Template:Featured Articles/7-2017

Moment of Awesome - Sooraya Qadir/Dust : Training with Everett Thomas in the Danger Room, Sooraya achieves a new aspect of her powers. Packing together her sand form was not really uncomfortable anymore... it was just that the human shape was a lot more complicated to form then the simple geometric forms she often used. Sooraya decided to discard the details and just focus on the main lines. There... where eyes of a human would have been... and in the middle of the thing's chest. Those were her targets. A metallic tentacle came out from the outstretched hand of the now-standing Sentinel, the pincers on its tip snapping at the humanoid sand-Sooraya. The Sentinel lifted its arm, raising the tentacle with it, and then slammed it down to bludgeon Sooraya like a whip. The whip passed through the sand, splitting apart, but sealing back together immediately as it passed through. Something that faintly resembled a smirk formed on her 'face' and both fists shot out, aimed at the sensor on it's 'chest'. The combination of force and razor sharp sand cut through the thin metal and plastic as a knife through butter. The Sentinel shuddered and jerked like it was having a seizure. It tried to raise its whip again, but it hadn't the strength anymore. The robot stumbled back several steps and then collapsed with a loud boom. The lights in its eyes dimmed and it was still. A moment passed before the Danger Room alarm dinged and the holograms vanished, leaving the still-glowing Ev and sand-Sooraya in the empty metal-lined room. Holding the tablet under one arm, Ev applauded and whistled. "Marvelously done! That was great, Sooraya." Sooraya assumed her human shape and walked over to the wall, picking up a bottle of water and taking several long sips. "Thanks. Only... was the last bit not a little bit too easy? I mean, I only took out one set of it's sensors? Or are there other vital components just behind the sensors that I hit as well?" Ev shrugged and took out the tablet to review the data being analyzed and displayed. "That's how that particular menace is set at this difficulty level. There's only so much data on this thing so I guess whoever programmed it had to fill in the blanks. But even so, you needed quite an oomph to to destroy that one sensor. It wasn't a cake walk." She walked over and peeked over his shoulder at the display. "Difficulty level was not set overly high." Sooraya mentioned with a note of disappointment in her voice. "Though..." Her voice brightened at the next words. "... I finally did manage to pull myself together in a human shape!" "Beating the snot out of a giant robot wasn't the challenge, even if it was pretty damn fun to watch. This was about achieving and maintaining that form in the face of danger. And you did it! After all that work. You should be proud."