by S. W. Gunn
“It was an Eal’tain and he came looking for you.” Father Lapella said.
Jarron was very surprised. He looked at Elyse and could see that she was shocked.
“What for?” She asked cautiously.
“He said that he was your father. He stated that he had not known of your existence and when he found out about you, he had started to search for you. When I told him that you disappeared he seemed quite upset.”
“My father?” She asked her voice seemed to pitch slightly higher.
“Yes, he said he was your father. He asked that if you return that I relay some information to you. He said his name was Iaeth and he told me that if you wanted to contact him, you could do so by going to the Deep Space Station Whitmire 5 where they have a small embassy for the Eal’tain there. All you would need to do is simply say his name, who you were and they would arrange contact with him for you.”
Elyse looked in complete shock of the revelation. Jarron had no doubt that she must have spent many nights of her youth wondering about her father, maybe she might have even given up on ever meeting the man only to have him reach out to her.
She thoughtfully nodded and said, “Thank you Father Lapella.”
Father Lapella told her, “I am going to sleep, I suggest you both do the same. Tomorrow we have the church cleaning scheduled and it is hard work.”
He turned and closed the door as he left, leaving the light on as he left. Jarron turned to look at her. He could tell immediately that she was still stunned by the news. Reaching a hand out, he tenderly stroked her cheek.
“My father.” She said softly.
Jarron said, “We should go to that space station and find out about him.”
She replied, “I don’t know.”
“Why not?”
She sighed heavily and after a slight pause almost said in a panicked tone, “How do I know he is who he claims to be? If he is, how come it took him so long to find me? I spent so many nights dreaming about him and had finally given up on him some time ago, and now he suddenly wants to know me. I’m just very hesitant.”
Jarron wished he could understand but he had always had his parents, well at least until his father kicked him out. He softly ran his fingers along the side of her head.
There was little doubt it was important to her and he felt that it was important that she see him so he said, “I think you should give him a chance. I’ll be with you the whole time if you want me there.”
She sat quietly for a moment and then announced, “Alright, I’ll go meet him for you.”
Jarron shook his head before saying, “Don’t do it for me... Do it for yourself. You deserve to at least meet him and have your questions answered.”
“I think you’re right.” She said with a thoughtful look on her face.
Jarron stood up and turned off the light in the room.
As he sat down on the bed next to her he said, “Now I believe we were in the middle of something before the constant interruptions.”
Elyse laughed at his words and pulled him close for a kiss.
Chapter 9
Jarron awoke the next morning to find that he was alone. Elyse must have slipped out at night after he fell asleep. He was disappointed since he found himself missing her once again. There was a gentle rap on the door.
He recognized the voice of Father Lapella as he said, “Young man it is almost time for breakfast. I’ll send Elyse to escort you in a bit.”
“Thank you.” He called out.
Standing up, he went into the bathroom to clean up. After he was done he came out of the bathroom and dug through his duffel bag for a change of clothing. Once dressed he poked his head out the door and saw Elyse approaching. He laughed at her timing. When she caught sight of his head she smiled and waved at him.
As soon as she got close she said quietly, “I’m sorry for leaving you, I didn’t want anyone to know what we did.”
He chuckled. She was definitely not acting normal around the people here.
“Let’s go get some breakfast, I already told Father Lapella that we won’t be cleaning with them. I think we should go down into the town and maybe help the people there.” She stated as she waved at him to follow her.
He quickly caught up with her and walked beside her.
“Alright, what will we be doing to help?” He asked.
“Well maybe some healing, repairing fences, or just whatever we come across.” She told him.
“Is this normally what you did before you were kidnapped?” He asked her.
She shook her head as she answered, “Actually they rarely let me out of the church. We only have four people on the whole planet that have the Gift. They’re all sent here to serve as healers. Since they were so rare Father Lapella felt that keeping them together was best for their safety.”
“And they’ll let Ramona just leave?”
She replied, “Yes because the church believes in free will, they’d never stop anyone from doing anything unless it actually caused harm to others.”
“That seems fair enough.”
She nodded. They finished walking through the church and entered the dining area. Father Lapella again waved them to join him once he spotted them. As they sat down he offered the morning prayer for food. It was only slightly different than the one Elyse gave the night before. Jarron could see the casual appeal of their lifestyle but he was itching to leave. He found himself missing simple things like his musiphone and the Keg. He really missed his friends but he shrugged it off and starting eating. This time the meal was just some type of thick paste that was slightly flavored with a brown sugar and a large mug of juice. Jarron suspected that the people here probably never had a proper steak in their lives. It made him appreciate what he had that much more. After breakfast Elyse stood and gestured for Jarron to follow her. She guided him through the building and out the door that they came through the day before when they first arrived. Almost as soon as they were down the hill and out of sight she took his hand.
Laughing she said, “I missed something as simple as just holding your hand.”
He grinned at her.
“Seriously, I considered taking up Father Lapella’s advice to just marry you so I could hold your hand and be with you without the looks.”
