“That would be wise. Now, as we’ve discussed before, I know there will be a vacant room, Although the guys will be next door, I still believe it would make everyone feel more comfortable if Hunter resided in the townhouse with you two to lend support and assistance as needed. Would you agree?”
I perk up at the reminder of her joining us, since it has been going so well over at the Village, and smile when I see the excitement in Hunter’s eyes.
“I would love that. Thank you.”
As Hunter does her victory dance, the oven sings its song. I run over with my oven mitts on and the moment I open the oven door, the smell of chocolate and vanilla escapes into the kitchen. Hearing everyone’s satisfied moans, I bring the trays to the island and run to the fridge to take out the strawberry filling.
On my way back, I find my power and think of the hot whoopie pie halves cooling down so I can complete them. Waving my free hand, I complete my cast and pick up an empty piping bag, filling it with the strawberry creme mixture. The room is silent as everyone watches me dress the desserts. In a pattern, I take a vanilla half and top it with piped drops of strawberry creme, then place a chocolate half on top to complete it.
As I fill the countertop with a straight line of whoopie pies, I picture a dust of confectioners sugar on top of each pie. Snapping my fingers, a whoosh of sugar fills the space above the pastries and falls on the dark chocolate as the finishing touch. Hunter, almost ready to jump out of her shoes, races to the dessert the moment I give her a nod. She takes her first bite and comically freezes in place.
“Holy gods and goddesses, this is my favorite yet. Scarlet you have outdone yourself!” In a very unladylike manner, she shoves the remaining pie into her mouth, already reaching for another. Everyone else takes one and, like an actor on stage, I await the reaction.
“Scarlet, wow. These are just heavenly.” Evan’s sweet voice sounds in my head, and I feel my cheeks get hot.
The pleased moans throughout the room is a most welcome reward. Now that I've gotten their positive opinions, I take my first bite. It tastes even better than I’ve ever made them before. The chewy pies melt on my tongue, blending together and tasting like a summer dream.
“Since we’re in a meeting, I call for all meetings to be conducted while Scar bakes. Can I get some votes?” Hunter says, as everyone quickly raises their hand. Giggling, we finish the first meeting in silence, blissfully devouring the rest of the dessert.
***
It’s much quieter now that we’re all stuffed. This second meeting has been a little hard to get through since everyone but the Elders had to leave and we have only been at it for an hour. Every now and then I feel sparks down my spine and I know it’s Evan, checking to see if we’re done.
So far, all we have gone over is the list of comments or concerns from the casters who live here. One lady requested a petition for children to have access in Eden, which I very much agree with. Another woman voiced her worry about the new captives who reside in the forest, and I completely understand. The Dark Coven has brought nothing but misery to this realm and their close proximity should not be taken lightly. A man is running low on his special casting supplies and desires more. The list goes on and on. Until, finally, we hear the last report.
“At last, the end! Why was the town review so torturous this time?” Jade grumbles. I’m thankful I wasn't the only one counting the seconds.
“It’s only because it has been quite a while since we’ve had the opportunity to complete them. I believe next time we won't have to wait as long.” Ava says. I can tell her patience has also been tested by the long list of concerns.
“Please, can we move on? What’s next?” Nova groans.
Taking a deep breath, Ava straightens out her papers, then puts her fingers to her temples, massaging herself to peace.
“Next, we have to plan when each of us will do our civic duty for the casters. Scarlet, this will be your first time, and I think we have all agreed to place you as the official potion mixologist. Before you joined us we divided the task between the five of us. Now that we have you, it can be yours entirely.” Hearing that brings excitement back into my mind and I happily consent.
“Great. Belle will take you to the potion room this evening to show you the ropes. It’s as simple as following a recipe.” Sending me her sweet smile, I return the gesture and she moves on to start the next subject.
Only, she doesn’t get the chance to. Needle-like pricks begin at my fingertips and move their way up every cell in my entire body. I stand straight up, knocking my chair down behind me, causing the Sisters to become alert.
