Deal maker

Joseph continued to work on some new defences of his own design behind the bar. The rhythmic clicking of the ratchet was interrupted by the opening and closing of the pub doors followed by two pairs of footsteps and the knocking of two glasses on the bar. Joseph stood up off the floor and wiped his hands on an old, stained apron as Amy and Aniello turned to go upstairs.

"Hang on! Aren't you going to tell me how practice went before you scurry upstairs?" asked Joseph who seemed slightly offended by their behaviour. Amy and Aniello gave each other an uncomfortable look with a slight blush as they turned around and sat at the bar making sure to leave an empty seat between them.

"Well, my ability still works spontaneously but still no luck on using it effectively when I want to. I can barely use it on a small coin before exhausting myself." explained Amy.

"Same here. I can use it small things but I have little to no control over how much energy I use. And when I try to limit myself I just get extremely exhausted." explained Aniello. Joseph thought for a second before picking up a pencil from the floor and an old receipt off the bar.

"I think I have an idea what your problem is. It's called the Flumen problem I think. I read about it in a book while researching abilities to learn how to control mine but it was a bit complicated so I try telling it in a story form." Joseph drew two straight lines down the middle of the receipt and some squares either side at the bottom. "So... A village is separated by a river. They want to build a bridge but their builders and materials get swept away by the strong current every time. So they think of a way to slow the river by turning it on itself." Joseph drew two curves either side of the two lines making a shape similar to that of a spades symbol on a card. "The villagers dig two channels either side of the river so that the water curves around and slows the river down. It works but the water is so fast that lots of the water sprays out over the banks. So much water is lost that further down the river a water mill slows down. Substitute in someone's ability it shows that most people use their energy to control their energy output. But this method only uses more energy and wastes a lot. You two just need to learn how to use less energy from the start rather than limit it near the end."

Amy and Aniello nodded in understanding. They mostly understood what Joseph had said and luckily understood what he meant at the end. They thanked Joseph and went upstairs as Joseph turned to continue working. In the reflection of a bottle Joseph caught a glimpse of a figure standing in the pub window. He spun around and looked. There was no one in the window but a figure was smiling from a dark purple, brimmed hat at the edge of the tree line. The figure turned and entered the forest as Joseph cursed under his breath tossing the apron to the side and chasing after them.

Joseph entered the forest and ran after the figure only being able to catch glimpses of them ahead through the trees. Suddenly, Joseph's vision began to distort and warp around him. The trees grew and shrank while the ground dipped and crested. Joseph stumble over onto his hands and knees while Demitri leapt down from the tree above. Demitri shoved Joseph over onto his back with his foot and pinned him down by kneeling on his arms. Demitri's hat came down over Joseph's face letting his mind settle from the distortion. Joseph went to throw Demitri off but a sharp point on his neck suggested he should stay put.

"Lets settle down now shall we? I'm going to make this brief so you better listen while you have the chance." Demitri whispered into Joseph's ear breathing in sharply after every sentence. "I want something you have. And you are going to give it to me. Those two kids seemed to be quite excited about a festival so that's how long you have. You will give me those plans for that weapon so I can take them to my colleague, or... well, lets just say that young minds are so FUN to play around with. So WEAK and malleable. It would be a shame if they came to work for me due to a change of perception. Not to mention that I'd drag you along as well and make sure suffered as payment for all those years. I am the one in control this time! But lets not get carried away shall we. I think I've made my point clear. Bring the plans to the festival in five days. I'll find you so just find a comfortable seat and don't try anything stupid."

Demitri removed his hat from Joseph's face giving Joseph a few seconds to catch Demitri's eyes fade from purple to grey before they were covered up by the hat. Demitri took the knife away from Joseph's throat and tucked it into the inside of his jacket before leaning and falling sideways down into the shadows of the trees. Joseph rolled over onto his front and punched the ground.

"What was that! I thought we had an agreement. Why didn't you do anything?" asked Joseph.

"We have to smart if we want to take him down. For example, not running after him without any means of defending yourself. Just do what he says and take the plans to the festival. We'll deal with him there." replied a low voice in his head. Joseph stood up and wiped the dirt off his clothes as he walked back to the pub.