“Is it that bad? I haven’t even noticed any looks.”
She nodded at him before saying, “Of course not because they don’t expect you to follow their rules. I lived with them for so long that they expect it of me. The thing is, I’ve changed so much since I was kidnapped. I can see with more clarity and I honestly do believe there is a Maker but I don’t believe he’d give us this wonderful life and emotions and yet deny us access to them. I think if I live a good life as a good person that should be more than enough for him.”
Jarron could see her point. He had put no thought into the idea of some almighty being that created them. His concerns have almost revolved around his own day to day survival. He simply nodded at her.
“Do you agree?” She asked.
He replied to her, “I can see the logic in what you’re saying but if I’m honest with you I have to admit that I’ve put no real thought into the subject.”
She smiled softly as she said, “I understand since we’ve led very different lives. My life had for a long time revolved around the issue but my life has changed and so have my priorities.”
“What are your priorities now” He asked.
“Firstly to resolved our issue with this mad man and then figuring out what our life will be like together.” She replied.
“I have to agree with that. I wish we could just talk to the man, maybe if we knew what he wanted we could come to some sort of agreement.”
He had always felt it was the smuggler’s way to either negotiate or run, both of which he and Hain had always been good at. Hain could fight as well as anyone but Jarron usually preferred to fight only when he had to. He was not much of a fighter at all, he was the pilot. Elyse smiled widely as h
is reply. He found that he was enamored with her; it was simple things like the graceful curves of her face, which were slightly different than humans that drew him in. She stopped walking and gave him a deep kiss. After kissing him she turned and continued to walk down the pathway. They walked together all the way down the pathway until they made it into the town. She led him to what must have been the small town’s market square. He followed her as they went from person to person asking if they needed help. She healed that minor wounds and injuries of several people. Jarron helped an elderly man repair his fence. One family fed them lunch after Jarron helped the man clear out a large pile of rubbish. After a long day wandering through the town helping people they headed back to the church. Jarron felt exhausted. He had not worked this hard physically his whole life. After the long trek back to the church Jarron and Elyse were met by Father Lapella at the door of the church. He laughed once he caught sight of them.
“I can see that you have been working hard performing good deeds in the town below. I hope you both found it spiritually enlightening.” He said.
Elyse smiled happily. Jarron could not say that he found any spiritual enlightenment but he knew that she deeply enjoyed the time out helping others. He was just tired.
“Yes Father Lapella, it was wonderful to help others. We helped Tomas rebuild his fence and aided the Brunnar family in cleaning out the excess items in their back yard.” She replied.
Father Lapella chuckled.
His face suddenly shifted to a serious demeanor before he said, “That is wonderful Elyse. I needed to talk to the both of you about something.”
Elyse saw his facial expression change and she frowned immediately.
“What is it?” She asked.
“We have received news of an accident in Tromrel village. We were wondering if you could both go there. With your abilities you might be able to help them greatly.” He stated.
Jarron could hear the concern in the man’s voice. Elyse’s face immediately shifted to concern.
“We’ll leave immediately.” She declared.
Jarron was exhausted but he knew that she was right. They needed to leave immediately and help if they could. Elyse took him by the hand and slowly guided him back down the pathway.
As they made it halfway down the path Jarron asked, “How far is the village?”
Elyse replied, “It is about a two hour walk from here. Can you make it?”
He laughed at her inquiry because while he was tired, he certainly was not dying so he told her, “Of course.”
“Good because we won’t be walking.” She confidently stated.
“We won’t?”
“Once we are out of sight I am going to fly us there. It should only take a few minutes to get there.”
He forgot that she had the ability to literally lift them into the air. All he could do in response to her declaration was to simply chuckle. As soon as they got off the pathway she lifted them into the air and brought them to the village. She set them down just outside of the village so they would not alarm the people there. Oddly enough, he did not feel much fatigue from her using him to set them into the air. They walked the rest of the way. It had turned out that somehow a boulder had come rolling off of a nearby mountainside and crashed through several homes. The villagers worked as hard as they could to attempt to remove the wreckage and save as many as they could. Elyse moved quickly to aid them in removing the wreckage. With her abilities she was able to free many people who would have died waiting for aid. She healed many more but even with their efforts ten villagers had died. Jarron was totally exhausted after a day of physical labor and then the constant drain physical drain from her powers. Elyse was able to convince the villagers to loan them a room, although he doubted with her efforts that they would have ever said no to her. The room that they were given had a larger bed than the one in the church so he was happy since it meant that they could easily share the bed. Elyse softly rubbed his shoulders as he rested against her on the bed.
As she continued to work on his shoulders she said sincerely, “I’m sorry you are so exhausted. It seems as though you are like a power source for my abilities. The more I use them, the more it drains you.”
He nodded in response. There was no doubt that he was a giant battery for her abilities because he was physically and mentally drained. Once she finished rubbing his shoulders she slowly removed his shirt and softly began kissing his shoulders and neck.
