《Power Initialization [Power Crafting LitRPG]》 Chapter One Eli grunted as Tom Harver''s fist sank into his gut for the fifth time since his beating began for the day. The bully had been hitting him nonstop for what felt like minutes and Eli was pretty sure he could feel ribs cracking, but that wasn''t enough to stop him from getting up again. He''d gotten in three good hits of his own before being knocked down by another blow. "Had enough yet?" Tom sneered as he shoved Eli over so that he sprawled out on the pavement. "I told you what would happen if you came around here again." "And I told you," Eli wheezed his words around the searing bar of pain in his chest, "to stop selling your trashy weed to my sister. Leave her alone or I''ll make you." Tom laughed and kicked Eli''s chest, rocking his body back into the brick wall of the abandoned gymnasium. "What are you going to do? You''re nothing but a loner that has to stalk your sister to get her to talk to you. Next time you interrupt my business, I''m going to break something. If I didn''t already." Tom spat a thick globule of saliva that dribbled down Eli''s face. He lay there gasping for breath while he tried to stand. Bruises pulsed across his ribs where he''d been kicked without mercy. Movement flashed in the corner of his tear-blurred vision. Lyra, his youngest sister, standing at the edge of the shadows watching them nervously. She winced while she waited for Tom to leave before she rushed over to crouch beside him. "Oh my god, Eli I''m so sorry. I didn''t think this would happen. I... I just saw Lana leaving with them and texted you... I didn''t think they''d beat you up like this." "It''s... okay Lyra. Don''t worry about it." Eli hissed through the pain as he wiped the mix of blood and spit off his face and curled up with his back against the brick wall. "I can''t believe she''s hanging around those losers still." "Should we tell Mom and Dad?" Lyra''s eyes shimmered with unshed tears. Eli winced at the thought of blemishing his parents'' idea of their twins. They were three years younger than he was and he''d felt like he''d been in charge for as long as he could remember. Now Lana was drifting away as she escaped into drugs and boys. Lyra was a nervous mess over their sister and the crushing workload of high school. How could he leave for college with things like this? "I don''t know..." Eli muttered. "All they''d be able to do is yell at some teachers and administrators then we''d get in trouble for ''snitching''." As soon as he said it aloud, he knew how true it was. He loved his parents, but they did everything like the forces of nature they were. When he''d been overworked last fall at his fast food job, they''d strolled in and sworn up a storm at his managers about how they were giving him too many hours. He had to quit shortly after that, it had been too embarrassing to face any of his coworkers after that. "Well what are you going to tell them about all of your bruises?" Lyra raised her eyebrow. "I don¡¯t know, but I better figure it out soon. Seventh period is almost over," Eli sighed as he struggled to climb up to his feet. Then, everything went black. Nothing was visible except his body, not even his clothes. He really hoped he was hallucinating and that he wasn''t actually naked. A public indecency charge would not look good on any of his college applications. The words burned themselves into the void in front of his eyes, before a screen popped up in the open space. Eli stared at the floating screen as he wondered if he had a concussion and had slipped into some kind of psychedelic nightmare. He flapped his arms and tried to pinch himself, but nothing changed. "Am I dreaming?" He asked just so he could hear his own voice and then he blinked in surprise as the text on the screen changed. "No! My name is Elias Newton." He corrected it instantly before his gut sank at the realization that he was talking to his hallucination. At least his parents had decent insurance, otherwise, he''d be a lot more afraid of what the ensuing medical costs would look like. Going into a mental hospital would be scary enough without the thought of overly burdening his parents like that. "Yes." Eli frowned as the screen updated and then vanished. The pitch black void brightened to a almost blinding white and he felt as if he were falling from an astronomical distance. A new screen popped up in front of his eyes. "Um... what?" He asked, then shrugged. It wasn''t like he could do anything but answer these asinine questions. Maybe the sooner he was finished with this the quicker he''d wake back up? "I guess when my parents took all of us to Orlando for the amusement parks with my grandparents." He smiled at the memory and all of the other times he''d gone on vacations or traveled with them. Too bad they hadn¡¯t gone anywhere since his parents got new jobs in their respective careers. "Probably being forgotten or being alone," he frowned as he remembered the time his sisters had both gotten severely sick and he''d been left to his own devices as they had to be tended to around the clock. Or the time when his Dad had been late picking him up from school by nearly an hour and he wished that he could have just been magically home. The sensation of falling at rapid speeds only seemed to increase. Below was a bird''s eye view of Farbrook City and from the looks of it he was falling straight for where he had been earlier. Eli gasped as he flailed awake with an agonizing squeak of protest as his ribs blazed with agony. He blinked blearily at the sunset that bloomed across the sky. Then he glanced down and yelped in surprise at the unconscious form of his sister Lyra right next to him. He crawled over to check her pulse and was relieved to feel the even tempo of her heartbeat thrum against his hand. "What the hell was that ''System of Humanity''?" He asked under his breath and then yelped as a screen flickered in front of his face: [Stats: Body: None Mind: None Will: None ] [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Teleportation Ev. 0/Lv. 0 Slot Two -- None Slot Three -- None ] [Unequipped Powers: N/A ] "What the fuck is all of this?" Eli muttered as he poked at the words teleportation, but nothing happened or changed. His hand passed through the screen with no visible effect. Lyra groaned as she woke up and squinted at Eli as if he¡¯d grown a second head. "Um, did something strange happen to you too?" "Yes!" He shouted in his eagerness and hope that he hadn''t been alone in experiencing whatever the hell that was. "Did you see those weird screens too?" She nodded her head slowly. "Do you remember what yours said?" "It asked me a few odd questions, but when I woke up and thought about the whole ''System of Humanity'' thing a screen popped up." Once Eli said ''System of Humanity'' to Lyra, the screen vanished. "Huh. Yeah. It popped up for me too..." Lyra said with a forced calm as her face blanched. Her eyes roved over the text that only she could see. "It''s like some kind of weird video game? Are all of your stats empty too?" "Yeah. The only thing filled was an equipped power. Teleportation, I guess?" Lyra frowned as she pointed at a line near the bottom of where her screen would be. "Mine says that I have ''Illusion'' at level zero?" "Teleportation was at zero for me too." "This is really fucking weird Eli... We need to look around. See if we can find out if this happened to anyone else." Lyra stood up, then offered her hand so that Eli could pull himself up. His chest ached from the flurry of punches he''d been subjected to, but somehow the situation made all of that seem insignificant. They wandered away from the abandoned gymnasium behind their school towards the bleachers where Lana and her ''friends'' liked to hang out and smoke. A group of five people were talking animatedly amongst themselves, including Tom and Lana. "Lana! We need to talk to you." Lyra called out as they got closer. "Did you guys see it too?" Lana blurted out as she stood up to rush over to them in excitement. Her friends studied them with a mix of hostility and curiosity. Tom cracked his knuckles as he tried to stare Eli down, but Eli ignored him once Lana reached them. "It was really crazy, wasn''t it?" "We did. What did yours say?" Eli asked in a brisk tone. "Nothing that no one else''s said except for the whole ''equipped power'' thing. I have ''Enhanced Athleticism'' apparently. I''m the only one so far. What''s yours?" Lana boasted with the biggest grin Eli had seen on her face since she¡¯d failed to get into varsity track, even if she was a freshman. "I have illusions and Eli has teleportation. What do they have?" Lyra answered before Eli could. He frowned a bit about how open they were being about all of this. They needed information, but¡­ something about these powers felt a bit private. Personal. Especially if the questions the ¡®System of Humanity¡¯ asked had anything to do with what they were. He grunted in annoyance as he dismissed the screen that flickered in front of his face. "Don''t tell them! Why should they get to know?" Tom sneered as he stood up and walked over to them. "What did I tell you about leaving us alone?" "Does that really matter right now? We have no idea what the fuck is happening. Stop with the dick measuring contest." Eli rolled his eyes as Tom got closer. Irritation prickled him at the thought that they¡¯d had the same thought. Asshole. "Wait, why are your clothes so dirty?" Lana asked with narrowed eyes. She moved closer as she studied his lopsided lean before she poked his chest where there was a smear of dirt. "Ow," Eli grunted with a wince. "What the hell did you do, Harver?" She whirled around to glare at Tom and point her finger at him accusingly. "Nothing! He was trying to get between me and my favorite customer." "So you beat up my brother? What''s wrong with you?" Lana crossed her arms. "You should probably speak nicer to me. My power is better than yours." Tom''s face darkened as sparks of flame ignited and whirled around his fists. "I''m not afraid to use it." "Whoa! Tommy, sit down and chill out. Forget about them," called out a girl from Tom¡¯s group of rejects. Never mind that his sister hung out with them too. "Yeah, yeah..." Tom shook his head at each of them before he muttered, "This isn''t over yet. You''ll pay for this soon enough, Newton." "Let''s go, guys." Lana huffed as she led the way off the field towards the back streets where Eli had parked his car. "Are you okay?" Eli asked once they caught up to her. "No, I''m not fucking okay. That brute beat you up! I just can''t believe he''d act like that." "I can. He''s fucking dumb as a rock, his head is emptier than the school¡¯s recycling bins. He¡¯s repeated his senior year twice." Lyra rolled her eyes. "I heard him bragging about how many times he''s been suspended. I''m surprised he could even count that high.¡± He unlocked his car with his key fob with no small amount of relief. A small part of him had been concerned technology wouldn''t work. He couldn¡¯t say why he had been worried about that, but he definitely had been. He did almost swear though at the time on the dash''s clock. It was nearly seven. How long had they been unconscious? This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. "Hey Lana, did you guys all wake up earlier than us?" Eli asked as he glanced at her in the rearview mirror. "No. Some of us woke up earlier than others. It seemed kind of random." She paused. "Do you think Mom and Dad are okay though?" "Dad was probably home when that happened. Mom could be at the office, but who knows?" Lyra shrugged as she lifted her hands as a faint translucent glow began to warp and distort around her hands. "Well, let''s hope that they''re both home. You want to try calling them, Lana?" Eli said as he drove through the warren of residential streets near the school. Traffic was a mess of cars parked haphazardly as people ambled around trying to figure out what had happened. Several accidents blocked parts of the street so he had to backtrack more than a couple of times or even drive over the sidewalk to keep moving. "I think the phone lines are down." Lana sighed after a couple of minutes. "I''ve tried calling and it goes straight to voicemail. They haven''t texted me back either." Eli grew increasingly worried as they drove closer to home. Hordes of people filled the sidewalks as they spoke to one another. It was nearly eight at night by the time they were almost home. By that time, police and news helicopters swarmed across the sky. More than a few intersections had the added chaos of police and even a few military vehicles and soliders all wearing combat gear parading through the streets with loud speakers out. "Evacuate the area immediately. Return to your homes. Curfew will be enforced at 10:00pm." The warning repeated again and again as the clock wound down minute by minute closer to the stated curfew. Before too long they reached their house with both of their parents'' cars parked in the driveway. They stood on the porch with their phones in their hands before they rushed towards the car. Eli had barely pulled to a stop before they tugged the doors open. "We were so worried!" Mom cried as she pulled Lyra and Lana into a tight embrace the second they stepped out of the car. Dad smiled at Eli as he walked around to join them. "I was about to leave any second now to see if you were all at the school. The news said to not go anywhere... but it was starting to get pretty late." Dad said as he pulled Eli into a hug of their own. Eli''s wounded ribs twinged at the treatment, but he staved off a wince or yelp from the force of the hug. "We should head inside. Come on kids." Mom insisted as she gave Eli a quick hug before their parents herded the three of them into the house. Eli frowned as he studied the living room expecting to see tremendous changes. But everything was the same. Large TV flashing with the current news report where the TV was framed on the wall. The entertainment stand still stuffed full of knicknacks and the family''s gaming console collection. Their couches and armchairs were just as they left it. It felt so bizare. He glanced over at his status again and studied the words Teleportation with a growing sense of horror and excitement. What would happen if he¡ª His mother passed him a glass of water and gestured for him to sit. Eli flopped into the couch cushions with a groan of shifting wood at the same time everyone else joined him in the living room. Dad snapped his fingers and the TV muted itself. "Uh, what was that?" Lana asked, dazed. Her eyes flitted from the TV to Dad as if she¡¯d seen a ghost. "One of my powers was technomancy. I can kind of control any technology I can see." Dad shrugged. "Tell us what happened to you guys first." "One of your powers?" Eli echoed as he turned to frown at his sisters. "We each only have one power." "Odd. We both have two. Maybe because we''re older?" Dad paused in thought before he shook his head. "Anyway. What happened?" "Well..." Lyra started then stopped with a glance at both Lana and Eli. "I just remember being surrounded by nothing and seeing a lot of strange screens in front of my face. It was like I was playing one of your VR games, Dad." "Same here," said Lana and Eli at the same time. "Then I woke up with Eli shaking me and the sun was setting." Lyra finished lamely as she gestured for Eli to continue for her. "And now we¡¯re here.¡± He said distractedly as he studied the floating status that hovered right in front of him. Apprehension and excitement grew as he read through it again and again. "I''m glad you all made it home safely. These powers are dangerous. Have any of you tried to use them?" Mom glared at each of them in turn as if they¡¯d personally caused this. "We don''t know anything about them or this ''System of Humanity''." She shook her head sadly as she took a liberal sip from her glass. "Not yet." Eli sighed, he hadn''t really had a chance to see what teleportation was like. It felt like the power was detatched from him, but close to him at all times. As if it were a vestigial limb that had finally been granted a purpose. "I did..." Lyra admitted with a raised hand. Light twisted and broke above her open palm until the image of an apple floated above her hand. But the picture of it was distorted and off. Flat and waxy, the red was less like the skin of an apple and more like that of a crayon. "I have illusion powers, I was practicing while we were in the car." "That''s cooler than mine," sighed Lana. "And yes, Mom, I guess I have used mine. My powers feel like they''re always ''on''. Everything about me physically seems like it''s been enhanced. My balance, strength, reflexes, everything. It''s already reached level one." "Well... I guess Lyra''s and Lana''s don''t sound too dangerous." Mom sighed as she held her hand to her head. "Your father is forbidden from using his other power indoors. Our fence in the backyard was destroyed right after he woke up and panicked. I was worried your powers were also destructive." ¡°What do you mean?¡± Eli asked derisively as he glanced from one parent to the other. ¡°I can create and control storm clouds.¡± Dad said with a dazzling smile as he started to lift up his hand, palm up as if he were about to show him¡­ then stopped at the harsh glare Mom sent his way. ¡°But I¡¯ll have to show you later¡­ Anyway. What¡¯s your power, Eli?¡± "I can teleport, I guess. I haven''t done it yet." He shrugged. Wouldn¡¯t it be awful if he could teleport only a dozen paces at a time when he could¡¯ve just walked? What if he accidentally teleported inside of a wall or something and lost a limb? He didn''t want to leave pieces of himself everywhere... but he really wanted to try it. Maybe when everyone went off to bed he''d give it a whirl. "What are your powers?" Lana asked as silence stretched in the lull of conversation. "Ah! Like I said, my first one is something called ''Storm Cloud'' which is... well what it sounds like, but it¡¯s really hard to control. The other is just Technomancy. I can control and interact with technology.¡± He grinned like a kid in a candy store before turning his smile to Mom. ¡°Tell the kids about yours, love." "Fine," Mom sighed in a huff before a smile thawed its way through her worry. "My first power is ''Cooking Enchantress'' which seems like it''ll happen whenever I make food. I haven''t figured it out, but I feel like I can do a lot with the different kinds of food I make or even whatever I eat. Then I also have Phytomancy, which lets me control plants." "That sounds pretty cool, Mom!" Lana exclaimed as she leaned forward. "You both seem like you have more... more polished powers than we do or some of my friends did." "What did they have?" Eli asked snarkily as he remembered the flames that had appeared around Tom''s hands. Thank god the initialization hadn''t happened before he''d been beaten or he might''ve been burned too. Seared ribs instead of just bruised. No way he could¡¯ve hidden his injuries then. Small mercies that Tom hadn¡¯t hit him anywhere visible. His parents had no clue how school was going for him. They still thought he had friends. "One kid had fire powers, Samantha had dream powers, another had some sort of earth-shaping power? And finally, another kid could control sound." Lana rattled the powers off excitedly as she bounced on the edge of her seat. "Samantha''s powers were pretty cool. She can create dreams for people." "A fire power sounds kind of dangerous..." Mom sighed as she slumped against Dad''s shoulder. "At least none of you have anything like that." "They all sound kind of scary to me," Dad said as he started to rub her shoulders. "Dream powers sound like they could get nasty quick. Or earth-shaping? She could destroy buildings very easily. Not to mention the damage sound could do on... well almost anything. I''m glad all of your powers were a bit more tame." Silence stretched for a few minutes while everyone processed what had happened. How the world changed. Speaker enhanced voices crackled in the echoing distance while the police and military continued their attempts at keeping things peaceful. He hoped. "Well, I think I''m going to go to bed. I''m glad you''re all home safely." Mom stood up after a lengthy pause. "It''s been a long day and... and maybe things will be better tomorrow. "Okay. Goodnight," Dad said before he kissed her then waited for her to head upstairs to their bedroom. The door closed with a click. "Should we go to bed too or...?" Eli asked with a sinking feeling as he noticed the gleam of excitement that got them stranded listening to a monologue about whatever had caught Dad¡¯s interest in the past. Or on a spontaneous trip to a store in New Faram city for six hours. Nothing good ever came from that look. "If you want, but don''t you want to experiment with your powers a little?" Dad beamed as he stood up and stretched. "We can head down into the basement." "I don''t really think I can experiment too much with mine. It¡¯d be normal exercising, really." Lana sighed as she stood up. "I might head to bed too." "What about school?" Lyra asked. "It''s canceled. Everything basically is until they lift the curfew. Are you in?" "Sure. I want to see what I can do with illusions anyways." Lyra shrugged. "I am curious about what this teleportation is like..." Eli said haltingly as Dad frowned. "I think you should definitely practice with it, but try not to think about anything outside of the house just in case. I don''t want you accidentally going somewhere you shouldn''t. We don¡¯t know how it works yet." "Mom is going to be so pissed when she finds out you guys practiced." Lana chuckled as she headed for the stairs. "She expects it, I bet." Dad shrugged before wishing her goodnight. "Now come on. It''s time to see what we can do." The basement was filled with stacks of boxes and miscellaneous clutter in one of the spare rooms they had down there. There was a guest bedroom and a bathroom that laid empty most of the time unless extended family decided to fly in, but they were in the largest room in the basement. The laundry room/rec and exercise area where Eli helped Dad move the ping pong table against the wall. Before he could say anything, Dad started rummaging through some boxes of storage in the corner. Anticipation filled the air as Eli huddled close to Lyra in the middle of the room. They were about to break the natural laws of physics to practice and experiment with their powers. The prospect was as thrilling as it was horrifying. He¡¯d always daydreamed about what he¡¯d do if he control fire or lightning, throw things around with telekinesis¡­ and now he could teleport. Eli couldn''t wait to see how teleportation worked. As long as it didn¡¯t end with him buried in the wall or trapped in a crawl space. Nerves tingled and churned through his gut while he shifted his weight from foot to foot. "Can we start, Dad?" Eli asked, interrupting their father''s storm of muttered curses. "Yeah, that''s fine. I''m just looking for some old tech that I can work with, but that can wait." He pulled away from the boxes and turned to watch as Lyra weaved picture after picture in the air. Eli''s heart hammered against his bruised ribs as he thought about using his power. Tunnel vision blacked out the edges of the room as he felt his focus narrow more and more until he stared at a specific point on the crack in the concrete floor inches away from the wall. Shivers tingled across his skin as if he''d plunged into an icy lake as darkness devoured his senses. Nothing to see, hear or feel. Until he stood wobbling on the crack like he''d been shot out of a cannon. A cold breeze wafted away from him as he''d landed right next to the wall. "Good job, you did it!" Dad and Lyra congratulated him at the same time as he sank to his knees. Nausea knifed at his gut as he heaved from the motion sickness of suddenly moving from one place to another so quickly. "Are you okay?" Dad asked as he knelt next to him and patted his back comfortingly. "I''m fine, I didn''t... I didn''t expect teleportation to be so¡­ intense." Eli coughed as he pushed himself off the ground. He shook his head and took deep breaths as he tried to get control over his breathing again. "Did it feel instantaneous to you?" Dad asked with clear enthusiasm. "Pretty much, why?" "You disappeared for almost half a minute before reappearing over here. We were starting to get worried you''d accidentally teleported somewhere else." Dad said as he patted Eli''s shoulder again. "I don''t think I could have gone too far. At least not yet. I think I can only teleport anywhere I can see. " He crossed his arms over his chest as a realization struck him. "At least my clothes came with me, I didn''t even consider that they couldn''t have, but what if there was a weight limit?" "Could be," Dad shrugged as he handed over a ping pong ball. "Can you teleport objects while you stay behind?" "Let''s find out." Eli nodded as he held up the ball and focused on it. The moment he concentrated, the ball vanished from his hand and appeared a few inches away to drop to the floor with a rolling plink. He held his hand out as he focused on the ball teleporting back into his hand, but he felt resistance as if the space between the ball and him was rigid. Yet it was still flexible between him and the ball. He could teleport to it, but not the other way around. He did so and smiled as he blurred closer to the ground with his hand right on the ball. Nausea twanged through him for a single moment before it faded and dispersed. Maybe shorter distances didn''t affect him as much? "I always thought teleportation would be a cool power to have." Dad said wistfully as he watched Eli teleport the ball a few inches away from himself, then teleport himself towards it as he tried¡ª and failed to catch it. "You don''t think illusions are cool?" Lyra asked in a teasing tone as she spun the image that hovered in front of her around so they could see the photo-realistic 2D rendering of themselves. "So far all I can do is flat images. I''ve tried to make them 3D, but they haven''t worked. Neither have illusions for the other senses." Eli looked at the spinning image and grinned. It wasn''t perfect, but it had his likeness down perfectly. "Nice. That''ll be useful for your art. I bet you could create all of your designs with your power first then trace it." Dad smiled and nodded approvingly as he suddenly sighed. "Your mom just emailed. She says it''s bedtime and we can play around with our powers tomorrow. Guess the phone lines are still down." "How can you tell?" Eli asked with a shared glance at Lyra. "You didn''t check your phone." "I can sense it with my technomancy and use it at the same time. I didn''t find anything useful down here that I could play around with too much, so I''ve been browsing social media with my power." Dad shrugged. "I can''t do anything too exciting with it yet, but I''m hoping it¡¯ll become better as it levels up. I bet I could do some really fun stuff eventually.¡± "What do you mean by level?" Eli asked with a frown. "You haven''t leveled your power yet? Mine''s already reached level two." Lyra said as she read the status only she could see in the air in front of her. "Technomancy is at level three for me, but Storm Cloud is still at zero. Is Teleportation still zero?" "Yeah, it is." Eli said as checked, but saw that nothing had changed. Lyra and his dad exchanged a glance before Dad¡¯s phone buzzed again. ¡°Time for bed! Let¡¯s go.¡± A few minutes of bedtime routine later and Eli was alone in his room. He shut the lights off and sat on his bed with the ping pong ball he¡¯d slipped into his pocket now cradled in his hands as he thought about everything that had happened. Tom Harver had beaten the shit out of him, then what was probably the entirety of humanity had spontaneously gotten powers, and now he was sitting alone in the dark as he teleported the ping pong from one hand to the other. He had tried teleporting himself in the dark and it was harder. Space seemed to squeeze around him as he fought with it to allow him to slip through its vise in order to teleport. The process took longer. It seemed like he needed to see wherever he was teleporting to, but since he could teleport the ball from one hand to the other he was pretty sure he could use his other senses to teleport. Eventually. Not to mention his imagination might still work, but the thought of trying to visualize his room scared him. What if he got a detail wrong or his mind wandered? He didn''t want to appear somewhere in the middle of a military mandated curfew. That sounded like the ultimate bad idea of all time. Or even worse, what if he somehow teleported and got stuck inside of something? Or appeared in another dimension or universe? He¡¯d seen enough sci-fi horror movies. So instead he decided to try to stay inside his room while he practiced. A part of him longed to reach for his phone and scroll through the different social media sites and see what people were saying, but he didn''t know if Dad''s technomancy would somehow clue him into it. Eli grinned as he teleported in place, but with the intention of lying down. His senses flickered and then he was flat on his back with his head on his pillow, ping pong ball in hand. He turned his head to the left and looked at his barely visible nightstand in the low lighting and teleported the ping pong right next to his lamp. With a smile on his face, he rolled over and fell asleep ignoring the notification that flashed in front of his face. Chapter Two His phone''s alarm blared with a loud echo and woke Eli up just before dawn. As soon as he opened his eyes he saw a notification hovering in front of his eyes with a translucent screen holding text written across it. Through the edges he could barely make out the ceiling behind it. Teleportation Lv. 1> With a grin, he grabbed his phone and checked his other notifications. There wasn''t much with the phone lines still being down and a lot of traffic on all of the servers on the internet, but it still more or less functioned. He had a few emails from his grandparents saying they hoped they were all safe. Eli opened the most recent email from his grandparents and snapped out a quick reply before he stood up and stretched. Jealousy twinged through him with the realization that Dad could''ve done all of that in seconds without lifting a finger. Eli shrugged it off and went downstairs where Mom was already making breakfast sandwiches that smelled divine. She was in her domain up until she finished a plate of sandwiches and set them out on the counter for everyone else. He hurriedly put together his plate and thanked her before he sat down and tore into it with gusto. ¡°Good morning. I hope you didn¡¯t go to bed too late.¡± She said with a pointed glance at him which he ignored in favor of taking a bite of his sandwich. "What should we even do with school and everything being closed down?" Eli blurted out to change the subject as Mom sat down with a plate of her own. "We¡¯ll think of something,¡± she sighed without looking up from her plate. "We¡¯re going to be stuck here until things get better," she replied without looking away from the food in front of her. "Do you think things will ever be fixed?" Mom sighed and put her fork down. "I don''t know. This sort of thing has been something your father has hoped for all of his life, but this is honestly my worst nightmare. People are fine, I guess normally, but now everyone has supernatural powers?¡± "Yeah..." Eli furrowed his brow as he thought about Tom beating him into the dirt and how after the initialization, he''d immediately threatened to burn him with his fire powers. People could be pretty terrible already, and now it seemed everyone everywhere had gotten some kind of power. Not to mention those with authority. Quite a few teachers scared him a lot more now that he knew that they had powers too. "How did this happen though? The whole world can''t just decide to wake up and start having abilities that defy reality." Mom shook her head, "I feel like this is something people will try to figure out for years. If everything doesn''t break down by then." "I suppose," Eli sighed as he ate with a slightly deflated sense of enthusiasm. He liked being able to teleport. "Hopefully there''ll be enough good people that will be able to make a difference." "Hopefully, not to be melodramatic, but I wouldn''t count on it. Powers are scary. Their sudden appearance could bring the government to a screeching halt. We need to stick together and stay safe. Do your homework, I guess. Who knows how long school will be closed." She finished eating quickly and got up, giving Eli one last glance before she left to go downstairs to the basement. Eli mulled over their conversation. Something bugged him about seeing his usually upbeat mother so¡­ downtrodden. He felt conflicted. Dad had been ecstatic to help them experiment with their powers last night, but if these powers were really as dangerous as Mom thought¡­ Would it be better to practice with them or leave them alone? He rubbed at his arms while he thought about it. He knew that people like Tom would definitely develop their powers and would probably use any excuse they could to actually take advantage of them. Should he? After all, teleportation wasn¡¯t dangerous. With that thought, he ripped off a piece of his sandwich and held it in his fingers. He concentrated on the warm, squishy toasted bread slightly coated in mayonnaise and butter, with layers of salami, cheese, and some spinach and tomato slices. His power flexed around him with the faintest buzz as it warped around the food in his hand as he teleported it straight into his mouth. It was hard to imagine something so intuitive and natural being dangerous. The novelty of being able to teleport himself and objects around was definitely not going to wear off for a long, long time. Teleportation would change his life. If he could travel farther than a couple of feet across the room anyway. He might never have to drive again! Maybe his parents would let him sell his car if he got to that point. If things mellowed by then. He glanced outside into the backyard and focused on the patio as the tunnel vision cramped his sight then dragged him to the spot he''d chosen to teleport to... and fell flat on the wooden deck with a crash. Eli groaned as he climbed to his feet. He''d forgotten to think about standing up first and landed right on his ass. He looked back inside the house and saw Lana snickering as she walked over to join him on the patio. As she slid the door open, he reflected on how lucky he was that he had been able to teleport through the window. It probably wouldn¡¯t have been good if it had broken and cut him to shreds. "That was probably the most hilarious thing I''ve ever seen," Lana giggled as she showed him the live photo she¡¯d taken of him vanishing from his spot at the table and then reappearing with an audible crash as he fell in a heap. "I''m definitely sharing that... wait... It''s not working?" "Huh?" Eli frowned at the thought of that going around school when he was already a bit of a laughingstock, but was puzzled as the phone refused to upload the picture turned into a GIF online. Then the screen flashed itself to the notes app and while they watched letters appeared already typed: PLEASE DON''T UPLOAD ANYTHING ABOUT OUR POWERS ONLINE. WE DON''T KNOW HOW THE PUBLIC IS GOING TO REACT TO THIS YET. BTW THAT WAS HILARIOUS, HAHA. SORRY FOR HIJACKING YOUR PHONE. - DAD "What the fuck? That''s a huge violation of privacy!" Lana shrieked as she locked her phone and whirled around to try and glare at dad¡­ but he wasn¡¯t in the room. Eli shivered at the display of power and was doubly glad he hadn''t tried to sneak online last night. If dad could mess around with their technology using his powers from wherever he was¡­ what could other people do? He turned around to study their neighbor¡¯s yards and houses from over their fence. Everyone had powers now. Who was to say somebody over there didn''t have something just as scary, just as invasive? His family already had trust issues about strangers, and now he suspected they''d be far worse. "Come on, we need to talk to him." Lana grabbed the door and flung it open as she led the way inside. Eli¡¯s mouth turned dry as he winced at how her grip bent the knob from her vastly improved strength. "Where is he?" "I don''t know. I know mom went downstairs." Eli said not-so-helpfully once they paused next to the stairs. "I know. She kicked me off the treadmill. I guess with Enhanced Athleticism I don''t need as much sleep. I ran ten miles on the treadmill and barely even broke a sweat." She shrugged nonchalantly, but the gleam of excitement in her eyes was obvious. He smiled at her, relieved that she was showing an interest in anything remotely related to sports after she failed to make the cut for any of the varsity sports she¡¯d tried out for. "We''ll try this." Eli said as he pulled his own cell out of his pocket and typed out a short message in his note app. Thank God he could sense technology or it wouldn¡¯t really work with the phone service being out. DAD, WHERE ARE YOU? WE WANT TO TALK. For a few moments, nothing happened then a short message typed itself out. Eli tucked his phone in with a sigh and led the way upstairs to their parents'' office. He knocked on the door and walked in with Lana practically walking on his heels. "Good morni¡ª¡± Dad started to say, but Lana cut him off. If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. "Are you using your power to spy on us?" She blurted out the instant she passed Eli to march up to glare at him over his desk. "Not really... I guess it may seem like it, but it''s pretty distracting whenever something is first used." "But you''re watching our phones!" Lana protested. "I mean, it''s hard not to, the second it''s unlocked. It''s like a scream for attention, plus I saw Eli falling when you took the picture. After that I only noticed since Eli wrote ''dad''. I trust all of you and don''t want to be a tyrant." He shrugged as his eyes moved as if he were reading, but a glance into his glasses showed that the monitor wasn''t turned on. "What are you doing?¡± Eli asked as he walked around the desk to try and figure it out, but the desk was the same as it always was. An organized mess of chaos with a shelf full of clutter and pages. The only empty space was where his two monitors were, his keyboard, and his mouse, but dad wasn¡¯t using any of it. He was sitting with his arms crossed over his stomach and his legs stretched out. "Working? My power basically lets me use technology as if I was actually interacting with it, but I don¡¯t need to see it. As long as it has an output, I can see what it¡¯d display. When I took a shower this morning I booted up the console and played a quick game with technomancy." He grinned at them both before continuing. "Plus, I think having access to everything like this is helping me powerlevel technomancy. I''m already at level four." "Pretty soon you''re going to be the real world''s premier superhero if you keep it up." Eli joked even as Lana watched them both with her arms crossed in front of her chest. "Sure, I guess. What I''m more interested in is the implications of what this will mean across the board. All of our powers so far seem to be somewhat common, especially you kids, so I want to try and get some security coded in to protect against that other than encrypting literally everything. Technomancy has some pretty nervewracking implications." "Does encrypting prevent you from seeing stuff?" Lana asked hopefully. "Only while it''s encrypted. I tried downloading some encrypted messenger apps and when the app wasn''t open or currently being used I had no access, but the second it was decrypted in app I could view it normally. Technomancy also seems to leave a small, but noticeable trail so I''m hoping that I can create some code that''ll allow for those protections to lurk in the background. Like antivirus software." "Are you going to try and sell it?" Lana asked excitedly. She¡¯d been pestering their parents to buy her a car ever since they got their new jobs, but they kept turning her down. Eli hoped they wouldn¡¯t, he had to save up and buy his own car, after all. "Maybe. I''m torn between releasing the open source code once I figure it out or fully developing it and trying to push for a release through work. This is a really big deal. Everything is digitalized. I can''t remotely piggyback off of the internet to a website and reach the backend of it unless I actively try and hack it, not that I really know how, but that doesn''t change the fact that my powers let me easily see and make changes if I¡¯m actually around the technology I¡¯m using my powers on. Imagine if I or another technomancer decided to walk by the Pentagon or the White House or take a stroll down Wall Street. And that''s if I''m thinking *big*. If we weren''t basically in an enforced quarantine, I could go to an ATM right now and force it to spit out every single dollar bill it had. As easy as that." Silence filled the room except for the whir of Dad''s computer. Eli shared a frightened, but thoughtful glance with Lana. He had to wonder though why adult powers seemed to be so much more potent than theirs. Sure, Eli could teleport and he didn''t quite know the limits of what his power could do but it wasn''t anywhere near what either of his parents could do. He resolved to definitely try to use his devices less around his dad though. It would be like constantly having him peek over his shoulder. Gross. Mom could make a simple, but giant meal at a cafeteria or anywhere and heal everyone who ate a bite of her food. Or she could create a host of other effects based on what Dad said they''d figured out what the ''enchanting'' part of her power meant, but if it was like an RPG use of enchanting... Could she cook something that''d light people on fire or do all kinds of other things? Not to mention her control of plants, which were also everywhere. Did that synergize with vegetables and stuff too? Could she make someone a salad and just decimate them? Not to mention dad¡¯s crazy storm power that had gotten away from him for a second and blown out half their fence in the backyard. These were only his parents'' powers. If every adult got more... sophisticated powers as well as two, not just one, then he fully understood why the government seemed to be freaking out, even if everything was relatively normal at the moment. Other than being trapped at home. "Wait, Dad..." Lana squeaked, causing both Eli and dad to turn towards her. "What about criminals and the whole prison system? They got powers too, right?" "As far as the news knows, everyone got powers." Dad''s phone on the desk glowed as it rapidly turned on, unlocked, and opened to a news video where the reporter spoke about reports of multiple riots taking place in countless prisons, as well as mass escapes. Chaos was everywhere in larger cities. They were only slightly safe because they were in the suburbs, but Eli suspected even that wouldn''t last. Lana sat heavily onto the chair reserved for Mom''s desk. She held her head in her hands as she stared blankly into the carpet. Tears began streaming down her face as the audio crackled about the massive state of unrest taking place not only across the United States, but the world. Dad stood quickly and rushed over to hug her tightly as the video continued to play even though no sound came out. Eli leaned over to peek and frowned at the headphone icon in the upper right corner. He watched the heavily censored footage of people blasting their powers against other people or against police decked out in riot gear. It didn¡¯t seem like it was happening everywhere¡­ but it was happening. Eli squeezed his fists at his side as he thought about his barely level one power and how far he''d have to push himself if he wanted to catch up. Teleportation was all he had, but it might come down to his power to keep them safe. He didn''t think he could teleport others yet, but he needed to be capable of it in case things got worse in their area. What if they got attacked? It¡¯d be up to him to ferry his family to safety. With his newfound resolve, he glanced out through the open door into the hallway and teleported out of the room. He landed in the middle of the hallway where each of their rooms were and then teleported in a series of hops down the stairs, through the living room into the kitchen, and then outside in the backyard where he fell to his knees to throw up from his stomach bucking against the sudden tide of nausea. He pushed his fist tight against his mouth hard enough to make his teeth hurt to try and stay silent. When he finally finished retching, he teleported all of the evidence across the yard in the no man¡¯s land between their house and the neighbor behind them. He winced as he forced himself to teleport in place to transition from sitting to standing in the swaying grass as he surveyed the destruction of the fence in the backyard. A massive gap a couple of yards wide had been torn straight through the wooden fencing. The wood slats lay scattered across the lawn while most of the posts remained intact, although some were charred from sparks of electricity. Eli teleported his phone from hand to hand while he studied it in idle thought. He¡¯d have to get tools, but he didn¡¯t know what he was really doing. Some of the knocked over posts could probably be teleported back into the ground. But what about the actual boards broken into fragments and scrap? Curtains twitched from the windows of the house behind theirs. He frowned at the thought of being watched, but didn¡¯t know what else to do. He definitely didn¡¯t want to step into their yard though and have them think he was trying to break in. He had a feeling that people were feeling rather trigger-happy at the moment. "What are you doing out here?" Mom''s voice called out from behind him, he turned and was taken aback at the sweaty state of her hair that curled against her beet-red face. "I was thinking about fixing the fence, but I don''t want to go into anyone''s yard and I don''t think we have any more wood. Also¡­ I think we¡¯re being watched.¡± He nodded as surreptitiously as he could manage towards the other house where the curtain fluttered as if someone peeked around it again. If he could teleport through windows¡­ could other people break in as easy as that? He probably could. Not that he would of course. "Hm." Mom sighed as she crouched down to examine one of the boards that lay flat on the lawn. She brushed her hand across its grain. Eli noticed that the grass around her drifted to point towards her whenever she moved like how a flower moved to pace its petals towards the sun. "Well. My plant powers don''t seem like they can really help yet, but I feel like I could maybe turn the grass where the fence was into a hedge.¡± She stood and pointed her finger at right at the grass that grew along the fence. Blades of grass straightened like a soldier called to attention. Verdant light seemed to emanate from it as it grew and twisted itself into gnarled knots with its rapidly growing neighbors. She dragged her hand in a horizontal line until she''d pointed at the entirety of the gap. Slowly, but surely, over the course of a few minutes, the grass had changed into a strange sort of bush that was at the same height as the rest of their fence. Thorned flowers of white, blue, and yellow bloomed to dot the entire thing. Mom beamed with more satisfaction then he¡¯d seen on her face in years. Then her expression darkened as she twitched her hand a thorn shot out of the bush to skewer itself into the ground like a needle. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s head inside.¡± When no further attacks materialized after several tense moments, Mom paced slowly backward away from the hedge fence and turned to look at him with clear concern etched upon her brow. "We should head inside, come on." Eli ignored her to look up at the perfect blue sky. He turned towards the roof of their house and thought about teleporting up their to enjoy the rest of the day. Maybe he could see what was happening elsewhere. Get a glimpse of anyone else using their powers out in the open. "Elias!" Mom snapped her fingers startling him. ¡°I think we need to have a family meeting. I might have overreacted a bit this morning when we talked, but¡­ I think we all need to talk about this and what it all means. As a family.¡± He nodded then turned back around to peer again at the house behind theirs and frowned at the silhouette in the window. They were still watching. Chapter Three Mom stalked back and forth throughout the kitchen like a general marshaling her troops as she waved her hand over a loaf of bread, blocks of cheese, salami, and seasoning. With a snap of her fingers, the variety of raw ingredients flurried around and assembled themselves into sandwich after sandwich until there were exactly four that levitated under her power onto the empty plates. On the other side of the kitchen was their coffee station, but instead of using their dedicated coffee maker, she lined up a few mugs partially filled with water, some sugar, coffee, regular milk (for her), and oat milk (for Dad and Lyra). With another snap of her fingers, coffee was perfectly made and ready. "Too bad I don''t have telekinesis," Mom muttered with a bitter tone. Eli teleported from out of his seat at the table where he''d been awkwardly waiting into the kitchen then turned to regard the table. He touched each mug and plate one by one to teleport them to the table. Another teleport dropped him in his seat as easy as sitting. It didn¡¯t even wobble under his sudden appearance this time. "Thank you, Eli.¡± She said as she sat down at the table. "No, thank you for coo¡ª", he started to say as a line of text interrupted his vision. Teleportation Lv. 2> "Oh hey, teleportation just leveled up." He smiled. "Nice.¡± She nodded as she pulled her phone out of her pocket and fiddled with it while she thought about something. ¡°Cooking Enchantress hit level three and after making that hedge Phytomancy reached level one. It¡¯s strange¡­ the more I use them, the more I want to practice with them.¡± Eli waited for his mom to continue speaking, but she had stopped to continue messing with the protective casing of her phone. He pulled out his own and sent out an email real quick to everyone letting them know lunch was ready. Email was about the only thing that was halfway reliable right now with the Internet. Most other website servers were crashing from the unbelievably high volume of people using them. He took a sip of his coffee and was delighted at the warm, but not boiling hot temp while he waited for everyone else to come to the table. His phone vibrated as a response went through, but he didn¡¯t bother to check it. Within a few minutes, footsteps rang through the house as everyone came from wherever they''d been. "Oh wow, this looks delicious! Thank you!" Lyra cheered as she walked into the room as illusive almost 3D stars danced and twinkled across her skin. Each star twinkled and seemed to breathe from diminished light to sparkling radiance. "Lyra, what level are your illusions at?" Eli asked before Mom could say anything. He had just realized he hadn''t seen her at all that morning and had a suspicion she''d been holed up in her room practicing nonstop. "Level four!" She beamed as she picked up a diagonal half of her sandwich and devoured it with relish. "Level four?" He crowed with a sense of horror and jealousy. "Oh, you hit level four too?" Dad asked as he walked around the bend from the staircase too. "Congratulations." "No, Lyra did! I''m only at level two!" "Where''s Lana?" Mom asked, cutting across the conversation. Her phone still held in her hands as she popped it out of its case again and again. "I''m pretty sure she''s on the treadmill again, I sense it running." Dad shrugged as he pulled his seat out and then a moment later said, "There, I turned it off." "Have you figured out that anti-technomancy code yet?" Eli asked slightly grumpily as he tore into his own sandwich. The sheer level of technology everywhere meant that his father could see and interact with a lot of stuff at any given moment. Lana''s terror at what he could do was becoming more understandable each time he witnessed his powers in action. "No, but I think I''m making progress. Some of the people at work have similar powers and we''re working on it together." "Making your employees work even when the world is ending?" Lana asked derisively as she entered the room still in her damp gym clothes. "The world is not ending," Mom said warningly, despite how she¡¯d been acting. Ah, the firstborn''s natural right to parental terror never failed. "And she does have a point, love. Is it really fair of you to make your employees work right now? They should be spending time with their families." "It''s on a voluntary basis. The sooner this gets figured out, the sooner things can potentially start to get back to normal. Besides, I''d rather powerlevel technomancy then curl up in fear." He shrugged as he took a bite from his sandwich. "This is good, thank you for making us all food, Addy." "My power makes it a breeze." Mom shrugged with a slightly coy smile. Eli hurriedly looked down so he could pay more attention to his food and less on his parents'' egregious flirting. "So it''s okay for us to use our powers now?" Lana asked. "As if you guys weren¡¯t already.¡± She scoffed then sighed heavily. ¡°I¡¯d rather we know how to use our powers then be trampled over by everyone else using theirs. Just¡­ be careful.¡± Lana nodded slowly understanding dawning over her features. Her eyes darted left and right as she glanced at each of them. Finally after several seconds she gave a curt nod and said, "Okay. I''m glad you agree... but after talking to Dad earlier... I think that you were right a bit too. These powers are scary. Did you hear that practically every prison has had riots or escapes now?" Dad winced a bit at her throwing out that particular piece of news. Mom turned towards him with a raised eyebrow. "You told her about that?" "And Eli, but I wanted them to realize the scope of things a bit more. Last night I was a little too excited about it and I didn''t want them to treat these powers like a game or think they can use them to fight like comic book characters or something.¡± "Fine." Mom sighed. "So, with that said, I think we should go around the table and talk a bit about what this means for us as a family and set up some ground rules." "Like what?" Lyra asked while she spectated over an illusionary war of miniature people fighting on her otherwise empty plate. One side wore dark flagless mercenary fatigues while the other wore medieval suits of armor and waved around shining swords. "First of all, no powers at the table, please?" Mom asked pleadingly with a hard look at each of them. Dad and Lyra both shifted guiltily. "Also, Eli, I know you''re pretending to eat normally. As weird as it is and sounds, I can sense food. Stop teleporting it into your mouth and just eat." "Okay." He grumbled as he ate the last bite of his sandwich ''normally''. "Secondly, I think we should talk a bit about what each of our powers does and where we are level-wise. We should also start coming up with an emergency plan. What if something happens outside or around us? I want us ready for that just like we are for a fire. Sounds good?" Murmurs of ''yes'' or ''sure'' echoed around the table. "I''ll start. I have my cooking power at level three. It lets me basically cook ingredients without actually cooking them as well as enchant any food I cook or eat. I''ve made food that can heal, provide a rush of energy, increase focus or strength, and a bunch of little things like that. I haven''t figured out everything I can do with it yet, but it''s what I''ve been focusing on the most. Next, I have Phytomancy which allows me to control, grow, and mutate any living plants near me. I haven''t done a whole lot with it other than repairing the fence your father broke, but I want to try some things out with it later." Everyone nodded as they listened along waiting for their turn. Lyra started speaking next. She went through her list quickly before pausing briefly to take another sip out of her own coffee. Lyra couldn''t do anything but visual illusions yet, but she said that she thought she was getting close to creating tactile and auditory illusions. Dad rambled for what felt like several minutes about all of the kinds of things he could do with technology, and how he wondered why he couldn''t control more ''simple technology'' like tools and other things like that, but Eli quickly tuned him out. Until he started talking about his storm power, "I played with it a teensy bit more while in the shower this morning, and I can create clouds and control them pretty easily. But it''s a power that can definitely get away from me easily. I want to wait a bit more to mess around with it until everything opens up a bit more and I can head out to somewhere more secluded." Why couldn''t Eli have gotten something a bit more cool like his parents? Teleportation was incredible, but so far, it seemed heavily dependent on what he could touch or see. A part of him was curious if he could use his other senses to teleport. What if he could hear a sound and teleport towards it instead? "Well, you guys all have more flashy powers than I do, but mine is the best." Lana shrugged nonchalantly. "I''ve run the course of a marathon today as easily as if it was a stroll. I also need less sleep, food, and water, and also heal a bit faster as well as being more... more resistant." Her voice trailed off slightly as she blushed lightly under everyone''s gaze. If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. "So, what do you want us to do Mom? Train like we''re superheroes and hone our powers?" Lyra asked once Lana finished. "Wait a second, Eli hasn''t gone yet. And no, I want us to be mindful of what we can all do so we can rely on each other if the worst happens." "I can teleport anywhere I can see," Eli shrugged. "I can teleport objects, but only light objects so far. My power''s level is the lowest at level two." "Only level two? What have you been doing all day?" Lana asked with a snort and a raised eyebrow. The rest of the group groaned audibly. "I haven''t been able to push my power''s limits!" He protested hotly as Lana tried not to laugh aloud. After calming down somewhat though, he continued explaining himself after taking a deep breath. "Look, I''m pretty sure that my power levels when I can teleport farther distances or when I use increased weight. I can''t really do that very easily inside, now can I?" "We have weights in the basement hidden away somewhere. You can teleport them across the room, then again to pick up and just grind out some levels. I''ve been using technomancy practically all day. It almost feels like an extension of me now, not a tool." Dad said proudly, patting the table absentmindedly. Everyone else stared curiously at him. Lyra finally spoke up next. "You probably have a point about pushing your power''s limits, but I think its continual use is just as important. Lana has been exercising all day. Dad''s had his fingertips all over every tech in the house apparently. Mom''s made food twice today and probably had a snack. And I''ve been creating more and more complex illusions all day long as I try to perfect them. You should do the same." "Yeah, okay. Fine." Eli sighed as he glanced over towards the entryway of the house and teleported in a zig-zag down the stairwell into the storage area of the basement where there were piles upon stacks of boxes filled with old stuff. There wasn''t any heavy lifting equipment here either; instead, there were various sets of dumbbells and a single barbell tucked away which he started dragging out. Exhaustion and frustration plagued him as he pulled out five, fifteen and twenty-five pound dumbbells before he collapsed with his back against the wall. Spots danced in front of his eyes as he panted out breath after breath. Going straight through three teleports into the physical labor of moving boxes and weights around had wrung him out; his stomach gurgled in complaint, but at least the nausea wasn''t quite as bad as it had been previously. Irritation prickled at how everyone immediately acted as if they knew so much more than he did about the phenomena that had literally only existed for about 24 hours. Eli closed his eyes tightly shut and mentally forced himself to focus. His body ached from head to toe, but he pushed those thoughts aside. So what if he was the one with the lowest level? He''d show them! Show them all exactly who was or who wasn''t a disappointment. With gritted teeth, Eli leaned over and touched and teleported the five pound dumbbell across the room. Then the fifteen, and the twenty-five. His vision swam and pulsed with smears of color and specks of light, but he climbed to his feet and leaned against the wall for a few seconds before he reached an equilibrium. Eli teleported across the room with his pile of weights and touched the five pound dumbbell with his foot and teleported across the room again with it. He smiled as he reappeared with the weight in his hand, and his body turned around facing the way he''d come. He waited half-expectantly for a status message to appear, but none came. He hissed in annoyance and teleported the dumbbell with a flex of anger and then stopped as it crashed and rebounded off the wall and rolled towards him. A dent caved in part of the hard cement where the weight had teleported. A notification scrolled across his vision, but he ignored it as he crept over to study the weight and grinned at the lack of distortion. Did that mean he was safe from accidentally teleporting himself into objects? Teleportation Lv. 3> A vibration thrummed from his phone. He pulled it out with a frown and ignored the goodnight message from his parents with a reminder to not stay up too late. He turned it off and shoved it back into his pocket without another thought. He had some training to do. This time, however, no matter how many times he repeated the process, nothing happened. Frustration bubbled within him, rising until he could feel heat radiating from his face and arms. Even still, he didn''t stop trying to teleport an object with force into something. "Okay Eli, let''s break it down..." He said to himself as he paced. Something had clearly happened and obviously did every time he teleported. Whenever he did so, he always displaced some air, so there had to be some force involved. Maybe he teleported the dumbbell with more force...? But then why couldn''t he repeat it? Eli tried to slow the process of teleportation and paid as astute attention as he was capable of: first, he had to decide what he was teleporting and where, then his vision gradually tunneled (slower with more distance), then bam! Teleportation. With an extreme amount of will, he was able to slow the process bit by bit as he teleported again and again throughout the basement. Tunnel vision could be delayed, but once it narrowed to an absolute focus on something he would either be forced to teleport or abort and start over. Only his nausea seemed affected by the delayed teleport, he had almost none when he took his time. But what if he chained a series of teleports together, each delayed as long as he possibly could? After a quick zip over to the ping pong table, he filled his hands with three balls each and turned to study the far wall where the crack in the floor carved its passage through the concrete. Slow inhale, tag one ball to teleport on the crack, gently restrain the tunnel vision... The ping pong ball rolled free from Eli''s grasp with a Plink! as it clattered on the ground. The next two bounced were the same, but he started to notice something. It wasn''t just his vision that was tunneling, but his other senses as they were compressed to a single location. Longer teleportation time, tighter tunnel vision. Ideas peppered his mind as he gathered up the loose ping pong balls. Could he exclude things to teleport? Eli willed himself to teleport across the room, but restrained it as long as he possibly could. Darkness eroded his vision until a single point remained across the room, but he''d kept his focus on his sense of touch. The sensation of his clothes, his bare feet pressed flat into the stone floor, the slickness of his sweat on the ping pong balls. Smells of the relatively still air of the basement cloyed in his nostrils. Creaks of wood and echoes of conversation from upstairs reached his ears. Silence filled his ears as he let the void dull his hearing. No aroma or scent wafted as the dark slowly devoured him. Numbness iced along his skin from the crown of his head to the balls of his heels, but he noticed how the tension from his clothes remained as well as the touch of the ping pong balls. With a thought, he denied the ping pong balls. Space vibrated as the darkness ignored the white balls, then light slashed through the cocoon of darkness and he stood across the room. He turned around and smiled at the pile of ping pong balls that bounced in a clatter where he had previously stood, but then he furrowed his brow once he realized he still held something. It was a halved ping pong ball sheared down the middle; both halves sliced without a hint of resistance. Shivers of nervousness, fear, and excitement roiled through him as he waited expectantly for the notification that still refused to come. Why hadn''t it worked? Was it because he cut off too much sensory input? Or maybe he needed another way to delay the effect of teleportation? But how? What else could he try? His eyes flicked back and forth between the remaining ping pong balls and then the weights he''d left out. Eli refused to give up as he teleported across the room without slowing it down and then stood shock-still in surprise. The transition had been quick as a blink and yet he still didn''t feel any nausea. He thought about teleporting back across the room as he started to reach down towards the¡ª Plink... Plink. Plink! Something had peeled off from around him and unfurled to wrap around each of the ping pong balls. Motion sickness wrenched at his body as he collapsed bonelessly at the same time all of the ping balls piled up on the floor teleported across the room before he could even touch them. He convulsed in revulsion as vertigo spun his senses in loop after loop. His... his sense of touch had extended into the balls without him touching them and he''d still teleported them. Intimate levels of detail etched themselves into his brain in a neverending symphony of synesthesia from the void he slipped into in order to teleport. Eli tried to sit up, but his limbs flopped like limp noodles. A tug at his telep¡ª Vomit spewed from his mouth as his body recoiled at the crick-crackly ink feeling of the void. The strange second skin felt as if it had ripped and tore, but it now draped loosely around him as it flapped in an invisible wind. Whenever he thought about moving or going somewhere it drifted then snapped back into him like a rubber band. Inhale... exhale, breathe in... hold... and out. Eventually, his mind and body calmed enough that he could sit up. He wiped at the crust of his vomit in disgust as he gingerly prodded at the... at the spatial field around his body and winced at the snap of tension that pulsed in his head. Yeah, he wasn''t teleporting again tonight. He shakily climbed to his feet and limped towards the bathroom so he could wash off his face, grab some towels and spent what felt like an eternity cleaning up his sick. Then he headed upstairs and went to bed in the solitude of the night. When morning came, he would have no choice but to go downstairs and deal with the mess of weights and ping pong bells he''d left scattered everywhere. But, for now though? He desperately needed sleep. More than that even, he was eager for his morning shower. Every step was an uncomfortable mess of pinpricks and needles as he forced his way upstairs close to his room. He winced at the lack of light streaming in through anyone¡¯s doors except for his parents. Lana¡¯s room was across from his with Lyra¡¯s right next to hers, but neither of them were awake. He started to open his door when he heard one of his parents whisper-shout about something. He leaned against the wall as quietly as he could while letting his senses ease into his spatial sense or second skin. It warped and fluttered around him, but he split his focus on wanting to stay where he was, while pushing his attention and focus down the hall. Crackling pops echoed in his ears while he felt his away past their office next to their room. His spatial second skin shuddered in a series of broken twitches, eager to yank him across the void and drop him in front of their door, but he held it back. He wasn¡¯t teleporting. He was trying to anchor himself in place. Voices whispered with sharper clarity as if he stood in front of their door. ¡°...tell them about Dave or Sandra. What we did to them?¡± Dad¡¯s voice asked hesitantly. ¡°We did nothing wrong, Rick. They were using our startup to launder their money for fuck¡¯s sake! It was thirteen years ago. It¡¯s fine.¡± ¡°Is it? With all of this prison breaks and riots¡­ I¡¯m afraid they¡¯ll get out and come after us. We turned them in Addy.¡± ¡°We did the right thing, okay? We¡¯re fine and so are the kids.¡± ¡°I hope so. I hope you¡¯re right,¡± Mom sighed. ¡°Speaking of, are any of the kids awake?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think so. Lyra and Lana¡¯s phones are charging, but Eli turned his off. I could try and turn it on?¡± Dad said quietly. Eli yanked his spatial skin back and had to grit his teeth to stop himself from yelping as he teleported through the door then again into bed. Another teleport shucked all of his clothes off and his phone into his hand so he could plug his phone in. Just in time as his phone started to boot up. He rolled over onto his back as he fought to push away the nerves and pinprick feeling of nausea that swelled from his multiple teleports, but the conversation he had overheard bothered him far more. Mom and dad were keeping secrets. Secrets that sounded vaguely familiar¡­ didn¡¯t he remember a ¡®Dave¡¯ and ¡®Sandra¡¯? He tossed and turned for the rest of the night. Chapter Four Something pulled him from the grimy clutches of his slumber. Eli blinked his eyes open in the pitch black of his room as he groggily curled up on his side. He was pretty sure it was nothing. Just the wind... He drifted as he closed his eyes... Until a sharp vibration rocked his nightstand and a dazzling radiance speared through the dark straight into his closed eyes. He squinted his eyes shut as tight as he could as he waited for his phone screen to dim... but right as it did it lit up again. He sighed as he reached for it. Fingers fumbling, he unlocked it and blinked once, twice, then again as he read the message Dad had written. VERY IMPORTANT! I THINK SOMEONE IS IN THE HOUSE. TWO FLASHLIGHTS TURNED ON DOWNSTAIRS AND I SENSE MORE CELLPHONES THAN NORMAL IN THE HOUSE. WAKE UP AND BE READY TO RUN OR HIDE. WITH LOTS OF LOVE, PLEASE STAY SAFE - DAD Another message. DAMMIT ELI. WAKE UP. THIS IS NOT A DRILL AND I DIDN''T SENSE YOU OPENING YOUR PHONE. "Oh shit." Eli rolled onto his stomach and hurriedly got dressed as quietly as he could. Then he groped along the wall for anything he could use... If only he could teleport anywhere he wanted then he could check on everyone and either evacuate them, or even go into the basement for the weights. Eli prodded at the spatial field around him as he thought about teleporting and took a shaky breath. It felt fine, but fragile. At least he''d be able to teleport if he had to. Eli¡¯s eyes roamed over his room as his eyes slowly adjusted to the faint light that streamed in through his window. On his dresser he had his mostly full laundry basket and a lamp that one of his siblings had pushed on him months ago, but he¡¯d never plugged it in. He picked up the bulbous weight of ceramic and metal and gave it an experimental swing. It was awkward, but it¡¯d be better than his fists. Hopefully. Wooden boards creaked downstairs while Eli''s heart hammered in his chest. A glance down at his dimmed phone screen showed no new messages. Too bad he never got into sports or he''d have a baseball bat in his room like Lana did and not the awkward weight of his lamp. Sizzling nerves pulsed across his skin as footsteps climbed the stairs. His hand tightened around the base of his lamp as he hefted it over his head, the cord tugged against his skin where it snaked around his arm. Someone paused outside his door. Menacing silence loomed in the night while Eli stood there with the lamp heavy in his hands, but still far too light for what it might be needed for. Instead of his door, another door was opened across the hall. Lana¡¯s scream shattered the still night. Eli wrenched his door open and narrowed his eyes at the vague silhouette all dressed in black who was stepping into Lana¡¯s room with their hands spread wide. Gray metal shimmered and glowed from them as a knife made out of the same metal appeared in their hand. Eli threw himself forward in a teleport. Air screamed in a shrill cry as he crashed into them in a gust of displaced air. Glass shattered as he slammed his lamp down against their head as his tackle knocked them both down to the ground in a sprawl. Shards rained and clattered as they spilled across the floor. He hissed as blood streamed from dozens of tiny and large gashes sliced into his palms. Gray light flashed again as the figure, an average sized man dressed in a ratty hoodie, stood up armored in that same gray metallic light. Their knife elongated and thickened until they held a sword that they lifted up¡ª Lana swung her baseball bat into the intruder''s face with a tortured squeal of metal as her bat twisted around his gray light helm. The blow was enough to knock the armored assailant off balance. As he stumbled, he blasted out a wall of gray metal that clipped into Eli and sent him flying out the door. He landed in a rolling skid before he crashed halfway into his door and his door frame in a crack of wood and plaster. He shifted with a groan as stars danced in front of his eyes and a buzzing drone blared in his ears. Agony lanced through his left shoulder where¡¯d struck the door frame as he started to try and stand back up. A loud impact shook the room as wood broke. Lana roared and the man grunted as another crashing impact shook the room. "What the hell are you doing?" asked a nasal voice as the other intruder called from the bottom of the stairs. Eli''s phone buzzed from where he''d left it on his dresser, but he ignored it as he tried to shakily climb up to his feet. His hands shook and trembled as he wobbled with his weight on his right shoulder where he leaned it into his door as he frowned at his sister¡¯s room barricaded by the same shimmering wall of gray metal that had sent him out of the room. ¡°Brandon! What¡¯s going on?¡± shouted the nasal voice of the man downstairs as a beam of red light speared up the stairs into the ceiling of the hallway. Eli startled as the flash dissipated with only a seared spot sputtering with red-hot embers on the ceiling. Ash drifted lazily from the ceiling. Nasal-voice started to climb up the stairs as a dull red light glowed and pulsed as he charged up his power again. Eli turned to peek and winced at the sight of the man with an orb of crimson light that radiated heat. He lifted his hand up and fired right as their eyes met. Eli stumbled back and tripped as he fell into his room. Wood popped in a burst of sparks and smoke as the beam pulsed into the ceiling right where it¡¯d have drilled into Eli¡¯s head if he hadn¡¯t moved. Nausea sent his stomach careening as he stood back up. Footsteps drew closer. Eli¡¯s heart pounded as the red light started to charge back up again as the stairs creaked. He jumped out of his room and stared past the man to the foot of the stairs, ignoring the growing sphere of light in his hand. Light fired into another beam. Tunnel vision clamped down on Eli as he shot through the void to reappear at the landing of the first floor. He turned with a wobble as the man swore. His parents'' door to their room banged against the wall as one of them peeked out. "Lana! Elias! Are you both alright?" Dad roared suddenly as every light in the house turned on. Loud crashes and grunts of pain were all that answered him from Lana¡¯s room. Eli remained silent as he stared at the intruder¡¯s back as his hands shook. The laser-intruder growled as he started to barrel up the stairs as another orb of light grew in the palm of his hand. Eli''s heart throbbed as it pulsed against his ribcage. He glanced down into the now-lit staircase where he''d left the weights out a few hours ago. Dad couldn¡¯t escape like he could. Dull red light brightened into dazzling brilliance as the man reached the top of the stairs and started to lift his hand up to aim. Eli''s eyes widened and before he could change his mind, he teleported downstairs and ballooned his spatial field out before he even landed. Cold metal and dusty concrete prickled against his senses as he teleported back upstairs with the full set of weights. He felt them lift up in the air all around him like they were asteroids orbiting him. Blistering pain tore his head apart, even as nausea and vertigo smeared scars of lightning across his vision. He stared up at the red spotlight of a man and before he could change his mind again, he contracted his spatial field as hard as he could and teleported the weights straight into the man¡¯s back. Howls of pain mingled with Eli¡¯s shout of pain as ninety pounds of weights whistled through the air and landed with a crunching cacophony of broken bones. A salvo of metal and various debris from the entryway blitzed into the intruder. He stumbled into the wall at the foot of the stairs as tears streamed down his face from the pain, blood spilled in a hot rush from his cut and his now bleeding nose. Bile burned as he swallowed it back. The world rocked as it spun on its axis. He collapsed to his hands and knees as he retched. Notifications spilled across his vision scrambled with afterimages and unshed tears, but he pushed them aside. Suppressed them while he tried to stand. Tried to roll over to right himself, but all he could do was writhe, each of his nerves a cluster of pain and lightning. Over the crackling thunder in his ears, he heard shouts from his family. From his dad, from Lana who still needed him. He tried to push himself back to his feet, but his body resisted. His muscles felt sluggish and leaden, his skin as rigid as iron. Eli had to stand. Had to protect his family. Seconds. Minutes. Hours. He had no idea how much time passed before he was finally able to stand up with the support of the wall. He gasped at the wreckage of a human body and the shattered step at the top of the stairs. Blood splatter and spray had streaked and exploded all over the walls of the staircase and presumably deeper into the hallway. Blood trickled and flowed down from the top of the stairs in a growing pool. Dumbbells, the glass in his hands, debris from the walls and the floor, even the tip of an umbrella that had hung from a hook... all laid scattered across the staircase beneath the intruder without a trace of damage. Meanwhile, the intruder was more of a broken human pancake than a person with the way their bones twisted and jutted out in sharp angles. He blinked in shock as he slowly looked up into the eyes of his father whose hands were wreathed in swirling thunderclouds. Dad nodded to him once as he burst a cloud that scattered wind and air all over the remnants of the corpse and blood smeared staircase. Then he turned and shoved his hands out towards the gray light wall blocking off Lana''s room. Motes of gray light billowed out into the hallway as the wall exploded from a gale of power Everything stopped. "It''s okay! Everything is okay! We''re safe!" Dad crowed as he pulled a grinning blood-soaked Lana out of her room in an embrace. "Oh my god, what happened?" Mom screeched as she burst out into the hallway and shrieked at the state of Lana. Eli leaned against the wall and winced at the sting of the cuts in his hands. "Are you okay?" "I''m fine. Most of this blood is his." Lana shrugged as she beamed like this was a boxing tournament and not a home invasion. "I''m already healing, but I¡¯m going to take a shower.¡± Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. "Elias! What about you?" Mom asked into his empty room. Dad tapped on her shoulder and pointed down the stairs where he still leaned against the wall. "Elias Herbert Newton! What happened to you?" Then she glanced down at all of the blood and blanched as her face turned pale as bone. "I''m okay." He croaked as he swayed on his feet. Dad winced and shook his head, but mom had already leaned forward, and then she blanched as she pulled back from the grisly sight. "Rick... Deal with this. I''m going to check on Lyra." Mom hurried away into Lyra''s room which she then sighed as she walked out of the room. "She''s asleep. She slept through all of it. Unbelievable." A few moments later, she gingerly tip-toped around the corpse and came down the stairs so she could pull Eli into a firm embrace. The only sound other than his sobs came from the ticking clock above them. It seemed so quiet after everything went insane. It took several minutes before Eli finally spoke again, "I can''t believe this happened. How are we supposed to return to normal after this?¡± Mom squeezed him tighter. "I don''t know, but we''ll stay together." "Why didn''t the police do anything?" "Rick called with his power, but they didn''t even pick up. We were put on hold then we heard fighting. What happened?" "I heard the one walk into Lana''s room and then she screamed... After that I... I just reacted. Then the one down here... he started firing these laser beams. After that, I went behind him and remembered the weights I had been practicing teleportation with. And I... I used them." Mom sighed as she guided him into the kitchen and sat him down at the table. He rested the back of his hands on the tabletop and stared into the pitted gashes sliced into his palms. Time passed as mom set a glass of water down alongside two slices of bread with a pat of butter on each. A moment later and the butter spread itself out, sizzling as the bread toasted itself golden brown. He heard people talking, but he couldn''t focus. All he could do was stare at the slices of toast. Eli couldn''t wrap his mind around what had happened. Powers had seemed so cool at first, even if they were scary. He knew something like this could happen... but they lived in Farbrook, a cozy little suburb of New Faram. Before today the scariest thing that had ever happened was two days ago when Tom had beaten him up when all of this began. Other than that he had only ever been afraid of getting made fun of or failing a test, which had happened often enough. His hands shook as he thought about the way the intruder''s bones had snapped as easily as the wooden boards had. Or the way they''d been so casual about attacking Lana and him. The one had created a suit of armor out of that gray material and shot him with a wall. Then the other one had shot at him with lasers right at his head. What would have happened if he hadn¡¯t tripped? "Here. Eat your toast, I enchanted them to heal and relax you. Okay?¡± Mom asked as she pushed the plate he¡¯d been staring at idly closer to him. When he didn¡¯t respond she patted his shoulder and walked away. "Hey." Lana called out as she walked in and sat down wearing her robe and slippers like nothing had happened. Her hair hung damp over her shoulder. "Did you... did you take a shower?" Eli blinked and looked up. A plate full of loaf¡¯s worth of bread had been toasted and slathered with butter. Crumbs sprayed out all over the table as Lana bit into. "Yeah. I needed to scrub all of that blood off of me. I had to wrestle that guy and choke him out while I tried to beat the shit out of him. What power did you get from killing your guy?¡± "What? What power?¡± Eli asked as he carefully picked up his own share of toast from the plate mom had prepared for him. His palm burned as he moved his fingers, but bite after bite, soothed his body of aches and pains like cobwebs in an attic being swept away. ¡°You should¡¯ve gotten some from killing that guy. I got a new power and from all of that fighting I even managed to push my power enough to max it out and evolve it. Check it out.¡± Lana beamed as she flipped her hand over and fizzles of gray light sparked from her skin as a small ball formed. "He was really powerful at level eight, but I''m getting the hang of this ''Graylight Construction'' power." Eli shook his head as he frowned and noticed she was right. He had quite a few notifications stored up that were all too eager to flash across his vision the moment he thought about them. Teleportation Lv. 4> Teleportation Lv. 5> Eli ogled the mess of text. He sighed after he finished the toast and reached for his second while he thought over his options. Already the cuts on his skin were slowly starting to scab and heal along with the bones that shifted and realigned in his shoulder and ribs. It didn¡¯t hurt or anything, it even felt good. "So, what did you get?" Lana practically bounced in her seat while she waited. "I maxed out teleportation at level five apparently, but the... the person I¡­ I, ahem, he had a power called Photon Shot. I can either use it to level up my teleportation, which is already maxed out, or I can take a perk or get the same power he had." He frowned while he thought about his choices. It would be nice to have something else, but he didn''t think the laser beams were really his style. Plus, it¡¯d feel morbid to use a power that had belonged to someone eager to kill him and his family. "Take the perk then." Lana shrugged as if it were simple... which he supposed it was. He sighed as he thought about the ''Gain a Power Perk'' option and watched the next wall of text scrawl across his vision. He squinted as he thought about each of the options and frowned as he felt a wash of sensations and impressions form about each choice. It was almost like he had a small preview to each of the perks hooked up to his head. Light Charge would allow him to gather and charge up light whenever he used whichever power he slotted it into. That sounded pretty useless unless he wanted a weak flashlight plugged into teleportation. Eli disregarded it with a shake of his head as he focused on Focus (Light). It seemed like it''d improve the effects of whatever power he linked it to, but only when he was in the light. Then his power would be considerably worse in the dark. He frowned as he thought about the void that he disappeared into whenever he teleported... would that mean that he wouldn''t be able to use the power at all? Or would it not count? He was a bit tempted since he wasn''t able to teleport that easily if he couldn''t see already, but he hoped that would change if he could evolve his power. "How good was your power evolution?" "Oh, it was excellent. Enhanced Athleticism became Superhuman Conditioning! Before I felt a bit more resistant and just slightly better, I guess, but now I actually feel improved. When I was wrestling that guy down, I felt my power change a little and checked the notification and evolved it. My strength and everything became... well, superhuman. After that it became far easier." "Hm..." If that was the case then he may not even need to worry about seeing where he wanted to teleport for much longer. He decided to check out Light Blast then wind back around to Focus if he didn''t like it. Light Blast gave him an impression similar to Light Charge, but instead of a slow, weak flashlight it was more of a physical flash of light. It gave him the sense that he''d be able to practically imbue anything he used his power on, including himself, with an explosive flash of blazing light similar to the intruder''s Photon Shot. Unlike Focus, which felt like it was permanently activated, this felt like something he could choose to do or not. He took a deep breath in while he considered for one last second before deciding. It didn''t make any sense to take the perks when the power had all of it and offered far more versatility and power. He didn¡¯t think he¡¯d ever rely on it as more than a flashlight, but if he had something like that he wouldn¡¯t have needed to go down into the basement in the first place to move the weights. Besides, he¡¯d rather have it than any one of the perks. They sounded okay, but at least with this new power he could do all of it. Each of those perks felt like a possibility he could achieve with it. With a grin, he selected evolve power and then frowned at the option. "That''s fucking bullshit," Eli growled. The impression it gave him was hardly any different. Nothing changed except that he could teleport a little bit farther and with a bit more weight. He''d do it if he didn''t have any decent offerings for a new power, but so far he was pretty disappointed about his options. Teleportation was a bit lamer when he couldn''t even use it to travel across the globe at a moment''s thought or appear anywhere he¡¯d already been. "Language!" Lana smirked jokingly, but she glanced at him with a smidge of concern before it melted away. He frowned at her then glanced over towards the living room where mom and dad were huddled together whispering in a frantic discussion or argument. He shook his head as he ignored Lana''s curious look and then selected the ''Obtain New Power'' and then read the list of rather mediocre choices. Right away, he knew he was only remotely interested in either Hydromancy or Telekinesis. He had the very clear feeling that he''d only be able to control what each of these powers correlated to, not create it. That turned powers that could be interesting into something that was almost useless. What was the point of Photokinesis when Photon Shot mostly did the same, plus it¡¯d allow him to fire a laser? Pyromancy would rely on more fire than he¡¯d prefer. Plus even Tom had a power that allowed him to create fire. He couldn¡¯t have a fire power worse than Tom¡¯s. Geomancy could be interesting, but something about Hydromancy and Telekinesis called to him far more. No. Hydromancy would be useful since there was water practically everywhere and he felt like it''d be easier to grind out levels for it than any of the others except for Telekinesis. Photokinesis could maybe be an easy level up, but he didn¡¯t even know if he¡¯d like Photon Shot. However, Eli was very excited at the possibility that he''d be able to move things around with his mind and thought it''d also pair nicely with his teleportation... especially if the exploit he was thinking of worked with it. "I got telekinesis." Eli grinned as he felt the power start to integrate with him. Over his spatial senses or second skin, he felt something far more tactile and stretchy form around him. With a thought he willed the scraps of crust left over from his toast to float and move towards his mouth while he winked at Lana. Instead something wavered in the air as it distorted shredding the curst into a fine powder of crumbs that launched straight into the ceiling in a shower that spread all over the kitchen and dining room. He winced and blinked around at the mess sheepishly before casting a nervous glance over at his parents who hadn¡¯t noticed yet. [Stats: Body: None Mind: None Will: None ] [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Teleportation Ev.0/Lv. 5 (Maxed) Slot Two -- Telekinesis Ev.0/Lv. 0 Slot Three -- Photon Shot Ev.1/Lv. 0 ] [Unequipped Powers: N/A ] Chapter Five Eli tossed and turned in his bed well into the morning. After he''d made his choices and chatted with Lana and his parents a bit more, he''d headed straight to bed. The toast had dumped him straight into slumber, but he¡¯d woken up in a fit a few hours later. He¡¯d been awake since, stuck staring up at the ceiling. People had broken into their home and they¡¯d almost killed them. But they hadn''t died, instead, Lana and him had both killed someone. All he knew about them was that they were a burglar and had leveled their powers up to level six. Which meant they had practiced their powers relentlessly just so that they could rob others. He snarled at the thought, but his irritation felt hollow in the wake of what he¡¯d done. Images and sounds echoed endlessly in his head. Forever on a loop. He had obliterated that intruder. Jets of blood had streamed everywhere in a mist that had coated the walls and pooled down the stairs. Bone had crunched and popped in a barrage louder than a firework display. Yet he didn¡¯t know if he regretted it or not. They would¡¯ve killed them, so he¡¯d done a good thing, right? He¡¯d protected himself and his family. But¡­ his conversation with Lana flashed through his thoughts. Not a shred of worry or concern had shadowed a single inch of her expression. She had been excited. High on victory. Granted, she didn¡¯t turn someone into gruel like he did. So who was right? The police hadn¡¯t come, they hadn¡¯t even answered his parents call. As far as he knew, they were still on hold. Dad hadn¡¯t done anything and both mom and Lyra had stayed in their rooms. For fuck¡¯s sake, Lyra had slept through the whole thing. He clenched his fists until the crescents of his nails dug into his healed, but faintly scarred palms. He nudged at each of his powers. Space rippled along his skin more readily than it had just a couple of days ago. It felt far smoother, more natural. Like it was a part of him. He teleported in place and sat up with his knees crossed while he stared down at his blankets. Telekinesis bristled both along his skin where it butted straight against the air as well as in a knot behind his forehead. He put light pressure on it and watched as the blankets dipped in a sudden crater, the coils of his bedspring creaked along with his bedframe. Photon Shot was next. Right when he thought about using it, he felt a sort of awareness of the low light around him. He could pull, store, and release it, but without any stored light¡­ nothing happened. He lifted his hand up and pulled on it until his bedroom swam with shadows with only a slight area of visibility remaining due to the bead of red light that he cradled in his palm. It wasn¡¯t warm or cold, he couldn¡¯t even feel it besides the use of his power. He winced at the thought of firing it and burning a swath of destruction in its wake. He gently eased off his pull of the light and chuckled at the tiny low-powered beam that did nothing but glow as it trailed across the walls. Cats would love him after this. It was incredible how much he understood it just from seeing the three perks¡­ plus the encounter with its previous wielder. He winced at the thought and cut the power off and heaved a sigh. He was just avoiding his haunted thoughts, throwing himself into exploring his two new powers. Ignoring the weight that pressed against him every moment since he¡¯d stared up at that man¡¯s figure at the height of the stairs. He could¡¯ve tried to teleport the man away or even tried to hold back on his artillery blast of weights or even aimed to cripple. But no. Eli had aimed straight for the center of his back. At that moment, he had hoped that he would kill him. Visions of sitting at his dad¡¯s funeral blitzed across his imagination. No. He¡¯d done what he¡¯d had to and what he could have. But did his family see it the same way? He¡¯d made the decision to make sure that him and Lana were the only ones that had gotten hurt when he¡¯d gone into the basement. So what if dad has a powerful ability that could¡¯ve leveled the house and probably done far worse to the man. Eli had acted. Eli knew with startling clarity that he would do it again. Except next time? He would do it even better. He¡¯d have to train his powers until he could drive off any threats or put them down the moment they became unmanageable. Eli winced at the thought of facing the judgment, worry, and fear in his parents¡¯ faces when he inevitably talked to them next. A small part of him seemed to howl at the thoughts he was having. Of how he¡¯d pin someone down with telekinesis, snap their arms and legs if they so much as raised a hand against any of them. How he¡¯d teleport whatever he had to into their fragile bodies, and if they had body enhancement powers? He¡¯d do far worse. Not to mention the laser beams that he would learn to fire with exacting aim. Char holes to the bone. Then he flopped his head back into his pillow with a heavy sigh. Mom and dad were ashamed, disgusted that they''d raised two killers. Would Lyra be afraid to be around him after this? If him and Lana would even be free. Maybe they¡¯d be thrown straight into jail. If there was even a government after all of the riots stopped¡­ if they ever did. Dark thoughts called for some light. He focused on his Photon Shot ability as he held his finger up and pulled all of the dim light that leaked in through his window to his finger. A glowing red dot of light charged up as he contained it on the nail of his index finger. He thought about each of the perks the System had offered him. A nudge at the power that seemed dance through him like an aurora seemed to resonate in three distinct ways. He felt and watched all of those parts as they worked under the hood to achieve Photon Shot. The Light Charge part of it was what allowed him to gather all of the light. Focus (Light) felt more like the core that linked the other two parts of it together, but it still had an integral part to play. Eli allowed it to activate and watched as the bead of light brightened to a cherry red as it condensed itself. Then Photon Burst would be the actual firing part of the power, but instead of activating it, he slowly relaxed his iron grip on the light until it vanished in a slight flash. The only light in the room was what streamed in from the window now. Photon Shot Lv. 1> Huh. He wondered why it leveled up so easily considering it was only the second time he''d used the power. Telekinesis didn''t level up after he used it twice and neither did Teleportation. Was it because he knew about the different parts of it from the perks list? Eli frowned as he closed his eyes while he thought about his other two powers, even though he knew deep down this was little more than a distraction from what had happened and that he was avoiding going downstairs and seeing the now tarnished way his parents looked at him. He couldn''t bear to see Lyra once she realized her brother was a murderer. On top of the reason why their hallway looked like a demolition project carried out by a madman fulfilling a bloody massacre. Okay. So Eli already figured out that first he had to decide what he was teleporting and he assumed telekinesis was the same with what he''d be moving. Then, he had to focus as his spatial field swallowed him up and transferred him to his new location. Easy. Telekinesis... He thought as he activated the power and grimaced as his sense of touch expanded to encompass the entirety of his blankets. Eli sat up and moved his pillow with his hands and set it at the foot of his bed where he could barely feel it with the power. Eyes narrowed, he focused on telekinetically moving it towards him. Eli paid careful, close attention as he became more and more aware as his ''telekinetic'' field tightened into a cone instead of a spherical blob. He felt more detail from the blankets, but only the top of them. He tried to see if he could feel both the top and underside¡ª Damn. The telekinetic field snapped back into an amorphous blob and was already fading the second he stopped thinking about moving the pillow. He tried again. Soon enough, his telekinetic field touched the edge of the pillow. Eli squeezed his hand as he thought about grabbing it, and watched with tamped-down interest as his field wrapped around the pillow in a strange distorted imitation of a hand and snapped it back towards him like a whip. Eli held his hand out to catch the pillow as it whooshed towards him, but before it reached his hand, his telekinetic field readjusted into a bubble and held it suspended in midair. He smiled as he waved his hand around then giggled as the pillow floated in time with his gestures. It bobbed as he pushed it away from him a foot, two feet, then a full yard. By then, his telekinetic field had thinned to a tether that wobbled every time he moved the pillow, but it still hovered under his own telekinetic might. Then he sighed as he thought about how his teleportation could work off of other senses than just his sight, and how telekinesis relied on his sense of touch. Even now, he could feel the pillow and even the string-thin strip of air that was his telekinetic field anchoring him to the pillow. Eli teleported the pillow into his lap. A loud rip tore through the room as his pillow was sheared in two as both of his powers competed with his attention. Half of the pillow appeared in his lap, while the other half dropped to the floor in a mess of foam. The sight of the status message was barely enough to make up for the destruction of his favorite pillow. Telekinesis Lv. 1> "Ugh, goddammit." He threw his head back in a sulk then hissed as he slammed his head into the wall where his pillow usually rested. Eli grumbled as he stared up at the ceiling and thought about how different things had been just a few days ago. Finals were just a short month away and he''d been terrified about failing his classes. Not to mention his impending birthday, college applications, and whether or not Tom¡¯s crew would be bullying him or leaving him alone. This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. Now? Now he and the rest of the world had superpowers. Two motherfucking assholes broke into their home, to either steal or hurt them, and both him and Lana had killed them. That sure put his plans of going to NFU in New Faram for college in perspective. Hell, there might not even be colleges after this. He''d already had little idea of what he wanted to do with his life, but now that his childhood dreams of comic books and movies had come to life... he still didn''t know what he wanted to do. If he had to deal with nearly dying or having his family suffer then he couldn''t be a superhero. Especially not if it happened with any sense of regularity. That had been beyond horrible. Weren''t heroes supposed to not kill though? He''d already failed then. No. He had no plans or prospects just like before. Unless if he wanted to try and become one of the fastest delivery people in town. He snorted at the thought while he turned his head so he could see next to his dresser and teleported out of bed to get dressed. Moping around wasn''t doing him any good. A few moments later he sneaked out into the hallway in the low light of morning. He peeked down with a grimace at the bloody mess that was everywhere, but he couldn¡¯t even begin to imagine cleaning all of it up. It felt impossible. It was far too large of a task, but he felt responsible. He shook his head with a sigh before teleporting down to the foot of the stairs, then again through the living room into the kitchen. Good. It was only 9:27 AM, he could start some coffee and maybe even make breakfast for himself. Maybe for everyone else? He thought back to his earlier thought and how he¡¯d considered becoming a delivery person just because of his powers and how it felt like such an easy jump to a conclusion, but was ultimately unsatisfying? Maybe that was how mom felt about cooking just because of what her power was. No, he¡¯d cook something. Maybe then he could even get to work cleaning. Minutes passed in a blur as he teleport-hopped his way around the kitchen gathering mixing bowls and two skillets that he set on the already heated stovetop. Pretty soon he had the pancake mix and the carton of eggs set out and ready while he whisked the batter together with a wince. It was practically hard labor, how it all stuck together and refused to stir. Eli frowned down at the sludge of pale white with clumps of flour scattered throughout the whole thing. Then, he grinned as he reached out with telekinesis like it was an arm and willed the batter to blend at high speed. He watched with glee as the batter coiled together in a spiral like a tornado as it snaked up his telekinetic field. He condensed back down with a squeeze and nearly clapped with joy at how easy that had been. How could he stop now? Eli crossed his arms in a pose that he¡¯d seen on one of those old cooking shows his parents had watched on one of their anniversaries and glared at the ingredients that dared to not be fully cooked food. He whipped his telekinesis out to free some eggs that he threw into his telekinetic grip above one skillet where he tapped it to teleport the shell into the trash. A perfectly intact oval egg floated above the skillet where it slowly rotated in his telekinetic grasp. He brought the bottle of olive oil over to him so he could pour some into the skillet with telekinesis before dropping the egg in with a splat of sizzling oil. Pretty soon, he became a cooking machine of efficiency. Limbs of telekinesis reached out to dole out portions of pancake batter before flattening it out into one skillet, while another dealt with the eggs. Two plates waited at the end of the counter where he soon piled up stacks of pancakes and fresh eggs. Now he had a feast ready and he didn¡¯t even need to use a single utensil. He beamed over the best show of cooking he¡¯d ever had before turning to the clock with a grin that slowly faded to a frown of irritation. It was only 9:50 AM and no one else was even awake. He stared at it all with a growing distaste as his mouth seemed to dry. Food seemed so unappetizing. Even the toast from last night looked better. He shook his head as he dumped it all into tupperware containers and packed them into the fridge. It was time to clean instead. Eli searched for all of the cleaning supplies, but found far more bottles and scrubbing utensils than he¡¯d ever realized they had. Maybe he could just use his powers here too? He stretched as he straightened back up with his bucket full of soapy water as he towed it behind him with telekinesis. For a moment he just wanted to walk. He didn¡¯t want to have to see the mess any sooner than he had to. Hands and fingers trembled and shook so badly that he was grateful he was able to carry the bucket with telekinesis instead. Otherwise he¡¯d spill everything all over the place. Breath hitching, he rounded the corner towards the staircase and blinked at the sight of dad standing at the top of the stairs in his bathrobe and an orb of swirling water that streamed with bubbles. Lashes of water and wind scrubbed against the walls and the carpet before looping back around towards another orb dark with blood and grime. ¡°Dad?¡± Eli¡¯s voice quavered and cracked far more than he liked. ¡°Hey, son. How are you doing?¡± Dad said with a forced level of calm and normalcy. ¡°I¡¯m fine. I¡¯m surprised you¡¯re awake. I thought you and mom stayed up late?¡± ¡°We did.¡± He sighed. ¡°But your mom used her powers to make us tea that¡¯d put us to deep sleep¡­ but I couldn¡¯t take more than a sip. I couldn¡¯t sleep after this. Then I felt you turn on the stove and the lights and figured it was time to be up.¡± ¡°Sorry about the mess.¡± Eli¡¯s apology was a heavy, burdensome thing. Filled with far more apologies than the simple, but monstrous mess sprawled across the hall and staircase. He was sorry for waking him up when he knew his dad hardly ever slept as it was. Another apology for being a murderer. Then another for not cleaning up after himself. Finally, an apology for just¡­ for everything. ¡°Don¡¯t be. My power makes it pretty easy as long as I don¡¯t let it form into a cloud.¡± He shrugged. For a second, the only sound was the bubbling of dad¡¯s powerwashing the carpet and walls before sucking all of the water and everything else up into his other orb. ¡°I hope you know that you didn¡¯t do the wrong thing. I don¡¯t like that you put yourself in danger, but¡­ I appreciate that you didn¡¯t leave either even though if things were much worse you should have¡­ Anyway, the main point is that you didn¡¯t do anything wrong.¡± Eli nodded then used his telekinesis to try and help clean the mess up as well as he could. Whenever that didn¡¯t work, he laid his hands on a filthy area and focused on teleporting out the mess. Slowly, they returned the state of the house to a more orderly state. Even if the wounds from the home invasion remained in the scars gouged through the plaster of the walls, or the scorch marks charred into the ceiling. Or the loss of Eli¡¯s lamp. And most certainly the devastation in Lana¡¯s room. But in the end, they returned the state of chaos to one of order, as much as they could. ¡°Good job.¡± Dad nodded to Eli as they headed back into the kitchen to eat. Dad pulled out the platter of food Eli had made and reheated it, but Eli sat at the table with his arms crossed and his attention laser-focused on the grain of the table. Now that he¡¯d made food and helped clean¡­ what was he going to do? Static seemed to chatter in his ears and churn through his chest down to his stomach. Dad stiffened and came to a stop with his plate partially made, his head turned towards the door. ¡°What is it?¡± Eli asked in alarm at the thought of it being people wanting vengeance on the home invaders wrapped up in their garage. ¡°I¡¯m not sure. I sense radios and cell phones¡­¡± He answered as a heavy series of knocks boomed from the front door. ¡°Stay here.¡± Eli shivered as he watched his dad make his way back towards the entryway. If they were people wanting vengeance, Eli would need to be ready to step in and prote¡ª A squeal screeched as Dad opened the door. Eli strained his ears to try and hear whatever was being said, but he couldn¡¯t hear any more than the murmured voices of conversation. He started to try and throw out his senses in a partial teleport right as his phone vibrated. When he pulled it out to check on it, there wasn¡¯t a notification or anything, but it vibrated again so he unlocked it and read the message that popped up on the notes app immediately. THE POLICE ARE HERE. THEY¡¯LL WANT TO TALK TO EVERYONE AND TAKE A LOOK AROUND. I¡¯VE ALREADY SENT A FOLLOWUP EMAIL TO OUR LAWYERS, BUT THEY HAVEN¡¯T RESPONDED. GET YOUR MOM. - DAD Palpitations shuddered through Eli¡¯s chest as his heartbeat hammered. Numbness frosted across his fingertips as he read through the message another time and wondered how the fuck he was supposed to get Mom. It wasn¡¯t like he could just walk up the stairs with the police right there at the door. He climbed up to his feet as he tried to imagine teleporting into his room from memory alone, but nothing happened. No tunneling, no easing into the void. Nothing. He turned to glance out through the gaps in the blinds to the backyard. No one seemed to be outside, and wouldn¡¯t the police need permission to enter their backyard? Or were they already out there? Invisible and watching? He shook his head at the thought. Getting paralyzed about what powers people might or might not have wouldn¡¯t get him anywhere. A teleport later had him standing outside with his bare feet on the grass before another teleport dragged him through space and through the window of the attic. A wooden beam above him shifted and cracked from his teleporting in standing, so he quickly crouched down before sneezing violently from the heavy musk of dust. Okay. Okay. How would he get down now? He was in the attic, but he had no line of sight anywhere¡­ Eli patted and swiped his hands everywhere he could and flinched at the grime of inch thick dust that coated every bit of box, old furniture, and floorboards. He tapped his phone screen turning his phone on and shined it around, but he couldn¡¯t see the trap door. He was too far in the crowded back of the attic. Maybe he could teleport somehow through touch? After all, he could teleport objects by touching them or even being near them. Eli flexed his spatial field and felt it sink in through the floorboard and layers of insulation to the ceiling below him. Right now he crouched above the guest bedroom at the back of the house. He focused on teleporting below right on the bed and winced as bands of force seemed to clamp in pinching vises across his body until he slid out into the void and popped back into existence with his back to the ceiling. He had a second to blink as the floor seemed to grow in size before he crashed into it. Pain swelled and seared across his chest and shoulders as he smacked through the air and smacked his head against the floor. He let out a groan of pain as he scrambled to get his bearings before rolling over and trying to get up. Thankfully there was that giant ugly rug that didn''t fit anywhere else in the house to cushion his fall. But it still fucking hurt. Aches pulsed from his forehead, to his shoulders and knees, as he limped his way over to the door and brushed his smarting hands across it to teleport on the other side. Only to frown at the departing form of his mom walking her way down the hall toward the stairs. He threw up his hands in exasperation only to wince as he jostled his hurt shoulders. Eli didn''t know which was more ironic, the fact that he had gone through all of that work to get his mom and she''d gotten up anyways, or that he''d made sure to make food for everyone so she wouldn''t have to cook, only to injure himself again. Ensuring that she probably would end up making him food anyways to heal him. Goddammit. Chapter Six "I still can''t believe you both got more powers. I''m still stuck at level four and you both got to level five like that?" Lyra sighed as she created illusion after illusion of increasing complexity in rapid succession. Galaxies full of swirling nebulas with dazzling stars, radiant suns, and magnificent planets. He narrowed his eyes at the display when a blush of heat seemed to radiate from the illusion before Lyra replaced it with a desolate desert filled with ringed cities with shining white walls. "It had a cost you don''t want to pay." Dad said sharply while he created a miniature cloud and spun it up slowly to release a gentle, cooling breeze that blew over them in the shade of their backyard where they lounged on their patio. "Again, I''m sorry you both had to deal with that. Last night after... after the incident I put together more of a home security system. Hopefully you won¡¯t have to go through that again. " "Sure, I''m upset it happened, but I''d say we''re better off. We know how this new world works now." Lana said while she created a sphere of graylight metal from her hands and shaped it idly while they talked. It glowed softly under its own light before she formed another one next to it. The glow faded away between each piece she made, revealing a steady stream of glowing spheres flowing around her hands like some kind of luminous river until they disintegrated into sparks. "I''m kind of glad they came." "Are you serious?" Eli asked incredulously, he glared at her but she ignored him. "We had two people break into our home and they tried to kill us.¡± "And we''re fine, because of our powers. If this was before the System it would''ve been both of us who died instead. But now? Now we''re stronger for it." "Lana..." Dad started to say, but she shook her head. "Look. For all of humanity''s history, the only thing that has mattered is power. Whether that''s social, political, or financial. Right? Well now, everyone has power. I don''t want this world to be a ''might makes right'' world, but... wasn''t it already?" Lana ranted as she climbed to her feet in a tortured screech of her metal as her launched herself up to her feet too hard. Each of her steps ended early as she created block after block of graylight for her to stand on until she towered over him. "Would you rather be worried and afraid for us when we''re powerless or when we have literal superpowers?" "What kind of question is that, Lana?¡± Dad shook his head while ignoring her thematics. ¡°I¡¯ll always worry. This didn¡¯t change anything, especially, since we don¡¯t know how the world will turn out just like we didn¡¯t know before. But now? Everyone is basically armed to the teeth with a gun at best and a nuke at worst. You got up in a bit of a tantrum and just ruined a lounge chair. Let¡¯s say the world does return to normal. Right? And someone gets cut off in traffic or has to wait a little too long in a line. What happens then? Before it could¡¯ve been just a honk or two, maybe an assault at worst. Now who knows? That¡¯s not to even mention the scars of having to live constantly with fear and paranoia.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not afraid.¡± Lana shrugged then scoffed when Dad opened his mouth again. ¡°No, seriously. Every morning, day, and night I was plagued with news stories of bad things happening to young girls like me. Before I was a victim and now I¡¯m strong enough to ¡®break patio furniture¡¯ with ease. Why should I be afraid when I¡¯ll only get stronger?¡± Dad took a unsteady breath before shaking his head and sitting back down. His mouth was puckered like he¡¯d just shoved a lemon in his mouth while he thought over everything she¡¯d said. ¡°Besides! Mom can heal us. A simple meal and we¡¯re better than if we¡¯d gone to the doctor. We¡¯re fine.¡± Lana said nonchalantly as she started to lie back down on the lounge chair then frowned at the lopsided cloth with broken springs and a bent frame. She sat down with a huff as she held her hands out to try and create a chair out of graylight, but the metal kept collapsing before she could finish. Eli shared a skeptical, fearful glance with Lyra and he was reminded again how grateful he was that she hadn¡¯t been awake during the home invasion. He could imagine what could¡¯ve happened as clearly as if she¡¯d painted out the scene with her illusions. Lyra couldn¡¯t teleport, she wasn¡¯t superhumanly strong or durable. Hell, Eli had been hurt fairly badly and was only healed back to normal because Mom had made him food after the police left with the bodies in the garage. He turned to study his dad¡¯s face whose eyes were squinted in concentration behind his glasses, his eyes sunken from days without sleep. Irritation flashed through him as he recalled the conversation he¡¯d overheard before the attack. Was it a simple home invasion or burglary? Or was it perhaps more? Did those people his parents mentioned put out a hit on them? He didn¡¯t recall either of those two men trying to steal anything. They had gone straight up the stairs. Eli started to open his mouth to accuse Dad, but held back after a moment. His phone popped into existence in his hand after a flex of his spatial field to rip it free from his pocket. He quickly unlocked his phone and scrolled through different news feeds. Practically every supermax prison was now empty of prisoners, but full of more corpses than a graveyard. He opened up his browser and started looking at prison sentences for laundering money, ignoring his father¡¯s raised eyebrow at him. ¡®Not watching us use our technology, my ass.