Chapter 20

Psychic Training part 1

Two groups were stationed in separate training rooms inside a facility located near to the Golden Lion’s headquarters.

In one room was Felix and Anastasia, both of whom were separated by a small wooden table with a rifle standing upon it.

“What about Marie?” Asked the blue-eyed young man.

“According to research, stage one's don't possess any aura.” Anastasia’s brow curled as she responded in a skeptical manner, “So she isn’t going to do this training.”

Felix had a curious expression upon hearing those words as he recollected their sparring match. “I see…” He replied dejectedly.

“The Chief thought that it might be better that I would be the one to teach you.” The red-haired woman explained as she placed her own twin guns on the table, “So, where do we begin?”

In another room stood David, and in front of him were the three red-eyed espers. Nero, Isabelle, and Grant. He collected wooden staffs and rubber knives and other objects.

“My name is David Soldier; I will be teaching you how to use your powers. I haven’t had the time to read your files, so introduce yourselves.”

“Nero Miles.” The blond young man with sharp eyes nodded.

“My name’s Isabelle Castella, sir.” The silver-haired woman nodded.

“I’m… Grant Jaeger.” The brown-haired, pony-tailed man responded as he stared intently at David’s face.

He then looked around and asked, “Why isn’t Blue Phantom with us?”

“Thanks to this one, Felix is training with Anastasia…” David placed his hand on Isabelle’s head.

Nero’s eyebrow raised.

“Why’s that?” Grant asked, “Aren’t you the best teacher for this?”

David paused for a moment, spending the awkward silence searching for the right words. “Personal reasons.”

Isabelle lowered her head, which Grant and Nero both noticed.

The sudden clatter of wooden items startled the three, “I’m sure the professors told you all they know. You three have been espers for six months, correct?”

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“Yes sir.” The red-eyed trio answered.

“Let’s start with the basics. We are not simply human anymore. Not the way we used to be. Officially speaking, we are referred to as “Homo Lucerna”, those who will bring light to this world. Though as of recently, Professor Tetsuya has gradually been shifting to “Espers” for short.” David explained.

While Nero had an indifferent expression, Both Grant and Isabelle were more bothered by the statement. Grant’s eyebrows furrowed, while Isabelle scratched her arm upon hearing those words, the two were clearly bothered by the sentiment of no longer being simply human.

“As a new breed of humanity, we have many gifts that are far and beyond normal people. But our defining trait is our telekinesis, the ability to control energy and bend objects to our will with the use of Zeta radiation, or aura.”

In the other room, Anastasia disassembled the rifle as she explained, removing each piece, “Something you have to understand is that aura itself is more than just telekinesis. It’s an extension of your senses. Personally, I’d call it a projection of your soul. It’s not a weapon, at least not until you make it one.”

“So I need to be able to release more of it soon.” The blue-eyed boy responded.

“First you learn how to even use your power before you even think about drawing out more.” She said, tapping his head the rifle’s barrel.

David placed a metal sheet beneath his arm, “And we are limited by two factors: By the amount of the aforementioned aura that we possess, and the limits of our psyche. Controlling energy is controlling movement, and how it’s expressed differently between each user, often shaped by your psychological hang-ups.”

A fiery haze formed around his arm. Untouchable, intangible, but dense and fiery. A visible contradiction between reality and power.

It flowed out of him like water and enveloped the metal sheet and was pulled upward from the floor. The three covered their ears as they watched the sheet bend and fold with an ear-piercing creak, wrapping itself around David’s left arm. “For me, it works like armor.”

Anastasia elaborated, “Aura is the power to stop, then to attract and repel. Take it one step further and you can stretch and mold... and change. The ability to impose your will in the real world, we call it psychic energy.”

The red-haired woman placed her palm above the weapon, and it shined with an orange glow, and it began seamlessly putting itself together.

“You need to understand what it is, inside and out. Its nature, form and its construction, like memorizing the pieces of a puzzle.”

She then disassembled the rifle once more as she continued, “You need to know something inside and out to use this effectively. You will need to keep repeating it until…” With a flick of her wrist, the form reassembled itself in under five seconds.

David handed the three red-eyed espers a staff and a rubber knife, and remarked, “It isn’t a weapon. It’s a tool. All of you are stage three, so you should theoretically possess same amount of aura.”

With a metallic screech, the metal sheet bent and folded, molding itself to the shape of his arm like armor.

“But what about when it comes to drawing out the power?” Grant asked David.

Anastasia took in a deep breath, followed by a faint, orange glow manifesting from her body, “Drawing it out varies differently from between me and David. For me, drawing it out is a lot like breathing.”

Felix nodded.

David continued with his lecture, “But if there’s one sure fire way to release it, then imagining it is the easiest way. Don’t just feel it. Imagine it. The power comes from the brain, so you have to project it into the real world. It’s a slow process, so keep doing it until it’s as natural as breathing.”

“What do we call this power we possess?” Nero asked.

“We simply call it psychic power.” The iron-armed man answered.

“I see.” He sighed dejectedly, as if hoping for something more.

“Now, then, show me what you all can do.” Their mentor instructed.

~