Chapter 26 Tony
TONY
Tony wasn't overly enthused about working underground again.
He hated not having windows, and he couldn't understand why William had decided to build his empire inside the mountain the village sat on top of, when he could have done so aboveground and enjoyed the near-perfect Southern California weather.
He did enjoy working with Kaia, though, and not because he still had a crush on her. She was a married woman now, or rather mated, but it was the same thing, and the truth was that he was no longer enchanted.
Yes, she was pretty. Yes, she was brilliant. A true prodigy. But his mind was full of a redhead that had taken him home last night and had shown him the meaning of pure bliss.
Being with Shira was revelatory. She was constantly smiling or laughing, and she didn't take anything seriously. She was a breath of fresh air, and being with her, he couldn't help but reflect on how different the experience had been with Tula.
Tula hadn't been happy. She hadn't been cheerful, and he'd always felt like he needed to walk on eggshells around her because she would fly off the handle over the most trivial things. He'd never felt at peace with her.
"Try substituting this symbol for a molecular weight designation." Kaia pulled him out of his thoughts, leaning over his shoulder to point at his screen.
Tony made the adjustment, and suddenly a string of gibberish resolved itself into something that almost made sense. "That's a protein folding sequence? But the values are off by an order of magnitude."
"Different base system." Kaia settled back into her own chair, tucking a strand of blond hair behind her ear. "Once you account for the conversion, it should line up."
She was right. "How long did it take you to figure that out?"
"Long. I've been banging my head against the wall for over a month." She smiled. "You're welcome for the shortcut."
He was helping Kaia to decipher texts written in an alien language and translate scientific notations into something comprehensible.
It was tedious work, and he could never tell anyone about it or publish his findings in any scientific papers, but it was a pleasure to work with someone as brilliant as Kaia.
The decoding was painstaking work, requiring equal parts scientific knowledge and linguistic intuition, and it was intellectually challenging and deeply satisfying.
But today he found it difficult to focus.
His mind kept drifting to Shira, to the unexpected connection, and to Fenella's eerily accurate reading.
His Dormant potential was circumstantial but compelling.
It had started with his connection to Kaia before his abduction, when she had still been human, and neither of them had known immortals existed.
It continued to him ending up on an island full of them, and now he was living among another faction of them.
The chain of strange coincidences that had led him here, to this village, just seemed too fantastic.
If the Fates the clan believed in existed, and Tony was beginning to suspect that they did, they seemed to have plans for him.
But if he was a Dormant, he needed to do something to kick-start his transition, and he wasn't sure what that something was.
He'd heard bits and pieces about it during his time in the harem, but he'd deliberately avoided asking too many questions.
The less he knew, the less they would have had a motive to kill him.
He turned to Kaia. "Can I ask you something?"
"What is it?" She didn't look up from her screen.
Tony swiveled his chair to face her. "It's about the transition into immortality."
That got her attention. She turned, her blue eyes curious. "What do you want to know?"
"Was it difficult?"
"Not really. It was quite easy for me, but that's because I'm young. Why?"
"I think I might be a Dormant."
She nodded. "It almost seems like fate was guiding you here."
"Yeah." He chuckled. "Isn't it strange that two scientists like us are talking about fate?"
"When the facts point at the impossible, our job is to find out why it is possible and not bury our heads in the sand."
He smiled. "So true. I should probably go for it. But I don't actually know what's involved."
Kaia's eyebrows rose. "You spent years on an island full of immortals, and you don't know how the transition works?"
"Tula told me about getting bitten when she was a girl, and how awkward it was, but since immortal females don't have fangs, I'm not sure how it works for male Dormants."
"You also need to get bitten by an immortal male, but the trigger for his venom production will be aggression rather than sexual attraction.
You need to fight him, and there's a whole ceremony around it.
" Kaia leaned back in her chair. "It's a controlled situation.
Nobody's actually trying to hurt anyone.
But the physical confrontation is necessary to produce the biochemical response. "
Tony tried to picture himself wrestling with an immortal, and the image that popped into his head was comical. He wasn't a weakling, but he wasn't a fighter either and immortals were freakishly strong.
"What kind of ceremony are we talking about? Guys in black robes chanting around an altar in a dark chamber?"
Kaia laughed. "You've seen too many horror movies.
It's actually not a big deal. Kian presides over it, recites some traditional words that are all about an eternal friendship between the inducer and the induced, and then there is the drinking of a nauseatingly sweet ceremonial wine.
" She rolled her eyes. "Men always need something special to feel manly.
