Over the next few months, several of the teenagers turned sixteen, which meant they were coming of age and deserved to be tested. Since they were all individuals and their skills, interests, and desires were all different, Hunter devised their own special trials for them to take. There was no pass or fail option, and unlike The Order, they were in the sparing arena and the others were there to cheer them on with encouragement.

“You've got this, Tish!” One of her half-brothers said loudly. “Kick Dad's ass!”

“It's not that kind of test, dummy!” Tish hollered back and they all laughed.

“Actually, he's half-right.” I said and waved her forward. “I want you to show me what you can do.”

Tish looked at me with disbelief on her face.

“It's all right.” I said and took a fighting stance with my hands held loosely at my sides, then slowly hopped from side to side for a moment. “Use the enhancing technique I showed you and attack.”

“Dad, I...” Tish shook her head. “You're my father.” She said. Not to mention super-powerful. She thought. “I can't fight you.”

I chuckled. “We're not fighting or even sparing. I just want you to try and hit me as hard as you can. Don't hold back. Give it everything you have.”

“Dad.” Tish sighed.

“Remember what I started to do to you when you wanted to learn how to sleep and stay awake at the same time?” I asked with a grin.

Tish's face switched from possible regret to instant anger. “Sneaking into my room at random times every night to wake me up was NOT nice!” She spat. “I didn't sleep right for weeks!”

“I had so much fun teaching you.” I admitted.

Tish growled at me, because the Presence didn't waver. Her Presence covered her and her muscles increased slightly in size, her blonde hair floated up slightly, and little sparks of lightning ran all over her body.

“I especially liked that you sometimes cuddle...”

“DON'T SAY IT!” Tish yelled and disappeared from where she stood. She used both Stealth and Presence Run to run around behind me, then she ran full out and slammed her fists into my back as she discharged a dozen bolts of Presence Lightning into me. The force and shock blew me off of my feet and I flew forward through the air thirty feet and tumbled several times, before I used Presence to correct my trajectory and landed on my feet facing her.

I slid backwards another ten feet, then let out a laugh. “Wonderful, Tish. That was wonderful.”

Everyone in the stands were shocked at what had just happened.

“What the hell happened?” One of her half-sisters asked. “I didn't even see her move!”

“Did you see that Presence Lightning discharge? That was awesome!” Her full brother said. “I wanna learn that!”

“It'll be your turn next year.” His half-brother said and clapped his shoulder. “We can all sit here and watch you slam the old man then.”

“All right!” He said happily and they laughed.

I walked over to Tish and she was breathing evenly, even though her face was passive and her eyes were still angry. That's a little secret I haven't shown anyone how to unlock before. I thought for her alone and made the scars glow on my chest.

“Dad.” Tish's angry eyes went back to normal.

“Anger can be a tool to use, just don't let it consume you. If it runs free, then all it will do is get you killed.” I cautioned her. “I almost died the first time I let my anger out.” I took her hands and the little lightning bolts flowed from her to me. I easily added my own Presence to them and sent them back.

Tish gasped at the increase in power and her mouth opened slightly in surprise as it merged back into her. “Dad!”

“Yes, now that you've shown the ability, I'll train you in its use.” I said and let her hands go. “For now, though... what can you do with this?” I asked and waved at the side of the arena. A training droid rolled out and held up a wooden sword. “Be careful, though. It's quick and it saw what you did to me.”

I walked over to the stands and sat down with the kids and watched to see what Tish was going to do.

Tish gave me a mournful look. Dad, I don't want to fight it. She thought, because she knew how important it was to keep all of the droids functioning. She was on the Heavy Maintenance Squad, after all.

Who said you had to fight it? I asked her. No more clues. Go ahead and deal with the 'intruder'.

Tish gave me another pointed look, so I smiled and waved both hands in a shooing motion. She shook her head and sighed as she walked over to the droid. It took a fighting stance and Tish didn't react to it at all. It looked at her and she looked back at it as she kept coming closer, then she walked right up to it without assuming a fighting stance at all.

Tish reached around its head and pushed the little button that performed a self-diagnostic test. The droid shut down and started to perform the diagnostic, so she took the wooden sword from it and tossed it aside.

“What the hell was that?” One of her half-brothers asked.

“Proof that sometimes, fighting isn't the answer.” Tish said and looked at me. “Although, that's only true in very few circumstances.”

