Lili - Unexpected talk
I get up early, determined to find Easton and resolve our issues. The warning last night reminded me of my vision, and I don’t have time to waste fighting about Gwyneth. I check Easton’s room for his energy, which is nowhere to be found in the area. I stop walking and concentrate on expanding my search for Easton. I quickly locate him downstairs in the back of the school. I prepare myself for a complicated conversation, going over the best and worst-case scenarios in my mind. As I’m walking down the hall, I pass the library and remember my first kiss with Easton and how our energies blended perfectly. I continue to walk farther down the hall until I end my search at a large office in the back of the school.
I knock on the door and a booming voice calls out, “Come in! My office is always open.”
I enter the room and don’t see Easton anywhere. I do see Wayward sitting at his desk looking at me quizzically. There’s a large wooden bookcase behind him with ornate decorations, and he sits at an oversized wooden desk, which looks presidential in style. “Hello, Ms. Araica. What can I help you with?”
Oh no. I swore Easton was here, and now I have no idea what to say. I hear my voice begin to speak without giving my brain any warning. “I hope I’m not bothering you. I just wanted to check in and get to know you better.” I have no idea why I said that, but it would be nice to know more about Wayward. Maybe I can find something out about memory eradication.
He responds to my request with a kind smile and excitement in his voice. “That’s very nice. I’d love to get to know you better! What would you like to know?”
“You’ve run the school since the beginning, right? How’d you get that job?”
He softly laughs as though he’s recalling a memory. “Well, I was the Celestial who ran messages between Adem and Michael. Trying to make peace between the two Celestial parties was difficult. It was a tireless job but both sides trusted me, making me a perfect fit to run the school.”
That’s interesting. He wasn’t attached to Adem or Michael. “How were you able to be unattached? Is that allowed?”
His face twists and shoulders sag. “No, unfortunately. I wish it was different sometimes, less political.”
He watches me judiciously, and I try to respond in a reassuring way. “Yea, it would be nice to have more freedom of choice.”
His eyes beam with pleasure. “You’re right. I guess that’s why I never fit in to Adem’s or Michael’s sides. I think differently than most Celestials. I’m glad to see I’ve finally met someone who has a similar mentality. If only I was powerful enough to change other things.”
I hesitate before asking, “What else would you like to change?”
He responds quickly as though he knew my question before I asked it. “I’m not sure about memory eradication, but what can I do?” He gives me a knowing look.
I’m shocked by his admittance. Excitement pushes me forwards as I ask, “Really?! What don’t you like about it?” Suddenly Wayward’s door flies open as Easton stands in the doorway out of breath.
He’s projecting rage as he stares at me. “Lili, I’ve been searching for you. We need to talk.”
I’m startled by Easton’s heavy arrival and irritated by his timing. “I’ll be there in a minute—we were just finishing up here.”
Wayward suspiciously looks at Easton as his demeanor and tone changes. They don’t seem to care for each other. “It’s fine. I have work to do anyway.” Wayward turns to me and continues with a softer voice. “Lili, it was a pleasure to talk with you more. You’re a very special young lady. We will have to finish our talk later. You and Easton enjoy your breakfast.” I feel my face flush as Easton puts his hand on my back and leads me out of his office.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Location
Lili - Tough Terrain Ahead.
Easton leads me down the hall into the food court. His shoulders are tight, and his jaw clenches as he listens to me speak. “Easton, stop walking. What’s wrong?”
He slightly sways, like he’s fighting a battle within himself. “What were you doing in Wayward’s office?”
“I felt your energy there. I didn’t even know it was his office until I was inside. Why, what are you worried about?”
Easton’s takes a deep breath as he tries to calm himself. “Wayward has a lot of political power. He’s not someone whose bad side you want to be on. You don’t want him to notice you or take an interest in you at all. I was nervous you’d exposed your abilities.”
Easton’s worry is genuine, though misplaced. “Well, I didn’t expose anything. I appreciate you caring, though.” His eyes soften. Easton moves towards me, then changes his mind.
It feels wrong for us to both feel unsure of each other, making me assess my own feelings about him lying about Gwyneth. “Easton, I’m sorry for how harsh I was to you last night. I thought a lot about our fight and decided I acted out of hurt and jealousy. I understand why you lied and forgive you. Can you forgive me?”
I feel relief burst from Easton’s energy. “I don’t need to forgive you; you didn’t do anything wrong.” He looks down at me with perplexity as he asks, “How do you forgive so freely? Aren’t you afraid I’ll hurt you again? “
“I grew up with my mom holding resentments towards others for my whole life. I saw how her grudges hurt her, and I don’t want that for myself. I try to remember how horrible I felt when my mom didn’t forgive me and used that feeling to help me choose another path. I use it to forgive and move on.” Easton moves closer to me, bending down and kissing me lightly. His velvet lips make my face feel flushed.
Checking to be sure that no one is nearby, Easton asks me, “Yesterday, you told me you found an object with Baxoney’s energy. Have you used it to find him yet?”
“No, not yet. I have no idea how to locate an energy. Plus, Harper told me it’s dangerous to locate a Celestial that doesn’t want to be found. I was hoping you would want to help me.”
