William Trey, Water elemental

  First class is, it turns out, physics. I was right about that at least, which is nice. Making my way into the lecture room I make my way to the back of the classroom, setting my bag down and slumping into a chair. Slowly, students begin to flood into the classroom. All seem confused and concerned. A few people are looking down at their phones, watching something. I pull my own phone out of my pocket and pull up the popular news page. Through that I learned that what everyone else heard was very different from what I did. For me it felt like a chance. I heard someone calling me something of water… and then I made that ice… fuck. There's so many unknowns and variables I can't understand or put together and it's only the first day at college. I wanted to be a hydraulic engineer dammit! Wait, water powers would be perfect for that… augh, I'm losing focus.

  The people of the world only got the part about elementals and the poll thingy. The Canadian government has issued a statement and requested anyone who knew anything about these elementals should come forth to do so, and would be offered hefty rewards for anything of value or substance. I've thought on the idea of going forth and offering what I know, but… I think it'd be better to stay safe for now. I'll watch and see how things go, and then- the clock lets out a ringing noise, startling me from my musings.

  “Alright, phones away!” Comes the voice of a woman from the front of the classroom. I slide my phone into my pocket then look up to where the voice came from. At the front of the class is my new physics teacher, professor Marger. She's an older woman, though not grey hairs kind of old. She appears to be in her mid 40s with the build of a dancer, black hair streaked with red tied into a bun. Green eyes assess the students as slowly voices die down. She adjusts her black shirt then nods, settling herself behind her desk.

  “Alright. I will begin by welcoming all of you to physics 101. Anyone who puts in the effort and knows what they are doing will be fine. Those that do not might as well leave now. This is not grade school. There is no continuing after failure. So I want everyone to understand that and come forth with their utmost effort and eyes wide open. Keep your ears perked, your eyes watching, and your mouth ready to ask any question you may have. If you all understand that, then it's time we get started.” she passed for a moment. “And we do not need to worry about what happened this morning. It does not concern this class, so do not let it do so. Keep focused.”

  …

  The second ring of a bell signals the end of class. I slide my books back into my bag and stand, stretching. I had not asked many questions. I had questions, but didn't ask any of them. They had nothing to do with physics, however, so I did not voice them. Fortunately so, as I have no wish to attract attention to myself. And the best way to attract no question to myself, it turns out, is to let my nerve out, at least a little. Everyone happens to be a bit on edge as of late, so letting those nerves show won’t draw any attention to myself. Everyone is jumpy, though most seem to just want to ignore it. Time stopping? In this economy? No thank you.

  Making my way out of the lecture hall, I set an alarm on my phone to half an hour before my next class, which is on chemistry, an hour after lunch. Once that class is done, I head immediately over to my hydrodynamics class to round off the day. By the end of it all I should be home by around 7PM if I’m lucky. Which I am usually not, so I’ll bet on 7:15 at the earliest. But for now, I just need to get to a place where nobody can see me. I need to put out all the information I have now, and decide what to do with-

  “Oof!” I stumble backwards after colliding into someone else walking in the opposite direction to me. The result is that we both fall on out asses, then stumble back up with half-dazed, stupid expressions on our faces.

  “Oh, hey Will!” Comes a familiar voice, and I rub my eyes.

  “Oh, Selena. Hey.” I say to the woman opposite me. Selena Yesman was the girl everyone down our street expected me to end up with. A pretty girl with green eyes and black hair, a short build, and always hanging out with me. She lives just 2 houses away from me, and my mom and her mom happen to be close friends. The thing is, though, that I never really developed feelings for her. She’s a bit too tomboy-ish for me. Not that we aren’t friends. She's one of the few people I’d go as far as to call found family.

  Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

  “Here, let me help you with that.” I say, scooping up the books in front of her and holding them out to her.

  “Thanks.” She says appreciatively, then opens her mouth to say something else before I interrupt her.

  “Sorry, can we meet up another time? There’s something I’ve got to deal with and I’m running late.” I say, slinging my backpack back over my shoulder, adjusting it to be more comfortable. Her eyes latch onto the movement before turning to me.

  “Alright, sure,” She nods. “Sorry, I wasn’t looking where I was going.”

  “Yeah, a lot on everyone's minds today.” I chuckle awkwardly.

  “Yeah…” She nods. I take that as an opportunity to offer a small smile and a nod, then slip back into the crowd. Well, that wasn’t awkward at all.

  …

  The best place I could think of to experiment was the forest. You see, the college borders on a patch of forest that streams through town, that a few professors like to use for walks or taking students out for various reasons. However, beyond that, nobody really actually goes there. Few animals are spotted there, and those that do are quite skittish. Except with cars, apparently. You hear about something getting run over at least once a week. Maybe that’s why there are few animals here…

  Nevermind. The important part is, I can use this area to discover what I can do. Finding a half decent log, I situate myself there and hold my hands forward.

  “So, how do I do this…” I mutter, focusing. I then notice I can feel my body. Like, not in the way a human can feel their body. I can feel my blood pumping through my veins. I can feel the moisture in my skin, my muscles, my eyes. I can feel it all so clearly, as if the moisture itself was as much a part of me as the matter of my brain.

  Focusing outwards, I realize I can feel more than just in my body. All around I can feel the moisture in the air, the grass, even the log I’m sitting on. It’s like having limbs detached yet still part of my body. Alright, so that’s likely important. I can feel moisture. I can feel water, liquid, and humidity. So, can I control it? I should be writing this down.

  I go to grab my phone, then pause. My phone might not be the safest thing to write it on. The government might soon learn about elementals, and the info on my phone might be easy for them to access. Perhaps a notebook.

  I pull out the notebook I had intended to use for my hydro class, and start writing.

  Test: What can I feel?

  Observations: Can sense fluids and moisture inside and outside of body.

  Question: What can I do with this?

  First test: Can I pull liquid out of something alive?

  I snap my book shut and put it back in my bag, then I pluck a leaf off of a tree. Turning it side to side, I do a few quick calculations in my head. This thing should be around 1 ounce in weight, and it should have around 60% of its weight be water. That’s just rough estimation, but that would mean that I should get around 0.6 ounces of water from this. Thats just a little less in fluid ounces, but a negligible amount in something so small.

  Focusing, I feel out the liquid inside of the leaf. I can feel the water inside it. Reaching out, I make the connection to it. Instantly, I can feel the leaf more strongly, but from the point of view of the liquid inside the leaf, not the liquid itself. If I just… the leaf shrivels and practically turns to dust as all the liquid leaves it (no pun intended) and the leaf falls to the ground. The water floats in front of me in a small ball, firmly grasped by my will. Leaving the little ball to float there, I make a note in my notebook.

  Results: Can leech liquid out of objects.

  Second test: Can I compress or throw the water?

  Focusing back on the water, I focus on making the tiny ball even tinier… and am immediately hit with massive resistance. I grit my teeth, throwing all my mental effort into compressing water, the ultimate defiling of the laws of physics… before sighing and stopping. I lean back a little bit before forcing myself forward as I remember that I’m sitting on a log, not a chair. The thing was, though, that I think I can compress the water if I put more effort into it. It’s just… difficult.

  Alright, next thing. Can I chuck this little ball? Pointing a finger forward and straining my will on lt slightly, the ball shoots forward at frankly terrifying speeds, drilling into the tree opposite myself and leaving a little dent, splashing into tiny water particles. Well that was-

  “What the fuck?!”

  I freeze. Slowly I turn to the speaker of the voice. Selena stands there, glancing between me and the dent in the tree, jaw wide open like a stock image.

  “Oh.” I say, frozen place. “Fuck.”