So I finally decided to start a thread about my progress. If you've read the cheers/update thread then skip the next bit.
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I was wandering around Obernet when I realised that I haven't actually kept everyone uptodate with my progress. So anyway this is what I've been doing. My goal was to write 20,000 words to finish the book I've been writing by the end of February which means I would go from 30,658 words to 50,658. Its only a short book . So I kept to my schedual of 300 words a day until I went on holidays in early January and didn't write anything for a week. I caught up on the words I hadn't done over about three days. It was then I realised that I wasn't going to finish my book in the amount of words I had left so I increased the number of words I was going to write to 25,000. This meant I needed to write 500 words a day. A couple of days after that I realised that uni starts at the end of February so I should probably try and finish writing before that. So I am now writing 25,000 by the end of January. I have written 50,392 which means I'm 266 words from my original goal but 5,266 from my new goal. As long as I keep writing 1,000 words a day I'll make it.
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You can stop skipping now, this bit is new.
Good news: I am up to 57,509 words. Yay I passed my aim of 55,658 words!
Bad news: I haven't finished writting my book.
I'm hoping that it'll be finished by about 60,000 words so I'm going to try and finish it for fun over the next couple of days. There isn't much to go its just connecting the last bits together so it all makes sense since I wrote the end bits earlier and I'm just trying to catch the rest of the story up to them.
Anyway since you've had to put up with my lack of updates I'll put up a bit of my story for you that I wrote today. I hope you enjoy it and I'm sorry if it doesn't make sense.
I wanted to help but I had no idea how. I walked out onto the veranda when Aaron went to check how everyone in the dorm was going. I watched as Ryan used a flame to harry a griffin to the ground. Jordan or Ruby made the ground rise up and encase the griffin all the way up to its head. I could see griffins similarly caught all over the ground. I looked back at Ryan. I could harry griffins too. I turned to Ria. She was waiting for more water to be brought to her. “Tell Aaron I’m going to try to drive the griffins to the ground,†I said.
She looked startled, “But that’s dangerous.â€
I was too busy shapeshifting into an owl to answer. It was getting too dark to shift into my favourite bird, the peregrine falcon but the barn owl would do just as well, maybe even better for this. Owls have excellent eyesight and hearing and can fly almost silently. They wouldn’t know I was there until I screeched at them or slashed them with my talons. I ruffled the feathers of my barn owl form, pale brown on my back and white on my underside, and took off. I flew above the attacking griffins and looked around. Everyone seemed to have crowed together in a couple of dorms to make it easier to defend. Our dorm seemed to be stopping the griffins best while the others were mostly just trying to drive them off. One of the dorms had a force field around it so most of the griffins were concentrating on other dorms instead. I could see Catherine, Jen and Derek on their verandas directing the campers’ defences. I hoped they’d found a healer. I saw Ria wrap a rope of water around the waist of one of the people the griffins had captured while it was being driven to the ground by Ryan’s fire. A ball of fire flew at the griffin’s talons and it released the camper. Ria’s water pulled him to the ground where there was a sudden blur and he was gone. I saw him on the veranda the next second with one of the superhuman speed kids and them the superhuman speed kid was gone again. I circled the dorms looking for someone to help but everyone seemed alright here for now. I headed toward the amphitheatre to see if there was anyone left behind. I could see injured people, mainly hidden under something to avoid the griffins and flew back to let the superhuman abilities know. I landed on the veranda and shifted back. A blur deposited someone on the veranda. “Wait,†I called.
A redhaired boy appeared before me, “What?â€
“Between here and the amphitheatre there’s injured people hiding from the griffins,†I said quickly.
