“That is correct. We’re in a separate plane composed of our two minds, held together by one of my abilities...”
One of his abilities?
“But, enough about that, time is fleeting, and we have a lot to do. We should warm up first so you get the basics. Come at me with everything you’ve got,” Mr. Ferris says confidently.
“Everything? But, my powers...”
“I already know about them, but that’s irrelevant here. If they’re still a part of you, you should be able to utilize them here. If you can’t activate them, then you might as well call it a day and go back to bed, because things are only going to get harder from here on out.”
“Fine, I’ll give it a shot.”
“Heh, so, what are you waiting for? Let’s see what you can do.” Mr. Ferris snickers and places his hands in his pockets. “Ready when you are.”
“Okay, here I go.” I lightly tug at my pool of power, and a flame suddenly ignites in my palm. No way. There’s no pain, and I didn’t even have to struggle to bring it out. My powers are in the same shape as they were before I fought Von—no—they’re stronger.
There’s no resistance at all.
“That’s a unique energy you got there, but from what Mr. Hoover told me, I expected more. That all you got?” Mr. Ferris snickers. I snap my gaze up from my palm and flash a smile.
“I’m just getting started.” I lower my body into my battle stance and tense my muscles, causing an influx of power to ignite from my core. The ground begins to tremble, and I can feel my energy growing denser.
“Ah, that’s more like it... Over here, the rules are different. You should have full access to your powers at their current level of maturity outside of this realm. Your mastery transfers over, so to speak. What you were capable of there, you are capable of here. Your body experiences this reality as a normal existence, even though that’s hardly the case... Now show me what you got.”
“Fine...by...me!” I push off from the ground, my hand ignited with my dark flame. Mr. Ferris keeps his hands in his pockets and his posture relaxed, but I don’t let his demeanor fool me. At the end of my reach, I discharge my energy, but he redirects it by adjusting the trajectory of my arm. He’s fast. My dark flare cuts past his head, and he plunges his knee into my chest. He knocks the wind out of me, but I don’t let it slow me down. I follow up by summoning my energy into my other hand to catch him off guard. He wanted me to give him everything I got, and now’s the perfect opportunity.
Flash Touch!
I shoot my hand towards his chest, ready to unleash my energy once I’m sure I can connect.
“Too slow!” Before I can touch him, his fist crashes into my jaw. He grabs my wrist while I’m stunned and jerks it towards the ground before I can release my energy. I quickly call off my attack and raise my guard to block his follow up, but he fakes me out and his leg crashes into my side, knocking me to the ground. Not only is he fast, but he’s strong too. And it’s not just that. He can read my movements perfectly. He knew exactly how to position himself to make releasing my energy pointless, and all from seeing it only once. “You asked me about my alias, so I figure now’s a good time to let you in on the story behind my name.” I slowly stand, my arm bracing my wounded side while I keep my flame engaged with the other. “I have a second ability that comes as a result of honing my first. Just like how a fire elemental can withstand extreme heat to the extent of their growth... I’ve unlocked a nifty skill due to the way my mind operates which allows me to do all sorts of cool things. Time moves slower for me when I focus...it’s almost like a switch I can flip at will in my mind, and when I do, my perception is altered to a level that far surpasses that of a normal human. I got my name because the concept of my combat style mimics a strategy shared by ranged fighters in online games—kiting. It’s when a player lures in a target, baiting them to attack, but, in all actuality, they aren’t in range so their attack falls short. The pursuer continues to attack, but the person kiting manages to stay just out of range of the enemy’s assault while simultaneously attacking on their own, successfully whittling them down. Pretty cool, huh? I’m sure you thought you had me a couple of times back there, didn’t you?”
“I figured your secondary ability was some form of telepathy. I was starting to think that you knew my attacks before I did.”
“No.” He laughs and waves his hands in front of him. “Nothing like that, but that would be cool.”
“Either way, it makes you impossible to hit unless you’re dealing with someone who has some serious firepower or something in their arsenal that can keep up with your perception,” I muse.
