The Gifted

Training

The bright sun beat down on our tanned skins as the waves rolled up to our feet. Our competitiveness was wearing off into one another. Water splashing everywhere, fire braising our skins, wind beating on my face, and shadows flying from my finger tips. Just before more shadows left my hands, I heard a shout.

"Time!"

Nervous of how well I did, I shook in place when Sensei paced back and forth analyzing my classmates and I.

"Kaito, you need more control. Your hand movements were a little shaken. The key to mastering your Spirit Water Gift is to have light and controlled movements. Keep a firm stance when blocking. If your body is not firm, you will be blown over like a leaf. Now, for the things you have done well. You finally 'blew' Hayate off of her feet." Amidst the laughter, Hayate was getting red from embarrasment. She doesn't like to be told she did poorly. However, I only laughed because of Sensei's joke. After the laughter subsided, Sensei walked up to the next person.

"Hitori, don't use your anger to fuel your Passion Blaze Gift. This Gift is dangerous for a reason. It is connected to your emotions and it fluctuates between each kind of emotion, making it dangerous. Sadness makes the flame become weaker, but more bright. Jealousy, turns the flame into different colors and creates odors that weakens your concentration. Anger, makes the flame bigger, brighter, more powerful and it is very hard to control. As you saw, several times you would be focusing on one person and the flame would uncontrollably be hitting someone else. This is dangerous when you work with allies and are protecting citizens. However, you did control that anger longer." Hitori has always had a problem with anger. I never knew what causes that or what but only Sensei knows. His attitude changed when he approached the person beside me.

"Hayate, you don't always have to be up in the air. Yes, flying is a great advantage to the Gentle Breeze Gift, but you need to learn to use the Gift on foot as well. It seems you have gotten the swiftness in your attacks controlled, but your stamina needs improvement. Without swiftness, the force of the breeze will not go to its full potential. Without stamina, the range will not go near as far. However, I have seen improvement in your aerial attacks." Just before Sensei continued to walk he laughed and said, "And next time don't let Kaito push you as easily as he did today ok." Hayate is the youngest of us all. She is very emotional, but Sensei says that she has learned and improved quicker than the rest of us at her age. Sensei believes that she will one day be better than all of us. My mood changed when I saw Sensei come over to me.

"Kage, where do I begin?" He sounded almost as if he was insulted. I didn't think I did that bad. "You are the eldest, you have been training with me for over 15 years. You know as I have told you your Gift is the most dangerous in all of creation. The Unholy Shadows Gift has that name for a reason. It can, without the proper training, cause you to lose your soul and become one the Reapers. However, since this Gift is so hard to control you have shown great strength in your improvements. You have controlled the shadow's power to your advantage. I did notice, that your eyes started to turn to grey. If they had went a shade darker, I would have stopped the training. Why did you not say something?"

I swallowed as I tried to answer. "I didn't say anything because if a Gifted person does not complete their mission they lose their honor. It is better to die honorably completing their task, than to stop and not complete their task and ultimately die dishonorable."

Sensei's look pierced my mind, making me more and more nervous.

"Yes but perhaps you think too highly of your honor." Sensei turned his attention from me to the entire group. "Training is over. Overall, I have seen improvement in each of you. Tomorrow we will work on your weaknesses from today's training. You are dismissed." The other students left the beach but Sensei told me to stay. I figured it had something to do with today's training.

"Kage, I have studied for over thirty five years about the mastery of each Gift. With you being the eldest of my students, I want to show you some knowledge before you are of the age to fight. I don't fully understand the other Gifts because I do not have them. I can only tell them what my Senseis have told me throughout my studies. The one Gift I do understand completely is the Unholy Shadows Gift. It is technically against the regulations for me to tell you these things, but I trust you and I want you to succeed. I also have the Unholy Shadows Gift. Through my many years of training I have completely mastered it."

I was so confused. There are key signs that show each person's Gift. For the Spirit Water Gift, the key signs are blue eyes, short stature, and/or long hair. The Passion Blaze Gift shows signs of an emotional person, typically anger, and red hair. The Gentle Breeze Gift is white hair, tall stature, and/or pointed ears. I was confused on what the Unholy Shadows Gift signs were. Sensei has brown hair and green eyes, his ears are rounded. I have jet black hair and red eyes. What physical traits do we have in common?

"I understand your confusion. We have no similar signs. That is what I am going to tell you. Unlike you and the students who were born with their Gifts, I was born Giftless. My parents had Gifts, but were disturbed to find out I had no Gift. Desperate to have their only child fight in the Eternal War, they sent me to the Counsel. There, they discussed what to do with me. The Counsel reached a consensus that I would be given a highly powerful Sensei. One with the Gift to give Gifts. The Gift Giver Gift is rare. Only one out of every million Gifted people are given this Gift. Mostly it is given to those of high status. When my parents sent me to my Sensei, my life changed forever. My Sensei wanted me to use my new Gift for evil and not for good. He wanted me to use it to work for the Reapers, but I refused. Little did I realize that it was only a test to see how true and faithful I would be with my new Gift. So I trained and became your and the other students' Sensei."

I was in complete shock. Unsure of how to respond, I just shook my head. It is possible to be given Gifts? Is it possible to be given multiple Gifts? If there is a person in the world with multiple Gifts, they would be the most powerful in the world.