((So before I post this I'm going to link everyone up to a little peice of Fan art I did of Karuka))
Back Story link: Malus Adlido - The story of Karuka Fulguralis
The Art of Heaven: Chapter 1
Karuka smoothed her skirt, and straightened her Jacket; “Time to look presentable and jump through the hoops again,” she muttered. Today was the day that she was to attempt to use her powers again. They wanted a record, and to help her control them. Karuka had decided a while back that they were uncontrollable, but she might as well humour these men and women. With a deep breath and a sigh, Karuka opened the door and stepped into the hall.
Classes were done for the day; it was study time now, only an hour and a half before dinner. The hall was brightly lit by a bank of windows that ran it’s length, facing out into the courtyard, only a story below. The patches of sunlight had made the stone tile floor warm and there were students bustling about in the corridor. Karuka didn’t recognize any of them. Just as well. She was running late, and she needed to be there soon, socializing wouldn’t help that.
Karuka latched the door closed, when she turned around Scott was standing there, “oh my,” Karuka laid both hands on her chest, “Jesus you scared me,” she was going to slap him, but remembering how hard his skin was the last time she touched him Karuka decided against it. Scott could cover himself in metal if he chose to, but even when he didn’t his skin felt like rock. “Come on, I’m to escort you to the field. Word has it you’re late for most of your classes, Gemini doesn’t usually stand for it,” He smiled at her, it was a knowing smile, something an older brother shows a younger sister when she’s done something wrong and their parents don’t know yet.
“Really, I think I’m ok,” Karuka said blinking uncontrollably and trying to turn away.
“This way is faster,” Scott was point down the hall behind him with both pointer fingers. Karuka brushed past him and started walking. His heavy footfalls fell in with her. “Now up here, you’re going to take a left, down the stairs and,” Karuka’s glair cut him off mid-sentence.
“I know, thank you,” despite the kind words she knew her voice was indignant, she picked up her pace, already she was beginning to feel her skirt clinging to her, her hair was pricking up on her head. “Perfect timing, we can shorten today’s lesson,” Karuka muttered to herself. The doors leading into the stair well gave her an almost satisfying shock. Satisfying because this would help prove her point, her power was a curse, it was uncontrollable.
Outside the sun shone brightly, and the wind blew hard. The leaves were already just beginning to change colour. The fields were still green, and no leaves had fallen just yet, but the time was fast approaching. Breathing the dry warm air Karuka sighed again, this was her time of year. It was very beautiful; even in Rhode Island where the winters weren’t harsh, and there was barely a pause between fall and spring.
Men were waiting out in the field, standing about in small knots, milling around machines. It was like a repeat of the last time. But this time her adopted parents weren’t here to see the madness. Karuka looked around, and realized that Gemini wasn’t here either. In fact the crowd was limited to just technical staff and medical staff, and of course Coach was there too. Standing commandingly, like a stiff general, perhaps a drill instructor. His hands behind his back, ‘at ease’ they called it in the military; he didn’t look very much like he was ‘at ease’.
“Ah Karuka there you are, almost late. Step up let us get you all ready; today will be a little different,” it was the good doctor speaking now. Two men approached her, and as before started attaching electrodes to her, several to her forehead and one to either hand.
Karuka started reaching out, she could feel everyone standing around her, and more accurately she could feel the machines. Beyond that there were a few more targets, one clearer than the machines; it was the basketball net. Instinctively she started walking towards the basketball net, with its pole dug deep in the ground it was the best target, the most likely one if she just reached out, but not the only one. She could feel where the electricity would go, could feel it flitting between people who strayed too close and the machines and the net.
“Now this time, just hold it in; don’t lash out if you can avoid it. We want to see what happens.” Doctor Conrads was behind her, she didn’t know which of the milling masses he was, but that was where all the people were. They were behind the machines, but if she could feel them it meant that she could strike them. Karuka stopped thinking about lashing out with the energy. She started thinking about containing it, keeping it inside her.
Slowly, lazily her focus shifted inward, she started loosing the sense of the grounded objects around her. Until she couldn’t feel anything, her range was so short that nothing was within that range. She could hear sparks in her head, the sound of electricity searing the air around her. She must be imagining. Keeping her eyes closed she pulled her scope in tighter around her. It was just her; if she stuck her hands out they would be beyond her scope beyond her range. She narrowed it even further; with both hands out her scope was just the space from her hands to the ground, two narrow spot lights to either side of her.
With the image of the spotlights locked into her mind she opened her eyes. She turned, keeping her hands held out. The sounds of searing electricity still burned in her ears, but she couldn’t feel it lapping out of her, so she was sure it was false, imagined. Facing the crowd now, image locked in her mind of her dual spot lights. The crowd was filled with faces in awe, some contorted in what could only be fear. Looking down at her hands Karuka realized for the first time since starting this exercise that the sound she was hearing was real, not imagined. The ground was being struck by multiple forks of lightning arcing from her hands. None left the area she had designated in her mind. But the ground was bare with overturned dirt. Karuka could feel an imbalance somewhere in her; it was like being pushed only your body refused to move. But it wanted to at the same time.
Karuka felt pulled to the ground now, she could distinctly feel it. Only now she realized what she had done. Instead of putting targets out her mind she had put on in; but if she could narrow her focus.
