Vantier a Whateley Tale

Ancient and Powerful Vantier awakens in a foreign world, struggling to find her place in it.

In this chapter, Vantier has to go through Required testing as a mutant....this brings issues and lack of trust between her 'keepers' and her.
but her friendship grows with her new teacher!

He is saved from the death of his race and planet....to start all over again....but can she survive?
A human high school and being a teenager? Will she remember what was? And grow in power?

please take note...this story does start out slow...but once its rolling, its a RIDE!

most of my current stories can be found on Fictionmania

Drop a e-mail to me at [email protected] (link sends e-mail)

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All night I sit in the exact same spot, never moving. Becky comes in the next morning at near eight am. "Kyley? you here?" Becky asks out while walking in my house. She finds me in the same spot! "Kyley? you never moved?"

"Why? I don't need sleep? and I don't eat like you, so I sat here and learned all night from the TV! AND its great! I am sure I got at least thirty new words and their meaning right!" my eyes still never leave the TV, as I talk to her.

Becky takes up the remote from the table and hits 'pause'

MY new fun world of learning, I see it all stop! "What happened!?" I yelp, as I finally turn to her more than confused.

"This 'remote" Becky waves it around in the air "Can do lots more! besides on and off. Then add channels. It can stop all of this and you can start it later at the exact same spot!"

"OKAY! I like that. If we start it again? Can I change some channels? As some are boring me?"

"I bet! Some are boring you! AND yes we can add more and different ones later on!"

Becky sits down next to me on the couch with a plop "Well lets get down to today's lessons shall we?"

I nod my agreement to Becky. She then gets out all the books, we will need from her large bag and then we start into working. We work through most of the day and things seem to go well. I test out my 'new' words, that I just learned from the TV and make sure they are good....they are! As Becky wraps up the days lessons to go back home and have dinner. She sets up the TV for me to watch all night. As its seems for now, it adds to my learning curve for the better!

Now it seems to be Becky's coming over just about every day to teach me English. I am now catching on a lot quicker, now that I have more positive and quicker reinforcement. On the second day of us doing lessons, one of the guards shows up. He brings into the house after talking to Becky. A stack of boxes off his cart outside. They take them all into my bedroom as I watch them, then the guard leaves.

"What is this?" I ask her.

"Your new clothes...I sure hope they did better this time!"

Becky starts going through them all for me. As she does, she seems to get madder at each item from the boxes that comes out. "All they got you where girl versions of male clothes! They're all too practical.

"It's just fine. What where you expecting? For me to wear an evening gown, ball gown or something?"

She laughs at me saying a ball gown and shakes her head "No? I was not, but you need to get clothes that show your a 'girl'...not this!? This is something a girl in the military would wear! You need to start wearing, what a 'lady or girl' would wear."

"Ahh all right? So tell them to take it all back?"

"No we will keep them for now, as you have to have something to wear? As of now all you have is that one outfit and hospital clothes? But soon, I will get them to let you go shopping out in the world and buy more."

"Humm that sounds like a plan?" I say, while thinking it would be real nice to leave here even for a day.

Becky starts putting my new clothes away "Well at least they washed them for you, before bringing them over to us."

I look more than puzzled for a few seconds at her "washed?"

"You do understand 'washed?" She leers at me.

"Yes you take them down to a river and beat them over a rock?....Washed."

"Ohh...then I have to show you something. Go get your dirty clothes and follow me."

I go and grab the bag, I was shown to keep them in, back in the prisoner section of this place. I then start following her out the front door, to that green area that rests between all the small houses here.

As we walk toward the small house. I see four guards walking on a concrete path on the green space's far edge. I know they are watching me, as I can catch them trying 'NOT' to watch!

We both go to the small building that rests on the far corner of the green space. I watch as Becky just opens the door without even a knock?

"Why did you not knock first, on this persons house?"

"No one lives here. Its a building that has group things in it, for all the houses around it. Everybody shares this."

I nod and I don't quite understand, but follow her none the less into the building. Once in, I find this end of the building has lots of windows in it and three tables with chairs all around them for over twenty people to sit and use. Along one wall is a sink and 'countertop' Becky calls it and cabinets. On another wall is two doors and Becky goes into one, I follow not even understanding any of this place.

'Is it a meeting hall? or place to have a court for leaders for the area?'

She walks in and opens the top lid of one of four big white boxes, we find there.

"Kyley let me have your clothes or 'laundry' is what we call it?"

I hand her the bag and she separates the few underwear I have out and dumps the rest into the big white box. Then she opens a cabinet at the rooms end and selects a container after she reads the labels on them. She pulls out a little mushy cube from it and she tosses it in the machine. Then selects a bottle from the shelf in the next cabinet over. Takes the bottle, she pours some blue liquid in a little cup and then into the machines center tube. Then she closes the lid.

As she gets ready to turn a knob on the boxes front "Kyley please come here and look at this. This word here that's 'wash' then you turn this knob to this mark" it click and grinds like mad when she does "then pull out the center knob" it makes a big click. I now hear water flowing and splashing Then she lifts the lid again "See its filling with water and when its full of water. This machine will move this thing around in the middle and clean your clothes for you. It takes about Forty five minutes."

She takes my arm and guides me to the large cabinets. She opens the doors once again and takes a mushy cube out of a container there "This is soap. You only need one to wash with" She grabs the bottle back out "This is a chemical to make your clothes softer and smell better."

I sniff it. I find, Its was kind strong. So I wiggle my nose at it "That...there? it dilutes in the water. It's not too bad then, after it's done." she adds.

I look in the cabinet at the other stuff there "Hey this is 'Tide?' and this blue bottle is 'Downey?' I remember seeing it on the TV!" I say more than excited as I point at the boxes and the large blue bottle.

"Well at least the advertising people got their money's worth! I think they just landed their new customer and one that will out last the company!" she starts laughing...and I don't get it at all?

"But Kyley after the washer gets done. You open this door on the dryer" she opens the front of the next box up and it forms a little shelf there "then you take your wet, clean clothes and toss them in here. Close this door up. Then you turn this knob" She shows me "to here...that is for heavy clothes or cotton. Like your jeans! Then pull this out, it starts to spin around inside and makes heat to dry your clothes out" She opens the door real quick and I see it spins once or twice then stops. "when it buzzes it's dried and you pull out your things. If you don't like wrinkled clothes...but you probably don't care if your clothes are wrinkled or not. But if you care? Put them on this setting here" she shows me a place on the 'dryer' knob "This means no wrinkles. But you still have to pull them out pretty quick after they are done or they will little wrinkle up anyway!...okay? This is how you wash your clothes."

"All this just fine for your cotton things. That you now own. But as you get new things that need different care I will show you. You do know what I mean by 'cotton'?" she looks at me to see my understanding.

"Yes I do understand it, we have something very similar back home...or 'had' something like that" I say, now sad and starting to tear up.

She realizes what just happen to me "Every time you think about home. You realize it does not exist any longer?"

I nod fighting down the sadness, as I do not want to project it on her and make her day bad too!

"Well anyway you just learned how to clean your own clothes here! You should do this every few days the keep all your things from piling up and having to spend the whole day here washing. There are many machines here and near no other people staying near us. SO you will have plenty of time for this."

I glance over at her "I usually have people that would do this for me. But now I guess I'm going to do it myself?"

"Humm really? So you never did this task at home?"

"Ahh yes I did once and a while...but remember! We don't wear clothes and outside we only wear armor for the most part."

"Ohh ya. But sooner or later you have to wash-up on the outside? Don't you?"

"Yes once and a while. But for the most part my armor does not get dirty or me in it. I do remember once after being in a long fight, taking a long bath, to soak out the smell of blood off me. As I was in that fight near non-stop for a year."

"A year! wow! what a fight that must have been?"

"Maybe some day, I will bore you with the stories of some of that time?"

"Okay we can do that. But lets take some time to go over all of this. So we make sure you learned the all the words from here."

So we start into reviewing the words in English. We work on it until it looks like I've got it. This all takes over an hour for me to get out correctly -wash, soap, dryer, clothes and other stuff used in the building. Then Becky thinks that I might need a basket to hold this stuff and she writes down her notebook that she has been carrying.

After we are done at the 'community building' she called it, we go back to my house. I put those few things away. Becky is out in the living room tidying up things and make more notes.

She says to me, while closing up the last book on her stack up "I am going to get lunch now."

"Are you going to eat in your house?"

"No I am going to go to the cafeteria."

"You want me to go with?"

She near bubbles out "Yes! I would be more than happy for you to come with me for your first time there. You have not gone there yet, in the last couple days, have you?"

I shake my head "I have not tried much of going out of this house of theirs. I wanted to feel comfortable here before I ventured out. But going with you will make me comfortable!"

"Fine Kyley...then lets go. AND please if you want to walk around with me. We can always do that instead of lessons. As I can teach you while we walk, on what we see too?"

"Now get these on, so you look nice" she hands me a stack of new clothes.

I immediately start stripping down and put on the new things. When I get done. I say to her "Lead on your in charge!"

Becky literally bounces out the back door of my house and we start to walking down the path toward the large cluster of buildings. As we walk I notice three guards off in the distance yet again!...'prisoner' is all I think.

As we walk, she shows me things as we go and uses the words for them. Tree, plant, flowers and my favorite now 'rock!' ...As we meander down the path I hear a sound again, one that I must ask about.

"What is that? up there making that sound?" I point up.

Becky stops and looks up, to what I am talking about "Ohh that....is a plane!"

I look at her more than befuddled by that word.

She giggles at my confusion. "A plane is like the 'cart' or the 'van' instead on being on the ground, as we use it...it fly's. Remember we humans don't have WINGS!"

I look up at it and use my great vision to look closer. I see windows on it and maybe a head of a person looking out? "Ahh I see that now. I can see a head in one of the windows on it!"

"You can see that?"

"Yes I can. I should be able to. Because as fast as I can fly, if I did not see things very far off like that! I would smash into objects all the time!" I laugh out.

We finally get to the cafeteria and we go in. I see there are many people here. Far more than I have seen in one place here, even the last time we where here it was empty. I have to wonder if they moved everyone that first time I came here just incase I was dangerous? As I see and count the crowd fast, 247 in the room. I make sure my glamour is fully off. But GODS, I do love all the people in here! All the ambient life force is just filling me up! GODS it feels so good!

I watch Becky get in a line of people and grab up flat board "Get one of these Kyley to carry your food on...its a 'plastic tray' "

I look down at the vast stack of them, She just grads me one and hands it to me finally. I am not sure I want to eat anything? I think about it, I might as well try it?
Becky slides her tray on a metal rail on the side of the long table with food behind glass on the other side of it and people are standing there handing out plates of it to any who ask?

Becky waits her turn and orders her food? after a mere second they hand her a plate. She then talks to the man more and I watch as he gets a large plate, to just put little samples of food all over it and he goes to hand it to me.

"Take it silly that's yours...I told him, that you only eat so much and you want to sample everything. As you don't know what our food is like."

"Good?"...then I say to the man... "Thank you." I get "You're welcome" back from him. She says more to him with a slight giggle. He just nods back.

We slide along to the end. To a final younger girl sitting there, who looks over what Becky has. Then Becky pulls out of her bag, a small case and hands her 'paper'?

My guess that is 'money' here

I start to pull out multiple gold coins. Becky stops me "No give her this" She hands me my ID card, she just unclipped from my shirt "this has your money on it."

"Ohh all that's right!" I hand her my card, she swipes it through a machine as I'm walking by and then she hands it back to me. As Becky walks off , I hand the girl one the coin anyway..."is yours" I say and walk off. She's looking at me like I'm crazy now.

We both sit down and about five or ten minutes goes by. Then that the girl I gave the coin to an two other people walk up and start talking to me, somewhat upset. I don't understand what they are saying all I can get is one word of ten at best.

So I point at Becky across the table from me. "Her?"

So all three start talking to Becky at the same time and they seem to be upset, happy the same time. Becky's listening to them...then one of them, a man WHO I DID NOT! give the coin to, hands it back to Becky. She looks at it, then looks at me...that look just says trouble all over it! to me.

"You gave her a gold coin? Why would you do that?"

"I have enough I think?...So I gave her one....I know what giving a gratuity is to a person is?"

"We call it a 'tip'!"

"Tip'...I repeat out "okay?"

"Well her supervisor, her person in charge says it's not a good thing."

"Well tell them to share it then?"

