Prologue ~ Ch 1 ~ Ch 2 ~ Ch 3 ~ Ch 4 ~ Ch 5 ~ Ch 6 ~ Ch 7 ~ Ch 8 ~ Ch 9 ~ Ch 10 ~ Ch 11 ~ Ch 12 ~
Ch 13 ~ Ch 14 ~ Ch 15 ~
For Kairavini the next few days passed in a haze of pain. He swam in an out of consciousness and in his more lucid moments he would reach out to his twin but he couldn’t find her. He’d fight the drugs, needing to see her if he couldn’t find her with his mind, but always they’d just increase his dosage and he’d drift away again.
Dr. Arjun was called in, but Ravi was unaware of this.
“I’ve never seen such potential,” the medical technician said to the doctor. “This is the third time we’ve had to up the dosage of the suppressors.”
“His readings should be levelling out by now,” the doctor said with a frown.
“Twice we almost lost him, but we managed to pull him back.”
“Two of the other Water potentials have returned to their element,” a second technician told him.
“Have you been able to ascertain his rating yet?”
The two technicians looked at each other, then one silently handed doctor Arjun the records tablet.
The doctor glanced down at it, then back at the technician. “How accurate are these calculations?”
“We ran them three times, just to be positive.”
They all looked down at Ravi where he lay in his tub of saline solution.
“A potential five,” Dr. Arjun said. “This just proves that I’m on the right track.”
“With respect sir,” the first technician said. “I don’t believe he’ll stop at level five. He could go all the way to six.”
The doctor’s eyebrows rose. “A six! We’ve yet to have a six. You must make sure this boy survives his tespiro. You have my authorization to do anything it takes. If he dies . . .”
One of the technicians shivered, the other was able to suppress it.
“What’s the average power rating of the rest of the potentials?”
“Earth is average 3.4, this new lot of potentials are somewhat lacking in strength. The highest of the Earth is 3.9. Wind is better, the average is 4.1 and the highest is 4.8. Fire . . . we’ve only had three Fire potentials in this batch and none of them are looking to be more than 3.7 to 4 in strength.”
“What about Water?” Dr. Arjun asked, once more looking down at Ravi.
The technician hesitated. “The highest potential so far is 4.9 and the average is 4.2. Unfortunately though, Water seems to have the highest mortality rate. We’re not sure why.”
“We think it might have something to do with their power. They seem to have the highest potential,” the second technician added.
“I want the documentation for this on my desk,” the doctor ordered. “If it’s possible, he should be fitted with his inhibitor right away.” He swept out of the room.
“Well, what do you think?” the first technician asked as soon as it was safe.
“I think we shouldn’t even try to fit him with the inhibitor until his readings are completely stabilized. Suppressing his power could send him into another seizure.”
“I’ve never seen a tespiro go on this long.”
Ravi moaned in his tank and the readings on his monitor spiked suddenly. One of the technicians held a scanner over him and frowned.
“I can’t account for these readings,” he said.
“I bet I can.”
The other technician went over to the second tank in the room. He stared down at the emaciated figure and made an adjustment to the nutrient feed running into her. Her eyes flickered, opening fully for just a moment as the new course of drugs began flowing through her system. The intense pain kept her from speaking and her eyes closed again.
“I’m so sorry,” the technician whispered.
“Looks like his readings are stabilizing again,” the other technician called.
What good comes from all this suffering, the first tech wondered. How many deaths will it take before Arjun finds what he’s seeking? He could only hope it would all be worth it in the end.
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