"And finally, the moment we've all been waiting for. Please welcome our special guest of honour: The Helmet Boy." Sophie cheered as I stepped out of the changing room with Aaron's pyjamas and helmet. "Seriously, helmet boy?" I asked rolling my eyes. "Actually, it does sound catchy," Aaron said . "Oh no. Please don't tell me you're on her side now," I asked in mock horror. "Well, its usually you two against me and I'm tired of being on the losing team," Aaron said bluntly. "Then you should be on my side!" I exclaimed. I felt so betrayed. "I fear that even with my superior intellect and your wit we would still lose against her." Acknowledging the truth in his statement yet refusing to openly agree with it, I just let out out a grunt.
Aaron took us out to a large expanse of land about twice the size of a football field. I wondered how he got so much land. There were drones flying around the area with surveillance cameras. "Okay everything is set. First, just stay right there. The clothes are measuring your brain activity and alterations. Done. So, I'll need to see your punching power. Just punch the air as hard as you can." "Okay." Taking a deep breath and steadying myself, I clenched my fists and drew my arm back. Drawing upon the power I felt welling up in me, I punched. I felt the force of the punch as it caused the air around me to vibrate. I punched again and again and again. "You're not giving your best, Sam. I need you to not hold back. You won't hurt anyone here. My readings tell me you still have much more in you. I took another deep breath and tried to let go. It was such a strange thing for me considering I spent most of my life trying to hold back, to not crush everybody I met, to not move too fast, to not overwhelm my senses. After trying futilely for a while I stopped. "This isn't working. I've spent too long holding back to just let go." "You can try to do what you did when you rescued me." Sophie said quietly in a way that was totally out of character for her. At the mention of that day, memories I'd tried so hard to suppress came to me along with the rage that they brought. Memories that almost caused me to hate myself. She was right. Channeling the rage made me want to vent out my anger. What better way than letting loose. With the memories came the punches.
The faint sound of her screams reach my ears. A voice I'd recognize anywhere. I felt the air twist more around my arm and the sound of the shockwave the punch produced. I fly to the place thinking about how bad it would have been if I hadn't been practicing my hearing. Another swoosh of air twisting around my arm. I hear their voices before seeing them. Hear the glee in their voices as they talk about what they want to do. Another shockwave, even greater than before. I fly inside the shabby building. See the person I've come to know as my friend tied up and bruised with the culprits in front of her. I feel the lust coming off of them, stronger than any emotion I've ever felt. Another swoosh. I can feel it coming. I move to hit them faster than they can comprehend somehow holding back enough to not decapacitate them. I move to her, cutting the ropes binding her and checking her for injuries. Swoosh. I don't see much injuries, just a few cuts and bruises with a black eye. I feel the rage increasing as I turn towards the men, taking pleasure in their obvious fear. I move around the room, destroying everything, ripping apart metal with ease. Another swoosh. Any moment now. I focus on them, feel the rage reach maximum point and for the first time ever, I see red. I feel a new power growing in me and moving to my eyes. I feel the concentrated beams of energy leave my eyes before I can process what is happening. I can vaguely see what looks like ashes scattered around before I can fully come to it. I knew it was coming before it arrived. I punched but this time, there was no swoosh. There was only noise and my ears were ringing, my body receiving backlash that would have killed a human. But I'd never really been human. The next things that happen aren't fully processed by my mind. Sophie, scared managing to call her dad. The police arriving, my mum coming and hugging me. I only feel terror. Pure horror at what I'd just done. This punch comes even faster than the last. My hearts beats faster and faster. I can't think straight. The next seconds brought a flurry of punches going faster and faster. I vaguely heard Sophie worriedly asking If I was okay. I am scared. None of them would understand me. They hadn't killed anyone before. I do the only thing I can. I fly. My feet left the ground before I decided to fly. A small part of me is worried about disturbing Aaron's work. The rest is measuring the distance. 200 metres, 400 metres, 800 metres. Boom! Higher. Another boom. I felt the air thinning as I got to the top of the clouds and yet I didn't stop. I'd always been too scared to go to space. Today though, I didn't care. I felt the air go from thin to non existent and I felt gravity release its hold on me. A deep calm came upon me as I took in the void of space. I didn't need to breathe. I felt the cold but it didn't harm me. And I felt it. In the calmness a vague feeling I wouldn't have noticed without the calm. I'd always been good at sensing energy. The energy released by the change in levels of the electrons: quantum. The energy I felt in Aaron's lab. The splitting of atoms: nuclear. The energy I felt during storms, around the house: electric. The life giving energy of the sun: solar. The energy I felt from sonic booms: sound. I'd felt multiple types of energy in my life but this was off, like it wasn't from this world. I tried to get a feel for it and I noticed it slowly entering the atmosphere, almost invisible. I felt it changing. It came to me. The energy that changed , warped anything it touched. I couldn't get a name for it though it felt vaguely familiar. Remembering my friends, I flew down, thoughts of this energy in my head. "I'm really sorry Sam, mentioning that was very insensitive" said Sophie when I landed. "Its okay. You were just as affected by it as i was, i shouldn't have freaked out like that. But there's something up there guys, something serious." "Your face looks like you're about to say there's a storm coming." A storm. That was normal at least. "I wish I could say so. What's coming is so much crazier than a storm."
If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.