Realistic or Modern Unity of the Gifted

[Imogen Sherbet]

The next day was relatively uneventful. Then again, anything would seem uneventful given the events of the previous two days. Elena was still trying to come to terms with what she'd discovered. So, she went to a school with other people like her. It wasn't that big of a deal, was it? She'd worked her way through more difficult situations. As her last period ended and she packed away her books, her mind wandered to Daichiro's parting message.


We might be a strange bunch, but we're the only ones who will ever understand you, Miss Elena.


I don't need understanding. I'm through with that. Memories washed through her mind. Memories of walking through a dark hallway, as the talking around her faded into whispers and haughty glances. Memories of walking up to her locker, only to find that someone had written 'DYKE' in permanent marker over the front. Living with it for the rest of the year and ignoring the giggles it produced. Finding the guy who did it and beating the crap out of him. Not feeling the satisfaction that she thought she would at seeing his bloodied face. Her parents. The late-night conversations. She'd long since given up on finding someone who understood her.


She snapped back to reality, discovering that she was the only one left in the classroom. More determined than ever, she marched out of the classroom, holding her head high and striding boldly. Yet the actions were empty-they did not match her feelings.

 

[Kyero]

Daichiro continued reading his text book until he finished the chapter and closed it, folding the corner of the page to prepare for the next chapter later in the week after the quiz and set it down next to him. As he looked up, he saw that miss Alexandria was awake.


"Welcome back to the world, miss Alexandria. Have you been sleeping well?" He asked.


The reason he asked was because he knew he could help. Even in sleep, the human mind was susceptible to his power. In her dreams, he could implant subconscious messages to influence the kinds of dreams she had. The human brain translated language as images, so if he whispered in her mind about a gorgeous field of flowers with clear blue skies and animals all around frolicking and playing and enjoying the day, that is what she would see in her dreams. But he wouldn't do anything without her permission, so he needed to find out if she had been sleeping well.

 

[HonestlySurviving]

Alexandria


'I can't conto my power...' I thought sort of at him. 'I can tell I've used it, but I can't control it.' It was obvious that I was scared.

 

[Kyero]

Daichiro heard the thought, taking note of how scared she sounded and he took a breath.


"Okay... Listen to me very carefully," he said as he walked over and sat on the side of her bed.


"Perhaps it will be different for you, but for me, my power exploded and became uncontrollable when I tried to fight the fact that it was mine. I refused to believe when I was young that I was as different as everyone said. My desire for normalcy isolated my power in the depths of my mind where it began festering like an infected wound until at last it broke through the barriers I placed on it and nearly killed me. It took a few weeks back then because I didn't understand why it happened, but I realized soon after that in order for me to regain control over what I had lost, I had to accept my abnormal abilities as part of who and what I was."


He put his hand on hers very gently.


"I have learned to control my power so I only hear what I want to hear from other people when I want to hear it. As such, I have refrained from reading your mind since you were hospitalized and I do not know whether you have accepted or fought your gift all your life. Only you know that right now. But if you have been fighting it as I did when I was young, you must stop now or it will kill you as mine almost did me. Embrace what you have and accept that you are different, and always will be. It doesn't make you undesirable, ugly, freakish, or dangerous. It just makes you unique."


He removed his hand and sat up straighter.


"If you have accepted your power, then it could also be possible that your power has accumulated within you over the years which you have not used it. It's overflowing like a bowl under a running sink faucet. If that is the case, then your best option is to meditate. As you begin to clear your mind of thought and outside stimuli, the only thing left will be the sensation of pressure which your power places over your mind and body. You have to focus on that pressure, and concentrate on allowing it to flow rather than trying to contain it. Use your power. Use it on anything and everything around you until there is no power left to use. It is the only other thing I can think of that could be happening to you."


He took a breath and smiled.


"If it turns out that your power is in fact overflowing as I am thinking, then begin meditating. The instant you feel that pressure I described, begin focusing on using that power that is pushing its way out and direct it at me. Allow your power to do whatever it wants, and do not fight it. Just relax and allow it to flow on its own."

 

[HonestlySurviving]

Alexandria


"I'm scared..." I thought to him, tears springing to my eyes. "My mom doesn't even know about me... you have someone to go to att home, I don't..."


