Everyone knows of my absurd ability now. Nine has been helping me train it, so I've been spending more time in the Lecture Hall than I'd like, but so far, physical drills haven't helped much to control this thing, or even to bring it out. In terms of what it is? Henri said it's called ergokinesis: the ability to control and manipulate currents of energy.
"It's said to be the rarest Legacy of our planet," he says over dinner, "and the strongest. In fact, no one seemed to possess it except Pittacus Lore. Some believed it to be a myth."
"Why was it that rare?" asks Eight.
"It isn't just any Legacy that any Garde can develop," he explains. "It's one that requires a source of Lorien directly to be used."
"Are you saying—?"
"Lorien chose you, Emily. I don't know why or how, but Lorien must've seen something in you that the rest of us don't have. It's up to you to use it for its true intention." I look down at my hands. I have no idea what triggers this thing, let alone why it chose me.
"What—What is its intention?"
"Of that I'm unsure," he answers. "As spectacular as ergokinesis is, it's also very unknown. It has many uses that even I don't know about. I was never trained to deal with such a high and mighty power, but I'm sure with all of us working together, we can find a way to train you with it, and maybe eventually, find its true purpose."
***
Later that night, I dream of WV. I'm in the cave, in the chamber, with Henri, the gravity of my weight weighing me down. I cry out when the sludge drips down, but my screams are drowned out by Setrákus Ra. His voice echoes through the walls, yet he's nowhere in sight. "Twenty-three hours," he chants. "Twenty-three hours, you hear? Twenty-three, and I will have what's mine."
I try to ignore him. "Leave me alone," I mutter, but as soon as he appears to touch the staff to my neck, I know that won't be happening.
"We will work together to understand your power," he declares. His breath is foul, like dead fish. "You'll tell me everything you know about Pittacus Lore."
"No," I croak. "I won't. Please, just go away... go away!"
"If you insist," he says, pulling the staff back and the ooze comes back to petrify me. "But you know the consequences, dear. You know how to make it end." I scream and gasp in a heap.
I startle in bed, panting in big breaths, and Pixie jumps at me somberly. I check the clock; 2:29 a.m. I'm not sleeping anymore; I can't. I can't let this continue. I know I said I'd never go back, but if it means stopping all this... if it means ending the nightmares... it'll be worth it, I think.
I can't help but shed tears at the thought of leaving them like this—leaving them to fend for their own; my own—as I reach for my journal, but write in my journal I do:
John—
I know you told me not to, to stay as close to you as possible, but I can't do this another day. The nightmares, the pain, it's getting worse, and if there's even a small chance of stopping it, I have to try.
Please don't come for me again. Don't do anything rash. Just train and get stronger and stop that monster before he hurts anyone else, and don't die in the process. I know this might be suicide, but if that's what it takes to make this endless nightmare end, then... I'm OK with that. Really. I am.
Take care of yourself, and maybe one day, I'll see you again.
Your friend and ally,
-Emily
YOU ARE READING
A Hero in the Dark: 2nd Edition
FanfictionTHE EVENTS IN THIS STORY ARE REAL. NAMES AND PLACES HAVE BEEN CHANGED TO PROTECT THE LORIEN. WHO REMAIN IN HIDING UNTIL THE TIME IS RIGHT. - SHE HAS DEVELOPED POWERS. SHE CAN FIGHT BACK. SHE CAN HELP YOU SAVE THE WORLD, BUT SHE MUST CHOOSE A SI...
