Powers

Chapter 14

"It's a good thing you learn fast, because if you don't master this soon, the Council will get suspicious," Adam urges. "No pressure there," I say sarcastically. "Don't worry. Now, do you feel like you have a little bit of energy back?" I feel like I just ran a hundred miles nonstop without water, what do you think?

"Yeah. Let's get started," I say instead. "Good. Now, the power of transparency is a bit tricky. You must empty your mind of all thoughts in order to fade away, and you must believe that you are becoming a part of your environment. You become one with the empty space. Now, to begin, I want you to close your mind and empty your mind of everything. Every thought, every feeling, every aspect of life. Be empty," Adam orders.

I close my eyes and do as he says until my mind becomes nothing but a blank page. "Good," he says. "Now, I want you to make yourself believe that you are not in fact a solid substance. Instead, convince yourself that you are empty, a part of the air. Nothing to tie you down to the earth, but instead, be free. You are not of yourself anymore," he insists.

I am not solid. I am empty. I have nothing, nothing and no one to hold me to earth. Let go, and empty your head. You take up no space, but instead, you are the space itself. I am not me, I am transparent. I am free.

Instantly, I feel...well, enlightened. I begin to feel myself slowly slipping from a state of being to a state of emptiness. My mind is clear, and I become aware of being as light as air.

I open my eyes, and look down to where my hands are. Or at least, where they used to be. I see nothing, not my hands, not my legs, not my feet, only the tile where I once stood. "Adam? What's happening?" I ask him. "You're transparent," he answers with a smile. "You can't see me? At all?" I ask. "Nope," he answers warily. Time to have some fun.

"Well in that case..." I trail off. "In what case? Julia? Don't do this to me! This isn't funny!" Adam says panicked. I go over to him, grab his arm and pull it up between his shoulder blades, force him to his knees, and push him forward, causing him to fall. He lands in a cry of pain, and I give a sound of satisfaction. "What was that for?" He asks bewildered. "For throwing me across the room when I was already weak," I answer with a sly smile. "But you had me pinned on the ground!" He shouts. "But you could have been the better person and not fought back. I will remind you this constantly: I'm never the good one," I tell him. "Obviously," he grumbles to himself. "Now, can we stop trying to hurt each other and call ourselves friends?" Adam asks, his hand outstretched.

Everything inside my head screams at me to not trust him. He is a part of the Council. At the same time, however, he took on the task of mentoring me. He was understanding, and patient...somewhat. If he wanted to kill me like the rest of the Council does, he would have done it by now. I take his hand and shake it in a formal matter, and doing so brings back myself from being transparent.

"Why am I visible now?" I ask him. "Because you let your guard down and found someone to hold you to earth. A friend," he answers. I try to make sense of his words, but I suddenly feel faint, black spots dancing in my eyes. I try to stand, but the room starts to spin. Which way is up? What's down? What's right and left?

"What's happening?!" I scream out in a panic. "This is why I didn't want to teach you transparency yet! It was too much for you! The power drained every drop of energy you had left!" He yells back. I feel the sensation of falling, and Adam catching me before I hit my head on the ground. Then everything goes black.