Chapter 8 : Present

As Lincoln plummeted towards the city, he saw the streets of Guardio Seno teeming with various kinds of floating vehicles. These vehicles, shaped like "pods," came in a range of sizes, brands, and levels of luxury, and were all gliding smoothly through the city during the night.

As Lincoln touched down on one of the pods, he swiftly surveyed his surroundings, taking note of the diverse buildings that blurred past him. Suddenly, a faint cry from inside the pod drew his attention, compelling him to inspect it more closely. To his surprise, he discovered that the pod was unlike any vehicle he had ever encountered on Earth. It possessed a glass exterior with a subtle tint, a gleaming metal base, and lacked the typical thrusters that he was accustomed to seeing.

As he gazed upon the unconventional pod, Lincoln formulated a hypothesis that they were traversing on an exceedingly sophisticated mode of transportation that utilized an electromagnetic field as a "road." He identified this technology as being in its conceptual phase on Earth and not yet having been actualized. Lincoln mentally recorded his curiosity to investigate and amass more knowledge about this technology in the future.

The sound of breaking glass immediately put Lincoln on high alert. Reacting instinctively, he swiftly leapt from the pod to the side of the road and narrowly avoided being hit by a blue energy shard that flew by. He tried to use his powers to seize control of the shard and redirect it, but to his dismay and surprise, it didn't work. Making a quick decision, he unleashed his own shard to neutralize it and prevent it from causing harm to the building nearby.

What was that? He thought to himself.

Lincoln felt perplexed as to why his abilities had failed to work against the energy shard. He had undergone rigorous training for several months to master various energy weapons and become adept at manipulating the energy they produced. He swiveled around, scanning his surroundings for the source of the attack, and caught sight of a room with a broken window. Lincoln surmised that the energy shard he had encountered was distinct from anything he had trained with and resolved to investigate this new peril further, arming himself with knowledge to better prepare for future encounters.

With swift action, Lincoln teleported into the room, as the remnants of red energy dissipated into thin air. He paused for a moment, appreciating the liberty he possessed to use his powers on Alvanian, where such abilities were commonplace, unlike on Earth. Here, he knew that his actions would not be scrutinized or questioned. Nevertheless, as an energy manipulator, he understood the importance of exercising caution at all times.

The room seemed to be used for storage, with many boxes stacked throughout. He spotted a functional portal in the corner of the room and immediately took cover behind a box. It was clear, that the portal was how the attackers had entered the city.

Lincoln was plagued with a question that persisted in his thought. Why were portals left unguarded for anyone to stumble upon and utilize? He had believed that the use of portals was intended to be severely restricted. Was something awry? His confusion spurred him to consider whether any anomalies existed in the utilization of portals.

Lincoln closed his eyes and was able to see a third-person view of himself. He mentally zoomed out of the view to scan for any signs of life energy around him.

What he saw shocked him.

Energy is typically imperceptible to the naked eye, as it only becomes observable when it has been manipulated or altered in some way. Energy manipulators, like Lincoln, can sense atmospheric energy and make it visible by giving it a specific colour subconsciously, such as his crimson signature. Advanced tools, such as energy weapons, can also make energy visible by gathering kinetic energy, but they rely on advanced magnetic technology. Lincoln's ability to manipulate energy, on the other hand, was far more advanced than any tool or weapon. He had the power to control and manipulate energy in ways that other energy tools couldn't even come close to.

One of the key aspects of Lincoln's ability is his "second vision" which allows him to see and differentiate all forms of energy from each other. He perceives energy in four distinct colours so far, each representing a specific type of energy. This heightened perception allows him to quickly identify and respond to different types of energy.

However, when Lincoln activated his second vision this time, he saw a colour he had never encountered before. While the light blue and green energy he saw emanating from the streets behind him was familiar to him, the strange energy in front of him, near the portal, was something new. It was a dark orange colour and seemed to make the purple energy inside his body glow in response. This was the first time he had seen his purple energy react in such a way, and he was determined to find out why.

Lincoln concentrated on the energy emanating from the portal and attempted to channel it into his purple energy. In a moment, the orange energy was drawn in and assimilated by Lincoln's purple energy. The process was surprisingly effortless, leaving Lincoln to ponder the potential uses of this newfound power.

He was suddenly caught off guard as his mind was overwhelmed with vivid memories that felt foreign to him. He saw orange energy flowing out of his body, portals opening and closing, and people entering and exiting through them. Lincoln shook his head frantically in an attempt to clear them from his mind. A voice that kept repeating the word "storage" echoed in his head, making his head pound with pain and Lincoln had to fight the urge to scream.

The fleeting moment seemed to stretch on endlessly as Lincoln grappled with excruciating pain. Gradually, the discomfort abated, and the dazzling flashes faded away. He let out a quiet sigh, drawing in deep breaths as he opened his eyes. The portal had lost its luminosity; was he the cause?

He closed his eyes and noticed that the purple energy that had been glowing in him had also calmed down.

However, Lincoln couldn't shake the feeling that something or someone was trying to tell him something, something important, like a missing piece that he just needed. He shook his head again, attempting to dispel his growing sense of paranoia.

Suddenly, he heard a noise behind him and quickly turned around. An energy shard shot through the broken glass, piercing his shoulder. A figure in a robe then leapt into the room and kicked him with enough force to send him hurtling towards the portal frame. As he flew through the air, he was hit by more energy shards, until he finally collided with the portal frame and dropped to the ground. His body then disintegrated into tiny particles of red energy.

The figure in the robe approached the scattered energy particles, their entire body concealed by the cloak, not a single inch of skin visible. They began to recklessly destroy the boxes around them, as Lincoln watched from a distance.

He was already concealed behind the boxes in the dimly lit corner of the room when he heard the sound of the energy shard. He quickly created a clone of himself and switched places with it just before the shard could strike him.

He was still confused by what had just occurred.

No energy weapon could be able to attack in such a manner and it didn't appear that one had been used. Can the attacker manipulate energy too? That should be impossible. In the universe, only one being could possess the power to manipulate energy at a time.

Before Lincoln could delve deeper into his thoughts, his attacker approached him. With a sigh, he let his body emit a red energy, realizing that he would have to fight.