"Who else have you got with passive powers?"

"Well, there's Professor Munoz, although I suppose it's inaccurate to describe his power as passive, defensive though it is. He can basically adapt to survive anything, including disintegration. There's a kid with an immune system that can fight off pretty much everything--we haven't exposed him to anything beyond the normal, but apparently some of his T-cells in a petri dish have won some pretty impressive grudge matches."

"All right, maybe it'd've worked better than I thought. And I can pretend I have a power that does something with the exo, anyway."

"Well, you have a power that lets you use the exo."

"I have a power that makes it legal. Anyone could use it."

"I meant more that you couldn't have gotten your hands on it if it wasn't legal. If you could have then the power that lets you use the exo would presumably be called 'being rich.'"

"True. Is that a power that qualifies for admission into the school?"

"No, not on its own."

"Didn't think so."

"I wonder if it would be safe for me to use one, I'm on the high end of telepaths and could probably swat anyone who tried to hijack it."

"Nobody on your world will stop you if you want to try it, anyway. It's only a real issue if someone notices how it works and decides to attack you and you can't beat them."

"Yeah. It might be a little hard to pull off if I can't get it reverse-engineered, tho'. ...And I wonder if it blocks magnetists sensing as well as pulling it, because my sister emphatically does not need that kind of feedback about the topography of my body."

"It doesn't go everywhere. But I don't know, I've never asked one."

"If it goes over the breasts it's apparently TMI. I've discussed this with her."

"I mean, I barely have any, but when they show up I do have to reconfigure the exo around 'em because they'll get in the way of the muscles, which are what the exo is supposed to go on top of."

"...Not that it actually matters, because reverse-engineered Milliways technology is the best, but would it do anything for someone who was paraplegic?"

"Depends on why."

"Bullet to the spine."

"Yeah, probably, the exo could jump the nerve damage. I'm not a doctor but that's my understanding."

"Good to know. Again, not massively relevant, but still good to know."

"It's the best gadget."

"I bet. Bar, I haven't decided yet, but if I did want an exoskeleton like hers what would it cost me?"

$87,350.

"...Seems a bit excessive considering I already have a near-perfectly functioning body that does what I want it to. I think I'll pass, at least for now."

"My parents didn't pay for it out of pocket but I forget if it was insurance, the IF pulling strings, or the company giving it to me for free as a PR thing. I just opened it up on Christmas."