Becky goes on talking to the man and I can see he is having none of it...while he is shaking his head at her. But all this time I feel good and hope off the young girl who I gave the coin too. I feel she wants it and NEEDS it for something?

"Tell them I insist or it will be an insult...that's not a good thing."

Becky gets kinda mad at him and starts talking fast. What I don't know is going on is?

The manager says to Becky "We don't tip here....that's not allowed."

"Well this person is from a faraway place and this is what she does normally at home. So tipping is normal to her." Says Becky in a tone, that should get results soon is my bet!

"Well? we don't normally tip here...and not especially a one or two thousand dollar gold coin! It's just ridiculous!"

"NO! she's insistent. That you guys just share it, divide it up equally with everybody that's probably working today and enjoy it. She appreciates people working for her. So just keep it or...your going to insult her badly and that's not going to be a good thing."

They start arguing back and forth for a little bit. I watch and my anger is starting to rise.

Becky sees and feels it. As she stands there, right next to me "Well your going to have to keep the coin and keep it as a tip or donate it to charity or something. But don't insult her by giving it back. I insist! or do I have to call Mr. Twain down here and settle this for you?"

The man sighs "Okay we will call it tip and everybody will share it."

The two girls that are standing say "Thank you"

"You're welcome"

"I guess they finally took it, at your insistence and mine?" I ask Becky.

She sighs back "Yes...but Kyley don't do that again, it's not a good idea."

"Well it should be. They seemed happy to get it? and that younger one seemed to need it bad in some way. I felt it from her!"

She shakes her head "Maybe we should get some regular money for you. As giving that much is...quite a little bit too much."

"Well they are going to share it or divide it up. That's better now isn't?"

"Kinda makes sense?"

So with that issue done, I get back to eating. I sample a little nibble out of everything on the plate. Becky, she tells me what things are. Like the pizza (I loved by the way!) there and the spaghetti, meatloaf and she leads me through the rest of the tray. We make it into a lesson and a chat. As I finish up, that younger girl from before comes over to us.

She says "Thank you" to me and then tells Becky something. After she is done she goes to shake my hand. As I take it up, my minds just shoots off like mad and I feel out to her. She is very sick....near death in mere weeks...I feel out to heal. as I always have done AND get stopped cold by...that feeling of balance. Something MUST be paid to BALANCE the scales out...to keep the gates of hell closed. I hold on to her hand for far too long but, she does not pull away from me, as I must be making her 'feel' good. I finally let go of her hand.

"Your welcome...name?" I ask.

She says 'Madelyn' then nods and walks off.

After she goes off. I put my face in my hands and near start to cry.

"What? Kyley I can near feel that off you!" Becky asks me...more than feeling the now growing sadness in me.

I pull up my shields fast...I say to Becky in that older language. We now use for secrets "That child is sick, she is so...near death! AND I can't help!"

"What? I don't understand?"

I get up from the table..."Outside with this...not here?" Becky stands to join me on my walk out.

Once outside and far off from the building.

I stop Becky on the path back to my home. To talk "What is wrong Becky. Is that nothing stopped me from healing anyone back at home. Just so you know most of my kind are warriors, then later on some of us far older ones...Like me found we could heal, as well as kill with our inner energy. But now that I am here? New laws of this world stop me from doing so. The law here is 'balance' I give....so must I take. I hate it!....but that is the way for me now."

"Well then 'take' and cure her?"

"I can, but that 'take' is so incredibly high. That after I do it...why live? As to cure her would make her a near slave to me or worse. Strip her of all freewill forever and beyond. I am not that evil! I just can't."

"So what is it, she has got?"

"I don't know your words for it. But her guts, are literally rotting out. She has mere weeks, a month or two?"

"Well at least make an offer? Death is death, some kind of life, is still living? Does she even know she is dieing?"

"You go ask...I don't want to be near that, if I am doomed to not help!"

"I will!" and Becky stalks off to go back inside.

Becky walks inside, wonders about for a short while and then finds Madelyn at her work station "Ahh I have a personal question for you, can we talk off somewhere else please?" Becky asks her very softly.

"YEP lets go over here" and Madelyn near drags Becky off.

Once they both get out of the main dining area, then into a separate small banquet hall Madelyn asks Becky "So what do you need and your friend is so nice!"

"I don't know how to put this...but that friend feels your sick or something...do you know that?"

"Sadly yes...final stage, cancer in the liver and it spread to other stuff in there. I have like a month or two...and if your going to ask why I am working its, for the money AND why sit at home waiting to die!"

"Humm Okay, I understand that. I just have to say this and its between only us you promise?"

"Okay I will bite. I promise, So what is it?"

"Ahh that friend is real special in many ways annnd if I said she can help you. But the price would be extremely high...and we are not talking money here...would you go...go for it? or ask and listen?" Becky barely squeaks out.

"Fine lets see this!"

I wait on the path to my house and pace while doing so. 'Gods I hope that this lady is not getting me into a hole!'

As I wait on the path, thinking and pacing about. I see Becky leading that young girl Madelyn this way! 'danm it!' my mind screams!

As Becky gets there, she asks me "Well Kyley, Madelyn is sick and has something to ask you?"

"DAMN IT Becky you have no clue? You worship a Daemon, yet you don't know this? Gods this is going to be trouble." I snarl at her.

"Yes I know it! But the offer has to be at least made!" she says more than insistent to me.

"Fine 'girl' I will...ask her this...do you promise what we are about to talk of never passes your lips or you will never write it down?"

Becky does it for me. And then translates as we go.

"Yes I do."

"Fine...Since 'Becky'..." I leer at her "Brought you here on this I have to offer. I can fix you...BUT! the price is VERY! high...AND then do you believe me, when I say that, I can do this?"

"What is it? and I do believe you, as when you touched me. I felt something and you made me feel better than I have in months!"

"Well the price is HIGH...darn it....it would be near to say your life again, as your soul in a way...till you die. I can make you do anything and you have no say! AND I mean NONE, as in....I ask you to jump off a cliff to your death....you go! The reason for this harshness is, your so close to death. It will take lots to save you from it."

She stands there pondering it!........'Gods she is actually thinking of saying yes?......please don't' I beg her in my mind.

"Is there any other option?" Madelyn asks me....and I see that glimmer of hope in her eye...........and its killing me!

"Humm let me think..." I start to pace...then...the thought just hits me...kids!

"You can bear a child or more for me? That would at least give you free will, But you still have to obey me impart? As My requests on you would be more your choice...but to refuse too much....say 5 times and then you would have no choice! AND these are not my rules. I don't make them up! A higher power did eons ago!"

"Can I think on this?" she asks.

"You bet! you will...I would demand you did!....and do you have kids of your own yet?"

She shakes her head, to answer me. "Good, as if you do this...these will be MY children not yours....you will be mother to them, but they will not be human at all."

She just nods back to me. She is silent and thinking.

"Take your time, as I will be here for quite some to come."

Becky and me, leave her standing there deep in thought. She has life changing choices to make.

The next morning comes early and since I don't sleep. I greet the sun, while I am standing outside on the communal grass between all the buildings. I am stretching out and going through what I call the Warriors moves. I wish I could pull my Axe out. But doing that, would probably get too many people mad at me. My body is starting to relax from my exercise. I am starting to like this place now. As I flow from one move to the next, in my rotation. I see Becky come out of the house next to mine. She looks like, she's going somewhere? She looks over the area, finally lays eyes on me and finds me out on the grass several yards away doing my moves.

I hear her speak to me, as she walks over to me "Kyley what you doing up so early in the morning?"

I stop flexing and stretching out, to talk to her "Becky remember I don't sleep, I've haven't slept since I came here?" I laugh at her.

"Oh, I keep forgetting that?"

I look her over and she has a robe on and some sort of slip-on shoes that I have never seen. "What you doing?"

"I am off for a morning swim!"

"Humm that sounds like fun...maybe I otta go swimming too?"

"Do you have a swimsuit?"

"Swimsuit?...You wear clothes to swim" I shake my head "How you people....I have hard enough of a time wearing clothes as it is! Now you say, you have to wear clothes to go swimming in?" I sigh out. "I'll never get you people on that? I guess that's one more thing to send the guards to get for me?"

Almost instantly, she pulls out a little notepad out of her pocket yet again and writes down on it. I glance to her "Do you make a note about everything I request? Are they paying you for this?"

She leers at me with a crooked smile...that says she is a little mad to me "Don't you be giving me gold. I don't need it. I have got, everything I need from the church okay! But the Church will accept the donation?"

I give her more than the evil eye "The church...your church does not need my donation and I know it! One of these days I am going to tell you what Sara's long time ago relatives did....to where I was at and then you will know why I'm just very leery of her. Give money to her church?! I laugh at it! Even if she is different. It...just would be....just stupid."

"Could you at least give me the basics?" she asks in a calm voice, that does seem to have caring at its core.

"Okay I will give it to you short and to the point as possible. Everything that I knew. People I knew. Places I knew. People I loved. Everywhere that I have ever been. They destroyed! Okay? Simple as that, it's all gone!...I haven't figured out why? But I got plucked from there, to here and that's all there is?....That I know about. I have a feeling eventually someone's going to tell me what's going on?"

She can't even look at me now and her mood is definitely changed from happy to sad with what I just dropped on her. "I'm sorry for you." she mumbles to me.

"You don't need to be apologizing for something, you did not do or had no control over. It happened so long ago and so far away....it's funny." I sigh out in thought "So why don't you go have your swim. Then you can have them go buy me the clothes I need for that too...have fun."

Becky starts walking away, then stops suddenly. To twist back and look me over "That ID card....your supposed to be wearing it!" she gets gruff with me.

"Okay I will wear it?" she walks up to me to whisper at me "Remember that card tells them where you're at exactly!"

"Humm?"

"They want to know where your at all times, that's why they want you to wear it. You have to wear it or they will get mad."

I am surprised at that and say "You mean I have too, even out here on the grass practically in front of my house?"

"They might be okay with that?...but you have to wear it all the time."

"Do you think they scry on the inside of my house?"

Becky has to think about what I mean by 'scry' for quite sometime "OHHH! 'scry' you mean take pictures and listen!...probably? I wouldn't put it past them? they did not make a promise not to?"

"Maybe I should make a new contract with them on that?"

"Mr. Twain probably won't sign that. This is his land and his buildings. He can do what he wants to them right?" she near tells me.

I sigh out "Yes, I am a guest. I have to obey the Lord of the lands rules, don't I?"

She nods "Yes...that translates perfectly...I will see you in a couple hours" then she walks off toward the rec hall area.

After I stretch out for a bit longer. I see one of the guards is looking at me from a distance off outside. I go back in my cottage for bit, to grab that silly badge of mine and put it in my pocket. Then I think about it. How can I fly with a shirt on? I can't do it? Flying with my armor on would get them really upset? Yeah whatever?

I walk over the male guard standing there. I have noticed that...there is one around every time I come out now. As I get up to him I say out while I point up "Go...fly...now?" Then I point at my wrist meaning for time "Hour?" and he nods.

I walk back over to the grassy area. Next to the bench there, take off my shirt and drop it on it. I glance at the guard...and the look from him is priceless 'what the heck' is what, I am guessing is running through his mind right now!

I let my wings come out and flex them wings out for a minute or two. Then I hop up and fly straight up. Then start into flying around the area. After getting about 10 minutes into, it loosening up and enjoying it. I find a nice air current, I am enjoying floating and soaring on it. I see Becky underneath me walking, I watch her for a little and then she notices the guard looking near straight up at me.

She screams up at me so loud, that I could make out even up here! I hover for a second and she Bellows once more even louder! "Get down here!"

I go like a bullet right at the ground and pull up to land near her feet. I fold my wings up, making them go back all the way into being hidden under my skin.

I walk up to Becky to ask her...I am near scared I did something really wrong "What's the matter?"

"Your not wearing anything on top! You need to be wearing a top. I told you this is not right."

"Well then tell me what to wear? As these people have not been giving me anything without a back on it!" I sass her.

She pulls out the notebook again to write something down. "Kyley please turn around and put your wings out for a second." I do as asked "Humm I never really looked back here before now...your wings or where they go, looks like a 3D tattoo right now"...I finally unfold them and she looks like she's trying to measure by gauging it with her hands across my back.

"I think I got an idea of the type top you can wear. If not? I will have a custom one made for you to wear."

I get sassy at her "Really? I have to wear clothes even while, I am doing that?"