¡¯ Oh yeah, whoever these Sandra and Dave people were, they were definitely in a federal prison after laundering money and doing who else knows what. He wished he knew what their last names were. So what were the chances that these two were hunting them and could¡¯ve sent those two? Probably pretty fucking high. WHO ARE ¡®DAVE¡¯ AND ¡®SANDRA, DAD? - ELI SO YOU WERE LISTENING IN. Dad sighed and glanced furtively at Eli over where he sat by Lyra who was still practicing with her illusions. THEY WERE OUR BEST FRIENDS AND OUR MAIN INVESTORS WHEN WE CREATED ¡®Denson and Newton Consultants¡¯. THEY WERE JUST USING US TO LAUNDER THEIR MONEY. WE LOST A LOT OF MONEY BECAUSE OF THEM. IT¡¯S TAKEN US THIS LONG TO GET BACK TO BEING VIABLE. - DAD DO YOU THINK THOSE PEOPLE FROM LAST NIGHT WERE SENT BY THEM? - ELI I DON¡¯T THINK SO. Dad stopped typing for a moment while he stared off into space with a frown. BUT I WOULDN¡¯T PUT IT PAST THEM EITHER. I¡¯LL LOOK INTO IT, BUT DON¡¯T WORRY ABOUT IT. Eli sat there holding his phone while he thought about everything a bit more before sighing and teleporting his phone back into his pocket. He glanced over at Lana and Lyra who were both hard at work practicing their powers. Lyra was the center of nearly inaudible lightshow complete with the same two verses of a song stuck on repeat. Lana had most of the legs of a chair constructed out of graylight, but when she set it on the ground the legs kept buckling. He glanced back down and reaffirmed his decision to practice his powers for real. There were so many limits that he¡¯d barely begun to scratch. How could he test how far he could teleport if he was constantly cooped in the house or the backyard? Same with Photon Shot. He hadn¡¯t been able to really test out its firepower since he didn¡¯t want to burn holes in the walls or anything. That left his Telekinesis. He willed it to activate and pushed it out and down to trace across the grass like a pseudopod flailing. Grass flattened and swayed in the wake of his powers passage. Soon he felt out the edge of a rock and snatched it straight out of the ground. A tug brought it smacking straight into his hand. He teleported it in place to clean it of all dirt until it sparkled a cloudy white. A bubble of telekinetic forced wrapped around it and he held it aloft straight above his head while he bent a stray tether of telekinesis to pull the lounge lever of his lounge chair back so he could lay down. The rock floated above his line of sight about a dozen feet away. Photon Shot charged in his hand, even though he wanted to try and power it up in his eyes. Laser vision would be sick, but it was pretty steadfast in wanting to only work with either of his hands. Good to know. A beam of crackling red light streaked upward to smack into the rock with a flash of heat. The rock gyrated in his telekinetic grasp as the laser pulsed into the side of the rock. A second later his Photon Shot ran out light and fizzled out into sparks. He blinked a few times to clear his vision as he pulled the rock back to study it and frowned. Only some soot and scorch marks? No cracks or molten bubbles? Eli didn''t think he''d ever felt as exceptionally disappointed as he did in that moment. He had imagined the rock shattering in a pop of incendiary might or the beam drilling a hole straight through the rock to pierce to the sky. Or the rock even vaporizing, but instead he''d done as much or maybe a bit more than he could have with a lighter. Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. Fuck that. He was trying again. A flex of telekinesis lifted it into position where he shot laser after laser until the rock had a noticeable hole burnt into it. He brushed his thumb across the hole in surprise. Over the course of several iterations, he''d honed his Photon Shot into more of a solid beam. He found that he could either charge it up to be more physical or to be an even hotter, brighter beam. Photon Shot Ev. 1/Lv. 2> Eli started to open his mouth to cheer about his level up when Lyra burst up to her feet in a prismatic firework display of illusionary spectacle surrounding her. She beamed at everyone who stared at her with wide eyes then said, "I maxed out Illusions!" "Did you evolve it?" Lana asked as she launched herself up to her feet with a twitch of her legs. "Or did you get a new power? What are your options?" Eli teleported over to her in an effort try and see her status or level up message, even though he knew it wasn''t possible. "Wellll," Lyra drew out with a literal sparkle in her eyes. Damn, she was even more dramatic now with her illusion power. "If I evolve it, it''ll become ''Synesthesiac Illusions, then my five new power options are..." A giant drum appeared beside her that began to thrum as a massive drumbeat blasted from it. "Forcefield, Flight, Projection, Geokinesis, and Telekinesis." "Which one are you going to pick?" Lana practically bounced with excitement as she fidgeted from one foot to the other. "I''m not sure." She shrugged then glanced from Lana to Eli with a mischievous grin that he knew far too well. Before she started hurrying back inside, she shouted over her shoulder, "I''ll decide later!" "Ugh. Whatever." Lana sulked as she kicked at the dirt then winced as her shoe gouged a divot into the lawn. "I''m going inside to lift some weights." "How much do you want to bet she''s going to pester Lyra now?" Dad chuckled with a grin before he settled back into his own lounge chair with his eyes closed. Eli glanced at him then stared as he wondered what he was doing. Playing a game? Working? Spying on their neighbor''s devices to see what they were doing? He had no idea. *** Eli kicked his feet over empty space while he thought about where he was going to train. He sat on the roof of the abandoned gymnasium behind the school and stared out into the residential warren of Farbrook¡¯s suburban hell. Smoke hung in a cloud of smog over the horizon of New Faram city, but very little of it had reached Farbrook yet. From the corner of his eye he watched some people wearing full clothing covering their faces and bodies skulking around, but he ignored them. Who was he to judge? Maybe they were tired of being trapped too. Teleportation made it so he couldn''t be stuck in a cage unless he wanted to be. Or so he wanted to believe. He leaned back so he could stare up into the endless gray of the night sky. He felt so torn. The more he considered the future and what had happened and what should have happened, the more frustrated he felt. So many feelings warred inside of his heart. A part of him wanted to stay with his family so he could defend them, but he couldn''t stand being stuck with them. He had been so excited to start finally living his life and not being stuck in a neverending tutorial of school and obligation. Now he was a month shy from being an adult in what could easily become a post-apocalyptic world instead of just a moderately dystopian one. Another part of him wanted to run as far away from everything as he possibly could. He didn''t want to fight ever again. Something about being healed easier made it so much worse than whenever he¡¯d been hurt pre-System. Eli was pretty sure he''d broken some of his bones at least twice in the last three days and he felt perfectly fine now. Better than fine. Dad and Lana¡¯s argument kept repeating in his head too. What Dad said about the possibility of people flipping out over the slightest thing¡­ that was a real concern. Tom and his goons already took every chance to bully Eli that they could take before. If school did start up again and he went back¡­ he¡¯d have to deal with that again. But they¡¯d all have powers. He could barely fight back before, but now he¡¯d¡­ he¡¯d killed. Would a brawl start? Would police now be stationed at every school? But. Eli couldn¡¯t deny there was a larger than he would like dark thrill at the thought of finally being able to fight back. Before he was just a teenager with the weight of his family¡¯s expectations on his shoulders and constant abuse and bullying at school. Now? Now he had fucking superpowers. Powers that grew and changed with him. He could go anywhere with teleportation. For the first time, it felt like the world had opened up. No longer did he have to worry about Tom and his goons catfishing him with people interested in him all the way in the city. Or spreading his intimate info all over school. Sure, maybe he¡¯d still get beaten. Except, now he could return the favor. It was just that he was so tired. Exhausted even and he wasn¡¯t even eighteen yet. He kicked his feet over the edge of the roof again and frowned up at the empty night sky that didn¡¯t even have a single star shining. What was the point of living under constant expectations and pressure? Of toiling away for others¡¯ approval when it was never enough? He had to succeed. Surpass. Overcome. He only wanted to live, but that wasn''t even the bare minimum of success. Eli clenched his jaw as he squeezed his fists at his side and glared at the sky. He didn''t want to feel helpless like he had last night ever again. He didn''t want to hear his sister scream in terror as a hooded man snuck into her room at night. Didn''t want to see his father''s horrified face when he saw an intruder burst like a pinata. See the horror on his mother¡¯s face. No. Eli wanted to be better. He wanted to get strong enough that everyone would leave them alone. Strong enough that he would be in control. Maybe people would expect more of him, but at least he could back it up now. In order to do that, he had to keep training. Improving. Preparing for what was to come. Lana was right. This wasn''t over yet. Eli glanced straight up into the night sky and teleported himself up into the air. Teleport after teleport shot him high into the air until he could see Farbrook laid bare beneath him. Warrens of residential areas with a strew of lit houses and pinpricks of streetlamps glowed white and amber beneath him. Roads snaked and sprawled like veins. Red and blue lights strobed in the night as police patrolled or dealt with whatever they were doing. All he knew is that it wasn''t enough. Gravity started to reclaim him as he reached the height of his ascent. Brisk air clawed at his skin, and throttled the air from his lungs with a gust that grew suffocating as he started to fall. His clothes flapped and fluttered like thunder. He glanced out over to the distant lights of New Faram and the patchwork of empty farmland or even plots of rural land and he grinned. Eli''s stomach gurgled from the staggering chain of teleports that he hopped through. Moments after choosing a new spot and teleporting with a concentrated flex of will, he''d shoot through the void in a blast of force only to do it again. Air streamed and gusted across his skin and his hair until it was slicked up and back. Nerves tingled and buzzed across his skin from the exhilarating chill of what he was doing. He wasn''t flying, but did it matter when he was able to teleport as far as he could see and launch himself through the air? Cloudbanks drifted through the air and soaked his clothes with beads of condensation, but only for a moment. He left all of the unnecessary moisture behind each time he teleported. Dark, gloomy land disappeared along with the rest of the world before appearing in a whiplash blur as he flew through the air until he stalled out and started to dive. Then it disappeared as the shutters of the void swallowed and spat him out again. Rural houses and small towns cropped up with lights like glittering jewels, but he ignored them as he drew closer to New Faram. New Faram was a two and a half hour drive just to enter the city normally. But he could probably do it in twenty minutes considering he blitzed through the night sky with ease until he managed to find an empty plot of land surrounded by nothing. Nothing at all. Just empty woods on one side, barren land that was just soil and rock. It was practically a dump with what looked like a pack of rusted, old cars and metal oil barrels. He teleported in another flex and stumbled as he landed in a crater in the ground. Dirt and rough grass exploded all around him in a shower that danced on the breeze he''d created. "Fuck." Eli breathed out as he tried to climb out of the hole, but his whole body was numb and cold from all of the wind. He teleported out of it and wobbled as he landed on solid ground again. His eyes roved over the desolate landscape. There was no sign of anyone for miles, just like he''d thought. It was perfect. There was even a highway close by that he could probably use in case he got lost. He patted his pockets down and sighed at the necessary loss of his phone. There wasn''t any point in sneaking out if he brought his phone with his Dad''s Technomancy. Who knows if he could track the GPS signal or would notice if it just vanished from the house? No. Eli had an analog watch that he''d found in his dresser that he used to wear when he was twelve. It was a basic thing of rubbery plastic that chafed against his wrist. He had an old flashlight that he''d taken the batteries out of... and that was about it. A brush of teleportation was enough to make the batteries and flashlight appear in his hands. Another teleportation aligned the batteries and a flick of his thumb brought radiant light to the pitch black night. He grabbed the flashlight with telekinesis as he lifted, turned, and angled it over behind his head so it''d follow his gaze as he started to wander over to the abandoned cars in his new training field. All of the windows were cracked or shattered entirely. If there were seats, they were a watterlogged rotten mess. Rust pitted most of the doors and the trunks, but the frame seemed solid enough. A quick push with telekinesis proved they were all still solid, hefty weights. There were three oil barrels that were full of old stagnant rainwater and were caked in mud. But why worry about that when a quick touch of his hand was enough to teleport all of that gunk away and out in a ditch? Now he had three oil barrels, five abandoned cars in various states of junk, and a whole lot of land to play around in. He spun in a circle to study all of it for a moment before grinning to himself. This was perfect. Telekinesis flared to life as he lifted up one oil barrel while light streamed into one of his hands from the flashlight as he began to train. If his parents'' enemies, Dave and Sandra, or any of their fellow prisoners, Tom, or any other home invader assholes wanted to mess with Eli Newton? They''d be in for a surprise. He was going to be ready for them. Telekinesis shuddered in a wave as he snapped it out to throw the oil barrel as high as he could before shooting in the charged crimson beam in his left hand. A glowing orange oval marked the falling barrel before it crashed with a loud reverberating thrum and a gust of dirt and grass. Chapter Seven Moonlight spilled through the gaps in the clouds on Eli¡¯s training field close to one of the old highways that led into New Faram. It was a junkyard that over the past week Eli had used to hide whatever equipment he could smuggle into its grassy depths. Old weights liberated from a corner of the basement, his oil barrels, nearly six different flashlights of various intensities. He had an old radio that he checked nearly every hour to make sure no new incidents had happened nearby. This was where he trained three to four times a week. He juggled three twenty-five weights with his carefully shaped telekinetic field. A few different tricks had been figured out over the past week. Both his telekinesis and teleportation had a weight limit of roughly around his total body weight times two. So for now that limit was 260 pounds if he wanted to try and push his limits. However, he didn''t try to teleport with anything above his weight class too often. Only once a week. Nausea and pain would split through his body as it dug into every crevice of his being. It was far too intense. Whatever surpassed his limits would be sheared in half if he teleported, while his control with telekinesis sharply fell off to nothing. It was like trying to shove or tug something with as much force as possible through the void and it''d only be a nudge. No lifting or throwing cars... yet. Teleportation was as maxed out as it could possibly be, but he was still figuring out some new tricks with it. With his spatial field he could target a portion of mass and remove it to be teleported elsewhere. It took a lot of fine control, concentration and time, but it was possible. He made sure to dig a few holes every set. It was almost exhilarating to watch a hole just appear as a full foot of dirt vanished somewhere else. Inspiration had struck one of the times he¡¯d teleported a mess out of his clothes. His true struggles were with using his three powers at the same time. Teleportation and telekinesis felt so similar that they should have no problem functioning at the same time, but the harder he pushed both his spatial and telekinesis field to integrate, to synergize¡­ the harder the backlash was. They didn''t like occupying the same space almost, as if his powers oversaturated the area. He could use one then the other and flicker through them, but that became nauseating rather quickly. Eli sighed as he dropped two of his weights on predetermined spots and brought the final weight close to him until it hovered in place. He closed his eyes and let his powers guide his senses. A few centimeters away from his skin was where his spatial field protruded like a second skin. He could push it out farther, but it''d destabilize and decay eventually. However, his telekinetic field spanned nearly twelve feet in a radius around him. If he focused and shaped it he could easily triple the range to thirty-six feet away, but then his control of objects would only be adequate at about twenty-four feet away. Anything past that was far less absolute. Eli focused his telekinetic field out past the weight that still floated next to him until he felt the large X he''d carved into the ground with his powers ten feet away. He rested his hand on the weight and felt the still surprising warmth of the metallic grip and focused on the ground that had an X carved into it. He imagined that where his telekinetic field exerted pressure on the X was the same as his foot. It was a part of him. He felt the prickly stubbornness of the shortgrass that refused to bend next to the bed of tallgrass he''d cut and mulched with his powers. The ground was dry and coarse with dirt that hadn''t seen water in a long time. Teleport Eli commanded with a flex of his will and then felt his telekinetic field sway out of the way like oil and water from the flash of spatial energy as the weight was thrown through the void. He stretched and cracked his neck as he squeezed his still-closed eyes shut tighter. This was the easy part. It was hardly a stretch to teleport things to his telekinetic field, but not the other way around. His telekinetic field swept back around the weight with glee as he lifted it up again in a bubble of kinetic force that gradually changed its shape to be more like his hand. He held it and wanted to teleport it back into his empty hand. Cracks spanned through his spatial field as it tried to appear beneath his telekinetic field, but the more he forced it to wrap around the weight, the less he held it in his telekinetic grip. Eventually, he found the proper balance of barely lifting it with his telekinesis, and only just covering it with his spatial field. The old white weight dipped and rolled before it vanished. The weight appeared in his hand. He smirked at the growing ease he could accomplish this at the ten-foot mark. But the true test had just begun. His telekinetic field surged out even farther until it encompassed the twenty-foot mark. He made sure to curve his field slightly so the only point of contact was his target. In a moment, he teleported the weight and winced as it crashed into the ground with a thump. His telekinetic field shattered and reset around him in its uneven ten to thirteen-foot radius before he managed to smooth it out to an even twelve feet. With a thought, he extended his field out again and tightened it until he felt the weight and the ground it rested on. Every time he tried to teleport it back to him, his fields clashed and broke each other. He had to restart again and again until he gritted his teeth hard enough that his jaw ached and his temples throbbed. A last ditch effort surged through back fields like chaotic eels thrashing through the water to wrap about the weight and teleport it back to him anyways. Lightning sizzled through his brain as he stumbled back with half of the weight in his hand. Dry dirt sloughed off of it and fell with a thump to the ground. Eli wiped the oozing leak of blood from his nose and stumbled his way over to the other half of the weight and sighed at the partially crumpled metal grip with its sheared-off end. The plastic weightend ring at the ends had cracks in them from his telekinetic field rupturing. Not to mention the irregular hole that spiked through the earth where the end he held was. He sighed as he picked it up and stumbled over to where he kept his oil drum with his spare weights, flashlights, and a tarp in case he ever needed one for whatever reason. He dropped the two halves of the weight on the dirt patch he''d burnt all of the grass from and pulled out two flashlights. Eli sat down and winced as he tried to use his tender telekinetic senses to squeeze the dents out of the weight, but the more force he exerted, the more his headache bloomed into a migraine. This wouldn''t be a pretty fix, but that was fine. It wasn''t like it lost its weight. However, he did manage to use his telekinesis as a vice to line the ends of the weight up as precisely as he could. Then he thumbed the switch on both of the flashlights and trained their blinding rays towards the barrel to reduce any visibility. He closed his eyes as he used Photon Shot to gather and focus the light from the flashlights and moonlight into an orb of light on the tips of his index and middle finger. A dull red light grew and brightened to a sort of orange. Any brighter than that and he''d start to lose control of it. It had swelled to the size of a baseball, but an effort of will condensed it to about the size of a pea. Eli turned away and relied on his senses from telekinesis and Photon Shot to guide him as he released a narrow burning beam that he used to slowly carve a boiling trail across and over the broken path of the weight. Sweat beaded across his forehead from the heat and the heavy labor of mental power. He had to balance his telekinesis with his Photon Shot perfectly. Thankfully, Photon Shot had no issues being used simultaneously with telekinesis or teleportation. Which was useful for cases like this or if he wanted to rely on a laser to teleport things around. Eventually, he had a crude weld holding the two halves of the weight together. Dimples and scorch marks marred the surface of the metal where he''d accidentally used too much or too little power from the now flickering red sphere of light. Eli glanced hopefully at his status, but grumbled at the lack of a level up. [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Teleportation Ev. 0/Lv. 5 (Maxed) Slot Two -- Telekinesis Ev. 0/Lv. 4 Slot Three -- Photon Shot Ev. 1/Lv. 2 ] A full week of near-constant training had provided good experience for telekinesis, but he was still stuck at a low level Photon Shot. What he probably needed was some more target practice, but he found the power fairly reliable when he combined it with telekinesis. Otherwise, the slightest tremble could bump his beam somewhere he didn''t want it to stray. He had some other ways he wanted to test it. It''d be nice if he could store light and basically have a portable lightbulb, but once he let it free to illuminate something, the containment always broke and all of the light exploded free. Overall, he was fine with it being more of a backup power. He wanted to be accurate with it, but as long as it was in his twelve to thirty-six foot range of telekinesis he''d have near perfect aim. Telekinesis made it as easy as touching his nose to get a bull''s eye every time with Photon Shot. Plus, he could teleport around as needed and even use teleportation with Photon Shot too. So far, he''d only experimented with using it as a laser to teleport whatever he focused it on, but that only turned it into a cutting beam as it''d only teleport in the path of the beam. He''d also tried teleporting the actual beam itself and had mixed results. It certainly worked, but it disrupted whatever kept it stable and dispersed the light in a blast rather than a ray. He already had a hard time aiming at those ranges anyway. Too bad he¡¯d always turned Grandfather Denson down on learning how to shoot a gun or hunt. Maybe he¡¯d have better aim now. Eli sighed in contentment as he leaned his head back against the oil barrel and relaxed with a glance at his analog watch. A slow draw of light with Photon Shot was enough for him to check it and see that it was 3:27AM. It was time to head home. He stood up and stretched as he focused on his spatial field and closed it in around his clothes and shoes and made sure to exclude any dirt or other stains and teleported an inch to the left. A cloud of dust, dirt and tufts of grass billowed in the breeze as he took the batteries out of his flashlights, put them in a plastic bag and returned it all to the oil barrel before he covered it up. Then he teleported in a series of gentle pops towards the highway with a compass and pair of binoculars he''d found in his hands. Before too long his feet were on asphalt again and with a quick glance at his compass, made sure he was heading SE and off he went back into the open air of the sky. He''d practiced chaining multiple smaller teleports together compared to chaining his long range teleports. Due to his telekinetic field, he had a passive awareness of about twelve feet that he could easily teleport around in. When he teleported and hung in that void, his spatial field encompassed both where he was and where he was going. As long as he teleported within his passive telekinetic field, he was basically walking and could teleport multiple times a second without a hint of nausea. When he combined that with his teleportation launches, he skipped in and out of his void in a staccato of blasts of air. His journey of twenty or so minute wandering a week ago had shortened to twelve minutes. Once he entered city limits he had to slow down and stop blasting himself and the air around him through each teleport. The number of patrol cars he saw had gradually increased until Farbrook resembled a hive of red-and-blue lit drones intent on keeping the peace. Incidents had still continued, but while the police and National Guard presence had spiked, some semblance of normalcy had started to return as well. Phone service was back, even if it was spotty. Most websites and everything else were more or less fully operational. A gentle series of teleports was enough for him to land on the roof of his home with contemptuous ease. He sat down carefully. Quietly. Then he compacted and narrowed his telekinetic field as much as he could until it was practically a quivering, vibrating mass of kinetic potential that he slowly unfurled downwards through the roof. He felt in between the shingles, the grain of the wood, the foam of the insulation... and then he felt the cavity in space that was the attic, a teensy bit farther showed him the crowded floorspace of the attic. A slow, gradual teleport silently dropped him into the dark without a single breeze to betray his presence. A stray telekinetic tether snaked into a specific spot above his closet and he teleported all of his dark clothes, his compass and binoculars and boots. Everything he had and wore teleported into that spot. Next he let his telekinetic field slide down the four walls of his room until he could feel the floor of his room, his closed door, and his shared wallspace with his parents¡¯ office. He didn¡¯t feel any movement in the hallway or anyone lurking in his bedroom for some reason. It was all clear. He loosened his hold on his senses, at the cost of resolution, until he felt the soothing chill of his mattress and rumpled bedding to look like he was in it. A moment later he was curled up under the covers sleeping. Three hours later his alarm rang on his phone and he rolled over with a groan. His body felt gritty and sore with countless aches from staying up far too late and pushing his body far too hard. Crust coated his eyes and he¡¯d drooled all over his spare lumpy replacement pillow. He stumbled out of bed as he shut off his alarm. A flutter of telekinesis flicked the light switch on and he started to get dressed for the day. He stepped out into the hallway and teleported down the stairs and then into the kitchen. A part of him was irritated at the unnecessary leaps, but he didn''t want his family knowing he could teleport with his telekinetic senses yet. If they knew, they might figure out that he was sneaking out. Or that he was a bit better with his powers than he pretended. A twitch of telekinesis opened the fridge and pulled out the jug of cold brew that Mom had started preparing every night once she got tired of everyone asking her to make coffee for them. Another wave of telekinesis flipped a cabinet open and pulled out a mug, a plate and some silverware plus a couple of frozen waffles. He teleported into his seat at the table with his mug of coffee and his phone out. He scanned through the different news channels and sighed at the government''s demands that people start to go back to work and school if able. They wanted people cooped up at home, but also out and about to keep the country productive. Several countries had closed their borders, not to mention the excessive lockdowns on airport travel and all of the checkpoints everywhere. At least the riots across the United States had started to die down and stay down. Emergency Congress meetings had gone through and passed a number of bills that had a mixed response. Everyone with a license or ID would have to return to the DMV to renew their cards with their powers listed on it. Accordingly, they were going to treat active public use of powers as the same as using or holding a firearm without a permit unless there was proper cause. Efforts were being made to categorize powers accordingly. Eli sighed as he took a sip of coffee and shivered at the wave of alertness and contentment that rolled through his knotted body and relaxed him. He scrolled through the news a bit more and groaned at the reports that schools in their area would be resuming session in a couple of days either remotely or in person. He pulled his waffles out of the toaster, buttered them with a swipe of his telekinetic field. "Good morning, son. Sleep well?" Dad asked as he strolled into the kitchen with his empty mug of coffee. He was wearing pajamas, even though he''d already been awake and working remotely for an hour. Technically, he was probably still working right now. Eli wondered if he could get a version of his Technomancy power. Even if it were a basic one. "Yeah, I slept okay," Eli said as he took another sip of coffee to purge any remnants of dark circles under his eyes. "How''s work going?" "Pretty crazy, to be honest. After we released the standard, free build of technomancy protection and started advertising the more robust models we''ve had an insane amount of offers. Every company and organization wants its security to be unique and powerful. I can''t even crack it with my technomancy at level nine now." Dad shook his head as he poured his second ration of cold brew, mixed in an insane amount of milk, and started chugging it. "It''s all hands on deck now. We''ve had to pause all of our previous contracts as much as we could. At least brute testing all of the different versions plus everything else is entertaining." This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. "Has mom already left?" "Yeah. She has all of her seeds on her though if anything were to happen. She should be back around the afternoon." Dad frowned as he shook his head and pretended to peek at Eli''s phone to read the news page he was still on about school resuming. "Are you ready to go back? It''s almost May now. It''ll be your birthday soon and then you''ll be graduating!" "Ugh, don''t remind me." Eli slumped at the thought of finals. He¡¯d put off practically all of his homework and everything else during the impromptu break. "Do you want to play Eldritch Wars later?" "Maybe, we''ll see. After you''ve done some chores and studied a bit. I don''t want you getting complacent about school." Dad said as he started to walk out of the room and then stopped. "It looks like we''re going to meet Addy later at the DMV to re-register our licenses and the girls'' permits. Be ready for that in a couple of hours." "Okay!" He called out then sighed as he stabbed his fork into his waffle. He had completely forgotten to study for his finals or to do any of his homework. How could he not when a System came out of nowhere handing him power after power to discover and explore? It was too bad he couldn''t hand wave it away. What he really wanted to do was continue practicing with his telekinesis. He only had that final level left until he could hopefully evolve it or get a new power. Even though he had no idea what he¡¯d even want power wise. Eli sighed as set his phone down on the table, snaked his telekinetic field up the stairs and into his room, then teleported in there to start slogging through his homework. Now that school was starting up again, he knew one or both of his parents would check on him. While he started getting everything together, tendrils of telekinesis crept back downstairs to drag his phone through the air up to his room. He didn¡¯t want his dad sensing his phone vanish from the kitchen to appear in his room. Tendrils of telekinesis wrapped in fields felt out the kitchen as he moved his plate and silverware into the sink so he could rinse them off, and place them on the dishwasher¡¯s rack. Before he dismissed the tendrils, he remembered his coffee and carefully sealed it in a field before navigating it up to his room and setting it on his desk. Then it was time to start working. Eli frowned as he exerted his will behind him to do telekinetic curls with his bed. Hopefully it''d net him that final level, even if it probably wouldn''t. While he skimmed through his textbook, he idly wondered what the issue was with Telekinesis. He had range, more than adequate precision, and while his power was lacking it was still steadily growing. He¡¯d figure it out eventually. *** Change had swept across Farbrook and the entire world. It was far harder to tell at night time when he teleported across the horizon to train. Now in broad daylight, everyone huddled together and regarded other people with suspicion and distrust. Police were stationed at and around both of the DMV''s in Farbrook decked out in full SWAT gear. Eli''s nape tingled and tickled every time someone twitched in his twelve-foot radius. It was exhausting. "This is horrible," Lyra complained with a huff as she glared at the line that slipped out the doors, around the side of the building, and straight into the parking lot. "I can''t even practice with my new power." "Just create illusions in your pocket or something." Lana whispered with a wink and nudge. "I''ve leveled Graylight Construction so much since I first got it." ¡°What power did you even choose, Lyra?¡± Eli asked, then sulked when she winked at him and shrugged. He didn¡¯t think she¡¯d evolved her Illusion power, but she could¡¯ve also kept it lowkey when she practiced around the rest of them. Just like what he was doing with his powers. "Don''t use your powers in public." Mom snapped as she tapped her left foot while she crossed her arms in front of her chest. "It''s rude, not to mention practically illegal now." "Only if it''s dangerous!" Lyra protested in outrage. "My powers are harmless, you know they are!" "Every power is dangerous," Eli murmured as he kept a vigilant eye out. Dad had dropped them off. Due to his work he''d been able to get his core team processed in advance along with everyone else who either served a prominent role in city government or who had powers that were in high demand. Mom could protect them, of course she could, but he knew that if anything happened it''d be up to Lana and him to protect Lyra. "No. Powers. Please. And Eli, stop being so melodramatic." "It''s too bad that Dad couldn''t get us expedited licenses too." Eli sulked, then sighed at a sharp glance from his mom. "Anyway... How did volunteering go?" "It was exhausting. I made so much food. I''ve never pushed ''Cooking Enchantress'' so hard. I finally hit level eight with it though." Mom smiled with pride. ¡°But I have to work remotely once we get home.¡± They passed their time waiting by chatting, playing on their phones, and doing whatever else they could to pass the time until they made it up to the front desk. Eli had found some forums where people talked about powers and some other stuff, but they were pretty restricted. Lana had told him about some of them: Superior Power Trading, Power Cultivation, Foolproof Guide to Powers, and The Irrefutable Power Tier List. Most of them were a mixed bag of people either crazy about the powers and conspiracy theories, but it was still interesting. It wasn¡¯t like there was anything else like these sites. They both had their eyes on them to see what people were saying and if there were any good ways to level up their powers. That and to just see what these people were saying. It wasn¡¯t like their parents were paying attention to this stuff. "How may I help you?" asked the disgruntled DMV worker who seemed like they had a personality that was more stale and flavorless than tepid water. Eli had to remind himself that these people also had powers... and they were still doing the job they had before. Or at least, some of them. Only these two older ladies were running the desk. No wonder the line was devilishly long. "I need to update my license, my son''s provisional license, and the driver''s permits for my daughters." Mom said as she splayed out the various forms across the desk with all of their cards pinned to it with a paperclip. "Is the address still correct on these?" She asked as she typed away at the computer with one finger at a time. Eli had to resist the urge to teleport behind the counter and fill them in himself. "Yes." "And you''ve verified that the abilities you''ve listed on the forms are accurate?" "Yes." "Alright. Your children will undergo a threat assessment at their schools. If they are homeschooled you will need to schedule a meeting with an agent for them. And you, Mrs. Newton, will need to come with me for yours right now. Your children can wait for you over there in the lobby." She said as she printed out the quick changes to his and his sisters¡¯ cards then waved for them to leave the line. Eli glanced down to study the changes to his card: ELI NEWTON POWER: TELEPORTATION DOB: 05/17/20XX SEX: M Right next to the space where his power was listed was a conveniently empty border for a stamp. He led his sisters over to the side of the lobby then groaned once he saw Tom Harver sitting next to some of his bully friends. He started to guide them away towards the door, but Tom met his eyes with a widening smirk on his face. His telekinetic field tightened around his body like a suit of non-existent armor. "Well, well! If it isn''t Ms. Newton. I was sad to see you didn''t return my texts once the phone lines were back up, Lana." Tom called out in that artificial low-voice he used when he was being sleazy. Him and his friends sauntered over to them before they could escape. "Let''s go wait for mom in the car." Lana rolled her eyes as she turned to lead them towards the door. "They won''t let you. Minors have to wait for a parent or guardian in case they need to be put in a foster home." Tom smirked as his eyes flitted up and down to study her. "I see that your power made your body even hotter." Eli gritted and ground his teeth so hard he was surprised his molars didn''t crack. He stuffed his fists into his pockets so he wouldn''t start charging up a Photon Shot to grill the bastard. "Don''t be a pig." Lyra spat out with a quick glance at Eli, but when he didn''t do anything she joined the conversation. Tom¡¯s friends giggled and jeered as they joined in on catcalling his sisters whores. Eli took a casual glance around the room and saw that no one was paying them any attention. As long as they stayed within the pen. He made eye contact with a security guard who glared at him as if he were the punk. If he got in a fight he''d probably be tried as an adult now. Especially with powers in the world. The government was trying to make as much of an example as they could with every case. He glanced at his status and quickly unequipped Photon Shot so he wouldn''t be tempted to use it. A wave of coldness washed over him as he felt the power disconnect from him and disappear into his status. Somehow, his teleportation and telekinetic powers felt crisper. More distinct. "You two should come by later to my house. We can have a good time if you leave that waste you call a brother behind." Tom suggested as he leaned closer to Lana and Lyra who were glaring at each of them. "And I can''t believe you call that dilapidated trailer a house, Harver." Eli said, no longer able to resist joining the conversation. He couldn''t forget the beating and everything else he''d said about his sisters. The way he kept trying to fuck them even though Tom was already eighteen. "Oh, wait, sorry. Was that word too big for you? Dilapidated means that a building is in poor repair just like your social life." Tom''s face turned bleach white then darkened as purple as a plum as he stood up and balled his fists. Smoke began to coil off his smoldering skin. He took a step closer to Eli and snarled, ¡°At least I have a social life, Newton. My only friends aren¡¯t my siblings.¡± ¡°Is that because your siblings are in jail?¡± Eli asked innocently as he moved closer until they were almost nose to nose. Tension vibrated in shudders up and down his skin. Both of his powers ached and rippled like rising hackles. "Come on! Elias, Lyra, Lana! Let''s go." Mom called as she waited next to the door to collect them. "Leave my family alone," Eli whispered before he turned around and followed his sisters out of the DMV. His hands shook with rage in his pockets where he hid them. People seemed to glare at him and everyone else. He ignored the jealous studying stares. Gauging them as they left. He tuned out the murmured conversation his family was having as they walked toward the car. Wrath illuminated every memory he''d ever had of Tom Harver bullying him for the past year ever since his sisters started their freshman year. He''d been harassed, humiliated, and beaten over and over. Anyone that was friends with him had become a target. Now he was practically alone. None of his family knew except for Lyra and now Lana. Vengeance warred with his morality. He wanted to pay him back for every bloody lesson he''d been forced to learn. He idly got in the car while he thought about pinning Tom down with his telekinesis and using Photon Shot to burn him to a crisp. Telekinesis to break his wrist where Eli had broken his when Tom had shoved him at the beginning of the year. Teleportation to dump all of the cafeteria¡¯s grease all over him and drag him throughout the halls of the school so everyone could see and make fun of his body like they''d done to Eli after the catfishing scandal. Tom and his friends had pretended to be someone in New Faram and then leaked every detail and picture he¡¯d ever sent to her all over school. Ever since then his parents had made him delete all of his social media, just in case. It had to be Tom¡¯s turn, right? He seethed with ravenous joy at the thought of punishing him for every bad thing he''d ever done to Eli. For every single disgusting thought he¡¯d ever had about his sisters. "Eli!" Mom clapped her hands and he jumped from the sudden noise. "You haven''t said a word since the DMV." The rearview mirror showed Mom staring at him with concern. Anger bubbled inside him again until he reminded himself that he needed to calm down. They couldn''t know what he was thinking. It would have just made things worse if she did. Before she¡¯d worry, but now with superpowers? They might be afraid. "I''m just exhausted from all of the waiting. We were there for almost three hours." He said flatly with a glance out the window where a ton of people were parked at the grocery store. "And I have a headache." "Okay. Do you want me to make you something when we get home? Make you feel better?" "No, it''s fine. You''ve been cooking all day. Don''t worry about it. Some sleep will be enough." He said before resting his head against the window as he made up plan after plan. Ideally, he''d keep his identity as lowkey as possible. He knew where Tom lived after all. He''d followed them there after school one day when he''d started making his moves on Lana. The whole time he''d thought about how it was justified in case something happened. So he could tell his parents and call the police. But nothing happened. It hadn''t been necessary. Tom hadn''t done anything to her, it had only been a way to try and get to Eli. Lana only started paying attention to Tom when she failed to get on any of the varsity teams. Failure had destroyed her. Next thing he knew... Tom''s attention and advances started becoming more real. Eli hopped out of the car the second they pulled into the driveway and he snuck into his room and laid down in bed to pretend to be asleep. Before he did anything, he had to level Photon Shot and Telekinesis some more. Plus, he needed more than a dark outfit to blend in with the night. He needed some way to actually hide his identity. Was he actually considering this? He shook his head with a sigh as he pressed his hands tight against face until his skin pinched with pain. He needed to calm down. Eli inhaled a shaky breath, before he sat up and glanced over at his status. A distraction would be good. Maybe some more training? In case he needed to deal with Tom¡­ [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Teleportation Ev. 0/Lv. 5 (Maxed) Slot Two -- Telekinesis Ev. 0/Lv. 4 Slot Three -- N/A ] [Unequipped Power List: Photon Shot Ev. 1/Lv. 2 He tried to equip Photon Shot but frowned as another message popped up in front of his face. Well, fuck. He flopped back and laid down so he could study the ceiling. More and more often, he wished this System had come with a user manual instead of just sweeping him into that empty space, giving him powers, and dropping him back into his body. Before too long, he even managed to fall asleep for real. Half-remembered nightmares plagued him throughout the rest of the afternoon. Footsteps sounded from the hallway as his bedroom door creaked open, the hinges somewhat busted ever since he was rammed into the door frame. "How are you feeling?" asked Mom as she walked into the room and rested her hand on his forehead to check for a fever. "A bit better," he admitted as he loosened himself out of his blanket prison. "The DMV was a lot.¡± "You know... your sisters told me what happened. Do you want to talk about it?" Mom asked as she hovered at his bedside. "Not really..." He mumbled as he fought to keep hold of his anger, and while it was still there, the fire felt spent. Cold ashes after an all-consuming blaze. "I just... I hate that guy. He''s made my life a living hell." "So why haven''t you told us or a teacher?" "Because nothing ever changes. It''ll happen again eventually. And worse next time because now he knows exactly what buttons to push on me. He''s so cruel, mom, I''m afraid of what he''ll do now that powers are real." ¡®I¡¯m afraid of what I¡¯ll do with powers.¡¯ Eli fought to keep a hold of his emotions, to stuff them down deep in his chest. Pressure flattened his blankets as a unilateral force smooshed against him as he tried to imprison his feelings with telekinesis. It didn''t work, but the weight was nice. "You probably don''t understand. Everyone loves you and Dad." "Ha!" Mom chuckled then shook her head. "Sorry, sorry. I''m not laughing at you. Hon, everyone does not love us. School was a vicious time period for both of us. My ''friend'' was a horrible person who took every opportunity to victimize me or make herself look better and I grew up in such a small town it was barely on the map. My class size was smaller than the population of our neighborhood. And Rick? Every bad thing that really ever happened in his life happened while he was in school. Bullying, mental health issues, his parents'' divorce... Everything." "But... didn''t you guys say school was an important part of your lives?" Eli frowned. "Yeah, but nothing really matters in high school and definitely not anything before that. It''s all about the next step. College matters... but it also doesn''t as long as you do it, and even then people are alright without it. Not that you shouldn¡¯t do college if you can.¡± She shrugged. "Do you know why Rick is so obsessed about you all doing college?" "No?" He had to throttle the urge to roll his eyes at the rhetorical question. "Because he dropped out of high school. He was convinced that it was the only way for him to be happy. We didn''t know each other then, but his life had practically fallen apart." "So... school is optional?" He asked, latching onto the idea that he could easily solve all of his problems. Drop out and never deal with Tom or the bullshit ever again. He could practice with his powers all of the time! Maybe start a gym or something so he could others get better with theirs. "Elias Newton, you¡¯re finishing high school. You barely have a month left.¡± She scoffed. "It just doesn''t matter as much as it seems like. You''re almost done. Soon you''ll be graduating and moving on to college or doing whatever else you¡¯ll do. Hold on and it''ll be over before you know it. It might feel like the whole world is after you sometimes, but it¡¯s not. I promise." He furrowed his brow and nodded while he thought over what they talked about. He supposed that there was little less than a month left, as long as they didn''t extend school due to the two weeks they''d missed from powers appearing. He could avoid Tom that long, especially if his parents let him do school remotely. Or he could just teleport away every time he came near. Doubt and discomfort wriggled in his stomach, but he ignored those feelings. "Thanks mom," Eli said as he rolled over and burrowed under his blanket once more. "Of course, you can always talk to us..." She said before walking out and shutting the door. He bolted upright the moment she left and stared down at his hands as he gathered field after field of telekinetic force between his palms. Telekinesis would never finish leveling up if he didn¡¯t try new things. And he needed to try new things. Needed to improve and get stronger. Eli might not start anything with Tom or anyone else, but if it happened¡­ He''d make damn sure to finish it. Chapter Eight Eli sat with a bowl of cereal in front of him, but his eyes glazed over as his foot bounced against the tile floor. Jitters of nervousness and anxiety surged through him as he glanced at the clock again and saw it was nearly 7:10 AM. School resumed today. He wasn''t ready. Sure, all of his homework was done and he''d even done a bit of studying to refresh himself after the spontaneous two week break. He''d even gotten an acceptance on his application to NFU in New Faram, but he bet that was because a lot of people were making erratic decisions. On his anonymous social media accounts he noticed a lot of people his age were refusing to go to school or do anything ''Old World¡¯ since everything changed. Yet, it hadn''t. After two weeks post-System things were starting to reach a balance again. Crime was dangerous and there were numerous manhunts out for escaped prisoners who were now stronger than ever thanks to their newfound abilities. The police weren''t able to get anyone close enough to help catch criminals without dying themselves, which meant that certain crimes went unsolved every night. But that might change now that states were authorizing police to be able to use their own powers more and more. However, that had people rightfully nervous. He''d heard rumors that the federal government was planning on creating some sort of Federal Superpower Task Force that''d basically be federally regulated superheroes, but everyone was arguing about it. Currently private security firms started advertising and pushing their rights to fulfill that role. Bounty hunters had also started to pop up to assist with the capture and deterrent of top priority criminal cases. Eli had idle thoughts about trying out for it, but he wasn''t sure. While he''d been training his powers and preparing for the need to defend himself, he didn''t necessarily want to fight. Training to be prepared for trouble was different than throwing himself into trouble. Unless if that fight happened to include Tom. Then he''d be ready for a stomping. "Come on, Eli! It''s time for us to go!" Lana called over by the door and he sighed as he teleported the milk out of his cereal into the sink and then did the same with the cereal in the trash. Another teleport later put his dishes away and he was at the door. "I''m not the one holding us up." "Oh, stop you two." Lyra rolled her eyes as they walked out of the door. "I''m excited for P.E. now." Lana practically skipped through the air. Literally sailing about six feet with every jump before she finally realized and stopped. "What about you guys?" "I''m going to slay art class with my Illusions." Lyra beamed as the colors of her dress swirled. Her hair darkened to a pitch black then lightened to a blonde brighter than even their mom''s. He still didn¡¯t know what her new power was! "I''m just going to school." Eli shrugged as he thought about all of the classes he was required to take. He didn''t really have much interest in any of them beyond some of the history classes, but it wasn''t like his powers would actually help for that. He glanced at the shimmering graylight jewelry that Lana wore as rings or her necklace. It somehow seemed more luminescent than it had before. "What level are your powers?" "Secret!¡± Lyra giggled as she winked at him. ¡°But I¡¯ve really stepped up my game with illusions.¡± A phantasmic quartet appeared in front of them singing some nonsensical tune with acapella. "I got Superhuman Conditioning up to level six finally. It''s been really hard to level since I can''t really safely push its limits. So far, I''ve been managing by controlling exactly how much of the power I use. I''ve found that I can start controlling what part of me physically becomes ''superhuman''," Lana shrugged as she flounced along. "But the real prize is Graylight Construction! I''ve gotten it up to level eight, but I think I''m really close to level nine." Eli frowned at their rapid pace of leveling and he shook his head as he said, "Teleportation is still maxed out. I can use it far easier now that I''ve gotten more used to it and can even go a lot farther without getting sick." It took only a dozen teleports for him to reach his secret training ground at night now. "But telekinesis hasn''t leveled since I hit level four for a long time now. I thought it was because I wasn''t pushing the weight limit, but that doesn''t seem to be the case." Whenever he tried to lift something too heavy it''d just break his telekinetic field. "But I''ve gotten Photon Shot up to level six." "Huh... Do you think it''s taking you longer because you have more powers?" Lyra asked as the school became visible down the hill. "I only have¡­ well, I have fewer than you.¡± Eli thought about it as they walked closer to the school where a stream of people milled around outside as they waited to be let in. Two cop cars were parked a block away that elicited a frown from him. He wondered if what Lyra said was accurate, he felt like it could have been. Maybe something about his other powers were getting in the way of telekinesis, and the only reason Photon Shot was at such a high level now was that he''d been practicing with it almost constantly. Now he could charge, condense, and fire light from any point of his body¡­ including his telekinesis. It drastically weakened its power, but he could do it. "I''ll text you guys if I want to walk back together. I might hang out with my friends." Lana said as she flounced off towards a small huddle of freshmen girls. "I''ll meet you after school. Bye!" Lyra said as she ran off to her own group of friends. Eli watched her leave before turning to look over at the police cruisers down the street. He thought about that federal program again and wondered if it''d be worth looking into once it got finalized. When the home invasion had happened, he''d been traumatized, but there had been something thrilling about fighting for the right to live. Well, according to his parents, he still was traumatized. They¡¯d set up an appointment for him with a local therapist recommended by the police for youth in similar situations. He wasn¡¯t exactly thrilled about it. "Eli, man, how have you been?" asked a familiar breathless voice. Eli cringed inwardly as he turned around to face his forced acquaintance at school, Jimmy Southerland. Jimmy was tall and lanky with blonde hair and a wispy mustache that he swore would grow in. "Is your phone service still down? I tried texting you, but you never responded." "Sorry, Jim, I''ve been busy." Eli said as he struggled to keep his tone from turning flat. "What power did you get?" "Oh! I got something called Design! It''s pretty cool, I can turn any drawings or images that I''ve created into real objects. It only works with my own stuff, though. I''ve leveled it pretty high too." "Wait, anything you draw?" "Yeah! Pretty much. It erases whatever I drew though. So I''ve mainly been using digital art on my phone so I can create multiple copies of the same file. It''s pretty sweet. What''s your power?" "Teleportation, but I can only go somewhere I can see. I''ve been playing around with it a lot, but your power is cooler." Or flashier, at least. Eli was pretty jealous of how his sisters could create whatever they wanted, but he liked how much utility his power set had. "Dude that''s¡ª¡± "Attention! All students will be required to head to the auditorium for a mandatory school assembly." One of the office receptionists said over the blaring intercom. Cafeteria workers unlocked and opened the front doors, and Eli surreptitiously teleported a few feet forward at an angle so it''d look like he was already there as he headed in. Jimmy was alright to talk to, but not when Eli was trying to avoid running into Tom or any of his friends. Plus, he never stopped talking and he didn''t want to get in trouble for being next to Mr. Chatterbox again. The cafeteria filled up quickly as kids began gathering by their tables while others sat down on benches lining the walls. The smell of cheap pancakes, breakfast pizzas, and french toast sticks wafted in the air. School was just the same as always. Eli headed over to the bathroom so he could hide and avoid any attention. As soon as he entered one of the stalls, he pulled out his phone and levitated it over his palm with telekinesis. What Lyra said stuck in his mind. Maybe he should try unequipping his different powers when training. It''d probably be a good idea to limit what he had equipped anyways when in public. He didn''t want to get startled and instinctively fire off a Photon Shot after all. Eli called up his status and unequipped both Teleportation and Photon Shot. [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Telekinesis Lv. 4 Slot Two ¨C N/A Slot Three ¨C N/A ] [Unequipped Powers: Teleportation Lv. 5 (Maxed) Photon Shot Lv. 6 ] Eli shuddered as a tidal wave of sensation roiled across his body. It felt odd to suddenly lose the intimate connection to his spatial field and the space around his body. Light no longer felt like something he could control, something he could feel. He narrowed his eyes as he let his phone drop into his hand with a plop as he focused on the spot a few inches away from the stall door as he tried to teleport. He declined it then tried to use Photon Shot and winced at the screen that popped up. At least he knew for sure that he could easily equip Teleportation whenever he wanted, but he wondered what the arbitrary two hour cooldown was for. Was it because Photon Shot was at a higher level? Maybe he¡¯d have to unequip Telekinesis at some point and compare, but he didn¡¯t want to be restricted to only Teleportation. Especially in tight quarters. What if something happened and he had to escape through his spatial field or line of sight? In the school that¡¯d be next to impossible. He needed Telekinesis to balance things out. He thought about it as he poked and prodded at his mental telekinetic field and found that it was far more responsive than it had been before. Now, it felt like he could extend it up to about fifteen feet and he could feel every grimy inch of the tile floors, the chill of the toilet water, the laminated wood of the bathroom stalls. Eli unlocked the door with his telekinesis the moment the bell rang and he headed towards the main auditorium used for assemblies. It was strange navigating through the thrones of humanity with the growth of detail he experienced with his telekinetic field. Everything felt clearer. Every person sitting there looked less like silhouettes with blurry features, and more like actual people. He tucked himself into the first chair he could find and shoved his backpack under his chair. While he waited for the rest of the room''s chairs to fill up with people, he experimented with creating opposing forces within his field and watched as the air seemed to twist and ripple right next to his chest. It was interesting how stable his telekinetic field felt now, compared to how it was with his other powers equipped. "Hello students!" Mrs. Morrie, the school principal, greeted the crowd warmly while standing behind her podium near center stage. "I hope you''ve all recovered well from your spontaneous vacation." She smiled brightly down at them. "The world has undergone a spectacular change and it''s become clear that your generation, your peers, will be instrumental in shaping how the nation and the world will move forward. We need heroes who can lead us past these tumultuous times; we need leaders whose actions inspire those following in their footsteps. That is why I am proud today to announce our speaker today, please join me in welcoming Federal Agent Jackson Daniels! Welcome Mr. Daniels," she added cheerfully once the applause died down. A tall man dressed in a plain black suit walked onto the stage and took position beside Principal Morrie. His face was plain, utterly ordinary. Except for the crimson shining twin stars that smoldered where his eyes should have been. Eli frowned slightly as Mrs. Daniels burning gaze swept across the hall of the students where it lingered on a few different people. Including him. The agent coughed dryly, "Thank you Mrs. Morrie for inviting me to Farbrook High. Today I wanted to remind all of you that these strange, systematic powers are as dangerous as they are miraculous. People across the United States, as well as the rest of the world, have been restored from crippling states of distress. A second chance has been given to many. However, many have decided to use these powers to harm their fellow men and women. Do you know how many have already died in America alone?" The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. Silence. "Nearly a million American citizens have died in the past two weeks from improper use of powers. We have decided to treat these powers as an intrinsic part of every citizen. Everyone had the potential for destruction before, but now, nearly everyone is equipped with weapons of mass destruction that rivaled that of pre-System military weapons. As such, stringent gun and weapon laws will be added to the curriculum. You have a responsibility to not use your powers to cause the destruction of property or cause undue harm to yourself or others. Each of your powers will be evaluated to help you¡ªand us¡ª understand the weight of your responsibility. Your powers can be what helps you become a productive member of society... or to be removed from it." He paused as he studied all of them one more time. "My team and I will test each class one at a time until the entire school has been evaluated. Until you''ve been tested, you must lawfully refrain from all public uses of your powers. We will interrupt your classes as little as possible. Thank you, and good day." "Join me in a round of applause for our speaker, Mr. Daniels," Mrs. Morrie said then clapped as he walked off the stage. "Please treat each and every member of his team with as much respect as you possibly can. With that, we''ll start the assessment with the senior class and then move down the grades from there." She pulled out a clipboard and read off five names, "I''ll need Lucy Allen, Jessie Anderson, Benjamin Andrews, Victoria Alston, and Emma Adams to stay behind for their test. First period will start in five minutes. Thank you." Eli weaved through the crowd as he booked it for his first period of English class. There were still quite a lot of kids milling around outside the hallways as he headed inside and took his seat. It was going to take a while for them to start reaching the ''N'' names. He struggled to pay attention throughout his classes, but it was difficult with the nagging sensation of his powers in the background. Ever since he''d gotten them he''d indulged and practiced at every chance and now he had to step back into his old life? To pretend he never even had them? It grated at him every time he had to bend down to search for something in his bag, to waste his time scraping notes into paper with a pen when he could just sit back and write with his power. To wait behind slow people in the hallways when he could have just passed them all in a single blip. Insufferable. Lunch started then passed without anything of note except for a slight spat. Some freshmen got in a fight about something or another. Eli heard that the one had cut the other in line. Their powers were boring, unpolished. One could apparently create ice, but didn''t have any control over it afterward. The line cutter was some variant of speedster, but it sounded like there were severe drawbacks. When they slowed down, they actually slowed down. Their every movement as laborious as if they moved through amber or molasses. Supposedly they both got a severe suspension with mandatory summer classes. Hearing that definitely knocked any of Eli¡¯s suppressed plans for paying Tom back for every foul thing he¡¯d ever done down the to-do list a few spots. It was already in the ¡®maybe, but probably shouldn¡¯t¡¯ category, now it was in the ¡®definitely shouldn¡¯t¡­ but still might¡¯ camp. It was sixth period when Eli finally heard his name crackle over the intercom in Economics. He stood up gratefully and swung his backpack over his shoulders and walked out of class. Kady Norton smiled at him as she walked out of her own classroom across the hall. "Hey! It''s Elliot, right?" Kady asked as she caught up to him with a chemistry textbook cradled in her arms. "Elias, but I go by Eli," he nodded as they headed towards the auditorium. "Kady from Spanish class, right?" "Yeah! Senorita Johnson is the *worst*, isn''t she?" Kady giggled as they rounded the corner to go down the stairs. "That quiz today was killer. I haven''t thought about a single word in Spanish the whole time." "Neither have I. It''s been insane." They reached the bottom of the steps when Kady sighed and turned to him. "Hey, I just wanted to say that I appreciate that you haven''t asked me about my powers or anything like that. It''s all anyone''s wanted to talk about all day." "Well¡­ um..." He felt himself blushing slightly under her warm smile. "You''re welcome? It''s a lot. I like my powers, but I don''t want that to be the only thing that matters about me. You know?" A wriggle of discomfort burrowed in his chest at the thought. It was true, but¡­ he didn¡¯t want to neglect them either. If the past repeated himself, he¡¯d live or die by his powers. She nodded and started walking again, "How about we don''t talk about powers then? What do you like to do for fun?" ¡°Oh. Well, I love to travel. Play games and go outside.¡± He shrugged awkwardly then added with a small smirk. ¡°I also love flying.¡± ¡°Ugh, sorry, but no thanks. I can¡¯t stand being in an airplane. My mom has to bring around a small pharmacy with us every time and we always get searched a bit extra because of it.¡± She shuddered while they made their way across the school closer to the auditorium. They talked about all of the places they had been and everywhere they wanted to go. When they stepped inside, Eli noted that the theater curtains were drawn shut so that they blocked the stage off from view. Four agents stood sentry around the room. They sat down next to each other and started working on the Spanish homework together while they waited for Felix Narris to finish with his test. The bell rang announcing seventh period while they worked. Eventually he limped out from the stage with a shell shocked expression evident on his face. "Elias Newton?" called the agent at the stage. "Well, that''s me." Eli said awkwardly as he stuffed his half finished homework into his bag. "Good luck! See you in Spanish tomorrow." She smiled as she waved him off. His smile lasted the entire way up the steps of the auditorium until he stood face to face with the towering Federal Agent Jackson Daniels. His burning eyes flared as he extended his hand. "You have quite the interesting file, Elias Newton. I look forward to your assessment." Mr. Daniels said as he waved for his assistant to speak. "Please verify each of the statements as I say them for the sake of accuracy." He flipped a page over from his file. "Elias Newton, son of Rick and Adelaide Newton. Born on May 17th, 20XX." Eli nodded. "At the local DMV, you and your mother reported that you have a teleportation power?" Eli nodded again. ¡°And it appears that your family experienced a break in on the second day following the appearance of the System. Both intruders were killed. One by severe blunt trauma spread across the entirety of their body and the other had suffocated and had a broken trachea. Is that correct?" "Yes." Eli winced at the reminder. His hands shook in his pockets where he hid them, but under Mr. Daniels¡¯s stern fiery gaze, he might as well walk around with the story of it all written on his chest for how easily the man seemed to read him. "Did you know them?" "No." Eli shook his head, his voice wavered as he remembered the sting of broken glass in his hands. Being blasted back by a wall of graylight. Teleporting ninety pounds of assorted weights straight into the one that gave him Photon Shot. Bones broken, sprays of blood that jetted across the hall. "Trenton Knight and his uncle Brandon Knight were the intruders, does that ring any bells? We suspect that a number of break-ins and murders around Fallbrook traced back to them." "I''ve never heard of them before." "I see. Who killed them?" "What?" "Who killed Trenton and Brandon Knight, Mr. Newton." "I don''t..." He sighed as his mind flailed from thought to thought. Mom and Dad said they¡¯d handled everything but did that mean he spun some sort of story or had he told the whole truth about the entire situation? It was in self-defense but still. Two men were dead. He decided to take the credit for both. He could teleport, after all. "I did, sir." "Interesting. That''s not what the file says, but go on. How did the events of the night transpire from your recollection?" "I woke up from a technomantically sent message from my dad on my phone. He said that he sensed flashlights turned on downstairs and thought people had broken in. He warned me not to do anything, and to be prepared to run or hide. So I got dressed and cast around for something to use as a weapon, just in case. I picked up a lamp and got ready if any of them came upstairs. I heard footsteps as one of them came upstairs and then..." He swallowed with a dry click. "Lana, my sister, screamed as one of them went into her room across from mine. I teleported across the hall into her room and hit him over the head with the lamp. He created a wall of shimmering metal like light and sent me out of the room. Then the other one from downstairs started firing these lasers of light. I panicked and teleported into the basement to grab a lot of weights and teleported them into his back. Then I teleported upstairs and¡ª" "Don''t lie, Mr. Newton. You insult us and yourself. We know that Lana Newton killed Brandon Knight and took his power. However, it is true that you did kill Trenton Knight." Mr. Daniels interrupted in a brisk tone. "That lie is your first infraction. Please be honest with us for the rest of this." "Do I need a lawyer?" Eli asked nervously, his mouth and throat dry as his dad''s infamous steakburgers. "No. Any superpower-related crime that happened in the past two weeks is under our jurisdiction. We decide your fate here today." Mr. Daniels said with a blazing stare into Eli''s soul then he nodded at his assistant. "What did you do after this happened?" "Dad moved them to the garage until the police came the next day.¡± "No. I don¡¯t mean what happened after that, but what have you done since then? Since the Knight¡¯s broke into your home?¡± His stare brightened with each of his flaming eyes flaring, as if they¡¯d char him to a crisp if he didn¡¯t get the exact answer he desired. ¡°Well, Mr. Newton?¡± "I did my homework. Helped out around the house. Did what I¡¯ve always done. And..." He gulped. "I trained my powers every chance I could get." "What powers do you have and what are their current levels?" "I have teleportation maxed out at level five. I chose to get a new power, Telekinesis which is at level four. I haven''t had any luck leveling it since. And my Photon Shot power, that I... that I got from the home invasion is at level six. It hasn''t evolved yet." "I see. Thank you for your cooperation so far. That part of the investigation is now concluded." Mr. Daniels nodded at the assistant who¡¯d transcribed what he¡¯d said. "Just so you are aware, Mr. Newton, it has been ruled that any power obtained after the death of an individual must be handed over to the police as either evidence or so they can then make sure it gets passed onto the next of kin. However, at this time, there''s no real official record of any powers before the mandatory registration. You get to keep it this time, but if you ever come in possession of illegally gained powers and can¡¯t prove under oath and polygraph test how you obtained it¡­ Well. It¡¯d be very bad for you.¡± Eli nodded frantically as he fought to restrain the sweltering heat that started to boil across his skin, sweat beaded under his shirt. He didn''t intend to go on a murder spree after all... even if he was still planning on being ready if Tom, this ¡®Dave¡¯ and ¡®Sandra¡¯ or anyone else threatened his family. "Good. Now, we have a series of tests that we''d like you to perform." Mr. Daniels said as the fires in his eyes sockets died down slightly. "The results of these tests are only to determine the worst-case scenario threat level you and your powers represent at this current time. Understood?" Eli nodded then stumbled as the crushing pressure of something slammed into his brain. Vibrations scrambled his thoughts. Shapes crackled in smears behind his closed eyes. Or were they open? He couldn''t tell. Order restored itself. He was back home in the living room with a game controller in his hands. Everything was clean and pristine. Safety saturated his entire being as he relaxed back into the cushion of the couch. Mom stood talking excitedly to dad in the entryway. Lana came in from outside through the door in the kitchen with Lyra with the family''s black lab Sadie on their heels. Lightning crashed through the building in an oscillating pillar of destruction. Eli was thrown back bodily in the massive shockwave that mulched their house in seconds. Mounds of rubble buried him in a tomb, but Eli ignored the splinters of bone that his left arm had been reduced to. Light flashed in the distance as a giddy voice echoed with laughter. "Wh...y?" Lana asked weakly over somewhere to his left. His shoulder dislocated with a wet pop when he tried to turn and look over. "Because I could. You and your family always spat on me, but I don''t have it. Burn in hell." A scorching wave of heat blasted out from the figure. Sizzlings pops of cooked meat crackled in time with Lana''s screams up until the moment she turned to ash. Footsteps crunched brittle, hollowed out stone from the heat as the shadow silhouette stood over him. Looming. "Hello, Eli." The empty silhouette grinned, a mouth opening to reveal pristine teeth, as the figure stepped on top of the mound of rubble covering Eli. His body pulsed with molten rivers of fire and crackling electricity that made Eli¡¯s eyes water just from looking at them. ¡°What a nice¡­ house you had.¡± Hatred pulsed in Eli''s chest as he reached for the powers he knew were waiting for him to call. He reappeared above Silhouette as he launched the mountain of rubble and solid ground he¡¯d culled from the earth. Everything he could reach on top and under him entered his void. Teleportation, telekinesis and Photon Shot became a medley of power as they combined and synergized around the rapidly condensing ammunition. A flex of his powers unleashed his man-made comet, his battering ram of destruction upon Silhouette. A flash of electric fire flickered from Silhouette¡¯s hands and a shield of simmering ash caught the rubble and sent a cascade of molten stone and glass in a rainstorm around him. Before Eli could fall from the air, he teleported again and combined his powers again to compress, teleport and ignite the air around him in a cannon blast into Silhouette¡¯s back. The vague shadowy figure launched across the broken street as it carved a tunnel through the ground in its wake. Before it could twitch so much as a finger, Eli teleported again and tightened his telekinetic field into a javelin of tightly restrained kinetic energy. He glared down at the sniveling form of the intruder who''d murdered his family and ruined everything. Eli didn''t dare blink as he hurled the kinetic javelin into Silhouette¡¯s chest. He felt bones flex, crack then break and shatter as his javelin-shaped field hammered into and through its body. Then he unfurled his field in a whipping wave that pulverized¡ª "¡ªa crater eight feet deep and a foot and a half wide. He held nothing back, sir. I made sure to simulate agonizing torture and he became a focused beacon of vengeance. Every action was about killing his enemy, but other than specific areas he contained the resulting destruction adequately," said the assistant with a clipped tone. "What''s your recommended rating?" asked Mr. Daniels with a glance down at Eli''s prone body. He flopped bonelessly while he felt himself become more lucid, more attuned with his real body. "Lethal-5, but I also think he''d be a more than adequate candidate for the Federal Superpower Task Force. He has a strong desire to protect and defend. The individual he dreamed about was a, quite frankly, terrifying silhouette that killed his family. He didn¡¯t go into a blind rage, but he didn¡¯t hesitate either. With some discipline? He¡¯d do well, sir.¡± "Noted. Thank you Mr. Swan." Mr. Daniels nodded at his assistant who stepped away. "Can you stand, Mr. Newton?" "Yes." He snapped in a tight tone as he climbed to his feet, dumbfounded at what he''d experienced. It had felt so viscerally real. Even though Sadie the dog had died a few years ago, every other aspect could''ve happened. Easily. He even halfway remembered the way his powers had combined and felt that he''d be able to replicate the different things he''d done in whatever that was. It all felt like the natural progression he was on, if he wanted his powers to be nothing more than a weapon. "That was something else." "Indeed. Well, normally, I''d stamp you with the second most dangerous threat assessment levels we have without immediately stuffing you under severe surveillance. However, Mr. Swan is an exceptional judge of character. If he says you have finesse and control, then I''m willing to give you a Potential for Lethality, or a PL rating, as long as you undergo some mandatory compliance training. I also highly suggest you sign up for the Task Force if you¡¯d like to serve your country and the men and women embodying it. If you enlist, you''d be very well compensated." Eli stood with his mouth agape before Mr. Daniels pointed at the exit out from the curtains and said, "With a PL rating, you''re deemed potentially dangerous no matter the power, so you''re allowed to use your powers in a minor public capacity. But you will be required to share your rating with any law enforcement that asks." He paused, then said, "Good day, Mr. Newton. I hope I don¡¯t see you again outside of mandatory compliance training.¡± Chapter Nine Kinetic force bent and buckled as he tightened the shape of his solidified telekinetic field. Two planes of opposing force obstructed each other. Both of them equally matched in strength, shape, and stability. Eli''s chest heaved as his lungs hitched with his every breath. His fingers trembled where he folded them in his lap. Sweat ran in rivulets down his face. Air rippled and breezed from the maelstrom of opposing forces that sent ribbons of dirt snaking through the grass of the training field. He struggled to maintain and contain the two planes of force. The more force he created, the more the shape distorted and lost cohesion. Without his other powers equipped, he was able to at least start to form a shape to activate his telekinetic field into it. Otherwise, his other powers interfered with the level of precision necessary. A flicker shuddered through his telekinetic field and he gritted his teeth as the whole thing popped in an explosive blast that rumbled and kicked up a lone plume of wind and dirt everywhere. Eli fell back with great panting breaths as he tried to recover. Every inch of him trembled from the tremendous effort of will it had taken to create more and more force while trying to create the kinetic constructs he¡¯d made in the vision during his threat assessment. The ripeness of power and possibility still whispered to him about what he could be capable of. But Eli knew he would be able to do even more. He forced himself to sit up as he stretched his telekinetic field out as far as he could, then drew it back in until it coiled tight against his skin like the surface of a lake. Calm and smooth, but full of bottomless potential. Out, exhale until he felt every edged blade of grass and rough wooden bush that covered the field. He felt out each and every dip and hole. In, inhale with a rushing breeze that strengthened to a gust the closer it got to him until the air touching his skin was superimposed with his telekinetic field. A twist of his power activated it. Force blossomed from his skin as it sought freedom, as it tried to amplify every twitch of his fingers, but he didn''t allow it so much as a quarter. Every wheezing gasp became an uncontrolled gust as his telekinetic field imbued it with power. It swelled outward and expanded exponentially as if someone were blowing bubbles through his telekinetic field. If he loosened his grip on it, he knew there''d be an even greater burst. An explosion of unleashed pressure. Eli checked for any notifications with a half-satisfied smirk that turned dour at the lack of anything new. It''d only been a couple of days since his threat assessment, but he''d progressed considerably when it came to turning his telekinetic field into an actively shaped force. The barely there kinetic constructs were remarkably fragile. They needed constant maintenance just to keep going without losing their structure. His biggest challenge now was learning how to control and maintain them. Any movement inside of them became amplified exponentially. Photon Shot had fallen by the wayside. He still practiced with it, but he hoped that managing to create these kinetic constructs with telekinesis would translate to the same with his other powers. When he''d been trapped in that dreamlike simulation he''d noticed that his ability to teleport had grown. How else had he managed to teleport a house-full of rubble and ground to attack that malevolent Silhouette? Perhaps mastering telekinesis and using his powers in sync would allow him to finally teleport far more than himself. Maybe even other people. Eli gritted his teeth as he forced his telekinetic field into a bubble beneath his feet. Ripples of undulating force caused him to wobble as he compacted the field until it only wrapped around the soles of his shoes with some loose strands braided around his legs to act as a brace. Vibrations kicked up a cloud of dust as the field shuddered against the ground until he drew it back, then he took a step and let the force blast downwards into the ground and recoil back into itself before breaking. A scream tore free from him as he was launched through the air at a sharp angle. As gravity pulled him down towards the earth again, Eli gathered his telekinetic field to try and create a cushion, but the field was sluggish. Cracks spanned through it with gaps where it didn''t want to reform. He slammed into the rocky, tall grass field with a bouncing crash as he skidded forward in a roll. After several bounces, he came to a moaning stop as he lay facedown amidst the wreckage of broken grass stalks and a long ragged trail that led to a massive impact site of flattened, packed dirt. Agony splintered across his scoured arms, his face, and especially his now bare right leg where his telekinetic field-leap had shredded the denim of his pants on his right leg, not to mention his shoe that¡¯d been ripped into tatters that fell apart at his slightest movement. He panted from the mix of exhilaration and sheer terror that knocked at his ribs with the throbbing pulse of his hammering heartbeat. With a groan, he slowly sat up as he equipped both Teleportation and Photon Shot. Immediate relief swept through like the sight of an old friend or home after a long trip. A quick thought drew in ambient light into a charged sphere that he focused on top of his head, that he then relax a hair so it¡¯d release a thin slow ray of light to act as a headlamp. Eli winced at the tattered state of his shirt and pants. Streaks of green and brown smeared across his bloodied scraped skin. A few spots oozed red while others were flushed black and purple. Blood dripped from numerous small and large cuts. Aches permeated every part of his body. Turning to the side, he spat out a clod of dirt before checking the notification that blinked across his vision. Telekinesis Lv. 5> He grinned at the list once he noticed that teleportation was also up for evolution. Maybe because he maxed out the power he obtained when he maxed it out? A mental prod at ''Obtain New Power'' brought forth a list of available powers: Visions swam across his vision as he considered each option. Eli wasn''t sure, but he felt like these offerings were slightly more potent than they had been last time. He was tempted by Force Construct, Enhanced Physiology, and Recovery. It felt like Enhanced Physiology would be a gradual boost to his body''s natural processes across the board while Recovery would be like a potion from a video game almost. After what had just happened, he was really tempted by both of them. His body fucking hurt. His little experiment hurt badly enough that he accepted the Recovery power without a second thought and accepted the equip pop-up and sighed with overwhelming relief as the tide of pleasure surged across and through his body. Energy sizzled through his veins as his awareness spiked as if he''d downed a triple shot of espresso. Recovery slowed to a trickle as the power emptied and felt taut, spent. Little aches and pains remained, and he still felt like he¡¯d been awake for nearly eighteen hours, but it was far more bearable. His skin was less black and purple and more yellow and blue. Even his cuts were ribbed with the places they¡¯d scabbed over. Plus he''d gotten a level up out of it already! Recovery Lv. 1> He studied the rest of the list with a frown. He was caught in the middle between quite a few of them. Enhanced Physiology would make a huge difference. It affected Lana in every aspect of her life, but he also felt like it was something he could easily pursue later. It didn¡¯t really fit in with what he had and he knew those kinds of powers took ages to level up. Force Construct would be incredibly exciting and would probably even synergize really well with Telekinesis, but he wasn¡¯t sure. Everyone else had at least an evo-1 power and he was starting to butt up pretty hard against the limits of both Telekinesis and Teleportation. With a grimace, he checked both of his evolution options and sighed. They were too underwhelming, still. It was pretty common knowledge that each evolution made the max level increase by five at this point. He didn''t want marginally better powers that he''d have to grind up to level ten before he could get new options. Sure, they¡¯d be better¡­ but just barely. Eli knew they''d be fine, but he wanted to see what his merge options would be. If they were bad, he''d take the evolution and swap out Photon Shot and Recovery whenever he wanted to train them. Another subpar power that he''d have to level was just as less than ideal as suboptimal evolutions. Besides, he¡¯d already proven he could sort of create telekinetic constructs. He needed better powers now, not later. Eli sat with a heavy frown as he thought about his choices. He knew that he''d lose both of the original powers for the merge, but he knew that the scope of Spatial Control would be greatly improved. It''d be better than having both powers evolve and trying to force them to work together... He also liked the implication of actually being able to control space. He climbed to his feet with a sigh and limped at the sharp edges of rocks that dug into his bare foot as he teleported rapid fire back home. Soon he sat in his bed after teleporting all of the dirt, dried blood, and other filth that coated him away. Where before cuts and bruises had covered him were faded scabs and yellowed bruises. Another pulse of Recovery rocketed through his body as it scrubbed every pore clean with invigoration. Eli frowned at the notifications for the evolution or for the merge. He was nervous to lose the original powers, especially if it meant he lost Teleportation, but the possibilities felt like so much more. He''d be able to actively control space, so theoretically, there''d be a way for him to teleport and still move objects around¡­ But what if he couldn¡¯t do it? And yet¡­ what if he could do even more? Could he create portals? Teleport himself and others relying not on his senses, but on his actual control of space? Actually distort and warp space around him? Who knew what he could accomplish with this slight setback. Maybe he¡¯d even be able to max it out quickly, after all, he had familiarity with both components. He had to do it. Maybe he could get one of the other options after he maxed out the merge. With a grimace, he accepted the merge and flopped under the blankets while he stared at the far wall and thought about the vision that had been forced on him during the threat assessment. Eventually, his thoughts fizzled into sleep with his status screen popping in front of his eyes before he drifted off. [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Spatial Control Ev. 0/Lv. 0 Slot Two -- Recovery Ev. 0/Lv. 1 Slot Three -- Photon Shot Ev. 1/ Lv. 6 ] A jumbled mishmash of nightmares shambled across his dreamscape. Maniacal laughter echoed in his ears as he watched an all consuming flame creep closer to his loved ones. Beams of light carved through the walls he relied on for safety. Suits of shimmering gray metal loomed over him. If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. "No!" Eli woke with a lurch and blinked around in confusion. Space had roiled and unfurled in an uneven bubble around him. The space from his bed to his closet had tripled, while his bed now leaned against the wall, his nightstand was a mess of splinters and sawdust. Glowing scars smoldered in a great charred gash across his room. He gingerly rolled out of bed as a fresh wave of Recovery invigorated him. "What''s wrong?" Mom cried out from the hallway before she managed to wrench the door open and then stopped to stare around the room in shock at the devastation that he''d wrought onto his room. "Sorry... I had a nightmare." Eli mumbled sheepishly as the expanded bubble of space in his room ruptured with a pop as everything returned back to normal. "I''m sorry..." He shifted awkwardly then winced as a splinter pierced into the sole of his foot. "I''ll fix the bed and the nightstand." "I''m not worried about that." Mom rolled her eyes as she stepped into the room and snapped her fingers. Broken pieces of wood rattled as they flew back together and reassembled into a nightstand, sawdust flooded through the cracks that slowly closed from sutures of roots. "You evolved Phytokinesis?" Eli asked eagerly, anything to push off the horrors of his nightmare. "Yes. But we¡¯re not talking about powers right now. What was your nightmare about, Eli?" "I..." He sighed and drooped as he let light some light spill from his fingers in a dull glow. "My threat assessment was... brutal. I didn''t realize that I was running from what happened. I''ve thrown myself into leveling my powers, but... it doesn''t change anything. I''m still so weak." "Eli..." She hurried over to drag him bodily into an embrace. "I''m the one that''s sorry. I''ve been so caught up with everything else... I know I set up an appointment for you to see a therapist, but I haven¡¯t checked in on you as much as I should. You aren¡¯t weak, you¡¯re a normal teenage boy.¡± "I don''t know." He drooped into her embrace as he hugged her back. Recovery seeped into his body and mind in the background with a slight buzz of strength. ¡°I don¡¯t really think you¡¯ve done anything wrong. You¡¯ve been busy. It¡¯s been a lot.¡± ¡°Thank you, but no. I¡¯m calling to see if we can¡¯t move up your appointment to today.¡± ¡°What about school?¡± ¡°Your mental health is more important.¡± She shrugged as she started walking out of his room. ¡°Come on down when you¡¯re ready. Hopefully we can get something set up.¡± *** "Thanks for getting us into this," Lana grumbled next to him where she glowered at him. "I don''t want to talk about any of this, I''m fine." "Alanna Newton." Mom said with a tone of warning from across the room. "We all need this and we''re all doing it. You''re first." "You haven''t been having any nightmares or anything?" Eli asked with a frown as he glanced over at his perpetually confident sister. Powers had done more than reignite her old confidence, it''d reinforced it. She seemed so much happier, more driven and passionate. Yet he was crumbling, falling apart. He straightened his back against the back of his chair as he drove Recovery through his body again. Peace flowed through him, heaving a heavy sigh of relief. "Not really. I''ve been practicing with my powers, but that''s only because I enjoy the challenge of it. And the levels are so thrilling. Aren''t you the same?" "Somewhat, but not really. I don''t want that to ever happen again." He whispered as memories flashed. The sharp buzz of his phone. Lana¡¯s screams. Jagged shards of glass slicing into his hands. Bone crunching under the hurtling weight of exercise weights. Flesh sizzling as electric fire destroyed his family. Explosive forces channeled into the faceless silhouette¡¯s body, turning into a pulped mess. Could he do that for real? Would he? Eli would rather damn himself than watch his family die. What haunted him the most was Lana''s screams that night when the Graylight guy. No. Brandon Knight broke into her room. Tendons creaked as he squeezed his fists at the reminder of how he''d failed her. "Elias Newton?" asked a gentle man''s voice as an older middle aged man walked out into the waiting room. Eli stood up and walked forward with no small amount of trepidation. His heart pounded so hard he had to restrain Photon Shot from pulling in any light, had to fight space from bucking wildly around him. Without any hesitation he unequipped both leaving only sweet Recovery equipped. "Yes, that''s me." "Hi, welcome! How was your school day?" "I actually stayed home. I''m a bit nervous about my classes though since it''s so close to the end of the year." Eli said as they walked through the rear door in the waiting room into a hallway and then into a cozy office with plush recliners and couches. The man sat down in a plush recliner and smiled kindly at Eli who did a double take. He¡¯d thought he was talking to a random receptionist, not the actual therapist. "Please, sit down. My name is Dr. Simmons. I hear you''ve had quite the experience since the system appeared?" He asked with a pointed wave of his hand. The doctor was dressed more for golf than talking to patients. His glasses were thick rimmed bifocals perched low on the bridge of his nose. A large square jaw gave way to a beard strewn with silver strands. Eli idly wondered what his powers were but wasn''t sure how rude it was to ask. It was starting to become a bit of a taboo everywhere except the Internet. Granted, most people suspected others of lying so far. Videos of people using their powers were everywhere. Plus the scammers and influencers promising a fast track to reaching ¡®Level 100¡¯. "Yeah, I guess you could say that. Wasn''t everyone''s experience bad though?" Eli asked with a weak attempt at deflection. It was a knee jerk reaction. He didn''t want to share about what happened. Not really. And yet he did? This man was a complete stranger. He didn¡¯t have to prove anything to him. "Sure, but that doesn''t invalidate your experience, of course." Eli had to fight to not roll his eyes at the classic pithy turns of phrase. This was more in line with what he expected for a therapist. Or was he a psychologist since he was a doctor? "I know plenty of people are upset merely by the radical changes. Some expect these powers to fix everything that they hated about themselves, and maybe it helps for some of them, but not all. I doubt it helped even most." "I guess." Eli frowned as he jiggled his knee. He took a deep breath and decided he might as well talk, a little. He didn''t want to talk about his secret training outings or much about what had happened with his threat assessment or even the home invasion... but he did want to talk a little. He didn¡¯t want to have another nightmare. "Before this all happened, I was being bullied. I had become a bit of an outcast in school and I think a small part of me thought powers would change that. But it hasn''t?" "What makes you feel like an outcast?" "I don''t really have any friends or at least not with anyone that I actually like." Eli admitted. "Plus, I''ve been getting bullied a bit ever since my sisters joined school. I have to watch out for them and some people have taken a lot of pleasure in taking advantage of that. Before it was like I flew under the radar, but this whole year has been terrible. Now with powers... I''m constantly afraid of how that bullying will escalate." "How has this bullying taken place?" "At first it was mostly just online messages and insults, but then... well, it''s become more targeted. Rumors and private screenshots of things I''d said or even faked messages have been passed around. All of my old friends became targets themselves, so¡­ now I have no one.¡± Not to mention that Lyra had grown far closer to all of the art people in a span of two days. She even had a small online following where she recorded her illusive displays. She must have evolved her power for it to show up on camera though, right? He shut that line of thinking down. He wasn¡¯t here to talk about Lyra¡¯s withholding of information about her power. "Has any of it been physical?" Dr. Simmons asked with a raised eyebrow, his pen poised over his notebook to scribble. "Yes." He sagged into the couch with a combination of horror and relief at finally talking about it to someone. That''d been a weight he''d been carrying for the entire school year, it didn''t really help to mention it, but at the same time it did. "The worst was actually the day the system appeared. And then..." He paused. "Then the ''incident'' happened. Are you comfortable talking about that all?" Dr. Simmons asked as his pen skated across the pages. "Yes and no," he sighed. Mom wouldn''t let him not talk about it and he did want to. It was just¡­ hard. "I''ve been having nightmares about what happened. I''m constantly paranoid that something like it will happen again. Do you know what happened?" He asked, desperate for any out so he didn''t have to explain... even if a part of him wanted to let it out. "I do, but only from your parents'' point of view. I know the story, but I don''t know your side of it." "What do you mean by my side of the story? It happened to all of us." He protested with a scoff as he crossed his arms in front of his chest. "Lana had someone break into her room. Dad stood right there, unable to do anything without destroying the whole house, while he watched both of his kids kill someone else. Only Lyra and mom avoided anything bad happening to them! Lyra slept right through it. She had to be woken up after!" "And that upsets you?" "Of course it does! I had to fight to save my sister, my whole family really, and I''m the only one struggling with it?" Eli shouted as he found himself standing up with his hands shaking. A cooldown message appeared saying that both Spatial Control and Photon Shot were on cooldown. His heart shuddered with adrenaline as he sank back onto the couch. "Every day since then I''ve been pushing myself so it doesn''t happen again. I''ve been training non-stop, but no one seems to understand the danger that we''re in! If they''d been a little bit more powerful we could''ve died. I would have!" He blinked in shock as confusion surged through him at the all consuming tide of anger that had roiled inside of him. If he¡¯d had his powers, he was certain that he would have called on them. He had no idea if he would¡¯ve used them though. Would he have done something? Used his new control of space for some unknown purpose like he¡¯d done in his bedroom? Or would he have blasted the man with lances of light. He trembled as he leaned as far back as he could into the cushions of the couch, his eyes unable to meet the man¡¯s own gaze. It was like¡­ like Eli was one of those bloodthirsty criminals hungry only for power levels and perks. Eli slumped as the walls seemed to vibrate and gradually close in around them. His lungs felt tight and trapped beneath the vise of his ribcage. Panic clawed at him at the realization he was a rabid dog with the powers to hurt or even kill. Echoes of his threat assessment scoring as fully lethal plagued his mind. Recovery hammered at him up and down his whole body, just barely keeping him stable from having a full panic attack. "It''s okay, Eli. You''re safe. Nothing can hurt you here." Dr. Simmons smiled with melancholic kindness. "You could try to destroy this whole room and it wouldn''t matter. It''s okay." "What do you mean?" Eli asked numbly as he glanced around the room with probing eyes. Nothing seemed out of place... then he shivered at the reminder of his threat assessment. "Is this a dream or an illusion? What are your powers?" "It''s okay," he repeated. "My powers aren''t anything like that at all. I have two. The one I''m using right now is Lesser Domain. It marks a space as mine and gives me control over the space itself and almost anything in it. It has no effect on people, but I can reinforce everything in here so it wouldn''t break or even put it back together again. I''ve had several clients take a lot of joy in the fact that they could destroy this whole room if they wanted to.¡± He chuckled then added, ¡°Some have even suggested a start a side practice for it!" "And your other power?" Eli asked suspiciously as he frowned at the pristine furniture around the room. "Empathic Conjuration. I can conjure up emotions that I or anyone around me feels. I only use it to get a feel for what my patients are feeling so I can better understand how to help them. And to show them they aren¡¯t as black and white as they can sometimes feel." "You can control what others are feeling?" He asked in outrage as he sat upright. "No. I haven''t tried, but no, I don''t think I could nor do I even want to. What I can do is materialize emotions physically." Dr. Simmons said as he held his hand out and a calming blue radiated out of his hand as it shaped itself into a tranquil cloud of light. "This is peace." "It''s... beautiful." Eli admitted as he leaned forward as he watched the fog ebb and flow endlessly above them like a canopy or a soothing mist. "Does that mean you can remove my anger? My fear?" "No. It¡¯s only a representation," Dr. Simmons shrugged, "but I wouldn¡¯t if I could anyways. Therapy isn''t a magical solution even if powers do exist now. Do you want to stop feeling angry? Afraid?" "Of course I do." Eli frowned as he flexed his fingers into a fist and relaxed it again. "I don''t want to constantly look over my shoulder expecting someone to hurt me or someone else. It''s exhausting." Dr. Simmons nodded and then asked, "Wouldn''t you rather see the other emotions hidden under your fear, beneath your anger and guilt?" Eli blinked as he stared at the casual, unassuming man across from him. "What do you mean?" "Your joy, your excitement, your pride. I sense so much more than what you''re clinging onto and it''s understandable that you do. I would be more concerned if you shrugged all of that aside after what happened. But I want to remind you that there''s more than that." "Like¡­?" Eli prompted curiously. "Love. Hope. You aren''t a beast or monster eager for it all to happen again. In fact, you hope it doesn''t and it''s natural to prepare in case it does. I suspect everyone in your home has been in secret. None of them are my patients, but that¡¯s because I don¡¯t want to muddle the lines. You are my only patient and I¡¯m only here to hear your perspective of things. It sounds like you want to protect, but... it isn''t your job or responsibility to do so." "But, isn''t it? What else are these powers for if they aren''t meant to be used for others?" "Whoever said they were?" Dr. Simmons raised his eyebrow. "Studies have suggested quite a few things about them. What do you remember from the Initialization?" "I was in an endless sea of darkness." He said slowly, pondering as he cast his thoughts back to what started everything since then. "Were you asked by the system what your favorite memory was?" "I was..." He frowned then smiled a bit as he thought about it and remembered. "I always loved traveling and going on vacation. Seeing our extended family or going to far off places. It''s been a couple of years since we''d gone anywhere. Ever since Dad started his own business and Mom got a promotion, they¡¯ve had to deal with more expectations and responsibilities and¡­ it just never happened. We haven¡¯t gone on a vacation since.¡± "Your power is Teleportation, right?" "It was. Now it''s Spatial Control... How did you know that though?" Eli asked with a suspicious glare. "It''s in the public records along with your reported threat assessment score." Dr. Simmons said as he pulled his computer out from under his cushion. "Everyone''s powers become public once they get an updated ID. Anyway, don''t you think it''s interesting that your favorite memories involve traveling? Going far away from home? And the system gave you the power to achieve that. To see the world, to experience wonders both close and far away." Eli thought it for a second and felt a sense of clarity at the thought. It made sense and he could easily see that being the case. "Where is this study?" "It''s in the Science Journal. It''s still in the preliminary stages, but the data correlates pretty strongly. Otherwise, it seems to be paired with the second question about fear, but most seem to have powers meant to help them fulfill their greatest joys rather than to help defend them from whatever terrorizes them." Dr. Simmons reached under his cushion against and pulled out a magazine with its title stylized inside of the special punctuation the System used. The cover featured a detailed sea of stars and galaxies. After weeks of growing used to Lyra¡¯s illusionary displays, the cover felt mundane and gaudy. "So you clearly aren''t a monster, otherwise you''d have more sinister powers. Not to scare you, but the prisons that are still standing have reported that quite a large number of inmates have powers linked to their first crimes, especially when they''ve been driven by a pathological need of some kind. Thieves have abilities centered around stealing and so on and so forth. Maybe it''s time to let the joy and pleasure of what you enjoy motivate you instead of the fear and rage. I know that¡¯s easier said than done, but still. I hope that helped.¡± Chapter Ten Eli sat in the basement while he watched Lana and his dad play a spirited game of ping pong. Lana was a whirlwind of motion as she darted from one edge of the table to the other. Dad had a few tiny storm clouds that he used to create a burst of air to launch it back her way every time she sent it his way. Soon enough, their volley was a screeching ping pong ball that whistled through the air. It''d surely leave a welt if it made contact. Lana refused to talk to Eli, he didn''t know how her appointment with the therapist went, but Eli felt slightly better about everything. It wasn''t like he had a choice not to go and Dr. Simmons seemed as good as he could have expected. Eli also respected the man''s powers and his restraint. The thought that powers were customized and maybe even optimized for everyone was also a comforting thought. Sure, he had control over how it developed, but he also had that same level of direction for his own life. Only he could control himself and all of that drivel every adult said whenever a kid or teenager showed the slightest bit of attitude. Except for dad apparently, he just played a game with Lana to help her train his powers. Or maybe¡­ maybe they were just having fun? He blinked at that thought before shaking his head to himself. Dad might just be having fun, but Lana was pushing herself to get stronger. Better. He had to do the same. Eli¡¯s senses flow into his Spatial Control, his other two powers unequipped for the improved focus. First of all, the power really was a perfect cross between Teleportation and Telekinesis. He had the same intimate sense of feeling for everything in his range, but only for the space. Space felt like a vast ocean of small points with an omnidirectional grid of lines outlining every possible angle from point to point. Actual objects were more like silhouettes with infinite gaps between each point. That''s how he saw it, but it wasn''t as overwhelming as it sounded. When he shaped his spatial field, he felt those points and lines sort of like a tapestry that he could influence. When he pushed with his field, he expanded the line between points and the space grew. When he pulled, it shrank. That was about the point where complications started popping up. A push forward would create a tiny pull everywhere else around it like it was actually a tapestry, or even if he had a bunch of dominoes lined up and if he knocked some down, others would stand up and vice versa. It was superbly difficult to figure out how each push or pull would affect the surrounding space. He hadn''t figured out how to teleport yet either or use telekinesis, even though he felt like it would be possible through workarounds. Both of the powers combined gave him more of a control around space after all. So he should be able to brute force his way through teleportation or find a way to move the space around something well enough to basically mimic telekinesis. If video games were any kind of guide, he really hoped he¡¯d be able to figure out portals at some point as well as making container spaces permanently larger, but he had a long ways to go before that point. He supposed he could temporarily do it, but it was far too inconsistent and draining as it was. "Do you want to play, Eli?" Dad asked as he exploded another miniature storm cloud to send the ball careening back to Lana. "Elias doesn''t like to have fun, dad." Lana said snidely as she whipped her graylight paddle forward to send the ball back with a crack. One of the regular paddles had already been demolished from her super strength. ¡°I¡¯m sure it wasn¡¯t that bad, Lana. Addy was right to set up those appointments for you guys. I¡¯ve been having nightmares too. We all have. And if you don¡¯t want to talk about any of that stuff, talk about whatever. That¡¯s a safe place to vent about anything you want.¡± His words were punctuated by the turbulent puffs of air his clouds released to gust the ball across the table again and again. ¡°It¡¯s a good thing. And if Dr. Simmons or Dr. Alphon isn¡¯t who you want to see, we can find someone you¡¯re comfortable with. Otherwise, if they think you¡¯re really fine with it they¡¯ll either schedule you less or say you don¡¯t need to be seen. That¡¯s non-negotiable.¡± ¡°Fine.¡± Lana sighed as she twisted in a blur to snare the ball out of the air and planted it on the table. Before anyone else could say anything else she shouldered past Eli causing him to stumble. ¡°I don¡¯t get it dad.¡± Eli sighed as he sat down on the treadmill and cast a dour glance his way. ¡°I didn¡¯t even do anything.¡± ¡°She¡¯s probably lashing out because she is having issues with it too. I¡¯ll talk to her privately later. But how about you? How are you doing with all of this?¡± ¡°I honestly don¡¯t know.¡± Eli admitted. ¡°I¡¯m trying to not be scared, but prepared. I don¡¯t want that to happen ever again, but I already distrusted most people with guns before and now everyone has powers? I¡¯m not sure if that makes things better or worse. But I really do enjoy my powers! They¡¯re really exciting and every time I improve with them or find a new use, I feel a huge sense of accomplishment and progression! I merged Teleportation with Telekinesis and got Spatial Control. I¡¯ve barely figured out how to use it. I still have Photon Shot and it¡¯s level seven now. But I got a new power called Recovery that¡¯s incredible. It heals and energizes me. It¡¯s like the best cup of coffee and medicine that works instantly.¡± Dad nodded while he listened then he beamed with a wicked grin. ¡°Want to do some tests?¡± ¡°Sure,¡± he shrugged. He was pretty eager to get some practice in, especially if he could figure out how to teleport again. His training speed had dropped to a snail¡¯s pace. Photon Shot was stuck at level seven and he wasn''t sure what he could do to grind out the last two levels, nor was he sure if he''d keep it in his kit or try and obtain a new power and keep it as a backup. Recovery was easy to use, but demanding to level. In order to do so, he had to push himself really hard. For the moment, it was a nice substitute for lack of sleep or a way to get some energy after a hard work out or whenever his focus lapsed. The bonus of it helping heal him was nice too, but it took a lot more uses to actually heal anything. Until he could relearn how to teleport¡­ he was stuck inside. No midnight practice in a field for him. "Want to head to the park?" Dad asked while he led the way upstairs, grabbed his keys and sunglasses, and gestured for Eli to hop into the passenger seat while he unlocked it. "I thought powers couldn''t be used at the parks?" Eli asked with a frown while Dad sat down and turned on the car with a flex of his technomancy powers. He then ogled in shock as the transmission moved itself into reverse and the car backed itself up perfectly out of the driveway onto the street. Soon enough they were cruising without his Dad ever once using his hands after he put the keys in. "How the hell did you do that?" "Technomancer evolved into Technopathy at level ten. Now I have more intuitive control of all technology both behind the scenes and a sort of telekinesis for any tools. The more complex the tool or machine, the easier it is to control. I can float around a screwdriver, but I can actually pilot the car remotely. It takes a lot out of me, but it''s easier to drive than otherwise actually." Dad said effortlessly as he waved and gestured with his hands with total abandon as the car vroomed down a series of streets rapidly. "It helps that I can sense other cars and even cell phones and stuff. As long as I still watch out for people or animals, it''s fine. I''m trying to convince Addy that we should buy a fully electric automatic car so I can drive it effortlessly." "Uhhh," Eli stretched the word out at the idea of people with powers sufficiently advanced enough using their powers to do something as complicated as drive. Sure, people throwing out lightning or fire or whatever was alarming enough and he could control and bend space, but that was just physics. This had to be flouting nearly every law there was. Plus! Wasn¡¯t Dad technically using his cellphone while driving too? He really wanted to crack the mysteries behind Spatial Control so he could re-learn Teleportation. "Anyways, how does the park sound? GPS says there''s a power friendly park a few miles away." "Power friendly park?" Eli raised an eyebrow at that. The general public opinion of powers was hardly ¡®friendly¡¯. It wasn¡¯t downright hostile or anything, but people were starting to make it nearly taboo to use too publicly. Teleporting across the street without too much fanfare? Alright, fine. But carrying everything Telekinesis? Disturbance of the peace. "Yeah, it''s kind of like a dog park, but you know, for powers. I heard about it on a power leveling forum and group chat. It''s pretty neat. I just sent you a link." Dad explained eagerly as Eli''s phone simultaneously lit up with a notification from his Dad with an invitation to a bizarre looking app blazoned with the letters PLL. He opened it up while he idly noticed that Kady had sent him a message with a picture of her dogs. He sent a quick response before he opened it up and saw plenty of posts about different theories about power sets and evolutions. ¡®Power Leveling Library: Where Knowledge is Power¡¯ flashed across his screen before it opened up to a general forum interface. He started scrolling through the front page and clicked on a random thread of someone with an evo-0 Psychokinesis that trained over the course of the last two weeks since the System that practiced until he could lift his trailer. Apparently it had evolved to an evo-1 Macro-Psychopathy power. As he read, he noticed plenty of users had recorded what powers they had and how they''d leveled it, what evolutions they''d been offered, as well as new powers at various points. There were even tips on how to powerlevel different kinds of powers. "Wait, I just noticed a trend on the ''known power list''." Eli said as he scrolled through it again. "There''s tons of physical powers, but none of the more outlandish ones from comic books and stuff." "Yeah. No real fate, luck or destiny powers have been reported. Same with telepathy and stuff like that. Strictly physical. Some people can conjure constructs of their thoughts, emotions, or dreams, and because of that they can sense them, but it has almost no real detail." Dad confirmed as the car drove itself off into the winding roads leading to Evergrove Park, an offshoot of the Evergrove Lakes. "No influence or persuasion powers either, which has been a huge relief so far." "That''s good. I''m glad no one has shown up that can control other people''s minds or do whatever other wacky stuff that pops up." Eli said as he found a page for teleportation. He frowned as he read it. Apparently, it was somewhat uncommon, but there were several variations of lesser versions of it. Blink, Warp, etc. But Telekinesis and elemental type powers were the most common. There were already concrete guides on how to powerlevel them or even merge them for slightly more interesting powers, but after a certain point there seemed to be a lot of randomness to it. Also, individuality. How powers were trained seemed to impact the evolution, new power list, and merge results exponentially. No mentions of Spatial Control popped up, but there were a lot of people theorizing about what could be possible with more control of teleportation powers. "Interesting..." Eli muttered as he re-read the listing again and noticed some stark differences between his teleportation power and other people who had it. First of all, almost no one had a spatial field. Those who mentioned something similar just got increased range or teleportation weight load. Secondly, he didn''t see anything about being able to teleport something with increased force. "What is?" Dad asked as the car pulled itself into a parking spot, switched into park, and then shut itself off. All without his dad even twitching a finger the entire time. This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. "My teleportation is really different from other people. I wonder if that''s how I got offered telekinesis... It seems like the ''Obtain New Power'' list people gets more and more personalized the more they use their powers. Maybe the way I used teleport is what led me to getting telekinesis too." Eli frowned as he thought back to how he''d teleported so much weight with a mass of force into Trenton Knight''s back. Right after, he''d been offered Telekinesis. He leveled Telekinesis primarily by using it with Teleportation and to increase his range of teleporting objects and got the ability to control space and his spatial field when he merged the two powers... Something he''d been practicing and training towards. Not only that, but after he used Telekinesis to blast himself around and hurt himself, he''d been immediately offered an ability to help him recover as well as create force constructs. Sure, he didn¡¯t accept it, but it¡¯d been offered. "Dad, have you heard about what people are saying about the System giving people powers based off our best memories and worst fears?" "Yeah, of course. I read the study quoted in the Scientific Journal. It''s still pretty preliminary, but it lines up. I always loved watching storms and being inside of them. One of my favorite memories was growing up and watching them roll in with my parents. Or when I flew in a plane for the first and saw the clouds from above¡­ or when it started thunderstorming and I decided to go for a drive and found out when I got home that I¡¯d left in the middle of a tornado" Dad said whimsically before stepping out of the car and continuing once Eli caught up. "Next was when I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do for a career. Your mom really pushed me to go back to school. Well, I guess I should say she helped me get the courage to do it. I decided to take some computer programming classes on a whim and I''ll never forget that unshakeable joy at figuring out how to make the code work. And I always loved playing games and being on the computers and all of that stuff." "Huh..." Eli said as he processed it. He had already bought into it before when Dr. Simmons mentioned it, but now he really did. "What about mom?" "She always loved to cook and make things from scratch. Baking, cooking, whatever it was. Meals were more than food and always have been for her. They were experiences. Wishes. Our first date was us making a three course meal of tasty abominations then watching cooking reality TV shows knowing we¡¯d have been yelled out of the room for what we were eating.