Intimacy

I didn’t make it into the other room without another Death stare. I was starting to get used to it. Hopefully she will trust me as time goes on. She can take her time, I don’t mind. It makes sense for her to distrust me, as I’m the one who randomly showed up in her life.

Walking into the larger room, I immediately recognized Lucy. She had clothes on this time. Not that I had hoped for different, that would be weird. Besides, clothes can be cute in their own way. She had on a leotard attire, a lady’s version of what I initially tried on at the clothes store. I can appreciate when it’s skin tight on a woman, just not on myself.

There was also a new face. Angela introduced her as Madam. She had long black hair, one eye orange and the other one red. She was taller than me, most likely from the heels she had on. She was wearing a black dress with a split up the side.

“Hello, I’m Ben.” I spoke up. She outstretched a hand at my introduction, so I shook it.

“So you’re the one I’m here to meet.” She looks me up and down. Her eyes are different than the girls. Not only because they are 2 different colours. No, there was something else in her eyes that set her apart from the rest. She looked at me like… No, I shouldn’t judge right away. It’s probably my imagination again.

I nodded, “Thanks for taking the time to come over.” I don’t know what the girl’s plan is, but I do want to ask Lucy about Death’s power.

For a bit, the girls just explained my situation to Lucy and Madam. Once everything was pretty much said, Lucy and Madam took me to yet another room. This one was small, and had some technology in it. I started to feel like a lab rat. I sat down, thinking of it being an examination table. My heart started to race. To calm my nerves, I decided to ask Lucy what was on my mind, “I don’t believe you showed me Death’s power. What does she use that is dark purple?”

“I thought you might have that question when meeting her. She controls a power outside of the normal. All powers are generally used in a certain style, and that varies with the user’s intent. She has stretched the Violet power to a different functionality that most never get close to. As you remember, Violet can transport items through the void. However, Elizabeth can pull anything into the void and never bring it back. She can also visit the void and return when she wants. We don’t usually refer to it as this, as it exposes the horrible truth of her power. We call her power ‘shadow,’ although that is just a euphemism.” Lucy’s explanation shed light on Elizabeth’s dark guardian name. She actually can bring death on whomever she chooses. I shiver, still feeling the cold presence of her hand on my shoulder. I don’t think I count as a power user, so the grid would allow her to kill me if she wished it.

“I came here to see why his colour came back, not to see it rush out of him again,” Madam said, making light of the blood draining out of my face.

“Ah, I have a theory,” I said, clearing my throat, “Lucy, do you remember how you said emotion has a lot to do with power?”

She nodded, and I continued, “I believe that Angela was so nice to me, that it sparked the change. That’s the most significant thing that happened around the time of my colour returning.”

A smile spread across Madam’s face, and Lucy nodded.

“He’s quick witted,” The android said. “That’s what we assumed when I heard the story. It’s also the reason I brought Madam. Her tactics are… eccentric, but she has never failed to make a crusader. She is a Blood Orange user. Do you have any more questions for me, Ben, or should I leave the rest to her?”

I mulled over her words. It was a little surprising that she was leaving so quickly. She made it sound like she was going to let Madam handle the rest. I had assumed the android had more to do with this than answering my few questions. She must have just been the one to find the Blood Orange user, that’s all. But I didn’t think too much of it and nodded, allowing the android to dismiss herself.

There’s one thing that stuck with me. Did she say ‘eccentric’ tactics? What’s that supposed to mean?

Before my mind could focus on that too much, she held up a dainty hand close to my face. “I’d like to show you Blood Orange, before we get started. Just to acquaint you with the feeling of the power.”

That’s reasonable enough. The grid softly glowed in the room, and I noticed channels in the room that weren’t apparent until now. The reddish-orange seeps up through her high-heels, where her feet touch the channels on the floor. Her web-work of colour on her body is much different than the girls. She has had time to refine her power, I’m assuming. It races up her arm and to her finger tip. I see her fingerprint lit up with fine grid details, very similar to the android. This must certainly mean she is an expert at her power. She touches her finger to my forehead.

