Axis Twitch

The brisk winter air of the mountains of the sun bit at Chase's nose. It wasn't usually cold there because of the multiple suns that towered over the area; however, you could still notice that the air was quite bitter.

Chase dug the bottom of his shoes into the hard pavement, and tried to channel his energy.

'Now...'

WOOSH!

Air slammed into his face, breaking his concentration as the next thing he knew was the cold surface of a patch of courtyard grass.

THUD!

With a couple of off balanced rolls, Chase hit his back against one of the trees, finally stopping his momentum.

"Damnit all!"

He screamed, punching the tree behind him.

"QUIET!"

One of the many teachers yelled from one of the windows perched around the lower levels of the academy.

Chase's face went red, and his brows furrowed.

He didn't understand this whole Axis Step thing at all.

How was he supposed to skate across the ground? He thought for a moment, realizing that it didn't even make sense. It was completely against the common logic of physics...

But then again so was the second sun that flew above the academy at that very moment. 

He sighed.

Standing up again, he rubbed one of his many new bruises on his back.

Channeling his physical energy into his Achilles, he shut his eyes and envisioned himself standing on the other side of the courtyard. 

Theoretically Axis Step was a much more refined ability when it came to movement, it allowed the user to practically step into a nearby location as long as it was in sight and range. 

It was a graceful form of movement, unlike Axis Twitch which could destroy entire buildings from its sheer force.

There were obviously limitations to this strange form of movement, such as it taking so long to build up, (Which like many things could be trained over time) as well as the amount of energy it uses.

Then there was the disorientation one would feel after using said ability...

Once he felt the static build up in his lower legs, he released the energy into the ground below him... Sending himself flying forward with a large gust of wind.

His eyes were no where near strong enough to actually see where he was going, so he had to solely rely on his instinct. 

Just as he realized that he was about to reach his destination, the excitement caused him to hesitate.

His foot slipped on the pavement, and the next thing he knew his body was upside down, looking at his blue haired peer across the courtyard.

SLAM! 

Landing face first into the grass, inches away from the pathway, he let out a terrible groan of frustration.

"That was more of an Axis Trip dontcha think?"

Neo said, trying to hold back an uncontrollable burst of laughter which was of no use.

Poppy who was standing next to him, gave him an annoyed side eye, and went to step toward Chase but must have hesitated.

Pushing himself onto his feet, he shook his head trying to regain his senses as best as he could.

"Need something?"

He asked the two intruding students.

"No."

Poppy said, turning toward the exit. 

Neo grabbed her by the wrist, while still trying to catch his breath.

"Yeah, we do need something, come on."

Scratching his neck, Chase tilted his head and shrugged.

"I'm training, what is it?"

"I wouldn't call that training, but alright."

Poppy responded, still not bothering to face the two boys.

Neo rolled his eyes, and pointed at a small magical wristband that was wrapped around his wrist.

"You ever end up checking your current output?" 

He asked, dodging the question.

Hesitating, Chase remembered why he hadn't told anyone about his current output.

In all honesty, he was still angry about the reality of his actual strength.

"Uh, no not really."

Poppy turned around, and looked at him with a dumbfounded expression.

"How?! It's the first thing on the vox!"

Feeling a sense of annoyance wash over him, he recalled the many reasons why he despised Royals such as Poppy.

"What is it?"

Neo asked, stepping closer with a curious expression on his face.

"It's uhm-"

As he was acting like he was checking the Vox, Poppy cut him off.

Grabbing his wrist, she frowned.

"It's not a big deal just answer the question, everyone knows you're lying."

His skin started to get hot, and his heart started racing.

"It's one and a half stars..."

The two students didn't seem to realize what he had said for a moment, until they did.

Neo's eyes went wide, and his expression turned bewildered. 

Poppy tilted her head, and frowned at him.

Chase was quite short compared to the two of them, so it was extremely awkward having to look up at The Ivory Princess during such a moment of embarrassment. 

"How in the hell?!"

Neo yelled, with his mouth still agape. 

"What's your potential output?" 

Poppy asked.

Chase shrugged awkwardly.

"It won't tell me."

Tapping on the runic black screen of the Vox, he lifted it up and showed her. 

"Huh..."

"It's just a bunch of question marks..."

Chase said, avoiding the eye contact of the other two.

"It has to be a faulty one, I watched you completely overpower an eleven star Imperial, there is no way in hell you aren't at least six star output."

Neo grunted, scratching his head.

"Anyway, that's all we wanted to know."

Poppy said, starting to walk away.

Once more, Neo grabbed her wrist and shook his head.

"Nope! Tonight is the annual Winter Gala, and were in charge of getting people to attend."

Before Neo could continue, Chase spoke flatly. 

"Hell no."