The hivemind is conquering for me?

Arriving at the Zenith of my jump, I took a deep breath and began. Psionic bullets began to emerge around me in the dozens. With my Aura projecting as far as it could, I wasn’t quite in range yet, but I would be soon.

My plan was not to go for total destruction. My goal was to have fun with my Psionics and show that expectations can be subverted. I furthered this goal by reaching above my head and began to use my Pyrokinesis rather unceremoniously.

A fireball emerged above my head. It was crude, basic. Powerful in its own right sure, but there was no nuance to it and it was incredibly imbalanced and hard to control as it grew in size.

But this was a test. And a test that was already causing me to sweat as I was using four Psionic abilities all at once.

While I continued to slowly ascend, my bullets continued to accumulate while my fireball continued to grow. It was now twice my size in height and just as wide. I could go further, but I decided against it, especially since a fifth ability was coming into the mix now it was formed.

...

On the ground people were looking up nervously. Pyrokinetic wielders have a... Tendency, for being unpredictable, especially around flames and a great deal of people were shitting bricks thinking the massive fireball would be thrown at them.

Meanwhile, Lena, a fellow user of Pyrokinesis, opened her mouth gobsmacked. ’How has he done that! Why has he done that!’ She couldn’t help thinking as she looked at that beautiful ball of fire turn wrong in a moment’s notice.

...

Hecate looked up, fascinated at what she was witnessing. She admitted to herself that she was ever so slightly turned on. Not by Apollo himself, he was basically a child, but the sheer talent he possessed. Her assessment after their first meeting was only becoming a reality at this point.

While nowhere near as strong as she is or was at that age, she was, is and will continue to be a prodigy after all, she felt like Apollo had this endless void of potential within him, call it a hunch, and she felt like he could be the key to unlocking even greater power...

The only question was. How could she do so and go about getting close to Apollo to learn his secrets without Valerica calling her a pervert? That was the biggest hurdle she currently had...

’Oh, he is starting? Good.’ She thought and snapped back to reality.

...

I had descended down far enough that my aura now covered the metal block on the stage. Like during the bastion war, within my aura, I basically had aim-bot. I didn’t need to use my eyes to see. Below me I could feel with my mind all the surfaces of the metal cube. It felt like wearing a glove and holding something. I could tell it was there, but I couldn’t feel greater detail, but that was enough.

My regular Psionic bullets came to life and began whizzing through the air to the target below. The bullets began hitting five sides of the cube simultaneously, letting out a plethora of incredibly satisfying ding noises as they bombarded the cube.

The cube was stronger than I had expected, I had an inkling that Hecate performed a switcheroo with the other cubes she had been using as it was nowhere near as damaged as I expected after the first volley, still. I had about a minute of descent at my current pace and about three minutes before I started tapping into my Psionic reserve, I had time.

Bullets continued to fly as I continued to descend. By the time I landed on the cube situated on the grass, everyone had taken a few more steps back due to the massive ball of flame above me while the cube on the platform had five sides heavily dented with smiley face patterns.

As I was standing there, the woman with fire whips suddenly ran forward and literally climbled up my body while screaming. ”Where is it! Where is the heat? Where is the glorious burning sensation! Why is it cold!?! WHY IS IT COLD!?!”

I couldn’t respond, the woman had caused me an imbalance and I was focusing very hard to make sure this sphere didn’t heat back up and go kaboom. It didn’t help when others, emboldened, walked over and began raising their arms, revelling in the ’cool flames.’

I wasn’t going to be able to get rid of this safely now with the clinger using my shoulders and thigh rests and slowly squashing my head. I was just going to have to throw it up in the air and hope for the-

My Sphere was suddenly attempted to be hijacked. I felt I could resist if I wanted, but knowing who was trying to take control, I let her, it would be a burden on my shoulders, literally.

I watched as Hecate pulled the fire ball away, out of my influence, it began heating up again hastily, forcing the majority of individuals to fall to the ground at the intensity of the heat. Hecate extended her hand out towards the mass of Psionic energy and the sphere began shrinking as tendrils of energy began pouring towards her.

’She is absorbing my energy?’ I watched curiously. ”No!!!” I suddenly heard above me as the woman jumped off my shoulders and towards the ball of fire. She fell to her knees as the fireball ceased to be and was fully absorbed by Hecate. ”But it was so beautiful...”

Hecate stood there for a moment, her eyes closed as she seemed to be processing something. Her shoulders shuddered in delight before opening her eyes once more. She then looked at me and smiled. ”Apollo, your Psionics are quite spicy and that was not a pun. A brilliant presentation.”

She then frowned as she turned her attention towards Lena. ”And you. Do not disrupt other presentations, you almost caused great harm to your fellow students with your actions. Would you like to receive punishment for your actions now or later?”

Lena turned her attention to the kindred spirit. She knew how volatile Pyrokinesis was and she acted rashly because the heat was gone. The fire was wrong. But, the man was performing a trick, she shouldn’t have been so careless... Something just snapped within her at that moment.

With a determined expression, she looked up at Hecate and declared. ”Now.”

Hecate nodded, understandingly before floating forward. She then leant down and placed her hand on the woman’s shoulder. Lena’s face immediately creased in pain and proceeded to lay on her side in writing agony while grabbing her stomach.

”What did you do to her?” Someone in the crowd yelled, appalled and also curious. ”My Psionics are acting in place of tissue and are making her experience endometriosis.”

A collective gasp of phantom pain, followed by a holding of the stomach emerged from the women present. A disease none of them would ever wish on their worst enemies. ”That’s evil!”

The rest of the women also began yelling similar things, while some of the men were trying to figure out whatever that endo-thingamabob was.

Hecate sighed at the racket before flicking her finger. The sound in the surroundings ceased. The air, breathing. Even the noises you don’t think about like the grass swaying. All mute. All the while, everyone continued shouting for a moment before stupor overcame everyone upon realising they could not hear themselves. Not even the voice inside their heads. Well, not all voices.

’She is a strong prey Apollo, be cautious around her.’ Onyx declared. If Onyx was saying that, then Hecate was clearly a big player, bigger than I thought. Not that I was planning on doing anything that would require me to be cautious around her though.

”Ah Silence, how I missed thee.” Hecate chirped with a smile on her face. ”You need to remember who your teacher is, students. I don’t take backtalk. Now, I will resume your capacity to enjoy the sensation of sound in a moment, no doubt you are already starting to feel sick from the lack of stimulation apart from my soothing voice, but if I hear another peep about being called ’evil’ or ’immoral’ you will suffer the same fate at Lena here, understood? I will take your ’silence’ as a yes” She joked, seemingly trying very hard not to laugh at herself before unmuting us.

After an initial gasp of relief from everyone, the surroundings remained silent, though this time consensually. Hecate nodded and undid her punishment for Lena, as it was long enough.

”Well then, we can carry on now. You. You are next, up on the stage.”

...

The rest of the Hecate test was not as exciting as it previously was, with the threat of pain, everyone lost their wind a little bit. Once everyone was finished and we were told to rotate, everyone got up and ran like their lives depended on it.

Only I ended up saying goodbye to Hecate as she was my friend, by adjacent to Valerimommy after all, and thanked her for helping out with my sphere before walking off myself towards the next tests, where my favourite chonk would get to show off again.