“You say that, but every ability has its flaws. There’s a limit to how long I can use my extreme concentration, and believe it or not, operating in this realm actually makes it harder to manage. In that exchange we just had, I used my ability for roughly one second in total. It was unnecessary in our fight, but an ability like mine is more interesting when experienced rather than explained.” Only one second? That means he dodged everything else on his own.
“I’m also holding this reality together, so that takes away some of my focus by default. I’m weaker here, but that’s not to say that you aren’t strong. You’ve only been at Crown for a couple of months, yet you move like you’re accustomed to battle. I should have figured that given how you handled the student who attacked you.”
“Von...” I say after powering down. Once my flame completely dissipates, I realize there’s a sharp drop in my energy—like I’d been fighting a lot longer than what had actually transpired. I haven’t been using my powers as of late, but not long enough to cause such a dramatic change... There’s more to this realm than I thought.
“Yes, him. It’s the reason why we’re here in the first place. Mr. Hoover told me that you thought your powers had died. Obviously, that isn’t case. They’re just being blocked right now. Mentally, by your subconscious. That’s why I’m here and why you’re here with me. Think of this initial meeting as an opportunity to orient you to this realm and give you a bit more information about what I plan to do.... Hmm. I see that you’ve stopped attacking, are you through, or did you burn off too much of your energy without realizing?”
“No, I’m fine, I just know that I can’t win as I am.”
“Smart. No use tuckering yourself out this early. I expected you to learn this the hard way, but you were savvy enough to take a step back and rethink your strategy, especially since the playing field has been entirely changed. You’ve been taught well.”
“Thanks. I’m just trying to do my best.” To be fair, I don’t think I would’ve been able to do much more if I fought him again, let alone actually hit him.
“Another point of interest. While you do have full access to your powers here, your energy isn’t unlimited. Everything you do here takes a toll on your spirit. By now, I’m assuming that you’re familiar with the concept, right? Mr. Hoover told me that you were a bit of a late bloomer, so I don’t want to take any chances. Your stamina is tied to your physical feats such as running, punching, things like that, and your spirit is akin to the separate energy source that most of us have when using abilities. There’s an undeniably strong mental component as well, hence your current predicament. Some crossover between the stamina and spirit exists also, but for the sake of simplicity, the more spirit you possess, the more frequently and effectively you can use abilities that require them. With enough training, new things become possible.” I nod in silence while thinking back to the attack I launched against Von. A projectile. Does that mean I should be able to do that now? “Luckily for you, everything we do here trains your spirit. You won’t get physically stronger, but your spirit, and even your mind, will most certainly reap the rewards. Being a late bloomer means that your spirit isn’t quite as refined as the other students here in the combat program, so there’s a lot of room for improvement. The degree to which you can use your powers should skyrocket, provided you stick with it.”
“Cool.”
“I know right? We’re training, but to the outside world, you and I are just sitting in front of a waterfall.”
“So, do you use your powers to primarily train people or...?”
“No, it’s actually quite the opposite. I use it to break people down. You’re one of the few that I’ve worked with in this manner. My combat skills are decent, but I’m primarily sought after for the ability that I’m using right now—interiorization. Usually, my skills are used for interrogation purposes...reconnaissance...things of that nature, although my abilities are highly versatile. Everything you feel here is indistinguishable from the real thing. Even if you haven’t felt it before, your mind drums up what you think it feels like by combining memories and sensations from previous stimuli, forming an educated guess of sorts.”
“I see, so you’re basically hired out by shadow organizations to torture people.”
“Flat out torture, no, but I do put them under mental duress if necessary. For others, I don’t have to go nearly that far. I have a code, you can say. I only take jobs that align with that.”
Great, so this guy is like a ninja...and he says his combat skills are only decent? I couldn’t touch him. Is he being for real right now? “So, how do they go about finding you?”
“One thing at a time, kiddo. Your powers are what’s important here.” Throwing out shadow organizations was just a stab in the dark, but he didn’t refute it... Just like I thought. There’s still so much I don’t know about how these organizations work, and everyone’s tightlipped or skirts around the subject altogether. “In order for us to get them back, we’re going to have to dig into your mind, but you’re far from ready.”
