‘Maybe I was a little bit too effective back there’, I thought to myself.

Why would I think that? Well, it’s been a little over thirty minutes, and these people in front of me haven’t woken back up yet! Hell, they didn’t even flinch involuntarily when I dragged them one-by-one onto the space yacht, nor when I took measures to ensure that no fights would break out once they did wake up.

And now, I was left awkwardly waiting for them to regain consciousness. All three of them.

Yeah, I decided that Joel deserved to be included in this little talk, and added him into the mix with dragon-man and bitch-woman. In other words, my parents. Also, he’s technically my brother, so there’s that. Unfortunately, even he’s still out of it.

Ah, wait! Movement from the woman! I quickly sat up straight in my chair, trying to look as intimidating as possible. Which is really freaking hard to do when you’re only a meter and a half tall.

I have my ways though—namely by striping my unfortunate victims to their underwear, cuffing them with iridium, and using rope in some questionable ways.

I didn’t do that to Joel though. He’s mostly been nice to me, besides that ‘knife at my throat’ thing. He only got handcuffed. I still used iridium though, just in case.

The woman opened her eyes in a panic, and I could see her wondering what had happened. She tried to move around, and noticed the ropes. Then, she tried to Awaken, and noticed the handcuffs. Finally, she noticed me.

The woman tried to speak, and discovered that her mouth was gagged in the most effective way possible—duct tape. I held up a finger, silencing her attempts.

“Wait for others.” I said. I didn’t want to have to repeat myself each time someone woke up, after all. She quieted down, while still glaring at me with the force of a thousand suns or whatever. I ignored it.

Eventually, dragon man woke up as well. His first actions were very entertaining, since he immediately tried to stand up, only to flop forward on his face. He wiggled about for a while, before yelling muffled obscenities into the tape on his mouth. Joel still hadn’t woken up at this point, but I decided to not wait for him. Besides, most of what I wanted to say would be directed towards these two.

I got up, and brought the man back up into a sitting posture, so that they could both see me. It’s a little entertaining, since I know that these two don’t actually get along outside of work and duty. But now, they’re both being forced to listen to me together. Well, I say listen, but I won’t be talking. I’m not able to say what I want to, due to my speech patterns. So, I have my keyboard instead. Much like I had when the woman first came onto the yacht, I would be typing out my messages. There’s a difference, though. Back then, I wasn’t in a position of power. Now, however…

‘I want you two to read this very carefully.’ I typed out.

‘I am going to stay in exile. Letting me leave was the best thing you people ever did for me. I don’t care about familial duty, or my new-found usefulness. I will not help the Al’Verath family, and you cannot force me to. Point in case—have either of you ever heard of the zero-point-one phenomena observed by frigate captains under the employ of the Al’Verath family?’

Ah, there’s confusion in their glares now. That’s no good. They haven’t heard about that, so I guess I’ll just have to enlighten them on the subject. I pointed to a television screen to the right of them, and they turned towards it as it flipped on, displaying a video feed.

‘That is a live feed from one of your merchant frigates carrying goods to the Goliath Sector.’ As I typed, the man and woman in front of me kept turning their heads back and forth, trying to both read my writing, and watch the feed. They wanted to figure out why it mattered.

I grabbed my computer from my bag, and opened up a few programs I’d created.

‘Really? Neither of you understands the significance of my being able to access that ship’s cameras? Well, to put it simply, I’ve hacked it’s system. But it’s not just the camera.’

I finished inputting a command on the computer with my right hand, while my left typed out the message.

Immediately, cries could be heard from the ship’s bridge as it’s anti-gravity systems shut off, leaving the crewmen floating for a few seconds, until a second command restored the system.

‘Imagine for a second that I hadn’t simply shut off the anti-gravity for a couple of seconds. What if I vented all the air from the ship, killing all crew members? That’s fine, as long as the cargo is retrievable, right? But, what if I made the ship steer itself into the nearest star?’

I let that sink in, and the man and woman’s eyes widened in horror, as they considered the implications of me crippling the entire merchant fleet of the Al’Verath family.

‘But I won’t do that, as long as I’m left alone.’ I added on, completing the threat. I walked over, and ripped the duct-tape off my parent’s mouths. They didn’t say anything when I did so. They weren’t even glaring at me anymore. Instead, their eyes are downcast, and they almost refused to look up at me. Ha, didn’t that woman say that I couldn’t have possibly hacked them? Karma, bitch.

It was at this moment that Joel woke up. He hopped right up, since he was only handcuffed. He caught sight of his parents tied up and stripped to their underwear, and had a clearly visible ‘Huh?’ moment. He then saw that I was seated in front of them, and immediately yelled.

“Let go of my parents Revian! You don’t want to make an enemy of the Al’Verath Family!”

I shook my head sadly. Maybe I should have waited until he woke up, in order to give that demonstration.

As it was, dragon-man fiercely cut Joel down.

“Shut up, boy! You have no idea how screwed our family is if we provoke her!”

I typed some more into my keyboard.