He nodded, “We’ll get on to it.â€
Then he was gone. I shifted back into a barn owl and flew off again. I flew at a griffin and screeched at it, trying to distract it from taking a cowering camper. I snatched some of the griffin's feathers with my talons making it shriek in pain and leave the camper. I was gone before it realised who had hurt it. I heard another screech and dived to avoid a pair of huge talons. It didn’t sound right for some reason. It came into my vision and I realised why. It wasn’t a griffin, it was a hippogriff. It had an eagle’s front and a horse’s back. It grabbed the roof of a dorm with its talons and smashed a window with its hooves. There were screams from inside. I dove at the hippogriff and tried to rake its head with my talons but it snapped at me with its beak. I flew out of reach. The scryers would let everyone know that we were being attacked by hippogriffs now as well but I really needed to find a way to knock them out of the air. Something heavy but agile and able to protect itself against or at least avoid the sharp beak and talons of the hippogriff. Some sort of big cat would be good. A leopard. I remembered seeing pictures of them on the internet dragging their kill into trees to protect them from other predators so they should be able to hold onto a hippogriff. The problem would be that I would have to change from owl to leopard midair and get the timing right to actually land on the hippogriff. I stopped circling the hippogriff on the dorm roof and flew toward it. I started to shapeshift just before I was over the hippogriff. My wings became muscular legs, my body became furred not feathered and my tail grew long. I landed on the hippogriff, talons sinking in. It shrieked in pain and lost its grip on the roof. I leapt from the hippogriff’s back to the roof. I watched it hit the ground. Earth rose up around it, encasing it. I turned away and looked for my next target. A griffin swooped toward the ground near the dorm I was standing on. I waited for it to get close enough and leapt. I landed on it and the griffin was unable to adjust to my sudden weight. It crashed. I leapt off it and out of the way. The ground reached up ad swallowed most of the griffin, leaving it able to breathe but not able to move. My ear twitched at the sound of wing beats and I ducked. A hippogriff swooped over me, just missing. Being a leopard on the ground was no use against large flying attackers. I shifted back into an owl and took flight. I noticed the force field around one of the dorms had disappeared. I flew closer and as I passed the window I could see it was empty inside. I checked the other dorms. All the campers and the coordinators had crowded into the three dorms that were closest to each other. I flew down to the veranda of one and landed. I shifted back into my human self and walked inside. “What’s going on?†I asked the nearest person.
They looked at me in confusion. I sighed and went looking for Aaron or someone in charge. I found Aaron first. “Where have you been,†Aaron said worriedly as he hugged me quickly.
“Helping. You know there are hippogriffs attacking now too right?â€
“Yes. We’ve moved into these three dorms so we can put a force field over everyone.â€
“Have we gotten everyone here then?â€
“No, we’re still looking for people. Go over and tell Catherine you’re here so she knows you’re not dead or captured.â€
I nodded and walked over to the line of people waiting to see Catherine. “Name and ability,†she said when I got to her.
“Kaylee Anderson, shapeshifter.â€
“Where have you been?â€
“I found injured people for the superhuman abilities to get and told them where they were and I was knocking some hippogriffs and griffins to the ground for the earth manipulators.â€
“What did you shapeshift into to do that?â€
“A barn owl and a leopard.â€
“I want you to take a four hour rest and then I’ll get you to scout the grounds for me. Find a bunk and take a sleeping cordial. Make sure to tell the healer who gives it to you four hours. Next. â€
I moved out of the way. Aaron came over. “What was she talking to you about for so long?†he asked.
“She wants me to scout after I’ve slept.â€
Aaron nodded and led me over to a bunk, “She has to make sure we don’t overuse our ability. None of us have a strong ability stamina yet so we can’t use our ability for a long time so she has to keep getting us to rest.â€
I sat down on the bed, “But I’m not tired.â€
“Adrenaline probably.â€
A healer boy came over and asked, “Are you injured or do you need sleeping cordial?â€
“Catherine said four hours sleep but I’m fine.â€
“I’ll go get the cordial then,†the boy said and walked off.
