Precious Metals (On Hold)

Chapter Three

Sjon started to freak out, "Wait, am I going to go to jail? I didn't-"

"No, you'll be fine. If anyone, Cyrus would get into trouble, but that didn't happen when he brought me back to life, so I think it'll be fine. However, what's more important is why he brought you to life," She paused for a second. Pilar said something to Cyrus and then turned back to Sjon, while Cyrus walked over to him. "Sjon, it's not going to hurt very much, so just bear it for a second," she stated out of the blue.

Cyrus came over with some sort of magnifying glass and a knife, and scraped off a piece of Sjon's skin off his arm.

"Ow! That hurt. What the hell man?" Sjon yelled.

Cyrus looked at the skin in the magnifying glass and excitedly said something to Pilar. He went over to the kitchen and got Sjon a towel, and continued looking at the sample.

"Sjon, it worked," Pilar said to him. "Your skin cells aren't dying. Check your arm."

Sjon took the bloody towel off, to see that the wound had already scabbed over, and was beginning to heal.

"By this rate, you should be completely healed by tonight," Pilar gushed. "I'm so happy it worked! Sometimes the others would have cancerous tumors or wouldn't heal at all, but you're like me! You're immortal."

Sjon looked confused. "Wait, I can't die?" he sputtered.

"No, no, you can still die, just not from old age or as easily from wounds. If someone cuts your head off, you'll still be dead," Pilar quickly revealed. "But for all intents and purposes, you're immortal," she smiled.

"Can't you heal me with that device? The one that heals people quickly?" asked Sjon, holding his arm.

"Unfortunately, we can't. The pain of forcing your body to heal so quickly would kill you alone," stated Pilar.

Cyrus yelled something from the kitchen. "Your cells are still doing well," translated Pilar, "but he needs to take some blood," she said as Cyrus walked back in with a syringe. "We need to test you for magic."

Sjon laughed. "Magic?" He snorted, while Cyrus took his blood, "What do you mean? I don't need to give you blood to show you I can't do a magic trick."

Pilar sighed. "No, that's not it. I mean actual magic. And- the magic in the fantasy stories that you're thinking of isn't what's recognized today. Magic is just a word we use to explain what science can't."

Pilar took a breath. "Secondly, every person Cyrus has tried to bring to life never made it back without some sort of magic. I, for example, can control fibers. Clothing and the sort. It's weak, but it's the reason he could bring me back. So, you must have magic. It just might be very feeble."

Sjon stopped her rant. "Alright," he pleaded. "I understand it now, so..." He rolled his eyes. "What kind of magic do I have?"

"That's what we're testing for," she revealed while Cyrus put the syringe into a box, and dropped it into some sort of mail bin. "Do you remember if anyone on Earth had magic?" she asked.

"I don't remember anything about my life," he replied. "But I can faintly remember that... uh, wormhole technology was supposedly based around a person with that kind of magic, right? Oh, and I think a singer could 'control' water or something like that, but I always thought it was just a gimmick to make her more popular," Sjon thought out loud.

"Well, let me explain all the different types to you, as best I can," Pilar began. "There are three categories, Esper, Controller, and Summoner. Espers will have some power like telepathy or telekinesis, but Espers are very rare. Controllers can control a physical object, either a solid, liquid, gas, or plasma. Usually the powers are more specific, like someone might control a certain type of wood, but controlling all solids is less common. Summoners can summon a physical element. They have the same categories as Controllers. Some people are Controllers and Summoners, but usually one is weaker than the other."

Sjon took a minute to let all that information sink in. "Wow, I had no idea the system was that organized... So you're a Controller? You control a solid, fibers, right?"

"Exactly," acknowledged Pilar. "Why don't I show you where you'll be sleeping? The results won't come until tomorrow."

She beckoned to a discolored circular area on the floor, meaning for him to stand on it. He went on, and so did she. When Pilar pressed her hand onto the wall, the circle raised up quickly. It went through a hole in the ceiling and stopped.

They walked down a small hallway and stopped by a wall. After a short moment, the wall slid up to reveal a bedroom. What it revealed was kind of disappointing. It was all plain white, with only a full-sized bed and a dresser. The floor was not textured, and so were the walls.

"I have to admit, I was expecting a little more," muttered Sjon.

"Don't worry, it's customizable," explained Pilar. "What would you like the floor to look like?" She asked.

"Maybe... wood? Oak wood?" suggested Sjon.

"Hmm." Pilar typed in something and the floor appeared to be similar to a light oak wood floor. "Like this?"

"Can you make it darker?" Sjon asked.

Pilar typed in something again, and the floor changed to a darker oak color.

"What color do you want the walls?"

"Something green? Army green, if you have it." Sjon replied.

Pilar typed in something again, and the walls shifted hues to a dark army green.

"There you go. Anything else?"

"That's great, thank you," Sjon said gratefully. He yawned.

"I'll let you go to sleep now., I'll wake you up when we have your results.," Pilar smiled at him.

"Good night," whispered Sjon.

"Good night," replied Pilar, and as she left, the wall slid shut, and the lights dimmed down.

Sjon rolled over in bed, finding it to be extremely comfortable. He looked at his arm, and the wound hads almost vanished. A, all that was left was a small red mark. He closed his eyes, and realized how exhausted he felt. Being brought back to life really took a toll on his body. He tried to remember how he died, but his mind was completely blank. However, he couldn't think for too long, because he fell fast asleep in a manner of minutes.