Angela speaks up. “You’ve told us that we are to save humanity. You have to admit, those are some big shoes to fill. And you have to train us for it. What makes you the right people to do it?”
Jake speaks up. “Point taken. We’ve created a training program customized for each of your abilities. Yes, they’ve been inherited. These gifts are worthless without practice. Some of them are dormant, not even visible to you yet. Right now, your abilities are inconsistent and hazardous at best. We’ll be working to make these gifts valuable assets to you, the fellowship and those you’re protecting.
Luke takes the floor. “Nate, your unique gifts are Ushering, which is controlling others through Compulsion, and Latrosis, which is healing with your mind using your life force.”
Siobhan speaks up. “Nick, you can shift into anything with a life force, any animal or person. This ability is called Transfiguration. You also have the gift of Pyrokinesis, producing and controlling fire with your mind.”
Ezra jumps in. “Angela, your intellect and ability to absorb mass amounts of knowledge along with your ability to levitate are your unique gifts.”
Each of the mentors doesn’t just know their own trainees abilities. They all are aware of what we can do. Luke addresses me now. “Jesca, your gifts are Telepathy, Ushering, and power of your life force. But that’s only what we’ve identified so far.”
The “so far” makes me a little concerned and anxious. “Why so far? Is there more?”
Luke continues to speak ignoring my comment. “Bottom line, each of you’ll be able to control, defend and protect yourselves and others with your abilities. Until now, you’ve each thought you were losing your mind. We’ve all been there. We successfully gained control of our abilities and have used them to protect humanity and ourselves. Once we’ve trained you and you’re sent to guard your territory, Sebastian will be in direct communication with you.”
Nick asks, “And how’s that happen? How’s Sebastian communicate from Dobria? Cell phone?”
Sarcasm, I like Nick already. Nick elbows Nate attempting to get a rise out of him. Nate just shakes his head and smiles.
Ezra’s fake grin doesn’t find amusement, quickly melting away Nick and Nate’s smiles. “Through visions and in your dreams and nightmares. Since he’s been in Dobria, Sebastian has adapted to many properties of that planet in that galaxy. In Dobria, simply thinking is enough to communicate, something you’ll learn to depend on.”
Nate, Nick, Angela and I exchange a glance as Ezra continues. “As your abilities become second nature to you, you’ll begin to harness additional abilities that are interlinked. It’s like opening a door to your mind you never knew was there. Once you open the door, it’s as if you’ve opened the floodgates. Telepathic communication is one of these gifts that you’ll grow into if it’s not your dominant ability. For now, your mentor is your first line of communication between you and Sebastian.”
Jake rises to stand next to Ezra. “Training will last for four weeks. It’ll be both physically and mentally intense. Once your training is complete, you and your mentor will be assigned a territory in the US to actively monitor and guard. You’ll be prepared to infiltrate Sondian sleeper cells as well as perform combat missions to shut down Sonde guardian activity. Balthazar and his guardians are still trying relentlessly to follow through with the plan of opening a passage between our world and Sonde and we need to keep that from happening.”
CHAPTER 9: THE FACILITY
Jesca
The rest of the first day is busy with touring the facility, lunch, and settling into our individual accommodations for the next four weeks. The rooms we are assigned are warm and welcoming, just like the hearth room is. The decorations are minimal, but something to make the underground unit seem more like home.
The smell of food from the cafeteria is welcome after the tour. I haven’t eaten much in the past seventy-two hours. As I walk along the food assembly line, the two servers are on the other side waiting to dish up our requests. There are three chefs behind the two servers whipping up the food on the stove. One of the chefs has this animated voice and personality that shows through as soon as Angela speaks her order. “Grilled cheese and Portabella mushroom, uh, sir.”
He responds, “Please call me Patrick, Angela. So you want the best-grilled cheese and Portabella you’ve ever tasted? Not a problem. Not a problem.”
Patrick proceeds in startling us with a huge howl before he grabs a plate and starts stacking cheese, two slices of bread and a Portabella mushroom onto a plate before returning to the stove behind him.
