Derailed - 5. Student and Master

Chapter 4

I woke up the next morning to see Seth still sleeping next to me. Not wanting to get up quite yet, I laid there and watched him sleep, his chest still rising and falling slowly as he breathed steadily. He continued to sleep for a while longer before finally coming to life, I watched as he stretched his arm out and pulled his shirt on. He turned to look at me and saw I was already awake.

“What are you still doing here? Aren't you suppose to go see Magashi today?” he asked, smiling at me. As he got up and started to leave the tent, he turned to me, “I wouldn't be late. You know he works you harder when you’re late.”

I had almost completely forgotten that I was supposed to be meeting him today. I grabbed my shirt and bolted out of the tent. Seeing as I was already behind, I skipped breakfast and began making my way down one of the abandon tunnels towards Magashi.

Magashi's spent most of his time in an area he had set up to act as our training ground. It was actually an old cross section of tracks that had been abandoned over the years and was no longer used. The tracks had been removed, revealing a large enough area for us to practice our combat and our abilities. The only down side was that it was rather dark at parts, even more so than the station. We had run extra lights throughout this area of the tunnel, but that still didn't make a huge difference. But I had always figured this to be a good thing. If I could learn to defend myself well in limited visibility, then I would be all that much better where I could see well.

I arrived to find the old man kneeling in front of a small wooden table he had set up. He looked as though he was asleep, but I knew better. I knelt beside him closing my eye and began to meditate with him. I focused on all the events of the past few days, the fight between the refugees, the tests Mark had conducted the previous day, the explosion and what I had learned about my ability, about me. Was I really that dangerous?! I let these thoughts and images swim in my head for a bit. I began to feel a rush of sadness as the idea of me having no control hit me. Finally, I heard Magashi's voice and I was brought out of my thoughts.

“You were late this morning, Cameron,” he said with his eyes still closed. “Any reason why that is?” He didn’t sound angry or annoyed. He sounded very calm, he always did, but not in the same way Mark did. This wasn't blank or empty, he truly felt at peace.

“How did you know?” I asked curiously. I was certain that I was as quiet as possible when I came in

He merely chuckled as he got up off his knees and finally opened his eyes. They were a dark smoky grayish color; you could almost see the wisdom behind them. His hair was long and dark, with frequent streaks of gray through it, almost the same color as his eyes. He always had it up in a ponytail, except for a few strands that would get loose and fall in front of his face, which was old and worn by the years he had seen. He was, after all, well into his sixties. But despite his apparent age, he still had the aura and presence of a warrior. He was someone you still always felt safe with... as long as he was on your side.

“How many times have we been over this?” he asked as he chuckled once more. “I know everything. Now since you were late, we have lost valuable time so to make up for it we will work twice as hard and I will keep you for an extra 2 hours.”

“Two hours!” I said with shock in my voice. He couldn't really be serious?! “But I was like 15 minutes late at the most,” I said, not wanting to spend all day here.

“Ah yes, but this is not the first time you have been late and I am sure it is not the last, so I'm planning ahead. We’re going to make up today the time you will waste in the future.”

Seeing that he was not going to allow any further arguments, I decided to drop the subject before he added more time on. I did, however, have other questions and since he claimed to know everything, he should have some answers.

“Why did you want to see me today? I wasn't supposed to come for another few days?” I asked, standing up myself.

“Straight to the point as always I see. I called you here because of the results of your test with Mark yesterday. I believe you had quite a revelation, did you not?” he asked, as if he didn't already know the answer.

“I thought you knew everything,” I said, getting a sly smirk across my face. Looking up I saw him somewhat laugh inwardly as if there was some joke I wasn't getting.

“I know about the test because I gave him the Idea, or rather, I pushed him in the right direction. I've believed for a while now that your emotions may affect you ability far more than we had originally thought. I believe that different emotions you feel can have different influences on your powers. Tell me, am I correct?”

I thought back to all three of the tests. Up till now I had only been concerned with that fact that I had leveled an entire room of equipment. But as I remembered, an idea came to me.

