Ethan dodged another blast of telekinetic force. He only narrowly scraped by and as he rolled to the side, drenched in sweat and breathing heavily as if he'd been running a mile, the metal of the wall caved in slightly behind him. Belle was standing in front of him, smirking. Her position had barely changed since she had stepped in and begun her assault, raining blows all over the room and hoisting Ethan around the walls with nothing but her mental will.

Psychics were difficult for a vast number of people to battle, primarily for this reason. Due to the nature of their powers, invisible, intangible forces spawned from their minds, untraceable and almost uncounterable. They weren't invincible, and could certainly be beaten with some degree of ease if their opponent knew what they were doing, as most attacks still had to be choreographed by a physical motion, but in most cases it was a difficult task. Ethan had an advantage over most in his situation, as he had the same powers and knew how they worked.

He couldn't exactly see the blasts, it was more sensing where they were coming from, but he could still dodge. And his own powers could interact with them in a way most people couldn't. Yet with all of these advantages, it didn't stop Belle from hurling him around the room.

"Are you even trying?" Belle asked. Her tone was one of mocking amusement, of sheer condescension. "Honestly, I genuinely can't tell."

Ethan threw himself to the ground, feeling his hair rustle as another wall of mental force blew by him, reverberating as it struck the wall. He had given up trying to shield against her blows when, for the third time, it completely decimated the barrier he had taken refuge behind. As much as he hated to admit it, the raw power she possessed was impressive, and the skill she wielded it with was even more so. She was certainly a powerful opponent, which made it all the more infuriating that she had managed to weasel her way into his little bubble of quiet. This was exactly the kind of stress he had been trying to avoid. Part of him was screaming to simply give up; after all, he had done his fair share of work and collected four chips. It wouldn't be so bad for him to be eliminated by a far stronger opponent in the teacher's eyes, especially after he gave what he thought was a good fight.

But every time he caught a glimpse of her obnoxious smirk, the way her eyes burned with arrogance and contempt, that part of him was instantly quelled. Despite the fact that his body was sore all over and howling for reprieve, he continued to dodge, waiting for an opening.

"You won't get one, you know," Belle called. "Especially not when you're broadcasting your gameplan so loudly. Just a thought."

Ethan swore mentally. He was so busy dodging invisible attacks that he kept forgetting she could read his mind too; he had never learned how to repel another telepath, so she had unfettered access to everything brewing in his noggin. Meanwhile, though he had tried relentlessly to breach her mind, he kept getting resistance. It wasn't the same as when Alec or Charlie's mental signals had disappeared under the use of their powers. No, he could feel her mind quite clearly, he just couldn't reach it. It was as if it had been encased in something hard and solid, but transparent. Visible but unreachable. Not to mention all of his efforts in trying to figure out how to break through would be in vain if she kept reading his mind every time he came up with a plan.

He needed to find a way to unsettle her, to distract her while he carved an opening for himself. But first that meant it was time to stop playing defensive.

He rolled to his feet after he tossed himself to the side yet again, but this time he darted straight for the door. He managed to slip outside while more blows hammered against the metal coating behind him, and just as he turned the corner he heard Belle let out a deep sigh.

"Chickening out now? You know you can't run right? Especially when you're literally thinking where you're going," she called out behind him.

Which was the point, in essence. Belle was peeking into his mind, sifting through his thoughts, but that in itself was the opening he needed. He just had to find a way to exploit it. Right now his biggest issue was how deeply Belle was looking into his mind.

He had had much practice sorting his thoughts; it had been a necessity in his youth. Growing up, his mind had been filled with the voices of everyone in a steadily increasing radius: every angry, sad, happy or jealous thought bursting into his mind at almost every hour of the day, unbidden and unwelcome.

It had taken a great deal of time and effort, but he had eventually worked through it, and the mental exercises he had endured for the process had led to several other highly beneficial breakthroughs as well. He could exercise his mind almost as if it was a physical muscle, and one of those ways was what he was doing now: planting a firm mental image in his mind and using it as bait for Belle to fall into his trap, meanwhile his actual plan was simmering softly in the depths of his consciousness. If she was looking at what he was thinking on the surface, it wouldn't be an issue. But if she was actually digging through his brain, well that would be a problem.

