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<h2> I am serializing my middle grade novel The Dolbin School Book 2: The Dark Cloud Rises here on Steemit.</h2>
<p>I serialize the first book in the series Dolbin School for the Extraordinary back <a href="https://steemit.com/writing/@mctiller/dolbin-school-for-the-extraordinary-chapter-1-jake-cooper">in the summer</a>. You can get this book on <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00WPTO8UM/ref=series_rw_dp_sw">Kindle and in paperback.</a>The book is leveled for 4th grade readers and up. It's the story of a group of boys who discover they have Extra human abilities and are sent to a school for students with their skills. And with any school there is bullying.</p>
<p>But what happens when the bully is a super-hero? </p>
<p>Click here for <a href="https://steemit.com/writing/@mctiller/the-dolbin-school-book-2-the-dark-cloud-rises-chapter-1-friday">Chapter 1</a></p>
<p><img src="https://steemitimages.com/0x0/http://martintiller.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/DarkCloudBookCover2.jpg" width="1575" height="2475"/> </p>
<h2>Chapter 2 Virtual Reality</h2>
<p><br></p>
<p> Jake sat down at the lunch table and Mark rolled up next to him. “Some things don’t change. Friday is still pizza day.” </p>
<p> Mark took a deep whiff of the pizza. “Yes, but the pizza here smells like good pizza. Actual good pizza.”</p>
<p> Bruce and Red joined them, followed by Cal and Henry. Brad came in last. “Can I sit here?”</p>
<p> “Yeah,” replied Mark and cleared a space next him.</p>
<p> Bruce leaned forward with pizza in his mouth, “So what did you think of your first gym class?”</p>
<p> “Different from my old school – our old school,” Brad said, waving his hand at Jake and Mark. “Plus, my shoulders are burning.” He rolled his shoulders. The rest of the table laughed.</p>
<p> “You’ll get over it,” smiled Red, a kid with hair so red it matched the pizza sauce.</p>
<p> “Mr. Banner paired you with Maggie. Do you like her?” blurted Henry.</p>
<p> “No. Do you?”</p>
<p> “Ha! Good one,” replied Cal, Henry’s roommate, and he reached across the table to give Brad a fist bump.</p>
<p> Brad returned the fist bump and kept talking, “She is a Healer like me. So Mr. Banner put us together.”</p>
<p> “Well, after seeing her climb the wall faster and farther than you, maybe he will pair you up with Mark while he is in his cast and wheelchair,” teased Red.</p>
<p> “Enough.” Jake said, eyeing Red to stop the teasing.</p>
<p> Bruce changed the subject, “So are your parents coming this weekend? That happens a lot with new students. They get moved during the week and after their parents are relocated they come and check-in.”</p>
<p> “My parents told me they were coming tomorrow,” said Jake.</p>
<p> “Mine will be here, too,” Mark confirmed.</p>
<p> “I think mine will be here. I don’t remember much of what they said when I was being rushed out of the hospital onto the helicopter,” Brad said.</p>
<p> Jake felt his cheeks turn warm at the thought of Brad in the hospital since he was one the one who put him there.</p>
<p> “Jake, you ought to show your parents where we got into trouble the first night you were here,” Cal grinned from ear to ear, with his blonde hair bouncing as he laughed.</p>
<p> “Um, yeah, I’m not going to tell them about that,” smiled Jake. “And neither are any of you.” He pointed around the table.</p>
<p> “Yes, Sir!” Bruce gave a mock salute.</p>
<p> Red put down his pizza, wiped his mouth and sat up straight. There was a clearing of a throat behind Jake. “Gentlemen, at this table I need your attention.” Mrs. Brisby spoke quietly, but firmly, in her British accent. Everyone else at the table put down their food and turned to her.</p>
<p> “Thank you so much for giving me your attention, and I appreciate how you are spending time with our newest member, Mr. Cushing,” she bowed toward Brad. “Mr. Cushing, after you finish lunch here you will be heading to see Mr. Banner.”</p>
<p> “I just left gym class. Am I in trouble?”</p>
<p> “Oh, no dear. Your schedule is now finished and this afternoon you will be with Mr. Banner for your Independent Study. There may be other students with him, but you are to go back to his office in a few minutes to see him.” She handed him an official looking piece of paper. It was his complete schedule.</p>
<p> “Yes, ma’am.” And with that she turned around and left them alone.</p>
