Moonlight And Betrayal

Chapter 3 Gaining Control

Mia's Pov

I woke up a few minutes after 5:00 am and silently got dressed. I put on a plain fitted dark grey top, comfortable joggers and a light zip up hoodie. My hair was tied up but slightly messy because I was in a hurry.

I left the dorm and started jogging towards the direction while looking at the map on my phone. Training ground 13 wasn't marked like the rest of the academy, there were no banners, no visible guards or welcoming signs. I kept heading towards the map direction. I panicked but I tried to stay focused.

I slowed down for a while, because my phone started buzzing. It was Elena calling.

“Why's she awake by this time?” I said to myself.

I was so distracted on my phone I didn't notice someone was coming towards my direction, I continued jogging then I bumped into a strange person. The kind of force that pushed me back, I fell and hit my hand on a stone.

“Ah…” I stumbled back and fell.

I stood up, picked up my phone lying on the floor and started limping, I couldn't jog again. I was in pain. I wondered who he was, the kind of force that pulled me back wasn't ordinary and I don't think he is. I wasn't even able to see his face properly. It didn’t feel like hitting a normal person, it felt like hitting a wall of pressure.

I finally reached Ground 13, it wasn't as scary or bad as I thought, Rowan was already standing there waiting with his hands behind his back.

“You're late.” He said without even turning back.

"I tried getting here as fast as I could.” I replied while trying to catch my breath.

Not even a good morning. He sounded more like a military instructor than a student. I was expecting at least a little sympathy after running halfway across the academy. Apparently not.

“Let's get started.”

Rowan places glowing markers around the training field. They constantly move positions.

“ You must use your powers to stop them.”

The targets moved too quickly for my eyes to keep up.

"You're already making your first mistake.”Rowan said while walking towards me.

"Stop looking at the markers and take a breath. You're thinking too much."

Anytime I focused on one, another drifted out of reach. The markers kept moving and my confidence was moving right along with them.

"You keep chasing the target. The target should be the one chasing you.” Rowan glanced at me.

“Let's try something different.”

He activates the training field. Dozens of glowing Soul Orbs appear floating in the air. They drifted slowly but constantly changed position. Some were high, some low, some hidden in motion layers.

“Stabilize them.”

He opened a box and handed me a blindfold. I stared at the blindfold in Rowan's hand for a moment. There was no way covering my eyes would improve a situation that was already going terribly.

"if you need your eyes to find your target, then you're already behind."

He was talking like I was about to fight a war or something. At this point, I wasn't sure if Rowan was training me or conducting some kind of social experiment. The scary part was that Rowan sounded completely serious. Not even a hint of a joke or even a smile.

"How is not seeing supposed to help me?"

"Because seeing isn't helping you.”

"Fear isn't weakness. Letting fear control you is.”

I covered my eyes with a blind fold. I couldn't see a thing, well that was the point.

“Good.” Rowan’s voice came from somewhere in front of me. “Now focus.”

I exhaled slowly trying to steady my breathing. But what exactly did he expect me to focus on? I couldn’t see the field anymore or even tell which direction I was facing.

After a few seconds, the air felt steadier, it wasn’t pulling my attention in different directions anymore. I raised my hand slightly again.

This time around the response was immediate. The Soul Orbs didn’t scatter or jump. They shifted together, slowly, like they were adjusting instead of reacting. I could feel it.

I didn’t understand what was different this time. I wasn’t doing anything new. It was just still. After a few more seconds passed.

The faint movement around me reduced even more. The orbs weren’t drifting as much anymore. It felt like they were holding their positions, waiting.

I lowered my hand a little, and instead of chaos, the orbs followed me settling into place again.

I stayed completely still after that, not wanting to ruin whatever was happening.

“Stop.”

His voice sounded a bit different from before. I thought I had done something bad.

“Take it off,” he added.

I slowly reached for the blindfold and pulled it down.

The first thing I saw was the Soul Orbs. They were all suspended in place. Not moving freely like before, not drifting randomly. They were steady, evenly spaced, almost like they had been arranged without anyone touching them.

Rowan stood a few steps away, not moving. His eyes were fixed on the orbs for a while and then he looked at me. After a long pause he finally said “training is over.”

Then he added, “don’t tell anyone what just happened.”

I couldn't explain it, but the power felt less like something I was learning and more like something I was remembering.

On my way back from the training, I checked my phone, I had 15 missed calls and several messages from Sarah and Ava. Then I checked the time.

“Oh God, I'm going to be late for class.” I started running so fast, I almost missed a step.

I got to the dorm and they were already gone. I tried calling them, but they weren't picking up again. The main gate closes in 19 minutes and I haven't even had my bath yet. I rushed to the shower immediately, the cold water shocked me awake. I stood under the water trying to process everything until reality hit me that I was already running late.

I quickly dried my body, put on my uniform and tied my hair into a simple ponytail, leaving a few strands loose because I didn’t have time to make it perfect. I grabbed my bag, shoved everything I needed inside, checked the time one last time and hurried out of the room, heading straight for school.

When I finally got to school, the gate was already locked. I didn’t even know if I should go back to the dorm or try to find another way in. For a moment, I just stood there staring at it before I started climbing the wall because I couldn't afford to miss today's class. I paused halfway up the wall, I could feel someone was watching me, but I didn't turn around immediately.

“ What do you think you're doing?” A sharp voice asked.

My heart started beating so fast, I thought I got caught by a teacher or something. I turned back and it was Rowan. He reached out for my hand, and the moment I took it, he suddenly shifted his grip away. I lost my balance and fell.

“You need to learn not to trust anyone you see.”

“Okay… so that was the reason you let me fall on purpose?”

“Don’t forget I’m your trainer. The training doesn’t stop at Ground 13.”

“Just follow me.”

He led me to the back of the school through a dark entrance. I was surprised to see students passing through there too. It looked like some kind of underground passage into the school.

“Are you sure it’s safe here?”

“Be quiet. You ask too many questions.”

I didn’t say anything else until we finally got inside. Rowan then walked off in a completely different direction, leaving me to find my own way. I continued walking until I finally reached Hall 4.

I stood in front of the door for a while, not sure if I should go in or not. My hand hovered near the handle as I stared at it, then I took a deep breath and pushed the door open.