The chef next to Patrick is Charisma. She’s an African American woman in her fifties maybe. She has the biggest smile on her face when she asks Nick what he’d like. “Nick! How are you, sweetness? You a New York boy, right?”
Nick responds with caution, “Uh, yeah, that’s right.”
Huh, I’d have suspected Nick to be some kind of free-spirit surfer from California with the bleach blonde hair and tan skin. Charisma nods at him. “Call me Miss Char. Now, what’ll you have? I make a wicked Rueben sandwich, if I do say so myself.”
I step up in front of the third chef. He’s tall with blonde hair and soft blue eyes. His accent is what draws my attention most; English. “My name is Fenton. What would you care to eat, Jesca?”
All of the mentors snatch up one table. I wait to see where Angela and Nick plan to sit.
Nate stands next to me with his tray of food and nudges me with his elbow. “Let’s go sit with the others.”
Nick looks up first as we approach. “Hey, guys.”
“So, what do you guys think? Pretty heavy shit, huh?”
“Yeah, pretty crazy,” Angela says.
Nick gestures with his hands. “Yep. The galactic godlings, Sebastian and Balthazar, were simply mythical when I first learned of all this a few weeks ago. Now, with this place, the mentors and you guys, it’s like a validation that I’m not batshit crazy.”
We all smile at his candidness. He’s spot on though, making it easier to take in that I’m here doing this. Whatever this is.
Over the course of lunch, we decide we need to learn more about each other, our abilities and dealing with all of this baggage. We’re up for meeting at the end of the day in the recreation room, which is cool—pool table and a vintage Star Wars pinball machine.
After lunch, the mentors give us free rein of the facility. My immediate thought is to go for a run and let out all this built up tension. Apparently, there were numerous trails through the caves that had been cut out and maintained over the past four decades of the facility’s existence. We didn’t tour them, but I was itching to get on them and burn off some steam.
Jake told us on the tour that Sebastian created this facility right after his first few teleports to Dobria. He said Sebastian had a very strong influence on the creation of the compound because it needed to be conducive to the type of environment the future guardians would endure in the real world.
The facility started as an area the size of a standard high school gymnasium. As the numbers of guardians grew, the facility expanded and now the facility is the size of an underground shopping mall, sans the cool stores. They say it’s still under construction with further expansion, but construction stopped during training. There are multiple facilities scattered all over the world from what Ezra said.
I find the trailhead and start my run on the gravel. The cutouts are about six feet wide and ten feet tall. I head down the first one, which takes me onto a decline deeper into the underground. The twists and switchbacks are like back home in the woods, minus the smell of trees. I feel a chill deep in my bones suddenly. I wonder if they’ve created massive central air units and air duct systems in order to keep the oxygen levels stable for us to survive down here for an extended period. I breathe in the smell of rock and earth, rich with minerals. I smell water suddenly, like the momen
ts just before it rains. The open areas come up on me quickly as I slow to a stop and take in the grandness. The height of the area’s ceiling takes my breath away, and I stumble back to look straight up into the chalky white stalactites. They drip water into a pool of the lightest blue-green water I have ever seen. Scanning the open space around me, I see four more cutouts wrapped around the pool of water, assumedly going deeper into the trail. This place is massive!
I sit down at the edge of the glowing pool of water, cross my legs, and lean back in awe. All that is audible is the trickle of water from the fingerlike calcifications above into the water below. The best part is there is no humming, vibrations, or whispering. No looming, heavy, dark shadows. All of a sudden, I hear a crunching of gravel coming closer from a distance. I turn to see Nate entering from one of the cutouts. He stops running and takes his ear buds off as soon as he sees me. His shirt is sticking to his chest, highlighting his pecs, which is a bit distracting as I try to keep my eyes level with his. “Hey.”
Without a second thought, he pulls his shirt off as he tries to catch his breath. Holy mother of God! I divert my eyes back to the pool and pretend his half nakedness isn’t flustering as all hell. “Hi.”
I pick around in the gravel for a small pebble to toss into the pool—a thoughtless distraction to replace the attractive one.
