ﮩ٨ـﮩﮩ٨ـ Tethered ﮩ٨ـﮩﮩ٨ـ

Chapter 12

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• Amir •

The organization wasted no time putting Amir's incredible healing abilities to the test. They moved him to a room on the medical floor as soon as they determined he was rested. The only thing in the white-walled room was two white chairs facing each other.

Amir raised an eyebrow at Alisha. "I like what you've done with the place. It's very . . . stylish."

She ignored him. "Sit. Either chair would do."

"What if I want to stand?"

"Have it your way." She nodded and turned to face the camera, which was positioned in the corner. She then faced him. "You understand what is expected of you. We're starting with one of our newest participants. He's twenty years old and in perfect health."

"Except for the inevitable injury to him?"

Alisha narrowed her eyes and shook her head

"And this is something he requested?"

"That he did. You'd be surprised at how many people are willing to put their lives in jeopardy to have their bodies healed of any illness they have or may have."

Amir was more genuinely shocked by the level of ignorance depicted by some people. Signing up for healing with a success rate of less than one percent didn't seem wise, but what did he know?

She handed him a large cuff. "This has tanzanite in it. I'm certain you understand what it does. It will help with the healing process and keep you from becoming weak."

Amir took the tan cuff and looked at the dark stone in the center with the blue symbol. "You're simply handing me a piece of this, knowing that it's going to absorb the other chemicals and make me stronger."

She gave him a stern look. "You're also aware that we have soldiers equipped with those nefarious little weapons I mentioned. That outweighs the presence of Tanzanite."

Amir wrapped it around his upper arm and welcomed the energy rush. He glanced to see Alisha staring at him as if he were her favorite person. He had a feeling she wouldn't bring out the big guns even if he ran from floor to floor whacking people to death. Unless he did something catastrophic.

He was purely too unique to keep.

He was also irritated. When he needed to heal Moon, she could have given him the tanzanite piece. He was going to do something horrific to this woman one of these days.

The vibrant, straggly participant marched into the room and squatted on one of the chairs without fear. The kid appeared to be younger than seventeen, and while Amir tried not to feel anything, a pang of guilt rose.

Not because he intended to sabotage any of it. He would have no reason to. If he didn't successfully heal this man, the organization would eventually turn their wicked, malicious eyes on Luna. And that . . . was so not going to happen.

He was definitely living the "there needs to be a 'genuine desire' to help the candidate" mantra, but he wasn't sure if it would work properly. If it didn't, this homeboy would either die in a few days from his injury or spend the rest of his time as a dull, ordinary human.

Amir hoped the participant was accepted into the world of happy superhumans for his sake.

"How should we proceed?" Amir asked Alisha.

She called out to one of the two guards who had walked into the room with Patient One. A soldier approached, clutching a nasty-looking knife similar to the one used in Psycho.

Shivers ran down his spine.

"Oh jeez," Amir muttered as he crossed his arms. BARDA had planned to terrorize the man.

Patient Too Gullible confidently gripped the knife. Before he could do anything, the door opened and Moon walked in, Greer close behind.

As his unease grew, Amir's arms dropped to his sides. "Why is Luna here?"

Alisha gave a tight smile. "We thought you could use the push."

Understanding ignited him like a firework. Their push was a warning. They knew he and Luna were well aware of what happened to Jamal when Ethan refused to do what they demanded. Amir watched Luna shake Greer's hold and stomp over to the corner. She stayed there.

Amir locked his eyes on Alisha, staring her down until she finally broke eye contact after several moments. "Let's get this over with," he said.

She nodded at Patient Most Likely To Bleed To Death, who took a deep breath and, with a wheezy grunt, slammed that serial-killer knife right into his abdomen. He then yanked the knife from his grasp and let it drop. A guard shuffled forward and snatched it.

"Holy crap!" Amir's eyes widened. Patient One was bold.

Luna flinched and avoided her gaze as blood flowed from the new wound. "That was . . . It was more disturbing than a horror scene."

If blood kept pumping out of his rapidly paling body like that, the participant probably had less than three minutes to live. He was hunched over, holding his stomach. The air was filled with a metallic stench.

