Lunara Mitchells runs, bobbing and weaving between trees and playground equipment. Desperately dodging invisible lasers flying all around her.
"You'll never get me!"
Reyn runs behind her, his little legs struggling to keep up with her superior agility.
"Wait, you're going to fast, mom!"
"Weakness! Come! Show me your strength!"
Lunara rolls beneath a playground slide, doing her best to hide her body among the thin rails.
"Bang, Bang!"
Lunara dodges.
She dives through the sand, vaults a park bench and sprints to a large tree, where she suddenly vanishes.
"Mom! Mom! Where'd you do?"
"Seek the truth, and you shall find your destiny!"
"HA! I see you! Bang, Bang!"
Lunara swiftly rolls from her hiding-spot revealing herself for the final confrontation.
"No more running. We stand and fight. Show me your power!"
"I will defeat you! BANG BANG!"
Lunara dodges, but a beam finds her chest. She screams out in anguish and falls to the earth, her limbs flying wildly in all directions.
"You… you got me."
Reyn stands over his mother's quivering body. A grin of accomplishment on his chubby face.
"I win!"
Lunara suddenly springs to life, grabbing the little boy into the air by his wrists and twirling him around.
"Never! The Queen of the Elements rises again!"
Reyn pouts.
"What's wrong, baby?"
"That's unfair. I won. You have to lose."
"Ah, honey. But how can the good guys lose?"
Reyn's pout sinks deeper into his face.
"Why do they always have to win? It's unfair!"
Lunara smiles.
"Honey. The good guys don't always win."
She snatches the boy's cheeks and twists his face towards hers, adorning his forehead with a moist kiss.
"Listen Reyn… real life, it's not like your games and movies. The good guys don't always win. Matter of fact, they lose a lot too. But sometimes, the good guys can't lose. Not because they're stronger or smarter than the bad guys. But because losing means they lose something they love."
Lunara hugs the boy tighter as he stares up at her intently.
"No matter what happens Reyn, we have to fight for the ones we love. We can't give up. We can't lose. Because if we lose, they lose too. Do you understand honey?"
Reyn nods earnestly, his brow furrowed with intensity.
Lunara laughs at the charming display.
"You cutie!" She smiles while playfully poking at his tummy.
"Mommy!" he scowls.
"So that is why, sometimes, the good guys just have to win. Reject the Impossible!"
She throws her fist into the air.
"Victory or Death."
The little boy shouts triumphantly.
Reyn rouses from his nostalgia with a smile.
"Oh, looks like I reminded you of something good?"
Reyn nods, his smile now warm and honest.
"You did. Thanks!"
The voice lets out a hearty chuckle.
"Healing wounds and mending hearts! Damn, I'm good!"
The men joke and converse a while longer, Reyn's wounds long healed.
They reminisce on old battles and archaners and speculate on the nature of the invasion.
Eventually the man is obligated to leave and bids Reyn farewell.
A few minutes later, another assistant arrives to collect him.
He is instructed to spend the rest of the day observing the testing of his fellow recruits, while Ravinok figures out a new way to stimulate his aetherics.
Reyn spends the rest of the afternoon strolling the various training grounds and watching as his fellow recruits begin their journey to mastering their new abilities.
He finds Ghazal, still being berated by Rick Justice for his inability to moderate his power output.
Jocelyn sits soaking wet and shivering furiously on a bench on the periphery, having discovered unexpected challenges to wielding power over water and ice.
Lucien and Reginald play haphazardly with their abilities. Lucien wraps bits of material and objects in chrono-fields to rapidly age them, while Reginald weaves crude shapes with his ferrokinesis.
Abilities and skills ring out across the area as Reyn watches on solemnly.
His mind is still struggling to understand itself.
The day's activities come to a close and the recruits are debriefed. Their power-cores are all returned to Ravinok and the group is transported back to their dormitories.
As they filter out of the bus, Reyn sighs deeply and drags himself towards the building with a solemn expression.
"That bad?"
"Oh, hi, Joze."
"I take it that things didn't go too well?"
Reyn sighs and rolls his eyes at Jocelyn, slowly shaking his head.
She punches his shoulder.
"Chin up, Mitchells', boy!" She says, trying her best to mimic Dr. Ravinok.