¡± He chuckled then added, ¡°I''m sure that''s where Cooking Enchantress came from. Plus, she grew up basically in the middle of nowhere and spent all of her childhood outside with her sister. I don''t know why plants specifically, but your Aunt Belle got the power to speak to animals, so I''m sure that''s the source of that for her too." Soon enough they walked off the concrete path into the woods and on the mild grass of a vast field full of people practicing with their powers. He saw a little girl shooting streams of water at other kids from her hands as they ran around through the woods. Off to the right, were older people playing games or even mock fighting. This little patch of green was so much more inviting than the field Eli snuck off to trespass onto in the middle of the night. His heart ached at the thought of crossing county lines nearly every night to do something he could¡¯ve shared with others. Maybe he could make new friends interested in the same thing. Powers were more than a means to an end, to safety. He needed to remember that. He gnawed on that thought while they walked deeper into the field until they had an empty patch dozens of yards large. "Alright!" Dad clapped his hands together with a large beaming smile on his face. "What can you do with Spatial Control?" "Well, I can sort of fold space, I guess," Eli said as he pointed down at the grass and folded it into a ridge of compressed space that made the air ripple in a haze. He pushed his hand past the slight resistance and plucked a blade of grass free from the ground without bending over. "I can also expand it, but it''s weird." They both watched as Eli shoved his will against the fold of space. The point that bridge his finger, the ground, and the air between it and his finger. Light bent and buckled into a prismatic light show, ribbons of light trailed across the ground as the space expanded more and more. A hole slowly formed as if a pole was being driven into the point he continued to expand. Resistance butted up against his will, against his control of the fabric of space once the hole reached a depth of about six inches. His spatial field all around him quivered from the strain. He let go. Dirt fountained in the air the moment he released all of the pent-up force he''d used to expand the space between his hand and the ground. Dad jumped as dirt splattered all around them to reveal a small divot about eight inches deep. Spatial Control Lv. 1> "Nice. I just leveled it up." "That was definitely more than teleportation," Dad squinted as he studied the clods of dirt that covered the ground and their clothes. "It seems pretty dangerous though." "Before I could teleport all of that dirt out of the ground. It''s just different. Different method, similar result." He shrugged. Hopefully, he''d be able to do that again. It would really suck if he''d fully lost both his teleportation and telekinesis from that merge. "But now I can''t teleport at all!" "Are you sure?" Dad raised an eyebrow at him then turned to point back to a few paces away from the car where they¡¯d parked. "Try to fold space as far as you can over there." Eli turned to the billowing oak that he''d pointed at and studied the field of spatial points that dotted the way between him and the tree. He plucked at the line that connected him to the relay of points on the way to the tree and gritted his teeth at the massive weight. It resisted and yearned to spring free like a spring that he had to coil by hand. It fought against him at every step. Every twisting fold caused it to shift and shudder. Light shone as it twisted itself into a braid of cracks of compressed space along the path between him and the tree. Every bone in Eli''s body felt leaden from how tight he braced himself from the effort of keeping the bunched up space from surging free. Heat bloomed across his skin before pain blossomed behind each eye; bright light seemed to burst through his skull making everything spin. The pressure built inside his head until tears streamed down his cheeks. But still he held firm. If dirt exploded from his little trick earlier, who knew what would happen if he let go now? He took a step forward and had to fight against a rising tide of nausea that used to plague him before he¡¯d adapted. Now it was back hungry for its toll. Another step had him wince at the clamping pressure that bit at his skin. Static crackled in his ears. One more step, and he stumbled as he fell right in front of the tree. Vibrations twanged up and down the path of compressed space he''d stepped through but before it could blast free, he crushed it still with every fiber of his being. Space shuddered as every small folded point in space snapped free. A few moments¡ªor lifetimes¡ªlater everything was back to the way it was. "Eli! Are you okay?" Dad shouted over the echoing thunder of his ringing ears as he sprinted over to him. He hissed in pain as his arm flopped limply as he tried to force himself to climb to his feet. A glance down showed that hair-thin slashes covered his now tattered clothes. Blood dripped from his nose until he hurriedly slotted Recovery into his Equipped Power list and sighed at the relief that staunched the aches throughout his body. By the time Dad reached him, he was already swaying on his feet. Another activation helped stabilize him and restore his ringing ears to something closer to normalcy. Recovery Lv. 3> "Yeah, I''m fine. I got a level in recovery." He wiped his bloody nose off the back of his hand as he turned to Dad with a grin. He continued to spam his power abandon as he stretched out as much as he could. Gashes knitted themselves closed into ugly puckered scabs, his blazing headache soothed. Best of all? His limp broken arm slowly righted itself as the bones and tendons healed themselves back in place. It was still most definitely injured, but at least it didn¡¯t hurt as much. "That power seems really dangerous..." Dad trailed off once he noticed the tattered holes across all of Eli''s clothes. "Eli, what the fuck. I''m not sure you should mess with that power much anymore..." "It''s fine. I think I''m figuring it out. Watch." Eli tuned him out as he tuned out his flimsy mortal senses and watched the world through his spatial field. Lines were nothing more than the distance between points, with each little line representing another possible path. But when he had his original teleportation power, his power had forced him into a tunnel vision and blipped him out into a void. He was just folding space together and walking through it with a prayer that it won''t explode. That wasn''t the right way at all. Eli focused on a point right at the edge where things became blurry next to the silhouette of connected points that was their car. Darkness blurred its way across all of the other points surrounding him in his spatial field until only two remained. Himself and his target. He tried giving the line between points a tug, but nothing changed except for a slight decrease in distance. Same with a gentle nudge. A chill numbness licked across his flesh leaving goosebumps in its wake. Eli opened his eyes and nearly panicked at the absolute nothingness that surrounded him. Only a single point of light shone across the ink black void. The spot right next to the car he''d aimed to teleport at. He tried to take a step to the right and winced as he rebounded off of something invisible and utterly inflexible. A step closer to the light was fine, but then he couldn''t move backwards. Eli checked with his spatial field and felt the way it arched out from him to create the tunnel that surrounded him and guided him to his target. A flex of his will elongated it slightly until he could step back where he was. He felt the curved walls, the sloped ceiling, and the perfectly flat floor as if they were an extension of himself. With a thought, he imagined the tunnel closing behind him as it flung him out of the void. Concrete grated against his hands and knees as he shot out of the teleportation in a roll. He stumbled past the grass in front of the car and found himself lying right next to the car in the parking lot instead. Pebbles and dirt stuck to his bleeding hands and knees. Another tug on Recovery helped scab his wounds, but it quickly ran dry. Eli frowned as he prodded at the power while he ignored his dad calling out to him. Fuck, his broken arm howled at his repeated mistreatment of it. He felt that Recovery was like¡­ it was sort of well that he drew upon. Instead of water, it was full of rejuvenating power that sought nothing else but his absolute recovery. But how could a power that could help him recover run out? That didn¡¯t make sense at all. Pain lanced deep into his bones and blazed across his veins as he yanked at the power and forced it to flow through him anyways. Emptiness flowed through him as deep and hungry as the void he¡¯d just stepped through. Absence of Recovery wrapped around his body, mind, and soul like a tightening fist. Heat flickered across his skin as Recovery''s recovery strained against him and his commands. It wanted to recover on its own, but he refused to allow it to slip anywhere but where he wanted it to. It would recover, so it could help him recover. Telekinesis never ran out. Neither did Teleportation. Why would this? Aches. Pain. Agony. Relief. Throb. Pain. Suffering. Relief. Sting. Pain. Hurt. Relief. Eli leaned over to rest his healed palms against the shredded denim over his knees as he tried to catch his heaving breaths as his powers settled. Exhaustion was a sullen leaden weight that dragged at his every muscle, tissue and organ in his body. But he felt strong. Full of life and power. Spatial Control Lv. 2> Spatial Control Lv. 3> Spatial Control Lv. 4> Recovery Lv. 4> "Elias Newton! Where the hell did you go?" Dad shouted as he finally reached Eli and squeezed him into an embrace. "You were gone for so long. It was horrible. I thought you''d teleported farther away than normal, but then you didn''t come back." "What?" Eli asked, then winced at the icy discomfort of his tongue. "You disappeared for about fifteen minutes." Dad held him back and frowned as he glanced at the state of him. "And you come back with your clothes absolutely destroyed then disappear again. What happened?" Eli winced as he led his dad into the car and started to explain what he¡¯d discovered about how his old teleportation connected to his new Spatial Control. It took almost an hour before he managed to placate his father enough to convince him that everything was fine and that he hadn¡¯t actually been hurt at all. That entire time was the most uncomfortable drive of his life as he tried to convince his dad to not take him to a hospital. It was nearly impossible considering the destruction of his shirt wherever he¡¯d touched the wall of his teleportation tunnel. Or the dried crusted blood that stuck to the back of his hand and his nose. He didn¡¯t explain his struggle with Recovery or how he¡¯d forced it back on itself to make it recover, so it could aid him in recovering himself. Right when Dad said they were going home he passed the fuck out so thoroughly he might as well have been a light switch flicked off. Chapter Eleven People slowly milled around the rarely used community center that they''d been required to meet at for the first mandatory meeting for those with Lethal Threat ratings. Eli liberally tapped into his Spatial Control to limit his senses so that Lana''s constant fidgeting wouldn''t annoy him any more than it already was. Lana only had a Potentially Lethal (PL-3) rating, but her presence had been requested by that threatening federal agent Mr. Daniels. Mom and Dad had taken Lyra to the nearby mall while they all waited for this to be over so they could pick them up. The entire car ride had been a shitshow of frustration and anxiety for everyone involved except for Lyra who had seemed like she was in her own little world. Their parents had fought both directly and passively about the whole thing and how pointless and shitty it was that this was happening. Yet they¡¯d come and been dropped off here. How fucked up the whole thing was and how they were being treated like second-class citizens because of powers that had been thrust upon them by some uncaring deity or even something else. Still, they were here. Not to mention how obnoxious it was to be trapped in a car! Eli hated sitting in the backseat where he was squeezed against the car door. Hated having to watch the world crawl by him at a snail¡¯s pace. Stuck there for two and a half hours. He could¡¯ve been there and back a dozen times in that amount of time. What was the point of being able to teleport anywhere any time and still having to go places he didn¡¯t want to? His spatial senses and control itched at him uncomfortably every passing moment. Every point and line in space was a possibility of somewhere else he could be instead of trapped for a mandatory lecture by that asshole agent. But no. Eli hadn¡¯t let any of that time be wasted. His fingers twitched inside of the void and he frowned at the strangeness of his disappeared left hand. It was alarming to glance down and expect to see the hand he knew he had, the hand that felt the icy numbness of nothing inside of the void. Yet there wasn¡¯t even a distorted shimmer to show that something was off. His left hand just appeared to be gone. He charged up light on his wrist and passed it up into his hand with Photon Shot until his fingers and palm felt full to bursting with the radiant orange light. He tried to charge it further, to draw it deeper inside of himself so he could give it more power. But it refused to accept it. The resistance felt slippery and absolute. If he wanted more light he¡¯d have to charge it up throughout his body or try something else. The whole time he¡¯d been in the car, he¡¯d been practicing with his powers. Both Spatial Control and Recovery were still stuck at level four after the rest of the week since the Threat Assessment and their joint family therapy appointments. But with liberal use of Spatial Control and his personal void to charge and fire up endless streams of light, he¡¯d quickly hit his new limit of level eight for Photon Shot. At the end of the week Lana had been given a Potentially Lethal rating, but apparently her test had been rather extreme so her presence was requested nonetheless. She had been proud of it ever since and hadn''t seemed to mind the dreamlike simulation she''d been subjected to. Apparently one of her friends had a similar power. Several people both offline and online were furious that the government had authorized this nationwide, but apparently, it didn¡¯t affect most people as strongly. They understood it was a dream as they were in it. Only those with mental disorders and trauma had severe reactions to it. Eli grimaced as he squeezed the ball of light in his void-hidden hands and took little solace in the flexible hardness of the light. He willed the light to sharpen to a series of fine points on the tips of each of his fingers like claws. After that he¡¯d had to go see Dr. Simmons again. It almost felt like each day subjected him to new events he¡¯d have to later discuss in therapy. God-fucking-dammit. None of this would¡¯ve happened without powers. He¡¯d be almost done with school and then he could leave for college. "Will you stop sulking already?" Lana snapped as she turned to glare at him. "I don''t actually blame you or anything weird like that, you''ve just been so annoying lately." "I''ve been annoying?" Eli raised his eyebrow as he turned to look at the sharp green of her eyes. "You''ve been rude and petty all week. Every time I see you, you run away and make snide comments. Lyra said you''re always exercising or doing whatever it is you do when you disappear." "So what? It isn''t like you''re doing the same thing. Everyone is." Lana shrugged as liquid steel flowed from her skin until a shimmering form-fitting glove covered her hands. "Don''t pretend that you don''t enjoy improving your powers. Besides, I¡¯m not only practicing with my powers like you are." "Did Graylight evolve?" Eli blurted as he stared at the construct that had once seemed dull, nearly insubstantial, but now it seemed far denser and real. Distortions in space wafted from it as if it were far heavier than it appeared to be. "It did. At level ten it became Silverlight." Lana twisted her hand and turned the silverlight into a blade, a statue of a bird, and then a snake before she snapped it back into gloves. "It''s better on every level. Now I can control it far easier and change multiple things about it. Make it super flexible, if it¡¯s a liquid or metal, all kinds of stuff. I''m pretty happy with it. ¡°Oh, cool.¡± He nodded as he thought about that. A part of him wished he¡¯d gotten Graylight instead. "But don''t change the subject, Eli." She rested her silver-encrusted hands on the concrete of the step they were sitting on with a clink of metal. "I know you''ve been sneaking off to train in secret every night." "What? How? I''ve been careful though." Eli blinked at her in shock as he cringed at the thought of what his parents would say if they knew. Both of them seemed a bit more... distant than they had before. Training with his dad in the park had scarred both of his parents somehow. As if he were too horrifying for both of them. Somehow the whole home invasion incident hadn''t alarmed them nearly as much as him casually destroying the ground with a twitch of his powers. Or him disappearing for several minutes. Or what the nature of his true rating was. Only Dad had a higher rating and that was because of the sheer range and destructive potential both of his powers had. Storm Cloud could easily cause real changes to weather and Technomancer let Dad see everything technical. "The attic creaks, dumbass." She rolled her eyes. "Superhuman Physiology makes it so I barely have to sleep and my senses are better than before. I''ve heard you almost every night." "Wait, Superhuman Physiology? When did you max out your other power too?¡± ¡°Eli. Stop. We¡¯re not talking about that. You¡¯ve been sneaking out to train like a psychopath.¡± ¡°Why didn''t you say anything if you knew this whole time?" He frowned at her. "I was hoping it''d be a more interesting secret. Maybe that it was related to whoever you''ve been texting so much." She said pointedly as his phone screen flashed with a notification from Kady. He teleported it into his void-hidden hand where he fragmented his view so he could see it and chuckled at the comment she''d made about their Spanish teacher. "Which I still want to know about, but whatever. Then you''ve been using your powers as much as I have. I can tell. But¡­ you¡¯re doing it differently. I¡¯ve always loved to exercise, so this is the same thing to me. You aren¡¯t doing it for the right reasons. I can tell." "How could you possibly tell?" "I''m not dumb. You have a weight around you that''s different than before. Your teleportation seemed so simple, but now it''s like you''re actually moving through space. You never get tired anymore. You''ve had mood swings that''ve been really weird. Whenever you get upset now, you instantly become calm? What the fuck. Plus, have you not noticed how vibrant colors are on you?" She pointed at the hem of his green jacket. "This used to be more of a dull olive or something, now it''s even brighter. I bet you it has to do with your light power." "So what?" He shrugged defensively, not really getting her point. "I''m trying to get my powers leveled up just like everyone else." "No, not like everyone else." She shook her head. "A lot of people seem to be treating it like a cell phone or video game console. An accessory. But it''s become a part of us." "Very astute observation, Ms. Newton," said the familiar voice of Mr. Daniels. He walked out of the community center to stand statue-still next to them as his fiery eyes flickered as he watched them. "That''s part of what elevates your rating to what it is." "Whatever." Eli sighed as he dispersed his charged light and withdrew his hand from the void-space after teleporting his phone back into his pocket. "Your powers have changed, Mr. Newton." Mr. Daniels said approvingly. "Make sure to fill out the updated paperwork during class today noting any changes." "We have to give updates on our powers?" Eli asked incredulously as he teleported a few inches away so he could frown at the man. It was strange how much easier his power was with the precision Spatial Control gave him. "Every week during the course of these classes. They''re thinking about making an online form for it. The government doesn''t care about leveling up, but evolutions or new powers. There''s talk about charging small fees for it, but who knows if that will happen. People might just riot again.¡± He shrugged as he gestured at the door. "Please, feel free to head on in. The meeting room has signage. The rest of the class should be joining us shortly." "Anyways, I want in. Once you can teleport others, take me with you or at least help me sneak out." Lana whispered as they walked across the outdated linoleum flooring to the posted room. "If you don''t, I''ll tell on you." "What are you, five years old?" Eli scoffed as they entered the small room with three rows of tables full of chairs. They headed to the far side of the room and sat down in the third row. "I''m not going to take you. It''s still dangerous out there. I have to teleport a certain way so I don''t get seen by police for breaking curfew, or anyone else that''s out and about!" "I''m strong enough to bend steel with my bare hands before I even use Silverlight," Lana rolled her eyes while she pulled out her phone and started scrolling on the familiar Power Leveling Library app. While he watched a text notification for a ¡®Healer Boy <3¡¯ popped up at the top of her screen. "Regardless, take me or don''t, but if I know you sneak out again without me I''ll tattle if I have to. Both Superhuman Physiology and Silverlight have slowed down dramatically since I evolved them. I still haven¡¯t gotten either of them to level one.¡± Eli pinched the bridge of his nose as he sighed heavily. "Fine. I''ll figure it out, I haven''t tried teleporting anyone else yet though. If I can''t though, then I can''t. You might have to wait until the next evolution. Also, who the fuck is ¡®Healer Boy¡¯" ¡°Tell me who Kady is.¡± She turned to scoff at him before rolling her eyes. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s what I thought. But what do you mean ¡®at the next evolution¡¯, Eli, you¡¯re practically a power collector or trader at this point. You¡¯ll probably keep trying to get a bunch of evo-0 powers so you can merge them into some abomination.¡± ¡°Wait, power trader?¡± He squinted at her as if he¡¯d suddenly seen what had been a dull stone before sparkle. ¡°Are you kidding me? Get some more friends, it¡¯s embarrassing having to catch you up all the time.¡± ¡°Saw it? Good.¡± The screen vanished once he nodded. ¡°If you find something gem related let me know.¡± He blinked at her then the empty air where the trade message had been. He shook his head then said, ¡°Okay. I didn¡¯t know about that. Maybe I¡¯ll do some trades, but I don¡¯t know. I just don¡¯t like my evolution choices so far. If they¡¯re only slightly better, why take it and have to deal with leveling something to level ten?¡± ¡°Evo-1 powers aren¡¯t supposed to be that good.¡± She shook her head as she started typing something on her phone rapid-fire. ¡°Oh really? Then why are all of ours good?¡± ¡°Because they just were? And Lyra got a new power so she doesn¡¯t count.¡± ¡°She did? What is it?¡± His eyes shone with excitement as he felt Photon Shot start to gather light there, but he quickly stopped it. ¡°Forcefield and then she merged it with Illusions. Which created Phantasmic Illusions and it lets her create real illusions for a bit before they fizzle out. Then it evolved into Synesthesiac Phantasia which is even better at it.¡± Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more. ¡°I have to see that.¡± He frowned while he wondered about how that worked if powers were¡­ ¡°Her videos! That¡¯s how she¡¯s gotten her illusions to appear on camera?¡± ¡°Yeah, but she got around it by just creating a forcefield then draping an illusion over it at first. Then it''s just gotten better. See what I¡¯m saying? If you keep wasting your time on getting new powers endlessly then you¡¯ll never go from almost good powers to actually good powers. You keep judging them as they would be at level zero, not level ten.¡± ¡°Maybe, but maybe not.¡± He shrugged. ¡°I might evolve Spatial Control and Recovery, but I don¡¯t really care for Photon Shot too much. Maybe I¡¯ll use that to keep getting new powers and just keep it in my back pocket.¡± ¡°You literally use it all the time and it¡¯s badass. Why wouldn¡¯t you evolve Photon Shot?¡± ¡°It¡¯s just not really my style, I guess. It¡¯s fun and all, but I have to be so incredibly careful with it. It¡¯s tedious to control outside of what it wants to do in the first place. And I need to have light for it to work. If there¡¯s no light and I¡¯m trapped in a deep enough cell then I¡¯m basically defeated. So why not get a better power?¡± And he really didn¡¯t want his rating going up to being Lethal in actuality. "Get a new power then." She shook her head before tuning him out. He didn¡¯t remember the last time he¡¯d talked to her for as long as they just had. Maybe his parents had a point. He¡¯d been avoiding her just as much as she¡¯d been avoiding him. It wasn¡¯t her fault that she¡¯d gone through the same situation¡ª *Eli* what are you doing here?" Kady asked after she strolled into the room until she stood in front of him. She seemed pretty nervous and uncomfortable at seeing him there. "What? Oh, hi Kady." He smiled then froze as he realized they were in a Lethal rating mandatory classroom to teach them all of the ins and outs of their newfounded power and adapted gun laws so they didn''t get in trouble. "What are you doing here?" "I asked first." She frowned slightly as she fidgeted with her hair. "I''m Eli''s sister, Lana. You must be Kady.¡± Lana interrupted as she set her phone down and glanced at Kady with the predatory stare of a shark on the hunt. ¡°What''s your power?" "I uh..." Kady turned to him and winced. "We never really talked about powers, but mine''s actually pretty dangerous." "I doubt it''s worse than ours." Lana said dryly. "I''m basically superhuman and I have a damn good construct power." "I can create clones of things as well as myself and control them," Kady squinted as she blushed. "It''s pretty embarrassing, but I also got a power that allows me to boost myself up. They¡¯re both evo-1.¡± "See, Eli, even she has both of her powers evolved. You have two that are behind." "Lana," Eli said warningly before Kady turned to narrow her eyes at him. "You have three powers?" "Yeah. But I don''t really like the evolved one," he shrugged then winced at her harsh stare as she waited for him to share what his powers were. "I can teleport, recover, and basically fire off lasers. I don''t like the last one as much." "Why not? Free flashlight and laser. You could befriend any cat you wanted," Kady smirked and then beamed at Lana''s chuckle. "It''s a bit more dangerous than that." He admitted while he remembered the charred wounds Trenton Knight had carved into their ceiling or the smoldering craters he himself left behind whenever he really practiced with it for real. It could pierce straight through the junk cars on his training field now with ease. Trenton had only leveled it up to level six, while Eli had finally gotten it to level eight. Who knew what he could do with it now? "Everyone sit down so we can get this over with," Mr. Daniels called out as he strode into the room and slammed the door shut behind him. "We have a lot to cover. I''ll hand out some flyers and paperwork you''ll need to fill out, we''ll discuss some of the new laws, and finally we''ll even play a game with some powers." Kady hurriedly sat down at the table in front of them since there was no way she¡¯d be able to go all the way around to sit next to him. Eli wondered if he was disappointed or not by that. Eli tuned him out as pamphlets titled different things like ''Powers and You'', ''Your Responsibility as a Lethal American'' and all kinds of blaise things like that. He''d rather think about his idea for powerleveling powers for people or the fact that Kady could apparently create clones of anything and control them? Wasn''t that a scary thought. No wonder she had a Lethal rating, who knew what she could do with it. Would biometric security even work against her? Mr. Daniels started talking about how they''d have to be honest with law enforcement about their use of powers if ever used for self-defense or if they were pulled over or something. Eli sighed as he sank into his seat and decided to think more about what he''d want his next power to be. It''d take some time to figure out the whole power leveling job thing, but he was close to the final level up for every power he had. It could be some pretty easy cash to sell different evo-0 powers he unlocked. Spatial Control was more or less as perfect as he could make it, unless he could pick up a new power he wanted to merge it with. He really needed a better sensory range, but that was about it. Recovery was nice and reliable. Every time he got tired or hurt, a quick flash of it and he was back to normal. Maybe he could use it to get a new power? Same with Photon Shot. If he could turn it into a construct power or create light himself and actually shape it into something other than pointed blades that would turn into beams or blasts hot enough to melt metal once he fired it¡­ then he''d appreciate it. As it was, he almost didn''t even trust it enough to use in self-defense. If someone jumped him, he''d be afraid of charbroiling them into a corpse instantly. Why do that when he could just fold space around them and knock them back? Did self-defense really even count if he could just recover from about anything. Not to mention he could teleport away as long as he sensed a point to escape to. He''d been thinking about getting a water power for awhile and he still thought it was cool but he wasn''t sure. He needed something to either complement what he already had or to make up for something he was lacking. It''d be nice to get a power that offered more durability or strength, but if he evolved Recovery enough, would it even matter? He''d be able to heal anything that happened more or less. Unstoppable. No, he needed better senses and range. That''d help with Spatial Control and Photon Shot, his aim with it was terrible once it surpassed his spatial field. It helped that if he really missed, he could fold space a bit or distort it so he''d be closer. Some other powers could be interesting. "Mr. Newton," barked Mr. Daniels in a loud voice, jolting Eli out of his trance. He jumped as he startled and noticed everyone else was waiting at the door. He teleported over and grinned sheepishly at the flaming stare of the literal federal agent that could make his life hell. "Follow along.¡± They followed him as he led them towards a basketball court on the other side of the community center building. Eli took stock of the eight or so other people in their class. Most of them were either high school or college aged. He was only one of two guys with the other being a scrawny giant with long hair he had pulled back into a ponytail. One of them looked slightly familiar, but he couldn¡¯t place them. For some reason they kept glaring at him and Lana. Maybe they were just upset that he¡¯d been zoned out. "What did I miss?" Eli hissed in a whisper to Lana who shook her head. "I wasn''t paying attention. I was chatting with my PLL friends. One of them has a power similar to me and suggested some ways I could push Superhuman Physiology enough to level without too much difficulty." "I''m so glad you both are taking this seriously," glared a severe woman with long braided hair. An ugly massive scar marred the right side of her face from her chin to her forehead. "It isn''t like people are dying across the world because people are playing around with powers they don''t understand." "We''re fine. Thanks for minding your business." Lana narrowed her eyes as they stopped to glare at each other. "I had to cancel my plans for college, little girl. Everyone in my sorority died because of their powers." She glowered at them. "They aren''t toys. Stop acting like they are." "Obviously." Lana used Silverlight to extend the soles of her shoes until she stood at the same height as the towering woman. "Two people broke into our home on the second night. You don''t think we don''t know they''re dangerous? Get over yourself. You aren¡¯t the only one traumatized by this." Eli ignored Kady''s glance his way as he teleported in between the two women and expanded the space around them slightly so they weren''t in his personal space. That and he didn''t want them fighting, obviously. "Stop." "Don''t tell me what to do until you''ve seen your drunk friends have a panic attack and explode everyone you knew." She took a step closer, but Eli rolled his eyes as he extended space again. He had them in a bubble that he could expand pretty indefinitely. It was like his void tunnel, except it wasn¡¯t in the void. "Mr. and Ms. Newton, Ms. Wright." Mr. Daniels said as he loomed over them. "Stand down. We''re going to play dodgeball with the other class here and you''ll all behave. Final warning." "Fine," huffed the Wright lady as she marched away from them into the basketball court where the rest of the class already waited. "Sorry." Eli muttered as he shambled into the doorway into the expanded basketball court with a row of cones set up in the middle of the court. Rolling shelves full of foam balls waited for each team on either side of the court. "That was fun." Lana said as she flounced over to the rest of their class who watched them with apparent criticism considering the rant the other girl was already halfway through. "Are you both trouble magnets or something?" Kady asked as she watched them with crossed arms. "You bet I am," Lana beamed with a wink to the other girl who sighed and shook her head as she led them closer to one side of the court. She whispered to Eli, "I like her. She''s fun." "Whatever. What was that about? Are you trying to get in trouble?" Eli shook his head as they loitered at the far end away from everyone else. "I''m tired of people measuring their proverbial dicks with powers. It''s fucking aggravating." Lana complained loudly. "As if they have the sole right to pride or a shitty situation. Everyone has it bad right now." "Dick measuring?" Eli asked blankly. "Power levels and powers are starting to really matter. That''s why I was so happy that we didn''t talk about it at all." Kady said as she butted back into the conversation. "It''s exhausting." "The people that are getting bullied now in my grade are either those with weird powers or ''useless'' ones. One kid, Jordan, can create a sort of bug exoskeleton and other parts of bugs. It''s gross, but cool, you know? Then Bobby can turn invisible which is... problematic. He can apparently glow too but he doesn¡¯t use that part of his power all that often." Lana explained as Mr. Daniels and his assistant started scattering balls from the shelves over the room. "Liven up class! Our competition is here." Mr. Daniels shouted as the doors banged open on the other side. Eli''s lip tightened into a flat line, his hands squeezed into fists. Tom Harver was on the other dodgeball team. "We want a clean game. Powers are allowed, but no passing over the line or attacking the other team." Eli teleported a couple of balls over to their group as he started funneling light into his hands as he lowered himself into a low crouch. Tom Harver''s dark eyes met his own as ash and smoke coiled around his fists into a net that wrapped around the ball in his hand. Both teams lined up with balls held at the ready. Silverlight shimmered from the corner of his eye as Lana created another pair of silver whiplike appendages that snared two balls that he''d teleported over to their group. Kady bent down to touch one of the dodge balls, stood up and created six copies that hovered around her in floating rings. A whistle blasted out a shrill note that echoed in the air. "Your ass is mine, Eli!" Tom shouted as jets of ash and smoke blasted from the back of his hand to empower his throw. The ball flew unerringly towards Eli. He teleported to the left and tried to snag it out of the air and yelped at the scorching bite of the lingering ash that sizzled against his skin even after he dropped it and teleported again to avoid another ball. If only he had Telekinesis still. Recovery buzzed into his injured hand as he folded space right up to the row of cones and threw his ball with his left hand as hard as he could right as he slingshotted it with the walls of the void. Air screamed as the ball exploded free from its teleportation to slam into the boy like a battering ram scattering a cloud of burning ash as he rolled from the impact. A ball slapped into Eli''s head from the right hard enough to make his ears ring and his eyes water as he reeled back from the hit. He flicked off the field on the sidelines to watch the rapid-fire artillery salvos of balls volleying back and forth. Kady quickly got taken out after he did. Only Lana and the girl that she''d gotten into a fight with remained on their team. Meanwhile three people were on the other team. Someone with superspeed, some kind of shockwave power, and solid shadows that writhed at their every command. Lana created and blasted out shield after shield of silverlight that wrapped around each ball launched her way. Her whiplike arms sliced through the air to send it careening back to the other side again and again. Ms. Wright flickered back and forth to swat aside ball after ball with the one held tight in her hand before she returned her own throws so powerful the balls boomed through the air before crashing into the wall as each of her targets dodged or knocked them out of the way. He cringed at the thought of her throwing something more substantial at someone. What could her power even be to do something like that? It probably wasn¡¯t good if they were all here for having Lethal ratings. Lana darted forward to try and land a ball on the speedster who came out of blur-time as the shockwave one threw a ball that streaked through the air and knocked into her armor so hard the silverlight metal cracked. "Out!" Mr. Daniels shouted as she limped her way off the court where she leaned against the wall next to Eli. Sweat dripped and beaded down her face. She heaved with panting breaths as she sank to the floor. Her hands trembled with every breath she took. "You okay?" Eli asked as he sat down next to her. Recovery cycled through him in a constant flow as he tried to heal his burnt hand and to just keep himself fresh. It was hard keeping up with the game otherwise. His sister shook her head as she pounded a fist into the laminated wooden floor so hard the plastic cracked with a snap. "I''m fine." She narrowed her eyes as she watched Ms. Wright dance past the array of balls zooming towards her. Each of her throws were more powerful than a cannon. "I want to beat her, but I can''t. I''m not strong enough." He patted her shoulder in a comforting gesture as he tried to ignore the hot damp cloth of her shirt. Recovery sparked from him into her. Her exhaustion stirred and melted away like clouds of silt under a riverbank. He felt his power flow through her until it ran out. A headache pounded at his skull as it dried up for the first time in ages. Fatigue sapped him mentally and physically as the stable consistent trickle of Recovery stopped. Recovery Ev. 0/Lv. 5> Right as he started looking through the menus of options everyone''s phone simultaneously went off with a loud alarm. He checked it with a frown and then stood up with a gasp. WARNING: Springridge Mall has an active superpower crime in the process. Be advised to avoid the area. "That''s where mom and dad are..." Eli said in horror as he glanced from the notification to his open system status. He hated the idea of losing out on a potentially cool new power, but he''d rather have an improved version of Recovery right now. "Everyone, stay calm! We''re far enough away from the mall that it''ll be okay." Mr. Daniels said as Eli stood up and teleported in a series of jumps until he was out of the building with his fists blazing an orange light from all of the light he was compressing into them. He glanced up and teleported as high up as he could into the sky before teleporting towards the mall with every intention of saving his family. Or else. [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Spatial Control Ev. 0/Lv. 4 Slot Two -- Rapid Recovery Ev. 1/Lv. 0 Slot Three -- Photon Shot Ev. 1/Lv. 8 ] Chapter Twelve Teleport after teleport blasted him through the air as fast he could possibly go. Each time he reappeared with a guttural roar of pressurized air, Rapid Recovery flowed through his body to restore him. He¡¯d tried calling his parents, but they hadn¡¯t picked up. It had gone straight through to voicemail each time. His family¡¯s faces kept flickering through his mind¡¯s eye with startling clarity. Haunted memories clamped down on his heart. Every passing teleport it tightened its grip. This scene was far too familiar. How many times would his family be in trouble and he¡¯d have to swoop in to save them? At last, Springridge Mall came into view. It was a long, squat complex that had grown over the span of several years and developmental phases. The first floor was where the food court was housed amidst a series of simple shopping centers, arcade games scattered about, and other cheap shopping delights. The second and third were a chain of department stores covered in tall, open windows. The roof was flat except for where the skylights dotted the mall''s buildings throughout. Eli¡¯s last teleport hid him in the void above the mall. Police cars, fire trucks and several ambulances swarmed around the building below. The sight made his blood boil even more. His anger bubbled inside of him, itching to get out so badly he wanted to scream. Yet somehow, despite how angry he got, he couldn''t move forward. Not yet. He once again wished he had some sort of sensory power, but this would have to do. Focused charged light vibrated from his fists as he stared through his teleportation target peephole. Explosions boomed as a part of the mall''s roof exploded open from the rising crash of a column of crystal that pierced all the way through before shattering in a hailstorm of shards. Glittering knives plummeted back down with the fury of a disgruntled god. Plumes of dust billowed out as the thunderous grating of rock reached a crescendo. While he watched more cops arrived in a blaring phalanx of patrol cars headed straight for the food court section of the mall. Blockades were set up for the first responders to corral and usher civilians away from the mall and behind their barricades. Something writhed in Eli¡¯s gut at the scene. Emotion after emotion sizzled and spat through the synapses of his nerves down to the marrow of his bones. Fear. Horror. Rage. Awe. But most overpowering, almost seductive with its sirensong, was the thrill of excitement. Every one of his training sessions had a purpose now. He had been right. Justified. No one would have understood his obsession with improving himself and his powers. Every sleepless night spent honing himself. It all came to this moment. Three powers radiated within the core of his being as he watched. And waited. If he approached the food court, he¡¯d be shut down instantly by the police. Seen as nothing more than an interloper at best or an accomplice at worst. No. He needed to come in from somewhere else. Hopefully he could find his family and save them. His phone buzzed and flashed from his pocket. It was probably Lana again. He slipped it out of his pocket and texted a quick message before turning it off and putting it away: AT THE MALL. WISH ME LUCK. Eli focused on a spot closer to the mall above it for a better vantage point above the settling cloud of dust and debris. A tug with Spatial Control pulled him through the void to his new perspective. Nothingness surrounded him as he peered into the storm of bullets, rubble, and flashes of light from various powers being thrown around what seemed to be the hallway leading from all of the rifraff stores to the food court. Would his parents and sister be eating or shopping? They had been in the car for a long time, but Lyra¡¯s favorite art store, Ars Imagina, was in there. He chewed on his lip while he watched. While he wrestled with indecision. Where would they be? Fear clamped its sharpened jaws around his spine, gnawing against his resolve while he watched for any sign of his family. He had no idea what he was looking for. Who was in the right or who was in the wrong. Eli didn¡¯t even know if it mattered at the end of the day. It was hell down there. Shivers crawled up from his spine to his pounding heart. Every heartbeat crashed against his ribs like it was dead set on galloping his life away to an early grave. Lightning crackled from somewhere inside as every light in a two block radius surrounding the mall flickered before crackling streams of electricity arced its way back inside the mall towards the sporting goods section of the store. He followed curiously until his viewpoint showed the glass wall on the third floor. Ars Imagina was up there. Dad¡¯s Storm Cloud could create lightning, it had been what had blown out the fence so long ago. Maybe they were up here. People huddled behind tables or under clothing racks as six people in masks paced up and down the walkways with guns or various effects from their powers. It looked chaotic and desperate, which only served to make Eli angrier still. That rage boiled over as lightning struck a random woman who¡¯d held up a glowing hand towards the group. She fell in a twitching heap as they convulsed. Lash after lash of lightning arced into her body. Once, twice, thrice until they flopped lifelessly on the ground. Despair clashed with rising hatred. That wasn¡¯t his father. A young girl barely fifteen or sixteen wailed as she lifted her hands up to form a sphere of water between her palms that she shot at the group from her hiding spot near a clothing rack. Water splashed off one of the masked terrorists with a hard slap square in their chest, knocking them off balance. Eli edged closer to the window and gritted his teeth as they aimed their guns and powers right at her. An innocent bystander. She dove back into her cover behind the clothing rack as a volley of bullets, darts of fire, and shapeless energy flashed towards the girl. Eli gritted his teeth as the wave destroyed shelves and mannequins. Screams and cries rang out as the terrorist group advanced on the girl. Eli squeezed his eyes shut, unable to watch buzzing phone heralding a living nightmare¡ª cool slick ceramic trembling in his grasp door creaking open, lana screaming, shrieking¡ª He shook his head as he tried to clear the memories from his head. People scrambled away in a mad rush to escape the masked terrorists closing in on the girl¡¯s last position. Charged light seared against his skin with a sharp yellow blaze like a forge fire. He wouldn¡¯t be able to find his parents or Lyra in this mess. If he rushed in there he could die. But if he ran away, these people would die. Like Lana could have. Or Lyra would have if they¡¯d both gotten upstairs that night. The drenched terrorist raised their gun again. Light burned against Eli¡¯s eyes as charged volatile light flickered across every inch of his skin. He watched the gunman¡¯s bare finger curl around the trigger of their rifle. It¡¯d be a slaughter if he did nothing. Eli teleported with a thunderous crash. As he shot through his void, he carved out window after window. All of the glass shattered in his void where he twisted them into needles with jagged points. He landed right in front of the gunman with his back straight. Every part of his skin radiant with scorching golden light. Teleportation point after teleportation point were set in a six-way chain as he portioned off his void into six tunnels full of pointy gifts for these terrorists. A series of shattering cracks rattled as most of them were pierced by his volley. Only the one sparking with electricity remained untouched. They crossed their arms as they tilted their chest and studied Eli. "Shit, fuck!" One of them screeched in an overly young boyish voice as he stumbled forward while clutching his bleeding shoulder. "How did you do that?" Another asked as they raised their hands that spouted a hose of fire that streamed toward him. Eli stared down the flashing fire that seemed so dim with his eyes shrouded in the glorious light of Photon Shot¡¯s power. He lifted his hand as he drained and funneled all of the light he could into a sphere that he compacted right in front of him. Darkness crowded all around him as the fluorescent light diminished to nothing, as did the light from the fire, even as it slammed into his sphere and curled towards him. Stolen novel; please report. He vanished into his void with his overcharged Photon Shot and appeared behind the shooter. Hesitation threatened to claw at him, but he remembered Trenton Knight at the height of the stairs. Necessity didn¡¯t demand murder. He was better now. He thrust his hand forward. Golden light flared out into a crude blade that melted straight through the shooter¡¯s back and out their stomach. Skin sizzled and burned. He vanished again as another gunshot cracked. Eli appeared next to the young boy where he swung his light blade in a luminescent arc. Slag metal dropped from the boy¡¯s limp fingers as he fell screaming where the metal of the gun had burned him. He teleported again. The four other masked terrorists were covered in a sprawl of polka dots oozing blood from glass crusted wounds. Except for one who was unharmed. The electric one who¡¯d watched Eli the entire time. They pointed their finger at him right as he appeared in front of¡ª Lightning cracked through the air again, striking Eli dead center on his chest as he slipped fully out of the void. Voltage scrambled his nerves as he landed with a grunt. Space fluctuated and distorted all around him as electricity pounded into him. Black spots danced across his eyes as all of his light discharged in an explosive blast. It stopped for a moment. Eli rolled with a flop. Footsteps squeaked against the ruined tile as the unblemished figure from before stood over him. Another bolt lashed out at Eli, arching his back as his limbs flailed weakly beneath him. They reached down and grabbed his arm and hauled him upright so that he dangled limp in their grip. Screams crackled and hissed in his ears at the cries of the other people. Electric blue eyes peered down at him through the eyeholes of the criminal''s mask. Fear roared in time with Eli''s heartbeat. His feeble struggles to escape amounted to nothing. They lifted their mask off with their other hand revealing the chiseled handsome face of an average man that could¡¯ve been in his thirties. A tall somewhat familiar man approached with one of the four he¡¯d blasted with glass leading him. Shadows and darkness curled around his body from the hidden folds of his tasteless suit that darkened as a cold dark metal combat armor conjured around him. He flicked his hand out in a flourish turning darkness to a three foot long blade of cold dark metal that corrupted and devoured the light. Deep black mist steamed off the wake of his every step. Eli drew on Rapid Recovery and as strength surged back into his limbs he¡ª Lightning. He came back to himself on the floor with the scent of charred flesh pungent in his nostrils. Agonizing heat seared through his arm where he''d been held. Copper coated his numb tongue. He flopped as he tried to get up only to be pushed back down by an immense crushing weight. Past the flashes of black spots, he saw the¡­ the electric man''s black denim jeans and his dirty shoe as he leaned his full weight onto Eli''s chest. A flash of white teeth gleamed between smiling lips where sparks of electricity jolted across his teeth. Sounds fizzed and popped as Rapid Recovery restored his broken hearing. "¡ªh him. We''re wasting time here. Our main targets aren''t up here." "Huntress said he¡¯s downstairs near the food court, boss." "Good. Find him. Take his family hostage to get him to cooperate. I''ll deal with his fucking son." Darkness writhed as the man''s shadow-turned solid hair danced. He poised his sword over Eli''s chest as his lackeys scurried away. "Hello. Remember me, Eli?¡± "No." Eli croaked as he focused the entire brunt of his will on restoring himself with Rapid Recovery. Numbness gave way to boiling agony as his nerves repaired, his charred skin sloughed as fresh skin slowly knitted itself together beneath the blackened burns. "I used to be your godfather. Or should I say my wife and I were your godparents. Before your parents betrayed us.¡± Tendrils of darkness lashed out from the tip of his blade to press against Eli''s chin. An icy chill sliced against his skin as the man''s power wriggled into the wound. "You¡¯re after my family?¡± Eli replied hoarsely. The pain had faded enough now to let him think clearly again. He looked up at the man and met those familiar gray eyes head on. He squinted at what he could see of the man''s face as his mind replayed what he¡¯d just said. ¡°Dave?¡± Dave threw his head back in uproarious laughter. Shadows danced with his enthusiastic glee. "Well, well, the boy does remember. Tell me. How has your life been while I¡¯ve been locked away in prison?¡± Eli''s eyes widened as tendrils of shadow wrapped around his body so it could hoist him up to his knees. Rapid Recovery cycled through him again and the dizzying fog in his mind lifted. "Isn''t this rich." Dave pulled back with a sneer as he flicked his blade away from Eli''s throat, the tendril of shadow squirming inside of his skin rasped free with a squelch. He wailed as Dave unwound his shadows so it pulled Eli closer to Dave¡¯s face. "I only came here because one of my fellow prisoners told us that your parents had been seen with a young girl. Your sister?¡± "Leave them alone.¡± Eli snarled as he strained against the ropes of darkness spun around him. Photon Shot tried to grab at any light it could, but he struggled against the veil of darkness shrouding him. Space buckled and bent all around him, but the shadows touch became agony whenever he started to try and teleport. It felt like he¡¯d get cut into bits and pieces if he tried. "Your parents tricked us. Wheedled their way into our companionship and friendship then begged us to fund their little business idea. We decided ¡®why not, we¡¯re all good friends¡¯, let¡¯s mix business and pleasure. Then they started asking questions. Digging. Searching for secrets that weren¡¯t theirs. We were happy to give them the money they so desperately needed, but they turned all squeamish when they found out where they came from and reported us." Dave snarled as he leaned closer. Darkness crept up from the shadows under his clothes to caress his cheek. "You look just like them. The mere sight of those hazel eyes and black hair makes me want to maul you with razor sharp shadows. Break you open like a pinata. I¡¯ve thought about how to make your parents suffer every day since then. For fifteen fucking years. And then you show up gift-wrapped by Jack¡¯s lightning!¡± Eli roared wordlessly as he fought and struggled with all of his might. Skin twisted and tore from his furious attempts to free himself. Teleport after teleport ended in nothing but pain from where the shadows tightened around him. He spat right at Dave¡¯s eyes as he dipped his spatial field down into the floor and sheared free as much concrete and tile as he could before blasting it at Dave. Stone crunched then exploded in a ricocheting rattle as numerous displays were buried. His bonds loosened momentarily. Eli gathered light into his soot stained hands. Then he collected more. And more. Until the light drifted up past his wrist, then his elbows as he willed all of the light nearby to him. Darkness devoured all of the light except for the golden charge of Photon Shot. Eli twisted free from the shadowy ropes as he teleported up to his feet and glared at Dave with glowing eyes. "Still a mewling child crying for his parents." Dave snickered as he dusted his suit off needlessly before crafting another suit of dark armor. "Who fucking talks like that?" Eli narrowed his eyes as thunder cracked and shook the mall from over by the food court. He hoped it was his father and not that fucking electric man, Jack. He drew himself back up to his full height as he folded lines of space outside and drew in even more light with Photon Shot until his whole body shone gold. Then he forced in more light. His bones felt like they were burning, melting in the flood of radiant white light. His powers sizzled and clashed together as Photon Shot overwhelmed his frail, normal body even as Rapid Recovery healed him. ¡°I won¡¯t let you get my parents.¡± "Looks like Jack already did," Dave smirked as darkness streaked across his body until he was shapeless. Endless spindly legs of shadow ripped out of his armor to lift him up. The darkness flowed through cracks between tile floors and walls and burrowed its way into the ceiling. Rapid Recovery steadied Eli''s heart as he sliced his spatial field across shelves, mannequins, clothes, stone, glass. Anything he could find. Until his void was full to bursting with enough junk to fill a warehouse¡­ or to smash this fucking pest into paste. Before he could do anything else, Dave already made his move. The black mass erupted outwards in a cloud of shadows. It flooded towards him while Eli tried to teleport to escape. But his void refused to accept him, his void stuffed too full for him to travel through. Darkness grew thicker by the moment. It grabbed onto his arms and legs and dragged him down under its weight. A strange gray mist sputtered where Dave''s darkness pressed against his light. Eli fired a beam blindly, his spatial field so swollen he could barely sense around himself. Shadows swirled around before dissipating, leaving nothing behind. There were only pieces of broken wood and dust. Then silence fell over the empty sporting goods department once again. Eli stared blankly at the spot where Dave had stood moments ago. An immense impact crashed into Eli''s back with the untold strength of thousands of tiny tentacles. Dark matter sprayed in every direction as he spun sideways. As soon as he regained control of his balance, Eli skidded across the floor before he released a flash of light to land on his feet. Dave surged towards him on a wave of darkness, shadowy legs pulled him forward in a matter of moments. Eli lifted his hands and fired a beam of blue light that exploded into gray mist where it carved through the endless folds of shadowy armor. Dave drew closer, his sword drew back¡ª Green light crackled as he tore open his void, compressed his light into the collected mass inside of it, and tightened the tunnel through its line straight into Dave''s chest as he pinched space closed as much as he could. It was barely wider than a needle. Light flashed as molten stone and metal, burning wood and everything else exploded into Dave like a battering ram sent by Heaven or Hell. Right as Dave''s sword cleaved into Eli''s shoulder and sliced clean through his left arm. An intense pain raced along Eli''s nerves as blood streamed from the wound. His hand went numb and his vision blurred. He stumbled backward, trying desperately to maintain his concentration as his blood spurted in a misting rain all over the floor. Eli wobbled as he collapsed, his right hand pressed into the wound in his left shoulder... then clawed at the stump. He whimpered as his fingers found bone and muscle. Slim filaments of ruddy red light beaded along his right hand as he tried to use them to stem the flow of blood. Rapid Recovery was spent, empty. It''d kept him going as long as it could. Light flickered then vanished as his hand shook over the raw torment of his wound. People screamed all around him. No one came close as tried to croak for help, tried to stop the bleeding. But it was an endless tide of red that¡ª "Are you okay?" A woman knelt beside him. Her skin was pale enough to show her freckles and she wore thick glasses. She reached out and gripped his good shoulder. Cold clarity broke against Eli''s mind as energy flowed into him. "I''m a nurse at New Faram General Hospital. My powers are Serenity and Healing, so they should help..." They both watched as skin wriggled in a flap that tightened into a stump from his ruined limb. He winced at the sight until relief flooded into him. He lifted his head up to look for Dave, but all he saw was a massive mound of wreckage that bled molten tears. Halfway between him and the destruction was a pulped arm that was putrefying before his very eyes as Dave¡¯s shadows dug into it until it dissolved. Eli¡¯s eyes fluttered as exhaustion, revulsion, and peace slammed into his consciousness like great sweeping waves of the ocean that dragged him into sleep in a giant undertow. Interlude: Lyra (Springridge Mall) Lyra Newton sat at a far too small table on the other side of her parents. Chatter surrounded them on all sides along with the menagerie of drab storefronts that clashed with vibrant displays and glowing signs. The food court was nearly packed to the brim as was the rest of the gargantuan Springridge Mall in New Faram City. Her parents were arguing while pretending they weren''t. Mom had her phone lying next to her tray that was stuffed full with little cardboard containers packed with nachos, quesadillas, and at the center of it all was a taco bowl that Mom hadn''t even touched since they had sat down. Instead, she kept picking up her phone where she¡¯d type into it like she was drafting an essay before setting it down. Only for Dad to stare off into space while he ate his burrito mechanically. While he waited for her to respond, he''d rub his forehead while he studied everything and everyone with a distrustful squint or a stern glare. She wondered what he saw, but she was also glad she didn''t know. Sure, anti-technomantic encryption was out, but very few companies were using it publicly yet with his build. They preferred to try to use the skeletal source code Dad¡¯s team provided. Dad said they thought it was too risky for most companies to blindly trust in their product, but either way. He was essentially a telepath but instead of thoughts, he had access to every message, photo, note, email, and browser history of everyone that unlocked their device around him. How maddening that must be. He¡¯d need to exercise so much self-control or risk falling under a sea of digital noise. Lyra shook her head as she picked up her own quesadilla and took a small bite out of it, wincing internally at the uneven taste. Mom swore by the little Mexican food place here in the mall, but Lyra still hated it. Thankfully, a little tweak with her newly evolved Synesthesiac Phantasia was enough for her to turn the bland, almost revolting flavors into a divine extravaganza. Every bite now was more delicious than humanly possible, she bet every mortal chef in the world would throw their hats and aprons down in despair if they tasted it. A quick glance at her status filled her with unparalleled joy as she re-read her power list again. [Stats: Body: None Mind: None Will: None ] [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Synesthesiac Phantasia Ev. 1/Lv. 1 Slot Two -- Daydream Ev. 0/ Lv. 2 Slot Three -- None ] Phantasia''s evolution was extraordinary, and she thought it''d only continue to improve. Her illusions worked off every sense now and would even have a bit of solidity to them after merging it with Forecefield. As if she were tricking reality itself. Warping it to match her own imagination. But no, that wasn''t the true prize. Daydream had opened up so many incredible possibilities for her. Illusions were only as good as her imagination, but Daydream dialed her visualization and imagination capabilities up to untold heights. Which fed into her illusions, or it allowed her to play back her dreams, or to play out scenario after scenario in her head... with weak results so far unless the simulation was basic. But she''d heard a very fantastic choice would be offered by the System soon. One that was a perfect fit for what she''d turn Daydream into. "I hope today has been a good day for you, Lyra," Dad said out of nowhere as he turned to peer right into her eyes. She looked up at him with a blink then a small grin. "It''s been good! I enjoyed getting out of Farbrook for a little bit. We haven''t been to the mall in forever." "It has been a while hasn''t it." Mom said wistfully as she flipped her phone over before focusing fully on her and dad. She smiled wanly at Lyra. "I''m glad we got to go here. How about we go to Ars Imagina to get you some art supplies?" "Can we?" Lyra beamed as she glanced back and forth between both of her parents. Loud shouts roared above the general chatter of the mall towards the designated shopping centers farther back away from the food court and the doors. She dampened the noise with a flick of Synesthesiac Phantasia. Noise successfully tuned out, she took another bite of her quesadilla while trying to optimize the flavor even more with her powers. She could use a better camera so her illusive pictures and videos wouldn''t seem as fake or cheap. Or a new sketchbook. Lyra always needed new sketchbooks. Dad shook the table sharply, startling her. His eyes seemed to spark with barely contained electricity as tendrils of water vapor leaked from the pores of his face as he got up, his hand pulling Mom out of her chair. His other hand was held out with a dark thundercloud growing in the palm of his hand. Both of her parents'' mouths moved. She shut off Synesthesiac Phantasia and flinched at the clamor of people screaming. Thunder echoed somewhere else in the mall, far back in the warren of department stores. Gunshots rattled out in a never ending chain. Way back at the bend in the hallway was a massive mountain of crystal that erupted from the ground to pierce through the ceiling in a tumultuous crash. Cups and trays rattled and fell off the tables from the massive vibrations. "Get behind me!" Dad shouted as he jerked Mom around behind him before swishing his storm cloud hand to the left. Their plastic silverware leaped from being stationary to orbiting them. Chairs broke into disparate pieces as their screws drilled free of their bearings and joined the belt of junk around them. Lyra hurriedly pushed out of her chair and rushed around behind her parents'' backs. Mom snapped her fingers making lettuce, beans, and guacamole burst free from the ruins of their plates as their table collapsed into screws, nuts, and bolts. When did Dad¡¯s Technomancy¡­ no, he had evolved it, Technopathy work on non-electronics? "Get Lyra out of here." Dad commanded as he started to step forward to where the stampede of people ran away from people in masks with guns or their powers on display were slowly coming over to the food court. "No. I''m staying with you!" Mom yelled as lettuce leaves sharpened themselves into blades at the end of growing vines that quickly sprouted wrapping around her like bramble armor. Laminated wood split free from plastic veneer to bristle at attention as they broke apart and grew into a blockade of spears. Lyra looked all around the food court and saw that for every person hopelessly sprinting for the double doors of the food court that led to the outside parking lot were trailed by a dozen people huddled together with their powers activated. Doomed. "I''m not leaving either of you!" Lyra shouted as she activated her own powers creating a suit of illusive armor around each of them. Their center was as strong as her old Forcefield power had been. "Rick! Come on." "Goddammit!" Dad snapped as he shook his head and started to turn around to guide them toward the exit. "Going somewhere?" asked a tall woman in a stunning black dress. Her eyes were a glowing misty gray with a narrow cat''s pupil. A red masquerade mask covered half of her face like she was going to an old-fashioned party or something. Each of her nails grew and sharpened into claws as she stepped forward. She plucked a walkie-talkie out of a bag slung over her shoulder and said into it, "Rick and Adelaide are here with the youngest daughter." Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. "Roger. And Camille, you have to say ''over'' when you''¡ª" The voice on the walkie-talkie fizzled out as Dad grunted. His power slammed into it so hard it crumpled in her hand. "So. Your name is Camille." Mom said as she stepped forward shoulder to shoulder with Dad. A vine sprouted from her back and pushed Lyra back away from the brewing fight. "Nice to meet you." Tension broke. Stakes and spears of wood shot out in a wave in time with a thundercloud that burst forth from Dad in a gale aimed straight for Camille. Lyra''s jaw dropped as Camille became a whirlwind of activity. Her hands darted with superhuman levels of precision and speed as she plucked two spears from the air and used them as she ducked and weaved in a dance through her parents'' attacks. She stalked forward like they were nothing but gazelle for her to hunt down. Water pooled all over the floor beneath them as Dad''s storm cloud darkened farther as bullets of hail shot from them. While everywhere that Mom''s volley of spears landed, including the ones Camille held, began to sprout and grow into thrashing roots. Blood sprayed from Camille''s hands as she growled. Bullets of ice cracked into Camille''s skin with a spray of blood. Lyra stepped back as Camille drove forward through the hail. She slashed out with her claws and ripped them across Dad''s chest. Agony blazed across Lyra''s own chest as a wet warmth spilled from matching wounds. Her eyes widened as she realized that Camille''s claws had shredded her illusive armor to cut her too. "Take Lyra! *Now!*" Dad roared as he blasted Camille back with an explosive blast of storm clouds that sent chunks of rock torn from the floor spinning through the air. Dark thunderous clouds brimming with lightning howled around him as it wrapped around him like armor. Dad shot himself forward with a thunderclap of air that sent Lyra and Mom stumbling back. Vines started to grow around Mom as she prepared to follow after Dad, but then she met Lyra''s fearful gaze. "Come on, let''s go." They started to turn when Lyra felt something with Synesthesiac Phantasia. She threw out an illusion of air that she hardened and turned as solid as steel. Baneful orange sparks reflected off it before they bloomed into explosions that tore through her solid illusions and sent her and Mom flying through the air. Lyra recreated her illusive armor and padded it out as thick as¡ª Crack! She tried to breathe as she stared up at the ceiling. Stars burst across her eyes in sweeping shades of red and green. Orange and brown. Her arm flopped to the side as she slowly rolled and pushed herself up as she blinked at the man with acrid orange fire that sparked from his hands like swords as he hacked at mom''s tide of growing plants. Something about him was off. It wasn''t quite an illusion or dream, but she felt something in between warping off from him into the distance far away. Vines whipped and snared, leaves flurried as their edges sharpened into honed blades, and wood shot up from the snarl of ivy that grew across the floor. Tree trunks popped up whenever Orange got to close, but his strange fireblades cut through them with an eerie scream as they burned. Whenever Mom got hurt, vines would pull her away and a berry would pop off her armor straight into her mouth. Lyra blinked slowly as the world seemed to wobble on its axis. She didn''t feel right or good. Her shirt stuck heavily against her skin from something damp that grew colder by the minute. Pain lanced into her skull. Where was Dad? She panned over slowly and saw Dad fighting that strange beast woman and a tall man surrounded by a cowl of lightning. Hail and debris exploded from Dad as shaped storm clouds into whirling tornadoes that he sent whipping through the air like swords. It shredded everything it passed over before it exploded into (hopefully) empty storefronts or into the corridor. Beast woman''s dress was ripped to bloody tatters, but she still danced her way around attacks like they moved in slow motion to her. Lyra rubbed her forehead. She wanted to understand. What was even happening? Mom screamed. Lyra startled as she turned and watched as orange fireblades charred through Mom''s bramble armor straight across her chest. Mom plopped to the ground as if her nerves had been cut. She had to do something. Illusions of nothingness and invisibility wrapped around her as Lyra walked carefully forward expecting him to notice while he growled something to her. He didn''t. Soon Lyra stood trembling as she watched a dart of crackling orange flame spout from his fingertips while he aimed down at Mom''s chest. Right over her heart. "Dave and Sandra say hello." He smirked as the dart brightened to a harsh glare. Mom''s eyes widened. She seemed to change. A flood of red flushed its way down and across her skin. Mom flicked her wrist towards a sliver of laminated wood that rapidly grew into a small thick tree trunk that speared through the ground to shove her aside. Lyra stepped closer then winced as she almost tripped on debris. Her invisibility shattered. "Lyra!" Mom shouted as the man rushed towards her with those same burning blades. Images of fire filled her mind as Daydream showed her every flame she''d ever seen. Candles, fireplaces, campfires, when Eli had tried cooking a frozen pizza for her once when she was in elementary school. Every flame flickered in her mind''s eye as it showed her how fire moved, how it worked. How fuel combusted into energy. Orange light sizzled its way through her shirt and she screamed as it ignited her every nerve. It wasn''t real. Until it was. An inferno of agony burst as the blade pierced through her skin for real as the heat that sparked threw her nerves grew to a wildfire. "Fire," Lyra whispered. Commanded. Her Daydream became reality as a blast of illusive fire slammed into the man with as much power she could give it as she *roared* with pain. Heat exploded across her skin as her clothes started to spark like kindling. A stench wafted of burning hair and cooked skin as he wailed. She burned him with Synesthesiac Phantasia. Making his every sense scream with certainty that he was getting burned alive. Roasted. At the same time, she shoved at the old Forcefield part of her power that made the illusions real for a time. He stumbled back as he waved his arms in terror. Mom snarled as she slapped her hand forward. The tree trunk Mom had created earlier snapped up into the air then barreled straight into the burning man. It gored straight through his chest in a crunching spray of¡ª He disappeared. Vanished. The trunk streaked through the air without a hint of resistance. She frowned at it as the strange not a dream or illusion vanished from her perception. "Lyra." Mom shook her shoulder, startling her from her trance. "Are you okay?" Lyra shook her head. Everything fuzzed. Light swam from the movement as her Mom slowly came back into focus. She glanced over and saw Dad''s thunderclouds wisping away where he stood in the wreckage of the shattered floor, broken tables, swathes of destruction across the ceiling where he had fought. Scorch marks and bloody gashes covered nearly every inch of him. He limped over to them then shouted, "Did yours disappear too?" "Yes." Mom said tersely as she tried to rub Lyra''s shoulders to get a response out of her. She turned to study the mall where numerous bodies laid¡ª She turned away with a sobbing huff as she collapsed into her parents'' arms. "Can we go?" "Of course, sweetie. It''ll be okay." They guided her out toward the front doors where a barricade manned by police waited with their guns held up and pointed at them like *they* were criminals. "Put your hands up!" Mom complied immediately while Lyra lagged slowly behind her. Dad did so slowly, but he glared at them like they''d all personally skinned his cat. "Why the fuck didn''t any of you do anything?" "Put your fucking hands up or we will fire!" Dad did. Humidity rose in the air around them as static seemed to build up and down Lyra''s arms. "Charles, Will, Patrick. Bring them over. If they''re cleared, take them to the medical tents." One of the officers barked. Two younger officers jumped and walked towards them with their hands itching towards their guns. "What took you all so long? Why are you just sitting out here?" Dad demanded once they came over. They grabbed each of them gruffly as they forced them closer to the barricade. Their fingers pinched and bit against Lyra''s arms. "This is a Federal Superpower Task Force situation, sir. A team is en route. We aren''t allowed to engage, only to keep the situation from spilling outside." "We had to fight for our fucking lives." "I''m sorry to hear that, did any of you kill anyone else in the chaos? Get any messages?" Another cop asked in a far too calm tone. They all said no. "Are you sure? Check your notifications, please." Lyra glanced at her status and grimaced at the spike of levels she''d gotten. They all said no. "No defeat or kill messages at all?" "None." Dad grunted to which they echoed. "I see. Right this way to the medical tent and an officer will be over to interview you." Synesthesiac Phantasia Ev. 1/Lv. 2> Daydream Ev. 0/ Lv. 3> Daydream Ev. 0/ Lv. 4> Daydream Ev. 0/ Lv. 5> [Stats: Body: None Mind: None Will: None ] [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Synesthesiac Phantasia Ev. 1/Lv. 1 Slot Two -- Dreamer''s Simulation Ev. 1/ Lv. 0 Slot Three -- None ] Chapter Thirteen Washed out lights flickered above him. He thrashed as he woke up, as he remembered the cutting agony of Dave¡¯s shadowy blade scything through his arm. Blankets twisted with his clothes, tubes and wires tugged and pulled painfully on his skin until he blinked the sleep out of his eyes. He was in a hospital room. Of course he was. Eli lifted both of his hands to rub his face then flinched when he only felt one hand move. Only one arm moved and bent. Stiff bandages were wrapped and padded around the stump of his left arm that ended abruptly shortly below the shoulder. More were wrapped around his chest in a kind of brace. He slowly lifted his head and angled himself up to a sitting position and looked around the small room he¡¯d been stuffed inside of. Machines crowded around the head of the bed, there was a counter cluttered with trash from whatever kits they used, and there was a markerboard with his name and the name of a Dr. Nathaniel Byers written above his name. A large message from his mom took up the whole bottom corner along with a doodle that Lyra must have left of a giraffe for some reason. ¡®Hope you¡¯re doing okay. We¡¯re just outside in the cafeteria. We¡¯ll be back soon. Love Mom and Lyra¡¯ Tears crowded in his eyes as he re-read through the message again. And again. What about Dad and Lana? Was he okay? Did he get hurt while Eli was fucking around trying to save other people? ¡°Hey there, sweetie. It¡¯s okay.¡± said a familiar voice as the exhausted looking nurse that had helped him in the hospital swished the curtains aside to step inside. He realized he was sobbing, but he didn¡¯t really care. His chest ached and his eyes burned from the sudden downpour of tears. His lungs heaved as he held his head in his hands¡ªhand¡ªand started bawling even harder. A warm hand patted his back soothingly, but he ignored it in favor of sinking deeper into his grief. What would he do if Dad had died? If he¡¯d been hurt from what had happened and Eli hadn¡¯t been there. His vision swam and his hearing buzzed as the ache in his test tightened like a wretched cold hand that clutched his heart and squeezed. Weakness and exhaustion plagued him as he swooned a bit. Rapid Recovery. Eli commanded his powers, but nothing happened. No swift stabilizing tide came to take away all of his pain and discomforts. Nothing came to fill him with strength that he didn¡¯t have. Nothing at all. He tried again as his panic mounted. Spatial Control. Space refused to bend or buckle at his beck and call. He became instantly aware with sharp clarity of how unaware he was of everything around him. Panic climbed from the pit of his heart. Its sharp nails raked up his chest to his throat. How would he escape if something were to happen? Photon Shot. Light refused to gather how he wished or desired. He couldn¡¯t sense its gentle guiding light inside of him. He was defenseless. Without the light to charge and control at his whim he was just a fragile cowardly little boy who had to run away. Clammy fingers scratched at his throat before they clamped down and squeezed. Black dots danced before his eyes as he bawled louder. Everything broke free. Memories that had been held back broke and joined the new haunting scenes he¡¯d created for himself. Broken glass. Lana screaming. Sizzling beams of light crunching bones blood spraying ¡°Eli! What is it!¡± Mom cried out and she was there. Holding him. ¡°Are you okay? What¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°D-dad? Is he okay?¡± Eli¡¯s voice was thick and clotted with snot and tears from his hysterical sobbing. He leaned into her embrace. ¡°Where is he?¡± ¡°Picking up Lana. It¡¯s okay. We¡¯re okay. Are you okay?¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t get hurt?¡± ¡°We¡¯re fine. We¡¯re all healed. Stop asking about us. Are you okay?¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine!¡± He snapped as anger spiked deep and hot in his gut. He pushed away from her embrace to glare up at her through the veil of his tears. Of his weakness. He wouldn¡¯t even be upset if he¡¯d been stronger. Strong enough to not get hurt. ¡°You scared me by leaving a vague message like that! And no, I¡¯m not okay. I fucking feel horrible and can¡¯t use my goddamn powers. It¡¯s too cramped in here¡ª¡± ¡°Eli¡­ Eli, son. It¡¯s okay. We¡¯re all okay. It¡¯s over now.¡± Mom said as she reached out to hug him, but he leaned away. Panic, fear, and pain scrubbed and pulsed at him like iron wool scraping against his skin. She reached out anyway and hugged him tight. ¡°The hospital has everyone¡¯s powers suppressed but the staff. You¡¯re okay.¡± ¡°Suppressed powers?¡± He yelped as alarm shot through him like¡­ like lightning. He shuddered at the memory of that blue-eyed man tossing him down to the ground like a child¡¯s doll. ¡°How? What? How can they do that! Why?¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay. It¡¯s temporary.¡± She said then paused as she peered into his eyes. ¡°But¡­ Is that really what you care about? Your powers?¡± ¡°N-no. Of course not.¡± He shook his head even as his discomfort continued to grow. He tried to call and use his powers again and again, but nothing happened. He was ordinary again. Mundane. Powerless. ¡°What were you doing there?¡± ¡°I got an alert on my phone.¡± Eli said, looking away, unable to meet her gaze. ¡°It said there was an active situation at the mall and I¡­ I had to go. Had to help. What if you needed me?¡± ¡°We did need you. We needed you to be safe. I think you¡¯ve forgotten that you are our child. We protect you¡­ not the other way around. And you were needed to stay where you were with Lana. You left your younger sister behind at that community center, Elias! What were you thinking? Rick had to go pick her up.¡± Eli said nothing. He couldn¡¯t, he felt far too numb. In the heat of the moment, he had thought he had made the right decisions. He shivered as the oppressive, chill air sapped the heat from his bones, out of his skin, but what if he hadn¡¯t. What if they couldn¡¯t have protected themselves? What about the people he saved? ¡°I don¡¯t understand. Help me understand, please, Eli. Is the therapist not helping? Because something is most definitely going on. You aren¡¯t excited about the future anymore, you don¡¯t seem to care about college or¡­ well anything. At first I thought it was an adjustment period after what happened, but no. You¡¯re obsessed. All you care about are your powers. You keep pushing and pushing with them. This isn¡¯t a game, Eli.¡± Eli shrank back with his mouth open as he tried to meet his mother''s furious stare but didn''t have the strength to. What could he say? She didn''t understand. How could she understand? The only thing he knew was that he had tried to do the right thing. They had been harassing and tormenting everyone while looking for *his* family. He squeezed his fists and winced as only one hand responded. Right. He''d lost his left arm... Bed springs creaked as Mom sat down partially on the bed so she could hug him again. She smelled like their garden back home. Emotions toiled and warred throughout his body and mind. His entire self was a battleground that crumbled with every passing moment. He opened then closed his mouth half a dozen times before he finally managed to speak. "I..." He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. "Mom, I''m sorry." ¡°I know you are. But this isn¡¯t acceptable. You can¡¯t throw yourself into danger like that. Please take care of yourself. Please, Eli. I don¡¯t want you becoming one of those Federal Superpower Task Force people. I won¡¯t be able to handle wondering the next time you¡¯ll end up in a hospital bed¡­ or a casket.¡± Eli nodded, unable to say anything. ¡°I¡¯ll go get Lyra and see how far away your dad is then we¡¯ll probably go,¡± Mom sighed as she stood up. ¡°Me too or am I staying here?¡± His heart thudded with the slightest ache of betrayal at the thought of his family leaving him in the hospital. Alone. Powerless and trapped. ¡°You¡¯re coming home, but¡­ I don¡¯t know. I can¡¯t talk about this anymore. I¡¯m glad you¡¯re alive and I love you, but don¡¯t you ever do this to me again, Elias.¡± She left the room in a rush, her legs unsteady as new sobs overtook her. He winced at the pain and uncertainty of what he had done. She said something to someone outside in a low cracking voice filled with pain. ¡°Knock, knock!¡± Lyra said as she walked in too. He blinked, hardly able to recognize her. No longer was her hair brilliantly lustrous with a casual sheen to it, but instead it was a dull brown matted with dirt and blood. Instead of a dress or actually cute clothes, she was wearing a blocky gray hoodie with ¡®NEW FARAM GENERAL HOSPITAL¡¯ emblazoned in it across the center. Her jeans were smeared with dirt, dust and blood with numerous rips and holes that hadn¡¯t been there when he last saw her. Something about seeing his usually perfectly presentable sister wearing a mismatch of dirty and ¡®ugly¡¯ clothes broke something in his chest. New tears rolled down his cheeks even as his eyes prickled like needles had been stuck in them from how much he¡¯d been crying. What if she had been hurt or killed while he¡¯d been off fighting that absolute fucker, Dave? Or that lightning prick Jack? He wouldn¡¯t have been able to live with himself. It started to dawn on him exactly how much he¡¯d fucked up¡­ and how much he¡¯d let his priorities get skewed. He needed to stop fucking around with his other powers and evolve Spatial Control so he would be able to teleport other people. So he could actually help next time. ¡°Eli?¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine. Honestly.¡± He smiled at her even as he turned to try and hide his missing left arm from her. ¡°Obviously. Hey, I just remembered, could you give me a hand with some of my math homework?¡± She asked with a straight face except for the small, sad smile on her face. Warmth wrenched at his raw aching heart as he stared at her flabbergasted before they both started roaring with laughter. ¡°Guess I should become a handyman, huh?¡± Eli asked, turning their uproar of laughter into one of hysterics that went on until their sides ached and their laughter turned into crying instead. At some point she¡¯d sat on the bed and he¡¯d hugged her as well as he could with one arm. Maybe he could find a way to use Spatial Control after all of this so it¡¯d be like he still had two. Or maybe even harden enough Photon Shot to create a sort of prosthetic. Then he winced internally, barely able to suppress it so she wouldn¡¯t notice. Eli had started to accept that he only had one arm now. ¡°Hey, buddy, how are you¡­ doing¡­¡± Dad trailed off as he walked in and noticed Lyra held under Eli¡¯s arm. She pulled away with a sniffle and waved limply at Dad before she stood up. ¡°Can we go home now?¡± ¡°Yeah. Your mom is in the emergency waiting room with Lana.¡± He sighed then turned back to look at Eli. His face was blank with his jaw rigidly set like he was struggling to not clench his teeth. ¡°Can you head out there? We¡¯ll catch up.¡± Lyra nodded before she practically sprinted out of the room as fast as she possibly could. Dad took a few steps closer as his eyes roved all over mostly Eli¡¯s prone form, the tubes and wires that snaked all over his chest and the crook of his arm. Silence stretched between them while Eli waited for whatever was going to come. Dad opened and closed his mouth half a dozen times in the space of a minute. His stare grew glassy and dazed. Haunted. Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. Did he understand why Eli did this? He had to, right? "Dad?" Eli''s voice cracked at the tension of all the unvoiced questions. He had to understand, right? Dad loved having these powers almost as much as he did, if not more. It was only mom that didn''t get it. She was the scared one. He would''ve done the same thing. Eli knew he would. Any second now he¡¯d tell Eli he did the right thing, that his only fuck up was not being ready or some ot¡ª "That was the most irresponsible thing you''ve ever done." Dad started to say, slow and careful. His voice was taut, thick with emotion. Each word stacked on top of the other like building blocks leading to a conversation neither of them wanted to have. "I know." "No, you don''t. You don''t even know how reckless you were," Dad said as he narrowed his eyes. "You could have gotten yourself killed or worse. You could have killed others. Again! You almost paralyzed one of them. I saw them when the police finally managed to pull us out of the mall. He was lying on a stretcher and he had a hole burned through his back to his chest. What if they used you as a hostage? What if they demand for you to go to jail? Why didn¡¯t you fucking call us or stay put. I''m not going to let you take this risk again, Elias." "I wasn¡¯t going to kill anyone.¡± Eli growled. ¡°I used Photon Shot so I wouldn¡¯t. Would you rather I had buried them in a ton of rock or weights again? I bet I could have found some in that mall somewhere. Besides, you can¡¯t stop me. Or control me, I¡¯m almost eighteen on the 17th! That¡¯s only a week and a half away." "What does that matter? I don''t see an adult here." Dad sneered. "I see a child who might''ve meant well, but is only alive through sheer luck and because powers that break the laws of physics exist. You''re lucky and you try to throw it all away? You¡¯re even luckier that Mr. Daniels pulled some strings for us to keep you from being arrested¡­ this time. But that¡¯s beside the point, what are you going to even do after school now, if you''ll even be able to graduate?" "Why wouldn''t I be able to graduate?" Eli asked haughtily as he lifted his chin to glare up at him. "You don¡¯t think we know how poorly you¡¯ve been doing lately? Teachers have been a bit more vigilant ever since the System. They honestly aren¡¯t paid enough to deal with teenagers already and now they have to deal with kids that hold bits of cosmic power at their fingertips? No. They¡¯ve been very active about letting us know about your poor grades and lack of attention.¡± ¡°So what? Mom said you didn¡¯t graduate high school.¡± Eli tried to cross his arms, but felt pathetic when he only ended up moving one arm into his lap at the cost of tugging on every single wire and tube attached to him. Somehow it panged him even more to not even be able to cross his arms in spite. ¡°That¡¯s different and you know it. I got my GED. Would you? Or are you going to go galavanting around as a vigilante because you have cool powers and feel the need to show them off? What do you even want to do after high school? Sure, you applied and got accepted to New Faram University, but what do you actually want to do? Are you even going to go?¡± "I don''t know! I have no idea, okay?" Eli snapped, his lone fist clenched tight on his lap. "I want to travel, I want to do things, see the world. But no, I¡¯m not going to be a vigilante or join the fucking Federal Superpower Task Force. I''m not some battle-crazed maniac! I''ve only ever fought to protect my family, not that you or Mom have ever noticed!" Dad opened his mouth and then stopped, puzzled. "What does that mean?" "I thought you understood, but I guess you never did." "What do you mean, Eli? You say you''ve been protecting ''the family'', what does that mean?" "I''ve only ever gotten in fights or been beaten because of you three." He huffed as he shook his head. "Bullied because of Lana, attacked because some creep wants to be with her, or because someone broke into our home. Rushed off into danger because I''m the only one who can move freely. I''m not nearly as reckless as you all think." Dad was shock-still, his eyes glazed as if he were processing everything when the curtain opened with a rattle of clinking curtain rings. "Sorry, sorry, but we need the room. Are you ready to go?" asked a different nurse with bloodshot eyes. Her hair was pulled back in a lanky ponytail. He also noticed she had a strange plastic wristband on her wrist, but it wasn¡¯t a watch or anything. He wondered if it had to do with the power suppression. "My son needs his IV and EKGs removed first, please." "Right away." She came around to his bedside and got to work where she quickly removed his IV in a practiced motion. He shivered at the rip of tape pulling and the icy touch of the needle slipping free from his arm. Then she tugged EKG node after EKG node off his chest and sides before stepping aside. "Anything else?" "That''s it, thank you. We''ll be out soon." Dad nodded at her then turned with a sigh when she left. "We''ll continue this later. We need to get going. After we drop the girls off, I¡¯m taking you to an emergency appointment with Dr. Simmons. Just¡­This was horrifying to deal with and we only want you to be safe. That¡¯s it. Okay?" He nodded as he slowly stood to his feet then stopped as he glanced down at his arm again. "They really couldn''t heal my arm or even reattach it?" "No. Your arm was destroyed in your fight and none of the doctors'' powers could heal it. The discharge paperwork said you were as healthy as you could be. You''ll have to go to a physical therapist to teach you how to... cope with one arm. They said that as theoretical and practical knowledge of powers advance they might be able to one day restore it or even you could, but not right now." "Hm." Eli stood with a sigh as Dad handed over a bag full of cheap thrift pants and a hospital gift shop hoodie. Dressing himself was a slow, fumbling business. He naturally wanted to bend and use both hands to pull on the clothes... but he only had one hand. He almost lost his balance every time he shifted around. "Let me help." Dad said as he helped him guide piece after piece of clothing on him one by one. Underwear, pants, shirt. He even helped tie his shoes. It was enough to almost set Eli off on another bout of crying. After fifteen or so years of being independent since he was a toddler, he was now reduced to not knowing how to dress himself. Pathetic. Helpless. Eli followed behind his dad like a lost little duck following its parent as they walked out of the hospital room. They crossed through hallway after hallway honeycombed with small hospital rooms just his, most of them full. Nurse stations littered nearly every hallway and each of them was abuzz with activity. After a series of quick turns, they finally stepped out of the ward into the nearly full waiting room. Dad stopped for a second as he scanned the room before pulling his phone out to check it and then sighing and leading them outside. The immediate moment he stepped over the threshold a series of System notifications scrawled across his vision, one after the other, along with the familiar presence of his three equipped powers opening themselves up to him. Relief flooded through him as Rapid Recovery melted away all of his aches and pains until he stood taller. Stronger. He wiped his tears away with the back of his hand as he climbed into the backseat of his dad¡¯s car. Within moments they were driving back home in silence while Eli read through his System notifications and tried to figure out what he should do. Rapid Recovery Ev. 1/Lv. 1> Rapid Recovery Ev. 1/Lv. 2> Photon Shot Ev. 1/Lv. 10> ] Eli nudged at the prompts for both Evolve Power and Slot Power into Stat. Two new windows popped up in front of his face with two very different choices. Visions of each option filled his mind as each option presented itself to him. The evolved form of Photon Shot, Photomancer, would give him a far more intimate connection with light. Allow him to shape and channel it however he wished. Turn it into something more. It¡¯d be like turning it into a part of him. Or he could literally turn it into a part of him. Just like when he picked a new power, he could feel what each stat would do when imbued with Photon Shot. Not only would Photon Shot remain as it was, permanently bonded to him, but each option would enhance him in different ways. Body of Light would allow him to charge himself up physically with any light. Turn it into strength, help him heal even better with Rapid Recovery, even transform himself into light. Of course there was downside if he ran out of it or used up too much, but that could be an easy fix over time. It¡¯d be a huge start in making up for his shortcomings. Mind of Light would enable him to think faster. Better. Temper his mind with radiant light along with what it did before as Photon Shot. He felt like it would be a huge benefit and aid to him in nearly any situation¡­ except for two things. It still needed and used light obviously, but it¡¯d be far more of a hindrance at night time or in his void whenever he teleported. But would the sheer strength of his evolved mind make up for it? Will of Light was¡­ strange. He didn¡¯t fully understand what the System was trying to show him. Not for the last time, he wished it told him what each option and power did. It was practically passive-aggressive with these flickers of vague images and impressions. He just felt it¡¯d somehow change his emotions. Make him feel like light and open up a whole world of possibilities if he chose it. But the minute he understood what Will of Light would do, he realized he wanted to save that stat for whatever his spatial power was then. Otherwise, what would be the point? Photonomancer sounded¡­ okay, but after that fight and after that dodgeball match, he realized how outclassed he was by everyone with a body enhancing power. He was just as weak as a normal human right now. Sure, he recovered and healed faster, but that meant he was still getting hurt. No. It was between Mind of Light and Body of Light now. He thought again about the sheer limitations it implied with both of them. Be a bit weaker in the dark and have to use the light it let him store¡­ or be mentally slower? He had no power to boost his body right now, but if he chose Mind of Light he¡¯d be literally thinking far faster than he could even move. That would be problematic¡­ except then he could teleport and use Spatial Control just as quickly. So what if the teleportation would give him mental whiplash from the super-speed of thought crashing back down to normal cognition? Would he even need to worry about his body being as frail as that of someone pre-System? But¡­ Body of Light would strengthen him. Make him faster. More durable. Heal him quicker even before he took Rapid Recovery into account. Plus, he could transform into light. Would that mean he¡¯d be able to turn into light and heal his arm back? With Photon Shot and Body of Light he¡¯d be able to turn his whole body into a single radiant weapon. Eli leaned his head against the window and watched the interstate blur past as he tried to decide. He¡¯d need to¡ª No. He needed to stop thinking about it and just make a decision already. At this rate, he¡¯d spend the rest of his life trying to weigh each and every pro and con. It¡¯d never turn up one way or the other. He glanced at Lana in the corner of his eye who sat with her arms crossed as she stared out at the interstate with her headphones in listening to whatever music she was into. Silverlight flashed on each of her fingertips then disappeared again and again to the furious beat of whatever song was playing. She was strong. Powerful. Especially now that her powers lined up with her dreams¡­ Eli stopped and took in a deep breath. Right. His dreams. What was the point of choosing a power for no reason other than if it¡¯d bring him closer to what he wanted? Photon Shot was his throwaway offensive power, but he¡¯d grown to rely on it over time. Now it would become a part of him in body or mind, but he got Teleportation originally because he wanted to travel. To be free. What was more free than light? With that thought, Eli prodded the Body of Light prompt before he could change his mind then grimaced at the confirmation message. The system never asked or repeated itself. He accepted and shivered from delight. Warmth suffused his skin as the sunlight suddenly felt amazing on his skin. Strength radiated through him as the changes took place. A feeling of lightness spread through him as his bones shifted and realigned. His muscles grew and strengthened as he stretched and flexed. He glanced hopefully down at his severed arm and frowned once nothing happened. But he couldn''t stay sad about it for too long as pleasure jolted through his body. He reveled at the feeling of strength as he lifted his hand up. His fingertips glowed with a peaceful white glare as skin, nails, tendons, and bones all became light. He felt an increased control of the transformed digits. A thought sharpened his fingers into literal blades of light. Another thought spread the transformation throughout the rest of his hand. Newfound strength swelled into his hand even as he felt the limited light stored and charged inside of him begin to diminish. His hand was far stronger than it had been before as flesh and blood, but the rest of his body felt far weaker in comparison. He¡¯d have to test how full body transformation would feel¡­ when he wasn¡¯t stuck in the car. Mom and Dad would be furious if they found out that he was experimenting with a new power right after landing in the hospital and they had both torn into him with a full lecture. Eli sighed as he let the light fade and then blinked in surprise as he noticed a new notification waiting for him to acknowledge it. Chapter Fourteen Two status screens hovered in his view. Every new power tugged and pulled on him in an entirely different way. Each power a new path answering an important question that it was time to try and answer: Who did he want to be? Eli shifted uncomfortably on the chair he''d been sitting on for the past ten minutes as he tried to come to a decision. Dr. Simmons had been talking to his dad in his office the entire time, but he could barely think about that right now. Couldn¡¯t think about what had happened today. The mall... he winced at the thought then relaxed as tension melted in the wake of Rapid Recovery soothing its way through his body. It felt so strange to feel so... powerful. Colors were vibrant everywhere he looked. Every sight appeared different¡ªchanged¡ªas if it were his first time seeing them. Individual threads bristled up at him from the carpet as he studied the whirling pattern covering every inch of it. No one else sat with him in the waiting room or was even in the whole building other than the three of them. Yet the empty space in his Equipped Powers list stared at him with its hollowness. He checked his status again. [Stats: Body: Light (Photon Shot) Mind: None Will: None ] [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Spatial Control Ev. 0/Lv. 4 Slot Two -- Rapid Recovery Ev. 1/Lv. 2 Slot Three -- None ] Nearly every power on the list called out to him one way or another. He had loved the idea of controlling water way back when he''d picked Telekinesis instead, but he''d grown to appreciate light with Photon Shot, and after the past scant few hours of being stuck in the car with sunlight''s warmth on his skin... He''d started to grow to love it. Each vibrating photon flitted through space faster than he could even comprehend. It was a constantly shifting landscape that mesmerized him as the spectrum changed and evolved. Now he had come to realize it was the limitations of Photon Shot that had bothered him. It had yearned to be destructive. To be fired so it could blast his targets. Reduce whatever it struck to scorched oblivion. That wasn''t Eli, despite what his parents seemed to think now. Spatial Control offered him more than enough options for destruction already. With how easily he could displace things and launch them through his void... no. He didn''t need help being more destructive, but to reign it in. Eli needed to be precise. Exact with how he used his powers. He scanned through the list again. Hydro and Metal Control felt weak to him. They were exactly as they seemed. Eli didn''t need to learn to master a whole new power that offered him little real perks now or later when. Especially when he could probably learn to replicate Telekinesis a bit still with Spatial Control. He had some ideas on that, but nothing concrete yet. Now that he¡¯d evolved Recovery to Rapid Recovery and slotted Photon Shot it was more than time to finish out Spatial Control. With all of that said, that left Voidshade, Assimilative Constitution, and Winter''s Dominion to choose from. Each was appetizing in its own way. Voidshade would undoubtedly help him with Spatial Control. He sensed that it was literally the abyss of his void that he traveled through whenever he teleported. He knew that it would transform other shadows to fit it and then he¡¯d be able to control them too. It would also help balance out Body of Light''s weaknesses, especially if he could find or was offered a body-boosting power like Enhanced Physiology again to merge with Voidshade and Rapid Recovery at some point. Maybe then he could even combine it with Spatial Control or whatever it evolved into at evo-1. Whatever resulted would be perfect in his Mind or Will slot. Assimilative Constitution was the power to literally take in materials, elements, and even concepts and weave them into the fabric of his being. To strengthen his body even further both temporarily and permanently. After experiencing the sheer difference in scale from his weak mundane body pre-System to now? A more than significant part of him wanted to chase that high and become even stronger with it. He bet it would synergize very well with both Spatial Control and Body of Light. Absorb the void, space (if he even could), and light to further empower himself. Winter''s Dominion... felt powerful. He''d become the soul of winter personified. Cold would be nothing to him. He''d be able freeze whatever he wanted, control ice, create snow, and probably control any freezing air, which would be all air around him. It also felt like it''d evolve to become a Domain power at some point. But it was rigid. It felt the most complete out of the others even if they were all at evo-0. He felt it with certainty even if the System didn''t list their evolution stages. "Ugh..." Eli sighed as he stretched out and leaned his head against the wall. Too bad he couldn''t just take them all. Voidshade and Assimilative Constitution plus Rapid Recovery and Enhanced Physiology if he could get it again would turn him unstoppable. His body would be perfectly attuned to both the light and dark. Every teleport would empower him. Heal him. Winter''s Dominion would allow him to freeze and attack everywhere around him and once it became a domain... well, he already had control over space. Safety wouldn¡¯t just be ensured, but guaranteed. He eyed each of the five powers one more time, weighed each choice, and still came up with those three as the only ones he wanted. Maybe these powers would be offered to him again the next time he slotted a power into a stat. Maybe they wouldn''t. He had no idea and it wasn''t like he had his phone to check either. His battle in the mall had fried it down to scrap. If he only had one choice... and he had to assume he did. It came down to Voidshade or Assimilative Constitution. Winter''s Dominion seemed cool, but... while it was metal as fuck, it wasn''t him. Not yet anyway. He wasn''t going to throw everything sideways just for the coolest sounding power that he would have to drop everything to master. It did offer an interesting option with how reflective ice and snow turned light, but it wasn¡¯t nearly valuable enough to ruin a unique chance for a new power. Voidshade Control and Assimilative Constitution. One would help him optimize and delve deeper into his greatest asset while the other would help him shore up his weaknesses and allow him to turn it into a constantly growing strength. Rapid Recovery would help both of them so it wasn''t really a way to balance the scales. Same with Body of Light, except for the fact that being stuck in the dark now sounded even scarier than before. He already had to rely on his senses to teleport whether physically or his spatial field. But what if he expended every drop of light he had charged and was trapped in a dark cell or it was nighttime and he was under attack? He''d be almost powerless. That terrified him. Voidshade would help him with that right away and even more once he turned it better. "Sorry that took so long, Eli." Dad said as he walked down the hallway with Dr. Simmons right at his heels. Dad looked and sounded... broken. His face was ghostly pale except for the smoldering heat in his cheeks. His eyes were bloodshot and his hair was mussed as if he''d run his hands through his hair multiple times. Eli cringed a bit at the whole situation and that he¡¯d caused all of this, even if he didn¡¯t think he had done anything wrong still. He only felt bad that Dad had driven them all to New Faram to drop him and Lana off at the community center, gone to the mall, then he had to presumably drive everyone (sans Lana) to the hospital, go back to the community center before coming back to the hospital. Then he¡¯d driven everyone back home before driving them here? Holy shit that was a lot of driving. About eight hours worth in total. Eli wished he had his phone so he could check the time, he knew it was beyond late. "Feel free to sit down and relax or go somewhere if you want while Eli and I talk, Rick. If we need to, I¡¯m more than willing to talk until two in the morning. It¡¯s not like we have to worry about any other appointments. How does that sound, Eli?" Dr. Simmons''s eternally calm voice helped ease his tension even more as he nodded, stood up, and followed behind the man as they stepped into his office. "It sounds like you''ve had quite the hell of a time since I saw you last." Dr. Simmons said as he plopped down into his chair. Eli stopped halfway into sitting on the couch so he could stare at the man and wiggle his stump of a shoulder sarcastically before sitting. "You''re telling me." "How do you feel about it?" "Pfft. Classic therapist question." Eli scoffed as he turned away to avoid eye contact. His conversation with his parents flashed through his mind. He already knew he fucked up. He didn''t need¡ª "It sounds like it was really scary, Eli. You definitely made a mistake, but it was a brave one. I don''t think I would have been able to rush across town into an active terrorist situation to try and fight them off like you did." "Does it matter if everyone keeps saying how stupid I was?" "Bravery is often stupid. Not that you should do it again, of course, unless you''re already in the situation... and then it''s probably better to fight a pitched battle so you can run away. But otherwise? You''ve already been punished and shown what the consequences of your actions were. It sounds like your parents already gave you an earful you lost your arm like you pointed out. Why waste our time counterproductively repeating what has already been said? I''d rather hear about anything you''d like to say about what has happened." "My parents haven''t punished me? They both tore into me while I was lying there in a hospital bed." "Eli. You scared them, no, you terrified them. They thought you were safe then found out that you were in the hospital from the same situation they had just gone through? And you had lost your arm in a fight against those terrorists? What parent wouldn¡¯t be upset? I have one kid in college and another with his own children. I would ¡®tear into them¡¯ too right now if treated their own life like it had so little value. But in the end, I''d say you¡¯ve had enough lecturing about consequences. Luckily you weren''t killed¡­ this time, but what about if something like that were to happen again?" "Then I''d stop it," Eli said as he lifted his chin up with all of the determination he could muster. His status seemed to whisper to him about the possibilities he''d wield next time. Voidshade Control Assimilative Constitution Eli would be an entirely different person. Ever since the system came he''d been beaten, berated, and banged around from situation to situation. He was fucking tired of it. Nails bit into the palm of his hand as he clenched his fist and reveled in the sudden thrum of strength that rushed through every fiber and strand that made up his muscles. "Elias..." Dr. Simmons lowered his head as he rubbed the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger. "You need to live for more than paranoia and powers. To have more than the next level up or new power waiting on the horizon. Do you remember last time we spoke about how studies found correlation between the powers the System granted people and their greatest memories and their deepest wishes?" Eli nodded. "The first few times we spoke I saw a young man wounded by a poor social life in school. Discouraged to try, unsure what he wanted to do in the next five minutes let alone for his future. I still see that in you, but... I also realize how much fear there is inside of you. Every decision seems to be governed by it. I think the System even gave you an out, maybe too many outs to that end." "What do you mean?" Eli frowned as he studied the man in his trademark golf polo, red today, his neatly pressed slacks. He was composed as always. As confident in himself as steel was that it wouldn''t break, but still soft and kind. But yet, Eli had to revolt against a rising tide of anxiety at what he might say. "You''re aimless. Sure, you love to travel, but... this is different. I¡¯m not a scientist or anything like that, but a psychologist, and yet it seems like the System gave you an easy answer to your extreme avoidance. To allow you jump from one thing to the next without needing to ever face whatever bothers you. Then you got your Recovery power which I think has been doing the same for you. It has made you reckless. Emboldening you to take increased risks without having to deal with the long-term repercussions. That''s da¡ª "Dangerous I know." Eli sighed as he tucked his head down. "Maybe you''re right, but I''ve been trying to prepare myself in the face of danger. I''m not playing with these powers for the sake of them being cool! I don¡¯t want to lurk in the shadows to ambush criminals and beat them to a pulp or anything." "No, you¡¯re not. But you''re practicing with them for the sake of being ready to harm others. It''s one thing to be vigilant and quite the other to be obsessed. On the hunt for trouble wherever you can find it." Dr. Simmons sighed then leaned forward. "How often do you use your powers, Eli?" "What do you mean?" Eli narrowed his eyes and tilted his head slightly. "This space is my domain. So I sense a lot going on in here. I feel how space bunches all around you. Now there''s a current of some energy constantly running through you that I don''t recognize. I can feel the sheer energy of light that''s radiating off you. I bet you that every one of your powers is constantly in use. Right?" "Aren''t most peoples¡¯?" "No, Eli, they aren''t. Most people use them as tools, but you aren''t. I''d like you to deactivate all of your powers for me if you can. Right now." You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. "What? Why?" Eli tensed up at the ridiculous suggestion. Twitches of adrenaline spiked through him as his heart pounded. Strength started to well up inside of him as his body began to absorb more light. To charge it inside of him as if his entire body were a simple orb for Photon Shot. Ready to fire, to act. "I want to see how you react." Dr. Simmons pursed his lips. "Just deactivate them, please. Take a deep breath and think about how you feel when you have no powers. When you don''t have to worry about anything but what you need." "I...I..." Eli swallowed with an audibly dry click as his mouth seemed to turn into coarse sand. "I can''t. I just can''t. "I understand that, but I really do think you need to. You''re perfectly safe in here." "I just can''t." He said as he bitterly thought about how easy it would be for this man to crush him like a bug beneath his heel. All it would take would be a quick nudge of his powers and it¡¯d be done. He¡¯d be nothing but a bloody smear. "Why not?" Dr. Simmons asked in a low, gentle voice. "I know you have a lot of anxiety. But I think this is important for your recovery from what has happened and also for your wellbeing in general." Eli glanced up to meet Dr. Simmons''s unflinching gaze, his wide but openly concerned smile. Disgust twisted in his gut. What was wrong with him? Dr. Simmons wouldn''t hurt him. Eli nodded as he unequipped both of his powers one after the other. Spatial Control¡¯s influence vanished as the space around him deadened for the second time that day. Rapid Recovery ceased all at once. Comfort vanished like a magic trick leaving only exhausted flesh and blood that had been pushed to its last leg. Emotions sparked and flashed through his mind rapid-fire as if his heart was a lighter on the fritz. But Body of Light remained. Photons buzzed ever so imperceptibly against his skin as he fought to keep himself from collapsing. From guzzling every bit of ambient light in the room dry to strengthen himself as much as he could. "Your light power too please." "It''s permanent," Eli whispered as tears started to claw their way out of his eyes. Each feeling was starting to catch as they went blazed like oiled kindling. Fear. Regret. Longing. Discomfort. Anxiety. Anger. Again and again on repeat. "What are you feeling right now?" "Not very good!" Eli snapped as he dried his tears with a swipe of his hand and said with a shake of his head, "I feel awful. Bad emotions and memories keep popping up." "Like what?" Pen scratched on paper with the same whispering of spindly shadow legs clicking against the tile floor of the mall. Eli shivered as his stomach rebelled with a sharp cramping pain. "Being bullied. How I stopped getting invited to do things or go around places. How I quit the job I worked at throughout high school so I could buy my car. The home invasion. Dealing with how mean and prickly everyone has been since then... Having my mind broken into so the government could see if I was a fucking threat. Hearing that the mall my parents and youngest sister were at was getting attacked! I knew I had to do something! What if my parents had gotten hurt and Lyra was stranded by herself? All she has is some kind of advanced illusion power I don''t understand! No one understands why I did it, but I had to go. What if I hadn''t and Lana and I had never been picked up? What if they died while I sat around knowing I could teleport across the city easily? Fought knowing that I could get hurt or die, but at least I can heal and recover better than my family could. Even with my mom''s cooking enchanting power. No. I hate how everyone keeps yelling at me like I¡¯m a dumb child who broke something from being a fucking idiot. I''m a bit over two weeks away from being old enough to enlist in the military, but I¡¯m still not old enough to fight to defend myself and my family?" Eli found himself panting furiously behind the couch with razor-sharp unmoving streamers of light that trailed behind him like ribbons. He stopped, panting as his breath exploded from his lungs with a bright glare emanating from the cloud of vapor. Hot shimmering tears glowed like luminescent beads of sparkling glass that dotted the front of his ugly hospital gift shop shirt and the tread of his path back and forth across the carpet. Meanwhile, Dr. Simmons''s pen skated and glided across his notebook like an Olympic figure skater. Swirling loops and hard-edged lines. Each word probably a condemnation permanently in his notes. Eli let Body of Light fade as he walked back to his spot on the couch. Fans of glowing light and dotted beads of light dissipated back to nothingness or to regular mundane tears. His outburst left him fatigued as if he''d run a whole marathon in an instantaneous sprint with a weight yoked to his chest. "I... I didn''t mean to yell..." Eli said between ragged breaths. "It''s just... I''ve been holding it back for so long and..." "It''s okay." Dr. Simmons said as he leaned forward to nudge a tissue box closer to him. "You''ve been through a lot and you seem to be beating yourself up over... well, living, on top of what you''ve experienced? It will take time, Eli, but my hope is that if you keep trying to stay involved, do new things and stay mindful of these things then change will come. Slowly but surely." Eli sat there while he tried to process everything he''d said. Something about the words struck him as hollow, but also genuine. Change wouldn''t happen instantly. He''d have to try if he wanted to be better. He thought about the last year in more detail and winced at what he''d allowed himself to be reduced to. Before he let Tom and his friends get under his skin, he''d loved to do so much more than stay around at home waiting for the school year to end. He''d been on the swim team throughout junior year and had just... he''d just stopped. He pulled away from everyone and sure, Tom had turned some of his friends into targets like with what he''d done to Roman or Scott. Eli winced at how he''d pulled away and ghosted them. Now they just ignored each other in the halls at school. Sure, he''d convinced himself he was doing it to protect them, but wouldn''t a good friend have stayed by their side? "I think you''re right Dr. Simmons," Eli said with growing conviction as he wadded his damp tissues up and tossed them into the wastebasket before standing up. "I''ve been a bit of a dick. I have some people I need to apologize to." "You don''t want to finish the session? Are you sure?" Dr. Simmons blinked in surprise owlishly. "I do, but... I want to get a headstart before I lose momentum. I just can''t believe I let myself fall so far." "We fall and rise, but it doesn''t make us demons or angels. You¡¯re as human as I am. Superpowers don¡¯t change that one bit." He shrugged but stood up with him. "We''ll talk to your father if he didn¡¯t leave or keep talking while we wait for him to come back if he isn¡¯t. . I''d like to think you understand what I said, but I''m hoping you''ll think about it and be a bit kinder to yourself... and to others in regards to all of this. But one last thing before we go. These powers are nice and fun when they can be, but try to take time away from them now and then. Breaks are important." "But... what about safety?" Eli asked as he peered up at him. "Do it when you max them out then." Dr. Simmons shrugged. "At the very least, I think we''ll have a new policy of having your powers deactivated as much as possible while you''re here." "Okay..." Eli winced at the thought as he followed him out of his office into the hallway. He instantly tried to equip Spatial Control and Rapid Recovery again only to be hit with cooldown messages. "Dr. Simmons..." Eli said then paused right outside the threshold of his personal office. A thought had clicked in place like a puzzle piece as he thought about Rapid Recovery. What if it helped him more than just physically? Every step he took was dogged, he felt like he would have passed out if it wasn''t for his sheer determination to make up for how he''d been acting to, well, everyone. "Do you think that my Recovery power has been working mentally and emotionally too? When it was suppressed at the hospital I had a really hard time adjusting. It was even worse when I fully deactivated it just now." "It''s certainly possible. Or it could be that you''ve been leaning far too hard on your powers as a crutch to cope in an unhealthy way. Maybe it''s both. Is it still deactivated?" "Yeah. Both of my powers are on cooldown." "Hm. Well. Just be mindful of it. Make sure to spend time without it activated whenever you have time to yourself or when you''re doing something where you don''t need it. It might be helpful for you across the board. We can talk about it and see how you feel after our next appointment." Eli nodded as he pondered over that while he followed him into the lobby where his dad reclined with his head leaned back right against the wall with his prescription sunglasses covering his eyes. His legs stuck out at odd angles and his arms were crossed over his chest. Mom and Lyra had gotten new clothes from the hospital, but his father hadn''t. Rips and tears crisscrossed across his sleeves like claws had attacked him in a flurry of blows. Small scorch marks dotted numerous spots on his spring jacket. Even his pants had more than a few slices taken out of it. Eli hadn''t noticed before. Either because there wasn''t a single stain of blood or because he had just been that self-absorbed with his own shit. "Dad?" Eli asked as he stepped forward to shake his father awake. Dad startled awake instantly. Tendrils of water vapor spooled from his hands as he glanced around before he calmed down. Eli wished he had Rapid Recovery equipped so he could give him some energy. He looked like he needed it. "Sorry about that... I must have fallen asleep there.