Giving out a loud laugh he asked, “Even exhausted my work is not done is it?”
She slowly brought her lips to his ear and said, “Nope.”
* * * * *
Jarron woke the next morning to find that he was, oddly enough, completely refreshed. He doubted that it was the sleep since he did not really sleep as well as he could have because they made love twice. Yet he found himself strong as ever. Glancing over at Elyse he saw that she was still soundly sleeping. He stood up and went to the restroom real quick. When he returned he found Elyse had woke up.
“Good morning.” She said with a wide smile.
He said with a grin, “And you as well.”
“Did you sleep well?” She asked him.
“Nope, someone kept me from sleeping most of the night.” He said with a roguish grin on his face.
Giving out a loud laugh she asked, “Sorry. How are you feeling?”
“Actually I feel wonderful.”
She smiled evilly and asked, “How wonderful?”
He climbed back on the bed and slowly made his way to her before answering, “I am feeling that wonderful.”
Right as he moved to kiss her there was a gentle tapping on the door, which elicited a laugh from Elyse.
“I think we need to find our own home or something where we can take our time together uninterrupted.” She stated.
A voice called out through the door, “Breakfast is ready when you are.”
He recognized the voice as the elderly woman who took them in. The room that they slept in was once her son’s room. When he moved out as an adult she left the room for guests.
Elyse announced loudly, “Give us a little bit and we’ll be right out.”
She turned back to Jarron and declared, “Alright let’s get going, we have to head back to the church.”
Jarron nodded at her and then pulled himself off the bed. He helped Elyse stand and then quickly got dressed. She went to the small restroom and then closed the door behind her. After she was done they left the room. Unlike the church, which had very basic foods, the woman here provided them with a much more filling meal that consisted of strips of fried meat, some sort of pastry and a juice. Jarron enjoyed it much more than the gooey paste that he had the morning before. The woman hugged Elyse and thanked her for helping the village yesterday. Almost as soon as they exited the small home of the woman they were swarmed by the people of the village. Hugs and offers of gifts overwhelmed them. Elyse made sure to let them know that they would not be accepting gifts. After finally making their way through the village and towards the church they slowly walked down the pathway. Once they made it far enough not to be noticed Elyse again lifted them into the air and back near the town by the church. Jarron followed her back up the pathway and slowly opened the door of the church. They were immediately greeted by one of the brothers.
“Brother Paul.” Elyse said with a half-smile.
This man was another older man. Jarron guessed that he was in his mid-forties. He wore the same robe of those in the church. He had short blonde hair and light blue eyes. Pockmarks covered his cheeks, giving his face a rough appearance. He nodded at her and then gave Jarron an unusual look. Jarron was left with the sense that the man was unhappy to see him. The man briskly walked away from them.
“That was unusual.” Jarron commented.
“He’s jealous.” She replied curtly.
Jarron could immediately tell that she did not like the man.
“What for?” He asked.
“Before I was taken he h
ad tried many times to gain my affection. It was quite creepy. It only stopped when I complained to Father Lapella. I found out later that Father Lapella threatened to kick him out of the church if he so much as looked at me wrong.” She explained.
Jarron nodded. He could understand why the man would have been attracted to her. She was uniquely beautiful, even with the constantly plain way that she dressed and complete lack of any lipstick, foundation and all of the other things women tended to apply to their face. That was one thing about Elyse that he really loved, her skin seemed virtually flawless. He only noted a few scars on her skin, which were from probably playing around as a youth. He figured that it must have been because of her Eal’tain heritage. The one Eal’tain that he had met before had perfect skin, or at least that he could remember. He did not exactly examine the man since Jarron only saw him from a short distance away. They walked through the church and to the meeting hall. Father Lapella was kneeling with his head bowed near the front of the first pew. Elyse stopped and stood quietly, which Jarron mimicked. After some time he rose to stand up and turned. Once he saw them he smiled widely.
“Elyse and Jarron, it is wonderful to see the two of you. Last night we received word of your efforts and to say it was nothing short of a miracle would be accurate. Elyse your powers are impressive. I was told you lifted a massive boulder with just a gesture and then saved almost sixty people.”
Giving a frown Elyse said in a somber tone, “Yes, but ten people died.”
Jarron reached out a hand and softly rubbed her shoulder. He had known that she was upset about the loss of life, he was as well, but they saved many that would have died without her help. Father Lapella walked over to her and embraced her in a tight hug.
“Elyse my beautiful girl. It is unfortunate when the Maker calls some back to him but you saved so many people that you should never feel bad. Your efforts and heart were in the right place and I have no doubt that the Maker will reward you with many blessings.” He stated softly.
She hugged him tightly and smiled, Jarron could see some tears welling in her eyes. He was glad that Father Lapella had spoken to her because he felt very unsure what to say to make her feel better about the deaths of those people. Father Lapella released the hug and turned to him.