Chapter 5: Test and abilities

MONICA

I'm drowning in a sea of thoughts, and my eyes are shut tight. I direct all my focus into pushing all these thoughts back, but it's futile; they assault me, each pushing to the forefront of my mind and demanding my attention.

I want to scream in frustration and pain. I keep trying to push the thoughts back, but they keep coming, louder and louder, until I sense a familiar mind. I latch onto it, focusing on it to the exclusion of anything else. Lutor's thoughts ring loud in my mind, every thought as clear as crystal.

I'm finally able to open my eyes. Slowly, my surroundings came into focus. Lutor's hands circle around me, anchoring me, and I fall into them, tired and spent. He's worried for me; his thoughts are panicked, so I murmur to him that I'm alright. He nods in understanding, and I hear his panicked thoughts subside.

Closing my eyes, I pull my senses back around myself. The thoughts of a few people still stream into my mind, but it's easier to manage. I pulled myself upright a few moments later, and I nodded to Lutor to let him know I was ready.

When we finally enter the building, the thoughts are shut out, and I sigh in relief. I'm suddenly in my own mind once more. Lutor leads me to a table occupied by a woman in an outfit resembling an office suit. It catches me off guard, and I realize that she was the first person I had seen in AEFLYM dressed in a fashion similar to Earth's

She looks up when we get to her and asks if we would like to conduct a full test. Lutor declines and points at me, "Just a class test." The woman produces a document, nods towards me, and asks if I have been registered. I reply negatively, and she directs me to the chair opposite her.

She introduces herself as Ingrid, asks for my name and age, and I reply, telling her my name and that I'm 17. Ingrid asks a couple more questions as she fills out the document in front of her, while I answer all that I can. In only a few minutes, the registration is over, and she grants me an item similar to an ID card with a picture of myself on it. It's a beautiful picture, and I look perfectly harmless in it. I laugh when Lutor has a similar thought.

A few minutes later, Ingrid announces it's time for the test, and my earlier nerves resurface. She asks if I'm ready, and I nod. She leads us towards a door at the other end of the room. The room is almost empty except for a mounted screen and a crystal eerily similar to the legacy I found, mounted on a cylindrical sound.

She explains the process of the test, and I nod to convey my understanding: "Your test results will be displayed on this screen once a connection is established with the test crystal, as well as any abilities you might have." I nod once again, but the nerves persist, and my palms sweat, so I wipe them on my jeans.

I ask how recruiters find strong talents, and she nods at the expected question: "When your class is revealed, it is immediately forwarded to various governing bodies in the empire, some of which have recruiters stationed at local test centers such as these."

"And when one recruiter is interested, the rest always are," Lutor adds.

The woman frowns at him. "I know dealing with recruiters can be a hassle, but I'm sure you'll be fine."

She nods towards the crystal, and I pick it up. It's cool to touch. I direct my senses towards the crystal in my hand, and it vibrates, flaring up slowly as I connect with it. The woman nods as the connection settles, gently directing me.

Lutor is staring at the entire process like his life is staked on the outcome of this test. I complete the process in a few seconds, and the screen lights up with my class and abilities.

The boys already spoke to me about classes, from mundane classes to world endings. I look up at the screen, but what I see is—

I see a picture of myself on the screen, the same one as the one on my ID, but I don't look beautiful anymore, and the whole screen is lit in red.

I hear Lutor gasp behind me; he swears a couple times, and I know things have not gone as expected. I make myself look beneath my name, and my breath stops at the class written there.

CALAMITY! I'm unsure whether to jump for joy or weep at the absurdity of it. As a class 6 telepath, I see Ingrid tapping anxiously on her tablet, and I realize how big of a deal this is.

"How often does this happen?" I ask, and Ingrid looks up at me, caution and fear plainly written on her features. She stammers a bit before she's finally coherent enough.

"A calamity telepath has not appeared in a thousand years," she says to me, her head bent almost to her knees, and I realize that she's bowing. Lutor is no different; I focus my mind on his thoughts to get an understanding of how he feels, but all I get is a spattering of celestials, immortals, and holy Roal.

I turn my focus back to the screen, scanning my abilities, and I'm surprised at the things I could do.

ABILITIES

• Read minds

• Project mind

• Shatter minds

• Manipulate minds

• Find minds

• Create mental space.

• Erase the mind.

I read the abilities a few times, making sure to memorize them before turning to Ingrid.

"Will my abilities be made available to these agencies?" She shakes her head, still bowing. I turn to look at Lutor; he seems calmer, but I can still hear his fear and worry. I ask if he's alright, but he just nods, so I turn to Ingrid and ask her to clear the screen.

When the screen goes blank, I walk towards her and say, "I'm sorry for this."

She knows what I'm about to do; she nods and closes her eyes. I direct my focus to her mind, and using my newly learned ability, I carefully erase every memory of my ability from her mind. I refuse to take such a risk.

When I'm done, she finally opens her eyes; she's a little disoriented but is completely fine. A few seconds later, she asks to leave, and I point towards the exit. I feel like an ass, but it had to be done; people will pay good money to find out what my abilities are, especially when I grow stronger and actually become a threat.

I turn to Lutor, and he nods at me, saying, "I would have advised you to do that as well."

I smile wearily; it makes me feel better to hear him say that. He smiles sadly and says, "They'll never let you remain in the sector; you'll have to go to the capital, where they can train and help develop you."

I knew something like this was coming, and I knew why I would have to leave. The strongest people in this sector are class 3s; I would be too strong for the sector. In a few more tiers, I would be a calamity if I didn't leave.

Lutor stretches his hands towards me, and I hug him back. "So would it be impolite to ask what your talent is?" I murmured into his chest. He laughs at my question, and it's such a relief that he's not bowing and scraping. I don't know how I would feel if he did that.

"Well, I am a class 3 wind talent," he winks at me. "Gerial is a class 3 sound manipulator." I nod at his words until I realize that if Gerial could manipulate sound, we wouldn't need to whisper at the statue of Roal. I hit Lutor, and he laughs.

"Asrai is a class 3 proprioceptor," he continues, "but I have no idea what a proprioceptor means, and he explains that Asrai could manipulate and enhance his strength as well as his senses to a certain degree."

We sit and talk for a little while before we are ready to go. Lutor opens the door, and the sound and flashes of cameras fill the air before he shuts it again. Leaning against it, he whispers, "How will we ever get out of here?"