"Kiara, are you okay can you hear me?" Blake's voice comes out in sputters, coughing up the remnant blue slime. His teeth scream out in agony, unable to handle the strain of the voltage from the skill.
Unfamiliar Panic manages to surface and distract him from the pain. Seeing the brutal scene before him, he gulps down his fears knowing he has to act fast. Walking over to Kiara, his eyes quiver seeing the spikes sticking out of her. Blood seeping to the surface of each puncture.
"Not again, I wont, I wont lose anyone else." Blake bites down, moving into action, his electro arm glowing brighter in response to his emotions.
Moving faster than flesh, His arm pulls out each individual spike with incredible precision, his electro limb goes into overdrive from the demand of his panic. A minute goes by and the last spike is plucked out clutched in his hand before being snapped and thrown to the side.
Blood begins frying off his limb. Pressing his finger to each puncture on her body. The heat of his green electricity sears and melts her cells and flesh back together, burn patches form covering each bored hole stopping anymore blood loss.
'I need to get us out of here. My apartment is the closest. If any more of them will show up, i doubt we can handle it. I need to get us out of sight as fast as possible.' Blake's thoughts crash together, struggling to keep up with the speed of his actions.
Putting Kiara on his back, supporting her legs. He generates as much speed as he can handle. Intense green starts to trail behind him as usual. Traffic seemingly made way for him once. Breaking through the streets and alleys. Speed wobbles start to dominate his legs, lowering his knees to accommodate.
"The....wind...its….. So comforting" A smile breaks through her loose awareness. Hazel eyes look up at Blake before she slips into unconsciousness once again her head burying into Blakes shoulder.
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*10 Minutes before*
Red hair follows a strong stride. An optimistic grin filling his expressions. A fireball skates its way along his fingers, being flicked back and forth rapidly. stopping in front of disheveled complex.
"Wow this is the accommodations they are given?" Pyre says to himself, full of Disappointment.
"How are they meant to keep going and see their own potential if they are treated like this?" He brushes a hand over the cracked wood of the staircase. Worn out old materials compose the whole complex.
'They're even using materials like these, this is wood, we've long left that era. Why is this still being used? This should be something more long lasting like steel or regencrete.' He gazes over the outdated materials with a look of complete confusion.
'We have so many resources at our disposal and we give them this? Is this meant to be an odd sort of encouragement?' Pyres mind boils with more thoughts, over the injustice of what he's witnessing.
"This place is already falling apart!" Pyre chokes, retracting his hand and backing off before he inspires any more damage.
'Why have we resorted to this? It wasn't long ago we were all united. That incident really left a cracking fracture everywhere.' Pyre reflects, reliving painful memories 4 years gone now.
'Hell, they could have just used steel for this.' His irritation now starts to reach a boiling point from these squalor conditions provided to students.
'No wonder so many just give up.' Pyres fingers run down the old run down walls as he walks further into the apartment complex. Past students, lessons and spars flood into his mind. The movement of time claiming it all.
"I wonder why he hasn't yet?" He asks himself, Blakes recent participations still taking space in his mind. The fight still fresh playing out in his mind over again.
'He pushed me farther than most. If he was just given some help. His fire would burn brighter then most.' He theorizes, imagining just how big Blakes inner flame could grow.
"I hope you use this chance wisely kid, i want to see you go far." Pyre sighs to himself, walking up to one of the doors with the number he's after, 14.
*Knock Knock*
The door slowly opens allowing a view into the humble abode. A petite girl emerges in the doorway. Deep black hair flows down her shoulders. A familiar pair of green eyes follow it.
"I wasn't expecting anyone else today, can I help you sir?" Raven says politely, not wanting to forget her manners.
"Unusual for me to find someone so well mannered." Pyre chuckles giving a curt salute.
"The name is Pyre. I have been assigned to you as your mentor for your progression into the exams". He introduces himself with his thumb pointed at his face as usual.
"Oh I didn't think I would be getting a mentor for the exams, considering how my brothers went. Missing one arm and they still refused to give him any kind of help." Raven scoffs.
