"so much we dont know"

 "How long have you known?" Antariksh asked, her voice low but sharp.

"Take a guess," Agni replied, his tone almost casual.

"Was it... was it when you met my projection in the mind realm?" she asked uncertainly.

"Close," Agni said with a faint smile. "Two days before that incident."

Antariksh frowned, confused. "When?"

"It was in your room. The one in the dorm. The hologram projectors—they were heat-based projectors. I could feel them," Agni explained.

"But... how?" Antariksh whispered, her eyes wide. "You can see heat as well? And you've been dismissing my claims all this time!" Now, she sounded angry.

Agni sighed deeply, rubbing his forehead. "It was important, Antariksh. Mishtul would have—"

"—Mishtul would have figured it out. I know!" she cut in sharply. "But you could have told me!"

"To be frank, I didn’t understand it very well myself," Agni admitted. "And you’re forgetting... Mishtul could read minds. Only those who knew about their abilities could block him out."

"I knew he could read minds!" Antariksh exclaimed, her frustration mounting. "You know I knew! I was the one who warned you!"

"Yes, but..." Agni sighed again. "It appeared to me that you were...quite...quite weak. And I haven’t even finished answering your first question. If you keep interrupting, we’ll never get anywhere."

"Fine!" Antariksh snapped, folding her arms and glaring at him.

"The reason I could sense the heat projectors," Agni began patiently, "is because I am fire—or rather, I have higher concentrations of it. Do you know what fire is, Antariksh? Nobody does." A manic grin flickered across his face, one that reminded Antariksh of Mishtul. "I’m governed by heat... and to some extent, light and sound. The flames I produce are a result of the heat I can control—at least to some degree. But I cannot see heat. I can only feel it."

"Wait," Antariksh interjected, her tone shifting to curiosity. "So all the elemental powers that people have—fire, water, air, earth— these people...they have this... unknown control over molecules and atoms? They can’t see it, but they can feel it? And what they do see is just a result of them controlling this feel on the universe?"

"Yes," Agni confirmed irritably. "Fire, water, air, earth—these are just names we give to the different ratios of photons, phonons, and other... forms of energy."

"‘Other forms’? You don’t know?" Antariksh asked with a sly smile, knowing Agni hated admitting when he didn’t have all the answers.

Agni’s jaw tightened, and he shot her a sharp look. "I don’t claim to know everything, Antariksh," he muttered.

Her smile widened. "You hate admitting that, don’t you?"

Agni groaned and looked away, muttering under his breath. "You’re insufferable sometimes."