Mentalist

1. The Ultimate Victory

“Slow down, the world isn't watching us break down
It's safe to say we are alone now, we're alone now”

A dark era had fallen oven Earth only thirty years ago, but it felt like centuries. Demons rose from the ground and began to conquer the cities, renaming them in honor of demon kings and queens. Although Lord Goliath was named as king of this new world, Tiberius was the most dangerous of them all. Not only was he the most powerful, but he was the one of their kind to become immortal. He slaughtered countless humans with no remorse. But this dark world was not without hope. Although the demons came up, during this time, people mysteriously began receiving psychic abilities. Soon after this, an underground training academy was started to train psychics to use their abilities. The best were recruited to become Guardians who were full time demon hunters.

Baelith was the capital of the world. Thousands of humans are held captive with in its walls and the rest aren’t much better off. The hide in the houses praying that today isn’t their day to die to demon hands. The city is densely made of metal, so much that the shadows from them make it appear as if there really is no sunlight in Baelith.

Tiberius was walking around searching for a kill. He stood in the dark alleys in Eastern Baelith. Normally, he saw hundreds of people running for there lives, or guardians to fight, but today there were no people to terrorize, or guardians to put his skills to the test. Tired of roaming, he stopped in a dark alley that was empty except for a large black dumpster and the red blood that was splashed against the walls.

He was sick and tired of killing innocent people. He needed a challenge. And there it was. His acute sense of smell picked up that which all demons lust after - blood. As he looked around he saw a young blond-haired girl in a white cloak and cape wielding a black katana. Her grey eyes glowed with anger and sadness as she shot a hateful glare at the demon. It appeared as if she had just finished slaying a demon.

“Well, well, well. How do you think I feel about you slaying one of my brethren?” proposed Tiberius.

“You’re a demon, all you feel is pain, anger, and hate. How is it that you demons can feel such things without possessing a soul?” pondered the woman.

“You guardians are an arrogant lot to be sure. The Underworld is much different than Earth. It is filled with an eerie dark mist we refer to as thymer. Thymer had a very unique quality; it absorbs energy and transfers it. A few unlucky humans have stumbled into our domain and those are the only things they felt. Those emotions seemed to have moved into every demon.” said Tiberius.

“I am Guardian Yorue. Silent Slayer. And I have come to atone your sins,” said Yorue raising her katana.

“Being a guardian and all you should know that I can’t be killed,” said Tiberius.

His face tensed up as a blue fireball formed in his hand, releasing it towards Yorue. She leapt into the air, back flipping behind her opponent, narrowly evading the fireball which hit the dumpster. Then she came up behind him and pressed her blade firmly against his throat.

“I’m going to do much worse than kill you,” said Yorue in a soft and dark voice.

She placed her hand on his head, clenching it tightly in her palm, focusing solely on him. Tiberius began to cringe, falling down to his knees as he cried out in pain. The pain began to rise as his skin began to boil and his eye sockets receded leaving nothing but darkness in their place. He could feel thousands of people’s pain seeping into his consciousness as he screamed out in pain, darkness consuming him. The cries of every person he had ever killed as well as those in pain now, echoing within him. His body began shaking, fearing for his life as he lost control of his own body.

“What did…you do to me?” he asked weakly.

“The only way I could stop you. I am an empath. And I placed the curse upon you. Demons can’t handle human pain. Now you can feel it all. For each life you take, you will feel their pain,” said Yorue.

“You think this petty curse will save you? Your people? I will find a way to make this work for me. To my advantage. And when that happens, there will be nothing to protect you,” said Tiberius.

“Maybe I wasn’t trying to stop you. Maybe I was stalling until the person who does have that power comes around,” said Yorue with a light snickering.

Tiberius soon began to fight her curse as he rose to his own two feet. He grabbed onto the ground with all his might holding on as he endured the pain. He pressed his hands onto the ground in an attempt to relieve himself of some of the empathic energy, but it was useless. His nostrils began bleeding uncontrollably as he felt a small vein burst. It was then that he fell deep within his mind. He was falling deep within a pit and he looked up and saw a beautiful girl dressed in all white. She reached out her hand for his. He reached out his own and she pulled him up and them vanished in a puff of white smoke. As Tiberius awoke, his body was back to normal and his strength was at its peak. He rose to his feet like the curse was nothing and came towards her.