¡± Dad took his glasses off to rub at his sunken eyes. "It''s okay. It''s Saturday so no one is here and we didn''t mind." Dr. Simmons said kindly before studying both Eli and his father. "I think we''re done today, but I''d like to see Eli at least twice a week. Does that work out for both of you?" "Of course. How about Tuesday and Friday next week?" Dad asked as he gazed off into the distance like he was reading something with Technopathy. "That should be perfect. But I''d like Eli to come by himself if that''s possible?" "By myself?" Eli asked at the same time as Dad. "Yes. I think it would help you make this more personal. Besides, you have a license to drive and a car, don''t you?" "I do but I haven''t really used it since I got powers." Eli shrugged. That and with how easily he could teleport around town it hadn''t occurred to him to sit inside his car for a while let alone use it. "Do you feel comfortable with that Rick?" "I guess. I mean, Eli used to drive him and his sisters around... I guess he could again. Other than today things have calmed down for the most part, but what about his new... his new condition?" Dad''s hands clenched together with a hard squeeze. "I think it would do him some good to try anyway. Help him find a more normal, empowering use for his powers. "Sound good?"" Dr. Simmons smiled at him and Eli smiled back, although he wondered how he felt about driving again. It felt... odd. Weird and pointless. Why do that when he could just zip around using Spatial Control, but maybe it would be nice. Once he figured out how to drive with only one arm, he could drive just for the joy of it. "Sure." Dad shrugged after Eli nodded. "Then I''ll see you on Tuesday, Eli. Both of you take care now!" Dr. Simmons said as both him and his father walked out of the office. "How about I drive, dad?" Eli said as he held his hand out for the keys. "I can drive." "You''re exhausted. Let me do it." Eli insisted as he shoved his hand out closer. "Eli... You only have one arm and none of our cars are really accommodating for that." "Not a problem." Eli shrugged as waved his hand again. "I might be able to use light a bit to help, but I mostly drive one-handed anyways. I''ll have to take turns slower, but that''s probably for the best, right?" There was a long pause where they looked at each other in the looming shadows of the night. Eli held his hand out while Dad wavered on his feet. Eli stepped closer and waved his hand more urgently. ¡°If I can¡¯t figure it out you can just take over with your powers or we can switch spots. It¡¯ll be fine.¡± "If you insist, kiddo." Dad sighed as he handed his keys over and rubbed his face again before they got in the car and took off. "Hey dad... I''m really sorry for everything that happened today. I know I made a mistake, probably several, but I also don''t think I did anything wrong. I just did it all in the wrong way, you know, like in the grand scheme of things. If I was older and stronger, it could''ve been the right move, but... I couldn''t bear living afterward knowing that you guys got hurt when I could have helped. But I do feel really bad that I made you all worry and left Lana alone like that. That wasn¡¯t very cool of me to do." Silence. Eli risked a glance over and sighed at his father''s deeply asleep form. He''d started snoring like a bullfrog that was trying to assert dominance over everything in the car. Loud and gutturally. Despite all of his assurances that he was fine and could take over with his powers if Eli needed help, he was out cold. He vowed to apologize again. Regardless, it felt good to drive again even with the radio off. The only sounds were the thrum of the engine, and the flapping breeze of the wind coming in through his window. Not to mention his father''s snores. Light from streetlamps spilled through their windows to dapple Eli¡¯s skin giving him a shiver of strength each time as he was topped off. Blinding rays from headlights weren''t even an annoyance, in fact, they were now a benefit. He had to generate and harden panes of light now and then to help brace the steering wheel whenever he had to turn or follow the curving roads. The first few times were embarrassing as the light had shattered into motes of radiance, but he started to get the hang of it. Maybe one day he''d be able to fashion a construct out of light to act as a prosthetic. Then he might be able to just restore it to flesh and blood using Rapid Recovery. It would''ve been a perfect drive if it weren''t for the pestering reminder of his status notification asking him what power he wanted. At least he was able to equip Spatial Control. Rapid Recovery was still on cooldown. Finally after nearly twenty-five minutes of driving, he pulled into the driveway at home and parked the car. He leaned back into the seat of the car and looked at the new power selection screen again. It was time to make a decision. Assimilative Constitution would be a huge help in making his body stronger all around. It could even be the pathway to restoring his arm. Might even allow him to do all kinds of neat tricks that he wouldn''t be able to do otherwise. He''d be able to take in the traits and materials of whatever he wanted to improve himself. Merged with Rapid Recovery and maybe Enhanced Physiology if he was offered it again? His body would serve him like a dream come true, especially if he could find someone to trade him another body power or two. But Voidshade Control? It''d allow him to literally control the void he teleported through. Literally optimizing what he already had while making up for his weaknesses with Body of Light both right now and in the future. Sure, he was fine as long as he had light absorbed, but his body was entirely mundane in the dark unless he used up his stored light. Plus, it''d be a huge boon to further his offensive powerset. Not to mention the possibilities if he did something similar with body-focused powers. He just couldn''t decide. Both enticed him in entirely different ways. "Is earlier today on your mind?" Dad asked softly, startling Eli so bad that his skin glowed a prismatic radiance for a split second before he calmed down with a deep breath. Anxiety tip tapped along with the beat of his heart, but he was fine. "Kind of." Eli sighed as he turned to look at the man who had raised and guided him on so much in his life. Why not ask for his input now? "Don''t chew my head off or anything¡ª" "Great way to start a conversation, but fine." "¡ªbut I maxed out Photon Shot and I was able to slot into my stats and now it''s permanent on top of it buffing my body in practically every single way. Granted, it doesn''t work in the dark unless I use light I''ve stored and charged up all day, so right now I''m physically a normal human." "Okay." Dad said flatly, but he was paying attention at least. "So... after I did that the System offered me a choice between five different powers, but I think I only want two of them. Assimilative Constitution which would be great long term and really help make me better physically or Voidshade Control which would make up for the weakness with Body of Light now and later plus it¡¯d help me get even better with my Spatial Control!" "Hm. And you''re positive about these two powers?" "Yes. I was interested in Hydro Control, but I don''t want to get a whole new power right now that doesn''t really mesh with anything else." "Are you sure? That makes sense and everything, but you''ve always loved the water. Whenever we went to the beach or have gone swimming we had to pull you out of the water. You''re always the one that sat out with me and watched the rain or gone with me to walk through it. It could be a good pick for you." "I''m sure. I can always build something like it later. It''s offered me a water power every time." "Alright. So. We got a physical boosting power and essentially a meta power that''s good in its own right?" "Basically." "Eli... I think you should pick the Voidbane one." "Voidshade." Eli interrupted quickly before he got too much farther. "Yes, Voidshade. It''ll help balance you out now and you can always get another body-enhancing power whether by yourself or you could even buy one later." He shrugged then added, "Besides, I feel like it''ll synergize very well with your light body at some point. After all, what happens when you absorb all light or you have a very bright light?" "It''s either pitch black or there are shadows." "Bingo." ¡°Okay¡­ I¡¯m doing it.¡± "I know I already said it, but... I''m sorry dad. And thank you." "It''s okay. I understand." Dad sighed then paused. "We''ll talk more tomorrow. It''s really late and we should probably go to bed if we can." "Worst Saturday ever." Eli said as he climbed out of the car and tossed the keys back to his dad who fumbled them and dropped them... before they stopped right above the ground then snapped back up into his father''s hand. "Goodnight, son." "Goodnight," Eli said before he stepped into the void to teleport into his bedroom. Instead of an endless abyss, his void was now a spectrum of swirling shadows a million shades of dark. Each one of them was cold, but also deeply familiar. Shadows trailed around him as he dropped out of his void and under the covers. He almost fell asleep within moments, but before he did he remembered what Dr. Simmons said and left Rapid Recovery unequipped. It was the deepest sleep he''d had since the school year began. Chapter Fifteen Eli woke up bleary-eyed in a snarled tangle of bedding messed up so bad his sheets had been pulled from under the mattress. He kept his eyes closed as he felt around the room with Spatial Control. Silhouettes cast shadows everywhere in his perception of where empty free space was before it became a minuscule array of endless points. It wasn''t perfect though. In fact, his senses through his spatial field was beyond blurry if he wanted anything more precise than where everything was exactly in relation to himself. He focused next on Body of Light and grimaced at the melodious bands of glimmering radiance that crawled across his floor and wall from the cracks in his blinds. Diffused light gave him a bit more detail than spatial field, but where the direct light touched his floor and wall? He felt and saw it with stunning levels of detail even with his eyes closed. But shadows lurked under his bed, behind his dresser, and everywhere else the light didn''t touch. Eli prodded ever so gently at the closest pool of darkness he knew must be close by with Voidshade Control and gasped as he broke out into a cold sweat. Cramps knotted in his stomach as he felt a rising tide of chilled darkness swirl in accordance with his will. Eli bolted upright and looked down at himself with an incredulous cringe as his skin began to mottle with a patchwork of growing bruises as puffs of gray mist popped free from his skin in little bursts from a series of cracks oozing blood. He frowned as the sensations stopped once he eased off of Voidshade. After a few moments, the dark mottling faded to nothing but red splotches of irritation. Light flowed into him as Body of Light allowed to greedily drain all of the light around him. He watched each of the bloody cracks shine before they sealed back together. Okay. That was unpleasant. Eli leaned over so he could grab his old alarm clock that he had to pull out of his closest last night and groaned as he checked the time. 8:47 AM Well. He''d already slept a full nine hours. Might as well start the day with some more practice somewhere else. He¡¯d rather do it on the roof. A few moments later he dressed himself with liberal use of Spatial Control to teleport his clothes onto his body and he was ready. A push upwards with his spatial field was enough for him to feel past the ceiling, up to the attic, and then onto the roof. Eli wobbled as he landed at a tricky angle on the slope of the roof, but another teleport corrected himself so he was sitting cross-legged by the eave banked full of shadows from the rising angle of the sun. He leaned back against the shingles of the roof and sighed with contentment as he glanced out into the horizon. He took a few minutes to enjoy the crisp air, the twinges of rosy orange that faded into bright blue. It was nice, but he was done with that now. Now that he had Voidshade Control it was time to crack that last level on Spatial Control and hope he could pump out some easy levels for Voidshade while he was at it. If it continued to hurt him he might even be able to get a level or two out of Rapid Recovery once he got around to equipping it. First, he reached out with his Spatial Control to a point far, far above him and opened the void right in front of him, and smiled into the yawning tunnel that passed through the void. Instead of focusing on the closest darkness to him, he focused on the abyss inside of the void and pushed forward with Voidshade Control then grunted as he felt his power sink its clutches into the pure unadulterated darkness of the void. Pressure didn''t build or slowly mount, it clamped right through his skull straight into his brain matter with a harsh buzz. Eli could taste his thoughts with a classic coppery lemon twist as he watched the voidshadow draw towards him in a rolling wave through his void tunnel. Spatial Control and Voidshade harmonized at a harsh thrum that quickly grew to a screeching drone that made his bones feel like they were grating together. Voidshade Control''s hook to the void''s darkness snapped and everything went dark. Eli crashed back into consciousness with a warm glow as Body of Light cannibalized his internal storage of light to bring him back to awareness. He''d collapsed backward and smacked his head against the siding of the eaves. Spatial Control had held firm even though Voidshade hadn''t. Neither power had leveled, but he still felt like he had learned a lot from his first real attempt. Mainly that Voidshadow wasn''t just darkness or shadow, but the shadow inside of his void. The voidshadow that was normally held back by the tunnels of hardened space that appeared whenever he teleported himself or anything else. He had a strong feeling that every pinprick of space that he felt in spatial field that allowed him to teleport tied back to voidshade. Somehow. Next was that he could harden space. This whole time he thought that the last level could have to do with figuring out portals or expanding space in a stable way, and sure, it still could be. But now he felt almost certain that he should be able to create hardened bits of space just like he did whenever he teleported. Eli stared up through his void tunnel to his teleportation point high in the sky with narrowed eyes as he focused on another point farther above before he chained the two together. Space warped and distorted farther inside of his void tunnels, but they held stable otherwise. A tug shortened the tunnels enough so that when he shoved his hand through he felt the glacial screaming gusts above bite against his fingers. He took a moment to wonder why the wind didn''t blast out of his void tunnels and nearly yelped as the cold wind whipped past his arm straight into his face from the open teleportation point. Then it stopped right when he wished to not get a ton of freezing air in his face. Small mercies then. It was probably better left alone. A quick push of his will only expanded the space outside of the teleportation point. Pinching it was just folding it. Trying to move space around that point did nothing other than fold or expand space all around it. He withdrew his hand before he shook it out to clear off the crawling tingles that buzzed across his skin. No. This wasn''t how he''d achieve what he wanted. He had to think differently. What was he doing wrong? Okay. Space. Spatial Control... He thought about how it had changed from when he''d merged it with Teleportation and Telekinesis. First off, he had to manually teleport using his spatial field by diving in-between the space between points. While there I had full control of the void and everything in between, but that wasn''t real space... unless if it was? Telekinesis had a whole kinetic field that had been malleable and adaptive. It moved how he wanted and it had moved what he wanted the exact way he wanted it to. But it wasn''t until he''d doubled his kinetic field with extreme opposing forces inside of it was he able to figure out how to break into force constructs. Was that it? Eli closed his eyes and redoubled his focus on the space outside of his chained teleports. Instead of relying on touch or sight, he let his spatial field fill in the gaps without holding it back. He winced as the clarity doubled then tripled. Uncountable dark points floated everywhere around him in one layer, but another layer showed the spots of space that existed inside and through objects. Then silhouettes clouded his spatial field even further. Every silhouetted shingle of the roof was packed with so many smaller fragmented silhouettes that surrounded the tiny spots of empty space. They seemed to vibrate at multiple frequencies. Not to mention how faintly translucent breeze carried with it spots of its own. A growing headache started to bloom as the information continued to stream in unabated. Pressure mounted until his eyeballs seemed to quiver in their sockets. His tongue felt fuzzy as he swiped it across the roof of his mouth to get the rising taste of bile out of his mouth. He stopped. His hand trembled as he brushed it across the beads of sweat on his forehead. That didn''t work. It was far, far too much information. Maybe he was close, but that wasn''t it. He screwed his eyes shut while tightening his spatial field down to nothing. Everything but the open teleportation void tunnels were trimmed. A frown deepened as he studied the stable space outside of the teleportation points. It didn''t even really mesh or interact with the innermost stable layer of space points he saw. It was almost like... Eli gasped as he dismissed both teleports and watched the surrounding space as they vanished. They didn''t interact. Each layer was separate even as they were bundled together. A flash of radiant light sparked across his body as he beamed at the euphoric sense of how close he was. He started and then canceled a teleport while he kept his spatial field leashed as close around him as he possibly could. His teleportation target was only half a pace forward, but with that tight of a zone his spatial sense could really pick out what was in the field. Two teleport-cancels. Six. A dozen. Yet every single time he started and established the teleport nothing changed on the outside layers of space. When he started and went through his teleport it might as well not exist. That was why his folding and expanding space was so catastrophic. It was on the wrong layer of space entirely. He slowed the process down to a crawl that an inchworm would''ve been irritated at how sedate the pace was. Only two layers of space existed. The rigid foundation of black dots and the infinitely small spots that made up each and every bit and piece of matter and the space between. But for the briefest of moments, there were three layers as Spatial Control snapped one of its own over both snapping it through the entrance to the exit. Then it vanished, still completely separate, but synced up to both original layers of space. Again and again, he watched as a bubble appeared and stretched out before it thinned out into a line connecting both points for teleportation. Eli stopped and blinked his eyes a few times to reorient himself with a deep breath. Warmth radiated off the shingles of the roof from the streaming sunlight. Excitement wriggled deep in his core. If he got this right it might just be enough for that last level he needed. He let himself dream of all the dazzling possibilities. He could see the world from stunning heights without worrying about flight. Maybe even teleport around the ocean. Especially if his void kept whatever he wanted out. Actual spatial expansion! "Alright Eli, now it''s time to do it..." He whispered to himself as he drew his spatial field around himself as tight as he could until it was as close as a second skin. Then he imagined a bubble of space appearing in front of him. A snarl curled his mouth as it appeared by pushing at the space around itself in every direction. Instead, he thought of his void and how it was separate from everything but him. Eli poked his finger out and watched as it vanished into the void around him anchored to his spatial field. He was vastly overcomplicating this. The void simply existed. Nothing more, nothing less. With a twist of his hand and without thinking about pushing or pulling, he simply willed a bubble of separated space to appear above his palm. His spatial field snapped out and fuzzed as it appeared to overlap his field. It was invisible to his eyes or other senses, but he could feel it as easily as his own hand. It didn''t exist his spatial senses but was invisible to his eye or other senses until he allowed it to slot into real-space. Air distorted with a crinkle as he popped it in and out of real-space again and again. It darted and whizzed around the air as easy as breathing without dragging on or exerting force on anything unless he willed it to exist inside of real-space. A push and pull on it ballooned it out to the size of a melon on the outside, but he sensed that he could control the space inside of it just as easily. Space was relative after all. How would a bubble that exists as its own framework know how large or small it really was until he wanted it to exist for real? He tilted his head as he willed air to teleport inside of it and blinked as he felt it fill up without any noticeable changes otherwise. Not only was the bubble intimately linked to his perception, but so too was the air inside of it now. Eli started to lift the bubble up into the sky as he prepared to elongate it and pop all of that air back into reality when he paused. Maybe this wasn''t the best idea right now. Did he really want to explain to his parents how he blew the roof up practicing with powers the day after he went to the hospital for rushing into an active terrorist situation? Without thinking about it he shunted the air-filled bubble into his void as he prepared to teleport back down into his room then he stopped dumbfounded. It floated inside of his void as if nothing happened. His grin turned into a radiant beaming smile. Literally. He teleported downstairs into his room where he turned to study the mess of papers, folders, and textbooks scattered all across his desk. Or his dresser drawers that were left in a state of limbo where some were closed, some left halfway open, and others left fully out. His ancient hand-me-down laptop that his dad had given him back in middle school that barely worked. A heap of boxes and other clutter that he''d collected over a lifetime. A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. Dozens of bubbles appeared as he snapped item after item into bubbles. All of his school stuff? In a bubble now packed into the void. His clothes? Into a pair of bubbles, one for clean and one for dirty. A thrill of excitement started to thrum inside of him as he stared at his bed with wide eyes as he created another bubble¡ª "Eli, are you awake yet? We need to talk..." Mom asked as she opened the door and then stopped as she watched his bedding, bed, and bedframe all vanish before her very eyes. While to him, he felt his bed still distinctly in its own personal bubble now packed into the void. He turned to smile at her, parts of his body glowing from his barely contained excitement that dimmed as he met her red bloodshot gaze. Tears rolled down her cheeks even as she blinked at him in astonishment and alarm. His bed appeared as if he''d never tucked it away accompanied by a level up notification that he ignored. "Mom... are you okay?" He asked as he teleported next to her to try and reach out but she shook her head as she stepped back. "What are you doing, Eli? You can''t even take a break from this for one minute?" Sobs cracked her voice as she stared at him with broken eyes. ¡°Why do you continue to treat this like a game? This is real life. People died and we were attacked. Your father and I had to fight to survive and here you are playing with your powers?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not a game to me,¡± Eli said in a brisk tone as his smile flattened. ¡°It never has been. Why do you act like I went there for anything else other than to help you guys? I¡¯ve told you again and again and you still act like I¡¯m the problem here when this is your fault in the first place.¡± ¡°What do you mean my fault?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t lose my arm fighting some random psychotic terrorists or whatever they were, but from fighting Dave. My godfather, apparently, was put in jail along with his wife because of you and Dad. I had to fight for my fucking life the entire time!¡± Breath hissed between her teeth as her lip trembled. Fresh tears slid down her face as she shook her head. ¡°No. I¡¯m sorry. I can¡¯t talk about this now. We¡¯ll continue this later. That federal agent is here to see you." She rushed down the hall where she shut her door with a firm snap. Eli snarled at how his joyous exploration had been dashed instantly by the reminder of how he¡¯d been tossed around and had his arm cut off like a doll. How she¡¯d yelled at him and berated him endangering himself as if he were a dumbass that was out on the prowl for fights. He sighed as he started to walk down the stairs as slow as he could, not wanting to teleport there instantly. Maybe Dr. Simmons had a point. He got everywhere so much faster with teleportation now. It was good to take his time more often and drive or even go for walks and bike rides again. Irritation fizzed in his stomach even as he tried to refocus himself. His status menu opened as he considered equipping Rapid Recovery, but he closed it before he could. It was fine. He didn¡¯t need it. Turning his thoughts away from the short-term screaming match with his mom, he reoriented back to what he just discovered. Would this allow him to use Telekinesis again sort of? Put things in bubbles and move them around at will? What was his size and weight limit? Could he fit his car in a bubble? Steps creaked as he ambled down the stairs. Mr. Daniels stood stoically with his hands crossed behind his back and his head tilted at a polite angle as he listened to Dad ramble on about his newest character in Eldritch Wars. Apparently, a necromantic storm demon lord that relied on heavy lightning AOE attacks which summoned two undead to fight for him on every storm magic kill. "Ah, there he is! I''m glad to see you''re doing alright, Elias. I was concerned when you left without warning yesterday," said Mr. Daniels in a warm tone once Eli came into view on the staircase. "May we talk somewhere in private?" "Eli is still a minor, Mr. Daniels," Dad''s voice turned frigid in an instant. "Whatever you want to say to him you can say around me." "Of course, Mr. Newton." Red light began to glow through the tinted lenses of Mr. Daniels sunglasses as he waited for Dad to invite him in, but he didn''t. Instead he stepped forward to lead them out on the porch. Eli sat down on a seat while he studied both adults glare at each other. Both of their body languages were hostile with how they stood and shifted their weight from one foot to another. Dad''s fists clenched even as he watched the agent warily. "Well?" Dad prompted when nobody said anything. "You almost had severe charges levied against you, Elias. I don''t know if you are aware, but you skirted around several laws with what you did. Vigilantism, assault with a deadly weapon, obstruction of justice at least. There was talk of pushing for more charges, but I managed to talk them down and get all charges dropped entirely." "Thank you, I¡ª" Eli started to say before Mr. Daniels continued. "If you adhere to some rules. You have a choice, of course, and you''ll receive a warning. I need you to sign some paperwork saying that you received this warning, you''ll need to update your threat assessment forms with your updated power portfolio and well, you''ll need to attend more mandatory classes." "I believe my son has had enough of your mandatory classes. Lana said there was far too much propaganda to try and encourage everyone in attendance to join the Federal Superpower Task Force. My children aren''t going to fight and die like that, Mr. Daniels." "They are mandatory by law for anyone above a Potentially Lethal rating. You would have known that if you weren''t given special privileges for your work with the anti-technomancy encryption, but perhaps that should be revoked. After all, you do have a Massively Lethal rating. How much devastation could you cause right now if you happened to snap, Mr. Newton?" "What happened to ''innocent until proven guilty?" Dad shot back. "That''s what I mean. We all have a duty to be educated about the changing world order. Sticking to old archaic ways will get everyone killed when someone like you or your children goes on a rampage because they have the powers to put themselves above the law." Mr. Daniels nodded at Dad before turning to look down at Eli. "Like you did yesterday." Dad opened his mouth then closed it with a frown. His eyes had that glazed look he had whenever he dug his teeth into a thought and really started thinking it through. Eventually he sighed and shook his head. "I get what you''re saying, but this is still wrong. Eli and Lana are teenagers and I don''t want them to be indoctrinated in some crazy regime." "It''s not like that at all, Mr. Newton. The Superpowered Threat Assessment Indicator or STAI is a newly founded branch of the Federal government that is doing its best to ensure everyone, especially young people, are aware of the danger their powers and that of others poses. Do I need to remind you that two of your children have killed? In self-defense, sure, but they both pulled that trigger with supernatural abilities that I''ve seen grown men and women unable to do. They have powers that we do not understand, as everyone does now, but they are a proven element. Your son could have easily injured or killed a bystander or the very people he was fighting when he shouldn''t have been anywhere near there." "It was self-defense." Eli mumbled then looked away as both men turned toward him. Beeps sounded as Mr. Daniels unlocked his phone and swiped his fingers across the screen before he clicked something on it causing Dad to swear vehemently. "Look at what you did to twenty-three year old Gavin Smith. He was an escaped convict involved with the attack, but look at what you did and what you are capable of, Elias." A far too crisp picture glowed with the backlight from his phone revealing a wound carved all the way through a man''s stomach out his back. The slanted walls of the wound were blackened and crispy like a seared steak. Around the outside of the wound was a massive ringed series of crimson burns that went from the hole out to a diameter as large as his fist. Swollen white and yellow blisters rippled all over it. He winced at the picture as Mr. Daniels swiped again. Now it showed the backside. Here it looked as if a chunk of flesh and muscle had been burned out entirely. The same hole remained, just as crisp as before. Now however the burns covered almost all of his back. "That isn''t self-defense. You could have killed them. The only reason I was able to talk down prosecution is because of your involvement with my mandatory class and I was able to vouch for you and because the only case of you actually murdering someone was in self-defense and those records have been sealed. If you don''t want to see me every week on Saturday until the course is concluded I''ll be happy to call for the police to come take you." "Why did you handle this and not a lawyer?" Dad asked while Eli studied the picture with growing horror. "Why wouldn''t I? This is serious. Besides, I don''t want an emotional situation to ruin a young man''s life. This is his last chance. Otherwise, he''ll either have to go to jail or be conscripted into the Federal Superpowered Task Force. Come to the classes, live a clean life, go to college and settle down. Do whatever it is you want as long as pictures like this don''t get attached to your file. Are we understood?" Eli nodded. Horror dug its claws in deep. He almost instinctively opened up his status so he could equip Rapid Recovery, but before he could, Dad spoke. "Thank you for bringing this to our attention. We appreciate all you have done on our behalf. If you leave us the paperwork we''ll have our lawyer send it to you if everything is agreeable." "Excellent. Well, that''s all. Good luck, kid." Mr. Daniels reached into the folds of his suit to pull out a thick wad of paper with a binder clip holding it all together. Eli blinked at the discrepancy in space, but when he reached out with his spatial field he didn''t sense anything to explain how that fit in his suit pocket. "See you next Saturday." They watched as he walked over to his black car and drove off in silence. "I''m so sorry Dad..." Eli whispered as he closed his eyes to try and forget the gruesome images that kept popping up in his mind with the clarity of a spotlight. "It''s okay." Dad squeezed his shoulder as he sat down beside him. "It''s okay. Everything is fine. We''ll all be better now." Eli bit his lip as he fought to keep his emotions stable. Light rippled and beaded across his skin and space warped a bit all around him as he struggled to keep it all in. He turned to his dad with a wince, ¡°I¡¯m not so sure. Mom and I had a fight before I came down.¡± ¡°I know. She already texted me about it. Do you want to talk about it?¡± ¡°Why does she distrust me so much? Lana and Lyra use their powers all the time.¡± Eli started to shake his head then he leaned against the wall in a slump. ¡°They didn¡¯t run into a fight and lose their arm, Eli. Of course she¡¯s more focused on you right now. Lyra¡¯s over at her friend¡¯s house right now because she said she wanted some normalcy and Lana wasn¡¯t even there. Your mom is really upset like we all are.¡± ¡°I guess.¡± Eli bit his lip again before he blurted out, ¡°It was Dave who hurt me. Him and his wife are after both of you. They hate you and want to hurt you guys anyway they can.¡± Dad cringed as he turned to look at Eli with horror before he seemed to crumple in on himself. He opened and closed his mouth half a dozen times so that he practically looked like a fish. ¡°...I didn¡¯t know that. Why didn¡¯t you say anything earlier?¡± ¡°I was too busy being yelled at about how dumb I was.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not fair.¡± Silence stretched between them uncomfortably. Right as Eli was about to go teleport to his room Dad stood up with a stretch and turned to look at him. "Come on. Let''s go do something. Just us two." "Like what?" Eli scoffed at the sudden topic change. "Anything." "There''s nothing fun to do around here." He shook his head even as he started to latch on the idea of actually doing something instead of staying cooped up inside wallowing or practicing his powers non-stop. "If you insist." Dad shrugged with a growing smirk. "What if we went swimming?" "Are any pools even open?" Eli asked with a frown even as a part of him skipped at the thought of diving into the water again. He really didn¡¯t want to keep having this conversation, but he knew it was going to come sooner rather than later once Mom worked herself up. "We''ll go to the beach then. It''s only an hour or two of driving. Come on, let''s go." Dad insisted with growing fervor as the door banged open with Lana marching out the door. Her stare stopped on Eli with a mix of irritation, pity, and anger. "No. Eli is coming with me, Dad." Lana passed Eli as she started to walk towards the sidewalk. "We need to talk." "What''s going on?" Dad asked as Eli shrugged and started to follow after her. "We''ll be home by dinner." "Alanna!" Dad called as she started to jog without looking back over her shoulder. "You better go with her Eli, but I swear to God if anything bad happens..." "I know, I know, Dad." Eli waved goodbye before he a couple of teleports caught him up to the now sprinting Lana who was running in the street nearly as fast as a car. "Lana! Jesus Christ!" He teleported again a dozen paces in front of her to shout before teleporting again. She slowed to a stop to turn around and glare at him. "What is this about?" "We have a lot to talk about, Elias. You left me behind! What if my whole family died because you couldn''t fucking look out for your sister? What if you went to jail? You are so unbelievably lucky that Mr. Daniels stood up for you and all you do is whine about it? Grow the fuck up. You need to get stronger, so we''re training. Don''t teleport. I''ll meet you by the old supermarket." "The one on Grover St?" Eli blinked as he tried to process everything she said. "Yep. You need to meet some friends of mine. Now come on and run with everything you have." She shook her head at him like he was a lost cause before she tucked her head down and slowly started accelerating over the course of half a mile to a sprint. He watched her disappear in the distance before he realized that she wasn''t sprinting. For her newfound strength, she was jogging. Eli absorbed as much light into his body as he could before he turned his entire body to radiance and began to run with everything he had. Mailboxes and houses blurred past him as he focused on moving as quickly as possible while still maintaining control of his form. After a few minutes, he felt himself hit the limits of his Body of Light and forced himself to slow to a steady trot... for his new level of speed. He was a golden streak as he bounded down streets with more stamina, speed, and dexterity than he''d ever had before. Focusing on his spatial senses to keep from wiping out, he pulled up his status notifications to check what he got from his practice earlier and to see what options he had. Spatial Control Ev. 0/Lv. 5> Voidshade Control Ev.0/Lv. 1> Chapter Sixteen Spots danced across Eli''s vision as he leaned his whole body weight against the lichen coated brick wall of the old grocery store to the north end of town. Eli''s lungs heaved air that seemed to burn its way up his throat with each exhale. A stitch cut against Eli''s side from the heavy exertion. Light streamed into his body, but the instant it was absorbed his body devoured it for more energy. He considered equipping Rapid Recovery, especially since he hoped using it now could even grant him a level, but he couldn''t stop looking over his power options while he waited for Lana to do whatever she was doing in the grocery store only the elderly shopped at. He wasn''t just tempted by the idea of Hydrokinesis, he was enamored by it. It would be so much fun, but... it felt like a waste of new power. Besides, he imagined it would be common enough that if he really wanted it he could buy it later. Similar story with Geokinesis, except he saw little to no use for it unless he wanted to maximize what he could do with teleported earth in a fight. It didn¡¯t fit him, but he hoped he wouldn¡¯t need to make power decisions based on need for a fight again. That left Force Construct, Enhanced Anatomy, and Dynamic Vitality. Force Construct felt like it was exactly what it was with the last power selection. Objects created from raw force would be at his command. If that was all it was he would probably delay picking it until later like Hydrokinesis except for the fact that it would instantly help him with his lack of an arm short-term. Using Body of Light to create photonic constructs was possible, but his control of light was too fragile still. Each time it bent or twisted it cracked or shattered. Force Construct would be perfect for that and whatever else he wanted it for. Could he really waste a new power like that though? It''d only be worth it if he found a way to merge it with light, voidshade, or something else. And Voidshade was already spoken for once it maxed out and he got whatever power it offered him. He¡¯d merge it with Spatial Control the minute after. It was really tempting... but the other two powers could go a long way to actually fixing the issue either right away or in the near future. Especially once he merged the powers he wanted and got them maxed out with Rapid Recovery for a merge. Enhanced Anatomy felt like it''d be extremely difficult to level though. It''d enhance his entire body. Improve it. Maybe enough to regenerate his lost arm, but what if it didn''t work like that? Besides, how would he continue to improve his body to level it up enough to max it out afterward? But¡­ wouldn''t it also improve his Body of Light while potentially removing one of his biggest weaknesses? Even with Body of Light he was far too weak. However, Dynamic Vitality was interesting. It''d improve his body at a flat rate across the board at first. His stamina and energy levels, his senses, strength, and health. All of that. But then, he''d be able to strengthen the other aspects by a bit at the cost of weakening another area or he could even weaken all of them to maximize one aspect entirely. Eli felt like it''d be a step closer to him getting Assimilative Constitution his own way if it was never offered to him again too. Rapid Recovery felt compatible too as if they were a part of the same "set". It also interested him how much it would synergize with Body of Light also. In the end though, he wanted to ask Lana about Enhanced Anatomy when she came out. She''d had a similar power since the Initialization so she''d probably be a good touchstone on how easy or not it would be to level and evolve. He needed something a bit on the quicker side, but that didn''t mean he was going to ignore a good power-investment. A vibration rattled against his leg. He stuck his hand in his pocket to check his phone before he remembered that it had been ruined the day before at the mall. "Fuck," he whispered to himself then winced as an elderly couple scowled at him as if he''d spat on their parents'' graves. Why was Lana taking so long at an out-of-the-way grocery store of all places? Was this just petty revenge for leaving her at the community center or something else? ¡­Was it something else? Alarm shot through him as he straightened with a jolt of light and power as Rapid Recovery equipped in his empty slot. Tremors eased as energy filled him up to nearly bursting. His head swam from how heady and intoxicating it was as nearly every problem seemed to vanish from his body. Tricky emotions felt less bothersome. Peace and calm filled him. Unless Lana was in trouble. He turned to glare at the seemingly innocent building. What if there was a robbery or something and Lana was held hostage? Could Dave and his wife Sandra be after them? Here? Eli''s spatial senses started to push through the wall and inside just as the door opened with a squeal of tortured metal. "Goddammit. I didn''t mean to do that... Shit," Lana swore with a heavy air of defeat. "I''m pretty sure that was a pull and not a push door," said a male voice sarcastically. Eli pivoted to study the teenager that seemed to be about the same age as Lana, so he was probably a freshman too. He wore a uniform with the words Farbrook Supermarket emblazoned across the upper right of his chest. Something about him seemed a bit familiar, but they did live in a relatively small suburb town. Everyone was familiar. Eli withdrew his spatial field feeling rather silly. He had really let himself get worked up over nothing... Of course she was fine. She was Lana. If anything like that were to happen it''d be everyone else in danger, not...not her. He frowned at the realization and wondered what would have happened if she had been at the mall instead. Would she have slaughtered everyone instead? The lighting guy, he believed his name was Jack, would''ve either countered Lana perfectly with Silverlight if it was conductive, but if it wasn¡¯t, then she''d have blasted through him with contempt. Dave would''ve been hard-pressed to fight her. He remembered how precise and in control Lana had been during the dodgeball match against people with powers just as dangerous as theirs. Or more. Yet she had dominated. She wouldn''t have lost an arm. Did he make a mistake by pulling back? He didn''t want to kill anyone, but he had prioritized everyone else by not using Spatial Control more. He could have shot light with Photon Shot or by teleporting projectiles at them. Why had he teleported up to them instead of playing to his strengths and zipping around like a sniper? Or just Spatial Control to... to handle them entirely. Instead, he''d gotten in close. He might¡¯ve gone to jail, but according to Mr. Daniels he had risked that already. Too caught up in the moment. He believed he was invincible and lost an arm for it. She wouldn''t have made the same mistake. "¡ªrth to Eli!" Lana said as she waved her hand in front of his face. He snapped back to the present with a start as he glanced at her and her friend. "Finally. Was that run really that hard for you?" "What? No, it''s fine. I used Recovery." He said with a side glance at her friend who had his phone out instead of paying attention to what was going on around him. "But I wanted to ask you about something... privately?" "What is it?" She furrowed her brow as they stepped aside while her friend walked farther away down the sidewalk next to the parking lot. "I maxed out Spatial Control earlier and got offered two powers that I wanted your opinion on. Enhanced Anatomy which seems like it''ll improve my whole body once, but be hard to level, or Dynamic Vitality which will boost me in general but then I''ll have free reign on what''s improved afterward at a moment''s notice." "That''s it? We don''t need to talk about that privately." She scoffed then called out, "Hey, Theo! Has anyone in the group or on the forums gotten ''Enhanced Anatomy'' or ''Dynamic Vitality?" "Hey! Don''t just shout out my power options for the world to hear!" Eli hissed, but she had already started walking past him towards Theo who was scrolling on his phone at a frantic speed. "It''s fine, Eli, but you really shouldn''t have used Recovery yet. Whichever one you would have chosen would have been able to do more work when your body is broken down. That and it would''ve been better for you to wait for your new light power to do the work for you." "Oh..." "I don''t see much about ''Dynamic Vitality'', but Enhanced Anatomy is a pretty simple body boosting power. It''s noted as an incredibly stable foundation for power crafting though. Pretty bland otherwise as a R3 Evo-0." "R3?" Eli asked as he stared at Theo as if he''d spoken a foreign language. "Rarity Three. Each evolution tier seems to have various tiers of quality inside of it. Think of cards or characters in a game. Not all cards or characters are equal, right?" "Yeah, sure." "So, some powers are beyond basic like ''Strong'' which makes whoever has it stronger, but that''s about it. Great for perk mining though." "Huh?" Eli asked as Lana rolled her eyes and started to lead them towards the woods outside of the parking lot. "Come on, we can at least walk and talk." "Please. I don''t want to be asked to stay longer," Theo said while rushing to keep up with Lana''s frightfully fast pace. "What''s perk mining?" Eli asked after he teleported past them and then started walking. He wouldn''t rush when he didn''t have to. "Do you know what perks are?" "Yeah?" Eli asked in alarm. He really hoped these power nuts weren''t secretly killing people for perks... "Hm. Okay. Well, you can take any evo-0 power and dismantle it for perks. You''ll get a choice out of however many options then bam! You have a perk. Once you get two or more perks though you can combine them to create a whole new power entirely. Perks are also *far* cheaper than powers and there isn''t as much of a cap to how many perks you can have in total like there are with powers!" Theo explained in an animated tone as he waved and gestured with his hands as they entered the woods. "What''s the power limit?" "Fifteen for evo-0 then ten for evo-1. No one has been able to get enough evo-2 or above to really figure out the limits, but people assume it counts down by five each evo tier." "Theo," Lana said warningly, "Dynamic Vitality or Enhanced Anatomy?" "Well, it depends on the rest of your build." Theo turned to study Eli with a suddenly intense gaze as if he were looking at him with more than just his eyes. "You definitely need one. Your body is super fucking weak and weird, sorry to say it man, but it''s true. Whatever power you have for it now isn''t enough. You teleported, but it was near instantaneous instead of delayed, so it''s probably merged or evolved, and you said something about Recovery?" Eli nodded, dumbfounded. Normally he''d try to deny it, but this kid was scarily accurate. "Alright, so, again I''m sorry, but your build is a fucking mess. My younger brother who''s eleven has a better build than you and he only has two perks. I''m all for utility and everything man, but how impatient are you?" "Apparently enough to get Teleportation at the Initialization..." Eli muttered as he glanced away catching Lana''s smirk as she stared open-eyed at Theo. Nope. Not going there. "But yeah, it is. I want some more body focused powers that I could hopefully merge with Recovery at some point." "Trying to grow an arm? Hate to say it, but that might be almost impossible if you were born without it." "No. I lost it. Yesterday." "Oh! Why didn''t you say so." Theo stopped as he reached his hand out and snared Eli back with startling strength. It felt like he could have flipped a rushing bull over with one hand despite how scrawny he was. Right as Eli opened his mouth to ask what the hell he was doing, he started to feel something. Hooks dug and ripped at the skin of his stump as if it were bubbling. It hurt like fire, worse even than when Dave had cut it off or when Jack had electrocuted him even as Recovery healed him. His stomach twisted into knots as he grit his teeth against the pain. A sharp scream tore from his throat before he realized that he wasn''t screaming. "Oh, damn. That wasn''t good. Sorry, man. It''s beyond me. There''s something in the scar tissue blocking me from healing it."Theo shook his hand out before he turned to smile at Lana. "I leveled up Biomantic Control and Regenerative Heal!" "Nice." Lana and him fist bumped while Eli tried to climb to his feet for a second before he teleported in place to stand up. "Alright, your turn. What powers do you have, Theo?" Eli asked as he glanced at Theo and how close he and his sister were standing... nope, still wasn''t his business. He was pretty pissed that he''d used his power without permission, especially when it had hurt so fucking badly. He needed to figure out how to teleport other people ASAP. "Oh, I have Shield, Biomantic Control, Regenerative Heal, Augmentative Enhancement, Stockpile, and Construct. All are evo-0, but I''m trying to wait until I have the best power or two before evolving them." "And you said I have too many powers?" Eli turned to raise his eyebrow at Lana who flushed. They started walking again. "But he has a plan for them. Unlike you." "Yeah! I''m going to tear apart or merge Augmentative Enhancement, Stockpile, and Construct for something I''m hoping will let me either create biological matter and if it doesn''t I''ll merge it with Shield. It''s going to be so badass." "Create biological matter?" Maybe it was Eli''s business if Lana was into this kid, he was a bit too crazy about powers. "Yeah man, imagine if I could just create an arm for you and plug it in. Boom. So much easier to heal. Or I could make some real bodily changes instead of tweaking things around a little. Bet I could create a giant body or something like the mechs my older brother makes." Theo nodded sagely as if any of that sounded remotely like a good idea while Lana beamed. Was it too late to call Dad and ask if he wanted to go to the beach still? Freshmen were horrifying. "Tell him about your shield idea!" Lana cried as she swung her hand a bit too excitedly and knocked it clean through part of a tree trunk. Bark and tree matter exploded in a spray as if her hand had been a battering ram. Theo brushed his fingers across the tree and in moments it was restored with only a bare patch of missing bark left. "Or I could take some of those same powers and maybe something else to mix with Shield! I want to create something impenetrable. Something that this one won''t be able to shatter with her pinky finger. Then I can have armor almost as cool as hers!" Eli couldn''t tell if he was more afraid, concerned, or endeared by Theo. He was very, very strange, but kind of sweet? He wasn''t using these powers for anything else but because he thought they were cool and he wanted the best one he could get. He started to open his mouth to ask about something else when another thought occurred to him. "Wait, did you want to become a doctor or something? I''m assuming healing was your Initialization power." "It was, but no. I had cancer for the longest time and¡ª" Theo continued speaking, but with that and what he said about his older brother, Eli realized how and where he recognized Theo. Right as they walked up to a clearing next to a park with a couple of picnic benches filled with teenagers from their school. One, in particular, stood out where he sat next to a tarp spread out on the ground with a bunch of shiny stuff beneath the shade of a tree. A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. Roman Anders. One of his old best friends who he hadn''t spoken to since the beginning of the school year. Was it too late to run? Theo kept talking as he walked into the clearing towards his brother who was fiddling with a bunch of mechanical parts laid out on a tarp with two toolboxes beside him. A bunch of other teenagers from their school were messing around with their powers or playing games on the half overgrown basketball court nearby. Roman looked up with wide eyes as they approached and then smiled broadly once he saw Theo. "Hey bro. Glad you could make it. Did you finally bring that girl you''ve... been talking about...?" Roman trailed off once he noticed Eli and Lana. Warmth drained off his face instantly like the first cold breath of autumn. He stood up with a glare as if daring Eli to come closer or run away. Darkness started to close in as Eli prepared to teleport back and away when Lana''s hand clamped around his wrist and tugged him forward as she led him over to Roman and Theo. Rapid Recovery started to pulse through him, soothing¡ª He unequipped Rapid Recovery instantly. This wasn''t the time for that. Although he wished one of the new offered powers could grant him some bravery too. He needed more than physical strength. "Eli. It''s been a while." Roman''s tone was as glacial and cutting as the arctic wind. Too bad he couldn''t teleport there instead of being here. Eli took a deep breath, no, he''d promised Dr. Simmons he''d try to be better. Do better. How could he do that if he kept running from everything? "Hey Roman..." Eli said awkwardly while Lana picked up Theo and slung him over her shoulder to his giggling protests as she hauled him away. "How have you been?" "Oh, I''ve been great! Nothing like getting beaten up and harassed by the Tom Squad every day. You know how it is, oh wait, no. You don¡¯t. You abandoned us. After two years of hanging out nearly every day, you ghosted and ignored us." "They''re still bullying you guys?" Eli blinked as he latched onto what he said while he studied Roman''s hard-angled face. "I thought they''d stop if I didn''t talk to you guys anymore." "''You guys'' who do you mean by that? Are you talking about Scott who had to move away because it destroyed him? That ''you guys'' or do you mean someone else?" "Scott moved away? Where?" "Far east coast somewhere. He stopped talking to me too." Roman shrugged, but his gaze was as unyielding as steel. "So. Why are you here? Are you going to join in and make my life hell too or is this about the Power Club?" "Power Club? I don''t know why I''m here, to be honest, Lana dragged me here. But..." He sighed to take a steadying breath. "I''m glad she did. I''ve been meaning to talk to you." "Pass," Roman grunted as he plopped back down to start fiddling with the gears of some kind of chassis. "Look, Roman, I''ve been a huge asshole." "The biggest." "Right. And I know it''s not really an excuse, but I... I really hoped they would leave you alone since Tom was targeting me, you know? I thought... well I don''t know what I thought exactly, but I hoped they''d leave you and Scott alone if they didn''t think we were talking anymore." "Apparently you''re a dumbass too," Roman scoffed. "They weren''t bullying you. They were bullying us, damn it Eli, how egotistical are you? Besides, even if they were only bullying you, why would you think we''d be okay with you disappearing so they could gang up on you alone?" Silence stretched between them as Eli shifted awkwardly from foot to foot while Roman worked on... whatever that was. "What the hell are you even working on?" Eli asked as he leaned over to try and get a look casting a shadow over the bits and pieces of mechanical parts and tools. "A mech or power armor." "Really? You can make one?" Eli asked in surprise as he tried to get closer covering all of it with shadow. "I know you''ve always loved them in books and video games and that''s why you wanted to go into Engineering, but still..." "Of course, I can make one." Roman huffed then shook his head as he slumped in defeat. "Well. Technically I can create one, but I haven''t figured out how to build a real one." "Cryptic much?" Eli chuckled as he felt some of the ice between them melt a bit. Roman turned to stare at him before waving his hand beside the tarp. "Sit down so the sun doesn''t cover everything in a shadow and I''ll tell you." "Yeah, yeah." Eli rolled his eyes then watched as the slate-grey shadow darkened to a gloom black before it slid away to coil around Eli''s feet instead. "... Please tell me that was you." "Yeah, I have a shadow power," Eli said vaguely as prodded at the sensation of the power in his mind. He hadn''t even noticed, but it had felt like it was a part of him. Like a... like a limb. Eli shifted around as he willed the shadows to coalesce around his stump and grow into¡ª Pain spiked from his shoulder as he felt something inside of him move to bud up against his stump where it collided with something else right at the edge where it had scarred. Whistling static echoed in his ears as he yanked his focus away from Voidshade Control and waited for Body of Light to stop the pain and heal whatever the fuck that was. It had almost felt like shadow that wasn''t his. Clearly, his power worked on the darkness inside of his body. So did some still remain from when Dave had hacked his arm off? "Sorry, what was that?" Eli asked once he realized he¡¯d zoned out and that Roman was staring at him with horror. "Holy shit. What the fuck happened to your arm? Are you okay? Theo!" Roman asked rapid-fire before shouting for his brother who was on the other side of the field sparring with a silver-armored Lana. "It''s fine, Roman," Eli sighed as he plopped down on the grass. "It''s been rough." "Rough? You lost your fucking arm!" "Oh that. Yeah, I already tried healing it Ram," Theo said as he reached them. He wasn''t even out of breath from his sprint. Lana glanced at Theo with a tilted head as if asking if she should come over too. He shook his head. "It''s like totally messed up. He even has a Recovery power and it didn''t do anything." "Do you have any other powers that might help? Eli?" Roman asked all panicky as he reached out to grab Eli''s uninjured shoulder as if he were bracing him from the reality of what had happened. It broke Eli''s heart a little actually. How much of this year did he let Tom ruin? "Uh... well, I have Rapid Recovery and a light-body hybrid power," he lied through his teeth since he didn''t know how rare stat powers were yet, "and I have a separate shadow power and teleportation." "He also has new powers available. Two body ones: Dynamic Constitution and Enhanced Anatomy, right?" "Almost. It''s Dynamic Vitality," Eli read off his status screen to double check. Would either of those help with the shadow residue stuck in his arm or would Rapid Recovery still not be enough by itself to heal it? While he kind of liked the kid, he didn''t know if he trusted Theo to do something the doctors weren''t able to do. "Pick one right now. Hopefully, you''ll get offered the other next time." Roman snapped his fingers causing the half-built chassis to dismantle itself into raw parts before he pulled out various odds and ends of parts and metal from his toolboxes until his tarp looked more like an organized junkyard than anything else. "What are you doing?" Eli frowned while he watched Roman move his hands rapidly as he began to build something. "Hopefully something that''s unneeded. Pick a power." "Okay, okay." Eli read through his list again as he glanced at Enhanced Anatomy and Dynamic Vitality. The one would apparently be a huge improvement to his body in general while the other could let him customize how well his body performed at any given moment while still improving him in general. It was hard to decide though. Enhanced Anatomy would continue to make his body better while Dynamic Vitality would do more to help him use his body and its resources better. Plus there was the chance that it would synergize and eventually merge very well with Rapid Recovery. It''d also be easier to level up, which depending on how long Voidshade took to max out, could mean that he''d be able to sneak in another power or two for himself or for trading. That sealed the deal for him. Dynamic Vitality would do less for his body short and long term, but he''d have far more options that he could develop it into and more customization with how he used it. Plus, if he got some other power options he could turn it into something like Assimaltive Constitution down the line after it was merged with Rapid Recovery. He equipped it in the empty slot left by Rapid Recovery being equipped and shivered as he felt the power take root. Power, literal power, felt like it had been plugged into the base of his spine and injected into him. Strength flooded into his muscles, his bones felt denser and more resilient, and his senses and ability to process them sharpened. It felt like everything about him got dialed up a couple of notches. A shiver later and it was done. Dynamic Vitality had found its new baseline. A prod at the power felt like it was a series of wells. Stamina, Perception, and Strength. Each well had the same amount of power, but he could drain each well into each other if he wanted. A tug on Stamina emptied it completely until it dropped to his pre-Dynamic Vitality level then he focused on Strength and shuddered as his muscles and bones felt like they had inflated two-fold. Pure physical might and durability. He emptied Strength to siphon it all into Perception and smiled as the veil of mundane life was ripped away entirely. Light and colors already felt more vivid with Body of Light, but now the whole world seemed like it jumped in quality. It was like the leap from a toddler''s art to a fully fledged professional at the height of their career. Every chirping buzz of insects and spoken word around him felt as full of melody and life as a symphony in a room with perfect acoustics. He wrinkled his nose at the stench of sweat and decay that hung on the wind, but the earth had a rich, loamy scent. Itches prickled at him where his clothes pinched wrong, but the breeze felt so refreshing. Eli released his hold on Dynamic Vitality and relaxed as the three wells reached an equilibrium again. Strength, Perception, and Stamina were all in balance. "Feel like your arm can grow back?" Theo asked when Eli came back to himself. He shook his head after a quick push with Voidshade revealed that the shadowy residue felt the same as before. Worse even. It had darkened a shade. Eli siphoned Stamina and Perception both into Strength and grunted at the stark difference as it deepened three-fold. Another nudge from Voidshade proved that he was right. The residue had darkened considerably from a cloying black when he''d gotten Dynamic Vitality. Now with Strength filled to the max it was noxious, a devouring dark that ate up all light that came near to burn it out. It felt toxic as if it were leeching from him. He allowed Dynamic Vitality to return back to normal again. "Did you see that?" Eli asked Theo who nodded with a cringing look. "Yeah... that was pretty bad." "Eli, we gotta go. Mom just called. She''s pretty upset that Dad let us leave." "Okay, well, thank you both," Eli said to both of them as he stood up before he tentatively asked, "See you tomorrow?" Roman paused his building of what looked like the very early stages of a prototype for a mechanical prosthetic arm. He glanced down at it and then up at Eli with a creased brow and a small frown before he nodded and got back to work. Lana nodded at Theo before she started walking off into the woods. Eli waved at both of them before he teleported next to Lana. ¡°Both of you should come by after school! Lana will show you the way!¡± Theo called after them to which they waved at him before disappearing into the woods completely. "Well?" "Thank you for this. For that," Eli sighed. "I needed it." "Good. Glad to hear it." She bit her lip before she stopped to look back at the clearing from the veil of foliage. "I wish we could stay longer... is there any chance we could and you could teleport us home?" Eli frowned as he thought about it. Space bent and buckled around him as he created a teleportation point a couple of feet away from them. He widened it to include both of them and started to drag them through when it collapsed and Lana hissed in pain. He startled and glanced over to her wounded hand. Deep scratches as thin as hair bled in a fractal pattern up to her wrist. They started to scab while he watched. "Guess not." She held it up to inspect it then shrugged. "Sorry about that, I¡ª" "It''s fine, Eli. Let''s get moving." She started sprinting at a full tilt hard enough that the ground shook as if an elephant had jumped. Her feet carved jagged trenches through the dirt until she got up to speed. He stared down at the twin holes in the ground with a shock of fear at how strong she was. Eli turned to watch her disappear in the distance to the sound of branches shattering as he wondered how durable she must be... and how dangerous his Spatial Control must be if a failed teleport was enough to scratch her durable skin. A few teleports later caught him up to her before he sprinted to keep up with her heavily utilizing Dynamic Vitality and Body of Light which glared even brighter than before. He even closed the gap between them a little in terms of speed and stamina. He was making progress, no matter how slow it was. Before too long their race back home brought them to their neighborhood. Mailboxes, fences, and cars whipped past them in a honking blur as they rounded the street towards home. Where Mom stood on the porch tapping her foot, her face as thunderous as a storm front which only grew darker as they came barreling in. "Lana. Go to your room. We need to talk, Eli." Grass and weeds started to grow in a snarled tangle as they began to reach towards her in her anger. "But¡ª" Lana started to protest then quit as Mom shifted her glare onto her. She walked past Mom with a surly, "Fine." "Rick! He''s back." Mom called as Lana hurried inside with clenched fists. Dad slipped out after her with face flushed red with anger and disappointment with a far too familiar sack held in his hands that he dumped out all over the porch. "Want to tell us what this is about?" Dad asked as he pointed down at the pile of dirty clothes stained with grass and blood. Alongside it was an analog watch and a pair of shoes with clods of dried mud and little sprouts of green that speckled the dirt. "H-how did you find that?" Eli asked then cowered when their glares intensified. That was apparently the wrong question to ask. "Well. I was looking through photo albums when I remembered there were far more in storage¡ª" ''Oh no, don''t say it,'' Eli winced in fear of¡ª "¡ªup in the attic. When I sensed some plants up there. At first, I was afraid it was mold or something, but no, it was this. So. What are you up to Elias Herbert Newton? Playing hero or vigilante? After you told us that you were only at the mall to help us? Anything you''d like to tell us?" "Um... there''s a perfectly good explanation for this that I am about to tell you." Eli''s brain was a whirlwind of activity as he searched, hunted, and prayed for any answer that he could think of to help him out here. He hadn''t expected this! "I''d like to hear it sooner rather than later." Eli opened his mouth then closed it again. How did he explain how he was, no had been sneaking out. It''d been a few days, maybe that would help him a little? Then he looked into his mom''s hardened green eyes and then his father''s icy blue-gray eyes. Nope! Wasn''t happening. There was no minimizing the damage. "Okay... I''ve been sneaking out off and on to practice with my powers. That''s it! It''s not a big deal, really!" He shouldn''t have said that. "Oh, it''s not? I didn''t realize. Do you think it''s a big deal, Rick?" Mom asked in a voice thick with far too much forced calm. "Yes. I do. You mean to tell us that you''ve been sneaking off into who knows where to fuck around with dangerous powers in the middle of a federally mandated curfew? Where have you been going? How exactly have you been practicing with your powers?" "Um, a field halfway to New Faram?" "New Faram?" Mom screeched as she shook her head and walked over to sit down on one of the porch chairs. "Please deal with this, Rick. I can''t." "No, no, halfway to it! Out in the country in some abandoned field! I don''t think anyone owns it!" "Eli... there isn''t such a thing as ''abandoned land''," Dad groaned as he massaged his forehead with both of his hands. Wow. He''d really done it this time. "What did you do there?" "Just practiced with my powers to level them up and merge them! That''s it! I swear." Eli met Dad''s wide-open stare for a few seconds before he sighed and nodded. "Okay, fine. I believe you, but... what the hell were you thinking?" "That my powers can be a bit destructive and I''d rather go where there''s nothing to destroy?" "Except a farmer''s land or state-owned property." Dad started pacing as he combed his fingers through his hair until it poofed up. "Alright. Well. You did what you did and¡ª" "No. He''s grounded." "What does he even have, Addy?" Dad asked as he turned to Mom. "He lost his phone, he doesn''t really have his own computer, he doesn''t really drive or go anywhere and he''s almost an adult. What¡¯s the point?" "He has his powers." She stood up as if inspiration had struck her like a lightning bolt. "And people can trade them, right?" "Yeah, but he''d have to start over at level zero unless they''re maxed out and he''d be almost powerless." "No, he wouldn''t be. He has that stat power you told me about and probably half a dozen new ones by now. Tell us what you have." "Are you really going to make me give you my powers?" Eli blinked as he looked at both of his parents and then realized they were. He sighed as he pulled up his status and read outloud the info. Rapid Recovery Ev. 1/Lv. 3> [Stats: Body: Light (Photon Shot) Mind: None Will: None ] [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Spatial Control Ev. 0/ Lv. 5 (Maxed) Slot Two -- Voidshade Control Ev.0/Lv. 1 Slot Three -- Dynamic Vitality Ev. 0/Lv. 0 ] [Unequipped Powers: Rapid Recovery Ev. 1/Lv. 3 } "See, he''ll be fine. Give me Spatial Control and Voidshade Control," Mom said with a nod. "You can keep everything else until either your birthday or if Dr. Simmons says otherwise." "But... I just got Voidshade Control and it''s been hard to level and, and I think it''s connected to why the doctors can''t heal my arm..." Eli babbled as he met her unrelenting gaze until he said the part about his arm. Her glare softened as she turned to look at Dad. "I think that''s fine if he keeps it, don''t you? We''re most concerned about him actually teleporting about as he pleases, right?" "Fine." Mom sighed as the trading prompt vanished then reappeared with the change. ¡°You¡¯re really going to take it away?¡± Eli glanced up at his mother¡¯s eyes which were unflinching. Dad looked away. Fucking coward. Always that ¡®united parenting¡¯ bullshit. He thought about teleporting away, never coming back. With his powers, he could be a ghost and survive easily, anywhere. It¡¯d be easy. ¡°Just for a little while Eli.¡± ¡°You know I could still sneak out, right? I¡¯ve done it long before powers¡­¡± Her glare hardened into the ¡®You better listen right now or else¡¯ look. Fear jolted up his spine. Space started to warp behind him as he prepared to teleport away. They wouldn¡¯t be able to stop him. Then he thought about his friends who he had just started to reconnect with. Lyra who had withdrawn into herself ever since the mall. She was acting like¡­ well like him. He didn¡¯t like seeing the pain in her eyes whenever she would look at him. He nodded at his mom. Eli would give it up, for now, but the minute he was an adult and had it back he¡¯d run if things didn¡¯t get better. It was only a week until his birthday. With a sinking heart, he accepted. Spatial Control disappeared as it was ripped out of his soul when it disappeared from his System status. At the same time there was a crashing gust of air and all of his belongings popped out of his bubbles from the void and spilled across the lawn. Maybe it was a good thing he had never gotten around to packing his car into a bubble. Chapter Seventeen "Can I drive us to school?" Lana asked as she stared longingly at his car as they started to leave. It was just them, Lyra was still at her friend''s house who said they were more than happy to take her to school. "No." Eli walked onto the sidewalk towards the school. He didn¡¯t want to drive or get to school any faster than he had to. His single hand was in the pocket of his hoodie with his backpack slung over his right shoulder. Every step sent it swaying awkwardly along with his empty, hanging left sleeve. Anxiety churned in his gut as he led the way. What were people going to say? "It''s okay, you know." "What do you mean?" He turned to look at her with a hollow stare. "Losing your teleportation for a bit sucks, but¡ª" "I''m not upset about that," he said then paused, "well, I am, but I''m more nervous about how people are going to react to my missing arm." "Oh." "Thanks." He glanced at her but she was starting to get ready to dash on ahead. "That might not be a good idea. You don''t want to bowl anyone over or piss off any drivers or anything." "Fine. It''s just so boring and slow walking." "Enjoy it! This used to be how slow we used to move every day. I think driving you everyday and powers , in general, have made you spoiled." "Ha ha, okay. That''s rich coming from you." She turned to glance at him with a smirk. "So they found out huh?" "Yeah, apparently mom found where I had stashed the training clothes. Ironically, I had just learned how to have basically a video game inventory of sorts. If I had thought about it I could''ve put them inside and no one would''ve ever known!" "It was only a matter of time. I would have told on you if you didn''t take me." She shrugged. "So you weren¡¯t bluffing? That''s pretty rude, you know." "Or is it irresponsible to sneak out anyways or I don''t know go haring off into a mall when people are firing guns and powers all over the place?" "Fine." They walked for a few minutes in silence before impatience and irritation started to prickle at him. Between Body of Light and Dynamic Vitality, he had so much strength and energy now that this slow pace was infuriating. Not to mention how easy it would''ve been to zip through a couple of teleports straight there. But then he¡¯d have to deal with people reacting to his arm. What would they say? He distracted himself with a glance at his status and how Rapid Recovery was unequipped. It was so hard for him to have it equipped and on all the time. Knowing that it was actually interfering with his emotions and helping him recover more than just physically had taken a lot of the fun out of it. It was still an incredible power though. Amazing even. The ability to not only heal himself but give him a flood of energy was invaluable. It was also dangerous. He didn¡¯t know whether or not his judgment was trustworthy when he could recover so easily. "Please don''t zone out and make this walk even more boring, Eli." "Sorry. I wish Lyra was here, to be honest. She always made walking or going to school more fun." "Yeah... I''m really worried about her." Lana turned to him with a grimace. "Saturday really shattered her. She wasn''t like you and me when it came to powers. Sure, she loves them, but they were only about the art for her." "And she was there at the mall right in the thick of it. They were at the food court, weren''t they?" "That''s what I heard, yeah. She won''t talk to me about it. She thinks I''m just jealous that I didn''t get to fight." "...You aren''t?" "No, of course not. I wanted to go and help protect them too." She glanced at him with a scrunched brow. "Sure, I like testing myself and improving my powers as much as I can, but a battlefield isn''t the place for that. I like a good fight, but that doesn''t mean that''s all I want to do." "What do you even want to do? I kind of assumed you''d be all for combat of any kind and that you were ready to join up with the Task Force when you were old enough." "Oh. Well, maybe. That''s my backup plan, I guess, but I really want to try out for sports again. Imagine a superpowered Olympics or just how sports will change in general! I''m still bummed I didn''t get in varsity or anything, but maybe there''ll be new divisions for powers and I can get in that." "I still can''t believe how badly you took failing to get into varsity. You''re in ninth grade, you''re not supposed to get in yet." "That''s just what they tell you," she said then added in a snarky tone. "I still can''t believe you ghosted all of your friends because Tom was a bit rude to you." "A bit rude to me?" Eli scoffed as he turned towards her incredulously. Heat flushed into his cheeks and down his arm as his temper started to rise. "He fucking bullied me and my friends, Lana. They fucking catfished me and linked the chatlogs everywhere. He''s beaten me and said disgusting things to you and about you at every turn!" "Yeah, but like, he''s actually not that bad. So what, he''s just a bit abrasive?" "Abrasive? You call stomping on someone''s chest and ribs ''a bit abrasive''? Abrasive is being a bit standoffish, maybe saying a couple of comments, he''s out of control." "But his parents beat him!" She protested then yelled, "Stop laughing! It''s not funny!" "No, obviously, it''s not. What''s funny is that you think that excuses it!" He shook his head as they started to get closer to the school. Fuck, no one was waiting outside. He wished he had his phone so he could check the time. They were probably almost late. "I mean, it doesn''t, but it''s not like it''s fully his fault then?" "It''s a good thing you have superstrength, Lana. You just better hope he doesn''t get it either." He shook his head as drained Perception and split it between Strength and Stamina as he started jogging to the school. Shadows writhed across his skin with a cold rasp as he drew closer to the doors. What would happen when people saw that he was missing his arm? What would he say? Eli stepped into the bustling cafeteria where most of the students waited at tables with breakfast or where they chatted with friends. He started to make his way over to the bathroom where he usually hid when he noticed Roman sitting at a table with Theo. He changed course. "Hi guys," he said as he sat down awkwardly as his empty sleeve fluttered as it swung out. "Hey man, is your sister here?" Theo''s eyes brightened at Eli''s presence then dimmed as he started searching over the crowd of sitting people for Lana. "What happened? You had to leave pretty fast yesterday. I haven''t seen you have to rush home that fast since you stayed the night last year and your parents found your browsing history..." Roman asked after putting down some kind of bizarre watch on a big bracelet thing that looked like it was fit for armor on the table. What was that called? Right, a bracer. "Okay, so, I''ve been sneaking out at night to practice my powers, right? Well, I had a secret bag in the attic full of different clothes, an analog watch so my dad wouldn''t sense it, and an old pair of shoes. Well, my mom found it and was furious at me. She grounded me and made me give her my Spatial Control power." "Spatial Control? You have an E4 teleportation power?" Theo hissed in excitement as he leaned forward then paused. "Wait. She made you give it to her? Ram, are our parents going to take our powers too?" "If you keep turning yourself into an abomination with them they might." Roman chuckled then turned back to Eli. "That''s pretty rough. At least it wasn''t your dad punishing you this time." "Thanks a lot, Eli. I just got detention for running and cracking the cement of the sidewalk." Lana grumbled as she plopped down on the other side of the table. "Oh, and I saw Kady by the way. She asked me about you. Apparently she had texted you or something and you never answered?" "Who''s Kady?" Roman and Theo asked at the same time as they both leaned closer to him. "Just a friend. A girl in my Spanish class." "What are you doing sitting with us? Go talk to her!" Roman commanded like a Legionnaire of his namesake. "Guys, I''m not intere¡ª" The bell rang signaling the start of classes in ten minutes. Eli got up as quick as he could and took off with his backpack bouncing awkwardly on his shoulder with every other step. Walking through the crowd was a humbling experience after the loss of Spatial Control. Fortunately, classes weren''t too bad. People reacted more or less how he expected. There was a lot of hubbub and general questions about his missing arm, but most teachers cut off the interrogation by his classmates as soon as they could. Other than that the hardest part was trying to figure out how to apply enough pressure whenever he wanted to write something. He really, really regretted merging Telekinesis with Teleportation now. Eventually, he figured out how to create an almost extra hand of barely warm constructed light on his remaining hand to brace the page. That brought him to his Social Studies class where he listened to the teacher drone on and on about the review for finals coming up. Eli figured a better use of his time would be to try and figure out how to use Voidshade Control better. The second he focused on the shadow beneath his desk he felt it respond instantly. A peek under was enough for him to see the faint midnight shadow deepen to black. He grabbed the shadow of his chair and had snake itself over to the circle he was forcing it all into. Where the old shadow had been was the faintest smudge of an outline. No black shadow or trace of light, only gray as if all the color had been leeched to where his circle was. He tried to shape it into words and felt resistance, so he compromised with a triangle. A cube. Then a horse... nope, it broke and snapped back to being a normal shadow as physics reclaimed it. But those were just flat shapes. Could he make them solid? The shadow rolled under his control again beneath his desk straight to the center where he tightened it into a circle. He tried ballooning it up vertically, but it did nothing other than a weak quiver. Maybe he needed more shadows? He didn''t feel as much resistance as he did with trying to force it into complicated shapes... Cords of shadow snaked out from beneath the folds of his clothes to where he pooled them in his shoes. He shivered at the frosty brush of the shadows as they crept down his skin. They trailed out over the top and onto the tile to join the far darker circle. Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. Another tug on the circle and he watched it flex as it deepened to the color of the void. He watched both with his eyes and his grip on Voidshade Control as it darkened further. Heat flooded into the power as the spot where the shadow rested became an absence. Fear shot through him at the thought that the power would be able to annihilate or devour the tile beneath it even as he felt it harden and rise into a cylinder before he dismissed it and let the shadows snap back to normal. He wished he still had Spatial Control so he could observe it from both sides. How much easier would it be to control and sense his connection with voidshade? Voidshade Control Ev. 0/Lv. 2> Voidshade Control Ev. 0/Lv. 3> He scraped the sole of his shoes over the spot he experimented with and frowned at the slightest of dips underneath his desk. Had that always been there? He decided to ignore it and pay attention to the lecture... at least until he remembered that lunch was coming up. Classes flashed through on a loop of people exclaiming about if he was okay, and what happened. It was way past the point of being tiresome. What was the point of gossip if it wasn''t talked about once and it was over? At lunch, he got his tray of food and sat down at his usual table with Kady who eyed him like an eagle watching a mouse scurry across a field straight towards her. "Hi, Kady..." He trailed off as he set his tray down with a clatter across from her. "So, I''ve heard some interesting things today." "Yeah," he slumped a bit. "I bet you have." "Are you okay? It sounds awful. I wish I could create permanent copies so I could give you an arm, but I can listen if you want to talk about it instead?" Eli''s mouth gaped wider as she continued to talk. A part of him had expected her to ask what had happened knowingly and then try to dig for info when he''d say he was at the mall. "Yeah... okay. I''ll take you up on that," Eli said before he started to explain more or less everything that had happened in the mall other than the part about who Dave was or that his parents were actually targeted. "You''re kind of a dumbass, Newton. But in a noble way." Kady shook her head at him while she played around with her plastic fork. "Well, what are you doing after school?" "What do you mean?" He frowned as he glanced up at her. "''What do I mean'', well are you going straight back home or were you going to do something else?" "Oh, well, my friend and his brother invited Lana and I to go hang out with them? I was probably going to do that, although... I''m not sure. I''m kind of in a lot of trouble so I might head straight home. And Lana got detention." "How about I meet you both outside school and we''ll find out?" She smiled while her hands twitched as if she were going to move them across the table closer to him. She didn''t. Eli didn''t know how he felt about that. So much had happened that he hadn''t really thought about anything like that in ages. They talked about the safe topic of Spanish next period and then how her weekend went before the bell rang and they threw their trash away and dropped their trays off. *** "There you are Eli!" Roman called out as he swooped in to join his conversation with Kady. Where they stood chatting outside the school on one of the surprisingly free benches. "Hi, Roman Anders, Mechanical Extraordinaire. Nice to meet you...?" "Kady. Kady Norton." She shook his hand as she introduced herself with a befuddled look on her face. "How do you know Eli?" "I''ve been his best friend for about two years." Roman shrugged off-handedly as he swung his backpack around. "I wanted to give you something real quick, Eli, but is there somewhere else we can go?" "Sure," Eli glanced at both of his friends before standing up and following behind Roman as he led the way around the school building to a more secluded area. Paranoia tingled down the back of his spine even though he knew the rustling of grass behind him was Kady and not Tom and his goons. "Alright, here we go." Roman flipped his backpack around as he zipped open the biggest pocket and revealed a scuffed unpainted mechanical prosthetic arm. Eli glanced at it in shock as he studied the hard planes and ridges of the protective shielding up to the joints at the elbow, wrist, and each of the small fragile knuckle joints for the fingers. He reached out to take it but Roman shook his head then nodded at the hanging sleeve of his hoodie. Eli shucked his backpack with a loud thud before he ripped his hoodie off too. He tugged the short sleeve back on his shirt to reveal the stump of what was left of his arm. It didn''t even have a scar. They''d been able to heal that, but not much else. "So. A couple of things first," Roman said as he started fitting the end to his shoulder. "It''s going to be ridiculously heavy at first. I used all of my powers and Theo also chipped in on it too." "What do you mean?" Roman eyed Kady warily then right as she was about to leave he spoke, "I have four different powers that I''m on track to merge into an ultimate mechanical assembly, analysis, and control power. So far I have all of the pieces and it works, but I gotta iron out the kinks." Cold metal pressed right up against what was left of his arm. Eli gritted his teeth and almost complained, but Roman beat him to it. "Sorry. You can''t cover it with cloth, I''ll explain in a second." He knocked his knuckles against the rounded part of the arm that cupped over his stump. Gears whirred as a band clamped and suctioned around his stump while Roman held up the weight of the arm. "Anyways. That''s just the first part of this. If that was all I had this would be literally impossible. I also have two dream-based powers. Oneiromantic Conjuration which doesn''t really apply here, but I want to merge it later on with the real star: Dreamer''s Enchantment." A cascade of spinning gears sounded off as the arm began to bend and wave as it flexed and spun. Plates and segments composing the outer arm began to slide and retract as it gradually started to shape itself to fit what his arm looked like before. "Wait, you mean?" Eli asked as he glanced from the prosthetic arm to Roman with a widening grin. "Hell yeah. I can weave other powers into objects. That''s what I did with mine and Theo''s so the arm will heal itself and be like a real arm once it''s bonded to you. The only downside is that our powers took up almost all the room on it. You''ll only be able to push one power through at a time." Roman explained as ran his free hand up and down the metal arm. "Alright, ready?" Eli nodded. One final knock and the prosthetic clamped down as all of the metal plates aligned themselves perfectly to where they were supposed to be. A tingle built right at the edge of his stump as a current started to run over his shoulder directly into his spine. Tension built as the muscles of his back locked up. Pain spiked in his jaw as he gritted his teeth. He collapsed to his knees as sensation started to jolt through the metal arm as the fingers flexed and bent almost wildly. He almost screamed at the weight of the air as his arm sliced through it from one movement to the next. From one moment to the next, debilitating torment turned to extraordinary pleasure as the arm gradually came under his control. Eli found himself kneeling in the grass next to a barricade of cloned Kady''s to block off the sight of him while Roman was muttering to himself about ways to fix it. He held up both of his hands with a blink and watched as they both squeezed into fists. Ecstasy crashed through him at the feeling of curling both of his hands into fists. At the joy of not having only one arm. Light glittered on the hardened panes and edges of the arm as it drew on his Body of Light. "How does it feel?" Roman asked nonchalantly as if he were trying to be smug while he swiped his hands across his sweat streaked forehead. "Like a glove," Eli grinned as he climbed to his feet with the assistance of the quartet of Kady''s. Two of which tried to hold him up while the others glared at Roman. "Are you insane? Like that''s cool and all, but what if that went badly?" "Ah, it''s fine." Roman stumbled over his words. "Theo could''ve helped him if it went badly." "Speaking of, where is Theo?" Eli asked while he waved his left arm again and watched it move in transfixed fascination. "I don''t know. Do you think he tried waiting for Lana?" "You mean... like a stalker?" Kady asked with a quartet of frowns. Eli had to restrain a chuckle at the dizzying sight. He doubted she knew she had her power still on. "I hope not," Roman sighed. "I really, really hope not. What do you think E¡ª" "Nope. Nuh-uh. Not my business. I tried interfering with her dating life before and it did not work." Eli shook both of his arms in an exaggerated motion. He didn''t think Theo would fight him like Tom, but still. Nope. If she needed him she''d ask or it''d be obvious. A stray thought fired across his mind... Did Lana have a weird thing for boys with ''T'' names? "C''mon, let''s go look for them," Roman said as he led the way towards the back of the school and the abandoned gymnasium. Eli started to hurry to keep the same pace, but Kady grabbed his hand to pull him back for a moment. "Are you sure you''re okay?" Kady whispered. "Yeah, I really am. It''s incredible," He whispered with a smile then he called out, "You''re a genius, Roman!" "Hell yeah!" Roman shouted as he whirled around and then smirked at the distance between them. "How about we split up? I''ll check behind here and you guys go around the building?" Eli opened his mouth to say it was fine, but Kady beat him to it. "Sounds good! We''ll meet you back at the front of the school!" Roman nodded and took off at a heavy sprint, for a mundane human. Eli winced inwardly at how low he ran. Everyone really did need a body focused power. He¡¯d need to try and convince his parents and Lyra to get one at some point. They were too weak without it. They walked along in awkward silence. Crisp grass rustled and crunched beneath their footsteps as they rounded the back of the school showing the fields where the baseball and football teams were practicing. "So, uh¡ª" Kady started to say right as he blurted out a realization that had just hit him as his mind caught up to his earlier thought. "Fuck! I forgot about Lyra!" He turned his head around back to the front of the school and hoped that she was still waiting there and hadn''t gone back home without them. His parents would kill him if he let her walk home alone after everything that had happened. "Oh, okay, should we¡ª" Eli had already turned radiant and kicked off in a flashing streak of light. Yards were chewed up in his mad dash as he pushed himself harder. Faster. He really missed Spatial Control now for sure. It was hard to run this fast and not be able to sense the surrounding space with ease. Too bad, otherwise he could''ve drained Perception to boost Stamina or Strength. A long walk of about ten to fifteen minutes shortened to about a minute as he slowed to a stumble. A gaggle of students eyed him warily as his radiant body turned back to flesh and blood... and metal. He scanned through each of them then sighed once he realized both Lyra and Lana were gone. Should he check inside? Eli started to shimmer as he was about to turn radiant and go blitzing through the halls before he stopped and decided to walk like a normal person. A fast walk though. While his parents probably would kill him if the school called about him using his remaining powers like that, they''d still be pretty upset if he left Lana and Lyra alone. He grumbled as he marched down hallway after hallway to check on the art rooms, the gyms (never know), and even the detention room. "Mr. Newton! Have you seen your sister?" barked Mr. Mitchell, the grizzled coach that was halfway into retirement. "Nope! I''m trying to find her." "Well, if you find her, let her know her being tardy added on an extra day." Eli nodded as he slowly walked away... then started jogging as slow, but fast as he could. He walked into the library and glanced over and across the shelves where he found Lyra chatting with a group of her friends. Relief. He really wished he had his phone though so he could text Lana or Roman and Kady to see if they''d found her. Lyra caught his eye with a wince as if she were afraid to see him standing close to the entryway, but she hurriedly said her goodbyes and walked over to him. "Hey Lyra." "Hi..." She frowned as they started to move back into the halls. "Did you need something? Dad said I could stay at Ava''s house again." "Oh. Sorry about that, my phone is broken... yeah." Eli frowned as he studied the dark circles under her eyes and the way she wouldn''t even make eye contact. She was hunched over as if she carried a massive weight. "Are you okay, Lyra?" "Pfft. Obviously not. We almost died and you didn¡¯t see what our parents did. They were¡­ they were monsters, Eli. Both of them. And you lost your arm and¡ª" She stopped as she finally glanced down at his mechanical arm that shimmered with bands of light still. He hadn''t been able to stop it from glowing, but he could dim it at least. "How did you...?" "Roman has powers that let him build it." He said offhandedly, he didn''t want to share his friend''s secrets in a public space especially. He almost asked more about how she was doing, but she looked so uncomfortable and upset that he didn''t want to hurt her any more than she already had been. "Well. I''ll let you go back to what you were doing, I guess, don''t be a stranger okay?" "Bye." Eli watched her leave with a frown before he left the library to head for the front of the school building and blinked at seeing everyone gathered out there. He really needed to fix his phone or get a new one. "Where''s Lyra?" Lana asked, breaking off her conversation with Kady. "She''s staying over at her friend Ava''s place tonight." He started walking off to go home before pausing to turn around. "Thank you guys so much, but we should head home. I don''t want to be in any more trouble and..." "It''s okay, we get it." Roman nodded as he stepped closer to him. He held his hand out for fist bump which Eli touched the knuckles of his right hand against. "The other one." Eli grinned as he tapped the knuckles of his new mechanical arm and hand against Roman''s. "Thank you, seriously. Thank you too Theo!" "Of course! Let me know if you figure out that residue thing. If your power isn''t enough to heal it, I will." Theo called out from where he''d moved over to say his own goodbye''s to Lana. "Bye Eli!" Kady called as she rushed over to hug him. "I''m glad you were okay after everything that happened." After a few more moments of farewells, they left. "I''m really starting to get worried about Lyra," Eli admitted as they shambled back home. "Me too. She''s usually not like this. We''re the ones that get upset or flip out about things, but she''s... she''s actually hurting." Lana''s voice croaked as if she were about to start crying. She took hold of his shoulder briefly before letting go again. They walked home without saying another word. Chapter Eighteen "These charges have to be entirely bullshit, right?" Dad fumed while he paced a tread across the carpet as he bounced from one wall to the other. Eli sat uncomfortably on the living room couch unsure of what to do. Lana had headed straight into her room and Dad had pulled him aside so they could call a good lawyer he''d been referred to. So far it had been nothing but a lot of one-sided yelling and Eli trying to practice Voidshade Control while he waited. He had figured out he could switch a shadow to be more void-like where it had started to consume heat, turning it darker and more solid. He stared at a piece of paper he''d set on the carpet next to the couch after he tore it out of his notebook. With a flick of his finger, Eli sent out another tendril of shadow that whipped across the floor. Resistance pressed against his will as he tried to keep the void away from darkening the shadow. Without the void, it had little solidity to it, but he didn''t want Voidshade, he wanted Voidshadow. A ribbon of shadow as thick as a finger skipped across the page before he managed to slide it underneath the page to its shadow. Sweat beaded on his forehead as he struggled against the void that wanted to consume the darkness and everything it contained. He squashed the void as he pinched the shadow to condense it to a single pinprick of night. As the shadow grew denser and stronger, so did the pressure from the void. It wanted to reconcile with it and dominate it. But he didn''t allow it. Something was missing though. The shadow felt primed and ready to turn solid and follow his every whim and command. Voidshade was already familiar to him after a couple days of practice. It felt like it was the nexus, the crossroad between Spatial Control and Body of Light... just different. Hopefully, he¡¯d be able to get Spatial Control back tonight. Ever since he¡¯d gotten home he¡¯d worked like a dog to clean and do everything else he could to hopefully get on Mom¡¯s good side by the time she came home. If not, therapy was tomorrow. Dr. Simmons would have to help her see reason. Sure, he understood that sneaking out in such a dangerous situation was irresponsible and that his parents didn¡¯t understand why he had gone to the mall to help save them. But after a day of not having it¡­ Eli''s eyes prickled as tears threatened to spill down his face. He ignored it. He felt the light around him with his intimately improved connection. Every light had its shadow. It was only the absence of it, but the brighter the light, the darker the shadow and vice versa. After closing his eyes, he pushed with his senses as he focused on feeling the light flow from the bulbs overhead and scattered throughout, as he felt the light that streamed in through the windows. Then he marshaled his focus through Voidshade Control and felt how eager it was to diminish the light. Just as the light wanted to brighten the dark. He gave both what they wanted. Light''s vitality poured into the endless depths of the darkness''s embrace as it sought to consume it. Movement twitched under the page as the shadow beneath bulged from insubstantial shadow turning solid. He squeezed his eyes shut as he fed more light into the shadow. As it swelled with growing solidity, so too did the void''s hunger and its fight grow. Pain blooded under his skull. He willed the shadow to rise from the floor like a stalagmite that speared through the paper with ease. The torn scrap of paper dissolved as the void surged free and devoured it. Veins of voidshade pulsed through each and every fiber inside of it. Frost crept across the page as it wrinkled and then hardened as the void ripped all of the heat from it. Pressure spiked as he wrestled the void back from the shadow pooled at the bottom where it touched the carpet. He didn''t want the frost or consumption to spread there. Steam misted and rolled off the paper. Eli willed the shadow to rise and writhe beneath the frozen crumpled page to support it as he lifted it in the air. A grin cracked across his face as he brought the floating paper to hover right in front of him. New strength flooded into the shadow as he allowed the void to sunder the paper to pieces then watched as they vanished into the voidshade like a rock dropped into a still pond. A mass of shadow roiled in the air under the might of nothing but his will. He crushed it into a hardened sphere the size of a basketball before he compressed it down farther to a dot. It darted in tight whipping whirls through the air as he guided it through looping patterns. "Wow, it''s really dark in here," Dad said as he walked back into the room out of the kitchen. "Anyway, I just got off the phone with our new lawyer, Abraham Hauff, who said that Mr. Daniels is not accurately representing anything at all. But first, he will check with the NFPD about the charges concerning Saturday, but he did confirm that you and Lana have no business being at those ¡®mandatory¡¯ meetings. Apparently, it isn''t mandatory to track power changes and developments either unless someone has committed prior crimes. Same deal with these mandatory meetings. They¡¯re recommended, but in no way required. He said that only the Initialization power needs to be reported and that the scaling system will be changed a bit too. Too many revolts and other bad situations." "So I''m in the clear?" Eli asked as he allowed the voidshade dot to disperse. A wave of darkness rippled through the darkened room before light flashed back through. In moments the light levels returned back to normal. Excitement vibrated through his veins like rising bubbles in a glass of soda. "Yes. You¡¯re in the clear. Hopefully. Lana should be too." Dad nodded as he stepped forward, his eyes darted from Eli to the space where he''d ran his Voidshade Control through its paces. "Have you figured out your shadow power then?" "I think so. I wish I could test it, but it''s a bit hard. I think I''m on track to figuring out how to use it similarly to Photon Shot also." "What would that be? Umbral Shot?" Eli shrugged as he studied his dad''s face and saw nothing but interest and acceptance. Unlike with how Mom seemed to take every opportunity to find fault with him when it came to mundane and power-based matters. He clenched his metal and flesh-and-blood fists tight at his sides. ¡°Why did you let her take away Spatial Control, Dad?¡± ¡°Eli¡­ You¡¯ve gone too far. I appreciate what you¡¯ve done, but goddamn, your actions have been dangerous. It¡¯s¡ª¡± ¡°It¡¯s not the same world anymore.¡± Eli crossed his flesh and metal arm in front of his chest. ¡°Yes. I¡¯ve done dangerous, maybe even stupid things, but it¡¯s a dangerous and scary world now. You just said there were too many revolts and riots. Why take away the one power that can guarantee my safety?¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to talk to her again, okay? I¡­ I don¡¯t know. I don¡¯t like everything you¡¯ve done, but we¡¯ve all made mistakes. This is a shitty situation and there isn¡¯t exactly any parenting books that cover raising kids with physics-breaking powers, alright? We¡¯re trying.¡± ¡°Try harder.¡± Eli frowned to which his Dad chuckled. ¡°God, you remind me of myself when I was a kid. I blamed my parents for everything wrong that happened in my life, and they were definitely responsible for a lot, but not all of it. No parent wants to push their kid away, but we¡¯re trying to help prepare you for the world if it¡­ well if it maintains any sense of normalcy at all. But yes, you¡¯re right. We went too far.