“Each emotion I felt had a different affect, when he showed me the images of my mother I became sad and the can lifted up to the ceiling but when I saw images of... um... someone else, the can sorta...” I let my voice trail off, feeling that I've already given away more then I wanted.

“Yes you affection for Seth does run rather deep” he said as he closed his eyes and began tot think to himself

“my eyes grew wide as I heard the words come from his mouth I was im a somewhat state of disbelief I had never mentioned my feelings for Seth for fear he would find out.

“Please dont say anything I pleaded I dont want him to know not yet anyways” I said still unsure if I had really heard him say it.

Why do you worry he would not be accepting of you is that? He saild looking down at me with a inquisitive look on his face “I do hope you would give the boy more credit than that im sure he would be more than understanding”

“I’m not afraid of him not liking me I know he would be fine with it im just worried that if I tell him and he doesn’t feel the same way that things might not be the same after wards, and im just not ready to risk it yet” I looked down at my feet as I finally confirmed my fear to both him and myself. He look as though he was still deep in thought, trying to sort out what I had revealed to him.

“I understand your feeling and will respect your wish for me to remain silent however I would advise you to try and work though this. It is not a good idea for you to shut you emotions up inside like that” he began pacing around the table “And that brings me back to your test with mark.” he said as he continued to walk around not even looking at me.

I decided to just let him think. For several minutes he didn't speak and it was beginning to gnaw at me. What was going through his head? Did he think I was a threat as well? Did he think he could help me, or was he just trying to see how long he could keep me standing there before I said something? But before I got the chance, he walked over and grabbed something off the ground and held it in his hand. He looked down at it, then smiled once again at his seemingly never ending private joke.

“Tell me again, Cameron, what were the three emotions you explored yesterday?” he asked with almost a sinister tone in his voice.

“I believe we tried sadness, anger and... love.” I said, the very word bringing a bitter taste to my mouth.

“Interesting,” he said. “If you don't mind, I’d like to be absolutely sure that what you and Mark discovered is true. I’d like to try one more test, if that's ok,” he said, the sinister tone growing even more so. He was planning something, what I couldn't be completely sure of just yet, but what I was sure of was that the last test I tried hadn't ended so well.

“I’m not sure if that's really a great idea,” I said, taking a step back. But as I did, he turned, his arm raised and I saw the rock he had picked up. Before I had time to move out of the way, he sent it beaming straight for my head. I screamed out as I closed my eyes and waited for the impact and the pain that would come next... but it never did. It took me a second to realize it, but the rock had somehow missed me, or rather, never reached me. I opened my eyes to see the stone that was once dead set on slamming into my head, now stopped in mid-air at a standstill.

“Just as I thought, where anger creates a need to lash out and attack, fear comes from a sense of danger and protects. You saw the stone coming for you and you sensed the threat, so your powers reacted,” he said, now sitting down once again.

I sat down in front of him taking in what he had told me. “Then what Mark told me is true, and that test proves it, my powers are controlled by my emotions, which means the only way I'm ever going to gain control is to become like Mark and feel nothing.”

Magashi began to once again laugh inward to himself, “It is true your powers and your emotions are linked. I don't believe one has full sway over the other. I think your emotions may have influences over your power, but they do not control them,” he said, still laughing to himself. “Also, on the subject of our friend Mark,” He sighed some before speaking, “You must learn to control you emotions because the more you force your power, the more influence your emotions will have. Mark, however, doesn't deal with his emotions. He’s merely found a way to use his power to help him ignore them. Believe me, on the outside he may look calm, but inside he’s screaming and one day, sooner or later, he will have to deal with them.”

I sat there feeling relieved that I would not have to reduce myself to the emotional state of a toaster. But in the back of my head I still knew the truth if I ever became too angry or sad, then I would lose it again, like I had in the lab. I st there thinking about the what this meant for my powers and what I had just been shown and the though slowly accrued to me.