“And who might that be?” he asked as he clasped his hand firmly around her throat and raising her in the air.

“I know not her name,” she began to say as his griper grew tighter. “But she is known as…” and with her last breath she muttered “The Mentalist. She’s the last of her kind,” said Yorue.

As Tiberius tightened his grip, the pressure on the veins in her neck bust wide open cause her neck to split open with blood oozing onto his hand verifying her gruesome death. As he threw her to the ground, he licks the blood left on his palm and walks away.

2. The Academy

“What makes you think that you are invincible
I can see it in your eyes that you're so sure”

The Academy was located deep under Baelith. It was well hidden, both technology and glamour hiding the place from any type of detection. Only a human psychic would be able to find it. Today was for target practice and the pyropaths were up for a go. The first was a timid little girl. She formed a red stream of fire that jetted from her hand and hit the target perfectly. Next was a boy of about 12 years. He formed a fireball which not only missed the target, but it impacted on a cliff causing rocks to fall, one of which hit the boy in the knocking him unconscious. Everyone simply ignored him. It was simply the way things were, you had to be tough enough to survive on your own or else you didn’t deserve the academy. The third one was a teenage boy with wild, crazy hair. He formed a massive fireball, the only one of which burned bright blue. As it claimed its path, it made contact with not one, but three targets, burning them instantly.

“Ha! Top that!” said the boy.

“You’re supposed to aim for one target not destroy them all Desmond,” said a sassy voice from behind him.

As he turned around, he saw a girl his own age with purple and black hair flipping through the songs of her Ipod Touch, letting the song A Twist in My Story by Secondhand Serenade play. Hazel always listened to music before exercising her powers, for some reason the results never let her down. Occasionally, if the mood was right, with the music, her powers rose beyond that of anyone else’s. Hazel knew she could do incredible things. Now she was searching for her purpose.

“Well at least I got it taken care of. Do you always feel the need to criticize me, Hazel?” asked Desmond.

“Yes, what else would you think? Now it’s my turn,” said Hazel as she stepped up to the targets.

As she squinted her eyes, three balls of dark purple energy appeared in front of her. She lightly nudged her arm, moving all three balls at three targets. Each ball of energy, hit the target directly.

“Still showing off Ms. Deveaux?” asked Bartholomew Brithway, director of the Guardian Program.

He always stood behind the students as they practiced but no one seemed to notice him until he spoke. It was almost as if he was invisible. Brithway was the only one there. There were other professors and such, but he was the only one who seemed to look beyond their abilities and see them as people.

“I wouldn’t have to if you would hurry up and make me a full time guardian,” demanded Hazel.

“You’re far too reckless and hard-headed,” said Brithway.

“Look at what I’m capable of. I’m more powerful than half your guardians put together!” shouted Hazel, waving her hands around in frustration.

“You’re powerful to be sure, but not invincible. Any demon with enough experience could easily defeat you. It’s far too dangerous to make you a guardian at the moment,” said Brithway.

Hazel was overwhelmed with so much aggression, her hands began glowing purple. It was happening again. She could feel herself losing control of her ability. A wave of energy was released from her arms slicing through the rocks that feel earlier. Most were safe from the energy wave except for one boy, the same boy who was hit earlier. The blast, knocking him into the air, motivated him to get up. He ran away frantically, far, far, far away from Hazel.

“If you want to know what you need to become a guardian, seek out control rather than power,” said Brithway walking off like he usually does after his lectures.

“Ughh…Brithway is such a quid,” said Hazel, rolling her eyes in aggravation.

“Be careful what you say. Don’t let him catch you saying that and you’ll never go on another mission,” said a light female voice from behind her.

Hazel knew that voice anywhere. She could recognize her energy signature even if she was on the other side of the planet. She could always recognize when her best friend was present, even if she was blind and deaf.

“Remi!!” shouted Hazel, running over to hug her.

“I have a mission for us three. Something that might help prove ourselves,” said Remi.

“You had a premonition?” asked Hazel.

“A huge one. We need to find The Mentalist,” said Remi.

“Wait, there’s another one? I thought Goliath had them all killed?” pondered Hazel as her mouth dropped.