"Its just not acceptable" she says while crossing her arms to me. Thus saying to me...'this is a RULE!' by the motion.

I sigh and I walk away from her. Then I fold wings, As I walk. As I go I grab my shirt off the bench and put it back on. "Your people and your customs are certainly cutting into my idea of having fun and enjoyment....You know that! I am never going to feel normal with your weird customs around here!"

I'm actually REALLY upset now, as I walk away from her and go back to my cottage. As I go in, I can see she is shaking her head at me and with that motion from her. I walk in my door and slam it shut!

I near scream out at the empty room "These people are just getting to be a little too much with their weird customs."

An hour and a half or two hours go by and there's a knock at my door. I look out the small window in the door and it's Becky. She usually doesn't knock. But? this time she knocked? I open the door to her "Why did you knock to ask to come in? You just usually just come in?"

"Well you seem to need some personal time. You are upset at our rules or our customs are bothering you. Well they just are...and your going to have to accept them. You're here now, not there. You understand what I am trying to get through to you?"

"Yes I have to accept that everything that was...is gone and this is all new...but forever."

I finally notice, that she's got a plastic basket in her hand and she hands it to me.

"Here you go, here is your swimsuit, it should fit you? There are two different types of them in there, for you to try out to see which one is better."

Then she leads me into my bedroom and takes the basket from me "This is for your dirty laundry. Just put in here, then you can carry it easier over to the laundry area. They sent two suits over, after they figured out your size. And maybe one can be used as a top when you fly? At least till I get a few custom ones ordered for you. BUT Today were skipping lessons."

"What!..... why?" I ask more than flustered at the interruption of that.

"You're going to go to the medical facility. You are going to start doing those tests ...that you promised to do and get them out of the way. Then maybe after its all done you can go outside faster, as you need one of our MID cards to do so."

I sigh more than disappointed "Okay I agreed to that...yes?

"But anyway" she pulls out one of the clothes from the plastic bin "This is a one piece swimsuit. I suggest you wear this, but they also sent this over" and she pulls out two very small pieces of clothing "Since they're guys they picked this" she shows me "What it this is...is a bikini. It covers as LITTLE! as possible, so guys can look at you!"

"To me? they don't make any difference so.... I'll probably end up wearing this more often. You know what I said with my custom is. I don't care what they see, as long as they don't touch me."

She gets more than sassy and kind of motherly to me "Well if you like guys LEERING! at you all day long!"

I shake my head to her "I don't care what they are thinking, as long as they don't act on it."

She looks at me, with a curious look on her face "Well what would you do?"

"If a male groped me? I would probably break his arm. If I didn't rip it out from the side of his body. You might want to tell them that. If they touch me, like that. Someone is gonna need a healers help desperately."

Becky pulls out her ever present notepad and writes it down quickly. Then asks me "Take off your shirt...please?"

I take off my shirt, at her request and throw it on the bed.

"Please put on this Bikini top?" I do so easily "Can you make your wings come out with this on?"

I flex and think about it for second, as I get the feeling off it, how it fits me "Yeah it'll work?"

"Good you can wear this, when you're flying then? The bikini top? " I nod to her "Pull your wings out, so I can get some good measurements?" I do and she goes over some things back there "Good...there is a couple of what we call exercise tops that will work for this. They are backless." I nod back not even knowing what she is talking about.

Then I see her write down yet another note "That stuff will be here for tomorrow to cover more of you up and it will not be so easy for it to fall off. Because of these ties --that bikinis have on them."

She undoes the bikini for me and tosses it back in the basket. Then she tosses me back my shirt and I put it on.

"Well then lets start getting you over to medical station. We start into walking rather slowly over there. As we do she starts into explaining what my MID card is, the MCO, what mutants are on the planet, and I am now classified as one. She goes on to say that they will probably call me an 'avatar'. Because I've subsumed my human and it changed me into this. Then on top of that classify me as a changeling?...which is a change in sex."

"Humm Okay all this to describe one person and most of it can't be seen--funny rules you have here?"

"So what we are going to do today is what they call this powers testing, for the MID card so they can figure out what you do"

I nod back--thinking about this

"AND please Kyley...you don't hide anything, as of later on you reveal something drastic. They're going to get really upset and they might try to put you in jail."

I don't like that idea at all! That I must reveal all to them...I am going to hold back some. As I am still not sure how 'good' Sara or her kind are here! or the maybe that they might find me via this...to END me?

Then we finally get to the medical buildings and she introduces me to a couple of the doctors and she tells me their names. Then she tells me in my language, that they're irrelevant names and don't worry about remembering them. 'but I remember everything!' I laugh innerly to it.

Then they get me all dressed, in a suite that measures what I am doing. Then they lead me and have me run through this gauntlet, maze and throw stuff at me. They surprised me with stuff, that they do to me! They test my strength, running speed and even more!

Then Becky reminds me "They know that you turn into a bigger version of yourself. They have to test that also?"

SO! we run through the whole thing AGAIN! With me at what I really call normal! ...bigger version and she's patiently watching the whole thing. Making sure that she translates and about ten percent of what they say to me. I'm understanding now.

The test person puts me on the treadmill again as my bigger self to run it again. He says "Something...run now..." and off I go! As I understand that!

As I am running, he says "Stop" since I know the word 'stop' now, I do. Then they launch balls at me, that's new? A cannonball swings on a metal rope at me and before it gets to me...I slap it off, out of the way. Since this is the 'bigger' me, as I slap it out of the way. I bust the whole device completely out of the ceiling. 'whoops' is in my thoughts.

The lead tech sighs "Well that's first time that's happened."

Becky is laughing, as she translates it for me. Then they start into measuring my strength, then onto my agility, which is higher than normal. Then near finally a test of my memory with shapes, colors and other strange stuff. I can memorize it nearly instantly, then they start feeding it to me as fast as they can and I still get one hundred percent on every score across the board. I even beat the computer, on that 3D chess game that changes rules on the players!

I see Becky shaking her head, at how fast I memorize stuff . She finally gets a chance to ask me "If you do all this, then why? Do you such a difficulty with English? You memorized this silly test instantly and you can't do the other?"

"I don't know why English is an issue? Maybe it's the human, I subsumed fighting me? I don't know, it could be the last curse of him."

The tech says for the next test...."We want to take you outside and see how fast you fly?"

"NOW! that sounds like fun!" now I am happy!

Becky says to me "Kyley just a minute!" and she runs off, as they take me outside. She finally comes back with a top for me.

"Come over here!" she takes me to a corner "Put this on, where no one can look!"

I sigh "Whatever?" as I do as told, to keep her happy.

After I finally get it on, I pull my wings out and relax. "Ahhh that feels SO much better!"

Becky notices that I relax more, when I have my wings out. As this is the second time, that she has actually seen it.

"Do you feel better with your wings out? Kyley?"

"Yes" I say while stretching out.

"Is it?..."she questions me "When you have them put away, is it like you have to hold them in?"

I say to her as I stretch out "Yes exactly that. Its liken to clinching a fist all day long."

"So you have to make an effort to have them in and having them out there's no effort. Have you thought about leaving them out, all day long. I can get clothes and shirts made for you, so you can do that?"

I think about it for sometime before I answer "It would not be normal, would it? and you're so worried about me not wearing clothes as it is?" I think I got her on that "I might as well just wear this...top...when I need to and keep everyone happy? You can get me a couple more of these....right?" she nods back "Well I am going to try to fit in with your customs much as I can and I don't see a lot of winged people around now...do you?"

She laughs at me "No."

They walk me completely outside for this test and I see a Doctor standing there a bit farther off from the group. I see that he has a lit thing in his mouth and smoke is coming from it. I 'just' smell it and I start to walk over there to him, just entranced by that delicious smell!

I wave to Becky to come to me and I point at the man "What's this?" I ask.

"That's a cigar" she says. Then man finally notices me and her asking about it.

I'm smelling it and its DEVINE! "I don't know why, but I want one!"

Becky shakes her head "They are not good for you. It's a bad habit."

"I want one!" I near demand.

The doctor over hears us both "I will giver her one, if she wants to try it?"

He gives me one and for some reason the one he gives me-- my mind says to me suddenly that 'this is a reasonable quality one' --I take a smell it. Then he gives me a gizmo to use.

Becky jumps in "He will explain how to use that."

I don't even wait. I snip off the ends in a well practiced manner on the cigar like you're supposed to and I hand back to tool to him. He looks at me and Becky more than puzzled "Is this the first time you have had one?"

"Yes I think?....But for some reason I have got a memory my head stuck...that I've had this before?"

Becky leers at me hard "You like cigars?"

"This is first time, I can remember in my surface memory having one? But I have a deeper memory..." I stand there concentrating "Becky?... This must be what's left of the human I subsumed? The resistance to my understanding English and this stupid 'cigar'? you call it? This must be the last bits of him disappearing?"

The doctor goes to hand me a lighter and with that move of his. I look at him like he has gone nuts.

"No you don't light a cigar with a lighter. You light one with a match!" I informed him.

After Becky translates for me. He looks at me more than surprised..."Well she is right on that one. A true cigar person uses matches only. I use a lighter because its works for me."

He digs deeper into a satchel, that he was carrying and pulls out a small box of matches then hands them to me "Now lets see if she know the rest of this correctly?"

"Thank you" I say.

I get out a few and he's watching me intently. As I light the first one. I heat the end of the cigar fully. Then evenly light it off by, drawing the smoke out of it in long pulls of air through it, till its finally lit to my satisfaction.

"Well shoot! she knows how to do that right!" I go to hand him back the box "No keep them you may need them for later?"

"Thanks...this is...ahhh...good?" I say not sure if I am saying it right. ...I am, as I see Becky nod to me.

The doctor asks Becky "She just lit that correctly and You are saying this is her first time smoking a cigar?"

"Well doctor? You have to understand that she is a 'mutant avatar' and she subsumed her human near completely. This skill or habit and her having some mental block or resistance to learning English. As well as any other languages from here. Seems to be the only small 'itsy bitsy' residual parts left of that human--so far?"

"So you tried other languages with her?"

"We tried a couple dozen languages weeks ago and the same thing."

I get Becky's attention back to me, from the doctor's questions "Becky can you
ask him to buy me more these and the best that he can find?"

Becky asks the doctor my question.

"Ohh ya I have a connection to get her the finest Cuban cigars and she wants to? I could also get her a humidor and everything else. But its going to cost money?"

Becky laughs "I'll ask her about that....money issue?"

Becky asks me "Kyley....what your asking might cost a bit of money? So do you have any to spend on this? As I think its a waste of your money."

After she asked that question. I finally really realize something. I have been in a bit of denial. I have been thinking for weeks 'that its only a mater of time...till they come and kill me again'....What if they never come? I might need every coin, I have to live. As I am sure that no skills, I have currently can make money here at all. Its not like in my past as a young boy. That I could go out and have fun to gather treasure from the world at large, or depend on the empire and family to care for me. It has been so long that, I have not needed to worry about this...I have forgot how to deal with the need of it.

But that WANT or CRAVING for them is just over powering. I NEED it!

"Becky I think I have enough money for this....I need this in some deep way. So I will do it. So how much is it?"

"Doc? she has some money on her ID card to use?" Becky questions the man.

"No...I prefer cash, the ID card is good, but they track them. Where I get my supplies from is not exactly legal."

Becky translates that for me. So I reach out for my pack of coins and grab a few. As I do I ask "Becky how much would cover this?"

"I am not sure? a couple hundred?...maybe? I will ask him?"

Becky asks the doctor the question at hand and discovers he's talking about thirty to fifty bucks apiece for the top-of-the-line ones--he's never had one that good and expensive himself. But he feels that on average, the middle market items are just as good and at a far better prices overall.

Becky goes over that with me and after pondering that question I decide that sounds good..."Becky please tell him that I will go with what he said. On what to buy. I want several boxes the best he can find at a good cost. All the accessories you need to smoke them, with wooden matches like I asked. Maybe something to carry the cigars around and so they don't break. Then give me what's left over and he can keep a bit of it for himself? for the trouble?"

I then hand him two coins "Good? I ask him.

He nods back and then talks to Becky for some time. While I simply puff away very happily. The doctor says to her during their talk, that he'll have everything by the middle of like next week.

As I am standing there more than happy I notice that most of he crowd there is looking at me for something ...but not saying anything? "Well I guess I had better get on with this flying thing for them." I hand over my lit cigar to Becky and she grabs on it and she holds like she's revolted by even being near it!

