Val781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4h2cfXwzPo
Ash sleeps until the sun rises and a sliver falls on his face. He wakes up and accidentally punches me in the face with his fists as he yawns. He jumps as he realizes I'm still here. "What the-?" He nods as he remembers what happened. "You actually stayed?"781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3E1H2BnZLr
I try to hide my blush and shuffle a little away from him. "Uh, yeah, I didn't want to be alone with only my thoughts. Besides, I told you that I wasn't going to leave you. Never, you're stuck with me."781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjTZbK9FbnJ
He grins, "I don't know if I should be glad about that. What time is it?"781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHIKYxysn3i
I look over at his desk and see a quartz clock ticking. "5:41 am. Do you always get up this early?"781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG2oiGtXITi
He sits up and throws the sheets away from his body. He stands and stretches, yawning as he goes along. I can't help but stare at him. His hair is ruffled up and his eyes are dilated so that his pupils are huge. He's gorgeous in his own sort of way.781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSdqtex9nXG
"Come on, it's time for morning workouts." He rubs at the scar on his shoulder and rotates his shoulders. "You don't have to participate but you should come with me. We can play some music and have a grand time."781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnKgcGC3iia
"You train in the mornings too? So morning, middle of the day weights, and then afternoon training?"781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW1izeu9Ntq
"First of all, I have to hold myself back in weights. I'm honestly stronger than all of them combined, but I needed to do something that went with my profession. So more work outs. That reminds me, it's not training, it's a workout. That's basically crossfit on steroids- no not steroids, on crack. I can't go too hard or I'll be sore whenever I go to school but now, I'm good. Come on, we can practice with your ability today. If you're up for it."781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhYPeut9Z5t
I stand and elbow him, I've been wanting to see what I'm capable of since last night. I want to prove that I'm not just a sitting duck. "let's go Asahel. Let's go train."781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSIKdRtgN2k
He smiles, "I hoped you would say that." He races down the stairs, his socked feet barely making a soft thud against the creaky old wood. I race down beside him and every footstep I take is like a clanging cymbal. 781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiR6Rl6dVXC
When we walk into the secret door and down the steps, Ash leads me into the room full of control panels and security camera footage. He taps absent mindedly on a laptop overlooking the training arena. Equipment and other obstacles begin popping out of the walls and spit out of the darkness. I see a ropes course complete with no harnesses and a fake rock wall. Then a few stations which I'm guessing must be more of a crossfit thing.781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdgj0yooVgA
"When I say go, press enter. Play some music while you're at it, it's a good distraction." He points to a different computer which I'm guessing has the music. "Have fun with their music choices." He quickly strips off his socks and throws them at me. I almost incinerate them with my hands. He walks into the training arena and lays on the ground in pushup position.781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV0HYnBt3Hx
I poise my finger over the enter button and wait for his signal. He looks up at the daunting challenge in front of him and sighs. "Alright. Now!" 781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3hnoz6gjuK
I slam my finger on the key as a large red stopwatch appears on the training room walls. Five minutes. Five minutes for him to complete this whole thing? No way.781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIOvrDtxrzE
He starts doing rapid pushups and I turn to the other computer, pressing the play button accidentally. A voice blares from speakers. "Stayin' alive, stayin' alive. Ah-" I press a random button. "You ain't nothin' but a hound-" Elvis? Another random button. "If you want to destroy my sweater-" I press another button frantically. "R-E-S-P-E-C-T. Find out what it means to me-" This is getting annoying. "It's the final countdown-"781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVvfYqjdOGv
"Ash don't you have anything that's not from the 80's?"781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRjXod7UX7y
He looks up at me from doing crunches. "No. They aren't all from the 80s. Mom and dad haven't ever gotten over their days of youth. Just play something good."781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzKFkK1ERs7
"I don't know how to work this thing!" I start jabbing every button. "Ain't goin' down till the sun comes up, ain't go-" "You don't have to call me darlin', darlin'-" 781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAsRF4ak8fR
"What is Merle Haggard and Garth Brooks doing here?!"781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUF6ufkAaFM
