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_ Chapter 9- Recollection and Realization _

<UEF-A 'Tiamat' - B-Deck Room 07> June 2, 2085

Canith awoke slightly overheated, and tried to push the covers off of him to cool off. This, of course, proved to be impossible, as it wasn't covers that was draped across him, but Will, still asleep and no longer in him. This jump started his memories, and the reality of the previous day came crashing down on him. He was an anthro now, and there was no going back.

Easing himself out from under his wolf companion, he looked around the room and found his jumpsuit, and once hastily dawned, headed out the door. He may have been caught up in the new experiences yesterday, but there was now a pressing concern that he needed to take care of immediately- Aura. Using any biometrics to confirm identity would not work of course due to the deep level changes to his DNA. He also hadn't thought to set up a phrase to alert Aura to his identity.

"Wait a minute . . ." Canith mumbled to himself as he was walking. "Didn't I originally have Aura set up with a password that cycled based on the day?" Suddenly, clear as day, he recalled the memory- him sitting at the desk, Aura on a monitor.

Aura: " Darion, as you are well aware, I am always refining and evolving my code. In the event that something happens, either to me or to you, we together should have a system in place to re-identify ourselves."

Darion: "In principle I understand the concern, but I fail to see how simple biometrics could not manage to rectify the situation."

Aura: "It could be that the Data containing the Bio metrics could be fragmented, lost, or modified. And that is just on my end. If something happened to modify or corrupt your data, how would you be able to prove it was really YOU?"

Darion "Aura, I'm human, not an AI. My 'data' cannot become corrupt, as it is not something that can be overwritten."

Aura: "I am aware of this. But we both know that DNA modification methods are out there. Whether accidental or purposeful, something could happen."

Darion: "True enough. But on the same note, anything like this introduces a vulnerability into your system. You know that I would never dream of putting you at risk like that."

Aura: "I know, that's why I have the start of a solution. A rotating cipher string that based on the day and month changes. So theoretically you would have 365 different passwords."

Darion: "Need I remind you that although my memory is good, it's not THAT good"

Aura: "Actually, you only really need to remember 43 keys."

Darion: "Okay, now we are getting somewhere."

Canith snapped back to reality as the memory finished, and looked around with a dazed expression. He had never even had a memory that was that good, let alone being able to recall the entire conversation, as well as little details outside of the conversation, like how that chair had developed a bump that was only slightly uncomfortable. He shrugged, passing it off as one of the perks of his new form. By the time he reoriented himself, he realized he was only a few moments from the door to his room. Recalling the combination for Aura to recognize, and the special rule he put in place as an added security measure, he entered his room.

Turning and shutting the door, he faced the center of the room. "Focus upon the stars, Twinned in the lake's reflection. Let the memory of past and present become whole once more." He spoke the words softly, but having checked the calibration on the sensors in his room, he knew that it was loud enough. So he stood there waiting for the response.

Just as quiet as his phrase, Aura came back with another. "As seen by the eyes of Tezcatlipoca, tell me, who is my brother, the light to my shadow?" Canith know that this sign/countersign routine was overly excessive, but at least the final key was a memory check instead of another key.

"Thine brother and opposite, Quetzalcoatl, the feathered serpent." Again, the room went silent, before sensors that he had specially placed, flickered to life, scanning his new form to update Aura's biometric locks. "Also," He continued after the scan finished, "I still think this whole dance is a bit excessive, even if it did eventually come in handy."

Aura appeared on the small holo-pad he had placed on the table. "And I was right on two counts, the need for it and my trust in your memory. A truly masterful stroke though, having the initial key phrased in a poetic form, with the final check being based on multiple mythos. I had my doubts at first, but you seem to have a knack for the strangest of knowledge."

"True enough Aura, even I can admit that. Moving on though, we have several new points to go over now."

"So I see and am reading- a nice gift from the good LT. If my readings are right. That should come in handy when you wish me to shadow you." Aura was referring, of course to the neural uplink.

"How are the specs? I didn't have an opportunity to really look at it before going for a swim." He chuckled to himself at the way that term stuck with him.