“If what you said about fear is true, then if I wanted to, I could stop a bullet, couldn't I?” I asked, hoping for a positive answer.

He opened his eyes again, smiling slightly. “What you did today with the rock was only a reaction. A bullet would be moving much faster than that, faster than you could react. So I'm sorry, but no, your fear won’t be able to save you from a bullet... not yet anyway.”

“Well what about a VCU Agent Do you think id be able to defeat on of them?” I said curious to what the full extent of my power may be. I looked at him as he turned to face a stone serious look

Listen to me and listen to me well. In time your power could become a very powerful force to be reckoned with, but until you’ve developed a much better grasp and understanding of exactly what it is your dealing with I wold advise you not push it to far. So should you ever find yourself face to face a the VCU you will do one thing and one thing only......run you run and you get as far away as possible. The VCU Agents are trained for years to prefect and use their powers to hunt and kill us. As you are right now......you would be no match for them.”

“No matter,” I said calmly, “I still think I could handle myself out there pretty well if I needed to,” I said, standing up with him.

“Oh really, do you now?” he said with the same sinister tone from earlier. “I’d love to see just how you intend to do that,” he said with a sly smile.

Like a rocket his hand shot out, missing me by inches as I leaned out of its path. I stuck my hands out as I found his exposed chest and focused. I ended up knocking him back several feet to put some distance between us. If he wanted a fight, he was gonna get one. He rushed me again, swinging so fast that I couldn't land a retaliating attack. He continued this barrage, slowly backing me up to a wall. I knew once he got me there, that was it. This fight would be over before it started.

He continued to deliver blow after blow and I was already starting to slip up, allowing a few to make contact with my stomach. I felt the pain ripple through me as he continued to throw punches my way. I had to break his attack and soon. I backed up a few more feet, getting closer and closer to the wall, then I saw my opportunity. I focused on a small brick laying a few yards behind him and swiftly it rose up at my command and began to shoot straight for his back. But it was too late. He noticed the shift in my eyes and he turned to see the brick now flying in his direction, and he easily used my own power to redirect it over his shoulder and into the wall. It did, however, provide enough distraction for me to land a quick blow to his leg, bringing him to one knee as I spun to face him.

With his back now to the wall, the positions were reversed and I began to launch my attack. Despite my best effort, he still seemed to evade every punch and every kick I threw at him. I was going all out and he was toying with me. He didn't even seem as though he were truly trying. I felt my frustration growing. I put my hand out to meet another one of his blocks, but I wasn't having it this time. I focused directly at him and sent him slamming into the wall a few feet off the ground. As he slid down and regained his balance, I rushed him once more, not wanting to give him the chance to regain himself.

Now that he was against the wall, his movement had drastically been reduced. He had to resort to blocking rather than dodging. But even then I couldn't seem to gain the upper hand. He was blocking every one of my attacks effortlessly. And with each block I could feel my anger and frustration growing more and more, as each fist failed to make contact. I began to put more and more power into each punch and each kick. As I felt my adrenalin pumping, I wanted more than anything to land one blow on him, if anything, just to prove I could do it. Then I saw it. My one opportunity to prove to myself that I wasn't helpless.

As I went to kick he used both arms to block leaving his face open. I threw my fist at him as hard as I could, but as it came closer he moved and my fist smacked dead on into the bricks of the wall. I expected every bone in my hand to shatter with the impact, but it didn’t. Instead, it was as if my power had created a cushion around my fist. Instead, the wall cracked with the force of it. I stood stunned for a moment at what I had done, but my surprise was short lived as he used this distraction to use my own power and throw me back several feet, to land on my back. I looked up to see him once again rushing me, with a full on assault in mind. The rules had changed now he was no longer going to hold back.

