Chapter 14 #2
Although he was maybe only ten or fifteen years older than I was, the Temern gave me an almost paternal smile.
“Good. I’m glad that’s settled. Now, I would like you to focus on your mate’s emotions and to block Ellen and me.”
I blinked, my eyes flicking in turn towards Linsea, Ellen, and Arafin.
“I… I don’t know how,” I said hesitantly.
“As part of the cure we devised for you, we helped your brain develop new neuronal connections that every other Temern naturally possesses and strengthens over time. They should allow you to isolate the emotions you want to perceive while blocking others. I’m going to send a weak signal to those specific neurons to stimulate them and help you see which part of your brain you need to activate. ”
“Okay,” I said, my excitement cranking up another notch.
Since he lowered the dampening effect, the enthralling song of Linsea’s soul had been washing over me in the most delightful caress.
Sadly, its beauty was drowning in the—admittedly rather pleasant—emotions of the two doctors.
But the thought of finally basking in the perfection of my female’s melody without any other interference had me dying with anticipation.
I shivered violently as what felt like a tiny electrical spark went off deep inside my brain.
“Are you alright, Kayog?” Arafin asked in a worried voice. “Was it too strong?”
I shook my head reassuringly. “No, not too strong. It just took me by surprise. But yes, I see which part you stimulated.”
“Perfect,” Ellen said with enthusiasm. “Try to reproduce this on your own and exclude everyone but Linsea.”
I nodded and attempted to replicate the spark I had felt. To my shock, it only took a couple of seconds. However, instead of isolating my mate, complete silence resonated loudly as I ended up blocking everyone.
It took about a dozen tries before I finally succeeded. Tears welled in my eyes when her mesmerizing song soared in its divine purity all by itself, untainted, unchallenged, undisturbed by other unwanted noise.
“You’re so beautiful, my dove,” I whispered, my throat constricted.
“It worked?” Arafin asked with a thrill in his voice.
I wanted to tell him to piss off and not distract me from reveling in my mate’s mesmerizing song.
But I quelled the ungrateful thought and forced myself to focus on the task at hand.
The sooner I learned how to master this wondrous gift, the sooner I could finally be alone with my soulmate and grant her my full attention.
“Yes. I only hear her right now,” I confirmed.
“Excellent. Now repeat the same thing but focus solely on me while blocking the other two, and then do the same with Arafin once you’ve succeeded with me,” Ellen said.
I complied. To my dismay, it took a few attempts to be able to isolate them. Although I had a better understanding now of how to achieve it, it would take some practice for it to come more naturally and to succeed on the first try.
We repeated the process a second time with me focusing on each of them in turn, and then Arafin further lowered the dampening effect until it reached a level where I could no longer isolate anyone.
He brought the level back up until it was comfortable again and where I could block others with minimal difficulty.
“We’re going to leave the circlet at this setting for now,” Ellen said.
“For now?” I echoed.
She nodded. “It’s like a muscle to be trained. The more you practice, and the more control you will gain over those neuronal pathways, on top of likely creating new and better ones. If all goes to plan—and so far, it seems to be—soon, you will no longer need the circlet at all.”
My happy grin quickly faded upon seeing Arafin’s serious expression.
“However, you will need to stay here for a few weeks—and maybe even months—to properly train your abilities while we continue to run tests and make sure there are no negative side effects.”
As distraught as the thought of having to potentially spend a few months in what resembled a high-tech medical facility, I accepted that comment with a level of serenity I never thought possible.
They had given me a whole new lease on life.
I was no longer a broken abomination, but a person who would finally be able to lead a normal life.
“Understood,” I replied.
After a few more questions and comments, the doctors left the room, leaving me at long last alone with my dove.
I immediately drew Linsea against me, closing my wings around her even as I let her mesmerizing song wrap around me. It was odd how delicate and fragile she felt in my arms, and yet she was the rock that kept me from drifting into the ocean of madness that had threatened to engulf me.
We remained in each other’s embrace for an undefined amount of time before I reluctantly released her. She rubbed her beak against mine, and my heart swelled to bursting with love for this female who had brought light and hope in the endless pit of despair and darkness that my life had been.
