impact and even the walls of the hall shook .
Sapphire sorceress was smiling brightly now . She thought to herself , " Lady luck is smiling at me . I now have the opportunity to teach potential number one ranked Hero of the world ! " She greeted David as he came back .
"Impressive David ! That was a great display . You completed your test in just 3 minutes . That might be one of the highest scores yet ! "
David smirked and nodded his head . He went back near the participants who cleared his path and gazed at him with admiration . He was loving every second of the attention he received but maintained a tough exterior and sat down as another student went ahead for his exams .