I met his eyes slowly. I wanted his help, I wanted to listen, but I was terrified of the power itself.

 

[Kyero]

Daichiro could sense the fear growing in her heart, even without using his ability.


He reached out and held her hand, a bit tighter than before.


"I am here, miss Alexandria." He said softly.


"I may not be your family, but I am your friend and I am here for you. Your power is near identical to my own in every way, the only difference being that you can transmit images while I transmit what equates to language. But really it's just two sides to the same coin."


He put both hands around hers.


"You have nothing to fear from this power so long as I'm with you. Even if it begins to go out of control, I can help restrain it and give you time to release it properly. But it will take time, and I cannot guarantee that it will not hurt from time to time. I know it did for me." He said, speaking as calmly as he could.

 

[HonestlySurviving]

Alexandria


I looked down, shaking. I threw my arms around him in a hug, silently crying into his shoulder. "Thank you..." I thought to him, squeezing my eyes shut tightly.

 

[Kyero]

Daichiro was a bit surprised, but he let out a soft breath and returned the hug for her. He let her cry for as long as she needed, sitting quietly and rubbing her back to try and help calm her down.

 

[HonestlySurviving]

Alexandria


I eventually managed to stop crying and feel asleep on his shoulder, the shot on which I'd cried now a darker color. My grip slackened as I drifted off, and my body went limp, my breath slowing.

 

[Kyero]

As she fell asleep, Daichiro carefully set her back down in bed and made sure she was as comfortable as he could make her. He stepped out for a few minutes to give Saeko a call, letting her know he'd be home late. She didn't mind, and gave him leave to stay as long as necessary. He stepped back inside after the call and sat beside her bed in the event that she would wake up, but it didn't seem like that'd be happening which was fine. The more rest she got, the better.


In order to help her rest a bit more peacefully, he placed his hand on hers and closed his eyes. He concentrated his own power on her, and began to focus in on the source, where he felt it strongest. When he made contact, he began to allow her mind to drift and "share" with his own, allowing her power to gently and in a carefully controlled manner to enter his mind and allow her dreams to be the conduit for releasing her power bit by bit. With luck, this would relieve a lot of the pressure on her mind and body and help her recovery. He didn't know how long he'd have to do this, but he would help her however he could.

 

[HonestlySurviving]

Alexandria


I slept for a while, my body slightly more relaxed once he began to use his power. I woke after a few hours, my eyes fluttering.

 

[Imogen Sherbet]

Elena walked down the hallway, absorbed in her own thoughts. Suddenly, she heard a loud voice from not too far away;


"Hey! You, with the pink hair."


She looked up, somewhat surprised, to see a boy leaning against a wall. His face was a mess-he had a swollen lip, and his cheeks were littered with black and blue bruises. One of his arms was in a sling, and his face was a mask of malice. He beckoned her to come towards him with his good hand. Hesitant, she thought about turning and walking in the other direction, but she was intrigued. What could he possibly want with her? Slowly, she walked over to where he stood, keeping a distance of a metre or two. Although he didn't appear to be in any kind of fighting condition, he gave her seriously bad vibes.


"You. You're friends with the red-eyed freak, right?" Elena was confused for a moment, before she realised who he was talking about.


"What's it to you?" She said nonchalantly, not breaking eye contact with him. She could tell he was trying to intimidate her, but it wouldn't work.


He laughed. "You should think twice before using that tone with me. Now..." With one swift movement he had her pinned against the wall with one hand. "I'll ask you again. You've been hanging around with that creepy guy, right?" She struggled against the position, but it was clear that he had the upper hand.


"I think you've got something wrong there. The only 'creepy guy' here is you. What kind of way is this to treat a lady?" She spat, her voice dripping with venom. While he stood taken aback, she brought her leg up between his knees as hard as she could, and took off running down the hallway. When she heard his enraged shout from behind, she could tell that it had been a bad plan.

 

[Kyero]

Daichiro had a thought about staying the night to watch over Alexandria, and as the nurses came in to tell him visiting hours were over as the day drew to a close he used his power to influence them to leave him be. He was locked in the room with her, but that was fine. Allowing his power to serve as a conduit for her power to escape was necessary to help her now so whatever he had to do to help was fair game.


