We spent the next few hours playing cards until Lucian yawned. "What time is it?" I asked.
He had taken off his jacket some time before and pushed up his red sleeve and looked at his watch. "Half-past one, give or take a few minutes." He tapped its face. "I can never be sure about this thing." He held it out to me and I couldn't make out what brand it was but it looked expensive, with a wide face made of etched gold studded with diamonds.
"Cool. That must have been expensive."
"Priceless, actually. This watch has been in my family for nearly three hundred years. One of my ancestors made it to commemorate the founding of… something or other." He sighed, chuckling, "Though famously we are diamond cutters and not watchmakers. The number of times I've had to reset this thing is in stark contrast to its value as a piece of jewelry, though I have faith that the two numbers will meet at some point."
"If you hate it so much, why don't you upgrade to a Rolex or something?"
"This watch has been in my family for centuries and has always been on the wrist of the heir to our fortune that entire time."
"You know, whenever you talk about your family, or your legacy, or whatever, you usually sound sort of bummed out."
He frowned slightly. "Perhaps. Though I have never forgotten that I am very blessed to be a Kline. The fact I have inherited such vast wealth and status by simply being born as I have has not escaped me. It's one reason I take so much time helping the less fortunate."
"That almost sounds like you're punishing yourself for being born rich."
"We all punish ourselves for things we regret, don't we?"
"What do you mean?"
"You understand that, here in this room, with me at your side, your monster could not possibly hurt anyone, don't you?"
I nodded, "Yeah, I guess that's true."
"Well then, why else are you refusing to sleep if not to punish yourself?"
I set my cards down. "What else am I supposed to do? Am I just supposed to let it out? It's evil! It wants to kill things. How am I supposed to allow it to exist?"
"It is not up to you. There is nothing you can do to alter what has happened, but you can strive to change your relationship."
"You keep talking about it like it's more than a monster. It doesn't have an opinion, it's just a mindless killing machine!"
"I doubt that. I doubt that very much."
"What are you talking about?"
"The darkness is not a mindless thing. It has existed before there was even a universe in which to cast shadows and for all that time it has watched and it has waited. You might have given this monster form and even purpose, but you can be sure it has a mind all its own. It is alive, and it is not evil simply because you drew it to have claws. It will be your responsibility to temper this violent, dangerous thing into a tool used for good." He pinched the bridge of his nose and blinked a few times. "In the meantime, I suppose if you really are determined to stay awake, we best make a pit stop in the cafeteria for some more coffee."
***
Despite how tired he was, Lucian stayed with me until morning. There were no sightings of the monster that entire time, and I hoped it would stay that way. After a few trips back and forth, I suppose Lucian gave up hope I might come around to the idea of going to sleep, and we moved into the cafeteria and stayed there. This was nice because it gave us easy access to the vending machines that dispensed coffee and canned energy drinks, respectively. I had never seen vending machines that didn't require money, but these didn't even have any way of accepting change or cards. It seemed sort of silly that they didn't simply open like refrigerators, but the push button system worked well enough.
The first sign that we had lasted the night was that the staff filtered into the cafeteria and began prepping breakfast. Soon after, I caught my first glimpse of other campers coming into the room. I wasn't sure what I had expected, but they were mostly teenagers like me. Some were younger, twelve or thirteen, and some were older, eighteen or nineteen, but no one I saw was in their twenties, if I had to guess.
I got up and got some breakfast when it was time and the selection here was good. Here I found fresh fruits, pancakes, waffles, real eggs, an array of pork products and there was even a decent gathering of vegan options. I couldn't remember the last time I had this kind of feast available to me, and I dug in eagerly. The whole time, even as we ate, Lucian and I kept playing cards, mostly rummy, until someone sat down at our table.
"Hey." I looked over and saw that Eli had sat down next to us and there was another girl sitting down across from her as well.
"Hey." I said back to her.
"I see you didn't get any sleep."
"Such is life." I said, grinning over at Lucian, "Who's your friend?"
"I'm Kat." She said with a grin, "K-A-T, and I'm thrilled to be here, thank you."
To my surprise, it looked like she was being sincere. "How come?"
Eli laughed, "She's a pyro who can actually control fire. It almost makes me sick to think about."
"You're just jelly!" she laughed back. "I can't actually make it do anything yet, other than get real big, real fast. Although, I can also make it sort of… dance."