As the needles make their way up my arms, I feel like I'm in a nightmare. The kind where you want to scream but nothing comes out. All I can do is look at the women in front of me with complete fright in my eyes.
“Scarlet? Honey? What is it?” Ava calmly attempts to get an explanation, but I can’t give her one.
I can see them begin to panic because I clearly can’t move. I feel my chest lift up and down as I breathe in huffs. Then, at the worst possible moment, the sparks begin to make their way down my spine. Evan is here and it feels like the sparks are mixing with the needle pricks and it is internally excruciating. He storms into the room with a look of alarm on his face.
“Scar! What’s wrong?” And again, I can’t move or speak.
The pain is too unbearable. My whole body feels like it’s being tattooed all at once as I feel the ache reach my brain. I almost faint when the pain completes its journey and courses throughout my entire body.
I fall to the ground and lay there, numb and confused. The pricking sensation is gone and my breathing is returning to its normal rhythm. Evan quickly bends to the ground to kneel next to my still body.
As if he is in slow motion, I watch his hand come up to my forehead to wipe my hair out of my face. The moment his skin touches mine, my body takes over and instinctively goes out of my control and reacts. Somehow my legs wrap around Evan’s neck and try to squeeze the life out of him while my hands hold his hostage.
“Whoa!” I shout, quickly untying my limbs from his and running across the room.
“What the hell was that, love?” Evan demands. But I have no idea what just happened. In my peripheral vision, I can see Hunter making her way towards me at a slow pace and I watch her like a caged and rabid animal.
“Scarlet? It’s okay. Everything is going to be okay. Just come here.”
She raises her hand to mine and, again in slow motion, I watch the moment her fingertips touch mine. Instantly my hands fly above my head and, without being able to stop them, they form a circle. In a dance, we all silently watch the ceiling above my hands, where a portal is beginning to form.
“What the...” Hunter says under her breath.
I don't understand what is going on and that is freaking me out even more. Thank gods Ava stays level-headed. She claps her hands, causing everything in the room to still, even the dust particles. She walks to me with large round eyes and gently lifts her hand to my cheek.
Again, the second her skin makes contact with mine, something inside of me shifts. As I stare into her eyes, images of her past and future flash in my mind. I suck in all the breath I can and she stumbles back, stuttering words that don’t make sense to me.
“I…I…I…but…assimilate…? Gifts…?” She snaps her fingers to bring everything back to its normal pace. Again Evan rushes towards me.
I stumble to the ground as I start to backpedal away from everyone. I quickly get up and keep walking backwards. I almost trip on my feet again as I feel for the wall because I don't want anyone to touch me.
When I get to the wall, I turn around to see Belle wrap her fingers around my arm. I rip myself away from her and reach for the door. When my hand grips the knob, hundreds of tiger lilies sprout around the door, blocking my way out.
“Scar? Please calm down. It’s okay. Just relax. Breathe, love. In, out. In, out.” Evan attempts to coach me into calmness a
nd it almost works. But then he touches me again.
Before I can realize what I have done, Evan is already sprawled out on the floor, locked in a death grip that I have never learned how to do before. Untangling myself, I close my eyes and picture myself in a bubble that no one can get through. I snap my fingers. When Evan realizes what I did, the pain in his eyes is enough to crush my heart entirely.
“Whatever is happening, we can get through it, together. Please don't push me out.” He pleads with me and gives me this message in my mind, just between the two of us.
“I just need space for a second. Every time someone touches me, an uncontrollable force awakens inside of me to protect me and it does not want to allow anyone to get close. Please, Evan, a moment is all I need to gather my thoughts.” I try to explain as much as I can, but I feel clueless.
Clearing her throat, Ava walks towards me, standing directly where my bubble begins.
“I believe I know what has happened. The gift you received from your caster father is dream walking, and it seems like you're excelling. Now Scarlet, I believe you have just received the gift you inherited from your angel mother.