I fly up and ask Becky "What do they want me to do?"

"Kyley...they want you to fly as fast as you can. At first, then do the obstacle course. I nod my understanding to her and fly off.

I fly off in the direction indicated and do several passes. I see from them after six complete run bys. I am done. I look to Becky for the next part and she points at a bunch of rings set on poles at various heights and sizes of ring.

"You want me to fly thought the rings?"

"Yes as fast as you can please! The ones they want you to go through will light up as you go."

I look off into the distance, while I hover. To see a ring light up, just as she said it would. I tip over, dive at it and go through it. To notice the next one inline lights up, as this one fades out...'humm a game! This I might like!"

I do several runs, thought the whole thing. As I go, I see they are using the same set of rings over and over. But they are trying to get me to do faster and narrower turns at each run. On run through number four, the rings shrink in-size. I actually have to pull in my wings, as I pass through them to make each one. By run number eight, the size is down to just my body and a small bit more! But I still make it and keep my speed up. Then at run number ten, I am hit by a blast of wind from a device at the rings entrance and that tosses me up hard!...But I make it! This sudden 'wind' test of theirs, gets progressively worse at each run till. I am tossed VERY violently to the ground with a thud! When I get back up, the testers tell Becky its over. As they now have all the information they need.

"So what's next?" I ask her. As I dust myself off from the fall. Then I stand back from her and shake the dirt out of my wings.

"Well Kyley? They are done out here. The next part is back in the medical center. Some sort of magical test? But don't ask me what it is, as I do not do that at all?"

A cart drives up and they ask us it get on it. Then it drives us all back in the direction of the medical center. As we drive, I watch around me and see we are not going to the medical center. I listen to one of the other riders talk to Becky for most of the trip. Then she finally turns to me, just as I see we are about to enter a large guard post to enter an elevator.

"Kyley? Since they know your a mage of some sort? We are going to is down to a lower level, to test your magic skills out. Since this can be a dangerous test. They don't do it on the surface at all. So we have to go back down in the mines again" She can see my mood change, as I know the deeper I get, the harder it will be for me to get back out. If they break their oath to me. "Hey don't worry I am sure this is normal." her smile...even thou I know its nothing, it does give me some comfort.

As we go down, we drive long hallways to an elevator and that takes us down into the complex again. I close my eyes, relax and open my mental shields. To 'feel' out to the men around me. So far I am not 'feeling' any deception from them or that they are hiding something. As I am 'open' I reach out a small bit...I know there is vast evil down here...somewhere, so I am cautious. As we drive along, suddenly...it hits me! and I pull my shields back up, as it near jolts me off the cart! That action and near fall. Gets Becky's attention fast!

"What! Kyley?" she asks while holding my arm to keep me in my seat.

"Sorry...I was 'feeling' out again and that 'evil' here just knows? I am here and reached for me in a big way!"

"WELL then, don't do that anymore!' she near shrieks in my ear.

I nod back to her, as the cart stops and the others get out. Becky and I follow them to a room. As we enter this new section. I can feel the 'wards' allover the entrance at the doors edge. We the all walk down a short...but large hallway to a room. This room has even more 'wards' on it. I can see them all from the doorway, that the walls have etched and painted runes all over them. Becky stops, to talk to a person that was already standing there waiting for us? My guess, is that he is the mage in charge here. As I can feel it, as well as read it from him.

After they talk for a time and I see him point out something in the next room to her. She walks back over to me "Kyley This is the staff mage here and he is going to do your magic test for us. This is so you can get that MID card taken care of and travel soon enough. But what is going to happen is your going in there and he will tell you what to do and I will translate it all via the sound system in the room.....Okay? " I nod back "But first off you have to step into this circle, for the testing to start."

I look at the circle and its a mage built one "I don't want to...not gonna happen!"

"Why? she asks me.

"You never stand in a circle made by a mage willingly. As they will have power over you. I'm not doing that! EVER!" I say while, I am shaking my head vigorously.

Becky says my reply to the mage standing there "Well she's not gonna do it. She says its bad and I believe her on that" she tells the mage.

"Well please tell her, that it will not hurt her. Its One hundred percent safe and it's only for testing to keep everything safe. It keeps her safe and us while she is doing our testing." pleads the man.

Becky tells me what the mage said to her. I stand there not quite sure what to do... then it dawns on me "Have them sign a piece of paper, like I do for them. That this is not going to hurt me. Also at my request or demand, this tests ends and I am free...right there!"

Becky says that to the mage for me "She wants a document from you, like she signs for you people....a sorcerer's contract I think you call it? Between you and her. That she can get out of that circle when she makes a request and that your not going to hurt her or she's not gonna do it."

He sighs out then looks at me, angry? I return his gaze to him...."Are you going to do this or do we have an issue...mortal!?" I say my language.

Becky turns to me fast, to leer at me in anger and then! She shushes me!

"Don't shush me!" I near bark back.

The mage asks her, after my little outburst "Becky? what did she just say?

Becky sighs out..."What she just said is 'Are we going to have a problem?' is basically what she said."

The mage's attitude starts getting a little more than defensive in its posture to me. Even Becky a non-warrior sees its change.

"Hey now don't you two get into a Kafuffle over this. As its just her being cautious, as she is new to here and has not developed a trust with anyone yet."

"Ahh okay, I see that now. I will give her one" He says, then starts into writing out, a short contract to keep me feeling a bit more safe in this 'test' of theirs.

After he is done writing it out. Becky goes over the simple paper with me and translates it all for me. I tuck it into my pants pocket and say to him as friendly as I can "Start...where?"

He leads me to the circle and we start into a bunch of magical tests with Becky translating as best she could. The first step is a Question.

"How do you 'see' magic?"

"Humm I see it in many ways...ley lines...the glow from an area, object or person."

"How do you make or use spells?"

"I just think about what I want and if I or the area has enough magic energy in it...it happens?"

"But you must 'weave' or form spells with words or actions or something surly?"

"No I just see the amount of magic in the area and use it. Plain and simple as that? But what your referring to, is what I and my master who taught me. We both call that a 'crutch'... a way for a simpler brain to 'see' how to use, what is normal to me and he who taught me."

"Who first taught you magic?"

"Uthor."

"Who or what is Uthor?"

"He was the king of all dragons where I came from. A Golden one. He taught me over about, I would say somewhere between five to ten thousand of your years? in total. At first it was just about twenty years. Then I came back for more later on in life. You have to finish what you start!"

"Huumm now that's a first for me! You are certainly older than you look!" he laughs out nervously.

"Well then lets begin shall we?"...I just nod agreement back to him.

I stand in the circle, to go through a whole bunch of magical tests and after nearly two hours of that evil. He finally lets me out of the mage circle. He then hands a full report for Becky to read over to me.

"Well Kyley this shows out of a skill range of one to seven. You are a four and he definitely thinks you're trainable to a six. If you learn the different magic styles that are used now and that may take years for you to learn he says...But I know you have that!" she giggles out "Just so you know, there are only a handful of Sixes on the whole planet. But trainable to a six is pretty incredible! This also says you have quite an affinity for magic and a very deep essence well to draw upon for your magic. Then the way you do and see magic is something they might want more on later. As you 'see' it, then use it instinctively and very different way than others do? He then says, your magic is really close related to the Fae's magic or that of Elves?"

"Well make sense, I learned a lot of magic from the Elves."

"Really? You learned magic from Elves?"

"Yes I did, after Uthor got done with my basics. I did some study time under the best Elvin mages around. As the Elvin Empress and me where old friends. I helped the Empress to clear her lands of all evil and to secure her throne. She was a VERY good friend of mine. She was one of the first ones to fall, when 'they' came." I am shaking my head in sadness thinking about it. I start walking towards the door to leave. I just don't want to talk to her about it any more today.

I walk over to the cart and sit on it. I see Becky near runs out after me, after talking with our escorts.

"Kyley we are not done yet. But the next part is back upstairs anyway. The next part is the medical exams--like blood x-ray, MRI, CAT scan, eyes, ears, hearing ,ect" ...she just goes on and on. I hear her fully, but my mind is really lost in the old thoughts of long dead friends.

After some time traveling Becky notices, that I am not really 'here' and whacks me in the ribs hard "Are you listening to me at all?"

"NO, not really. I am thinking of all my old times. But I did hear all you said and remember it. I just don't care right now is all" I say very plainly and flat. Then I drift off back to what mattered to me at the time.

We all go back up through the same maze of hallways and corridors back to the medical center. After we get there, the first thing Becky does is hand the gentleman in charge there the paperwork from the mages. He looks over it more than interested, while he goes off to read the reports more. A second man comes forward and asks Becky if they can test my armor out.

She translates this question to me. I nearly laugh at the though of it. As since I have been here I have heard no less then five times, that they tested the 'block' that was my armor for near One hundred and Fifty years!

I am still so near laughing, I barely tell Becky "Please Becky tell them that my armor is the same, as it was as a block or me wearing it. They had all that time to test it and nothing has changed...from then...(I laugh more) as I am still in it!"

Becky looks at me in wonderment no quite getting the joke...then it dawns on her I was IN that block all that time, so testing now is exactly the same! as then.

The man looks more than disappointed in that fact. As my bet is, that he never got to do any of theses tests and really wanted to see this for himself. But he went on to explain something new to Becky for several minutes.

Becky finally came over to me "Well this is the last part for powers testing. What they want to do is a test for regenerative healing. They know from that shot to your chest on that first day that you heal. Now they just want to see how good you heal."

The doctor gives Becky the first steps on this. As she listens to it she doesn't look happy...near at all "Well This is new for me --The only way to test your regenerative healing is...destructive...they cut you and see how fast you heal?"

"Really? well that's going to be interesting?"

I nod to the doctor and he leads me to sit me down at a table, then puts my arm in a device to hold it, so I don't jerk around is my guess. After its all set, the medical attendant tries to cut me with a knife. It doesn't cut so good. So they try another blade or two on it and the results are not what they are looking for....As all they get, are very deep cuts into my hard skin...then my internal energy near melts the blade and makes it dull. They move on to a laser. But that just makes real bad burn marks on me, that heal up fast. What they are after, is a consistent 'cut' to measure. AND my energy is interfering in this.

The assistant tells Becky "If we can't cut her? We're not going to be able to measure your regenerative abilities today? I will have to send for a set of special blades for this and that my take a week or more?"

Becky tells me his question "Kyley they can't cut you, so the test has to wait?"

As Becky is telling me this...'I remember that my armor properties should have leached into my body and my skin. Thus making them tougher. Since I wore mine so many years. I should probably be one of the toughest people that lived where I am from, plus that cursed, gift?....the blackness of my armor, made it even tougher. Did my rebirth, make all this go way?' I ponder the thoughts.

"Humm they just need something to cut you with?" she asks again.

"I know...get this thing off my arm for a minute please..." I look at the man sitting there "Off now?" and point at the brace my arm is in.

After he gets me out of the brace. I pull out my storage bag. I literally dig around in it for several minutes. From it I get a small dagger and place it on the table. The medical assistant starts to grab for it and I have to slap his hand away like you would do a small child! "Becky? tell them not to touch the edge of this. As it will surly cut their fingers completely off in a split second, or from just a tap it will take their whole arm off! okay? It's made of the same metal my suits made out of, but this is an alloy of it."

She explained it all to him. Then I put my arm back in the device. No sooner than I was done he started using the dagger to cut me. Some blood pours from the new wound for the barest seconds, then heals fast and no scar or other indication of a wound is left.

Becky is in a bit of shock at the sight of it "DO! you feel pain? right now?"

"No not really? You can call it a pain? But it's just telling me, I got hurt."

They do a few more on the arm and hand. Then the doctor tells me via Becky.."They want to cut off a finger now?" she gulps at that thought!

"I am Okay with that...go ahead."

The doc cuts off my small finger it drops off to the tray below it, with a large spurt of blood. Then rolls around in the tray it fell into for a second. To disappear in a small flash of light. There is a small bit of ash left there to show it even existed. Then in a few seconds, a new one starts to grow back in its place and after several minutes. Its all healed

"Humm now that is new...never saw that before or even read about that! Kyley what was that? your finger just did?"

After Becky translates to me..."Ahh, that is my energy or maybe you can call it life force? Being released?" I say back to him.

"Lets do more!" he cuts off another and another one with the same results. The doctor writes it all down each time.