¡± ¡°So why does Mom not trust me then?" "She trusts you." Dad blinked as he scrunched his brow in confusion. "Then why does she keep yelling at me over the slightest thing?" Eli growled. "It''s like she thinks I''m some bloodthirsty maniac ready to destroy everything in sight! She acts like I''ve changed when I haven''t! Plus, I''m using my powers just as much if not more than Lyra and Lana! It''s not like I would''ve even been hurt in the first place if it wasn''t for your old business partners!" Dad stared at him for a moment before he sat down on the nearest chair. He rubbed at his forehead for a few seconds before he spoke, "She''s afraid, Eli. Not of you, but of the world. Of herself. These powers are literally her worst nightmare. Remember? I told you that right at the beginning. We watched you sink over the course of a year where you hid in your room and withdrew from everything. Whenever we tried to talk to you about it, you ignored us or you denied that anything was wrong. Eventually, we just assumed that you were focused on school and that you were stressed about college and all of that. But then..." He sighed. "Then the world got powers and you started coming back. You had light in your eyes again. You showed interest and passion in something again as you threw yourself into these powers like someone stranded in a desert who found water. We were so happy and glad that you were back¡­ but also alarmed. Then our home was broken into and you had to fight for your life. Your determination only grew. It became an obsession. Lana is obsessed and has problems too, don''t get me wrong, but she''s doing what she''s always done. Same with Lyra. You''ve thrown yourself deeper and deeper into this every day that has passed. And then..." "Saturday." Eli nodded. "Yes. I don''t think you understand and I don''t ever want you to, but it was bad. I won''t presume to know or try to weigh the difference between our trauma at the mall, but it broke your mom. It has broken me. Dr. Simmons referred me to another doctor at that office for me to see during your appointments. It¡¯s just¡­ the things we had to do... it was bad, Eli. Very bad. And she''s hurt because Lyra has been distant from us since as if we¡¯re the bad guys. And well¡­ maybe we are. We never thought that Dave and Sandra would get out and that they¡¯d come for us. We¡¯ve been trying to look for somewhere else to go, but¡­ every airport is still locked down or flights cost a fortune. The police say they¡¯re on their trail, but I don¡¯t know. They keep slipping away. The infrastructure of our world is not equipped to handle any of this. And well, back to what I was saying, your mother has always been afraid. Anxious about the world and about safety. Did you know when she was little she wouldn¡¯t even go into a cave once on a family vacation because she had to wear a hard hat? Now the world has powers that only grow scarier each day." "I see," Eli said as he studied his dad''s broken face and his shaky breath. He opened his mouth to ask what he thought and how what he did was bad then if he stood up for himself and for them. Whether or not it was just because he was still a minor that it was wrong. Mom''s car pulled into the driveway. Her car beeped as she locked it then a moment later she walked through the door and saw them. "Hello, how was everyone''s day?" She asked carefully as she swept into the room and sat on a chair across from them as she glanced from Dad to Eli with a curious look. Her eyes brimmed red with tears. "Pretty good. I spoke to that lawyer finally and he''s pretty confident he''ll be able to resolve our issues with Mr. Daniels. How was your day?" "Good," Mom said as she leaned back into her seat with a sigh. "These companies treat us like we''re miracle workers and don''t understand it takes time and their effort to improve their workplace culture." The pause stretched to silence before Mom asked cheerfully, "Where did you get the metal arm, Eli?" "Roman Anders made it for me." "Oh good! You guys are talking again? I''m glad!" Mom beamed as the conversation landed on a familiar topic. Relief thawed the fear and anxiety that sat like a void-frozen stone in his chest. "Are you going to invite him to your birthday party?" "We''re throwing a birthday party?" Eli blinked. Why was she talking about everything like it was all fine and normal? "You bet we are. You''re turning eighteen, why wouldn''t we? Do you have any other friends you''d want to invite?" "Maybe Roman''s younger brother and another friend from school." "Oh?" Her eyes twinkled with amusement. "Is this friend a girl?" Something about her jovial question as if the past two days hadn''t happened broke something in him. They were just going to pretend that she hadn''t yelled at him and grounded him? Stolen his power based on who he is? Irritation flared through him hot as a wildfire. "She is," He said tersely as his knee started bouncing. He fought to keep the rising anger out of his tone, but her eyes narrowed anyways. She started to get up. To run away. Wood creaked as his left hand squeezed on the armrest of the couch. Maybe Lana had the right of it. She was the only one in the family who didn¡¯t fucking run. He started to open his mouth, but Dad spoke first. "Addy. Sit down, please." Dad rose as he glanced at both of them. "I think you both need to talk. Listen to each other. We can''t let our fear of change hold him back and we can''t pretend what''s happened didn''t happen. I think we need to give him back his power, Addy, but first, you two need to talk. We went too far." A few seconds later footsteps pounded down the stairs as Lana ran down. "We''re getting pizza?" "Yes. You can drive. Do you have your permit on you?" Dad asked, eliciting an excited squeal as she whirled around to sprint up the stairs. "I believe in both of you, okay? You got this." They nodded numbly as both they watched Lana tear down the staircase again before they both left. Dad''s car roared to life with a squeal of acceleration as Lana must have whipped out of the driveway. Mom and him both winced then sighed with relief when their cars weren''t crashed into. "Well. Okay, let''s talk then, I¡ª" "Why don''t you trust me?" Eli asked as he crossed his arms in front of his chest. "You trusted me before, so why not now?" "Are you serious?" She shook her head with a raised eyebrow. "Eli. Your powers are scary. I tried using it earlier and it was horrible. It cut a trashcan in half when I tried to teleport an empty cup into it. How can you even handle knowing how much capability you have for destruction? How can you handle the constant vertigo and nausea? The very air buzzed against me. I almost had a panic attack and had to unequip it immediately. Why would you even want something so¡­ so horrible?" You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. "Because I''m still me." He sneered. Knowing she had used his power set his heart pounding with territorial rage. "Nothing else has changed. And because it¡¯s my power. I get that you think I¡¯ve gotten too crazy about it, but I don¡¯t think you¡¯ve accepted that things have changed. We need our powers now to survive. It¡¯s not just a convenience or whatever. It¡¯s a necessity. So. Why don¡¯t you trust me?" "You''ve been sneaking out. You rushed into danger! You could''ve been killed or even killed someone else. Again. Are you sure you haven''t changed? You couldn¡¯t have done anything like that before¡­" "Mom. I already was sneaking out before. I hadn''t in a while, but I still did. Sure, I wasn''t in dangerous situations, but with the mall¡­ I would have gone in regardless. Powers or no powers, except I would have died. I lost an arm, but it¡¯s only temporary. I haven¡¯t changed, I¡¯ve just become more¡­ more me. I¡¯m starting to feel more brave, more confident. I think Lana is right. I feel safe knowing that I have the capability to protect myself now when before I would¡¯ve been at someone else¡¯s mercy. I haven¡¯t changed, I promise." "I''m not so sure about that." Her upper lip quivered as tears started leaking from her eyes, but she didn''t acknowledge them. "These powers change people. I-it''s why you and Lana killed someone. It''s why we got attacked and why everything has gone to hell. All of the shootings, bombings and everything else. Three states have already declared martial law with talks of more joining! Have you checked the news? It¡¯s a nightmare out there! Who knows how many more there will be? Airports are still closed for the most part or they¡¯re beyond expensive." "I mean, okay, but... I don''t know. Things weren''t perfect before either. Sure in general, things are worse, but people can do so much more good. Isn¡¯t that better? We can do things as individuals. As people. These powers seem to help us be who we are or who we want to be. I¡¯d rather we be safe no matter what." "So. You want to be a ruthless killer?" She snapped, her mouth pressed into a thin line. "Is that what you think? That¡¯s what you think of me?" He started to stand up but she shook her head. Tears raced down her cheeks in a pitter patter down her business suit. "I... no. No, it isn''t, I''m sorry." She slumped. "This is all too much. I''m having a hard time adjusting and I''m so afraid, Elias. So, so very afraid. I lie awake at night afraid that someone will break in again. I''m terrified now when I''m at work or driving somewhere. Worried about how you and your sisters are. Your father. My sister and brother. My parents. Everyone." "That''s how I''ve felt this whole time," He said, ignoring her slight flinch. "Everything I''ve done since then has been about all of you and not me... until Dr. Simmons pointed out to me that the System seems to have given us powers that suit us and our desires, like I said. Not to be good or bad, it''s still us that has them. I felt so aimless before and now... now I think I know what I want to do. Who I want to be." "And what''s that Eli?" She said with a mix of hope and dismay. "A power trader maybe," Eli grinned even as she rolled her eyes, but he noted how her mouth twitched like she was about to smile. Then he glanced down at his metal arm and beamed at the thought of what he and Roman could achieve together. "Or maybe something else entirely." *** Eli grimaced as he clicked through news reports on his dinosaur of a laptop that sounded like a fatally wounded animal as the fans roared. Reports of national disasters, massive shootings and bombings. Other countries had undergone violent coups. Even more had taken to trying to screen out people¡¯s powers with similar methods as the United States, but many were even more invasive. Dream and empathic powers were becoming some of the worst powers to possess it seemed. He glanced down at the shimmering metal of his left arm then glanced at his status. After their talk and dinner over pizza, Mom had given him Spatial Control back with a heartfelt apology. He was still angry, but he only had it taken away for a day. Hopefully she understood now. Voidshade Control Ev. 0/Lv. 4> Dynamic Vitality Ev. 0/Lv. 1> [Stats: Body: Light (Photon Shot) Mind: None Will: None ] [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Spatial Control Ev. 0/Lv. 5 (Maxed) Slot Two -- Voidshade Control Ev. 0/Lv. 4 Slot Three -- Dynamic Vitality Ev. 0/Lv. 1 ] [Unequipped Powers: Rapid Recovery Ev. 1/Lv. 3 ] Soon he''d be able to unlock a new power with Voidshade Control and then use Spatial Control to merge the two powers. Excitement screeched through him in time with his racing heartbeat as it slowly cooled and grew tempered with a hardened resolve. It was time to finish max out Voidshade Control so he could level it. He flicked out his will with Voidshade Control to pull some shadows from under his desk. He scrolled through numerous reports of two disgruntled employees blowing up their workplace with gusts of scouring wind and what seemed to be pulverizing waves of force. Fear shivered inside of him at the thought of how easily it was for powers to become destructive in a matter of weeks since the Initialization. Tendrils of shadow slithered up his glass of water as he poured darkness into the cup. Intuition guided him as he turned the shadow liquid and watched as they swirled like dye in the once translucent glass. Eli coated the glass with thick opaque shadow as he willed the shadows in the water to become voidshade. Webs of voidshade shot through the water as it froze. Mist writhed above the glass as he turned his attention back to the news. Protesters and strikes marched everywhere as everyone complained about workers marginalizing those with inefficient powers or overworking those with suitable powers. Reports of violent demonstrations and terrorism against government buildings for the enforcement of corrupt procedures in an unconstitutional manner. He frowned at all of the news reports as the weight of the world seemed to settle on his shoulders once again. The weight of his family¡¯s world. If he didn¡¯t get Spatial Control and Voidshade Control merged and evolved, how would he be able to protect them and help take them to safety if things escalated? If he didn¡¯t get his body stronger, how would he manage to withstand the violence that had to surely be coming? Voidshade frozen ice rose out of the glass in a cylinder. He studied the nearly purple ice with its pitch black coils and swirls as he spun it in a revolution above his glass. He frowned at what he was about to do before he popped out a spatial bubble that he filled with air and the voidshade ice. A push on the voidshade turned all of the ice black as the air began to freeze around it. Within moments the whole bubble went black to his spatial senses from how thick it all was. Eli started to pluck the voidshade out of his spatial bubble before he stopped and looked at it again. It felt far more solid with both of his powers working in tandem. Another bubble appeared that he pushed Voidshade into and he grinned as he felt the two mix and react. He willed the bubble to fold and flatten like a blade as he placed it into real-space. His spatial field extended into his void where he had a bubble of his school things and he teleported out a worksheet from Math that had a B written on the upper corner. A twitch of his spatial-voidshade blade swept it across the page where it cut without a shred of resistance. He watched with interest as the blade devoured the slender strip of paper it had cut through. Eli glanced at the old alarm clock he had on his night stand and nodded at the time. It was only nine. He teleported across the hall while he slipped his spatial-voidshade blade into his void and knocked on Lana¡¯s door. ¡°Yeah?¡± She called as she opened the door then frowned at him. ¡°I¡¯m trying to do homework.¡± ¡°Sure. Can I borrow you for a minute in the basement? I want to test something.¡± ¡°I guess? What is it?¡± ¡°I want to try something with your Silverlight.¡± Eli said as he willed another blade of spatial-void out next to another bubble that he flattened into a sort of shield. ¡°And to see how strong this is.¡± ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s go.¡± Lana shrugged as she followed him down to the stairs. Eli peeked into the living room with his spatial field where his parents sat on the couch while watching a movie of some kind. Soon they stood in the basement again cluttered with boxes, their ping pong table and their treadmill. He ignored the weights that were missing in the corner from when the police had taken them or they¡¯d been thrown away from when he¡¯d broken them. ¡°Give me two pads like we¡¯re boxing.¡± Silverlight flowed across her fists up to her wrists like boxing gloves as she settled in a crouch. He complied with two flattened spatial bubbles that were paper thin in real-space, but internally he expanded them to the size of a room. ¡°First I¡¯m going to fire some silverlight projectiles to make sure I don¡¯t get cut again.¡± Eli nodded as he stepped aside just in case they got cut or tore through his spatial shields with ease. Silverlight dripped and beaded off her arms where they floated in front of her chest as they coalesced into a spinning array of soon-to-be projectiles. A moment later they shot through the air as they slammed into his shields. He felt them enter spatial-voidshade shields and knew he could let them pass through the other side, contain them, or even devour them to strengthen the void more. He slowed them considerably then dropped them out of the bottom of the shields where they clinked on the floor. ¡°Nice. Can you make them solid now?¡± Lana asked to which he gave a thumbs-up as he willed the shields to harden and watched as she fired another silverlight buckshot of glowing beads. They blurred then stuck against the outside of the shields. He felt like he could pull them into the shields or even teleport them around as he pleased since his bubbles were technically a part of his spatial field. ¡°Great.¡± Silverlight metal evaporated into silver mist that streamed right into her once again. ¡°Alright. I¡¯m going to punch now. Make it solid still, I don¡¯t want my fists going inside, but don¡¯t make it stick to me. I don¡¯t want to break my own bones.¡± ¡°What if it breaks?¡± ¡°Then it¡¯s not strong enough and if it doesn¡¯t break, I¡¯ll hit harder.¡± Eli watched as she swatted out a couple of punches that cut through the air that fell flat once they struck the shields. One-two. One-two. Heat and momentum were devoured by his void instantly the moment her silverlight boxing gloves collided with the shield without a sound. Again and again she struck. Silverlight gloves cracked against his shields with more and more force that seemed to almost break the fragile spatial bubble, but then the voidshade consumed all of the force and energy she unleashed upon it. ¡°Ugh!¡± Lana grunted as she swung so hard her feet cracked the cement of the floor. Then her fists drove into the shields with a crack as her silverlight cracked and ruptured in a spray of light and molten mist. Fractures spread across the spatial bubble just as the mist poured across it and disappeared into the shields instead of her. Silverlight pooled down her legs to encase her feet and the floor before slammed her booted leg down as hard as she could only spraying up a puff of mist. ¡°How did you not break the floor just now?¡± ¡°Silverlight empowers whatever it covers at the same time.¡± He nodded as she started punching without gloves. ¡°Fuck!¡± Eli swore as something in his skull seemed to get crushed into pulp right as she tore into the shield with all of her might. Voidshade boomed in twin explosions as both shields were destroyed. ¡°Finally!¡± Lana growled as she shook her hands out that were pocked in holes that leaked rivulets of blood. Fragments of ice peeked out of the wounds as they melted shadow. He dissipated them instantly then equipped Rapid Recovery to heal her. ¡°How was that?¡± ¡°Pretty good!¡± Eli grinned as he looked over his status. ¡°That was the last level I needed!¡± Voidshade Control Ev. 0/Lv. 5> Dynamic Vitality Ev. 0/Lv. 2> Dynamic Vitality Ev. 0/Lv. 3> Rapid Recovery Ev. 1/Lv. 4> ¡°Anything good?¡± Lana asked as she dismissed all of her silverlight. ¡°Nothing super great, but I¡¯m going to finally take Hydrokinesis then merge my other two powers. Then I¡¯ll finally have a power ready to evolve once it¡¯s maxed out!¡± ¡°About time.¡± Lana nodded, then asked after a second. ¡°Well?¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t done it yet¡­¡± [Stats: Body: Light (Photon Shot) Mind: None Will: None ] [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Voidspace Control Ev. 0/Lv. 0 Slot Two -- Hydrokinesis Ev. 0/Lv. 0 Slot Three -- Dynamic Vitality Ev. 0/Lv. 3 ] [Unequipped Powers: Rapid Recovery Ev. 1/Lv. 4 ] Space shimmered purple above Eli as he willed another spatial bubble to pop into existence. It was seamless as he willed it to shape into a knife or to inflate into a bubble that he willed air into. Suddenly, it felt like he had far more control of the air inside of his bubble at a much more involved level than before. He pushed it out and willed it to flatten into a vertical disk that spun as it stretched larger. The space around and inside of it felt like near perfect extensions of himself and his spatial field. He popped out another disk that he set up across the room. Then he tried to link the two and smiled as he felt the space between them became linked. He started to walk forward, ready to step through his first ever portal¡ª Air cracked purple as the two disks vanished then reappeared where they crashed into each other. Cracks glowed a deep indigo as they flowed across the two disks before they darkened to a shade of the void. Then they seemed to shudder and vibrate with a drone as if they were about to explode. Eli hurriedly willed them to vanish with bated breath that he released in a sigh of relief as it vanished. Voidspace Control Ev. 0/Lv. 1> Chapter Nineteen
Wind gusted across the shore whipping sand in a billowing cloud that would''ve stung against Eli''s eyes if he didn''t have his voidspace bubbles layered across his eyes to keep everything but air and light out. Waves of water lapped against his ankles as he stepped deeper into the ocean. He glided as he dove and started swimming. Stroke after stroke his clumsy movements melted into a smooth, natural gait as if he''d never stopped. Eli''s Body of Light with his Dynamic Vitality let him swim with unnatural ease. Strength allowed him to swim harder and farther. Instead of the deep pervasive chill of the ocean, he only felt unhampered joy and satisfaction as he was able to ford to the near bottom of the ocean. Darkness seemed to blitz against his eyes beneath the water, but with Voidspace Control, his spatial field was even more perceptive. Rocks, shells, sand dollars, and seaweed all churned on the ocean floor beneath him. Farther in fish swam in droves, he could almost sense the splashing waves as ships and boats sailed where the ocean truly thrived. He let himself slow to a stop as his body turned radiant and watched his prismatic light sparkle through the water and shone across the seabed. At last, he reached out with Hydrokinesis and beamed as his senses exploded with possibility. He pushed down as hard as he could¡ª Eli shot through the water in a glittering arc of incandescent water as it trailed off his hard light body. He laughed as he did a flip to dive back in. Bubbles of water flooded around him as he knifed beneath the waves as he shoved against the water behind him. He shot forward faster than he had ever moved on land or in the water. Water tensed in front of him as he let it slowly compress and weigh him down until he came to a gradual stop. Rays of light bathed swarms of fish darted away from him as if he were some new kind of horrifying predator. Pressure started to build in his lungs as his internal stores of light began to fade. He needed air or more light. Eli started to reach out with Voidspace to the air above the water so he could reclaim either one... but then he smirked. Oxygen was a part of water so what if he¡ª Bubbles swirled around him from the top as he swiped his Hydrokinesis downwards until a dome of air formed around his head. He took in a big gulp of air as his grin grew even larger. He looked above him and watched as the dazzling strands of bubbles eddied towards him as he continued to guide oxygen-rich bubbles down while he shunted bubbles with carbon dioxide out. Hydrokinesis Ev. 0/Lv. 2> He closed his eyes as he let his Hydrokinesis-attuned senses drift outwards along with his spatial field. Using Dynamic Vitality, he siphoned Strength both ways to fuel Perception and Stamina. Prismatic colors sparked as they shot through his strobe light of a body as he relaxed. For the first time in... in forever he felt at peace. Plus, he finally had a chance over the past week to level Hydrokinesis. True peace that wasn''t tainted by the fear and anxiety of the future. He was just happy. Eli felt light in body and soul as he let his powers continue to work. Actual light streamed in from a small bubble he sent above the water and bubbles of air flowed down and away from him as easy as breathing. He reached out as he relaxed and... A sharp buzz woke him up from the watch on his wrist that his Dad had programmed with his powers so that he''d be a bit more accessible. It didn''t track his location or anything like that, it just gave a simplified read-out of his vitals so they knew he was okay. If they dropped dangerously or anything then it''d alert his parents and give them his location. It was a compromise, but it was one he was okay with. Far better than them distrusting him at every turn and being unreasonable about taking his powers away or anything else. He glanced down at it with a wince. It was already after nine PM. He was supposed to be home soon, fuck. Eli started to bolt through the water so he could teleport back when he noticed the water around him. Everywhere around him where his Hydrokinesis senses could reach was cleaned, pure seawater. Not only that, but the water had a shimmering glow to it that continued even after he turned off his radiance and became flesh and blood again. He pushed his Hydrokinesis through the water and felt it almost... burble with his joy reflected back at him. He snared a portion of it as he teleported back to land in an ever-growing chain of teleports until he stood back on the beach. A rippling sphere of water floated above the palm of his hand even now. What the hell was this? Eli blinked at the surprising number of notifications. Hydrokinesis Ev. 0/Lv. 3> Hydrokinesis Ev. 0/Lv. 4> Dynamic Vitality Ev. 0/Lv. 4> Voidspace Control Ev. 0/Lv. 2> But... he hadn''t done anything? When he had first started learning his powers they''d been nearly impossible to level. What was that about? He glanced at each of the notifications again with absolute confusion before he shrugged and shoved the shimmering water into a voidspace bubble and teleported outside of home in a matter of ten minutes. Eli made sure to grab his keys and unlock the door before stepping inside. Another compromise. They wanted him to at least make a show of leaving and entering through the door. It was slightly annoying, but they shrugged and said it was a matter of respect. It only took him a few seconds longer. "Hello." He said a bit awkwardly as he stepped into the living room where Dad''s eyes flitted from side to side as if he were looking at something that wasn''t there. Mom was watching one of her old favorite movies. "How was your swim?" Mom asked with a smile as she paused the movie and tapped Dad. "It was really nice! I didn''t realize how much I missed it." "Did you find a nice spot that you wanted to set up at or do you want to change your birthday plans while we still have the night?" Dad asked as he blinked and rubbed his slightly bloodshot eyes. Eli had to resist the urge to be petty and ask if he was okay after using his technology with his powers so much. "I think I still like it, but it is pretty far. If you guys don''t want to¡ª" "A bit of a drive is no issue at all. We want to celebrate your birthday doing something fun. We have reservations for Shoreside and we rented out two cabins for the weekend in case any of your friends want to stay for the weekend." Mom said with a smile that he returned. "Okay. Well, I''m excited for this. Thank you." Eli nodded to both of them before he tugged with Voidspace Control to teleport himself up to his room. He studied his professionally cleaned room that didn''t have so much as a speck of dust or anything where it didn''t belong. Thank God for his Voidspace bubbles. He cast his senses through his void across each of his bubbles as he searched through two different bubbles of clean or dirty clothes, all of his money taken out of his bank account along with his wallet, his car, and a container of gas he had bought and filled up. Finally, he found his bubble of schoolwork thrown far in the back. Eli winced at all the clutter of his bubbles that took up far too much space inside of his void. He had two essays to write and more Math homework due by Monday. Most teachers had started to pull back on assignments and basically gave up on trying to do anything too new. It was only a week away from graduation now. He really didn''t want to spend his Friday night doing homework, but they were leaving to pick up Roman, Theo, and Lyra pretty early tomorrow... Annoyance prickled him at how Lyra had been avoiding all of them. He understood, but it wasn''t fair of her either. Their parents were trying to adjust, trying to understand. Ever since they took his power away then given it back they''ve taken more of an active interest in trying to understand and grow their powers. So far they''ve taken an hour every day to train and practice with them a little. Eli had made little progress until tonight with his little excursion, but his parents had improved by leaps and bounds. Dad had his Technopathy up to level one even though it was at evo-3. Unfortunately, Storm Cloud was still at evo-2, but they had a hard time pushing its boundaries. They were too afraid of it blowing out of his control. Mom had improved the most though. Both of her powers were now at evo-3 level 0, but she could use them far better than she could before. Enchantress''s Palate let her enchant any food or water she ate, plus duplicate whatever was in her stomach. That had been a disgusting discovery. Stomach acid did not smell pleasant at all. The real prize was Phytopathy. Now she could mutate and grow plants and plant matter with far more ease. Including any plants used for clothes. Mom had taken to making sure she had at least some type of cotton clothing that she would sew various seeds into so she could grow them as needed. Eli stopped to think about it as he looked down at his textbooks with a frown. He really didn''t want to sit there and write. What if...? Notebooks and pens slid out of his schoolwork bubble into a new one that he created with Voidspace. Inside of which he suddenly felt each page of the notebook with an enhanced level of clarity without having to rifle through each notebook. He scanned over to a blank page and visualized writing with one of his pens and watched with a growing grin as ink scrawled in sloppy handwriting at first that soon improved to his normal scrawl. How fast could he write? Eli glanced checked his notes for his research paper on biometrics and the use of and quickly began writing as he thought out the first two sentences and watched as they wrote themselves into the page as if he''d written them by hand. ''Biometrics can take numerous forms such as fingerprint, facial ID, or iris scans. As technology continues to improve, biometrics have become increasingly more common for the everyday citizen as well as within professional industries.'' His smile grew as he teleported up to the roof to sit in his spot at the eave where he played with his luminescent sphere of water that he churned into different shapes one after the other: a cube, helix, pyramid, a chain. It was strange. The water responded to him so easily and yet according to the Power Crafting forums Roman and Theo had sent to him Hydrokinesis was barely at a rarity of R2. Yet, it felt more like a part of him than Teleportation or anything else had back then. While he played with the water and tried to puzzle out the inconsistency, he devoted the rest of his attention to writing his essay. Would he be able to cheat on Math and other classes by using the calculator he had in his voidspace? Maybe. He wasn''t sure how he thought about it though. Eli bounced the water sphere in his hands before he stopped to study the sloshing surface of glowing water that had dimmed since he started playing with it. He wanted it to go brighter¡ª Light flowed from him into Hydrokinesis. It brightened considerably until he held a globe of radiant water that responded to his mental commands with considerably more ease than before. He blinked spots out of his eyes as the glow turned radiant. Weakness shook through his trembling arms as he leaned the rest of his weight against the eave of the roof. Dynamic Vitality siphoned Perception into Strength. The spots cleared instantly as the shining water turned blinding. Each droplet gleamed and shimmered like an individual candle with a white flame. Exhaustion started to sap against his mind. His eyelids grew heavier. His metal arm dropped with a clunk against the shingles of the roof rendering him unable to even lift it. He squinted against the glare of the water as he fought to keep it from blinding him... Wait. How was light able to blind him? Eli blinked wearily once he realized that his internal stores of light had been drained. He yanked at the light in the water and jolted upright to his feet as if he''d been blasted with lightning. Again. Power slammed into him as it saturated every cell of his being. He lifted up the now dim, but not dark, sphere of water. He had sucked it dry of every bit of light he had packed into it, yet it still glowed. Eli shoved it back into a spatial bubble before he created an empty voidspace bubble that he compacted then popped into real-space. Inside of its shell hardened space, purple voidshade churned inside of it. A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. He filled it up with as much light as he had stored and watched as the purple undertone brightened until it sparked like indigo lightning in a pitch black thundercloud. He felt feeble again, but underneath that¡ª Voidspace Control Ev. 0/Lv. 3> ¡ªwas unhindered excitement. Stats didn''t just synergize with powers, but they played off them. Strengthened them. He drained as much light as he could and watched the crackling purple light fade until it was also dim, but still brighter than the shade it had been before. Now his storage of light had faded by two thirds, but still. He had to experiment. Eli felt like he was moments away from a discovery that would change everything for him. He siphoned out everything from Perception and Strength and flooded Stamina full of energy until he felt like he was vibrating. Then, he focused on pushing light from his stores through Dynamic Vitality and started spasming as every nerve fired with the indisputable necessity to do something. Light vanished from his stores entirely as he felt the well for Stamina blaze with power as it expanded. He slowly pushed off the shingles behind him even as he bit his tongue. Before blood could fill his mouth the wound sealed with a flashbang of light so bright it glowed through his cheeks with a red glare. Eli stood as he felt absolutely wired. Motivated. Empowered. He could run a marathon! Two! He took a single step forward he felt Dynamic Vitality''s well run dark. Embers of radiance glimmered inside the slightly enlarged Stamina well, but he had ran out of light. He took a single step before his whole body went numb. Everything went dark. ... Energy screeched through his veins as he awoke in midair. His head, hands and knees stung. Peace flowed through him as his heart pounded. Before he landed, Eli used Voidspace Control to teleport in place where he widened his spatial tunnel to bleed off the excess energy. He landed on his feet on the lawn while the sprinklers spouted arcs of water. He shook his head in confusion even as he tried to push out with Hydrokinesis to stay dry... when a cooldown message popped up at the same time he became soaked. He teleported back into his room while he shoved all of the water on him into the same spatial bubble as his glowing water. Relief and glee sizzled across his skin the moment he stepped into his room. Bright power seeped into his body immediately. Eli''s eyes widened as he did a double take at the cooldown message then opened up his status. Rapid Recovery Ev. 1/Lv. 4> [Stats: Body: Light (Photon Shot) Mind: None Will: None ] [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Voidspace Control Ev. 0/Lv. 3 Slot Two -- Rapid Recovery Ev. 1/Lv. 4 Slot Three -- Dynamic Vitality Ev. 0/Lv. 4 ] [Unequipped Powers: Hydrokinesis Ev. 0/Lv. 4 ] "What the actual fuck?" Eli swore while he ran his hands through his hair, before he caught himself and lowered them with a grunt. Was he really losing it or did his power equip itself on top of him doing the same stress gesture as his dad? A few moments later he sensed Lana''s door open as her silhouette walked across the hall. "Did you say something?" Lana called from the other side of his door. He teleported over to it and stared down into her face with what was probably a wide-eyed crazy expression. He didn''t care. "I think my power just equipped itself!" He hissed to her while he pranced from one foot to the other at the sheer volume of energy zipping through him. A check with Dynamic Vitality showed that Stamina was full by three-fold and the second it started to dip, Rapid Recovery filled it. "I was on the roof when I..." "When you what?" Lana raised her eyebrow as she studied him carefully. Eli took a deep breath. Did he really want to tell her what he could do? If he could channel his light into any power to improve it, then he''d be throwing away his only secret advantage... but they had helped each other with their powers and hung out together with the Power Crafting club over the past week. "Practicing when I noticed something. My stat power somehow allows me to push light through other powers which seems to help me control and empower whichever power it is by an insane degree." "Holy shit!" "And... I think it helps me level powers easier too?" That or it was some other reason that let him level Hydrokinesis so quickly. He loved the water and had fallen asleep under the... wait. "Wait. Lana... You''ve always loved working out and pushing your limits physically, right?" "Yeah? Why else would I work out?" She frowned at him as if he''d gone over the deep end. He nearly giggled. He supposed he had when he had gone swimming in the ocean. "Eli?" "Sorry. I got distracted." He shook his head. Panic started to flare... no. He was fine. "And Lyra loves art, obviously? Well, what if your powers leveled faster at first because you actually enjoyed using them?" Eli started pacing as his thoughts seemed to drift like cloudbanks. This was too big. He had to move. "Teleportation didn''t start jumping up in levels until I fell in love with it." And when he started sneaking out. Sure, he had done it out of fear and to protect himself, but same thing with Telekinesis. Even a bit with Photon Shot despite his misgivings until near the end. "I bet if I had still been on the swim team, I would''ve been offered a water related power. Right? But since I wasn''t and I only wanted to be away I had gotten Teleportation. Great, amazing power that fit me, but not nearly as well. Same as your powers." He looked up at Lana''s wide-eyed stare as she watched him bounce back and forth from his desk to his wall. She slowly crept into his room as if she were approaching a wild animal. "Eli. It''s okay. You might be right, but it''s late. Don''t you think it''s time for bed?" "Nope. I''m not even tired!" He chuckled a little. "Do you have your Rapid Recovery equipped?" "Yeah! See that''s the thing. I was on the roof practicing and I figured out how to push my light into my other powers! But I ran out of light and fainted or something but then I woke up in the air! I think I must have subconsciously equipped Rapid Recovery or something, right? But it gives me a great idea! What if I sit somewhere with a looot of light and supercharge Rapid Recovery while using Dynamic Vitality to boost each of its aspects? I bet I could powerlevel both powers really fast! Doesn''t that sound like a great idea, Lana?" Eli turned around to try and look for her, but she had gone back in her room to look for something. Did she want to talk in there? Eli teleported into her room. "Maybe I could use it to help you with your powers too!" He said, startling her as she fumbled her phone with a large crack as she accidentally pushed her thumb too hard into her screen. "Goddammit! I broke my fucking phone. Eli. Elias. Stop. Unequip Rapid Recovery right now." "What? Why?" He glared at her incredulously. That was a silly idea. It had its dangers, sure, but it had literally saved his life. Probably. And it could be the secret to him¡ª "Just do it or I''m telling Mom and Dad." She chewed her lip hard enough that it bled while she studied him with a concerned squint. "Tell them what, Lana? I patched everything up with them. Besides, it''s not like they can tell me what to do much longer!" He giggled then whispered as if it were a surprise. "I turn eighteen tomorrow. And! And I didn''t tell them about everything you were doing. Just like you and Lyra didn''t tell them about what was happening to me at school." "What the fuck, Elias?" She hissed with a glance toward the door. Tears started to shimmer in her eyes. He realized he was glowing. "Stop. Now. Or I will knock you and drag you into your room." "I''d like to see you¡ª" *** Eli woke up laid out on top of his bed with the sun rising. A massive lamp hung over his bed along with three different dead flashlights. He sat up with a yawn and blink as he checked around him with Voidspace Control and turned to the near comatose form of Lana huddled under half of her bedding laid out across the floor. He scratched at an oddly itchy part of his skull and frowned as something flaked off under his fingernails. "What?" He whispered in disbelief at the dark red grit that coated his fingertips and nails. It was blood. "What the fuck happened last night?" He glanced at his status and gaped at the level gains he''d gotten. Rapid Recovery Ev. 1/Lv. 5> Rapid Recovery Ev. 1/Lv. 6> Rapid Recovery Ev. 1/Lv. 7> [Stats: Body: Light (Photon Shot) Mind: None Will: None ] [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Voidspace Control Ev. 0/Lv. 3 Slot Two -- Hydrokinesis Ev. 0/Lv. 4 Slot Three -- Dynamic Vitality Ev. 0/Lv. 4 ] [Unequipped Powers: Rapid Recovery Ev. 1/Lv. 7 ] "What the fuck happened last night?" "Huh?" Lana stirred as she bolted upright with a massive hammer made out of Silverlight falling into her hands as she prepared to swing it into his head. She stopped herself with a sigh as she dispersed the hammer into mist. "You''re awake?" "Yeah?" He frowned at her before he noticed the way she drooped with exhaustion. Her hair was a gnarled mess of tangles and snarls. "Lana... What happened? Rapid Recovery leveled a lot and you slept in here?" "You kind of went a bit crazy. I had to knock you out multiple times. I... I was afraid I had gone too far a few times. But you''re okay." She heaved a ragged breath. "I had to make you use up your Recovery enough that you''d be a bit more normal. Then I put as much light on you until you became lucid enough to unequip it. You''ve been asleep since." "You knocked me out?" Eli stared at her in horror. "What if I got brain damage or something else?" "You don''t understand. You weren''t coherent. You were terrifying. Arrogant. Dangerous." Lana hissed then whipped her head around towards their parents'' room. "Fuck. They''re awake. Teleport all of the blood off you now and send my bedding to my room, if you would." "Okay, okay." He did so. "We''re even now. Never throw the fact that I dated that shitbag or did drugs with him in my face again." Her eyes narrowed as a silverly sheen glimmered across her iris. "I won''t hold back again if you do." She crept out of his room back into hers. Eli held his hands up as he stared at them with a sense of growing confusion. What the fuck happened last night? His memory was a blur after he fell off the roof. He slowly started getting dressed as he pulled clothes out of his void while he pondered on what was going on with Rapid Recovery. ''Too bad Mom didn''t try taking that power,'' he chuckled to himself before he teleported downstairs. Ingredients rapidly teleported into his voidspace from which he pulled out the beginnings of an omelet in his bowl that he then glanced down at as he wondered. If he was able to prepare all of the ingredients together and write an essay in his voidspace... What else could he do? Eli teleported the egg mixture and other various ingredients out of the mixing bowl into its own separate voidspace bubble. He focused on the cold mixture as he brought his concentration to bear. He willed the voidspace bubble to heat up. He pushed at the idea of cooking and folding the egg mixture into an omlet as hard as he could. Sweat dripped from his forehead as he leaned against the kitchen counter with all of his weight. Slowly. Ever so gradually. It began to boil and bubble as heat seared it golden brown. He added the rest of his ingredients as he twisted the omlet on itself and pressed it into itself before he almost teleported it onto a plate that he''d set on the table when he stopped. Could he preserve the temperature in his bubble? Did time even pass to whatever he held inside of Voidspace? Eli pondered that as he poured himself a glass of water from the water purifier in the fridge. He studied the water while he wondered what Hydrokinesis needed for his last level. He teleported everything to the table and started eating. A couple of minutes later his parents came down stairs. Dad was still in his pajamas and his hair was a wild mess, but Mom was fully dressed with all of her makeup on for a beach day. "Happy birthday!" They crowed as they stepped into the kitchen to hug him. Oh yeah. He''d forgotten after he woke up with dried blood all over his hair from when Lana had to beat him into unconsciousness. Apparently. "Thank you." He smiled up at them and how they glanced at each other. "Do you want your present now or later?" Mom pranced from foot to foot with excitement. Dad smiled as he went to pour himself a cup of Mom-made coldbrew that he then poured copious amounts of milk and flavored syrup into. "Uh, now, I guess?" "What''s this?" Eli stood up as he glanced from the status to his parents. "We felt really bad about taking away Spatial Control. It was wrong of us¡ª," Dad started to say. "Wrong of me." Mom interrupted. "¡ªso we started looking at power trade lots. It''s pretty interesting, but it''s a full auction normally. We managed to switch add in Photonic Generation though so you could get a light power too. They''re all zero evolution, but we hope you like them." Dad finished with a growing smile on his face. "After you said you wanted to be a Power Trader, I thought it was kind of ridiculous, but... after we looked into it, it''s definitely a valid career path that could be perfect for you. Maybe this can help you be a bit more safe or to even get started when you graduate." She pulled him into a hug that Dad joined in on. "Are you sure? Aren''t traded powers super expensive?" Eli asked as he pulled back to glance at each of them. Both of his parents grimaced with a bit of a guilty look. "You didn''t pay with money, did you...?" "No. We didn''t." Dad sighed. "We dismantled our highest evolved powers into perks and sold them. They were apparently very good. We bought new starter powers that we like, but..." "You''ll have to start completely over!" Eli glanced at each of them in horror even as a part of him felt touched by what they did. "I can''t take these! You need¡ª" "No. You''re accepting it. Please." Mom insisted as she grabbed him by his shoulders. "We''ll be okay. It''ll be fun to start over anyways. Besides, we have two power geniuses in the house and Lyra..." Mom winced as her breath caught. "And Lyra can help us see the beauty in them too." Eli looked at each of them before he accepted the trade and slowly sat down with them. "What powers did you break and sell?" "Technopathy." Dad said with a poorly hidden wince. "Phytopathy." Mom said forlornly as she sighed. "When did you even..." He frowned as he realized they hadn''t done training the past two days together as a family. "You guys sold these just a couple of days ago? But... aren''t these your best powers?" "We did, and they were, but... now we''ll get to see what you and Lana have been talking about as we build up our new powers instead. It''s an apology and well, it was the only present that fit you. We hope you enjoy it, Eli. Now! Hurry up and eat! We have to pick everyone up and head to the beach in the next few hours!" Mom said as she started to get a breakfast of her own together with a bit of a frown at his omelet and how he had cooked for himself already. Dad glanced off into the distance as he pulled out his phone to text manually. A few moments later Lana came rushing down the stairs too. Eli waited expectantly for Lyra to come then he remembered she was still staying at her friend Ava''s house. They''d be coming to the beach too. Hopefully, he could talk to her and figure out what was going on. Eli glanced at his expanded status with a growing smile as he read. He could do a lot with these. Voidspace Control Ev. 0/Lv. 4> [Stats: Body: Light (Photon Shot) Mind: None Will: None ] [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Voidspace Control Ev. 0/Lv. 4 Slot Two -- Hydrokinesis Ev. 0/Lv. 4 Slot Three -- Dynamic Vitality Ev. 0/Lv. 4 ] [Unequipped Powers: Rapid Recovery Ev. 1/Lv. 7 Speed Shift Ev. 0/Lv. 0 Photonic Generation Ev. 0/Lv. 0 Aerokinesis Ev. 0/Lv. 0 ] Chapter Twenty "Come on, let''s try out our new powers! Race you there, Lana!" Theo exclaimed as he rushed towards an empty expanse of the already bustling beach. Eli glanced over to Roman who winced at how Theo lagged behind Lana who sprinted with all of her superhuman might. "So... Lyra isn''t coming?" Roman asked as he turned to look at him after Theo reached Lana in the water. A barrier popped out in front of him straight into the waves. Water kicked up in a spray that knocked him back. "Later. She isn''t talking to me or Lana. She avoids us at school and won''t come home. My parents and Lyra''s friend''s parents are starting to fight about whether or not Lyra should stay with them. They''re talking about taking Lana too." Eli shook his head while he used Photonic Generation to create a weak light above his left metal hand. If he pushed too hard it¡¯d shatter, but if he tried sending a flow of light from his body into it then it¡¯d flash before sputtering out. Frustrating. He hoped this wasn¡¯t one of the issues with using a traded power and that it was something else. "Do you think they should go stay with them?" "I don''t know. I really don''t." Eli sighed while he unequipped Dynamic Vitality to try out Aerokinesis again. He tried to gather air together into a pressurized sphere, but it was hard. It constantly fought against him and even a hint of breeze was enough to collapse it into a puff of air. "I thought they were good parents before they both got new jobs and dedicated everything they had to them. Maybe they were, maybe they weren''t, but holy shit, man. Ever since the Initialization it''s been a nightmare. It''s only been a bit over a month and things have not gone well." "That''s a bit of an understatement," Roman said wryly. "Eight states declared under martial law, general discontent, and nowhere for refugees to really go? Little wars are starting to pop up everywhere now too." "Yep." Eli nodded. He''d been trying to keep up with the news a bit more with the rest of his family. It was better to acknowledge everything instead of pretending everything was fine. But it did not help his general fear and paranoia. Dr. Simmons told him to try and be conscientious without obsessing about it. Whatever that meant. "And did you hear the rumors that if you kill someone at the same evolutionary tier or higher you''ll get their powers?" Roman whispered. With those words, Eli''s worst fears had been confirmed. It was becoming public knowledge. "Bot accounts have been posting it everywhere on social media and other forum websites. The messages keep getting taken down but..." "But nothing dies on the Internet." Car breaks creaked as someone pulled into the parking lot near their cabins. Eli turned around and winced as Lyra got out of the car with her friend Ava. Lyra¡¯s face was paler than usual and her eyes seemed somewhat dazed until Ava grabbed her hand. She seemed to brighten up a bit after that. "Hi Lyra! And Ava, so nice to see you again!" Mom screeched as she rushed over to where Lyra, Ava, and Ava''s mom were. Eli watched as Lyra awkwardly hugged Mom while Ava''s mom watched them like a hawk. He created a miniature teleportation point high enough above them no one would notice the slight distortion in space while he listened in. "No. We need to talk, Mrs. Newton." "Mrs. Newton? Lisa, we''ve¡ª" "Come on. Go play, girls!" Lisa called out as she shooed them. Lyra and Ava started to walk ploddingly along towards Eli and Roman, but they seemed pretty deadset on going into the water rather than chatting. "Happy birthday, Eli!" Lyra smiled as she walked up to hug him. Her eyes drifted to his metal arm again with a grimace. He supposed everyone else pretended it and the mall attack didn''t happen. But not Lyra. Her face had grown slightly gaunt and wan. "Thank you!" He said as she pulled away and refused to meet his eyes. All his motivation and drive to see what was going on and if she was okay dwindled. He couldn''t. Not yet. She was hurting too much. Eli idly wondered if that was what everyone else thought and told themselves when he had been hurting after Tom started attacking him, Roman, and Scott. "Come on, Ly, let''s go swim!" Ava said as she grabbed Lyra''s hand again and dragged her toward the water. "Do you want to swim or...?" Roman asked awkwardly as he turned toward him. "Eventually." Eli sighed as he sat down and created another light that flashed above his hands then dimmed to a stable glow. "I don''t know, Roman, everything is real now. I''m eighteen today. I''m not trying to mope or anything, but this is not how I expected any of this to go at all." "That''s an understatement." Roman scoffed as he sat down and patted the sand in front of them. Eli rolled his eyes before he popped out the bubble full of Roman''s toolboxes, general power armor gear, and even a few snacks. "You really need to let me try and make something that could hold your spatial powers." "Maybe at some point. When I got my water power, I was offered Imbue¡ª" "Take it. If it comes up again, you have to take it." Roman turned to gape at Eli. "Enchanting with your own powers is so much easier and while you don''t have a wonderful build at the moment, you do have diversity and some banger powers. Take it. Seriously." "Okay, geez. I was planning on it." Eli glanced at Roman''s intense stare out of the corner of his eyes and shrugged as he reached out with Hydrokinesis as far as it could go to the barest edge of the waves. He gathered water into a growing wave as he coiled it together and flooded it under the sand as he willed it to flow closer to him. Eli could feel Hydrokinesis growing stronger as he ran it through his paces. Unlike Light Generation which hadn''t even leveled *once*. Roman started tinkering. His hands flew over loose gears and parts as he used his body and powers to turn scrap into some kind of gauntlet. Then he created another. And another. Each one was churned out faster than the last. Eli had just lifted out his spout of water he''d pulled from the ocean and held it aloft when he''d gotten distracted by the one man factory sitting beside him. Seven gloves. Eli scrunched his brow as he shook his head and focused on the sphere of water that pulsated under his will. He bit his lip while he pushed at his senses with Hydrokinesis so he could sense the salty brine of the water. He felt each flake of sea salt, but when he tried to separate them from the water it felt like he was trying to file down a rock with his fingernails. Technically possible, but impractically difficult. Should he cheat? Shove it into his Voidspace so he could purify the water that way? "Come on. Let''s pass these around." Roman said as he stood up with a stretch and pointed down at the tarp full of eighteen gauntlets. "We only need fourteen, but maybe someone else will want one. Is Kady coming?" "What are they? And I don''t know, she didn''t say." Eli shoved the still salty seawater into a new bubble. He picked a gauntlet up and winced at the crawling vibrations that seemed to hook beneath his skin and pull at his powers like they were tangible. "Power gauntlets." Roman said as he put on his own pair. Gears whirred as they reformed to fit his hands perfectly. "The power enchantments won''t last for long, but allow anyone who wears one to shoot water like a water gun." "But you don''t have a water power? And I think my dad''s the only one who can create water like that." He frowned again at the thought that they sold their powers. Eli appreciated the gesture, but it emphasized the whole point of the problem. They saw powers as separate from them unlike him where he saw them as an actual manifestation of who he was. The only reason he¡¯d given up Spatial Control was because he didn¡¯t want to keep hiding and running away. "Don''t need it with Oneiromantic Summon. Here. Try it and think about water." He said with a demonstration as he pointed his palm down at the ground to shoot out a bubbling stream of water. Eli frowned as he thought about diving into chlorine water, the near-blind rush of sliding under the surface trailing bubbles, the burn in his muscles as he threw himself forward. Stroke after stroke. Push. Push. Until he reached the other end of the pool and pulled himself out of the pool with a spraying splash. "Nice one!" Roman cheered as a geyser of sparkling water shot out of the gauntlet to arc through the air and puddle in the darkening sand. Eli took in a shaky breath that eased while he watched the water pool, his gaze lifted up to the ocean where Theo and Lana built a five tier sandcastle with copious use of Theo''s new Barrier and Lana''s Silverlight. Lyra and Ava were splashing through the waves with an illusive painting of an aurora borealis above them. Ava shimmered and glowed various colors, whenever she swiped her glowing hand through the air trails of color remained. Prismatic violets that faded into a midnight blue sky, smoldering reds and lunar whites shone crisp and bright. Both of their powers together blended and melded to create a stunning display of splendor. Eli turned around with a beaming smile... until he saw Lisa and his mom locked in a furious argument. Dad marched away from them with his phone held up to his ear, his expression grew darker with every step. Eli locked gazes with him and raised his eyebrow, but Dad shook his head. "What do you think that''s about?" Roman asked as they watched Dad start pacing. "I have no idea, but it does not look good." Eli sighed, turning away. He had devoted enough of his time and energy to his family without being asked. "How about we test these gauntlets out?" If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. "Sounds good." "First to fall loses?" Eli asked, then smirked as Roman nodded. Eli tossed the rest of the gauntlets into the void before he squared off with his friend. Roman stood with both of his gauntlet covered hands held up aimed straight at Eli''s chest. Eli crouched a bit to lower his center of gravity, but otherwise stood flat-footed. Without Dynamic Vitality equipped, he''d be slower, but with Spatial Control and Hydrokinesis he''d win any water fight. Photonic Generation still felt clumsy, but he pushed and pulled it around his body as he shaped it around him like a suit of light... that trickled into Body of Light. It wasn''t nearly powerful enough to sustain him more than the most basic of amounts, but it was something along with the sunlight that warmed his exposed skin. "Ready?" Roman asked as something seemed to change about him. His muscles enlarged as if he had hit the gym every day, all day with exceptional form and discipline, until his form rippled with raw might. He even seemed taller. His movements sharpened until they seemed honed as if he were a trained athlete. Purple light overshone the brown of his irises. "Set?" Eli ignited his body into radiance as voidspace shields snapped around his body. Photonic Generation''s continuous light brightened as he forced his voidspace shields to reflect the combined radiance back into his body. Heat smoldered in his photonic bones. He flexed his fingers to check how the gauntlets held up to his reinforced Body of Light strength. Not to mention if and how the gauntlet tugged on his mechanical arm. Both hands moved with contemptuous ease. "Go!" They both shouted. Eli expanded the space around them while snapping voidspace shields up at the perimeter so it''d be harder to see what they were doing from the outside. And so they wouldn''t need to worry about anyone getting in the crossfire. Roman dove forward, his arms extended back and down as twin jets of water shot out of his gloves to propel him closer. Eli bent his knees and launched himself up in the air where he teleported himself in place. At the same time, he pushed the thought of water along with both of his powers through his gloves. Photonic Generation and Body of Light seemed to buzz as they worked and fought together until pressure mounted. With Hydrokinesis, he pushed his will straight into the gloves as he launched two blasts of water. As the water traveled through his Voidspace, he narrowed and split the tunnels of his void to chain a teleport to create a cage of powerful streams of water. The water shone as he twisted it with Hydrokinesis as it speared into the sand around him just as he flipped midair to try and shoot his own water where Eli had been. Water swelled as it closed around Roman like a bear trap. Eli teleported back to the ground with a triumphant cheer as he held the now smoking gauntlets above his head in victory when something moved in the vortex of water. Water hissed as Roman crashed out of the water in a mechanized suit that had appeared around him. Segments of armored plates gleamed in the noonday sunlight. He held his hands spaced out as if he were holding a gun... then he was. A long barreled water cannon appeared in his hands. Sparks of purple light fizzed across the burnished metal likes moths gorging on clothes stuffed in a closet. A low hiss that rose to a piercing whine built up as the tank of the water cannon emptied into the pressurized chamber. Roman''s finger twitched towards the trigger. Water boomed out of the cannon with a loud crack. Immediately, large swathes of Roman''s armor and water cannon vanished in a plume of sparkling purple smoke. Eli reached out with Hydrokinesis as he shoved his will against the frothing whiteout water. Pain built up in his head to a blinding spike of agony. He expanded space between him and the watery projectile as he forced Hydrokinesis to push back. Tension built and vibrated up and down his connection with the power until he felt it release and smooth over. A wave of Hydrokinesis slammed into the globe of water with a spraying crash as if it had hit a wall. He yanked back on the spray, freezing each droplet, before he snapped them back at Roman in a cascade of ice pellets. Roman grunted as each frozen drop scratched or dented his summoned armor, each hit releasing a puff of purple smoke. "I got you now," Eli smirked teasingly as he shot out a continuous spray of water from his gauntlets, but he held them back with Hydrokinesis as he thought about cool foggy days. The charged bank of water frothed as mist steamed off of it. He teleported the vast amounts of mist around Roman who was surrounded in a corona of purple light as he gathered up another water cannon shot. "I don''t think so!" Roman fired another blast of water at the same time his water cannon and armor shattered in motes of purple sparks. Eli started to teleport when Roman zipped forward at blinding speeds, he lifted his gauntlets and fired ten rays of water from each of his fingertips. Ten streams of water thudded against Eli''s voidspace armor. Every drop vanished into a spatial bubble that he surrounded his charged bak of water around. Roman''s eyes widened as Eli exploded out a blast of mist that consumed him in a brilliant white cloud. His spatial bubble teleported right behind Roman''s back where it exploded into a wave that dragged him across the sandy dunes. "Ow, fuck!" Roman swore as he rose unsteadily to his feet. A film of sand coated his face and body as he gasped out panting breaths. "What the fuck man? What are you, a demon? I dreamed that I had combat training, a full set of power-armor, and a water cannon and it still wasn''t enough?" Eli shrugged, embarrassed but also proud. He swapped out the now maxed out Hydrokinesis for Rapid Recovery while he reached forward to put a gauntlet covered hand on Roman''s shoulder. Roman relaxed as Rapid Recovery eased his aches, healed his wounds, and filled him with vitalizing awareness. Oh. He had made a lot of progress. Voidspace Control Ev. 0/Lv. 5> Hydrokinesis Ev. 0/Lv. 5> Photonic Generation Ev. 0/Lv. 1> Eli glanced curiously at what merging Voidspace Control and Hydrokinesis created and was... confused. Hydroplanar Control sounded very interesting, but also weird. It felt like he lost out on nearly all of his versatility for a hyper-specialization. He would be able to control water and space through water and be able to natively teleport anywhere there was water. But he''d lose out on the void, spatial bubbles, and the sheer amount of freedom he had now. He shook his head with a small smile as he thought about how he would have jumped at the chance for this power at the beginning of the Initialization, but he wasn''t going to toss aside his greatest asset now. He declined the merge and accepted the evolution from Voidspace Control to Voidspace Mastery. He shivered as space seemed to crystallize around him. It felt like a part of him as he sensed the void everywhere like a lurking shadow hidden within every point of space. "Eli? You okay? I feel better now, really." Roman said as he shook Eli''s shoulder. Eli nodded even as he felt all of the empty spaces inside of Roman. His trachea, ear and nose canals, chest cavity. Eli blinked as his perception of Voidspace sharpened further. Empty space was everywhere around him down to the atom. "Yeah, I''m fine." He unequipped Rapid Recovery and replaced it with Aerokinesis while he studied the new power and evolution menus for Hydrokinesis. A breeze kicked up around him as he cycled the air around him. He scoffed at the list. These new power options were trash other than Imbue. He wanted to get Imbue regardless, but he had idea that he wanted to check out first. He¡¯d read and seen on the different forum websites that creating powers from Perks allowed for a lot more customization and often better results. It might also help him with the trade penalty issues he was having. Photonic Generation, Aerokinesis, and Speed Shift were remarkably difficult to use. He brought up a separate status screen then focused on Aerokinesis, Photonic Generation, and Speed Shift and thought about dismantling them into perks. "Roman, what the fuck is the power dismantling messages? I knew I could only pick one from each, but there¡¯s no backing out from it? "Yeah?" Roman said casually then his head whipped around in alarm. "You didn''t try to dismantle all of your powers, did you?" "No, just the new ones my parents gave me. But I''ll be able to combine these perks into a power, right?" "Yep. Two or more. What are your choices?" "Well, sensing air, air itself for some reason, controlling air for Aerokinesis. Creating light and just light for Photonic Generation, and the weirdest one is Speed Shift. Accelerating something slow, speed, and slowing something down." As Eli rattled each of them off seeds of ideas began to form. ¡°Let¡¯s see what this does¡­¡± Eli slotted Air into Hydrokinesis and shivered as he became far more aware of the traces of water vapor in the air all around him. Out of curiosity, he checked and smiled at how the evolution option changed to Advanced Aero-Hydrokinesis. Create Light turned Hydrokinesis''s evolution into Brightwater while Speed and Hydrokinesis became Rapid Hydrokinesis. He considered between getting Imbue or evolving Hydrokinesis right away. Brightwater or Advanced Aero-Hydrokinesis sounded pretty incredible. Brightwater could go a long way to fixing his light creation abilities while letting him specialize more with water. It''d also synergize with his plans for the Mind stat if he found a way to merge it with his body powers. But if he did that would it be better to merge Dynamic Vitality and Hydrokinesis together at the first evolution or later? He decided to get Imbue now while he could. Then he checked what he could create with the perks with and without Create Light on Hydrokinesis. He smiled at the result. This would be better. If he could merge threeways like he could with perks¡­ then he¡¯d be able to create something truly incredible with this power, Hydrokinesis, and Dynamic Vitality later. "I figured it out." Eli said as he equipped the composite power and smiled as he created a strong gust of wind that shimmered with light. He watched as it shone and kicked up sand as it dispersed then dimmed. And he liked what he hoped he''d be able to do with it, Dynamic Vitality, Hydrokinesis, and Rapid Recovery someday. He held his still gauntleted hands so they almost touched as he pushed with Lumengust and watched as glowing air swirled together in a sphere that he barely controlled as it pushed and bucked against his gauntleted hands. The light brightened to a harsh glare even as tendrils of bright air whipped up sand around him. Eli drank in all of the light instantly and watched with interest as the gust died down to a breath instantly. Strength flooded his body as he smiled. "I like this power." He¡¯d like it even more when it bonded with Dynamic Vitality, Hydrokinesis, and Rapid Recovery though. Since stat powers were both the original and the changed version of the stat it would boost his body, give him a synergized elemental power, and enhance his mind. It¡¯d be perfect. [Stats: Body: Light (Photon Shot) Mind: None Will: None ] [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Voidspace Mastery Ev. 1/Lv. 0 Slot Two -- Hydrokinesis Ev. 0/Lv. 5 (Maxed) Slot Three -- Lumengust Ev. 0/Lv. 0 ] [Unequipped Powers: Rapid Recovery Ev. 1/Lv. 7 Dynamic Vitality Ev. 0/Lv. 4 Imbue Ev. 0/Lv. 0 ] Chapter Twenty-one ¡°Jackson Daniels is a criminal on the run from the United States,¡± Dad said with a heavy sigh. ¡°Our attorney Abraham Hauff called to tell me earlier, I didn''t want to ruin your guys''s day and your birthday Eli, but it''s time for us to make a plan.¡± Eli sat on the tiny patio of their beach cabin while he stared out into the horizon. His stomach was full from dinner at the Shorefront and from an excessive amount of cake his parents had made together. But it felt like a knife jutted against his heart. His mouth puckered into a frown at what he had heard as he tried to process it. Dad sat next to him awkwardly while he cradled a water bottle in his hands that crinkled with his every anxious motion. Lana bristled with outrage and confusion. Silverlight pulsed across her body as it shaped itself into armor again and again. Lyra stared off into the distance with the shell-shocked expression that she always wore, especially around Eli or their parents. Mom glowered with an impotent rage as flurries of snow billowed off her skin for a moment before she caught it and stopped her new starter power. ¡°Are you serious?¡± Lana growled as she paced furiously. ¡°We were alone with him! While Eli was off galivanting to Springridge Mall, I had to sit and wait with him for you to pick me up! And he¡¯s a criminal?¡± ¡°What did he do, Rick?¡± Mom asked with a cold, sharp tone like the rumbling crack of a frozen river. ¡°Apparently, he¡¯s been selling government secrets. Inciting rebellion, and... and the murder of an entire squad of his Superpower Task Force team.¡± Dad squeezed the water bottle with a harsh pop. ¡°They¡¯re also pretty sure he¡¯s been working for Sandra and Dave Farley.¡± ¡°No! Rick, what the fuck? Why didn¡¯t you say something sooner?¡± Mom hissed as she paced with her arms crossed. ¡°We need to go. Leave! Daniels knows where we live!¡± ¡°Where would we go?¡± Eli scoffed as he turned to glance at both of his parents. ¡°He knows our powers. Where we live, yes, but you don¡¯t think that they have people watching us? Reporting our movements? They raided a mall in broad daylight!¡± ¡°The police...¡± Lyra whispered as she looked up from her dissociation. ¡°They didn¡¯t move from their barricades.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right!¡± Dad said as he turned towards her, then frowned. ¡°You¡¯re right. When we could finally leave, they said that they were ordered to not go inside! They were only supposed to keep the terrorists penned in until the Superpower Task Force arrived.¡± ¡°But they never did?¡± Eli asked as he glanced at his parents and Lyra. ¡°When I teleported over, I saw no one coming. It was only the police and ambulances outside.¡± ¡°No. They didn¡¯t. Once it was clear most of the prisoners were subdued, the police rushed in to arrest and kill any prisoners still fighting and to get people out.¡± Dad said while Mom picked at the hem of her dress while she stared into nothing. Back on the other side of the cabins, laughter roared around the bonfire. ¡°Do they know where Dave and Sandra even are?¡± Eli asked. Both of his sisters turned to stare at him as if bewildered he understood who these people actually were. He supposed that Dad probably only talked to him about it. ¡°They tracked them down to the border of Mexico when they disappeared in the ambush that killed Daniels¡¯s team. His assistant Grant or something was the only one to escape. He reported what happened. Only his ashes were found in the hotel room he tried to hide in a few towns over.¡± Conversation stilled into silence. Eli could only hear the laughter and murmur of his friends talking and the whisper of the ocean¡¯s waves. ¡°So. What do we do about it?¡± Eli asked as he stood up as he ran a dim, but still noticeable current of radiance through his body. His metal arm sparked with white-gold light. ¡°Well.¡± Dad said with a frown, light reflected off his glasses. ¡°I think we could hole up somewhere. Maybe at a hotel or get a new house.¡± ¡°I¡¯d rather we stay with my parents.¡± Mom said as snow spun around her in a blizzard. ¡°They live far enough in the middle of nowhere in the Midwest. My parents both have strong enough powers that they could help us and they have our old house that isn¡¯t really being used. We¡¯d be safe there.¡° ¡°I don¡¯t want to endanger anyone else though, Addy... Sandra is ruthless. Remember how she ruined her maid¡¯s life by planting drugs in that woman¡¯s son¡¯s car then she fired her for bringing around ¡®undesirable influences¡¯ into her home? She will gladly destroy anyone around us. And Dave! Don¡¯t get me started on Dave. He always took things to extremes before. And now they both have powers.¡± ¡°We can¡¯t stay here though!¡± Mom protested hotly as she glared at Dad. ¡°We only even moved out here for work and so we could get away from them and the mud they fucking dragged us through! Come on kids, what do you think?¡± ¡°I think I¡¯d rather stay at Ava¡¯s house.¡± Lyra stood up while she looked at both of their parents. ¡°I... I keep remembering the mall. It was a normal day, but people died and got hurt. I bled and they hunted us down... because of you two. Both of you fought and destroyed so much¡­ I... I had to burn someone alive with a solid illusion because they were about to kill you Mom. Therapy isn¡¯t enough. Talking about it with you or some doctor doesn¡¯t help. I¡¯m afraid to be at school knowing that basically everyone there has powers! I just want to be safe.¡± Lyra left. Mom started to chase after her, but Dad held her back with a shake of his head. Lana frowned as she stared after Lyra, glanced at Eli and his parents, before she followed her. Eli¡¯s throat felt swollen as he winced throughout Lyra¡¯s speech and beratement of their parents. He could imagine it all too well. How he¡¯d come swooping in with overwhelming force as he fired shards of glass, rays of scorching light, and whatever else he could teleport around to fight. But it hadn¡¯t been enough. He¡¯d been hurt, humiliated, brutalized and disfigured until he figured out how to restore his arm. All because of his parents in the first place, but also because he had felt the need to step in. Instead of being thanked or even apologized to for it or anything at all, he¡¯d been yelled at. Lectured. But Lyra had been there for all of it. He had made a choice, and he stood by it, even now. She had just been there. He would do it again. But he wouldn¡¯t risk himself needlessly. Not anymore. Eli watched both of them talk to each other as they tried to plan. Tried to decide what they were going to do. He considered just leaving. He could go anywhere with ease. Hole himself up in his void and wander as he pleased. He frowned as he considered it though. He¡¯d be living the life of a ghost though. Chatter and laughter echoed as someone said something around the light of the bonfire away from the cold and dark patio overlooking the sea. Powers and fear didn¡¯t rule his life. He did. Eli wanted more than a life of fear and of him looking over his shoulder constantly. A life where he had to live knowing his family¡¯s safety was in danger. He wanted to go to college and be free. Have fun. Make all kinds of power tech with Roman like his pair of gauntlets that rested in a spatial bubble inside of his void. He could do so much more than run and hide with his powers. But would that even be possible? He glanced over at his parents while he thought about how the terrorists in the mall had shot down multiple people. Their powers had been beyond basic from what he¡¯d seen, but if the ascent to power was to murder a few people that were at least as strong or stronger than you... then he wouldn¡¯t get to have that either. If Mom had to accept that the old world was gone, then so did he. Eli¡¯s heart pounded as he thought about the seeds of rebellion. Several states were in open martial law. News was lagging internationally. Fights were blowing up everywhere as were other attacks. Other parts of the world surely had to be worse. Hell, the United States wasn¡¯t any better. Part of his heart shattered at the thought. Jackson Daniels hadn¡¯t seemed amazing or anything. He¡¯d willingly forced a school full of people to undergo invasive dream-like simulations of traumatic events just to see what they might do or could be capable of under duress. Eli had scored as fully Lethal in those tests. He hadn¡¯t just survived or weathered every event forced upon him. Every situation he endured. No. He¡¯d overcome. Eli squeezed his fists before he glanced at his parents with a shake of his head before he walked away. His parents didn¡¯t understand, and maybe they never would. That was fine. He couldn¡¯t protect them forever, but he could at least help them escape before he left on his own. Whether that was college or wandering, he¡¯d do it alone. Light from a flickering bonfire glowed across the sand where everyone had gathered in a circle. Lyra, Ava, Lana, Roman, and Theo were all gathered together as they celebrated. Well, hopefully not totally alone. He sat down beside Roman while he reached out with Voidspace to teleport a flat rock into his hand while he equipped both Imbue and Lumengust and listened to their stories with a smile. Imbue felt like an elastic but adhesive power as he pushed and stretched it over and through the structure of the rock until he felt it settle. Solidify. It was ready for him to give it something. Eli nudged against it with Imbue and tilted his head at how it seemed like it wanted something else. He drew on his ambient light as he tried to shine a light on it so he could inspect it when he felt the Imbued rock grab onto that light and guzzle it into its structure. Colors swam across the once dull rock as it became a thing of vibrant dazzling specks of minerals as it shone with its own light. He tried to push at it with Body of Light to see if he could dim or brighten it but then he blinked as the rock floated above his palm for a split second before it flashed and dropped back into his hand, dead. All of its light spent like that. Imbue Ev. 0/Lv. 1> He did it again. And again. Over and over until he had a heap of gently glowing rocks piled up next to him from a series of teleports. He felt every single one of them with his light attuned senses from Body of Light, Voidspace Mastery, and even the faint sense of whatever he¡¯d imbued into them. He swept them all into a spatial bubble and packed it into his void so his space would get less cluttered before he teleported another blank rock into his grasp. Imbue. He felt the rock become malleable. Almost a conceptual object ready to be charged with new meaning. A rock that was eager to become more. Lumengust slipped into the rock with a bit more resistance until he drew on the light from his stores and supercharged both Imbue and Lumengust. He almost felt like the imbued state could handle even more... Eli closed his eyes as he imagined throwing the rock and saying ¡®Gust¡¯ to release all the stored light and wind to propel it forward. Then he fell into his void as he expanded its size as far as he could until it felt endless with a small lake of floating spatial bubbles that he willed to gather out of the way behind him. He wound his arm back with the rock held high before he threw it forward and commanded, ¡°Gust!¡± Light exploded in an incandescent flash as the rock flew forward with a thunderous clap. He floated back through the empty Voidspace from the backlash. The rock shattered as it crumbled as Lumengust streamed out of it while the seed of Body of Light consumed the light to strengthen Lumengust in a loop without end. Until the rock couldn¡¯t handle it anymore. He popped back into place with his chin in his hand while he ignored everyone¡¯s incredulous stares. What else could he do with this? Another rock fell into his hand. Thankfully, the ocean was full of enough stones for him to do this as much as he wanted. Imbue. Body of Light to fill it with a spark of light, then an empowered snap of Lumengust to create the foundation of his loop. Then he filled it with Voidspace Mastery and winced as the rock instantly exploded into shrapnel. If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Fragments of rock scored bloody lashes across his palm. He teleported all the rock dust and residue out of his wounds before he yanked all the light out of one of his previously imbued rocks and watched as the gashes healed in a flash of light. Another teleport and all the blood was gone. Hm. ¡°Do enchantment powers not work on powers that are stronger than it?¡± Eli asked as he turned to Roman, who had an assortment of his own tools laid out in front of him. Lana and Theo stared at Eli with abject horror on their faces. Lyra and Ava had left without him noticing. How long had he spent on this? Imbue Ev. 0/Lv. 2> Imbue Ev. 0/Lv. 3> Lumengust Ev. 0/Lv. 1> Lumengust Ev. 0/Lv. 2> ¡°Not very well. They¡¯ll usually wear it down faster or break like that. What did you try using?¡± Roman asked while he fiddled with some sort of armor piece again. ¡°Spatial Mastery. I wanted to see if I could either teleport the rock somewhere or even make it teleport whoever holds it and says a keyword, but well... you saw.¡± ¡°You¡¯ll have to level it more first. Better materials also make a difference.¡± Roman commented as Lana stood up to walk closer around the smoldering bonfire. Eli gathered light in a white molten bead to get the fire going before he experimented a little. He teleported one of the spare logs into his voidspace. Dry wood opened itself up as he willed it to be cut and quartered. Grain and seasoned bark felt rough, as if he had touched it with his bare hand. Heat flooded his voidspace until the last little bits of moisture that remained started to sizzle and evaporate. ¡°Oh.¡± Eli muttered as he allowed some air into his voidspace. Flames immediately darted and flickered. He teleported the burning logs into the bonfire and watched as it became a conflagration for a few moments before it dwindled. He watched the flames as Lana stared at him with wide-open excitement. ¡°Can other people use the items you create?¡± She practically vibrated with glee. ¡°Dynamic Vitality to make me stronger? Rapid Recovery to make me heal and recover quicker? Teleportation?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, but I¡¯m not giving any to you... for free.¡± Eli beamed as he made his bones radiate light with a harsh, red glow. She flinched at his demonic shift in appearance before she narrowed her eyes. ¡°You¡¯re really going to charge me for something you¡¯re going to make anyway?¡± ¡°Why not? You can¡¯t make it.¡± He frowned at her. He had grown tired of her always expecting others to indulge her. ¡°So wait,¡± he turned to Roman, ¡°does enchanting a different power level both?¡± ¡°Technically, but only a bit.¡± ¡°It¡¯d be good for you too! Please, Eli?¡± Lana begged, to which he shook his head as he teleported another rock into his hands. Imbue flowed into it as he mapped the structure of it out with the power before he flooded it with light from the campfire. He switched Lumengust out for Dynamic Vitality. Imbue snared Dynamic Vitality, then writhed in the stone¡¯s structure as it emulated the power. It felt like it¡¯d be able to draw and store Stamina, Perception, and Strength while also allowing whoever used the stone to dump all the gathered resources into their bodies at will. But he¡¯d seen how he could¡ªwith Body of Light¡ªuse his internal storage of light to supercharge his other powers. Eli held the rock up as he studied it with his powers. He felt near to bursting melting pot of powers contained within boil with light like the essence of a breeze as it churned with Stamina, Perception, and Strength. He siphoned the power out of it and into himself. Power ignited his nerves as his muscles twitched with growing strength. Gray wood smoke burned in his nostrils, but it didn¡¯t bother him. Eli teleported in place so he stood with each of his wells of resources from Dynamic Vitality crackling with a radiant nimbus of power in each. ¡°Which is stronger, Silverlight or Theo¡¯s new shield?¡± Eli¡¯s voice rumbled a whole octave lower than normal. His breath glowed and sparkled with flecks of light. ¡°Silverlight. Barrier isn¡¯t very strong still, but I maxed it out earlier today and unlocked Bio-Matter Generation!¡± Theo said as he lifted his hand, which wriggled with growing fibers that thickened at the end to become a white bone. Eli nodded, then turned to regard Lana, who licked her lips nervously. ¡°Create a Silverlight shield.¡± Eli commanded as he shook his metal and flesh hands out to loosen them and his muscles swelling with strength. Dynamic Vitality felt stronger, even as seemed to tenderize. Lana held her arm up which shimmered as metallic light appeared and wrapped around her arm before it elongated into a large curved shield. ¡°Rea¡ª¡± Eli took a single step as he twisted his back foot, turned his hip with his motion, and drove his right fleshy hand forward with a clang of crushed metal. Knuckles crunched as his fingers bent, his hand wrenched to the side, and the bones in his arm fractured from his wrist to the middle of his forearm. Then his arm aligned with a blazing flash of light. He swung it experimentally and smiled. Stronger than ever. ¡°What the fuck?¡± Lana stumbled with a hiss of pain. Her shield crumpled with a massive dented crater in the center full of massive cracks that gushed silvery mist. It vanished entirely before streaming back into her. Her arm bent at a slight angle. ¡°You fucking fractured my arm, Eli!¡± ¡°Make something better.¡± Eli checked the radiant haze of power in each of the wells of Dynamic Vitality. Their light and twisters of energy had almost entirely faded. He teleported another stone, Imbued with light and Lumengust, into his hand that disintegrated from his massive withdrawal of energy. He watched while Theo healed her with a quick brush of skin to skin contact. ¡°I¡¯m going to hit harder this time.¡± ¡°Harder?¡± Lana blanched, ¡°How are you hitting so hard in the first place? You don¡¯t have that many body boosting powers.¡± ¡°Just do it.¡± Eli focused as he siphoned out all of Perception out into Strength with only a third going into Stamina. Then he gathered, charged, and guided his internal storm of light to radiate down from his right shoulder to his hand. He wished he still had Lumengust equipped so he could get some extra momentum, but he wouldn¡¯t need it. Lana squatted on her heels as she conjured a massive shielded post that she braced into the ground. It was a rounded cylinder thicker than a telephone pole. ¡°Ready.¡± Eli slipped into Voidspace, where he teleported himself right in front of her. He flexed space to blast him forward with more force even as he pulled and folded space along the path of his fist. Bone snapped in his ankles. Metal screeched as his radiant fist bent the pole around his punch. Silver beaded and melted where his radiant hand sparked against the misting metal. ¡°Sorry,¡± Eli muttered. He toppled over, his fist still held in the hole he¡¯d punched through the metal. ¡°What?¡± Lana asked before he let the folded rigid coiled space expand. Her silverlight cracked, shattered, then burst into a glowing pall of roiling silver fog. Lana flew back in a shrieking tumble as she flipped end over end through the beaches dunes. Eli landed on his side as his vision swam from his overuse of Dynamic Vitality. Numb discomfort zipped up and down his tingling nerves while he gasped. Noise buzzed and murmured in his ears. Rapid Recovery replaced Imbue. He groaned as heat flushed into his ankles, the tendons and ligaments around them, and even the bruised swollen skin around them. They shifted with little grating tugs. Bone rubbed against bone as the joint realigned and then healed with a cooling snap. Rapid Recovery dumped restorative energy into the rest of his body. His hearing cleared. Strength returned to him as the pressure exerted on the wells of his Dynamic Vitality eased. Eli teleported back onto his feet with a yank of Voidspace Mastery and watched as Theo sprinted over to the prone Lana, whose hair was a gnarled mess. He teleported over to her in an instant and reached down to push Rapid Recovery into her. Dynamic Vitality twisted in response to his push too as he guided some Stamina and Strength into her. She stiffened as his powers thrummed through her like a stallion with free rein on a racetrack. After a moment, Eli straightened and watched as Theo dove in a spray of sand where he healed her again. ¡°What the fuck is the matter with you? That was way too hard, man!¡± Eli shrugged. ¡°I thought she could take it since my build was so lopsided.¡± ¡°Jesus Christ.¡± Eli teleported back to his spot by the bonfire where Roman glanced at him with a raised eyebrow. ¡°I got a bit too overzealous, I guess.¡± ¡°Looks like.¡± ¡°I really thought she could take it! She¡¯s really strong, you know, and I didn¡¯t expect that.¡± Roman nodded. ¡°Fine, I¡¯ll apol¡ª¡± Eli said before Mom called out as she rushed over to them. ¡°Eli, Lana, come over here for a second.¡± Mom gestured while she walked back toward their cabin. Eli teleported over to Mom while they watched Lana stomp over to them. Her hair was a knotted nest full of sand now. ¡°Wha... Okay. We¡¯re thinking about going to a hotel after we leave tomorrow. Do you mind going with your dad tomorrow to pack up some more stuff, Eli?¡± ¡°Sure.¡± He shrugged. They wouldn¡¯t even need boxes with his spatial bubbles, hell he could go right now. He wasn¡¯t even tired. Turbulent light twisted in a closed system from Dynamic Vitality, Rapid Recovery, and his Body of Light. Whenever the light dwindled, Rapid Recovery recharged it into a crackling maelstrom of power. ¡°I¡¯ll go right now.¡± ¡°What, Eli, no. It¡¯s your birthday, rela¡ª¡± Eli tuned her out as he slipped into his Voidspace. He prepared to chain a series of teleports back to Farbrook when he noticed something already tugging on him from that direction. He reached out with his spatial field and felt something resonate and echo. Faint silhouettes wavered in his room as if he were peering at the bottom of a murky pond. That¡¯s right, he had left a bubble out the night he merged Spatial Control and Voidshade Control in his bedroom. It called to him like an anchor even as he yanked on it. Space warped and distorted in his voidspace as he shot through a spatial tunnel that seemed to stretch for an eternity. He glanced over at his status while he waited and smiled at his gains. While he checked, another level up popped up. Dynamic Vitality Ev. 0/Lv. 5> Rapid Recovery Ev. 1/Lv. 8> Voidspace Mastery Ev. 1/Lv. 1> Before he could check out what his new power, merge, and evolution options were, he shot out of the bubble in a bouncing crash as he rebounded off his wall with a crunch as the plaster broke. He drained the light that streamed from his lights with a groan as he climbed to his feet. Eli sneezed before he teleported all the plaster dust off him and into his voidspace. He spread his spatial field out as he created a bubble to pack up his desk, bed, dresser, and everything else that wasn¡¯t already packed into it. A second later, it was clear. Maybe he should look into offering a moving service? Pretend to have a spatial storage power and super speed so he¡¯d be valuable, but people would give him more of a tip since they¡¯d think it was harder work for him? That could be interesting. He mused idly as he stepped into the hallway to start on Lana¡¯s before he stopped. All of the doors upstairs were thrown open with the lights on. Speaking of¡­ why was his light on in his room? Eli threw his spatial field out across the house then recoiled as it wrapped around the silhouette of a short woman in a business suit downstairs in the dining room. She looked up right in his direction as if she saw him through the layers of the house and all the room in-between him. A tremendous force swatted from her into his spatial field shattering it with a twinkle. Eli stumbled back as agony split into his head. Light twisted behind him before it was snuffed out. Tendrils of shadow snared out from behind him even as he dove forward. Floorboards broke with a snap behind him as he rolled into Lana¡¯s room and tried to teleport, but hissed in agony as that same force shattered his spatial field again. Dave stepped out of Eli¡¯s room with his hand hanging loose at his side where he held his sword out pointed straight for Eli. His body rippled and undulated with darkness. ¡°Jack, Jackson, look alive! We got our first visitor!¡± Dave called as his shadow rolled out from underneath him toward Eli who turned radiant as he forced all of his light into Voidspace Mastery even as pain boiled and split through his nerves and bones as he tried to teleport as far as he could above the house. Eli¡¯s spatial field cracked before he could escape. Space ripped as he stumbled out of voidspace to ram into the rafters of the attic with a crunch of broken wood. Eli landed flat on his radiant face. He stood up woozily as he tried to limp away. Glowing claws pierced through space above him, where he¡¯d teleported out with a rasp. A woman in a dress dropped from his teleportation point with a muffled thud. Her eyes gleamed with a gray light, her pupils slitted like a cat¡¯s. She stalked forward with her clawed hands held to either side of her like she was a wrestler, but instead of choking him, she intended to maul him. Eli¡¯s spatial field quivered as he drew his voidspace around him. It spread out from him in fits and starts while he heaved. Rapid Recovery burned in his chest as his exhaustion eased, but as his spatial field pinged across the house, four blind spots gaped in his senses. Only the woman in the business suit in the living room was visible, but the second his field reached her, that rending agony gored his spatial field apart. Eli stepped back as the woman approached with a bestial growl low in her throat. Instead of being cringy or edgy, it sent sparks down his spine as the hairs on his skin rose. He whirled around as he siphoned Perception into Strength and stomped his foot straight through the floor. He turned into soft light and slipped through. He landed in a puddle right on the steps as he snapped back into a rigid state. Eli started to barrel down the stairs when a man in a burnt, bloody suit rounded the corner to block his way to the front door. Jackson Daniels reached up to slip his sunglasses off his face to stare Eli down with his burning twin sun eyes. ¡°What¡¯s the rush, Mr. Newton?¡± Bands of darkness wrapped around Eli with a snap. Shadows hissed and sizzled where they pressed against Eli¡¯s radiant skin, but he couldn¡¯t break it. They were almost metal like Lana¡¯s Silverlight, but with darkness instead. Dave clapped his hand on Eli¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Time for you to meet my wife.¡± Dave shouldered past him as he walked down the stairs. His shadow trailed behind him like a series of ropes that drew taut around Eli¡¯s body. Eli landed flat on his back before he slid down the stairs to slam into Jackson Daniels legs. Eli screamed as his hip popped out of place from where it cracked against Daniels¡¯s shins. ¡°Sorry about that.¡± He chuckled as ropes of shadow dragged Eli toward the living room. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the woman in a dress drop out of the hatch into the attic. Her gray eyes met Eli¡¯s with a tangible force. Eli turned away with a flinch. ¡°This is the boy that broke Daniel¡¯s projection of you, Davie?¡± Sandra, Dave¡¯s wife, asked as she stood up out of his parents¡¯ loveseat to glare down at Eli¡¯s prone form as if he were a cockroach she¡¯d seen wandering away from a pile of shit. Dave nodded. ¡°Pathetic.¡± She bowed to push his glowing bangs aside so she could peer at his face. ¡°You have the misfortune of looking like your father. Pity. Want to play plastic surgeon, Jack?¡± ¡°I¡¯d love to, boss,¡± said Jack, the man with bright blue eyes from the mall, who crouched down to squeeze his sparking hand over Eli¡¯s face. Bolts of electricity arced into Eli with the galvanic wrath of a storm god... but Eli roared with laughter as the electricity filled him to bursting point with light. It hurt, but not nearly as much as it had in the mall. He overcharged Strength and Stamina with the stolen light as he swiped out with his arms. Bands of shadowy metal snapped with a screech. His metal hand clamped down on his wrist with a brittle crunch as he ground his bones to powder. Eli lifted his right hand as he molded his hand and fingers into a solid radiant blade that he swung clear through Jack¡¯s elbow. Light blasted from his feet as he turned into soft light again and skidded across the floor before reshaping into solid radiant light once again. Eli wasn¡¯t a reckless boy anymore who had sprinted into a fight in a mall. Space shuddered around him as he forced his power to work as he created voidspace blades and bolts that hung all around him. He filled each blade and bolt with a light and Lumengust Imbued stone. Everyone gaped as Jack howled as lightning crackled all around him as he jammed his dismembered arm into his elbow pointlessly as it charred from his lightning. Elias Newton was an adult defending his own home. And he didn¡¯t need to hold back this time. Voidspace bolts and blades shot forward in a barrage that whistled as they devoured their way through the air. Chapter Twenty-two
Space buckled as Jackson Daniels launched a volley of fireballs. For every one he created, another would appear before he loosed each set. Eli''s artillery of Lumengust-Imbued stones clashed with each fireball in a chain of explosions. Wallpaper and furniture lit ablaze from the flash of heat. Gusts of hot air blasted across the living room and kitchen, shattering all the windows. Eli stood unbothered and safe in his voidspace armor. Hairline fractures scored the surface of every segment, but Rapid Recovery and Voidspace Mastery worked together to restore the damage. "You''ve come a long way from the sniveling boy that asked me if you should have a lawyer present." Daniels chuckled as globes of red fire churned at the end of his fingertips. Flame licked up the walls into the ceiling while they stared each other down. Everyone else had disappeared from the salvo. Did they escape? Did Sandra teleport them, if she even could, or... Ten fireballs streaked toward him. Air boiled until it screamed in their wake. Eli drained all the surrounding light until the room darkened. He created a voidspace bubble, then flipped it inside out and smiled as the room froze as the gloom darkened. Frost spread in plumes of mist from the charred surroundings. "Fuck, that''s cold!" Daniels hissed as sparks spat from his fingertips, but every spark he started only fueled Eli''s void. Eli teleported forward in a rip through space as he condensed all the void back until into a dot in front of his fist that he flipped back around. He drove his fist into Daniels''s spine. Space unfolded and expanded with a roar of thunder as the void ripped through him into an explosion that vaporized the wall of the living room that led to the entryway. Eli panted with leaden exhaustion as he whirled around to search the extinguished rooms, charred black and white from the flash fire. Rapid Recovery sang through his nerves and veins with a new rush of energy. "You''re more exciting than your parents," growled the gray-eyed woman as she appeared in-between blinks on the threshold of the front door. Eli narrowed his eyes at her sudden appearance. He hadn''t felt space move or react at all to her appearance. She pounced in a flurry of claws shrouded in gray light that sundered the air. He created a flattened voidspace bubble behind him and her before he linked them together and teleported up on the roof. Discs of voidspace crashed together in a spray of blood and bone¡ª Vanished. Eli''s spatial field poured out of him where it swept down his house into the street and into the nearby houses. Several silhouettes stood with phones held up to their face while they stared at his house. Except for the soccer mom van full of five people veiled in a different kind of spatial field then his across the street. He reduced his glow before he blipped inside the van in the trunk as silently as he could. His voidspace armor tensed from the sudden pressure, but it seemed to veil him from scrutiny for the moment. "He''s tearing through my projections left and right! If you want to deal with him, you''ll have to fucking fight him yourself!" Daniels screamed with a flash of red light and heat. "What''s with this kid? I thought you said he was a pushover, Jack?" asked the woman with the claws. "He was. What kind of training hell did his parents put him through?" Jack scoffed. "He would have cut my arm off!" "Quiet. We have work to do." Dave commanded from the front seat. "Is your projection working right? I don''t see him in the house, Jackson." "He disappeared!" "If you all let him escape to go crying back to his parents..." Sandra said in a scathing warning. Eli siphoned Strength into Perception and Stamina. His clothes scratched at his skin as the world slowed down around him. He prepared to teleport to where Daniels was so he could take him out. If he had some sort of projection power and he was only sending out doubles, then he had to go out first. Otherwise, they¡¯d be able to wear him down without consequence. Eli ripped through space and appeared in the middle of a van where Jack sat with his head resting against the window. His electric blue eyes widened as Eli''s appearance ripped the roof of the van off around his body. Daniels gaped as Eli''s arm turned into a radiant blade edged with hardened voidspace that sliced toward his head. In the backseat, the gray-eyed woman followed his sped-up movements with ease. Claws grew from her fingertips as she put her hands on Jack and Daniels''s car seats. She pulled herself forward with a loud rip of torn upholstery. Eli''s radiant arm-blade pricked Daniels''s face with a spray of sizzling blood. His features changed as a crimson hued orange fire kindled in both of his eyes. Daniel''s fist punched out and caught Eli right on his solar plexus. Beads of crackling red-orange flame burrowed in his voidspace armor before exploding in a series of small pops that drove them in like daggers. Agony pierced through Eli''s chest as the flame seared into his skin. His radiant arm-blade curved across Daniel''s eye before he blasted out as much light as he could spare. Shadows writhed all around him. Foreign space prepared to lock him in its grasp. Arcs of electricity droned. Glowing claws lunged towards him. Eli teleported out of there with a howl of wind and orange flame as rolled in a skid on the pavement. He wanted to scream at how the orange fire dug and burned its way into his nerves before it fizzed out. Terror desperately tried to thaw the chokehold of peace Rapid Recovery kept him in. Glowing claws sliced out a gash in space where he had teleported through revealing the woman with gray eyes and a long dress. Sandra opened her door to call out, "Gut him, Camille." "Gladly." She dashed toward him in a blink of an eye. He teleported backward then screamed as her claws raked through his teleportation point across his chest. Scarlet light splashed on the ground as he stumbled back. "Not only will I get your powers, but I''ll go stronger from the hunt. Thank you, prey." His light faded. The sole of her boot towered above his face as she brought her leg up. Space bent at his will, but before he could teleport away or blast her with voidspace, her claws shredded it apart. Car doors slammed shut. Cooldown messages popped up in front of his eyes as he tried to equip Lumengust or Imbue. Imbue would''ve been a long shot, but maybe he could''ve done something. Hydrokinesis equipped in Dynamic Vitality''s stead. His eyes flicked to the side of his menu with a smile at the realization that they were both capped. He could switch them back and forth as needed. Camille''s boot descended. Eli reached out with Hydrokinesis as far as he could. Fire hydrants built up with pressure before they exploded in a geyser. The storm drain and sewer beneath the road churned at his command. A void bubble full of radiant water boiled. Space twisted as he folded and condensed all the water together with a honed blade of ice at the front. Her claws flashed out again, but before she could, he narrowed the bubble further before he launched the water. Radiant murky water slammed into the back of her leg with a crack of fractured bone and shattered ice. She lifted in the air as she flipped back with a spray of water and dark blood. He teleported to stand up as he wobbled. Arcs of lightning bolted towards him alongside jets of orange fire. Shadows twitched behind Eli as they turned into metal blades. He teleported above Camille while he stuffed all of his water back into a voidspace bubble along with a light and Lumengust Imbued stone. At the peak of her ascent, he appeared. Space folded in a corridor around her as water blasted out of his voidspace bubble with the stone. He commanded, "Gust!" transforming the stone into an incandescent explosion of air and water that rammed her down into the street below with a bang. Before the water swept out of control, he vanished into his voidspace again. Before he could do more than skim, he teleported himself higher into the sky to land on a platform of hardened voidspace. Primal Savagery enhanced everything about her, Predator''s Consumption strengthened her whenever she... ate her kills, and Huntress''s Might made her even stronger while she was on the hunt. No wonder she was so fucking durable. Light and Lumengust Imbued stones appeared around him as he devoured the light from them to restore his flagging stores of light. Vast amounts of air vanished into a new voidspace bubble. Camille rose slowly on unsteady legs. Everyone''s attacks were aborted except for Dave''s shadowy spikes of metal that streaked toward Camille, who caught them with ease. Fear buzzed up and down his quivering legs. It bucked against the pacification of Rapid Recovery as he watched Camille stare straight up at him despite his height and the night. He wanted to run. Escape. The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. But he couldn''t. If he let up for even a moment then they could strike at his family. This was an ambush. It was only a matter of time before they descended on them. Horror squirmed in his gut at the thought of them attacking his parents or Lyra when they were all as durable as pre-System people. Only him and Dad had powers capable of dishing out enough damage, but¡­ his dad¡¯s powers were too devastating. Too impractical to control and restrain. Only Eli could handle this here. Eli popped out more voidspace bolts and blades and new voidspace armor as he telep¡ª Darkness glimmered with a malevolent edge as Dave rose on an ascending column of shadowy metal. The night grayed and began to lighten around them as Dave drew closer. Eli slipped into the void before he fell limp as a tremendous amount of pressure cleaved through his shoulder. Hot blood gushed down his metal arm in rivulets before the prosthetic shot off his shoulder entirely. Tendrils of metallic shadow thrashed with jagged edges as they gouged their way out of his shoulder. Edged tendrils of shadow scoured his shoulder and chest like the blades of a blender. Dave landed on Eli''s voidspace platform with his sword held high. Dynamic Vitality swapped with Hydrokinesis. Power instantly plugged into each and every nerve, muscle fiber, and grain of bone as Eli supercharged Dynamic Vitality, Rapid Recovery, and Voidspace Mastery with all of his stored light. Time slowed to a stop as Perception blazed bright. Something clicked in Eli''s mind as he supercharged Perception as much as possible. They weren''t trying to kill him. Not yet. They were holding back. How many chances had they had at the mall to do something on top of their obvious monitoring of his family, and with how many times he''d been alone with Daniels? Eli glanced up at the blade that plunged toward his stomach. No. Right now they were taking an opportunity. They still thought he was helpless. Weak. Eli willed a blade of radiant Voidspace to chop through the stump of his left arm above the shadowy scar. Blood, flesh, and a sliver of bone all squelched into his void. Stamina strobed like flickers of electricity as his wounds sealed shut. A nodule of exposed bone grew from where the scar had been before torment seared through his newly created nerves. He chopped it off again. Dave''s blade lowered an inch. Eli opened part of his voidspace platform and watched Dave sink into it. Eli teleported behind Dave on a new platform as he willed the old one to rise to his knees before turning solid again. Bone crunched as the voidspace caught and twisted on his legs. Dave howled. Brilliant celestial might transformed Eli''s right arm into a radiant blade once again. It brightened to a blinding white. He rammed it through the center of Dave''s back. Shadows bled gray and white as his flesh melted and boiled. Smoke plumed from the wound like grease that fell in a grill fire. Eli teleported in place again and again while he waited for a kill notification to appear. Each teleport shook Dave''s body violently. Blood vaporized into steam. Bones seethed as Dave drooped down Eli''s radiant swordarm. Space ruptured as someone appeared to reach for Dave. Crackling orange fireballs blitzed up from below. Eli created and placed a tiny spatial bubble into the empty space that yawned in Dave¡¯s joints. Hopefully, it would act as a teleportation anchor again. He teleported away, then hissed as something shattered his voidspace entirely. All of his light blazed out now that his voidspace armor broke. Leaden exhaustion plagued him as each of his Dynamic Vitality pools dimmed and emptied. Eli tumbled through the screaming air. Dots smeared across his vision as his consciousness fuzzed. Rapid Recovery started and stopped like a car with a dead battery. Houses whipped past his vision along with his street full of cars. He tried to teleport with a grunt as his spatial field broke around him again. "No! Dave!" Sandra roared from a tremendous distance somewhere above him. Wind whistled in Eli''s ears. He spun in another flip and saw the roof of what he believed was his house was dozens of feet away. He didn''t need a new power. With a push of his intent, he slammed his will into Siphon Power Experience. Screens flickered in front of his face faster than he could read, but he kept his intention firm. Level up Imbue so it''d hit the cap and free up Hydrokinesis, then max out Lumengust. More experience beckoned, so he shoved it into Voidspace Mastery. Eli merged Hydrokinesis, Lumengust, and Dynamic Vitality all together and pushed on the new power with all of his might. Vibrant clouds burst from his every pore with a tumultuous scream of power. Shingles flapped and ripped off into the localized tornado that flowed from him as he smacked into the roof with a rolling bounce. Pain and weakness overcame him as the cloud dimmed. He wheezed. Power flooded in from his lungs into the rest of his body with countless strands of energy that plugged into his every cell. Light streamed from Eli as he pushed himself up awkwardly with one arm onto his knees. He glanced at his status as he processed all the light that now thrummed throughout his body into his internal store. Another breath sent another tide of power zipping into his flesh. Panes and segments of voidspace warped and solidified from his left shoulder into a new arm of incandescent purple voidspace. He reread through his system logs and grinned at the changes. Lumencloud Invigoration Ev. 0/Lv. 1> Rapid Recovery Ev. 1/Lv. 9> [Stats: Body: Light (Photon Shot) Mind: None Will: None ] [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Voidspace Mastery Ev. 1/Lv. 5 Slot Two -- Lumencloud Invigoration Ev. 0/Lv. 1 Slot Three -- Rapid Recovery Ev. 1/Lv. 9 ] [Unequipped Powers: Imbue Ev. 0/Lv.5 (Maxed) ] Eli glanced up at the falling forms of Dave and Sandra before space ruptured again and they appeared by the van. Sirens blared in the distance along with flashes of red and blue. "Camille, Jack, kill him. Don''t hold back." Sandra said before she, Daniels, and Dave vanished with the van in a clap of thunder. Electricity flashed then exploded as lightning struck Eli on his voidspace armor. Cracks spider-webbed across it before Rapid Recovery smoothed it close. Jack held his hands aloft as bolts of electricty arched off telephone poles and cars right into him. Camille pounced up in a single bound with a boom of broken concrete. She flew toward him in a rush as lightning flickered again. Eli reached out with Voidspace Mastery as he linked the space between the lightning and Camille together. Shadows twisted and fluttered across her skeleton as electricity wreaked havoc across her body. Eli stepped in as he teleported closer. He grabbed her by the shoulder. Purple voidspace fingers dug in through the skin as tried to push his spatial field into the joints of her body. He breathed in and smiled as the rush of power fueled his Strength further. Bone cracked as her shoulder snapped in his grip. Glowing claws gouged scratches into his voidspace armor even as he willed space to twist around so she harmed herself instead. His fist jabbed into her solar plexus with a grating crunch of breaking bones. A push out with Lumencloud Invigoration siphoned all the power from his body into the billowing cloud that blasted into her with a gale of radiance. Eli controlled the oscillating cloud that twisted into her. He willed each gust to sharpen into hard light. A breath and more strength washed over Eli before it flowed into his cloud. Electricity flashed from the street. Lightning speared through the night as Jack leaped onto the roof. Electricity wreathed around him as he lashed out and decked Eli across the face. Voltage seared through his nervous system as he fell limp on his side. Eli teleported back as Jack stomped down where his head had been with a splintering crash. Sparks caught on the roof as flames flickered. Camille fell into a heap before Eli could resume control of his cloud. Eli took a breath in before he telepor¡ª Jack whooshed over to Eli with another peal of thunder that rattled his bones. He lifted his arms to block as his roundhouse kick barreled straight through his voidspace arm into his now open side. Lightning knocked Eli back. He flipped through the air to crash in the backyard. Blood coated his tongue with a coppery tang. Tears dripped from his eyes as he tried to stand before collapsing. Vitality slowly trickled into his body as it healed from Lumencloud Invigoration, Body of Light, and Rapid Recovery all working together. Lightning cracked as Jack blurred through the air. Camille vaulted over the fence with a rattle of chain links. Eli had to do something. Had to win. Jack crackled as he drew closer, Camille hot on his heels. Eli pushed out with Voidspace Mastery and smiled as he felt his anchor in Dave''s body to the southwest toward New Faram. He had to handle this first though. Voidspace yawned in a corona all around him as he felt their super durable bodies charge blindly through his spatial field. He tried to teleport them into the ground, into the sky, into each other. Space flickered and bent as air screamed and thrashed. Clods of earth and grass spiked up as parts of their clothes, hair, or even their shoes teleported around with as much force as he could muster. He pushed harder. Layers of voidspace wrapped around them as Jack''s galvanic fist closed in. Eli pushed right as his fist sparked into Eli''s face. Space shuddered and cracked as Jack¡¯s own fist flashed out from Eli¡¯s voidspace armor to ram into his chest before his voidspace armor stabilized and sheared it off. Jack wailed with agony. His bones flickered from the inside as his lightning thrashed and sparked all around him as he cradled the stump of his wrist. Eli popped out a spatial bubble that he flipped inside out as it inverted, submerging Jack in a new spatial field. A yank of his will buried him far underground. Eli blanched as the rest of Jack¡¯s arms sloughed to the ground with a plop. Sirens and flashing lights blared outside on their street. Camille closed in. Eli repeated his new trick, but her claws shredded through the inverted bubble¡¯s spatial field with ease. Every time he teleported away, she would dive straight through his teleportation point to nip at him inch by inch. He channeled all of his light into his fists before folding space along his knuckles as he lashed out. Her claws flashed and snagged against one of the spatial bubbles. A shockwave lifted him up as it carried him back through the hedges in their fence into their neighbor¡¯s yard straight into their house with a splat. As if he were an overripe tomato. Consciousness returned to him as the air revitalized him with a fresh surge of vitality and Rapid Recovery did the rest. Bones creaked and popped as they realigned then snapped into place. Pulped organs stitched themselves back together then restored themselves to their new peak condition. He pushed himself back up with both arms as Voidspace Mastery erupted from his left shoulder with his violet construct arm. He glanced up and blinked as blood and sweat stung his eyes. He teleported it away. Camille streaked toward him. Relentless. Unstoppable. He couldn¡¯t teleport her away, couldn¡¯t carve into her with voidspace, Lumencloud did nothing, and he was no match for her physical strength. Another trick would have to do. He tottered forward as he chained a series of teleports straight up while teleporting off to the side to dodge her raking claws. When her claws pierced through to follow him, he pushed her through the chain instead. Each teleport launched her upward with far more force than the last. Torment scraped, ground, and slashed as she flailed through his voidspace tunnels, but he persisted. Until he sent her out of the atmosphere. Eli collapsed to his knees in a slump. Car doors banged out on the street in front of his home as police barged their way into the backyard. Guns pointed right at him as they shouted nonsense. He felt his neighbors cower away from their devastated wall and porch. It was time to leave. He teleported away in a flash of violet light. He vanished as he teleported up through the air in another chain of teleports until he slipped into his voidspace above the school.
