The Tests II

I walked out of my mansion and descended the stairs to the black limousine waiting for me below, near the water fountain.

The soft hum of the car's engine vibrated gently in the air, and the sky was painted orange, the wind getting colder as I opened the backseat door and stepped into the car.

"Where to, Sir?" The chauffeur asked politely from the driver's seat as I made myself relax in the luxurious plush fabric of my seat.

"The castle," I answered tersely, the tinted glass windows rolling up, as the air conditioning system turned on.

"Alright, Sir," he nodded, and immediately, the car started moving.

The car smoothly moved along the paved road, and in a short time, drove out of the mansion estate, the manicured gardens disappearing slowly from my rearview mirror.

Tall trees and other green plants stood along the sides of the road, their leaves gently fluttering in the wind as the car passed them.

My view of the surrounding verdant greenery gradually through the tinted windows devolved into a blur as the car accelerated.

The inside of the car was cold and filled with the soft clean scent of seats and together with the silent hum of the engine, a relaxing calm came over me.

I shifted to make myself more comfortable in my seat and closed my eyes, sinking into my thoughts.

After some time, the car stopped, and I could hear the tranquil sound of water gently flowing, with a cacophony of birds chirping echoing all around.

"We have arrived, Sir," the chauffeur alerted me as I opened my eyes and looked out of the window to see the familiar environment.

A small grey stone castle stood gently, nestled at the bank of a small flowing river, with a bridge extending from one bank of the river on the left to the other bank on the right.

There were tall sturdy trees ringing the place, forming a circular enclave, and there was a paved road cutting through the trees on the left that led to the downtown area of Bellwood, the silhouettes of numerous skyscrapers visible in the distance.

"Yes," I nodded and opened the door. "You can take your leave. Come back in five hours," I stepped out of the car.

"As you wish, Sir."

The moment I heard his reply, I closed the door with a soft bang. The car quickly turned around and drove off as my eyes scanned the place, standing near the river.

A small smile drew on my face, and turning, I strode to the face of the castle and descended the stairs that led to a silver metal wall that had a clean circular indentation at the center of it.

Slipping my left hand into my pocket, I withdrew a circular disk-like object marked with a green hourglass symbol on a dark background and placed it into the indentation.

The hourglass symbol flashed green, and the whirring sound was produced from the wall. I removed the object from the wall, and it immediately rose up from the ground.

An empty and spacious dark room was revealed with machinery running along the length and breadth of the room. Seeing the familiar room, a smile drew on my face.

This was my father's personal headquarters, or his office if you will. It was where he worked when he had the chance to work from home.

Formerly, this place was filled with a lot of advanced monitoring and surveillance systems that he used to scan and monitor the planet and solar system for illegal alien activity.

He also had his Plumber's gear and a bunch of highly advanced alien weapons here, but I'd moved all those items to my mansion.

I thought of using this place the way he did, but I'd always enjoyed working at home, so I didn't follow through with it. Now the place was vacant and empty and would remain so until I'd thought of something better to do with it.

This whole forest and the forest it was located in were my private property. No one came here without the risk of being fined and tried for trespassing, and given how secluded it was, it was the perfect place for what I had in mind.

I was here to test my bioenergy manipulation ability. This was the true aspect of my power, the true face of it. It was what made my bloodline as powerful as it was.

It was something that when mastered would really set me apart from a lot of people in this universe, and I fully intended to master it.

Turning, I ascended the stairs and walked to the edge of the river, staring at its calm waters.

Alone, I took a deep breath of the cold breeze that washed over me and made the leaves of trees flutter, the sky darkening as the sun set below the horizon.

Even now, I could feel the volatile energy within me, coursing through my veins and every fiber of my being, pulsating intensely, almost screaming at me to release it.

My body shivered in excitement as I focused on the feeling, smiling at the powerful sensation I stopped tuning out.

Closing my eyes, I shifted all of my concentration to this feeling and naturally, as if I was born to do this, I willed the energy to pour out of my body, forcing it to come out of its shell.

Immediately, I felt something warm wrapping around my body, like a warm blanket only much more comfortable and lighter.

My eyes were firmly closed, but I could see and feel something very bright shining on my face. Opening my eyes, I was instantly awed.

My whole body was covered in a shining golden aura or light that had white little specks that resembled stars embedded in it. It was so bright that even my darkening surroundings were affected, illuminating the place like a light bulb.

I had seen this happen to my father before, but it still didn't take out the awe in me. After all, it was one thing to see something happen to someone than to see it happen to yourself.

I felt incredibly light and strong and secure. It felt like I was wearing a suit of armor only lighter and much more compact.

The feeling was surreal, and I couldn't help it but allow a broad elated smile spread across my face as a thought crossed my mind. I could do more, so much more.

Steadying my breath, I calmed myself down and focused on my energy, feeling it move from my body to my hand as I extended it with my palms facing upward.

I concentrated on the energy, with an image in my mind, and a small orb shimmering in golden light materialized, floating at the center of my palm.

With a small gesture, I released the orb and gazed in fascination as it shot out towards the river, streaking across its surface and dissipating into flecks of scattered light.

Encumbered by this sight, I wanted to try something. Easily, I formed another floating orb, but this time, I didn't release it.

I concentrated on it, connecting to the energy that made up its structure, and tried molding it into images in my mind. Slowly, the orb's structure changed and transitioned into a simple square.

"...Nice, let's try another one," I muttered with an excited smile and still focused on the orb now square, I forced its structure to lengthen, changing it into a rectangle.

After that, it was as if something hit me, and little by little, I started manipulating the orb into various shapes, from the rectangle into a square, from a square into a triangle, etc.

When I tried manipulating it into complex geometric figures like prisms, spheres, hexagons, etc., my

concentration began to wane, the orb becoming unstable.

The moment I tried changing it into a cube, my connection severed, and the orb flickered out of existence.

I wasn't surprised; in fact, it was expected. My control wasn't the best, and I didn't expect it to be. At least not now anyway.

The more I practiced, the more I'd get used to it, and the more perfect my manipulation or control would be. For now, I was satisfied.

It was time to try something else.

I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply, my mind focusing on the energy that coalesced on my body and the feeling of lightness it gave me.

I thought deeply about my feet leaving the ground, zoning out as I directed every bit of my willpower to that thought, and slowly my aura intensified, hugging my figure more tightly and securely.

Before I knew it, I had lost the sensation of my feet on the ground, and when I opened my eyes, I saw my body hovering in the air, above the trees, the river, and the castle, glowing brighter than ever.

I felt the cold wind rushing against my skin, ruffling my hair, spreading it all over, kissing my face.

I could see the highway teeming with cars in the distance and the skyscrapers that loomed beyond it, towering into the sky. I could even hear the loud honking that came from the cars.

I did it. I was flying. This time it wasn't by riding my hoverboard or by hitching a ride as a kid on my father's shoulders. I was doing it on my own, on my very own.

I couldn't turn or move my body, but nonetheless, it was happening. I had done it.

"So this is what he must've felt like huh? It's incredible." I glanced down at the river below me and smiled warmly, clenching my shining right hand into a tight fist.

I wished my father was here at this moment to see me. To see me officially leave the nest like he said I would. The nest of humanity.

I was going to make this power mine completely by any means necessary. Whatever it took. From here on out, things weren't going to be the same.

The universe could count on me making sure of that...