‘Be nice now. He doesn’t know anything about the situation yet. He can find out during the week I’ll be staying here.’

“Wha…A week? Why?” Cried out the woman. I cut her a reproaching glance, and she shrunk away.

‘To see the family, of course. I’m assuming that Joel isn’t the only sibling I have, right?’

Joel’s eyes widened in astonishment after reading that, and looked towards his parents for affirmation.

Dragon-man sighed and nodded.

“Revian is your older sister.”

“What? But she was supposed to have died in an accident! Why were you in that far-flung city then?” Asked Joel, turning to me for answers.

I motioned in front of me.

“Ask Adrianna.”

So he did. She explained to him that everyone thought my Awakening had failed due to a few specific reasons. I lost my eye because of it, and spent two months in a coma. After I woke up, they waited about two years before judging me to be useless, and forcing me out of the family. Joel was actually a little appalled at this. It doesn’t look like he really understands the High-Families yet, if he thinks this is bad. Dragon-man’s brothers are much worse.

After that pleasing little conversation, I removed the ropes and handcuffs from everyone present. Joel’s parents immediately went for their clothes, redressing themselves.

As they were leading me to their mansion, that woman asked me a question.

“Did that experiment really fail back then? To hack into our systems requires more than a stunted and broken mind. It’s something only the past Revian could have done.”

I didn’t say anything. Those memories still hurt.

The man and woman’s mansion really was absolutely gigantic. Given that it was only inhabited by this branch of the Al’Verath family, the thing felt more than a little excessive. Though, it probably doesn’t matter, since the Earth is so sparsely inhabited now. Its population hasn’t risen above a million since the Lunar Cataclysms ended. Humanity might have actually gone extinct in that time period had we not discovered how to Awaken, or create warp-drives. Hell, the Earth would still be a barren wasteland from the destruction, were it not for the terraforming efforts of the High-Families.

Anyway, their mansion was massive. Built into the side of a mountain, I knew that it extended far below ground as well, with labs and other secret places put under the Earth’s surface. The two owners of the imposing building didn’t speak another word to me as we approached the mansion.

I really didn’t know what to feel towards them. On one hand, that woman is in some of the worst memories I have of my childhood, and I know that the two of them are not good people. On the other, they exiled me from the family. To some, this may seem like more cruelty, but I think it was a blessing. It gave me freedom, for a time. And, this branch of the Al’Verath family is more…’merciful’ than the others. Failure is not tolerated, especially not genetic failure. I was allowed to live. Others weren’t.

So, I had conflicted feelings walking back into my childhood home. At least they got rid of that gaudy and putrid looking carpet floor, right?

Other than the carpet, few things changed. The mansion was just as large and unwelcoming as I remembered. The servants bowed to their masters respectfully as we walked in, while eyeing me warily. None of them would recognize me, since I was allowed no servants. Perhaps they would know me by reputation, unlikely though that might be. I was a stranger to even the oldest staff members.

Nobody gave the servants an explanation for my presence, and the man and woman simply told the head maid to set me up in one of the best rooms they can offer. The aging head maid scurried off to prepare the room, likely assuming me to be someone important. I continued following behind the man and woman, until we eventually reached a set of wooden doors. A push on them revealed an office space divided, with extensive computer monitors on one side, and stacks of paper hiding a desk on the other. A coffee table was placed dead center in the room, as if it was a mediation zone between the two sides of the chaotic space. There were also a couple of chairs unevenly sitting around the table, in a variety of styles. Seeing the other three sit down in these chairs, I picked the only remaining seat, facing everyone else.

And the room was silent.

I watched those two and Joel staring at me, as if trying to formulate what they were going to try and say. I think the situation’s finally starting to sink in a little for them, since the whole threatening incident earlier happened rather abruptly. They can now sit back and ponder things a little more, and they’re coming to certain realizations.

The woman, ever curious, was the first to talk, and ask a question.

“You…You’re stronger than us now, aren’t you? I don’t feel like I even have a chance of beating you, now that I take a proper look. You prevented me from noticing it on the ship, didn’t you?”

I simply nodded sadly.

It’s true; those two don’t have a fart’s chance in hell of beating me. There are very few who do, and all are at least a power divide higher than I am.

The man rubbed his forehead, obviously thinking hard.

“What sort of power did you awaken to?” He pondered aloud. “It’s subtle—but powerful and pervasive. You had us on the ground and knocked out inside of a second. But did you really simply punch us?”

I held up two fingers.

“Two powers. One simple strength.”

The woman groaned.

“Of course you would Awaken two powers. You are still a child of a High-Family, after all.” She said, somewhat annoyed at herself.

It’s one of the reasons why the High-Families live on Earth, even after it had been nigh-on destroyed. People who Awaken here are typically more powerful than those who Awaked elsewhere. Better yet, living on Earth for extended periods of time can affect people in ways not yet fully understood. It’s changed the genetic code among the High-Families subtly, making them stronger, smarter, and more deadly. It can also have an effect on the types of powers people Awaken to.

