The Chosen One

With great responsibility comes great power. How do ya get rid of this stuff?

Acceptance is the first step to greatness

-The Legends-

Here I was sitting in the living room listening to Jake drone on and on about how to act in his world. To be completely honest I wasn't paying attention. I was too busy trying out abilities. So, it's been 6 hours since I've accepted the fact that I wasn't normal. Who cares? Normal is way overrated. I found out about weather, matter, light, water, fire, ice and invisibility peared along with forcefeild.

I found out most of them when I was hiding from Jake and his lectures. Some when I was running away from him. Most when I was trying to have fun but what he called "Distraction carefully disguised as games."

To put thing short, I wasn't very task coordinated. I got distracted easily and very frequently. Which is weird since I've always found it easy to concentrate plus I've never been easily distracted. Jake says it has to do with my task priority sensor in my brain is messing up because of the power overload. Sure, you can do cool stuff with the powers like make a snowball fight in summer and fly away invisible but the powers weren't all fun and games. I actually had no control over them if I don't concentrate really hard. I didn't want to squeal because of the ending of a book I was reading on Wattpad was so cute and it end up making a burst of light effectively blinding everyone. So, I still have a lot to learn.

"Alex!" jumping I ask, "What?" Jake gives me a look, a look that says, 'Really, it's been 6 hours. Pay attention.' "You need to pay attention. This information could be the thing that determines whether you live or not." Staring at him in mock wide-eyed fear as I ask, "What? Live or Die? I didn't know I was participating in the Hunger Games." Sighing Jake mutters to his self before stating seriously, "Alex, this is serious. The Supreme Counsel are reluctant to allow anyone with great power live on without restraint. If you don't show even sliver of control or responsibility the counsel may decide against allowing you to live." "What are you talking about? You said I was the chosen one, the one meant to be their savior, why would they kill me?"

Sighing he explained, "I said you were a savior, I didn't say to whom, you could as easily aide the enemy as well as be our champion. Taking into consideration that the council is very short minded you need to train harder than anyone has trained before. 2 months from now you will be called in to face the counsel. A counsel that believes that if one can't control themselves then no one can control then. A counsel that in some cases have taken an extreme cause of action; if somebody somehow reaches the age of adulthood and still is incapable of control them self they become a threat and are sentence to death. And in my culture 12 is the age of independence, as was the number of Olympians and Titans. Your 17, well past the age limit and if you don't gain control before you face the counsel they will sentence you to death. Chosen one or not. Those are the rules."

"Oh, please train me so I don't die, oh so great one." It was like set off a time bomb. Yelling, Jake threw my .5-pound book against the wall, the book staying where it had landed; the perfect dent imbedded itself into the 3-foot-thick barrier. Shrinking into the couch I wait for Jakes rage to die down. Slowly Jake takes in deep breaths. Turning to me he mutters his apologies just before he explodes into a rant. "This is serious, you can die. Just because you have all these powers doesn't mean you know how to use them. If fight comes to call you won't know how to defend yourself. You need to face the fact that you need to be taught how to control these gifts but if you won't then I should just save myself the trouble and call the counsel now because if you won't train you won't be any better than you are now when the times comes two months from now when you face the counsel. So, get yourself together and listen to me."

Nodding my head, I place all distractions an arm's length away. As looks upon my slightly frightened face his tense features soften, "I'm sorry Alex but..." trailing off he sits down in the chair places his hands onto his face. Shrouding his look of frustration and sadness. I felt bad, if I had just listened to him he wouldn't have lost his temper and he wouldn't look so dejected. Standing up I walk over to him and place my arms over his shoulders. Awkwardly I mummering, "It's okay...You didn't do anything I wouldn't have. Sorry."

Slowly Jake looks up and I smile but it quickly turns into a frown as I notice his tear streaked face, "Jake, I'm so sorry. I should have list—" "It's not your fault. Look, I haven't been completely honest with you." I look at him questionably. Sighing he launches into what I can only assume is the story of his life, "I'm not a legend, or at least not fully. Before I was born there was a decree that Legends and Mortals could not interbreed due to the causalities that resulted. The women died and the child grew frail and weak. But my mother was a free spirit. No rule could restrain her. She believed herself to be in love, she didn't care for the laws or the consequences. All she knew was in the moment she had found her soul mate. My mother had met him 2 moons before the law was decreed. Soon they had a blooming romance on their hands. In secret even as the law was enforced she continued to meet him. Soon though they had married him privately in the woods behind her home. 2 months later she found out she held a child. As you may have guessed many had questions as to whom the father was. My mother told them, "The father is a man in whom I love.' But when her mother comforted into the identity of the man in which had given her daughter a child to bear. My mother broke down in tears and she revealed all. My grandmother disowned her. My grandmother was a traditional woman, she believed if you disobeyed the laws deliberately committed a slight against the gods. She couldn't stand having one so...neglectful, to put it in nice terms, in the ancient family. But my grandmother was still the mother of my mother and she couldn't stand to have her child face an execution because of a foolish romance. She feigned innocence to the whole ordeal. Claimed she disowned her because of her lack of faith to her to-be-husband. My mother had a prearranged to a handsome rich lord whom had a nasty personality. So, my mother ran to the arms of her mortal lover, whom had after hearing the consequences of continuing their love ran. Ran like the coward he was, leaving my mother and their children to fend for themselves in the cruel world she had once called home. Less than 6 months later, without family and supposed loved one, my mother gave birth to an additional child. The universe "gifted" her with twins. Unable to take the toil of emotional heartbreak, stress, and labor she died. I'd like to believe that if her mortal lover stuck around that she would have had the strength to keep going but that was not the case. She left behind two cursed children. I am but one of the existing halfling children. Only then had we survived because of the consequence one would receive for killing the innocent, and now for the constant protection our grandmother provokes in her name and the name of her ancestors. However, the council as I have told you is very short minded. The children that survive birth are traditionally very powerful and difficult to control. My twin sister Rayen barely survived execution last year only because of reckless promise made by me and approved by my grandmother. because of a foolish romance. She feigned innocence to the whole ordeal. Claimed she disowned her because of her lack of faith to her to-be-husband. My mother had a prearranged to a handsome rich lord whom had a nasty personality. So, my mother ran to the arms of her mortal lover, whom had after hearing the consequences of continuing their love ran. Ran like the coward he was, leaving my mother and their children to fend for themselves in the cruel world she had once called home. Less than 6 months later, without family and supposed loved one, my mother gave birth to an additional child. The universe "gifted" her with twins. Unable to take the toil of emotional heartbreak, stress, and labor she died. I'd like to believe that if her mortal lover stuck around that she would have had the strength to keep going but that was not the case. She left behind two cursed children. I am but one of the existing halfling children. Only then had we survived because of the consequence one would receive for killing the innocent, and now for the constant protection our grandmother provokes in her name and the name of her ancestors. However, the council as I have told you is very short minded. The children that survive birth are traditionally very powerful and difficult to control. My twin sister Rayen barely survived execution last year only because of reckless promise made by me and approved by my grandmother. The council decided that if I somehow bring the chosen one back trained and ready to defend they'll pardon both me and my sister for the circumstances of our birth. However, if I fail...I must face the inevitable; death." "Oh..." "So, as you can see your life is not the only one at sake...Alex my sister needs me if I die no one will protect her. Please take this seriously; lives hang in the balance." I had no idea how to respond to that, so I just nodded my head and mentally steeled myself for what I can only assume to be the hardest months of my life.