"That's part of why I needed to tell you. It won't be splitting, just branching. If I were splitting then the part of me that was with her wouldn't hear anything from the part that was with you and vice-versa. It would give us certain... options without any spillover, but I wouldn't be able to help if she was in trouble, or woke up suddenly and didn't know what was going on, or...
"Probably nothing like that will happen, but I can't just split off a piece of myself for her. Not tonight."
***
Back at the resort, she split off from Shin briefly to visit Kayla and Mattie, leaving a portion of herself listening in to both of them through the night. She normally didn't mess with people's dreams, but they'd both been under pretty severe psychic attack, even if that hadn't been the dead lovers' intention. The kind of night terrors that usually resulted from that were no picnic, so for tonight at least, she made sure that their dreams would be sweet.
She hated seeing Mattie like this, so as soon as she could get her body out of there, she did, only lingering long enough to give her a soft kiss on the forehead, and a whispered. "I'm sorry."
***
Her own dreams were troubled. She hadn't been taken over in quite the same way as the other two. She'd flickered in and out of Filipe, and had purposefully plunged into Annabelle - it made a difference. And she knew how to fight back against her nightmares, even if it made for less restful sleep. Not being alone helped a lot too. Even if it did make for one dream about Captain Kylie and her cabin boy that she would have to make sure to revisit later...
A small space that seems, somehow, larger than the interior of the small trailer that it, very clearly is. Sun shines in through the small windows illuminating a rumpled, but clean space. Under the bed toys peak out from a plastic crate - a stuffed bear, well thumbed paperback books ,a Praetorian action figure. On the bed lies Mattie. Cold. Very cold. A voice, incoherent, her father's, argues with another and is cut short. She looks up from beneath the safety of the bed clothes. Red. So much red.She feels cold. A figure turns to face her, its face hidden, splattered with red. Heat. Screams. Flames.... A figure watching unburnt. He turns to face her, his face, somehow cloaked in inky blackness. Mattie stirs in her sleep and releases a small cry. Then sinks back into unconsciousness. A beach at night. Mattie lies in the sand watching the stars, alone, listening to the gentle sound of waves. Her arm pulses with pain but then a winged figure seems to descend from the clouds, her form obscured by a halo of shining bright light. The figure descends and hovers inches above her, face to face. A face that she knows, that she feels drawn to, connected to. An angel. Kayla. As the figure leans in loser, Mattie arches upward desperate to make contact. As they kiss she feels a power suffuse her body, spreading through her body. In the background another figure, Kylie?, watches.
Mattie stirs, drifting upwards out of sleep gently. Curiously, she looks around at her surroundings - an empty room that seems familiar. Her arm feels a little sore but, apart from that mild pain she feels,... energized. At the knock on the door she smiles, somehow sensing who it is, she smiles. "Come in Kayla" she says, sitting up in the bed with a smile.
Kayla makes her way in, already in her beach clothes, alongside a very stern looking Rory. Kayla’s face is at first concerned, but seeing Mattie so chipper and energetic brought a smile to her face. ”How is it you almost die and I’m the one wiped out. That’s not fair!”
She makes her way to sit on the side of the bed and asks ”How are you feeling?” She gives her a chance to answer before adding ”So...the three of us need to talk,” looking anxiously to Rory.
Mattie is a little surprised to see Rory there too, but smiles at him as he enters behind Kayla. "I'm feeling good. Really good actually." she replies. When Kayla brings up talking to Rory she glances down, nervously. Yeah," she says. "I suppose we do."
PRATORIA
“Hey. I know you've been busy with stuff at home. But we are planning a trip for a week. Would love it if you could go!”
GALLOWGLASS
Trip, like a road trip? sure i'm in. sorry, i had an interview for a temp agency that places some of the security for infinicorp, and then my mom needed help getting ready for a big party. work thing for the U
how you holding up?????
PRATORIA
“Okay. Feels weird being so...I dunno. Vulnerable. But not a road trip. We’ll be flying. And I’m still not wild about this undercover thing you are planning...”
GALLOWGLASS
IT'LL BE FINE! relax, I'm a PRO LOLOLOL
PRATORIA
“Lol. Yeah you are. Makes me jealous sometimes.”
glad yr feeling a bit better anyway. are you sure you wanna leave town now? I hate to ask, but what if Dread does something sick with yr powers??
GALLOWGLASS
and RIGHT I make YOU jealous.