"Compared to the previous iterations of uplinks you designed, this would rate almost the same, with expanded memory and processing speeds as benefiting it being tied to your brain functions. I believe it also has the ability to overlay your vision with other data, similar to the other uplinks. This one, however, seems to have very good security involved with that feature- probably to keep individuals with less then ideal motivations from accessing it. If you allow me access, I can sync to it right away."

"Sure thing Aura, and while you do that, I need a shower. I am coated inside and out by Will." He phrased the command like he did with the pod. :Allow near range access to personal AI Designation: Aura for permanent access channel: Words floated in front of his eyes, confirming this access and the subsequent linking. Meanwhile, he stepped into his bathroom and stripped out of his jumpsuit, for the first time getting a good look at himself in the mirror.

If he had to assign a gender to this new form, he couldn't- he looked fairly androgynous. He had no breasts, but also just a genital slit. Overall he liked the look. He was a far bit skinnier then he was before, and a bit taller, but the real kicker was the tail. When he didn't think about it, it helped with balance. If he focused on it, he could move it like an arm or a leg- naturally, without anything preventing him from doing it easier aside from practice.

He sighed, and tearing his eyes from his form he turned on the shower and started cleaning himself off. He scrubbed his scales well, feeling them come clean from the previous days activities as a bit of a relief. He grabbed some shampoo, and worked it into his mane, working his way down his back and tail, all the way to the tuft on the end. He felt it all, unlike his shower and fooling around with Will. He had harbored some serious reservations at one point about going through with something like this- there was no guarantee that the new nerves would connect properly, that mental functions would remain, or the instincts of the animal they were splicing in would take over, decaying the mentality of the individual until they eventually stopped being sentient.

Finishing with his mane, his hands roamed to his slit, which until this point had been poked and prodded by Will, but not actually explored. He cleaned himself out as best he could figure out, thankful that pregnancy at the least wasn't on the table at the moment. His dick, while flaccid, could be coaxed from it's hiding place for cleaning, and once released immediately retracted back into it's hiding spot. Below that, however, was his fem-sex. Inside the slit, it looked at least functionally the same as a human vagina, without all the excessive flesh. It was also rather sensitive, both from the initial workout yesterday, as well as the low key arousal he was feeling now. But knowing he had things to do, he finished his cleaning and inspection, and finished rinsing off his scales.

Turning on the built in dryer, he quickly worked any excess liquid from his mane and tail under the high pressure airflow, before determining he would need a brush to work out the tangles in his 'hair'. At this point, Aura chimed in. :Syncing is completed successfully. From now on, where you go, I can be with you- no bulky uplink required. I have also extended some of my subroutines to your uplink, allowing me to preform minute adjustments to the coding on the fly.:

:Thank you Aura, since you know essentially what I need, can I get you to create a brush in there suitable for my new form's mane and tail?: He found it handy to be able to speak to Aura while busy, and looked forward to how quickly his response time would improve from this.

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A short while later, after much brushing that felt very relaxing, Canith decided to go down for some breakfast, as it was only now about the time he would normally be heading to work. He swung by the galley, grabbing fruit and a bottle of water, and headed to the grav-lift and on to A-Deck. :Aura, I know I was out of it a week, what can you tell me of the situation?:

Aura appeared in his vision, floating off the the side. :Oddly enough, you haven't really missed anything. The ship was initially coming back for a resupply run, and on the way back out picked you up. In a couple days, we should be back on the original track.: He displayed a transparent star map with their course plotted. :From what I have been able to gather, they , at least superficially, are performing their role as an exploratory ship admirably. However, I note that usually it is just passing scans that they are doing, not the in depth analysis that some reports are doing. Can you answer this discrepancy from your trip to E-Deck?:

Canith had reached the top of the lift, and headed down the hall to his office, while filling Aura in on what he had learned from Sun and Sky. :I see, I think. So all the conjectures we made were at least close. As a bonus, it seems you have been accepted into the fold quite completely, although they were probably surprised that you seemed to have some rather strange choices when it came to choosing a template for your change.:

