Aegis: Catalyst Grove (33 page)

Alex grinned.
 
“I guess for some, seeing is believing.”

Alex stretched his hand out again, causing their wrists to illuminate.
 
“These past 24 hours have been a time of activation.
 
The catalysts activates the power coded in your DNA so that the Aegis power can be accessed.
 
It happened last night when you first put them on, but it could not take full effect until your specific gifting was drawn out.
 
Think of it as a needle from the doctor, drawing out blood.
 
Catalyst Grove was designed to do just that.”
 

Alex could feel their confusion.
 
Instead of further explaining the details of how the catalysts worked, he decided he would let them see the final effect for themselves.
 
Looking to the other men, Alex signaled for them to come over to the new recruits.
 
Cavaness, Branson, Chase and Murphy all walked over to the small table, pulling up their sleeves as they went.
 
Each balled their fingers into a fist, forcing their bands to appear.
 
With their forearms facing up, Graham and the others could see that the circle portion of the bands were not empty for them.
 
There were strange symbols filling them, different for each one.
 

“Now, if you will, please turn your arms over so that your palms are facing upward.”

Each one did as Alex asked.
 
Their bands were still illuminated.
 
The once vacant circle that lay on their forearm was now filled with a symbol like the others.
 
Beginning with Ailey, Alex walked over to each one.
 
Ailey’s circle was filled with a small line connecting two semi-circles.

“Ailey, you have the gifting of a
Bridge
.
 
Your purpose is to serve the others by helping them use their powers together.
 
I am sure you remember the odd feeling in your hands when you grabbed Graham and Kel’s shirt in the warehouse, and the confusion of seeing both of them fire a similar beam of light from their hands.”

Ailey nodded, remembering the experience.

“And I am sure you will never forget grabbing hold of Cavaness and causing the ground to erupt.”

Ailey grinned and shook her head side to side.
 

“It is a wonderful gift being a
Bridge
.
 
It suits you.
 
You are good at building up others.
 
You would rather let the light shine on someone else as you work in the background using that creative mind of yours.
 
Don’t you agree?”

Ailey nodded again, but her enthusiasm was now mixed with the confusion of how Alex knew about all this.
 
Alex moved over to Kel next.

“Kel, you have the giftings of a
Pusher
.”
 

Looking down, the small circle in Kel’s band had a sort of a ‘V’ in it, which was inset into a small arch resembling the ground.

“It is not unlike a normal mode of attack, though the energy you use when you ‘push’ is more like the shock wave of an earthquake.
 
What makes your gift very unique is the fact that it can change trajectory.”

Alex looked into Kel’s eyes as if peering into the intimate parts of her mind and soul.

“You are a math and science person, are you not?”

“Yea, those are my favorite subject in school,” said Kel.

“Alright then.
 
A basic rule of physics then, is that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.
 
Now, let’s apply that to geometry.
 
Your favorite game back at your Orphanage is Billiards, correct?”

“Yes, it is.
 
How did you kn….” said Kel, but unable to finish as Alex continued.

“Let’s say there is a ball close to the pocket, but you have to use the side rail of the table because there are other balls blocking a direct shot.
 
When you strike the cue ball into the side rail of the table, you do it at a calculated angle so that it collides with the other ball in just the right way to make the shot.
 
That is the strength of a Pusher.
 
Let me ask you.
 
Do you remember your reaction to falling down the embankment?
 

“Sort of.
 
It all happened so fast.
 
I remember shooting the ground, then the trees blowing out of the ground,” said Kel.

“And how far away were the entry and exit points of your shots from the ground?”

“Umm, I don’t know.
 
15 or 20 feet, maybe?”

“Yes.
 
23 and a half feet.
 
Based on your position and elevation, you calculated the exact angle needed to uproot the trees so that they would span the gap in the ground.
 
You already have such a keen sense of the spacial relations of your surroundings.
 
As long as there is a surface to absorb your shots, you will be able to deflect it back at any angle you wish.
 
Cavaness has the same gift, and will be your mentor.”

Kel’s heart sank.
 
“Cavaness?
 
He almost killed us.”

Alex smiled softly.
 
“I wouldn’t say that.
 
If you felt the full force of his attack, you would be very thankful for his restraint last night.”

Alex turned and addressed all four of them.
 
“I hope you will not hold these acts against the men sitting behind me.
 
Everyone in this room has acted on the desire to draw out and develop your skills.
 
Putting someone in extreme circumstances with the understanding that you will be hated and despised for it takes a large measure of courage and love, if they truly believe the final outcome is for the best.
 

“Why not just tell us what it is from the beginning and help us develop it that way,” asked Damien.
 
“Wouldn’t that be a lot less drama for everyone?

“Indeed it would.
 
That is exactly where we started.
 
Those case files you found were the records of each attempt to draw out the power with willing participants, but we came to discover that it simply does not work that way.
 
Let’s use your words Damien.
 
I think you put it best when you shoved Kel to the ground while in the cavern.
 
You said, and I quote, “Sorry about pushing you like that.
 
I had to do it hard enough to make it seem real.”

All at once, the lightbulbs went off in their heads.
 
Without even knowing it, Damien realized what Alex had long ago.
 