The tingling sensation is nothing like I’ve felt so far. This time, it’s much better. Tiana’s strength I felt in my gut, Lucy’s various powers I felt on the surface of my skin, but Madam’s power was in all 5 of my senses. My eyes were wonderfully hazy with the deep orange, I smelt a blissful perfume, heard a low, robust hum, I tasted a hint of sweetness, and felt a soft tingle across my body. And nothing stayed the same. It was a flowing, changing medium that I drifted through. This was power. It’s all the bits and pieces of power I’ve felt so far, all mixed together and amplified.

When she took her finger off my forehead, I’m ashamed to say I think I let off a sound. An escaping breath released what power was building up inside of me. I watched her, wondering what could be next. She said she was just getting me familiar with her power. What was her power, anyway? Lucy said it was change, and that it allowed for power to be stored instead of channeled. But what does that actually mean? How would she be changing me? Obviously it changes how my body interacts with the grid, but was that it? And what means did it take to get there?

“That is what Blood Orange feels like. It’s the newest of the powers, it shouldn’t be like anything you’ve ever experienced so far.” She said in a tranquil voice.

“You got that right.” I said, my mind not functioning well enough to be socially adept.

“Like you said, power is about emotion. Everything hinges on the fact that our emotion can change the world.” She starts glowing again, much stronger. Her pattern starts to show through her clothing, the grid giving away her naked figure. She catches me looking and places a finger under my chin, raising my head up to look at her face.

“Where is your modesty?” She said in a joking voice. She laughs, her colour pulsating along with her joyous attitude. She leans forward, her face filling my vision. The Blood Orange tint of her aura seeps over to me, filling my lungs. The amount of power she is giving off is intoxicating.

I have no idea how to respond to her forwardness. It doesn’t help that the power is severely impacting my brain function. The air is laden with a groggy, volatile mist. A few more moments of this and I will start to pass out.

Luckily, she backs off, giving me space again. “Crazy, isn’t it? How this power can be so overwhelming?” I nod, unable to speak just yet. “It takes over your mind, renders your body immobile. Don’t worry, that’s just because you are completely out of power at the moment. Once you get ahold of it, wielding power will be a breeze.”

Before I’m able to regain my mental capacity, she looks me in the eye. There’s no mistaking it this time. I’d be naive to explain it away. She approaches me. The grid responds again with a surge of Blood Orange. Her eyes keep me still, my heart beating. If the thought of her touching me with a finger was a lot, what I felt was incomprehensible when she touched my side with her hand. Her dainty hand was creeping under my shirt. The skin-on-skin contact of her palm brushing up my side was a thousand times more intense than when I was just getting familiar to the colour. Her face approached mine, and soon her hands had managed to work their way up to my chest.

There was no argument. I was completely taken by this power. The closer she got, the closer I wanted her to get. Her mouth interlocked with mine, and I got a full dose of whatever the heck this power was. When we broke apart, I gasped for breath. It’s not that we kissed too long, but I think I forgot to breathe from the very start.

She simmered her power down, and the extremely pure hum I was hearing died down to a sub-bass drone. I still tasted the sweetness of her lips, and my vision was stained a pastel orange. My body tingled along where her hands had dragged across my chest and stomach. I could still smell the perfume, and my mind was high off of the tremendous power that had exchanged in this room.

She returned to normal, and sat down next to me, stroking my arm. My heartbeat continued to flutter rapidly, but it started to ease as she tickled my arm. Luckily she wasn’t putting any more power into me or I think I would burst.

“You took that really well,” She said in a soothing tone, still comforting me as I tried to settle down. If I could think properly, I’m sure I would have a lot of questions. Internally, I was peppered with inquiries and emotions. All I could do externally was relax into her embrace.

She let my head lay in her lap, running her fingers through my hair. What a difference, from the extreme high that her power ensued, to the relaxing sensation of normal human contact. My consciousness slipped, and I fell asleep to her caressing my head.

✶ ✶ ✶

I awoke with a blazing headache. The first thing I see is a pair of thighs. That wasn’t a crazy dream then. We were still in the white-walled lab room. Lucy had entered when I was asleep. She was pulsing blue, she must be examining me.