<p> The boys finished lunch and left to their different classes. </p>
<p> Brad headed out of the dining hall and back into The Dolbin Building where the gym was located. Walking into the hallway, he was suddenly aware that he was not among the oldest students at school anymore. Walking the hallway with middle school and high school students was going to take some getting used to.</p>
<p> Guys and girls who were taller, bigger, and more confident walked with purpose to their destinations, whereas Brad grew more nervous the closer he got to his destination, the gym. He clutched his tablet close to his chest.</p>
<p> He turned into the gym and stopped at the entrance. A tall blonde-haired girl took a deep knee bend and then jumped eighty feet straight into the air and landed easily on the platform. She turned around and jumped. Brad held his breath. She landed easily on the floor, as if she was just getting out of bed. She stood up, and smiled at Brad. He felt faint. A tall brown-haired boy walked to where she had landed. He turned to look at Brad, rolled his eyes, and jumped eighty feet in the air to the same platform. </p>
<p> The girl motioned to Brad. “Come on in. I won’t hurt you. I’m Julie. Are you here to meet with Mr. Banner?” </p>
<p> Brad could only manage a quick nod. No words came out of his mouth. He walked quickly past her. She put her hand out to him as he tried to walk past her. “You must be a new student here.”</p>
<p> He paused and shook her hand, “Brad.”</p>
<p> “You’re shy. Why are you so shy? I’m not going to hurt you. I am a tenth grader. I remember what it was like to be new.”</p>
<p> He looked around. He still couldn’t believe she was talking to him. </p>
<p> “Cushing. There you are.” Mr. Banner shouted from the door of his office. “Come on in here.”</p>
<p> Julie smiled, “Well you better get in there.”</p>
<p> “Yeah, I guess I better.” He waved quickly and hurried off to Mr. Banner’s office.</p>
<p> Mr. Banner put out his hand, “Come on in. I know everything is overwhelming right now.” He pointed to a padded chair, “Go ahead, take a seat.”</p>
<p> Brad sat down.</p>
<p> Mr. Banner sat down behind his desk and looked at his tablet. He swiped at the screen a couple of times. “So, you went to school with Cooper and Daniels.”</p>
<p> “Yes.”</p>
<p> “I see you three did not get along very well.”</p>
<p> Brad looked down and shuffled his feet. “Yes.”</p>
<p> “I see that Jake showed his displeasure with you quite publicly.” Banner lifted the tablet and showed the security footage from Kane Elementary School. Brad had never seen the recording of Jake picking him up and throwing him out the window. He looked down at his feet.</p>
<p> Banner put away the tablet. “Brad, I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings.” He noticed that Mr. Banner used his first name. “But I showed you that footage to point out just how remarkable your Extra talent is. To be able to heal so quickly from that fight and then from the helicopter crash just a night ago is amazing. Sure you’re not lifting cars over your head, or outrunning cars like some of the students here, but your ability has great potential.”</p>
<p> Brad leaned forward, “How?”</p>
<p> Banner shrugged his shoulders, “Healers can take risks other can’t or wouldn’t be willing to take. Including those with super strength. After all those with super strength can still be hurt and can take a long time to heal. Your ability on the other hand allows you to be less worried about a situation. You can help without being worried about life debilitating injuries.”</p>
<p> Brad smiled. It was the first time someone explained how he could actually act like a superhero. </p>
<p> “Now don’t get me wrong. You’re not invincible. You can still be killed.”</p>
<p> Brad cringed at the thought. </p>
<p> “If the injuries are severe enough it could take you several days to recover as opposed to just a few seconds.”</p>
<p> “Can you give me an example?”</p>
<p> “Well, for starters, if your head is cut off. It’s over.”</p>
<p> Brad grinned, “Like a zombie or a vampire.”</p>
<p> “Correct. Injuries to your heart and brain will take longer to heal. Your ability is biologically based in your heart and brain. Plus, your brain is very complex. It takes time for that to heal.”</p>
<p> “How do you know all of this?”</p>