For instance, most of my friends on Jor Awakened to fairly potent powers, with things like speed, strength, dexterity, mana manipulation, and mixes thereof. Their abilities are above average, and strong when compared to others.

But they’d be slaughtered by someone from Earth.

Even those who get ‘normal’ abilities are monsters. Those with speed-based abilities are ten times as fast, those with powerful mana manipulation can level some cities.

But, there are also those who can Awaken to rare or previously unheard-of power types, like omnipresence domains, spacial manipulation, and laser eyes. The most powerful and rare ability types can be found on Earth.

And there’s more.

About half of High-Family members Awaken two power types.

The woman sitting in front of me is like that—She had mana manipulation, and the ability to see the true nature of all in her sight. Both are extremely powerful in her hands.

The man only has the ability to manipulate fire. Well, I say only, but the guy’s a walking volcano. And a dragon, which is formidable in it’s own right.

I have no idea what’s up with Joel though. I only just met him, you know?

I Awakened with two power types.

The woman is angry because she forgot about that possibility. She never stopped to consider the fact that I did Awaken on Earth. It also doesn’t help that she was trying to figure out the mechanics behind my ‘teleporting’, and was too preoccupied with that to even begin to wonder if I had another power, one that I wasn’t showing her.

“Great, so you have a freakish amount of strength. And, am I right in assuming that you won’t say what your other ability is?”

I nodded. Really, they have no reason to know. I’ll be out of here in a week, and they should never see me again unless something has gone very, very badly for someone. Besides, I think the knowledge of what my other ability is would only be detrimental for them, with all things considered. The shock wouldn’t be good for their health.

“Tell me about siblings?” I asked, looking at Joel as I did so.

“Huh? Me?” He asked, pointing a finger at his chest, as if he were expecting me to ask his parents instead of him. I wouldn’t ask them, since they would tell me all the wrong things.

I nodded at him.

“Right…uh. Well, there’s me. I’m the oldest in the family at the moment, and am fifteen years old. Well, I guess I’m not the oldest anymore, eh?” He said, scratching his head awkwardly. I motioned for him to continue.

“Then, there’s my…er, our younger sister Violet. She’s fourteen now, and attends a boarding school near the equator. She’s playful, and specializes in close combat. She likes cute things with a scary passion, bordering on insanity. Then, there’s our younger brother Zain. He’s in the same boarding school and grade as Violet, though he’s two years younger. He’s the next genius of the family, and is slated to join Mom’s research team after graduation. He’s…reserved towards us, though Violet says he talks to his classmates.”

Ah, sounds like they’re doing alright. It also sounds like they’ve been passed over by that woman, which is also good. Though, I’m still going to ‘talk’ to her one on one, to drive home the message that human experimentation is bad. I can only assume that she didn’t do anything to the rest of them after losing me as a test subject, since they definitely wouldn’t be able to survive something that had left me so broken.

Anyway, the week passed quickly, and then I went home.

What? I already told you people the most dramatic things that had happened. Of course, there were other things that I did while there. I pounded in some strict warnings, did some illegal things to the mansion’s security system and computer main-frame, and relaxed. They have a killer hot bath there, which I enjoyed as much as I could. It was very soothing. I also had dinner with those two a few times, much to their discomfort.

There was also an interesting moment between us worth mentioning, right as I was leaving.

The man pulled me aside, out of earshot from the others, before telling me something that explained quite a bit.

“I kept your mother from experimenting on the other children. Really, I had tried to stop her from doing it to you too, but she wouldn’t take no for an answer. After all, your mind was, and probably still is like nothing anyone’s ever seen before. You forced her to develop newer, better tests for measuring potential and intelligence, since you broke the ceilings on all the other ones. What researcher wouldn’t want to figure out how you did it?” He smiled sadly at me, but still didn’t apologize for his part in the mess that was my childhood. I think he knows that he can’t.

Besides that, the woman tried to guess my second ability a few more times. She was utterly wrong, of course. She’s completely misunderstanding its nature.

Surprisingly, Joel hugged me before the space-yacht took off.

“Thank you for still being alive, Revian.” He said, leaving me to wonder what he’s thinking.

He seems like a good person though, once you break past the arrogance and haughtiness.

The trip back took two weeks. I didn’t send word to my friends before going to school again. Boy, were their faces entertaining when they realized that I was back. Eventually, I figured out that they were under the impression that I would be gone for quite a while—years maybe. They were happy to be wrong on this occasion, and warmly welcomed me back by taking me to a café after school ended. I ended up getting a stomach-ache from all the chocolate cake I ate.

From there, things went back to normal. But it was a new sort of normal. For one, I didn’t hold myself back at school anymore. Needless to say, I was now sitting at the number one ranking quite comfortably, crushing all beneath my academic brilliance. I felt like I had to—ever since my teacher, the elderly Mr. Ruben, had stood up for me after that exam. I had to prove that I measured up to his word.

Suffice to say, there were no accusations of cheating this time ‘round.

I was enjoying my carefree life for now.

End of Arc One: Prologue.