Chapter XIV: Cintracies (Pt.1)

While my mom and dad were prepping Tymon's registration and training, I found time to ask Viraa some questions that were on my mind.

Hey, Viraa, can I ask you a few questions?

Sure, but let us limit it to four for now, and I cannot promise I will answer them all, so be sure to choose your questions carefully, she responded.

That's not surprising. It was obvious she was withholding information for whatever reasons she had. I really wanted to ask her about her home world, but I suspected she'd refuse to answer. I was going to have to stick with questions she'd most likely answer for now. Perhaps later, I could ask her more personal questions.

My first question is, how old are you? I asked her.

Hmm. In Earth years, I am roughly 1.3 billion years old. She answered.

Wow, that's... a long time to live.

I was genuinely astonished that someone could exist that long. Compared to us humans who could barely live a century (usually).

Indeed, it is. It is pleasant to have such a lifespan, though life can become jaded if one does not give themselves a purpose.

This was so hard! Now I wanted to ask her more about that. But I decided to continue with my original questions.

You've been around since before humans. Is it true? Was there really an Adam and Eve?

They are believed to be the first humans, correct? Viraa inquired.

Yeah, I confirmed. What happened the day humans were created? How did we come to be?

After some time, Viraa finally spoke.

Some phenomena are best left a mystery, she answered.

What? Seriously?

That is all I will say about that topic. Viraa's toned strongly suggested I move on. Although a little reluctantly, I did.

Okay, my third question; earlier, you said where you're from, the others would be considered klevonians. What are klevonians like? I asked her.

Oh crap! What was I thinking? I didn't mean to ask that! I meant to ask if she was a klevonian too!

They are klevonians. I am not. She clarified, but she didn't continue.

Instead, Viraa paused for a moment, then chuckled. Of course, she wasn't going to say what she was. She'd rather I use my final question asking her when there's a good chance she won't answer.

And, of course, I couldn't help but ask anyway.

What are you, then?

Viraa remained silent for a few seconds before answering. I could feel her contemplating on telling me or not.

I am a pneumarian, but that is not a detail the others need to know right now, she informed me.

Why tell me if it's not something relevant right now?

I reside within you. The least I can do is tell you what I am. She replied.

Suddenly, I felt her mood switch from lighthearted to serious.

Besides, you have inherited the same burden I possessed. A burden that will force you to make impossible decisions and keep secrets from everyone you love. Sadly, you will discover that on your own soon enough.

What are you talking about? I never asked for any of your burdens, I said sternly. I wasn't interested in any more problems coming my way – especially problems that had nothing to do with me.

No, you did not, but unfortunately, you are the only human born capable of awakening my power. That makes you fated to inherit it and all the weight that comes with it. If there is one thing you will learn moving forward is that everything happens for a reason. Heed my warning; do not try to change what is already fated. Even I am powerless before it.

I got up and moved to a nearby window.

Stop being cryptic and tell me what this burden I've inherited is, I told her. I was trying to play it cool, but, in all honesty, her ominous warning, combined with the certainty I was sensing from her, was starting to scare me a little.

On my world, many pneumarians and klevonians are born with something called cintracies, Viraa began. They are the source of our unique abilities. The quality of a cintracy always falls within one of four types: temp, eutierric, mystic, and divine.

Viraa explained what each type was without getting into the history of cintracies. Apparently, it was "far too early" for me to learn about it. I feel like that's going to be a common theme with her.

Put simply, as it was told to me, temp cintracies are one of the most common types that most cintracies fall under. Eutierric cintracies are also relatively common but more dangerous because they allow users to change their spirit energy into an element they can manipulate (like Tymon's darkness). Mystic cintracies are even more dangerous because they either fall under multiple types, have various properties, affect other cintracies, or have unknown limits. The most dangerous kind of cintracies is the divine cintracies. They're very rare cintracies that can tap into cosmic energies, giving the user an insane amount of control over one specific cosmic energy: time, destruction, creation, or space.

After she explained this to me, Viraa said I could tell how many cintracies someone has by spotting the number of black rings on their wrists.

I looked over at Tymon as my dad spoke to him. Around his right wrist were five thin rings implying he had five cintracies. I'm not sure how I hadn't noticed that before.

He most likely is not aware of what his cintracies are right now, Viraa explained. You, however, have been given my divine cintracy, Temporal Sight. As you have already experienced, it significantly enhances your vision and allows you to view the future.

I looked at my wrists to see if there were any rings on them, but there weren't.

How come I don't have a ring, I asked her.

Because you are primarily human, Viraa replied. Cintracies are not meant for humans and require more energy than humans can produce, so I am currently sharing my cintracy with you. It is actually tethered to my conscience that I have passed as a gene.

So, this was the "burden" I inherited from her. If I could learn to control it, this would be more of a gift than a burden.

Will I be able to control when I see the future? I asked Viraa.

Eventually, yes.