Balancer's Soul (47 page)

They walked over to the Birch tree
that his in-laws sat under. Sarah and Connor sat with them to rest
for a moment. Jillian held out her hand and Sarah placed the glass
in her upturned palm. They all studied it carefully, giving praise
for a few moments before returning it to Sarah who put it in her
pocket.

“What’s next on your list?” Jack
smirked. He obviously has enjoyed such a change in his decades of
routine.

“I have only enough spare energy for
one more test. Sarah, do you still have enough for one more?” She
flashed a bright grin. “I think I’m up for it.” She said while
standing back up.

They walked only a few yards away and
he asked “Please conjure one more orb of water for me.” And she did
so.

This was his first time
doing this. In theory it seemed simple, but understanding the
properties and complexities made it more difficult. After focusing
Connor opened his eyes again. In his hands burned his first
unassisted fireball. A warm feeling emanated from it, but it didn’t
feel hot though. He resisted touching the flame, knowing how
foolish it might look to be poking a finger at an open flame in
front of everyone.
“I’ll do that
later.”
He told himself and smiled at such
childishness. Sarah stood while waiting impatiently.

“My idea is to make a fog.” He flashed
a smile. He felt glad her parents were out of hearing
range.

“How are you going to pull that off?” She
shifted her weight to her other leg.

“Leave that to me.” Connor held his
flame at his side. “Let’s slowly push these two elements together.”
She nodded, feeling uneasy.

With a simple countdown
they connected her water with his fire. Hissing erupted from the
moment they touched and the water was flash boiled into steam. When
the last of the water evaporated Connor turned his flame off.
Surrounding them was a wall of steam. “Connor, this
isn’t
fog and it’s
unbearably hot.”

Connor closed his eyes and focused on
the steam and used the other ability of the Fire element. As he
opened his eyes a wave of power released from his entire body in a
single bubble instead of focusing on his hands, like the spreading
factor of Sonar. Instead of pulling heat to himself he pushed it
away, leaving the moisture alone. The water vapor stayed put and as
the heat left the area around him, the steam thickened into a wall
of cool and solid white fog.

“Connor, where are you?” Sarah called
out from about ten feet away.

He used the pulsating sonar ability.
“I can see you, Princess. Use your other ability to see.” He called
back.

“My other…? Oh.” And he felt her
unique pulses seconds later. “I found you!” He saw her turn and
walk up to him. Connor then turned off the pulses to see her eyes
glowing white.

“Welcome back.” he looked around and
saw nothing, but fog. “This is useful to have in our arsenal incase
we need a quick getaway.”

“I agree.” With her glowing eyes she
reached up and kissed him.

A gentle breeze disturbed the area and
Connor saw that the fog began moving away. “That was good thinking,
Connor.” Jillian said, pulling all the fog to her hand. She became
a dark silhouette at first as the fog lifted. “It took Jack and I
five years to do that trick.” Jillian laughed as she became in
focus again, dropping the water on the ground. They both walked up
to the two younger pair wearing smiles. “So was that really all for
today?”

“Yes.” And to make his point Connor
walked over to the shade tree and laid flat on his back. Sarah
joined him under the shade, but she sat cross legged above his
head. She lifted his head and rested it on her soft and silky legs.
Connor looked up to see her gorgeous face and she smiled so
beautifully. When he looked up past her, at the sky, he knew that
the day just started to wind down.

Ten minutes later, when Connor felt
able to move again, they left. During their run back home their
family separated half way and the Branderson’s went to their home
and the May’s went to theirs. Before they were out of hearing range
Connor yelled “Same place tomorrow!?” They raised their hands in
confirmation.

After a satisfying dinner, Sarah went
to bed exhausted. She had already forgotten about his alteration to
making explosions. He on the other hand practiced different kinds
of elemental uses. Also he poked a fireball with his index finger
and it didn’t harm anything, but a test twig disagreed by igniting.
Connor learned that as long as he had the element under his bodily
control it couldn’t cause harm, but any other foreign object is a
different matter. Then he went to bed.

***

The next morning, Sarah wore a blue
shirt and her white short shorts. Connor didn’t wear a shirt, but
he did wear his black pants and hiking shoes.

They arrived only five minutes before
her mom and dad showed up at the clearing. Today Jack came
shirtless as did Connor and Jillian wore a one piece bathing suit
with red shorts. He also brought Haunt again as Connor did with
Tool.

“What kind of training are we expected
to do today?” Connor asked Jack who slung Haunt over his
shoulder.

“Only two types of training today.
Defense against an elemental attack and fighting while using the
elements.” He stated with a playful grin. Connor knew he had more
experience with using his abilities.

“Let’s get started.” Connor said
standing to her left as he stretched.

Her father swung his metal club down
and planted it firmly in the ground to announce “It won’t be just
you, Connor, Sarah is participating in this as well.” Sarah’s heart
beat wildly at just the thought. They can finally get to work
together. It was her greatest hope for the day. Sarah became calmer
when Connor laid his hand on her shoulder and gave her a
smile.

Sarah’s mother walked up next to her
father and said “The two of us are going to fire volleys of our
elements directly at you and your job will be to collaborate and
work together.” And her father added “You may not use the balancers
chair to multiply your powers. You need to know how to defend
yourselves as individuals first.”

With Connor at her side Jack explained
the rules, after that he and his mate walked a ways back. They
stopped at a safe distance and Jack said “You may use any and all
of your elemental defensive capabilities. Try not to get hurt.” Her
father turned to her in warning. “Sarah, you’re up
first!”

As Sarah stepped forward
Connor playfully tapped her bottom with his palm.
“Good luck Princess. First make a pressure
shield.”

“Ok, but don’t hit my butt
unless you’re ready for the consequences…”
She arched an eyebrow at him. And his face finally went
red.