“How long was I out?” I asked while caressing the soft feathers of her cheek.
“A little over seven months,” Linsea said in a commiserating tone.
I stiffened and gaped at her in complete shock. “Seven months?!” I exclaimed. “What the fuck happened?”
My mate nudged me to sit at the edge of the bed before cuddling against me. She then recounted all that had transpired since the explosion went off in the Convention Center to my awakening here in the Enforcers’ advanced medical research facilities.
I ran a hand over my head, blown away and distraught by all that I missed, the heavy burden Linsea carried to keep me safe, and the insane new reality that my life had become.
“So what happened to your classes?” I asked.
“It wasn’t easy, and I called in a lot of favors, but I managed to graduate. I took a page out of your own book and convinced them to allow me to attend most of them remotely so that I could stay by your side.”
“Thank you, my dove,” I said with sincere gratitude, my heart melting with affection for her. “Any legal fallout from what went down?”
She waved a dismissive hand. “We handled it. The Enforcers’ PR department made sure that your name wasn’t associated in any way with what went down in the center. You have nothing to worry about.”
“Maybe not from the justice system, but what about from the UPO and the Enforcers? Am I a prisoner here?” I asked cautiously.
Although she immediately shook her head, I didn’t miss the sliver of hesitation and worry that she attempted to bury.
“You’re not a prisoner, but Colin will want to talk to you,” Linsea said, choosing her words carefully. “When you do, please listen to what he has to say with an open mind.”
My stomach knotted with apprehension, a sense of unease washing over me.
“He’s going to try to recruit me, isn’t he?” I asked, although it was more of a statement.
“There’s no question that he will. But he already approached you about that long before this incident,” Linsea replied in a noncommittal fashion.
My eyes flicked between hers as I studied her features to get an even better sense of what she was thinking beyond the reserved and cautious emotions emanating from her.
“You want me to accept his request?” I asked, tension stiffening my back.
To both my surprise and relief, my mate held my gaze unwaveringly as she responded with a sincerity that erased any doubt I might still have about her true wishes on the matter.
“I want you to do what you feel is right for you, Kayog. Whatever your decision, I will support you all the way.”
“But?” I insisted.
“But you’re extremely unique,” she said in an almost apologetic tone. “You’re insanely powerful—or at least you were when you collapsed in the center. Until they perform further tests, we don’t know for sure what kind of power and abilities you possess.”
“So they think I’m a security risk,” I said grimly with sudden understanding.
“They have to consider the possibility that you might be,” she corrected softly.
“Right, I can see that,” I conceded begrudgingly.
She smiled and gently caressed my face. “If it’s any consolation, Colin and I had extensive discussions about this. He really wants you to join them so he will make an offer that will likely be appealing.”
Although Linsea said that she would support whatever decision I made—and while I didn’t doubt that she meant it—my mate clearly hoped I would accept. If only because she saved my life, I likely would. But there would be time to dwell on this later.
I glanced around the room in complete awe, still struggling to believe this was my new reality.
“This is so unbelievably quiet,” I whispered wistfully before looking back at my female with adoration. “Thank you for saving me, for not letting me give up when I was at my lowest.”
To my shock, Linsea’s beak quivered, and a powerful emotion mixed with intense relief flashed over her face.
“What is it, my dove?” I asked, confused by her reaction.
“I was so scared you would hate me for forcing you to stay when you begged me to grant you peace,” she said in a shaky voice. “I just couldn’t let you go. It was selfish of me, but so long as there was hope that you could be healed, I couldn’t give up.”
“And I’m glad you didn’t,” I said forcefully.
“Do not apologize or feel guilty for what you did. It was my pain speaking at that moment. I just wanted it to end. But had our roles been reversed, I also would have fought with everything I had to keep you. Thank you for fighting for me when I no longer had the strength to do so.”
Tears welled in her eyes while another wave of relief, gratitude, and deep affection surged within her. Linsea wrapped her arms around my neck, and we exchanged a deep and tender kiss. Maker! I was falling madly in love with this female.