Awakening - The Last Science #1

Chapter 6 - An Impossible Marketplace - II

  The river was in a shallow valley running along the side of the town, almost like a moat protecting the border. Rika nimbly slid down the slick grass on the slope, still damp from the rain, and landed neatly at the sidewalk that ran alongside the riverbank. "Come on!" she called back up.

  Alden was... less successful following her.

  "You okay?" Rika asked, trying not to laugh.

  "Yes," he muttered, looking at the mud stains now spattered across his arm and legs.

  "I can lend you some clothes later, if you want," she offered.

  "Now what do we do?" he asked, trying to change the subject.

  "We wait," she said, nodding at the brick wall underneath the bridge. The concrete was dry there, and the rain was starting to pick back up, so Alden quickly took a seat before he got soaked even more. To his surprise, Rika sat down beside him, close enough to touch. With everything he'd seen in the last few hours, having her right next to him like this was intoxicating. Alden was still a guy, after all. He'd be insane not to find her attractive. Plus, there was that aura about her, an exhilarating feeling he got just from being close to her. Or was that...

  "Rika," he started.

  "Hmm?" she murmured, her eyes closed.

  "Why do you feel like lightning?"

  She laughed, a sound that sent waves of joy through Alden. "That's the best way you could phrase that?"

  Alden's cheeks went red yet again. "Sorry."

  Her tone grew serious. "I was experimenting with something, it went wrong. Now I'm like... this. It's actually pretty fucking inconvenient, to be honest. I set off metal detectors everywhere I go, screw up electronics, mess with people's heads without meaning to. Took me forever just to figure out how to keep it under control so I wouldn't just straight up shock you right now."

  "That sounds annoying."

  "Yeah, well, I can also shoot lightning from my fingertips whenever I want, so it's a trade off." She opened her eyes and sat up. "Wanna see a trick?"

  "What?"

  "Gimme your phone."

  Alden hesitated, but handed it over. "It's dead. Didn't have time to charge it."

  "Perfect," Rika said. She picked it up and looked it over for a moment, then held her finger up to the charging port. After a few moments, the screen lit up with a battery icon.

  Alden laughed aloud. "Seriously?"

  "Hey, you don't know how impressive this is. Cell phones are very picky about what they'll take." She handed back his phone, which he turned on gratefully.

  A few moments later, it turned back off again, the battery icon flashing red.

  "That's it?"

  "What more do you want, Mr. Tesla?" Rika said grumpily.

  "I expected it to be more charged or something."

  "Well I could, but then your battery might melt. Or explode. Which could be fun. Wanna try it?"

  "No thanks," Alden said quickly, before the eager glint in Rika's eye started something worse.

  "Well, at least this explains why you were so lost earlier. You didn't seem the type."

  "Thanks, I guess?"