PRATORIA
“Nothing I can do about it if she does. I’d just be at risk of losing what I have left. And time away will give me time to maybe recover some.”
“Buuuuut there is something about the trip you need to be aware of...
GALLOWGLASS
K???
PRATORIA
“Tan lines. Like, tan lines in weird places...like your face...from a mask...”
“You are the only one on the team who hasn’t told everyone who you are. And I get it. I just...I feel weird being the only one on the team you’ve told. Honored, but it’s a lot of pressure...”
GALLOWGLASS
hmmmmmmmmm
PRATORIA
“FYI, Psyche probably knows anyway...”
GALLOWGLASS
its not that i dont trust them...but what happens if villains come to assault my folks cuz theyre mad at me? they live in a real house not some fancy tower
OMG sorry i know your folks are missing
that wsnt how i meant it
PRATORIA
“...yeah. I get it. Just...when you get back you are gonna have a hard time hiding those tan lines. That’s what I’m concerned about. Harder to explain a mask tan line than it is to explain the need for secrecy to your team.”
GALLOWGLASS
i think yr right
PRATORIA
“Your call though. Don’t want YOUR parents to go missing too.”
GALLOWGLASS
really really sorry i said that. you know i'm doing everything i can to help find your folks
PRATORIA
“Sorry...that was rude. It’s...a touchy subject. Especially with Grammie and now Dr D.”
GALLOWGLASS
so where we flying anyway? it's one thing if the team sees my face. if paparazzi see me maskless with yall then EEEEEEVERYONE knows me
I mean, unless they decide I'm too goofy and weak to care bout writing about
PRATORIA
“My families private island in the Caribbean. We call it The Retreat. Nobody but us and the staff (who have been vetted with background checks and professionalism and their ability to keep secrets). No one who has visited with my folks there have had any pictures posted or ID’s revealed from going there.
GALLOWGLASS
!!!!!!!!
u cant be real
PRATORIA
Gift from...my parents on my birthday this year. Better now than never, right?
GALLOWGLASS
OK NO F'N WAY MASK LINES KEEP ME FROM COMING THERE!!!!
PRATORIA
“Well...that’s a bit forward...”
“;-P”
GALLOWGLASS
LOL
k mom needs my help making dip. I'll grab my suit while I'm here. later!
Kayla looks nervously back and forth between the siblings, suddenly feeling like a third wheel. She lightly pats her bare thighs with her hands, and gently rocks her feet back and forth on the floor. She takes a deep breath and says ”Soooooo...”
When Mattie texts Praetoria's contact...seconds later Ness's phone buzzes. She looks at the text, cracks up, and then says, "Uhhhh, look gang. I have a Truth I need to get out there.
"All of you've been very open with the team about your real names. I know some of you don't even have secret identities. I just...I'm really nervous about my family. I don't want them ending up in the crosshairs because I piss off some villain."
She gives an awkward glance to Kayla. "I'm going to work hard to keep my identity secret, for my family's sake. I really need your help with it, OK? That said, you're risking your lives for me and I totally trust you with this. My real name is Ness MacDonnell. My mom's a professor at Halcyon U, out in the 'burbs."
Smiling at Mattie and Kayla, she adds, "If that means Mattie gets to text another of Kayla's contacts, that's your call."
"To really be fair, I have to say that I haven't exactly been using my 'real' name. But that one is a fourteen-digit serial number in a language none of you understand, so it would be a bit awkward anyway."
Rory exhales rather hard, "Okay, I'll go first. First off I am extremely happy you are okay after last night. I'd like to say I am not mad but that wouldn't be true, I am incredibly hurt that you two kissed, like if it had been any of the other girls it wouldn't have stung so bad, but my sister..." he angles himself directly at Mattie, "I can't even imagine kissing someone you were dating, even if they were the initiator, I guess I'd like three thing, why did you do it, why didn't you come to me right away - I asked you on the beach, how did you think this wouldn't blow up? ... I'm just confused and upset about this mess." Rory looks like he is about to burst into tears and takes a moment to compose himself and grabs both Mattie and Kayla by the hand, "I'm not upset by the lesbian thing, if that's not a huge surprise after the you and Jade thing, I mean you cut her head out of a bunch of pictures after you guys 'stopped talking' and I saw you and her kids while playing house once. But you're all I got in this world..."
Kayla says nothing in reply, giving the siblings a chance to make things right between them first. She gives Rory’s hand a gentle squeeze of reassurance, though, to let him know she was there for him, if that meant anything now...
