Free Awakening by J. E. Swift

show you the basics of levitating and telekinesis and we will talk about healing. Take a seat, make yourself comfortable.”
    “You are kind of taking up both chairs. Unless you want me to sit on the table.”
    Garrett gave that damn smirk again before grandly removing his feet. Caitlyn plunked down on the chair, tempted to knock over his. Before she could act, Garrett stood up, walking over to the display on the other side of the room. She watched with interest as he picked out various objects. One by one, ten balls of various colors lifted into the air, swirling around him. As he walked closer to her, the balls began to move of their own accord, creating various patterns, circling around her mentor’s body. Finally, when Garrett reached the empty table in the middle of the room, they all landed softly in a perfect row.
    Garrett walked back over, placing his palms on the table. “That was levitating in its most basic format. However, what I just did was more difficult than it may appear.”
    Caitlyn was amazed even by the capability to do that. Hearing him state that Actuals can levitate was one thing, but seeing it first hand was completely different. She was enthusiastic to try. “How so?”
    His left hand grabbed two of the balls, letting them rise a foot above his hands as he talked. “All these balls are the same shape and size. But the balls are made out of completely different materials. This ball-” He indicated the ball on his left hand, “is made out of cork. The other one is made out of copper. Why would this be important?”
    “May I?” she asked pointing to the balls.
    “Absolutely.” Garrett levitated the objects into her hands.
    Caitlyn examined the two balls briefly, feeling the orbs in her hands. “They have different densities.”
    She was pleased when Garrett grinned widely. “Exactly! The denser the object, the more difficult it is to levitate the object. The cork is much less dense than the copper ball, so the cork ball is easier to lift. It takes more concentration to lift the copper ball.”
    “So when we start levitating, I’ll start with items low on the density scale.”
    “Yes. Most times, a student will learn to lift multiple objects of a lighter density before they are ever able to levitate a small ball made of gold. Some Actuals, whose specialties lie within other talents, are never able to lift even that.”
    Garrett returned most of the balls to the corner, where the room lowered the items back to wherever they came. The one exception to this was a plastic ball that remained on the table. Caitlyn looked at him questioningly.
    “For those that master levitating, the next step is manipulation of physical matter. It is one thing to lift it, but quite another to be able to bend it to your will. This ability is much less frequent within our society.”
    The plastic then began to shift and change, the material molding to whatever it was that Garrett desired. What was once a ball, now slowly morphed into a single plastic snowflake, intricate in its design.
    Caitlyn picked it up gingerly, turning it to examine the back and sides. It was flawless. “That is amazing.”
    “It takes a massive amount of concentration to do that. We will not begin to work on that until you have mastered levitating. Because it is so difficult, it is tested for in the Threshold, but not required to accomplish to pass.”
    She handed the snowflake back to Garrett, who set it back on the table. “What else will we work into the training?”
    “Well, the last ability that you will be tested on is healing. Healing is even more complex than matter manipulation. What is interesting about that is while some folks may not be able to manipulate matter; they have the uncanny capability to understand the abstract art that is healing. Healers by profession need to have an intricate knowledge of the body. Without that, someone who attempts healing anything significant can do irreparable damage to the subject of the