"Keep going, you're in the country years!" He is now doing box sprints at a blinding speed. Next suicides, he's sweating but it looks like he's just took a jog through the neighborhood. That's angering.781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYoW5VSKkTJ
"Whoa, we're halfway there, oh-oh livin' on a prayer-"781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHaZmHyqupl
"That's a good one but it's overplayed by the parents. So skip."781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdUF6w2bEb3
"I'm not trying to be a nuisance-" Right now it's Ash's theme song for me. "You can take the one thing I have left, beat me to the ground and take my breath-"781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7QJbqtvU0L
Ash motions for me to restart that song. "See, that's an early 2000s song. Don't generalize, all generalizations are wrong." Now he's climbing the rock wall, his red bare feet clinging to the fake rocks as he propels himself closer to the ropes course.781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgAz8B0FvS6
He's suspended ten feet in the air by the time he makes it halfway up the course. Now he's making me nervous.781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO3EPq1LiOD
"Can someone please radio for help?" The song blasts out a few lines in a loud melody. 781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt2wf96tOsA
He makes it to the ropes course and the timer hits two minutes. He steps out onto a thin rope tightrope and stares at me. Twenty feet in the air, no harness and a very hard floor below him. He bends down shakily and grabs the rope with his hands. He wobbles all over the place but he balances enough to keep him above the rope. Then, he swings himself down and hangs by his arms. He cockily winks at me as he starts moving.781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDMgKhFBYdU
"You can take the one thing I have left, I give it all away for so much less, even take the heart inside my chest-"781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPXroWSxe8d
He begins to swing across the tightrope like he's done it a hundred times. He keeps going through the one tightrope and onto the next. He grimaces as if something hurts him. His fingers slip.781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRTGnW5c5Os
"And I swear we were born to let you down. We scream but never make a sound."781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsF6OQGB5ri
I scream as he falls. He tries to grab onto something with telekinesis and flails his arms like one of those cartoon characters trying to fly. He screams and tries to maneuver so he'll fall on his knees, but it won't matter. I thrust my hand out more out of instinct. Suddenly, Ash is suspended inches above the ground. A throbbing pain pulls at my temples as I pull away my arm and he drops. The throb stops immediately. 781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvHFzeff0NG
"Don't wanna be the same. Cause we point the finger, act like everyone else is to blame! Blame-" I press the off button for the music.781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpJOb88g7ox
Ash sits on the ground staring at me with unbelief. I hurry out of the control panel room and sit beside him. "Are you hurt? What happened?"781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡApRoLa1Gin
His eyes stare at me in unbelief as he sits back and rubs at his shoulder. "How did you do that?"781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsya3NoVEoz
"I don't know." I furrow my eyebrows. "I'm not sure, I just instinctually threw my hand out to catch you. It was like in the movies where the character tries to grab something out of reach before it falls. It felt weird. Why what's wrong?"781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRDNfcwaAVc
He stares at my eyes and shakes his head. "Val. You're a receiver right?"781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBU6UGfewOG
I nod. "Yeah. What are you trying to say?"781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhW93YbXbyr
"Receivers only get one ability. You set the school on fire and saved me. That means you have-"781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡabTHBSi6yJ
"Two abilities? That can't be right." I stare at my hands, "it was purely instinctual. It can't be right that I have two abilities. Maybe you caught yourself."781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuRtSAe00A1
"There's only one way to find out." He marches off into a closet to our right, appearing with a few large knives. I don't like where this is going.781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoL5NepFTff
Suddenly, he throws a knife into the air and sends it hurtling towards my face. I yelp in surprise and put my hands in front of my face to defend myself. I peer through my fingers and see the knife drop to the ground as if it hit a hard brick wall. Ash sends the last two knives sailing towards my head, I take away my hands and bat them down by moving my eyes. 781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTFihb4jXqh
Ash's eyes are wide in surprise, "that's strange. Okay, now light something on fire."781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNuwd6Lq4Z7