If your gift is what I believe it to be, it is an ability that is remarkably rare. I have only met one other person with such a gift. It is both incredible and unfortunate at the same time because of challenges with control and the need for continuous and vigorous training. Power assimilation is when an angel can absorb another person’s magical gift.
With a single touch you can take in any caster’s or angel’s special ability and, in time, as your gift develops, you will be able to control the gifts you acquire and use them individually or collectively when you need them. I just…can’t believe how unique this is. How unique you are.”
With that information, I can do nothing but fall into the comfortable silent blackness as my body gives out from all the exertion. I feel myself weightlessly fall to the ground as my mind and body begin to shut down.
This is too much. How can this be called a gift when I can no longer touch anyone without obtaining their personal gift? The only thought keeping me from drifting into that dangerously empty void again is the hope that maybe, just maybe, we can use this to defeat the Dark Coven once and for all.
Chapter 13
Training Day
Evan
Everyone paces outside of the bedroom Scarlet is in as we wait for her to wake up. The vibe is utterly bizarre as our thoughts and conversations are all over the place. They range from somber to chaotic and thunderstruck over Scarlet’s predicament. At times we’re too shocked to mutter a sound, but are still pacing, trying to figure out what to do to help Scar.
I don't even know where to start. Our skin barely touched when I felt a piece of me get pulled from my body. It felt like someone took a vacuum to my heart and sucked out a part of my soul.
Then, when she threw me down with a combat move I trained hard for weeks to learn, I realized she was using my gift against me. I couldn't move after that. I was completely shocked. But then Hunter touched Scarlet and replaced her gift with mine returning mine to my body. I felt my full power return to its place in my soul, but I didn't care, I was focused on wanting to help Scar. Even if that meant touching her again and losing a piece of me.
Wait until Rick gets here. He’s already upset we had to call him away from the mission to capture the angel that’s been following Scarlet. Even Demi is on her way. It shouldn't be too long until they arrive. Hopefully Scar will wake up soon. Clapping her hands as quietly as she can, I’m thankful when Ava squares her shoulders and lays out a plan for us to follow.
“When she awakes, Scarlet will likely be distraught and possibly even adamant about not touching any of us. We should respect her wishes and provide her with all the space she needs. If we crowd her, she’ll become overwhelmed and try to close us out again. We can’t let that happen.
She has to know we are all here for her, the way she needs us to be. If that’s from across the room, then we all move to the other side of the room for her. We knew from the moment she stepped foot in Eden that she is special and powerful in a way we have not known before.
We should expect that there may be more gifts and powers to come for Scarlet. We are her family, all of us, and she needs us. We need to show her that she can trust us as she undergoes these changes and finds out more about who she is and who she is to become.
It will be tough to convince Rick and Demi to give her space, since they did not witness what we have, but leave that to me and we will work it out together to help our girl.” Ava expertly instructs.
No sooner does she say this, when the doors swing open. Scarlet’s sister and dad run right to Scarlet’s bedside, where she lay asleep. One more inch and both of them will be touching her still body. But Ava snaps her fingers, freezing them in their place. Rick snaps his head towards Ava with a shocked and offended look on his face.
“Ava, what is the meaning of this?” Ava waves her hands through the air and we watch Rick and Demi float to the empty seats next to where Ava just sat. Tears escape Demi's eyes as she is pulled away from her sister, who she wants to help and comfort so badly.
“Please forgive me. It was the only thing I could think to do in the moment. This matter is as urgent as it seems. Scarlet has acquired her angel gift from her mother’s bloodline, and that gift is power assimilation. With a single touch, she can absorb the special power given to whoever she comes in physical contact with. At this time it appears she has no control over this ability and her body is instinctively using the new powers to protect herself.
As of now that is literally all we know. She broke down before we could conduct further analysis. But as time moves on, I'm growing worried. She should have awoken already.”
