Chapter 25 Purple Haze
The Fifth Element 🔥🌊🌪️⛰️🌀
Cassie's POV
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Mr. Ken looked encouragingly at me. Eyes bright, like he was watching his favorite experiment work.
“Yes. Now, I want you to tell one of them here to do something, anything, using your mind,” he said to me.
“Oh. Um, okay. I’ll try,” I said and focused on one of the guards. The one on the left. Younger. Nervous. Sweat at his hairline.
I kept repeating the word slap in my mind. But nothing happened. He just blinked. Shifted his weight.
“Um, nothing is happening,” I said to Mr. Ken.
“Try harder. Remain focused,” he said to me and I closed my eyes, trying again. Blocked out the hum of the lights. The guard’s breathing.
I opened my eyes and raised my hand in midair, and a purplish haze appeared on my palm, swirling like smoke, like ink in water. Cold against my skin. I directed it to one of the guards. It moved. It listened.
The guard suddenly slapped the other one, hard. Smack. Echoed off the tile. Catching him off guard.
He seemed to recover himself after slapping his colleague, blinking, confused. Touching his face. “What the—”
I burst out laughing at what I just did. Couldn’t help it. It was fun to watch. Now this was power. Real power. Mine.
“Okay… Not what I had in mind but it works. That’s all that matters,” the teacher said to me, shaking his head. But he was smiling. Proud-dad smile.
“Sorry. I’m sorry. I don’t know why I suddenly thought about that,” I said when I regained myself from laughing. Wiped my eyes. Still grinning.
“It’s okay. Now I want you to do something else,” Mr. Ken said to me.
“Sure. Um, ohh, I’ve got an idea,” I said and focused back on one of the guards. The one who got slapped. He looked pissed. Jaw tight. Hand near his baton.
I thought about something and suddenly the guard started dropping all the weapons he had on himself on the ground. Baton. Taser. Zip-ties. Knife. Clang. Clang. Clang. One by one. Like his fingers forgot how to hold. His face went slack. Eyes empty.
With the look on Mr. Ken’s face, I could tell he was impressed. Eyes wide. Nodding. Slow.
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“Very nice, Cassie. This is great. With a power like yours, you could do so much with it if you wanted,” he said to me, sounding proud.
“Thanks. I feel pretty powerful now,” I said to him. And I did. Buzzing. Like I’d drunk three energy drinks but cleaner.
“You are. That’ll be all for today. You need to make them forget what happened here,” he said.
“Okay. Why is it that no one has to know about my powers again?” I asked him.
“It’s not safe yet for anyone to know. Your power is different, somewhat dangerous if you ask me. Which is why no one can know yet until we figure out how to use it well,” he said to me.
“Not safe? What does that mean?” I asked him. My buzz dipped.
“I know this school might seem like a fairytale to you. It isn’t. The horrors are not only out there but also in here. You can’t trust anyone yet. So it’s best we keep this to ourselves for now. Until you’re ready and prepared for what’s coming.”
“So you wanna tell me what exactly is coming? The war?” I asked him and he smiled. Not nice. Sad.
“That’s not my place to tell. Now back on what you’re doing.”
“Right. Right.” I said and focused on the guard. The one who slapped.
I kept wishing for him to forget about what happened in here, repeatedly. Forget. Forget. Forget. Pushed the haze at him.
Suddenly the guard fell on the floor. Knees hit first. Then face. Thud.
I stood up quickly, wondering if I did it right. Heart jumping. “Did I kill him?”
“Relax, he’ll be okay,” the teacher said to calm me down. Hand on my shoulder.
“Oh. Why did he collapse then?” I asked him.
“I don’t know,” the teacher replied. But he didn’t look worried. That worried me.
When the guard got back up, he looked so lost. Blinking at the ceiling. At his hands. At us. “Where… what was happening?” he asked, voice small.
That’s when we knew what I did worked.
“This is good. Cassie, do the same thing for the other one,” the teacher said to me and I nodded.
I repeated the exact same thing and the other guard fell to the ground for some seconds before getting back up. He also didn’t have any memory of what happened here. He kept asking for his knife. It was at his feet.
Mr. Ken thanked them and told them they could take their leave. They left, rubbing their heads, confused.
He also encouraged me and dismissed me as well.
I felt proud of myself. Giddy. Terrified.
I guess the color of my power has something to do with purple. Royal. Dangerous.
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