I looked at Aaron, “I’m fine, I don’t need to sleep.â€
“Get some while you can. Catherine’s divided up the influential abilities so some of them can sleep and so all of the dorms can be protected. We don’t know how long we’re going to be attacked for or how long until help arrives. We sent out a message to the guild police but they haven’t answered or they haven’t gotten the message.â€
I nodded. He was right. Now that I was sitting down I was beginning to feel tired. I wasn’t just physically and mentally tired but my ability also felt tired. Actually fighting stuff took more out of it than training sessions. I suppose that was why Amber made me practise for such long periods of time and under uncomfortable circumstances. The healer came back and gave me a glass about a quarter full of a dark blue liquid. “Drink that then lay down,†he said.
“Night,†Aaron said.
“Night,†I said and drank the sleeping cordial. I gagged. It tasted terrible. “That’s disgusting,†I said.
“Drink it all,†the boy said, folding his arms, “Or I’ll make you sleep with my ability and I won’t make it nice for you.â€
I scowled, took a breath and drained the glass. I handed it back to the bossy healer boy with a shudder. I lay back, suddenly desperate for sleep. I shut my eyes and was asleep immediately.
That's an action-packed story, Araleen! Makes me think of a fantasy version of one of Matthew Riley - something happening non-stop.
I like the different talents you've introduced us too, and am intrigued about your main shape-shifting character. Can she become any animal at all? Can she become another human?
Why are the griffins attacking a dorm-full of students?
Sorry for all the questions :). Very interesting read, and congratulations for being so close to finishing.
Mystic Ward
12 years ago
Mystic Ward
Twentyfamilies Gypsy
Well done on writing so much.
Wow, you have written heaps, Araleen. Totally jealous of that. And don't worry about your snippets not making sense--they are meant to not make sense (not entirely anyway). Just gives people an idea of what you're up to, and it certainly looks as though your characters have been up to a lot. Doesn't seem like a very fun camp though.
Oh, well done, Araleen! What an achievement. I'm so envious.
Is this the first book you've finished writing?
Shape-shifting sounds like an extremely handy talent. I want to be a shape-shifter!
Hurrah for first drafts--now onwards to the millions of after-drafts. Certainly is a big achievement to finish writing a novel though, not a lot of people get that far.
Wanderer Ward
12 years ago
Wanderer Ward
Dreamscape Artist
Congratulations on finishing your first draft Araleen! :D Wow, I'm away from the OberNoWriSu board for a few days and there's been so much progress!
I like that your main character's favourite bird is the peregrine falcon! There were two peregrines at my place earlier in the week. I'd never seen them before and had always imagined them to be really majestic, which of course they are, but they were making these horrible screeching calls to each other which totally ruined the moment! :P
Are you just going to focus on editing now or do you have another story idea ready to be written? Good luck going to university! :)
Woot! Congratulations! That's some awesome work. :) Hehe, it's good that you leave a few mysteries in there. Tell us how your editing goes, I know I'd love to hear if some crazy new ideas pop up along the way :)
11 years ago
Wed Dec 26 2012, 05:04pm
:rolling: OberNoWriSu 2012/2013 :rolling:
Ok this is the start of my OberNoWriSu 2012/2013 updates. Yay!! I'll update you on what I've been doing since the last OberNoWriSu.
I've been editing of the book I finished for last OberNoWriSu and I've been getting people I know to read it which has been useful. So far it seems to be making sense to people which is good and they find it interesting. One of my readers also volunteered to do some editing while reading which has been pretty funny. She keeps writing funny comments on what she thinks about it and gets particulary annoyed at my lack of Oxford commas.
I've also been working on the sequel because editing gets a bit boring. I've managed to get a story line and about 2,000 words of random bits of scenes that pop into my head. It would have been nice to get more done but real life like uni gets in the way a bit.
OberNoWriSu 2012/2013
Anyway I've written 554 words since I posted in the thread today. Some for yesterday and today so I keep on track. Hopefully I'll be able to keep on track and reach my goal. I'll try and put some of it up in the next week and see what you think.
Excellent! Way to go Araleen :D
Here's to progress!
