Chapter 13 #3
“We don’t know what he is or how dangerous he can get,” he replied, his voice heavy with frustration.
“Then find out, and then cure him,” I retorted in a factual manner.
“And risk losing those incredible powers of his?” he argued.
I waved a dismissive hand. “What use are they if they break his mind? I may not be a doctor, but you don’t need to be a genius to understand that repeated brain hemorrhage will leave permanent scars.”
“And then what?” Colin demanded. “What happens once we’ve cured him?”
“Kayog is blessed with genius-level intelligence. He’s a natural protector, possesses extremely high morals, has proven exceptional athletic abilities, and he’s insanely charismatic.
My mate could be a huge asset in a variety of roles within either the Enforcers or the UPO,” I said with a bit too much eagerness.
With his powers, whether they disappeared after a cure or not, neither organization would ever want to let him loose, as his abilities could return.
And assuming he never lost them, he would be much too dangerous a weapon roaming free in the wild without supervision.
Worse still, enemies could seek to enlist him to turn him against us.
Colin didn’t have to go into details for me to understand my mate would never truly be free.
But there were ways where he could achieve something close enough to it and live under his own terms within the organization.
And I intended to use every tool in my arsenal to make sure of it.
Colin shook his head. “I already approached him about joining us. He flat out refused. And judging by his tone, there would be no swaying him.”
I scoffed. “Of course, he refused. With his current condition, it would have been completely impossible for him. Cure him and then ask again. I bet you will be pleasantly surprised by his answer.”
He narrowed his eyes at me, a speculative glimmer sparking in his eyes. “Are you pledging that he will?”
I gave him a ‘Don’t be stupid’ look. “You know I cannot make such a commitment on his behalf. But make him an offer he can’t refuse, and he will accept.”
“That’s a huge ‘if’ that you’re expecting me to go to battle for,” Colin argued.
I leaned forward, my gaze intense as I tried to convince him.
“No Edal has ever lived past a few hours or days,” I countered.
“You have a full-grown adult one, capable of speech and reason. How many others like him have died pointlessly because they couldn’t express the cause and source of their distress?
You have a golden opportunity to learn about people like him while searching for a cure.
Temerns are important members of the UPO.
The organization owes us to help find a cure. ”
He snorted. “Your own people want him dead.”
I huffed. “Out of ignorance. They only pursue an old tradition born of fear. Science has evolved since those early cases. There is no reason why we couldn’t look into it again now with a more open mind.
By the way, isn’t one of the core purposes of the UPO to put an end to these types of tragedies and slaughters based on primitive beliefs? ”
He gave me a strange look, the corner of his lips discreetly quirking with a hint of amusement. “Temerns aren’t primitive.”
“In this, they are acting like a primitive species, thinking Edals are demons simply because they don’t understand what’s happening with them or how to fix the issues,” I said with a shrug.
“Didn’t humans use to lobotomize people who suffered from mental health issues because they didn’t know how to help them? This is no different.”
“I will grant you that their policies regarding Edals date back many generations and need to be revisited,” Colin said calmly.
“They do,” I concurred firmly. “So talk to your scientists and spin a tale for the psionic blast at the Convention Center. I have wealth, and my family will provide any support needed to help research a cure. The UPO and the Enforcers stand only to gain by protecting Kayog. I have no doubt he will become a fantastic asset.”
Colin leaned back against his chair, an undefinable smile stretching his lips as he gave me an assessing look.
“I like you, Linsea Kenna. You’re cocky, ruthless, and undaunted with things that matter to you. By the way, nice disarm on my guard. Unfortunately for him, he’s not going to enjoy the disciplinary measures coming his way.”
I flinched, my heart going out to the poor agent.
“Please, don’t be too harsh with him. With my credentials and my grandmother’s endorsement, he had no reason to expect I would pull a stunt like that.
Don’t forget that I also have self-defense and combat training, as is required for negotiators and aspiring ambassadors. ”
“True though this may be, he still allowed himself to be disarmed by not properly securing his weapon after he had initially unlatched it,” Colin said in a tone that brooked no argument.
“As no one died due to his negligence, he won’t be dismissed, but he won’t make that mistake again.
Now, when are you joining the Enforcers? ”
I snorted. “Never.”
“Is that so?” he asked, seeming genuinely surprised.
“I’m joining the UPO to protect people like my mate from you guys making dumb choices. So don’t make my hiring awkward by forcing me to first publicly shame you all,” I said with a haughty tone.
He burst out laughing, and I smiled in return, pleased that my effort to dampen the tension that had been building worked.
“I cannot promise you anything, Linsea,” he said carefully.
“I didn’t ask for a promise, only that you make it happen.”
He smiled. “I’ll do what I can. And you see to it that he joins us.”
Colin making it happen turned to days, then weeks, and then too many months.
That day at the Convention Center, something happened that completely realigned Kayog’s brain.
The only blessing in this entire mess was the fact that I had taken a thorough scan of his brain prior to the incident.
It allowed the doctors and scientists to see what had shifted after that episode.
It opened a floodgate of possibilities with countless experts in various fields joining together to study what was hailed as one of the greatest discoveries in the past couple of centuries.
With our advanced technologies, stumbling on a new unknown species was nearly impossible.
Despite being a Temern, Kayog was a whole new breed that fascinated the scientific community.
As they were failing to find a method to prevent him from being assaulted by other people’s emotions, they couldn’t awaken him to test their various theories and potential remedies.
Instead, they recreated his brain virtually, down to the most minute detail.
That alone required nearly three months with the best engineers, neurologists, and psionic specialists to build it.
The simulator had an insane range, perfectly capturing and translating emotions on as vast a radius as my mate had been able to.
To their dismay, they never managed to get the virtual brain to recreate the psionic blast.
In the weeks that followed, every constraining system they attempted to apply to that virtual brain to block other people’s emotions failed miserably.
Finally, they realized that a different approach was required.
Kayog lacked some of the neuronal pathways that normal Temerns possessed, which enabled us to block nearby people so their emotions wouldn’t overwhelm us.
Therefore, the scientists decided to stop looking for an external device that could permanently regulate the influx of signals he received.
Instead, they devised a training tool to reroute the neural pathways in his brain.
Organic simulations confirmed the creation of new neuronal pathways and a reshaping of the pineal gland. Once confident that their method was safe, they used it on Kayog, while maintaining him in a semi-comatose state. Soon, he started forming the new neuronal connections he sorely needed.
After seven months, two weeks, and four days following the incident, they finally woke him up.