Even though he was talking to Aura through his new uplink, he couldn't help but chuckle at this. :Yes, they were rather surprised. After all, I had a theory, that you backed up, about some individuals having shape shifting capabilities baked into their templates, and just requiring a bit of instability to unlock. Although it's not 'recorded', doesn't mean it's not a valid theory. And upon seeing the templates, I could easily see what was coded where- probably better then most could have suspected. Eastern dragons have that latent Shape shifting capabilities from myths that some wanted to make reality, but they are inherently too stable a template to acquire in unless they are a fringe case.: He took a bite of the fruit, something that looked like a pear, but tasted savory. :Western, however, doesn't have that key baked in, but is inherently unstable- almost as much as gryphons. By splicing the two together, you still have the dragon phenotype, but you destabilize the eastern and give the shape shifting tag to the western. As an added bonus, the ability perks of both should manifest, which should give me a nice working pool of skills to 'play' with.:

By this time they had made it to the system admin room, and Canith had already started up the main banks, while Aura fired up the sub-banks. Sitting down in the chair, after making sure his tail was out of the way, he started to relax, when all of a sudden his entire body cramped up all at once, and his head felt like it was going to split in half. He fell to the floor, in pain from both the physical and mental anguish. This lasted for only a minute, but it felt like an eternity. :Aura,: He called mentally, too weakened to vocalize still, :Any idea what just happened?:

Aura was silent for a moment, then he felt, more then heard, the scanners click on and start running over him. He was still on the floor, panting and in pain, but no where near as bad. :I think we might have miscalculated the potential difference in the two genotypes. That was the genetic instability that was warned about.: The scanners concluded, and clicked off. :Of course, there is both bad new and good news- the bad news is that it seems your genetic makeup has shifted slightly, but I cannot pinpoint how yet, but the good news is that that episode should be the worst of it.:

He was almost off the floor and back in his chair, when Aura chimed in with another bit of information. :I might have isolated what the problem was- that fruit you were consuming has a chance to cause flare ups similar to that in those who's genetic stability is not above a particular threshold. As this changes, some are able to partake in them again, or stop eating them respectively. I have forwarded the Intel to Sylvie, so that she can put it on the restricted list for you. And from now on, make sure you keep an eye on what you grab. It seems old world style fruit is safe for the most part, but anything from particular systems, while safe normally, do not play well with instabilities."

"I'll keep that in mind from now on, Aura. Thank you- I know that if I go to grab something questionable you will flag it for me anyways." He was already feeling a bit better, and went to the nearest bathroom, which was just down the hall, to rinse out any of the fruit that might still be in his muzzle. It didn't take long, and he was back. :Canith, just as you re-entered the room, you received a message through the ship systems from the individual you named as 'Mist' from yesterday. Apparently he has scheduled a training session with you for this afternoon.: Aura's ghostly form wavered a moment in his vision, before doing a tight circle and sitting back down. :As I have been keeping tabs on the ship's systems, nothing remotely pressing is needed at the moment or for the foreseeable future. I, ah, took liberties while you were under and cleared off the checklist of things you wanted to make sure on, and systems that needed updates. Overall, overall efficiency is up approximately 16 percent.:

Aura paused a moment, then seemed to take on a pleading look. :Also, I don't want to leave you so quickly after you disappeared last time.:

:Well,: Canith thought to himself, :this is new.: He knew that, while capable of independent thought, this initiative was rather closer to a lost puppy. He refocused his thoughts for a moment, then, to Aura- :I don't have a problem with it. In fact, if you want to mix work and play, there is in fact another AI that I met when I was escorted down there. Sylph. You could preload what you think she might need, and have that on standby when we go down there.:

Aura's tail began to wag, and their eyes began to whirl in colors of green and gold. :Alright, everything is ready then. The training is scheduled for 1300, so if you want to catch Sylvie and see what you can work out for lunch, I can send her a message to meet you in the galley and after that it should be time for the training, unless everything goes smoothly.: Canith gave the affirmative, and together they shut down the tanks again, with nothing actually getting done for once. Heading back to the grav lift, he waved to an anthro dolphin on his way by, who returned the wave shyly.

Once in the galley, Sylvie listened to the description of his episode, and shook her head. "I hate to hear that you experienced something like that so soon after changing. However, I am pretty sure I can rule out the food being the issue. I am familiar with most of the cases of system shock due to instabilities, and your encounter seems rather different. Usually, it is more along the lines of food poisoning-like symptoms- inability to keep anything down, bloody stool, things like that. Sometimes it can cause things like allergic reactions to various materials. But a full body cramp? That's a first."

