Testing Tom
Worlds Between
Tom and
Selene enter a small barren room. The floor, walls and ceiling were all made of that silvery metal. A pile of dirt is in one corner of the room, a jar of water in another, and a few candles in the third. In the center of the room there are two metal chairs and a small table between them.
"Please sit down," she says, guiding him to the chair furthest from the exit. The door slid shut behind them. "Most people develop an ability that has an elemental affinity. I am simply going to ask you to perform a few tasks to see which affinity you have."
Tom nodded, looking around at the room as he entered. He was confused for a little bit by the pile of dirt, the jar of water was there to put out the candles he guessed, but even that confused him. He said nothing however, simply letting himself be steered into a seat by Selene. He nodded as he listened, trying to pay attention and not have his brain slither away to another frantic subject. "Alright" he said finally, straightening in his chair slightly "and here I thought my exams were finished..."
Selene smiled at Tom's comment, taking a moment to appraise him before continuing. "Don't worry, it's an easy test," she assured him as she walked towards the pile of dirt. "Tell me a bit about yourself, Tom. Your personality." She scooped some of the dirt up and put it on the desk in front of him. "And please try to move this pile of dirt from there, to here" she gestured to a place on the desk about a foot away from the pile of dirt "without touching it".
"Oh? well... umm... let me see. I'm paranoid. About everything. That's a rather large part of me..."
Tom blinked, turning his gaze to the dirt and concentrating on it as he spoke. He would find this easier if he was gazing away from Selene as he talked to her. "I mean... I always try to think ahead you know? Think of... the worst things... or sometimes the best things that could happen. That means I try and pay attention to what is going on around me all the time... though I don't always recognise I'm doing it. I'm afraid it's made me kinda creepy to my friends at time..." he chuckled softly, a frown crossing his brow as he tried to get the dirt to move "I literally take the words out of their mouths. Almost as if I live two seconds in the future from everyone else. Heck, I even predict what's on TV sometimes... So... yeah... I worry. But I joke... a lot. I can't face a serious situation without joking... I guess I think really quickly, make up jokes about the situation so it's not tense any more... while planning on what to do if it all goes HORRIBLY wrong." Tom let out another chuckle, shaking his head and concentrating on the dirt pile "I... also... well, I like to think I'm brave... but... I'm probably just... stupid... Or too much time watching super hero movies... But I wouldn't ever leave a friend in trouble... and I've been in a few fights for things I think are right."
Selene listened carefully as Tom spoke, alternating between watching him and watching the dirt. It was almost as if he was trying on a pair of shoes and she was assessing the fit. "Perhaps not earth then," she mused, scooping the dirt up again and returning it to it's corner before setting one of the candles on the desk in front of him. "Now, try to light the candle. Find an active emotion - like love, excitement, anger - and focus that energy on lighting the candle. It may take a few tries, don't rush. Focus."
Tom was, admittedly, a little sad that he hadn't got it right straight away. But this was a test, a slow test, he wouldn't get everything right. He was not perfect at all. "Ok... well... do you want to... know anything more about me?" he asked, staring down at the candles. An emotion? A strong emotion at that. Love... excitement... anger... He knew those emotions, but he couldn't just call them up at will. They just... didn't feel right. He cocked his head to one side, staring at the candle wick; fire. Something active, something that could burn, something that could destroy but also keep you alive. The first invention of man, the thing that changed them from beast to a person. Something that spread, consuming everything. The smile spread without him meaning it to. Yes... that was an emotion he could find. It started as a snigger, spreading through his body slowly until he was almost shaking from it. A hand slammed down on the table, and the laughter began to come out in shaking, room filling barks. He just... kept laughing. The candle was in his mind, true, but the energy of laughter was just spreading from him. The failed dirt still flashed into his brain, even as he almost roared with laughter, heck even the water trickled in there; concentration was difficult when overcome with laughter, so his mind was doing just what he said it did, concentrate on everything at the same time, almost as if playing out all the circumstances. All he knew was that it was good to laugh; if his powers to activate it would be right now, in a fit of controllable laughter that seemed to just fill the room, almost infectious.
Selene observed Tom with interest, smiling to herself at his choice of emotion. She thought she was going to like him. His laughter was contageous, and lightened her heart somewhat. Things had been too dark in her world of late. And suddenly, the candle burst in to flame. The entire candle, not just the wick. Her blue eyes widened. "Thank you.. Tom was it? That will be enough. You will need to learn control, but I think we've discovered your afinity." She grinned, "Now, see if you can put out the fire. Find calm inside of yourself and concentrate on putting that flame to rest."
Tom had almost tipped backwards off of him chair when the candle had exploded, making his rock on it flailing his hands, making him only laugh harder. He coughed a few times, trying to straighten his face, even manually sometimes. It took a long time, and quite a few heavy breaths, but eventually he got it down to a small giggle. He had a wide grin that almost stretched from ear to ear however, but that seemed to be his normal facial expression. He wasn't sure if the calming down would start to put the candle out, or if he'd just been blowing on it with his deep breaths. Either way, it seemed to be working. At least to him it seemed to be.
Selene's black eyebrows lifted minutely. "We will definitely have to work on control," she concluded as she watched the flames flicker and fade slightly, but not go out. Continuing her instructions, she spoke in a sobering, authoritative voice, "Find a calm, dark place in yourself and use that to smother the flame."
Tom nodded slowly, chewing on his lip as he tried to concentrate on the flame and shut his mind down. He couldn't really handle the calming part, he was almost always full of giggles. But finally, still breathing, his eyes closed, he began to think only about the candle, turning the flames down, entinguishing them. He was getting rid of the laughter the only way he knew how, shutting down his mind, as if meditating.
Selene nodded. "Good. Very good" gracefully, and with calculated movements, she returned the candles to their corner. "That concludes our test. If you consent to work with us, we will provide you with the training you need to hone your skills. I must continue with the other tests," she said as she pressed her hand against the blue rectangle before the door, continuing as the door slides open "If you have any further questions, please direct them to Master Blake."
"Alright"
Tom stood up and blinked down at the candle wax that had covered his front from the small explosion he had created, the white stains were drying and cooling speedily. "Wow... I... just..." he said, trying not to snigger again as he looked down at himself, walking through the door after Selene.
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