Chapter Twenty-three Eli stood in his old training field next to the abandoned junker cars. He idly ran his fingers across the scarred grooves and partially melted char marks from when he''d practiced with Teleportation, Telekinesis, and Photon Shot so long ago. He clenched his fists together, his right flesh-and-blood arm and his left one crafted from light and voidspace. Regret clawed at him like Camille''s relentless fury at how he''d left the arm behind that Roman had made for him. Rapid Recovery slowly regrew his dismembered arm back cell by cell while he tried to ignore the status messages and notifications that wouldn''t leave him alone. Both kill messages hovered in stark reminder of how he had fought for his life. He couldn''t believe it, but he would do it again. He had no choice. He knew that with certainty. It wasn''t just kill or be killed, but if he had left those fuckers alive or held back the slightest bit... he would be dead. And so would his family. Sharp vibrations rocked across his wrist as the tracker watch his parents had him wear buzzed again. Eli glanced at Sandra and Daniels location on the horizon where a faint glow glimmered across the night sky in New Faram. He sensed his teleportation anchor even now. He had to strike. They were too threatening, too malicious to leave alive. No. He had to kill them. No one else could do it. Police were useless. How many minutes had it taken them to arrive? Ten? Fifteen? Not to mention how Jackson Daniels had slipped through their net to begin with. He wasn''t trusting the government to handle this, not anymore. Mom and Dad weren''t capable of doing what needed to be done, either. They were weak relics of a lost age. Powers were accessories to them. They would hold back, try and capture them alive or talk it out. Eli would not sacrifice his parents so he could hide behind them. What were two more murders to add to his slaughter list of four and counting? Lana and Lyra had enough to deal with. Both of them had been traumatized in their own ways throughout this entire ordeal. Lyra had already seen their parents fight in the mall and turn on him when he''d done what he was going to do now. Whatever he fucking had to. He would not let her or Roman be afraid of these two fucking assholes, and they would be, and they would fear for him if he returned to his parents. Lana could''ve been a big help. She was perfect for this new, rapidly developing world. Ruthless. Motivated by and for power. She had an unflinching resolve and he knew she would''ve been formidable at his side with any low level people threatening them. But she wasn''t ready for this. Lana would''ve been a lamb before their slaughter. Dave countered her with his shadows and Gloommetal. Daniels would ensure that she''d never even get close to any of them for real with their projections. Jack would''ve melted her in her own suit of Silverlight. Camille would''ve gutted and strung her up as easy as someone chopping fruit. And Sandra... Eli shivered at the reminder of how she''d pinned him down. Ruptured his voidspace with contemptuous ease. Ordered his torture and murder like his death was a meal at a fast food restaurant. Only he could have survived. Between Body of Light, his new upgrade of Lumencloud Invigoration, Rapid Recovery, and Voidspace Mastery, he had a maneuverability, recovery, stamina, and the complete suite to punch above his weight class. That and their powers felt... strong but brittle. Like glass knives honed to a fine edge. Murdering for experience or for powers seemed like it gave exceptional boosts to powers in the short-term, but not in the long-term. Since the Initialization began, he''d been working on teleporting other people and now that he finally managed it, he knew he should have leveled. But he hadn''t. Eli sighed as he glanced toward the horizon again. Then his gaze flitted to the side where murder notifications waited at the edge of his vision still. It would not go away until he dealt with it and he needed to deal with them tonight. He didn''t want to spend the rest of his life looking over his and his family''s shoulders, whether or not the world got a fraction better. Or if it continued to get worse. With that in mind, Eli took a deep breath then checked his notifications. Rapid Recovery Ev. 1/Lv. 10> Eli took a deep, stabilizing breath as nausea spiked through his chest while he read through each of the options. He''d start with Imbue. His evolution option was fairly simple. It would evolve into Enchant at evo-1 and would allow him to program more commands and do far more with the powers he put into items. It was a pretty linear evolution. He tried to press the Obtain New Power option and grimaced at the text that flashed in front of his eyes. "Fuck!" Eli hissed. A smoldering cloud billowed out of his clenched fists to tear the grass out of the ground as it drilled into the dirt. Grass fluttered in the dying breeze as he regained control of his breathing. Alright. He was okay. First, he tried to select Obtain Power from the Conquered to see if he could do anything with Jack''s Body of Lightning, but he didn''t see it on the list at all. Eli frowned at that while he re-read through the notification again. Nope. It wasn''t there at all. Well, maybe he could take their powers that way. Or he could choose from the perk options and rebuild a new evo-0 power entirely. Then he wouldn''t have to deal with any penalties either. He selected ''Gain a Power Perk'' on both screens and bit his lip while he read through and tried to decide. He groaned as each of Camille''s powers populated its own screen, but the perks from Predator''s Consumption intrigued him. With this and Jack''s Aspect of Lightning, he could maybe slot them both into Lumencloud Invigoration or even Rapid Recovery and wait for when they''d merge. Or create a new power and merge it with Lumencloud Invigoration when they both maxed out. Absorb and Transform Into Element or even Absorb and Augment Element would make a tremendous difference to Lumencloud Invigoration. Or he could even use Lightning and add another aspect to Lumencloud. He''d match his father''s Storm Cloud then, but almost better. He almost confirmed both perk choices before he hesitated. Would it be better to wait until after he dealt with Sandra and Daniels? He''d get two powers from them too. He''d make sure of it. But could he afford to wait and come at them with anything less than his full strength? Eli paced. He''d have to be patient regardless since he had to max out Lumencloud Invigoration before evolving it, then max it out again to merge with Rapid Recovery before evolving whatever that became. Even then, he still had to max all of that out again to slot it into his Mind stat. But he was exhausted. While every breath enhanced his body as air and water turned into raw power and the constant cycling of Rapid Recovery... he felt broken down. Aches pulsed through his muscles. He was only conscious and still moving because there was work to do. Those two perks equipped on either of his powers could make a vast difference. Or he could even turn them into a power now and hope it''d help. If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. Eli sat down on the hood of the car. He didn''t even notice the chill of the metal that would''ve once been prevalent. Now... Either he was too numb from what had happened or Lumencloud Invigoration and Body of Light had elevated him beyond concerns as petty as frigid metal. He didn''t want to, but he felt like he had to decide now and stick with it. The longer that time passed, the more likely it became that they would leave Dave''s body behind. Hell, they could be long gone already or on their way to the beach where his parents were. So. With Rapid Recovery maxed out now, he could afford to swap it out with whatever he got. The question was, did he want Transform Into Element or Augment Element from Aspect of Lightning? Transform would synergize masterfully with Body of Light. Plus, as a quick power combined with Absorb, he got the sense it would let him choose and absorb an element then become that element depending on how much he absorbed. Once he merged it with Lumencloud Invigoration it would make a huge difference too. But without taking Body of Light into account, it was weak. Even with Lumencloud Invigoration, unless it meant that he could become the cloud entirely and cut out one of its biggest weaknesses so far. He wouldn''t need to siphon out any of his body''s power to control a badass cloud if he was the cloud in the first place. But then there was Augment Element with Absorb. It''d categorically strengthen his light, period. Not to mention how it would boost the air, water, and light inside of Lumencloud Invigoration, which would also strengthen him, again. That''d give him far more power now rather than later and would be just as strong long-term. He wanted to wait for after he dealt with Sandra and Daniels, but it made more sense to do it now. He needed any edge he could get. Plus, he''d be able to merge it with Lumencloud Invigoration sooner. Eli swapped it out with Rapid Recovery and swooned as unconsciousness almost claimed him. He flared Lumencloud Invigoration as he boosted his body as much as he could with it until it felt like a storm whooshed through his veins. He reached out with Augmentative Elemental Absorption and blinked his bleary eyes as the power paused. As if it were asking him a question. He thought about air and grinned while it slowly gathered the air above his outstretched hand as power thrummed through it. Then it slid into his body as the power gorged itself on the air. It stopped, unsure what to do with it, but then Lumencloud Invigoration took over. Strength cracked through his body with a flash as he shivered from the sheer potency. Now... what were the limits of an element? Eli thought about oxygen as he reached out with the power and watched as it condensed ambient oxygen, empowered it, then trembled as it snapped into his body with another pulse of energy. Huh, good to know that Lumencloud considered ''oxygen'' air. He glanced down at the half rusted metal of the car hood he sat on before placing his right hand down. Metal. Ants of iron crept under his fingers towards the center of his palm where the motes of metal warmed and purified. He felt Augmentative Elemental Absorption reach capacity when it felt like he had a small bead of me¡ª "Holy shit!" Eli yelped as the bead stapled itself straight into the meat of his palm before it stopped. Unsure what to do. It warmed further as the blood squelched and sizzled as his new power enhanced it further. He stopped Augmentative Elemental Absorption in its tracks and teleported the bead that had grown fractionally larger from the iron in his blood. He''d stick with classical elements and not periodic from now on. Vibrations buzzed across his wrist again. Eli shoved it into a spatial bubble in his voidspace as he focused on using Augmentative Elemental Absorption and Lumencloud Invigoration together. Since air or water would become Lumencloud and create itself, he focused on using Augmentative Elemental Absorption on the Lumencloud itself. Radiant clouds writhed as they gusted throughout his body while Augmentative Elemental Absorption purified and enhanced it moment by moment. Each time it reached a new peak, Augmentative Elemental Absorption would absorb it and re-condense his next breath to add to the collection. Rips and tears split bone, muscle fiber, sinew, and his skin as the power burst out of him before it got swept back by both of his powers. No aches or pains troubled him. Eli only felt the numb tantalizing thrill as both of his powers came together more and more efficiently. Wind caressed around him in a never-ending dance as he went to stand up, but his foot never touched the ground. He stood on a prismatic shimmering cloud instead. Wisps of cloud trailed behind Eli as he strode forward on his own personal cloud. Wind zipped and brushed across the strands of his hair while he turned to lift his hands, one of flesh and the other crafted from violet voidspace. Eli shifted Lumencloud Invigoration from himself out into a pressurized bolt of cloud before he shot it out. That wasn''t what happened. A shotgun blast of lumenclouds howled, then thundered as they rammed into, through, and around the junked car as the hardened radiant clouds pierced, lifted, and threw it in a tumble of screeching metal. Rust and car parts exploded out over the field as the cloud expanded and billowed out. He blinked at the devastation of the flattened car and the gouged out trenches in the ground. Little to no weakness or dizziness from transitioning Lumencloud Invigoration from his body to a controllable cloud. After testing the power out a bit more, he had a better idea of how it worked. He could either draw from the air and water to create lumencloud that would invigorate *him* or he siphon power from him into it. There was a fine line where he wouldn''t lose much from himself if he used it, but it was fairly slim. That was good though. It was only an evo-0 power and after this merge? He''d be even stronger. Then again once he evolved it and merged it with Rapid Recovery at evo-1. He sighed at the realization that he''d have to wait even longer to level up that power again to max it out. But it''d be worth it once his every breath revitalized him in every way on top of enhancing his mind too. Eli clenched his fists with his newfound strength as he glanced up to prepare his teleportation point. Wind fluttered past his nearly shredded swim shorts and the torn shirt he had on as he rose. He glanced down with a beaming smile answered by ribbons of prismatic light that rippled across the aura of lumencloud that lifted him up. Using Body of Light and Lumencloud Invigoration together, he grasped the light''s color and lowered it to a blazing red, a crisp orange, a golden yellow, a viridian green, and then a dazzling blue. Eli''s gaze fell to the crackling erratic dark violet light that sparked down his voidspace arm. His lumencloud aura shifted to match while he teleported some fresh clothes out of a spatial bubble in his voidspace. Voidspace armor formed around him in segments and bands. A flicker of intent above teleported him high above the clouds in a rush of magenta clouds. With the tug of the voidspace anchor orienting him toward New Faram, he headed toward Dave''s body. Teleporting in blindly would be beyond dumb. No, he was going to scope the place out. See if they had any other prisoners around like last time, whether or not they were even there, or whatever else was going o¡ª Scorching orange light lit up the heavens above the clouds like an early sunrise. A flash later and a magnificent fireball struck Eli''s back with a howling boom. Clouds dispersed in the blast of the golden-red inferno. Waves of heat and fire seared through Eli''s voidspace armor to singe his eyes, shrivel his skin in a wrinkling cycle of burnt then healed flesh. Lumencloud bloomed around him with a purple flash as he tumbled through his cushioned cloud until he came to a cradled stop. Voidspace resealed the cracked panes of his armor as he sat up. Over the constant flow and tide of Augmentative Elemental Absorption and Lumencloud Invigoration, he hadn''t even felt the sting of his burns. "You know it''s frowned upon to not report new powers, Mr. Newton." Daniels crowed as he floated above Eli''s solidified lumencloud. Eli squinted, befuddled at the sight of Daniels standing on the floating back of a featureless person. "You motherfucker!" Eli snarled as he glared up at Daniels as if he had the power to kill on sight. "You''ve been helping them all this time?" "Does it matter?" Daniels asked as he lifted his palm where a miniature red fireball sparked to life glowed. Then it twisted as another flame flickered and wrapped around it as if it were an inverted echo. Another flame puffed around it and another until he cradled an golden-red sun that crackled like a bonfire. "You won''t be able to whine like a beaten dog much longer." "I won''t have to once you''re dead." Eli growled as low as he could. His voice cracked and Daniels laughed. Eli fractured his lumencloud structure into shrapnel before he froze all the water vapor and brightened its light to a sharp glare. He launched all the lumencloud points in a roaring volley. Blood sprayed in a misting rain as bits and pieces of body parts fell in a shower all around where Eli floated. He sighed with relief... then frowned in alarm when the System didn''t give him a kill message. Movement flickered behind him through his spatial field. Eli teleported to the side as he turned where Daniels glided on the back of a body with his golden-red fireball held in his hand while a spray of ruddy red sparks whistled in a giant wave. Voidspace bolts whizzed through the air as he prepared an inverted spatial bubble. Streams of lumencloud rolled out in beams and blasts that exploded whenever it collided with one of the red sparks. A stray spark drifted close to Eli on one of the mundane gusts. Flicker. Daniels swapped places with the spark¡ªno longer standing on the featureless body¡ªhe rammed his golden-red fireball straight into Eli''s side. Heat flared across his ribcage. His voidspace armor fragmented as a shockwave hammered into him. Orange flame sawed into his nerves. Consciousness wavered as Eli whipped through the air. Numb pressure melted into blinding agony as the fire spread. Patchwork farmland criss-crossed with gravel roads drew closer. Space shuddered around him as he tried to push past the overwhelming pain to teleport away. Every breath fueled his body with more strength from Lumencloud Invigoration, but the baneful inferno eviscerated his concentration as it gnawed a crater into his side. Should he equip Rapid Recovery¡ª Bone and gravel crunched as he landed with a crash. Gouts of fire speared upward. Eli''s face twisted in pain as he coughed up blood. Red sparks cascaded all over him before each of them ignited with a fresh explosion. "You really thought you could beat me?" Daniels landed beside him with a scoff. His boot stomped down onto Eli''s leg with a fresh snap. "You couldn''t even win a game of dodgeball when you can control space. No wonder they bullied you. Lethal rating? What a joke." With each word, he twisted his boot into the ravaged splinters of Eli''s leg. He lashed out a kick straight into the crater on his side. His body rocked from the blow. Breath hissed and wheezed around the pooling blood in Eli''s mouth, filled with shattered bits of teeth. "You could be a fucking god with your powers, boy. But you cling to your weakness like a security blanket. You killed Dave with ease. Must have killed Jack and Camille or you would be dead. And still. Still you crumble. You and the rest of our fallen nation. When will you all understand that the world has changed?" His boot twisted up into Eli''s ribs. A breath of lumencloud exploded from his mouth. He tried to twist and spike it around to attack Daniels, but it fizzed out into motes of glowing wind. Daniels laughed. Baneful red light flickered above before there was a brilliant flash of heat that lasered into his back. Right where he had blasted through one of the terrorist prisoners at the mall. "You know, one of my projections almost killed your mother? I had her lying at my feet like you are now. Paralyzed. But your sister burned me alive with her illusions. It hurt, Mr. Newton. Just. Like. This." Flames spilled across Eli''s body as tendrils and tongues of flame darted and scraped against his bruised flesh or into the gashes or the protrusions where bone jutted out. Suffering wracked Eli''s body as he screamed silently. He yanked and pushed at everything he had. Space cracked and shattered around them in a sprawling cage of fractals that sucked in everything it touched before spitting it back out. Daniels laughed. Rays of light charged along his body before firing in a blasting salvo that pulverized the surrounding ground. Radiance dimmed from his broken, battered body, still under the throes of Daniel''s inferno. Daniels just roared with laughter. Lumencloud churned in blasting waves that scythed through the ground with violet twisters that raged. Jets and blades of lumencloud curved and sliced around him, but a flash of fire and Daniels saved himself again and again. Eli wasn''t thinking. He couldn''t think. He was a cornered animal tortured for a monster''s enjoyment. He. Fucking. laughed. Meaningless words flashed across Eli''s face as he howled and wished for the pain to stop. Something changed. Sensation returned and picked up where it left off as his nerves repaired themselves. Swathes of flesh that closer resembled swiss-cheese then human anatomy sealed together. His mangled bones realigned with a series of grating clicks as they healed stronger than ever. Pulped puddles of organs that were a mess of lacerations closed up with a squelch as they healed. Teeth shattered like porcelain as they popped out of his gums one by one before new ones grew at the same time his jaw cracked back into place. "Well. This was fun and all, but Sandra is waiting for me at this nice beachfront cabin. You''d love it." His laughter quieted to a snickering sigh as he appeared in a spark of flame in front of Eli''s head. "You seem like you''re done, so let''s wrap this up." Awareness flooded into Eli again as his brain stopped resembling swollen pudding. A ghost of a smile curved his lips as he read his status. Blades of inverted voidspace appeared as they whipped across Daniels''s ankles. A yank downward then up teleported his sheared off feet onto his kneecaps. Blood, bone, and gore splattered with a crack. Eli teleported in place as he stood over the prone, bleeding form of Jackson Daniels. He thought about gloating or saying something. He shook his head as another inverted spatial bubble appeared and submerged Daniels in his field, then teleported him far underground. Eli felt Daniels''s body overlap with the matter below as they pulverized each other. Without another glance, he popped out a spatial anchor and continued his teleportation drive toward the anchor in Dave''s body. He would go to the beach after, but he wouldn''t blindly trust Daniels''s word without cause. Rapid growth began from the stump of his left arm. [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Voidspace Mastery Ev. 1/Lv. 5 Slot Two -- Lumencloud Invigoration Ev. 0/Lv. 3 Slot Three -- Restoration Ev. 2/Lv. 0 ] [Unequipped Powers: Imbue Ev. 0/Lv.5 (Maxed) Augmentative Elemental Absorption Ev. 0/Lv. 4 ] Chapter Twenty-four Tense silence coated the streets of New Faram in its somber grit. Eli stood with his hands in the pockets of his hoodie while he studied the bright windows that surrounded the dark hotel rooms. Multilayered distortions shrouded the hotel and even a few of its rooms. A parking garage connected to the hotel with a skywalk. Somewhere in there was Dave''s body. He felt his anchor tug on him like a weight on a string. He wanted to search through the parking garage. Find the car he suspected Dave''s body was stashed in. See if he could find a lead to where Sandra actually was instead of blindly trusting what Daniels said. But he could feel the domains linking the garage to the hotel like a heavy gauze curtain. If he stepped inside, he''d be spotted. Eli winced as his arm regrowth reached his elbow with a flush of heat as the socket formed. Shockwaves boomed as someone flew by in a blur. A wave of force pressed against Eli, almost making him take a step back. Sirens blared as police cars raced below, following the figure that swooped through the air. Eli watched with a frown. He glanced over the street with fresh eyes. Trash littered the street. Bags and crumpled boxes trailed with every passing breeze. Graffiti scrawled across walls. Shadows lurked and loitered in alleyways. Police cars patrolled up and down streets three times while he watched and waited. Eli had only been in New Faram for about forty-five minutes while he tried to decide what to do. He hadn''t noticed in Farbrook, but there was an edge to the city now. New Faram felt like it strained under the pressure and it was only moments away from bursting. Fear struck a chord in him as he thought about all that had happened in one night. He had killed four people now, and he''d kill one more before the night finished. All he had to do was figure out where Sandra was. Eli studied the hotel again as he gnawed on his lip. A teleport seemed less than likely. He''d have to burrow through the domain, but the instant he stepped foot inside, he''d be restricted like everyone else. If these domains were powerful enough to suppress powers, anyway. He had no actual way of knowing. Should he leave an anchor here and head back to the beach? Then he could leave an anchor with his family and return to them if needed. He glanced the hotel up and down again with a sigh before he reached out to the spatial anchor he left on the gravel road. A spatial bubble flashed out of his hands that he hid behind the lip of the roof. Eli yanked on the anchor he left behind on the road. Darkness consumed him as he catapulted through space. While he blurred forward, he outfitted himself in a fresh suit of voidspace armor cushioned by gelled lumencloud padding. He adjusted the voidspace and lumencloud combination of his prosthetic arm as his arm regenerated bit by bit. Eli took a step onto a gravel road with half melted patches before he took another into the dark sky above. Teleports blasted him across the sky, boosted by a constant jetting updraft from his lumencloud aura. While he flew in stuttering skips toward the beach, he checked his status. He had no idea whether or not he wanted to take Daniels''s power yet. No. Eli closed it as the deep violet of his voidspace surrounded him again. He had time. Sandra''s death would give him new options he could choose from. AEA purified and perfected his internal storm of Lumencloud Invigoration constantly. His body grew stronger with every breath as he drew closer to the beach. Three notifications popped in front of his vision. Lumencloud Invigoration Ev. 0/Lv. 4> Lumencloud Invigoration Ev. 0/Lv. 5> Augumentative Elemental Absorption Ev. 0/Lv. 5> Glittering purple clouds trailed around him as he halted and read through his power options again. Nearly all these choices were far better than they had been before, except for Force Construct. He had wanted to merge Lumencloud Invigoration with Augumentative Elemental Absorption right away, but Space Dominion was far, far too good to pass up. Especially if he could eventually merge it with Voidspace Mastery. Hopefully, it would turn into a Domain power. Not to mention there were quite a few other contenders. Lightning Strike would give him more light and if he added it to Lumencloud it''d add far more versatility and power to it. Ice Control could be nice, but it wouldn''t be huge for his build. Selective Amplification on the other hand... It gave him the impression that it would let him boost almost whatever he wanted. That could be huge. Or he could merge Lumencloud Invigoration and Augumentative Elemental Absorption right now and wait for Imbue to come off of cooldown for him to get Space Dominion, max that out and then get Selective Amplification... but no, wait. He would have to wait three months then. Voidspace Mastery would hopefully be ready to evolve much sooner than that. Three months should be plenty of time to get an evo-0 power maxed out to evolve and then level up again. Or he could even dismantle it into a perk for whatever made it like a Domain. Besides, with Voidspace Mastery comprising both void and space, he hoped he''d be able to powerlevel it quickly. He could always wait to get Selective Amplification after that then. Eli used Augumentative Elemental Absorption to obtain it,t so Lumencloud Invigoration would still be maxed out and swappable at-will. He switched it out with Augumentative Elemental Absorption then yelped as his lumencloud aura that surrounded and held him gradually dimmed and thinned as the radiant cloud turned brittle. Strength flowed out of him straight into the cloud until it turned solid enough to embrace him again. Eli tried to use Spatial Dominion, but it didn''t give any feedback as he pushed and pulled on the sensation of it in his mind. It felt more like a doubling down of his spatial field. He kept it equipped for now. Hopefully, it''d level passively. He could always switch it out with Restoration if he needed it. Its cooldown had already ended while he had studied the hotel in New Faram. Wind howled as he flew forward again. A lone bonfire glowed in the night outside their pair of cabins, secluded by the shore. They had a nice view of the water. He dimmed the light from Lumencloud''s Invigoration before teleporting down to the beach. Sand stirred around him as he took a step forward before teleporting next to the bonfire where his parents and Roman waited. "Hey," Eli called out while he made sure to teleport all the dirt and bloodstains off his skin and his third change of clothes. "Eli!" His parents shouted as they sprang to their feet and rushed over to embrace him. Thank God for Restoration or he''d have been a walking horror show that they would''ve just had to hospitalize him for more blunt trauma. Even with his Body of Light and Lumencloud Invigoration strengthening him. "Oh my God, are you okay?" "Why wouldn''t I be okay?" Eli chuckled nervously as their arms squeezed tighter in their forced group hug. "Your neighbors called, man." Roman raised his eyebrow as he stood up and walked over to them. His gaze trailed on the false metallic shimmer of Eli''s voidspace prosthetic that he shifted light through to look like steel. "Were you there? Elias?" Mom asked as she pulled back to hold him by his arms. "Did... did you fight that gang or the glowing purple person?" "Yeah... it was really scary." He lied easily as he glanced from the terrified horror on his mom''s face, to Roman''s suspicion, to his dad''s sheer concern. "I bet it was! Our house blew up. Was it... was it the people from the mall?" Mom asked carefully. Eli hesitated, then nodded. Both she and dad shared a look. "Did you see Dave again or a short woman with medium length hair? Likes to wear business suits?" Eli almost chuckled. He had done more than see them, but if they didn''t know he was involved, why would he correct them? They already worried about him far too much as it was. He studied both of them as the realization struck him with how strained their relationship really was. He knew they cared about him, but was that really enough? They didn''t care about who he actually was or anything more concrete about himself. Only that he was ''safe'' and wasn''t a disappointment. He almost frowned. Or was that just what he thought? He didn¡¯t know. "It sounds like Eli''s been through a lot, love." Dad pulled Mom into a hug of their own. "Let''s just be glad that he seems to be okay." "Of course, I''m sorry, Eli. I was so scared when Gail called and said our house had gotten destroyed by all the fighting." She took a deep breath before she smiled at him. "But I should''ve known you''d be okay. You can take care of yourself." "Should we go tell everyone that he''s okay?" Dad asked, to which Mom nodded before she hugged Eli again. He gave Eli a lingering look with a raised eyebrow that promised a later conversation while they went back to their cabin. This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. Roman stood beside him with his arms crossed over a sweater to ward off the chill from the breeze. Neither of them said anything until his parents stepped inside the cabin. "So. You lost your new arm?" "Yeah." Eli winced with a sigh. He lifted his left arm up to show where his skin met the darkened violet tinged gray voidspace of his constructed arm. "Rapid Recovery evolved into Restoration. I wanted to save it but..." "But you fought them because you''re actually the purple guy?" Eli nodded. "And you''re lying to your parents about it because... why?" Roman asked, then shook his head. "You need to stop pushing people away because of your fear." "I... I guess you''re right." Eli swept his hand through his hair with a sigh. "It''s just... I killed them. I killed all of them, Rome. Every single one except for that bitch, Sandra." "I''m sorry, man. Are you o¡ª" "And they weren''t even the first!" Eli blurted out as wind gusted around him. "I... I didn''t say, but right after the System... people came and broke into our home. They had apparently been on a spree, breaking into other people''s homes and stealing shit. Dad woke us all up with his technological power, that he gave up for me, and then one of them came upstairs and went into Lana''s room. She started screaming. I-I teleported in and broke a lamp over the guy''s head. He blasted me back and sealed me out of her room." Red light twisted across the shifting streams of sand. A harsh glare shone from each of Eli''s fingers, twisted like claws, where it blazed on the fingers of his voidspace hand it glowed a bloodied magenta. "The other one started coming upstairs. He fired these laser beams. Nearly got me, so I hid. All of that happened in about a minute? Maybe? Dad came out and the laser guy was coming up the stairs. I... I didn''t know what to do! I teleported down into the basement, got all the weights I could, teleported back upstairs and sent them straight into him. He died. It was gruesome. But this was different. That was all heat of the moment and while tonight was too, it was different." Crimson mist seeped from Eli''s skin. Shadows writhed as breezes rippled through the cooling fog. "I was ready. I didn''t fuck around, but I went for the kill. Again and again. I gave it nearly everything I had." He peered straight into Roman''s wide eyes. "Hell, I stabbed Dave in the back. His blood sizzled as he fell and charred his way down my radiant arm. Teleported one of the others underground, so he collided with it. Each grain of dirt and root of grass displaced another part of him. Another was too strong, so I tricked and teleported her into space, like outer space, and the last one?" Red fog burned orange around them. "I nearly died, well, at nearly every point, but especially when I fought the last one. He had me at his mercy and tortured me. So I cut off his feet and teleported them into his kneecaps. It didn''t kill him. I could''ve gone into a blind rage and stomped on him, gloated, or even healed him so I could hurt him again. But I didn''t. I buried him underground like I did with that other guy." Roman opened his mouth, then closed it again. He said nothing. Eli smiled at him sadly. "I realized that I''m not afraid of dying, Roman. I didn''t think about my family being in danger or anything else. Only the fighting existed. I enjoyed it. A thrill that sang through my veins as I pushed myself and my powers to their limit. These people were criminals who escaped prison with most of their powers at evo-3. But I won." "I... I don''t, I don¡¯t really know anything about any of that." Roman fidgeted as he rubbed his wrists together. "I''m glad you''re alive though and that you''re okay. But..." "But what?" Eli crossed his arms as he took control of the glowing cloud around him and dispersed it. "Why didn''t you say anything? Eli... I had no idea people broke into your fucking home or everything else that happened. You''ve been flighty about the details of how you lost your arm in the first place other than you were at the mall in New Faram when the attack happened. But it turns out you killed the same people responsible?" "I didn''t want to worry you." Eli smiled, then flinched at the sheer vitriol in Roman''s glare. "Are you fucking kidding me? ''Didn''t want to worry me,'' are you serious? What else are friends for? Dumbass." Roman shook his head vehemently before he took a deep breath and sighed. "Whatever. I''m glad you told me and that you''re okay, but holy shit, man. Stop carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders. It''s okay to trust other people." Space shuddered behind him. Eli staggered as a tremendous weight cleaved into his spatial field. Fractals cracked in starbursts up and down his voidspace prosthetic. He fell to his knees. His spatial field shrunk to the small radius of his new Spatial Dominion, any farther, and it fractured with a spike of pain through his skull. Armor appeared around Roman too late before a gunshot fired. Roman stumbled back as blood dripped out of the crumpled bullet hole in the shoulder of his summoned power armor. Distortions unraveled the air in front of Roman as a gun of his own formed. "Stand down, both of you, or I''ll shoot again," Sandra said as she strode forward with a pistol held in both her hands aimed straight for Roman''s head. Eli almost stood up, but he stopped when he saw Roman''s barely summoned gun vanish. "Good." Pressure bore down on them that reminded Eli of when he was in the hospital and his powers were suppressed or whenever he was in Dr. Simmons'' office. Sandra had a Domain power that seemed to work the second they complied. Roman''s armor disappeared completely alongside whatever strength he had. He fell in a heap as he panted in short, ragged breaths. His hand held right over his bleeding shoulder. Eli winced as Lumencloud Invigoration and Spatial Dominion were suppressed entirely. Voidspace Mastery felt distant, but still reachable. Body of Light however, was untouched. Sandra turned toward Eli with her gun held loosely at her side. Old tears smudged her mascara along with their tracks down the cracked foundation on her face. Rusty brown stains coated the once white of her blouse, but the worst of it was on the flaking residue of blood that covered her hands like gloves. "Scream for your parents?" "No." Eli snorted as he tugged on the full to bursting reservoirs full of light inside of him. Lumencloud Invigoration might be cut off from him, but he still had all the light it''d given him stored. "Call for them." Sandra pointed the gun to the side while Roman''s body contorted as he levitated and swung through the air until he floated with his head held right up to her head. Eli frowned. If she could do that with her Domain power or whatever else she had, why didn''t she do the same to him? Why''d she even ask them to stand do¡ª She poked the gun against his other shoulder. Bang! "Fuck!" Roman screamed. Blood sprayed down his chest as the bullet streaked into the night. He fell limp into the restraints of Sandra''s power that distorted as it ground in space around her, Roman, and Eli. It didn''t connect through the space in-between, but it shrouded around each of them. A cabin door opened as cloud banks streamed from the ground in a pallor. Dad strode out confidently in the rumbling clouds. Mom and Theo held Lana back while they watched from the door. "Stop right there, Rick!" Sandra called as the auric bands of force holding him up swatted him to the side. Her power squeezed around Eli as it feebly dragged him over to her. When he resisted, it grew taut as it weakened, but if he acceded, then it grew stronger. Cold metal nuzzled against the side of Eli''s head. Dad stopped as his clouds swirled ominously around him. Hairline strands of electricity jolted in arcs through the clouds with him at the center. Distortions fuzzed around him once he stopped moving. Her power seemed to work when they obeyed her commands. Some kind of obedience-based domain power? "Don''t move or attack, if you do I''ll shoot him! Your son is just as devious and disgusting as you and Addy, Rick. He killed Dave. Stabbed him right in the back. Funny isn''t it? After you both betrayed us after we gave you both money for your business. Looks like backstabbing runs in the family. Eli''s eyes widened as he glanced over at the prone, bloody form of Roman who had been struck helpless the instant he listened to her after being shot. Dad''s clouds were already fizzling out at the edges, but her suppression didn''t seem to reach as deep. Maybe because of Storm Cloud''s level? If that was the case then Spatial Dominion and Lumencloud Invigoration were almost entirely useless at evo-0. Spatial Dominion disappeared from his equipped list as he replaced it with Restoration. He''d need to rely almost entirely on Body of Light and Restoration. Light ignited inside of his body as Eli marshaled his resolve and transformed into radiance. His body as malleable as soft light, he reoriented himself before he solidified so his radiant arm-blade hand slashed through the barrel of the gun straight through her hand. White-hot pieces of metal fell alongside two burning fingers. Sandra shrieked as she stumbled back. Eli''s radiance softened as he dove toward Roman in a blast of light. He reformed with Roman cradled against him as he shoved a pulse of Restoration into him. A deformed lump of metal dribbled out of the first bullet hole as it sealed shut around it a moment after the other one already closed. Slivers of Sandra''s domain condensed around him even as it broke from his resistance. Movement stirred the coarse sand behind him. Lightning flashed from Dad''s thundercloud with a deafening crack. Eli found himself sprawled out atop Roman as Restoration healed both of their eardrums. He turned to ogle at Sandra''s rising form. Jagged burns blackened their way across the charred front of her chest where the lightning bolt had struck. Scorched flesh crackled as it sloughed away in strips to reveal healing pink skin. She kicked the broken remains of her gun forward with her foot. Space shifted in front of Sandra''s hands and at her feet, where the gun scrap disappeared. A new gun fell into her now healed hand as she aimed the gun at Dad and squeezed the trigger. Light popped from Eli''s feet as he jumped to intercept, but he was too slow. A gunshot cracked. Then another. Clouds swirled with a howl as Dad held his hand out in front of him like a miniature tornado that glittered as hail froze and shattered from the rolling thunder of rapid gunshots. Liquids sloshed out with a splash from the twisting clouds. Another cloud whirled around Dad''s offhand. Space rippled like a mirage as Sandra sidestepped through the haze. Instead of business clothes and an empty handgun, she stood in full modern combat gear with a vest over her chest and a rifle in her hands pointed right at him. Voidspace shimmered around him as he prepared to break her weak hold and teleport. "Attack me!" Sandra grinned as his momentum and powers sputtered as he swung his radiant arm-blades toward her. She pulled the trigger. He reoriented himself just in time to take the brunt of the gunshot to his soft, light chest. The bullet phased through him as he slashed out at her. Force crashed into him as her domain dispersed. Thunder cracked as a seething dark cloud shot into her from the side. It broke in a cascade of water that knocked her over just as lightning cracked into her again. She tumbled in a roll as she fell through a ripple in space again to come up fresh with her rifle aimed at Dad. Roman rose in a crouch while he summoned a full suit of power armor linked up to a futuristic-looking rifle. The whole ensemble looked like the finished product of all of his prototypes he tinkered with whenever he had a chance. Lines of power glowed in a grid as the rifle charged. Her gunshot cracked while Roman''s roared. Sandra''s shot linked into Dad''s miniaturized tornado while Roman''s blast rammed into and through her with a bright flash. Gunpowder and ozone mingled with the coppery tang of blood in the air. Sandra collapsed to one knee. The entire left side of her body was a charred, oozing mess of sizzling buckshot centered on the trench carved all the way through. Space rippled around her as she sank through the haze to go wherever she normally went. She was leaving. After she attacked them at the mall, set an ambush at their home, sent Daniels after him, and then attacked them at the beach. On his birthday! Eli didn''t think. Light seared through his veins as he jetted over to her at the same time Roman flew forward with twin jets propelling him on his rapidly vanishing suit of armor. A bayonet gleamed at the tip of his rifle. Eli and Roman crashed into her at the same time as his bayonet speared through the pulped wound on her side while he slashed across her spine. While his radiant arm-blade burned through her, he saw a different horizon through the spatial smog. A gray expanse shrouded in white mist. "Elias!" Mom and Dad shouted at the same time Theo yelled for Roman. Sound faded to a crackling static as they fell through to the gray expanse. Eli''s eyes widened, then squeezed shut as they rammed into the unyielding ground with a rolling bounce. He glanced up to meet Roman''s horrified stare as movement flashed on either side of their peripheral vision. To their left on the horizon was a honeycombed view of a thousand different sights. Cities with shining lights and skyscrapers, medieval castles and thriving forests, desolated modern cities in apocalyptic ruins. Off to the right, behind Sandra''s slowly rising, healing form, was the beach where his family and Theo desperately dug at the place they''d disappeared. Dad''s sweater and swim trunks were drenched in blood from the smattering of bullet holes torn into him. Mom screamed herself hoarse in a silent wail as clawed at the sand. "Well, okay," cracked Sandra''s hoarse voice as she stood up as the horizon to the left streamed toward her like an elastic river. Once it withdrew back its hexagon view of a cityscape that looked like it came straight from a sci-fi movie. Now she stood restored with a new set of black armor and a massive modular rifle in her hands. "That hurt." She lifted her gun and fired. The recoil and flash threw Eli into the air as he felt a torrent of kinetic force tear the ground into shrapnel that streaked toward him. The gray world flashed white as the mist cleared in a ring all around them. She cocked it back again with a clank as a cylinder ejected with a thud. Restoration and Body of Light sealed the gashes, bruised muscles and flesh, and cracked bones as he stood up shakily. He narrowed his eyes as voidspace flowed violet around him in new armor as he tried ¡ª and failed ¡ª to use Lumencloud Invigoration. Roman stood with the same rifle and suit of armor as before. Something changed as his summoned equipment felt more real. More solid. His footstep thudded into the ground with a crack before he fired his gun. Golden-white light flashed with rolling, chaotic thunder as the javelin speared toward her. The ground rumbled as a wall rose in front of her, then shattered as the javelin exploded through it. She returned fire. An artillery of rapid-fire gunshots shredded his constantly restoring eardrums apart as Eli teleported above her before he popped his car out of its spatial bubble to slam into her. It crumpled flat as the windows shattered and his tires went flying through the air. Space rippled from the honeycombed horizon again. But he couldn''t feel it. Only the surrounding space in the gray, misty expanse existed to him. Sandra tore through the roof of his car in a shower of molten scrap as she fired her gun at him. Agony gutted through his body as the bullets tore through his body. He landed in a limp tangle of limbs as his wounds tried to heal. Stone exploded in a crumbling spray of sand as Roman''s power armor expanded into a titan of mechanized metal with eight limbs taloned with crescent moon blades. Each of the eight limbs hosted mounted turrets that glowed red before firing a salvo of missiles. Clouds of dust and sand plumed as the earth shattered. Shockwaves blasted out, flipping Eli through the air until he landed with a wrenching crack as his shins splintered from the impact. Space wafted from the honeycombed horizon, slower this time. Still, Sandra rose with new weapons. Roman closed in with a flurry of eight howling blades. Restoration snapped through Eli''s body as he pushed himself up with both of his flesh and blood arms. Voidspace blades appeared at the end of his hands before space shattered around the tip and edges, forming rifts that sucked the air into the void before spewing it back out. He teleported. Chapter Twenty-five Shrapnel clattered everywhere, following the earth-shattering stomp of Roman''s mech. Sandra stumbled away from the blow as crescent blades swished towards her. Roman''s blades carved out thick grooves in a spray of sparks through her chest plate. Her gun lifted, firing a pulse that ripped through Roman''s mech with a squeal of rupturing metal and tech as he went spinning through the mist. Eli appeared behind her in a storm of radiant voidspace blades. Light streamed from his spatial bubbles full of old lumengust and lumencloud light that drained into and through him into her. Metal bubbled as his light hit it, then vanished into his rifts, where it reformed into white-hot blades that then shattered against her armor. She fired her gun, but he popped out an inverted spatial bubble that he enlarged. All the projectiles and momentum sank into his voidspace before he teleported the payload into her back. Only slivers of her Domain remained to impede him. Sandra crashed flat on her face with a crunching splat of tortured metal and brittle bones. Blood jetted out in a fine mist across the ruined gray stone. Space shifted as the honeycombed horizon swept closer. Wherever it passed, the devastated landscape healed as it shifted closer. Rage strobed his pounding heart into a prismatic kaleidoscope with each heartbeat. Her Domain crusted over her healing body as the strange space drew closer. Eli teleported onto her so he straddled her with his hands clasped together held above his head. Light gathered into his fists until everywhere else in his body dimmed to mortal flesh. Vibrancy bloomed as gray stone sparkled, then shone from the brightness of his fists. Her armor beaded, then dribbled as what remained melted. Restoration pounded up into his arms as tumors grew, then vanished from his wrists down, the vacant space snapping back to rights before they regrew like popped kernels. Space swept over them. His senses split in two. Doubled with where they were in this decrepit wasteland between space and another place entirely. A world brimming with lush forests sprawling over mountains overlooking a verdant city chiseled out of stone and tree. His spatial field overlapped between both places. Then it tripled as he became aware of the beach where his family still searched hopelessly for them. Sandra''s body didn''t just heal, it changed beneath him. He felt her muscles swell as if she''d spent a lifetime climbing these mountains, decades honed hunting the behemoths that dwelled here with the gold and silver rifle that appeared in the wasteland in her hand. Her armor changed to a blend of green leather wrapped metal. New strength flooded her body as she thrashed beneath him, nearly bucking him off. Only a moment had passed as the shifting space ebbed back to the horizon. His senses of the other spaces faded as it went. He struck. Eli''s hands were no longer flesh and blood brimming with light or even transformed radiance. They had become celestial, a star packed with light, heat, and mass. Air boiled into steam as his hands descended and plunged through her vaporizing back. Nothing resisted him except for the natural limits of his shoulders. He released all the pent up light into her. Stone heaved, shrapnel melted, then sublimated into vapor. His photon shot burrowed through her into the crust of stone. Rumbling hacked through the ground as it bucked up. Fractals fragmented the earth as magma geysered through the cracks. A shockwave resounded from the impact, blasting Eli up and back as he flipped through the vibrating air. Eli''s brain and internal organs sloshed like they turned into gelatin as his bones snapped from the chaotic forces. Restoration fused everything back together before he tumbled across the shuddering ground. Everything froze as the world whirled around him. Vibrations rattled his bones as he slowed to a stop. Agony cooled to numbed torment as his body stabilized itself. Restoration fixed his skeletal and muscular systems with a series of squelching pops and grating cracks. Eli struggled to push himself up to his knees with his mangled, charred stumps of arms. He gave up and teleported himself to his feet. Misaligned tendons creaked into place as his toes and ankles righted themselves. Notifications flowed across his vision, but he ignored them in favor of sweeping his spatial field across the rolling mists over the churning gray plains. Inverted spatial bubbles slotted into real-space to extend his influence until he felt the cooling crater he''d left behind. He found Roman limping away from a wreckage of his arachnid mech that slowly fizzled out of reality. Eli teleported over to him so he could loop Roman''s arm around his shoulder. Restoration cycled through both of them with each breath as they stood wobbling. Eli''s crispy blackened wrist stumps healed far faster than it had a few hours ago. Space shuddered as the honeycombed horizon thrashed. "Did we get her?" Roman asked as he glanced at his notifications. "I don''t see anything." Restoration Ev. 2/Lv. 1> Voidspace Mastery Ev. 1/Lv. 6> "Wait, it only says incapacitated?" Eli blinked as he read over the notification again with widening eyes. "She''s still alive?" Sandra stepped out of the honeycombed horizon from the hexagon with the familiar landscape of forested mountains. Her face was a grinning, bloody mess. Burnt hair straightened itself back to its previous state. Gashes and burns pockmarked the ruinous state of her armor from his and Roman''s attacks. Understanding dawned on him as he glanced back to where he''d struck with his overcharged light. Her original stat power had been Dimensional Swap. Every other time she''d used her power, she had almost seemed to fuse with the other versions of herself as she changed her equipment each time. But the last time had been a true swap. "That would''ve been nasty," Sandra commented with a tilt of her head toward the fuming crater. Patterns of green dappled her armor as she lifted her massive gold and green rifle, but instead of aiming at them, her gun pointed towards the horizon full of the images of their family scattered around the menagerie of footprints from where they''d vanished. Mom and Dad cradled each other while they sobbed. Lana paced while silverlight glowed off her skin like sunlight reflecting off glacial sheets of ice. Theo stared vacantly at the spot where Roman had flown straight into Sandra. Gold and silver flowed through the sides of the stock like a river where they gathered in the rifle''s chamber. Light glinted in the gun''s barrel as the power reached an equilibrium a moment later. She fired. Eli threw his spatial field forward as he snagged at the bullet, then howled as his mind burned. Streaks of lustrous silver and gold marred his vision. Power ripped through his voidspace before it sank into the horizon and flashed out in a trail of silver and gold before it cracked through Dad''s chest in a puff of vapor. He fell back, wide-eyed. Metal streamed toward the chamber. Another bullet cleaved through his stomach. Mom guided him into her lap with a silent wail. Snow filled her palm as she shoved it into Dad''s mouth. He swallowed. Gushing blood slowed to a trickle. Eli found himself flat on the ground at Sandra''s feet, her boot ground into his chest as metal glowed in the chamber. His vision swam as he blinked up at Sandra. She fired twice. Roman screamed. Anger pried its way out of his still regenerating hands as his fingers clawed into existence. His hands knotted around her armored leg as hardened voidspace crusted over his hands. Gold light shone from the armor where he squeezed. Silver flashed as the resistance shattered and her leg bloomed in his awareness as he severed her leg in a teleport. Sandra wobbled one-legged. He teleported up to his feet as he jabbed his fist out. Voidspace flared around him as violet spatial light glared from all the empty space inside of him to gather along his knuckles. Armor clanged as he drove his fist into her sternum. Green patterns sparked gold. He flexed his ankle as he twisted his hip and pushed. Silver twinkled weakly as his voidspace shrouded hand phased through to the Domain and dimensional protection of her chest. Eli unfurled his folded, condensed voidspace ridged along his knuckles with a snap. Sandra hurtled away with a limp crack. He teleported behind her as he held one violet voidspace radiant arm-blade outstretched. Impaling her up to his elbow as he expanded it to stop her from sliding further. He slashed out with his other arm severing her in half at the waist as the honeycombed horizon foamed in its tempestuous thrashing. "Roman!" Eli teleported over to his friend who laid heaving on his side. "Are you okay?" "Yeah." Roman struggled to sit up as Restoration pulsed into him. "I''m fine." Eli glanced up at the horizon showing the beach and watched with horror as Theo knelt beside both Lana and Mom as he healed both of them. Twin puddles of blood pooled beneath Lana, who sat in a limp hunch while Mom was flat on her back. Dad tore open his bullet wounds as he crawled over to Mom and Lana. He pushed his spatial field forward, so it crashed up against the boundary of the horizon, but no matter how hard he tried, it didn''t pass through. They were out of his reach. Eli ignored the notifications that flashed, demanding his attention as he tugged at the now freed Lumencloud Invigoration. Light refilled his internal stores, now stained purple as every point of empty voidspace in his body radiated its own light. He siphoned the flows of power together as he rammed his will into the boundary. Once with a blast of expanding force that shredded the flat stone plain. Thin cracks hung in the air in fractals centered on the spot next to his family. Twice and the cracks widened as the wind cycled out into the void before it howled its way back. Dad turned toward him. As if he could see him. Thrice¡ª "Fuck you. Fuck all of you!" Sandra roared hoarsely as one of the hexagons on the other horizon flooded toward them. "Enjoy your last¡ª" Roman summoned and fired a revolver that fell into his hand in one movement. Her head snapped back in an explosion of bone and brain. Space from another world washed over them in a tide. His senses spanned across three dimensional spaces as he felt the bullets in each of his family members¡¯ bodies, except for Lyra, pulsate inside of them. It hammered against his voidspace as he attempted to gently teleport it out. Eli tilted back and away as the other world''s space hooked onto him. The beach and his family faded away. Blades of voidspace winked into real-space before disappearing with holes carved out around each of the bullets one after the other. Darkness swamped Eli''s vision as he hurtled through planes of space. Eli fell from above a different cityscape than any he''d ever seen. Tall, sprawling skyscrapers that shimmered with thousands of lights. Strange car-like vehicles flew through lanes in the air alongside other lanes of traffic, where some people flew under their own power. He homed in on a multi-block campus ?full of courtyards and impressive, towering buildings full of ceiling to floor glass windows. He hurtled through the roof of a squat building. A blink later and he bolted upright in a narrow twin sized bed in the middle of the night. Light glowed off his raised hand as he studied posters of unfamiliar athletes swimming. Trophies glittered on a shelf above a desk full of textbooks next to a still open laptop model he''d never seen before in his life. "What the fuck!" shouted a familiar voice as someone bolted upright on the other side of the room. Eli''s beam turned to reveal a similar set up room full of gear in various stages alongside folders of loose schematics and diagrams scattered everywhere. Roman stared back at him before he glanced off to the side. "Holy shit, check your status!" Restoration Ev. 2/Lv. 2> Voidspace Mastery Ev. 1/Lv. 7> Voidspace Mastery Ev. 1/Lv. 8> [Stats: Body: Light (Photon Shot) Mind: None Will: None ] [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Voidspace Mastery Ev. 1/Lv. 8 Slot Two -- Lumencloud Invigoration Ev. 0/Lv. 5 (Maxed) Slot Three -- Restoration Ev. 2/Lv. 2 ] [Unequipped Powers: Imbue Ev. 0/Lv.5 (Maxed) Augumentative Elemental Absorption Ev. 0/Lv. 5 (Maxed) Spatial Dominion Ev. 0/Lv. 0 ] Epilogue 1 (Lyra)
Lyra''s imagination had grown vast in the month and half since the Initialization. Constant use of Synesthesiac Phantasia had honed her mind and senses to such a degree that her mind could hold and use an ocean''s worth of detail. It had only grown when she had slotted both Synesthesiac Phantasia and Dreamer''s Simulation into her Will and Mind slot respectively, in the past week. She''d gotten two new powers from the selection: Icefire Control and Automated Craft.
With all of that enhanced capability, she couldn''t fathom any way that Eli survived.
Lyra clenched her fists as white-blue flames wafted across her fingers as she lost control of her emotions. Ava nudged her elbow into her side with a raised eyebrow in admonishment. Peace flooded through her as she imagined she was happy. Just like that, she was.
Frosted flames vanished as she shook her head and refocused. She glanced down at the snapped in half charcoal pencil she''d been holding. It fused back together with nothing more than her phantastic belief holding it together. She scraped it across the page gently as she scratched out the lines and shapes of Mrs. Granton''s face and physique without looking up.
Frustration mounted against her ironclad dream of
All mundane mediums lacked that breath of true art to her now. Her mind could hold more details and information than life itself. Her every passing thought, daydream, and especially her sleeping dreams, put the real world and every other media to shame.
If Mrs. Granton hadn''t forbidden power use to create these portraits, she could''ve created real art instead of this pale imitation drafted in such a drab, rote manner.
Lyra closed her eyes as she let her Mind of Dream guide her hands.
Before, the world had been too large. Every single thing held plains and valleys of detailed information that she couldn''t even grasp, let alone draw. Now she not only picked up on it, she could execute it perfectly. Better than any camera ever created or even conceived of.
Lyra opened her eyes with a small smirk that drooped into a frown once she looked at the photo-realistic rendition Mrs. Granton in her flowing dress, her black and white cardigan that draped around her shoulders and the way it bunched against the back of her chair. A dusting of charcoal across her face was an exact replica of her freckles.
It was visual perfection... but it was missing something.
Something vital.
Lyra frowned, then shook her head as she set her charcoal pencil down in her artist case. A few practiced motions had all her things packed up into her backpack before she stood up.
"Where are you going?" Ava hissed in a whisper that sent goosebumps cascading down her arms.
"Bathroom. I finished." Lyra walked over to the teacher''s desk in the corner of the large open spaced room and set down her picture without a second thought as she stalked out of the room in a huff. Irritation prickled at her.
She hurried down the hall to the nearest bathroom as she started panting. Spots danced across her vision even as her mind demanded she was
Lyra stared at the mirror where her unblemished face stared back at her. Mascara accented her eyes as if a goddess of beauty had held the wand herself. Lustrous bands of light gleamed down her hair, where it swooped down to her shoulders in wavy curls. She wore a black dress with revolving flashing stars that dotted the fabric.
She squeezed her eyes shut as the pressure rose from the pit of her stomach to rake the innards of her chest. Darkness bloomed in her mind''s eye before her imagination replayed the memory of huddling in the corner of their cabin''s bathroom in Ava''s arms as Lisa, Ava''s mom, paced in the bathroom while she talked to the police operators.
Wind sent the wooden bones of the cabin creaking as it rattled against the windows in the main room. Thunder knocked against the building as lightning lit the main room bright white in the strip beneath the door. Gunshots cracked outside.
Lyra heard her family fighting for their lives outside. She
Now Eli was missing or¡ª
She opened her eyes and blinked at the dull scraggly mess her hair was. Rows of acne streaked across her cheeks up to the bridge of her nose. Dark circles shadowed her bloodshot eyes. Her shirt had a couple of stains on it from how many meals ago, her shorts were covered in splatters of ink from when she''d played with a pen... a whole week ago?
Illusions submerged her again until she looked exactly as she had before. Once she was satisfied, she returned back to class with a smile at everyone packing up as the clock came closer to when the bell would free them. Finally.
"Lyra? Could I talk to you?" Mrs. Granton asked as Lyra moved to stand over next to Ava.
"Yeah?"
The bell rang as everyone filed out.
"You drew this?" Mrs. Granton pointed at the picture she had drawn which was separated from the other art done by the rest of the class. Lyra nodded.
"And you didn''t use your powers?"
"No. I didn''t. I drew it entirely by hand." Lyra said with crossed arms.
"It''s nice." Mrs. Granton turned back toward her before she flipped it back around. "But it''s missing something. Don''t you think so?"
"Like what?"
"It has no spark, Lyra. This isn''t art, but a carbon copy image. It''s impressive and you''ll get a full grade, but I''m frankly a little disappointed. I was really looking forward to how you interpret my portrait."
People started bustling in.
"You''d better hurry. You don''t want to be late for your next final."
Tears burned in Lyra''s eyes as she spun around on her heel and marched out of the art room. Once her sanctuary, but now it was only another classroom. Her shoes clicked against the tile as she rushed down a series of hallways until she was outside by the football fields. She rushed across the green toward the abandoned gymnasium until she was hidden from sight.
Her gaze lingered on the spot where Tom had beaten Eli down after she''d tattled on Lana to Eli. Warmth coated her hands as molten ice frosted over her skin as her breath hitched. Darkness swamped out all the light around her as Mind of Dreams replayed the memory of the Initialization to her.
Script blared across her vision again, asking what her favorite memories and worst fears were. Her voice echoed in her ears as she described her immense joy and satisfaction whenever she''d drawn a picture and her parents hung it up on the fridge.
The feeling of creating something
A refrain of her fear of being mediocre. Second-rate. Nothing more than the youngest child of three. She remembered the constant celebrations her parents threw for Eli''s accomplishments in swimming, and then the parade of trophies Lana earned through her games in volleyball, soccer, and then track up until freshman year when she gave up after she didn''t get in varsity. No matter what anyone said about how she never had a chance. Then Eli dropped out of swimming with no other explanation than that he was done.
Every little award she won through art contests or the hollow signs of digital approval on social media for whatever art she posted. Sure, her achievements were celebrated, but it wasn''t the same. Not until her siblings fell out of the spotlight entirely. Then she was the sole focus of her family''s delight, but she didn''t want or deserve it. What was the point if the other two were out of the running? How could her drawings and paintings, both digital and on paper or the occasional canvas, compare to actual trophies and medals? It was a false victory.
So she got the power to create art just as fragile as her art and her achievements. Every success was only the beginning of the next step up the path to the next big thing. Her illusions had grown since then, but still. Her art was only temporary.
Reality returned around her as she blinked her eyes to the sight of sheets of smoldering ice that clung across the sidewalk and climbed up the walls. Red light glowed as heat radiated from within the ice. Burning mist fogged from her mouth with each ragged exhale as she regained her composure. Ice melted into flickering flames that dispersed, leaving nothing but a hot sidewalk and brick wall.
"Lyra! What are you doing out here?" Lana called out as she rounded the corner with Theo at her heels.
"What?" Lyra blinked as she turned toward them. Theo''s face was pale, but otherwise, he looked no different than normal. Physically, anyway. Lana''s jaw was a rigid line of fierce determination that reminded her of whenever she''d tried to convince their parents that something was unfair or to let them stay up longer than they should. An ache stabbed through her heart at the thought of her parents and what they''d turned into.
"School is over. I''m surprised you''d stick around instead of running off with your girlfriend, Ava." Lana''s tone was harsh and cold.
"Lana¡ª" Theo interrupted, then stopped as both sisters glared at him.
"Ava and I aren''t dating." Lyra said matter-of-factly as she narrowed her eyes at her twin. "But I don''t see how that''s any of your business, considering your dating history is the same as a bathroom stall wall."
"Excuse me?" Lana growled as silvery mist splotched across her skin as it condensed into patches of metal. She lumbered forward. "At least I''m not the one running away from
"And Roman," Theo whispered.
"
"They aren''t dead!" Lana snarled.
Lyra''s mind caught the dilation of her pupils, the twitch of her mouth, the lift of her shoulder before her silver shrouded fist jabbed out. Illusive armor wrapped around Lyra as she sidestepped out of the way. Thick walls of force plopped into existence while it stopped her gauntleted hand with a sharp crack.
Lyra''s will snapped out as she imagined a ten-foot drop beneath Lana. Immediately, she dipped as her senses believed she was falling, then Lyra pushed harder and the asphalt of the parking lot and concrete sidewalk turned ephemeral. Reality warped as her illusions sharpened from solid concepts to truth.
Concrete crunched as Lana sprang out of the hole to barrel straight toward Lyra.
Domed translucent shields appeared out of nowhere around Lyra and Lana. Caging both of them. Lana rebounded off of it with a fracturing smack before it sealed. Lyra willed the shield to vanish, but it only fizzed around her, then dissipated with a hiss. Icefiretrailed up her arm in a phantom white-blue flame that sapped the heat of the air. Her other hand pointed at Lana as bolts of ice formed in the air with a core of molten yellow heat in its center.
"Stop! Both of you!" Theo shouted at both of them as tears spilled down his cheeks. "What the fuck are you doing? They''re
He left.
Silver armor puffed into mist around Lana as she stepped over to the brick wall before she slid down it with her hands held against her face. Lyra blinked at her as grief and guilt churned inside of her as she let her stranglehold on her mental and illusive powers fade. She stumbled over to the fragmented divot that had been the ten-foot hole she''d made. A push with Automated Craft bled into the ground where she felt each of the shattered remains.
Lyra drew them together as she de-crafted them back to wet concrete that she shaped with her will until the hole leveled out. Another flash of Automated Craft turned it solid again.
"That''s new." Lana remarked hoarsely while Lyra stood back up and hesitated. If classes were over, Ava would probably wait for her... "So. You did it then? Put your powers into stats?"
"Yeah. I did." Lyra sat down next to her sister with a heavy sigh. She rested the back of her head against the wall as she stared out past the fence around the school to the surrounding residential houses. She turned to study Lana and noticed her shattered vacant stare and the determined set of her jaw in a different light.
They were silent for a few minutes as they stared at nothing together.
Lyra fiddled with one of her shoelaces while she tried to muster up anything to say. Lana beat her to it first. Her shoulders shook as she leaned against Lyra''s side.
"I was so horrible to him... I... I took out everything on him after I couldn''t get into any teams in varsity. I was so jealous of how easy Eli had it. He had friends, he was doing well on the swim team, and he was going to get out of here once he graduated. I... I was having such a hard time with everything. No one really liked me and I failed. Tom was one of the only people that was nice to me. It felt so nice to be seen by someone for something more than my failures or past successes. I''m not going to lie, I also enjoyed how much harder his life was compared to mine. It made me feel¡­ better about myself."
Lana took a deep, shaky breath in as she slumped against Lyra in defeat.
"I don''t remember how it started or anything else, but one time when I was hanging out with Tom and his friends smoking, I mentioned how heartbroken Eli had been in middle school after we went to Florida on vacation and he met that one girl? He moped and pined for weeks afterward. They... no,
Lyra nodded even as her mind and emotions numbed from her heart''s freefall plunge into ice with every word.
"So... we made a fake account of someone in New Faram and catfished him with it. I only helped out for a bit, but Tom and his friends... they became obsessed with it. Eventually, they leaked all the text logs and everything
"Lana..."
"I know. I
"When you''re the reason it happened at all," Lyra said flatly as the gears spun in her mind. She and Eli had talked so
He had told no one, and apparently neither had Lana.
She rested her head back against the wall as mind spun with all the damned secrets in their family. Mom and Dad kept hidden about their involvement with Dave and Sandra and the fact they even had literal enemies locked up in prison. Lana had sabotaged Eli just so she could feel better and then said nothing. While Eli treated his own life like he was nothing more than a tool to help them.
Ice grated against ice as Lyra''s fingers ground into a fist by her side.
How could she trust her family when they did nothing but lie and keep secrets over the course of her fifteen years of life?
Lyra gritted her teeth at the thought of how the appearance of powers hadn''t shattered her worldview and life because of some untold disaster unfounded in reason. No. It was because of her
"Lana! Lyra!" Theo shouted as he came barreling around the corner with his phone in his hand. He skidded to a stop beside them. "Have you guys checked your phone? My mom called and said that President Ryan Turner proclaimed federal martial law!"
"What?" Lana pushed herself up with a quickly summoned pole of silverlight. She craned around to gape at the screen as Theo started playing a clip. Lyra rose slower. Every step felt heavy.
"We as a nation, as a people on this planet, are undergoing a time of grave significance and change. The arrival of these System-granted powers has overthrown everything we have ever known. It is my great burden as President of the United States of America to declare that it is time for us to go into federal-wide martial law as a country to stave off the growing unrest and to better adapt to our new future. Thank you, each and every one of you. God bless America." President Ryan Turner rested his hands on his desk in the oval office as he spoke every word in his crisp baritone. His balding head gleamed from the overhead lights.
"Well, fuck. That''s that then." Lyra rubbed her brow with a wince as a chill sank into her bones despite the blazing overhead May sun. She wasn''t sure if she wanted to laugh or cry right now. Despite everything that had happened since the first moment the System appeared a month and a half ago, the despair hadn''t settled until now.
It was the end, and the changes weren''t done. It had just begun.
