The energy flowed outwards, leaving his body in a gentle cascade of calm feeling.

Shane opened his eyes slowly. His entire body had relaxed.

His hand was still above the plant, as if hovering there to protect it from an onslaught of winds.

But the plant was changing.

Shane saw it begin to move.

It was rising, straightening out its own stem, growing longer and taller. Its coloration began to return. First, splotches of bright green appeared at random places, but they grew and spread out until the whole plant was stunningly viridescent.

A second later, darker green leaves erupted from the steam, unfurling and spreading out their shiny, broad surfaces.

Finally, small buds sprouted outwards from the top of the plant, opening to reveal delicate violet flowers.

When the process had finished, the energy dispersed.

Shane was suddenly overcome by intense fatigue.

Darkness clouded the corners of his vision.

Black stains writhed, spots flickered on and off.

His limbs ached, as if his bones were thousands of years old.

And he needed air.

He couldn't breath.

Pain built in his lungs, spreading through his chest.

He felt like his ribs were being crushed by a car.

There was a humming in his ears.

He cringed, and it reached a screeching crescendo.

He collapsed, falling to the ground.

His shoulder smashed against the hard floor.

There was a burst of sudden pain, a stinging in his nerves.

Than his lungs seemed to relax.

Shane gasped, like someone who had been trapped underwater and had just broken the surface of a dark and viscous ocean.

He greedily gulped in lungfuls of air.

Mr Stealreaver was looking down at him, worry in his eyes.

"Are you OK?" he asked, obviously concerned.

Shane coughed.

"Yeah, I'm better now. What was that?"

"A side effect of Vitakinesis. But it only occurs sometimes."

"Why this time?" Shane asked, confused.

"You must've used your energy too fast, expending all of it at a fantastic rate. Soon, you will be taught to control that."

Shane nodded. The terror of the sudden side effect was still starkly outlined in his mind.

"You see," Mr Stealreaver began, "when you are using energy to heal another organism, you are expending your very own life energy."

"Is there... is there a way to stop it?"

Mr Stealreaver shook his head.

"No. It is the sacrifice a Vitakinetic must make, to heal something else."

"But then... will this happen all the time? I mean, all the time I use Vitakinesis?"

"No, hopefully not," Mr Stealreaver reassured, "I will teach you, instruct you to limit the energy you use."

Shane nodded, getting slowly to his feet. He walked timidly over to his friends.

"Are you OK?" Luciana asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Shane answered.

"Well that was awesome!" Ava cried. Her energy was tangible, it bubbled outwards from her.

"Nice job, man," Fernando said fondly, clapping him on the back.

Shane smiled and thanked them.

But he knew something else.

Something they didn't understand.

He felt it.

Felt a difference within him.

Inside him.

He felt the strength.

The ability to manipulate life. To save a life, to end a life. To stop death in its tracks. To speed death up. To heal, to kill.

An all-consuming, drug-like feeling seeped into Shane's brain.

He didn't even need to wonder, to question it.

He knew very well what it was. What it did.

And he welcomed it.

He relished the feeling.

It was the power.

If you've enjoyed reading this story, don't forget to vote, comment and add it to your reading lists. I will be adding a new chapter every day. If you have any tips for how I can improve my writing, or what I did well this time, please feel free to tell me (in a nice manner). Thanks so much for reading my story!

Finally, a fairly long chapter! Or at least one that I would like to believe is pretty long. I know my usual chapter lengths can be kinda short, so I'm trying to make them longer. Anyway, exams are over, so I have more time to write and add to this story. I hope you guys are enjoying Psionic Academy. I've got some pretty thrilling and world-shattering ideas coming up in this story, so make sure to stay tuned!

And please: keep commenting and voting. When I see all the new notifications, it makes my day. All of your kind comments mean so much to me, and I'm so grateful for your love and support. I hope you guys will continue to enjoy this story, and adding your amazing and helpful comments - I really appreciate them. So please don't stop, keep voting and commenting!

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