Becky is just standing there jaw open for some time..."Wow that is neat!" she finally says out.

Becky and the doc talk a little...Now Becky asks for him "They want to cut off the whole hand now? Ahh that sounds a bit drastic. But that's what they want next?" she says more than sheepishly to me.

"Go ahead?"

She tells him and with little time delay or waiting. He does! Near the same thing happens, But this time the light flash is far brighter near blinding and the blood of mine even more. But since this was the whole hand. It takes near a half an hour, for it all to grow back. The doc writes even more notes, down this time. Then he does it once more after it grows back, just to test if my healing fades with time.

All the doctors talk for a few minuets, amongst themselves. During all of it Becky does not look happy or pleased with what is at question. I can feel some fear off her and its directed at me or for me?

She asks me in a voice that sounds all too worried now "They want to move you to a new table and take off your whole arm...since they see, your not feeling any pain and healing so quickly."

"Well I agreed to all of this...fine. Lets do it and get this over with!"

Becky now she looks a little queasily at me "Please, they only can do this if you agree to it?"

I nod back to her "I am fine with it. As I am not really feeling anything from this."

They take me into another room, that is a bit bigger and I see there are some other patients already there getting care for injuries. They sit me down, near a man getting a cast done on his leg. I can now see the reason why they brought me here. The table is made to hold, lift and move my leg 'just so'... To make this easier on me and safer for them.

I take off my pants for this and lay down on the bed. The doctor takes my leg in his hands "Well here goes!" and he cuts it off with my dagger as fast as he can. The blood flows out fast for several seconds as the leg falls off and the near blast of light from its going. Blinds everyone in the room but me! My flesh just flows and grows back into a new leg within an hour after that.

I Look over Becky and she does not look good at all! I also see that one of the technicians looks as if he may barf at any second and the technician who was with the doctor is looking happy as heck! at the sight.

Becky asks me in a soft tone "You don't feel any of this?"

"You could call it pain? But its not, its just my body saying, I am hurt a little."

They all talk some more and Becky comes back "They want another?"

"Fine" is all I say, with a nod to them.

Without a moments hesitation the doc moves to the other leg. But this time even more personal show up to watch this. He cuts the leg with the exact same results again...but this time I get a clap from the peanut gallery that is assembled there.

Becky and them talk at that...then she tells me "Well they are going to stop now because, the next test will be basically chopping you in half and I don't think that would be a good idea for you?"

I laugh "I think you're right chopping me in half, probably would not be a good idea?"

As me and her talk. I see a quite a commotion happening across the room. They are all talking over that man who was just next to me when they took off my leg. I can see that they are talking and pointing at something and the mans leg. Then they shuffle this one man into another room.

"Becky what are they arguing over?"

"They all seem to be looking at a X-ray of something?"

"What is that...an x-ray...please?"

"It takes pictures of bones through the skin, to show breaks and problems."

"Okay I understand that...so what are they talking about?"

"I can't tell they're muffling and mumbling too damn much!"

I try and listen...but end up shaking my head in disgust "I really wish I knew your language better then. I can hear every word they are saying. But I just can't speak it well enough to get what the issue is. All I can get is at best one word of ten spoken by them."

Becky finally gets fed-up and walks over to see what issue is. I sit there and my mind wanders back again to old friends gone. My mind as of today just can't seem to get off that track!

Becky comes back over to me all excited "Kyley! you know that guy that was next to you, that they just took away? After they cut off your leg and being in the room for a while for awhile, he says that the pain-- it stopped after being in the room with you. He broke, his leg two days ago and they just X-rayed his leg bone. It's completely healed up! Like it's ever been broken before? Do you know anything about this?"

"Becky have you ever noticed that you felt better when you're in the room with me?" I ask her.

"Ya? I just thought it was just me being happy, that I am teaching somebody?"

"Well?" I sigh out "My kind make people feel better being around us. If your around us long enough...it will probably heal your wounds a little bit over time. Then when they cut off my limbs, that flash of light? Was that energy being released at one time. That one flash was probably like being around me for a month all in one shot. That was probably what healed his leg?"

She gets all excited and tells the doctor. Who looks at me like I am slightly crazy "So you can heal people if you want to?" he asks me through Becky.

"Directly yes and if you're in the room with me long enough-- slowly yes?"

The doc asks "Can we test this some how?"

"Okay at least I will feel like I'm helping somebody today?"

They take me to the infirmary room or the ER, for this rather large complex and since it has a large group of people running it there are always some injured around here. The doc shows me the first one they want me to try. A man broke his hand the other day, they letting him recuperate here and doing a follow-up on him.

I put my hand on his broken hand. I feel out into him and I see the break, its a simple one. I push out some of my energy or life force into the hand. There is a slight 'glow' from it.

"Becky tell him to flex his hand and fingers now, everything should be fine."

He does it...after she tells him "Hey it feels great, all fixed! Thanks!"

I see the doctors take him away, to test my work out. When they finally get back. They tell me like I expected, its all healed up. I am next taken over to a man who was just brought in, with a rather large gash to his leg and he is bleeding badly. As I see him enter the room. I feel that PAIN of his wounds, I near run over to him and place both hands on the wound. It only takes me a couple seconds via touching him, with a little concentration and it slowly seals up.

After I am done with that man, they pull Becky aside to talk yet again to her. I am starting to feel like she is 'running' me, as they ask her all the questions. After that talk, they nearly drag me up to a hospital room and once there Becky starts into me quick!

"Kyley this man has lung cancer...its like that girl from the cafeteria, can you help him out?"

'Damn she expects me to fix everyone now? I already told her there is a price to such things!'

With I sigh, I walk to the man in the bed and start feeling out to him via my hands. I can feel the 'cancer' in him or as I call it 'red death' because you usually bleed to death from this...slowly. The cancer is all over his lungs, so bad there is no way to 'cut' it out like they do here. Then to add to his misfortune, its all in his stomach and spreading fast.....He is a dead man.

"Becky he is even worse than the girl was, he may last a bit longer. But he is still going to die. Tell him I am sorry."

"BUT you said to Madelyn you can save her for a price!" she near yells at me.

I am very mad and near screaming at her myself "YES! I did! You cornered me into that deal! But she has not made a choice yet and unlike this man! She can bear a child in payment to me and balance the scales that way.....THIS! MAN WILL BE A SLAVE TO ME! don't you get it.....balance is the rule! I can not change that! So you tell him that!"

"I WILL!" she finally screams out to me.

She starts marching over to him and she is going to do just that! Right in front of everyone!.... "STOP!" I yell in English. "Tell the others to leave first...as this is too personal for a crowd to hear!"

Becky shoos them all out. After they all leave. I drop a privacy ward on the room to be sure! Then I turn to Becky "Well tell him! he can live if? He is my slave till he dies! NO! free will at all. He will be at my 'beck and call' all day!"

"But its your power? not mine?" she near begs.

"You forced this! deal with it!....just remember that. I get the great pleasure of feeling all his pain, his lost hope, rage, when you tell him and let him down with this......I told you the price can hurt!" I give her a not too gentle shove over to him.

Becky starts talking to the dieing man "Ahh my friend here can help you. But first, do you feel we are talking the truth right now?"

"Yes strangely I do." he says calmly

"Well before, we can go on since this is so private. I have to ask you to promise never to tell anyone? EVER!"

"I can do that.....As I know I am a dead man so.....what's one more little secret!?"

Becky now sees what I mean a little 'by feeling the pain' as she starts "My rather new friend here is not normal...she is a mutant...but a little beyond that. She can heal you. But there is a price to be paid. Not in money to balance the scales of the world....As she calls it....'to keep the gates of hell shut'. So in your case she says the only way you can balance the scales out, is near slavery to her. As you have no other real 'currency' to offer in the deal. I am so sorry....but I had to ask, as life is life?"

The man looks up at her in veiled anger and sadness 'gods the pain and sadness ....then the rage! I am feeling now! from him is near killing me. Darn it Becky!'.... "So the offer on the table is live and be a slave or die? Why so high a price?" he barks at her.

"Its not her rules...these rules where written long ago by things far above us all and must be obeyed at all times or she pays the price."

He near spits at her "No! thanks. I am slave, to no one! Now get out!"

Becky turns to me as we leave "See?" is all I say to her.

I look to him and say "Sorry?" I turn to leave the room. As my back turns, He tosses his tray of food at me. I feel it coming and slap it away. I should be mad...but I can't. All I do is say "Sorry" again, as I go out the door.

We both walk down the hall, from the group of doctors at the man's door. I finally see a staircase door and shove! Becky in it hard! Then slam the door "What are you playing at! Are you trying to get me found out! or what!" I demand from her.

"I don't understand Kyley? what?"

I feel out to her and all I get back is confusion "I was thinking you where planning to out me to the world on this?...But now I don't feel it from you?"

"I would never do that!"

"BUT you would do....what you just did! I can not fix the WORLD! little girl....I am not this worlds GOD and even she can't! If you want to do this again, then do it with Sara! and see how much 'fun' she is...is my bet!"

"I......I don't...." she stutters at me confused.

I grab her by the neck, with my hand "If I did not need you!.... OOOHH!" I let go of her "Do you even know how painful it was for me back there...I felt all the pain and rage off him!....Sorry about grabbing you like that...its his rage...still getting to me. Can we take a break from this? As this whole building is pure pain!......to me?" I sigh out.

The doctors want to go on, but at Becky's instance we stop. I walk out of the medical center with Becky in tow, lagging behind me a little bit. She can see finally how mad I really am and is staying back a little to give me some much needed room.

After a long and very silent walk. We finally get to my back door "I will see you in a few hours Becky. I need some time alone right now."

"Okay...are you sure as I just really see it in you now? You do look very tired?"

"I am. They took all those fingers, my hand a few times and two legs. Then add healing those two men...it all has a price! I have lost allot of my energy today and then add the magic testing on top." I then shut my door, as I am far too mad to talk to her any longer.

After I get in my house I near tear off my clothes and go to the shower. I just feel so 'dirty' right now! I near jump in the shower and turn it on. I don't even give it time to warm up! I just stand there and bask in its warmth for over an hour, just plain enjoying the waters flowing embrace on me. I finally feel I have had enough, I get up the energy to get out and dry off. After I do...I walk slowly out to the living room with a blanket wrapped around me, that I just pulled off the bed and sit on the couch with a tired plop.

After I settle down to cover myself up, I grab the TV remote and push play. The sound and light from it, wraps around me and calms my raging mind. I decide to lay down and watch it. In less then ten minuets I drift off to sleep. As I sleep my mind divides up, one part listens to the TV and tries to learn. Another is processing today's madness and the final part drifts off to the last time I fell asleep with my wife Gina. As lay there wrapped in that wonderful night. It changes suddenly to her last day! I feel her dieing like all the rest, being torn part and her grief not knowing what will become of the kids! THEN finally her death stabs at my heart deeply!

I jump up near off the couch, screaming that name!...her name.

Once I stop screaming, I look suddenly about. To find Becky getting up from the other chair in the room, She is scared and is backing away from me. As my mind finally gets cleared from that horror, I was just in. I see why she is scared! My Axe is hovering in the room over me and is slowly going to her. I feel it means her harm!

"Becky DO NOT move!" I command her. Luckily she stands still!

I grab up my Axe and ask it why its out!

~'I am out....as last time you talked to her, you felt betrayed. Your fear and sadness. It called to me!'~

~'Go! now!'~ I say to it mentally and it fades out of sight.

"Becky are you all right?" I ask more than concerned for her.

She calms down and then finally sits "I am fine, what was that!

"That was my Axe. Sorry, it has gotten a little over protective...as the years have gone by"

"It thinks?" she looks a little confused to me, as she says that.

"WHY Yes! wouldn't you after 500,000 years of being around?" I sass her.

"Where you just sleeping? I thought you never slept?"

"I really don't. I was awake in some sort. I heard you come in, two hours ago and sit. I was just spent mentally and physically from today, is all?"

"Who is Gina?"

I near spin to her from my near sleep-- my now fierce gaze makes her back into the chairs cushions from me "NEVER SPEAK HER NAME TO ME! you have not earned that privilege to ask that of me....yet!" I bark at her.

All Becky can do, is nod silently in fear at me.

I feel that fear dripping from her, now that the rage of that outburst of mine is gone.

I say softly to her "Becky I will tell you that someday, when I feel you have earned my full trust. Just as of now, Because of your being around Sara. I don't fully trust you yet. Now please stop being so sacred of me right now. As I did say to you more than once I need you and will not hurt you willingly or knowingly."