It was a gamble he had to take, but for right now he needed more space than the tiny room afforded. He came to a halt a few moments later, just beside the doorway to another metallic room much like the one he had escaped from, only broader and with a higher ceiling. Perfect.

"Not a bad idea, coming here," said Belle's voice a few moments later. Ethan turned to see her leaning against the door frame, gazing around with an air of mild interest. She was faster than she had let on. "More space to maneuver around, better to dodge. But it won't help you much, unfortunately."

"Why are you bothering me, anyway?" Ethan asked. It wasn't part of his plan to do so, but the way she was acting towards him, the visceral dislike she seemed to hold for him, it seemed almost personal, as if he had gravely offended her in some way. "I don't even know you."

"Well for one thing, there's not that many people left, and the ones that are are mostly engaged in other fights. You're one of the few free enemies available for me to grab a chip and move on to the next level, which was the initial reason I came here. But then I saw what you were doing and it was just despicable. Shooing the more powerful students along and taking the weak bait so you can get easy wins? Pathetic."

"If you're trying to make me feel bad, then you're in for a sorry surprise. We all have our game plans, not everyone has the time or energy or the low braincell count to go charging headfirst into every enemy they see. So what if I wanted to be a bit more selective in my process?"

"The problem is you don't have to be selective. You have no idea just how effective our powers can be. Our attacks are almost unrespondable. We interact with the enemy's very mind. A good telepath can take the cake against someone who can breathe radioactive waste seven times out of ten. But you're not a 'good telepath,' are you? Because you're lazy, uninterested and completely unmotivated."

"Again, you're not going to have much success with this speech. But seriously, aside from the fact that you're a clearly, deeply troubled person, how does me being a lazy twat affect you? Is it like some weird emotional thing? Is my 'poor performance' a trigger for some vewy bad memowies?" he said, in a mock baby voice.

A spasm of anger suddenly crossed Belle's face. She conjured another eruption of mental power, which Ethan dodged again. And judging by the size of the hole in the wall, it was a good thing that he did. He had been trying to keep her talking long enough to recover some of his stamina before he launched his assault, but apparently he had struck a nerve.

"Ooh. Plucked a chord, did I?" he said in great interest, looking around at the huge dent she had blown into the wall. "So it's only okay when you're ripping into me, is that it? Your issues aren't fair game?"

"I changed my mind," Belle said. She was speaking again in that same falsely sweet voice she had been using earlier, but her tone was dripping with suppressed anger. "Clearly talking isn't going to do anything in this situation, and I have a new Level to advance to. So I think I'm just going to take your chip and end this whole charade right here."

He couldn't tell what exactly it had been, but he had most certainly touched a nerve. That in itself was the best outcome he could ask for, as she had been a step ahead of him the entire time not only due to her superior abilities, but because she was so collected. Now that she was off her mental game, it would be easier to exploit. Ethan conjured another wall of telekinetic energy as Belle threw up her hands. The resulting impact shook the very ground he was standing on, and while the barrier caved slightly, it actually held.

"Ooh, that last one didn't pack as much of a punch as the others. Looks like you're getting a little sloppy there, missie."

Now a wave of sheer, unbridled rage crossed her face. She raised her hand again and this time Ethan's reflexes kicked in, ready to react to whatever she threw next. Unfortunately, he wasn't expecting her to actually throw something. He was taken completely off guard as instead of a burst of invisible energy came rippling towards him, a huge chunk of the very wall tore itself from the whole and zoomed in his direction. By the time he could turn around it had slammed into him and thrust him against the wall, holding him firmly in place.

"Don't worry, I made sure to dial down the force of that last hit. Wouldn't want you to end up in a morgue, but I suppose the Medical Wing will do." There was nothing but callousness in her tone now.