Facing her seven hundred year old
father he created a small and controlled ball of red flames. He
threw it in a high arc directly at her. Focusing her power to both
of her palms Sarah created a circular pressure shield. As the flame
hit the shield it scattered in every direction, but
hers.

For Connor’s turn Jack made a larger
flame. Before he threw it Connor said to Sarah “Back up.” And she
did so knowing he wouldn’t say it unless he meant it.

As Jack threw the larger ball of fire
at an arc at him Connor then took in a massive amount of air into
his lungs, through his nose. His back muscles arched back, making
his large chest swell even more to allow a greater volume of air
inside. It was loud enough for her parents to hear him do it too.
When the red ball came within fifteen feet, Connor released his
breath through his pursed lips.

A six foot intense stream of red
flames erupted out of Connor’s mouth.

When the ball hit the raging inferno,
it was instantly consumed. Sarah felt the waves of heat radiating
from the flame nearly instantly. After Connor’s flame died down
every one of them besides Connor went speechless from the
demonstration. Connor eventually broke the silence. “What do you
think?”

“Connor, show me how to do that!”
Sarah yelled in excitement. After he explained the method she tried
it.

Using the fire element to warm the air
around her mouth and nose Sarah then breathed it all in and heated
it up some more with some of her own body heat and energy. She
pursed her lips to focus the contained breath into a stream and she
pushed the heated air out of her lungs. Sarah squeezed her
diaphragm muscles and the air shot out. As the hot air in her lungs
met the cooler outside air, it ignited into a fire stream. It
wasn’t as large as Connor’s because her lungs couldn’t hold as much
hot air. When she expelled all of the air she could, Sarah did as
Connor strictly warned. She absorbed any heat left within her lungs
back into her body just incase enough heated air resided in her
lungs to reignite when she took a needed breath. “Where did you
learn this trick?” She said in a breathless and excited
manner.

Jillian and Jack came closer to hear
this for themselves. “Last night I touched a fireball in my hand
and it didn’t hurt. I deduced that as long as I controlled the
flame it couldn’t hurt me. So I put together the two
ideas…”

Jack interrupted by asking “What two?
The most I was able to do is make either a huge fireball or make a
flowing fire stream from my hand.”

“I used the demonstration from
yesterday plus the feeling that the fire couldn’t hurt me. I used a
form of the Back Draft Phenomenon plus flame resistance to make my
breath turn into fire. It doesn’t hurt, but it feels different.”
Connor admitted

“Wait...! Back Draft!” Jillian yelled.
“You did that dangerous thing as a test? What the Hell is wrong
with you!” She ran up to him and started hitting his stomach and
crying all at the same time. It didn’t hurt him at all because his
abdominal muscles are iron hard. Sarah knew from personal
experience. His look told the others to let her do as she wished
and not to take her away. Even with her strength, Jillian couldn’t
hurt him. “How could you? You could have died and took my baby from
me forever!”

Connor fell to his knees
and held her shoulders. He spoke calmly and clearly. “Jillian,
listen to me. It
is
dangerous and I will be the first to admit it, but only under
pressure and if it explodes all at once. The method I used gave the
energy a direction and it wasn’t compressed. I used a similar case
of the Back Draft, not an actual one; like the one I demonstrated
yesterday, ok.” He then brought her into a hug until she calmed
down. “I would never put Sarah in any real danger,
never.”

Meanwhile Sarah’s heart was
still racing over this excitement about what she just did.
“I just breathed fire like a Keeper. My husband
is a genius.”
Her heart remained beating
and only added to the excitement. And her father stood there just
listening to Connor with a smile written all over his
face.

When Jillian eventually calmed, Jack
shot her a playful smile. “I’m going to try!” and before she could
say or do otherwise he made a stream of fire erupt from his lips.
The stream was as big as Connor’s and as intense. “Thank you, Son.
This is good to have in your arsenal if you ever lose your arms.”
He looked at his mate and smiled impishly. For once Sarah saw how
her mother fell in love with her father. “Hey Connor, did you try
any other fire style variations?”

“I could only come up with one more
since you already know how to make a continuous fire stream from
your hands.” Connor walked away from the three of them. “I made a
fire shield.”

Connor put his right forearm out
towards the three of them and a spinning circular shield of fire
conjured into existence as it rotated in a slow clockwise path over
the top of his arm. “Jack, throw a fireball at my shield and see
what happens!” Connor flashed him a grin. That fire shield felt
different because it didn’t radiate any heat. In fact...

Jack stood there motionless, staring
at Connor’s arm. “Before I do I have to ask a question. I’ve tried
to make a shield like that before and it could never hold a shape.
How did you manage to accomplish it?”

Connor’s arm dropped to his side while
the red and orange shield continued rotating and following his arm
as if it were attached like a true shield. “When you throw it. I
will explain.” Connor took a blocking stance again. His right leg
bent forward while his left leg remained straight, firmly planted
behind. He brought the shield to his eye level and nodded his
preparation.

“How big do you want it?”
Jack asked and Connor shrugged his shoulders. While he gathered his
energy Sarah mentally asked Connor
“I
don’t feel any heat from that fire. What is it?”
Connor turned his head to smile at her. When her
father gathered enough energy he held a watermelon sized ball of
rotating flames.

With both hands Jack lobbed the fire
at Connor’s shield. As the flame touched the shield its rotation
instantly increased into a circular blur and grew. Sarah would have
thought that when the flame hit the shield it would disperse like
it had with her pressure shield, instead the flames were absorbed
into the shield. As the last of the flames were absorbed Connor
stemmed his energy and the shield disappeared. “Thank you for the
energy boost, Jack.” And Connor grinned. He walked up to them to
explain what he did.