Ok. I know I haven't updated in a while but I've had a busy week and weekend. I'm a little behind where I want to be in my word count but I should be able to finish catching up this week as it should be less busy.
Thank you everyone for your support.
Word count: 2,466
Total word count: 3,020
As promised here is some of what I've written. If you've read what else I've written then this makes some reference to that and gives you background information to what the world of my story is like. Sorry about it being a large chunk of dialogue and I hope you find it interesting. Enjoy.
“Welcome to the Australian School of Abilities,†the woman said with a smile, “For those of you who don’t know me, I am Ms Carmody, your principal. As you may have noticed there are more finals years in uniforms than first years who don’t have uniforms yet. The attacks on the abilities camps last year and over the summer have reduced our numbers. This is one of the smallest first years we’ve had. Our first years usually outnumber the final years. The Guild Police are doing everything they can to find those who were taken. I want you all to put all your effort into doing the best you can while at the Australian School of Abilities. That way when our other students are returned to us you will be able to help them catch up more easily. That is all I have to say to the final years. You may leave to collect your books and new uniforms if you need them for this year. Your room and roommate will be the same as last year. You may leave now final years.â€
The final years left the foyer, murmuring to each other.
Ms Carmody waited patiently until they left before she began again, “Most of you first years will only have used your ability at one of the Headquarters where you were trained last year or at ability camp. That is why you are here. Throughout Australia and most other countries there are suburbs in major cities that are exclusive for people with abilities. Only people with abilities are able to live there and primary and middle schools for children with abilities are found there. Those who grow up in an abilities suburb will spend all of their schooling except their final two years in abilities schools. The final two years will be spent in non-ability schools to help them adjust to living with non-abilities. All of you here are not like that. You have not been raised in an ability suburb or have only spent a small amount of time in one. Due to this you spend your final two years of schooling surrounded by people with abilities. The Australian School of Abilities is in the centre of the first abilities suburb in Australia. This will allow you to adjust to living with other abilities and controlling your own ability on a daily basis. You will be able to freely use your ability while you are here and explore the ability suburb on weekends unless you are being punished for misbehaviour. You will also be divided into a faction called a guild based on your ability. The guilds are named for and represent the original guilds of somatic, psychic, influential and unique. Once you have been divided into your guild your restrictors will be removed and you will receive your uniforms and books.â€
11 years ago
Mon Dec 17 2012, 06:20am
Oh, sounds a lot like Obernewtyn but set in the present day world. I look forward to meeting your protagonist and seeing what he/she is able to do. Also very curious to know who's taking the kids with abilities.
Good progress, Araleen!
Edit: oh I just scrolled up and had a look at your earlier snippet - I remember your world now! So griffins took those people that your teacher said were taken? And is this story also from the point of view of the character in the first snippet?
It's like Obernewtyn and Hogwarts had a love child :D Nice to see you are still working on this, Araleen. Is your last snippet from the frst or second one, though?
Also I'm so stealing your idea of shoving snippets in spoilers, makes for much easier scrolling :D
Word count (since last time I posted): 2,544
Total word count: 5,564
Thank you Darga. Thank you Sion. Its so nice that you think its that good.
Questions
Darga
It is from the same point of view as the character from the first snippet. As for meeting the main character here's a snippet from the first one when you first meet her.
I sighed as I stepped off the plane into the summer heat of Western Australia. Bright red dirt gleamed under a clear blue, cloudless sky and gum trees twisted skywards, bushes clustered around their feet like children. My black three quarter leggings, black skirt and black spaghetti strapped, skull patterned shirt clung to me in the heat. My feet felt suffocated in my shoes and my black hair stuck to the back of my neck. My father, Damian Anderson and my mother, Lola-Marie Carrington glared at each other as they disembarked from the plane. Damian had brown eyes and black curly hair which I had unfortunately inherited and kept straightened at all times. Damian always looked like he was going to a meeting with his black pants, crisp, collared shirt, tie and jacket. His jacket was off today because of the disgusting heat. Lola-Marie had long, wavy red hair and sweet, dark blue eyes completely opposite my own cold, ice blue eyes. She wore a short denim skirt and a dark green shirt which you wouldn’t expect to see on the mother of a teenager.
