A new week starts

"Ok today let's test your abilities more, I can make water bullets capable of piercing through woods so I am a level 1 but not ranked," Emily said explaining to Seth.

"What do you want me to do" Seth asked.

She gave him a smirk. "I want you to try and catch me" 

"Really?" he asked with a serious expression, why did she want him to catch her?

"Yes really, if you do you win" Seth shrugged his shoulders and didn't question her, his hair became a light shade of green and then like snakes, they rose and thickened.

Thally wasn't looking at them but was just munching on some grasshoppers inside of her pot.

"Catch me if you can, Seth," Emily teased, her voice light and challenging. Without warning, she darted to the side, her speed catching Seth off guard.

Reacting quickly, Seth sent one of his vine-like tendrils whipping towards her, but Emily was already a step ahead. She twisted out of the way, her movements fluid and precise. Seth's vine brushed past her but didn't make contact.

"You'll have to be faster than that!" she called over her shoulder, her tone almost taunting.

Seth narrowed his eyes, determined not to let her slip away so easily. He focused, sending multiple vines snaking toward her from different directions, trying to corner her. But Emily was quick, dodging and weaving between them with ease. Every time Seth thought he had her, she'd slip away, her agility proving to be a formidable challenge.

"You're not bad," Emily admitted, her tone genuine as she avoided another vine. "But you'll need to get creative if you want to catch me."

Seth clenched his fists, feeling a slight bead of sweat forming on his brow. He realized that brute force alone wouldn't work against Emily. She was too quick and too experienced. He needed a different approach.

'Hey mind helping me Thally' Seth said as he communicated with Thally. She glanced at him.

'Isn't that cheating?' She asked a little skeptical.

Seth rolled his eyes. 'No it isn't, you are a part of me, and I am a part of you, so it can't be considered cheating if we were just using our abilities' Thally finally got his reasoning, With a mischievous grin. Thally went out of her pot and then rooted her legs into the ground.

Spreading her roots beneath the surface. Thally's roots extended, weaving a network beneath the earth.

Emily continued to move, unaware of the new strategy unfolding beneath her feet. She dodged another vine with a fluid twist of her body, but Seth wasn't aiming to catch her with that one. He was just buying time.

'Alright, Thally, now!' Seth mentally signaled.

Thally responded instantly, her roots bursting from the ground around Emily, forming a ring of thorny vines. Emily's eyes widened in surprise, realizing too late that she'd been lured into a trap. She tried to leap away, but the vines closed in quickly, leaving her little room to maneuver. Seth sent his vines shooting forward, weaving them together with Thally's to create a thick net that surrounded Emily.

For a moment, Emily hesitated, looking for an opening, but she was well and truly caught. With a resigned sigh, she stopped struggling and smiled at Seth.

"Okay, okay, you got me," she admitted, raising her hands in surrender.

Seth grinned a mixture of relief washing over him. "Teamwork, right?"

Thally's voice echoed in his mind, her tone smug. 'See? Not cheating, just smart.'

Emily looked around at the vines, clearly impressed. "You've gotten the hang of this, Seth. Using Thally like that… I didn't see it coming."

Seth released his hold on the vines, and they slowly retracted, freeing Emily. Thally's roots returned to the ground as she unraveled her trap, before returning to her pot with a satisfied hum.

Emily dusted herself off, her usual confident smirk replaced with a genuine smile. "You're getting stronger, Seth. And more importantly, you're starting to think strategically. That's a big step."

Seth frowned. "Are you saying I'm dumb"

Emily laughed for a few seconds. "Well I mean when it comes to taking care of complicated things you usually don't get enough confidence and you just freeze up"

"That was one time ago," He said rolling his eyes as his hair became brown again. Emily came towards him and touched his face. "What are you doing" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Calm down, you have dirt on your face" Seth blinked in surprise as Emily's fingers gently brushed away the smudge of dirt from his cheek. Her touch was unexpectedly soft.

