Newborn Eyes

Back in Time

I am currently falling through space and time. It guess it feels kind of cool. It's like a tingly sensation throughout my entire body. Tons of things that look like stars and sparkles whiz past me. The stars are starting to make me dizzy so I hope I land soon. It's as if the machine heard my thoughts because, with a huge thud, I land on the ground. Nice that the time machine listened to my wishes. Although, it did make me fall into a tree (stupid healing plant powers, just because I'm Proserpina doesn't mean I want to land in a plant).

I jump down from the tree and look around at my surroundings. Apparently I am in the middle of a mall. Well that's wonderful, I just jumped out of a tree in the middle of a mall (that must be strange to a viewer's eye). I decide to go into an electronics store to ask if they know anything about the Xena machine. A worker comes up to me and asks me if I am looking for anything in particular. I tell him about the Xena machine and although he doesn't know anything personally, he points me to a stand in the mall that is selling magazines with information on the machine. I walk over the the stand and pick out a magazine that has the headline Want to Know What it's Like Being a Xena? I take a few bucks out of my purse and pay the clerk for the magazine. I flip to the main story from the headline and I find the address for the facility with the machine. I can feel my heart beating out of my chest. This is finally my chance, I am finally going to become a part of Xena.

I walk out of the mall and wave down a taxi. I read the address out of the magazine before taking out my phone to look up more information about the machine. There are a few reviews from people who have already been changed. A few of them complain that they didn't get the power that they wanted but from what I see, the machine is perfectly safe and will definitely give me a power. I pay the driver when we reach our destination and walk inside the building (who knew this was going to be so easy). As I walk up to the front desk, a middle-aged woman peers over her glasses at me. "Can I help you?" she asks.

I hold the magazine out to her as I reply, "I saw this article about a machine that gives people powers and I was wondering if I was in the right place to get that done?"

"Yes you are. If you would, please hold onto my arm." she orders.

"Um, okay?" I reply as I take her arm.

As soon as I touch her arm, a surge of energy goes through my body and when I reopen my eyes, I am in what looks like a doctors office waiting room. "You can teleport!" I exclaim, "You can travel to different places with your power! That is so cool!"

"Oh don't act so surprised!" the old lady scolds, "Now go through the first door on your left, I have notified them that you are here so they are expecting you."

She immediately disappears leaving me to find my way around. I go into the door that the woman described only to find myself alone in a room. Suddenly, the door shuts behind me and I hear a loud booming voice.

"CONSTANCE WINTERS! ARE YOU WILLING TO FACE THE EFFECTS THAT THIS MACHINE WILL HAVE ON YOU? ARE YOU WILLING TO LEAVE YOUR RACE BEHIND AND JOIN THE MOST POWERFUL RACE IN THE WORLD?"

I look around the room to try and find a window or any way of knowing who is saying this to me. "I am willing, this is all I've ever wanted," I decide to respond, hoping that's enough.

"WELL THEN BE PREPARED FOR THIS MACHINE TO DECIDE YOUR FATE!"

"Decides my fate! What are you talking about?... Anyone?"

I stand very still in the room waiting for someone to respond to my question. I hear the purrs and groans of the machine coming to life. Light spews out of the walls of the room and engulfs me. I close my eyes as a tingling feeling moves up my entire body. The light grows brighter and spins around me as my powers, I hope, are being powered into my body. The light suddenly disappears and leaves the room completely dark. I'm hoping they didn't forget about me as a huge tv screen comes down in front of me and shows a man in his 40s on the screen. I recognize him as Cain, the leader of Xena. "Greeting Constance Winters! We are so glad you have decided to join us, would you like to see your eyes?" Cain asks me.

"Um, sure." I reply.

A mirror appears in thin air and hovers in front of me. I take the handle and bring the mirror up to my face. I see my silky black hair with one white streak as I work my way up to my eyes. The mirror finally catches sight of my eyes and I gasp, as I see that I have black eyes. I am finally part of Xena! I am so speechless that Cain scares me out of my daze when he speaks again. "So, welcome to Xena," Cain congratulates, "Now before you get too excited and rush out of here, we need to talk about your powers. Because these powers were given to you from a machine, no one knows what your power is. I have specialized trainers that can help you discover your power if you would be willing to accept one."

"Yes, of course! There is definitely no way for me to find this power on my own. I don't even know where to start," I admit.

"Now normally we give people their choice of the trainers based on their personalities. Connor is kind of strict so don't pick him unless you're good with tons of rules. Sarah is very easy going but that may make it take longer for you to find your power. Katy is..."

"I'm honestly really good with anyone, I just want to find my power!" I interrupt.

"Well then I'll pair you with Tyler. He's very good at figuring out powers of people who are his age so you should work well with him. I see on this sheet here that you are 16, correct?

"Yes I am but isn't Tyler your son?" I respond, suddenly feeling intimidated.

"Yes? Will that be a problem?"

"Oh no, no problem at all. I just didn't know that your son was a trainer as well."

"Yes, he actually volunteered to help the new Xena find their powers because it took him so long to find his. He is also 16 so you two should get along just fine."

As I'm processing what Cain just told me, a man comes into the room wearing an all black uniform.

"Constance I would like to introduce you to Kyle," Cain announces, "Kyle will show you to your room, you will be staying here in our headquarters while you figure out the power that you have gained."

Kyle walks up to me and gives me a smile and a nod. He holds his arm out to me and I brace myself, knowing what is coming next. We teleport into my room and I struggle to stay standing as my head spins. "Ugh! Why do so many of you do that?" I question.

After no response, I realize Kyle has already left me alone in my room. My head starts pounding up a storm so I trudge over to the bed and climb under the covers, not bothering to look around the room, and I fall asleep. Hopefully training will go well.