'Hello? Anyone out there?' The girl pressed herself against the bark of a tree. There was no response, not even the caw of a bird. 

'Anybody?' Nayeon's voice quavered in fear. 

She hated being alone. It wasn't just being all alone that bothered her; it was the feeling that no one was there. No one wanted to be with her. No one would be there for her even if something bad happened. 

No one would know even if she died.

She began to teleport throughout the forest, jumping around in a attempt to spot a exit of some sort.

After just six minutes, she was beginning to feel terrified. Her palms were getting clammy and her eyes darted around the forest, hoping that there would be at least someone. Even if it were a little sparrow or a wild bunny, she'll take it. She was that desperate. 

'Come on Nayeon, don't be childish and irrational. It's just being left alone. Jihyo is waiting for you to come out. The gang is waiting for you.' She said aloud in an attempt to convince herself. 

'It's only been six minutes. It's not that bad.' She looked at the pocket watch that was trembling slightly in her open palm. 

The main reason for speaking her thoughts was to distract her from the silence that was ringing in her ears. Right now, she would kill to have crickets chirping and snakes rustling the leaves as they slither along but there were none. There wasn't even a breeze blowing through the forest, making the air so still Nayeon felt suffocated. 

The entire landscape looked like it was frozen in time.

'You're not deserted. You're not unwanted.' She repeated as she walked around. 

'Jihyo loves you. She does.' 

Every tree she walks by seem to be the same, making her turn back to check if she had really left her previous spot. 

Another few minutes passed and she was convinced that there was no escaping this forest. The souls trapped in here would have a new comrade to join them for eternity and she would never see her friends again. 

Her breathing became laboured and each step she took became heavier and heavier. Eventually her knees buckled and she collapsed on all fours. Even her elbows trembled from the weight of her upper body, making her sit on her bottom and lean against the bark of a tree for support. 

The trees appeared to be wiggling around in her vision as her head became light. She couldn't feel her feet or her hands and her chest felt equally numb. The ringing silence wasn't disappearing either and her heart began to palpitate. 

At that moment, she was convinced she was going to die. How ridiculous can you get, Im Nayeon, she chided herself. Getting panic attack from being left in isolation. 

But your friends left you here, a voice in her head said. 

They're lost too.

But they're finding their way out. You? Stuck under a tree.

They will find me.

What makes you so sure they will? They could be walking out and gathering. 

They won't leave me behind.

Take a look for yourself.

Her eyes rolled over to the side where a portal like fissure had opened on the trunk of a tree. There they were, getting into black vehicles and driving off down the road where they had crashed earlier on.

'That's nonsense! It's a trick you're showing me!' Nayeon groaned, flinging a rock weakly at the portal. 

From that very same tree stepped out a familiar figure. 

'Is that.. Me?' She asked to no one in particular, squinting at the darker figure of herself. 

She was paler. Much paler. As pale as a ghost if she could say, wearing the exact same clothes except they were in tatters and covered in dirt. 

'Look at what they did to us.' Her mirror image snarled. 'They left us here to die and rot.'

'No.. No they didn't.' Nayeon shook her head violently, retracting her legs towards her torso.

'They couldn't be bothered to rescue us.'

Nayeon could only gasp in horror, hugging her knees close as the figure's neck snapped to the left, limbs twisting at impossible and inhumane angles. 

The body contorted and convulsed, morphing into a ghoulish, lanky creature. 

That wasn't her. That would never be her. That looked more like slender man than her. 

Its mouth opened and dark mist began to pour out, gathering near the floor. Nayeon teleported herself out of the path of that hellish being and began running, occasionally teleporting a few feet ahead of her. She had tried to teleport back to the road but found herself unable to do so. 

Opening a portal under a boulder, she let it fall on top of the creature and it seemed to be squashed into a puddle. 

Before Nayeon could let out a sigh of relief, the black puddle began to reform into its original state but this time, it appears much bigger.

'It feeds on your fear. Stop running.' A stern voice echoed.

Nayeon didn't know if it was in her head or all around her but she didn't care. At least she wasn't alone. There was someone watching her. 

The dark creature lashed out and pinned Nayeon to the ground. What she assumed to be its face began to peer down, putrid breath invading her sense of smell. She wanted to teleport but it seemed to be blocking her powers in some way. 

Now she was trapped with nowhere to run. 

'Now or never Nayeon, stop being a coward.' She winced as she pressed herself as far back into the ground as she could. Her eyes were screwed shut but she could feel the thing advancing, ready to take her soul. 

Live up to your name and fight back, she screamed in her mind. 

Her eyes snapped open and she shoved the horrid thing off her body, disappearing and reappearing behind it. Standing straight with her new found confidence, she puffed her chest out and looked down at the creature which seemed to be shrinking. 

'I'm not afraid of being alone. I know that there will always be someone watching over me in my heart. You will not control me.' She spoke in a stentorian manner. 

It was the creature's turn to cower as Nayeon advanced. Casting a portal at it, she banished it to spend eternity in another realm. 

'Congratulations. You have faced your fears.' A lady with stormy grey hair materialized in front of her. Her eyes were dark and calculative but Nayeon could sense some friendliness within them regardless.

'You saved me.' 

'You saved yourself. I only told you not to be afraid.' She mused. 

'I thought I was alone.. where did you come from? How did I not see you before? And who are you?' 

'Slow down with the questions.' She chuckled. 'You weren't alone, I was watching over the entire test of your endurance and willpower. Seeing how you almost gave up trying to conquer your fears, I had to step in. I am Celestine, first of your kind to walk this earth.'

