Issue 1 Downtime

Steve, still disappointed by the strange closing of the Point, sat on a bench in the exercise room. In one hand, he lifted a dumbbell up and down.

Gideon tended to wear nondescript clothing while in public places in order to not draw too much attention to himself. He stood on a set of gymnastic mats going through a complicated set of martial arts forms at first slowly, but gaining speed with each movement.

Steve began to watch with increasing interest. He had only seen such things done on television and in movies.

Gideon moved with a great deal of agility. The movements very smooth and looking quite well practiced. However, all things come to an end and Gideon stopped and exhaled slowly unaware that he had an audience.

"Dude... you've got to teach me how to do that," the muscular Southern boy grinned.

Gideon seemed to measure Steve with the look he gave him. If Steve was looking he'd see that Gideon's arms had a large number of scars. His eyes glowed an alternating blue and red.

"I don't teach," Gideon said, "The faculty wouldn't approve of me interacting with young malleable minds."

The look, as much as the statement, made him stop what he was doing.

"Why is that?" he asked, trying not to sound nervous.

"Because I'm only here because the headmistress is vouching for my desire to reform," Gideon said, "And likely nobody would trust you if I were to teach you."

He shuddered mentally, wondering if Gideon was some reformed supervillain.

"It's just martial arts," he said with a barely believable 'so what' shrug.

"Nothing is ever that simple," Gideon said, "Have you ever taken a self defense class?"

"Well... no..."

"Have you taken a power control class?" Gideon asked.

"I'd have had my first today but it got cancelled."

"The fundamentals in both classes will help you more than I can," Gideon said, "Or private tutoring with a specialist. I took telepathy lessons with the headmistress, which would have helped more if I were more diligent student."

"You're a telepath?"

"Yes, telepathy is one of my gifts," Gideon said.

"I'm a telepath too."

"Ah," Gideon said, "It's not an easy path. More difficult depending on your powers...focus."

"I... don't even know what my focus is," he admitted, "Just that I see more than hear."

"You'll find it given time and practice," Gideon said, "Mine was fear. Later on it was fear and pain. I hope for your sake you don't have to follow that path."

Steve would have stepped back if he wasn't sitting down.

"I'd never... You don't... don't have to worry about that."

"It isn't my place to be concerned," Gideon said, "I should be warning enough not to take that path. An example that don't get to fall and rise again in one piece. Because you don't come out of that fire the same as when you went in. That's what becoming War does to you."

"You were one of the..." he said, shuddering a little.

"Yes, I was a Horseman. The incarnation of War," Gideon said, "Thats why I can't teach you. The teachers would think me a negative influence and the older students wouldn't trust you. Even if I could teach you my skills are not for peacetime."

"Point t-taken," he answered.

"Good," Gideon said, "Do not be so frightened, Mr. Jones. I would not be allowed here at the school if the teachers thought I would kill other students."

"I'm not afraid," he lied reflexively, turning red with embarrassment, "I'm just..." He found no good cover story.

"You can't lie to me about fear," Gideon said, "But please continue, youngling."

Steve said nothing.

Why can't I stop being such a coward...?

"You are not a coward," Gideon said, "Being frightened of somebody with as much blood on their hands as me is only natural. What matters is how you deal with that fear."

"... how do I?"

"Do what?" Gideon asked. "Deal with fear? That doesn't have a simple answer. Each person handles fear differently, but I've always found understanding why I am afraid to be helpful."

"How the heck do I figure that out?"

But you do know Stephen. You do know.

"The headmistress or the school psychologist can help you with that more than I can," Gideon said, "My advice is to look at it objectively if you can. My other advice is to learn how to keep people, their emotions, and thei thoughts out of your mind. As a telepath you are open to being influenced by others' emotions and through that their fears. Try not to shut off your negative emotions entirely, but instead understand them. That side of you is not a foreign entity. Thinking of it as such will lead to a great deal of pain. Both things can make you unstable.

Steve nodded. "Believe me, I can't wait to not randomly see people's thoughts."

"Here is my only lesson then," Gideon said, "There are many kinds of telepathic shields, but the simplest involve memories or simple images. With memories pick something simple, but vivid. Sit and think about that memory: every scent, color, taste, and feeling. Meditate on it regularly until you every detail comes to you easily. Then when you find yourself finding it difficult to be around others focus on that memory. If you keep practicing it eventually you will be able to do it sub-consciously. Otherwise pick a simple object. Most beginners choose something like a wall. Fix the image of that wall in your mind, picture every brick, the color, and it's strength. It follows a similar process as that of using a memory, but some prefer mental shields that are not personal like a memory. Others prefer being able to use the emotions of a memory t empower the shield. However, either can be equally effective for somebody whose talent is nascent."

"So... I could just picture, say, a model space shuttle?"

"Whatever image works best for you," Gideon said, "Most prefer simpler images with fewer moving parts, but it is a personal decision. Once you have the rough image start thinking of the details of the model. Each panel, window, flag, fuel pump, and so on."

"I have one on my desk, but yeah... maybe I'll try something easier first," he nodded.

"Alright," Gideon said, "You should perform this mental exercise every day or as often as you are comfortable with. Headaches are not uncommon after the first few exercises."