Reyn slaps his forehead as he turns away to laugh.
"Ha! Fixed you. All better. I'm a healer, see!"
"Wounds and hearts!"
Jocelyn smiles.
The fact that Reyn remembers her words strikes her unexpectedly.
"Wounds hearts!"
They share a coy glance and proceed to enter the building and disappear into their rooms.
Most of the graduates spend their evening in the lounge and kitchen, discussing the day's events and their new abilities.
The excitement is fervent as the recruits spend the night in deep conversation and merriment. A few bottles of smuggled-in alcohol works as a catalyst for some physical interactions. Some romantic and others resulting in drawn blood.
A visit by a passing security would eventually settle the evening and help the young archaners to their beds. Some find themselves not sleeping in their own rooms for the night.
Reyn has spent the evening locked in deep contemplation and calculations.
His only concern was understanding his aetheric ability.
He lays in bed as he mentally reaffirms his leading hypothesis.
He believes his powers are linked to his main weakness, but also his biggest strength.
His indecision.
His mental state, whether born or bred, has left him with a talent to consider many possibilities that most would not even fathom.
But his indecision makes these revelations a weakness. Perhaps if he had the time to consider all choices and their consequences, but reality allows no such privilege.
But, his ability does, it clearly shows him all choices, and their consequences. To an extent.
Perhaps if he learned to control it, he could see more of the scene played out in the bubbles. Perhaps he would have more time to explore the ocean before the darkness would start to take him.
The logic started to form in his mind, the start of an understanding, enough to forge a new path.
The awareness allows him to fall to sleep a little more peacefully.
The next day the recruits receive the assignments via their GAARD assigned communicator.
They have once again been split into groups.
The various groups are told to arrive at different locations across the compund, where they would meet their invigilators and discuss their tasks for the day.
Reyn's message instructs him to meet with Agent McCain and John Buchanan at the GAARD HQ's main entrance, where a bus would be waiting to take their group on an external excursion.
Ghazal bumps into Reyn as he exits the building.
The friends exchange some pleasantries and their regrettable experiences with Rick Justice. They walk together for a while discussing their day's activities and the previous day's happenings.
Ghazal sees Reyn off with their signature shout of encouragement as they go their separate ways, which Reyn returns in kind.
As Reyn walks towards the facility's entrances, his thoughts are lost in the knowledge he had accumulated in his late night self-reflection.
He contemplates deeper each facet of his hypothesis and how it will help him achieve his immediate goal of manifesting and controlling his ability.
A nudge in his back brings his focus back to reality.
"Ever the same, Mitchells. So lost in thought? You're letting the world pass you by."
"Oh, yeah… yeah, sorry, I-I have a lot on my mind."
"Oh, sounds rough?"
"Nah, I think I'm starting to get a handle on it."
"Anything I could do to help?"
"Oh… uh…Dr. Ravinok is looking into it. He's working on a way to help me control my ability."
"Oh, cool. What is your ability, anyway?"
"Um… I-I'm not sure."
Jocelyn pouts.
"You're not hiding it from me, are you?" She says with a playful flutter of her lashes.
"N-No. I'm… we're still trying to understand.."
"Oh really?"
"Yeah, Ravinok is kinda obsessed. He's really trying to figure it out."
"Oh. What do you think it is?."
Reyn hesitates.
"I - I dunno. Lots of possibilities I guess."
He shrugs.
Jocelyn rolls her eyes.
"So you're going on this road trip too?"
"Yep."
"Hm, I thought it was only for biokinetics. You are a biokinetic, Mitchells?"
"I don't think so."
"Hmmm."
Jocelyn looks at him skeptical.
The two reach the facility entrance and are greeted by Agent McCain and John Buchanan who await their arrival and 3 more recruits who join them.
They quickly shuffle into a waiting bus and begin their journey to a nearby farm.
Agent McCain explains to the recruits their tasks for the day.
John Buchanan would be guiding them on manifesting and controlling the biokinetic abilities.
They would start their training on simple plant matter. Using their aetheric boosting abilities to improve strength, vitality and even yield.
Once they have learned to harness and control this, they would move onto living creatures, starting with smaller farm animals.
As their skills improve, human testing would eventually be introduced.