“Congratulations, Ben. You look lively and well.” The robot titters, her voice reverberating. Her high-pitched voice sounded much crisper. Maybe it was the contrast from the hum that has been bouncing around it my head or my senses were heightened from the power. Anyways, I sat up, a little embarrassed.

I scratched my head, now suddenly feeling awkward around Madam, “Thank you, Madam, for helping me.”

“Call me Madison,” she responds with a smile, and ruffles my hair. Lucy continues looking at me, probably running through various scans.

“So it looks like you soaked up the power very well. Now the challenging part. There is no shortcuts, no fast ways around this. You need to develop and ingrain mental channels in your body for the power to flow. Right now you are a container, but that power isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.” Lucy speaks as she peers at my face.

“Mental channels?” I ask, already supposing it’s similar to the physical ones in the room.

“Yes. The power needs direction, just like it flows in the palms of my hands, or the room around us.” Her palms glow blue and she hovers them over my chest. She raises an eyebrow.

Madison giggles, and I’m almost too busy thinking to put 2 and 2 together. After a short pause, I figure out that she’s laughing because Lucy must have detected where some of the power transfer occurred.

“Hopefully Madison’s techniques weren’t too much for you,” she says pointedly, shooting a glance at the guilty party.

My face flares up with heat, not knowing what to say. If I say my mind, I’ll sound way too happy about it. I also don’t want to be too nonchalant about it, either.

“It was an experience,” I say, allowing the underlying tone to suggest my understatement. This made Madison laugh.

Her laugh sounded so genuine, it erased all the awkwardness I might have been feeling.

Once we settled down, the robot-in-a-leotard emulated clearing her throat and continued her explanation, “These channels, or pathway of nerves, must be familiar with carrying the power in a certain flow. This will be the same as muscle memory.” She moves her hands to hover over my face and immediately regrets it. Her hands turn off, her expression jaded.

“Well you’re pretty stable, I’d say. Just no more transfer of power, he’s had plenty,” she warns us, waving her finger.

“So how should I make these channels?” I switch the topic, uncomfortable that she found out about the kiss.

“I believe you should tag along with the girls individually, and they can all provide different tips and ideas to try and get the pathways going. Creating them is very hard and there’s no direct way. It will take a lot of patience and a lot of time. The better you get along with the guardians, the easier it should be. Emotions play a huge part in the control and development of power.” She takes one last glance at the two of us, but doesn’t say anything more. Maybe she is holding back her comments on the power exchange she accidentally shed light on.

“Are you sure they are ok with that? They have done so much for me already…” I wonder if they are fine with me randomly dropping into their lives and requiring so much help.

“Don’t worry about that. They were the ones that suggested it in the first place. It’s really great for your development to stay around the friends you’ve already made. Emotions are the biggest problem that prevents grays from accessing power.” Lucy explains patiently.

We exited the room and I shly waved at Angel when I saw her. My colour had returned, but I was still a little lightheaded from the whole experience. I went up to Angel for a hug. She noticed and received the embrace. This one lasted a bit longer, telling me that she really does care about me. I felt that physical warmness of her embrace, her emotion making her power trickle over to me. The sensation was heightened, even though it wasn’t much power at all. That must be the result of the Blood Orange session. I now can feel the smallest hint of power as if it was very loud. I can now pick up the subtle way her power stretches across my senses. It used to be just a warm, pleasant feeling, but now I am able to pin down what exactly she makes me feel. I hear a very quiet hum of a heavenly choir, as her power ebbed and flowed between us. There was also a roar of blood rushing to my face, but I think that’s just because I really like the hug. I feel the eyes of everyone on the room looking at our hug again.

“You look great!” The goddess says as she releases me to inspect the results, “Your colour has really came back.” She pinches my cheek, making me blush even more. She’s becoming more comfortable with me so quickly. It almost makes me feel guilty of how I received my colour. Almost. I don’t regret it at all, though. It was mind-blowing.

“It’s all thanks to you girls, for helping me so much.” I saw, suddenly feeling shy.

“You must be hungry. We were all thinking we should go out to a celebratory dinner!” Tiana says, walking up to my side to pat me on the shoulder.

“Now that you mention it, I am quite famished!” I agree with her, wondering what type of cuisine this place offers.