"Heal him," Alisha said, shifting her weight with enthusiasm in her eyes.

Amir knelt by the man and placed his hands on his stomach, shaking his head in grotesque fascination. His hands were immediately covered in blood. He had been trained to operate in an emergency, but with this one, he could see the man's intestines.

What kind of mystical Kool-Aid did this guy consume to willingly submit himself to this? Goodness.

Amir let his physical form fade away, and a whitish-yellow light engulfed the man and the majority of the room. He imagined the jagged edges of the wound healing shut, blocking the blood loss. He had no idea how to heal someone he didn't know. It was something that happened by itself. He envisioned the wound, and sometimes snapshots of the frequencies would flash through his mind without his own feelings. What he did pay attention to was the light passing through the veins . . . and Luna.

Amir took a breath and looked up. Alisha's face had taken on the euphoric look of a mother who had just seen her child for the first time. When he started searching for Moon, he spotted her. She peered into his eyes, a look of awe on her beautiful face.

His heart skipped a beat, and he returned his attention to the person he was healing. "I'm doing this for my wife," he stated. "I hope it was enough for you."

The man's head jerked upward. His cheeks had already regained their color.

Amir didn't feel drained after a massive healing with the tanzanite.

He let go and stood, backing away. He glanced over at Luna once more, staying in his angelic form long enough for the man to stand on shaky legs. One hand was resting on her chin. Greer stood beside her, looking a little uneasy.

Then something occurred to him.

Returning to his physical form, he turned to Alisha, who was staring at Patient One with such awe and hope that it was concerning. "How come you can't test this on the Dark Ones?" Amir asked. "They can also heal."

Alisha barely looked him in the eyes as she motioned to the camera. "They can treat most wounds but not cure diseases. We're not sure why, but they're limited in their abilities." She guided the man back into his seat with surprising care. "How do you feel, Logan?"

Logan cleared his throat after several deep breaths. "I'm a little sore, but other than that, I feel amazing." He smiled as he shifted his gaze between Alisha and Amir. "Am I healed?"

"Well, it appears so," she said. "But, we're still testing this."

Dr. Reynolds rushed in, his stethoscope thumping against his chest. He didn't even look at Amir. "Incredible. I was watching on the other side of the glass. Amazing work."

"Yeah. Yeah." Amir began to walk toward Luna, but Alisha's piercing voice cut through the air like fingernails on a chalkboard.

"Stay put, Mr. Khan."

He slowly turned his head, aware that the other soldiers had moved closer to Moon. "I did my part."

"Aside from the fact that you healed him, we haven't seen anything yet." Alisha moved around the chair, keeping an eye on the doctor and Logan. "How do his vitals look?"

"Good," the doctor quipped when he stood up and wrapped the stethoscope around his neck. He reached into his lab coat and extracted a small black case. "We can begin Aristides."

"What exactly is that?" Amir asked, watching as the doctor brought out a vial filled with a shimmery black liquid. Greer cocked his head to the side as he stared at the syringe.

"'Aristides' means The Best," Alisha stated.

"It's also a Greek word," Luna emphasized.

Amir's eyes twinkled with glee at her.

She shrugged. "I read about it."

Amir couldn't keep a small grin from appearing on his lips. Luna and her quirky reading habits. It made him want to kiss her and do other things. She realized it, too, because her cheeks became flushed. That, however, was not going to happen.

Logan's sleeve was rolled up by Dr. Reynolds. "Aristides should flow quickly, as there would be no need to wait for any other changes in his body. It will expedite the healing process."

"So, he's just another guinea pig for you guys?" Luna questioned from the other side of the room.

Alisha tsked. "We do what we need to do and get the job done."

"Then I vote for you to be a test subject," she insisted confidently, and Amir gave her a stern look. "It's only fair."

Greer snorted behind her before returning his attention to Logan and Alisha. "Be that as it may, Mrs. Khan, but you don't get a vote."