"I am sorry for that? I am not scared anymore."

I see her still shaking in fear. She is just mouthing the words now trying to be polite to me.

"Yes you are....was it the Axe? As its now gone...Because if your still scared of me....then go right now! I will figure out all this myself!" If she only knew that fear, nearly hurts me as much as sadness and rage does.

"Hey! don't say or think that? Are you all right? As you seem really too angry and off right now?"

"I need more rest.. then add all the 'feelings' I had to deal with from others today...have affected me a bit today?...But we have to get the rest of these stupid tests done?"

"AAhh nope we don't, I will call and get them to it set for tomorrow. Do you want to sleep some more? or?"

"No....Actually I want a pepperoni pizza?....and sorry I lost it. As who you asked about....may have....died....years ago...but to me, it was just yesterday." I finally stuttered out in thought ...as I held back all the sadness. Because if I let it all go with her in the room, it would surly drive her mad.

"I'll be right back in a few!" and off she runs out my door.

After she runs out, I bury my face deep in the blanket and cry. I let all that sadness from that dream out and then try to calm myself before she gets back.

After about twenty minutes, Becky comes flying in the back door with three large pizzas in hand and large bag of snack food. I go for the pepperoni one, as I asked for it and start eating it slowly. As Becky pulls up a movie on the TV to watch, as we chat about the week gone by. As we sit there, I am finally letting all the days madness flow out of me. As the night goes on, Becky is giving me near tones of snack items to try out for taste. I finally seem to like items that have peanuts in them allot! I get into relaxing on the couch. I snuggle into its corner watching the movie and I fall asleep again from the exertion of the day both mentally and physically.

I fell into a dream of my youth being out with friends in the untamed world and not a nightmare this time at all! When I wake several hours later from that nice feeling of safety. I find out why that was. Becky had fallen asleep snuggled right next to me and her emotions where of feeling safe and comfortable being next to me. Her dreams and emotions they had bled into that dream of mine to form it.

Well now that I am up. I find that I can't get up without waking her? 'OOhh...well' I think. My hand grabs up the TV control and I hop through the channels looking for something interesting, to settle finally on a kids show with a large yellow bird? As I watch it, I find it silly. But even with the sound off....its entertaining!

As I lay there for a couple of hours, I find Becky is really snuggling 'close' really close! I really like her....but I want to keep her, for now at arms length. She finally stirs in her slumber, then looks up to me.

"Well we are finally awake are we?" I ask her.

"MMMM....yes. God your so warm! I loved that!"

"What?...I did nothing?....can I get up now? or shall I stay here and be your pillow more today?"

Ohh poo! We have to get going. If it was not for those tests I would happily lay here all day?"

"So last night...you stayed...why? If I can ask? As after I fell off to sleep, you could have just left?"

"I was told to watch over you by Sara and that's all there is....that's my job. I am here to make sure you get cared for." she says to me while standing up and stretching out. I watch her closely as she does and find it familiar.

"You know Becky...when you stretch like that, you remind me of a old friend of mine!" I start to laugh at the thoughts.

"So who or what? would that be?" she asks while moaning out from her moves.

"You remind me of Tameria. She was part of a humans tribe. I traveled with for a long time, she was like a were-tiger? I think you would call it? All your stretching looks like her...like a big cat!" I now giggle out.

"So I act like a cat?" her gaze on me is less than happy at that statement.

"Yes a big cat!...."

"So how did you meet this cat?"

"Well not cat....tiger! think human female and tiger blended. Then think over six foot tall, all muscle and weighs 400 pounds! But I met her in a town. She saw me when she was young, stupid and VERY hungry. I was walking down a alley and she jumped me, thinking I was a rather large chicken! Well my throwing her through a building wall, solved that issue fast! At that age and time in my life I was going to kill her for that, but a human that was traveling with us. Liked her and we took her in. For that...boy she was loyal to us as repayment!"

"Humm sounds like a fun friend...who tried to eat you!...." she laughs out as she does the 'face of menace' and clawed hands at me.

"She was great!...but I got to get a shower!" I say as I jump off the couch.

"Do you want company?" she asks me in a very inviting voice.

"Becky...I am not going to do that with you. I do not want to have that type of a relationship. Your my teacher to me, I don't want to complicate the relationship between a teacher and a student at this point....please? We can still be friends? Then maybe...beyond this place and this now....something can happen?"

"Okay I have no problem with that. But someday, we might revisit this issue!...But like you said...off to shower up and lets get this over with!" she beams out.

After an hour of me getting ready for the day, I step out the front door. Wearing a shirt that Becky just got for me, that has a built in hole in the back for my wings and a pair of 'cargo pants' I got from the 'new' pile of clothes. I walk on to the green open space in front of my house, to let my wings out and to stretch them out. As I go through a set number of moves I try to do daily to limber up. I notice that a guard is walking near me once again? It's funny how every time I leave that house of mine. A guard pops up in a minute and a half.?"

As I ponder that as, Becky comes out of her place, then walks up to me, all clean and ready too. "Hey you ready? or what?" she asks.

"Becky? isn't funny how that every time I leave the house, that the guard pops up? So they must be watching me in there...inside my house? This man here just proved it!"

"You know, you're right every time you do leave the house, a guard pops up within a minute or two. They practically run out here!"

"So in other words I have zero privacy?" I near hiss.

"Well I thought they would...look in on you? As they are not fully sure of you? Not to mention your a bit powerful?"

"Hummm" I think..."But anyway...more tests? today?" I ask...even thou I know this.

"Yep more tests. But today will go fast and easy! As its just medical stuff?"

"Same building?" I ask...not sure.

"Yes same building!" she smiles to me.

"Well lets go!" I scoop her up and fly over to the medical building with her squealing in my ear all the way.

"Hey I did not expect that! and you messed up my hair!" she says while taking out a brush from her bag to fix it.

"But it was fun?...say it!....say it!" I coax her.

"Fine....yes it was."

"Well then I guess? We will have to get you a hat for next time? hummm?" I question her with a evil grin.

With that little verbal swipe of mine, Becky walks into the building a little mad at me. I just laugh at her, I know she loved the flight!

After we get inside I watch Becky go off to find, who we go to for this next part of the tests. Since she just left me just standing there, I wonder off to find something to peak my interest! Walking from room to room, watching the people come and go. I find this simple thing really interesting to say the least. I may not know what they are doing? But its fun to watch them all. In my wandering I come across what must be a medical place for the children of people who work here. I can tell by the change in the color of the walls and all the happy paintings on them. In that area, I find a small room off to the side of the main hallway, As I enter the room I find a TV showing that show with the big yellow bird in it. In front of the TV are three children just watching the show, not one of them over I would say age five. I stand there at the door, I watch the show for a short time to find that, I like this show and its even better with sound! So, I go and sit down on the floor just behind the entranced kids.

We are all sitting there watching the show and a slow part of the show comes along. With that, one of the Kids finally turns around to see me sitting there. She gets VERY! excited and starts talking to me.

The first kid to turn around is little four year old...Mary. She spins around from watching Sesame street and finds sitting right behind her is, Me...an Angel in her young mind watching TV too! "Hey look its an Angel behind us!" she squeals out!

The rest of the kids turn to stare at me, at hearing that outburst from her!

Little Matt, that is five says "No its not! Those wings are fake!" He jumps up to run behind me and grabs a wing of mine's, edge feather and tugs hard! to prove it to all!

As he tugs, It does hurt a little, but he is no where near strong enough to do any damage....So all I do is yelp out a little "Ouch" as I pull back a little from his play then say softly to him "No...please?" He was certainly surprised that the wing did not come off, like his sisters did. When she wore some, just like these last week! When she played at being an 'angel' for a few days.

A younger kid Sally who is three...does a teaching moment to both of them. "You don't pull out a Angel's feathers! Silly...but you can pet them!" and she toddles beside me to pet a hand on the wing she finds there...softly. "See she likes it!"

As Sally is having her fun. Mary near yells at Matt "See I told you she is real!"

Mary comes up closer to me to ask "What's your name?"

Cool! a sentence I know! "Kyley!" I say out to her more than excited.

Well my answering one question opened the FLOOD gates! "Hi am Mary!...she is Sally...That stupid boy there, is Matt my dumb brother...Where are you from?...how old are you?....how big are your wings?...how fast do you fly?...are there more of you?"....and she went on for several minutes...like all my kids did at that age! You could swear, they don't need to breath to talk!

All I can do in reply, is shake my head at near every word she says to me. As I don't sadly understand a word she says to me.

As Mary is talking a river of words to me. Matt is behind me trying hard to flex out my wings to get a better look at them. I let him do it as best I can, while sitting. Then Sally has taken to sitting on my crossed knee, to watch the TV show.

I suddenly feel fear and concern behind me. I slowly look over my shoulder to find a woman standing there gasping at me. She near yells out "KIDS get away from her now!"

I sense nothing but mass confusion from the children now. As they don't understand why she is yelling at them for nothing? But her more than commanding voice moves them all over to her. Where she does the 'mother hen' move and clutches her arms around the kids. I stay seated as she does this, Because my guess she is afraid of me?

A rather large man suddenly runs into the room now that the woman near screamed out. He sees what my guess is his children move over from me, to the mom? "What in the heck! Who let that monster in here!" he yells out at me. But I don't understand a word of it.

Mary yelps out "Dad she is not a monster! Don't you know an Angel when you see one?"

At the same time Matt in a voice that says stubborn all over it "Dad she was not hurting us. She is a good person?" he insists to his father.

I see the man turn angrily to his kid and his left arm rises up. I can see and feel what is going to happen. He goes to swing and my instincts take over. I move at near blinding speed and grab his wrist to stop him from hitting the boy.

As I hold his arm in my vise like grip. I say to him "No...hurt" while I shake my head to him.

Sally squeals out "SEE! daddy she is good....an Angel will never let a kid get hurt when she is there!"

I feel what is coming next from him. I have his left hand in mine, but his right is free. Since I am leaning far down to catch his hand, before it hit the kid. I am in a bad position to defend myself. His right fist rolls far back and then smashes into my faces left side. When he lands the blow, my head only pops back slightly from the blow...

'I hear the bones in his hand break...at least three'... After he hits me, the pain from the blow stuns him and he starts to shake his hand from the pain of it hitting my hard skull.

I GLARE at him in anger and I see a look come over him that says to me 'What did I just do?'... the look then fades into....'ohhh no, that did not even phase her at all!' then his look fades lastly to 'ohh no, she is mad and will surly kill me!' and I feel all that anger from him, drop to sudden fear coming off him.

As I let go of his arm, to stand up. Becky comes running into the room. AND! she is mad! I am sure, she saw the blow land on my face. So...she is now pushing the man back without fear of any kind. All the while yelling at him...who knows what?

As I stand up at Becky's sudden showing up. My mental shields go up as full as I can muster, as I hold back my anger and rage at being struck. I try hard to calm myself, as I watch the show of Becky shoving and screaming at the man. Then I see, he is about to act on her! But a glare from me backs him down. A thought runs through my head...'good idea...as if you hit her! I would hurt you badly!'

As Becky is going 'all nuts' on the man. Four guards show up running in, with Mr. Twain. Twain sees what might happen soon, then he then jumps wisely between Becky and the man to stop something that will surly get out of hand fast!

"What is going on here!" Twain demands from the man and Becky "Why did you hit Kyley!" The rage coming off Twain is so high, I can feel it.

"She was hurting me!" man rages back at Twain.

"Humm now lets see?....." he then turns to the mother "But first ma'am please take your children with this guard to keep them out of this?"

I watch as the mom takes the kids off while the younger two girls shout out "Why? she is fun"...and "I want to stay and help the Angel out!" I smile and wave at them friendly as they all go.

After they are all gone. Twain turns to a guard standing there to bark "Tablet now!" and the guard hands him one of the flat computers.

"Well lets see shall we. AS! All of this was caught on the clinics camera system!"

I see the man's mood change as he hears that, While Becky is catching me up on the translation of it all.

Twain watches the tablet for a few minutes. Then spins it to show the man something on it "Humm from what I see is that, she saved you from hitting your kid and me firing you for it!"

