Page 70 of Volik

Turning away from her locked front door, I cross the living room to the sliding door that I left open all night.

I should have shut it. But I did not want to waste a single moment with my Nix.

The metal gives a light groan as I step out onto the balcony. And I keep one hand on the blanket as I slide the door closed behind me.

The morning is cool. The typical gray.

Quiet.

Early.

Most people are still in bed.

I look up.

The ledge of the roof is not far above me.

With my back to the railing, still holding my blanket, I use the tiniest amount of effort and jump up.

When my bare feet settle on the roof, I turn to face the direction of my house.

The university’s campus is to the left, the three locations forming a squat triangle. But going directly home from here… it’s not that far. Just a couple miles. And mostly forest.

No reason I cannot test out some of this new power swirling in my center.

There are many names for it. Depends who you ask. Depends what century they were born in. But in my family, we call it gravito.

No one knows the source of the power, why some have it stronger than others, but gravito is like having your own gravitational pull. Acts as though you are your own planet.

But instead of it being a steady, constant pull. It’s a roiling tangle of pure energy inside our chests. We can use it to push things away. Pull things to us. To… jump.

My mother’s bloodline was known for being especially talented at controlling it. And my brother mastered it young. He could make multiple turns without ever stopping or touching the ground.

I am proficient. But now that I have a mate to protect, I will get better.

In order to jump, we need to channel all the gravito within ourselves and focus it forward. Or backward. Or up. It’s dangerous to go farther than you can see. But if you are good enough, you can keep changing the focal point, constantly yanking yourself forward through open space.

Going long distances uses a lot of energy.

It can be draining.

I take a step forward.

But that is the thing about me now.

I take another step.

I have so much energy.

And… I might be a little better than proficient.

I run the final two steps. My foot pushes off the ledge of the roof.

And then I throw my gravito forward, taking myself with it.

Over the street. And trees.

Over the city. And roads.