Keeping one ‘spotlight’ in her brain below her right hand she closed the left one, turning it into a pin point of light before shutting it off. She thought of the basketball net, and only that, trying to picture it in her mind and only that. Ignoring everything else, but the image wouldn’t come. Another tactic, maybe, possibly it might work. Karuka envisioned a beam of light coming from her hand, a pin point laser of perfectly white light. She centered it on the post, about shoulder height off the ground. Opening her eyes, she couldn’t see the white light, but she could feel where it would be. Closing her eyes again she slowly shut off the spot light on her right hand. ‘This has to work’ she thought to herself. When the light in her mind winked out under her right hand, she turned it palm up to the pole and centered a second white laser beam on it.
‘Come on,’ she urged the electricity in her head. She could feel it wanting to go. She made the pin points smaller, impossibly small. Then she felt it, not weak like she remembered it being. A strong jolt, she opened her eyes. Electricity flashed. A brilliant blue, brighter than the day it arced between her fingers and shot out straight as an arrow for the pole. It connected and held for a moment. Longer than lightning ever held, a second, two, Karuka thought. Then it shut down. She felt tired, but not drawn to anything her hair had smoothed out and her skirt settled. ‘I did it, I didn’t stop it no, but I can control it,’ she thought. Elation filled her to the brim. She had never been so proud of herself. ‘All on my own, I did it.’ She smiled and bowed her head. ‘I did it Mom, Dad, I think I might make it now,’ tears welled up, hot salty tears. ‘I did it,’ she collapsed on the ground.
Medical staff came rushing from all sides, seemingly out of no where. Karuka realized she was mumbling, “I did it,” over and over again. Closing her eyes, and seeking something of a quiet place, she stifled her tears of joy. Her cheeks still felt hot and her eyes burned a little when she looked at Doctor Conrads. Crouched on the ground looking Karuka straight in the eyes, he smiled, “Something clicked in your head didn’t it Karuka, you realized something about your power, and how it works out there.” His smile was full of knowing, and of wisdom. Fearing the only words out of her mouth would be ‘I did it,’ again Karuka just nodded. She looked at the ground, straining to remember the way it felt to have something ‘targeted’ in her mind. That’s what it was, targeting. She opened herself to the flood of electricity she could feel now. Small sparks arced between her hand and the ground. A mere six inches, but it felt like a mile in her mind. “This is a critical turning point,” Conrads was still speaking, “Now that you know how to control your abilities, you can learn to improve on them. So how does it feel, crossing the first hurdle?”
“I did it,” Karuka said, smiling at Conrads. Karuka increased the pin point light to a spot light again. Playing with the circle of electricity on the ground, ‘I did it,’ she thought to herself.
“Karuka, you can stop now,” Conrads still there, still talking, still crouched. Karuka started counting in her head. ‘One,’ she thought, picturing a straight line with a little forty-five degree hat on the top and a flat bar at the bottom. ‘Two,’ was all sinuous curves, with a big loop and a long tail. Instead of decreasing the electricity seemed to be heightening, growing stronger as she counted higher. “Three,” Karuka was speaking aloud, chanting, trying to over come it. She would, she had to, she’d come this far. What good was learning how to target something when she couldn’t turn herself off, she couldn’t run around throwing lightning bolts all the time. “Four,” it was no use, her brain was too scattered between maintaining a target and trying to visualize the numbers. She couldn’t do both. With her eyes closed, Karuka barely heard the approaching footsteps. She opened her eyes and found Coaches face staring at her. His eyes were deep pools. Time slithered by, some how slow and fast all at the same moment. Karuka blinked and realized she couldn’t feel the electricity arcing anymore. ‘He did it again to me, stole my power. Why couldn’t I have that power,’ she thought silently.
At least this time she didn’t feel woozy. Standing up she brushed the grass off her skirt. As the last piece fell to the ground Karuka started to feel strange.
The last time Coach had taken her powers it was almost a full day before even a lick of static had shown up. But now she could feel her skirt clinging. Anxiously she pulled it down, tried to peel it off her. It wouldn’t come; her hair was standing on end.
Fear and anxiety filled her. She brought her hands up to her face but before they reached there she could see the electricity arcing between her fingers. Brain a jumble of thoughts she tried to spot light the ground beneath her out stretched hands. The control jumped rapidly from iron bar tight to whisper thin. Her spot light from six inches across to filling the field. “Karuka!” someone was calling her name. She opened her eyes, Coaching face filled her vision. He was nearly ten feet from her, but still he was all she could see. “Karuka,” his voice enclosed around her, it was all she could hear. Muffled sounds came, but that’s all they were, muffled, indistinct sounds. “Karuka, just look at me.” And she did, coach’s voice filling her, his face filling her vision. Time was weird again, she was aware of a man lying on the ground, the group around him was so thick she could not see who it was lying there. “Karuka,” the voice called again, Coach’s rough voice. She stared at him. His hard face was hard, a square set jaw. She felt something leave her, like it was being pulled out of her. She could have sworn she saw a vision of herself separating from her body, but the her that left was transparent, a bright blue. Staring at Coach Karuka was almost unaware of her vision narrowing, and going gray. Slowly getting darker, she was unconscious before she hit the ground.
The art of Heaven (Karuka Fulgeralis)
Moderator: Student Council
- Adlido Malus
- Posts: 6
- Joined: Wed Oct 03, 2007 1:00 pm
The art of Heaven (Karuka Fulgeralis)
"If you can't do something smart, do something right"
Karuka Fulguralis (Code name: Malus Adlido)
Karuka Fulguralis (Code name: Malus Adlido)