Casters (Book One: Star Caster)

Chapter Twenty Nine

"A perfect score?"

"Yeah, weird right? I mean, I've never made a perfect score on anything in my life. And I know how to use some of my powers all of a sudden almost like the info just poofed into my brain. Any thoughts?" I ask.

"Hmm," Vega taps her pen on her chin.

"Cyrene said people can be naturals, but come on, do I look like a natural? I don't even know how to do basic energy conversion or whatever it's called."

She snorts in amusement.

"See!"

"There is a third option." She says.

"What?" I shift in my seat and lean in closer to her.

"Well, here is my theory. Back before awakenings were outlawed, people would have power burst after being awakened. You see, normal Casters grow with their powers, their powers grow naturally as they grow. People who are awakened don't have that luxury. It's a sudden onslaught of powers pushed onto you all at once. If you don't learn how to use and control them quickly you will have power burst."

"Which means..."

She huffs, "Your powers will find their own ways to manifest and can get out of control. For example, one of the main reasons the practice was outlawed dates back to the vampire incident. As it's called today."

"The what?" I eye her.

"In the late '50s, a man was awakened to his fire caster powers. He wasn't a natural and struggled to grasp all the concepts. His energy kept building and building until boom!" she slams her hand down on the table.

I flinch back.

"He combusts into flames. Caught our very dormitory on fire. Hence the name Ash Ruin Hall. He burned the whole building to the ground and burned himself to ashes. Like a vampire combust in the sun. Six people were killed in the incident."

"That's... horrifying." I make a face.

"My point is, your powers could be bursting to get out. Just like how you blasted Cyrene back on accident. Each Caster is different. One thing Star Casters can do is create light illusions. Mirages, some people call them. I think your powers are making you see these weird things. Have you noticed any other weird visions or strange scenery out of place?"

"Wait so you think I'm doing this to myself?"

"Not intentionally, but yeah."

"How can my powers make me see someone die, that seems like more than a mirage."

"It's possible."

"I don't know, I just don't feel like—"

"We've already established you don't know anything about anything. So what's the harm in checking to be sure?"

I sigh in defeat, I guess she does have a point.

But this feels different.

Like can a mirage make my future self put some weird key inside of me? Can a mirage predict what someone will say to the exact phrasing? Can a mirage cause someone to fall into your arms and feel as though they are dying?

I don't think so.

"Okay, so I'm going to go into your memories and look for clues. Then I am going to do something, but you can't tell anyone. It's highly forbidden. I'd be so dead if anyone found out."

"What?"

"I'm going to help you control your powers by showing you how to. Implanting the info into your brain. This will help reduce possible power bursts that are happening. If the visions stop, then my theory was correct."