“Absolutely right. That little trick won't work anymore, now that it knows you can do it.” I said. “Go ahead and open the compartment in the belly.”

Tish opened up the compartment and inside were the basic components needed to construct a Light sword. She stared at them for a full minute and then looked at me with wide eyes.

“You don't have to do anything with them.” I said and tossed her a sack that was big enough to hold the parts. “You can make what it was intended for or you can make anything you want.”

“Dad, I...” Tish's mind went over everything she had heard about Light swords, including all of the stories her father and the others had told her, as well as all the videos and information she had found on the galactic net. She wasn't sure if she wanted the responsibility of having to carry a deadly weapon all the time.

I walked over to her and packed the bag for her, then put it in her hand. “It's not a test of your character, Portishiastis.” I said and pulled out a pendant and hung it around her neck. “I'm just telling you that I trust you with this responsibility.”

Tish looked at the pendant and saw that it was identical to the one her mother wore. “D-dad.”

“I love you.” I said and gave her a hug. I held it for several moments and she didn't struggle or fight against it, then she let out a sigh and put her arms around me. “I want to keep you safe from harm and the best way to do that is to prepare you for harm that might come for you.”

“I... I know, Dad. I know.” Tish whispered.

“Then get your butt over to the seats and let one of your brothers have a turn.” I said with a smile and let her go as the droid rolled back out of the sparing arena to refill its compartment. Tish nodded and took the bag of supplies to the seats.

“Yeah! It's about time!” Sheph's son said and jumped from his seat and down into the arena. It was a distance of about twenty feet, so it was kind of an impressive jump to his siblings. It was just unfortunate that he landed wrong with one of his feet slightly off. There was a snapping sound as his ankle took all of his weight and it broke. He dropped to one knee and hissed at the sharp pain.

“Now you know not to show off.” I said and walked over to him. “Balance is key. If you can't retain your balance, then use Presence to correct your posture and let it guide your feet to the right spots.”

“S-sorry, Dad.” Peyhs said and looked up at me with gritted teeth.

“It's all right. That's the whole point of all of this.” I waved at the arena and used Presence Heal on him to speed up his regeneration. “Practice your abilities. Use patience if you're not sure if you're doing things right and ask for help when you need it.”

“But... I thought...”

“What?” I chuckled. “That you should go it alone and hope that you work everything out for yourself?”

“Yes, actually.” Peyhs said as he stood and I chuckled.

“This isn't The Order.” I said and put my hands on his shoulders. “We're all family and friends here. It's okay to ask for help, even when you think the others might think less of you for it.”

“That's not why...”

I smiled and pat both shoulders. “I said it's all right. Everyone here is in the same situation. They can all ask for help when they need it and some of them do.”

“I asked you for help in confidence!” Jelly's son Kellan exclaimed and everyone turned to look at him.

“I didn't say who.” I said and he groaned in defeat for giving himself away. “Besides, it really is like I said. There's no shame in asking for help.” I looked at him. “Did it help?”

“Yes.” Kellan admitted.

“Then there's no problem, is there?” I asked and he sighed. “Okay, Peyhs. Show me what you can do.”

“I kind of don't have the upper hand now.” Peyhs said and I chuckled.

“Okay, then. Go on back up to your seat and try jumping in again.”

“Huh?” Peyhs gave me a disbelieving look. “But... I'm here and...”

“Go, on. Go on. I don't have have all day.” I said and waved at the seats. “Let me see you do it right this time.”

Peyhs opened his mouth to argue, then sighed and clomped his feet as he crossed the arena and went up the stairs to his seat to repeat his 'surprise' jump. He took his time to prepare beforehand and made sure he was in the right frame of mind for it, then he jumped again. He looked to be overshooting his target slightly, so he used Presence to adjust his trajectory and then used it to catch himself when he landed.

“Much better! Much better!” I clapped and walked over to him. “I suggest using some body reinforcement just before landing as well, just so you can charge something as soon as you hit the floor.”

Peyhs gave me wide eyes, because he hadn't thought of that.

“Want to try it?” I asked.

“Yeah.” Peyhs said and a smile appeared on his face. “I would.”

“Then get back up there and let's see it.” I encouraged him. “Show me how much you've practised.”

“Okay, Dad!” Peyhs said and ran over to the stairs. “You guys are not going to believe this.” He whispered to the others in the seats, sat down, and waited for a minute as I walked a little ways away in a random direction.

