The Last Elementalist

Chapter 12

Connor caught Evie watching him as he walked around, red eyed and hair unkempt from a sleepless night. Now he felt pitiful for all those other mothers and fathers who had babies and had to stay up night after night until they were finally satisfied, only to be woken up again soon after by more screaming and fits.

With a sigh, Connor made his way over to Evie.

"Look, I owe you an explanation," he reasoned before he had to hear more screaming. "Tonight at twelve."

Layla appeared behind Evie and touched her shoulder lightly. "Evie, we have our readings now. We should go."

They all got up and walked over to the door where Cassidy was talking with Jean and Lielle, both looking just as horrible.

They weaved through crowds and stumbled around fights with glowing fists.

As they approached the lab room, they walked into a man with a name tag reading Eric Steinhouser; Healer.

"I was informed about three of you, not six," he noted.

"Uh, actually," Lielle said. "Layla and Jean arrived last night, sent by President Travis and Cassidy only escorted us here. She was read already."

"Is she done with baby growth spurts yet?" he asked, staring at Jean.

"Yes, she's just short," Connor barked. "What would happen if she wasn't?" he added, softening his voice.

"Don't see how that concerns you," he smiled. "Now come along."

"Wait," Jean called. "I know a baby who's in danger. Can it come here? I know it has abilities."

"We do not allow babies, Jean."

"Why?" she whimpered.

"They tend to have outbursts of their abilities along with abnormally fast growth spurts from the affected cells and we do not wish to get involved until they are older. These spurts normally stop at about four months at which point they will begin to develop their abilities. Normally once these are done, the child will reach about three feet, and gain the ability to walk and talk, allowing them to begin to train when they are one years old and their powers have fully developed."

"And when is the earliest this ends?" Connor asked, desperate but cautious.

"Anywhere between six to ten months. Come, now. Enough about babies more about you," Eric urged.

They both held their breaths, clearly thinking the same thing; these babies would not be so small and cute for too long.

* * * * *

Connor pushed all thoughts aside when he was called into the room. It looked like a regular doctor's office. A raised seat covered in paper sat in the center of the room.

"Take a seat," Eric said. Daniel now sat in the room to watch the screen at the desk.

As he sat down, Eric explained how attachments would allow him to read his genes. Nothing sounded suspicious, so he allowed him to attach the wires to his wrists.

Almost immediately, a series of lines and colors popped up. Daniel took notes while Eric spoke in a hushed undertone. Only minutes later he was detached from the machine.

"Not many people are second generation Duelists," Daniel complemented before Connor ran down a series of twisted tunnels to the crack in the wall.

* * * * *

"What do we do?" Lielle worried. "I was afraid they'd find out from their screaming but now..."