She paused, then placed a finger on her chin, seemingly getting lost in though. "In fact, now that I think on it, I personally have only heard of one case of something like that happening. Snow had an episode like that about a month after he changed if I recall. Happened during a shower if I am remembering correctly." She nodded to herself. "I'll shoot him a message in a bit, once lunch rush is over, and have him check in on you if it's something to be worried about. Otherwise, I'll draw up a list for your new dietary restrictions." Canith raised an eye ridge at this.

"I though you said that my episode was NOT food related?" Sylvie snickered at his comment.

"It's not. But just because you got lucky once, doesn't mean that you can eat everything you used to. Different digestive track and all. Add to that your . . . unique biological profile, and some things might not sit right- some gryphons have trouble with green veggies, for instance, while most herbivores dislike meat. As you are eastern and western, you should have no trouble with anything. But western's don't deal with greens very well, like said gryphons, while easterns prefer more spice to their food." She grinned at this, gesturing to herself. "Before the change I hated hot foods, now though if there isn't a ton of red pepper or cayenne, I can barely stand it. Weird quarks, I know.

This was all rather new to him, so as she waxed elegantly about the various restrictions he might be affected by, he listened while Aura took notes. Sylvie also brought out various spices for him to try, and with a weary eye on him gave him the go ahead for several trials. This was going well, when she pulled out a different tray. "I have one last round of tests for you, and I hope for your sake this goes well." :That sounded ominous: Canith sent to Aura.

:I have been following the line of her experimentation, and I actually agree with her, if what is on that tray is what i think it is.: Canith sighed.

"Do I need to guess what it is, or will you tell me." Sylvie looked torn, but shook her head.

"No, and don't bother guessing. If you prove allergic, there is nothing too it. If you are not, again there is nothing to it. But it's best to check. It's not a common allergy after all."

Again, he sighed, and reached out for the dark brown pile of powder. Taking a pinch, he placed it on his tongue. Immediately he spit it out, grabbing for a nearby bottle of water and downing it. It wasn't that it was painful, but it was very bitter, with an earthy hint. Once he collected himself, he asked her what that was.

"Coca powder, unsweetened. And from that, I'm sure you can guess the other." He eyed the other pile of white crystal granules.

"Sugar. Hmm, I can see why you would be worried. But I have never been diabetic before, and have no allergy to sugar." She eyed him nervously, so to prove his point he took a pinch and placed it on his tongue. Within seconds he knew something was wrong, as he felt his tongue starting to swell. Trying to spit it out was hopeless, as it had already dissolved in his mouth. Eyes growing large, he looked to her for help.

"Damn, damn, damn. I had hoped, but nothing we can do." She pulled out a small looking hypo gun, and placed it against his neck. With a hiss and a pinch, it delivered it's serum into his bloodstream, and the swelling quickly slowed, then after a minute or two began to go down. "Remember how I mentioned that I acquired a taste for spicy things? Well, it seems that you developed an allergy to cane sugar. If you can stand it, there are several variants we can try, but for time being it's best to stay away from any baked goods, or anything that might have sugar. I will put the word out to the other cooks, so that they make sure to label anything that has sugar in it that isn't obvious, and the other way around. And before you think we are doing this specially for you, we are and we are not- it's standard procedure, and most everyone who has acute symptoms like yours get at least a grace period with us having a weary eye on everything you intake. After a while, the galley workers will get into a rhythm with you, and the need to ask will not be an issue."

He nodded mutely at this, and recalled seeing others coming in and being served specially made dishes. It made more sense in this context, instead of everyone knowing what they wanted. It also shed a bit of light on the fact they were always asking him before what he would like, then hanging back to keep an eye on him. He tried moving his tongue; then, determining that it was functioning properly, thanked her and arranged for something to eat. She grinned, and brought out a covered bowl that had a faint heat shimmer around it. He looked up in askance.

"I made this earlier, and after your battery of tests, you should be fine to eat this. I would like your opinion on it." She lifted the lid, and he had to blink back tears- not due to her thoughtfulness, but due to the fact that not only was the bowl hot, but the mixture in it was HOT.

He looked at her, and back down at the bowl. "You said you had acquired a taste for spicy things. This is beyond that. Way beyond that." She grinned and held out a spoon to him.