I look around but there's nothing to catch on fire except the ropes course and a few orange cones. I pick an orange cone up shakily with my own telekinesis and set it down in front of me. I feel sweat bead on my forehead at the immense concentration I had to use. My brain hurts. "I don't know if I can set it on fire, moving it zapped me."781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcwkiglAhAB
"Try it anyways."781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt8Ej3yzyfw
I take a big breath and stare at the cone. I feel stupid for just staring at it. Catch on fire, I mentally urge it, do something. Come on! Do something! The cone still glares at me, laughing. Burn! Catch on fire you stupid cone! The cone's edges begin to move and then they melt together and collapse in on the other walls. A thin smoke rises from the dead cone as if a white flag of surrender.781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaPStkidWzk
"Well…" Ash trails off and shrugs. "We should go get mom and dad, they can explain what's happening. 781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLhgwm5Djpg
I pick up the melted cone and toss it into the air and try but fail to catch it. "I guess. Because I know about as much about being a Socius as this cone. So… I'm not waking them up."781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc5KYpPdInZ
"Stay here then, see if you can do something. Practice, just don't strain yourself." He turns and I start failing at juggling his knives. I can throw them and make them hover in the air, but complex maneuvers hurt my brain.781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡojMOc2Vzpo
But what does this mean? Did this mean that they lied to me? The words of the Inimicus pop into my head. "Don't believe the Socius, they're lying." What if this proves her right? What if they're purposely tricking me into helping them destroy my own people? What if they've already brainwashed me?781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJbI8XVGG8O
Another thought races across my mind as I bat it away a little slower than I should. What if the Inimicus aren't the bad guy? What if I'm the bad guy?781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO1NAIL11Eh
Ash runs back down the steps with Kara and Heath right behind him. They don't look pleased to be up. Ash points to me. "It's not possible!"781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4wRaY0eZpi
Heath rubs his face and then through his black hair. "Hello and good morning. So, Ash said that you can suddenly move things with your mind."781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeKk2d4uMKJ
I nod and pick up a knife to show him. "I caught Ash before he could fall and I don't know what happened."781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIiPGDtzmQc
"See," Ash says triumphantly, "I want's lying." Or was he? Is this all a scheme?781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9O46IUL9mn
Heath steps forward and takes the knife from my hand and stares at my face with a skeptical look. "Kara? You're the real Socius here. Go for it."781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4PN8FBGFDS
Kara shrugs and stretches out her arms. "Well… we might've been wrong or you might be an exception to the rule. In case you can't tell, there aren't many sources to get any info on our kind. The only way I know what I know is handed down generation to generation and written down in journals. So that means you're a flaw in the system and lucky you, or you're normal and I forgot something about the receiver's gifts."781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ88Yd6tuLwt
"Oh," I look down kind of disappointed. I thought there would be a better explanation. I don't know what I was hoping for. "Why doesn't this hurt like the other though?"781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRuJ0XlBfKv
"It's called an emergency ability. It pops up whenever there's a situation where it would come in handy. It won't hurt you." 781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQPzdzLvhFi
I nod and sigh deeply. "Well… I feel better. Should we start training?" 781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEahgo7lWjt
Kara flattens her hair and shakes her head. "I love your enthusiasm, but in case you haven't realized it, it's six in the morning. Go to sleep or something. You've had enough excitement for the day here. Asahel, don't ever do any cocky stunts like that again. You're lucky you didn't break your face."781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGrJg6shwHN
He shrugs, "you wanna go on a walk in the woods?"781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtGLEam0lhB
I look down at his bare feet and shrug. "I'm up for it, as long as it doesn't involve bodily injury. I know you and everything has to be an adventure where death and injury is a distinct variable."781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXRDuDJsEX3
He pulls on his socks and his smile widens even more. "You know me so well."781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHWIXEnuasu
781Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2qEPEQjuW4
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