"I believe I recall the inciting incident that attracted the Diamantaire's attention to your location." Lucian stroked his chin. "If I remember correctly, you were the one that burned down a chemical warehouse. We had to suppress the footage from getting out, but you caused the following inferno to sway back and forth, changing color as it went."
She continued to smile. "To be fair, I was rather high at the time and didn't realize the fire was actually doing that. I just remember it being pretty."
Eli shrugged, "I looked for you at the assembly, but—"
"Orientation!" Lucian dropped his cards and buried his head in his hands. "I completely lost track of time this morning!"
"You didn't miss much." Eli said, "I actually think we got more information from you, Lucian, then they gave out at the assembly. Nobody even showed off their powers or anything."
"A real snooze-fest." Kat added.
"But everybody got paired up with either another camper or one of the staff. Something about countering flaws."
"How does blowing people up counter fire?"
"Well, I didn't just blow up the guy." She looked away from me. "We were sort of in the bathroom at a club and… well, I trashed that entire room. The faucets and toilets shattered, pipes exploded up out of the floor, and water was everywhere."
"I don't get it. Did you blow him up, or drown him?"
"The answer should be obvious, Damien," Lucian said, "or do you not realize that the human body is mostly water?"
I blinked a few times as I realized what must have happened. "That's wild… and gross, now that I think about it."
Kat laughed, "Blood, guts, and sewer water? What's not to love?"
"Yeah," Eli pulled her jacket tighter around herself, "it wasn't fun to live through."
"Despite the circumstances of your awakening," Lucian said, "you should be proud of your ability. Most people with the gift of water manipulation struggle to manipulate even saltwater because of its impurities. What you did was very impressive."
She rolled her eyes at him. "Sure it was."
"Did you two have any plans for today?" I asked.
"Oh, yeah." Eli pulled a somewhat rumpled paper out of her jacket. "There's like a bunch of activities happening all over camp." I glanced over and saw that the paper had several names of courses written across it. Some looked pretty mundane, like Grief Counseling and Management, or Drum Circle! However, there were others that were more interesting. One in particular I noticed had a circle around it.
"Power Hour!, huh?" I chuckled. "Have you already signed up?"
She folded the paper. "It was her idea." She gestured over at Kat, "But I think it might be good for us."
"It's why we're here, right?" Kat said, "I know I'm not going to waste my time singing kumbaya when I can play with fire without getting yelled at."
"I would be remiss if I did not mention that they mostly focused this class on meditation," Lucian added. "Though, should you progress to the more advanced courses taught by Edelin, you will certainly learn how to safely manifest your gift."
"Edelin?" Eli asked. "Isn't that the same person who treated Damien last night?"
"Indeed, they are very skilled at what they do, and I would say that she is an excellent teacher."
"So, what do you say?" Eli asked, looking at me.
"Yeah, go for it." I said, picking up my cards again.
"Wow!" Kat grinned. "I can't tell if that was a major whoosh moment or if you're just cold-blooded."
I blinked at her. "What?"
"We want you to come with us, bozo!"
"No." I shook my head. "That's a terrible idea."
"You should reconsider." Lucian said, "I will come and sit in on the class if that would help your anxiety."
I was still shaking my head, but Eli just frowned. "What else are you going to do? I saw that thing there in the snow. Before, you said monsters only happened around you when you were asleep," she scoffed, "but that time you were wide awake." She stood up. "No one is going to force you to come, but I know what I would do if my powers started acting up without warning."
They walked away, and I groaned, "Wait! Just wait up already! We're coming too."
***
We wandered through the halls for a bit as 'Power hour!' didn't start right away. Soon we walked over to a building that differed from the other cabins that made up the camp. This building was one of the largest on the grounds and was long and at least two stories tall. They made the building of thick concrete with a red, rounded roof. As we made our way inside, I realized that this place was a gymnasium. The entrance was in the center of the building and to our left was an open section. Here were a few basketball courts, a climbing wall, and what looked like a series of closed off rooms and offices. A wall with another set of doors dominated the other half of the building. I could smell chlorine in the air and assumed that half of the building held a swimming pool. We walked past a receptionist's desk and the staff members there waved at us as they looked up from their computers. On the other side of the desk was a set of stairs which doubled back on themselves as they led to the second floor. Gym equipment dominated the second floor. Here I saw weights, and several rows of ellipticals and treadmills. To our right was a narrow track that looped around the edge of the basketball courts below them. The center of the loop opened to the floor below so that you could look down and, I guess, watch the courts as you ran. There was another long room next to the track and gym equipment, and we made our way inside.