She held out a hand towards him, as if accepting something from an invisible person standing ahead of her. At once, the chip hanging around his neck, suspended from the shoelace he had tied around it, began to drift towards her. He immediately hardened his mental will, enforcing his own telekinetic hold over it and cementing a kind of psychic tug of war.

"Could you be any more childish?" Belle asked, rolling her eyes.

"Yes," Ethan said. He furrowed his brow in concentration, putting everything he had into maintaining the link between the two. Belle seemed to be struggling too, judging by the look on her face. He had been right; she had lost her composure and her mental fortitude had dampened as a result.

"Just let go!" she snapped suddenly. "You can't win. You know it and I know it, just stop wasting my time."

Ethan didn't respond. He was concentrating so hard his headache had worsened tenfold. It was truly a new experience, dealing with another telepath. But he was starting to adjust. He loosened his mind's grip ever so slightly, just enough to nudge his head slightly to the side. Belle stumbled as a slight wave of mental force knocked into her, sending her sideways.

"Gah! You little —" She cut herself off and applied more force to the chip; the shoelace necklace actually burst around his neck and went flying towards her. He managed to reaffirm his hold at the very last second, catching the chip dead in the air.

"Will you just let go?"

Again he realized his chance, as her exasperation spilled across her face like a mask. He nodded sharply at her. The next wave slammed into her midriff and she went tumbling, but still she managed to maintain her hold on the chip, her right hand outstretched towards him as she balanced with her left. Then something strange happened; she changed the angle of her hand, positioning her fingers so that she was pushing him instead of pulling, and he felt the metal sinking into his stomach, pressing him deeper into the wall.

"I know what you're doing," she said abruptly. "Trying to mentally wrongfoot me. I see. You think you have a chance if you can throw me off my game. Unfortunately, that won't work."

Ethan ignored her, preparing to throw another sideways hit. Unfortunately, Belle seemed to have regained her bearings after all, because nothing happened.

"Not this time." She wagged her fingers and the anger vanished from her visage without a trace. She was smiling, all signs that she had been upset scrubbed clean as if by an industrial eraser.

Ethan let out a pitiful groan as the sheet of metal pressed even harder against him, flattening him against the wall. The pain was so intense that his concentration on the necklace was breaking. The harder she forced him into the wall, the further the necklace drifted towards her.

"So this is the true extent of what you're capable of?" Belle said suddenly, shaking her head. "Pathetic. All those years trying to master your powers and this is the best you can do with them."

A stab of shock jabbed at Ethan's brain. What she had said, it was general enough to apply to almost every student in this school, not counting obvious exceptions like Alec who had only recently discovered what they were capable of. But the way she spoke, it sounded as if she was alluding to something else.

As if deliberately to confirm his suspicions, she went on. "Must have been so hard. Especially for Clea, you know. Having to put up with such an abject failure."

Ethan's heart skipped a beat. His eyes were wide as he stared at her, a mixture of shock and fury coursing through his veins like poison. "Shut up."

"Simple mental training exercises and you couldn't even do that." She clicked her tongue. "It's as they said, you're just a disappointment."

"Shut up!"

The telekinetic wall she was maintaining slammed into him with renewed vigour and thrust him against the wall once more, a merciless wave crushing a defenseless boat against the rocky shore.

"Pathetic," he heard Belle say through the haze of pain. His drooping head lifted against his will, coaxed upwards by her crooked finger, and he looked up at her. She bent her finger father upwards until his eyes directly met hers. "You have no idea what you would be able to do if you just applied yourself."

She pushed him roughly back against the wall, enforcing that crushing grip over him once more. Apparently she was treading a fine line between necessary and excessive force, because none of the teachers had appeared yet to declare that the match was over. What she was doing was ruthless, cruel, and yet he had no room to complain, given what he had been doing before she appeared.

He could feel the strength of her pull overpowering his on the chip, and knew that she could have pulled it over to herself at any time in the past few seconds. But apparently this match was going to go on until he fell unconscious, he conceded and released his feeble hold on the chip, or she decided her victory had been claimed. Unfortunately, neither of those two last things seemed to be happening any time soon.

