Secret Lightning [REWORK IN PROGRESS]

============================SECRET LIGHTNING============================

Hello, readers, today, you will notice, I am a little late with the story. If I am a day late, well, this means I was too rushed to go back and change this author’s note. Not rushed with the story, mind you, but rushed with other things. While I realize I don’t have to force myself to output daily updates, I like to, because it gives me something to do, and without it I’ll end up watching MLP episodes off my external hard drive. Not that that’s a bad thing, but it kind of is when I spend an entire afternoon after school doing it. Also, there Is a fanfic I have been tracking, called Two’s company, Three’s a crowd that I really like. It’s an actually successful octa/vinyl fic and I just love it. Anyway, the author of that fic outputs  daily updates as well, but with one difference: his chapters are shorter. So I’ve been milling in my head whether or not I should pick up that update style. Also, most of you have liked what I’ve done so far with the Bioshock crossover, and I thank you. However, plasmid-like powers are about as far as it’s going to go into the strange world of Rapture. Now, would you kindly read chapter 8?

============================Chapter 8: Learning============================

Matt was confused: “Train me? For what?”

Celestia replied “As I said, in time you will learn this. For now, all you need to know is you are being trained to be a very great warrior.”

Matt looked down at himself. He was 5’8”, pencil-thin, and could barely lift a moderate amount of weight. Aside from that, he looked like complete hell. His hair was a complete mess, all going in different directions, and singed, and completely full of dirt and other things. His clothes were dirty, his black hoodie and white t-shirt were also caked with dirt, and were burned and peeled on his back, where the lightning had struck him. Even his jeans were filthy, and his shoes were no prize, either.

“Me? Are you serious? A great warrior? I look horrible and can’t even lift my own weight. What makes me so special?”

Celestia spoke once again. “You will learn quickly, Matt, that strength is not what defines a warrior. Instead, it is his heart. His willingness to push on for his cause. His character that, by definition, has never known true power. That makes him all the better of a hero, because he then truly has respect for power.”

Matt was amazed. Never before had someone told him they saw potential in him. To most, he was seen as just that kid that never talked, and failed every class. Celestia broke the silence, her horn alighting as she spoke. “Now about the issue of your clothing…”

Matt felt himself get lifted off the ground, all the while a pink glow was surrounding him. He felt his hair suddenly get cleaner, as the dirt was magically stripped from it, and the strands of wispy brown hair fell back into their proper place. His shirt felt almost cold as the dirt was stripped from it, revealing the brilliant white underneath the layers of dirt, and the back sealed up, all singe marks and peeled away fabric disappeared, as the white cotton appeared to liquefy and reform around him. His hoodie did the same. His legs got a similar cold feeling as his jeans were cleaned and repaired. After his shoes and other clothing items were clean and undamaged, Matt was placed back on the floor, the pink glow around him dissipating. Matt was still in a bit of a trance. It was only about thirty seconds he had actually been in that cocoon of magic, but it felt like an eternity. He looked up, only to see a human Twilight standing in front of him.

“You okay, Matt?”

Matt shook his head, clearing the last of the daze he was still feeling from Celestia’s “Dry Clean”

“Yes…yes, I am okay.” He finally managed to spit out.

“Well then, I hope you are ready, because now marks the official start of your training.” Celestia interrupted. She tapped her hooves together, and within seconds, two very nervous looking servant ponies staggered in, each holding one side of a large, burning fire pit. They set it down in front of the white marble stairs, and quickly hurried away.  She turned her attention, and everyone else’s, to that burning fire.

“Now, if our theory is correct, you shall be able to absorb any kind of energy, and repeat it back rather forcefully. For example, if you absorb this fire here, you shall then have an almost unlimited supply of fire that you can repeat back much like a biological flamethrower. I say unlimited, because from what we know, your power feeds on how much you truly believe in yourself. Now give it a try.”

Matt nodded, a little dazed by the information he had just received. This is almost EXACTLY like Bioshock, he thought, except for that last part.

He pointed his hand towards the burning fire, and concentrated. After a couple of tense seconds, a small tornado began to take shape within the fire, pointed end up. This small tornado quickly closed the distance between it and his hand, and actually started to ENTER his hand. After a few seconds, Matt decided he had absorbed enough, and withdrew his hand. There was now a concentrated inferno enveloping his hands, much as the lightning had done before. Speaking of the lightning, Matt wondered if he could switch back and forth now. Within seconds, the fires died and were quickly replaced by lightning again. This excited Matt. Alright, now THIS is awesome! He thought to himself.

Celestia, seemingly reading his thoughts, broke the awkward silence. “Yes, Matt, while it is pretty cool, we still have much work to do.”

She tapped her hooves again, and the two servant ponies returned again, this time carrying wooden targets. They looked VERY nervous this time, as they had entered just as Matt had really starting experimenting with his newfound powers, and had one hand covered in lightning, the other fire. They set down their targets as fast as they could at the end of the hall, somewhat close to them, and galloped out, no traces of dignity left. They just wanted as much space between them and this strange creature as they could get.

Celestia sighed and shook her head. Scaredy-ponies. With that, she turned to Matt, and spoke once more. “Try to hit one target with lightning, one with fire.”

Matt nodded. He knew what was going on here. He first raised his flaming hand, and concentrated his power. Within seconds, he drew a mighty fireball, which hovered just above his hand, burning angrily. He then whipped the fireball much like a baseball directly at the target. It hit dead center, knocking it over and reducing it to ashes within seconds. He nodded, satisfied with himself, but he wasn’t done yet. He raised his other hand, and flung a lightning bolt about the size of a smartcar at the target. It hit dead center again, slamming into the target, sending it shooting across the hallway, before vaporizing it. Hell yeah, he thought this is getting interesting.

“Impressive” Celestia commented, and Luna nodded in agreement. Then Luna spoke.

“But you still have much to learn, and with less time than we had hoped. So let us continue with your next energy type: telekinesis.”

Before Matt even had time to think, she stepped forward and lowered her head. Her horn began to glow, and a large cone of air and loose dust formed around her horn, and then enveloped Matt, lifting him off the ground again. Seconds later, he was set back down, this time his hands shimmering with an unseen heat. Luna tapped her hooves this time, and the two servant ponies returned. One carrying another target, the other carrying a large metal weight. That one placed the weight in front of Matt, while the other set the target down at the end of the hall, where the other two had once been. Yet again, they practically RAN out of the throne room.

“Now Matt, I want you to pick up the weight.”

He pointed his hand towards the weight in a clawed grabbing fashion. Seconds later, a whirlwind swept out of his hand and surrounded the weight, bringing it to a close hover inches from his hand.

“Now Matt, drop it.” Luna commended.

Releasing his power, Matt dropped the weight on command.

“Okay, now that we have the basics of telekinesis down, why not try throwing it?” Luna suggested.

Matt decided THIS part sounded like fun. He picked the weight up again, and this time waved his hand nonchalantly in the direction of the target. On command, the weight screamed away from him in the direction of the target, immediately destroying the target on contact.

“Impressive” Luna said, “You seem to have picked this up fairly quickly. But you still need training to further improve these powers. Together we shall turn you into an unstoppable force to be reckoned with.”

Matt just stood there, the huge smile on his face getting bigger by the second. This is going to be awesome.

============================END CHAPTER 8============================

Well, then, I guess I got it done on time! I’m too lazy to change the beginning author’s note though, so yeah. Also, let me know what you think about my possible change to my update style, whether you prefer I do daily short ones, longer twice daily ones, or what I have going now. Kind of looking forward to getting an answer, I’ve been milling about it for hours now.