The man is standing there is shock at that...then Twain adds "What I also see is you hitting her! in the face!...But lets not split hairs....you just know your fired...right?" he hisses in anger at the man

When Becky gets done telling me that. I speak out "No he does not need to lose his job for this. I am unhurt and besides, he broke his hand hitting me. He thought he was protecting his kids from a danger? All I want out of this is...he keeps working here and he tells me why, he called me a 'monster'?"

As Mr. Twain ponders my request. Becky 'still very angry' whispers in my ear very fast. A short version of 'monster' refers to mutants. Then she adds to that with some people have organized via 'Humanity First!' or..'H1!'.. to get rid of them all and that would include me!...I nod back to her that I understand.

"Humm fine he keeps the job....so tell her why you called her a 'monster'....NOW!" Twain barks at the man.

"Well I thought by your looks? That you where dangerous?" after he says that. He stands still and silent.

Becky shrieks at him "SO your not H1! as that is their slogan!?"

"No! I just lost it and used the first word in my head! I know its an insult. So I am sorry?" he says in defense to her...rather meekly.

After Becky translates for me. I walk over to him "Can I see that hand you hurt?"

Becky tells him my request and he puts out his right hand. I take it up and he winces in pain. I see the hand is now swelling rather nicely and turning some nice black and blue colors! I feel out to it "Humm you broke three fingers...well that will tell you, not to hit me next time!" I laugh out... as Becky translates for me...then I put some of my energy into his hand to heal it "No...hurt...now?" is the best I can get out to him in my little english, when I am done with it.

He pulls back his hand and looks at it, as he flexes his fingers "She can heal people?"

Becky boasts to him "YEP! and it looks like she just did it to you. Even after you tried to hurt her!"

Twain tells the man rather harshly "You can go now!"

I watch as he leaves. I smile to him and say to him though Becky..."Tell your kids it was fun and be good!" all I get back is a crooked smile of confusion from him.

After he is gone, Twain says to me "Well lets get on with those tests. Please remember that we have to test out the Axe of yours and that 'light' power or yours that comes out of your hands?"

"Okay? and what 'light' power are you referring too? As mine just heals is all" I ask him trying to sound innocent.

"The one you almost used one day to blast the TV set, after it surprised you in your house. That power!" he states to me.

"SO! you do Scry on me!" I say more than mad at the thought. "You figured out my 'light' kills as well as heals!...Good for you!"

"Well yes we do...you maybe treated better for now...but you are still an unknown. We don't know what you can do? or if your a good or bad person....or should I say creature?" His tone at me, is one I do not like.

"Fine I will show you that and more. For more freedoms. I want to be able to fly off farther, lets say three of your miles up and across? Plus, I can fly at anytime I want to! Then lets add this? You take out all the Scrying devices from my house and swear to it!" I stand my ground waiting for my answer.

After Becky more than happily translates that question for me. Mr. Twain is more than mad "You are in no real position to bargain. If you want to leave here. You have to get tested and do as I ask."

After I hear what he has to say. I just don't care anymore "Fine then I will stay here and not leave...you are all just 'smoke' to me anyway. I will wait till your gone and deal with the next person in charge." I pause inwardly laughing "In?...say one hundred years?" After I am done talking, I start to walk off....not caring.

Becky stops me "What do mean 'smoke' I don't get it"

"You humans....mortals...are 'smoke' to me. OR before I really see or know you. You all disappear in the winds of time, never to be seen again. Understand it?" she nods to me as I walk off.

"Mr. Twain?" Becky asks him "She will stay here and wait till you die or go and then deal with the next person who takes over for you. She called us all 'smoke' ...or gone before she knows it with the winds of time. So now what? She can wait you out and not care? As she has time on her side! She said, that she is willing to wait a hundred years at least?"

Twain near barks out "Damn it!...FINE! I will do as she asks. BUT this had better be good stuff or no deal!"

Becky stops my walking away, with a hand on my shoulder "He agreed...." she giggles out.

I walk back over to him and offer my hand. He shakes it of course. Then I say "Lets get today's testing done!"

With that Becky leads me off to the Doctor she found that will handle it all. So for the rest of the day they medically test me. They take blood (which was hard!) only to find it disappears in a hour. That really upset them! Then we go on to.. Full X-rays, MRI, CAT scans, and other things that show inside my body. Some like the X-rays are blurred by my internal energy and some like the MRI don't work at all on me? After we are done for the day. Me and Becky return to my house.

As I see her off for the night "Well see you tomorrow and maybe this 'testing' will end on that day? As it bores me to no end and has near stopped my lessons that I really need!" she nods to me while walking off.

On the next morning I am still getting showered up, as Becky walks in my door. I have just got out of my shower and I am in the middle of toweling myself dry when she comes in my bedroom. When she sees me with nothing on, she averts her eyes and starts to exit the room.

"Stop Becky...you know by now, I do not care if you see me...or any other? So why are you so ashamed at this?"

"I just am is all...its not normal in our world. So you doing it will take me time to get used to?"

"Fine I have no issue...So wait for me in the living room. I will be right out."

I finish getting all dried off and toss on some clothes for the day to come. I choose a backless shirt and jeans today. I walk out to the living room and find Becky is eating 'breakfast' at a leisurely pace.

"Hey your done! I got you some pancakes for this morning to try out?" she smiles at me.

"I tried them near two weeks ago? So what is new about these?" I ask.

"This batch is buckwheat and I added a bunch of flavors to them!" Becky says to me while happily shoving food in her mouth.

What she brought me looked good? So I sat on the couch and grabbed a plate, then added a pancake on it. At Becky's instance I added some strawberries? then syrup on top. I started to dig in, I found this new flavor of her's, to be real good!

After we get all done. I sit there watching Becky and her rather funny bloated stomach! She ate far too much! "Well shall we go?" I say.

"Yep!" she blurts out.

"Ohh and we are walking. As after you ate all that, there is no way I can carry you and fly!" I jest her.

I duck the swipe! that came next.

"Hey I did not eat that much! besides in that test. You lifted a bit over a tone in this" she waves her hand at me "smaller body of yours! AND the LARGE one did near four!...SO quiet you!" she snarled at me.

All I do in reply, is snicker at her. Which earns yet another swipe at me!

We walk to the medical center to meet up with the latest test giver. Who tells us that we have to take a van out to a far off test area for destructive tests like mine. So he leads us outside to a van and tells us to wait as more are coming soon to go with us.

I see walking toward us is Mr. Twain. So he, is the one we where waiting for?

"Good morning?" I ask....the only real greeting I know.

Then Becky starts to ask the same thing and all she gets out is a rather large 'BURP!' Man she is embarrassed at that less than lady like sound, coming from her.

I just can't resist "See I told you...you ate too much and that proved it!"

SWIPE!

Mr. Twain tries hard to act the gentleman...but fails, as he turns his head to look away. But all he can do is laugh out loudly, when he does so.

Becky is on him in a second "NOT! you too...now shut-up you!" she barks at him while wiggling a finger at him harshly.

He snickers back and raises his free hand in surrender, then waves the same hand toward the van's door and he says something to both of us. Becky gets in the van while daggers near shoot out of her eyes at him. I follow her in the van laughing hard at the whole scene. As Mr. Twain got in the van, he started to tell us today's plans. The first was going to be my 'light' power, then my Axe and followed by anything else I care to share with them today.

As we drive off the main part of the complex. I start looking out the van's window at what is around us. Since we are so far out, there is near nothing to see. But still this place...my new home still intrigues me to no end. As I watch the near barren world side by my window, I finally notice as my head turns that a van is following us and one joined in front of us at the gate we just passed through...more guards no doubt!

We finally arrive at the testing area, near three miles outside of the main complex. What I see when I step out of the van. Is a barren bowl of dirt with small hills all around us. A few scattered block buildings, that look to me as being built really strong. My guess is that they hide in those during the bigger tests?

"So what do they want me to do?" I ask Becky as she gets out of the van "Need any help there? you look so burdened?" I ask as she looks to be moving so slow ...and the joke is so ripe to be picked.

SWIPE! "No! darn you?" she howls at me.

After she is finally out of the van. She goes to ask the assembled technicians what is at hand for me to do. While she is away from me. I look up into the sky and feel the winds out for the best way to fly around here. I bend down to the dirt to look at it. I feel it in my hands, as I pick up some in one and as I stand up I let some out of my hand to gauge the winds. I find, that they look good and strong for just soaring around here for hours in. As I look off up there, my mind drifts off. Becky finally comes back over to me after several minutes of watching me standing there. Becky has to tap me to get my attention back, as my mind drifted so much...in my just looking around and picking at the dirt in boredom.

"Hey Kyley where do you go? when you drift off like that?" she asks me.

"Ohh that? I was thinking of a simple thing like soaring on these great winds for hours...just floating in the clouds. I have to do simple things once and a while to rest my mind...as it never stops. Example this morning..and I am not making fun of you!...You ate three pancakes and took 127 bites to do it. See what I mean, I just suck up information that is not needed?" I look at the dirt in my hand before I drop it... '1,956,098 grains of sand, 4,507 small pebbles, 365 pebbles...' I drop it before I count even more of it.

"Humm okay...maybe you need to find a hobby?" she giggles "But what they want you to do first, is test your power on slabs of steel. To see how much you can cut or destroy?"

She leads me off to the techs who have set up various metal plates in holders. The whole thing is set up in front of a large hill to stop...my guess from damage going farther?

I step up to the arrayed targets and let lose on each one. One step at a time. As we go along I notice as I burn or blast each one, it gets a bit thicker. Also while I work at the task the techs make notes on each plate and the results most furiously. Toward the middle I slow my pace and pretend not to be able to get through some of them. As I am being cautious with just how well they know my powers and skills work.

On the next set of thinner plates, they want me to just 'blast' them explosively...no burning them. I go through about half and stop. I say to them "That's my limit right there."

Mr. Twain walks out to me and smugly asks "Anything else?"

"Humm there is this!" I say as I form a ball of near pure energy in my hands. After it gets to about three inches. I toss it far off into the distance toward the dirt berms. The explosion it makes is very nice! The assembled techs make even more notes at that display of mine.

"Well that is good!" Twain says as he dusts himself off "Messy but good."

One of the techs then asks me "Does that get bigger or do anything else?"

"Yep!" I say out as I form up a larger one and start into rolling it around in my hands and juggling it between both of them.

"So they do get bigger? and they don't explode till you let go of them?"

I say through Becky "Ahh nope..Once I form one it goes...boom, either real quickly like the last one...Or...like this one here...they have a time delay."

"So what is that one's delay?" Twain asks me.

I toss it to him as I say "In about fifteen seconds!"

He catches it easily, then hears what Beck near screamed out and tosses it! He flops on the dirt, as he did not toss it far. I just stand there waiting and watching the group flop around. Becky stands with me, my guess is she trusts me real well by now.

I stoop down to them "Guys I lied..that one is like...fifteen minutes till it goes boom!" I calmly walk out onto the clear area, while Becky is laughing at Twain and his group as she translates to them. I bend down to the ball, to pick it up and toss it at the berm. In my walk back to the group, I can see that Twain is just furious and I feel his anger growing toward me.

"SO! you think that was funny!?" he barks.

"Yes" I say calmly. After Becky's translation is finished.

"You know? I got my new suit dirty because of that!"

"Then take it off, if it offends you now? I don't care. You know that." Becky stifles a giggle and holds back even more. As she translates for me.

As he is yelling even more at me. I just stand there calmly waiting. At the right time I hold up my hand, so Becky can see it and count down the fingers one at a time...at three left. She steps near me to shield herself, just incase from the blast that comes at.......one!

Boom!

Twain stands there as even more dirt and dust falls on that 'nice' suit of his. His mood does not get better now.

All I say is "Next?"

Becky nudges me playfully in the ribs "The Axe!"

"Ohh ya I had better get set for this part" I start to grow into my bigger self. My clothes fade away, as my armor shows up.

As I call my Axe, to have it appear hovering next to me. I ask out "What now?"

My Axe is near Four foot tall, from blade edge, to the stone at its handles base. To most, the blade of it looks to be made in three equal parts, and it is.
The blade it self is a skeletonized circle, that is about three quarters round with the last quarter where the handle extends from. The handle is made of a wood from my home and is wrapped in a leather, that only I know what it is.

As one of the techs walks forward to me I can just 'feel' the fear off the group standing there. As my new size, is not exactly a friendly look, especially in my black armor. One of them finally comes off the group and He leads me to blocks of metal already set up near by. As we get there, He does not wait for Becky to come over he dose a chopping motion at one. I get the drift of his request, so I start into slicing progressively thick and harder metal at each one. As I do, I ask the blade to not cut anymore at one, so as not to show its full abilities to them all.

