Empath Reborn

by J. A. Culican

  "It is, dammit."

  "Is it? I see things more clearly now. The dead need to stay dead. Without any proof this will ever work, the mere possibility has turned you into a traitor, and you made me become one, too. Look what you've done, old friend. Seriously, torture? And you just stood there and let it happen."

  "That wasn't me, it was Luna."

  Meredith shakes her head. "No. You allowed it. You didn’t stop it. You put this entire team together. All of this is as much your fault as hers. And I share the blame, too, for joining you.”

  Talon watches the two talk, and even Luna is paying attention to it, though her stiff posture tells me she hasn’t forgotten about the sword at her throat.

  Meredith continues, “I won't be a part of it anymore. I'm switching sides back to where I should have been this whole time—with the Wraiths.”

  Dawson sneers at her. “You really think they’ll take you back without disintegrating you?”

  “I don't care what they do to me when this is over, but my magic isn't yours to control anymore, you bastard."

  I hear a metallic clatter to my left, and Talon grins in that direction

  A moment later, Glenn and Ida come into view, now holding swords at the backs of the other Shades.

  "I guess they were afraid of me."

  "Don't be ridiculous. You aren't why they surrendered."

  Surrendered?

  Dawson backs away from everyone, but where can he go? He stops with his back against the wall, only one arm still in my field of view.

  Talon opens his mouth to say something, distracted by Dawson, but Luna bats the blade away from her throat. She steps back and draws her own sword in one fluid motion.

  So much for Luna’s ridiculous insistence that only magic mattered.

  Talon lunges immediately, thrusting his blade at her. She barely manages to dodge aside in time, but his sword glides harmlessly past her face. She counter-attacks with an overhead slash at his neck, her blade only a blur, but he easily deflects it with his, and her sword slides harmlessly through only air.

  The next minute feels like an hour as the two duel with ruthless enthusiasm. I don't think I've ever seen anything quite like it, and they’re completely on their own. Glenn and Ida can't help while still keeping control over the Shades who've surrendered to them, and Meredith is no fighter, nor is Dawson. I'm certainly in no condition to help.

  They seem evenly matched, at first, but I don’t think they are. Looks are deceiving. Talon has practiced for many long hours with focus on the physical, and his stamina and upper body strength will make the difference.

  I watch, riveted to the scene, as he beats her back an inch at a time until she's up against a wall with nowhere left to retreat. He lunges, and though she blocks his attack, now they stand inches apart, blades locked together. It’s not over yet, but I was right—Talon’s strength and conditioning will win out, though they’re evenly skilled.

  He growls at her, "Surrender and I let you live long enough to stand trial."

  Surprisingly, she grins at him. She swings her hand, the back of her wrist striking the wall. Her watch shatters from the force. Her grin widens.

  Boom. Boom. Boom. A series of explosions go off, each at a different tone and volume, which means they’re going off at different distances—all over the city.

  Talon is distracted for only a moment, but it's enough for Luna to slip away from him, and his chasing blow strikes only the metal wall.

  Another explosion goes off, but this one is far closer than the rest. Its blast is deafening, and almost immediately, the room begins to shake like gelatin.

  Luna attempts to take advantage of the distraction by darting past him, heading toward the only door. Talon isn't distracted this time, though. He grabs her by her hair with one hand and smashes his sword hilt into the back of her head.

  As she collapses, eyes rolling into the back of her head, my heart sings with a savage joy.

  "The shaking is getting worse," Ida screams over the dying roar from the blast above.

  My heart-song vanishes.

  Glenn looks up. "The building is collapsing. She demolished the top floors, and it's caving in the floors below, one at a time. With the construction they used, it’ll take a while before it collapses, though. The disk is designed to survive a war, after all."

  Someone touches my wrists. I look and find Meredith next to me with some USB-style device in her hand. When she touches it to a shackle, it opens. I cry out in pain as all my weight lands on my still-bound right arm. She touches that shackle, too, and I collapse to the floor.

