Chapter 5: Family.

"Before that I'd like to confirm something"

"What is it?"

"If this technique forcefully overworks your cells,does that mean functions like healing and the five senses would drastically improve?"

"As expected, you catch on quick,that seems to be the case but also know that using Pulze-overdrive results in backlashing. If the body is not strong enough the backlash is deadly which is why I trained you intensively in order to reduce the magnitude of the backlash.Enough with the chit chat let's see what you can do,you see that oak over there?"

" The largest one?"

"Yh, attack it with your full strength"

"Okay", I walked up to the tree sizing it, it was around sixteen feet and its trunk and branches looked sturdy and bulged,I ended up asking myself if this really was a good idea.

"But I thought you said we were sparring"

"Just do as I say I need to test something out"

Letting out a sign I kicked the tree from the side with all the strength I could muster.To my surprise my kick cut through the tree like it was butter and then with a loud crash the tree fell to the ground. I could here master clapping from behind me but I was still trying to make sense of what had just happened it was like my strength had doubled.

"Very impressive that you're able to release this much power on your first try,if you train a little more you should be able to vibrate your cells faster and release even more power.Now attack me with the same power"

"Master Brian is everything alright",Vanelope walked into my room to find me lying drenched in sweat on the floor pale from exhaustion and gasping for breath,to her I probably looked like I was having a cardiac arrest,she rushed to my side with a disturbed look on her face.

"Don't worry Vanelope, I'm fine,I'm just a little tired", actually I was completely drained,the backlash of using Pulze-overdrive had just hit me plus master Julius gave me a good thrashing in the spar earlier,he never really holds back against me.

"You're not fine at all, you're injured and..."

"Vanelope,I said I'm fine,are you going to defy your master"

"No,I'm very sorry master,I shall take my leave now, I only came to inform you that dinner would be ready soon".

It hurt to have had to play the master servant card on her but she wouldn't have left if not so

I forced myself up,powering through the pain all while staggering a few times and headed to the bath room.I almost never dine with the family but today I was looking to join them for dinner because of my risen appetite from training.After changing into new clothes I headed to the table, Beatrice had already finished with the setting but there was still nobody in sight so I just flung myself into a seat and tried to be as inconspicuous as I could.

Before long I noticed my mother approaching together with my brother,my sister,Felice was also tagging behind them which came as a surprise because she was supposed to be at SKATA,the only logical conclusion to this is that she is on vacation.My father was the last to arrive at the table,he took a seat between Andrew and I.

I could feel his heavy gaze on me as he sat down but I dared not raise my head to meet his gaze.

"Let's get eating then",he said as he dished some food out onto his plate,"nobody's more starved than I am",he continued.

After everybody had food on their plates,my father started a conversation...

"Looks like everyone's here today,welcome home Felice,I heard you've been doing remarkably well at SKATA. The situation wasn't looking good for me because this is where the family starts to talk about their accomplishments, Andrew and Felice are geniuses when it comes to fighting plus they have powerful pulze abilities, I on the other hand I'm a different story, yes I'm the disgrace to the family.

The strider family is a family of fighters that protect the royal family,we come from a strong bloodline which is more compatible with pulze and this significantly enhances our pulze level and pulze abilities allowing us to be superhuman even among the superhuman,there are even believes that our family alone can fight a a whole zone's military and win.

I'm supposed to be the heir to this powerful family but here lies the case where I'm weak even compared to other superhumans,and the worst of it all is that I don't even have a pulze ability, due to this my family has deemed me unworthy of anything that has to do with the family and they treat me like an outcast. I did everything to earn their acknowledgement,since I could not get stronger, I tried to get smarter but that was also seen as substituting for my weakness.

Now all I do is harbor hate towards them but I'm still going to prove that they were wrong about me by getting into STRATA. My plan was to finish my meal quickly and get the hell out of their sights but unfortunately I had already placed my hand into the mouth of the lion.

"Brian,looks like you decided to join us today,but you think you can just show up and sit down like one of us when you lack talent, why didn't you just do what you normally do and wait till we finish before you have your dinner. To think you don't get it after all this time, you're weak and the weak should not mingle with the stong".

"You're wrong father, the weak should mingle with the strong so that they too can become strong".

" A loser like you should not talk back to father,more so say that father is wrong.The weak can never walk with the strong it only makes them look even weaker",Felice cut in.