<p> Banner leaned back in his chair, “Good question. All Healers have certain specific traits. Those are the ones I just mentioned. Plus, each individual will learn the subtle differences in their skills.”</p>
<p> “Could a Healer have other talents such as running fast or being strong?”</p>
<p> Banner laughed, “Still stuck on those two things? You know there are people here who are flame resistant? They helped you the other night when your copter crashed. There are students and faculty here with math and engineering skills beyond normal people. There are students here who can emit an electromagnetic pulse and disable all electronics in a certain area. Calvin Jacobs on your hallway can do that. There are students here who can learn a language and be fluent simply by listening to a few paragraphs of a language. There are few other rare skills but those are the main ones. You just need to remember Brad that not all Extra-abilities come in the form of physical feats.”</p>
<p> “So what am I supposed to do with mine? How am I to practice mine?”</p>
<p> “First, we need to get you into shape, excellent shape even for a Basic. Which is why you are assigned to me. By being in excellent condition your healing ability will also be in better shape. When you are in shape, it’s less likely that you will be unable to handle a situation where you would need to go to assist.”</p>
<p> Banner paused and then leaned back in his chair. “But at the moment, you’re only ten. So thinking of a time or an event that you would be involved with is premature. Right now your job is to learn as much as you can. That begins with this Independent Study. Look at your tablet.”</p>
<p> Brad shuffled his pencil and paper in his lap and pulled out his tablet. Three books appeared on his screen: Learning the basics of your Extra-abilities, A Brief History of Healers, and Careers for Extra-ability People.</p>
<p> “You will be reading over these books the next couple of weeks. The first thing you need to do this week is read at least the first four chapters of Learning the Basics of Your Extra-Abilities.”</p>
<p> “Four chapters?” whined Brad.</p>
<p> “Yes. Four. More is going to be expected of you here, Brad. When you have the gifts you have being like everyone else is no longer acceptable. So that includes doing more work than you did at your last school. You have structured study hall time here. You cannot be out playing with your classmates since they will also be working as well. Whining is also not accepted. You survived a helicopter crash, and getting thrown through a window. You don’t get to complain and expect to be listened to.”</p>
<p> “Yes, sir.”</p>
<p> “Brad,” Banner softened his tone, “it is an extraordinary thing that you can do. Use your gifts wisely and freely. But the expectations of you are now much higher than they were before. And that goes for everyone here at Dolbin. The expectations are higher.” Banner put his hands down on his desk and stood up, “Enough talking. Put your stuff down and follow me.”</p>
<p> Brad did as he was told, and followed Banner to his office door. “What do you see?” ask Mr. Banner.</p>
<p> “Um…a couple of high-schoolers working out,” said Brad, uncertain as to what the correct answer was.</p>
<p> “Cushing! Julie will be able to jump two hundred feet straight up without any help by the time she is eighteen. Kevin with her should be able to jump over two hundred and seventy-five feet by the time he is eighteen.”</p>
<p> Brad watched as Kevin landed easily from a perch of at least seventy-five feet in the air.</p>
<p> “Plus, you are looking at the finest training facility in the world!” Banner grinned. “The wall that Julie and Kevin are using is able to levitate, move, tilt, and hold at least twenty platforms for them to jump from. Nowhere else in the world can you find this technology.” He walked out into the gym, and Brad followed. “This isn’t a static obstacle course,” Banner pushed a button on the wall and the climbing walls, bars, ropes, and tunnel folded into the floor or seemed to vanish into thin air. Brad jumped back. “See! Cushing you would never see this stuff at your old school or anywhere else you went. Follow me.”</p>
<p> Banner picked up his pace. He crossed the track and opened a door. Brad followed him in and there they stood inside a cavernous room. It was blue. All blue, from floor to ceiling</p>
<p> “What is this?” asked Brad.</p>
<p> Banner smiled and made a couple of clicks on his tablet. Suddenly, the room was pitch black. Then Brad found himself on a sidewalk in a metropolitan city. Banner was standing next to him.</p>
