Page 76 of Whispers of the Void

“Could be.” He sits down across from me. “Did you look into whether or not any humans were recorded having psionic gifts?”

“If there were, they didn’t write about it in this book. Humans are just human. Nothing spectacular.”

“What if you’re not just human?” His voice is soft, and his face gives nothing away.

“From what I know, I’m just a regular human. Did Hyva find something?”

“No. According to everything he’s found, there’s nothing to say you aren’t. Your DNA is fully human.”

“That settles it then. Can’t fake DNA.”

“What’s that book?” He points to the one beside me, an encyclopedia of Zeahirian animals.

I hand it over. “After target practice today I wanted to be aware of the possible creatures we could encounter.” I give him a sharp glare. “It’s a good thing, too. Some of those are downright terrifying.”

“We probably won’t come across anything too dangerous.”

“Regardless, it’s better I know so I can prepare and not be caught off guard.”

“You’ll be safe.” He sets aside the book. “I won’t let anything hurt you.”

“Yet you were teaching me how to defend myself earlier.”

“Can’t be too careful.”

“Exactly,” I say exasperated. “If you had to guess, what’s going to be the most dangerous part of what we’re doing?”

“Entering the temple.” He answers with no hesitation. “There will be protections in place. We won’t be able to prepare for them ahead of time.”

“Great. Scary creatures in the dark and booby traps. Sounds like a fantastic time.”

“Cuna and Hyva are almost finished creating lenses for you to place over your eyes. They should allow you to see in the dark nearly as well as we can. I want you to try them out tomorrow.”

The synthesizer beeps, alerting us to our food being ready. He sets my plate down in front of me and begins eating his own meal. I keep doing my research while he pulls out a tablet and begins to do some of his own work.

A while after I finish eating, I set everything aside. A small ache begins to pulse behind my eyes, and I know soon it’ll morph into a full-on migraine. I pick up my dishes and carry them to the sink, just those movements alone accelerate the pain. My glass clatters from my hand into the sink, shattering. I start picking up shards and end up slicing my palm open.

I feel Raiz’s presence at my back within seconds. “Stop. I’ll clean it up.” He grabs my hand and swipes his thumb over the blood seeping from the wound.

He pulls me through the bedroom into the bathroom and pulls out a medical kit from under the sink. The throbbing in my head intensifies with each beat of my heart. Beads of sweat gather along my hairline as I try desperately to fight back the episode.

“Doing alright?” He glances up at me while dosing my hand in antiseptic.

“Yes.” The sting on my palm gives me something to focus on beyond pain in my head.

“What’s going on?”

“Headache,” I say through gritted teeth as he wraps a bandage over my palm.

“I’ll get Hyva.” His eyes grow distant, an indication of him reaching out mentally. I’ve noticed if he’s further away it seems to take more effort and focus for him. “He’s coming and said to lay down while we wait.”

He leads me to the bed and helps me down.

“Will you dim the lights, please?” I ask.

“Of course.”

The lights go off entirely. I can’t see, but I know he can, so I let myself relax into the soft bedding that still has his comforting seawater scent. Maybe if I imagine the beach near his home, I can block some of the pain. A few of the Order medics tried visualization techniques with me, but it never worked.

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