Lost Mind

fourteen

THE MAT BENEATH me wheezed out as my body slammed against it. Growling, I quickly rolled over to avoid being smashed with Leo's balled fists. Before she could straighten, I swiped my foot across the ground, snatching her ankle from underneath her. With a small yelp she tumbled to the ground.

I pushed myself to my feet, but not in time to avoid Leo's punch to the stomach. Wheezing, I got hurled a few feet away. My bum ached as I met the hard floor that wasn't covered with mats. My back thumped against the wall, hacking up a few coughs. "We're not suppose to use our powers," I croaked angrily.

Leo flipped her hair over her shoulder as she stomped over to me. "It's not like I can switch it on and off." She panted as she grabbed the collar of my shirt, yanking me to my feet. Leo brought her fist back to deliver the gut wrenching punch when I gripped her wrist.

       My mind fizzled and popped against her own. Energy raced throughout our joined touch, nerves and brain cells crashing together as they sensed my presence. Leo wavered under my influence, and that was enough for me. I wrenched myself free from her grip.

My fist was flying in the air for a moment and at Leo's face the next. Though she stumbled away from me, Leo didn't miss a beat. She lunged toward me. Arching my back as much as I could, I swiftly dodged a punch. I'm still arched when Leo struck again. This time to my side.

             "Reaction time, darling. Recover faster." Miss Bea called out from somewhere. I struggled to find my footing, tumbling to the ground from the sheer force of Leo's punch. Gritting my teeth, I forced myself to roll to my feet. I thrusted my forearm up, blocking a hit from Leo.

     My whole body jolted from the collision of her arm. Leo pivoted to strike at my knees. I pushed off my front leg, jumping in mid air for momentum. As I landed beside her, I quickly saw my first opening. Using the momentum from the jump, I moved to strike Leo from behind—

  She spun and met me half way. Grunting with annoyance, I got pushed back into defense once again. It soon became a dance competition of who was the fastest. Block after block my bones began to grow weary from the shear force and strength I was receiving from Leo. Maybe if she wasn't so strong I could—

"Oof!" The garbled yelp escaped my lips as an ankle connected with my own. As I went down, I scrambled to grab anything to help me from smacking the hard ground. Leo shifted, trying to land another blow when the outside of my hand brushed against her arm.

My frantic mind opened immediately in panic. The world around me vanished instantly as I felt a connection hasten between my brain and Leo's. Darkness swallowed me whole, covering my body completely. I gasped as I looked around frantically. My heartbeat accelerated rapidly despite all of my training with Edmond.

The training room had disappeared. Leo had disappeared. The whole world had seemed to have simply disappeared. Fear began to crawl its way around my chest, squeezing my chest painfully. A scream echoed in the darkness. No matter how hard my eyes widened, I couldn't make out anything. Another scream reached my ears, I clapped my hands over my ears as I winced.

When I opened my eyes again, an eerie light seemed to glow yards away. I hesitated, reaching out to the only source of life. As my finger shifted toward it, the whole world began to zoom in. Wind picked up from nowhere as I got lurched forward. Screaming, I fell toward the light until I landed on a bed.

Another scream ripped from my throat, leaving it raw and dry. Pain coursed its way through my body in waves of electrical surges. Confusion and agony was everything that I knew in that moment. Sweat beaded down my forehead as I strained to look up. Bright overhead lamps shone down on me, preventing me from seeing much.