stellaR (Editing)

Chapter V

Chapter- V

You may never know what results come of your action, but if you do nothing, there will be no result.          -Mahatma Gandhi

 

Chaud had been teaching me about how he controlled his abilities. He said he couldn’t be sure how the others did it, he’d never asked, but that nearly all his powers could be channeled with the combined use of the hands and mind.

That was what I had been thinking, so it was good to know that I could still be right about some things. It was also why Chaud had flinched back, the first time we had met, when I raised my hands just after having nearly suffocated him.

It was interesting, the things I was finding I could do. But I still couldn’t figure out which element I embodied. Surely I had that much in common with the Four, that we all could manipulate a single element?

Chaud had been sitting down next to me, cross-legged on the grassy floor. Leaves were scattered from all the treetops overhead, which would soon find themselves to be bare as winter’s reach closed in.

I stifled a yawn, I always felt tired anymore, and after a few solid hours of hiking and mental concentration, exhaustion was setting in again. It seemed to be my constant companion these days.

“Try again,” Chaud encouraged, his voice sounding stark against the serenity of the forest.

I held in a sigh, and sat up straighter, thinking. He wanted me to levitate something, and though I’d managed it a few times, it was draining. Part of me just thought he got a thrill out of seeing things hover, out of seeing things defy gravity. Weird little pyromaniac.

I turned away from him, making to concentrate on a leaf that lay on the ground. I heard him shift, probably to see around me. Real quick, though, I felt him stir the vacuum I had been building up, and I knew he had launched himself at me.

I jumped up and back so fast it was like friction and common physics didn’t work for me.

Chaud had landed right where I had been sitting, in a feral crouch, looking much the wild thing that he epitomized.

He was smirking at me, and then sat back down, calmly. Like the whole him-jumping-me thing hadn’t happened.

After a few minutes of silence, I tapped my foot; his eyes followed the movement in a way that could only be described as animalistic.

“Well?” I asked, tautly, and he blinked.

“Well what?” He asked, and I wondered if he was always this daft, or if it was willful stupidity.

“What was that? Why did you… I don’t know, try to attack me?” My voice rose skeptically.

 He looked at his fingernails, seemingly bored, then back to me.

“You should know you’ve always got to be on your guard. This means at all times. I’m surprised you’re so shocked; I would have figured you’d be expecting me to try something like this for a while now. That was good, though, what you did,” He continued, ignoring the disbelieving look I was throwing him, “how you moved that fast, I don’t know. But, yes, you did fine.” He smiled then, probably hoping I’d see his reasoning, and forgive him.

I wasn’t so keen on that idea just yet.

Looking at him, I said, “Well, you interrupted my floating leaves bit. I hope you’re happy.” I pouted, my bottom lip pushing out.