Path of Lightning: Origins

Chapter 9: Welcome to Aether part 2

"So, what is your job here? You don't strike me as a fighter." Liz said as she walked along Aiko. She was showing her the place.

Some hallways seemed like they would never end, but she liked the theme the place had going on. The chocolate colored walls and the lamps attached to them reminded her of castles that she would see in movies.

"I make sure to check on everyone's penergy and help them with it. Penergy is tricky, so there are times where it could be dangerous to its owner if it's not monitored." Aiko answered, with a smile. "I don't really work here though. I work as a high school teacher."

Liz just met this woman, but from her first impression of her, she felt sorry for the poor kids she teaches.

"How is it tricky? I never had trouble with my powers." Liz asked, shoving her hands into her pockets. Her sleeves were long enough to cover all of her arms, but she still felt anxious about her veins popping out of nowhere and someone catching a glimpse of them.

"Penergy is complicated. Not everyone can control it easily. Sometimes it's even related to whatever trauma that unlocked it." The teacher explained, making the blonde feel more confused.

"What trauma? I never had one. I was able to use my powers for as long as I remember." Liz said. She did not remember anything traumatic, her first kill maybe? No, she already had powers at that time.

"Then you're one of the rare cases. Some are more gifted than others and are talented at a young age. The penergy usually unlocks itself when the person goes through a traumatizing event or is near death." Aiko explained. "Other cases, it could be due to a different strong emotion."

"What unlocked yours?" The woman only shrugged in response.

"You could say I'm gifted like you." She said then walked into a room. The room was separated into two halves, separated by a large window and a door. There was a computer in the first half, along with a few chairs on the side and a snack machine.

The blonde raised her eyebrow. Was this supposed to be a waiting room or what?

In the second half, there was a guy fighting in what looked like a forest.

"This is our training room. What you see right now is a simulation, you can choose whatever environment you want to train in, and how many enemies you want to fight. Looks pretty real, right?" Aiko explained with a wink.

"Wow..." Was all that Liz could say. She couldn't wait to use it. This place was the real deal, no training in the streets could come close to training in harsh environments. She didn't pay attention to the guy, but more to the computer and the complicated codes it had.

"It operates using some life penergy, which helps the environment feel real. You can interact with whatever is there."

Liz was about to ask more questions, but was interrupted when she heard a grunt, and watched the guy leave the room defeated.

The half he was in turned into a white and empty room. He noticed them the moment he walked through the door. "Oh, hi." He said, feeling embarrassed.

He wore a blue scarf on top of a green shirt. His hair was short, black and spiky, while his eyes were brown. He was pretty tall too.

"I see you're pushing yourself harder than usual, Yuki." Aiko said with a smile. "Are you trying to impress someone?" She teased him, knowing that he had his eyes on someone.

"Please stop embarrassing me." Yuki pouted. He then saw Liz and gave her a friendly smile. "Hi, are you new here? I am Yuki, nice to meet you." He had a friendly air around him, and the blonde found herself smiling back.