Ballistic Artistry

There was a problem being a kineticist, maybe several.

For one, you couldn't use the sports field bullpen for anything anymore, because every time you threw a pitch, the ball either melted and fused to the wall, or it simply hit the back and kept right on going like a bullet. If anyone was on the other side, one could only imagine what would happen when they tried to catch it. If they did manage, the only result could be an instantaneous Major League Baseball endorsement as some team's new catcher.

Frankly, Lumine could be someone's pitcher, but murdering someone every time you threw the ball was bound to draw some attention.

The only alternative other than the downtown training room, which cost money, was the Starlight Academy lake. Water was a surprising dampening agent, and sometimes Lumine wondered if she could skip rocks all the way across it. Sometimes she succeeded. It depended if the rock crumbled or not.

The girl in the white coat and flat green eyes picked a rock off the beach and tossed it a few times in the air, pocketing the implement and removing a glove, then a cover from her right arm, revealing an array of black gunmetal circuitry and metal. Another problem of physics...a shame really. Stuffing the covering and glove into her pocket, Lumine picked through her pocket for the flat rock once again, and rocketed the device from her arm in a snap sidearm motion. A second snap was heard as the rock accelerated past the speed of sound...and then a third as it vaporized on the second skip with the water.

She shook her head and caught a glint of someone in her eye.

Lumine picked up another rock before speaking.

"You look a bit lost princess, can I help you find something?"

Yep, she was one of those. Blonde, relatively short, and with one of those charming personalities that denoted that the lady standing before her was in fact, a princess. Not one of royalty of course, but something of the cheerleader type. Of course, Lumine was basing all of this off some possibly faulty assumptions, but in experience, she had been right a reasonable amount of time to keep her rule intact.

"Is that right?"

Lumine bobbed another rock in her hand and snapped it across the lake, once again creating a small sonic boom, and once again exploding the rock in the water. The Kineticist frowned a little bit.

"Unfortunately, you may have picked the worst possible spot at the school to meditate, unless you either meditate to loud noises, or have the ability to tune out sounds."

Lumine had never particularly understood meditation. Sure, the breathing exercises helped, but whenever she tried, her mind blanked out and...well, it just didn't do anything for her. The rhythmic tempo of hurling projectiles on the other hand was both exercise, and something of a state of mind. Just like introductions in a way. Lumine didn't much care for the playful, super upbeat type, but they were better than assholes in almost every conceivable way. Sure, Lydia may not have been Lumine's type, but it wasn't reason to get into a confrontation for an innocent meeting in the slightest. She sighed slightly.

"Lumine Symington, Lumi for short. It is a pleasure."

This time she tossed a rock without rocketing the thing this time.

"I got here recently too. Anything in particular that drew you to here, or this school in particular."

"That's even worse. Me trying to blend in with nature is something like trying to mix oil and water. It's really, really hard to do...and probably more effort than it's worth."

There was a funny little grin on Lumine's face. Of course she knew that wasn't the case for everyone. Her family practiced that kind of weird stuff on the occasion, and while they weren't totally into that whole meditation thing, at the very least, they would get something out of it.

Lumine? She just preferred watching things explode. At least as long as it didn't involve people.

"And yes, that's right. Although I'm hardly a blazing beacon of light. More like a rogue asteroid."

A dark, very destructive celestial body that nobody saw coming until it was too late. To be fair, Lumine wasn't actually that subtle if her lake shenanigans were anything to write home about, but the analogy remained at least suitably accurate for the time being. For now, she had taken a break from throwing, and started looking for more rocks, both round, and flat.

"I suppose I can't argue that reason. I got kicked off my high school baseball team for pitching a hole through our catcher. Team wasn't exactly pleased about that. Can't say I blame them. Also, more snap in your wrist, spin is more important than power."

Surprisingly, the catcher actually lived through the ordeal, but her sister had removed her from the school after deeming her pitch of 150mph+ to be a bit excessive for any team in the league. It was viewed as supernatural, and that was that.

"So, my sister decided enrolling me here was better, but there's no baseball team. So here I am, relegated to throwing rocks or the training room downtown. It's kind of sad really...but what can you do, right?"

"It's not that I don't relax, I just don't use meditation to do it...or I've tried, but I've never gotten that far. If you think you can get me some practice, I'd be happy to try again."

Lumine made something of an exaggerated straight face and tilted her head, perplexed at what she had just agreed to. Meditation seriously wasn't her thing, and yet, Lumine could not find it in herself to say no. Chalk one up to a possible lack of friends, or just anyone to talk to in general. At least the princess was a better conversation than anyone else at the moment.

"Not the ability itself. It just brings out the destruction inherent in whatever it touches. I've still got a long way to go. Try skipping another rock."

Lumine held out her right arm towards the water. The next rock after its first skip would quite literally take off.

Her mechanical right arm was indication of that lack of control from earlier however. In a sense though, Lumine almost preferred it that way. It meant that she was still subject to reality itself. Physics took no sides. Those that warped reality itself and thought themselves as gods were some of the worst people she'd ever met on the other hand. Completely immune to higher laws, completely full of themselves...and a pain to talk to. Lumine shook her head, but smiled at the notion of a golem.

"I suppose now I just need to find a golem. If you think you can find one, I'd be happy to turn it into a catcher...provided no language barrier of course. So? What about you? I hardly think my baseball career is of major note. Have you got anything special that you enjoy doing in your free time?"

"Wonderful, but dangerous. I'm not immune to the laws of nature, as it so happily reminds me from time to time."

Reminding her with a fit of broken bones, internal bleeding and other various medical problems when she overexerted herself. Thankfully, Lumine's insurance, as well as the medical services on the island were second to none, and she didn't have to spend too long in the hospital being mended.

"We might get lucky...or you could probably paint one...or is that a bad idea?"

Lumine didn't know the power of Lydia's ability, nor was she sure she trusted it being manifested just for fun, especially considering that the golem that came out of it could either be 30 inches tall, or 30 stories. Lydia might be able to pass it off as an accident, but Lumine? Not a chance. The last thing she wanted to do was get in trouble with Aurora or her sister about this.

"Or...maybe we should find something a little safer?"

((Sorry this one is so short, had it half written when I passed out.))