The group chitter as they travel along the long twisting rounds of the Turkish seaside.
Reyn sits staring out of a window. His eyes transfixed on the glittering sunlight leaping across the sea as they moved.
But his mind dwells within itself. Seeking answers to the questions that plague it.
Jocelyn notices from afar. Her expression shifts to concern.
"Ok, looks like we're here, recruits. Remember, you represent GAARD. I should not have to remind you regarding your appearance and etiquette. I believe Brannon-Brook should have handled at least that much."
Agent McCain leers from the front of the bus.
"We have been graciously allowed access to a local farm where we can perform today's tasks. Please, for the love of god, do not destroy this farmer's property!"
The group snicker.
McCain scowls.
"We're here to use your aether abilities to help him! At least that's what he has been told. Training recruits was not really part of the agreement."
McCain's scowl slipping into a grin.
"So, let's do this nice and clean. John here will provide you with your tasks and instructions on how to perform them. Do what's expected of you, and we'll get back to HQ in time for lunch. I might even buy it."
McCains words lighten the mood and the recruits exit the bus in excitement.
They quickly move into the farm, greet the farm's owner as they go, and get to work under John Buchanan's supervision.
Reyn and Jocelyn stand back with McCain and look on as the recruits weave their aetherics in the farmer's fields.
Strengthening plants and trees. Thickening their roots and bark, improving circulation, and optimizing nutrient intake.
Others use their abilities to break down and disrupt the biological process. Causing weeds and parasites to grow weak and sick.
As the day goes on, John eventually turns his attention to Jocelyn.
McCain and Reyn watch over the recruits as John leads Jocelyn to a small patch of vegetables.
He crouches down and she follows.
"So, you're a healer."
Jocelyn smiles and nods.
"Yes, sir."
"Well, as a fellow healer, allow me to welcome you to our ranks. It's a rare privilege."
The man extends his hand and Jocelyn greets it with hers to share a solid handshake.
"That being said, I spoke to Dr. Ravinok. He says you've got something unique. Something we haven't really seen before. That, right?"
Jocelyn nods nervously.
"Hmmm."
John leans forward and stretches his hand over a tomato plant. Its stem is bent and broken. Discoloration has started to set into its greenery.
"Have you used your ability yet?"
"No sir! I've been forbidden from using it unless instructed by the relevant command."
"Hmmm"
John's ARCH-unit lights up as the shimmer of aether flows from his hands.
The tomato plant begins to quiver as the aether works through its cells, rebuilding their structures and raising dying plant up.
"You're a hybrid right, so you know how it works. Focus your thoughts, channel the aether through your hands and… let go. I'm not gonna pretend to know how this healing thing works. But it does."
The tomato plant now stands firm and erect. Its color is as bright and radiant as the others around it.
"However. Considering we don't know what you're capable of, I need you to use extreme caution and moderation, ok. We're gonna take this slow. Just get a feel for it, feel the aether flow, feel the reaction. Don't overdo it. Anything feels off, anything looks wrong. You stop immediately, understand."
Jocelyn gives a stern nod.
"Yes, sir."
John points her towards another damaged plant.
She kneels down into the dirt and pulls back her hair, before rolling up her sleeves.
After a deep breath, she reaches out both hands.
Her ARCH-unit activates.
Small black tendrils smart slithering into existence. They trickle from her skin, flicky through the air towards her target.
They snake and slide around the plant, latching on in many places.
Jocelyn winces.
The plant begins to shiver as the black tendrils pulsate with energy.
In an instant, it stands erect and renewed.
Jocelyn falls back onto her behind. Her breath was stolen and a strange heaviness had beset her heart.
"You okay, Ms. Webber?"
John grabs at her, and helps her to her feet.
"That was definitely healing you did there. What happened though. Are you feeling ok?"
Jocelyn rubs at her chest.
"I'm fine, sir. Just a little surprised. That was… that was amazing."
Jocelyn ignores the strange sensations seeming to pull at every cell in her body, as she revels in the fact that she has healed a living thing.
Reyn watches on from afar, a slight worry across his brow.
They say progress and the students make steady progress in understanding their abilities.
Jocelyn would heal more plants, each time, her body feeling slightly heavier. A insignificant consequence of the amazing gift she has been given, she assured herself.