"or just an excuse to do something playful to my cheeks" Emily smiled, her eyes twinkling with amusement. "Maybe a little bit of both. But you do have a small smudge. Can't have you looking messy in front of everyone, can we?"

Seth raised an eyebrow but couldn't suppress a smile. "I guess not. Thanks for the cleanup."

Emily's touch lingered for a moment longer before she pulled away. "No problem. Anyway, you did well today. It's clear you're improving, and it's fun to see how you and Thally work together."

Seth looked over at Thally, who was munching contentedly on her grasshoppers, seemingly indifferent to the praise. "Yeah, it's been a good day. I think I'm getting the hang of this teamwork thing."

"Great let's go to my house now" Seth's face then dropped. "…Fine" Emily laughed and grabbed his arm. 

"Come on" Seth rolled his eyes and took Thally after Emily held his arm as they slowly walked out of the school grounds.

Meanwhile, in a conference room, a group of people were currently looking at Yale.

"Yo higher-ups, how's those old Asse's shaking" he was currently wearing some shades.

One of the higher-ups is a girl who almost looks identical to Yalen. "This is serious Yalen, we could be on the edges of a galactic war"

Yalen tilted his shades and looked at her. "Well since my cute little twin asked for it nicely~, The alien looked humanoid and had a strangely cute-looking face, she had pale skin and white hair, and her eyes were red, or was it blue."

One of the higher-ups which was a man who was wearing a metallic suit suddenly hit his hand on the table. "Stop fooling around?!"

*CRASH*

He flew and got embedded in the wall. "Ah, let me talk old fool, you don't want the children to miss their father do you?" Yalen had a smile but his blue eyes glowed with malice.

"Continue, ignore the old man" His sister didn't even hesitate or care for the old guy.

Yalen grinned. "Ah where was I she had a tail that had a glowing blue flame at the top of it, I fought her, and she was holding back a lot"

One of the higher-ups raised an eyebrow. "Like how you pretend to be level 5"

"Yes like that, I observed that she enjoyed the fight. But we were both holding back so we didn't get to see who was stronger" He said with a nod.

The atmosphere in the conference room was thick with tension, as Yalen's words hung in the air. The higher-ups exchanged uneasy glances, aware that they were dealing with something potentially far more dangerous than they had anticipated.

The man in the metallic suit, still embedded in the wall, groaned as he tried to pull himself out. Yalen's sister, unfazed, continued to address him, her tone sharp and commanding. "Yalen, if this alien is as powerful as you say, and if she's holding back, we need to be prepared for anything. You understand that, right?"

Yalen leaned back in his chair, the malice in his eyes fading slightly as he nodded, though the playful smirk remained on his lips. "Of course, Sis. But honestly, I think she's more interested in finding worthy opponents than starting a war. She seemed… curious."

"Curiosity can be dangerous," another of the higher-ups, a woman with silver hair and piercing green eyes, spoke up. "Especially when it comes from an alien with unknown motives. We need to gather more intelligence on her species and what they want."

Yalen shrugged. "Already on it. I've got some of my people keeping tabs on her. If she makes a move, we'll know."

His sister sighed, rubbing her temples. "This isn't a game, Yalen. We're talking about the potential for a galactic conflict. We need to approach this carefully."

Yalen's smirk faded slightly as he met his sister's gaze, the seriousness of the situation finally sinking in. "I know, I know. I'll handle it, Sis. Just trust me."

The tension in the room seemed to ease, though only slightly. The higher-ups began discussing contingency plans and potential strategies in hushed tones, while Yalen's sister remained silent, watching her brother closely.

After a few moments, she leaned in closer to Yalen and whispered. "Why did you leave me with old guys!!" When he looked at his sister she had tears in the corner of her eyes.

"Shhh, don't worry I'll treat you to a trip to an ice cream cafe later okay," He said trying to comfort me.

She pouted for a moment. "hmph fine, I want chocolate and vanilla"