Her eyes began to open not long after he managed to have the doors closed with him inside, and he smiled as he waited for her to come into full consciousness.

 

[HonestlySurviving]

Alexandria


I blinked up at him slowly, a little confused. "Hey..." I murmured softly after a moment. "Has my mom cone in yet...?" I looked around the room, but saw an alarming lack of daisies, the flowers she always brought me. "It's been two days..." I said softly, looking down.

 

[Kyero]

Daichiro put his hand on her shoulder.


"I have seen nobody come to this room, nor will they at this point. Visiting hours are over, and it's almost 2am. If anyone does come, I'll be sure to let you know." He whispered.


He removed his hand, looking to the clock and then the door. He wondered how long her body would take to heal. Since he was here helping her body to relieve the overabundance of power, it would hopefully only be another day or so. If it took longer than two days, he'd likely end up suffering the consequences for serving as a conduit like this. But still, if it meant a day of migraines and being bedridden for a few hours, he could deal with that.

 

[HonestlySurviving]

Alexandria


I smiled slightly at his words. "You are a good friend..." I murmured softly, trying to sit up again. I knew my body needed rest, but I was tired of sleeping, and stiff from it as well.

 

[Kyero]

Daichiro put his hand on her shoulder, stopping her from sitting up.


"Don't. Your body needs the rest. I can sense that you want to move, but there's a better way."


Daichiro kept his hand on her shoulder and closed his eyes. Using his telekinesis, he began to use his power to essentially give her body a massage. The muscles were flexed, held, and relaxed for her, simulating stretching and movement. Some of her joints such as a few vertebrae in her back and neck, her elbows and knees cracked, further relieving a bit of that stress which had built up. This went on for about thirty seconds before Daichiro stopped, releasing his grip and allowing her body to relax again.


"The stiffness should be gone now, but you shouldn't force yourself to move. Your body needs the rest and if you push too hard it's only going to take that much longer to recover properly. Trust me, I know." He said.

 

[HonestlySurviving]

Alexandria


I looked at him and sighed. "Thank you..." I said softly, laying back down. I still wanted to move around, but I just stayed still and watched him.

 

[Imogen Sherbet]

Elena found herself, once again, sprinting down the road away from her school. Is this going to be a regular thing? Who knows, I might even be fit by the end of the year! She smiled half hearted at her lame joke, but it was quickly wiped from her face when she heard a loud shout from behind her.


"You won't get away with that! Come back here!" What have I gotten myself into this time? In hindsight, it hadn't been the smartest idea to do what she did, b then again she had never been very good at controlling her actions. She flung a glance behind her to see the injured boy staggering after her as well as he could manage, but he appeared to be in a lot of pain. Someone must've beaten him up pretty badly. Judging from the extent of the injury, and the way he'd talked earlier, it wasn't hard to guess who.


Nonetheless, she was confident that she had the upper hand, and turned around, only to be faced with two other guys stepping out in front of her. They appeared to be in the same condition.


I'm outnumbered. Even if they are beat up, it's still three-to-one... Elena came to an abrupt stop, and heard a chuckle from behind.


"Thanks for backing me up, guys. She kicked me in the crotch.."


One from in front stepped forward.


"Now, listen, you little freak. Next time you meet up with your creepy-ass friends to go dance in graveyards, or whatever the hell you do with your time...give a little message to Emo-boy for me."


Before she had time to respond, a striking white pain spread across her cheek, and she was thrown to the ground with the force of a punch.


"We're pretty pissed off. That, is a little gift from me to him. Do you think you could pass it on?"


Snickering, the three boys began to make their way off. Elena stood off and wiped he blood from her cheek. Jerks...she thought to herself angrily, as she dusted herself off and began to make her way home.

 

[Kyero]

Daichiro watched miss Alexandria as she rested and helped to relieve her power a few more times as the dawn came and the morning broke through the windows. By this time she'd fallen asleep again, and would soon be ready to leave the hospital. He had school though, and he was sure she'd be okay. So, while she was sleeping, he gathered his things and left her in peace. Once out of the hospital he made his way home to catch up on a few hours rest before going to school.