<p> “Welcome to the best virtual reality room in the world. The best computer engineers are here working on this.” Banner clicked his tablet, and instantly cars populated the street. Banner made another click and people appeared around them. “Let’s go in here,” he pointed to a pizza shop. Jake followed him in. </p>
<p> A large man with thick black hair approached them, “Mr. Banner! Where have you been? I see you brought someone new! Hi, my new friend!”</p>
<p> Brad was silent.</p>
<p> “It’s okay Cushing, Antonio will respond to you.”</p>
<p> “Um..hi,” replied Brad.</p>
<p> “What kind of pizza would you like my friend?” Antonio was very boisterous.</p>
<p> Brad shrugged his shoulders, “Pepperoni.”</p>
<p> “Pepperoni it is then. Please take a seat!”</p>
<p> Banner led Brad to an empty table and they sat down.</p>
<p> “The chair feels real doesn’t it? It had a weight when you picked it up?” asked Banner.</p>
<p> “Yes, it did.”</p>
<p> “Cushing, I am showing you all of this because I want you to realize just how special this place is. Your old way of thinking about school needs to be thrown out. It doesn’t exist anymore.”</p>
<p> Brad sat in the virtual chair. His fingers felt its side. He leaned back in the chair. There was resistance on his back. Suddenly he felt like he was falling backwards. He leaned forward to keep himself from falling. Mr. Banner laughed. Brad put his hands on the table. He felt hard cedar wood under his fingertips. </p>
<p> “How can I feel this?” Brad observed the table closer. Mr. Banner just smiled. Brad picked up a fork. It was heavy and there was a texture on the handle.</p>
<p> “I can feel this.”</p>
<p> “Yes, you can. You see this was developed by the most gifted minds here at Dolbin, which means they are the best minds in the world. People that work, live, and teach here are not just super strong, fast or whatever,” Banner waved his hand. “They are also the brightest and most imaginative. So bright and imaginative they didn’t fit in with Basics. The Basics were afraid and tried to put them in their preconceived boxes. They poo-pooed their ideas and told them to just study and take the tests. But these students and teachers were beyond taking tests. Even if they scored perfect on tests, they were still unchallenged and bored. So when we notice that, we bring them here where they can create, explore, and hopefully teach.”</p>
<p> Brad put the fork down on the table. It clanked when it brushed up against the plate. “But can you tell me how I can feel this?”</p>
<p> “It has something to do with plasma that is brushing against you. Also your brain is being fed information from all around you. And it is that information that is allowing you to hear Antonio and the noise the fork makes when it hits the plate. But I am not an engineer. Professors Guinness or Norton can tell you more. My talent isn’t in this virtual reality world making.”</p>
<p> “What is your Extra-ability?”</p>
<p> “Mine is related to yours. My body ages slower than most. My cells repair themselves quicker and hold their youth longer. Consequently I am also stronger than normal. Not as strong as other Extras, but strong.”</p>
<p> “So just exactly how old are you?”</p>
<p> Banner smiled and tapped the virtual table in front of him. “That’s my secret.”</p>
<p> “What? You look 35-40. So you must be…what 70?”</p>
<p> Banner let out a loud laugh. “You can continue to ask. But it is my choice to keep my age private.”</p>
<p> Brad let out a breath of frustration and disappointment.</p>
<p> Antonio came up behind Banner and put a large pepperoni pizza on the table.</p>
<p> “For you wonderful gentlemen!” The virtual pizza store owner grinned from ear to ear.</p>
<p> Brad looked at the food on the table, took a deep breath, and smelled pizza. He put his hand out over the pizza and felt heat.</p>
<p> “Can I eat this?”</p>
<p> “Yes, actually. This is actual food. This program uses 3D printing to create food and the program brings it too us.”</p>
<p> “3D printing? With food?” exclaimed Brad. </p>
<p> “Actually yes. In the Basic world they are already beginning to use this technology. We’ve just been using it longer and we are able to make the food taste better.”</p>
<p> Brad pulled off a slice and put it on the plate in front of him. “But wait. How did this real food get here? How did Antonio bring it here?”</p>