Isaiah watched and waited, until he could catch Praetoria alone. He wanted to clear things up before they had time to fester, but would rather keep it private for now. He approached Praetoria, hoping she would be ready to listen.
"Hello. I figure I probably owe you an explanation here. Where do you want me to start?"
"Hey, you alright? You took a nasty cut at the end of that battle. And... there were some other things in there too. Want to talk about them?"
Kayla raised her head up from the beach chair at Isaiah’s voice, opening her eyes and looking over the rim of her small sunglasses at him, her face shifting from relaxed to stern.
”I don’t know, Isaiah, how about with why you,” she pauses to look around to make sure they were alone, ”why you’ve obviously been secretly harvesting my powers in secret somehow, hmmm? Care to explain that? And for what? Who else have you been draining? Everyone? How can you even do that? I’d heard of heroes powers being negated before, but never had I even heard of one’s being actually stolen until it happened to me, and now I learn my own teammate has been doing it in secret?” she rants in a half whisper, her body trembling with anger.
She starts to get up to chew him out proper, but she gets light headed and just lays back. ”Of course, of all days to be weak, it’d be a day I feel like busting something’s skull,” she says glaring at him. ”Do you have anymore of my powers stashed away? And how long have you been doing this to me?”
After watching Kylie sleeping for the better part of an hour, and failing to extract himself without her clutching tightly onto him, he decided that maybe he should wake her up. A good morning kiss to awaken Sleeping Beauty seemed appropriate for this situation.
Good morning, sleepyhead. New day, no pirates, everything's a little better and I want to go snorkeling. Up for it?
Shin was currently checking out an inflatable raft and snorkels from the cabana storeroom when Isaiah caught up to him. He paused, turning to him. Wearing only swim trunks, the vantablack scar on the left side of his ribs is clearly visible to the drone. "I had a rough moment," He understated. "But yeah, we can talk. My powers...I think I absorbed more than just radiation. I absorbed...everything. Prae's energy, your energy...Kylie's energy...I felt like I was going to burn up from the inside. I think that Dusk's been holding back what his powers can really do if I can do this."
Isaiah sighed. He figured she would have been thinking along those lines.
"Well, yes, I have been draining power ever since I got here, so to speak. Though if we're going to use that metaphor, I'll say that that is more how it has worked; I put a 'drain' in the 'floor', directed a few channels to it, and saw what flowed in. I was as surprised as anyone else when I found that a good chunk of it came from you, specifically. There's also Psyche, but that one I was expecting. She's like an unshielded nuclear power plant, emitting energy everywhere constantly, especially when she sleeps; I'm probably doing the neighborhood a favor soaking all that up. Additionally, that's all I've been collecting; energy. Not really full powers. Just the energy utilized by them. Hence why I needed a blood transfusion for that earlier trick. As for why... Well, it might be easier to show you than explain."
Isaiah sat back, and then... peeled back his 'skin'. Then pulled open a panel in the metal underneath. There, deep inside his torso, was a strange, humming, glowing contraption; it was clear from its position and the many wires and strangely etched cables attaching to it that it was important, and above it was a row of small cylinders; the very same kind as the one he had pulled out earlier. A drop of liquid violet light slid from one of them into the thrumming device, and a pulse of dim light flowed out of it in all directions through the cables and wires. Another drop, this one gold. Another pulse. The beating of a mechanical heart.
"Energy is life. Without it, I die. What more do you want me to say?"
He released his hold on the panel, and it swung shut again, and his 'skin' flowed back to cover it. No sign of the arcane machinery that lay beneath. But with supernatural sight, one could still see the dim gleam of his pulse, flowing through the microscopic etchings all through his body.
Isaiah noticed the scar. That was certainly odd. And with what he'd seen earlier... well, the possiblities were shrinking a bit. Still would need more research.
"Yeah, I noticed that. And the more I think about it, the more I think that your radiation powers might just be the more visible and easily controlled portion of a slumbering power much, much stronger and more dangerous. For just a moment back there, you were a singularity. A black hole. I have no idea how, but that is not something to trifle with. I'm going to put some effort into researching it. See what might have been the cause. But it might be a while before I find real answers."
Holly steps into Inquiry, after it's clear everyone will be alright, and the others have settled down for bed. Hey. She says. She is dressed in comfortable looking pajamas (which, in this climate, are thin by necessity.) and looks like she's been through a lot.