A somewhat disappointed Twain asks "Is that all?"

"Nope" I say...after the translation. I then toss the Axe at a far off small pole that stands at the berm over 200 yards off. It hits it and easily slices the metal pole in two then returns to hover next to me.

"Huummm" is all I get from him?

"Not impressed!? WATCH this!" and I show off just a little.

This time I toss the Axe and guide it via my link, to hit several poles at the berm.
Upon its return to me. I swipe it in an arc at the targets again. This time the three blades separate from the handle. They go off to strike the targets, that I guide them to. Then I have them fly back to me. I toss up the Axe's main shift and the blades rejoin it. The Axe falls down from the toss, to hover once again next to me.

Mr. Twain stands there.....but he looks not so impressed at that. Where as the techs are amazed at that showing.

I think 'he must want more....he is digging for more?!' I stand there confused at him and his actions.

"Well I am done" is all I say to him.

"Well! that's not near enough for our bargain then!" is his answer to me.

'Damn mortal is playing with death!' I think as my anger rises. "I will show you one more thing that's all, then the bargain is made and done!" I bark at him

I just know I am being played with...but I have shown him not near all I can do!

"I am fine with that...as long as its good?"

I call out 'Night' and there is a small flash and she standing there next to me. She is my near three foot tall hawk, with all black wings and plumage like my armor. She is just eyeballing everybody! I can tell she's not happy...not one bit! To calm her down, I bend down to her and I stroke her feathers on her back and head.

"Becky...Meet Nightwing...my bird. When I was born, this bird was born at the same time and we're linked forever. That's about all I am going to say about our relationship."

"Is she smart?" Becky asks me.

"Yes Becky this bird is smart. She is smarter than you by hundred and we talk" I tap the side of my head "We talk up here...not verbally, all you can hear is her screech like a regular hawk. Then obviously she is a bigger bird! also" I take a glance at Night...then she takes off, with a large beat of her wings. To circle over us and go fly around for a while.

"Was that enough or did you want EVEN more?" I ask....and I am not happy anymore with this game of his.

As I say that. Night must be feeling my displeasure at him. She lands on a steel handrail in front of him. Then she crushes it near flat, in her talons and tears it with them. Then she slides over a little to show him, while she tears at the rest with her beak. One of the techs backs up a pace or two at the show of force.

"Humm I still would like to see more?" he asks...and he is pushing the line!

"So you want even more? Do I have permission to show you more?" I ask him with a evil grin on my face.

"Yes you have it"....he stops and is about to say something else.

I jump up and fly up, at the same time Night disappears. I fly up to near 10,000 feet. Then I go what I call 'light speed' and streak off into the far distance.

What they saw was...me jump up and fly off. Night 'my bird' vanishes from sight when I do. Then they see me fly up high near out of sight.

Mr. Twains asks Becky "Where is she going? is she trying to escape!"

All poor Becky can do is shrug and say "I don't know...she does not tell me everything!"

Then they all see me far up high and a bright streak of light....not unlike a shooting star go off into the distance...from where I was just hovering at. Rapidly followed by a very large THUMP! One tech says then "Well she just broke the sound barrier...right there!"

"She what!..She is gone!...You have to know something Becky about this!...She planned this!..Get her back now!" he screams in her face.

"AND! how should I do that!...Should I flap my arms and go after her!" Becky shouts back, all the while flapping her arms to show Twain how stupid he is being.

After about twenty minutes. I come flying back into sight. I stop my high speed run and slow to a hover at that great height. I look down and see that they are all still there. I had hoped they would just give up and go away. I laugh thinking about it.

I then tip over, then dive at them, to pull up at the last moment and land.

"Well how about that?" I ask them all.

One tech asks me "How fast did you go?"

"Humm about 1300 of your miles per hour. But I can not turn during that, straight lines only and I have to go near one hundred miles or better!"

"Where do you go?" Twain asks in a less than friendly tone.

"That way...fast!" I say as I point where I was just at.

"So you think your being funny?" he asks

"Yes" I hiss out after Becky translates and then she tells me what he said while I was gone.

I start to walk off and Becky follows me very closely. As she is feeling I am now more than mad at this continued 'game' of Twain's.

I hear behind me in a calm voice "We are not done yet here Kyley"

I spin to glare at him "Yes we are!"..I hold my gaze on him unblinking... and deep in growing anger "We had a deal on this...I feel we are done."

"I and the center here want at least one more demo of what you do?" he asks me sounding like a unhonorable merchant.

"You want one more thing? Really?" I ask. I turn to Becky "I have done or shown you all allot today...haven't I Becky?"

Becky nods her agreement back to me.

"Yet he asks for more?" I question out. "So... you want more?...fine then just one last thing..deal?...or do I stop and wait you out?" I ask less than pleased.

"Fine Deal...one more thing from you and all you asked for is yours."

"So I am still free to do anything, to show you my skills?" I ask him...as I form a plan in my mind.

He nods back to me...."Say it...please...as I need to hear it from you to go on?" I ask back.

"Yes...do what you must" he toned out to me.

I smiled at him evilly...to think..'Silly mortal you just gave me permission to hurt you...but I will not'

"Becky get ready to translate this real fast...As this is not going to be pleasant!"

She says back to me rather meekly "Okay? Kyley...but please don't do anything bad?"

I reach my hand up in front of me, as if I was grabbing something there or grabbing at a bug. When I do this move.

The most hideous looking undead hands, shoot out from the ground, to wrap around the legs of each man standing there. All ten of them find that they can not move...not even budge an inch.

I start out slowly to them "There's a name for this power...in another language. Its basically called... 'The Hands' That is basically exactly what it looks like. If I want to" I say out as my hand is holding on to nothing but air "I can YANK all of you under the ground and you disappear forever!" Becky translates this for me, as near as her new growing fear allows "Twain! you want to keep on bargaining for more than you deserve! I can get rid of all of you right now! I will hate every second of that. Because I have to feel every second of you guys dieing! AND that's not going to make me happy today."

"You can't do this! You signed an oath not to hurt anyone here!" I barks out....but his voice shakes in fear to me.

"Ohh but I can...'mortal'...you gave me permission to demonstrate my skills and powers. This is how I choose to!...You have to watch, all our words when you deal with one of my kind!" I leer at him.

I finally let them all go. With that Mr. Twain walks over to me at a fast pace and he looks very mad. He near barks at me "You where just about"...Poor Becky is trying hard to keep up on the translations..."to kill me?!"

"You keep on bargaining for more than you earned!" I start to walk off from him...but I stay...near to him and shrink back to what they think is my normal size ..."I would have not killed you because it's not my way. This was my way of showing you that not everything is happy between us. Anyway? hurting all of you? Would have hurt me badly. I would've felt all of you go and I would been reeling from that impact for a long time. Death is not a happy thing to me...Okay? I don't like it. I don't like hurting people."

Twain stands there for some time thinking. "What do you mean by 'feel' death?"

"Death I feel it...that's all I can communicate to you...It just is?"

I turned back toward the van...as I am walking, Becky comes scooting up to me and walks along my side to ask me in a whisper "Would you have killed them?"

I say to her in our personal 'secret language' "No but! the threat is still there."

"Could you have killed them?"

"Yes--more powerful beings than them?...No. Only lesser beings....how you say? peasants? would have been killed by that...instantly. Everything else can struggle to get out of it. But they don't know that!" I chuckle out.

I get to the van finally and jump into it. Me and Becky sit and talk more while we wait for Twain. I look out the window at the group we just left and I see that they are all milling about talking. I also see Twain off to one side doing something with what looks to be a mage?

I go to lean back in the seat...tried from the day, to hear Becky ask me "That...little bit, with the creepy hands...took something out of you? didn't it?"

"Yes it did....it's not exactly an easy spell to do." I sigh.

"Can I ask where did you learn such a strange thing?"

"That Elf Queen had it. It was a gift, she bestowed on me. I was one of the first ones that she did. Ahhh! but when she did it! You should have seen it! Her pulling down a thousand very powerful people and beings to their doom, was easy for her. It was just amazing to watch her do it!"

"But when she did that, did you feel their deaths?"

"Ohhh that was back when I was young! Long before things changed in my life. Back then killing....to me was normal. It was just another day....like a job?"

"So you changed allot as you got older then?"

"Yes, when I was young. Death and fighting where near daily things to me. It was a 'wild' time in my life...then. After I settled down. My day to day looking over all the people of the lands in my control. Made me more than caring for all. As with that, I now 'felt' how the people under me felt!" I lean farther back in the chair resting, as I told her that trying to rest my body a little from the days workout.

Finally Mr. Twain gets into the van with us. "Here Kyley your deal...All wrote out and I already signed it." he says to me while handing me a parchment "So lets just go on from here...I was just doing my job...protecting the people around me."

'Humm an apology of sorts? Not really in my opinion!' I think as I take the two documents from his extended hand. I then give them over to Becky to check.

I sit back and wait for Becky to get done. In a few minutes she hands it back to me. "Its all good. Heck? he even added to your flying area, he made it five miles instead of the three you asked for. But only one add? Do try not to get seen by those outside of the complex area?"

"Humm tell him fine and thanks for the extra room" I burn my symbol on each page to make it official and then hand him back a copy.

He finally says "Your welcome"....I nod back.

We take the long trip back to the main complex in complete silence.

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Shadowsblade here.

This is my newest fan fiction story in a joint venture with a group of authors, so far this group is made up of Nuuan, then Branek and finally myself. We all got together and after a jumpy start decided to make a group of stories that all take place within the Whateley fanfic universe. This one here is my second one and hopefully its a good one.

With this launch I am trying to go a different route and I will release the story in smaller chapters to make it easier on me to get more out to you all much faster. As the rather large postings of my past got a 'little' too big!

But remember all. I am not leaving Shadowsblade behind! I will start writing her soon!

To have an idea about the main protagonist this story's will develop
around here is a short introduction.

Angels Peril a Whateley Tale: Written by Branek
Tormented by the past, Angel is struggling between light and dark.

Melvin a Whateley Tale: Written by Branek
They say old soldiers never die, Melvin is about to learn that the hard
way.

The Way of the Dragon a Whateley Tale: Written by Branek
Born for eternity but vulnerable like a child, dragons shouldn't leave
their nest.

Every Rose has it Thorns a Whateley Tale: Written by Nuaan
Watch what you say around rose, could give you more trouble than you ever
asked for.

Kelly a Whateley Tale: Written by Nuaan
Struggling with fate, Kelly has to deal with love and loss.

Shadowsblade a Whateley Tale: Written by Shadowsblade
Created for war and forged in pain, dealing with deamons within and the
out.

Vantier a Whateley Tale :Written by Shadowsblade
Ancient and Powerful Vantier awakens in a foreign world, struggling to
find her place in it.

You might ask yourself what is the Whateley Universe? To make it short,
here is a abstract straight out off the wiki.

Whateley is a Prep School for different teens. VERY different ones. Where else could a kid go to a school that has a resident demon living in the furnace? Or meet magic users, mutants of every imaginable kind, get trained in how to handle some rather odd abilities, and worry about
flunking Freshman English? Come visit Whateley Academy, nestled in the
lovely hills of New Hampshire. Just down the road from a town named
Dunwich... (Mythos jokes purely intentional).
This is the Whateley Academy Universe, a shared universe with over a dozen authors and more than a hundred stories (and counting). The stories range in size from vignettes to novels. It's a Mutant High scenario with both a strong transgender theme and a slightly watered down Cthulhu Mythos theme.

It's also very much a work in progress.'
If you want further information you will find them on.

http://crystalhall.wikia.com/wiki/Whateley_Academy_Wiki

or

http://whateleyacademy.net/

And a little intro of me

I am an older guy who lives in California. I am doing this project to have fun and do something creative ( AKA the muse in my head finally won the fight!)

But I have to thank, Both Branek and Nuuan for their vast input and the ability they both have to 'bounce' off ideas and improve them!

To all my readers who have e-mailed me and given support--THANKS!

Please feel free, to add a review to this story and others. As those kind words are 'cookies' that keeps that muse well fed on the 'sometimes' long breaks between stories!

Or if you want to input more?

Drop a e-mail to me at [email protected]

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced,
distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including
photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods,
without the prior written permission of the Author, except in the case of
brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other
noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.