Chapter 29 - Aura Control(Part 1)

Point-of-View: Alexis Tucker

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Grr...she's such a bitch! Keeping my mouth shut every time she yells and gets all bitchy is harder than I thought, it's difficult to resist to urge to snap at her, but I gotta keep a cool head. If this pressure represents her level of power, then I definitely don't stand a chance against her in my current state.

Well, at least I've gotten a feel for my Aura now. After what had felt like an eternity of bearing the pressure of Tara's Aura, I suddenly began to feel something. It was hard to put into words, but it somehow felt like an extention of myself.

It's like how you don't really notice your fingernails, until you eventually realize that they've grown really long and need to be clipped...okay, never mind, that's not the best comparison. But then, it was the best comparison that I could think of.

The first part was fitting though...you always have fingernails, but since you can't actually feel them constantly like the way you can feel your skin, you often don't notice or pay any attention to them.

That's how I felt when I first began to get a feel for my Aura, it wasn't like I was suddenly feeling something around me or whatever, it was more like I was made aware of something that's already there. If that's confusing, then too bad, because like I said before, this is hard to put into words.

Anyway, as for how the Aura itself is, that's pretty hard to put into words too...my impression of it is that it feels like a fire that flows like water, but with inconsistent pressure and low overall intensity, like a sputtering tap that needs its plumbing to be fixed.

Meanwhile, the pressure of Tara's Aura feels like I'm standing under a waterfall-...well, not that I've ever actually stood underneath a waterfall, but in this context, it feels like a fitting example...-and was definitely a lot more intense than mine.

My Aura capacity is supposed to be much higher than hers is, so does that mean that if and when I gain control over my Aura, the pressure it unleashes will be even more intense than this? Huh, that thought actually motivates me quite a bit, it'd be cool if I could make people weak in the knees just by unleashing my Aura.

Anyway, getting back to the current situation...how much time has passed since we began? This whole process is starting to feel really tedious and exhausting now, the start had definitely been the easy part. Getting a feel for my Aura only required me to bear the pressure, but actually gaining control over it requires a lot more deliberate and concentrated effort from me.

"Two hours are up," Called out Mike, after glancing at his wristwatch.

Tara had asked-...no, more like commanded...-him to let her know how much time had passed, in half hour intervals.

"Hey, uh, how long are we going to keep this up for?" I asked Tara, earning an annoyed glare from her in response.

"Tch...until this one fully masters Aura control," She replied, nodding at Zoraiz, before adding as she glanced between Inoka and I, "After that, I'm done, he can take over and help you two losers, because at the rate you're going, I fucking can't."

Bitch.

"Um, Miss Tara...," Spoke up Kiyana nervously, "I hate to remind you, but, um...the higher ups wanted you to assist with the rest of their training too, not just the first part."

"Grr, why did you have to remind me? Now I'm really pissed off...," She growled, a definite sense of impatience and restlessness about her.

Inoka and Zoraiz had been pretty quiet for a while, the former probably because he wanted to avoid the risk of ticking her off, and as for the latter, he seemed to be concentrating.

His expression was practically blank, and there was an almost eerie sense of calm about him. And of the three of us, he was standing the most steadily, while Inoka looked like his legs were still wobbling slightly, and I think I'm the same, I definitely still feel like I'll collapse if I let up for even a second.

Honestly, physically speaking, this has gotten easier after I got a feel for my Aura...but while the physical exertion hadn't been all that severe, the mental toll has been immense. Focusing and concentrating for this long is no easy task, I'm feeling completely and utterly emotionally drained right now.

"Hey, you said you'll stop after Zoraiz masters this, so, uh...how long will that take?" Inquired Inoka, his knees buckling.

"Tch, stop talking to me, it's annoying," Came the irritated response, before answering, "Seems to be about halfway done, should be there within the next couple of hours. Or rather, better be done within the next couple of hours, or else..."

"Wait, we have to stand around like this for two more hours? I don't think-," I began in dismay.

"I didn't ask for your opinion, did I? And toughen up, you fucking wimp. Most Meta-Humans go through this when they're a little over ten years old, and it's usually five hours of this per day till they get the hang of it. Well, it does typically take them two to three days on average though...but if you shits make me do this for that long, I'll make you regret it," She warned us with a glare.

Ugh, seriously...what a bitch.

"In that case, mind giving us some pointers?" Suggested Inoka hopefully.

"Grr...enough, stop talking to me, all of you! And if your pathetic little legs can't handle a little bit of standing, then sit for all I care, it doesn't make a difference!" She snapped in response.

Wait, really? She tells us now!?

"Big words coming from someone who sat on her ass the moment this started and-...aghh!" I began with a frown, before I was suddenly cut off as she swung her arm up towards me and grabbed my throat, with a painfully tight grip around it.

