by Lucy Roy
“Alright, let’s skip light for now and start there, then. How did you go about manipulating the water just now?”
“I just kind of thought back to yesterday, when I sent that water at Mary. I saw it and I wanted it to move, so it did. So, this time, I pictured the water moving in a different direction.”
“Okay, then let’s try to apply that same logic to wind and see if you can give us a nice breeze.”
“I—ok.”
How the heck was I supposed to do that?
I hadn’t really thought about it when he asked me to use water; I just pictured the water moving, and it moved, which was exactly what I’d done the day before. I’d been angry when he asked me to do it, though, and Chiron seemed to think that emotional reaction would make it simple to access those powers.
This time, I had nothing. Aside from a little apprehension, no major emotion was flowing through me.
At a loss, I closed my eyes and reached back to the memory of Andrei using his breath to dry my shirt, hoping it would trigger something. My power stirred, and a feeling of curiosity washed through me. Small feelers, similar to what I’d felt when Nate had gone into my mind the previous day, began to examine the memory. As I watched Andrei slowly dry my soaked sweater, a pale magenta light seemed to follow the path his breath made. It traced itself down until it hit my shirt, enveloping it and sucking the moisture right out. Once the shirt was dry, the wind receded, and the light was sucked back in.
Only, it didn’t all return. A small piece, barely more than a speck, remained. It hovered in front of my face, circling around, before drifting down to my chest. Then, without warning, I felt a small pinch as it was sucked right into my chest.
Holy crap.
“Tessa!”
Nate was calling me.
My eyes snapped open, and I saw that a strong wind was blowing across the lawn.
“Ha!” Chiron exclaimed, clapping. “I knew it!”
I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to figure out how to shut the wind down. The water had worn me out; I’d collapsed before I had a chance to turn it off. This time, I settled for just picturing the wind stopping, and when I opened my eyes again, I saw that it had worked.
When I looked at Nate, he was beaming. Seeing such happiness on his face was a bit disarming.
“Amazing.” He shook his head and stared at me in wonder. “Absolutely amazing.”
His smile is gorgeous.
The smile on his face grew wider, so before I could embarrass myself further, I turned to Chiron.
“So does this mean I can coerce him?” I jerked my chin toward Nate.
Nate’s face turned serious, and he glanced quickly at Chiron.
“To be honest, I think you already have,” Chiron said to me before turning to Nate. “You said she was forcefully blocking you yesterday? When you went into her mind?”
“Yes, I could feel her power beating back against my own. You think she was mimicking my power and using that to keep me out?”
I smirked. He did not sound pleased at that prospect.
Chiron nodded slowly. “I do. Considering we’ve just discovered she’s able to manipulate other powers, it’s the only thing that makes sense.”
“True, but her powers have been erratic at best. How could she use something as powerful as Coercion so effectively?”
“I’m not sure.” He looked at me speculatively before turning back to Nate. “You said her powers seemed sentient, correct?”
Nate gave a sharp nod. “Yes. As though there was an entirely separate consciousness at work in her mind.”
“Tessa, is that how it feels for you?” Chiron asked.
“Very much so. I had to fight pretty hard when I was trying to let Nate into my mind yesterday. It’s like my power is there with me and for me, but it hasn’t really become a part of me, if that makes sense?”
“Hmm.” He looked back and forth between Nate and me. “What did you see when you were drawing on the wind power?”
I explained what I’d seen when I recalled the memory of Andrei drying off my shirt.
“A small speck of power, you say?” Chiron’s black brown eyes were sparkling, as though he was on the verge of a big idea.
I nodded quickly. “Yes, just a little bit, maybe the size of the tip of my pinkie.” I held up my little finger.
“Interesting.” He crossed his arms across his chest.
“Nathaniel, didn’t you say you used your powers on her when she was still human?”
Nate’s cheeks flushed pink. “Yes, but—”
“No need to be ashamed,” Chiron said, waving off his protest. “It’s possible that this has something to do with the fact that you entered her mind while she was still human. You see—” he turned toward me, “—the human mind is very susceptible to manipulation, and if a power as strong as Nathaniel’s is forced into the mind of one who is destined to become a Mimic, well, it’s possible that power could leave a mark, much like Andrei’s did. His power could’ve been the first you gained access to.”
Nate snapped his fingers.
“That’s why I saw Mentalist abilities at her transition.” He shook his head and let out a laugh. “I seriously thought there was something wrong with my own powers.”
I held up a hand and shook my head. “Hang on, that still doesn’t make sense. I’m a Telekinetic. That’s what Nate announced, and it was the first power I was able to use successfully.”
Chiron tapped a finger on his chin and eyed me speculatively. “Did any Telekinetics use their power before you the other night?”
I frowned. “Yeah, actually. Charlise did.”
He held up his hands and smiled. “There you have it. It’s likely you wouldn’t have been successful had Charlise not used her power in your presence first.”
“Fine, but that still doesn’t explain why Nate announced me as a Telekinetic and not a Coercer.”
“Hmm.” Genevieve put her hands on her hips. “Nathaniel, didn’t ye tell me once that Telekinetics are the easiest Mentalists to both announce and train?”
