[center][img]http://i.imgur.com/ktlhhm5.png[/img][/center]
What was he supposed to feel about this?

As Shane resolved in entire incident in less time than it took for the trio to even arrive here, Brent could only watch as those crystalline structures provided both salvation and destruction. The golem, turning into a whirlwind of dirt, couldn’t do anything at all as students (and one dragon) was airlifted into safety, before the pink-haired Arbiter put on some actual clothes and put his full attention into destroying the monsters that remained.

In a large scale attack that made even Prism’s laser beams pale in comparison, a massive dome of death was erected, swallowing the entire battlefield whole, before Shane grounded everything within into dust. The golem, the ‘category three’ that was greater than a monster that could level multiple city blocks, was torn into shreds, its core crushed and its ‘body’ scattered into the wind. The scorpion fared worse, its carapace shattered and insectoid fluids creating a blue splash against the diamond dome, before even that was engulfed by a myriad of stakes. The Olive Garden wasn’t even an issue, meatballs and spaghetti put into a blender and turned into goo. And, at the end of all this, Shane even went out of his way to drill the death-dome into the earth as well, a tremendous quake resounding as the earth was rend.

From some miracle, none of the military trucks had toppled over during that devastation, and once those crystals dissipated into emptiness, all that remained was a new landmark on the map.

Brent stood at the edge of the aerial platform, his eyes wide, his mouth open, trying to comprehend the enormity of all this from someone who was more injured than he was. Shane could give birth from his dick and not be in as much pain as he currently is. And yet he could do this? With such power, what the hell was he and Sophia even doing here? Moral support? Strategic advice? In-flight entertainment?

A familiar, unpleasant feeling surfaced. In the face of such might, what were any of them doing here? What…what was he supposed to feel about this?

[quote][color=f7976a]“We can't trust your aim.”[/color][/quote]
In the face of that power, Shane didn’t need to trust anyone but himself.

[quote][color=f7976a]“They'll learn soon enough. I'm just helping them earn their stripes.”[/color][/quote]
In the face of that power, Brent had earned nothing, learned nothing.

[quote][color=f7976a]"Not all of us are useful."[/color][/quote]
In the face of that power, Alex was right.

His amethyst eyes flickered at those who survived. Exhausted, injured, angry, grieving, [i]breaking[/i].

All their efforts were for naught. Nothing would have changed if they had never came over to begin with. And even though Shane’s injury had reopened, even though he had to resort to drinking the magic blood of an unconscious boy after that, even though he could scarcely speak…it didn’t matter. The strongest Arbiter in USARILN East held a fragment of god within him, and Brent’s own power couldn’t match it at all.

Generation and manipulation vs improvement? What a fucking joke.

[quote][color=black]“This isn’t enough.”[/color][/quote]
He narrowed his eyes. What wasn’t enough?

[quote][color=black]“Everything.”[/color][/quote]
Then that made it simple. He’ll study more. Train more. Practice more. Utilize his power more. Do everything more, until he could be trusted, could earn his stripes, could be useful. Brent smiled, the [i]same lovely, genuine smile[/i] he always had.

[color=B0C4DE]“Damn Shane,”[/color] he said, with a short laugh, [color=B0C4DE]“That was fucking bonkers! Were you this insane when you first got here, or what? Like, god, that’s some massive overkill. Visualized the golem as those green pigs or something?”[/color]

Turning to Sophia, Brent almost considered slapping her on the back, before recalling her whole thing about not using his right hand. Instead, he said, [color=B0C4DE]“And hey, Sophia, guess we weren’t really drafted after all, eh? Guess Zhang just wanted us to witness the gloriously incandescent form of the strongest and all.”[/color]

Everyone else was tired, vomitting, or whatever else, but Brent decided not to let that stop him.

It was always better to smile, after all.