The doctor quickly inserted the syringe into the man's upper arm before she could respond. Logan collapsed, which was not a good sign, and Reynolds went into doctor mode. Vitals were skyrocketing. People were becoming tense. Because no one was paying attention to him, Amir started walking toward Moon. He was halfway there when the test subject jumped out of his chair, pushing the doctor on his buttocks.

Amir aligned himself between Luna and the general vicinity of where Logan was standing. He stumbled forward, then bowed, holding his knees. Sweat dripped off the guy's brow and onto the floor. The metallic odor was replaced by a sickly sweet stench.

"What's going on?" Major Thibeau demanded through the intercom.

As he neared the soldier's side and rested his hand on his shoulder, the doctor began to unwind the stethoscope. "How do you feel, Logan?"

His hands trembled. "Cramping," he uttered. "My entire body is going numb. My insides—" He jerked up and threw his head back. He opened his mouth and screamed, his throat barely working.

A brown, blackish substance splattered the doctor's white lab coat from Logan's mouth. He flopped to one side, his hoarse scream ending in a thick shriek. The same liquid oozed from his eyes, nose, and ears.

"Oh damn," Amir said as he backed up. "I knew something like this was going to happen."

Alisha gave him a blank stare. "Logan, where does it—"

The soldier spun around and dashed to the door at full speed. Luna howled and then covered her mouth with her hands. Amir moved to hide her from the disturbing scene, but it was too late. The participant smacked into the door with a fleshy, wet thud, hitting it with the force of a fifty-story jump.

Major Thibeau broke the silence with, "That was unexpected. Get the room ready for the next subject."

• • •

• Luna •

Luna would never be able to forget the image of the soldier transitioning from appearing to be in the early stages of a infectious disease to penetrating the door for the rest of her life.

They had to remain in that room until staff arrived and cleaned up enough of the mess for them to leave without stepping in the . . . goo. They wouldn't let them get within an inch of each other while they waited like it was somehow Amir's failure. Amir had healed the man—he had fulfilled his obligation. This was done by whatever was in Aristides. Amir had nothing to do with the man's freak accident.

The soldiers led Amir down one sector, while Greer led her down another. They were about halfway to the elevators when one of the elevator doors on the left opened, revealing two soldiers escorting a pregnant woman.

Luna came to a complete stop.

Not just any pregnant woman. It was one of the Dark Ones, the Lazarus batch. The sight caused tiny hairs on her body to rise. The woman wasn't Dee-Dee, but she had the same dark hair cut in the same style. Maybe a little older, but Luna was never good at guessing ages.

"Don't stop," Greer said, putting a hand on her shoulder.

She forced her legs to move, not knowing what it was about pregnant women that frightened her. There were probably a lot of things about them that made her nervous. The main thing was their unborn's abnormal abilities, and the women had strangely colored eyes and a demonic smile that seemed to mock the staff around them.

As they passed each other, the woman raised her head and settled her eyes on Luna. A sharp tingle of awareness traveled up her spine and exploded along the back of her skull the moment their eyes locked. She stopped again, nauseous. She wondered if the woman was performing some bizarre Jedi mind trick on her.

The woman's eyes widened.

Luna's fingers began to quiver.

'You've got allies down here.'

Luna's mouth opened. She couldn't . . . she didn't. Her brain shut down, and the words kept repeating themselves. The two were behind her and Greer, and she was trembling with adrenaline and confusion.

The woman's daughter's voice filtered through her mind. We have allies here?

Greer's face caught her attention, and his eyes narrowed. "You heard something."

Luna snapped out of it and immediately went on the defensive. "Did you see the woman's lips move?"

"I didn't have to. You're freaked out." He spun her around and nudged her toward the elevator, his hand on her shoulder. As the doors closed, he pressed the stop button. "There are no cameras in the elevators. Aside from the bathrooms, it is the only area in the building where no one is watching."

Luna took a step back, hitting the wall, not knowing where he was going with that. "All right."

"Lazarus patients are sensitive to thoughts and emotions. It's something Alisha didn't tell you. They are aware of what you are always thinking. Besides that, their unborn children can use their abilities before birth, which she is unaware of. But, I would be very cautious about what you think or say when you come into contact with them."