“You followed me here Damian!†Lola-Marie growled venomously, giving him a look that would peel paint.
“I followed you here?†Damian yelled, “I came here to get as far away from you as possible!â€
They had been doing this all the way from my former home of Launceston, Tasmania on the other side of Australia. They had divorced eight years ago when I was seven and had both jumped at the chance to move away from each other. Unfortunately they were both accepted in jobs in the same town. I grimaced, remembering what I had looked up on the internet about it. Only one cinema and a swimming centre. This place was a dump.
“Wicked weather isn’t it, its forty-six degrees Celsius today you know mate. I love it,†said a voice behind me.
I turned to see a boy in a red t-shirt with black hems, blue jeans and red and white sneakers.
I replied sarcastically, “Oh yes I’ve always enjoyed burning to death.â€
He chuckled and said, “You’re a laugh mate. I’m Xavier Dingo by the way.â€
“Kaylee Anderson,†I said.
“You just moved here?†he inquired and I nodded.
“From Tasmania, you’re a local I assume.â€
“No, well I’ve lived here for two years before that I was from Melbourne, Victoria so compared to you I’m a local. I’ve actually just come back from visiting my cousin in Melbourne,†explained Xavier, brown eyes twinkling mischievously.
“KAYLEE!†Lola-Marie yelled.
“Bye,†I sighed as I rolled my eyes and walked towards my annoying parents.
“See ya Tassie,†Xavier called after me.
Hope that helps.
Sion
The snippet is from the second one. In the first one they had just discovered their special abilties and were learning the basics before they went to an abilties school. That way they could focus on honing their abilities rather than spending half their time learning the basics. Also its to even out the people with abilties who had parents with abilties and had been practising since childhood from those who hadn't.
Anyway here's some of what I wrote this week inspired by a really weird dream I had. Anyone else recognise the creature ^^;
I stared at the creature on the bank in shock. It looked like a tadpole that was partway to becoming a frog; it had the legs, arms and head of a frog but the long tail of a tadpole and a strangely elongated body that belonged to neither. The main difference was that it was about four or five metres long not four or five centimetres. I edged back, remembering that the Guild Police had said it was the best method when encountering something unknown and potentially dangerous. Ria’s head broke the surface and she gasped loudly. It turned its head to look at her and then slid into the water.
“Ria!†I yelled, “Use your water manipulation to get out of the water now!â€
She jerked her head around to see where I was, splashing loudly. I watched as the creature swam just below the water’s surface toward her.
“Get out of the water now!†I shouted, voice rising.
I tried to stay calm. If I freaked out so would she. Ria spotted me finally and started to swim toward me.
“Use your ability to get out of the water!†I shouted again.
She paused and gathered herself to use her ability. She still wasn’t very good at using it. It still took her time to concentrate enough to use it. I watched as the creature swam closer, hoping for once she would use her ability fast. I saw Ria frown as the water rippled around her and turn to look toward the creature. He mouth dropped open in shock and fear as its head broke the surface. She put her arm between herself and the creature. The water rose up in a wave behind her. Her other arm rose in the air to direct the wave to swamp the creature like I had seen her do before. It was too late. The creature latched onto the arm she had put between her and it. Ria screamed. Jason ran past me toward the water.
“Stop!†I yelled at him, “You’re an illusionist! You can’t do anything!â€
He stopped at the water’s edge. Now that he wasn’t doing something stupid I wracked my brain for something to shapeshift into to save Ria. Suddenly the lake in front of us disappeared. Ria and the creature seemed to be suspended in the air. Ria gasped as it dragged her toward the ground like she was still in the water. The creature paused. It seemed disorientated. It floated upwards with Ria. Ria coughed like she was coughing up water but there was nothing.
