The Fire and The Storm - The Nexus of Kellaran #2 novel Chapter 51

Part 10

As soon as she had done that, she heavily Shielded her thoughts and communications from the children, and immediately informed Mark, Talia, Hilsith, Yazadril, and Yzell of the state of affairs with a single burst of psionic thought that would have staggered most minds.

None of those five were discomfited by the suddenness of the burst of information, though they were mightily discomfited indeed by what they learned. A moment later the five were standing silently in the kitchen with their eyes closed, concentrating intently on passively psionicly following what the children were doing, without interfering in any way. Alilia joined them in this.

Though all six adults were almost consumed with the need to put a stop to this incredibly dangerous procedure, they all realized that to even disturb the process in the slightest way might have dire consequences. The work was already well underway, the chance to put a stop to it was hours in the past, and all they could do was wait and hope that everything came out well. The only truly bright side to the situation was the children’s certainty that they were almost finished.

Mark called Povon and Quewanak into a Link, updated them on what was happening, and asked for opinions.

“I’ve been following what they’ve been doing since they began.” Quewanak informed the rest. “Don’t worry; they have things well in hand.”

“I have to agree.” Hilsith stated. “Their examination of the evidence was thorough and well-considered, their chain of logic is flawless, and it appears that between the three of them, they have the skills to do this. It’s only the fact that they’re in no way qualified to be doing it that’s so worrisome.

“You know, in these last few months Helemia has scoured my mind for much of what I know as a Healer, but I didn’t think she’d be able to internalize enough of it for it to be useful to her for years yet. Yet it certainly appears that I was wrong about that.”

“Obviously so.” Quewanak agreed. “This is innovative and ground-breaking work, as well as a brilliant display of technique. Furthermore, the importance of being able to awaken latent psionic and magical ability can hardly be overstated.”

“By herself, Helemia probably couldn’t use all the Healing she’s learned yet.” Talia stated. “But she never does anything by herself, any more than Mark or Alilia or I do these days. She and Reggie share every thought and task, whether it seems like they are or not. They’re capable of so much more together than they could ever do separately. And now that they’ve added Valentia’s deft and sure grasp of magic to the mix, the three of them are obviously a potent combination.”

“I’ll say!” Mark agreed. “That’s some delicate work they’re doing! I’ve never even conceived of working on anything at such small scales!”

Their conversation faltered as they concentrated on their observations of the children’s operation. Hilsith began tracing everything they’d done in the process, and preparing procedures to reverse it if necessary, should things turn out badly. It was so complex that she had to have Yazadril help her in order to keep all the details firmly in mind.

Then Talia gave herself a shake, and started making breakfast. Mark smiled, shrugged, and joined her in the task. They knew their children would need some quick food energy when they were finished, at the very least. They used magic to hurry the task as much as possible, and were finished in less than three minutes, then spelled it to stay hot and fresh until the children were done.

Almost fifty nerve-racking minutes later the children finished and began meticulously double-checking their work, and after another three minutes they were filled with the joy of their triumph.

The three babes shared their hug and their Link for one more long moment, just to savor their love and closeness and the joy of success as the adults who were physically present ran into the room. Then the three of them relaxed and laid back on the bed, extricated their legs from around each other, and began stretching muscles stiff and sore from holding their positions for many hours. All three had bright red spots on either side of their foreheads from pressing their heads together for so long.

Finally Alilia could contain herself no more, and she leaped onto the bed and tried to hug all three of them at once. “You crazy kids!” she cried as her tension and fear were released in tears. “You crazy, crazy kids! Gods how I love you so!”

Mark and Talia sat on the bed and wordlessly joined the big hug.