Again, Rick and Demi are shocked into silence, just like the rest of us were. I'm surprised we can still actually feel surprised after the year we’ve all had.
Slowly Rick rises and stands beside Scarlet’s bedside. Motioning for Ava and I to follow, we stand on the opposite side of the bed. We join hands, starting with Rick taking hold of Ava's hand and ending with taking my hand, completing the circle.
We close our eyes and join our power forces together, all focusing on one thing and one thing only - Scarlet. Ava begins a chant in Latin that is used to awaken someone who has fainted. As we follow her chant, I see a finger on Scarlet’s hand twitch. Now focusing all my power on helping Scar, I feel the tingle on my spine and I know it’s working.
The warmth travels down my back and I look down to watch her beautiful eyelashes flutter open. We stop instantly, but we do not make a move. Standing still and making sure none of us come in physical contact with Scarlet, we try our best to show her our support.
“Love? Everything is okay. How are you feeling?” I whisper, as I kneel down to her eye level. But she recoils slightly, tearing my heart open without knowing it.
“I feel weird. Why is this happening to me?”
I feel her body quivering and I naturally go to hold her. Before I get that far, Scarlet’s hands shoot up as blue sparks shoot out from her palms. I still try to touch her, already knowing what she’s doing, and my hand retracts as it gets zapped from the closeness.
“No, Scar. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have kept trying. Please take the barricade off. I promise I won’t touch you. We can figure this out without you having to close yourself off from us. Please, my love.” I'm relieved when she waves her hand, removing the cast. But what follows tears me apart even more.
Waves of tears escape her eyes and all we can make out through her heaving is, “Why me?” A few of the Sisters join her and, as tears flow through the room, it’s apparent Ava has had enough.
Shooting her hands up, she loudly shouts throughout the room, “Pax, solatium, Dea sana!”
Repeating those words in Latin three more times; peace, solace, goddess heal. Next, she swiftly brings her hands back down to her sides and immediately I feel nothing but relief. There is no weight
on my shoulders, no worries about my Anima Partem, nothing that could stop me from feeling calm and serene.
Thankfully, when my eyes find Scarlet’s, she appears just as tranquil. And so does everyone else in the room. It feels as if we are in the fire room, but way more intense.
“Whoa.” Scarlet whispers.
“Good. Now we can converse without any trauma or heartaches involved.” Ava says, brutally honest. I can tell she’s just as rattled as we are and needs the calm just as much. Shaking her arms out and getting accustomed to the new balance of peace, she takes a seat at the end of the bed, by Scarlet’s feet.
“Okay, now that we are all here and we all know the situation, we can discuss the issue further. Scarlet, honey, there is nothing for you to fear. I promise. Back a few hundred years ago, Fallen roamed around pretending to be mortal so they could live in peace without being hunted. During that time Belle, Jade, and I were out helping a coven of our casters in Saint Petersburg, Russia.
On our trip we met a man, an angel, with the exact gift you hold within you. He was rough around the edges, but a total mush on the inside. He only allowed a select few to get close enough to see that side of him.
Last I heard, he was killed. We were crushed when we received the news. At the time, it was common for Fallen to harass each other, so I didn't think twice about checking to confirm whether the rumor was true. There may be a slight chance he can still be alive.
He tended to run away and change locations frequently. I wouldn't be surprised if he still does walk the Earth. Nova will use her locater gift to try and find him. Jade, please aid her in any way you can. Maybe he can help us.”
With a nod in Nova and Jade’s direction, they quickly stand and walk out of the room to begin their task.
“For now, we can do our best in trying to help you control this new ability. I know you aren’t going to be happy to hear me say this, but I think the best way will be to embrace the gift and train yourself with our assistance. Which means touching us all until you get the hang of absorbing, combining, and transferring back powers, as well as learning from our expertise on our own gifts.” Ava says this so matter-of-factly, I hardly know how to react.
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