I was right; he had been toying with me. The second I regained my footing I felt his leg come up and his foot hit me square in the shoulder. It felt as though my shoulder had been shattered into pieces. I knew that if I let many more blows like that hit their target, I wouldn't last much longer. I saw his foot come up again, but I was ready this time; using my arm I was able to block it, but even then it sent pain rippling through my bones. It was obvious that blocking was not going to be an option any more. I had to avoid getting hit at all cost. He continued to use his legs and throw kick after kick as I began ducking and weaving in and out between them, but even now he was picking up speed. I had to do something quick. I couldn't continue to let him keep me confined like this. But he left no chance for an offensive. No sooner had I dodged an attack than another came right behind it. This continued onward for close to four minutes straight. I was beginning to feel the fatigue take hold of me. I had to do something and quick. I saw another kick come for my head. Ducking, I saw it...

I knew what I need to do, but I had to wait for the chance to execute my plan. I saw another kick coming up at my head again. ‘Perfect’ I thought as I ducked down. I saw the foot he had still remaining on the ground unprotected. Using what focus I could manage, I went to push it out from under him, but before I even got the chance, I left the ground as he flipped over me and, with my back to him, I felt his foot plant itself directly on my spine and I was sent flying forward with a kick that was guaranteed to leave a bruise. I felt myself land face forward in the dirt. I scrambled back up to my feet to turn and see him smiling. He was actually smiling at me, as if he found something funny in all of this.

“I was really expecting a lot more form you, Cameron. I believe you’re losing your touch in your old age,” he said with a slight laugh.

I couldn't take it anymore. One way or another, this old man was going down. The rest of this fight would be long range. I wasn't going to give him the chance to land a hit on me again. I sent my focus out, searching for objects on the ground, but all I could find were small stones. Nothing big enough to deal any real damage. Magashi rushed me, once again putting me on the defense. He began swinging at my head, making me duck back and forth, not giving me any time to focus on any possible projectile. I felt a few more hits connect to the side of my head and my anger began to build more. Becoming frustrated, I started to grind my teeth and then I felt it.

The fire in my chest began to build, the rage that I had felt in Mark’s lab once again coming to the surface. I continued to block and dodge as his fists continued to swing at ever possible opening they could find. And soon, more and more holes in my defenses began to make themselves known as more and more attacks began to connect with my head, ribs and stomach. I felt the pain of each blow one after the other and I was starting to falter more than before. And the fire continued to grow. I was getting tired of this. Why the hell couldn't I beat him? He was in his 60s, for crying out loud! I knew I was better than this. I had more power than this and one way or another I was going to prove it to him.

Enough was enough! He was not going to land another fist on me! I refused to allow it any longer. I backed up to get some distance between us, once again reaching out with my mind, but all I found were the small stones nothing of any decent size. But then the idea hit me I began to focus on every stone I could find. There were hundreds littering the ground. There would be no way to avoid this attack. I began to lift every one of them off the ground, surrounding him. He stopped his advance as soon as he saw what was happening around him. He stood there dumbfounded for a second. A smile broke across my face I had him and he knew it

“Alright old man, let’s see you dodge this,” I said with a slight hint of anger now in my voice as I felt victory at hand.

He merely smiled and closed his eyes and stood still there. Even further angered by his refusal to end the fight, I focused the rocks all directly at him. The first one whipped past his shoulder and hit the ground behind him the second one shot past his head, but again missed. Soon every one of the rocks began whipping past him, but none of them able to hit him and he was just standing there. Why wasn't I able to hit him, I wondered, now becoming frustrated to the point of no end. I saw the rocks continue to fly around him but not a single one making contact. And I began to focus harder, causing them to increase in speed, but still nothing, not even a scratch.

The fire now began to engulf me sending surges of anger coursing through my veins. Then it hit me and I realized why we was still standing unharmed! He was using my own ability to redirect the stones before they hit him. I was being out done with my own power. Finally, the last of the stones fell and he still stood there unharmed, smiling. I couldn't take this any longer. After all this, he was still just toying with me. I saw his eyes reopen and his smile grew slightly wider. My chest was now moving up in down as the anger caused my breathing to increase exponentially.

“Nice trick, Cameron, very resourceful... in fact, I’d like to try it,” he said with a sinister tone.