  Talon drops Luna and rushes to help me up, but I'm too frail and weak to even walk. “Dammit,” I growl. At this rate, no one will make it. "Just get out.” My throat and voice are like raw, open wounds from screaming in pain. "You have to go," I croak from my hands and knees.

  He shakes his head. "No way. Glenn, Ida, wait here with Ela. I have an idea. We might still be able to save Luka."

  While Talon speeds over to the control panel Dawson had used, Glenn rushes to help prop me up and Meredith grabs my other side. Ida takes up position standing over Luna's unconscious body.

  "Talon better hurry," Glenn says, looking up at the ceiling as a bead of sweat trickles down over his forehead. It's not from lifting me up, that's for sure. He seems to think we should be afraid of the ceiling coming down on us, and I couldn't agree more.

  Chapter Thirty-One

  I'm actually starting to find my feet again, my balance returning. I'm still too weak to stand by myself, though, and Glenn and Meredith have to prop me up. All around us, the lab building continues to shake. In the distance, new explosions are going off at irregular intervals.

  "Maybe she just blew up all the research notes and stuff," Glenn says as we wait for Talon to do whatever it is he's doing.

  Ida shakes her head at him. “Idiot. It sounds like she’s blowing up the whole city.”

  We don't have to wait much longer for Talon, though, before he comes up beside Meredith.

  Eyeing him, I ask, "Well, can we go now, before this thing comes down around our ears?"

  "No. I wasn't totally honest with you, before." He frowns, and his gaze is everywhere but on me.

  If this is about what I think it’s about, it will be hard for him. Humor sometimes helps in a situation like this, so I say, "Go ahead, dude. I swear I can't beat you up right now."

  That gets a faint smile, and then he says, "The truth is that, before my powers were taken away, I had the Gift of connecting with souls in the afterlife. I spoke to them, both to urge them to move on to paradise and to hear their last messages to surviving family."

  "So? Why would that upset me? It’s not a terrible thing you did." I really want to punch his arm all of a sudden, but I'm too weak to try it.

  "So, instead of seeing death, like you do, I could connect with it. Maybe that small difference will get this machine to work."

  "Are you nuts? I think you must be. Did you see what this damned machine did to me? And that was after I'd stocked up enough to kill someone.”

  “But maybe it’ll work differently, like I said. It’s worth a shot.”

  “Maybe it'll work? If you step in there, maybe it'll kill you, instead."

  "No, it won't." Talon shakes his head, furrowing his eyebrows. He nods toward Luna and continues, "Your magic stockpile got drained because that jackass over there kept zapping you, with the dial set to 'high,' not because Dawson’s machine took it. I'll be fine."

  The room feels suddenly hot and I clench my teeth. Once again, I have no idea why anger is welling up inside me. I only know that I hear myself shouting at him. "Don't you dare. You stupid jerk, it'll drain you. You'll turn into an empty husk and then you'll die. Or, if it works, I might want to—"

  I stop mid-sentence.

  What if Luka returns and I go with him instead of with Talon? Or, what if I don't? Either way, one of them gets hurt, and so do I. I wish I understood myself better, but intros
pection was never something I worked at, or even wanted, until very recently. I guess that's what has me so angry.

  Startled at the realization, my gaze locks with Talon's, and I stare at him with my mouth open. What can I say after dropping that bombshell? My eyes well up out of nowhere, the salty tears burning.

  Ida chimes in, saying, "Whoop, there it is."

  "Truth, yo." Glenn scrunches his nose up, making a stink-face.

  Dammit. They're right. That's the truth.

  Talon's irritated expression vanishes as he rushes forward and wraps his arms around me, resting his cheek on my hair. He moves it in slow circles. Cuddling? Now, of all times? It's a bit awkward, but I like it, too, so I don't flinch away from him.

  He says, "You know how I feel about you. That'll never change, Mirela. But if you leave me... If that happens, it happens.”

  “How can you be so calm? I want the truth,” I say without moving away from the intimate touch, “not just what I want to hear.”

