New Eden: Live to Play, Play to Live

Chapter 959: Final Test Before Landing



Once everyone was set and understood the rules, Alex conjured the globe of water again. In a spirit of camaraderie and friendly competition, he started by passing it off to someone he knew had a fine mana control, and let them choose who to pass it to next.

As anticipated, most of the people in the passenger cabin were adept at mana control. Once they grasped the way to catch and release the mana, this game was a breeze for them.

Jonathan and Violette, with each playful interaction with the orb, were showcasing a level of control that was on par with Alex and Kary. Alex could sense their potential, knowing that in due time, theirs would far surpass his, a testament to their growth and progression in mana control.

Winston quickly pushed through his limitations on mana sensing, focusing only on the water itself. He could barely feel the mana inside, but seeing it helped him focus on what to catch.

Of course, it made his mana control very brutish, but it was getting better every time the orb came back to him, and, even though he was sweating buckets by the time they were flying over China, he had grasped the technique well enough that it no longer burst on him.

But that wasn't before many failed attempts, or slip-ups in control, making him take a cold shower more than once.

Of course, the one that was worst for wear was Aapo.

His mana sensing was the most rudimentary of the bunch, and he could barely feel anything from the water at all. This made catching the water globe next to impossible for him.

The few times he caught it were flukes, and the water globe almost immediately leaked to the ground, as he failed to keep the mana together long enough to throw it back.

Frustration was growing on his face, and Alex often gave him tips, aiding him as best he could without outright catching the globe of water for him. This was something he needed to learn for himself, after all.

The last hour of travel went by like a breeze, their minds all busy either enjoying the game or being too focused on not getting soaked to care about the flow of time.

But Alex was keeping a close watch on time every time the game restarted. And by the time Major Schrute told them to strap in for landing, they were already seven minutes into their attempt.

They all knew they had failed to reach ten minutes, and looks of disappointment appeared on the younger ones' faces.

However, Alex wasn't going to let this get them down.

"Alright, let's switch things up! Landing is bound to get rougher, so let's put all your talents to the test!" Alex exclaimed.

Kary's eyebrow rose, curious about what he was about to suggest.

"Jonathan, I can tell by our angle of travel that we have a crosswind. I want you to focus on outside. Forget the water globe and head into the cockpit. You will try to counteract the

crosswind and help the Major land the plane smoothly. You up for it?"

Jonathan's eyes went wide, before an excited smile stretched his lips.

"Yes!" he exclaimed, jumping up from his seat.

He ran straight to the cockpit and knocked on the door.

"I don't want anyone in here for landing," the major replied on her intercom.

But Alex wasn't about to give her a choice.

"Let the kid in, Major. It's an order."

He could feel her anger through the steel door, but watched as it slid open.

He nodded in satisfaction, as the door closed behind Jonathan, and turned his eyes to Violette.

"As for you, we will work on your multitasking. Since you excel at this, let's make it a challenge."

Violette nodded, her eyes becoming focused.

"I want you to conjure two other balls of water, and cycle through temperatures with them. I want one boiling, one freezing and one tepid, cycling on each other. Can you do that?"

Violette frowned a bit, as it sounded simplistic.

"Yes. But that doesn't sound very hard..."

"It'll get harder, as you won't be controlling them, only playing with their temperatures," Alex said, before turning to Winston.

"Winston, I want you to hold them afloat. All three at the same time. Just imagine you are holding your mana as a solid plate with edges, and hold all three orbs at the same height until we touch down."

Winston's face became stern. It wasn't something hard to do, per se, since he had already learned how to harden his shield with mana in the game. But out here, it would be a different

thing.

But he nodded in acknowledgment of his task, focusing his eyes on the now three globes of

water.

Violette still failed to see how this would be a challenge for her.

However, Alex still hadn't assigned a task to Aapo.

Turning to him, Alex grinned.

"Your task will be the simplest one, but it will be great for your skill set."

Aapo gulped as he imagined getting an arduous task.

He was having trouble sensing the mana in the water orbs, even now that they were actively being tampered with and infused with much more mana than before.

If he had to do anything troublesome, he feared he would disappoint everyone, and their trust in him would drop.

"Aapo. Do you know what makes modern bullets more accurate and increases their range?"

Alex asked.

Aapo nodded his head, as this was a simple question.

"The rifling in the barrel imparts a spin to the bullet, stabilizing the bullet through centrifugal force, and creating a wind funnel to reduce wind resistance. Why?"

Alex grinned.

"That is your task until we land. I want you to act as the rifling of our water bullets. Spin them

with everything you got. Make them go the fastest you can, without letting them leave their trajectory. Be the barrel of this gun."

Aapo looked at him with a blank face.

"Excuse me?"