Jason said in a strained voice, “Attack it know while its confused so it lets Ria go and bring her back.â€
So this was what an illusionist could do. I shifted into an osprey and flew across the lake. I dove down and scratched the creature across the head. Its jaw released Ria. I dove down beside Ria and was shock when I felt water. I shifted into a baiji. Ria held one arm to her side and grabbed my dorsal fin. I swam toward the bank. My echolocation helped me to avoid submerged logs and determine when it was shallow enough to walk. I shifted back into a human. Ria stumbled forward. I grabbed her arm and put it over my shoulders. I put my arm around her back and we stumbled through the invisible water to the bank. The water appeared again and Jason splashed into the shallows. I stopped and let Jason take Ria. He picked her up, cradling her in his arms. His face was drained of all colour. I climbed up the bank and I climbed up behind him. I followed him as he walked well back from the bank before he sat Ria against a tree. Ria stared at him, tears spilling down her face as she clutched her arm. I gasped as I saw Ria’s arm. I had been crushed by the creature’s jaws. Jason grabbed the emergency signaller from around his neck and hit the switch. The light on it stared flashing.
“Don’t worry Ria,†Jason said softly, “Sebastian will be here soon to teleport us out of here. We’ll be fine.â€
Once again thank you for your support.
Thanks for the snippets, Araleen. You've clearly got your abilities very well worked out. I always like learning about new magic systems. Hope the writing keeps going well!
Hmm, I don't recognise the creature . . . but that's totally going to bug me now because I feel like I should know. >:(
Sorry I haven't updated in a while. Life keeps getting in the way. I also ended up getting really behind on my word goals so I've been catching up. I kept putting off catching up because it was building up. I think I ended up being 2,000 words behind my target so I had to sit down and just make myself write everyday so I would get it done little by little.
Anyway as of a couple of minutes ago I am back on track.
Word count since I last posted: 5,962
Total word count: 11,526
I wanted to put up a snippet to reward you for your patience but I'm not really sure what to put up since its bits of scences mostly as random things popped into my head.
Any requests?
11 years ago
Wed Jan 16 2013, 06:56am
All of it!! [act]flail[/act] Ahem. I mean, we'd be happy with anything :).
And well done on getting back up to date :).
Congrats on the word count. You have nearly doubled it since you last updated, so not a bad effort. :D And [strike]everything[/strike] anything is good!
The last few weeks have been pretty tough for me writing wise. I've been sick and busy and procrastinating so I'm about 4,000 words behind my word goal. I've been writing a little but I'll write one day then not do any for days. I managed to write a bit today. Its not much but its something so I'll just keep trying.
Word count since I last posted: 1,863
Total word count: 13,389
Here's the snippet I promised last time I posted.
“What’s that,†I said pointing through the mist to the far bank.
Aaron, Xavier and Ria squinted through the mist to where I was pointing.
Xavier said, “Looks like someone’s over there. Wait a minute.â€
Xavier stared into space. Aaron was watching Xavier with a worried look. I looked at Ria. She shrugged.
“I can see you fighting someone Ria. It kind of hazy though. I’m still not very good at seeing the future. The mist is there too which doesn’t help,†Xavier said.
“What!†Ria squeaked, “I can’t fight anyone.â€
A wave rose up on the far bank beside the figure and it started to move toward us.
“Please tell me that’s you Ria and you’re just going to turn the wave around,†Xavier said.
Ria stared at the wave trembling.
“Its another water manipulator,†Aaron said, “Kaylee can you fly over there in this mist?â€
“I can try. I’ve never flown in mist before,†I said doubtfully.
“First time for everything,†Xavier said with a grin.