  He doesn’t skip a beat before replying, “You want truth? Here it is. I don't want you to love me just because you have no options. Either you’ll choose me because I'm the person your heart truly belongs to, or don't choose me at all."

  "But I don't want to hurt you." My heart races at the thought. And what about me? It'll hurt me, too. And what if I make the wrong choice? "I love you. Do you know that?"

  "Of course." On the top of my head, I feel his face shift into a smile. "I love you, too—enough to let you go if Luka is the one who's truly in your heart.”

  “But how can you be so calm about this?” I know if I were he, I wouldn’t want Luka waking up anytime soon.

  “Because it'd be just one more scar, and I already have a lot of those. You don't need to worry about me. Even if I get hurt, I'll live."

  I can't make any promises on how it will turn out if he brings Luka back, but I know what kind of a man would sacrifice his heart for mine. At a loss for words, I can only squeeze him harder. I try to burn that moment into my mind. The feel of his embrace, his scent, and the warm-fuzzy feelings expanding inside my heart as he nuzzles his cheek into my hair. I don't know if it's going to ever happen again.

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  When I pull away, I have to wipe tears away with my palms. He's going to get into that damn machine and try to resurrect Luka with or without my agreement, despite the risk to his heart. I can't be angry at him for that, even if I find myself wanting to be. How odd.

  I push those feelings aside and nod. "Okay, if you're sure. But if you start to be too affected by this, I'm pulling the plug and you can't stop me."

  "Deal." Then, he turns to Ida and asks, "How's Luna doing?"

  Ida says, "She's awake, she's just pretending not to be while she comes to her senses, just like Ela did earlier.” Her mouth turns up at the corners and she adds, “You knocked her pretty hard."

  "Good.” Talon watches Luna pretending to sleep and says, “I have an idea, and I want her awake for it." He goes over to stand beside Luna, opposite Ida. He closes his eyes and mutters to her, "Stay alert."

  Glenn whispers to me, "What's he doing?"

  I shrug. Meredith just shakes her head. We all watch Talon, curious. Maybe he's going to kill Luna. I hope not. On the one hand, she's helpless at the moment. On the other hand, though, she certainly deserves it.

  Luna moves suddenly and tries to scramble to her feet, but Ida kicks her back down and digs one foot into the small of her back. Her eyes open wide and she looks... I don’t know. Terrified? I've never seen that on her before.

  Abruptly, she screams, startling me. “No, please!” she wails over and over again.

  I look around, trying to figure out why she's begging Talon, but I can't see anything that might cause her to behave like that.

  He ignores her at first, but a few moments later, he opens his eyes and grins down at her.

  She crawls to him, shouting, "Give it back! Please, you can't do this. Kill me instead."

  When he doesn't respond, she shrieks in anger, futilely punching his calf with one hand while still clinging to him with her other. Then, she begins to beg him in earnest. There’s nothing she doesn’t offer him, and as pitiful as the display is, I also find myself rather disgusted by it.

  At last, it dawns on me that he has taken away her power. I didn't know he could drain magic. I stare at him, startled.

  As Luna shifts from making demands, to sobbing, to begging, and back again, he stands motionless and watches the display with a vicious smile. When he finally does step away from Luna, she dives for him. He tries to back away, but she gets her arms around his ankle and ends up being dragged along with his foot.

  “Sorry,” Ida says. She walks up to Luna and puts one foot on the center of her back, then grinds her heel in slowly until Talon finally gets free.

  Luna lets out a wail that makes me cringe. I feel pity for her, in a way, but not mercy. Not after all she’s done. Not when she will keep hurting people I care about with no more thought than one might give the ants on the ground while walking to the store.

  At the horrid sound, though, Talon's smile fades. He squares his shoulders.

  “Please...”

  With iron in his voice, he says simply, "No."

  Luna's wailing pauses, as do I from simple surprise. I watch them both with rapt attention.

  Luna looks up, face a mess of tears and mucous. “Please. Anything, I’ll do whatever you want. You can—”

  “No.”

  Luna whimpers and closes her eyes tightly, sobbing.

