Chapter 14
Gemma had little problem gaining access to the system. It appeared that the new doctor hadn’t bothered to change Greensleeves’s old passwords. Gemma had memorized it long ago by watching the old doctor’s keystrokes. She typed it in now and was granted access to the galactic communications network.
Her fingers were a blur, but despite their speed, they couldn’t keep up with her mind. Searching multiple databases simultaneously, Gemma looked for any mention of RPS, its staff, her condition, and the names and characteristics of the new doctors.
Information flowed and she catalogued it all, racing through mainframes and archives. She’d been at it for ten minutes when she began to get a picture of what might be going on. It was only a moment later when her brain began to stutter.
“No, no, oh no,” she moaned, trying to push past the mental hiccup, but already, the input was starting to fray at the edges. Gemma tried with all her might to hold her focus, but it became increasingly more difficult to sift through the information for the bits that might be useful. She began just taking it all in, memorizing and categorizing, until she was trapped in front of the screen.
Not long after, the door creaked upon, but she couldn’t tear herself away from the screen. “Gemma,” Charlie whispered, then peeked back into the hallway. “We’ve got to go now. I think your boyfriend has Grimm distracted but I don’t know how long it will last. We barely escaped getting caught as it is.”
My boyfriend. Ian Fleming. Also known as Calabez Vartik, heir to the throne of the kingdom that bears his name. There had only been hints and whispers of his existence, some of it buried in data that others had sought to destroy but which she effortlessly resurrected.I wish he was my boyfriend.
“Come on, Gemma,” Charlie said, coming into the room but still glancing back at the open door. “We have to go. Now!”
The data kept flowing into her mind, but now she had next to no control. And Charlie’s voice was just one of the many streams of information floating across her consciousness.
“Gemma?” Charlie was at her shoulder now, her hands attempting to draw her away from the screen, but Gemma couldn’t budge. She’d lost her ability to separate herself from the code. It had overwhelmed her, was swallowing her whole.
“Oh shit,” Charlie murmured. “I was afraid of this. You’re stuck, aren’t you?”
Stuck. Trapped. Frozen. “Help,” Gemma managed to get out.
Charlie covered Gemma’s eyes, causing her to go slack. Then she turned her friend’s head and began pulling her away from the console. “That’s right,” she said. “Easy does it.”
But the damage had been done. They’d made it a few steps down the hall when Gemma lost the little thread of control she had. The torrent broke loose and a tsunami of information covered her, dragging her down beneath the waves.
She collapsed, her eyes rolling back in her head as she struggled to make sense of the flood of information.Ancient gods. Twin children of light. Spirits trapped by demons. A hidden race at the center of the struggle between good and evil.
She began to struggle against it, the hardest she’d ever struggled, but it only made things worse. Gemma twitched and moaned on the floor, blinking, her muscles seizing beyond her control.
Charlie let out a loud scream but it barely bounced around the confines of her mind with everything else.A blur. It’s all a blur.
Please let me out.
Tears were leaking from her eyes, and she bit her tongue badly. The copper taste of blood filled her mouth and Gemma choked on it, white spots appearing in her vision.
“Gemmaline!” It was a shout from a familiar voice, but she was too far gone to recognize it. Then strong hands took hold of her and lifted her.
“Give her to me,” another voice said, heavy and cold.
“Get the fuck away,” the first voice snarled, and she was pulled tighter into a warm chest. “You’re not even a real doctor. There’s nothing you can do for her.”
There was movement, and she was traveling down the hall. The cold voice trailed behind him. “So much for our conversation, Vartik,” it said. There was a momentary pause in the steps forward, and then they resumed.
“Oh, my poor darling,” the voice whispered to her. She heard a door shut and then felt herself placed on a mattress. He sat himself beside her. “What happened to you?”
Even if she wanted to respond, she wouldn’t be able to. She could barely focus on the voice, let alone manifest the ability to speak. Not in the state she was in.
“I’m sorry,” the voice said, and she heard a hitch in its breath. Her mouth was gently opened, and there was a harsh intake of breath. “It’s deep, baby,” the voice whispered. “Let’s hope the blood still works.”
She felt something in her mouth, something warm. A finger was rubbing it along the bite in her tongue. In moments, the pain had vanished.
“It’s working,” the voice said with relief. “I’d hoped it would. Even without my powers, my blood can still heal. Perhaps because the power isn’t inherent to my mind but to my essence.”
The voice calmed her, as did the stroking fingers. When she could finally push against the torrent enough to open her eyes, she locked on his green ones, feeling the now familiar sensation of things slowing down. The torrent trickled down to a stream, to something that was manageable. For now.
She raised a hand to stroke his cheek.
