Rosemary bit her lip."Oh,Storm...no,I'll tell you now.Storm has no idea,he thinks his mother died simply in childbirth.It was extraordinary...our father was the mayor at the time,and he was going through some hard losses from the Aether storms that winter.I was only seven years old.Our mother went into labor right in the middle of an Aether storm." Rosemary paused here to gather her thoughts."I was helping the midwife.It was a hard birth,and our mother suffered greatly,but the baby was born safely just as the Aether storm was passing over and moving away.Mother and the baby were both healthy,and for a moment,everything was calm.Until the baby cried.As my brother took his first breath and cried for the first time,the Aether storm...it turned around.It simply turned and headed back for the village-for our hut.Aether storms have never targeted anyone before,nor have they changed course,not like that.It was unreal,and terrifying.Mother was holding the baby,and she was the first to notice the blue lines under his skin-his veins running with Aether.His eyes glowing.Over the screeching of the Aether,mother looked up and uttered one word: Storm.She made it clear that would be his name.Then the Aether hit,and it struck our mother directly.Storm cried and cried,but when he quieted down,the Aether storm stopped.It just...disappeared.Storm was upset and mother was...well,it was something no child should ever have to see.After that,our father couldn't stand to look at Storm.He sent him to live with another man who had just lost his wife in the Aether storm,and never mentioned him again.Father died a few years later,leaving me as mayor.I have watched Storm all his life,making sure he was safe.He doesn't know about his power.No one knows about any of this.I'm the only one who knows,until now..."

" that's..... Impossible. Controlling aether on that level..... It's impossible, even for the aether guard" he said to her. " if the aether guard ever knew, they would worship him as a god-king"

Rosemary shook her head."We can never let that happen.I have been protecting Storm from being found his whole life.That's part of the reason I was so upset about this recent battle-it is winter,the Aether is stirring,and Storm was right there.If he had gotten upset...I don't know.I don't know how it works,but I cannot let it happen again.I cannot lose my baby brother."

"You might not have a choice. So that he learns how to control the Aether properly, he'll need training. Aether-guard's are your best bet of him getting any training. I 'could' capture one. "he said to her.

Rosemary looked close to tears."I just...I just want to protect him.If you think that's best,then I will trust you..." She said.

Just then,Storm spoke up,revealing that he'd been awake the whole time."So that's why the Aether storms always hurt me so much." He said.

Rosemary turned."Oh,Storm! Oh,I'm so sorry.I wanted to tell you in private.Please don't hate me." She begged.

"Hate you? I could never hate you.Finding out I have a sister...is the best news I've ever gotten.The whole story is upsetting...but now things can get better." Storm replied.

"Don't worry Storm. My sister, Alessia, is a telepath. Even without a mouth, My sister can understand what they would want to say. Capturing them will be relatively easy. They will want Storm, so we can use this to our advantage. "He said.

Rosemary frowned."I'm not sure I like the idea of using my brother as bait." She said.

"I can handle it.Besides,it's my choice,isn't it?" Storm said.

Alessia returned, and laid Storm back down. "Your not doing anything, until your rested. I had you sedated, to provide less strain on your heart. "she said, Sedating him again. "You Push yourself too hard, your heart will give out."

"Your sedation isn't working.And my heart is fine." Storm said,pushing the woman away."I heal quickly.I always have."

Rosemary frowned."All the same,you should lay down.If the sedatives aren't working on you,then you need to just relax.No matter how fast you heal,there is no way a stab wound like that will be 100% in less than an hour."

Storm sat back up."But it is! Just look." He said,pulling his shirt away from the wound-or,where the wound had been.It was gone,only a pink mark to suggest that anything had been there at all.

Alessia was speechless, but then started thinking. "Healing properties beyond normal......advance intelligence.....Inhumane Strength, and Meta-human Agility......I must say this, there is a large possibility that one of your parents were half-way into transforming into a Aether-guard, that's the only explanationI can come up with. "she said, looking him over. "You might be Quarter of a way into turning into one, maybe, though I doubt it. Your skin would be extra thick if that were the case. "She said, feeling it. "I'd say your a half-breed, so to speak."

Storm scooted backwards when the woman came near him.He didn't like people getting that close."Rosemary would know about that,I guess.If one of our parents was like that." He said,eyeing the woman warily.

Rosemary shook her head."Neither of our parents were anything but human.There is a family legend that after the Rain,our ancestor was struck directly by Aether in the very first Aether storm.She survived,obviously.Perhaps that caused a hereditary mutation that was dormant for some reason but became dominant in Storm."

Alessia smiled at Storm. "Your so cute when you do that. It's like your shy. "She said, then looked at Rosemary. "That's a possibility, and it would explain more then what I had in Min-"

Ventrinio walked in. "We got an Aether-Guard. "He said, pointing to the Reason the people were clamoring outside.

"Holy shit, that was fast. Where did you get one?" She asked

"It was outside the wall. It must be a Stray, or a Lone-wolf. "He said to them.

Outside, everyone was looking at Aether-guard. It was in a Plasma enforced Cage, Growling at everyone near it. Well, now growling, but you could hear a sort of hiss coming from it. It then looked at Storm (if he walked out) and bowed. It Literately bowed. Everyone then looked at Storm.