"Godammit, how many times do I have to say it...STOP...TALKING...TO...ME! Another word and I'll snap your fucking neck," She threatened me spitefully, before letting go and sitting back down with an annoyed huff.

I coughed a couple of times while gingerly rubbing my neck, which was feeling sore...damn, she moved so fast, I couldn't even react. In an instant, she got onto her feet, closed the one-meter gap between us and had a firm grip around my neck before I ever realized it.

I swear, once I learn how to properly use and control my powers, I'll make her pay, I am so going to beat the shit out of her. But for right now, if I lose my temper, I'm the only one who's gonna get hurt. So I'll suck it up, and for right now, I'll focus on getting a better handle over my powers...

...

I...I can't move anymore. Okay, that's an exaggeration, my body isn't all that tired. That said, mentally speaking, I was completely spent. Focusing on a single thing for four whole hours is way too difficult, I just can't anymore!

To be precise, four hours and twenty-four minutes had passed, and Tara had just ended the exercise, reigning her Aura back in and suppressing it again. The moment that the pressure dissipated, I felt an immense sense of relief, and I inadvertently completely stopped focusing on my Aura.

Inoka looked pretty mentally worn out too, but Zoraiz didn't...in fact, he looked like he could still keep going for a while yet. But he didn't have to, because he was already done. A couple of minutes ago, Tara's expression began to look a bit strained, before Zoraiz's Aura pressure equaled hers, though wasn't quite as stable.

And since he was mostly in control of his Aura now, for a brief moment, the pressure beating down on me and Inoka doubled, I thought I was going to get crushed.

"Hmph, not bad for an artificial Meta-Human, I suppose," Grunted Tara, as Zoraiz sat down with a slow exhale, suppressing his Aura.

"I can suppress it just fine now, but, uh, it still feels...I don't know, like I'm not yet in full control," He frowned uncertainly.

"No shit, dumbass. You managed to unleash enough controlled Aura to match mine, but you have a higher Aura capacity, remember? You've reached a level where you can suppress your Aura without much issue, but when it comes to unleashing it, you can't unleash your entire Aura with full control, only the proportion that's equivalent to my own," She explained, as she stood up...huh, is it just me, or is she being a bit less of a bitch towards him now?

"Wait, uh, since I can fully suppress it now, is learning to fully unleash it with control really necessary?" He asked her.

"It is, because while you have enough control over your Aura to suppress it, you don't yet fully control it. Until you fully control it, you won't be able to use your Skill at its full potential. And besides, an unleashed Aura will slow down any opponents that have lower Aura capacities, though doing so will burn through your Aura faster than if it were suppressed. Not to mention that it's a great intimidation tool-...," She answered him, before suddenly trailing off with a frown and abruptly storming off, "Tch, what am I doing, wasting my time explaining to you? Ask those two losers instead, I'm done for today. If anyone bothers me after this, I'll kill 'em. Actually, scratch that, if any of you bother me before all three of you have full control over your Auras, I'll kill you."

Well, that was weird. The moment she realized that we were all paying attention to her, she stopped and left. Yeah, without a doubt...

"What a bitch," All three of us remarked in unison, before staring at each other in surprise.

"Heh, glad we're all on the same page," Chuckled Inoka wearily.

"Pretty sure everyone who's ever met her is on the same page," Responded Zoraiz dryly, before shifting his gaze over to where Mike and Kiyana were.

The former was fast asleep, while the latter was absent-mindedly scrolling through her phone.

"She could have at least told us how much progress we've made and how much more we have to make before we're done," I sighed wistfully.

"Yeah, well, I couldn't care less about all that right now. I'm heading back to my room and going to sleep," Declared Inoka firmly, before turning to Zoraiz, "I guess we'll have to wait for you to fully gain control over your Aura before we can continue, huh?"

"Oh, uh...well, I think I can get it done with today, though it's a little bit tricky without her pressure to serve as a guideline," He replied, as he stood up and began walking towards Mike and Kiyana.

"Wait, seriously? How are you not completely and utterly exhausted?" I inquired incredulously.

"Well, uh, I am a little worn down mentally, but...I also feel like I'm on a roll, I feel restless...I, uh, want to keep at it," He responded with a slight gleam in his eyes.

"Hey, so earlier, that bitch said that those with good instincts tend to get the hang of this faster, right? Makes me think, that guy's probably had a pretty shitty life," Remarked Inoka, as Zoraiz shook Mike awake impatiently, while awkwardly asking Kiyana some questions about Aura control.

Yeah, I always thought that I had it bad, and well, I definitely did, but I guess there's always someone suffering more than you, huh.

"You're probably right...I saw some of the footage of him that was uploaded online and went viral, it looked like he was living in trailer park," I replied, as I stood up with a sigh.

"You gonna keep going with this training too?" He asked as I got up.

What kind of question is that...

"What? Hell, no...the only thing on my mind right now is sleep."

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