This room was simple enough and was rectangular, with a set of mirrors along the far wall. The gray carpet had a thick blue mat laid across its surface with several yoga mats spaced out across that. Edelin was there, laying out a few more of the yoga mats and they smiled as she spotted us. "Good morning campers, Lucy." They said, nodding over to us. "Just take a seat anywhere and we'll get started once a few more kids show up."
"Why does she call you that?" I asked Lucian as we sat down on the mats.
"It is a long story." He said, shaking his head.
We sat there talking amongst ourselves and, after a while, a few other campers came in and sat down. Mostly everyone stayed well away from each other, staying in groups of two and after a while a kind of hush fell over the group. It was strange. Normally, a group this size should be rather noisy, but as I looked around, I could see that most everyone had that shell-shocked look about them. After my time traveling from asylum to asylum, I was pretty familiar with that look and I could only guess what traumas and horrors these guys had been through.
"Seven campers and a Lucy…" Edelin said after it looked like no one else was coming, "I've had worse starts to a semester. First things first," they said as they walked over to the front of the blue mat, "everybody come in close. I don't bite much, so no need to huddle in the corners." There was some groaning, but soon everyone gathered into the first few rows of yoga mats. "I've met some of you before but allow me to introduce myself. My name is not Dr. Thatcher, or Doc, or anything like that. Just call me Ede or Edelin. I go by either, and I use they/them and she/her pronouns. I want to stress that this is a safe place and if you have any preferences about how we use your pronouns, or your name, please share with the group. In a moment, I will go around and ask that you share a bit about yourself. You can share as much or as little about yourself as you wish, though I hope you all will tell us your names, at the very least, as I am a terrible guesser. I know that much of this might feel strange, but you may also wish to share with the group what your gifts are. My gift, for instance, is air manipulation."
"Can we see?" Kat asked.
"I don't think—"
"Come on!" Kat groaned, "I've been dying to see some dang magic ever since I got here!"
A few of the others in the room nodded and called out approvingly, and Edelin smiled. "Well, I suppose the whole point of this class is to encourage you all to embrace your gifts." They took a deep breath, and then took two quick steps toward us and ran into the air. It was like they were running up an invisible set of stairs and as they crossed over us, they jumped back down again, ending in a low crouch. "Huh, still got it." They smiled as we all turned around to face her. "Now then, if we can move on, why don't we start with you?" she said, pointing at Kat.
"Yeah, sure." Kat was sitting on her knees and perked up as she spoke. "You all know me, you all love me, and if you don't, what's stopping you? It's me, the one and only Kat! Last names are boring, so I don't have one. Don't bother asking. I go by she/her one hundred percent of the time and I'm sixteen, but my fake I.D. says I'm a fashionable twenty-two. What else? Oh, I love fire! I love looking at it, smelling it, and if I could, I'd eat it! All things just look better on fire, so naturally I do my best to set the world ablaze and obviously somebody up there agrees with me. I am a fire warrior, a priestess of flame, and it bends to my will! Or at least it sort of does. Anyway, that's all."
There was a quiet, stunned silence then, before Edelin cleared their throat. "I see… well, is there anyone brave enough to go next?"
"My name is Elizabeth Miller," Eli said, "and I go by Eli. I'm eighteen, go by she/her, and I've already killed someone with my ability, or 'gift', to manipulate water. Apparently, I'm rather powerful and that's the only reason I could pop my boyfriend like a bloody water balloon. I don't regret what I did, he… he wasn't a good person, but I didn't mean to kill him either. I'm not here to have fun, but I want to learn how to control this unknown part of me."
"Thank you for sharing, Eli." Edelin said, "Who else?" I sat there, as one by one each person in the room said a little about themselves and what horrible thing had led them here. One person could manipulate electricity but would give anyone who touched them a shock strong enough to cause electrical burns. Another person could manipulate magnetism but had almost died after being crushed inside an elevator. Before long, everyone else in the room had taken their turn and Edelin pointed at me.
"You're up next kid."