“One. And she can save us all. All we have to do is find her,” said Remi with her usual smile when she came up with plans that got Hazel into trouble.

“Where is she?” asked Desmond.

“Not sure, but there might be someone who can find her. Jaden Smith. He can find others through their thoughts. Lat time I heard, he was serving as a guardian outside the city. We need to leave now so nobody will notice us leaving,” said Hazel.

3. Unfolding Destiny

“It's so much more than just tonight
So we have got to get this right”

Suzume Nyako sat there on her small cot, surrounded by all the other refugees. She had beautifully long brown hair although she didn’t think it was. Unlike them, she had no family, no loved ones to cling onto. The only thing left of her family and her old life was an emerald amulet that her mother used to wear before the incident. All she could remember was flames. Burning red flames. And when she tried to force herself to remember, she was in so much pain. Even the academy’s Memory Menders were no help. It was as if there was a wall within her mind made by someone else. As she looked around she saw that all the doors and windows were protected by guardians. Six of them. She envied them. Each one of them was gifted, special even. Suzume was as normal as they came, perhaps a bit unconfident, but normal. As she prepared to take a walk around, the entire place began shaking.

“Everyone don’t panic,” said one of the guardians in a medium voice. As soon as he said that the majority began screaming their heads off, running in circles eliminating all doubt that they weren’t there. Unlike the usual fire blast that broke down the door, it was a powerful bolt of lightning that blew the door apart. Surprisingly, there was only one demon this time.

A young woman with cold, white eyes dressed in all black, the standard uniform for demon syndicates. As Suzume looked closer she saw a red spiral tattoo on her left arm which marked her as a high ranked assassin. Slowly, the demon pulled out two weapons both shaped similar to guns except they were red and blue and much thicker. Everyone recognized them as Psybreaks. They are the most powerful weapons against a Guardian. Not only do they trap any target, but they suppress the target’s psychic abilities to an undetectable level.

The assassin pulled the trigger on both psybreaks, releasing light pink spheres, comparable to gumballs. As they hit two guardians, they expanded; trapping the guardians inside thick bubbles, then the bullets reverted back to their original size. Two of the other guardians went after the assassin, but she quickly jumped into the air, gathering energy in her hand, striking them down with a bolt of lightning. She pulled her triggers once more and trapped them like the first two. The last two guardians moved their hands in a circular formation creating two spheres of water and fired them. But the woman merely raised her hand, pouring out white-blue smoke which froze the water.

She pulled her triggers yet again, trapping the last of the guardians. Seeing the last of the guardians fall, Suzume ran out the door located in the far right in the room. The woman saw her and jetted after her. As she began running she turned around a corner moving at an incredible speed. However, as she stopped running and actually realized where she was going, she saw that she was trapped between the assassin and a dead end. Suzume had forgotten to account for the demon’s speed surpassing her own.

Just great. I’m officially that cliché character that runs into the worst possible place that people yell at in the movies.

“Looks like your time has come. I’ll make this easy for you kid,” the demon said as she shot a blast of blue lightning from her palm and aimed it at Suzume. She put her hand in front of her face which projected a yellow ward of protective light that blocked the attack. Suzume’s mouth was open in awe that she was a psychic.

“A psychic that’s away from the academy and isn’t a guardian. A very rare treat indeed,” said the woman. “For this, I will give you my name. You can call me Jynx. And it looks like it’s your unlucky day,” said the demon. She immediately aimed her psybreak at Suzume and pulled the trigger. The sphere comes toward Suzume, but is blown apart as a bullet makes direct impact knocking Jynx back to the ground. Suzume looks up and sees a tallish man with dark skin and long purple hair who lands on the ground holding a gun.

“Who are you?” asked Jynx with curiosity in her eyes.

“”Does it matter?” asked the man with a grin.

“No. I guess…” she says as she fires another lightning bolt. “Not.”

The man grabs Suzume and flips over Jynx.

It seems you’re more skilled than I thought guardian,” said Jynx.

“Trust me it’s no skill,” he says as he puts Suzume down and runs towards Jynx. He sends his palm outward, striking Jynx in her stomach. She bends over and coughs up a bit of red blood.

“Do you really think this will stop me?” questioned Jynx.