Rosemary walked out of the tent first,to see what was what.After reassuring herself that it was safe,she motioned for Storm to follow.

Storm walked carefully out and flinched when he saw everyone that was there.They were a small village,so naturally everyone knew everyone,and they all knew exactly who Storm was,no matter how much he blended in to the shadows.When the Aether Guard bowed to him,the murmurs from the people he had grown up with were too much,and he ran back into the tent,a look of pure terror on his face.

Rosemary,naturally,followed her brother instantly."Storm,wait! Oh...Everyone,disperse! I want everyone to go back to their duties.We have far too much to get done for anyone to be standing around here.Go on,now,nothing to see here!" She called.Once the majority of the villagers had gone,Rosemary went into the tent."Storm? It's okay,they're gone."

Alessia took Storms hand, and gently sat him Next to the Aether-guard. She then took the Aether-guards Metallic hand, and closed her eyes. Her voice changed, and it was directed at Storm. "You are the last person I expected to find her, Aether-Blood. You carry the gift, which my people Cherish above all. I Bow to you, for you are the only Mortal Ever known Bound to the Aether, as we all are. " it said. The voice sounded Raspy, Tired.

"Enough talk, Aether-guard. What I want to know is, who are you, and can you Train Storm to use Aether?" Ventrinio asked, holding his rifle up.

The Guard looked at him, cocking his head to the side. "I Am a Soldier, Like you Ventrinio. Only I was one of the many left out of an Ark. Many of the Soldiers, wearing this armor, became what you see. Gamma Armor, Now our Aether-skin. We know not how we changed like this, but we have adapted, as always. "He said to him. "As for Training......possibly. We only started Discovering our ability's a short 20 years ago, and only just scratched the surface, to understand what we can do. "he said to him.

Storm quickly pulled his hand away from the woman."Stop touching me!" He snapped.They had had to pull him physically out of the tent."Why don't you all just shut up and let me speak for myself? I'm not a kid!" He added.His annoyance was punctuated by tiny sparks of Aether dancing over his skin,making him impossible to touch.

Rosemary nodded."Really,let the boy speak.Storm can take care of himself,he has been for years now.We need to stop thinking of him as a helpless child."

Alessia cringed away, a look of fear on her face. "Okay....."She said. You could tell, right off the bat, Alessia was the more sensitive of the group. "Calm yourself, boy! That is the first thing you should know. Your letting your Emotions get the better of you, and you bring fear to your ally's, instead of aid. Calm yourself, and the Aether will relax. Your letting it get the better of you. "It said. It's voice would make even the most stubborn follow command. This was a the voice of a Drill-sergeant.

Storm glared at the creature."I am calm.I'm never not calm.That's why I never talk,and why I never interact with anyone.I've kept to myself my whole life and it's worked so far.All of this only became a problem when you people started bothering everyone." He said matter-of-factly.It was obvious that it took a good amount of restraint for him not to yell.

"Everyone relax,please.Storm,I understand why you'd be upset.After a lifetime of being left alone,all this attention can only be irritating.Especially from strangers.But you have to understand that they are trying to help.And as for the rest of you,just stay calm and leave him be.Getting all sensitive and scared will only make things worse."

"Miss, with all due respect, It must be done this way. Forcing him into a uncomfortable situation, will allow better adaptation in the future. We all had to go through it. "He said to Rosemary. "I said before, this is only recent study, so our results are inconclusive, but we notice we get better results if the Subject is more adaptive. "he said.

Rosemary placed her hands on her hips."Well then give him a chance to adapt! Instead of upsetting him and endangering all of us,why don't we simulate a stressful situation? Get him used to things before you just toss him to the wolves?" She suggested.

Storm cleared his throat."Excuse me,still here.Stop talking about me like I'm not here." He said,earning an embarrassed blush from Rosemary.

"Well, If it's alright with Storm, and Alright with you, Aether-guard, than I can build a Simulator. "She said, then realized that they might not understand what she meant "A simulator is basically....like a game. It allows you to send your consciousness into a Virtual Reality, and act it out. It was designed to increase mental focus. "she said.

Storm looked unsure."No one will get hurt?" He asked.

Rosemary nodded."I'm fine with it,as long as it is kept secret for now.Until Storm is trained,at least."

"No. Rosemary can look it up on her PDA, in case you haven't noticed she's a Ark Participant, and she can read a full Dialog on Simulators. No-one gets hurt, and all the Pain you feel is Virtual. The only risk you have to worry about is Madness, which is a High Improbability. You live in this crazy world, you must be extremely resistant to it.

Storm raised his chin stubbornly."I won't go mad.I'm stronger than that." He said."So fine,as long as no one gets hurt,then I'll do it."

Alessia nearly jumped for glee. Finally, she got to build something! She gently took the Toolbox Rosemary had "Excuse me, but I need these. "She said, and immediatly got to work. You could see, with some evident glances, that she had done this before. Her intellect was the highest in the Entire Squad

Storm paced while she worked,impatient.Now that he had decided to do this,he was eager to get it done.Think of the good he could do,how much help and protection he could offer his home village once he learned to control this power.

Rosemary,meanwhile,was worried for her little brother.She knew he wouldn't get hurt,but she worried that the training would be too much.He was fragile.His heart was always in the right place,but his mind had a tendency to break if subjected to too much at once.What would happen?