It took me a second to realize what he was saying, but soon I saw all the stones once again rise off the ground, only I wasn't the one doing it this time. I began running for the cover I saw as the first stone flew at me, hitting me in the cheek. I immediately felt a bruise form as more and more of the rocks began pelting me across the arms, back and my legs. I saw my only hope - the table that we had meditated at earlier. I reached out for it and lifted it to shield me from the rocks that were now slamming into it like bullets. I was completely on the run and my only defense was a wooden table that was quickly beginning to buckle from the machine-gunning rocks. I felt the pain in my arms from the first wave of rocks that hit me. It intensified as I struggled to keep the table held up as a shield.

“You've really disappointed me Cameron, I was truly expecting more, but you’re too weak to defeat me, you’re too weak to help your friends, just like you were too weak to save your mother,” he said with a slight sneer in his voice.

The mention of my mother sent me over the edge. I felt the same blast of energy I felt yesterday in Mark’s lab... only now I had a target, I had a focus.

I put it all at him; he was going to receive the full impact of every bit of power I could manage. It hit him like a train head on. He was sent flying at least 8 feet through the air to hit the far wall so hard, I saw a crack form in it beside him. His limbs went slightly limp, but I was far from done. The anger still boiled inside. I pinned him to the wall and lifted every one of the stones and formed them as a swarm into a point. I was determined. I was going to bore every last one of them straight through his chest. How dare he bring up my mother or the day she was captured? I walked closer to him, the energy from my anger now cracking the ground beneath my feet. He looked at me, still stunned by what I was doing, but then, once again, the smile came across his face... even as I was about to rip him apart.

“I was wrong Cameron, you’re not weak. You’re just a wild fire out of control. I needed you to see this. This is exactly what I said about your emotions taking control of your powers. Look at yourself. You’re about to kill me because I angered you. Is this how you'll deal with everyone who upsets you? Will you kill them all?” he said, having to yell to me so I could hear him over the swirling energy of my power and the rocks.

It took a second for his words to sink in and finally get through to me, but I eventually regained some kind of sense of myself. I looked at what I was doing. I was really going to kill him. Had he not spoken up, he might be dead right now and I would be a murderer. I felt my focus on him loosen and the rocks fell sharply to the ground, as I fell to the ground sobbing. I had almost killed my instructor, my teacher, my friend, out of blind rage. That is what he had meant. I had pushed my power too much and allowed myself to become over emotional... and it had almost cost me dearly.

“I'm so sorry,” I said, now at his feet so afraid of what I had almost done.

He knelt down and took my face in his hands. I saw a look of despair and concern cross his face as he sighed, “Cameron, I truly am sorry for what I said and did to you today, but you needed to see the potential threat that letting your emotions, especially your anger, get out of hand causes to everyone around you.” He said this wrapping his arms around me and helping me up to my feet.

He stood there for a few seconds trying to calm me down. Once again, neither one of us really spoke. And as we stood there, me crying in his arms, I saw all the rocks around us slowly raise off the ground, another side effect of my emotional instability.

After a few seconds he finally let go of me. As I wiped that last of the tears from my eyes, both of us were standing there, neither one of us speaking. I looked over the damage that had been done to the surrounding area. The greatest of it was done to his table and the wall. The table looked as though it had been through an old west shoot out. It had bits of stone now embedded into it. The wall had a small imprint from where he had punched it earlier and a large crack now covered it from the impact of Magashi being thrown into it.

“Cameron,” Magashi said, breaking the silence finally, “I want you to head back. We’re done for the day.”

“But I thought you wanted me to stay longer today,” I said, worried that he was angry, or worse, scared of what I had done.

He smiled once again and turned to me, “Yes, that was the plan originally, but it would seem that something rather important has come up and you’re needed by the others.”

I was confused at what he had said “How did you...” but I was cut off once more.

His smile grew wider as he went to pick up his table and kneel at it yet again. “How many times must I tell you?” he asked.

“I know everything.”