A simple match followed by a bite wouldn't be dramatic enough. "
Tony tilted his head. "There is no ceremony for women? Tula had a party with dancers and food and a lot of pomp."
"Those were the old days, when there were plenty of teenage immortals, and finding a boy to induce a girl was easy. Adult women are induced during sex."
He chuckled. "It's still more fun than what men have to go through. I have to get beaten up."
"I don't think getting beaten up is the goal."
"Tell that to my future bruises."
They shared a laugh, comfortable in the easy camaraderie that had developed between them over the past week.
Tony was grateful for it. Given their history, he'd been worried about awkwardness, but their shared interests and mutual respect lent themselves to an easy friendship.
Living with her and William was oddly comfortable, but they were a couple and he was a third wheel, and he needed to move out.
Shira had lived alone ever since Fenella had moved in with Din, and he wondered if she would be okay with their relationship getting turbocharged and him moving in with her.
That was probably not a good idea.
He was still human, and she wouldn't want to get attached to him unless he turned immortal.
Tony didn't want a repeat of what had happened with Tula. She'd never lowered her walls and let him in because he was human, and she needed to protect herself from getting attached to him.
"You need to find an immortal male who's willing to be your inducer," Kaia said.
"Any recommendations? Can William do that? I really like him, and I know he will not hurt me."
She shook her head. "I doubt my William is capable of becoming aggressive."
"That tracks with my impression of him." Tony glanced at the door to William's private office, which was so small that it was ridiculous for someone in his position. "Any other suggestions?"
"Guardians. Most of them would be happy to help.
It's considered an honor to induce a Dormant.
It's essentially giving someone the gift of immortality.
" Kaia tilted her head. "Anandur would be a good option.
He's strong, his venom is potent, and he's also a nice guy.
Since your inducer will become your mentor for life, you should pick someone you like. "
Anandur was Wonder's mate. Wonder was Tula's sister. Which made any interaction with Anandur awkward by association—a reminder of everything Tony was trying to move past.
"I'd rather avoid Anandur," he said. "No offense to him, but I want someone with no connections to Tula. I need someone neutral."
Understanding dawned in Kaia's eyes. "I get why you would think that, but I'm sure Anandur wouldn't mind."
"I would. It would be easier with someone who doesn't have any stake in my personal drama." Tony drummed his fingers on his desk. "What about his brother? Brundar looks like the quintessential warrior."
"That's because he is. He's terrifying. Are you brave enough to spar with the angel of death?"
Tony frowned. "Is that what he's called?"
"Not to his face, or Anandur's for that matter, but that's what people call him behind his back. He looks like an angel, but he's a killer, so the nickname fits."
"Yeah, I should probably choose someone who smiles from time to time." Tony ran through the list of Guardians he knew. "What about Yamanu? He seems like an upbeat fellow."
"Yamanu's great. He's patient, he's gentle, and he's experienced."
Tony nodded. "Yamanu it is, then. How do I ask him?"
"Text him. His contact info should be in your phone."
Tony pulled out the device and navigated to the contacts.
Sure enough, Yamanu was listed right at the top.
He opened a new message and stared at the blank screen for a moment, trying to figure out how to phrase the request. How did one ask a near-stranger to wrestle with them and form a lifelong friendship?
He decided to keep it simple.
Hi, Yamanu, this is Tony, one of the guys you rescued from the island.
I realized that I might be a Dormant, and I want to attempt transition.
Kaia recommended you as a potential inducer.
Would you be interested in doing this for me?
Don't feel obligated because I asked. I won't feel offended if you decline.
He read the message twice, decided it was good enough, and hit send before he could second-guess the decision.
The response came almost immediately. I would be honored to serve as your inducer. When would you like to do this?
Tony stared at the screen, surprised by the speed and enthusiasm of the reply.
Whenever works for you, he typed back. I'm flexible.
"What did he say?" Kaia asked.
"He asks when I wanted to do it, and I said that I'm flexible."
"That's awesome." She high-fived him.
Another message came in. How about this Saturday night?
Tony's heart started hammering in earnest. "He wants to do it this Saturday."
"That's great," Kaia said. "It's better to do it sooner rather than later. If you spend too much time thinking about it, it can grow into monstrous proportions in your head."
Panic was starting to constrict his airways, and Tony desperately wanted to backtrack or tell Yamanu that there was no rush and that he would like to do this in a month, or two, or six.
But then Shira's smiling face appeared in his mind, and he knew he shouldn't wait and risk losing her to someone else. He wasn't going to repeat the mistakes of his past. This time, he was going to pounce full force and not let go until he secured the prize for himself.
That's perfect. Thank you, he texted back.