Nate frowned, then nodded. “Yes, because their power doesn’t rely on the presence of another living creature. It’s the least complex of all the Mentalist powers. If she potentially has access to all Mentalist affinities, then it would make sense that the simplest of them would be the most evident at her transformation.”
“That’s certainly worth being explored,” Chiron said. “If she is, in fact, a Mimic—"
“Right here, guys.” I was starting to get irritated now. This was a big freaking deal and they were throwing around theories and talking as though I wasn’t even there.
“I’m sorry,” Nate replied, looking sheepish. He looked toward Chiron. “She’s right. These are just theories, but—"
I narrowed my eyes at him. “I didn’t say anything about theories.”
His brow furrowed in confusion. “Yes, you did. Just a second ago.”
“What are you talking about, Nathaniel?” Genevieve looked just as confused.
“Dammit.” I put my hands on my hips and glared at Chiron. “Is there any way I can shut that off?”
“Shut what off?”
“The yelling thing. Nate said I’m always doing it.”
“Not always,” Nate said. “You just project. A lot.”
“That’s a different issue entirely,” Chiron replied. “You’ll need to practice building up your mental walls a bit more efficiently is all. It shouldn’t be difficult, considering your power.”
I sighed. “Considering we know next to nothing about my power, I don’t find that likely.”
“It’ll just take some practice,” Nate said gently. “I’ll help you, don’t worry.”
I pressed my lips into a thin line and nodded, then looked up at him and tried to smile. “Thanks.”
He gave my shoulder a squeeze, then frowned. “Are you alright?”
“Yeah, it’s just a little weird, that’s all. I was having a hard-enough time yesterday, and now you guys
are saying I have to figure out this power that’s about a million times bigger than I thought.”
“We’ll figure it out,” Nate assured me, “…whatever it is. Did you want to try a few more things?”
I opened my mouth to respond, but Genevieve cut me off.
“Let’s give the girl a break, shall we?” Genevieve suggested. “We can give light a try another time. I’m going to take her for a walk.”
I gave her a relieved smile. “Yeah, I think that’s a good idea,” I said.
Nate’s gaze drifted to Chiron, who nodded.
“Of course. Come back when you’re ready.”
I let Genevieve lead me toward the dirt road that would take us back to town. She waited until we were a few hundred yards away before speaking.
“Are you okay?”
“Not really,” I murmured.
“This is an amazing thing, ye know? If it’s true?”
I wrapped my arms around myself as I stared at the road ahead. Annoyance washed over me as I felt the sting of tears in my eyes. “I thought so, too, but the more I think about it, the more I’m starting to feel like a giant freak.”
She smiled and slid her hands into the pockets of her fitted black uniform pants. “Oh, I understand that feeling, at least somewhat. When I was told I had five affinities, it was quite overwhelming.”
“How did you handle it? With training and everything? Did people look at you weird?”
“Training was difficult,” she conceded. “And there were others who felt I saw myself as above the rest.” She pressed her lips together grimly. “They were wrong, of course, and they’re all past it now, but I won’t lie and say it was easy at first.”
Her heavy Scottish accent had a soothing effect, and I found myself slowly relaxing.
“Well, maybe I’ll get lucky and it’ll turn out I’ve only got a bunch of affinities,” I said hopefully. “And not some one-of-a-kind weirdo.”
“Oh, honey, we’re all a bunch of weirdos in this world. Don’t let anyone tell ye different.”
I couldn’t help smiling. It was weird, hearing such heavy wisdom in her voice when she looked only a few years older than me.
“Hey, so can I ask a question? Not related to affinities?”
“Certainly.”
“When did you stop aging?” I asked. “My guardians told me I’d keep aging for a few years until I reached ‘full adulthood,’ but how long does that take?”
Her brown eyes crinkled with laughter as she smiled over at me. “Your mind goes to funny places when it wants to be distracted, doesn’t it?”
“I guess so,” I said with a shrug.
“Well, to answer your question, I think it was about four or five years. Ye don’t really notice that you’ve stopped aging at first, so it’s tough to put an exact number on it.”
“Huh. Interesting. So do I get to request to train with you, then?”
“If ye don’t, I’d be quite insulted.” She smiled and patted me on the back. “It will be quite fun to work with someone who can match me power for power.”
I felt the corner of my mouth turn up in a small smile.
“That does sound pretty cool.”
29
Nathaniel
“Should we tell Zeus?”
The words felt odd coming out of my mouth. A week ago, I wouldn’t have questioned whether to go to Zeus with news of a potential Mimic in our midst. We were on the brink of war, and someone with power like that could be invaluable.
Now, as Chiron and I stood watching as Tessa and Genevieve walked toward the dirt road that led back to Main Street, I struggled with it.
“No, Nathaniel, I think we should wait,” he said quietly. “We don’t know for certain what she is.”
I let out a relieved sigh. “Agreed.”
He nodded, looking pensive, then turned to stare at me with his formidable gaze. “If this turns out to be true, she’s going to need support. I don’t think I need to tell you how monumental this is.”
“No, you certainly don’t.