Luna gaped. "They can read people's minds? That means you can do it, too."

He shrugged shyly. "I make an effort not to. Hearing other people's thoughts is more annoying than anything else, but when it happens, you try to block it out. There's no need to constantly access someone else's consciousness."

"This is mind-boggling. Their unborn children can communicate with others and use their abilities. How is that possible?" Luna felt as if she'd fallen down a rabbit hole and woke in a superhero comic. Like in X-Men, some of them had unexplained abilities. And all of the thoughts she had about her guard? She was certain she had considered breaking free—

"I've never said anything to anyone, Mrs. Khan." Greer took a deep breath. "I'd have nothing to gain if I did."

"You're listening to my thoughts right now." Her heart was racing. "Why should I believe you?"

"Perhaps because I've never asked you to believe me."

She blinked. Hasn't she heard Titus say the same thing before? Did he know him? "Wouldn't you have gotten something extra if you told Alisha something about Amir or myself?"

He shook his head. "That is not my concern."

"No, but they—"

"Seriously, Luna, I couldn't care less what I told them. We don't have much time. Just be cautious of the Dark Ones. Have you seen Godzilla?"

Strange question, but she responded. "Which year?"

"Any one of them."

"All right, then, I've watched the first one."

A sly grin popped up. "Remember how Godzilla terrorized the city and how people continued to shoot at the monster in an attempt to bring it down? Attempting to flee here would be like that, but more gruesome. Do you understand what I'm saying? The Lazarus babies, particularly the most recent batch downstairs, are unlike anything BARDA has ever encountered. They are changing and adapting in ways that no one can predict. They are capable of performing tasks that I cannot even imagine. The organization is already struggling to keep control of them."

Luna was having trouble processing everything. Surprisingly, common sense kept issuing denials, despite the fact that she knew anything was possible. After all, she was one of their projects. "What makes this batch exceptional?"

"They were given Aristides to help them grow faster and become better than any other species on the planet." Greer sniffed. "Unlike Logan, the serum was effective before they were born. That was another thing Alisha failed to mention."

"Holy crap." Logan's mangled body flashed in front of her eyes, and she winced. "How is Aristides serum created?"

Greer gave her a skeptical look. "I can't believe you hadn't figured it out?"

She snorted. "Well, please excuse me for not having access to a secure laboratory."

"There's no need to mock me, Luna. I can restart the lift, and we can proceed to your room."

She cleared her throat. "Sorry."

Greer inhaled deeply and gave her a stern look. "They want the ideal species to repopulate the earth after they have cleaned up the mess they've created above ground."

"That's fucked up," she whispered.

He put his hand on the rail while nodding. "They have been doing this for many generations. Every human is born with a particular gene component that enables telepathy. But not all people awaken their natural abilities. They might live to be hundreds of years old but never develop telepathy before passing away."

"Why . . . why is that?"

"The gene remains inactive. Even if it takes months or years for their abilities to fully develop, it sometimes only awakens when humans experience trauma." Greer crossed his arms while placing one foot against the wall. "The organization values Pure Souls the most. The pairs are genetically inclined to have the ability to awaken at any time, but they do not. For BARDA, it serves as a playground once they have kids. I guarantee you that many people have descended from them."

"I . . ." At first, Luna didn't get it, but then she considered the serums the company has been creating for years. "The origins of Tethered Souls' abilities are somewhat related to . . . BARDA?"

He nodded.

"So we weren't supposed to have any other abilities besides telepathy?" She forced herself to calm down when he nodded again. She didn't want to think about how many innocent people they'd killed because of their experiments. "Why are you telling me this, Greer?"

He shifted his weight slightly and restarted the elevator. Giving her a long look, he simply stated, "You've got allies down here, Luna."

━━─── • ───━━━

I hope these two questions have been answered by now. What are the origins of Tethered Souls, and how does the pairing work? The answers can be found in the previous chapters of
Book Three. #TetheredSouls

Be prepared. Some gory and heartbreaking scenes will be ahead. And, of course, twists. :)