“Hey, aren't you gonna...” Someone started to ask.

“Shh!” Someone else hushed them.

Suddenly Peyhs was up and out of his seat and jumped through the air the twenty feet to the arena floor. Just before his feet touched, his body glowed slightly and instead of sticking the landing like the last two times, his whole body pivoted on his feet and he sprung like a frog another twenty feet.

“HAAAAA!” Peyhs yelled as he landed perfectly on my back and knocked me down to the floor.

“Wow!” Sandy's son Alex said. “He just... how the heck did he do that?”

“I don't know! How does body enhancement translate to extra strength if you can't use it all the time?” Beatrice's son Alan asked.

“Because until you gain enough Presence through practice, meditation, and age, using it in short bursts is the best way to benefit from it.” I said. “Okay, Peyhs. You can get off.”

Peyhs hopped off and grinned at me, a little arrogantly.

“Don't be too smug.” I said as I stood up and pretended to brush dust off of myself. “I saw and felt you coming.”

“I know.” Peyhs said. “I could feel the resistance of Presence the closer I got to you.”

I chuckled. “Good. Now, what would you have done if I had turned around and either tried to attack or catch you?”

“Presence Push.”

“To what end?” I asked.

“To get me out of your attack path, of course.” Peyhs said. “I'd never be able to move you, so I'd move myself.”

I nodded. “Good.” I said. “That's the best strategy when facing an opponent that you know has an advantage over you.”

“The biggest advantage is that you're our father.” Peyhs said.

“Ha. You're wrong.” I said. “That's the biggest disadvantage.”

“Huh? Why?”

“You'll hold back and won't give me everything when you attack.” I said. “When you pounced on me, you didn't go for the kill or try to hit my head, wring my neck, or even tried to immobilize my arms.”

All the kids and teenagers in the crowd fell silent at my words.

“That's okay, though. I have a simple solution.”

“What? Are you quitting?” A lot of them asked and nearly everyone laughed, except Tish. She had been smart and tried to tap my head for stray thoughts. I let her see and she covered her mouth to stop her laugh.

“His solution is me.” Kara said as she dropped her Stealth technique, right in the middle of the seats. Most of the kids jumped and one of the brothers let out a very unmanly squeak. She made an invisible walkway out of the stands and it looked like she walked through the air as she went to the center of the arena and stopped in front of me.

“Meet everyone's new sparring partner.” I said and presented Kara, and the kids that hadn't been tested yet groaned, even Peyhs. “She's going to continue the trials in my stead and I'll just be right over there enjoying the show.” I waved at where Tish sat, then I used Presence Run to get there in the blink of an eye and sat down beside her.

“You have three minutes to prepare.” Kara said to Peyhs and tossed him a wooden training sword.

“So, have you decided what you're going to make?” I asked Tish and she tore her eyes away from the arena to look at me.

“Dad, I told you...”

“...and I told you that you can make anything you want.” I smiled at her. “So, do you want another shield pendant? A Light sword? A laser pistol?”

Tish's mind raced as she thought about what she could make with what she had.

“Oh, and don't limit yourself to what you have in the bag.” I said and Tish gasped. “Yeah, that's right.” I put an arm over her shoulder. “Do you want to visit my own private little workshop?”

“Oh, god.” Tish whispered as the forbidden area was offered to her. She looked at the bag of parts in her hands and then at me. “Will you show me what I can make with these parts?”

“I'll show you how to make everything, if that's what you want.” I said.

“Yes, Dad. That's exactly what I want.” Tish said, her mind resolved to learn as much as she could.

I nodded. “We'll sit here and enjoy Kara taking out her frustrations on your siblings, then we'll have your graduating party.” I said. “After that...”

“...you can introduce me to a whole new way to look at the world.” Tish said, almost in reverence. “As components.”

I nodded again and we sat there and watched her siblings try their best against Kara. We had discussed for a while beforehand what strengths and weaknesses each of them had, which was why I had done Tish's test myself. I knew she wasn't really a fighter, even though she could kick ass when she needed to, so I handled her differently. The others were actually eager to fight and to test their physical skills, which meant I wasn't the best option for them.

Kara was more than ready for the challenge and performed their trials admirably. Needless to say, they all passed their individually tailored tests in their own way.