Easton contemplates my request, answering with uncertainty. “I don’t know what help I can be. I’ve never located an energy before. I’m not sure it’s even taught in the school.”
“That’s okay. Nora’s been researching how to find energies ever sinse I told her about my chat with Harper.”
Easton and I quickly head back to my room. We burst through the door and are immediately confronted by Nora throwing a book at us as her frightened scream make us freeze in place.
I try to control my giggles as I say, “Sorry, Nora.”
Nora is wearing her favorite cupcake onesie and has her hair in a ponytail. She’s sitting on the couch, and once she gains her composure her words come pouring out of her mouth like a faucet overflowing. “Hi, guys. Please don’t bore me with small talk. I have more important news. I found the best way to do an energy location, and it seems pretty simple.”
Excitement courses through my body as I run to Nora to hug her. “Thank you! You’re amazing!”
She grins at me as she pats my back like I’m a stranger off the street. I break the hug, taking her hint. She sticks her tongue out at me as she picks up her book from the floor and turns it to the right page. Easton and I move closer, reading over Nora’s shoulder.
CELESTIAL ENERGY LOCATION
- All Celestials’ energy is different, leaving traces in places it has been and objects the energy has touched. This allows all Celestials to be traceable.
DIRECTIONS:
1. Take the object with the energy you want to track and connect your energy to the energy attached to the object. If more than one energy is attached, then connect to each energy until you find the right one.
2. Once you’ve located the precise energy, concentrate on locating that energy. Once the right connection is made, your energy will travel from you to the energy you want located.
After I finish reading, I turn to Nora. “I didn’t notice anything mentioned about finding Celestials that don’t want to be found. Did you come across anything referring to that?”
Nora’s face twists. “No. I looked everywhere. All I can figure is it’s never happened before.” Easton and I look at each other, both worried about the other performing the energy location. It’s hard to prepare for danger when you don’t know what to prepare for.
Easton starts talking first, beating me to the punch. “I feel confident that I should search for Baxoney’s energy. The danger could be dark, and I have more experience dealing with that.”
Before I came to Cognosco I used to hide from danger, like a stick insect hiding in the tall grass, but I’ve been in danger every day since coming to school, and I’m starting to gain confidence that I didn’t have before. “This is my mission, so I’m going to perform the location of Baxoney. I appreciate your concern, but I couldn’t live with myself if you got hurt.” Easton doesn’t respond, staring at me with worry.
I take the encased ball out of my pocket and open the case. The ball shines as it rotates around. As if I’m watching in slow motion, I see Easton grab the ball from inside the case and use his energy to prevent me from moving.
Our eyes connect as he says, “I’m sorry.” All I can do is watch as Easton closes his eyes and connects with the energy inside the ball. Once my body is released, I run to his side both worried for his safety and angry he took my choice away. There’s not much Nora and I can do about it now.
Our bedroom becomes silent as we both intently watch Easton. His closed eyelids flutter, and his body remain still and loose. After a couple of minutes, Nora walks to stand beside me and grabs my arm in a caring way. Nora is not much for shows of affection, so her attempt to comfort me makes me feel seen, in the best way possible.
I notice Easton’s body tensing. His hands suddenly clench into fists as his body straightens like a board. He falls off the couch and begins convulsing on the floor. I’m unsure what to do or how to help him, so I run to my gnosis and ask Sax for help. As soon as I activate her, she begins instructing me. “Lili you must connect to his energy and bring him back.” I quickly jump on top of him and try to connect my energy to his. It’s hard for me to make the connection because his body is almost completely severed from his energy.
I disconnect from Easton, connecting to Sax again in a panic. “Sax, his energy is disconnected. How do I get it back? I can’t find it. Help!”
Sax’s answer is quick. “Search for his energy. Using his body’s remaining vitality to find him. Try to bring his energy back. You can do this. You are powerful.” I quickly disconnect from Sax and get back on top of Easton, wrapping my arms around his chest. I find enough of his energy left for me to locate him, swiftly following his energy through the vivacity channel to its location.
I enter a space absent of emotion, violently breaking my connection to Easton. I don’t feel sorrow or joy, scaring me to my core. There’s grey everywhere I look, with balls of light that seem out of place. I move closer to a ball and see a scene of someone’s life play out inside it.
There’s a young girl, playing baseball with a man. She hits the man in the head, and he laughs as he runs after her.
There are thousands of balls throughout the space. So many pieces it would take me forever to locate Easton within them. The longer I stay within the space, the less fear I feel. My energy begins to drain of everything I value. I take a deep breath and try to reconnect to my feelings for Easton. How I feel for him and how I felt the first time our energies reconnected.
In a space devoid of emotions, my feelings towards Easton help reestablish our connection. His energy lights up within the grey space and I move towards it thinking of our bond the entire time. I find him lost amongst the masses, unattached to everything that he cares about. I grab his energy tightly, entwining him to me effortlessly. We move through the space and back to our bodies together.
