It was two days after my fifteenth birthday. I was practicing in my backyard, doing my basic maneuvers that I'm sure my dad became bored with watching. Yet, he continued to watch, waiting for me to do something incredible.
I was in a particularly good mood that day, enjoying my new presents I had gotten just a couple days earlier. So, I decided to spread some happiness and give Dad something cool to look at.
I pulled one of my earlier creations out of my repertoire and began to set myself up. Then, I moved my arms in a circle around my body and a circle of fire formed around me. Then I raised my arms up and the circle became a column, working its way into the sky. I pushed my hands forward one at a time, several times, and little arms shot out of the column and created smaller circles around it.
I stood in the middle of the cylinder, admiring the gorgeous lights. This maneuver had no attack purposes - I just thought it looked cool. I slowly brought the fire back down to my palms and fisted my hands, quenching the fire.
I looked over and Dad's jaw was on the floor. This was probably the most complex move I had let him see, but it was simple compared to what I was working on currently. I smiled at him and walked inside the house, giving him the signal that I was done for the night.
A half-an-hour later I heard my Dad speaking excitedly into the phone. I sat in the den and could easily hear what was going on.
"You should have seen it!" he marveled. "It was unbelievable."
I heard the soft tap of the plastic phone on the counter as Dad set it down to reach for something in the fridge. He put it on speaker phone.
"I believe she may be ready." Shaw's deep, powerful voice resonated from the other line. "Her powers have seemed to strengthen over time and from what you're telling me, I think it's time."
My heart sank when I heard this, but I continued to listen.
"I doubt she is telling you everything," he continued. "She can't just go from basic training to something that advanced. She's been training much harder than you think. She's a smart girl."
Dad then picked the phone back up and took it off speaker, closing the fridge and coming back into the den. I walked out of the room.
