Chapter 2: Reckless Guide
The scream of sirens shocked Kellen out of the current guiding session he was in. Shortly after the siren, a soft but firm voice came over the speakers every room and hallway was equipped with.
"Code yellow. I repeat, code yellow. All available guides head for the fourth floor." Code yellow? That was an Esper who was only a few steps away from a power surge. How the hell did an esper get to that level on the fourth floor? Espers who were in such dangerous conditions didn't end up on the fourth floor, they went to the higher floors for immediate, safer guiding. This was fact since the fourth floor was the second floor for the C Class Guides. It was where Kellen's office was located.
Kellen swallowed and glanced down at the hand he still held, before looking up at the Esper in front of him. He was a C Class as well, and had been seeing Kellen since he arrived at Guiding Center B. He was the closest Kellen had to a regular Esper, so he had some attachment to him. To see him so pale while in the middle of a session made Kellen wonder what he was sensing from the hallway.
"Are you alright, Esper?" Kellen asked, and the Esper shook himself. The Esper seemed to take a few breaths to gather themselves before removing their hand from Kellen's. Despite the surprise, Kellen hadn't stopped guiding the Esper, until they broke the contact themselves. The Esper even got to their feet, shaking slightly, making Kellen frown slightly.
"I'm alright, Guide Woods. I think you should go and see to the Esper in code yellow outside." If they were shaking like a leaf and this worried, Kellen knew that they must be sensing something quite serious in the hallway.
Kellen, unlike a vast majority of Guides, wasn't able to sense the shift of powers in the air. It wasn't classified by higher Class or lower Class, but by person. There were Guides out there who were F Class and were able to sense fluctuations in powers, but Kellen hadn't been blessed that way. He was only able to tell the state of someone by physically touching them.
It was clear that this Esper was able to pick up on the surging power in the hallway, and Kellen trusted them not to lie to them. Especially if their life was at risk.
Sighing, Kellen got to his feet. Since the Esper had already cut contact, there was no point to continue on as if nothing was happening. Nervously, he wiped his hands on his pants, resigning himself to the fact that he was probably the only Guide on this level who would go check. He cast a glance around his room, taking in the simple office flare, with the soft couch against the right wall, and sighed. Hopefully, nothing horrible was going to happen in the hallway.
He headed for the door, and was about to open it before stopping, and almost as an afterthought, turned and gave a soft smile to the Esper who was standing in the middle of the room nervously. "I shall be back shortly. Make yourself a cup of tea to calm yourself while I'm away." Kellen spoke softly, but with quiet authority. Enough that the Esper swallowed and nodded before Kellen turned his attention back to the door. Swallowing, he gripped the door handle, and gave it a turn.