Nayeon's jaw dropped. Never in her life had she expected to meet the first teleporter. 

'Woah wait. How am I seeing you if you're dead? A-am I dead too?' Nayeon's eyes bulged and she patted her body to check if she was in one piece. 

'I am here as your teacher, your guardian. To share with you tips on how to master your affinity.'

'So.. This is real mutant school?'

'No, this is a one-time thing. Take this as.. An extra class. Now that you have overcome this mental block, how do you feel?' Celestine snapped her fingers and two chairs appeared along with a teapot and two antique looking cups. 'Sit.' 

'I feel.. Stupid. Like that fear was irrational. There was no reason to always be afraid that I would be left alone. Now that I think about it, if there was that huge brawl and.. And things don't go well, I might be left alone too.' Nayeon played with her hair and shifted a little in her seat as her ancestor poured her a cup of tea. 

'Valerian Root tea. It should calm you down. Try some.' 

The younger girl picked up the cup gently and sipped the steaming liquid.

'Smells weird.. Tastes weird..' Nayeon made a face and placed the cup down.

'It does indeed, but it is quite useful. The effects might kick in after a few more sips. Now, back to your block. Irrational isn't it? But think back to when you still had it. It seemed pretty big didn't it?'

Nayeon nodded.

'Just like the creature, our fears can grow out of hand if you allow it to do so. When we are scared, we see ourselves inferior to the object. Take for example.. Blood. Have you heard of the phobia of blood?'

'Yes I have.'

'It's the same. You might think it's irrational to fear something that is flowing in your very body but another person might have a traumatic incident that caused the phobia. I believe that all fears can be conquered as long as you are willing to try.'

Celestine placed her hand on Nayeon's shoulder.

'What if I told you that a teleporter is the most dangerous affinity?'

'What? Is it really?'

'Portals can turn ugly if you don't handle them properly isn't it? They can trap you in another dimension like what you did to your fear or teleport you to somewhere you don't wish to go. Imagine sending something into the middle of a volcano by accident.'

'Oh gosh!' 

'Exactly. That thing could be you or another human too. So to look at it from this perspective, you are brave. And now that you became truly independent, you are braver. Nothing can stop you now, Nayeon. The only thing that can stop you is yourself.' 

'So.. I'm good now?' 

'You have always been good. Great if I may say. Did you know, you are the key to the team's success? You have the power to displace space and use it to your advantage. Warp time and even travel to the past and future.'

'I can?'

'Time travel is essentially teleportation.'

'But.. How can I practice that? I can't even hold stable portals open!' 

'You don't have the time to practice. Trust me, I've seen what's in store for you and it's not pretty. Instead, I'll give it to you.'

'The ability to do that?' 

'Yes. Just relax your body and empty your mind. Slight discomfort and some pain but it will be quick.' Celestine stood up and walked in front of Nayeon. 

'O-okay.' 

'I will use the chakra points to do so. Here and here.' The lady pointed to Nayeon's chest and her forehead. 'The heart and the third eye.'

Less than two seconds after Celestine placed her thumbs on the contact point, everything was engulfed by a bright white light, washing away everything in Nayeon's vision. 

It wasn't painful but it felt like she was punched in the head and could see stars. 

Everything reverted back to normal and the young teleporter's vision was returned to her. She could see Celestine's face that was full of concern.

'Are you okay?'

'Yes, I think so. Apart from the feeling like I just drank ten cans of red bull.'

'It happens. Test them out.' 

Nayeon waved her hand and for the first time, a perfectly round portal opened. It wasn't shaking and the image wasn't distorted. Instead it was like a mirror, smooth and clear.

'Wow.'

'Step through. Take us somewhere back in time.' 

Nayeon hesitantly looked at Celestine and back at the portal. 

'How far back can we go?'

'As far as when the world was first created.'

'I want to go back and see the first mutants.' Nayeon pulled Celestine through the portal and they reappeared on the other side in a totally different landscape. 

'Welcome to my time.' Celestine smiled and gestured to the old landscape.

It wasn't particularly majestic but the buildings were well constructed. Houses were made of a mixture of timber and metal, there were docks for the ships and trading posts. In fact, it kind of looked like a small town on the outskirts of a city in present time but with a slightly rustic twist.

'Being mutants, we could create things better than humans could at that time. Some of the buildings are even made from the sand on the floor.'

'Is that you?' Nayeon squinted at a figure clad in white robes sitting under a tree next to another man also clad in white.

'Yes. That is me and my future husband, Xander.'

'That's so cool.. Was he a mutant too?'

'A telekinetic.' 

Nayeon flushed in the face. 

'Why have you turned so red? Ah.. Jihyo. I guess somethings just don't change.' Celestine chuckled.

'So you mean all teleporters are attracted to telekinetics?'

'You in particular. I guess we owe it to fate that out of all the teleporters I could meet, I met you.'

'How is Jihyo? Is she okay?'

'That I can't answer.'

'Ah..'

'But she's fine. Don't worry. Let's go back. Our mentor time is almost up.'

'Wait there's a time limit for this?'

'Yes. Do you want to spend a whole day with me to explore the universe?' Celestine laughed.

Nayeon sheepishly grinned as the lady brought them back to the forest. 

'My last parting words, don't hold yourself back from reaching your full potential. I'm sure you know how to do that now.'

'I do. It's an honour to be guided by you.' 

'It's my pleasure. The boundaries are no more, you can teleport freely to the outside world now. Go, find your friends.'

Nayeon grinned and disappeared instantly as Celestine bid goodbye.