“Dig into my mind? You can access my memories?”
“Yes, and no. I can help you explore them by allowing your subconscious to run free, but I can’t browse through them at will. I kinda just let your brain take the wheel, and help you drive it. The way that Mr. Hoover explained it to me is that your battle with Von is causing a mental block that’s compounding your existing problems. Your spirit needs refinement, so we’ll tackle that first before we do a deep dive... I see that look on your face, and yes, this is only the surface. Things get a lot crazier around here. We’ll work on training your spirit some more next time we meet.”
“Next time? We’re done for the day?”
“Hmph. You shouldn’t be too eager, Aiden. Check your energy, like, really search it.” I do what he says and pull my attention away from what’s going on to focus on what’s inside. I noticed a sharp drop before, but that’s not entirely the case, and it’s clear now. He mentioned that everything I do here takes a toll on my spirit, but I didn’t realize he meant just existing. It’s only a trickle, but it’s like I’m slowly being depleted. Is this another ability of his?
“You’re more tired than you realized, right?”
“Yeah, I am...why?”
“This realm is highly taxing on the mind. For regular humans, being in here too long can cause extreme duress. For people like us, we have a bit of a buffer, our spirit, for certain types, can soften the blow, at least in most cases. Mental toughness and the strength of your will are also a factor. I’m sure that Mr. Hoover mentioned to you that you should be well-rested before seeing me, yeah? That wasn’t just some cordial advice. If you stay here long enough, it’s no stretch to say that it can corrode your mind. Even though my mind can do it naturally, yours can’t. It’s a foreign stressor that few people have experience with. We’re blending parts of our mind right now, and your mental state plays a role in how quickly you decline—and there’s a bit of bleed through between here and the real world. Push yourself too far, and you might have a rough time once you leave here, and not just with your energy, understand? I know you can do more, but you still have classes to go to. You’ve made progress just by being here, no use in overdoing it on your first day.”
“Yeah...I guess you’re right.”
“Ha. I know I am.” Mr. Ferris steps in closer. “Whenever it’s time to go, I can break the link by touching you with clear intent.” He extends his fist towards me and smiles. “Like this.” He nudges my body and there’s a brief flash of light followed by an overwhelming darkness. I feel a shift within my body, and I realize that my eyes are closed, and I’m back in control of my physical body. The wind on my skin, the humidity in the environment, and even the crashing water in the background, they’re all amplified as if my senses have somehow kicked into overdrive. My eyes shoot open and I lurch forward, my palms pressed against the ground as I gasp for air. “Breathe, Aiden. Take your time to re-center yourself. Everything’s okay. Your mind’s just recalibrating to your body.”
“I got it. I’m fine,” I force out. “It just caught me off guard.” I say that, but in all actuality, my head’s spinning and it feels like there’s a hole in my stomach.
“You’ll get used to it,” Mr. Ferris says nonchalantly. “So, how was that for your first session? Any questions?”
“When’s the next one?” I stand up and press my palm against my temple.
“Tomorrow, if you’re up for it. Same spot, same time.”
“Sounds good.”
“You know, if you need to, you can rest your eyes for a bit. It’s still pretty early, and it’ll help you recharge.”
“Yeah...yeah, I’ll do that,” I respond, weariness evident in my voice. “Thanks.”
“See you around.” Mr. Ferris closes his eyes and his expression becomes flat. With the conversation clearly over, I don’t try to disturb him from whatever he’s doing. I check my phone, and to my surprise, it’s just like what he said. There’s still plenty of time to do what I need to tackle the day.
I walk back from the park and make it back to the central part of campus. The early risers are up now, jogging, walking to the cafeteria, and all around getting their day started. By the time I make it back to my room, I find my mental fatigue catching up with me. I set my alarm before climbing back into bed to rest my eyes. It isn’t long before I begin to feel drowsy and drift off. I didn’t realize that I was l sleeping until Von’s hand pierces through the darkness and reaches for my throat.