[Stats: Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. Body: None Mind: Dream (Dreamer''s Simulation) Will: Phantasia (Synesthesiac Phantasia) ] [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Icefire Control Ev. 0/Lv. 4 Slot Two -- Automated Crafting Ev. 0/Lv. 4 Slot Three -- None ] Epilogue 2 (Lana) Lana stood panting in the grove. Sweat trickled down her face and down her arms to her sap covered hands. A slight ache gnawed against each of her knuckles and her wrists. She took a deep breath in, held it, then lashed out again as hard as she could. Silverlight cracked beneath her feet as her fists hammered into the fortified tree trunk in front of her. Bark exploded under her fist as she pulped the trunk with each blow. Sap splattered across the back of her hands until the tree creaked as it fell lopsidedly. Theo''s Aegis arrested the tree''s fall as he aligned it with his will. Green life overflowed from the shattered seams and craters in a writhing flood until it restored stronger than ever. "Well?" Lana turned to look at Theo, who checked his status with a furrowed brow before he pumped his fists in the air with a beaming smile. "I got it! Ha! So the rumors were right!" "The evolution of Biomantic Grace changed?" "Yeah! The evo-1 was Biomantic Miracle and now it''s Biomancer''s Alteration!" His eyes unfocused for a moment before they cleared. Power shuddered through him as something shifted and moved beneath his skin. Theo closed his eyes as his muscles swelled and his bones thickened. "How is it?" "Silverlight me." Theo''s voice dropped an octave. He lifted his fists while Lana gathered a pool of silvery mist and cast it out in the shape of a rounded shield. She nodded at him. Wind whistled as Theo''s fist sailed straight into the shield with a clang. Lana stumbled back half a step as the force cracked the innermost sections of the metal fractured into bright mist. Before it dispersed too much, she willed it to reform and mend. His fists drummed viciously into her shield again and again. A puffing flash accompanied each blow. Her will reforged the silverlight until the growing force of Theo''s blows tempered and hardened the metal until it didn''t even dent. "Good." Theo rumbled with a smile for a moment before it faltered. "Too bad I didn''t have this a month ago when that bitch attacked." "No kidding." She frowned as she lifted her hands and compared how slender they were now to Theo''s monstrous, engorged fists. Everything about her physically was enhanced to the point every cell brimmed with strength and vitality. Her bones were more durable than steel. Tendons creaked as she clenched her fists. Yet she hadn''t been able to do anything. Eli had been right all along. He''d spent his every moment training, grinding, improving, and because of that, he had stood toe-to-toe and even driven her off. What was the point of Lana''s hollow strength if she couldn''t do anything about it? She hadn''t been able to shrug off Theo or Mom when they''d held her back. Because of that, both her parents had been shot. Sure, they were fine, now. But she''d seen the horror in her mom''s eyes in the way she constantly looked toward the door of their hotel room for Lyra to come home. Every day she drove past numerous checkpoints to the ruins of their old house to check to see if Eli came back. Eli was still gone, and so was Roman. Dad was even worse. He had become a limping ghost of himself. Always withdrawn in his office or on the rooftop, where he practiced with his thunderclouds and his growing repertoire of force powers. He had sold his company and the company''s anti-technomancy encryption to the highest bidder. All so he could further throw himself down the path to power. He swore nothing like that would ever happen again. But how could it not when the country slid further into chaos? Everyone pretended that all would return to normal soon, but open war was almost a certainty. No one could agree how it would unfold, but the military held a heavy presence from Farbrook all the way to New Faram. She could only imagine how it was in different states or cities. "Are you thinking what I''m thinking?" Theo asked as gestured toward the tree she''d been terrorizing. A branch bent toward him as if it were magnetized before it snapped and flew into his hand. Green life pulsed and twisted down the splintered end as the palm of his hand tore open. Blood flecked across the bark as Theo''s hand healed. "What are you thinking?" Lana watched as he stabbed the stick into the dirt. Bark shimmered as it sloughed off like a reptile shedding its skin. Red dribbled up in translucent veins as it coursed throughout the entirety of the stick. Blades of grass twitched as they pointed at the stick as it melted and reshaped itself. Tendrils of green and brown roots burst through the top of the stick as they wriggled in the air. One of the squirming roots scratched a blade of grass. Rot shriveled its way through from the single strand of grass as it spread in a sludging tide through the clearing. Silverlight wrapped around Lana''s body as she stepped back, but it swerved away from her and Theo as if it weren''t aware of them or the slim area of grass they stood on. She gaped at Theo and the way his eyes jerked and stuttered behind his closed eyes. He hummed a nonsensical tune under his breath while he tapped his fingers against the side of his leg. All the while, he controlled whatever it was he was doing. More roots burst forth from the stick that had grown to the size of a branch. Scales of fresh bark ridged the surface of its rapidly developing body as it widened to something vaguely humanoid. Silverlight flashed in her gauntleted hands as an axe fell in her hand. Primal rage and revulsion thrummed through her as the necessity to turn this thing into kindling grew. "No. Don''t." Theo whispered as she took a step forward. Green roiled beneath the surface of its barked skin before it settled into a squat humanoid shape four feet tall with spindly limbs that tapered to sharp, jagged points. A wreath of thorny vines crowned its head as its eyes split open to reveal drips of sap from its chlorophyll green eyes. It had no mouth, no nose, and no ears. Only eyes as large as a coffee mug adorned its face. It blinked slowly as it turned to regard the decrepit clearing. Bum-badump Veins of green thrashed beneath its thick bark hide as it tried to take a stumbling step forward. It tripped on its unsteady, wobbling legs. "Uh, Theo? What the fuck is that?" "One second, it doesn''t have a name yet." Theo glanced from the thrashing abomination he had made to the side as if he were reading something in his system. He smiled. "There. I named its species ''Greant''. That¡¯s cool, right?" "Greant? What the hell? Why did you just create a fucking monster straight out of a kid''s nightmares?" "We both want to get stronger, yeah?" Theo raised his eyebrow at her as if there wasn''t an abomination crying tears of sap as it clawed its way back up to its wooden feet. "Yeah...?" "This is how we can do that. You told me about how you got Graylight Construction and how Eli got Photon Shot." Theo nodded at the Greant, then said, "Kill it." The Greant turned and blinked at the both of them without a shred of comprehension in its eyes as Lana hefted the axe in her hands. She lengthened the haft so she could grip it with both hands while the simple crescent axe-head thickened and doubled in size. It tilted its strange gnarled head as it watched her approach. She brought the axe down with a wet thud as it cleaved through the mess of vines and roots atop its head down to the stump of its chest. Murky sap splattered across her silverlight coated arms and chest. The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. Lana kicked the Greant off the blade of her axe as she reshaped it into a spear. It rolled across the devastated glade as sap seeped from its massive wound. It didn''t move. Ev. 2/Lv. 14> "Silverlight leveled..." Lana turned away from the greant corpse to blink at Theo through a layer of tears as silverlight puffed into mist as she pulled him into an embrace that would''ve cracked his spine before. "Silverlight finally leveled!" "Congratulations! I''m glad." He pulled away from her with a smirking grin. Their eyes met with a boiling rush of heat. Theo pulled back from her as his face flushed scarlet as his hands trembled. "Want to go again?" "Sure," Lana said, slightly disappointed as she conjured another suit of armor and a spear of silverlight. An hour passed. Mounds of greant corpses decorated the glade until every step was punctuated with the creaking crunch of their wooden bodies breaking. Theo sat meditating in the center of the glade where he spawned new greants from the corpses of the old ones to fuel the never-ending horde that marched toward the sap covered armored form of Lana. A labyrinth of silverlight walls glowed gently even in the afternoon June light. Corridors flowed one way then the next to guide them toward the cavern where she waited for them. Lana was a maelstrom of death. Spiked blades jutted out of her armor so that every time one of the greants attacked her, they''d snag on the spikes. Lana lashed out with a constantly changing weapon of silverlight. One moment she hacked apart a greant taller than her with an axe, then the next she smashed apart another with a massive sledgehammer. Bladed whips of silverlight shot out from her shins and shoulders to push them back. Theo puppeted their every movements, but that only forced them to use their fledgling powers to try to defend themselves from Lana''s onslaught. Spears of bristling briar streaked from their bodies to shatter harmlessly against her armor. Vines bounced as they tried to imitate her silverlight whips. Still, they fell. They became whetstones that honed each other with each greant Lana slaughtered. Until the tide stopped for a few minutes. Theo stumbled through the carpet of corpses that disintegrated around him so he could pass unimpeded. His massively enhanced body had shrunk a bit to his previous form, but it seemed a lot of the alterations had stuck still. "Are you done?" Lana dissolved the helm of her armor so he could see her glorious smile. Thrills of excitement sizzled through her veins as she leaned against the poleaxe she had last used. "Yeah, I''m exhausted. I already hit level four though with Biomancer''s Alteration, but I think if we do this more tomorrow it''ll keep leveling. I got Aegis to level up a bit by killing some greants, but the experience was minimal." "Hm. Because you created them?" "Or because I was controlling them." He shrugged. "Anyway, let''s go home. It''s already three and I don''t want to be caught wandering around close to curfew." "Sounds good." Lana said as she read through her status notifications with a widening grin even as her eyes instantly hurt from the massive wall of text. A stray thought wishing it was condensed shrank it down to as few notifications as possible. Ev. 2/Lv. 15> Ev. 2/Lv. 7> ... Ev. 2/Lv. 11> "Holy shit Theo! I can evolve Silverlight or put it into a stat!" She beamed at him as she led the way out of the clearing to start heading back to the grocery store where he worked. She checked both the evolution and stat options then whistled at the results. Visions filled her head as she scrolled through each choice. It was a simple evolution for Silverlight straight into Platinumlight. More tensile strength, faster construction, and she could summon vastly more than she could now. If she hadn''t seen how much of an impact Body of Light had on Eli, she''d have evolved it in a second. But she was falling behind with only two powers compared to everyone else and she was excited to see what new powers the System would offer her. Body of Silverlight would allow her to transform into Silverlight as well as boost her physical attributes greatly when in silverlight form. With Superhuman Physiology, she''d be a true force to reckon with. A juggernaut of unrelenting metal. Mind of Silverlight felt like it''d make her far more mentally resilient and flexible. It didn''t seem to offer any other benefits though. She''d be unyielding once she put her mind to it... but that''s how she already was. Lana had been accused of having issues in that arena more often than not, as it was. Will of Silverlight would enhance the power itself. She felt like it would do exactly what she wanted it to. It''d respond to her most immediate desires at a moment''s whim if she wished it. She felt like she would be Silverlight. Visions filled her mind of shooting bullets of near molten silverlight that charred its way through greant bodies. She wouldn''t need to mentally shape molds and cast out silverlight or reshape it if it already knew what she wanted. Plus, the System gave her the impression that her silverlight would become more. It would reach its full potential to help her however she wished. "I''m choosing Will of Silverlight." Lana said as she chose it. "Are you sure?" "Yeah. I''d rather save Superhuman Physiology for Body or Mind. I''m doing it." "Okay. What power options did you get?" "Is there something wrong with me?" Lana asked as she read over the list again. If it was a well-recognized fact that the System generally gave powers best suited to people... then why did she have not only two combat focused power options, but one of which was vengeful? "Huh?" Lana ignored Theo as she stopped to reconsider her choices. She needed more power. That was a certainty, but she also needed more utility and something to synergize with Silverlight Will and Superhuman Physiology. Both of the Arsenal powers were out. Silverlight could do what they could and more. Forcespeed would make her exponentially faster on every level and let her project raw or controlled force at will. That was the most promising other than Gravatonic Resilience. Lana liked the idea of Geomantic Control, but she''d prefer that she were improved as well as her powers. Controlling the earth would be nice and all, but again, Silverlight could do nearly anything she''d want to use Geomantic Control for. Gravatonic Resilience, though, would let her control, negate, or amplify gravity around her while also making her untouchable while under the effects of gravity... which would be all the time. She''d be unstoppable, practically invincible. If she had that she would''ve been able to kill that bitch Sandra before anyone could have stopped her. Her knuckles popped as she squeezed her silverlight encased fists. The choice was obvious. [Stats: Body: None Mind: None Will: Silverlight (Silverlight) ] [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Superhuman Physiology Ev. 2/Lv. 11 Slot Two -- Gravatonic Resilience Ev. 0/Lv. 0 Slot Three -- None ] *** Moonlight spilled over a clearing full of scattered alien corpses. All was silent and still except for the wriggling mass that erupted from a humanoid tree corpse. Spindly limbs scrabbled against the desolate dirt as a greant clawed itself out of the body it had grown out of. Words scrawled themselves in front of ignorant beady yellow-green eyes. Then the words buzzed knowledge into the lone member of its species. Yellow-green eyes blinked incomprehensibly as thoughts flowed through his mind as slowly as a fly caught in solidifying sap. The new-grown greant scratched its jagged wooden claws across its itchy bark-scaled trunk. Yes, it was Sapblood. Sapblood liked its new name. It glanced across the clearing full of corpses that wrought a strange that constricted the ribbed bands of heartwood tight around its core. Sapblood bent down to shake the prone corpse it had grown out of. Dry scars criss-crossed the entirety of its fellow greant''s body. What had happened? It looked around the clearing with a growing sense of heaviness in its core. Why was Sapblood alone? Sapblood didn''t want to be alone. Sensation plunged into Sapblood''s fledgling body as if thousands of ants had jolted its way through its body. Terrible, burdensome knowledge filled Sapblood''s mind as they studied the scene before them. This wasn''t done in isolation, but intentionally. Greants had been slaughtered here. New words scrolled across Sapblood''s vision and they read for the first time. [Stats: Body: None Mind: None Will: None ] [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Regrowth Ev. 0/Lv. 0 Slot Two -- None Slot Three -- None ] [Unequipped Powers: N/A ] Regrowth. Yes, Sapblood liked the buzz of that word. Motes of energy zapped across the pointed prongs of Sapblood''s twig fingers as they brushed their limbs across one of their fallen brethren. Power flowed into them at an astonishing rate until tendrils of root and vine writhed from one of the many greant corpses. Sapblood wouldn''t be alone for long. Epilogue 3 (Herbert)
May 18th, 20X1 1:09 AM Waves lapped at the shore of the beach where two beaten down cabins stood sentinel over the shore. Corpses bobbed along the ocean and sprawled in the coarse sand of the beach. They were a mix of human and animal. Deer, rabbit, and multitudes of fish surrounding a few dried out husks of greant bodies and other new species discovered or created in the past year. Seven foot long trolls with angular limbs created in the bloody war between the humans of Farbrook and New Faram and the first Greant Sapblood. Metallic carapace glinted dully in the faint moonlight off the hordes of power grown and enhanced insect species known as ferroent. Nearly every single one of them gained powers related to the earth and especially metal. Only corpses and insects barely capable of sapience bore witness to the hazy distortions that split the air next to the firepit of the cabin as two sleeping humans flopped to the sand. Cold, gritty sand crusted under his fingers and stuck to the drool on his cheek squashing Herbert E. Newton''s dreams of winning the upcoming Tri-Delve Cup. He opened his eyes in confused horror at the sprawl of unusual notifications that covered his vision. After nearly six years since his personal Initialization he''d grown accustomed to the System and his powers, but he''d never heard or seen a message congratulating him for traveling to another dimension. [Stats: Body: Water (Hydro Authority) Mind: Icewraith (Icewraith Metamorphisis) Will: None ] [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Winter''s Tempest Ev. 2/Lv. 11 Slot Two -- Arctic Armory Ev. 3/Lv. 4 Slot Three -- Thermal Ionomancer Ev. 2/Lv. 9 ] Herbert slowly sat up as he noticed the rustling tide of the ocean for the first time. He wrinkled his nose at the salty tang and brine, but he couldn''t help but smile at the sheer overwhelming amount of water that sang to his senses. He''d always wanted to see the ocean at Neoadia and go to college there so he could swim along the coasts, but he didn''t get the scholarships he needed and his family lived in the middle of nowhere. Instead, he had been forced to go to the University of Anchora. "Les?" Herbert called out as he surged toward the prone form of his friend and roommate. Romulus''s eyes blinked open as a suit of robotic armor appeared around him from his Apparatus Vault. Herbert felt the ionized charge of the plasma stream from its battery core through its wire as Les prepared to blast whoever kidnapped them as a prank. "Herbert?" Les''s faceshield withdrew even as his mounted plasma guns charred with a whirring buzz. "Where the hell are we? Is this Maeve again, because I swear to God if your sister¡ª" "No. This couldn''t be her." Herbet shook his head as he glanced at his status again. "It looks like we''re in another dimension. Maeve can only planeshift, not dimension hop." "Potato, potahto. She teleported us out to the middle of nowhere when we stole the vodka out of her room. Is this really so different?" "Yes, it is." Herbert stood up and turned around to look toward the devastated highway that trailed off into the night. He had felt something die out there from his Icewraith Mind. "She couldn''t do that, especially not with how tight dorm security is." "Okay, fine. What about Hazel? Has your girlfriend somehow dumped us off into another timeline?" "Why do you keep blaming my people?" He asked while he searched the night even as he prepared to summon his suit of glacial armor out of his Winter''s Armory. "You literally hang out with the whole insane powertech crowd. Didn''t Gerald and Jane try to create a wormhole or something?" "No. A thousand times, no, they were trying to create a zoned domain, then replicate the space. That''s not a wormhole." Romulus muttered as he scanned their surroundings. "Anyway, we''re definitely in a hostile zone. A field of dead over there with mostly unfamiliar monsters. Looks like weaker unintelligent Shimmers and some weird tree people things and a smattering of trolls. Can you sense when they died?" "I''m not picking anything up with Icewraith, it must have been a while ago." Herbert turned around again toward the dilapidated cabins. "Nothing alive inside of there, either. We''re the only things alive that matter on this beach." "You thinking we should check for supplies?" "It might be wise. Classic delve rules, right?" Herbert said as he phased through the door with a sharp crack of splintering wood as it froze solid. He studied the brittle door as he poked his finger through the wall with ease. "Hm. Everything seems... flimsy." Frozen wood crunched in a cascade of tiny pops as Les followed him. "Think we''re outside of a civ zone? Nothing has been adjusted for powers... at all. I don''t sense any enchantments or anything special on any of this stuff. It''s a complete void." "But there are sys-spawn, aren''t there?" Herbert frowned at his friend as he shined high powered beams of light from his suit across the room revealing a dust covered furniture, a fridge that he sensed no current or charge running through, and two stripped beds. "Yeah... maybe. But they didn''t appear out of nowhere. The originals were created by people, weren''t they?" "Back home anyway." Herbert pushed back outside as glacial armor sheathed him in the familiar frigid layers of protection. Tendrils of frigid air breezed around him in a veiled aura. At the touch of ice and cold air, his Body of Water and Mind of Icewraith flooded his entire being with power. Power shivered through him as his stats synergized with each of his other powers. You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. They stepped onto pavement that cracked beneath the forceful weight of their armored steps. "By the Savior, what kind of hell dimension are we in?" Herbert sighed. "If people actually live here, we''ll probably kill them with a sneeze." "Probably." Les''s voice crackled tersely over his comms. Herbert knew he was probably glued to the different readouts of his scanners. A familiar boredom yawned inside of him as he plodded along one step after the other. Too bad he couldn''t skip the creeping walk into the dark wilderness. Water whispered to his senses everywhere around him, from the vapor in the air to the stores in their bodies. Not to mention the sheer multitudes of plants that waved in the breeze along the curved highway. Nearly an hour passed of them walking through the gray night that would''ve been pitch black if they''d been pre-System mundanes. Nothing attacked or even moved except for them. "We can move faster," Les said finally as propulsors slid out of carefully hidden seams along the soles of the mechanized boots, up the calves, shoulders, and palms of his powersuit with a click. "Water cannon?" "Sure." Herbert nodded as he transformed his body into pure water before he streamed into the open canister of Les''s familiar Mach II Aqua. Power slammed into his liquid form as the gold plated enchantments charged and boosted Herbert''s transformed body with transcendent energy. A secondary system linked up to the cylindrical canister to plug his mind into the sensors scattered throughout Les''s suit while wires looped through his suit toward the suit''s power cores. Red light bathed the innards of the canister. His Thermal Ionomancer let him generate harmless plasma that he could kick quite the charge through. If they ever needed it, this system let them piggyback off each other''s strengths while mitigating their weaknesses. When they''d tested it, they''d destroyed a target ranked at LR-20 that should''ve been indestructible to anything with a maxed out evo-3 combat power and below. It was their trump card. Vibrations stirred him as Les soared into the air before they blasted forward in a thunderclap as they shot through the air. If Herbert hadn''t transformed, the g''s would''ve wrecked havoc on him, but it was of no concern like this. He watched from his backseat canister as their speed chewed through miles like Hazel tore through her favorite Chinese food place''s dumplings. Ice frosted through his body, creating a pressurized fog that steamed out of the vents of the water cannon as anger spiked through him. Would Hazel think he''d ghosted her? No, no, she wouldn''t think that. He and Les disappeared together but... if he ever got home he''d have a hell of a time explaining that he had disappeared into another dimension. Savior damn him. What would his sister and parents think if he stopped returning their calls or check-ins? Pings flashed across his canister as they jerked to a stop. Highlighted boxes sectioned out the sensors'' viewports as he zoomed in on what appeared to be a ragtag crew of people fighting a horde of those odd tree spawn. "What do you think, Herb?" Les asked through the sub-system of speakers hooked up to the water cannon''s canister. "Let''s help them. If they''re having trouble, they could be worth some good experience. If not... then the people of this world are more fucked then we thought." "Want me to blast you?" "Do it." Herbert sloshed with excitement as he prepared to push with all of his powers. Red light changed to yellow as a target reticle appeared on the viewports as Les aimed the water cannon mounted down at a particularly nasty section of tree spawn with hulking trolls that were planning a rout. A gentle charge with Thermal Ionomancer confirmed. Green light flashed before his aquatic body guzzled through a series of tubes into an empty grenade. A concussive blast slammed into the grenade as he whistled through the air to crash into something with a wet thump. Bang! Water erupted from the grenade in a torrent as he shoved with all of his might. Razor-sharp glacial spears tore through tree spawn and troll flesh. Freezing wind churned around him as ice sheeted over the corpses and the ground. Herbert appeared as he absorbed all the ice and ripped all the water out of the shredded bodies around him. His modest six foot frame grew a whole foot as he towered over the rest of the sys-spawn threatening the humans that still hadn''t turned to look toward him. Too slow. No wonder they had trouble. Herbert didn''t bother to use Arctic Armory to kill the rest. They weren''t worth his evo-3 power. Blue plasma needled through each tree spawn, metallic insect, and troll with ease. Instead of heat, he used the thermal part of his power to flash freeze the moisture in their bodies which he then shoved his will into with Body of Water and Mind of Icewraith. By the time the people turned toward him with their guns and middling display of powers, he had already killed everything. Air stirred from above as Les hovered right behind Herbert. Whirring clicks resounded as plates pulled back too quietly for these weak humans to hear. Herbert flashed out a message with a series of pushes and pulls with the reserves of water left in the water cannon. ["Time?"] ["Five seconds."] Les responded as tiny vibrations buzzed into the canister. "Wh-what the fuck? Who the hell are you two?" shouted the lead person in a bulky mismatched set of armor with a disgustingly basic rifle in his arms. It trembled as he struggled to decide whether he wanted to point it at Herbert or Les. "Hi, I''m Herbert Newton. This is my friend Les. Do you have a town or somewhere we could go?" He transformed back into flesh and blood, although he remained in his arctic armor. "I''m Hank Harver and we''re the Voluntary Farbrook Defense." He said as he glanced at Herbert and Les, still suspicious. "Wait, Dad, stop. Did you say ¡®Newton¡¯?" asked one of the other men as flames kindled across his hands. He stepped closer as the dim light of his flames shifted across Herbert¡¯s face. "Eli?" "What?" Herbert asked sharply as the man stepped forward. Second glance showed he looked to be about his and Les''s age or maybe a year younger. He withdrew the ice helm from his face as he stepped closer. "My name isn''t Eli." "Uh, are you sure? You''re not Elias Newton?" He looked him up and down before he glanced up at Les. "You look exactly like him... are you Roman then?" "No. My name is Romulus. What is this about?" Les''s voice crackled before the feedback cut out as his faceshield slid back too. "Tommy, leave these poor people alone." Hank Harver growled as he stepped forward to whisper in his son''s ear. But to Les''s sensors and Herbert''s Body of Water and Mind of Icewraith, it was all too clear. "These are scary people, fuck! They could be monsters, as far as we know." "They went missing a year ago, a few months before the monsters started showing up." Tom whispered back. "You think they had something to do with it?" "No... I don''t know, maybe?" "If they don''t cooperate, we''ll kill them and find out." "We aren''t ''monsters'' or spawn. We mean you no harm." Herbert interrupted loudly as he rolled his eyes. "Are there more of you? A town or somewhere we could go?" "Why do you want to know?" Tom growled as his flames darkened along his fists. The light and heat were pathetic. "You going to stick your nose where it doesn''t belong again, Newt?" Power built in Les''s suit as he prepared to fire one of his many weapons. "By the fucking Savor, you''re all idiots, aren''t you?" Herbert growled before Les eviscerated them. "Point us to town and we''ll straighten this out. You won''t even be able to hurt us." "Oh yeah?" Tom hissed as he lunged for Herbert and swung his fist toward his face. He didn''t bother to dodge or do anything. Bone crunched as the flames sputtered out on Tom''s hand as he reeled back. "Babies hit harder than you." Herbert scoffed. "Look. You can''t stop us. If you don''t take us back, we''ll look for wherever you live ourselves. Maybe that''d be better anyway. You''re all too weak and slow. Come on, Les." He transformed into water again as he flooded himself back into the water cannon''s canister before they soared up into the air. ["How did he know your middle name?"] Les asked with a series of clicking buzzes. ["Where are we?"] ["I don''t know, but they said something about us missing. I guess we''ll find out once we reach whatever village they live in."] Herbert watched the woods flicker beneath them as they flew straight toward the dim horizon of lights so unlike the bright dazzling gleam of cities like there were back home. They really were in a different dimension. He checked the kill notifications with an internal frown. Herbert felt no change from the System regarding his power levels. The combined experience from each sys-spawn wasn''t even a drop in the bucket for him. If these people struggled this much, were they really that weak or were these spawn just the fodder?
Book II: Chapter One Light glowed off his raised hand as he studied posters of unfamiliar athletes swimming. Trophies glittered on a shelf above a desk full of textbooks next to a still open laptop model he''d never seen before in his life. "What the fuck!" shouted a familiar voice as Roman bolted upright on the other side of the room. Eli''s beam turned to reveal a similar set up on the other side of the room full of gear in various stages alongside folders of loose schematics and diagrams scattered everywhere. Roman stared back at him before he glanced off to the side. "Holy shit, check your status!" Restoration Ev. 2/Lv. 2> Voidspace Mastery Ev. 1/Lv. 7> Voidspace Mastery Ev. 1/Lv. 8> [Stats: Body: Light (Photon Shot) Mind: None Will: None ] [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Voidspace Mastery Ev. 1/Lv. 8 Slot Two -- Lumencloud Invigoration Ev. 0/Lv. 5 (Maxed) Slot Three -- Restoration Ev. 2/Lv. 2 ] [Unequipped Powers: Imbue Ev. 0/Lv.5 (Maxed) Augmentative Elemental Absorption Ev. 0/Lv. 5 (Maxed) Spatial Dominion Ev. 0/Lv. 0 ] "We''re in another dimension?" Eli whispered as he reread his status again in numb disbelief. Tension ridged his muscles. He reached out into his voidspace and sighed with relief as he felt his hoard of spatial bubbles full of his belongings and everything else he had collected in there. Hope flared in his chest. If they were still there, then maybe he could teleport them back somehow. He had left two anchors, one on the rooftop and another on the gravel road where he had his fight with Daniels. A flicker of his will and a tug on the¡ª It trailed off into nothing. He could sense his anchors and their vague, general location... but that was it. Eli tuned back in to Roman, pacing the length of what seemed to be a dorm room. His eyes fluttered as he panicked. "¡ªkilled her. Now we''re in another fucking dimension!" He teleported across the room so that he could grab Roman by his shoulders. "Hey, hey. It''s okay." "What do you mean, it''s okay? I killed someone and now we''re who knows where!" Metal rattled across the room as nails, screws, gears, and other parts in various stages of assembly shook as Roman''s anxiety mounted. "Why are you so calm? Take us back!" "I can''t teleport back. The spaces are..." Eli paused as he held his hands up with to empathize the space in between, "they''re separate. I can only move in this space now, not the other one." "Don''t patronize me and act all calm. We''re trapped here, Eli!" Roman shoved Eli back as he resumed pacing with newfound fervor. "She doesn''t even have any new powers that could help me out with this either!" Eli idly watched his friend almost hyperventilate. He felt perfectly fine. In fact, he didn''t really feel all that troubled by the whole ordeal. He glanced at his status again and frowned at Restoration. Did the mental aspects of Rapid Recovery evolve further? He shrugged. It didn''t really matter right now. Eli cast his spatial field wide across the room then frowned as it refused to budge outside the room and spill out into the hallways. Clothes of a slightly larger size and different style than he was used to flashed across his awareness. Shirts, sweaters, hoodies, jackets , and even a uniformed sort of armor cluttered a standing wardrobe''s closet while other clothes were folded neatly in dresser drawers. A few intimate items and packets were hidden in the underwear drawer. Next was the desk where a strange laptop rested. Its insides felt similar to what he was used to, but also very different. A cellphone sat charging on the bedside table along with two pictures in picture frames he hadn''t noticed when he''d woken up. He teleported on the chair of the desk while the phone and pictures appeared beside him. Light shone from the thin but oddly robust phone as he studied it curiously. The background was of someone that looked bizarrely like him with his arm around a woman''s shoulders with long brunette hair. They were eating ice cream. An ache pierced his heart as he touched his thumb to the screen. Instantly a box appeared with ''Face ID'' above a circle before it flashed a checkmark and the phone unlocked. Rows of icons littered the screen over an animated background of ocean waves. He scrolled through it slowly while he searched through a startling abundance of mobile games, video sites, and messy app organization. Until he reached the last page with three folders and one app. Delve, School, Financials, and the app System Portfolio. Eli immediately tapped on System Portfolio and grinned as the screen changed to the eerie blue of the system screens. It opened to a login screen while the thumb pad on the bottom of the phone flashed. He touched it with growing excitement, then blinked as the System dumped a notification in front of his eyes. It vanished at the same time the screen flashed red with an error message saying: FAILED POWER BIOMETRICS TWO MORE ATTEMPTS REMAINING Eli hurriedly flicked the screen away and closed the app while his heart pounded in his chest. He wondered what was in the app and how it had accessed his System. Was it an enchantment based power? Pure technology? "Roman!" Eli called as he turned over and blinked at the sheer focus and dedication he displayed while poring over all the schematics and devices that were laid out on top of the other desk. Roman¡¯s lips moved silently while he spoke to himself and wrote notes in another notebook. Okay. So he was on his own. That was fine. He thought about accessing the financial apps, but decided not to. That felt wrong and far too personal. He didn''t know if he''d replaced this Herbert, if they had swapped, or something more sinister. But he knew that they needed information about this dimension and their situation. From what he had seen while he had fallen through the Initialization, this world was very different and far more advanced. Eli continued his search. He tried getting into the delve and school accounts, but was met with a different sort of barrier. An untrusting plain old login page. No easy face biometrics at all. Eli searched real quick and found a notes app full of usernames and passwords along with a list chock full of exercises and monster names straight from a fantasy story. Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. Cardio: Run Hydreigan Lake (20 min - 4/10/20X1), (19 min - 4/20/20X1), (15 min - 5/10/20X1), (__ min - 5/20/20X1) Weights: Full routine (200 lb - 4/10/20X1), (210 lb - 4/20/20X1), (230 lb - 5/10/20X1), (__ lb. - 5/20/20X1) Dexterity: Juggling 10 lb. ball for 5 minutes, 20 lb. ball for 4 minutes, 30 lb. ball for 3 minutes, 40 lb. ball for 2 minutes, 50 lb. ball for 1 minutes (4/10/20X1 - 5/20/20X1) Flexibility: Standing splits for 10 seconds, standing twists for 10 seconds, standing rolls for 10 seconds (4/10/20X1 - 5/20/20X1) Sys-Spawn Slaying and (first and second floor solo) Delve Times: 15 goblins, 5 trolls, 8 giant spiders (28 dead, 0:32:14) - 4/10/20X1 30 goblins, 12 trolls, 16 giant spiders (58 dead, 0:48:52) - 4/20/20X1 45 goblins, 20 trolls, 24 giant spiders (89 dead, 0:54:30) - 4/30/20X1 60 goblins, 30 trolls, 32 giant spiders (122 dead, 0:49:08) - 5/10/20X1 # goblins, # trolls, # giant spiders (# dead, TIME) - 5/20/20X1 What are ''Sys-Spawn''? Monsters? Eli glanced over the typed words again with a growing sense of both excitement and horror. His world didn''t have monsters or they did, but they were people. He flicked the tab away to start digging into the browser and searching internet archives and journals relating to powers, the System, and these Sys-Spawn. For them, the Initialization happened right at the tailwind of the Industrial Revolution in the 1800s. Powers caused a lot of issues, but they were on a smaller scale initially since the world wasn''t as globalized. But it caused a boom in technological advancement credited to ''Enchantment'' type powers. Then animals started getting experimented on with and without powers. Every animal''s intelligence grew until they underwent a metamorphosis as they gained access to the System. Afterward, the System gave them every tool it had ever given humanity. But it also gave them more. They got sanctuaries that bent the laws of physics even further where they were spawned instead of born. They also started off with powers far greater than they should''ve otherwise gotten. Not to mention how problematic it already was that the System gave them the same advantages. The animal kingdom is rife with danger and death, so every sapient Sys-Spawn skyrocketed as they killed each other, but then they realized another prey was far more bountiful with different rewards. Humanity. Sys-Spawn are apparently heavily restricted on only one or two kinds of powers they can get, but people typically got powers that fell in four different categories: Control, Enhancement, Dream, and Unique. Apparently, spatial powers in general were fairly rare in recent times. They were notoriously hard to create, but quite a few people had gotten them in the initialization. Dimensional powers were even rarer. There were accounts of people leaving this dimension for others, but very few of the reverse. What were they going to do? Obviously, they were going to have to keep it a secret that they weren''t from here, but he had no idea if that would even be possible. He couldn''t even access Herbert''s ''System Portfolio'', whatever that meant for sure, and Eli had no idea how long Herbert has had powers or even what his powers were. He had the vague sense from his sleuthing that Herbert was a college athlete involved in some kind of competition for Delving. Otherwise, they had a lot of common interests. So he had no idea how hard it''d actually be to pretend to be him. Did they have the same mannerisms both with body language and speech? Eli had no idea. So he shook his head and continued to read. All he knew was that he and Roman would have to act like they came from here until they had a better understanding of the situation and the people around them. He leaped from one article to the next in a whirlwind of research about this world, their knowledge of powers and the System, and especially whatever he could find about Herbert. His world had so little information, only speculation, while this world has had powers for nearly two hundred years. One moment he was vaguely aware of it being 3 AM and he was reading through the databases on spatial, light, and cloud powers, then in the next moment sunlight streamed through the small windows. He wasn''t even tired. Eli climbed out of his perch on the chair with a series of twinges and phantom aches that vanished by the time he was fully standing. He had been awake all night and fought a marathon of multiple high-intensity fights, and he wasn''t even a bit exhausted. Sure, his body craved sleep, but he felt like he could keep going easily. Between Restoration, Lumencloud Invigoration, and Body of Light, he felt more than fresh. Roman was asleep with his head resting flat on his counterpart''s desk and a slew of papers scattered all around him along with a notebook he had scrawled out pages of notes in. He glanced at the clock and saw that it was 6 AM. Should he go to bed or¡ª His phone buzzed and he picked it up and didn''t even think about how it wasn''t actually his phone, but Herbert''s until it had unlocked and he read a text message from ''Hazel Lucas <3'' that asked if he was ready saying that she was waiting outside the door. Panic shot through him. Her contact photo was a picture of the same smiling woman from Herbert''s background. Would she know that he wasn''t who she expected? What was he supposed to even be ready for? Did these insane people have a date planned for 6 fucking AM? Eli hadn''t ever even been on a date! The phone buzzed again asking if he wanted to sleep in with a frownie face. He scrolled up hurriedly, reading through conversations discussing videos, Math homework, finals, and a whole lot of nothing. The text conversation only went back two weeks. A silent alarm flashed from the top of his phone screen from a calendar reminder saying ''Morning run with Hazel <3''. Oh, thank god. These people were just crazy in that runner way, not a crack of dawn date way. Eli teleported some gym clothes out of the closet onto his body and winced at the odd way the fabric hugged the contours of his body. He felt an enchantment type power connect to each of his enhancement powers with a zip of energy before it relaxed. He opened the door nervously then blinked with a blush at Hazel who leaned against the wall across from the dorm room with her own athletic wear and a cute jacket with a stencil of a duck emblazoned over her heart. Her dark brunette hair flowed over her shoulder in curly waves. She looked up at him with a smile. "Ready?" "Yeah, let''s do this." Eli''s voice cracked. She giggled at him and led the way down the hall. He felt overly aware of his skin and the way his heart pounded. She started jogging down the stairs while he hurried to catch up. Then they barreled out of a side door from the stairwell out into the brisk, balmy air of the courtyard he''d seen from his initialization here. No one else was outside except for them The sun was bright and crisp as she sped up. She rocketed forward with gradual ease, each of her obviously empowered footsteps left a zig-zagging matrix of flashing lights almost as if it absorbed the power or strength from her exertion to protect itself. He tried to catch up, but she was quickly outstripping him. "What powers does Herbert fucking have?" He muttered under his breath as he spiked Lumencloud Invigoration and Body of Light inward until strength flooded his body. He was still too slow. They were nearing a park that rested right next to the campus with a trail that wrapped around the woods and vanished into nothing. He read a sign as he flashed by that said ''Hydreigan Lake''. He used Voidspace Mastery and that strange violet light to make every point of empty space inside of him sing with power. Eli drew a little closer. Then he teleported in place with each step so he could blast more force into each of his movements to amplify them. He nearly wiped out, but he quickly got used to it as he grew even closer. Wind buffeted them, which seemed to annoy her, but to him it was a blessing. She seemed to only just be pushing against her limits while he had to use everything he had to keep up with her. Twenty-six minutes later, they had ran the entire track around the lake. Eli''s body trembled as he slowed with a gasp. The instant he didn''t have to use his combined powers to push himself physically, they seemed to click in place for Restoration to renew his stamina and smooth his aches and pangs. Hazel limped over to a picnic bench table where she collapsed into it breathlessly. She brushed her fingers over the grass while she frowned at him. He smiled uncertainly. "You didn''t have to humor me by shadowing me. You could have passed me." "Huh?" Eli blinked as she pushed herself up into a sitting position as he felt her power, something adjacent to space, strobe around her. She leaned back against the table of the picnic bench while she furrowed her brow at him. "You''re not even out of breath, Herbert!" "I wanted a warm up." He lied with a shrug, even though his heart hammered against his ribcage. "Alright. Well, do you want to do another lap then? I looped myself, so I''m ready to go if you are." She smiled feebly and Eli wondered what Herbert would say¡­ but then he noticed the tension in her shoulders. The way her brow still furrowed slightly. She didn''t want to go for another lap, so what did it matter what Herbert would''ve done? Eli shook his head while he extended his hand to pull her up. "Actually, I''m starving. Why don''t we go get breakfast?" "Good idea!" She tugged herself up with enough force that his shoulder nearly wrenched out of his socket. She beamed at him. "Caught you by surprise, huh?" "Yeah," he chuckled while he wondered if Herbert was some kind of exercise freak like Lana. What the fuck kind of mess did that bitch Sandra put him in? "Where do you want to eat?" "Oh! Let''s eat at Pandemonium Cafe. Have you been?" She smiled with satisfaction as she started to lead the way while she still held his hand. "Did I tell you that Hawkins canceled the final exam for my Geomancy class? He wants us to do a final project instead." "What kind of final project?" Eli''s mouth felt dry as cotton even as he was nervous that his hand was actually clammy and disgusting. Guilt smoldered in his gut as if Daniels was sawing into him with those orange flames of his. He felt disgusting that he had to pretend to be Herbert, but he didn''t have any other choice. Did he? "Okay so, we have to create a model of a city and the surrounding region and then we''ll need to simulate an earthquake and we''ll be graded on how accurate we are! Which isn''t fair at all! Hawkins slotted in an evo-3 Geopathy power into her Will stat. She''ll be able to sense everything about the earth." "Do you want any help with it?" He asked with a side glance at her as they started walking out of the seclusion of campus into the bustling city full of traffic, with cars that looked far sleeker than what he was used to. "Will you have time? You''ve been so busy training for the Tri-Delve Cup and you''re taking three other classes." "I''ll help anyway I can." He smiled even while he panicked internally at the thought of taking finals for four college classes. In a college that he''d never attended. He hadn''t even finished high school! "Who knows? Maybe I''ll surprise you." "I''m sure you will, Mr. Herbert Newton," She laughed. "Thank you for making time for me this morning after our run. I know how busy you''ve been and that we''ve only been dating for a couple of weeks, but I''m really happy." "Of course," he said even while he tasted ash and sand in his mouth. A knife twisted in his chest. Should he confess that he wasn''t Herbert? The more he talked to her, the more revolting he felt. He opened his mouth to say something when she practically dragged him to the side to the tucked away Pandemonium Cafe. "I''m so excited that you get to finally try this place! Come on!" She pulled him inside even as his heart plummeted further. What was he going to do about this? About her? And what about his family, both back at home and here? Last he¡¯d seen them, they¡¯d been shot by Sandra. Were they okay? Not to mention, if he looked like himself here¡­ how different would Herbert¡¯s family be to his own? Hopefully, he¡¯d be able to figure out a way home before he had to find out. Book II: Chapter Two
Eli stumbled back into the dorm room with two boxes of leftovers full of scrambled eggs, waffles, toast, and several strips of crispy bacon. His head spun from... well, everything. He had been on a date while pretending to be someone he wasn''t, but they were also essentially the same person. And yet, they weren''t. Hazel... she was great. He loved her optimism, her sense of excitement for the small things around her. When the food came with an extra side helping of bacons, her smile had been dazzling as if she''d won the lottery. Her laugh was bright and sunny. She had a great sense of humor. But she thought Eli was Herbert. Roman glared up at him with a frown as he hurled himself out of his chair to stomp his way up to him. "Where the hell were you? It''s nearly eleven! I woke up and you were gone! I thought you abandoned me!" Again. The silent word screamed unsaid as it was. "I went out for a run and got some breakfast. Here." Eli plopped the boxes of food down on his desk since it was closer to the door before he turned to pin Roman with a glare of his own. "I couldn''t sleep and I wanted to figure out what the area was like.¡± "Oh. Sorry." Roman ran his hands across his face before he picked up the takeout boxes with a sheepish grin. "I didn''t mean to snap at you..." "It''s okay, man." Eli nodded at the food while he shoved down his next rising tide of guilt. It was okay to omit telling him about Hazel, right? He just didn''t want to be needled about her and the whole situation. That''s all. "Have you been awake long?" "No, I woke up about an hour ago." Roman pulled out the chair to Eli''s, no Herbert''s, desk as he started eating with the plastic silverware he''d packed in. "This place is insane, though. Their technology is so far advanced we might as well be playing sticks and stones back home..." Roman paused to glance at Eli. "What?" Eli asked while he sat down. "You can get us back, right? Because I got nothing useful for killing her, so it''ll have to be on you to figure it out." "What did you get?" "She had a domain power called Authoritative Domain that''d let me control the area around a person and even physically affect them. It''s a nasty power, but my only other option is Self Mastery, which would give me almost complete control over myself. I''m leaning toward taking that one or dismantling it for a perk." Eli nodded while he thought about how he''d try to get them back. He glanced at his status, then noticed that he still had a pending notification from when he killed Daniels. He narrowed his eyes as he read Auto-Ethereal Projection and felt the vague impressions the system gave him about the power. It was essentially duplicating something and then sending it out wherever, but it also had a sort of teleportation power sewn into it that would allow the user to destroy a projection and appear in its place. Eli glanced at the rest of his status and paid particular attention to Spatial Dominion. Could he jury-rig a new power out of the two or even get a perk from Daniels''s power and put it on Spatial Dominion? Eli selected the Gain a Power Perk prompt and smiled at the options. One of these would be perfect, especially after he finished maxing out Spatial Dominion to free up Augmentative Elemental Absorption. Natural Autonomy allowed the projections to operate on their own, but according to their own ''nature''. Ethereal Paradox was a bit strange, but it allowed the projections to be real then not which was how Daniels did his teleportation swap. Replicate was exactly what it said it was, it''d allow for copying in general. And Projection was also straightforward. Ethereal Paradox, Replicate, or Projection could be enough or even vital to figuring out how to push Spatial Dominion or Voidspace Mastery to the tipping point where he could access other dimensions in space. He felt like Ethereal Paradox would help him blur a lot of his current limits with either of his powers. While Replicate could maybe double the inner zone of Spatial Dominion to be like another dimension? But he felt like Projection could help him push from one dimension to the other. He couldn''t decide; not yet. Eli turned away from the screens with a silent snarl while he swapped out Lumencloud Invigoration for Spatial Dominion. Constant unfailing strength dispersed from his leaden body while he sank into the comforting embrace of his mattress. It was pure luxury after being awake for over twenty-four hours. Words buzzed against his ears, but he ignored them as he closed his eyes. To better focus on the surrounding zone that seemed to sharpen in his awareness. Colors smeared across his mind''s eye like it was a canvas as he seemed to drift through an ocean of molasses. Voidspace Mastery highlighted the whole room in his spatial field, but it felt the teensiest bit clearer. He tried to use Spatial Dominion and winced as his spatial field blurred except for the immediate space around him and the bed. Restoration and Voidspace Mastery vanished from the equipped power loadout of his status. Immediately, he felt a different sort of spatial field that drew towards him. It was like a zone of awareness with him at the exact center. He tried pushing it out further, but it wouldn''t budge until he tugged on it. It squeezed around him as it flooded his mind with more acute details of everything around him. The gentle brush of the breeze, the two layers of blankets, the top sheet, and then the sheet and ancient mattress. Eli pulled it closer until it slipped under his skin with a tingling rush. His mind spun and his body shuddered as he felt himself fall into the void. His eyes snapped open as he lurched awake. He tried to teleport, then grunted as he felt Spatial Dominion''s boundary crystallize and a tide of spatial power toss him and his bedding off the bed in a tangle on the floor. Spatial Dominion Ev. 0/Lv. 1> Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. "Good. You''re finally awake," Roman said while he turned to look down at him while he fiddled with a mechanized gauntlet that hummed with power. "Your phone has been going off." "Oh, okay..." Eli thrashed to free himself from the tangle of blankets before he crawled out of the blanket cocoon. He flexed his will through Spatial Dominion and winced as space surged again to throw him and the blankets upward. Body of Light flared as he pooled against the ceiling in a pool of soft light. Eli streamed to reform on the ground so he could catch the blankets. Spatial Dominion seemed to try to move everything in its vicinity instead of teleporting from point A to point B like he was used to. Voidspace Mastery and Lumencloud Invigoration re-equipped while he used the former to make his bed with a flicker of normal teleportation. Spatial Dominion felt slightly sharper than it had before as it grated against Voidspace Mastery''s spatial field. Herbert''s phone appeared in his hand and he winced at the several notifications from multiple people trying to get ahold of him. Eli''s face blanched as he read the missed call logs from Herbert''s mom and someone named Maeve who had called and texted after he hadn''t answered Herbert''s mom. He ignored it. There were more important things he had to do. Besides, he had a hard time fitting into his own family sometimes let alone a family that wasn¡¯t even his. Multiple notifications from a group chat called 3Delve AU talking about meeting at the gym tomorrow at 6 AM before practice. Eli frowned while he read the chat history where these people talked about ''delving'' different dungeons ¡ª system made and ones ran by people with domain powers ¡ª and literally killing the System spawned monsters as a sport. "These people are fucking barbaric." Eli read amazed at the boasts thrown back and forth about the various ways they maimed or killed these monsters. Or sys-spawn, he supposed he would have to try to fit in. "What''s that?" "Have you read the group chat for 3Delve AU?" "Yeah while you were sleeping. I also looked up what the Tri-Delve even is and everything else about it. I figured out what classes my counterpart Romulus is taking too," Roman said while he continued to work on the gauntlet, that glowed with power. "Intro to Engineering, Enchanting and Powertech, and an English class and Calculus." "Oh." Those were all basically what Roman probably would¡¯ve wanted to take, anyway. "What classes are you, or well, the other you in?" "Let me find out," Eli sighed while he navigated to the school app with a series of clicks. Five boxes with generic backgrounds glowed with the class names written across the top. "English, Calculus, Intro to Meteormancy, Intro to Hydromancy, and Power Crafting I." "Jesus Christ, that''s intense," Roman chuckled while he shook his head. "Well, we have to fit in if we have any hope of getting back. Should probably get to studying then.¡± "Really?" Eli crossed his arms while he stared at his friend. "Have you gone insane? We need to try and find a way back home, not study and do homework." "Sure, if you don''t want to flunk out in a world with an economy and workforce, literally made up of powers that seem to require the power, education, and different levels of licensing to use those powers professionally. Who knows how we''ll be here?" "I guess." "We''re so far behind, too. Most people seem to unlock their system from when they''re ten to fifteen and we just got ours literally a month ago." "I got it, Roman." Eli teleported over to his desk where he started going over his classes in more detail. Within minutes of staring at class schedules that blocked out most of his upcoming three weeks until finals, multiple assignments due throughout including one in two days on Monday, and even discussion posts that read like people had been kidnapped and forced to type away in a forum. A headache pulsed at the base of his spine even with Lumencloud Invigoration and Body of Light working together to soothe it. Maybe he should work on the interesting classes first... Eli looked over the course history for Power Crafting I and grinned at the essay and assignment due Wednesday. While he normally hated writing essays, this one was fascinating and he would¡¯ve done the research, regardless. He was supposed to write about the history of the System from its appearance in and the rise of power classifications deployed during the Great Power Wars that spanned two decades until 19XX5. And to design the ideal power set for an electrician, welder, and auotomotive mechanic starting off with a base evo-0 power called Charge. It was described as: ''a basic power that allows the user to charge up any kind of energy and release it.'' A note pinned to the assignment said that everyone will have to present for one of their professions and defend their choices and reasoning. Whoever does the best would win the Charge ability. He started writing notes about each with the stipulation that, depending on how the user changed their approach of using the power it could apply to each profession. For an electrician, drawing in and charging energy would help in developing a sense for electricity, protect from any ill effects, and hopefully evolve into something more electric based. Depending on new power options, in an ideal situation, they''d be able to get something to either boost their body''s protection, help them control tech, or even metal for some additional capabilities. A welder would want to focus on heat in general, but would benefit greatly from new power options revolving the control of metal or fire. Otherwise, Charge would be too flimsy. Of course, if the user focused on precision and recycling heat they''d be able to cut and weld pieces of metal together the more they practiced. Eli left this section a bit more bare to focus more on the last. Charge was also tricky for an automotive mechanic, but he felt like it was a bit of a trick question. The obvious choice was to focus on the battery since Eli learned that nearly all batteries had a small enchantment to allow them to operate off of powers for a limited amount of time. There''d be a doubled synergy that would allow the... no. Eli frowned as he cut the whole paragraph and shoved it into a comment highlighted over the waiting ''Mechanic'' header. His cursor blinked mockingly at him while he tried to think how Charge would help. It said any kind of energy, so there were quite a few options. He started typing again. Charge would initially be helpful for gathering energy to jumpstart the car''s battery, to drain the battery or the fuel tank for the mechanic''s own energy stores at first. As they get more accustomed to the power, they should take care to focus on transferring energy and their general energy sense. This would allow them to use any energy they gather into themselves or release into the car to help them sense and diagnose any problems they wouldn''t be able to see normally. Finally, with a focus on the transference of energy, they''d be able to exchange the types of energy they could work with since they''d need electrical, thermal, kinetic, and possibly more. Using multiple energy types would also help them learn how to manipulate Charge so they could mend more issues with ease. With all of these uses, the mechanic would be primed for a more customized evolution that''d help them excel whether they evolved it or used it to branch off into more niche specializations or to later merge them into a more optimized power. Eli gnawed on his lip while he re-read over what he had. They kind of applied to each other. The welder would want the most specialized and narrow application, but really they built off of each other. Any one version of the Charge power would work for the others. He glanced at his status with new eyes while he wondered what uses he had for his different powers. So far, he''d been hopping from whatever option was the best at the time and would help him fill in the gaps he had, but he already had those gaps filled now. Body of Light had been a huge, but risky opportunity... So he pushed to always have light and to further boost his body with Dynamic Vitality and then Lumengust. Now Lumencloud Invigoration was one of his greatest assets and would only continue to improve after he merged it with Augmentative Elemental Absorption. In fact, he knew that Body of Light was the only reason he won against Jack, Daniels, Sandra, and Dave at all. Every one of them had powers at higher tiers than he did, but he won in the end, probably because of a few reasons. He felt like a huge part of it was that Body of Light allowed him to boost each one of his powers in a very real, physical way. Not to mention that he had a variety of powers that let him adapt to the situation and to recover from any injuries or mistakes he made. Rapid Recovery at the time had kept him fresh even as he injured them and wore them out. Voidspace Mastery let him turn the environment into a weapon while giving him unmatched mobility and range. Sure, individually, each power had been weak. But it was the use and purpose he gave each power that gave him the edge that allowed him to win. What other purposes did he want to fulfill now that he didn''t have Dave and Sandra, his family, or his past life looming over him? Time slipped away from him while he read his status and pondered the different ways he could use each power. To adapt and grow. All he knew was that he didn''t want to be as focused and narrow as the people in this dimension liked their builds to be. The System gave them the freedom and ability to not only become, but overcome. Why waste that to be another fantastic electrician, welder, mechanic, or for any other career? Elias Newton only wanted to be himself and once he figured out dimensional travel? He''d be able to do that and so much more. [Stats: Body: Light (Photon Shot) Mind: None Will: None ] [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Voidspace Mastery Ev. 1/Lv. 8 Slot Two -- Lumencloud Invigoration Ev. 0/Lv. 5 (Maxed) Slot Three -- Spatial Dominion Ev. 0/Lv. 1 ] [Unequipped Powers: Restoration Ev. 2/Lv. 2 Imbue Ev. 0/Lv.5 (Maxed) Augmentative Elemental Absorption Ev. 0/Lv. 5 (Maxed) ]
Book II: Chapter Three
"What kind of lunatics train at the crack of dawn?" Roman asked as they wandered down the hallways of the massive physical fitness complex on the other side of Anchora University''s campus. Eli felt fine with Lumencloud Invigoration and Restoration working together. He''d even given Roman a shot or two of Restoration, but he claimed he was still tired. "Us, apparently." Eli counted down room numbers with half tinted windows full of private or semi-private exercise rooms with a full set of workout equipment in each room along with weights and matts. There was even a few monst¡ªsys-spawn¡ª dummies in the corner of each room. "I think we''re a floor down still." "In the fucking basement... Isn''t Delving a super popular sport? Like more than football or basketball back home?" Roman grumbled as they rounded the hallway to enter another creepy stairwell. "Why is this gym so far removed from everything else then?" "Who knows? Privacy, funding, does it really matter?" "Uh, yeah, it kind of does. I need my beauty sleep, Elias." "Herbert now, Romulus." "Fine, Herbert. Not all of us have powers that render us unstoppable machines," Roman spat out while he rubbed at his eyes. Their footsteps boomed in the echoing shaft of the stairwell until they reached the bottom floor. "Ironic, though, isn''t it? Since that''s all you want to use your powers for?" "Hardly. I want to build a real mech or a cool power suit. Or a sci-fi spaceship, wouldn''t that be neat?" Roman said with a whimsical smile as he pushed the door open that clunked with an electronic click once he pushed his hand against the latch bar. A grand open space spread out in front of them with rows of workout machines, both familiar and foreign. Treadmills, ellipticals, various weight machines to target different muscle groups were on the right side. Boxing machines stood to the left alongside the same sys-spawn dummy machines he''d seen earlier, but in far better condition. Off to the left was a massive pair of double doors framed with sturdy bars bolted along the sides. Speakers that had been playing music cut out for a calm robotic voiceover, "Students entering: Romulus Anders. Herbert Newton." "Good! You''re here," said Dorian Smith, who looked exactly like his social media pictures. He wailed against one of the sys-spawn dummy machines with a crashing wallop every time a target lit up. "Nice to not have to drag you out of the lab for some real exercise, Les!" "Uh, yeah. Eli... Herbert, I mean, dragged me out of bed. Literally." He glared at Eli again as they drifted closer to the barrel-chested frat boy, who still pummeled his fists into the machine. Padding split along with the sound of creaking metal and plastic. "Eli?" Dorian stopped to peer at them inquisitively. "Going by your middle name now?" "Yeah, that''s right." Eli nodded while he straddled one of several treadmills that seemed fairly standard to what he was used to, except for a PowerTrain button, along with the other preset exercise regimens. "It''s shorter. Easier to call out and listen for it." "Makes sense, I suppose, but I hope you don''t expect us to not call you that when we''re delving." He chuckled. "Nora would kill us if we broke protocol." Eli nodded sagely, as if he had any idea who these people were outside of his sleuthing on their social media and in the text chains. Herbert seemed to be someone who regularly deleted his conversations since he found nothing before two weeks ago. He pressed the start button and eased into a jog. Roman started running on the machine next to him after he put on headphones he''d found on his desk under all his papers. Music wasn''t the same here at all. None of his favorite bands existed quite the way he remembered them. Eli hated it, but Roman loved how he could listen to all his favorite songs in a new way. He enjoyed whenever something was similar and especially when it was the same. They even had a new genre here called ¡®System-Synth¡¯ which was full of interesting electronic sounds and beats. Roman had shown him a playlist of it last night and it made his System screens flicker and flash. He had felt each one of his powers throb and pulse in time with the music. It was neat, but also way too distracting. So Eli ran in silence while the PowerTrain button tugged on his attention like a siren song. What would happen if he pressed it? Studying for Power Crafting I and his general research since they¡¯d arrived had made it obvious that power enchantments could do way more than he had initially realized. He pushed it. Power scraped across his thumb and up his skin before it found whatever it was searching for. Eli gasped as it tugged against the usually indistinct place where his powers resided in his body, mind, and somewhere in-between. Screens flickered in front of his vision. Eli blinked as he read over each of the options until he selected Spatial Dominion. Resistance clipped against his mind as he felt something suppress all his other powers entirely. Only Spatial Dominion remained untouched. Until he felt the power inside of the machine knead against the boundaries of space as it poked and prodded into it. He felt the machine''s enchantment sink hooks into the zone of Spatial Dominion and reshape it while the treadmill whirred to a faster speed than it had before. He stumbled, then winced as the machine crushed his spatial zone into his skin. "Continue." Eli pumped his legs as he gripped the handles of the treadmill with a creak of tendon and bone. With Restoration and Lumencloud Invigoration suppressed, he only had Body of Light to enhance him. It was still plenty, but not quite enough to make up for the mounting pressure that plagued him with PowerTrain mode assault. Waves of enchanted power battered and clawed against him. Spatial Dominion firmed under his will as he ground his teeth together. All so he could stave off resistance that pounded into him. His legs blurred as light spilled from his internal stores to boost and heal his strained body. This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. Eli didn''t slow down. He sped up. Air wheezed out of his lungs and sweat dripped from his brow as his lungs burned from the effort. He almost stopped when a notification pinged across his vision. Spatial Dominion Ev. 0/Lv. 2> How could he slow down now? Eli bared his teeth in a snarling grin as slammed his will outward into Spatial Dominion''s boundary to expand it outward. To not only hold the PowerTrain''s enchantment away, but to push. It. Back. Space seemed to congeal inside of the zone as it stretched and twisted. He felt it tingle as if something were pushing against him from the outside. A tickling sensation that grew as he continued to run. Force chewed up his fingers into his body from where he squeezed the treadmill''s handles. It scratched against his boundaries with an endless scourge of thousands of microscopic blades. Each one cleaved against Spatial Dominion from what felt like every angle. Blood dripped from Eli''s nose. He kept running. Space surged inside of his dominion like a familiar friend in a different form. Like the difference between a lion and tiger. Both were cats and he would claim space as his domain. Voidspace, regular space, what did it matter? It was his. His will became a bastion. Unyielding in the face of the PowerTrain''s enchantments assault. He''d hold strong no matter how it tried to crack through his dominion. Space buzzed around him in the inch thick aura where his Spatial Dominion extended. Crackling droned in his ears as shoved back with every clenched muscle, and each breath he took. And then the machine''s enchantment¡¯s grip slackened. Eli could feel it. It was still there, but it wasn''t as strong as it had been. He gritted his teeth and pushed harder. Light fragmented from his stores as it blazed through his zone into the boundaries of the dominion. Plastic creaked and snapped under his grip as he pushed the enchantment back all the way. His legs were a stomping blur that boomed with how fast and heavy his gait was. Spatial Dominion Ev. 0/Lv. 3> Spatial Dominion Ev. 0/Lv. 4> That was odd. Why was the text glitching? Eli blinked slowly as he tried to read over the clamor that rasped down his ear canals into his eardrums. It was so loud. The world around him seemed to wobble as he squinted to focus on selecting the escalating difficulty option. He stumbled as someone grabbed him from behind and yanked him back. The treadmill came to a halt. Blood trickled from his nose, down his chin, and onto his shirt. The muscles in his legs screamed with the strain he''d put them through. Aches sawed down his spine from the crown of his head down to the pads of his toes. "What?" Eli mumbled as noises warbled around him. He was laid out flat on his back, where he stared up at the ceiling. Numbness speared through his tongue to fill his mouth with a dry prickling. Nausea rumbled in his stomach as water and coffee decided it was time for a prison break. Instinct guided his howling mind and body to draw on any source it could for relief. Nerves blazed with sudden heat before they cooled. Swollen, torn muscles flexed, then healed. He scrunched his eyes shut as wooziness swept through him. Then he opened them as Restoration filled him with energy, healed what wasn''t broken, and restored what needed to be fixed. He opened his eyes to stare up at three faces crowded around him through a veil of tears. Restoration Ev. 2/Lv. 3> "You good? Eli?" Roman asked as he bent closer. He nodded as he slowly pushed himself up so he was sitting. "I appreciate the hustle, but you know it''s dangerous to overdo it on the PowerTraining," said the far too serious Nora Peters, captain of the Anchora University Delve team. "You don''t want to accidentally corrupt your power, do you?" "Corrupt it?" Eli yelped as he pulled up his status with alarm to check for anything amiss. Thankfully, it was normal... unless it was a hidden thing? [Stats: Body: Light (Photon Shot) Mind: None Will: None ] [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Spatial Dominion Ev. 0/Lv. 4 Slot Two -- Lumencloud Invigoration Ev. 0/Lv. 5 (Maxed) Slot Three -- Restoration Ev. 2/Lv. 3 ] [Unequipped Powers: Voidspace Mastery Ev. 1/Lv. 8 Imbue Ev. 0/Lv.5 (Maxed) Augmentative Elemental Absorption Ev. 0/Lv. 5 (Maxed) ] "Did you really corrupt one of your powers before we did a delve, Herbert?" Nora asked scathingly while she narrowed her eyes at him. "Your stats might have fixed you, but whatever power you pushed too hard could be strained for Savior knows how long." Savior?, Eli wondered internally even while he read over his status again. He opened his mouth to say he saw nothing different when Dorian interrupted. "He goes by Eli now." "Whatever, Dorian. So, did you? Do you see anything wrong with your status?" "Nope. It''s all the same." "Thank the fucking Savior," Nora sighed with as much relief as a smoker after three day relapse from another attempt at quitting. "Alright. Well. I guess you should take a break before we take a shot at the Crucible." "Alright." Eli stood up unsteadily with the support of Dorian and Roman while Nora studied the treadmill that was slowly mending the wear and tear in the belt and the shattered plastic of the grips. "Here, sit down. I''ll get you some water. Okay? You probably drained all your water from healing yourself." Dorian guided him over to a bench where he gently pushed Eli to sit before he rushed off. "What the fuck was that?" Roman hissed once they were alone. "The treadmill has this cool enchantment that suppresses your other equipped powers and pushes back against whatever power you want to train." Eli turned to grin at Roman. "I got three levels out of an evo-0 power." "And then you started bleeding everywhere and collapsed! Not to mention, all that blood vanished somehow. I don''t know if they''ll mention it, but it disappeared. Did you teleport it and blow our cover?" "What? No. I just used Restoration." "Goddamn you and that cheat power." Roman muttered while he massaged his face with his hands. "That was fucking horrifying. Theo told me that Lana said you were always acting crazy and throwing yourself into things like that, but I didn''t realize it was that bad." They both winced at the mention of their family. Eli frowned while he stared down at the unfamiliar blue and silver sport shoes he wore. So much was similar enough here he could believe he was close to home. Just in another state or country. But he wasn''t. He glanced up at the pitter-patter of footsteps as Dorian walked with a giant water cooler jug held in his hands. "This should work, right?" Dorian gently, then frowned slightly while he studied their expressions. Eli''s emotions stabilized instantly, so he was just sad and not hopelessly upset with a flicker of Restoration. "Yeah, that''s great. Thank you." Eli nodded even though he had no clue what the boulder of a frat boy meant as he set the jug down and ripped the thick sheeted cylinder cap off with a twist of his massive hand. Dorian nudged it forward with his foot when Eli hesitated. Did Herbert have some sort of water power then? Dorian had mentioned that he must''ve dehydrated himself after healing himself. Did that mean he had some sort of water healing power, or was that a side effect? He tugged on the water with Lumencloud Invigoration even while he throttled the light part of the power with both it and Body of Light. It streamed and flowed out of the jug in a wisping ribbon of water that quickly gathered into his mouth, where he pretended to gulp it down. When really, he was vanishing all of it into a spatial bubble in his voidspace. Still, he hadn''t realized how thirsty he actually had been. Power flooded into him at a measured pace as Lumencloud Invigoration absorbed whatever water it could once it touched him. Within a minute, the jug was empty and Eli felt like he brimmed with vitality. "Elemental stat powers can be so inconvenient sometimes, but when they work, they work." Dorian nodded before he crushed the jug under a sharp stomp of his boot. Plastic sundered before it vanished by the time his foot slowed to tap the floor. Ah, so Herbert had a Body of Water stat. Maybe he could fake it with Lumencloud Invigoration and Voidspace Mastery somehow. "Speaking of stats, did you reinforce whatever power you were training with one of yours, Herbert?" She corrected herself a moment later when Dorian glared at her. "Ahem, Eli." "Yeah, just a bit. I felt like I was really close to pushing it back and winning." "That''ll do it." Dorian and Nora sighed at the same time. "You aren''t supposed to beat PowerTraining enchantments. I know you usually prefer swimming or the dummies, but you can''t infuse whatever power you''re training with your stat when using a training enchantment. You''re lucky you didn''t break the treadmill and corrupt your power." Eli nodded nonchalantly even while his mind spun at all this random information being thrown at him. What was the point if he wasn''t supposed to force the enchantments back? And Herbert didn''t use this ingenious machinery and enchantments to powerlevel his powers? He also made a note to look up power corruption later. Nora nodded at each of them while she gestured for them to follow her over to the double doors. Locks clunked while the doors opened on their own until they stood at the threshold of an elevator. Space warbled oddly inside of there and in the shaft. He felt it with a shiver as they stepped inside. "Alright, guys, let''s head down there while we still have our team slot. I don''t want any other students or faculty hopping in through another entrance. Let''s beat some team and personal records today, okay?" Nora said as she looked each of them in the eye before she smirked and said, "Ready to fight some spawn?" Dorian cheered a moment before he and Roman joined in. Machinery whirred as the elevator descended. Book II: Chapter Four Space seemed to thicken around them as they dropped. Eli glanced at his status with his fledgling Spatial Dominion and decided risking an untested evo-0 power fighting literal monsters was unwise. He swapped it out for Voidspace Mastery and almost sighed with relief at feeling himself reconnect with the void full of his hoard of spatial bubbles. "Alright. We''ll do this in pairs." Nora tapped her foot with her arms crossed while they waited for the elevator to reach their destination. "Dorian and I and you two or I''ll be with Eli." Eli shrugged while his mind was a storm of thoughts that spun faster than his internal maelstrom of Lumencloud Invigoration. Why couldn''t he be with Dorian or Roman? Was it because of personal preference, some other reason, or pure strategy? "Eli and Les have the best teamwork together, so I''ll take Les and see how he does with that tin can of his." Dorian grinned as armor winked into existence around him, along with massive gauntlets ridged with spikes darkened with bloody stains. A massive spear flopped into his hands with a heavy broad spearhead at the tip. Rows of grooves were notched across the shaft. Eli winced at the tiny, sloppy ripples of spatial distortions that echoed around the appearance of each. It was like watching someone wipe shit over his clothes. He did not like seeing spatial powers bastardized around him. "Fine, but don''t summon your weapons in a fucking elevator." Nora glared at him and the spear vanished. Metal squealed as the elevator lurched to a stop. Dorian caught himself with a thump as his left hand crashed into the wall of the elevator to stabilize himself. They swayed as the elevator rocked. "Don''t say it," Dorian sighed warningly while they stepped out of the elevator into a sort of chamber like an airlock with another set of overtly secured double doors. Twice as many bolts and bars barricaded it from exit or entry. "Don''t you¡ª" "Looks like I don''t have to." Nora winked at the blushing Dorian, whose face disappeared as a sturdy helm appeared over his head. "Alright, guys. Do last minute checks, then we''ll head in." Eli and Roman looked at each other in horror while Dorian continued to summon belts full of sheathed knives, hatchets, and other weapons. Nora hummed to herself while she summoned a resplendent emerald dress that shimmered as it flowed down her shoulders to her now gloved hands that left her fingertips bare. A few more notes and a dark forest green vest popped into being buttoned over her torso. Her hair strung itself into a ponytail at the same time an old fashioned cap crowned her head. Were they going to fight or perform at an opera or concert? "Aren''t you guys going to summon your equipment?" Dorian asked with an echoing puzzled tone. Roman''s eyes bugged out at that as he glanced at the other two before he turned his now pleading eyes to Eli. Eli reached into his voidspace to the spatial bubbles filled with Roman''s powersuits and armor he''d shoved into there at the beach... was that really only three days ago? He restrained himself from shaking his head at the incredulity of that and with a careful precision he teleported the armor around Roman, letting none of the matter overlap. Without a body enhancing power, it''d be all too easy to explode his friend, and he wanted to avoid that as much as possible. Roman towered over everyone in a suit of menacing armor filled with lines of ominous red light. The metal was a rough burnished steel full of warped curves and ridges to deflect any attacks. Power gathered in the gauntlets Les had made, but Roman spent most of the last night tinkering with after they finished some assignments. Eli smirked at the imposing badass display¡ª "That''s it? Did you get a new power that you''re trying to level, Les?" Nora''s voice had a haunting melodic quality to it. "This is bizarrely underwhelming." "New prototype suit I wanted to take for a spin," Roman said with a digital crackle. "Alright." She shrugged, then turned to raise an eyebrow at Eli, who had no idea what sort of powers he should use. All he knew was that Herbert had a water power. He was clueless still, since he didn¡¯t have access to the System Portfolio app. "Going to fight in your civ clothes? I know you have an Ice Armory type of power, but still. That''s pretty bold, even for you." "I''ll be fine. I''m trying out something sort of new, too." Eli shrugged while he desperately slammed spatial bubbles together full of water and air in his voidspace that he froze into shields and spears. He nested hardened voidspace constructs into each of them that glowed with violet light before he used Body of Light to turn it invisible. Mist curled around his body as he devoured as much light from each strand of fog he could before he froze it into armor that he insulated with carefully hidden plates of voidspace armor. "Whatever. It''s not like we don''t have the literal championship and Tri-Delve cup in five weeks or anything. Do you want to try out anything new and different, Dorian?" "Actually, I''ve been thinking it''d be fun to fight with¡ª" "I was joking. If you want to try anything new, do it during your individual tests. We''ll be busy covering for Mr. Cocky and Spontaneous over here." Nora rolled her eyes before she sighed and summoned a violin with a metal bladed bow that had a tiny bell hooked to the end. "Ready?" They all looked at each other and nodded. Ice flexed and popped as it cracked, then resealed in Eli''s impractical suit of ice armor. Who the fuck fought like that? He wished he had found footage of anything about how Herbert fought, but all he''d found were general videos from past Tri-Delve Cups and other standard delves. He felt woefully unprepared. "Crucible!" Nora kicked the toe of her sleek boots against the door with an echoing bang that resonated in his chest. "Two instances of a three tiered dungeon, same format and seed. Progressive difficulty starting at Hard. Timed for an hour. Simulated injuries and death." Eli furrowed his brow with bated breath while he stared at the unchanging doors. Space thickened and air sharpened to a storm of humming needled shards. Whispers grated. Stains of color seeped from the ceiling as it dripped down the doors like oil paint. Embers of power sparked with trails of distorted light in its wake. A portal melted into the doorway, leaving none of the metal behind. Eli reached out with his spatial field and marveled at the sensation of overlapping space. The portal itself was a flat plane of mist that glowed with a faint blue light. A barren, rough-hewn tunnel of stone ascended to some manner of ruins. "With me, Newton. Let''s see if your new methods are better." Nora marched into the swirling portal with a ripple of space as she rocketed somewhere else, but her impression remained within the localized spatial field where the portal remained. Eli''s eyes widened at the implications. Could he do the same thing without linking through the void like he normally did? It felt like it was almost a bridge... like a bridge between two airlocks. Eli stepped through with a grin. A different kind of space brushed against him like a purring stray cat already loosely familiar with him. He sank through the portal, which had a sort of in-between loop that guided him through the bridged corridor in space smoothly, so his foot landed on the solid cave floor. Eroded stairs webbed with cracks and chipped with holes, also covered in literal webs. It raced up to the top, which gaped to show a horizon studded with desolate ruins of cobblestone buildings like an old castle town. Eli checked his status again to double check that his equipped powers were combat ready. Yes, Voidspace Mastery, Restoration, and Lumencloud Invigoration were all equipped and ready to go still. He frowned, hidden by his doubled helm of voidspace and frozen lumencloud. Eli had to max out Spatial Dominion sooner rather than later so he could merge Augmentative Elemental Absorption and Lumencloud Invigoration. The sooner he got that up to evo-1, the better. Not to mention once he maxed out? Spatial Dominion he could decide what he was going to do with the pending powers he''d gotten for killing Daniels. "You with me, or are you daydreaming about that new girlfriend of yours?" Nora snapped her fingers with a harsh click. "Sorry. Let''s go." Eli stepped forward while Nora shadowed him by a few paces. Echoes clattered around them as they climbed the stairs. Okay, so, he knew Herbert had a water stat and another power that let him use ice weapons and armor. Either the original power let him heal with water or he had Body of Water. Like his run with Hazel, he''d need to use everything he had to emulate what he suspected Herbert''s actual strength was. But Eli was effectively crippled. No real spatial tricks or teleportation, so that robbed him of his mobility entirely. Lumencloud Invigoration would also weaken him physically the more he pushed it toward strengthening his ice armor and weapons. He did not know how good Herbert''s healing was either. He didn''t want to lose a limb and regrow it easily in a few minutes or less if Herbert would''ve actually lost it. Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. Godfuckingdamm. He wished he''d been able to get into the System Portfolio app so he could just figure this out. Gray sunlight washed over everything the moment they stepped out of the cave onto a path with dilapidated stone arches. The path wound up and around farther up the mountain or down into a valley that swirled with mist. Wrong spatial energy rubbed against Eli as they stood under the gray light. It wasn''t natural. And it felt like a chained beast left to starve in the winter. "Which way?" Eli grunted as he pushed out with his spatial senses and nearly hissed as the spatial energy grew thicker with that awful sensation. It felt damp and sticky as it stirred around him in eddies and flows. Waves of mounting horror threatened to swamp his mind, but Restoration soothed him with its peace. For now. "Up first, then down. I want to make sure your head is in the game." "Got it." Eli turned to climb, even though he fumed on Herbert''s behalf. She did not think highly of Herbert, did she? Space weighed heavily on him with his every step as they climbed up the path. Light seemed to twist and bend with a malevolent edge to it as they climbed. Thin fingers of gray mist wafted around them as they followed the winding trail. Three standing monolith stones enmeshed in red moss that coated the mountain top overlooked the valley below. In the center was a massive sword plunged into the massive corpse of a ten foot tall giant body. Eli blinked and he felt how the spatial energy wanted to stream toward the center. How the mist billowed not from the air or light, but from the corpse of the giant. "Ready? Try not to kill it too fast this time." Eli nodded while he snapped out swirling orbs of frigid lumencloud filled with restrained light as they froze into a jagged volley of spears. Inside of each was a rigid blade of voidspace wrapped around an inverted copy of itself. Haunting notes twanged as Nora plucked at her violin, while Eli walked closer to the slumbering giant. Red light flared throughout the red moss like kindling lit ablaze. Cracks cleaved through the decrepit face of the giant as it opened its petrified eyes. A symphony of pops of shattered stone rang as the giant rolled to the side on to its feet in a single motion. Broken stone floated in orbits around it while it regarded them with pure gray eyes. Its sword vanished, then reappeared in its hands as it swung back straight through the monoliths, exploding them into powder and dust. It narrowed its eyes, then burst through space as it teleported right beside Eli while its sword scythed through the air. Eli panicked as his instinct urged him to teleport, but when he was almost into the void, he remembered he wasn''t supposed to be Elias but Herbert. He ducked while firing a wave of lumencloud that covered the giant in sheets of ice. Wind howled as the massive sword flew toward his chest. Boom! A shockwave blasted into Eli, knocking him away in a bouncing roll until he caught himself flipped back to his feet. The giant buried its sword into the mountain with a crash so hard he bit his tongue while he pinwheeled to keep his balance. Blood welled in his mouth. Nora continued playing her violin at a frenzied pace, each haunting note nearly silent to Eli''s ears, but bracken blood spilled from the giant''s orifices. It let go of its sword to dash over to her while it swept its boulder of a hand toward her. She flicked the bow in her offhand toward it with a jingle from the bell at the end. Another sonic boom blasted out, knocking the giant back a few paces to its sword. Blood dripped from its bare chest as her sonic attack struck it. "Leave!" roared the giant as it tried to free the blade. Nora glared at him with a tilt of her head. Eli shook himself mentally. He crouched down while gathering power from his hidden stores of violet light from his voidspace armor before he leapt with a gale of lumencloud. Blades of frozen lumencloud hailed around before he landed on its shoulder with a series of harsh cracks as the ice and solid voidspace inside break on its hide. Small gashes weep trickles of bracken blood. Eli dug his left hand into the skin above its collarbone while sharpening his hybrid gauntlet of ice-and-voidspace into needlepoints. His fingers pierced through before he transformed them into concealed radiance while he shoved icy lumencloud power into the wound. "Agh!" screeched the giant as tried to shake him off and pull the sword at the same time. Eli straddled the giant''s arm with his legs while honing the bottom of his ice armor into a blade that he teleported into its arm. Steam hissed from the murky flow of its bracken blood. Metal snapped as the giant wrenched to the side, breaking the sword in half. It glared at Nora as it raised its jagged halved blade before that sense of violated space flooded in. It was about to teleport! Eli stabbed and cut with nothing to show for it but gouts of sticky blood that melted his ice armor. Dim violet light glowed before he refroze it. Rage and horror mounted as they slipped in between the contours of space to somewhere else. Space was his and no one else''s. He shoved his fingers and leg blades deeper into the giant''s body as he rammed his will into voidspace until he felt all the empty pockets of space in every cell, joint, and cavity. Rage darkened to wrath at how normal spatial energy corrupted into its abomination of his power. Violet light shimmered beneath its skin for half a second. A series of booms rattled Eli on its body while he used a series of teleports to summon vast amounts of frozen lumencloud into its body. Glacial knives and arctic spikes ripped through the entirety of its body as it froze. Bones, muscle, organs were all shredded as icy lumencloud sundered the giant in a flash of power. It topped over with a harsh crack as the ice holding it together broke. Eli landed with a hard thud that sent stars bursting across his vision before Restoration healed him. He pushed himself up to his feet and turned to study the hoarfrost covered slush of the giant remains. Space returned to normal around him, loosening all the tension that had built up in his muscles. "What did it have?" Nora asked while she crept over carefully to study the still buried blade of the sword before she turned to the other half. He read the screen in disbelief. It had been that strong and it didn''t have any stat powers or body enhancement? Maybe he could''ve killed it quicker if he could have fought normally, but he knew that Nora''s music and sonic blasts had weakened it severely. "It had an evo-3 Corruptive Mist and Slipspace power. No stats." "Hm okay." She frowned at him with evident confusion. "But why would you expect it to have stats? It''s not a boss." "Oh... right." He shook his head like he was being silly, then tried to change the subject. "I''m excited to have the option of getting a teleporting power." "I suppose Icewraith would synergize well with it." She hummed in thought. "Are you going to take it? I know you''ve always been jealous of your sister''s power, but it could sell pretty well." He stared at her while his head spun a bit. What the fuck was Icewraith? And Herbert''s sister had a teleportation power? Eli wanted to seethe at how every discovery threatened to betray that he didn''t belong here. What powers did Herbert have? And what would happen if people found out he wasn''t him? He really hoped they wouldn''t try to kill him on sight because they thought he was some sort of shapeshifter monster or something. He made a mental note to look that up. "What? You''d make about ten grand after you sold it, depending on where you went. Spatial powers are rare enough outside of Initializations and legacies." "Right." He said haltingly while he realized more and more how lost he truly was in this dimension. But he had to wait to panic later. "I might take and keep it. It''d be pretty nice to be able to teleport around though." "Sweet. Alright, well are you ready now that we finished with the warmup? "Yeah, let''s do this." Eli smiled reassuringly while Restoration kept him from losing his mind. That was only a warmup? What the fuck was Herbert into? The more and more he lived Herbert''s life, the more he had to judge him a little bit. Eli had problems, but he wasn''t a masochist like that. He was more into his familiar internal misery than external. "Let''s go." Nora gestured for him to lead the way down. While they walked, he thought about whether he should break down the giant''s power for a perk or use it for experience. Spatial Dominion was close, but still not close enough. And he didn''t want any penalties from it. He selected the Gain a Power Perk option. Subspace? Now that sounded interesting. He accepted it and slotted it into Voidspace Mastery and shivered while he felt a whole new orientation slide into his perception. He toggled with Subspace and it felt almost like when he expanded space, but instead of ballooning it out, it created another equal amount of space nested inside. Eli grinned as they descended the path. Enough experimentation with this and he bet he''d be able to figure out the trick on his own without the perk and figure out the secret to other dimensions with enough practice. Now he had an out for using a bit of teleportation for real too. They reached the plateau and passed under the arches without saying a single word to each other. That suited Eli more than fine. He knew nothing about Nora and every conversation felt like a minefield of hidden depths and meanings that he had no context to even try to navigate. Eli stepped through the archway and gasped as an arrow plinked through his ice armor before it shattered against hardened voidspace. A horde of crocodile scaled goblins with bone bows in their hands pulled back more arrows before they loosed in a volley. He shoved out a frozen wall of lumencloud before he darted to the side where a troll rose out of the ground. It reached out to grab him with a snarl. Violin music thrummed in the air while bows cracked and goblins screeched in pain. He rushed forward to stab the troll with a dagger of ice. It chuckled from the blow before it rammed its knee into Eli''s groin with enough force to explode his armor and lift him into the air. Eli wheezed as he hit the ground. Restoration calmed the nauseating turmoil and pain while the troll lunged for him with his maw open wide enough to fit his head and shoulders in. He teleported to the side as gradual as he could before he reabsorbed all his icy lumencloud armor to flood his body with strength. Eli lashed out with a wild kick into its knee with a splintering crunch as the troll screamed in agony. He twisted away from its grasp and grabbed its arm to wrench it over his shoulder. Bone cracked with a wet crunch as he slammed the troll''s face into the ground. It struggled to rise. Thick knobbed fingers clawed at the dirt. Eli created a blade of frozen lumencloud that he thrust into the back of its skull. Nora screamed with a sonic boom that pulped his eardrums with a pop. He stumbled while he turned toward her. Goblins swarmed around her and over the mound of their murdered kin. Still, she sawed at her violin with a storm of notes and sonic blasts that mangled every goblin that drew near. If they got even closer, she''d whistle or flick her violin bow to jingle the affixed bell. Any noise she made separate from the violin eviscerated them with a shockwave. More goblins and trolls rose from the ground. Eli created a fresh suit of frozen lumencloud armor and teleported into battle. BII: Chapter Five Blood bathed the ground in puddles of slush and mud like a swamp. Goblin and troll corpses were strewn about everywhere around them. Eli stepped carefully around them while he made his way over to Nora, who climbed her way out of a half-dome of bodies. He bet it would have reeked, but between his frozen lumencloud and voidspace armor, he couldn''t smell anything. It was *fantastic*. Based on the scrunch of Nora''s face and how pale she was, he had a feeling his bet was correct. "That was one of the worst dungeon sets I''ve experienced in a while. I guess the Crucible is feeling vindictive today." She groaned and wiped the blood from her eyes. "I didn''t think it would be this bad, but I don''t understand why it escalated this much already. I asked for Hard, but..." "But that was a lot." Eli nodded while he checked the cooldown of Spatial Dominion and saw that it had already been over an hour of fighting. He glanced around again at the gristly reenactment of a butcher''s battlefield. She had told it to give them a ''three-tiered'' dungeon. Did that mean they already progressed? Nora frowned as she looked at him before she took her own survey of the slaughter they''d wrought. "Crucible! Status report. Which tier are we in?" She shouted out to the strange graycast sky. "Tier-one of Diabolic Descent. 849 spawn killed in total. Would you like to end your Delve session?" "No!" Nora shook her head as she slumped, heedless of all the blood and gore. Granted, her outfit was already splattered enough. It was a wrinkled black mess of crusted over blood and other fluids. "Well. Let''s do kill counts, take a short break, then progress." Eli nodded as he pushed out more lumencloud and shaped it into a mound of cloud that he froze, then stabilized with voidspace. It had become almost second-nature to him after the frenzy of battling. He checked his notifications. Eli blinked blearily at the list even as he ignored some level ups he had gotten during the fighting. He had a lot of options here, but he didn''t really want any new powers. He was drowning under the ones he already had. But he would gladly take perks. It was tempting to take experience, but he didn''t want to deal with any of the steep penalties. Only combat focused powers *didn''t* suffer from the experience and evolution penalties. He turned each of them into perks. Eli blinked at the knowledge the potential power imprinted into his mind. Any weapon or armor he made with this power would be very strong, repair itself, and any wounds inflicted would be nearly impossible to heal if he didn''t *want* them too. But he felt uncertain. He needed his powers to better fit his newfound needs here, not new powers entirely. He declined the new power prompt and fixed each of his new perks to his powers with a widening smile as he felt the horizons of each power grow. He took the moment to admire his status and his new level in Voidspace Mastery. It was *one* level away from being maxed out. After he slotted the Restoration perk into Restoration, a new message popped up. [Stats: Body: **Light** (Photon Shot) Perks Equipped: [Might] Mind: None Will: None ] [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Voidspace Mastery Ev. 1/Lv. 9 Perks Equipped: [Subspace] Slot Two -- Lumencloud Invigoration Ev. 0/Lv. 5 (Maxed) Perks Equipped: [Armory] Slot Three -- Restoration Ev. 2/Lv. 3 Perks Equipped: [Restoration] ] [Unequipped Powers: Imbue Ev. 0/Lv.5 (Maxed) Augumentative Elemental Absorption Ev. 0/Lv. 5 (Maxed) Spatial Dominion Ev. 0/Lv. 4 ] [Unequipped Perks: Blight ] Eli beamed at the offered power and wondered if he should take it at some point when he wasn''t stranded in a dungeon. Would this mean that he''d be able to recycle this power and merge it with Lumencloud Invigoration earlier than he expected? He glanced over at Nora and saw that she was playing on her phone while she leaned against a massive drum she summoned. There was no way that was comfortable, but whatever. Eli pushed with Lumencloud Invigoration and when he focused on his frozen armor, he felt it refine. Thousands of tiny errors and fault lines corrected in an instant. He relaxed as it became far more comfortable near instantly. He flexed his hands experimentally and grinned at how the armor stopped cracking as much by itself. Voidspace Mastery had held it together for most of this Delve with his inverted spatial armor. He closed his eyes as he let voidspace flood into the framework of the frozen lumencloud armor. He let it adjust until they were perfectly overlapped again. Eli punched his hand into his palm with a satisfying smack of unyielding ice reinforced by voidspace. Then he flipped his hand over and thought about creating a simple lumencloud knife. Lumencloud vapor curled from his palm before it appeared in a flicker of frozen power. Instead of a clumsy, jagged chunk of ice, it was now a basic dagger with a simple edge that came to a dull point. He focused on the light part of Lumencloud Invigoration as he willed it to gently ignite while siphoning its power into the core of the blade. Near flat dull planes tightened as the edge honed itself to a keen, gleaming edge. Again, he flooded the kernels of empty space inside of the blade with Voidspace Mastery until he felt the structure within and reinforced it with voidspace. No new notifications popped up after another check of his status, but he did notice that Spatial Dominion''s cooldown had expired. Should he try to see if he could another level out of it? Nora was still playing on her phone. And Lumencloud Invigoration was maxed out, so he could swap it out real quick. But what if other monsters appeared? He bit his lip with a frown. If he didn''t have to pretend to be fucking Herbert, he''d be a bit more fine with it. Eli *knew* he was close to a breakthrough with both Spatial Dominion and Voidspace Mastery though. Both were almost finished with their evolution tiers. "How much longer, Nora?" Eli asked right when a timer dinged on her phone. "Looks like it was fate for us to continue." Nora smirked at him for a split second before her face fell slightly. Her expression reverted to being neutral as she stood with a bone popping stretch as new, unbloodied clothes appeared around her. Her violin and its bow flickered as they vanished and reappeared with no sign from their entrenched battle. "Alright. We still have two tiers left. Do you see anywhere the path continues?" A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. He pulled himself up with a summoned spear of frozen lumencloud. The area was a nearly flat plateau now covered with goblin and troll bodies everywhere he looked. The arch and cave they''d come from along with the miniature peak where the giant was laid one way, while there was nothing but an outcropping of rock forming a lip around the plateau overlooking the valley. Eli''s spatial field explored every nook and cranny while he cast his gaze around to see if there was anything hidden. Were dungeons like those from video games, with neat puzzles or anything else? Would they need a key? He glanced up at the peak. Was the *sword* a key? Before he could open his mouth to suggest the idea, Nora spoke up from where she stood studying the valley overlook. She pointed at the ground. "Looks like there''s a sort of hidden staircase going down into the valley." "Oh." He led the way down with his frozen lumencloud armor. Gravel scattered down the trail and out into the open air with each step they took. Mist spun around them as they walked. Voidspace Mastery expanded around them where it plumbed every infinitesimal fracture or gap in the cliff face above and below them. If they were attacked up here, they''d have a troublesome time fighting without creative use of powers. If it got bad enough, he might even have to expose himself. He clenched his fist with a grating series of pops at the thought. Nora was silent once again. Eli was really starting to wonder if she hated Herbert or what was happening. Was she onto him? Was this something else? Or maybe she was just taking this whole Delve *very* seriously. He sensed movement as the space between the solid stone to their left loosened. Solid rock broke into clumps of sand as a troll started to lurch out from the side. Eli breathed in as he kindled the light in his internal stores and summoned a spear that he threw into its throat. He amplified the force with a tiny teleportation. Bone crunched with a crash as his spear pinned the troll by its throat to the cliff face behind it. Sand hardened into chunks of jagged stone that¡ª Eli pushed his will into the spear as he willed it to spread and freeze. Droplets of blood sprayed its body as lumencloud stirred inside of his body before punching through the front of its chest with multiple bristling points. Flesh drew closed around the wounds as it flailed feebly to free itself. It thrust his arm out and showered him with gravel that pinged off his armor harmlessly. He glared at it from under his translucent layers of ice and voidspace armor. Why wouldn''t it die? A two-handed axe fell in his hands as the lumencloud vapor froze a fraction easier. He kicked off with as much force as he could muster. Dust kicked up behind him as he swung it horizontally and cleaved straight into its skull. The troll''s head snapped back into the rock. Still, it tried to heal. Ice spikes jutted out from his fists as he slammed his will into the axe and exploded all of its force forward into the gaping wound of its partially split head. Brain and bone flew everywhere before he lashed out with his fist, despite the words streaking across his vision. Rock cracked and fragmented under his bloody fist. Sections of ice armor exploded to disperse the force before they resealed with ease. Eli just wanted to get out of here and be done with pretending to be someone he wasn''t. He was tired of Nora traipsing along behind him while she hummed to herself. Brackish red oozed from its corpse. Eli kept moving. Again and again, goblins or trolls leaped out of the ground to their left. Dropped from the ceiling. Rose from the ground. And Eli killed them every time, as he got better and better at using the [Armory] perk equipped to Lumencloud Invigoration. He was also getting the hang of freezing it. Instead of forcing it to stay ice whenever it broke, he''d let it melt in slushy water and vapor so he could refreeze it, then shape into blades to gouge into his enemies. Still. Nora followed behind him without saying a word. While they worked and fulfilled their bloody passage lower into the Diabolic Descent dungeon, he restructured and reformed his sets of armor and weapons continuously. Vents streamed with flows of lumencloud through a turbulent network in his lumencloud armor interlaced with his voidspace set. Each breath flooded both his body and armor with power. With Strength, Perception, and Stamina. A cave mouth gaped at the bottom of their descent. Drifts of mist seeped from the absolute darkness with the cave like billowing smoke. Ice creaked as power saturated his frozen armor. Eli swept his mundane and superpowered senses around them constantly. He had to be vigilant for an ambush. They reached the cave mouth without incident. Eli stopped to force his spatial field inside, but it couldn''t penetrate through the occlusion of the growing fog. "What are you waiting for? Final tier, then it''s the boss battle." They didn''t even have to duck when they stepped inside. It seemed to expand to let them in, as if the cave really was a mouth ready to feast on them. Everything outside seemed to vanish. He turned back, but the exit swirled with a black mist that devoured all light. "What are you doing Herb... I mean, Eli, it''s too dark. Can you give us some light?" She knocked on his armor with a flat click. Herbert could *make* light? What the fuck? He really hoped it was only pure light and little else or he could run into issues, but that was easy enough. He loosened his stranglehold on his lumencloud armor while shifting it to a pure diffused white. Flecks of minerals sparkled in the shifting rays of light. The walls of the passage curved? around them. No gravel littered the floor and there were no cracks of any kind. A cold draft of air brushed through his air vents to tickle across his face. Tight, cramped walls spread out into a massive cavern with full of pockets and craters strewn about. Eli glanced up as he pushed his spatial field out as far as it would go, and he still wasn''t able to sense the entire cavern. He focused and shined his beams of light around, then winced at the silent glance from Nora, but none of the holes seemed to be real passageways. They stalked deeper into the room. Eli popped out icy blades of lumencloud that angled to always aim wherever he? looked. Nora summoned a belt studded with bells that jangled with her every step like she was one of Santa''s elves dressed for war. Her violin and its bow grew larger as it transformed into a cello that she drove the spike at the base into the ground with an echoing thud. "Why aren''t they coming?" Eli asked clumsily as his mouth dried. "I don''t know..." Nora glanced around as she popped out a massive bass drum with the kick pedal under her right foot. She plucked out a few notes that echoed tortuously as pebbles split from the cavernous ceiling to clatter on the ground. A goblin dove from the shadows. One of Eli''s blades slid into its back. It twitched once and then fell limp. "There we go." He nodded in approval as goblins and trolls rushed out from their obvious traps as the obfuscating mist vanished to let them swarm towards them. Blades of ice and frozen wind slashed into their bodies with newfound ease. Every time he pricked through their hide and the resistance from their powers, he launched a tide of inverted voidspace into their bodies as he teleported needles of lumencloud into each progressive gap he overturned to be his. Goblin and troll bodies burst like overripe fruit as glaciers of ice tore through their body. Nora played at a frenzy pace. Each note sent a compressed shockwave into any enemy close enough to hear her play. Jets of blood spouted from popped eardrums as they continued to pour out of their hiding holes. If they got too close to their location, she''d stomp on her kick pedal to release explosive blasts of sonic power that mulched any enemy that threatened them. Eli gritted his teeth as he pushed more power into lumencloud weapons and armor as he sent them out to attack. Meanwhile, he ducked and weaved around as he blocked and slashed out with weapons. Nora could just about kill them in one strike, while he had to wear them down and destroy them from the inside out. Sheets of frozen glittering ice spread from corpses to live foes if they so much as brushed it. Glowing mist steamed off their wounds as Eli threaded their demise with each stitch of his blades. Restoration surged through him over and over as he pushed himself harder to keep up with the tide. Rumbling shook the cavern. He swayed as the ground heaved underneath him. A troll''s fist cracked into his armor, popping half of his frozen breastplate with the blow as he fell. Before he could teleport back to his feet, the floor of the cavern gave way beneath them. Rock and bodies tumbled around them as they plummeted through an open shaft. Shimmering lumencloud ice and vapor sent waves of light that reflected off of beady eyes and glinting carapace on the walls. Eli spun while he tried to reorient himself with the impressions his spatial field gave him. He felt the walls full of hordes of tiny, large, and giant spider bodies scurry downward to follow them. He couldn''t sense the top or the bottom, but he felt all the broken rocks nearby. He searched for Nora and found her cradling her half broken bow. Dark brackish blood from the sys-spawn along with her own drenched her clothes. Eli teleported over to while he prepared to push Restoration into her. Then he stopped. Light dimmed from his armor as he fueled his Perception to slow the march of time while he studied her and their fall. Her wounds were superficial and when she had initiated the dungeon, she asked the Crucible to protect them from actual injuries and even death. So she wasn¡¯t in real danger. Otherwise, they would''ve been more cautious. If he acted now, he''d expose himself and he still did not know who these people were or how they''d react if they knew he and Roman were from *another* dimension and world. Waves of sticky fluid blasted from the sides of the shaft in a tangled web that bounced as it caught more and more rock. Smaller Giant Spiders darted onto the web to feast on the felled goblins and trolls without impunity. The still falling rock squashed some of them. Eli wrapped his arm around Nora''s waist as he flooded the surrounding space with an inverted spatial field before he teleported them right before impact on a flat, rough-hewn plateau caught and supported by webs. Glacial walls of light infused lumencloud wrapped around them to block off her sight as she groaned from the whiplash of rapid movement. He lashed out with Voidspace Mastery as he stored as much rock as he could fit into a series of spatial bubbles before he launched as much spare rock as he could into the ranks of spiders closing in on them. Teleport after teleport were accompanied with a loud splat as their exoskeletons ruptured. Nora mumbled something quietly as she tried to push herself up, then yelped as she collapsed from her own weight. Her arm bent at an awkward angle. Whether it had broken in the fight, fall, or teleportation, he had no idea. They closed in around them and he flexed his will into the near radiant walls of lumencloud ice. He loosed rippling walls of thin, compact spears that he then teleported for as much force as he could directly into each spider''s body. Series of crunching pops and moist oozing pops echoed around them along with the twinling shatter of ice. Eli whipped the shards of broken ice around them in a hailstorm. Any spider that drew near exploded under the onslaught. Eli smirked to himself under his dim armor. And this was supposed to be a *hard* three-tier dungeon? Long spindly legs uncurled beneath them at the edges of his spatial field. Walls shuddered, then cracked as a behemoth charged at them from below. Eli''s eyes widened as the thing chopped out with one of its legs and destroyed the thick, solid plateau of rock with a single blow. Then an aftershock blasted them up at an angle, slamming them into the wall. Nora screamed with a wet gurgle as she flopped forward limply, then vanished. Layers of armor cracked then shattered along with his bones from the massive impact. Restoration rolled through him as it forced his devastated body back to its previous state. The spider below scrambled toward him. Each leg unfolded in one smooth motion before it sprang forward with a gale of force. Eli fell forward as it appeared in front of him, blocking out his sight entirely. Its mandibles were as large as a roof as they yawned on either side of him. Lumencloud hardened into pure radiance, and sheets and panes of voidspace appeared around him in an armored dome dozens of yards thick. Its mandibles closed with a screeching roar of wind that filled him and his layers of protection with pow¡ª He felt a crushing weight as the spider''s jaws crushed against him entirely. He tried to pull away or blast out Body of Light empowered waves of lumencloud at it, but it held him fast. The spider''s mandibles opened again. It tore into him with a cold savagery. Everything went black as he was yanked through space and chucked out into the airlock containing the double doors of the Crucible. Eli rolled to a stop with stars in his eyes from motion sickness. He slowly rose to his feet as he met Nora''s judgemental gaze. She sighed as she leaned back against the wall in her exercise clothes again. "Damn the Savior to Hell... I was really hoping we''d be able to take on a Hard three-tiered boss alone. Next time, please take this seriously and use *all* of your powers?" Eli nodded while fear clogged his throat. He *had* used all of *his* powers at the end and it hadn''t helped. How was he going to make up for the gap between him and Herbert before the next session? She got up and left while he closed his eyes in defeat and let the System flood his mind with its notifications. "Invalid options? What the fuck?" Eli mumbled to himself while he sighed. It removed all the other options since he had already selected from those lists? That was bullshit. He debated taking Earthen Mantle while he teleported back to his feet. He''d think about it on the way to his dorm room. Words scrolled his vision after he hit Gain a Power Perk to figure if it''d be worth it or not. Eli didn''t really feel like waiting for Roman anymore. BII: Chapter Six
Eli relaxed under the scathing flow of the shower with all the heat he could force out of it. Between Body of Light, Restoration, and Lumencloud Invigoration, the scalding water felt reassuring instead of agonizing. Hygiene went beyond teleporting all the blood, guts, and gunk off him. He needed to cleanse himself of the psychological stains too. Spatial Dominion soothed him with its precise spatial awareness of everything in its boundary. He couldn''t dig as deep with it as he could with Voidspace Mastery, but it was like the difference between a camera and an x-ray machine. One only showed a surface level image while the other penetrated deeper to show what was beneath the pesky... surface. Eli frowned with his hands tangled in his hair while a cascade of epiphanies ignited in his brain. He¡¯d been wasting the potential Body of Light and Lumencloud Invigoration had this whole time. Light was an entire spectrum, but he only ever used the visible part of it. He charged up as much light as he could with both Lumencloud Invigoration and Body of Light working in tandem. Scalding water splashed over him while his skin seethed with a scarlet radiance. Water steamed as it struck his skin before Lumencloud Invigoration guzzled it into his body to fuel his rapidly diminishing stores of light. Eli lifted his hands as the cells of his body vibrated as he manifested more and more of his latent power. Streams of water tickled him as it phased through his body. Pools of water at the bottom of the tub boiled where it puddled around his feet. He tried to force it lower with gritted teeth, but he couldn''t push it any farther. Infrared was as far as he could go down, but what about ultraviolet? He loosened his stranglehold on bunching all of his charged light up as he rapidly shined through all the colors. Blue shifted with violet as they intermeshed throughout his body outward. He flexed his hands while wondering if this was partially why he really didn''t seem to get sunburnt anymore. Heat didn''t bother him as much, either. Except for when he fought Daniels¡ª Eli groaned as he pushed the notification away. Later. He''d deal with that later. Rays of violet spilled from his body across the tile and porcelain of the... oh. That was disgusting. Eli turned on the spot while he studied the room only lit under his powers, he''d long since absorbed all ambient light. He turned the dial on the wall to shut off the water before he stepped out of the shower and glanced around. Color fuzzed all around him while he peered around at all the various stains smeared across the bathtub and tile of the bathroom floor. He looked at the toilet with a wince. Evidence of splatters coated the counters. Eli walked into the main dorm room and watched as the light shifted into broken bands as rainbows crawled up the walls and across the floor and ceiling before it drained into him. Only his manmade blacklight radiance lit the room so it looked like a skating rink. "Oh, no. This is the best people can clean with fucking super powers?" Eli grimaced at the slovenly state of the dorm room. He tried to soften his partially radiant form with a grimace, but found it separated his feet into visible light again. Clouds roiled beneath him as he willed himself to float. He never wanted to touch a single surface here again. Eli explored the rest of the massively unsanitary world while he continued his attempt to push past the ultraviolet or even infrared range of his Body of Light. No matter how hard he tightened his control and pushed, it refused to slip any further. He couldn''t even fully pass into infrared or ultraviolet. He could only tap into them and blow nearly his entire storage of light to keep it fueled. Thankfully, it was daytime and he had Lumencloud Invigoration, but it drained that inflow of light as quick as his powers could transfer it. Eventually, he grew bored and sat on his bed with a grimace at the distasteful horror a college dorm room was. He tried something different. Soft and hard light were known quantities to him. They were a simple transition, but he hadn''t pushed Body of Light or Lumencloud Invigoration to their full limits. Why would he take it for granted now? He tried to charge infrared and ultraviolet at the same time while radiant. The light ran incandescent throughout his body as he found an equilibrium. Eli poked the squishy part of his palm and marveled at how it dipped and flexed like regular skin. It was no longer rigid, unflinching radiance rendered as brittle as it was solid. Soft light always left his body a loose blob of light that''d let anything he touched phase through him. But this was different. Where it was meant to be soft or hard, it was. But there was a strength to it he lacked in the other states. Eli pushed his hand down into the comforter on his bed and felt possibilities open itself up to him. He felt the layers of enchantments sewn in through every multithreaded inch of the fabric as his hand smushed into the fabric. He felt how he could burn it with a push, harden his hand and stab through it. Or even soften his light a bit more and shine through it like regular light. He glanced at his status, ignoring the pending notifications for Daniels power and what he got from the Delve. [Stats: Body: Light (Photon Shot) Perks Equipped: [Might] Mind: None Will: None ] [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Spatial Dominion Ev. 0/Lv. 4 Slot Two -- Lumencloud Invigoration Ev. 0/Lv. 5 (Maxed) Perks Equipped: [Armory] Slot Three -- Restoration Ev. 2/Lv. 3 Perks Equipped: [Restoration] ] [Unequipped Powers: Voidspace Mastery Ev. 1/Lv. 9 Perks Equipped: [Subspace] Imbue Ev. 0/Lv.5 (Maxed) Augumentative Elemental Absorption Ev. 0/Lv. 5 (Maxed) ] [Unequipped Perks: Blight ] It was time to get that last level from Spatial Dominion and decide if he wanted to recycle Restoration or not. Boundaries of space sharpened around him as he stretched his will out. He blinked slowly as he felt his perception through Spatial Dominion sharpen as information flooded into his brain with far more detail than Voidspace Mastery gave him even now at Ev. 1/Lv. 9. He stared at the world around him his power only, his eyes closed as he withdrew his attention from the light that bathed the room. Threads in the comforter, blankets, sheets, and mattress spread out beneath him. Motes of dust stirred in the air around him and spun with his every exhale. Eli opened his eyes as every iota of space inside of his zone became subservient. He was lord and master of it and this zone was his territory. With a thought and twist of intent, he claimed it. Spatial Dominion Ev. 0/Lv. 5> What would happen if he tried to merge all these powers together? What would he get? Eli hit the prompt and blinked as the System seemed to lag for a few moments before a new line of text scrolled across the air. The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. Interesting, but definitely not. It felt like a mess of puzzle pieces thrown together that didn¡¯t fit. He had a fair idea what Imbue and Spatial Dominion would give him and figured it''d be a great addition right away. Depending on what the result was, he''d be able to narrow his choice for what perk he wanted from Daniels''s powers. Eli beamed at the notification. It was a perfect merge between the two powers. He wondered if that was because of how basic they were or something else, but he was thankful for it. He''d keep the spatial dominion part, but he''d be able to enchant anything in its range. It''d be even better, though, in a moment. Before he confirmed, new notifications popped up with the perk list from Daniels''s Auto-Ethereal Projection Ev. 3 power. Ethereal Paradox or Projection were his top choices now. Ethereal Paradox would let him enchant anything in his dominion with that sense of incongruity and warped reality, but he hoped it''d let him stack far more enchantments than he could otherwise. Maybe if he figured it out well enough, he''d be able to figure out other dimensions. He was pretty certain about picking this, but Projection would help him boost his range, push the limits of his enchantments, and maybe even help him burrow deeper through space. Especially if he combined whatever perk he got from Daniels with [Subspace]. It''d suck to lose it from Voidspace Mastery, but he was pretty certain he could achieve the same without it. Once he maxed Enchanter''s Dominion and whatever power he got, he''d have a perfect mix. Or... he could slot both perks on Imbue and Spatial Dominion, then merge them together that way and see what it changed. Eli chose Ethereal Paradox, unequipped [Subspace] from Voidspace Mastery and then grafted both perks onto Imbue and Spatial Dominion, respectively. But before he could confirm, he realized with widening eyes he could probably use Subspace to recycle Voidspace Mastery once it maxed out in one level. He unequipped it from Spatial Dominion, then confirmed the merge. Nothing changed in the name, but he felt the sheer level of differences and options available with it now. He had been paranoid about hoarding an evo-0 power so he could continue to get new powers if he needed to, but now that he knew how easy it was to harvest them from sys-spawn in this world? Why would he hold back? Besides, he''d be able to keep one maxed out evo-0 power when he and Roman went back home and they lost their easy attainment of new abilities. He accepted it only to study another pair of screens and choices. The power from the Delve and what to do with the possibility of recycling Restoration. At evo-2 it was his greatest asset, but he could tell that recycling it would give him far more options and allow him to create a better version of Lumencloud Invigoration in the end. Eli stared at the two screens while he fidgeted with a cylinder of hardened light. Macro-Control would be an incredible asset to pump into his growing power with Lumencloud Invigoration. Or even Voidspace Mastery. He didn''t want to start all the way over, but if he also merged Lumencloud Invigoration with Augmentative Elemental Absorption now, he''d be able to optimize his power and only have one merge left before he evolved it. Eli accepted all the changes and shivered while two powers vanished from his status and senses before they were slotted back changed on a fundamental level. Macro-Control Blight Might Subspace> Eli frowned while he read through his listed perks with widening eyes. He had forgotten [Armory] had been equipped to Lumencloud Invigoration when he had merged it and it had been consumed. He sighed with a small shrug. It would''ve been nice to keep so he could try to alter other powers to be fit for combat, but he appreciated that his largest growing ability was nearly ready to be evolved after one more round of merges. [Stats: Body: Light (Photon Shot) Perks Equipped: [Might] Mind: None Will: None ] [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Enchanter''s Dominion Ev. 0/Lv. 0 Slot Two -- Lumencloud Fortification Ev. 0/Lv. 0 Slot Three -- Hyper-Regeneration Ev. 0/Lv. 0 ] [Unequipped Powers: Voidspace Mastery Ev. 1/Lv. 9 ] [Unequipped Perks: Macro-Control Blight Subspace ] Eli took a breath in and twitched at the sheer euphoria that steamrolled through his lungs and into his veins before spreading throughout the rest of his system. He had thought Lumencloud Invigoration had been good, but this? This was incredible. He transformed into a stream of soft radiance to flash himself over in the middle point of the dorm room while he studied his near blinding light. It felt remarkably the same, but its scale extended far deeper than before. Exhilaration pounded through his radiant veins as he transitioned back into flesh and blood. He pushed out the tiniest bit of power from his palm and smirked as a small cyclone of glittering cloud burst from his hand. It threatened to expand rapidly, but he restrained it with an effort of will. Before, his clouds had been merely illuminated by wind and water vapor, but this was a spotlight condensed into a far greater form. A tug on the cloud sank it back into his body. Wellsprings of newfounded Strength, Perception, and Stamina seared through his body as he refined then reabsorbed it. Eli couldn''t believe how much merging the two powers together had improved it. He willed it to form a blade of lumencloud that puffed into existence like a sliver of radiance. Wisps of cold, balanced light and vapor wafting from the edge. He absorbed it back into himself with a snap. Armor sprang around him in interlocking sheets of lumencloud meshed in various states of vapor, cloud, and light before it locked into solidity. It was no longer armor crafted from cloudy ice that creaked and groaned with his every movement, but a perfectly balanced set that moved like an extension of his body. He glanced at his status again as he re-read its name. Lumencloud Fortification. He assumed that had to do with how much it enhanced him, but his ability with the [Armory] part of the power had improved in leaps and bounds. But what if there was more to it? With a furrowed brow he pushed out a contained gentle wave of lumencloud that he visualized erecting itself into a solid wall of power. Ripples stirred the air as lumenclouds rolled out of him like an incandescent fog that rose to the height of his chest before it hardened until a shimmering wall of light. He didn''t need to freeze it or use Body of Light to force it solid. But, he bet it''d be even stronger when he did. Eli reached out mentally to his perception of it where he siphoned its attributes into Strength while he froze and hardened the light as much as he could. Bands of ice rasped as the wall froze with locked motes of radiance. Lumencloud Fortification Ev. 0/Lv. 1> Ideas and images flashed through his mind in a torrent while he ran his hand across the wall. Would he be able to create other items? Or was it more literally restricted to constructing fortifications out of lumencloud? He absorbed back into himself with a shudder at the crash of ecstasy and sheer power dumped straight into his body. Each time his reserves of lumencloud improved, so did his Body of Light. Eli eyed Hyper-Regeneration while he wondered how that would change the power once it was merged into Lumencloud Fortification. Would it only help him heal or would it make his storage of lumencloud near infinite? He nudged his will into Hyper-Regeneration, expecting to feel a rush as his body healed itself from all kinds of hidden faults and issues. Nothing happened, though. No matter how he tried to cajole the power to respond. It felt more like it had transformed from a resource he could guide and control to an entirely passive ability. Well, fuck that. Enchanter''s Dominion sprang around him as he willed it into existence. Possibilities spread out in his mind as if his brain were plugged into a database for what everything in his Dominion could be. Eli tried teleporting his phone out of his pocket into his hand with the power, but frowned when all the power did was give him a wealth of information about his phone instead. He felt the array of wires, the firm durable plastic and panes of glass in the touchscreen. The battery and chips. All of it screamed out to him as if he were a teacher performing roll call. Yet Eli was aware of far more than that. He felt the enchantments already strung through it until they melded with the structure of the phone perfectly. An enchantment that relied on electricity to boost its performance far beyond what most computers were capable of back home. Multiple that ran parallel to cycle information from the device to the System and vice versa. Durability enchantments to keep it from breaking and even a slight one for limited self-repair. Under all of those enchantments, he felt space for him to push one of his own in. Eli almost shoved Lumencloud Fortification into it, but he wanted to see what it would do first. What if it broke it or flooded the processors and system with far too much power? He didn''t want to break it when it wasn''t even his in the first place. He walked over to the desk where he pushed the Dominion part of his power to search its hiding holes for any technology he could test it on. Half-dead batteries, a set of small lightbulbs for some reason, notebooks, and spare change that looked both similar and bizarre all at the same time. Just a ton of junk. Until he found a calculator that he didn''t even have to pull out of the drawer to look at. He felt its dimensions and information pour into his brain just by focusing on it. He smiled at the tiny rows of buttons, miniature light panel, the simple battery. All of it was perfect. It only had basic enchantments to keep it from shattering if someone with too much strength grabbed it without paying attention. Even then, it would still break under an easily attainable amount of force. A gentle nudge of Lumencloud Fortification guided the internal radiant turbulence into the calculator where he felt it fill with power near instantly. He stopped before he guided it to occupy the entire structure while he pushed and pulled it this way and that. Basic plastic firmed until it could''ve survived being crushed by a pre-System hydraulic press. Energy crackled in the battery as he taught it how to process the power Lumencloud Fortification provided it when in contact with air, water, or light. Perception and Stamina mingled in the processors to enable it to crunch numbers even faster than before. A pointless adjustment, but still easy. Eli tugged the bottom drawer open before he moved all the clutter of folders, notebooks, and other junk out of the way to reveal the shining calculator. Instead of a matte black, it now glittered like pearlescent crystal. He pulled with Enchanter''s Dominion and Lumencloud Fortification and caught it as it flew up toward him. Lumencloud Fortification Ev. 0/Lv. 2> Enchanter''s Dominion Ev. 0/Lv. 1> Enchanter''s Dominion Ev. 0/Lv. 2> He chuckled with mad laughter while he held the enchanted calculator in his hand in his still gauntleted hand. That was when he noticed that his armor had tiny gaps available within the power for an enchantment. Enchanter¡¯s Dominion showed the loose tangle and snarl of infinitesimal weaknesses in armor. Where and how it would fracture or break under enough pressure or force. He used it to guide Hyper--Regeneration through the network of faults until he felt it crystallize with perfection. Any damage that was inflicted wouldn''t last if his armor repaired himself. But what if it went further? Eli absorbed the suit of dense armor into himself. A never ending cascade of twitches jolted through his nerves as a growing tsunami of power barreled through his body. He collapsed even as he felt the rejuvenation soothe his body as it tore itself apart under the riptide of power. Threads of Hyper-Regeneration from the enchantment embedded themselves into his body even while the genuine power restored him faster than he could feel the damage. "What the fuck was that?" Roman asked while he stood in the doorway studying Eli with slack-jawed horror. He held a bag of takeout food in his arms with his powersuit helmet resting on top of the bag. "Growth." Eli pushed himself up to his feet while he beamed at Roman. His sweat reabsorbed into his body to add to the growing stockpile of power that fueled Lumencloud Fortification. Lumencloud Fortification Ev. 0/Lv. 3> Hyper-Regeneration Ev. 0/Lv. 1> He was finally taking his final steps to finishing out Lumencloud and reaching his goals of slotting it into his Mind stat. Eli clenched his fists as the harsh memory of being chomped in half surged through his mind. Instead of fading away in the evaporation of Restoration, it settled as his anger and determination grew. He smiled bitterly at that. He wondered what Dr. Simmons would say about his fresh start. Probably that he shouldn''t grind so much and enjoy life, but he wasn''t paranoid about lashing out anymore. He was preparing to take them home while doing what he had to. "Tell me about your Delve." Eli said while he took the bag out of Roman''s hands and set it down on his mostly bare desk. It was time for them to make a game plan for fitting in here and getting out of here. His phone dinged, and he checked it with a small smile before he portioned out a bowl of noodles. Even if he was starting to like it here.