He put his hands on his hips and looked back toward the arena. From the rumblings within, it sounded as though the warm-up runs had just ended.
“For now, we need to keep this to ourselves.”
“Her best friends live right here on Olympus, one just down the hall. If you think she’ll keep this from them, you’re crazy.”
“That may not be such a bad thing, assuming they can keep it to themselves.” He scratched behind his ear. “No offense to you, but I have a feeling support from someone like you may not rival that of the female she’s known all her life.”
“I suppose.” Annoyed, I turned and started walking back toward the arena.
Chiron fell into step beside me. “This seems to be bothering you quite a bit. Why is that?”
“She’s brand new, Chiron. She shouldn’t have to deal with something like this.”
He raised a brow and smirked. “It has nothing to do with the feelings you’re developing for her?”
I stared at the ground for a moment, unsure how to respond. The feelings of caring for someone had become foreign to me, and it was something I was struggling to wrap my mind around.
“It might,” I finally conceded.
“Ha!” He gave a little jump. “So you admit it!”
I gave him a wry smile. “Care to tell me what to do about it?”
Three thousand years old, and here I was asking for advice on women.
“It’s not your first rodeo, Nathaniel.” He grinned and clapped my back. “Isn’t that what the humans say?”
I punched his shoulder, and he winced.
“Honestly, I don’t know what you’re so worried about. It’s in our nature to love, to want to be with someone. You’d by no means be the first to start a romantic relationship on this blasted rock.”
I laughed. “True.”
Despite the rigorous training they went through, the Ischyra still had social lives, and their dating pool was quite large. Marriages were rare, children even more so, but romantic relationships were very common. Quite frequently, those relationships involved gods or even humans, in some cases.
“And I have no aversion. I just haven’t had any interest until now, that’s all.”
“So what will you do?”
“First?” I held my palms up and shrugged. “First, I’m going to help you find out what she is. Then, we’ll see.”
“She cares for you,” he said quietly. “You’ve seen that in her mind, I’m sure.”
“I try not to invade her privacy like that. There are some things that come, through.” I smiled as I recalled her thoughts on my smile earlier. “But ever since that day outside of her school…I just don’t unless I need to.”
“Understandable.” He looked back toward the road and nodded in her direction. “It’s time to bring her back. She needs to join training.”
“I’ll get Gen,” I said, directing my thoughts toward her.
‘It’s time to head back in,’ I told her.
‘Ay, we’ll be there shortly.’
“They’re on their way,” I told Chiron. Recalling my conversation with Prometheus the day before, I stopped him.
“I spoke with Prometheus yesterday when I was at Apollo’s. He’d like to help with hand-to-hand and weapons training.”
“I think that’s a good idea. What about his brother?” he asked.
“He wants to see Epimetheus more involved with the recruits, if possible.”
“I agree. He can’t mope in his brother’s shadow forever. The rest of us moved on from Pandora eons ago, it’s time he did the same.”
We stepped through the doors of the arena and were greeted by the site of Christopher attempting unsuccessfully to call order to the recruits.
“Unbelievable,” Chiron muttered as he pulled out his bugle. “Thirty minutes. All I asked was thirty minutes.” He raised the bugle to his lips and blew a single, long blast.
The crowd of recruits immed
iately grew silent, and Chiron and I made our way to the front.
“Now that we’re all warmed up,” Chiron shouted, “I’ll give you a rundown of our upcoming schedule. For the rest of this week, we will be focused solely on getting comfortable with your affinities. Next week, we’ll move on to a bit of hand-to-hand and weapons training, which you should have gotten a fair dose of with your guardians.” He folded his arms across his chest. “Did anyone here not receive the requisite weapons training prior to their transformation?”
I followed his gaze as he looked out over the crowd. Aside from the academic and civic aspects, Ares and Athena also decreed that Ischyra were to receive training in all physical forms of fighting prior to their transformation.
When none responded, he gave a sharp nod.
“Wonderful. We’ll be joined by Prometheus and Epimetheus for these lessons, as their skills in this area are quite extensive. Right now, let’s split off into your groups from yesterday, and your mentors will tell you where to go from there.”
‘We’re back.’
I turned toward the entrance and saw Genevieve and Tessa walking toward the crowd of recruits that was now splitting up into their affinity groups. Genevieve gave her a pat on the shoulder before heading off to join her group of mentees. Before I could take a step toward Tessa, Annette skipped over to join her, her blond pigtails swinging, and the two started talking.
“Where’d you all run off to?” Charlise spoke, having just appeared by my side with Fletcher.
“I had to help Chiron with something,” I responded. “Let’s get started.”
Without another word, I strolled off toward the tables that had been set up for the Mentalist recruits. As I neared the tables, I glanced up and saw Apollo standing in the top level of the arena, gazing at the recruits below. A few seconds later, Prometheus and Epimetheus joined him.
‘Anything you’d like to discuss?’
I gritted my teeth when I heard Apollo’s voice in my head.
‘No.’
Before he could respond, I closed off my mental walls entirely. When I looked up at him, he was glaring down at me, his lips set in a hard line.
Just then, Fletch showed up beside me.