I spring up from my bed and check my phone. It’s only been about an hour. I feel better, but that isn’t saying much. I try to go back to sleep again to get as much shuteye as possible before class. I have a full day ahead of me, and Summer’s going to be banging on my door before I know it.
Chapter 6
“Hey, Aiden? You ready?” I swing open the door before Summer can continue her assault on our front door.
“You really have to chill with the banging this early, Summer. People are going to start hating us.”
“They haven’t said anything yet.” She snickers.
“Maybe not to your face, but—”
“So, are you going to tell me what really happened yesterday? You’re good, right? Right?” I shut the door behind me, not breaking eye contact with her. Her mood instantly shifts, becoming more serious as she stares me down. “You know you can’t hide anything from me, right? We’re partners. We haven’t been disbanded yet. Erik wants to know too.”
“Mr. Hoover and I had a talk, and...and I wanted...I needed some help with something that’s been bothering me for a while now...”
“Like, what?”
“Managing my energy,” I say, narrowly avoiding the truth. I know it doesn’t make sense, but even thinking about telling her or any of my classmates the full story brings me to shame...like I’m an embarrassment somehow even though I’m working on myself. I don’t want them to judge me, especially after how they see me after standing up to Von.
“Managing your energy?” Summer asks with a furrowed brow. “You still need help with that?”
“Yeah...can’t you tell? I asked you awhile back and you gave me a ridiculous answer. I was hoping Mr. Hoover could give me something a bit more refined. The textbooks can only teach you so much, and I think I’m a bit beyond the basics now.” I mov
e from the door and Summer follows.
“I mean, it’s just practicing what you already know,” Summer says flatly. “You gain more control over time.”
“Yeah, for you maybe, but I was a little late to the game. My powers never really had a chance to mature. When I fought Von, I was able to actually shoot a projectile. I haven’t been able to do that since... I’d like to do that and see what else I can do. I think I’ve hit a wall going at it by myself and was wondering if Mr. Hoover could lend me a hand. When I first started here, he gave me little exercises to do and stuff to make up the difference between me and everyone else, but I’m beyond that now. I’m looking for the next step.”
“So, you’re wanting to get stronger then?”
“I guess you can say that.”
“This isn’t about Von, is it?”
“Not at all,” I lie. “It’s just that the timing’s perfect. Besides, you were the one who told me that I was going to be in the top spot now.”
“That was a while ago, and I was joking,” she confesses. “Crown is competitive, but we’re not psychopaths.”
“Yeah, I get that, but I mean, there was some truth to it. It’s part of the reason why everyone was weirded out by me showing up in class and how Malik was inspired by my fight to switch over to combat. I may not be the strongest of the class, but everyone who saw what happened was impressed. That means something, I guess.”
“Hmm... I think what really stood out to everyone was how brave you were. There were other students around with combat abilities, teachers too. They hesitated, but you didn’t. You gave it your all. That’s what I think matters the most. That’s what made you stand out. If we’re going to be doing this sort of thing in the future, you can’t hesitate. Even when you’re afraid, you got to go for it, you know? It’s funny...when you first started here, you couldn’t do anything.”
“Gee, thanks...”
“Hey! Let me finish. You couldn’t do anything, but you were always down to give it a go. You were paired up with a bunch of freaks in a combat class, and even without powers you never backed down... Even when it all seemed hopeless, you gave it your all. I know Tristen and some of the other students gave you hell, they tried to crush your spirit, but I think that was because they were jealous. Not everyone has the ability to hang in there like you were doing. A lot of people would have given up on themselves.” Summer sighs. “I mean, you’re on your second day back after going through something traumatic, and you haven’t missed a beat. You were working on your studies and stuff from your bed. Ugh... What I’m trying to say is...you know what? Never mind. I’m already getting too mushy. It’s disgusting... You work hard, so don’t be so hard on yourself,” she forces out after a brief silence. “You’ll get the hang of everything before you know it. Just keep being you.”
The Prodigy Page 6