"Blakes your brother?" Pyre asks, noticing the characteristics between the two siblings start to parallel. His eyes shift to the file he was given, the name Asteria sticks out like a sore thumb for him. How could he not have noticed.
"What caused the change?" She says, tapping her foot impatiently, her tone shifting to one of disdain despite her manners, easily cutting through any formalities in an instant.
"We're preparing for an oncoming storm in the future. We don't know what's going to happen but the future generation needs to be ready." Pyre explains, guilt forming in his face.
"I was assigned to you. I was told you struggle using your own power." Pyre says, steering the topic to a more amicable direction.
"Why wasn't my brother given the same help?" Her question buries a knife deep into his gut, unable to give her any kind of concrete response. Her arms cross waiting for an answer as her agitation climbs reaching boiling point, her brother's suffering ringing like an unmissable bell.
"As awful as it sounds. It's because he didn't have a power they didn't see a point in wasting resources on him." Pyre sighs, breaking down the military's viewpoint on how things should operate.
"They extended him some courtesy just by letting him enter the exams to begin with." He says, extinguishing the fireball on the tip of his finger.
"However, I had the opportunity to give him another chance. It took a lot of convincing but I can make a strong case. That's probably why he's late home." Pyre explains, chuckling a little.
"You're still not off the hook don't think ill forget it. But thank you for giving him another chance. He's a handful but he's one of the strongest people I know, you won't be disappointed." A smile breaks through the disdain painted on her face, gratitude starting to bloom in its place.
*CRASH* The sound of trash cans clanging together and a loud couple of thuds.
"PFFT, great add dirt to my palette history." Blakes spits and sputters, trying to get dirt of his tongue, the metal of his boots scrapes on regencrete.
"Blake?" Pyre and Raven say in unison blinking in confusion simultaneously. Looking down from the balcony the two see the wreckage beneath them and Blake Covered in sweat and dirt clinging to him like a sponge.
"Sis, I'm back!" Blake calls out cupping his hands around his mouth, through gasps of breath.
"Gene hunters!" He sputters, forcing words through his empty lungs.
"Me and Kiara ran into them." He explains, still trying to catch his breath.
"I…Managed to get us out of there at least, i think there still around." Blake says, over playing his exasperation spinning a white lie in the process.
"You'll be safe here kid, let's head inside any of them show up and I will immolate them." Pyre says. His eyes unable to break away from Blake. The flame from before gone, all that remains is a raging green inferno. Scorching its way throughout Blakes whole body.
'His flame!' Pyres' eyes go wide in shock unable to break away from Blakes inner flame.
'Green doesn't appear in the flame of life for humans. Just what happened to the boy. How is he even alive!?' Pyre asks himself, question after question forming in his mind at such an unexpected change.
Through his scrutiny his eyes catch sight of something forming in the green flame, a presence. the flames start to form into an malevolent smile forming through an erratic stream of energy.
'I have to tell him this soon, I don't want to mess with his retakes but this is concerning. Nothing should exist within our own energy. Only ourselves.' Pyres mind springs with chaos. noticing this drastic change in Blake.
Ravens jet black hair starts to levitate briefly summoning what little power she can manage. A grey mist flows out of her hand enveloping Blake and Kiara lifting them in the air over onto the balcony. Putting them soundly on their feet. The mist just as quickly disappears alongside the fear in Ravens stomach.
'Looks like these siblings have more potential than the military thought.' Pyre thinks to himself, forming a confident smile vindicated in his feelings seeing his accurate assessment of the two.
"You know Blake, She is cute." Raven teases, A mischievous grin painting her face suppressing any of her lingering fear.
"Not now Raven, let's make sure she's okay before you start your teasing" Blake blushes, stopping his sister before letting her get into full steam.
'He's got some new tricks up his sleeve. I wonder how he handled the retake.' Pyre's thoughts start to heat up with excitement noticing the new prosthetic clinging to Blakes stump.