My body is still wrapped around Easton’s, but I don’t feel his energy yet. I put my head to his heart hoping for it to beat again. The longer I wait, the harder it is to hope he’ll return. The thought of not seeing him again hurts everywhere, reminding me of the loss of my father.
Suddenly, I hear him catch his breath as his heart begins to beat. His eyes slowly open, and I bury my face in his chest to hide my tears. Easton wraps his arms around me tightly, and I feel his energy getting stronger. We hold each other in silence, neither of us saying a word; understanding everything that is unsaid between us.
Once normalcy begins to return to the room, Nora walks beside us. “I’m all for romance, but I think there should be a ten-minute cap on holding each other when I’m present.” Nora’s comment makes us both lightly snicker as we finally release each other.
I ask Easton, “Do you know what happened?”
Easton grabs my hand as he begins reliving his ordeal. “I felt his energy, and mine began moving towards him. I could smell the ocean, and then I lost him. I don’t know what happened.”
I ask, “How did you end up where I found you?”
“I don’t know. I saw his shadow, then it’s like I hit a wall and was propelled up into the sky, unable to stop it. Then the next thing I knew I was surrounded by grey. Nothingness.”
The memory of the grey, cold space makes me shiver. “It was an odd place, a space without emotion.”
Easton looks at me with fear. “The only way I can describe it is Nirvana. I tried to find my way out and back to my body, but after a while I lost the desire to even move.”
This catches Nora’s interest, and she says, “I read about that. Apparently, it’s the space between darkness and light in the universe. It takes away everything that makes a soul’s energy unique.”
I quiver from her explanation then turn my attention back to Easton. “Are you feeling better?”
He responds, sounding stronger than before. “I am. Thank you for saving me.”
I don’t need gratitude for saving him. There’s no better feeling than knowing you helped someone you care for. “I’m just glad I was able to. Glad I could help.” Easton smiles and a moment passes between us. I sit in the comfort of our togetherness before hiding my true feelings by smacking him across the shoulder and saying, “Never, ever do that to me again! I’m not a damsel in distress—I don’t need you to take all the risks. I’m perfectly capable of handling anything thrown at me.”
“I never doubted your ability. I’m just more selfish than you. I couldn’t let you do it. I’m sure you would have done much better than me. You’re full of light—you would have fought to keep it. I’m almost all darkness—I didn’t care when it was removed; I felt lighter. Then they took what little light I had. I felt my feelings for you slip away, but at that point it was too late.”
“That’s an interesting theory,” Nora talks to herself aloud. She paces back and forth in the room until she makes a beeline in our direction. She clears her throat and says, “I don’t want to be insensitive, but did you happen to find Baxoney’s location? Oh and uh, sorry about Nirvana and everything.” Nora and I turn our attention towards Easton at the same time. I remind myself that whatever he says, I should be glad that he’s okay. I could have lost him, and nothing could be worth that.
Easton is eating up the suspense, as he takes his time to reply. “I know exactly where he is.” Nora and I wait for Easton to tell us the location, but he remains silent, with a frisky smile on his face.
Nora’s patience wanes as she impatiently asks, “Good, and where would that be?”
Easton continues to smirk as he replies, “The location is far away and the school doesn’t have a direct transportation there, so we’ll have to make travel arrangements during Christmas.” The mention of travel fills me with excitement.
I’ve never gone anywhere outside of Texas. Though, Easton’s refusal to tell me the exact location limits the amount of excitement I’m feeling. “Easton, where is he?”
Easton looks at me, shaking his head as he answers. “Baxoney’s within a Crystal Cave in Bermuda.”
Lili - energy class
My professor Blake�
�s raspy belting voice echoes through our wooden energy room, “This is our last class before the holiday break, but I expect you to study during your time off. As most of you are aware, you can either visit your family or head to Verve, the Celestial City, and stay in the dorms there. Just remember, this is the last time you will be able to visit those special to you.” The room becomes achingly silent before Blake fills the space with his big voice again. “On a brighter note, today is where we can finally work on our energy blasts!” The room’s energy shifts to excitement as chit chat begins to break out. Blake brings everyone’s attention back to him as he begins to float in the center of the room. “Nora, how do you send energy shooting out?” Blake demonstrates sending a bolt of energy from his hands that lingers in mid-air then disappears into the energy absorbing ceiling.
Nora loves to be asked questions, which is evident by her wild grin and amplified response. “You gather all the energy you can from your core and channel it through your hands in the direction you want it to go in.” Luckily Nora’s next to me so I can whisper “know it all” in her ear. She sticks her tongue out at me in response.
Blake responds, “Excellent! Now, just remember that we only have so much energy within our core, so the more you use your abilities, the less energy you will have to operate your body. It’s like an oxygen tank; you will eventually run out and then be unable to even operate your body.”
James’ usually confident face looks confused as he asks, “How do you gather energy from other objects?”
Blake answers James’ question with a head bop, “That’s a lesson for second years. First we must master the practice of using energy bolts.” Blake paces the room, walking over to the practice mats. “Alright, now everyone pair off. Please work with the same partner you had during our shielding exercise.”
New Celestial : A teen paranormal romance series (The Celestial Series Book 1) Page 11