Reyn continued to watch on. Half of his attention is on the recruits' activities and the rest on his ability.
He has strengthened his hypothesis and with it, his resolve. He eagerly awaits Dr. Ravinok's summons.
The day finishes and the recruits are led back to the bus.
McCain makes good on her words and stops mid journey to purchase the recruits some local fast food.
They enjoy the food as they discuss the day's activities.
Reyn notices Jocelyn lying against a window in silence, an unfamiliar sight, as she was almost always conversing with her friends if they were within earshot.
He takes a seat behind her, where her brilliant brown hair spills over her chair.
The flickering sunlight filtering through the windows plays across it, transfixing Reyn.
His conviction softens as his mind plays for him a vision of the young woman's face.
The delicate lines of her lips. Her sporadic freckles. The dimple when she smiles. Her deep brown eyes.
Reyn flusters.
He ponders the choices and chances. Why would she like him? Why would she need him?
He wants to reach out, his heart yearns for it, but his mind won't allow him.
He hesitates, then remembers.
This is why he suffers. The indecision. Dwelling on possibilities.
He touches her shoulder.
"You ok?"
Jocelyn twists her head slightly, peeking Reyn in her periphery.
"Oh, hey Mitchells. Yeah, just tired. Long day."
"Oh, yeah, how'd it go? With healing."
"Great, I saved 12 tomatoes."
Reyn chuckles and Jocelyn joins him.
"That's great Joze. Happy to see you achieve your dream, you know."
"... Thanks."
A silence separates them, and Reyn turns his gaze to the mountains and valleys rolling across the horizon outside his window.
A glint catches his eye, and notices Jocelyn staring at him through the window's reflection.
She smiles.
"Hey Mitchells, do me a favour."
"Y - yeah, Joze. What do you need?"
"Come here."
Reyn slinks around the chairs into Jocelyn's row. She stares up at him fron her seat.
Sunlight weaves through her irises revealing infinite shades of brown, and Reyn finds himself once again transfixed in a new aspect of the woman's beauty.
He stares, and she notices.
"Sit, Mitchells."
She pats the seat next to her and Reyn quickly drops down beside her.
As he sinks into his seat, she grabs his shoulder, pulling him close and lays her head deep against his neck.
His breathing stops and his heart races.
"I'm tired, you don't mind if I use you as a pillow, right?"
"Sure."
Reyn manages to find a semblance of composure and settles his nerves.
Jocelyn makes herself comfortable and the two sit quietly for the rest of the ride.
As the bus approaches the HQ, A bump in the road nudges the sleeping Jocelyn awake.
"Oh, shit, I really fell asleep."
"Yeah, I didn't wanna wake you. But the snoring…"
"wha…oh, screw you Mitchells!"
Jocelyn slaps Reyn on the chest as he laughs.
She notices a small wet spot where she had laid her head.
"You've got a little…."
Reyn points to her lips. A small trail of liquid has escaped its edges.
Jocelyn's face turns red as she quickly wipes at her mouth.
She looks back at Reyn with a scowl.
"I'm sorry, you looked cute. I didn't want to disturb you."
Reyn recoils at his own words. It takes every fiber of his being to stop him from leaping out the nearest window.
The blush on Jocelyn's face grows redder.
She slaps his chest again.
Reyn smiles in response.
Jocelyn switches her face to a scowl and turns away from Reyn, trying desperately to hide her fluster.
"Sorry, I…"
Reyn squeaks. Confused and unsure of what the woman's reaction meant.
The bus comes to a halt and Agent McCain leads the recruits outside.
After a quick debrief and hand over of power-core's, the recruits were relieved and given the rest of the day off.
The group splits as they head off to their desired destinations.
Reyn lingers.
He watches as Jocelyn walks towards the dormitories, unsure of the right course of action.
She stops mid stride and turns her head back at Reyn.
She relieves him of his indecision.
He quickly runs up to her and she hooks her arm into his. Leaning on him heavily as they walk back to their rooms.
They reach Jocelyn's door, the journey there produced mostly an awkward silence and some mentions of the day's happenings.
Jocelyn opens and slinks inside.
Reyn looks on.
She disappears into the dark room leaving the door open.
"Come in, Mitchells, you gonna make me beg?"