Aaron nodded, “Ria, see if you can counteract the other water manipulator’s attacks. Xavier, use your precognition to get us some information. Kaylee, fly over and subdue the water manipulator. I’ll see if I can see anything that can help us but at this distance and with the mist my ability isn’t very useful.â€
We nodded, Ria still trembling. I shut my eyes and shapeshifted into an white-bellied sea eagle. I saw Ria form a wave of her own and move it tentatively across the river toward the approaching wave. I took off. I flew up so I would clear the waves before I began to fly toward the water manipulator. I flew over Ria’s little wave and across the water between the two waves. The mist seemed to be getting thicker the further I flew. I had just reached the other wave when a rope of water shot out of the wave. It came straight for me. I veered to the side to avoid it. The end of the water ope split into stands which shot toward me. I flew up. Another rope rose from the wave toward me, blocking my path to the water manipulator. I turned sharply to the left. Even halfway across the river the mist was still too thick for me to see the water manipulator clearly. The water ropes continued to follow me, driving me away from the water manipulator’s bank and back toward my own. I turned back toward the bank. With the mist there was no way I’d be able to out manoeuvre those ropes. I reached the bank and landed beside Aaron before shapeshifting back into a human.
“The mist gets thicker the further across the river you get. That water manipulator also had some water ropes that were keeping me from getting more than halfway across the river,†I said, frustrated.
Aaron nodded and said, “I think the water manipulator created the mist to hide his or her identity and to make it harder for us to defeat him or her.â€
We had to fight a clever person didn’t we?
“Its up to you then Ria,†Aaron said.
Ria looked pale and nervous
“I don’t know if I can do it,†she whispered.
Xavier grinned, “Sure you can. You practise really hard. Its gotta pay off sometime.â€
Ria gave a weak smile and nodded.
“I’ll try,†she said.
Ria turned her attention back to her wave. The wave grew bigger as Ria moved it toward the other water manipulator’s wave. The other wave shot forward and smashed into Ria’s wave. Ria gasped and her wave trembled as it tried to hold its ground. The other wave inched forward, pushing Ria’s wave back toward us.
“No,†Ria whispered.
Her wave gathered itself and tried to push the other wave back. The enemy wave faltered for a moment. The crest of the wave turned to ice and shoved Ria’s wave back. Ice tipped tendrils rose out of the wave. They slipped through the air to hit Ria’s wave. Where they touched, pieces of Ria’s wave turned to ice and fell away. I could see Ria’s wave shifted, trying to dodge the tendrils. They were too fast. Ria’s wave was falling apart piece by piece.
“Let go of the wave and use another to knock the other water manipulator out,†Aaron said to Ria.
Ria shook her head and gasped, “Too strong. I can’t.â€
“You can,†I snapped, “Your only problem is that you’re too scared.â€
Ria looked down and whispered, “I’m sorry. I know I’m a coward.â€
“Kaylee didn’t mean it like that,†Aaron said, “She means you need to be more confident in yourself. We know you can do it. You just need to believe it.â€
Xavier grinned, “Get it Ria. Show off all that studying.â€
Ria smiled and nodded. She took a deep breath. Ria’s wave collapsed and another instantly rose up by the other bank. It headed straight for the water manipulator. The shadowy figure raised a hand a flicked it lazily at us. Ria’s wave halted in its tracks.
“No,†she whispered.
The wave reversed direction and came crashing back toward us.
“Stop,†Ria yelled fearfully.
She thrust her arms out, palms flat, as if to push the water away. The wave stopped, hanging above our heads. For a few seconds we just stared at the wave. I let out a shaky breath. Ria seemed to come to her senses. She lowered her arms and the wave sunk back into the river.
“The person’s gone,†Aaron said.
Xavier Ria and I looked across the river. Aaron was right. The mist had vanished and the bank was empty.
Ria hung her head and whispered, “I’m sorry.â€
“That person was probably really experienced. It’s good that you were able to fight for that long against someone like that,†I said.
Aaron nodded, “Its not your fault. You did everything you could.â€
Xavier grinned, “That was cool. Wish my ability could do stuff like that.â€
“Thanks,†Ria whispered.
She still looked upset but she got upset when she got less than 90% at anything. She’d probably just spend more time studying.
“We’d better go back and report this,†Aaron said.
We nodded and followed Aaron away from the river.