I was thinking, with my head stuff and- No, I'm not going to lie to you. I just... don't like being in the cabin all alone. Are you doing anything important? She says
When Kylie wakes up, its like turning on a switch. Her eyes open, and the world snaps into focus.
"Wow. I was more out of it than I thought. I didn't think I'd stay asleep when you woke... Oh. Well, now I'm even more surprised you didn't wake me up earlier." A faint blush colored her cheeks
"Snorkeling sounds good, but I need to shower my way back to humanity first."
A loud rhythmic thumping sounded through his mind for a half second before she muffled it. "Care to join me?"
***
As Rory, Kayla, and Mattie had their talk, she gently disengaged. She was sure that she'd end up picking up most of it later, whatever wasn't incredibly obvious anyways, but she really hated how public things had gotten for both of them. At least we aren't back in Halcyon. Here at least no one got photos.
Kayla forced herself to sit up and take her sunglasses off to study what he was showing her. As the panel closed back, she hung her head and drew random shapes into the sand with her toes.
”So...does Psyche know? If not, you shouldn’t do that to her anymore without asking...” she says without looking up, still thinking. After a moment of thought, she adds ”So, could you not, like, thrive on solar power? Or another energy source...or does it have to be...well...that?”
"The field of solar panels would cover the entirety of some states. Practical in space, not so much here. The power bill from the grid would be high enough even your family might balk at it. And I'm certainly not building an antimatter reactor under Halcyon City. Mostly, I figured there was already tons of energy floating around in the background, and passive collection doesn't hurt anybody. And I've been planning on talking with Psyche about it at some point, but the opportunity hasn't really come up."
Isaiah looked out at the sea introspectively.
"As I said, I'm no Doctor Dread. I don't go around stealing people's powers, and I'm not entirely sure how they're doing it, though it is likely a simliar method. Which just reinforces the importance of keeping this technology out of the wrong hands, which is in turn why I haven't exactly brought it up. Word gets out that I know a way to do it, and villians will be lining up to pick me to pieces looking for the secret. Quite possibly literally to pieces."
Isaiah's voice spoke from Inqiury
"Not really, just refilling my power cells. Nothing that would be bothered by you being around. Need any furnaiture? Or if you want to talk face to face, just wait a bit."
Kayla sits quietly for a few moments more after Isaiah explains. It was a good thing Shin and Kylie has left a while ago to snorkel privately, or else she’d likely be pissed right now.
”Look, taking anything from someone without their knowledge is stealing. So you shouldn’t do that anymore. And...god, I can’t believe I’m saying this...if my excess energy would be enough to keep you working fine, then fine. But don’t do it all sneaky like. Come get me and let me know. I wanna know when I’m at 100% and when I’m not, okay? We’ll go,somewhere private and you can...wow this is weird...take some power. Just leave the others alone. We know I can regain what I’ve lost with time. They might not. Okay?”
...You're cute when you sleep. Especially when you cling to me like a barnacle. The image he had of her serenely sleeping face pouting as he tried to pull away from her flashed to Kylie.
The walls were thin in his old apartment home. He knew what that thumping sound was. A couple of days ago, he might have mumbled an excuse that it wouldn't be proper - there was reason he had her borrow one of his pajama sets to bed with him. Even if she'd only taken the top part. Now though?
He was going to adapt to the times.
He kissed her again, before slipping out of bed and into the bungalow's bathroom, turning on the hot tap and getting himself ready. His pajamas flung out of the open door was certainly suggestive enough.
If you don't hurry, the hot water's going to be used up.
---------
"...A black hole. Like, an Einstein-Schwarzschild singularity where light can't escape from its mass? How the hell am I alive?" Shin exclaims, disturbed greatly by what he'd been told. "Yeah...Uh, so, do you think there's any potential side effects from absorbing all of that then? Aside from this strange and alarming scar that Kylie seems to like..."
---------
Shin found Kayla tanning on the beach. Somehow he'd finally gotten use to the excessive amount of skin the girls seemed to enjoy exposing here. Though he supposed he should feel a little grateful they didn't just run around naked like in the Mediterranean. "Found you a souvenir," He told her, tossing her a half oyster shell. Inside of it was a pearl, still raw and needing to be cut from its mother. "Found a bed of oysters snorkeling with Kylie. Got one for each girl."
He sat down next to her, his skin somehow paler despite all his time out here. "You know, I think everyone here, me included, thinks of you like their big sister - their oneesan," He explained to her. "Including I guess everyone attracted to you at some point. Even I think you're like a bright blue sky that can be sunny or stormy at a moment's notice. So...yeah, not sure what I was trying to say here. Just that you have me in your corner if you need me."