“No, but this might,” he says as he presses two of his fingers firmly against a pressure point on her neck causing her to fall unconscious. “That should keep her out for awhile.”

“Too easy,” he said walking around in circles, hands be hind his head in pride. However his pride was soon interrupted by him gracefully tripping over a rock.

“Ok, what’s your deal? How did you do all that and then trip over a rock?” asked Suzume.

“I’m a mimic. I have the ability to replicate any physical motion I’ve seen instantly,” said the guy.

“Doesn’t that kinda make you invincible?” asked Suzume.

“Not really. I can’t do anything outside of my physical limit. Speaking of which, what’s your name?” inquired the man.

“Suzume. Although it’s common courtesy to give your own name before asking for someone else’s,” said Suzume.

“My apologies, I didn’t know I was in the presence of the King…erm Queen of Courtesy. I am Kaduro, guardian at your service. Shall we be going?” asked Kaduro.

“To where?” questioned Suzume.

“You’ll see,” he said as the walked into the city.

It’s probably not safe to be wandering off with a guy I just met. But it’s probably even less safe for me to be by myself. He’s a guardian and maybe I’ll understand myself better on this journey.

4. The Dark Circle

"Just between the rock and paper
The scissors cut in so much deeper"

“So, how do we get out of here? The academy doesn’t just keep demons out. It keeps us in too,” asked Desmond.

“You and your hair just need to settle down, if that’s possible. I have a plan,” said Hazel.

She grabs a hand from each of them and covers them all in a layer of energy. As they begin walking forward, they notice that they can pass through the defenses simply by walking through them.

“Not bad. You guessed that the defenses only repel matter so you covered us in energy,” said Remi in an intrigued tone.

As they began walking they saw two demons approach them. One was a female dressed in a red top and dark blue pants while the other was a guy in all black.

“Who are you?” asked Hazel, holding her ground

“I’m Lu,” said the girl, twirling her straight hair into curls playfully.

“And I’m Gree,” said the guy whose tongue came out of his mouth and licked his face.

“And we are two members of the Dark Circle. Goliath’s Advisory Council,” said Lu.

Hazel stood silent as she began to ponder.

Something’s not right here. Why would advisors go human hunting?

“Let’s get this out of the way, shall we?” Gree said as he released a ball of lightning. As it came in closer, Hazel quickly raised a ward of purple energy which protected them from the attack. In retaliation, Desmond released a stream of flame and Hazel fired a blast of energy. Both attacks struck a direct blow to Gree knocking him back.

“Remi, lets take down Lu together,” said Hazel.

Surprisingly, she didn’t hear a response.

“Remi?” she asked. As she looked around she didn’t see Remi anywhere. As she looked a little closer, she saw that Lu was gone as well.

“You fell for our trap,” said Gree running away.

“What happened?” asked Desmond.

“We were tricked. They wanted Remi and the got her. They needed a precog for something and they got what they came for,” said Hazel sounding slightly depressed that she lost her best friend to demons.

“This is bad. The only reason they would need a precog would be to destroy any chance we have of saving this world,” said Desmond.

“When you figure things out before I do, we know we’re in trouble,” stated Hazel.

5. The Gift of Knowing

“Maybe we've been livin with our eyes half open
Maybe we're bent and broken, broken”

As Kaduro and Suzume walked about, the street lights began to flicker and the wind picked up as dust trailed through the air and some of it flew into Suzume’s mouth. She coughed slightly as a tingle went up her throat.

“You ok?” asked Kaduro picking up his pace a little bit.

“Yeah. When are you going to tell me where I’m headed? I don’t usually like surprise. Unless they’re good surprises,” and for the first time in a while; Suzume let out a beautiful smile that reminded Kaduro that there is still hope.

Suzume picked up her pace as well, eager to reach her destination.

“Here we are,” said Kaduro as they stopped in front of a dusty old building that resembled a library. The building was covered in thick cobwebs. There was a tall staircase that led from the sidewalk to the main door. The door was barely attached to it hinges. It was cracked along the edges with a large hole in the center that most people could fit through.

“What are we going to do here? All the books were taken and stored in the castle archives a long time ago,” asked Suzume.

“Books aren’t the only source of knowledge. Just trust me, ok?” he asked as he climbed up the stairs leading to the top.

