into. "We can do that tomorrow. Or rather, you can. I... don't want you to get your hopes up too much. You did well today, but learning to use your abilities on purpose and as you command them to function can take a long time. Years. At least if you wish to do it well. You can't just start floating around the room or anything. Though I always thought that looked so fun when I was a child, for the kids that could do it." She looked at Billy as if expecting him to back her up, which got a shrug, instead of help.
"Don't count her out just yet. I mean, I understand the idea, that Gwen might be in for a few years of work and even then, it may not really be the same for her, being too old. But then again, she isn't from here. Her subconscious mind just isn't like yours, or even mine. If she can accept things in a different way, she might surprise the hell out of us all." It didn't make a lot of sense to her, but Gwen nodded anyway. He'd had a long time to consider the idea after all, having been there for years before she came.
"Well, I won't know until I try, right?" She tried to make it sound happy, since it was the kind of day that needed people to do things like that.
The men had floated in their armor earlier, which was a thing that she'd managed before too, and while the suites were basically just giant radiatives, with that function worked in along with a lot of others, it was a thing she kind of understood on some level, having done it before. On a lark she closed her eyes and tried to imagine herself in her own armor, feeling the radiatives kick in as she pushed power into them... and then triggered the mental game controller she used to get herself to float in the air.
She'd been in the armor enough that she didn't freak when it actually happened, allowing her to rise about four feet, which was way higher than she'd ever managed in the armor. She also managed to keep it up for a lot longer than she thought would be possible, even as Beth clapped happily. Billy spoke first, his voice a little sour.
"You are so awesome. I wish I could fly. Well, at least we know that you won't be subject to vast mental blocks that way, huh?"
She settled to the floor, panting a bit, since it was actually hard work to keep things like that up.
"Yeah. I was a little worried myself, you'd think I'd be kind of resistant to all of this, right? It's probably another sign that this is all make-believe and that I'm locked in a loony bin somewhere, isn't it? I mean, who just floats around like that?"
That got her Westmorland friend to tilt her head and give her a considering look.
"Not many people at all, to tell the truth, even here. On the good side, if you can do that , no one can ever just kill you by throwing you from an airship or tall building. Also, as you improve, you'll no longer need a step ladder. Otherwise it isn't as useful as all that. You should make an effort to practice daily anyway, for the time being. I recommend at least half an hour for now. Add in movement as well, since that will increase the utility greatly." There was a strange undertone to the words, but Gwen couldn't tell if it was meant to be teasing or not.
"Give that a try now, why don't you? It won't be hard for you, I don't imagine."
It was a little more difficult than it sounded, since she kept bumping into things at first, having to repurpose the mental controller to allow her to slowly float from place to place and still come down about once every minute or two, to catch her breath. Beth let her do that twice and then demanded that she go high enough to touch the fourteen foot high ceiling.
"Go on, do it now. Really focus."
It hurt, doing that, making her head feel like it was going to split in two, but on the fourth try she managed it, flailing a bit wildly and stretching up as high as she could. Her middle finger just brushed the wooden paneling there.
That got Billy to clap a bit.
"Not half bad. Now just learn to go about five times higher than
"Don't count her out just yet. I mean, I understand the idea, that Gwen might be in for a few years of work and even then, it may not really be the same for her, being too old. But then again, she isn't from here. Her subconscious mind just isn't like yours, or even mine. If she can accept things in a different way, she might surprise the hell out of us all." It didn't make a lot of sense to her, but Gwen nodded anyway. He'd had a long time to consider the idea after all, having been there for years before she came.
"Well, I won't know until I try, right?" She tried to make it sound happy, since it was the kind of day that needed people to do things like that.
The men had floated in their armor earlier, which was a thing that she'd managed before too, and while the suites were basically just giant radiatives, with that function worked in along with a lot of others, it was a thing she kind of understood on some level, having done it before. On a lark she closed her eyes and tried to imagine herself in her own armor, feeling the radiatives kick in as she pushed power into them... and then triggered the mental game controller she used to get herself to float in the air.
She'd been in the armor enough that she didn't freak when it actually happened, allowing her to rise about four feet, which was way higher than she'd ever managed in the armor. She also managed to keep it up for a lot longer than she thought would be possible, even as Beth clapped happily. Billy spoke first, his voice a little sour.
"You are so awesome. I wish I could fly. Well, at least we know that you won't be subject to vast mental blocks that way, huh?"
She settled to the floor, panting a bit, since it was actually hard work to keep things like that up.
"Yeah. I was a little worried myself, you'd think I'd be kind of resistant to all of this, right? It's probably another sign that this is all make-believe and that I'm locked in a loony bin somewhere, isn't it? I mean, who just floats around like that?"
That got her Westmorland friend to tilt her head and give her a considering look.
"Not many people at all, to tell the truth, even here. On the good side, if you can do that , no one can ever just kill you by throwing you from an airship or tall building. Also, as you improve, you'll no longer need a step ladder. Otherwise it isn't as useful as all that. You should make an effort to practice daily anyway, for the time being. I recommend at least half an hour for now. Add in movement as well, since that will increase the utility greatly." There was a strange undertone to the words, but Gwen couldn't tell if it was meant to be teasing or not.
"Give that a try now, why don't you? It won't be hard for you, I don't imagine."
It was a little more difficult than it sounded, since she kept bumping into things at first, having to repurpose the mental controller to allow her to slowly float from place to place and still come down about once every minute or two, to catch her breath. Beth let her do that twice and then demanded that she go high enough to touch the fourteen foot high ceiling.
"Go on, do it now. Really focus."
It hurt, doing that, making her head feel like it was going to split in two, but on the fourth try she managed it, flailing a bit wildly and stretching up as high as she could. Her middle finger just brushed the wooden paneling there.
That got Billy to clap a bit.
"Not half bad. Now just learn to go about five times higher than
Similar Books