Mattie can't bring herself to meet Rory's eye as he begins talking about how betrayed he feels by her, and what she's done. When he finishes, she swallows and begins. "I'm sorry," she says, eyes still downcast. "I didn't know you knew,.. about me and Jade. I, I didn't know how you'd react. And I guess you know now, even if you didn't before. I'm gay. I like girls. I'm not bi or experimenting or confused. I'm a lesbian and i think i always have been." Finally, she lifts her eyes to meet Rory's. "Well, you know I haven't seen anyone since mom and dad died, stuck back at Blockbuster without anyone else around. I guess I just wanted to see what it was like, you know, properly. And Kayla was trying to figure out how she felt, and it was just,... I guess I wasn't thinking. I didn't think that it would really mean anything. I didn't expect it to feel,.. like it did."
Kayla jumped with a start when shin tossed a shell at her, but after bumbling it about she managed to reign it in. ”Aaaaaw! Thanks Shin! We should all open them later!”
She was surprised by his sudden comradery, joining her privately for the first time this trip. ”Well, I hope not everyone, that’d be weird,” she says with a chuckle. She blushed when he said everyone had been attracted to her. ”What are you trying to say Shin?” she asks teasingly. ”Got something you need to confess?” she adds as she plays at moving her foot towards his leg seductively, before giggling and stretching and laying back on the sand, resting her head on her hands as she looks at the sky.
She was finally starting to feel better, which made her think her earlier weakness was due to blood loss and not power loss, and her powers had replenished the lost blood fairly fast.
”So what does one-sun or whatever mean?”
Now she gave Mattie’s hand a squeeze as she looked to Rory. ”And Mattie can tell you if I’m lieing here, but when I was ‘testing the waters’ to see how I felt, I made it clear that I was doing it so I could be honest with you with how I felt,” she says as she turns to him and takes his hand in both of hers. ”And I told you how I felt afterwards, and I still feel that way. Though,” she says with a nervous laugh and a smile towards Mattie, ”Your sister is an amazing kisser. Just gotta say. Must run in the family.”
She tried to laugh the awkwardness of her comment aside, ”But seriously. I obviously care about you both. A lot. But here’s the thing, Rory, if you have to be mad at someone...be mad at me. I asked for her to kiss me. And you are blood. Family is something you can’t let be broken. I used to pray Shane and I had a bond just half as strong as you two. If I was the reason you two fell apart...” Kayla said as her eyes filled with tears and she hung her head, her face becoming hidden behind a curtain of blonde hair.
"It's oneesan," He corrected her, blushing a bit as she slid her foot suggestively at him. "It something you call someone you think of like an older sister, or your actual older sister. I don't think I need to confess anything right now. Though...I don't know. Kylie wants to date me, but she also wants to date Mattie. And I want to believe that's normal because that's just how it is here in the future. It feels weird though. Like reverse Mormonism," He tries to explain. He lies back in the sand with her, where the thin vantablack scar is visible to the tanning legacy.
"...I'm just worried. I don't want to hurt her. It hurt me a lot when I realized she was dating Mattie before she could tell me herself. I haven't even talked to Mattie yet about it. I guess that's something I'll have to do later. Even if she's now my rival," He groans. "The future's corrupting me. Next thing you know I'm going to get those ear piercings Kylie teases me about, or worse, a tattoo like some sailor or outlaw."
He knocked on the door three times, waiting for a response. He didn't want to accidentally walk in on her naked again after all. When he didn't hear anything for a few moments, then he tried the handle, peeking in. "Taking visitors?" He asks.
Kayla rolled onto her side to face Shin as he talked. Despite he and her having a bit of a rocky start, it was kind of cute how he was starting to trust her and open up to her a bit like a friend.
”Yeah, I know this time travel thing has been hard on you. I’m sorry I haven’t been more supportive. I’ll try and do better...”
She casually took a finger and traced it along the strange scar on Shin’s torso. ”So...how did this Happen? I wasn’t really me during the bulk of that fight last night. Does it hurt?” she asks, continuing to move her finger along its edges as she speaks.
Rory laughed at the awkwardness of Kayla's comment. "Nobody is falling apart here," he squeezes both of their hands.