  "Your crimes deserve a fate worse than death, so that's the fate I gave you.” Action tag. “Now, you get to live as I have all these years. I'm confident you'll enjoy life as a mere mortal even less than I did.”

  As he turns and walks away from her, she doesn't respond or even beg anymore. She only curls up into a ball on the floor and rocks, still sobbing.

  Catching up to him, I ask, "So what now?"

  He pauses to look at me just before stepping inside the same machine in which I’d been shackled. "What now? I suppose that now we’ll see whether I was right about my power working where yours didn’t. And thanks to Luna, I now have energy to spare if the machine does take some of mine like you were worried about. You don’t have to worry anymore."

  My heart is pounding in my chest like a jackhammer. I don't know if I want him to succeed or fail, and I don't know why I don't know. The only thing I’m certain of is that I hate the hollow feeling in my chest as I watch him putting his wrists into the clamps.

  As soon as his skin touches the inside edge of the shackles, they snap shut by themselves with a click-click sound that makes me flinch. It's just so... final. He's really doing this.

  In only a few seconds, the machine whirs up like before. Where my attempts got only a buzzer and a chugging sound from the machine, now it keeps rising in both pitch and volume. The thick cables running from it to Luka's tank begin to vibrate, adding a rattling sound to the mix before they slowly light up.

  At first, there’s only a faintly glowing haze, but before long, both the cables and the liquid in Luka's tank shine so brightly that I raise a hand to cover my eyes. Maybe it's my imagination, but I think I see Luka's skeleton though his skin. The liquid around him begins bubbling like it's boiling.

  Abruptly, the light vanishes, leaving me seeing spots.

  Talon groans from inside the chamber. I turn away from Luka’s vat just in time to see the shackles pop open on their own. Talon collapses over onto his side.

  I stagger to him, crying out his name. My weakened condition isn’t strong enough, though. I end up crawling the last few feet, unnoticed by Glenn and Ida, who are totally focused on the same man I am. Holding my breath, I manage to check his pulse with one trembling hand. I only breathe again when I feel his heartbeat, strong and regular.

  "You jackass," I say, but then I flop over, covering him with my body as my own limited strength gives out. I try to catch my breath as I let m
y fingertips comb through his thick hair. All I can think of is the fact that I could have lost him—those words echo through my head over and over.

  Glenn coughs loudly. When I open my eyes to look at him, he's facing the vat. I follow his gaze, still letting my head rest on Talon's chest.

  I let out a tight, raspy cry. There, in the vat, as the building continues to shake all around us, Luka still floats in the goo much like he had before. One thing has changed, however.

  Luka's eyes are wide open, and he's staring at me.

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  A high-pitched, strangled cry rings out. It's my voice. I don’t realized I cried out at first.

  Ida calls Talon's name and rushes across the room to us, but I can't tear my eyes away from Luka to look over.

  Luka blinks.

  I blink back.

  What now? I can't seem to form a complete thought. He’s here. Really here. Is it him inside there? Will he know me?

  A loud beeping noise picks up, yanking me back to the real world. A red light is blinking at the top of his goo-filled cylinder. A moment later, the metal-glass casing rises up and separates from the heavy base. Goo floods out and sloshes across the floor.

  Luka spills out with it. Carried by the wave, he slides about six feet on his back before coming to a stop.

  I struggle to my feet and try to take a step toward him, but the goo is slippery, and I'm as feeble as a newborn calf. I end up sliding forward, arms flailing, and barely keep myself upright when I come to a stop.

  He manages to get propped up on his elbows. His head whips back and forth with wide eyes as he takes in his surroundings.

  I notice, though, that the slimy stuff covering him and the floor is quickly thinning out like wet cornstarch, becoming more watery by the moment. Maybe they had to keep it so cold inside his giant test tube to keep it from breaking down like this.

  The thinning liquid is easier to walk on now, and I edge forward carefully with shaking knees, my head reeling. I hope I recover soon from the machine's effects. Poor Talon, he's even worse off than I am.