KINETIC

Chapter 162 The Science Of Lightning

Leo used his stockpile of skill points increase the level of Authority. Because of the penalty from Transformation, all skill levels are reduced by one, so nothing will change until the penalty period ends.

'I was wondering what would happen to a level one skill during the penalty period but it doesn't seem to effect them at all.' Leo said in his mind.

'Were you expecting the skill to become unavailable during the penalty period?' Dreifus asked.

'Actually, yeah. That or the skill would just lose majority of its power. What concerns me now is that I'll only be able to use lightning because my authority is level two, so when I incur the penalty again one day, during that time i won't be able to use any lightning based skills.' Leo said as he imagined such a scenario occurring.

' That would be frustrating but not unmanageable. You would still have your fire, wind and force based skills to use, as well as your physical attributes. With the levels you've gained, the title you now have... Even with the penalty your stats are close to what they were a few days ago... Sort of.' Dreifus said, focusing on the bright side.

' That's true, but it's still something to be wary of. I can't use Transformation recklessly in the future, the penalty is too severe. I'll only use it as a last resort.'

'I have been curious about something ever since you used Transformation.' Dreifus said 'You used skills you've never used before and even managed to force the monsters lightning to change directions. How did you do that on your first try?'

'I already had an idea about how to use lightning, I just couldn't manipulate my energy with enough finess to do it. When using Transformation, Authority was leveled up, so I was able to manipulate the energy slightly better. But as you said, it was my first try.

Instead of trying to use my Energy effeciently, I used the Increased amount of Energy at my disposal to force the skills to work. Think of it like putting out a camp fire using a tsunami.' Leo explained.

'What about the flying?'

'I've known for a while that I could fly, I just didn't have enough Energy. All I have to do is keep adding Energy to myself to keep my momentum going, that way I'll never fall and can move forward as long as my Energy allows it.

The problem is that it uses a ridiculous amount of Energy. I was only able to use it because I had so much Energy at my disposal, otherwise it's impossible.' Leo explained.

' So you can do it now, you just don't have enough Energy?'

'I have enough Energy to use it, I'll just be using all my Energy within thirty seconds.'

'I see. You said a while back that it would be possible for you to use sound based skills when Authority reached level two but I didn't see you use any.' Dreifus said.

'I was wrong. I can feel sound waves using both Aura and Battle Aura but even with the boost from Transformation I could tell that it was still out of reach. I'll have to wait until Authority is level three or possibly even higher.' Leo answered.

'Well it's nothing to be disappointed about, you're still gaining the use of lightning skills. Oh, how exactly did you change the direction of the monsters lightning?' Dreifus asked.

'Usually I can feel something strange from other peoples abilities. Even if it's something I should be able to affect, I can't do it. I can feel a foreign Energy surrounding their attacks, I assume it's that person's Energy. It functions like a barrier that prevents me from influencing it.

But lightning is different. I didn't effect the lightning directly... I effected the world around me and caused the lightning to behave like a natural bolt of lightning would.' Leo explained.

' That doesnt really clear things up for me... What do you mean you effected the world?' Dreifus had absolutely no idea what Leo was talking about.

'Lightning is created when there is a large enough imbalance in the electrical charge of an object. The electrons surrounding an object determine its charge, this is true for everything.

I'm sure you've touched something metal before and your hand was shocked when you did, it's called static, right?' Leo asked.

' Yeah, that's right... '

Leo continued 'The reason you experience static is because you either lost electrons and became negatively charged, or you gained electrons and became positively charged.

When you touch and object, or even just get close to it, the electrons of that object will automatically try to balance out your charge by either giving you electrons or taking them away. That's when the static shock happens.

Lightning is the same way, only on a much larger scale. All I did was affect the electrons of an area away from myself and the lightning created by the monster was naturally drawn to that area in an attempt to correct the imbalance.' Leo explained.

Leo had an excited looked on his face, like he was a child that had just discovered the wonders of a new toy.

'And you did the same thing to make your lightning bolt change directions as well?' Dreifus asked.

'Yes.'

Dreifus was actually stunned. 'I'm impressed Leo. I understood the knowledge that was given to us better than you did and I still didn't think of doing something like that.'

'Thanks but I still need to figure out a way to use skills like that without the enormous amount of Energy I had during Transformation.

For starters, I think lightning skills will use large amounts of Energy regardless of my attempt to be effecient. It's going to require a large amount of Energy to create the conditions around me that will generate lighting.' Leo said.

' So... What? You're saying it's not going to be all that useful since it will be too costly?' Dreifus asked.

' No, not exactly. While it will be draining to use, there are benefits to it as well. For one, it's basically a garunteed hit since the lightning will follow the person who's electrons I've influenced.

Second, lightning is typically a negatively charged form of energy. When natural lightning strikes the point of origin is negatively charged while the target is positively charged.

So if I make the point behind an enemy negatively charged and I make the enemy positively charged, the origin of my attack will be behind them. I can attack from anywhere using this method, maybe even multiple points at once.

Third, I can attack multiple targets at once. If I make multiple enemies postivly charged then the lightning will either jump between them or split to hit each of them. I'm not sure about which one will occur but I'm excited to find out.' Leo explained with a smile on his face.

' It sound slike you've thought about this quite a bit.' Dreifus commented on Leo's unusual excitement towards his ability.

' If I'm being honest, lightning has always been something I've seen as powerful. It's the form of power I've most been looking forward to using ever since you told me it would be possible through my ability.

It's a natural phenomenon that creates immense heat, sound, light and destructive force, making it an amazing thing to have control over. I will admit that part of me is excited because it just looks really cool.' Leo was slightly embarrassed to say the last part.

' Hahahah! Maybe there is still some amount of your personality that resembles a sixteen year old. I can't believe you just said you're excited to use lightning because it looks cool! HAHAHA!' Dreifus couldn't help himself, he bgena laughing hysterically.

' Hey! Are you trying to say I'm acting like a chick or something? Just because I think lightning looks cool?' Leo asked with an indignant tone.

' No... No.' Dreifus did his best to calm down and stop laughing. 'You're not acting like a child. Your thoughts about lightning are exactly what someone your age is supposed to feel. It's natural.

It's just that you've always acted way more mature than you should be, so it was a big surprise to hear you say that.'

If Dreifus had eyes, Leo imagined that he would be wiping away tears from all his laughter.

' Actually... 'Dreifus suddenly became quite serious ' I suppose all your friends are like that too. It seems the burden of your power has forced all of you to act far more mature than you should. It's probably why the king felt it was alright to give you leadership positions, since you all gave off the impression of maturity.'

'Every ability user has been forced to fight, to kill and to watch their friends die. It's impossible for them not to behave differently from a regular person our age. I'm slightly different of course.

Being a slave has made it so that I couldn't allow myself the luxury of immaturity, that habit just happened to stick around even after my escape.'