Oversight

Chapter 3 Energy

Nothing was getting answered. Noah couldn't take it anymore. This guy, Mark is what he called himself, wasn't making any sense. Noah just stood there and pretended to listen for what felt like days until finally Mark stated, "...you will be trained and taken to you're new..."

"Taken?!" Noah interrupted. Mark looked down at him, no sign of emotion on his face.

"Yes, taken. No need to worry though, your family and friends will not worry or even realize you are gone. "

"B-b-but..." Everyone was looking at Noah, not with annoyance, but with fear. Like they didn't want Mark to get angry or he would become some giant green monster that would eat them all. Noah looked at his toes. "Never mind."

"Good, well then. For now, you all must be trained. One at a time I will visit you until I feel you are ready to learn together." This time it was Andrew that looked up as if to interrupt, but he thought better of it before words could form. "So all of you can go, except one. I will start now in my attempt to waste as little time as possible. Noah." Mark pointed to him. "You stay behind, your mother will not realize you are gone, and Wade will not say a word" Mark stared right through Wade with a deadly glare.

"Y-yeah. My lips are sealed." He made a gesture as if zipping his lips shut. 

"Good, then you are all free to leave now. But expect me soon." They all turned to leave, as if they knew their way back. Noah turned to Wade.

"Dude, I'm sorry." Wade looked like he seriously meant it. They all had a collective fear of this Mark guy, but at the same time, a hint of curiosity. Nobody really knew him, but at the same time they were forced to trust him. "I'll see you first thing in the morning, or maybe later tonight. Just... come over as soon as you can."

"OK bud, I'll try." He turned to look at Mark over his shoulder who was staring at the pair of them. "I'll, uh, see you soon." Noah was trying to hide his fear deep down inside and seemed to be successful because Wade had a look of relief on him as Noah said this. Then, with a quick look at Mark, and a wave to Noah, Wade rode off. 

Noah turned to face Mark. "So...uh... where do we start?" Mark didn't respond. He just started down at Noah for a few seconds, as if reading an interesting news article. 

"We start, with understanding. For if you have great power then you are weak but if you know how to use this power you can be strong." 

"Um, OK, so..."

"Don't speak!" Mark took a step closer, squinting at Noah. "You're a hard one to read. Maybe with time. Do you have any questions before we begin?"

Noah didn't think of any questions, but one came out. "Who are you?"

Mark smirked. "I've heard that question only a handful of times in my hundreds of years, yet I still don't know how to answer it. I have no real identity. I have, however, been interpreted in many different aspects, as will you." Noah opened his mouth but thought better of it. "I am most commonly looked at as an angel, but at other times, a demon. I am a messenger, a warrior, and a seeker. I have many purposes, but I do not fulfill all of them. That is the most I can give you, for the knowledge hasn't even been granted to me."

All that did was give Noah more questions. "Anyway," Mark continued. "I think it is time you gathered the first bit of useful knowledge you will have on this night."

"Which is?"

"What you control. I'm sure you are curious, everyone I've faced here has been."

Noah was confused. Could this be the ability he had mentioned? Control over something? "Um, sure. What is it?"

"Well," Mark said, "I can't tell you. You have a certain...aurora...that I just can't read. Maybe if we can test it. Try to concentrate on something. If you don't feel a pull, move on to the next thing. We'll find it eventually." 

Noah didn't know what he meant by that, but he didn't want to anger this obviously powerful person. He closed his eyes and relaxed. He felt a pull immediately, and allowed it to take him to it's source. He felt his legs move without command and he started walking towards a large tree. Mark watched curiously. Noah placed his hands on the tree and felt his consciousness move up and around the tree, digging deep in the ground and reaching up through the leaves. He even felt the presence of his hands on the trunk and he was at peace for a moment.

But the moment didn't last long. It felt...weird. He searched for an escape, anything, but he couldn't find one. His hands, they were the only thing he knew were his that he could feel. He retreated back, forcing himself to return to his body. He felt everything coming with him. 

Mark watched from Noah's side. He saw the quick flash of strain on his face and looked towards the tree he had his hands on. It began to wilt, leaves falling down like ashes, the trunk shrank like a straw having the last of it's drink sucked out, and the roots shrived as if aging fifty years in a few seconds. Noah pushed himself away from what once was a healthy tree, a look of terror on his face. 

It took Mark full minute to go over everything that had happened and come to a conclusion. "Magnificent. At first I thought you to be a controller of nature, but I was wrong. You seem to control energy itself. You are the first to throw me off in a very long time."

"I...uh..."

"There's no need to speak. You have shown your power. Now allow me to explain it to you. You, as I've said, control energy itself. This isn't only the electricity your civilization uses as fuel for your gadgets, but also the energy that runs through your own body, and every living thing. Energy controllers are rare, but powerful. You may be a very important person, like the energy-ists before you. Lets see, there was Thor, Zeus...."

"Hey!" Mark stopped talking and looked down.

"Yes?"

"What did I just do?"

"Oh, you sucked the energy out of the tree, and absorbed it into your own body, for your own use." Noah looked up at the dead tree before him. "Don't worry, I can teach you to control that, but first, I must teach you to give the energy away, you wouldn't want to get to much stored up in yourself. Also, stay away from water, it could take it all away, make you weak..."

"Wait!" Noah demanded, a sort of force pushing away from him and quieting Mark. "Give me a minute." Noah's terror was replaced with shock, then his shock replaced with anger. He never asked for this, what if he did something to somebody? But then, his anger was replaced with a feeling of strength. He had power, and he could use it. This was the opportunity he was waiting for, the something in his life that would finally go right.

Noah turned towards Mark, a different person than he was a few seconds before. "Lets get started."