<p> “I told you before, part of what you are experiencing is interaction with plasma. It changes shape based on the program. Your brain sees a waiter. The program creates a wave of plasma that brings you actual pizza. Again, that is a simple explanation of what happened. You will need to talk to other professors on how this works.”</p>
<p> Brad took several bites and then gulped down water. “Professors? Why is it we call you Mr. Banner and not Professor Banner like Professor Guinness or Dr. Fisher?”</p>
<p> Banner paused and measured his words, “I am a professor. You will see it next to my name in the school directory. I have studied a long time. I don’t need the silly titles to make my students respect me. I am an Extra, I don’t need another title.”</p>
<p> Brad took a bite of his pizza and chugged water. The pizza melted in his mouth, and the smell of tomato sauce filled his nostrils.</p>
<p> “What else is this room used for?” asked Brad wiping his mouth with his sleeve.</p>
<p> Banner put down his drink. “What do you think? We have been able to make a street corner appear out of thin air, you feel the chair beneath you and the table in front of you. You have eaten delicious pizza and drank ice-cold water. Do you think we use it just for hanging out and eating?”</p>
<p> “Combat. You use it for combat.”</p>
<p> “Well, you jumped to that very quickly. Why would you think that?” Banner took a drink. </p>
<p> Brad answered, “You have the biggest and best video game set-up here. I always played Ghost Recon at home. I guess I could do it here, only on a much bigger scale.”</p>
<p> “Yes. Some Extra will use this area for combat training. But those Extras are few and far between. We are not an army. Extras really are supposed to be about helping others. We use this room to practice rescue situations, such as fires, floods, helicopter crashes.” Banner nodded to Brad when mentioning the crash. “We use it for such events because we can’t really practice rescuing people the way Extras do it, out in the real world with Basics watching us. So this place becomes the way for us to practice real-world events, without actually needing to be out in the real world.”</p>
<p> “Why can’t we go out in the real world? Why are we hidden?” The question surprised even Brad as it just jumped out of his mouth.</p>
<p> Banner looked at Brad and finished his pizza. He wiped his mouth and then took a big swig from his glass. Staring at the glass, he put it down gently. “You ask a big question. There are those that think we shouldn’t be hiding up here on the mountain. We should be seen and out in the public, fully visible.”</p>
<p> “That sounds fine to me.”</p>
<p> “Some people think that Basics would freak-out if they saw what you could do and what your classmates Jake and Mark can do. They would lock them away, or send them to a laboratory, or just try to kill them.”</p>
<p> Brad’s stomach hurt at the bluntness of the comment. He looked at the last few bites of his pizza to ignore Banner’s gaze.</p>
<p> Banner wiped his mouth with his sleeve and stood up. “Okay, I think we’re done here.” He raised his hand, “Antonio!”</p>
<p> The virtual waiter walked over to the table. “Yes! How is everything?” His grin was huge.</p>
<p> “It’s was wonderful, but it is time for us to go.”</p>
<p> Antonio began clearing the food, “Oh, yes of course! I can’t wait to see you again. And don’t forget to tell your friends about my restaurant!”</p>
<p> Brad smiled, “Oh, I will definitely tell people on my floor!”</p>
<p> “Oh! Thank you!”</p>
<p> Banner waved at Antonio, “Okay we’ll see you later.” He looked at Brad, “I would stand up now.” Banner put his tablet in front of him and began making several swipes.</p>
<p> The restaurant disappeared, then the table. Brad stood up quickly as his chair disappeared as well. Everything was gone. Only a blue floor and blue walls remained.</p>
<p> “So can we try a combat game?” Brad grinned. “Wouldn’t I be able to heal quickly and get back in the game?”</p>
<p> Banner paused and stared at Brad. “That’s an interesting way to look at it. Remind me, didn’t it hurt getting thrown through the window?”</p>
<p> Brad deflated and didn’t say a word.</p>
<p> “That’s what I thought. It’s time to go anyway, you’ve learned a lot this afternoon.” Banner walked out of the room and Brad followed. The lesson was over.</p>
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