"Oh, um, yeah. My name is Damien Jones, he/him I guess, and I'm seventeen and was planning to go to college in the spring to be an art major. I graduated early because, as my dad likes to say, I think too much, but I… I made something, out of shadow, and it killed him, my dad I mean, and a whole other bunch of people. I don't want anything to do with these powers, but everyone keeps telling me I can't just ignore them, either. Honestly, I can't see any way forward from here, but what else am I supposed to do?"
"Well put, Damien." Edelin nodded. "Clearly, we all have different views about our gifts. Some of us are more excited by the thought of having abilities than the rest of us. However, the important thing is that we're all here with the expectation of learning control." They looked around at us. "Is that a reasonable thing to say?" I thought for a moment before nodding and it seemed everyone else agreed. "Good. Now, before we do anything else, I suggest we get up and move around a little."
We all got up then and took some time as Edelin led us through some basic stretches and breathing exercises. It felt kind of good, if I had to be honest, and as we settled back down, everyone seemed a little more relaxed. It was as if, between our somewhat emotionally charged introductions and the light exercise, we had unloaded some small amount of our grief.
"Now then," Edelin said, "one of the most important things that we Edelstein can do to learn control is to practice mindfulness. It is far too easy to lose control of our powers if we allow intrusive thoughts or emotions to overwhelm us. So, for today, all I want for us to do is sit quietly with our eyes closed. Just find a comfortable position, whatever feels natural, and we can begin." I adjusted myself so that I was sitting cross-legged and, with a sigh, I closed my eyes. "As we do this, I want us all to be aware of what we're thinking. It is not uncommon for the mind to wander and that's ok. Allow the thoughts to come. Let them wash over you, let your mind drift. If you feel any negative thoughts enter your mind, take a moment and set them aside. These negative feelings and thoughts are a part of you, but they do not define you and are not worth dwelling on."
I sat there with my eyes closed, listening to her guide us, and I couldn't help but think about everything that had happened. The night my father died came into my mind, and I couldn't help but relive that moment as I found his bloody body. I winced, but slowly I pushed those thoughts away. It was difficult, but I allowed myself to let the terrible things that permeated my mind to disappear. Eventually, I found myself in a place of calm and, for once, simply allowed myself to breathe.
"So here we are, alone at last."
I opened my eyes, startled by the sudden voice, but the surrounding room was dark. I stood and looked around, but I was alone. "Lucian? Eli?"
"Don't be afraid… come closer."
I looked around. Across the room from me, I could see the mirror that took up that wall. The reflection I saw made no sense though, as the room I was in was completely dark, but the reflection showed a room fully illuminated. The reflection of me stood there alone and beckoned for me to come closer. Slowly, I walked over and saw that this reflection of me was strange. He looked like me, but all of his colors looked inverted. His skin was a dark midnight blue and his hair was white as printer paper, as were all the shadows that fell across him. This strange version of me smiled as his purple eyes watched me come closer.
"Who are you?"
"Why don't you tell me?" The reflection said, grinning. "After all, you were the one to bring me here."
"What are you—" I stopped as I realized what it was saying. "You're the monster!"
"Am I!?" He snarled as his wild eyes glared at me. "Isn't that what you wanted? Didn't you call me here to kill, maim, and destroy? Didn't you create me to be a monster?"
"No! I didn't want you to do anything! You were just supposed to be a drawing!"
He scoffed. "Pathetic. Well, with the stroke of a pen, you called me here and I'm not going back. I exist and you can't stay awake forever."
"Wait, can't we… can we just stop this?"
"I told you I'm not going back!"
"I don't know what that means, but what if we stop fighting?"
"You have no clue what I even am, what I represent, and now you want me to stop?" He laughed. "You called me here to be a monster, not your friend."
"You're right." I glared at him. "You murdered my father, made me think I was insane, and ruined my life! If I could, I would kill you! But I can't do that, can I?"
"No sooner than I could kill you, but that's not important. After all, there are worse fates than death…"
"What do you mean?"
He chuckled. "You have no notion of what I could do to you… but maybe the most fitting thing I could do to you is rid you of your right hand, don't you think? Fitting for me to claim the hand that so carelessly gave me life." He reached out for me and his hand shifted into several long, serrated blades. I backed away from the mirror and he tapped its hard, glassy surface. I wasn't sure if he could cross over to this side, but he smiled and brought his bladed hand up over his right wrist. He laughed and, with one sharp slashing motion, he raked the blades over his own skin.