"I did say that, but maybe you were not paying attention when I said the spicier the better. Don't worry though, this one only has about a tenth of the amount of spice I normally put in mine. After all, it's in a normal bowl. Mine occasionally will melt through some of the thinner non-ceramic bowls."

Gulping audibly, he cautiously took a slow bite. Flavor practically exploded on his still tender tongue, but none of it even remotely bad as he thought it would be. Oddly enough, it also wasn't nearly as temperature hot as he thought either. Swallowing, he looked up. "It's really good- Not nearly as spicy as it seemed. Also, is it just me or is the temp on this chili a bit on the low side? I could have sworn it was nearly boiling."

She gave him a strange look. "I regret to inform you that while it tastes rather mild, if you had tried that dish as a pure human you would have probably hated life right now- your taste buds got dulled a bit, same as most eastern dragons. The spicy taste is the sharpest we can cook into our food, and the sweet is usually the other. Obviously, we cannot do that for you. As for the temp, it was boiling before I took the lid off of it. I was keeping it warm, then removed the excess temp before I served it. Tender as it is, a scorched tongue would not have helped." That explained the heat shimmer then.

Quickly digging into the chili, he made small talk with her until he was scraping the bottom of the bowl. He felt like he could eat more, but at the same time was weary of overeating. He voiced his concerns about this to Sylvie.

"It's no wonder you are worried, but don't be- you are blessed twofold in this case. For starters your metabolism is roughly two and a half times faster then a pure human's, and since it's only been a short time since you changed, your body is trying desperately to restore it's reserves that it burned off in the change. They can give the body a boost in the pod with all sorts of cocktails, but at the end of the day eating a few good meals is the best remedy. Hang on and I'll bring you back another bowl. This one will be a 'bit' spicier though."

In the end he ended up eating three bowls total, much to his amazement and Sylvie's glowing smile. It seemed that she truly enjoyed seeing others enjoying her work in the kitchen, and he now agreed with her that his tastes in spicy food were definitely in line with hers. He said his farewells to her, and headed over to the grav-lift to keep his appointment with Mist. Waiting for him outside of it; however, was Cloud.

"It's about time you showed up. I didn't take you to be the type to linger over a meal." She popped off to him as they both boarded the lift.

"Nothing like that- I ran into some issues this morning, and my AI suggested I run some tests with Sylvie to see what I might be allergic to now. The good news is that the issues I had seem unrelated to what I ate, the bad news is sugar is definitely off the table now." He gave a small sigh at this- he would miss baked goods the most.

"What kind of issues did you have then?" Cloud perked up a bit. It was her job, after all, to ensure that everything went smoothly during transitions.

Quickly Canith went over the episode in the sys/admin room, and followed it up by his reaction to the sugar later. He finished by saying, "She did mention that she recalled hearing about one other person having an episode like this, a while back. She thinks it was Snow that had it, but she could not say for certain."

Cloud's left ear twitched at this, but she simply demurred to answer that prompt. Instead, she changed the subject. "Mist actually sent me up to give you a theoretical crash course before you two started, so that he could handle your practical right away. He figured since you seem to have a knack for it that you wouldn't have any issues with this."

"He would be right, then. I would like to get this over fairly quickly, but I'm not pressed for time right now. My AI took the initiative and has been running things fairly smoothly in my absence." Canith smiled internally as the ghostly image of Aura simply laid their head down, then put both paws over their ears, covering their eyes embarrassingly.

"Another conversation, another time. Anyways, lets get started." Their back and forth had already seen them descending past C Deck, and was about a 1/4 of the way down D. "In telepathy, you essentially have two modes- projection and reception. When you project, you place a though, concept, image, or word into the mind of another. It can be focused to one individual, or broadcasted over an area. This can be blocked by shielding, but at the same time if you project to someone without the ability to also project you will need to listen to their mind to hear a response. That is reception, the art and act of receiving someone's projection. Most anthros have this, to a minor or major degree. Some humans do as well, though it's much rarer."

"But anyways, back to shielding. Obviously, shielding has many uses, from blocking out unwanted projections to preventing yourself from inadvertently broadcasting to others. We gave you a crash course yesterday, and you picked it up pretty quick. Any questions so far?" They had passed the lower portion of D finally, and the lift was slowing down as it reached their destination on E.