“You noticed it too, huh?”
Is he talking about my nervousness? I feel self-conscious to say the least, but try to play it off. “Noticed what?”
Nate comes closer then sits down next to me, dipping his shirt in the spring and speaks at ease. “The peaceful silence. You noticed it just now, didn’t you?”
“Uh yeah. I did. How’d you guess?”
I think back on the abilities we each have. “Is it your telepathy?”
Nate wrings the excess water out of his shirt. “Yeah, I guess. It feels so peaceful and safe.”
Nate pulls his shirt back over his head. I can’t help but watch the ripple of his abs before the shirt covers them.
Nate continues to speak, not noticing my hidden ogling. “I noticed the silence when I got away from everyone and started my run. When I saw you sitting there, you looked so—”
His pause makes me glance at him and his heavy stare makes me freeze like a deer in headlights as he speaks slowly. “It just feels so serene, perfect and beautiful.”
Wait, are we talking about the silence or something more now?
He pulls his eyes away from me and looks out into the pool. “Anyway, I thought you might be experiencing it too.”
I find my ability to speak and seek the same pool of water for peace from my racing heart. “Yeah, you’re right. I was enjoying the experience.”
Wait, oh god, please don’t let him think I’m referring to him being here sitting next to me, staring at me as he did with those gorgeous green eyes as the experience! Quick, change the subject! “So you hear the humming and whispers?”
Nate shifts, his leg brushing against mine. “Yeah, ever since kindergarten. That’s the farthest back I remember.”
We’re looking at each other again. The green-blue color of the pool has changed the tone of his eyes making them easier to get lost in. Appearing unfazed by my staring, he continues. “I was hearing actual conversations and linking my mind with people around me. It was like I had a really awesome hearing device on.”
Nate grins at his own simple explanation on hearing thoughts. I find it contagious as I react with a smile. His words aren’t the contagion, he is.
He shakes his head, and then tosses a small pebble into the water his gaze following it as it sinks. “I don’t have to tell you. You know exactly what I’m talking about.”
“Actually, you explain it so much better than I can. I never thought of it as my mind linking with theirs. I just thought of it as my mind intercepting everything around it.”
Nate’s expression becomes serious. “Well, then there’s the dark—a heavy, oppressive force.”
He shakes his head with apparent disgust the image brings, and then leans back on his hands to look up toward the ceiling of spiked calcification. “Mom and Dad got me through it every time. I can see how a person could easily lose their mind if they didn’t have someone to turn to.”
I nod. “My mom and dad got me through it too. It’s good to know we aren’t losing our minds, but it’s also scary as shit.”
Nate breathes out a loud sigh, and then looks over at me. “So you’re a runner as well.”
“Yes. Back home we have amazing trails in the woods. They’re so beautiful.”
“You’re from Georgia, right?”
How’d he know? I respond playfully even though his knowing where I’m from is strange. “Are you checking up on me?”
Nate’s grin brings goose bumps to the surface of the skin, making it hard to not smile myself.
His grin lessens, but he keeps his eyes pinned on me. “No, I just like to know the company I’m keeping.”
Keeping my company brings to mind thoughts that I shouldn’t be entertaining due to our confining proximity for the next four weeks. I lean back on my arms and look out into the water again. Creating the small distance between us doesn’t slow my racing heart or the breathlessness his continued stare is giving me.
Nate clears his throat. “Well, I’m going to head back and shower up before dinner.”
As he stands, he extends his hand to me. “Want to run back together?”
As he helps me up, his hand lingers after I’m standing. I should mind, but I don’t. But as soon as his hand leaves mine, I feel a coiling in my tension fade. I didn’t even know it was there until it’s gone, like he’s taken it with him. As he backs away from me, I debate going with him. Even though it’d be a good idea in all kinds of bad ways, I’m not here to hook up with a trainee. Days ago I found out I’m part of some fucking guardian fellowship, which is still a mind-twist. I have to get my bearings, not play tonsil hockey with Nate, no matter how appealing he looks. And, God is he appealing. “Um, I’ll catch up; just want to stretch a little.”
