I had been isolated, and hidden away at Dr. Keeley's house. I haven't seen Jacob for about a week now. I was worried, though of course I didn't have the option to go back and see him. I needed to stabilize myself so I didn't kill anyone. Currently Dr. Keeley was trying to make me run twenty miles around the house in under one minute.
Once I stopped, I walked to Grant to check the clock. "one minute and two seconds" he said. "Try again"
I plopped down onto the soft grass. Dr. Keeley didn't take kind to my relaxation. "Get up" he said. "You still have to beat the clock"
"But I only missed it by two seconds this time. Doesn't that count for something?" I asked.
"Two seconds may not seem valuable, but it's still time, and time is precious." He explained.
"Two seconds can't get you anywhere" I protested.
"In two seconds, someone could've pulled a gun on you, or set off a bomb, or threw a knife. Two seconds is very small, though very dangerous when used wisely, so you must learn how to conquer those two seconds"
I forced myself up from the ground. "Can't I have just one moment of rest? I've earned it. For a week I've been working and working nonstop."
Dr. Keeley crossed his arms. "You know what, you're right" he said. Quickly I was surprised by how easily he had given up. "You have been working hard, which is why I will let you rest, if you can start a small fire on the branch of that elm" he said pointing to the slender tree only about ten feet away from us."
Using my concentration, I focused on the tree. Its vibrations became one with mine, and suddenly I was controlling the patters. As I sped it up, I began to see fire, though it was more than I intended. The tree erupted into flames, and I had failed. "That's what's going to happen to you, if you don't concentrate."
I didn't want to burn up into flames. Though I didn't want to die of exhaustion as well. I stood up, and faced Grant. "Start the timer" I told him. He nodded, then began as I took off. This time I felt different. I wasn't overcome with exhaustion, nor were my feet getting road burn anymore. It was a comforting feeling, like I was running with the wind. The air wrapped around me, and moved when I moved as if I were the one controlling it. Before I knew it I was already done.
I stopped in front of Grant. "Time?" I asked confidently.
"57 seconds" he said.
I exhaled loudly in victory. "Then I'm done. I've mastered running" I said.
"I guess you can relax now" he said.
We headed back inside, and I ordered the most equisite meal from his kitchen then sat back and flipped the television on. it was the laziest id been in days.
Grant pulled the remote from my hands and quickly changed the channel.
"What are you doing?" I asked him.
He flipped to the news channel revealing the chaos unfolding. A large dust storm was tearing up the streets of Madison Avenue, eating everything around that it could. "What's going on, I didn't know dust storms still existed." I said.
"A dust storm?" he repeated. "In the middle of the city. It's too improbable. We should've seen it coming from miles away, and evacuated the city."
"Maybe there was a building that collapsed or something and whisked up wind in the ashes." He said.
"Unlikely. The ashes of a building are much less dangerous than the minerals engulfing this storm. It looks unnatural. As if it were conjured up there" Grant sat up, and observed the screen. "It looks alive"
I stepped up closer to the TV. "And what if it is alive."I asked.
Grant turned to me in worry. "Then we might have a problem." He said.