BII: Chapter Seven "That''s fucking disgusting. Why would you show me this?" Roman nearly gagged while he stared around the room with a pair of sunglasses Eli had enchanted with Body of Light. He didn''t want to blind his friend even while he revealed the unsanitary horrors of their counterparts'' dorm room. "Because it''s gross! I had to see it, so now you do too." Eli crossed his blacklight radiant arms over his chest while he watched Roman lift the toilet seat lid, then snap it down with a shudder. "We''re cleaning." "What?" "We''re cleaning. This is foul. We can''t ignore it." Roman pulled open the cabinet under the sink, then sighed. "They don''t have any cleaning supplies? What the fuck." "I don''t have anything in my spatial bubbles either." Eli shrugged after a quick scour of his voidspace. It felt bizarre to have Enchanter''s Dominion and Voidspace Mastery equipped at the same time. They didn''t clash as much, but his zone extended into the void where all of his belongings were stored. While he couldn''t enchant anything to have voidspace properties yet, he could definitely feel how they played well together. At the moment, they didn''t feel like they''d merge well together, but maybe that would change. "Let''s go shopping then." Roman stood up with a wave at Eli''s radiant lightshow. He turned back to flesh and blood while he started practicing with his powers using voidspace again. He wanted to grind Lumencloud Fortification, Hyper-Regeneration, and Enchanter''s Dominion to max level sooner rather than later. It was too bad having Voidspace Mastery unequipped for too long left him anxious. "You have money?" Eli asked once he caught back up with the conversation. He followed Roman back into the main dorm room where he went over to his bedside table where he pulled out a wallet full of plastic cards and a fair amount of cash. "Yeah. I feel bad spending it, though." He combed his hair down with hands despite how it was perfectly fine. "I was thinking about selling some of the powers I got from the dungeon though." "Don''t want to keep any of them or make something cool?" "I''m not going to get sidetracked with my build." Roman frowned at him while he checked himself over to make sure he had everything before nodding at the door. "I really need to catch up and trying to make random powers work isn''t worth it. Unless if I figure out something really good." "I don''t know, it''s always worked well for me." Eli shrugged while his phone dinged inside of his spatial bubble lodged halfway into his voidspace. He hid a small smile at the text notification from Hazel asking how practice went. Eli typed out a quick response without even having to pull his phone out. Was that how Dad felt with his Technopathy? Guilt tore at his heart along with gratitude at the thought of his parents and how they had sold a power each for him. Not only that, but what had happened to them after Sandra trapped them here? "You okay?" Roman asked as they bounded down the stairs. "Fine. Just thinking about my family back home." "Oh." Roman''s jovial expression darkened instantly. Neither of them said anything as they rushed down the rest of the stairs to the exit. Balmy wind tousled their hair the moment they stepped outside. Fluffy white clouds crept through the sky at a sedate pace over the towering stately dorms and other buildings everywhere on campus. Eli breathed in deep as Lumencloud Fortification kindled to new life as he assimilated the new air into his body. "Do you have any idea how we''ll get back?" Roman shot a forlorn glance his way while he typed in directions into the GPS on his phone. "I..." He stopped. How would Roman react if he knew Eli had thrown his powers together willy-nilly for the best growth and potential over getting them home? "I managed to max out Spatial Dominion, but it didn''t seem like it''d turn into anything useful, so I merged it with another power. But Voidspace Mastery is one level away from maxing out!" "What other power did you merge it with?" "Um, Imbue?" Eli smiled sheepishly while Roman shook his head and muttered under his breath darkly. With the rush of outside air and the constant breeze, Eli had no trouble hearing the impressive string of rambling swears. "So, how does that work?" Roman asked bitterly, even though he was clearly interested. "Okay! So, it merged into Enchanter''s Dominion and it lets me enchant anything within my spatial zone!" Eli beamed while he teleported the calculator he enchanted into his hoodie pocket so he could pull it out to hand over to Roman. "This is decent enchanting, actually." Roman said after a few moments, while he turned it over in his hands and studied it with his own powers. Roman continued to examine it while he and his GPS led them down a series of streets towards a subway station''s stairs. "You overdid several spots that''ll warp the material so it won''t last long, but it''s a longshot from what you could do with Imbue just a couple of days ago." "Right?" Eli took it back and, after some sleight of hand, vanished it into his voidspace while they waited in line to go through the terminals with an open handprint available. As they scooted closer, Eli felt the series of unfamiliar enchantments flushed throughout. "So, it does nothing for our actual issues?" Roman asked with a pointed stare. "Not right now, but it''s only evo-0. Besides, I only need one more level to max out the other one!" Eli protested with a dismissive wave of his hand. He responded to another text Hazel sent of a picture of her city and region model she''d created out of some regular soil. She was apparently upset that she couldn''t use Geomantic Clay, which would''ve let her mold it far easier with her powers. "You kids have a final project that you need a power for?" asked the balding man in front of them in a striped suit. Prismatic light glittered in his eyes. "What? Oh, no, it''s more of a personal project." Roman smiled weakly while the man stared at both of them. "What kind of power is it? I''m friends with the owners of the Ascendant Summit. Have you heard of it?" His shimmering eyes bored into Eli''s. Tension pulled his muscles taut as Strength flooded him in preparation of a fight. Eli shook his head, ignoring the first question. "Ah, very personal, huh?" The man''s smile revealed teeth that also shimmered with low level prismatic light. "Well, they do all kinds of power training with machines and they have personal trainers if you need help with your build or anything. If you''re interested, tell them that Roy sent you." "We will, thank you." Eli said through nearly gritted teeth. The man handed a card over to Roman with a logo of a silhouette meditating on top of a mountain. He nodded at them, pressed his hand against the terminal for a moment, before it flashed and he walked through the turnstile. "What was that about?" Roman asked, as Eli pushed his own hand against the terminal. His eyes widened as the enchanted power within scraped against his nerves as a screen appeared in front of his vision. System-affiliated Bank Cash Debit Card> Eli''s mouth thinned as he teleported Herbert''s wallet out of his spatial bubble into the back pocket of his jeans, which he pulled out to feed it an unfamiliar dollar bill worth twenty dollars. He walked through the turnstiles with a rattling clink of metal as he shoved his wallet back into his pocket where he vanished it into his voidspace. He wished he knew how much money Herbert actually had in his bank accounts, but that System-affiliated Bank option worried him. What were he and Roman going to do about money? "That''s so cool!" Roman said as he caught and guided them down into the subterranean bowels of the station where train tracks extended on either side of the platform. Eli wrinkled his nose at the foul scent of ammonia in the air. He was definitely not going to do his blacklight trick here anytime soon. "With an enchantment like that, I bet issues like fraud and stuff would be far less common." "I guess. I don''t know, Roman, I¡¯m nervous. I don¡¯t think we¡¯ve really thought everything through.¡± Eli said while he glanced up at the tunnel ceiling. He hadn''t really understood what it meant that this world had had powers for so long and the System. How long would they be able to keep their status as foreigners from this dimension secret? If they had a System-interfacing power for subway terminals, what else would they use it for and how long would it take for them to be caught? This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. There was so much they didn''t know. "Huh?" Roman turned to frown at him. "We need to make actual plans." "Well, yeah, but we have to live here still. We might as well learn and see what we can. As far as we know, we''re one of the first people to do what we did, at least from home." "Okay, sure, I agree. We need to at least keep up appearances, but we need to get as strong as we can, too. We''ll need to see if there are any other Delves we can do." Eli frowned while he tapped his foot in idle thought. "I want to get one of my other primary powers slotted in a stat, and you still need to get your first done. Ideally Will or Body." "I guess, but I don''t want to jeopardize my build or anything by rushing." Eli shook his head at that. "Weren''t you the one saying that we need to leave as soon as we could?" "Yeah, and we still should, but Eli, we can do and learn so much! Plus, we''re only really waiting for you to figure out the problem." Roman shrugged. Metal squealed as the train came rumbling to a stop. Irritation prickled Eli at the conversation while he followed Roman. Roman started fiddling with one of his contraptions the minute they sat down on a bench. Why was he always the one expected to fix everything? Eli leaned his head back against the wall as the train pulled away from the station. His foot tapped in time with his anger while he studied the other passengers that looked like regular people. New Faram had a decent public transport system, but he''d never used it. Dad always drove them around. "Do you really expect me to do this all by myself?" Eli asked with a sidelong glance at Roman. He laid his mess of wires and other bits flat on his knee while he shook his head. "No, of course not. But... Eli, I can''t do what you can. My powers are really only good for one thing, and sure, they give me a fair amount of variety. I''ll do what I can, but it is on you more. I don''t really know how much I''ll be able to help." Eli nodded, then turned away again. "I''ve been thinking over the past two days and freaking out and obsessing isn''t going to do us any good. We need to pass our classes and learn what we can. Practicing for Delving will push us and our powers, anyway. Rushing will only make things worse in the end." "I''m not so sure about that." Eli glanced down at his hands. "I feel like I''ve been grinding nonstop since the Initialization and while I''ve made incredible progress, it hasn''t been enough. Every time I feel like I''m about to take a substantial step forward, it turns out I can optimize something more or that I might''ve made a wrong choice. I don''t want to get complacent." "Slowing down a bit isn''t getting complacent." Roman snorted. "We''ll be busy enough already trying to fit in. You''re strong, Eli. I had to push all my powers to their limits just to catch up with you. Not to mention, you and Nora made it to the tier-3 boss before you guys died. We only made it to the second tier before my armor gave out and I got us killed. We''ll get there." "You''re right." Eli shook his head with a sigh. Right at the moment, his phone beeped in his void with a few new texts from Hazel... and a couple from Herbert''s family. "Fuck..." "What is it?" Roman turned toward him in alarm. His gaze flitted up and down the train to the passengers mired in their own conversations, on their phones, or napping. "Herbert''s older sister will be in town later this week and wants to catch up since I haven''t been responding as much." "Oh, well, fuck." Roman winced, then sighed. "I don''t know if you''ve looked into the differences between your life and Herbert''s as much, but Les is an only child. I don''t know how I feel about not having two younger brothers anymore. Or at least here." Eli clasped his hand on Roman''s shoulder. "I''m sorry, I know how difficult Theo''s... sickness was, before everyone in the world literally got powers and his healed him." Roman chuckled in a series of dry clicks. Metal squealed again as the train slowed. Lights flashed through the windows as it stopped with a lurch. Both of them nearly spilled out of their seats from the sudden movement. "Is this our stop?" Eli asked as he warily eyed everyone rushing by the doors to exit or get on. Would they even be able to get out if it wasn''t? "Shit, it is." Roman croaked as he wiped at his eye and leaped to his feet. They joined the press as the doors slowly opened. People pushed through both ways without a regard. Eli and Roman waited until everyone was through, but the doors started to close, then stopped once they forced their way out onto the platform. It closed with a hiss behind them. "Are you okay?" "I''m fine. Let''s get some cleaning supplies and groceries. Those two had absolutely nothing." Roman led the way again. Silence stretched between them as something seemed to shroud around Roman as he moved faster than normal. Eli had no issue keeping up between Body of Light and Lumencloud Fortification. Text messages buzzed in his void again. While they walked, Eli investigated something he''d been too afraid to check. Social media apps opened and closed as he scoured through his friends'' list, contacts, and finally photos. Herbert''s parents looked the same as his, they looked maybe a bit younger. Happier, too. Apparently, they lived in the Midwest in a little place called Rockford. Herbert''s family never lived in Farbrook or anywhere near New Faram at all. Pictures were taken in a variety of places. In an unfamiliar living room with and without his grandparents, out in fields with banks of clouds churning in the sky above his dad. Swimming competitions with a younger Herbert that looked like it was almost ripped straight out of his own family''s photo albums... but everything from the teammates, school, even his swimming trunks were all wrong. What stood out the most was that in every family picture, there were only four of them. Herbert''s parents, his older sister Maeve, and Herbert. Neither Lana nor Lyra appeared in any of these pictures. It was like they didn''t exist at all. "We''re here." Roman nodded at a department store plopped right in between a used bookstore and a store called PowerBank. Eli slowed while he read the sign, then peered at the flyers printed along the windows with the same color background as the System status messages. NEED A POWER OR SOME QUICK CASH? PowerBank HAS THE SOLUTION FOR THAT. "This seems interesting, doesn''t it?" Eli grabbed Roman''s wrist to pull him back and winced at the wrenching pop of his shoulder slipping out of alignment. "Ow!" Roman glared at him. Eli glanced off to the side while he tried to equip Hyper-Regeneration in Enchanter''s Dominion''s place. Thankfully, it had been long enough since they ate when he swapped it out for Voidspace Mastery. Hyper-Regeneration unspooled into his body as it fixed thousands of tiny problems that had cropped up while it had been unequipped. He felt it start to go dormant when he tried pushing it into Roman''s body. He felt the power pause, as if asking a question, before a tingling rush flowed down Eli''s arm and through his hand into Roman''s body. Hyper-Regeneration sank through flesh, muscle, and bone. Knitted close a ton of injuries that had piled up since he''d last Restored him before their training session for the Tri-Delve. "That felt different." Roman commented when the power finally finished and Eli pulled his hand back. "What changed?" "I, um, I also recycled Restoration back to evo-0 into Hyper-Regeneration." "Wait, what? You can do that? I didn''t see anything about that when I was looking stuff up." "Needs a synergized perk, apparently." "Well, okay. I''ll need to go over my build and spreadsheets..." Roman frowned as his eyes glazed over while he muttered to himself a bit. He shook himself. "Later, though. Do you want to check it out?" "Yeah, don''t you?" Eli took a step closer. "I don''t know. It seems kind of shady." "What if they have some super cool powers? Come on." He rolled his eyes while he opened the door with Roman on his heels. PowerBank had a sparse lobby full of podiums with cards that he bet were enchanted. Posters on the wall advertised various power banks that could store any perk or power for later retrieval, convenient trading, and to pass off powers as heirlooms. They also had several training items that cost anywhere from two hundred dollars to two thousand. Each promised different levels of intensity and were rated for different stages of evolutions. Some were tailored to specific types of power as well for further optimization. Sitting at the desk was a middle-aged woman with strands of gray shooting through her dark hair. On her hideous uniformed polo was a large logo above her name written in red: PB Super Star "Cynthia". Eli reaffirmed his shaky convictions about going to college on the spot and to care more about Herbert''s assignments. "How can I help you?" Cynthia asked monotone while she continued to tap away at her phone. "Just looking around." Eli smiled, but she didn''t look up at him. Roman nudged Eli''s arm and pointed at the rows of powers pinned the to the front of the desk promoting different perks and powers they had on hand. Several were crossed out. He tried to read, but the wording was slightly fuzzy despite his host of physical powers. Light shimmered in Eli''s eyes while he focused with Body of Light to sharpen his sight. Perks: Powers: Body Enhanced Condition Boost Flight Bounce Triplicating Echo Buoyancy Endurance Resist Thermal ... and many more! Most of the powers were ineligible from how many times they''d been crossed out until the paper was ragged with tears. He shrugged inwardly at the options. They were pretty shit. Some of the perks could be a decent base for something, but he was covered on that. Roman, on the other hand... "Are you going to get something?" Eli glanced at Roman, who frowned at the list. "Maybe... I haven''t picked my options yet from before or from the Delve. I don¡¯t want to get distracted from my build, but¡­" "Well, you do need a physical power." "What? No, I was looking at Bounce, Buoyancy, and Flight. I bet I could create a really cool power off that with the other options I have." Roman stepped forward. "Excuse me..." Eli read over the list again with a frown while he thought about his own available perks he had to sell or merge at some point. Plus, if he did well in Power Crafting I tomorrow, he''d win the Charge power. He could probably figure out something he could do with that. "One thousand and five hundred dollars?" Roman screeched as he glanced down at the flyers again before he tore his gaze back up to the blank expression on Cynthia''s face. "How much would it be for the perks alone?" "Two-fifty." She shrugged. "Flight is a popular starter power for anyone who wants to fly. Do you want it or not?" "I... I don''t know." Roman read through the flyers again. Eli wondered how much more it had cost for the evo-0 powers his parents had bought for him. They had needed to sell theirs, but was that more of a common thing between dimensions, or was it more because of the relative newness of powers that had driven up the price? Eli glanced at his status again and thought about selling some of his own perks before he realized he didn''t like that idea. The only one he was somewhat disinterested in was Blight, but it could help him a lot if he wanted to create more of a combat focused power. Or even if he wanted to equip it onto Lumencloud Fortification when they went through Delves. He almost chuckled at himself. He had been so confident about wanting to sell powers, but he couldn''t even let go of something as small as a perk. Mom or Lyra would have called him a power hoarder. "I''ll take it, but can you throw in Resist?" "That''ll be four hundred dollars." Roman handed Romulus¡¯s card over, then waited for her to pull out three small cartridges that glowed with a strange light. She handed them over along with his card before she turned to Eli. "Anything for you?" He skimmed over the list again before he shook his head. Only thing that would interest him would be something more combat focused or something with electricity so he could double down on Lumencloud Fortification or even build something new. Blight merged with lightning would be interesting. They walked out of the store while Roman cradled the cartridges in his hand. Power surged before the glow flickered and faded leaving nothing behind but cheap plastic. He handed it over to Eli who shoved it into his voidspace with a narrowed glance. He needed to figure out spatial storage enchantments soon or it¡¯d get old being a glorified backpack. "What are you going to merge it with?" Eli asked while they loitered in-between the department store and PowerBank¡¯s storefronts on the cracked sidewalk. "I''m going to dismantle Sandra''s power for the Self perk. Take the Control perk from the goblins and merge it with Stalwart Body from the trolls then add the Resist and Bounce perks I just bought for..." He read his invisible System with a widening smirk as he merged the powers together. "Soaring Bounce." Eli watched bemused while Roman took a normal step that blasted him up ten feet in a flip before he crashed down. Roman pushed himself up with a groan, but he seemed otherwise uninjured. He wondered how much of this was because of the powerful impacts he''d taken in the fight with Sandra, if it was more Delve motivated, or if really was as simple as Roman trying to have fun with a new power. He hoped it was the last. "Come on, let''s get some cleaning supplies." Eli led the way through the jingling door into the store. BII: Chapter Eight "You all should have your proposed builds ready for the professions of an electrician, welder, and automotive mechanic with the zero-tiered Charge power. Everyone will turn in their papers at the end of class. Three of you will present one at a time. Your peers will score your presentation if you choose to volunteer. Then, there''ll be an open debate or forum style discussion. If you present, be ready to defend the choices of your proposed build. Remember, if you pursue a career as a Power Consultant or any other job in the industry, you''ll need these skills and the discretion to defend your points. Sound good?" Dr. Avery Moiranne glanced across the decently full lecture hall before she pulled out a chair at her desk and sat. "First volunteer?" Eli didn''t care about what Herbert would do. He pumped his hand in the air hard immediately. He needed to win and get the Charge power. "Come on down." Eli walked down the aisles nervously while he held his stack of papers in his hands. He disliked presentations normally, but the reward of a new power was well worth the adrenaline and anxiety. Once he reached the podium in front of the board, he turned to face the crowd of blank faced or almost asleep students that were all mostly older than him. He was just a kid from high school who didn''t even finish. "Name?" "Eli Newton, or well, Herbert, but I go by my middle name now." He rested his papers on the podium while he leaned on it for support. All of his anxiety-boosted strength flowed into the enchantments in the wood to keep it from breaking. A hummingbird seemed to beat its wings in his chest while blood rushed into his face as he met the eyes of the crowd. "Ready whenever you are, Mr. Newton. Which occupation are you going to cover?" "The mechanic." She made a note of it on a piece of paper, then waved for him to start. Eli took a deep steadying breath as he rekindled his internal stores of light and lumencloud before he read out loud, with frequent glances at everyone in the audience. He explained that Charge, as stated, was a simple power to collect and release any unspecific type of energy available. How a mechanic would be best served to not focus on any one type of energy like the other two examples, but to learn how to harness thermal, kinetic, and electric energy to start with. Then, he spoke about how a more broad application of Charge could allow for the potential of transferring and converting different kinds of energy between their different states and with themselves. If they focused on finesse, they''d be able to use harmlessly released energy for a diagnostics and to potentially fix issues that would otherwise be impossible to reach without more mechanically focused powers or equipment. "If they attempt to broaden their horizons, the mechanic will improve far more both as an individual in their personal life, and as a professional mechanic." Eli ended at last as he wiped his clammy hands on his jeans before grabbing his papers to head back up to his seat. "Stay up here, please." Dr. Moiranne said while she scribbled out some more notes before a chair appeared beside her desk crafted in one go from a glittering green metallic material. He sat down with his papers folded in his lap. She spoke again. "Next volunteer?" "I''ll do the electrician," said a woman swaddled in a gray hoodie with AU written across the chest. She had dark hair and wore glasses. Did she not have any body focused powers or stats? "Very well." Eli watched while the next volunteer walked down to the stage. She had a very business-like attitude. Her every step was precise, and she cast a frowning glance over at Eli before she took her place behind the podium with her hands in her pockets. She had no papers or any notes at all. "Name?" "Lacey Blake." "And you''re doing the electrician?" "Yes, Professor." "Begin whenever you''re ready." Eli leaned back into his chair while tried to recharge with another wave of restrained Lumencloud Fortification. Why had Herbert signed up for this class at 8 AM? Turns out Hyper-Regeneration wasn''t as good for restoring energy anymore. It was entirely healing focused. He smiled dimly at how upset Roman had been this morning when he couldn''t get a pick-me-up of Restoration. "Charge as it stands is a fairly straight-forward foundation power, but it is only that, a base. As such, it should be primed to focus primarily on two different factors: range and electricity. If our electrician in question made a point to transfer electricity between objects as much as possible, then it would be more than likely for them to get an option to evolve Charge into an enchanting based power. That would be the ideal first progression with a Technomantic Mastery power as a close second. With either of these two options to start, the electrician would go from a glorified battery to a more than adequate electrician able to perform in a far wider area. Once they evolve again, they should either become more optimized or ideally shore up any weaknesses in performance by acquiring the other proposed power they lacked." Lacey rattled off in a brisk tone while she stared into the crowd of barely aware students. But she turned to look right at Eli as she spoke her final line. "Therefore Charge is a superior candidate for an electrician." "I see. Thank you, Ms. Blake. Any other volunteers?" Dr. Moiranne asked the crowd that was nearly in a slumber. No one responded or moved in the course of a few minutes. "Very well. Looks like the debate is between you two." Eli stood up nervously while Lacey''s eyes seemed to pierce through him with their inquisitive squint. "What are you waiting for? Begin." "Mr. Newton, what future options do you propose your mechanic take?" Lacey asked with a cough. "Well, he has quite a few options. I''d agree that aiming for Technomantic Mastery would be wise, but it wouldn''t necessarily be crucial. Anything with a focus on the senses or perception would help with synergy. But I think the most important next step would be that he ¡ªor she¡ª chooses whatever will fulfill them both personally and professionally." "That''s your advice? Take whatever power is fun?" "I suppose." Eli shrugged, even though that wasn''t quite how he worded it. That''s what he''s always done, and it worked out pretty well for him. "My favorite power I ever obtained and trained up was Telekinesis. It broadened my horizons a lot, and I used it far more than I would have if I had focused only on what would''ve worked with my Initialization power. Plus, it really helped me learn how to use my powers differently to this day, even though it was the first power I merged." "I''m sorry, but you wasted an important and valuable decision on what power to take from the System, for an arguably good power, but still... you took it because it was fun?" "Yes?" Eli frowned at her then turned to regard the crowd full of quite a few people that stared at him incredulously, as if he had told them the sky was purple or that he came from another dimension. "I knew someone once who was insistent that she¡¯d only take powers that would help her limited build. She only had two powers for the longest time and one of them she only got because she killed a mons... a spawn and took it from them." "But that''s normal! You''re supposed to focus on anything that will help your Initialization power and choose a career path that''ll help with that, slot that power, and then take either the best power for horizontal or vertical synergy. You''d really advise someone to take whatever powers struck their fancy when they need their build to be precise for their job? What about their System Portfolio?" Eli shrugged. He had no idea what was in Herbert''s System Portfolio still, but he found it a bit annoying how easily they sucked the joy and fun out of superpowers. Although, he supposed to them they were just natural abilities and barely powers at all. "Mechanics, electricians, welders, and everyone are far more than their jobs, obviously. Why should they hamstring themselves to be so narrowly specialized? What if the mechanic wanted to be a carpenter someday or a software engineer, or just anything else? If they took your advice, they''d have permanent choices, forcing them into a position where they''d be stuck." "That''s fair, but that''s what auxiliary powers or enchantments are for. You''d really have someone make an inferior build and derail their future? How would your mechanic be able to keep up with their competitors, both as an automotive mechanic or in another job if they switched tracks?" "They might have some difficulty, but I''m not saying they should take powers haphazardly, but to keep more than one goal in mind. I don''t know if you''ve noticed, but the assigned occupations have a lot of overlap. With what I suggested for Charge alone, my mechanic would be able to assist or even do work in any of the other fields, while your electrician would struggle to do more than fiddle with the battery and radio. It depends on what you value." "Okay, but they could take as many side powers as they want after they''ve prepared for their final stat and then when they''re ready they could slot it in for their Cla¡ª" Glittering darkness flashed as Dr. Moiranne appeared beside Lacey. She whispered quietly, but Eli could still hear after using Body of Light to heighten Lumencloud Fortification. "Need I remind you, Ms. Blake, that it is taboo to bring that up in public if it isn''t confirmed that someone has all three stats and transitioned?" If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. "I''m sorry, I got carried away..." Lacey mumbled quiet and meek. Dr. Moiranne''s power dissipated as she walked back to her desk. "I believe we''ve heard enough, anyway. Mr. Newton encourages a detailed optimization but with room for balance. However, Ms. Blake vehemently disagrees and believes that strict care must be taken with power builds. What do all of you think?" "I mean, aren''t they both kind of right? Herbert has a point that it''s better to have powers that can be used in more area. My uncle''s Initialization power was Cleanse, and he didn''t barrel down and turn it into the ultimate cleaning power. He got a few other powers until he had the best power for him," said a younger man in the front row with a beanie on. "What does your uncle do?" asked Lacey before Dr. Moiranne could respond. "He''s a fisherman." "By choice or because his powers are too subpar to¡ª" "Ms. Blake." Dr. Moiranne interrupted with a firm warning. Lacey stopped talking. "I bet your uncle has a variety of uses for whatever Cleanse turned to that help him out as a fisherman. He likely has the cleanest boat, catches higher quality fish, and might even help keep wherever he fishes clean." "Yeah. He does really well with it, but he says he''s happier than if he went into mass cleaning, chemistry, or into the medical field like everyone suggested he should." "But he''ll never be as good as someone with a water focused build or something else better equipped to help him!" Lacey protested with a point. He shrugged. "He still does well enough and has equipment and a crew that has their powers. It¡¯s what he likes to do." "What do you think, Mr. Newton?" "Well, I think it sounds like he has it figured out. As long as he''s happy, does it really matter? They''re his powers, so it''s his choice. Besides, what''s the point if everyone has nearly the exact same build for each job?" "That''s almost time! Please drop off your reports before you leave and be prepared for a discussion next week about which style is more correct." She created two chairs and pointed at them. "You two stay behind." Eli waited for the last few minutes to tick by while everyone packed their laptops and notebooks away before dropping their papers off and filtering out. Soon it was just the three of them. "You two laid out the exact schism in theory in Power Crafting on which is best for an individual and society as a whole." She pulled out a cartridge that strobed with energy as grooves filled with light before dissipating. "But now, I have a question for you both. What will you do with Charge if I give it to you?" "... I could find a use for it, but it wouldn''t fit my build very well as it is. Most likely I''d dismantle it for its Charge Energy perk." Lacey admitted, then she added as if it were an afterthought, "Or I''d sell it." Dr. Moiranne turned to Eli. "I''d probably focus it on light mainly, but also use it for kinetic, but I feel like I could push it to help boost my other powers before merging it." She nodded and handed the cartridge over to him. "Neither of you won the debate, but I expect you both to bring better arguments next week. I also want to hear how you''re using this new power, Mr. Newton." Dr. Moiranne''s voice was warm, but brisk. Lacey left before she finished. "I am glad to see you taking more of an interest in something other than Delving." "This assignment really made me think, and I saw a use for this power. Thank you." He smiled at her before she shooed him away. "You''re welcome. Be prepared next week and don''t backtrack on this new-founded interest and progress." Eli dropped off his papers before he retrieved his backpack and left to head over to the dining hall near their dorm. He checked his phone inside of his voidspace and winced at the litany of texts from Herbert''s family who were getting concerned that something had happened. He still didn''t know what to say to them, except that he was sorry and that he was stressed about finals. While he walked, he fumbled with the cartridge that seemed to burn his skin while he held it. Warmth radiated from it as it reached a crescendo before words crawled across his vision. <[ERROR] has initiated a power trade with you, Elias Newton, for N/A In return for Charge Ev. 0/Lv. 0> Eli hit accept and shivered as he felt the power slot itself into his status with ease. The cartridge turned chilly, as it became nothing but plastic waste. He shoved it into his voidspace while tried to think while he walked. He really needed to get that last level and max out Voidspace Mastery. He checked the time with his phone and grimaced. If he ate lunch, he''d only have an hour or so until his next class, but the 3Delve gym should be empty. Eli fired off an apology text to Roman and Hazel while he changed his course. It was time to get that last level. While he walked, he shoved as much of his attention into Voidspace Mastery that he could until the world around him and the space in-between brimmed with potential. Detail slammed into his mind from the gaseous flow of the air to the specks of dust that floated around him. Silhouettes of people passed by him. Some were obscure from a high resistance surrounding them like an aura, or he couldn''t sense any deeper than the surface of their skin. Others were an open book that he could see the faded details of their skeleton, their muscles, and the sprawl of their veins. Dots of empty space called out to him in between all the yawning gaps and cavities, from their joints to portions of their stomachs and anywhere else hollow. Eli stalked into the gym and marched down the warren of hallways before he reached the staircase at the back. He teleported down to the bottom in a series of hops, unable to wait any longer. He ignored the robotic voice as he tore into the empty gym and let his backpack fall beside the door. Eli drew his spatial field back until it only surrounded him, then he popped out two flat disks of voidspace on either side of him. When he had stepped into the Crucible, it had felt like a window or door with a bridge folded inside of it as if the other side was just around the corner. But these were just constructed disks of voidspace. He needed to turn them into something more than hardened space or newly created space entirely. He closed his eyes while he ran his will across the panes of voidspace while he searched for the apertures inside of it. If all normal space had a small amount of the void inside of it, then why wouldn''t the void have some small bit of space inside of it too? After all, he had mastery over both together. Eventually, he found a barely there network of tiny holes like passages spread throughout each disk. He molded both of them until they resembled each other in unison, rather than one being a copy of the other. Eli had a solid grasp of what he needed to do, but no actual idea on how to copy it or make it his own... except he had a few other ideas about how to do it. First, he reached into his voidspace linked directly to his power and not whatever ambient bits and pieces floated in space around him. Distortions spread in fractals around him in cracks of tainted violet light as he wound a tether from both disks, but instead of linking them through the voidspace, he inverted the tether and twisted it where he connected them. Wind howled while reality bled between both nascent portals as the two separate spaces interacted. Shadowed purple energy sparked between and through them in a flickering strobe light as each tendril of volatile energy thickened. He felt the singular portal warp as it deformed into a tunnel full of air and other energies that were ripped apart by the churning motion. Eli slashed his will through both portals as he crumpled them into harmless wads of voidspace before he dismissed them. Raw violet voidspace crackled through the air with a cascade of echoing pops before they trailed off into silence. He was close, but still off. The Crucible was protected. Separate from both sides of the portal. Whatever he''d just done had not been separate at all. It was better than his previous attempts, but still a failure. If he had thrown something inside of there, he would''ve bet that it would''ve been unraveled by the escalation of the sheer destructive power within. Whatever this was, it bore further testing inside of the Crucible later. He didn¡¯t want to blow himself or the school up without protection. Voidspace bent to his will as he popped out two disks again with a separate spatial bubble fitted around it. Otherwise, he repeated everything the exact same way as it was before, but he paid more attention to the tether in-between. Eli''s eyes widened while he heightened his Perception with Lumencloud Fortification. There was only one way for things to travel between both portals and since they hadn''t been sealed, it had forced everything it touched through it constantly. All the air and other airborne particles had been constantly displaced by itself. A shiver trembled down his spine. What could this do after his next evolution and even the one after that? He didn''t feel like it was a potential atomic bomb or anything. It was far too thorough in its annihilation, but it was still a devastating weapon, regardless. Eli split and twined the tether so there was a firm coordinated passageway from one portal to the other. Anything that went through one wouldn''t intersect with itself. A flicker of will later and he activated them. Space untainted by light bent and twisted in a series of infinite distortions around the portals, but they didn''t deviate from them. He stepped around and peered through the one portal and grinned at the image of himself not reflected back at him, but seen as if he stood where the portal was. He waved idly at himself. After the rush of exhilaration at finally making a portal, he watched them with a wary eye while he slipped the junk cartridge that used to hold Charge out of his voidspace and tossed it in. Radiant light consumed his body as he transformed in anticipation of it reacting while he focused every micrometer of his will on containing and shutting any reaction down. He watched instead while the cartridge shot flashed through the one portal, got compressed and shaved down to a perfectly rounded cylinder, and then shot out the other side. He teleported it back into his hands and rolled the smoothed plastic around in his hands before he swapped it out with one of the beach rocks he had saved from when he was grinding Imbue. Another set of spatial bubbles appeared to encase the interior of the tethers that he expanded out to perfectly match the dimensions of the portals without changing the size of the needle thin tether. Eli tossed the rock inside and then beamed¡ªliterally¡ªas the rock fell with a clatter on the other side of the portal with all of its momentum. He teleported it into his hand again, then looked up to flash a thumbs-up at himself. The rock was unchanged. Voidspace Mastery Ev. 1/Lv. 10> Eli''s smile shone while he prompted the evolve power option, then widened even further after he re-selected it with the Macro-Control perk equipped. Then he accepted the second evolution. Space exploded around him as his spatial field expanded farther than it ever had before. Eli didn''t just feel the entire room, he felt into the elevator shaft down into the murky depths of the airlock where the Crucible was. He felt the stairwell bloom behind him, nearly all three flights of it with the same level of detail he had felt before. He teleported down into the airlock with a gentle puff of air that fueled the kindling storm of lumencloud inside of him while he stared at the double doors of the Crucible. Before he accepted another prompt, he had to test something out first. [Stats: Body: Light (Photon Shot) Perks Equipped: [Might] Mind: None Will: None ] [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Enchanter''s Dominion Ev. 0/Lv. 2 Slot Two -- Lumencloud Fortification Ev. 0/Lv. 3 Slot Three -- Voidspace Horizon Ev. 2/Lv. 0 Perks Equipped: [Subspace] ] [Unequipped Powers: Hyper-Regeneration Ev. 0/Lv. 1 Charge Ev. 0/Lv. 0 ] [Unequipped Perks: Blight ] BII: Chapter Nine "Crucible! Give me the same dungeon as yesterday. Three-tier Hard difficulty. No permanent injuries or death." Eli commanded with a hard rap of his knuckles on the metal doors. He felt the array of enchantments weaved throughout the doors thrum to life as they stretched and pulled reality as if it were a malleable thing. Space elongated as a portal plopped over the door. After creating his own portal and after its evolution, Voidspace Horizon showed him how similar but different his portal was. Originally, he had thought his had felt like two places overlapping their space was correct, but this one felt like this dungeon was one of several in a corridor that had been aligned for him to step through. It also didn''t feel real. Eli stepped through into the same starting tunnel and grimaced at how he felt space double up in a way he couldn''t feel before. It was like he stood in a closet with the walls close enough for him to touch with the airlock just behind him, but also that he stood in an entirely new place separate from where he had been. Voidspace Horizon let his spatial field unfurl with ease as it penetrated through the millions upon millions of empty gaps through the rock and air. He felt the top of the peak above him with the stones and the slumbering giant as well as the outside of the cave down to about the arch. Eli dragged his will through the intangible currents of voidspace emanating from him as he focused only on the space. His range tripled until he felt the vast empty air above the peak beckon alongside the curve of the path through the second tier. Information flooded his mind while he allowed everything in his vicinity to stop his voidspace. Silhouettes drew a comprehensive topographical map of his surroundings until he felt every uneven dip and bend in the rough cave stone. Vapor twisted in his spatial field focused down to his prior range. He closed his eyes and walked perfectly fine as he navigated his way out of the cave. While he walked, he poured a low, but potent charge of Lumencloud Fortification into the earth with Enchanter''s Dominion. Each breath of air refueled him while tempestuous radiance sparkled off the strata of the earth in his wake. He wanted to test himself far more than he ever had before. Eli climbed the drab rocky ascent without any armor or other protection beside his clothes. His trail of enchantments left the rising peak glowing white as if it were transformed into divine marble. Before too long, he mounted the top where the same slumbering giant awaited him, with its massive sword sheathed in its chest. Fields of red rot led from it to the three monoliths. Last time it had spoken, would it again? He took a deep breath as power ignited in his body. It doubled as he transformed into radiance, then tripled once he activated the [Might] perk he had equipped to Body of Light. Cracks snapped through its layers of petrified stone while the giant thrashed itself awake. Eli squeezed out gales of Strength from his Lumencloud Fortification while he watched it drag itself up to its feet. Rock flaked off of it in chunks as it tore the sword out of its chest. Fractures filled with molten magma as it lurched toward him with a rumbling roar. It swung its sword sideways with an impotent howl of wind as it swept towards his face. Eli smiled. A violet portal flashed in front of him to intercept the slash of the giant''s sword shearing in three pieces. Two oversized shards of metal spun into the distance behind Eli while the middle part shot through the tether with magnified force out of the other portal he''d summoned behind the giant''s head. Brackish blood burst in a geyser as the blade cleaved through the giant''s skull out into the valley while it twirled on its way. Eli stretched and twisted the space around him so none of the blood splashed on him as the giant collapsed. He enchanted the peak while he spun on his heel to march back down toward the arch. He stepped through and watched while goblins and trolls rose out of the ground to rush him. Hordes of them converged on him with claw and fang. Weapons rose out of the ground into the hands of the trolls or appeared out of thin air with a malevolent glow into the grubby hands of the goblins. They swarmed around him with high-pitched squeaks as the trolls grumbled toward him in silence. Banks of lumencloud steamed off of him while Eli pushed out voidspace blades that scythed through any spawn that drew near. Eli''s smile widened as they breathed in the thick plumes of lumencloud that rolled over and under their teeming bodies. Corrupted spears, staves, and claws flashed toward him. He teleported up in the air. Four portals bloomed from where he had been to crash into the press of spawn, eager to take his life. Instead of shearing them into a pulped mess like he had expected, the portals cracked against their bodies as it crunched their bones. No notifications flickered across his vision. Trolls rumbled the earth with their powers as they shaped, then loosed a volley of stone spears. Eli teleported them back into each of them with an echoing crack of pressurized air. Goblin and troll bodies fell, but more rose to join the assault. Lumencloud flashed beneath him to hoist him up. Spears and staves flickered as they were replaced by bows that the goblins lifted to loose at him. Trolls shaped the earth into slopes and columns that they scaled to get closer to him. Still, they breathed in the shimmering mist that swirled over each and every one of them. He raised both of his hands as he created a single portal that he linked to itself. Wooden and bone arrows vanished into his voidspace, where he slapped lumencloud enchantments on them until they blazed with power. Dazzling arrows fell from the portal like a meteor shower, slaughtering dozens in an instant. Trolls leaped for him with a guttural roar. Instead of their meaty paws breaking his bones or their blunt nails tearing his skin, he only winced at the itching sensation as they phased through his soft light body. Radiance turned into searing light enhanced by a focus on infrared charring trollflesh. Each troll screamed as they dropped back down to the tide of spawn below. Eli dropped into the fray, with his spatial field drawn back to its previous range. He closed his eyes while he infused Lumencloud Fortification with Body of Light. Weapons flailed around him in a mad flurry as he ducked and weaved his way around the attacks. Plumes of lumencloud blotted out all natural light with the shining pallor of the fog. A troll lurched toward him from behind. Eli sidestepped as he grabbed its arm and wrenched it sideways into the gaggle of goblins pouncing on him from his left. Rot festered in the troll''s wounds as they ravished it. Every now and then he''d lash out, but while he did hurt them, his powers were too weak. Too under-evolved to do more than artificially wound them. Despite his limitations, he found ways to slaughter them, as long as he was willing to stand there and focus all his might on one target at a time. He froze all the lumencloud a goblin had breathed in with a splintering pop as the arctic chill tore it apart from the inside. Another he forced his lumencloud in the other direction as he turned it blistering hot as all the water vapor in its body boiled into scalding steam. If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. But it was risky and left him wide open for them to maul their weapons into his radiant body. He healed in moments from all the lumencloud surrounding him, which supercharged him every second he fought within its fog. So instead, he dodged and set them upon each other. He couldn''t kill them as easily as they could kill each other. Enchanter''s Dominion had a blind spot for the living, but once they fell dead, their bodies opened up to his influence. Eli turned them into lumencloud effigies that brimmed with lumencloud brilliance. All the lumencloud air they''d breathed in crystallized in their veins as he enchanted them all in one fell swoop. At last, they were all dead. He surveyed the field washed out by all his fog that he drove deep into the ground with Enchanter''s Dominion. Weakness trembled in his radiant body from the steep drop of available lumencloud, but it quickly renewed itself from the ambient air and water. A teleport dropped him onto the trail before he swept the pass with Voidspace Horizon. Silhouettes of trolls lying in wait in the walls reflected back at him. Eli narrowed the space along the trail in front of every single one before he teleported rocks next to each one as if he walked. Stone rumbled as it shifted into loose dirt as ten trolls up and down the path leapt out into open air. Then he unfolded the space in front of them with a hard snap as he shot them all down into the valley. He walked down the trail to the foot of the cave while his smile grew. Lumencloud Fortification enchanted the cliffside and the trail with as much spare power he could shove into it. Voidspace Horizon stretched behind him as he pushed it to its limits. Two miles of information howled into his mind as all the knowledge tried to split his skull in two. Voidspace consumed layers of earth and corpses as he gutted the mountain of all his enchantments and shoved it into a spatial vault in his void. Enchanter''s Dominion speared into his voidspace as it showed him all the places gaps in-between the structure of the enchantments for him to fill it with commands or another power. It was shit material for enchantments that he doubted would last the day, but he didn''t need them too. He prepared to fill them with light from Body of Light when he noticed he had another option. He could enchant using his perks too from [Might], [Subspace], and the unequipped Blight. That called for some experimentation later, but not now. Eli injected all of his [Might] boosted light into the enchantments again and again while he waited for his internal stores to refill from the ambient light and whatever he got from Lumencloud Fortification. Finally, it was full. He reignited into radiance before he stepped through the veil of space with a knowing smirk. Eli was becoming the master of all space under the horizon and he was going to take his due from that spider. A familiar grand cavern spread around him once again, but this time, it fit easily in his spatial field. He used voidspace to shear disks out of the cave that he enchanted with Lumencloud Fortification and Blight before he popped them into his voidspace. It didn''t take long for the goblins and trolls to come screeching out of their holes. Luminious disks burst into reality with an explosion of gore as the impact shattered the rock, releasing the contained tempest inside. Goblins and trolls screamed in their respective high-pitched and guttural tones. Sections of the cave vanished as he continued his rapid-fire battery as he pushed his will into both Lumencloud Fortification and Enchanter''s Dominion, as he turned each carving into a wall with a honed edge. Goopy blood sprayed and splashed through the air as he mowed them down, one after the other. Fault lines fractured in the stone from the shaft below as the Colossal Titan Spider made its move. Lumencloud surged beneath him in a billowing nimbus as he ascended. Panes of voidspace erected in a cage around him before he draped it with portals that he connected into a massive one beneath him. Broken earth heaved before the spawn below even noticed he''d vanished. The ceiling of the cave shattered and fell like a mass of asteroids that broke against his portal shields before they shot out of the portal beneath him into the array of monsters below. Spiders rasped along the walls as they shot out webs to snare the other dying spawn. Eli pushed Voidspace Horizon out with a malevolent smile the moment he felt through their flimsy exoskeletons. They were weaker than Voidspace Horizon was. An inverted voidspace bubble scraped along the walls as it snatched up every spider and corpse it could. The goblins and trolls were too high level, but they were already dead. At the edge of his expanded spatial field, he felt the Colossal Titan Spider lying in wait. He mashed the corpses up in his voidspace where he squeezed the mangled bodies of spider, goblin, and troll together while he enchanted them all with Blight-enhanced lumencloud. Then he teleported it right into the Colossal Titan Spider abdomen. It screeched with an ungodly sound that turned into what he imagined was a wrathful bellow. New cracks ruptured through what remained of the cave even as the sound ruptured his eardrums. Body of Light and Lumencloud Fortification slowly healed his ears within his radiance. That was fine. He''d be done with this delve soon. He didn''t need Hyper-Regeneration. It was over one way or the other. Eight massive limbs like tree trunks sharpened to spear points stabbed into the earth as the Colossal Titan Spider rushed toward him. He eyed its impenetrable carapace and its oversized mandibles. Explosions spouted through from the craters it left in its wake as shockwaves buffeted through his portals. His eardrums popped again from its screaming onslaught. In seconds, it was already upon him. Lumencloud Fortification focused his equal vitality all into Perception to slow time down to a standstill. He roared as the pressure on his radiant bones grated. A crackling hiss echoed endlessly as his brain tried to decipher the hellscape of sounds filtering through his constantly healing and breaking ears. Molten blood poured down his face. Still, the Colossal Titan Spider approached. Two spearlegs jabbed toward him and he already knew it''d destroy his portals. So he broke the tethers as he crossed all of his multiple portals together as he teleported his payload of an enchanted mountaintop through it. Before it could explode, he teleported as far below as he could then did it again to the depths of the shaft where webbed skeletal trophies remained along with an oversized pirate''s ship or galley suspended by webs. Its legs sundered his portal with a wet tearing sensation as his head wrenched with agony. Blood bubbled in his throat and leaked out of his nose as he screamed. Shadowed purple light flashed up above as the portals seemed to converge before everything flashed white in a nova. Lumencloud Fortification Ev. 0/Lv. 4> Lumencloud Fortification Ev. 0/Lv. 5> Enchanter''s Dominion Ev. 0/Lv. 3> Enchanter''s Dominion Ev. 0/Lv. 4> BII: Chapter Ten Eli found himself lying flat on his back in front of the doubled doors of the Crucible. Notifications cluttered his vision from his murder spree, but they made little sense to him while he read. Shouldn''t the numbers be higher or did it not count the ones he forced to kill each other? He forced himself to his feet with a wince at the deep ache that split down his spine from the base of his skull. Lumencloud mist wept off his skin before he caught himself and reabsorbed it. Lumencloud Fortification and Enchanter''s Dominion felt strained, as if he''d pushed them farther than they were capable. He swapped out Lumencloud Fortification for Hyper-Regeneration with a wobble as the strength of his foundation got swept out from underneath him. Relief washed over and through him as he walked over to the elevator and opened the doors with a muted ding. He leaned against the wall while he hardened node of space to push the button to take him up. While Hyper-Regeneration worked its magic on his body, he felt like the power asked him a series of questions. It was far more passive than Restoration had been, but he could direct it within those bounds when it worked. It wanted to know if he wanted to modify his frayed nervous system so it wouldn''t be overloaded from the same amount of stimuli, if he wanted his muscles grown denser for more immediate power or built for endurance. On and on the list went, as he tried to keep everything as balanced as possible until it asked him the final questions. More water retention? More lung efficiency? Real physiological light storage? Eli smiled while he confirmed all three, then grunted as his body squirreled away far more water than it had originally across his system. His ribs seemed to expand as his lungs swelled, then shrunk down. A shimmering mass seemed to wriggle across all his skin tissue as it expelled foul smelling muck with a series of stinging tears that rapidly healed. He vanished all the dark muck into his voidspace and marveled at his mostly normal, seeming skin. He used Body of Light to pull light away from his right arm and watched as the skin turned almost translucent while it visibly refilled with light. Then it was normal again. He walked out of the elevator and blinked at the sight of Dorian boxing with one of the training equipment that had transformed itself into an exact replica of Dorian. It wore the same athletic clothes and even had the same pair of headphones in his ears. They were both flushed from exertion and sweat seeped through his tank top, but not the replica¡¯s. Eli considered saying something when he noticed that Hyper-Regeneration had leveled up twice. Hyper-Regeneration Ev. 0/Lv. 2> Hyper-Regeneration Ev. 0/Lv. 3> He must have made some kind of noise since Dorian flew through the air until he stood opposite of him with a wild look in his eyes that calmed. Dorian''s fist stopped an inch away from Eli''s face. All the redness and sweat had vanished. Barriers of force sprang around them, trapping Eli in before that too disappeared. "Herbert. You startled me." Dorian nodded while he eyed him up and down. "Were you in the Crucible?" "Yeah. I did a solo run." Eli shrugged nonchalantly, even though his heart pounded in his chest to the point that Hyper-Regeneration wordlessly asked him if he wanted to improve his cardiovascular system. He accepted with a shiver. "Tied with the Colossal Titan Spider." "Wait. You ran the whole three tiers by yourself?" Dorian eyed him with begrudging respect. "How''d you do?" "It was hard." Eli admitted, while Dorian chuckled. "I sure hope so. Did you break your build or did something finalize?" "Nah, I just wanted a challenge." Eli shrugged. He couldn''t help but feel like he was drowning in the conversation full of context he had no way of knowing how to navigate. "So you did a full delve solo instead of a solo challenge?" Dorian shook his head with a scoff. "Alright, well, if you were in the dungeon, you''ll probably want to get dinner while you still can. I''ll let you go." "Dinner?" Eli blinked before he noticed that his phone had blown up with texts and missed calls from both Roman and Hazel. He had more notifications from his family and apparently Maeve had gotten assigned a case in a town nearby called Little Anchor. She was going to be here tomorrow and Herbert''s parents were coming in a week for a quick vacation before they headed home after finals were over. "How long were you in there?" Dorian asked with a frown. "Noon." "Shit, man. Be careful. I''d hate for you to get kicked off the team because you let classes slip." He walked back over to the dummy that had paused mid-blow. Eli hurried over to the door to the staircase before running up a few stairs until he was fully out of sight before he teleported to the landing on the first floor to sprint down the halls. Multiple people milled around in the various rooms, both for private and public use. He pushed himself harder until he shot out of the facility doors and continued to sprint through campus toward the dorm room. While he ran, he did damage control. He sent text messages rapid-fire to acknowledge Herbert''s parents and their change of plans, to set up a meeting with Maeve at the Pandemonium Cafe. He apologized to both Roman and Hazel by saying he had been in a Delve that had gone on too long, then skidded to a stop with a wince at Roman''s lone response. WE''RE AT THE LIBRARY. Eli rushed over until he stood lightly panting in front of the library''s imposing doors. His backpack appeared out of his voidspace on his back while he took a deep calming breath and stepped inside. Study rooms cluttered the sides of the room surrounding an impressive lobby of sorts with various computers and terminals. Staff worked quietly at the circulation desk. A bulletin board showed which collection was on each floor. He checked his phone again and started running up the stairs to take him up to the sixth floor, which was the predominant study area. Before too long, he found Roman and Hazel at a table together in a secluded corner with three other people. Eli kept the frown from his face when he recognized them. Gerald and Jane, Les''s friends, were there, but so was Lacey Blake. Eli marched over to the table with a growing sense of unease. Why was Lacey there? Was she mad about him winning, or was this completely unrelated? "Of course you were Delving." Hazel smirked at him once he reached the table. She moved her bag off the table in front of the chair next to her and set it down beside her. He took the obvious hint and sat down next to her with a smile. She had her laptop open in front of her while she worked on some sort of simulation software that had her city model spread out in different layers. "I thought it''d be quick." Eli shrugged with a wry smile while he turned to study Jane, who had pages of schematics and designs scattered in front of her and Roman. Gerald sat next to her with a textbook and laptop open in front of him, which seemed to be long forgotten in favor of the handheld game console he was playing on. Lacey sat at the foot of the table directly across from Roman and she had a single page in front of her covered with precise scribbles that were beyond cryptic. "I can''t believe you won the debate and took the power immediately to go Delving." Lacey scoffed derisively as she laid her pencil down. Her eyes narrowed behind her lenses as she glanced at him, then at Roman as if she noticed something different or odd about them. "I have to say... you seem different, Herbert. You''ve lost approximately 12.69% of your muscle mass along with a few other significant changes. " "Lacey." Jane said warningly as she pointed her pen at her. Lacey shook her head. "No, I don''t get it. You''re also 0.6858 centimeters shorter." Her eyes flitted back and forth while her lips moved silently. "There are other inconsistencies, but the math isn''t lining up." "What are you getting at?" Hazel asked gruffly. "I''m not sure yet, but I''ll let you know once I figure it out." She turned to pin Roman with the same piercing stare. "I don''t know what your numbers were before, but there are still irregular variables present on you. It''s the same set of numbers screaming out at me from both of you." "Leave them alone, Lace." Gerald said as he set his game down and frowned at her. The screen flickered and flashed as the joysticks and buttons moved with nearly silent tapping clicks. "You already cried to mom and dad about losing the debate and not getting the power even though you couldn¡¯t use it past evo-0. And I already told you I disagreed with your take. You''re obsessed with overspecialization." Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. "As if you''d understand, Ger. You take any power that seems remotely interesting. You only have a mediocre Body of Light and your build is a fucking mess! Everyone pats you on the back and says you''ll do fine, but oh no, I have to have my build perfect front and back. It doesn''t matter. I shouldn''t have lost and there''s something wrong about them!" She hissed while she looked at each of them, even him and Roman, as if she expected any of them to have an epiphany and point out what it was or to step in and defend her. No one did. She left in a huff. "Sorry about that, guys. She hyper-focuses on whatever she doesn''t understand." He shook his head before nodding at Eli. "So, you got that Charge power, huh? Any idea what you want to do with it?" "I have some ideas, but I''m not really sure." Eli admitted while he tried to put the awkwardness of what had happened out of mind. He pulled up his status and trimmed down the other notification, so it was only his new power options. "One second." [Stats: Body: Light (Photon Shot) Perks Equipped: [Might] Mind: None Will: None ] [Equipped Power List: Slot One -- Enchanter''s Dominion Ev. 0/Lv. 4 Slot Two -- Hyper-Regeneration Ev. 0/Lv. 3 Slot Three -- Voidspace Horizon Ev. 2/Lv. 0 Perks Equipped: [Subspace] ] [Unequipped Powers: Lumencloud Fortification Ev. 0/Lv. 5 (Maxed) Charge Ev. 0/Lv. 0 ] [Unequipped Perks: Blight ] Eli looked over the list again with a frown. Charge would let him build up and release potentially any kind of energy. That would be a huge addition, but he didn''t need it as an additional power. He''d almost rather break it down into a perk along with his other three new power options and see what he could make and then push the rest where they belonged. Proprioception, for instance, would be a huge help if he put it into either Body of Light or Voidspace Horizon. He looked into Titan''s Vault then smiled as he felt its impression bloom in his mind. There was no way he was taking it as it was with how the penalties would last until he leveled it to the same level it had been when he''d gotten it. He had no idea what that would be like with a ''condensed'' power. But it''d let him create an alternative space like his voidspace, but it was a real place and anything he stored in it could be copied and changed. If he stored a rock in it, he''d be able to shape and enlarge it as well as allow him to create multiple copies of it. It''d be a great tag on to Voidspace Horizon, but he felt like if he dismantled it for perks, he could flip it another way. Terranean Sovereignty was all about absolute control over the other, mixed with a domain power. What would happen if he merged whatever perks he could get from it together? He dismantled them down into perks with growing satisfaction at what he picked for each of them: Eli declined it before he studied his available perks again. The way this potential power was shaping up felt like it''d be an obvious power merge for Enchanter''s Dominion. He added Might and tried it both with and without Proprioception, but he couldn''t help but raise an eyebrow at the result. What would happen if he broke Charge down? He glanced at it again while he bit his lip. As it stood now, it was an open book on how it''d progress and evolve, but he''d need to max it out and merge it with something else to be useful in the first place. He dismantled it. All three were obvious, but had interesting results when removed from the other. Charge would pack in whatever he sent it without fail until it was forced to break free without a way to store or vent it. Store was a bit of a wild card with how it relied on the other two perks to give it a function, but he felt like it could have an interesting effect on the resulting power. Release would be a full release or incremental release of whatever something had stored. If he found ways to use it, it could be a very useful aspect to add to a power. Eli was leaning toward picking Store or Release though. Charge could have its uses, especially since Store would only allow an instant storage without further boosting or accumulation of whatever was stored. While Release would probably let him push whatever power it became attached to that much harder. He chose Store. It fit what Warmonger''s Vault seemed to be pushing toward, but it''d also potentially let him store more dubious things such as enchantments or more conceptual objects. He looked at his powers eagerly while he tried to figure out which one he wanted to swap it out with, but both Enchanter''s Dominion and Hyper-Regeneration were close to getting maxed out. It was only a difference of one or two levels. There was no way he was unequipping Voidspace Horizon, especially not after he equipped [Proprioception] into it. Clarity streamlined his spatial field around him, turning the grainy silhouette field into a colorless second sight, but more like touch. Avaricious Vault took Hyper-Regeneration''s place. Enchanter''s Dominion was far closer, and he felt like this would help him. Instantly, he felt a sense of another place weigh on his mind and body. It felt like he could slip inside of it just like he could fall into his voidspace, but it felt different too. It was empty, but he it begged to be filled. "Does anyone have a pencil?" Eli asked as he pulled his backpack open and searched while he prepared to teleport an old yellow wooden pencil that he''d packed into a spatial bubble ages ago when he first learned how to create spatial bubbles. "Yeah, here." Jane picked up one of the spare mechanical pencils she had lying next to their designs and schematics that she tossed at him. The instant it touched his hand, he felt the new path leading to Avaricious Vault for him to send it down. It vanished from his palm to reappear inside the space in Avaricious Vault. A plinth rose from the darkness to cradle the pencil as if it were a prized artifact. He tried to summon it then frowned as a copy of the pencil appeared in his hand instead. When he let go, it crumbled to dust that disintegrated further until there was nothing left. "Is that a new power?" Gerald asked as he leaned forward. "Decided to finally move away from the plasma, ice, and storm theme, huh?" Eli noted that combination down while he nodded. "Called Avaricious Vault, I dismantled Charge for it, but I''m trying to figure it out." "So... I''m not getting my pencil back?" Jane shot him a dour look alongside the incredulous stare Roman sent his way. Eli couldn''t help but notice how close they were sitting, but he couldn''t really say anything considering that his shoulder was practically brushing Hazel''s. "Um..." Another copy of the mechanical pencil appeared in his hand that collapsed upon itself the instant he let go of it. "Maybe not?" "Try this!" Gerald practically bounced in his seat as he rummaged through his backpack before he pulled out a crumpled notebook that he ripped a doodled on page out of. Eli took it and watched as it vanished into the vault too. Another plinth rose from the darkness to hold the next most prized junk in the universe. He summoned the crumpled ball while he tilted his head. "Can you write on it?" Hazel asked with a small nod. Another pencil appeared in his hand while he tried to write on the page, but it tore then disintegrated when he tried to color in a part of it. Irritation flashed through him. All he wanted was a smooth sheet of paper to¡ª The page in Avaricious Vault changed as it flattened and all the micro-tears and smudges of graphite disappeared. He summoned a blank sheet of paper that he drew a small picture of a basic house with a sun that his mom would''ve been proud to put on the fridge eighteen years ago, but probably wouldn''t care to now. Hazel touched the paper hesitantly once he stopped and he felt a question from the power. He accepted and watched as she took it before his connection to it severed and it vanished. It had only lasted for a few moments, but what if he wanted to give it up? He created another copy of paper and set it down with a smile when it didn''t disappear along with the same pencil as before. Ideas started spinning in his mind. "Quick, give me another sheet of paper." Eli took it from Gerald while he pushed Enchanter''s Dominion and some light from Body of Light into it. Another plinth rose next to the other piece of paper as it vanished. He summoned a copy discretely as he willed it to break down before appearing as a small rush of light reabsorbed into his body. Darkness vanished from Avaricious Vault as he stored light inside of it too. Avaricious Vault Ev. 0/Lv. 1> "Huh, I was able to store light..." Eli muttered as he tried to summon both light and the regular sheet of paper, then yelped as the paper smoldered harmlessly on his palm before they both vanished into Avaricious Vault as well. His eyes widened as fire got its own place of recognition. He looked up at the alarmed stares from everyone as he beamed. "How much do you want for it?" Gerald leaned forward desperately as he stared at him. "It''s not for sale." Eli said as he tried to summon a paper folded in the shape of a pencil and it appeared. This was going to be revolutionary for him, especially if he figured out how to do more than scratch the surface of what it could do. Plinths and displays sprouted from the dim light of the vault as he shoved everything he didn''t mind losing into it from his hoard of spatial bubbles in his voidspace. He wished he could... oh. Eli stuck his hand into the vault and ignored everyone''s exclamations when his hand vanished, then reappeared with Jane''s mechanical pencil held in it. He set it down with a wide smile. He summoned a shimmering calculator out of the vault and smiled as he felt the lumencloud enchantments double and persist. Enchanter''s Dominion flared out as he tried to snuff the enchantment out and push it over back into the original, but instead, he watched as the calculator teleported into the vault where it doubled with the original. He felt the enchantment double in strength along with the material as it was refined. Avaricious Vault Ev. 0/Lv. 2> Enchanter''s Dominion Ev. 0/Lv. 5> This was going to be fun. Only two powers left to max out. He swapped Enchanter¡¯s Dominion out for Hyper-Regeneration, then frowned at the cooldown message. BII: Chapter Eleven Eli fidgeted with his stopper he''d grabbed for his to-go coffee while he waited in a tucked away corner in the Pandemonium Cafe. He''d meant to sequester himself for comfort, but he''d accidentally sat down near the restrooms and felt beyond awkward about it. The rest of the tables and booths had filled up with people chatting on their lunch break or other students or people doing work on their laptops. Eli glanced up again, then winced. Maeve still wasn''t there, and she was running late. He rubbed his dreary eyes that ached from lack of sleep while he re-summoned a copy of lumencloud with Avaricious Vault to revitalize himself a bit. Voidspace Horizon wrapped around his table in a tight cordon so he didn''t accidentally spread his spatial field too far into the restrooms or the rest of the restaurant. Hyper-Regeneration jumped on the copied lumencloud and guided it through Body of Light with a shivering rush. The past two days had been a constant grind of assignments, power training, and a deep dive into Herbert''s family and messages with his relatives. He had pushed himself so hard that Hyper-Regeneration had offered to reconfigure his brain to boost his short and long-term memory. It had already reworked his nervous system and other parts of his brain to boost his processing speed. All the work he''d allowed, guided, and prompted it to do on his body had pumped it up to level four. He knew it was only a matter of time until it maxed out and was ready. Avaricious Vault was close behind. Bells jingled on the door. He glanced up, then grimaced when it was just a couple leaving. Eli leaned back in his chair as he fought to keep the rising tide of jumbled nerves calm. He tried to prompt Hyper-Regeneration to soothe his uneasiness, but it ignored the response in favor of asking him if he wanted it to ensure his body produced more glucose for more energy. He declined its offer of diabetes. Vibrations rocked his phone in his voidspace as someone called him. He teleported it discretely into his hand, hoping it was Maeve with an update, but it was Hazel. He answered the phone right as a tall man walked around the corner to step into the bathroom. Embarrassment flushed through him. "How was it?" Hazel asked breathlessly over the slight rustle of static from whatever she was doing. She had mentioned going to the gym earlier, but she had also said she was going to create her city model too. "She hasn''t shown up yet." Eli sighed, then winced as a woman sitting a few tables away glared at him over her laptop screen. He folded space around his spatial field to try to contain any sounds he made. "I keep expecting her to send a text or call, but nothing." "Do you want me to swing by?" "I don''t know... It might be kind of awkward." Eli shrugged while he pushed the tangle of emotions that came up from that suggestion away. Apparently Herbert hadn''t mentioned Hazel at all and he''d feel awful stealing what he assumed was his counterpart''s first sort of girlfriend meeting his family away from him. He didn''t really know what Hazel and Herbert were, let alone what she was to him. "You haven''t told them about me still?" She sounded almost hurt as she sighed. "Well, okay. I don''t know if I want to do this right now, especially over the phone, but I don''t like that. Last Thursday you were saying you wanted to be a bit more serious and then over the weekend you''ve pulled back a lot ever since our date. I thought at first you were acting like a completely different person and in some ways I like it, but I''m not sure what''s going on. Do you even want to date, or what?" Eli winced at that while he tried to think of a response. How did you respond to acting like someone else when you were someone else? Should he tell her the truth? Confess he wasn''t Herbert (even though Herbert was his middle name), but that he enjoyed spending time with her and didn''t want to hurt her? Would he tell her about his own growing feelings? He opened then closed his mouth. Dimensional travel wasn''t absolutely unheard of, but it was rare enough that he didn''t want to cause waves. Especially since he and Roman had stolen their counterparts'' lives in a very literal way since they appeared here four days ago, technically five since it was in the middle of Friday night, but still. He didn''t know what would happen if they told the truth. "Okay, fine. I''m sorry. This isn''t the time, but... I want to talk later, okay?" Hazel hung up before he could respond. Eli cradled Herbert''s phone in his hands with a grimace. What was he going to do? "Rough phone call?" asked a blonde haired woman who had a pair of sunglasses resting on the top of her head. She wore a gray-blue sundress with a cardigan wrapped over her shoulders. Dried bloodstains dotted her boots beside the smeared clods of dirt. "Yeah." Eli looked up, then blinked as recognition flashed. Maeve looked exactly like her pictures, but he hadn''t realized how familiar she would look. Maeve was the spitting image of Mom except for the dark blue of her eyes from Dad. His heart ached as he realized an unknown longing for an older sibling of his own. "I''ve been talking to a girl, but I don''t know..." She nodded as she pointed at his coffee and asked, "What did you get?" "White chocolate mocha." He shrugged while she set down her sunglasses and a shopping bag with DELVERS stamped on the side. "Finally mixing it up from almost black coffee?" She smirked before she turned around to walk over to the counter. "I''ll order real quick then we can sit for a bit and chat or head out. Sounds good?" He nodded, then frowned as she walked over to stand in line while she played on her phone. Eli''s thoughts returned to trying to figure out what he was going to do. Guilt gnawed at him after seeing Maeve, who looked eerily like she was his sister already. But he wasn''t Herbert. Bitterness coated his tongue with the tang of every lie he had to tell just to fit in. But how much worse would it be if they told the truth? They didn''t belong here in any way or fashion; they were just reflections of their counterparts. Eli didn''t want to be locked up with Roman or destroy Herbert and Les''s life by fucking it up, playing pretend. He was struggling to do any of Herbert''s assignments, interact with his friends, and not to mention his difficulties with the Delve team. He was far too weak to contribute as it was. How was he going to ever find the time to untangle the mystery of dimensional travel if they kept living a life that wasn''t theirs? Besides, he kind of felt like he owed it to Herbert''s family and Hazel to tell them the truth. But how would that go? ''Oh, hey, because of the Initialization my parents'' enemies from almost two decades ago escaped prison, tried to kill us, then marooned me and my friend here in your dimension? Herbert and Romulus are probably in our dimension back home, but don''t worry!¡¯ That didn''t exactly inspire much confidence. "Hm, it tastes good." Maeve smiled as she came back with a white chocolate mocha of her own. "I like how they''re able to enchant the coffee to adjust the temperature and flavors based on what powers people have." "Oh yeah? I didn''t notice." Eli took a sip of his own and frowned at how cold it had gotten. He prepared to discreetly teleport the coffee out of the cup so he could warm it up in his voidspace, but Maeve tapped her finger to the cup first. A power with unfathomable depths unfolded from her to encompass his mug before distortions flickered through it. Steam wafted from the lid''s spout. "Thanks." "Of course. Well, what do you think? Walk around, or do you want to sit here and chat?" She took another sip while she watched him. "How about a walk?" "Lead the way." She gathered her things before she let him walk in front of her as they left the cafe. Paranoia nipped at him while they followed the weaving path through the aisles out of the building into the sunlight. Eli smiled as the warmth of the sun danced across his skin before he turned around to meet Maeve''s narrowed eyes. Color leeched out of the world while her glare sharpened. Space skipped with a series of nearly imperceptible leaps until they stood in an identical world of black and white. Sunlight and wind vanished along with all natural motion. Strips and fragments of voidspace lit up in his awareness of his tattered spatial field. Whatever power she had over space not only far exceeded his own, but it was entirely different. "What... is... this?" Eli gasped as the air in his lungs and in the world barely moved in response to his rising terror. Every ragged breath was reduced to a feeble wheeze. He tried to move, but it felt like the weight of the world rested upon him. "Who are you, and what have you done with my brother?" Maeve demanded as a tendril of lightning burst from her hand before it shattered and froze six feet away as it reformed into a wicked crackling blade of electricity. Storm clouds burst from her skin in a swirl before electricity ricocheted from each wisp of cloud as it turned into ceremonial plate armor inscribed with sweeping patterns. Only her face was left bare. "What?" Eli blinked as a fraction of the leaden heaviness planted on his body lightened. Oxygen flooded his lungs as Hyper-Regeneration swept through him in a flash before he swapped it out with Lumencloud Fortification. Power streamed into him, but it was a hollow strength rendered meaningless against the absolute sheer control she possessed of their surroundings. "Who. Are. You." Her long razor-thin blade straightened as she pointed it straight at his eye. It was so thin and perfectly structured he could only see the tip that boiled with all the contained turbulence of a wrathful storm. "My name is Elias Herbert Newton! I''m from another dimension. I accidentally got sent here in the middle of a fight with our parents'' enemy, Sandra. Right as my friend Roman killed her, she dumped us here. I think that Herbert and Romulus were sent back to our dimension, but I''m not sure." Maeve frowned at him while she listened to his rambling prattle. She let go of her now floating sword with a roar of laughter. It shifted, so the tip dug into the ridge of his brow just enough so it didn''t pierce the skin. Maeve started pacing while her sword held him hostage. She didn''t say a word or make a single noise as she walked around him while she studied him at every angle. True terror sizzled from the pit of his stomach as he fruitlessly tried pushing with Voidspace Horizon to teleport away from her in this space or to even reach across to where they had been. What was this? Some kind of domain or dimension power? Whatever it was vastly outstripped his powers to where they were parlor tricks compared to what she had displayed so far. If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. Voidspace Horizon was completely unresponsive except for the glimmers of voidspace he sensed around them. Hyper-Regeneration had worked, but barely. Lumencloud Fortification hardly worked with the almost immovable air around them. Avaricious Vault bridged from him off into his vault cluttered with plinths and shelves of whatever junk he had stuffed it with. Including a rack full of lumencloud weapons like knives, swords, heavy clubs, and even a bow and quiver full of lumencloud arrows. A mannequin bore the suit of lumencloud armor he''d painstakingly created, then enchanted with Hyper-Regeneration. He was a bug in the palm of her hand. But if it came down to it, he''d fight with whatever he had to survive. "So. Let me get this straight Elias Herbert Newton. You claim to be my brother from a whole other dimension sent here against your will?" She appeared right in front of him as she teleported through this bizarre space. "Do you really expect me to believe that?" "It''s the truth." "Well, there''s one way to find out." Lightning crackled in her hands as she created something else. Adrenaline surged through him as he yanked and clawed at the surrounding space with Voidspace Horizon. Eli was supposed to be free with his powers. How was he going to be held captive in space when he had evolved from Voidspace Mastery to this? Muscles thrashed and vibrated with tension as he flexed to slip away as chains attached to crescents formed in her hands. Eli hadn''t come this far to die like this. His will beckoned Avaricious Vault, and it answered as copy after copy of his armor appeared in a shell around him. Each carefully fashioned plate fizzed as he reabsorbed it into himself to stoke the luminous tempest inside of him. Strength, Stamina, and Perception ignited as his body transformed into radiance. He summoned one final suit of armor at the same time he created a fresh one until he was a behemoth of lustrous power. Handcuffs dangled from her fist as he tried to throw off the fetters of her black-and-white world. She raised an eyebrow as she opened one cuff to snare it over his radiant wrist. Memories seared across his vibrant eyes as he unleashed all his gathered light and lumencloud at once to move. Eli''s body jerked to the size with a seismic effort of will. Light and radiant clouds seethed from his skin with a whimper from the sheer difference in their powers. He didn''t understand what was so different from Maeve''s powers compared to what Sandra or Daniels used against him. They had been near the cap of peak evo-3 and he''d defeated them easily. Why could he only thrash uselessly against her? "Be still." Maeve tutted as she reappeared next to him as if this alternate world bent to her will and brought her there. His teleports were so violent in comparison, as if he ripped space apart, while she was just there one second, then here in the next. He brought all of his power out to strike, to flee, and it didn¡¯t even faze her. She bent to clasp the handcuff over his wrist again when he commanded his powers to take him away from her. Violet light spat out sparkling tears in the devastation of voidspace from his skin as Avaricious Vault pulled him into its embrace. Eli heaved as he collapsed in the middle of his vault with a flare of light and color as her overbearing influence vanished. Notifications scrolled across his vision, but he ignored them as he pulled himself. His legs quivered as he copied and absorbed light into his body to recover. It was interesting how solid and timeless his copies felt inside of Avaricious Vault, as if they were the real thing. Relief filled him once he reached the genuine suit of his armor. Another suit of lumencloud armor flickered over him as he created a copy and devoured it for its fortification and the Hyper-Restoration enchantment woven inside of it. Voidspace stretched around him as his spatial field repaired itself and showed him the small, but endless potential in size, space, and power inside of the vault. Vibrations shuddered through the vault, rattling everything he had stored as black-and-white embers drifted through the air. It split with a resounding boom as Maeve stepped through a tear into his vault. Splinters of agony rammed into his spine from the head down as she walked closer to him. Color smoldered as the black-and-white residue of her power spread. He just wanted the pain to stop. "Leave me alone," Eli hissed as he ripped a lumencloud spear off the rack and hurled it at her with a shove from each of his powers. Space folded as the butt of the spear exploded in a jet of howling winds. The vault constricted around its passage as it faded almost to nonexistence while the spear overflowed with power. Body of Light radiance bolstered it further. "Huh." Maeve caught it with a squalling squeal as the spear shredded itself into a hailstorm of frozen lumencloud shards that pinged harmlessly off her armor. Illuminated beads of cloudy water dripped off her before the spreading black-and-white stain of power immobilized each bead in the air. She reappeared beside him as she dragged him out of the vault back into the monotone representation of the real world. Handcuffs clasped around his wrists for a moment before they vanished. "Interesting. You have some explaining to do, Elias Newton." Eli stumbled as the tension that had corralled him in whatever sort of spatial field her power vanished as color returned to his body and clothes. He turned around in confusion as the world around them blurred before color and sound returned with the sunlight and wind of Anchora city. They stood on the rooftop of one of the towering skyscrapers across town. He turned around to ogle her in bewilderment before he noticed with a blink that her storm construct armor and weapons had vanished, leaving her in her dress again with her coffee in her hands. Eli checked his status with a frown before he glanced back at her and her patient, unyielding gaze. Hyper-Regeneration Ev. 0/Lv. 5> Avaricious Vault Ev. 0/Lv. 4> Avaricious Vault Ev. 0/Lv. 5> Eli beamed at the sight of him finally maxing out all the powers he needed to finish. He was excited to see what they would become. However, he read the next notification that followed with a grimace.