Annoyed by her lack of a real answer, she followed him up the steps until the reached the door. They both crawled through the door, although Kaduro had much more difficulty getting through because of his longish legs and because of this a splinter got stuck in his nostrils. He spent roughly five minutes trying to get it out.

They finally proceeded to go further into the library which was filled with dusty and empty bookshelves that seemed to go for miles. Kaduro walked past about eight bookshelves, with Suzume following, and stumbled upon a yellow switch. As Kaduro flicked the switch, the shelves opened up and a secret passage was revealed. As they went inside, the room was so beautiful. A large chandelier hung from the ceiling which was carved from precious gems. The walls were covered in violet tapestry and four stone pillars sat at the corners of the room. In the center stood the statue of a young man dressed in robes.

“He looks so lifelike,” said Suzume, admiring the statue.

“That’s because he is. Or rather, he was,” explained Kaduro.

“What do you mean?” asked Suzume.

“For many of us psychics, we can freely use our limits as we please. This is due to the fact that they draw energy from the soul. However, there are some gifts that draw them from the mind or body which a limited sources. Once that source dries up, the person’s body turns to stone and their soul is trapped inside. They about bound between life and death,” said Kaduro.

“Isn’t their anything we can do?” asked Suzume.

“I’m not sure. But something tells me that you have the power to save him,” said Kaduro.

“But all my power did was shield me,” argued Suzume.

“I have a suspicion that there’s more to your power than that. I think it would be in your best interest to try and free him,” explained Kaduro.

Suzume walked up to the statue and placed her hand onto the statue and closed her eyes firmly. As she focused, a faint white glow radiated around her and transferred to the statue. As she focused more intensely, the glow grew brighter. Finally, so much power poured into the statue that the once stone figured turned to flesh. His stone white hands grew to a pinkish tone; his hair took on a brownish shade, and his deep blue eyes which Suzume lost herself in for a split-second.

“Thank you for freeing me. I presume you are the Mentalist?” asked the man.

“The what?” blurted Suzume with her mouth wide open.

“Yes she is. But, we’re not exactly sure what that means,” responded Kaduro, scratching his head in embarrassment.

“Well allow me to start by introducing myself. I am Tominari. I am what you might call a Wisen. We thrive on knowledge. We have the ability to draw knowledge from any source,” said Tominari.

“So you’re pretty powerful,” said Suzume.

“Yes, knowledge is power, but power comes at a price. We wisens are made with a craving. We thirst for knowledge. For power. And the more frequently we use our abilities, the more powerful the craving becomes. It becomes more desperate for knowledge,” explained Tominari.

“You can absorb knowledge from any source?” asked Suzume. “Does that mean you could recover my lost memories?” asked Suzume.

“What lost memories?” questioned Kaduro, feeling lost in the conversation.

“I’m afraid I cannot. That’s where my powers have their limits. I can only access the information from conscious sources. Your latent memories are subliminal and that I’m afraid is beyond my power. But there is some information that may be of use to you. I need to warn you,” he said in a grim tone.

“Warn us of what?” asked Kaduro, feeling both excited and nervous all at the same time.

“Goliath is not after you solely because you possess the power to save this world. He desires you because you are the key. Inside of you lies the power to open the gate. This gate links our world to every other world. With you in his possession, he could conquer all worlds. Recently, a girl with an incredible gift for foresight was kidnapped. I suspect that they are trying to duplicate her powers in order to find you,” said Tominari.

Kaduro began rubbing his chin pondering everything he had just been told.

One thing just doesn’t add up. How did he know that a girl was kidnapped while he was encased in stone?

“What should we do now?” asked Suzume.

“Your efforts would be best spent seeking out those who possess great knowledge of the mental arts. Just outside of Baelith lives Azrael, the greatest master of the mental arts since the Old Age,” said Tominari.

Taking the wisen’s advice, the two of them departed outside of the building in search of the infamous Azrael.

6. Mark of the Sorcerer

“At last the fallen sky descends,
a new chance for dawn to begin”{/center]

“How could I have been so stupid?” asked Hazel rhetorically out loud, lowering her head in shame.

“You’re not stupid. What I don’t understand is why she didn’t see this coming. Remi sees everything,” said Desmond curiously.

