Efferent

Chapter 39

"This is only a part of a whole, a part of the Efference serum. This is maybe only half, or a third of the original serum." James sighed. "I am afraid this is all of the serum I have left."

"Oh." I muttered, disappointed.

"I just wanted to keep this in case of something serious." James said, staring at the vial in his hand, then putting it back in the drawer. "Anyways... let us go train the Afferents. I was thinking each of us training five or six Afferents at one time."

"I agree." I nodded. "They will based on our powers, correct? Like, if their powers are somewhat related to ours, then we will train them?"

James paused. "Yes, I think that is a good idea. But I am afraid that they will not quite listen to you."

"Why ever not?" I asked, frowning.

"Because you have lost your Efference. They do not believe that you have Efference anymore, and they will not take you seriously. For example, if I said I was an Efferent, but I do not have any proof, would you believe me? No."

"Then what will we do?" I asked, desperation lacing my voice.

James pinched his brow, sighing. "I am not sure if you want to take the serum I have."

"You say that like me taking it is a bad thing. You sound worried, and even cautious. Is it not just the serum? Why-"

"No, Ardyn. It is not recommended to take the Efference serum with any damage. It has to be the exact amount, the exact dosage. This..." James said, pointing at the drawer. "This is not the correct amount. This is not exactly sterilized, either."

"So... there is a risk?"

"Yes." James nodded gravely. "The chance of something happening is high, and the chance of something bad happening is higher. I do not want to risk that for your life, Ardyn. It does not matter if you do not have your Efference, as long you are living."

"But it is a chance, a risk that I am willing to take!" I burst out, exasperated. "This is my choice, James, and I choose to take the serum."

"I will not allow it." James stated sternly, with a firm tone as he stood up to his full height. "It is dangerous. I knew I should not have gone and told you about this at all. It would do you good to erase the whole notion of taking the serum out of your mind."

"But-"

"This is the end of the discussion, Ardyn!" He said, raising his voice as he slammed a palm down onto the smooth wooden top of the drawer. "I mean it. It is not worth it to risk your life in exchange for something as trivial as disbelief from the Afferents. We can find the actual Efference serum, and then I will allow you to take it."

I made a small noise. "But-"

"Please, Ardyn. Do me this one favor. Do not take the serum." He took a deep breath and then his features smoothed into something calmer. "Come, let us go train the Afferents." James repeated what he said earlier, and this time, without any protests, I followed him.

When we walked out of the house, I was immediately greeted with hordes of Afferent children, all milling around James's house. James tapped the microphone he held, and then all the Afferent turned to him. Someone tapped me on the arm, and I looked into Travis's smiling face.

"Today, you will all receive training to control your powers and learn how to use your powers to the maximum. Forty of you will be allowed to participate at first, and then there will be a preliminary test. This will rid half of you, but do not worry, you have a chance next time. This is just to seek out the strongest of the Afferent first."

"Why?" Someone piped up.

"Because we need to band together, and it will be the most efficient if we take the best of you first. Then they can help train the rest, and then soon all of you will all be capable of anything. Also, it will be chaos if we try to train you all at once." James replied. "Alright, all of you, please go to Blaise over there and sign up. I look forward to taking many of you in."

All the Afferent rushed over to Blaise, and I turned to Travis. "How am I supposed to coach them?" I worried. "I do not even have my Efference anymore."

"Do not worry, Ardyn, I am sure you will figure something out. In the meantime, let us go help Blaise." Travis said, striding over to Blaise. I stayed back and walked towards a grassy field.

"Everyone who signed up! Over here!" I motioned with my hands, and different Afferent all ran over. Only a few caught my eye, though.

A girl with black hair, who was thin and short, nimble and fast. Another girl with brown hair, who seemed ordinary but her eyes spoke otherwise. A lanky boy with freckles that was looking around everywhere, seemingly paranoid.

"What is your gift, your power?" I asked a girl.

"I... I can bend... things?" She said in a questioning tone, as if she was not sure what she was saying herself.

"Could you specify?" I asked.

"I can bend things with my mind, I suppose. I can warp things to make it look like something else." She muttered, still sounding unsure.

"Well, nice to meet you. Please stand next to the building over there, and wait. We will be done soon." She nodded and ran off. I turned to the next boy, who was probably the same age as Amelia. "What is your power?"

"I make things bigger, or smaller than they actually are." He hesitated, as if he wanted to add more, but settled for what he had already spoken aloud.

"You can physically change their size?" I clarified, and he nodded. "Great. Wait over at that tree, please." I moved on to the next boy. "What is your skill?" I asked, repeating my question.

"It is the power of persuasion. I can easily convince other people of my point of view, really, whatever I want." He replied, his voice gruff and deep, probably a baritone. "They believe in what I say easily."

"That sounds very intriguing." I commented, and he grinned. "Please wait where the girl is there, thanks." I watched as the afferent were divided and sorted based on gifts, observing them interact.

A hand tapped my shoulder and I looked at James. "What?"

His expression was serious. "You have to take the serum."