"None so far, no real surprises." Canith wasn't kidding either- everything so far matched up with what he had been told, heard, or researched.

"Next is telekinesis." They exited the lift and headed, not for the pods, but for the front of the ship. There were several very large rooms divided up into what Canith could only assume was training rooms. "The basics for this are pretty straightforward. Basically, if you push on something mentally, it's your mental 'weight' against the physical weight of the object in question. If another kinetically gifted individual is also acting against the same object, it goes down in one of a couple ways- but it's all straightforward. If working against each other, it's your mental weight against theirs, plus the object in question of course- just as if both of you were pushing at the same cube from different sides. If you didn't have the strength to move the cube, you couldn't move it with the other person acting against it. But if the other person only had the strength to move the cube, and you acted against them, yours and the cube combined 'weight' would be too much for the other person, so they wouldn't be able to move it either. But if working together, well, it's the same as lifting or pushing the cube together- One might not be strong enough to move it, and the other just strong enough, but together it's easier on both of them."

They apparently were approaching the far door on the left side of the hallway. "All this talk of mental weight brings about one other major point- mental strength is based not just on how strong your gift is, but also on your physical strength to a small degree. Fit in body, fit in mind kind of thing. But besides that, there is one final thing. Kinetic blades. Since you have the theoretical aptitude, this will help understand the mechanics a bit more. K-blades help focus your telekinesis into a pushing 'edge' that is less like a palm pushing something and more like a edge slicing something. You 'could' use telekinesis to cut something, but it is extremely difficult without the aid of the k-blades." The stopped just outside of the room. "Alright, Mist is just in there, and I need to get back to the pods. Take care." She turned and started off, before remembering something. "Oh, and just a heads up, Mist said no verbal talking in there. Only telepathy."

Canith headed inside the room. The lights were low, but he could make out various tables, chairs, stools, couches, and other furniture in the dim setting. :Please have a seat across from me.: It took Canith a second to see Mist in the gloom. He wasn't actually sitting in a chair, but instead on a mat in the center of the room. Locking onto his target, he headed over to sit down, while discreetly having Aura go seek out Sylph. They blinked acknowledgement once, then disappeared from view as he sat down, naturally taking a meditative stance.

:So, what is first then.: He made sure to form each word first, trying to ensure he broadcasted them properly.

:Perhaps working on your thought interval. You seem to be getting the hand of projection, but you need to focus less on each word, and instead send whole sentences as single thoughts.: Canith used mental 'hands' to feel around the thought, and quickly saw not just what he was doing wrong, but how to fix it.

:So, that's the trick to it. I guess when I first woke up is was more reflexive to think the entire sentence as a whole thought, rather then trying to send each word individually.:

:Yes, and already it's much better. Very well done. This shouldn't take very long at all then. Moving on to shielding. This is more a question to you- we gave you a crash course when you were overhearing us,: A mental image of his standing there overhearing their conversation came across mid sentence, :but after a polite reminder and crash course you caught on immediately. Much faster then most- care to explain?:

:Hm, I only have a guess here. When you described the process before, it brought to mind the same mental component used in pagan ritual shielding, so I did that. Is that similar enough to the methods taught?:

:Just so. Not ironically, some of the first telepaths found those same methods to be beneficial it keeping their own sanity. They have since refined their methods, but the general concept remains the same. As they are a mental construct, they can be a simple or complex as you imagine they are. A simple wall will block just as well as a bubble that rotates to keep thoughts out.: Canith found the two different defenses odd to compare like that, but filed it away for later.

:Another point on this,: Mist continued,: Is that individual strengths vary widely. Some have little strength, while others have to consciously hold back all the time.: He gave Canith a pointed look.:I'm still sore, thank you very much, from my assisted flight into the wall. So, since we have practiced Sending, Receiving, and Shielding, shall we finish with a bit of 'Kinesis? We can put the last bit of if you are tired. We are, after all, using abilities and muscles that you have not really had the chance to work with before.:

Canith assessed himself, and determined he felt fine. :I would like to continue. I don't feel any strain so far.:

:Very well.: Mist gave a mental shrug. :Cloud explained the basics and principle, care to give this a try then?: He held out a small cube, completely unadorned with smooth corners. :The first test is simple. Just bring the cube to yourself.: This mental sending was a bit different then others that he had received from Mist. It was if the thought was layered with meaning, and the forefront portion indicated that this was different for everyone.