Mattie looks up from her bed at the knock, this time unsure of who was there but, somehow certain is wasn't Kayla. When Shin peaks in, Mattie is sitting in the bed, wearing a loose fitting t-shirt , her lower body hidden beneath the sheets. Her arm is bandaged but she seems alert, even energetic, but her eyes are red as if she's been crying. "Sure" she says, swallowing nervously once more. "Come on in Shin."
Kayla smiles at Rory, his mood seeming to start to brighten, and reaches up with both her hands and puts them on either side of his face as she leans in to kiss him.
Mattie smiles as Kayla kisses Rory. When they break apart, she reaches forward and squeezes Rory's hand. "I'm sorry." she says, "I really am, and I won't do anything to spoil things between us. I promise."
Shin looked surprised and blushed, but let her touch the scar. Everyone seemed interested in it after all. For Kayla, it felt cold to the touch, like winter air. "Honestly, it should still be an open wound. I got slashed in the side with a harpoon. But when I woke up after Kylie got me breathing again, it had already closed up to this. Uh...is it just me, or do women in this century like scars a lot?" He laughed, a little surprised by how close she was getting to him now.
She's not like...dissatisfied with only Rory too? Are all girls like this in the future?
"Uh...you know," He started, wondering where everyone else was right now. "How would you feel if, uh, Rory starting dating another person, as well as you?"
----------
He slips in, knowing that Kylie's probably listening in to this conversation and is fine with that. This involved her after all. "...You got shot, huh? I got stabbed," He tells her, showing off the new and unusual scar. "I think somehow it's giving me some strange aura of sex appeal, because nobody I've shown it to can keep their hands off of me," He joked. He cleared his throat a bit.
"So, I...kind of wish that you had told me that you liked Kylie. Or that you were dating her as well. I was really mad when I found out. She's talked me down since then. I care about her, and if it makes her happy to pursue relationships with both of us, I'll support that. But I need to know if that's what you want, Mattie."
"Well I can't be the only one who doesn't know what it feels like" Mattie says, with a grin, relieved that Shin doesn't seem angry. As she reaches forward, she keeps talking. "I'm sorry." she says, "Seems like i've had to say that a lot today" she frowns. "To be honest Shin, I don't really know what I want. I've only just properly kissed my second, and third person ever. All in one day, and I'm not sure what I feel. I mean, I like Kylie. Like, a lot, but I know she's likes you too, and I don't think she's really into the whole 'exclusivity' thing. I'm not really sure that I am, for that matter. Whatever happens I seem to be getting things wrong. Hurting Rory, hurting you..."
A light pressure touched on Shin and Mattie's minds, light and... tentative. It was easily noticeable for a few seconds before she actually got in their heads.
"Is this a conversation I should be involved in? Or do you two need to talk privately?"
I'd say that it involves all three of us, so of course you should be involved. Party line?
Once he and Mattie could talk mentally with Kylie's help, it became easier and more open between them. Being able to share feelings in their abstract form without needing to use words to describe them was quite advantageous to Shin.
Kylie...I'd like to share with Mattie everything we've done together on this vacation so far, as I remember it. Can you do that? He felt that it was only fair. Kylie wanted both of them, and after thinking about it, sharing as much as possible and not keeping any secrets was how it was going to work.
Though he hoped that things wouldn't be weird when she saw what happened with them that morning in the shower.
Praetoria's told me that we're all still kids, and we should act like it and try to have fun. I guess that dating is also part of that fun. As long as we don't hide who we're seeing so nobody gets hurt again. That's logically the best way to go about this as I see it.
Kayla giggled along neighbor Shin. ”I dunno about likeing scars. I just find them weird because I haven’t had one in a long time. My powers did away with the ones I had gotten as a kid, and I haven’t had one since.”
She folded her arms under her head, now laying on her stomach, and rolled her head into its side to face him. She laid there thinking a moment after his question, and sighed and said ”Well, while I answer,” as she held out a bottle of bronzing oil, ”do you mind? I’m no telekinetic, and everyone else is off doing their own thing for now. Please?”
She then lifts her hair up and out of the way and lays her head on its side and arms down as she answered ”I...I dunno how I’d feel. We just started being serious, and I’ve already done so much to cause him to not trust me. I guess I would have deserved it. But if he was open and honest with me as I’ve tried to be, and was...careful...with who he was with...lord I dunno. Why do relationships have to be so confusing?”
As she laid there, another thought crossed her mind and she bit her lower lip, ”Why...why are you asking me that, Shin?”
The realization of what was going on soon hit her.
