The next day—after a night of rest, Manifold prepared the lab for a training session with Lea.
"Alright, Lea — this will be a test. I want to analyze your fighting capabilities. Your waveforms intrigue me!" Manifold flicked his goggles and activated several computers.
He jotted diagrams into a notebook, full of resonance patterns, spectrums, and symbols. "I haven't studied sound waves much," he muttered, "so this will be a great way to expand my knowledge."
"So… how do I do this?" Lea asked, unsure.
"Simple. We spar. Like a controlled fight."
"Wouldn't that be dangerous?" Lea's concern showed on her face.
Manifold waved her off, tapping a nearby switch. Red lights filled the lab. Protocol: Training Grounds. The center of the lab retracted into a smooth, open floor. Sensors tracked vital signs, movements, and energy fluctuations. Harmful tools were shielded—but some empty flasks still clinked in the background.
"It'll be monitored. No lethal force. Maybe?" Manifold grinned.
"That 'maybe' seems… far-fetched," Lea said nervously.
"Now… let's see how sound interacts with chemical bonding."
Manifold flicked his goggles down. His fist cut through the air; molecules snapped into geometric sparks. A swirl of vapor froze and shattered into snow.
"Not bad," he said. "Can sound break bonds?"
Lea hesitated. Then she whispered, "Okay… think about the beat." Her fingertips glowed violet. Bass trembled from her palms, shaking the lab. Books fell, glass rattled.
Manifold slid back. "Forty-eight hertz. Raw, unfocused… but promising."
He waved his hand, weaving carbon into a shimmering disk. The barrier caught her waves, breaking them into mist.
"Outstanding. But can you handle this?" He compressed air into a dense sphere and hurled it forward. "Three seconds—improvise!"
Lea screamed. A perfect note split the air, shattering the projectile mid-flight. "I… did that?"
"Fascinating," Manifold grinned. "Emotion fuels you."
Her glow deepened from violet to red. A sonic boom detonated—glassware exploded, steel groaned, and the lab trembled. A distortion field pulsed around her like a living waveform.
"A resonance barrier…?" Manifold's eyes widened. He adjusted his goggles.
"Shift One." Carbon spikes bristled from his hands, polymer chains coiling like armor. He lunged at the barrier.
"Wait—no!" Lea cried, shielding herself.
The barrier pulsed—then BOOM! A wave erupted like a heartbeat, blasting him across the floor.
Manifold coughed through the impact, laughing. "It really is a barrier. Resonance alone… unbelievable."
"Is that enough for you, Manifold?" Lea asked.
"More than enough, musical prodigy! You have more raw potential than me." He flicked his goggles.
"Here are the results," Manifold said, showing her the screen. "You were confused at first, but somehow gained control. Impressive. Emotional stability like yours… rare."
"And that gives me enough information to build a control gadget for your powers," he added, eyes gleaming.
"I see…" Lea murmured, stroking her hair and staring at her glowing hands.
Manifold removed his goggles and lab coat. "Honestly… I haven't had this much fun experimenting in years. Thank you, Lea."
"Politeness aside, let's get some rest. We did a lot today," he said.
The training grounds reverted to a normal lab. Broken flasks and scattered notebooks littered the floor.
"That was fun!" Lea said cheerfully.
"Haha, yeah. Fun indeed," Manifold replied, smiling faintly. He sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Let's sleep now, m'kay?"
"Yeah! Definitely," Lea agreed.
Manifold slept in his chair; Lea on the bed.
But then she woke, an uneasy feeling gnawing at her.
"What… the hell was that?!" Her hands shook as she heard crashing waves in the distance. A faint red glow emanated from her fingertips. Zigzagging sound waves stretched toward some unknown destination.
"This sound… it's so loud!" she whispered, covering her ears.
"I have to go there." Her curiosity outweighed caution.
She glanced at Manifold, still asleep. I can't wake him… not yet.
Without another word, Lea slipped out of the lab.
The next morning, Manifold woke, hair messy, eyes half-asleep. He noticed Lea's absence.
"Huh… she must've gone somewhere. I'll check on her later, just in case," he muttered, confused.
He carried on with his morning routine, strapping on his goggles, eating breakfast, and walking through Quasar City. The city seemed… calmer. No rogue scientists or bizarre powers wreaking havoc.
Still, his thoughts lingered on Lea. He smiled faintly.
The seismologist incident had made him famous at school. Teachers were divided—some criticized him as reckless, others praised his potential. Meanwhile, the Sci-Fighters monitored him more closely. A future threat? Or a savior in the making?
Later, a classmate approached him.
"Yo, dude! What's up?"
Manifold smiled. "What's up? Got plans?"
They sat on a park bench.
"So, your chemistry shenanigans… I heard you passed the trials. That means more moves, right?"
"Not really. I see ordinary objects as subatomic structures," Manifold replied.
"But you can make bombs out of thin air!"
"I need the right elements. Think Lego bricks… piece them on the fly. Mix chemicals in real time," Manifold explained, scratching his head. "It's a hassle."
"What can't you do?"
"Change my body. Physics doesn't allow it," he said with a grin.
"Out of all the things you can do… that?"
"Hey, I'll take this over physics any day!" Manifold laughed.
"Anyway, I gotta go, Manny!" his classmate waved and ran off.
-----
Manifold finished his walk and returned to the lab, still thinking about Lea. A faint buzzing sound caught his attention— like a low frequency hum, distant yet persistent.
"Strange. That wasn't here before," he muttered, adjusting his goggles. The sensors he used to track Lea have been flickering non-stop, picking up a strange signal— almost musical in nature.
Somewhere far off— a new resonance is forming. It carried reason, persistence, and intent. It was growing louder and louder— louder than what Lea has heard before.
"No way..." Manifold adjusted his goggles.
"Heat-seeking mode" His goggles turned red, a faint red glow pierced through his goggles.
"I knew it, someone was watching us."
Manifold's eyes narrowed.
Outside, hidden in the shadows, a figure observed the lab. Silent. Waiting. The faint hum reached them too. "I better be careful, I almost got caught."
"Well, well, looks like the Goggles kid finally has a partner."
"I better report this to the boss man."