“She doesn’t see everything. Just the future, right? That does make her a threat though. But there are other precogs out there. Probably more experienced ones. It doesn’t add up,” said Hazel rambling with her loud, verbalized thoughts.

“Wait, you don’t know?” asked Desmond looking at her with a puzzled look.

“Know what?” replied Hazel with her eyes widening in suspense of what Desmond could know about Remi that Hazel, her best friend, would not.

“Remi’s power scopes beyond precognition. It’s called Omniscience. She can see anything and everything. That’s what worries me. She knew ahead of time that they were coming for her and she still went ahead with her plan. I wonder if she was just that fearless or if she had some ulterior motive,” pondered Desmond.

“Too bad we can’t find out now,” said Hazel.

“Who says we can’t?” asked Desmond with a “You know what I’m talking about look on his face.”

“No… We are not going down that road. Besides its too dangerous to go near the castle to find him,” responded Hazel shaking her head to indicate a powerful no.

“Who says he’s near the palace? Knowing him he could be anywhere. You can use your powers to track him,” explained Desmond.

“Fine. But don’t expect me to save your butt if he decides to stab you,” said Hazel.

Hazel slowly closed her eyes and raised her hands out in front of her. Her hands began gathering purple energy particles from the air and they began to surround her body. She could feel an enormous amount of energy pouring into her body as she tried to connect to him. After several long seconds of gathering, she could sense his presence, as she reached out to him, she felt a strong fracture in her soul. The pressure began building and building. She let out an enormous gasp, releasing the energy.

“Are you alright?” asked Desmond, worried as he saw his friend gasping for air.

As she caught her breath, she began to speak,” That’s strange. He doesn’t want to be found. There is one other way,” said Hazel.

“That’s way too dangerous. You can’t let her out. Remember how dangerous she was the last time,” argued Desmond.

“It’s not like she’ll hurt you. Besides it’s the only way to find my father. Please just say ok before you make me say that word again. You know I hate calling him that,” said Hazel.

“Fine, fine,” he said slowly stepping back.

Hazel stood still, releasing her control. Her eyes turned pure black and a black butterfly tattoo appeared on her cheek. As she opened her eyes, her hair turned a deep black with a stream of white going through the center. Hazel’s once short, natural finger nailed, became long and black.

“Remember me, Desmond? It’s Haruno,” said a deep voice coming from Hazel’s body.

Desmond didn’t say anything, but his shaking legs said it all. Haruno crept closer to him.

“You know, there’s no reason for you to be afraid of me. I won’t hurt you. She wouldn’t let me,” said Haruno as she stroked her long black fingernails through his hair.

Desmond quickly moved back again, escaping the unsettling feeling of being both scared for his life and creeped out by seeing Hazel’s body coming onto him.

“Can you just use your powers to find him already?” asked Desmond who was still shaking.

“There’s no need. Being Hazel’s subconscious has its advantages. I know things before she knows them. If she just focused on her own soul for once she would be much more powerful. What a shame? Are you ready to go?” asked Haruno.

Desmond nodded his head and took her hand reluctantly. Together they vanished in a flash of purple light and reappeared in a steel room. The only other person in the room was an old man of about 50.

“Hello Percival,” said Haruno with a wicked smile upon her face.

“Welcome back Haruno,” said Percival.

“How did you know it was me?” asked Haruno with intrigue.

“Well for one, Hazel’s usual greeting is a kick to the groin. But more importantly, some of us psychics who possess an extensive number of abilities can recognize souls. Your soul emits a stronger presence as well as desperation,” explained Percival.

“Let’s skip this pointless exposition and go to the part where you tell me what I need to know. Where’s Remi?” asked Haruno.

“You won’t get that information out of me that easily,” said Percival with a sly grin.

“Well, let me give you a push!” shouted Haruno as she released two spheres of purple energy. Instead of dodging them, he clenched his fists and the spheres passed through him and crashed into the wall forming a large hole. Desmond followed up by generating a spiraling stream of fire. As it approached Percival, he spun his arm, forming a powerful wind that blew out the fire. Percival then began running toward Desmond. As he reached him, Percival placed his had firmly on Desmond. A yellow glow surrounded Desmond and then passed into Percival.

“What did you do to me?” asked Desmond.

“I relieved you of your powers. And you are next,” he said, glaring at Haruno.