"Wake up, Io!" A familiar voice shook me awake. I rubbed my eyes, and immediately sat up straight. Not again!

"Have we been found again?" I questioned Denisse, who jabbed her thumb at an already wide-awake Christopher. He was wearing a hoodie and exercise shorts, and was busy stuffing knives into his bag.

"Chris said that we need to go out early," She clarified.

I looked out of the balcony window. It was pitch-black and I could only just make out the reflections of the moon on the rippling surface of the waves.

"Best to practice with fewer people around," Christopher explained, pouring water from the bathroom tap into several water bottles. Those are for me to test my power.

To be prepared to make a quick getaway, Denisse packed along her computer equipment and I wore my black boots and double-sided jacket.

Instead of taking the guest lifts, Christopher looked around the corridors before ushering us to the end of it. He swiped a staff card and beckoned us to go down the spiral stairway. It led to a narrow corridor that was supposedly for 'staff-only'. If it was not five thirty in the morning, the place might be crawling with frantic waiters and staff.

"Excuse me, what are you doing here?" A gruff voice asked when we were halfway through. Oh no, I cursed.

We turned to face a security guard dressed in a navy blue suit. He took wide steps towards us. Beside me, I could feel Denisse stiffen.

Surprisingly, Christopher let out a long string of words that sounded like gibberish to me, even gesturing animatedly. I did my best not to chuckle. Anyone would think we were a bunch of foreigners who were oblivious to whatever they were saying.

"I'm sorry, young lad," the security guard announced, "but this area is out of bounds for guests." He started waving us to the guest lifts.

Christopher sighed under his breath. I instinctively gripped his hoodie sleeve to turn him away, lest he made a scene by attempting to fight the security guard. He shook his head, signalling no, I won't, and I let go. As he pulled out three lanyards, I caught a glimpse of one. It read Tour Guest: Special Access to Staff Corridors.

I took them from Christopher and immediately waved them at the security guard's face. As he examined them, I used my hands and fingers to gesture that we had left something behind. Please understand. Please let us through.

"Okay, please quickly retrieve your belongings," the security guard replied, pointing down the hallway.

I placed my palms together, a thank-you signal, before hurrying down the hallway after Christopher and Denisse.

At the very end of the corridor, Christopher swiped the staff card again, and the door clicked open. Outside was a black forest, where the trees shot up like arrows into the sky, as if attempting to pierce the glimmering stars. We followed him further and further away from the hotel. When I looked back, the hotel appeared to be the size of my palm.

"Alright, time to see what you've got," Christopher announced, dropping his bag. Denisse took my backpack and she propped her computer equipment onto a particularly large rock.

I walked to the shore of the water and stared at the water surface. Come on, show me something, I begged myself, hoping that it would help.

Christopher levitated a small rock with his eyes, suggesting, "Let's try seeing if it works when I try to attack you. I won't hit you too hard."

He focused on the rock, and it zoomed towards me. Come on. Come on.

Nope, the rock smacked me in the gut. I had waited too long to grab it.

Christopher helped me up and scratched his head, noting, "You said that when the assassin tried to capture you, your body responded with a blast of water from somewhere. But now, when I tried to attack you, nothing happens. Why?"

I glanced to the water as I replied, "Could be that I need to try a different way. Nobody said the serum was the same for everyone, right? Maybe that's how our powers are so different."

"Okay, try to relax. But I can't tell you how, because my power always needs focus." Christopher suggested, taking a few steps back.

Relax, relax. I told myself, taking a deep breath before closing my eyes.

A few seconds, later, I felt something shift. Something's changed. I can... feel it. Water-

I opened my eyes.

Wow.

My arms and hands were feeling exceptionally light, yet powerful. The connection I had felt with the water was back. It was like the water was flowing through me.

"Whoa!" Denisse exclaimed, having looked up from her laptop.

"Can you do anything?" Christopher asked.

I lifted my hands. Water sailed along in an arc. What.

Denisse gasped. Christopher raised his eyebrows as he remarked, "Okay, you've just tossed the laws of physics out of the window."

What on earth- literally-

"No way..." I wondered out loud.

"Water manipulation..." Christopher trailed off.

It seemed almost too true. The connection was so strong it empowered every movement I made. How do I even know all of this?

"Do you feel a connection?" Christopher asked, taking several more steps back.

I nodded. The water almost felt like a part of me.

"At least we have something to bash any attackers with. I mean, shower them with," Denisse replied, and Christopher chuckled.

The more I moved my hands, the more connected I felt to the water. I tried swirling the water with my hands, and the water flowed in a circular motion in the air. When I tried to punch, however, nothing happened. I withdrew my hand as I muttered sheepishly, "Well, that failed."

"It must be the form of your power. Water flows and it's a liquid that's meant to be bent. Whereas punches are a solid. Try another way," Christopher mused.

I racked my brain for any potential ideas. Okay, tell me what I should do.

Nothing came to my mind.

Just then, I felt a pull. It inclined my hands upwards. It was not forceful. Something just told me to just take control of it.

Whoosh! The water flowed from my left hand to my right hand, as if weightless. It now stretched across, twisting and turning as I moved my fingers. It was like it was now at my fingertips, fully under my control.

Yes! I did-

Suddenly, the water collapsed into a puddle at my feet. I looked down, and sighed. Oh well.

"Looks like you need to keep steady," Christopher advised, "especially since you need to relax. It happened for me too, when I didn't focus enough on my telekinesis."

A gust of wind blew, sending my hair into my face. As I tucked them behind my ear, I turned to see Christopher poring over a pile of leaves several metres away.

"What's up?" I asked.

"You might want to see this," Christopher replied haltingly, picking up his bag.

"I- what?" I clarified, hurrying over to take a look.

Beside the pile of leaves was a bunch of leaves, forming ten letters.

HELP, Scover.

What do you think they'll do next? How will they rescue Scover?

Thanks for keeping up with the story thus far! Stay tuned, because the next chapter will be a wild ride!