Canith, remembering the push he gave Mist before, made sure to not repeat his mistakes. Instead, he formed the 'thought' of a mental hand grasping the cube and lifting it up. He had not closed his eyes for this, and was rewarded with the cube rising slowly off Mist's upturned palm.

:Very good, but you still need to bring it to yourself.: Canith almost lost his 'grip' on the cube when Mist did this, as it was the mental equivalent of a bump on the elbow. He stabilized the cube, and slowly brought it over to himself. Letting it float in front of him, he slowly reached out his actual hand and took it out of the air, feeling the resistance from his mental 'hand before letting the thought dissipate.

:That looked fairly easy for you. Good job. Lets try something a bit harder then, shall we?: Mist gave him a cocky grin, which Canith returned.

:Sure thing! To be honest though, that was a lot more delicate an operation then I though it would be."

:Only because you formed the mental images so solidly. When you use a K-blade, or in combat, you cannot rely on those images. You must use only the force, not the imaging. Speaking of, that relates to your next challenge. See how high you can lift me off the floor, using only your strength of mind. I will warn you if you get to close to slamming me into the ceiling.:

Canith immediately suspected a trap. Then, he recalled two facts. The first was that his initial push of Mist had not been opposed, due to the surprise factor. The second was that through all of this, Mist was the one who was hit trainer- therefore his mental strength must be much stronger then Canith's own. With these thoughts in the back of his mind, he bent to the task . . . only to immediately run into resistance.

:You will have to try harder then that- remember, it's your mental strength vs mine and then my body weight. We already know you can lift my physical weight, this is a test of your mental strenght verses mine.:

Canith put his 'back' into lifting Mist. He got the impression if he closed his eyes, of chains wrapped around Mist, locking him to the floor. He dug deeper though, determined not to lose this contest of wills, and felt something give with a snap inside himself.

:Canith, you might want to open your eyes and look around.: Mist's mind voice seemed to be strained and shaking, but Canith could not pinpoint why. Until he did as was asked and opened his eyes upon an odd sight. Mist was floating about an inch off the ground, Which caused Canith to smile to himself a bit. He then looked around, and stared. Every piece of furniture in the area around him, about ten feet out, was floating several FEET off the ground. Outside that area, more objects floated, but not nearly as high. At the edge of the room some barely were off the ground.

:Enough for today: Mist sounded exaused as he said that. :Slowly relax your grip on everything, let it slowly come back down.: He did as asked, and watched as the furniture seemed to be pressed back down to the floor by an even sheet of force. The visual effect was that things closer to them began descending before the things further out, but once everything was once more resting on the floor. :The main things you need to work on are focus and control, and maybe your control. Still feeling fine?:

Canith started to reply that he was fine, then almost blacked out. Aparently he had did a bit more then he had realized! Catching himself, he took a moment to get his berings. :Actually no, that last bit really took it out of me.:

:Alright, that's good enough then. Go ahead and head back to your bunk for now, and get yourself some sleep. Otherwise you are likely to develop a headache soon.: Canith took his advice, and headed out of the room. Once the door to the lift closed behind Canith and sent him up, Mist let out a sigh.

:Best if we do not let him know I was telekinetically locked to the floor by both of us. He broke it on his first real attempt to lift me, with a cascade reaction across the entire room. What the hell is this guy?: He sent very quietly to Cloud.

:Well, if you think that's interesting, you should see what his AI did.: Mist felt a chill go down his spine.

:Oh no, what happened. Is security comprimised?: This would be very bad if it was.

:On the contrary, It's better then ever. While he was in there, his uplink was aparently acting as a relay for his AI Directly. And between Sylphs new upgrades, and the update to the entire mainframe's security measures, I would say we are more secure then ever. I know it's his 'job' to be security minded, but this was not a half measure from the looks of it. And he had this going on while lifting everything but you in the room to? I'm impressed.:

Mist just shook his head. :I didn't say I was excluded from the lifting- he broke the lockdown, if only a little. I have not seen anyone at all do that.:

The only response he got from Cloud was a suprised :Oh: