Being Watched

Alice decided to celebrate her victory with her friends at a café, each one looking at her in amazement.

"You were amazing!" Rachel exclaims, still in shock.

Alice smiles modestly, sipping her tea.

"Seriously, how did you manage to break through Zarlivius's barrier? No one has ever been able to do that before!" Kairy chimes in.

"It was all about finding the weak point," Alice explains, "Zarlivius's barrier looked impenetrable, but every shield has a weak spot. I just had to find it."

"But the fact that you did it with gamma ray, which is supposedly impossible to see without special equipment, is insane," Kinsey said, her eyes wide with amazement.

Alice shrugs nonchalantly, taking another sip of her tea. "Like I said, I'm not like most people. And besides, you saw how it shook Zarlivius up when I broke through. He was completely rattled."

The group chuckles, recalling Zarlivius' shocked expression as the barrier shattered around him.

"It was so satisfying to see him knocked down a peg," Alice adds, her smirk widening.

"Yeah, he was such an arrogant jerk," Rachel comments, rolling her eyes. "He thought he could just walk all over everyone, but you totally humbled him. It was awesome.”

"I don't think I've ever seen someone look so shocked," Kairy chuckles. "His reaction was priceless, like he couldn't believe someone had actually beaten him."

"I bet he'll be thinking twice before bragging about his 'impenetrable barrier' again," Kinsey smirks.

The group laughs again, imagining Zarlivius' frustration and embarrassment. "He was so sure he was going to win, and then you come along and completely dismantle him," Kairy says, shaking her head in disbelief.

"Look at this," Rachel alerts, showing her phone with a picture of the full electromagnetic spectrum. Her finger hovered over the visible light range. "We can only see this tiny notch of the whole spectrum."

"Yeah, humans are practically blind," Kairy added with a chuckle.

"And yet we call ourselves the most developed species on the planet," Kinsey mutters, rolling her eyes. "It's pretty pathetic when you think about it.”

Alice nods in agreement. "I know, it's crazy. I mean, there's an entire spectrum of energy and information that we can't even perceive because our eyes are limited to just this tiny portion. It's like trying to play a video game while wearing blindfolds."

"Makes me wonder," Kairy said as she leaned in closer, "Could you see the entire spectrum at once?"

Alice nodded with hesitancy. "Yes...but I don't want to—it's absolute hell because EM radiation is literally everywhere, and the end result would just be a euphoric smudge of colors. I'd be totally blind to anything in my surroundings."

"Wow, that sounds intense," Kairy says, her eyes wide.

"Seriously, I couldn't even imagine," Kinsey adds.

"But it makes sense," Rachel chimes in, "our eyes aren't adapted to seeing the whole spectrum; they're calibrated to see visible light only. If we tried, our brains would be completely overwhelmed and unable to make sense of everything we're suddenly seeing."

"Yeah, 'cause like," Kairy began, her eyes narrowing in contemplation, "I know humans have 3 photo receptors to detect light, but how many would we need to see the entire spectrum?"

"Good question," Alice muses, stirring her tea. "If humans wanted to be able to see the whole spectrum, we'd need at least...bear with me here...75,000 distinct receptors."

The group was stunned into silence. "Seventy-five thousand?!" Kinsey was the first to break the quiet. "Seriously? That's an insane number. Where'd you get that?”

"EM radiation is extremely broad, covering everything from gamma rays to radio waves," Alice explains, gesturing with her hands. "Each band on the spectrum has its own wavelength and energy level, and to be able to detect all of them, we'd need a ridiculous number of different receptors in our eyes. With that number of receptors, we'd be able to see like—7,500,000 distinct colors that people couldn't even begin to fathom.”

The group laughs at the mental image. "That's a headache waiting to happen," Rachel chuckles, "Imagine trying to pick out one voice from all that noise.”

"Yeah, I doubt our brains are wired to handle that kind of sensory overload," Kairy agrees with a chuckle.

"Still, it's fascinating to think about what we're missing out on, though," Kinsey remarks, "all these frequencies we have no idea even exist, and yet they're constantly surrounding us every minute of the day."

"But YOU can see them," Rachel said, looking at Alice with a newfound fascination, "Can you shift your vision to X-ray real quick and see my bones?”

Alice smirks, amused by Rachel's request. "Sure, why not." Alice activates her Miracle Eyes and shifts her vision to the X-ray wavelength, then looks at Rachel.

"Wow," Alice says, her eyebrows raising, "I can see all your bones now. Kinda creepy, but cool."

The group leans in closer, curious. "Really?" Kinsey asks. "How clear is the image?”

"Very clear," Alice replies, "Every bone in your body is visible. Your skull looks particularly intricate in structure. I can see all the ridges and indentations on it...your sinuses as well."

"My sinuses?!" Rachel exclaims, "you can see the inside of my nose!?”

"Yep," Alice confirms, still peering at Rachel with X-ray vision. "I can see inside your sinus cavities. And...wow, you've got some pretty good airflow. Your sinuses look healthy, and your turbinates are well-developed.”

The group is both fascinated and slightly weirded out at Alice's description. "That's...very specific," Kinsey comments, "It's amazing what you can see like that."

"But isn't it kind of...invasive?" Kairy asks, a bit concerned.

"Not really," Alice replies, shrugging. "I'm just seeing what's there, just in a different way. It's no different than using a medical X-ray machine.”

The group nods, understanding that Alice's ability is simply a different way of sensing the world.

"Still," Rachel pipes up, a playful glint in her eye, "it's a bit weird knowing you can see inside my body right now.”

The group snickers at Alice's comment, finding humor in the absurdity of the situation. "Well, could you try the radio wave spectrum next, Al? What would you see then??”

"Sure." Alice shifts her vision to the radio wave spectrum.

"Hm..." Alice murmurs, tilting her head as she observes their surroundings with this new perspective. "I can see all the electromagnetic fields now. I see your phones, the powerlines, the Wi-Fi signals...and some other things…”

The group's curiosity perks up at the mention of "other things."

"Other things?" Kairy parrots, raising an eyebrow. "What do you mean?”

"There are lots of other things emitting radio waves that people wouldn't normally notice," Alice explains, her eyes still scanning the surroundings. "Electrical appliances, cell phone towers, wireless speakers, car alarms, wireless security cameras…" She pauses, her eyes widening slightly. "And...I think someone is monitoring this cafe with a hidden wireless camera.”

The group's eyebrows shoot up in surprise. "What?!" Rachel exclaims, "someone's watching us here?!"

"Looks like it," Alice confirms, still scanning the area. "There's a small device hidden near the espresso machine. The lens is aimed right in the direction of our table.”

The group glances nervously towards the espresso machine, trying to spot the hidden device for themselves.

"I don't see anything..." Kairy mutters, her eyes darting around the cafe.

"It's very small," Alice reassures her, "and well-concealed. You wouldn't notice it unless you looked through the radio wave spectrum.”

The group falls silent again, contemplating the idea of being secretly surveilled.

"But who would be spying on us?" Kinsey asks, her brows furrowing. "And how long has the camera been there?"

"Judging by the dust buildup on the device, it's been here for a couple of days at least," Alice notes, still observing the camera with her radio wave vision. "As for who it could be...I have a hunch.”

The group leans in, eager to hear Alice's theory. "Who do you think it is?" Kairy asks, her voice low.

Alice's gaze is fixed on the espresso machine, still observing the hidden camera. "I recognize the design of the device," she says slowly, "It's a miniature surveillance camera, the kind that's often used for covert operations. The fact that it's hidden near the espresso machine...it's as if whoever placed it knew exactly where we'd be sitting. And that narrows down the suspects significantly.”

The group is quiet, the gears in their minds turning as they contemplate the implications.

"Wait..." Kairy mutters, a realization dawning on her, "Are you saying..."

Alice nods gravely. "Yeah," she replies, her eyes narrowing, "someone is watching us on behalf of the government—most likely the Platinum Army. I'd recognize that type of equipment from anywhere.”