It was all about perception.
 
Graham immediately looked at Chase, who had been staring at him the entire time.
 

Chase wanted Graham to become one of them, letting loose the shackles of the past.
 
He knew Graham would find fulfillment here.
 
He would find camaraderie among them.
 
Chase kept these things in mind while he was scaring the life out of them these past 24 hours.
 
One night of suffering would be worth it.
 
Chase’s eyes evidently perfectly displayed these emotions, because he saw Graham nod in acceptance of his actions.

“Since you have spoken up Damien, let’s discuss your gifting,” said Alex.
 

A three-pronged trident was illuminated in his circle.
 
Damien traced all three with his finger in awe.

“An
Aquatic
is a rare strength.
 
There has only been one other to come through Catalyst Grove.
 
I have only seen a handful in the past 20 years, and none of them were able to drain a large pond from the very beginning.”
 
Alex looked directly into Damien’s eyes.
 
“I am curious.
 
Once you saw the others display their power, did you already know where your strength lied?
 

“Ummm, well….in a weird way, I kind of did.
 
How did you know that?” asked Damien.

“I know you look out over the lake every night before you go to bed.
 
Lima was quite the arid place to live, and your family did not have the means to take you down to the port much, did they?
 

“No, they didn’t.
 
They took me once when I was like 3 or 4.
 
I remember how good it felt to splash around.
 
It was so cool and refreshing.
 
It was like nothing I had ever felt before.
 
Since that time, we never had the ability to go back.”

Damien looked up at Alex, vexed by his knowledge.
 
Lima might as well be on the other side of the world from Portfield.
 
There is no way Alex could know about his past, and besides, he had never told anyone of his love for water.

“How do you know about our pasts?” asked Damien in a respectful but straightforward manner.

“I know a great deal about you all.
 
No one comes here to be developed with my acceptance, so naturally, I must know who I am dealing with.”

Alex walked up to Graham.
 
Taking hold of his wrist, Alex turned his arm over to show his gifting.
 
As his forearm twisted upward, he could see that his circle was still vacant.
 
Graham’s head sank almost as far as his heart.
 
He couldn’t make eye contact with anyone, especially Alex.
 
He had barely known the man, but for some reason he felt as though he had let him down.
 
Alex put his hand under Graham’s chin and gently lifted his head up.

“You’ve nothing to be ashamed of.
 
You have a lifetime ahead of you to develop your gifting.”

Graham listened but still could not bring himself to look Alex in the eye.
 

“Graham.
 
Look at me.”

Graham didn’t want to, but he could not disobey.
 
He slowly lifted his eyes to meet Alex’s.
 
Knowing Graham’s insecurities, he lowered his voice so that only Graham could hear what he had to say next.

“You’ve had a difficult past.
 
I know you feel abandoned and have always questioned what you may or may not have done to your parents.
 
I promise you, I will help you unravel this mystery.
 
For now, you must understand that you bury things inside, building walls around your personal life.
 
That is how you have learned to cope.
 
Somehow, your true strengths are chained to those walls.
 
We will learn together how to break it free.
 
I promise.”

Graham sat nearly speechless, choking back tears, not wanting to appear weak.
 
“Yes, sir,” he mumbled.
 

“Good.
 
It is settled then,” Alex said, winking at Graham.
 
Standing back up, Alex raised his voice for all to hear.
 
“Graham, Chase will be your mentor.
 
I hope you will find that agreeable.
 
You may not have the same giftings, but Chase is very knowledgable and is an expert at drawing out strengths.”

Alex walked back over to his table and picked up the silver tray he had brought in earlier.
 
He walked back over to where the kids were, and beginning with Graham, he lowered the platter so that each of them could take a golden envelope.
 
Everyone waited for Alex to put the tray back down for an explanation of what they were just presented with.

“Cavaness has given me the report that you have worked extremely well as a team.
 
Your strengths compliment one another’s and as I can now see, you have all grown very close.
 
Like men and women of war, you have all created a tight bond by way of the trials you have just experienced.
 
These types of bonds are so tightly woven, that it is nearly impossible to break.
 
You are a team, but I must warm you that accepting our offer will come with the certainty of danger.
 
These powers have been activated in you to serve as protectors.
 
You cannot protect someone unless there is something to protect them from.
 
We form a very real alliance of able men and women under the name of Aegis, who are at war with a very real enemy.
 
I want you to be aware of this up front.”

Damien stood up and raised his hand.

“Yes, Damien?” said Alex.

“Who are we protecting, and what does that have to do with this envelope?”
 

“The ‘who’ will take some time to explain.
 
More time than we have right now, although I gave you some detail in the story of the two brothers.
 
As for the envelope, the last thing I want is for you all to be separated now.
 
Time and distance are the only tools capable of tearing this bond you all have with each other, and these are relevant factors, being that you come from different Orphanages.
 
It is not up to me to arrange a transfer, nor do I have the authority to request your presence here on a daily basis.”

They had all been so caught up in last night’s events and the explanation of it all that they never thought about the reality of having to go back home.
 
Graham and Kel looked at each other.
 
They had been through so much.
 
He hated to think that he would never see Kel or Ailey again.