Once he arrived, he had the sneaking suspicion that something wasn't right. He made his way to class and sat down, uninterested in whatever the teacher had to say. He could sense the negative energy in the air, and he knew that he'd soon be forced to act on whatever this was.

 

[jinkx]

Philippa headed to school that morning with an icy feeling in her lungs. It was a strange feeling, like somebody had forced her to swallow ice that had gone down the wrong way and ended up in her lungs. She felt cold on the inside. She shuddered and crossed her arms, as she walked. The worst thing was, she knew this feeling. It meant something bad was going to happen.


Whilst most of her power was based off touch, she also had moments like this where she could feel what was coming- something good, something bad, etc. It was very similar to the feeling that you were being stared at; it felt like some bad force was watching her and waiting. Just waiting for the right moment to strike.


She went to class and sat herself down beside the window, keeping her bag in her lap. She was holding it like a child would hold something close to their heart. She just needed something to grip onto to calm her nerves. She adjusted her gloves and glanced around, wondering what would happen and when.

 

[Kyero]

Daichiro was day dreaming, gazing out of the window when he saw something strange at the edge of the yard outside near the front gate. A shadow of a male figure, and he could swear he saw bandages. Instantly, he understood what was going on and he stood up from his seat and walked to the door.


"Excuse me, Daichiro! We're in the middle of class!" The teacher called.


Daichiro froze at the door, glaring at the teacher over his shoulder who swallowed a lump in his throat and excused him.


Daichiro left the building and walked out to the front gate, but nobody was there. However, down the street, that figure was there again and disappeared around another corner. Daichiro made his way to that corner, and once again the pattern repeated. Eventually Daichiro was led to a warehouse which looked fairly run down, but it was a haven for gang types. He knew what was coming, but he wasn't worried. His power was a bit weak from helping miss Alexandria, but he didn't need it to handle these goons.


Daichiro used some of his remaining power to throw the door in, violently, sending it flying across the floor of the building to the other side and embedding it in the wall. The force of the impact shook the walls, and rattled a few nerves as Daichiro walked inside and saw a large gang of over twenty men waiting for him, plus the few thugs he beat up before. The thug who had been leading the fight against him before stepped forward with a sly and evil smile.


"Welcome, freak. We've been waiting for you ya know."


Daichiro crossed his arms in front of his chest.


"I know," he said quietly.


"Oh? You knew? Yeah, I bet you did you piece of trash! This world has no need for freaks lie you! It's time to die!"


A few men pulled knives, another pulled a piece of rebar, and others brought out brass knuckles and sticks and baseball bats. Daichiro smiled, doing a mental check of how much power he had left to work with. It wasn't much, but it would be enough. These men wanted to harm him, even kill him, but he would not be the first to die this day.


Daichiro waited for the first one to come at him, and it was one with a knife on his left. Daichiro stepped backward, avoiding the thrust of the blade and grabbing his wrist, twisting it around behind him, taking the knife from his hand, and in turn slicing the man's throat wide open spilling his blood and spraying it all across the ground at his feet as he let the man drop to the floor and begin choking on his own blood. Daichiro held the blade up, gazing at it for a moment, and then looked at the one who made the threat who was in shock about what had just happened.


"You have threatened to kill me, and that is your last mistake in this world. Your friend is already dead. His body just hasn't figured it out yet. Your turn will come, but for now..." he said, turning his head to look around him.


"Who's next?" He asked.


There was a lot of hesitation, but another came at him with a baseball bat. Daichiro used a bit of his remaining power to stop the bat from striking him, causing it to hit an invisible wall as Diachiro's telekinesis froze his muscles in place. Daichiro brushed the bat with his finger before reaching forward and slowly pressing the tip of the blade into the man's throat. Deeper and deeper, all the way to the hilt of the knife before ripping it sideways and opening the entire side of his neck. He too dropped to the floor and began choking on his own blood before going still at Daichrio's feet.


He looked around, covered in blood but still smiling.


"I have no fight with the rest of you," he said, looking to them.


"You may all leave. But you three," he said, pointing to the ones he'd beaten before.