And then her words echoed in his mind again, but spoken by a different voice. A familiar one, full of scathing rage. "If you'd only applied yourself."

White hot anger surged up inside him. There they were. Those words. He had heard so many iterations of them, but they were all the same in essence. "If you would just try harder. If you would only apply yourself."

But he did. That was the problem. He always did. It was just never enough. Not for her, not for the teachers, not for his father. . . . So what was the point in trying, if it always ended the same way? Tears stung his eyes as anger swelled within. He tried to blink them away, but they were coming hard and fast, and the thoughts overpowered the urge to wipe them away. It was never enough. He was never enough. He was a failure, destined to lose at every turn.

"I think it's time to end this, don't you?" said Belle sweetly.

She began to move forward at last, ready to claim his chip, though she could have simply willed it over to her. But in the time her guard dropped, he understood on some level that it was to humiliate him. She could have used her telekinesis, but she wanted to do it with her own hands, as he lay there completely and utterly incapacitated.

He fixed his eyes on the hovering chip and heaved on it again, pulling with everything he could muster. An involuntary grunt rippled from his throat with the effort of fighting back.

"Please stop, you're embarrassing yourself."

The grunt became even louder, stretching on until his voice faltered under the strain on his vocal chords. But he didn't stop; the rage was mounting within him, spilling over like an overfull balloon.

"What — what are you doing?" Belle demanded, sounding shocked.

He ignored her, the sound rising in intensity until it became a shout. With it, emotion rose. Anger and desperation. Something else too: resistance. As his anger rose, he felt the force emanating from him rise too, fueled by his fury. And as the scream reached its highest pitch, so the force exploded outwards. The explosion of mental energy ripped through the hold she had established over him, but she was quick; she pulled up her own defense immediately, shielding herself from the blow as he collapsed to his knees.

Now it was her turn to be confused. "How did you do that?" she sputtered.

But he didn't answer. There was no way he could. Rage flooded his brain, flushing out all sense of reason and logic. He threw up his hands at her in a wild, animalistic motion, shooting more waves of energy. Her barrier held under the impacts, but her impeccable demeanour was faltering. Amid her squeals of utter bewilderment, he launched blast after blast, not letting up, not giving her time to gather her bearings.

The shield faltered under every blow, weakening steadily until, with a final, almighty push, it shattered like a glass ball. A wail of terror slipped from her lips and she was blown backwards into the wall.

The force was so great that she fell unconscious directly upon impact, sliding limply to the ground. A sliver of blood ran from her forehead, underneath her glasses and across her face. But apart from that, she was alive. He could see her chest rising and falling with every breath she took. And that was all that mattered. Buckling under the weight of his powers, his turbulent emotions, and the beating he had just taken, Ethan fell to his knees.

In a moment he would claim her chip and advance to Level 3. It had never been a priority initially, but the whole debacle had lit a fire within him that was itching to be released. And he would release it, in time, but right now he needed to catch his breath. Mere minutes after the thought registered in his mind, however, a shadow fell across him, blotting out the light. He looked up to find the absolute worst person who could have wandered in at this time staring down at him, eyebrows raised.

"Holy crap. Didn't know you had it in you," said Damon Messus, staring around with a look of interest. "I'm genuinely impressed." His bright green eyes came to rest on Belle, lingering there for only a moment and then shifting away with a look of complete unconcern. "So." He clapped his hands together. "How do we do this? Do you need a couple minutes or are you ready to go right now? I can wait if you'd like. No time limit down here."

Ethan glared at him. The fire, so recently yearning to be unleashed, was extinguished in one fell swoop. Ethan slid the shoelace necklace across the floor and spread himself out on the ground as if getting ready for bed. "Just take the damn chip," he murmured.

"Much obliged." He heard Damon bend to pick it up and then walk off, whistling as he went.

Ethan's compass began to flash red, signaling where the closest exit was. He ignored the lights and the deep, rhythmic vibrations and slipped away into blissful unconsciousness right where he lay.