Getting a feel for the energy in his body and core, Kael began circulating void energy in his circuits. "I've just begun to strengthen my body with void energy."
He spoke out his actions to Elara.
The effect was immediate and visible. Usually, a faint glow would be visible around an enhancer's body when they are circulating dream energy.
In Kael's case, though, there was a faint, wispy dark fog that was barely visible, coating his whole body. More than that, Elara could feel it.
'What's this?'
The subtle suppression effect his void energy had on the air around them and on her, like it was eating away at the dream energy.
'It's this effective even though it's contained in his body? How intriguing, I can only imagine what he can actually do if he does emit it like he said.'
"Okay, I have confirmed your enhancer abilities. Let's see you conjure something up like an emitter. Try to do this..." She was eager to move on to the next part now.
The excitement of his claims turning out to be true was written all over her face.
She stepped forward and stopped a few steps apart from him, facing the wall.
Elara projected her palm to the side, the dream energy coalesced around her palm in a quick, fluid motion, and... she released it.
Zoom!
Bam!
A blast of energy echoed out on the other side of the room. The wall was still completely clear and intact when the smoke cleared.
"Do the same, I want to see." Elara stepped away to give him space.
Kael nodded and focused on doing the same. He did the same movement, stretching out his hand towards the wall.
And then in almost the same amount of time, he created a small sphere of dark, wispy energy, and released it in a pulse.
Zoom!
Kacha!
BOOM!
A loud explosion rocked the room walls.
Once all the smoke had cleared, a small cavity was left on the wall, with cracks lining along the side of the wall.
Silence...
Elara stared blankly at the point of impact, not knowing how to react. At this point, she was getting one surprise after another, but there was no getting used to this, it seemed.
"He actually did it, " She muttered, "The casting time, speed was even almost the same, and the effect was even more destructive than mince."
Her eyes were darting around, as she mumbled, her words slowly becoming incomprehensible; it looked like she was trying to come up with a more reasonable explanation.
Once she had calmed herself down a bit, she walked up to Kael and laid a gentle pat on his shoulder.
"Wow, I know that this should not be possible, but here we are. Maybe that is another thing that is unique to you? Once again, my mind is fully blown. At this point, I might be one who needs a break, to process all this."
"I don't mind, in fact, I agree, I feel kind of hungry." Kael massaged his stomach, as if to emphasize his point.
"How about I treat you to some proper food? There is an establishment around the corner that makes high-quality meals, not the scraps we feed on every day. I can't promise to buy you meet, my paycheck is not nearly enough to buy anything of that sort, but I got my spoils from out last mission, I can manage to get something decent, and some drinks, you know get you a taste of what good food tastes like in this age."
"That sounds like a plan. But I'll need to take a shower first."
"Oh, this is one of the more advanced rooms. There's a shower here, at the end of the hall. I'll wait for you while you freshen up."
Kael nodded and walked in the direction she had pointed him in.
Sure enough, there was a door and pad size small console on the wall beside it, it opened up for him and he walked in.
The shower was the same size as the one at their living quarters. Even the setup and equipment were the same.
He slipped off his suit and hung it over a railing outside the glass shower frame. Kael took a quick, refreshing shower and put back on the same sweaty, black bodysuit he had been wearing before.
'I really need another one of these. If I had known I would be taking a shower here, I would have brought some more mundane clothing. Well, no matter.'
He strode out of the shower room and walked up to Elara, who was busy on the handheld console that came with her band.
She switched it off as soon as Kael got close and looked up, scanning his appearance for a few seconds.
"Looking better. Let's go get you that meal."
...
"This place is a bit fancier than I thought it would be..."
Kael and Elara were seated at a round table by the window in a restaurant.
"Well, it is the best in town. If it weren't so expensive, I'd be here every day. Half my pay is going into this one meal, you know?" She gave a melodramatic sigh and wiped an invisible tear from her cheek. "But the sweet treats make it all worth it. Especially the moonberry tart."
Kael chuckled, watching her animated expression with quiet amusement. She continued to ramble about the desserts like she was trying to convince herself the splurge was justified.
He listened without saying much. He was content with just listening. These were rare moments that most did not get to experience during this time.
Something told him he'd come to cherish this evening one day, though he couldn't explain why. It felt like a whisper from a distant future.
The feeling and thought just suddenly popped up in his head, like a premonition, but he didn't think too much of it.
A waiter brought the drinks they had ordered earlier.
"Sir, madam, your drinks," she said, setting down two glasses with practiced grace. One held a translucent amber-brown liquid, the other a vibrant orange, juice, most likely. "Thank you for your patience. Your meal will be ready in ten minutes. Anything else I can get you in the meantime?"
"Not at the moment," Elara answered, her tone casual.
The waiter excused herself.
The duo indulged in Smalltalk while they waited. Laughing and smiling away.
A couple of minutes had gone by when the door went...
Ding! ding!
The sound had been going off generally periodically as people came and went from the establishment.
This time, though, it was different. This newcomer had had more than just food on his mind.
"Oh, is that Elara? Who's your friend there?" The newcomer, a tall, lanky middle-aged man, approached Kael and Elara's table.
"Oh great, why did he have to be here?" she muttered under her breath, loud enough for Kael to hear, that much told him that this guy was not one of Elara's favourite people.
He looked over calmly.