"You stay right where you are," he ordered.


The others took the hint and departed the warehouse as fast as their legs could take them, leaving Daichiro alone with the three thugs from before who were now literally quaking in their boots as he began walking towards them with the blade ready.


A few minutes later, Daichiro walked out of the warehouse. He was covered in blood from head to toe, but none of it his own. Nearby was a stream, and though it wasn't perfect it was better than nothing. He walked down to the water and washed himself off. His clothing was still stained red, but his face, hair, arms, and shoes were more or less cleaned by the time he was done. With that done, he walked home. When he walked inside, Saeko was beyond shocked to see his clothing stained like that, but she knew better than to ask him questions when he was like this. She let him go on his way, and he changed clothes before taking the stained clothing outside and burning it in the furnace.


Once the clothing was burned, he went back inside and took a nap.


This was not the first time Daichiro had killed people. He had done so before when he was very young. Age nine or so, being verbally assaulted by several children at school, his power became uncontrollable and he lashed out. His power was enough to kill six children around him and severely wounded/crippled almost a dozen others. Telekinesis against a human body was no contest. The metaphysical had no limitations on strength, and thus whatever the power wanted to do, it did. The body could do nothing against it. Daichiro had also killed a few street thugs over the years whom he knew had either killed other people, raped women in the area, or caused trouble for anyone and everyone around them with no signs of stopping.


Daichiro slept for most of the day, waking just in time to see that it was around 1pm. School still had a little over an hour left in it, and he had to go back and get his backpack and such so he jogged to school. Once he arrived he walked back into the classroom in the middle of the teacher's lecture, who promptly stopped and let him take his seat again without asking a single question. Daichiro checked that his backpack and all of his belongings were in tact before going back to his daydreaming as he waited for school to let out.

 

[Imogen Sherbet]

Elena walked into school the next day with a dreadful sense of trepidation. What were those guys up to? Would Daichiro be ok? Or worse-would Daichiro do something out of control? She was certain he'd beaten up those thugs, pretty badly by the look of it, and she dreaded to think about what he could do if he put his mind to it. The bruise on her face had swelled and blended into shades of violet. It was huge-spread kast far as just below her right eye, and touching the corner of her lip. She'd bandaged up the right side of her face, but the edge of her lip was swollen.


Anger coursed through her body as she thought about the guys who had done it. That night she'd stayed awake, tossing and turning, looking over the things that they'd done. She saw what they did to the small girl with the white hair-Alexandria, she remembered-she saw all the people they'd terrorised, the rumours they'd spread about Daichiro behind his back. The cruel things they'd done to people who didn't fit in.


People like me. People like Daichiro, people like Alexandria, people like the girl with the gloves. Freaks. Why? She clenched her fist in anger as she walked down the hallway. What did we do to deserve this? Elena didn't need to use her retrocognition to know that they'd probably had the same treatment their whole lives. Just like she had.


The whole morning, Elena kept her eyes peeled, hoping to see a flash of glossy black hair or vermillion eyes, but there was nothing. Her anxiety grew and grew, and she couldn't even tell if she was worried for Daichiro, or for whoever had crossed him. He didn't even show up for a class hat she had with him in the afternoon Finally, at just after 1pm, he walked leisurely into the classroom, as if nothing was amiss, and made his way to his seat by the window. Elena tuned out what the teacher was saying, and instead focused on him.


Daichiro...? She sent out the thought experimentally.

 

[HonestlySurviving]

Alexandria


I woke slowly that morning. A nurse was talking quietly to a doctor in my room, saying something about me being well enough to leave soon. I struggled to sit up, ignoring how much it hurt. "Where's my mom?" I asked. They turned and stared a moment. "We don't know, sweetie. The woman who brought you in will have to pick you up..."

 

[Kyero]

Daichiro...? Came a thought cutting through the haze of his mind.


His right eye slid to the corner to look over at miss Elena, who was looking at him expectantly. He scanned her mind firefly, and found that she had been attacked by those same thugs, hence the bruising and bandage on her face.


Those men who attacked you will never bother anyone ever again, He communed to her.


He returned his gaze to the window and continued his daydreaming.