The Seven (Fist of Light Series) by Derek Edgington Page A

technology consisted of basic metalworking. Those who went without training and didn’t have the will to conquer and control their powers eventually self-destruct : spontaneously, destructively, and all over the place. Gruesome, really, but there’s nothing to be done when they cannot be trained in time to avoid such fate .”
    “All of a sudden, I feel like learning basic control. How do I begin? Concentrate or something…?”
    Oddly enough, Jeeves responded without employing sarcasm. However, he did employ lip. “ Yes, of course, that should be done post haste. But I’d relocate to a position more isolated, and far more flame retardant .”
    I tried to contain my shivers of excitement. Who wouldn’t want to be caught inside a burning building? Being a human torch was so last week. With that in mind, I made my way outside the flammable building through the back entrance. It’s wasn’t my intent to avoid Em. I just didn’t want anyone to see where I went if I was going to raze the place in the near future. It wouldn’t be good for my image if everyone discovered I was a genetic freak. They’d already done a movie on that one, and I coveted no desire to be experimented on. That was me, caring about my image, if you weren’t listening. I don’t avoid anyone, seriously .
    The grass had withered ages ago. All that was left were the last desperate vestiges of growth, the final splotches of green that proclaimed triumph over insurmountable odds.
    I figured that if I were going to open my eyes to the world and see it for what it truly is, it would be necessary to break out from my dismal cloud of pessimism regarding the nature of man. You can fight eternally, but is it of value if there’s nothing to believe in? Except now there was a cause, a reason to fight. I had been living in a world where the only thing that existed was the need to run, to hide from perceived pursuers on the word of another. It was the only rule that had never been broken. Supposedly, if I had, it wouldn’t have been possible to evade what would have caught me. If I had this kind of power at my fingertips, surely it was likely that my parents did as well. The only unclear part was the guns, when you can be slinging around the elements, what’s the use of human technology? Who could have been able to take my parents with such a mundane weapon? Were they trying to protect me, allow me to escape?
    All these questions, and I wouldn’t be able to find the answers on my own. But, maybe, if I chose to enter this new world and make use of my power, the answers would be unveiled to my sun-blinded eyes. The status quo had been irrevocably altered. Before, there had been nothing to do but run. Now, if I could stand up for myself, if I didn’t spontaneously combust, and if I could get my newfound muscles under control, there would be an opportunity for the revealing of the truth. With exaggerated caution, I sat down on the ground, making sure not to trample any grass underfoot, then closed my eyes and voyaged inward, into the abysmal depths of my psyche.
    I delved deep into my mind, farther and farther, searching for a beacon, a light, something . And the farther I traveled, the more assured I became. I passed bright gyrating thoughts and snaking emotions that filled my consciousness like twinkling stars. I went through black voids of space, empty save the passing of a stray thought. I traversed a field composed of my memories, whirling masses of swirling shapes that rotated, allowing a glimpse of the recollection inside. Beyond that, amid the chaos, there were two sparkling nexuses of power, illuminating my mind like two miniature suns.
    Although immediately drawn to the larger, my curiosity was piqued and demanded investigation of the other before further progression to my ultimate destination. Upon closer inspection, the second spherical orb had a mystical tether tied securely to it, connecting it to the larger one. Gliding hesitantly forward toward