He...he already confessed being attracted to me. And now I have him rubbing on my back, and he’s asking how I feel about people dating multiple people...
Her pulse picked up and toes curled, but otherwise she tried to keep her breathing steady and not show any other signs of her growing flustered.
Okay. Could I... Can you charge your batteries in here? Could I sleep in here? Holly asks
"Well, to tell the truth, even if I was trying not to gather energy from Psyche, I'd probably end up with some anyway. I wasn't kidding when I said she radiates pretty hard. Kind of feels like she doesn't have control over her own energy regeneration, and keeps going full blast even when she can't hold it all. What do you call it when somebody shoves something at you without their own knowledge? And also, I know I could probably speak privately with her anytime I tried via telepathy... but that same ease of access has made me a bit leery about handing out heavy secrets, if you understand what I mean. With a strong telepath around, the only thing that you can be sure is secret is the thing that nobody knows. But now it's out of the bag, so I might as well talk to her about it."
"Oh, and in answer to your earlier question, as far as I can tell none of the others have loosely bound enough energy for any of it to end up in my collectors. A few wisps left behind when they use their powers a lot, but nothing outside of the background. And Shin is a bit of a sink himself, though I don't think he has control over it."
"Hey, Psyche. You doing anything, or can we chat a bit without it spilling into anything else?"
"I honestly have no idea how its working either. If I had to make a guess, whatever caused you to get the powers also adapted things so that you wouldn't destroy yourself with them. As for side effects... well, all that energy had to go somewhere, you might actually be able to tap it somehow if you can figure it out. In fact, venting it somehow might be a good idea, we don't want to find out if there's a critical mass where your event horizon extends beyond your ability to shield it."
"Sure! I'm actually just on the other side of the wall here, just kind of ugly at the moment. Or, well... You could say I'm everywhere here, seeing how Inquiry is as much a part of me as the body you're familiar with. Hopefully that won't make things really awkward or anything."
With a slightly liquid motion, a couple chairs and a bed slid out of the floor and walls. A quiet clatter emanated from one wall as Isaiah started disconnecting so he could talk in person.
Kylie was pretty surprised about how Shin and Mattie's conversation had gone so far. Astonished might've been closer. The rumble of disorganized thoughts drowned her out for a moment, before she projected, "I didn't mean that I never wanted to be exclusive. But we all just met, just started seeing each other. I just didn't want to leap into commitments without thinking about how things had to work back in Halcyon.
"They're tearing Kayla apart in that video for a consensual straight relationship with another well-known superhero who's basically the same age, race, religion and probably blood type for all I know! Can you imagine what the headlines are if we tried to make something like this permanent? 'Psyche Starts Psionic Harem?' would be the best one - at least it would have a question mark!"
Kylie herself floated into the room, a look of mortification only mostly suppressed.
"It's not that I don't care about both of you, a lot." A mix of warmth and and a kind of prickly heat flowed out to both of them. "But how would something like that even work?" The same rhythmic sound of her nervous heartbeat sounded across their minds. " I don't even think that I'd want to be with both of you at the same time long-term..."
"Would you/you really want that?"
***
"Of course Isaiah. Your mind is easy to keep things nice and separated out in anyways."
"Just wondering if you were aware of how much you tend to leak psychic energy all over the place. And Praetoria pointed out that I should probably ask you before collecting it and using it as fuel."
Rory had been sunbathing with Kayla until he fell asleep, various people came to talk to Prae while he slept and occasionally he would pop awake, look over to make sure she was still there, then roll back over to bask in the sun. Rory was exhausted from last night, the games, the fight, the walk back through the jungle, then staying up all night watching over both Kayla and Mattie.
"There has to be a better way to phrase that. I certainly don't leak :-)
But yes, I know that I tend to impact the world around me. What you're using isn't draining the active uses of my powers, or my close-range pickup is it? If it's just the residue, stopping would probably lead to the team having some very vivid nightmares :-/ "
"I usually stick to passive collection. It shouldn't interfere any with active uses of your powers, or anything you're actually paying attention to. Although, if you ever really want me to, I could turn it up and actually block things out a fair bit. In case you ever need some quiet or an escape from your own telepathy. I've noticed now and again that it seems like it might have some side-effects."
Psyche's hackles went up immediately, but after a moment she sent back. "Let's try it next time we fly. Should be easier to manage the timing than pharmaceutical methods if nothing else."
