They each smiled at the latter part, knowing better than to laugh. This was a serious matter and they were expected to treat it seriously.

“So, here’s where we get a hint of just how well you’ll do. Tonight, we’ll be doing two exercises. The first will involve me testing you all individually to see how well and quick you can respond to an oncoming threat. I’m sure you’ll all be pleased to know that I will be that threat,” I added, to which they smiled. “I know you’ll definitely be pleased to hear that I don’t want you to just defend, I want you to attack.”

Enthusiasm seeped out of every one of them; they wanted desperately to let go and abuse those powers. Boys and their toys.

A few of them suddenly noticed that the spectators’ box wasn’t empty tonight. I guessed that there must have been some movement from up there.

“Yes, yes, you have observers. Get over it. Note that my intention in this exercise isn’t to hurt you and see how well you can ignore the pain, we’ll leave that for another night.” More smiles. “During this exercise all I am interested in is your reaction to an attack. Only if I can be sure that you’re handling your gifts as you need to can we move on to the second exercise. All that understood?”

“Yes, Coach!” they shouted soldier-style. Dramatic, but whatever. I thought that they were probably showing off to Evan and Jared. I could swear that Jared’s eyes were on me. I had to expel that thought from my mind before becoming self-conscious and losing focus here. But it was hard, especially when only minutes ago he had spoken to me telepathically for the first time in days. It’s funny how you don’t realise you ever liked something until all of a sudden it happens when you weren’t expecting it.

Blocking out Jared for now, I moved at vampire speed toward the southern wall, stopping just short of five feet. Letting my body feel part of the ground beneath me as though my feet were roots of a tree, I stood firm and sucked in the natural energy of the earth. Ready, I then stamped twice with one foot and willed a decent sized bolder to rise. It was big, sturdy and bulky enough for each one of them to individually hide behind one-at-a-time, even tall David.

Returning to my spot near to the northern wall I repeated the action, creating myself an almost identical bolder. I then randomly called out a name.

“Harvey?”

“Coach?” He seemed eager for this. Harvey was eager during most exercises, but not so much enthusiastic...it was that he wanted to prove himself – prove that he didn’t need learning the way everyone else did. But all he proved time and time again was what I was already telling him and the rest of the squad; he’s not ready to take on the world yet. But Harvey could nonetheless be reckless and arrogant which made him not the best team player. If he could only get past that, I could properly consider the ideas that he was full of. But for now, as I said before, it’s a case of baby steps with him.

“I want you to go to that bolder over there.” I gestured with my head to the bolder at the southern point. “Use it as cover when you need it, but don’t hide behind it. Remember, I want you to attack and defend. But the intention isn’t for anyone to be hurt. Oh and nobody moves from their bolder unless I allow it.”

He wiggled his head as if loosening any tension in his neck, making his black silky hair dance around. “Sure thing, Coach.” However, behind that child-like grin lay a hint of mischief. His reckless side might just manifest here. If he believed that hurting me would make him seem power-tastic then that would be exactly what he would do. Then I’d have to twat him.

After I’d ushered the others to gather in the corner of the wall behind me, both Harvey and I stood behind our bolder. Twiddling my fingers, I drew in the energy surrounding me, especially the natural energies and held it in reserve, feeling it wriggle like a caged animal eager to be freed.

I then reached out with my sense of hearing, listening for any movement from Harvey. He was fidgeting crazily – wouldn’t be a good thing in combat, he’d be sounded out immediately. “Harvey, keep your movements to a minimum, remember.”

Instead, I’ve-something-to-prove Harvey attacked first; striving to move the bolder with his telekinesis. Idiot – did he really think I’d build something flimsy? Converting some of the absorbed energy into my beloved silvery-blue whip, I, in the swiftest movement, let half of my body peek around the bolder and cracked the whip at Harvey. He cried out, cursing.

“Don’t be a whelp, I didn’t whip you hard,” I called out. “But I will whip you senseless if you don’t give up trying to move the bolder and come up with something else. Come on, where are all those ideas of yours?”

I listened for him again. No movement. Wow, he’d actually listened to me.

I enjoyed the sizzling in my hands as I converted the whip into an energy ball. Vampire-swift again, I peeked around only long enough to fling the ball at the boulder before then retreating behind my own bolder; knowing perfectly well what Harvey would do in response. Sure enough, he used his telekinesis to deviate the energy ball. It crashed into the bolder but the mound didn’t at all crumble.

“Oh come on, you can do better than that!” I told him. “Stop trying to attack the bolder, that’s not what has a power to fling at you. If an enemy is really that intent on finding cover then they’ll simply find something else if you do manage to damage their cover.”

Again I threw an energy ball, but this time I kept my eye on Harvey. I then watched as he levitated the ball up into the air and then sent it zooming doom, hoping to catch me behind the bolder. Instantly I called on my energy shield, which made the ball rebound and hit the wall.

“Better!” I told him as I held up a hand as a gesture of the exercise having ended. We both then came out from behind our bolder.

“Oh Coach, I was just getting into it,” he complained.

“Sorry, but I’ve got nine other people to get through before we can move onto the next exercise. Did you not want to get out of the session early tonight...?”

His frown was replaced by a grin. “You’ll really let us?”

“I already told you I will – if you all do good. David, you’re next.”

As I expected, David did excellently. He waited patiently for his chance, and then peeked out and sent a psionic blast from his finger tips – my shield stopped the blast before it got to me. He was extremely pleased with himself because the nervousness that he had originally felt while handling his gift, not knowing exactly how to control the strength of the blast, had all but gone. I knew that because he was the youngest and had done well at the exercise all the other recruits would now try harder; not wanting the youngest to do better than them.