Meeting (Part 3)

Clay noticed how down John became when he asked about Leo's ability, "Look man, I know Leofalor is really strong, we're all a little jealous of his power. But you shouldn't feel disheartened because you aren't as strong. Your time will come." Clay had a sad smile because he assumed this was why John was feeling down.

'You don't understand! I might be jealous of his power but that's not why I feel this way... I can't believe I have to betray my friends like this...' Johns thoughts were only worsening his mood.

"Thanks, Clay. You're right, I know it will just take some time and effort." John forced a smile so that Clay would think he was feeling better. Clay knew the smile was fake but he didn't say anything.

"To be honest, we don't know anything about Leofalors ability. He hasn't said anything and nobody has asked him about it. For Clay it was visible what he did when he used his power. Leo just had some kind of energy, what that energy is, nobody could say. We could only ask him, but I doubt he'll tell us, and I don't blame him." Cain explained.

'With some ability users, their ability can be guessed based off what they do. Most would think I had super strength, but they would be wrong. Although my ability is achieving the same thing, the process is different. Clays ability is fairly obvious, you could see his arm get larger when he attacked. The specifics of how much he can do isn't known, but there is a basic idea of what his ability can do.' This was Cains thought process about how he tells what ability others have.

"Yeah that's true... We'll just have to ask him ourselves if we want to find out." John murmered.

Back in the meeting room.

"A way for us to get stronger? I assume this is something we can all do?" Leonard asked. It was clear that Leonard was excited about the possibility of getting stronger.

"Yes, there are 2 ways you can get stronger. One will strengthen your ability, while the other your body." Lieutenant Anders said.

"Please tell us about the ability strengthening first." Heath chimed in. 'Hmm, Heaths ability allows him to create a weapon, but his body seems to be very strong already, otherwise the weapon would be useless. It makes sense that he wants to strengthen his ability first, rather than his body.' Leo thought.

"Alright. The method is difficult and will cause you pain if you do it too much. It's possible to cripple your ability as well, so don't overdo it." Lieutenant Anders gave them the warning before continuing.

"All of you have a limit to how much power you can hold within you, once your power returns to you it stops at a certain point, we call the point you hold your power a 'core' . You are all aware that you are able to circulate your power through your body in order to strengthen it. In order to increase the amount of energy your body can hold, you must circulate your energy through your body. This removes it from your 'core' and places it inside the body. Your core will then start to slowly replenish the lost energy, but since the energy is still within you, it can be reabsorbed. How much you can reabsorb is dependant on the person. Some will be able to increase their power relatively quickly at first, while others will be slower due to their cores limits. The stronger your core becomes, the more difficult this process will become and the slower you will improve." Lieutenant Anders explained at length.

'Everyone will have to wait for their energy to replenish, causing them to take a long time to use this method, but I absorb energy from around me. I can use this method alot quicker by replenishing my energy through external means rather than waiting.' Leo was excited to try this process.

'Something doesn't make sense though.' Leo thought. He then raised his hand to speak. "How do you know of this? Abilities are a new occurrence in the world, there is nobody experienced in this that could have given you the information?" Leo asked.

Lieutenant Anders smiled for a moment before he answered, "The answer is connected to the body improvement method. There is something called 'life force' within all living things. The military knows of a way to allow us to absorb the life force of the recently deceased, allowing us to add it to ourselves and make our bodies stronger. The issue we ran into was the same as what ability users have with their core. We did the same method I just told you about to strengthen your core, only we did it with life force, we call the place your life force gathers your 'vessel'. Improving your vessel will increase your bodies strength. It's even possible to extend your lifespan." Lieutenant Anders explained.

'This is all very interesting but that didn't answer my question completely.' Leo raised his hand again. "I understand this method works for improving your vessel, but has it ever been used on a core before? Is it a safe and a viable option?" He asked.

"Yes, we have tested it. We know it is safe if done in moderation. I can not give you the details of our tests until you are a high enough rank within the military. Even I don't know everyone regarding it." Lieutenant Anders said.

Snythe raised his hand, "When will we learn the method of absorbing life force to improve our vessels?"

"It hasn't been decided yet, the other trainees will only be informed of the core strengthening process for now. Once a decision has been made by the higher ups, we will tell those that are permitted to learn it." Lieutenant Anders explained.

"We must end the meeting here for today, should the need arise, you can always call for a meeting with each other within this room. I will only be present at meetings in special circumstances, so you will need to figure stuff out for yourselves. Dismissed." Lieutenant Anders got up and left the room, leaving the rankers alone with each other at the table.