When Isaiah comes around the corner, she has already lain down in the bed. I don't have anything I particularly wanted to talk about. Holly says I mean, If you want to talk about anything, go for it. I was just lonely. Normally I would go in Kayla's room, but that would be extra weird after the last few days. and seeing as your my, you know, I thought maybe we could cuddle a little. after a while, you can go back to what you're doing, if you want.
This was not how he expected his conversation to go down Praetoria today. He applied the bronzer to her as she requested, trying to not think anything that Kylie might tease him about later. "I guess I'm just trying to figure out why people would want more than one romantic relationship. How it works if it's not cheating because everyone is on board with it all. It seems like so much more work, but I guess it's also worth it if it means everyone is happy, right?"
He sighed, and frowned as he applied her lotion lower. "I never realized how solid you are before. This feels like I'm polishing a mighty oak tree or aomething."
I want you to be happy. You're happy when you're with me, and when you're with Mattie. I'm trying to adapt the best that I can to make sure that everyone comes out of this unhurt and as happy as possible. He mirrored her warmth to her, warmth to Mattie as well. Kylie got the same sort of heat she'd felt with him early in the morning.
Of course, it doesn't work unless we're all on board. Which is why I think we should make it a trial and see how it goes. Maybe a group date together out in Europe? Think that's Kayla's plan. He reached out to Kylie, grabbing onto one of her hands and giving it a gentle squeeze, looking at Mattie to join on the other side of her.
Kayla’s face blushed and she (and Shin) felt her body get warm at his comment on her muscle tone. She giggled nervously, then turned her head to face Rory, who was still asleep. Suddenly feeling guilty, she says, ”Thanks, I think I can get it from here,” as she rolls over and takes the bottle of oil. She puts some on her hands and starts getting the back of her arms and legs. ”Here’s the thing. How do you know how you truly feel about one person until you’ve dated multiple? And life is short, we are only young once. Sure, it’s safer to be with only one person at a time. But if you both are being mature about it, and all can be trusted to be smart and careful...then you can learn who you really have feelings for, and what those feelings are.”
She looks at him and says, ”Do...do you wanna work on your tan? I have plenty more of this bronzer...” a part of her was adding the next part with a bit of anxiety...”Kylie might like you with a tan!”
Mattie looks a bit confused, and then sceptical at Shin's suggestion. "Umm, I'm not sure Shin. I mean, I'm OK with you knowing that Kylie and me have been on dates and,.. done stuff, and I guess I'm OK with knowing that you guys have done the same." How far have they gone? she thinks, trying to suppress a surge of jealousy. "But the details - what we said and did? Well I think that some things need to stay private. I'm not sure I'd be totally comfortable with sharing all my memories with you... It's not that I've got secrets i want to hide, not any more, but,.. I think maybe that's a step to far." she gives both of their hands a squeeze. "You understand that, don't you? I think maybe going out together might be fun, but, well,.." she stammers, " I don't think I'm ready to be exclusive either. I've only just come out to Rory, and, well anyone and, well, yeah. Can we just let things develop naturally and see where things take us?"
Psyche looked really, really tense. Even if she hadn't, the plane-just-took-off air pressure feeling in her mind would have made that very clear.
But neither of them hated her. Neither of them were even angry. They were both a little jealous, but they weren't sick with it. Maybe, even though this had gotten so tangled up, things could still work out. A date with all three of them though? That would be... strange.
But she'd never really thought she'd be holding hands with both of them at the same time, so maybe strange would be okay.
She squeezed back, maybe just a little too tightly, and said "Okay. We'll see how it goes. And I guess that includes the double-date. Triple date? Not sure what to call that. But Shin's right. We need to be honest with each other if this is going to work, even in the short term. That doesn't mean some things can't be private, but I want us to be as open as we're all comfortable with.
"I know I've got sort of an advantage when it comes to secrets... So anything you guys want to ask me, that isn't about the other one, now's the time."
"Yeah, that was more or less what I was thinking. Any particular reason you seemed to be getting it really bad during the flight? Oh, and if you ever notice any actual detriment, you can just tell me and I'll tone things down. I like having a steady energy supply, but I don't want to hurt my teammates over it."
"Just don't want to be alone, huh? Yeah, I can be around, if you need me. Not doing anything I can't put off."
Isaiah sat down on the bed next to Holly.
"One advantage of being a machine. I don't need nearly as much downtime, and I can put it off a lot better. Means I can always make time when something more important comes up. Anytime you need me, I can be there."