Nate puts his ear buds back in and nods. “Okay. Be careful, it’s a little rocky, Jes.”
As he disappears into the cutout leading back to the trailhead, I realize he just called me Jes. First Ezra, now him! I didn’t know my nickname was common knowledge! I decide to let it go and concentrate on his comment about the rocky terrain. I’m not sure what’ll be rockier over the next four weeks, the terrain and training or him and me.
CHAPTER 10: SINKHOLE
Jesca
Our rooms are about 700 square feet, give or take. I have my own toilet, shower, mini fridge stocked with bottled water and juice, a nice queen-size bed, an oversized chair with ottoman, desk and chair. The lighting in the room is canned, not the yellowish fluorescent kind that hurts your eyes which is a plus. I have wall hangings to compensate for the lack of windows. God I miss the trees and sun already.
At dinner, I make sure to sit on the opposite side of the table as Nate. I cut out of our recreation room meet up early. The exhaustion hit me all of a sudden. By the time I got out of the shower, I could barely keep my eyes open. Last thing I remember is curling up on the bed and pulling the blanket over me.
A pounding at my door wakes me and I sit straight up in bed. I look at the clock––5:00 a.m. I’d be angry if I wasn’t so thrilled that I’d dodged a nightmare and the after affects it brings—sleep paralysis. The second pound on the door is what I react to.“What!”
“Rise and shine love. See you in the cafeteria in twenty minutes! Oh, and wear something lightweight, like running gear!”
Ugh, Ezra. I flop back down on my pillow and shut my eyes. As soon as sleep tries to draw me back in, the pounding on the door returns vigorously. Son of a—
I crawl out of the bed, rush the door and yank it open ready to give Ezra a mouthful of attitud
e, but he’s gone. I step out into the hallway and give my two cents to the walls. “Good morning! Thank you for the courteous wakeup call!”
I go back into my room, slamming the door behind me, mumbling to myself. “Rise and shine my ass.”
Fifteen minutes later, I’m in the cafeteria with a tray full of breakfast comfort foods. I’m talking croissant, eggs, bacon, pancakes and breakfast potatoes. Angela, Nick and Nate file in and sit at the table with me. Shit, they look as bad as I feel.
Nick mumbles in a sarcastic tone, “Good morning, ladies and gentleman. Are we ready to be trained?”
Angela and I simultaneously let out a grunt. Patrick, the English chef, delivers a huge carafe of coffee to our table. Before he disappears back into the kitchen, Nick grasps his forearm, keeping him from leaving our table. Slowly, he rises to come to eye level with Patrick holding a look of seriousness uncharacteristic of the Nick we’ve seen. He places his hands on Patrick’s shoulders, looks at him with deep concern and then says, “Coffee by the carafe. Man, I think I love you.”
All of a sudden, the serious scowl on Nick’s face disappears and a shit-eating grin takes its place. Nate laughs. “Shut the hell up Nick.”
We all get a good laugh as Patrick pats Nick on the shoulder then walks back to the kitchen. As Nick pours us each a cup of coffee, I glance at the other table. Siobhan, Luke, Jake and Ezra look like they’ve been awake for hours. Nick turns in his chair toward the kitchen. “Hey Pat, can you just hook me up to a java drip. Something I can have on me while Jake kicks my ass today?”
Patrick shakes his head from the kitchen at Nick’s comment. I notice Siobhan scoot her chair back and make her way over to us. “Ahhh, day one for the green peas.”
A big smile spreads across her face as she glances over her shoulder at Luke, Jake and Ezra. They quickly look down at their plates, trying to disguise the smiles behind their coffee mugs and folded hands. As Nick tries to talk up Siobhan with pleasantries because, frankly, she’s hot, I know better. She turns back to us. “I’m not gonna lie. Your asses are going to be kicked today. And tomorrow they’re going to be kicked again. It’ll get harder before it gets easier. But you’ll condition quickly at the rate we’ll be training.”
Copula Chronicles: The Complete Collection: Origin, Descend, Ascend, Legacy Page 9