Voice of the Mind Ch. 11

Which organisation it is I have no clue. No idea what their purpose is, or why they would recruit people this agressively either. Only thing I know is that I don't feel comfortable joining them before and that feeling has only increased after what he did to you."

"Well, I do know there is at leastone organisation. That guy, Kevin, he's part of that one. So that would mean that there are at least two. One agressive one and the other ... I don't know. I haven't heard much of Kevin about his – but at least he didn't actually try to recruit me. He said he was merely here to guide me in case I had questions about this gift. To make sure I wouldn't go berserk or try to abuse it by hurting others.

The fact that he was there supporting us during the fight does help in giving him a little credibility though. I don't think we could've made it without his help."

"That's true. I don't know him, so I don't trust him, but I do believe he wants you alive – and that other guy seemed to believe that collateral damage wasn't all that bad – so I'll give him that much."

"Okay. Fair enough. Next question. Why am I here a week and do I have zero knowledge about that? Have I been in a coma or so?"

She paused. Hesitated. Calculated. Vincent could envision all kind of reasons why she wouldn't answer and his anguish grew hard enough to feel in his stomach.

But it wasn't Talitha who answered his question.

"It was worse, my friend. You were pretty much dead. Braindead. She has been repairing your mind bit by bit."

This time he recognized the voice immediately.

"Kevin. Nice to see you dropping in." The sarcasm was obvious.

Talitha cringed physically. Vincent realized she had been witholding pretty hardcore stuff from him and laying it in the open by someone else hurt her. Or rather, the fact that she had let it come so far had hurt her. He could sense the waves of guilt washing over her, so much that she couldn't keep them to herself.

"Don't be, Talitha," Kevin assured her."You did more for him in that part than I could. Mending minds isn't my kind of expertise and I'm still waiting on someone from my organisation to send over someone who can. The fact that you managed it all by yourself means that you have a gift – aside from the telepathy part – for doing some good. So, Vincent, I can genuinely say that she actually saved your life in some way. Be thankful.

To answer your question: Yes. There are several other organisations. Some small, others large. Not all of them have your best interests at heart. Your assailant was part of one of the bigger ones and you should be glad to have eluded them for the time being. The bad news about it is that if they have heard of you from him, theywill send another agent to retrieve you. I'm trying to figure out whether he has contacted his organisation to tell them about you, but that's quite hard to do without attracting attention.

As you know, Vincent, I haven't tried to recruit you because that's not how we work. We only observe, like a teacher with pupils. We try to teach, try to give you information, knowledge, and try to ensure that your ethics are – and stay – within the boundaries we expect them to be. It's not that much different from a teacher, in that way.

Truth be told, sometimes we come across as stalkers because of that. Not always is there a need to make direct contact. Sometimes someone has the gift, but hasn't done anything with it, laying dormant for a long time.

As for Talitha, I took notice of you when you took up residence here. I reported it to the higher-ups, so you were assigned a contact as well. She hadn't contacted you yet, but I assure you that she kept an eye over you during your time here. She was also the one who noticed this assailant when he first assaulted you and she brought me in because of that.

Because you're self-taught, you already knew how to block your thoughts somewhat, which was why she couldn't be here quicker to support you. She was ... occupied when I tried to reach her for her assistance. That's why I was the only one helping you guys that time. Vincent, my apologies for that. I couldn't drum up others in time to help us out.

As for Talitha, would you like to make contact with her? Either to ask questions or for other purposes?"

She pondered for a bit before she replied."I don't know. I don't know you guys. And the only experience I have is that guy who attacked us. So I don't know if I want to have someone around me I don't trust."

Kevin nodded."Fair enough. Then, shall we say that if you would like contact, you scream at the top of your lungs the name 'Emily' and she'll come running."

"How ... did you manage to join this conversation?"

This time he smiled. Vincent felt him smile rather than see him."You're not nearly as stealthy as you think you are. Besides, I'm Vincent's guide, so I kind of 'feel' him whenever he reaches out. Like I said, sometimes it does feel like we're a bit of a stalker. But as long as you're not capable of defending yourself, you'll have a guardian angel peeking around the corner. It helped when you were attacked, right?"

"Right," he said. Vincent felt the idea of someone peeking over her shoulder not appealing to her. Actually, he didn't find it appealing that Kevin did the same to him either.

"I do try to tune out your conversations with Jenny, Kevin replied.They are way too embarrassing for an old man like me.

Vincent turned more red than he had ever been.

"Now, before you kick my ass, I'll be off and leave you two alone." A small sound like someone signing off sounded, as if he wanted to tell them he was out of their conversation.

"He's a good guy ... I think. But I have to get used to a lot of things." Vincent said to Talitha.

"Yeah, I can imagine." She stopped and looked into the distance. Then she turned and asked:"What exactly are you conversing about with Jenny?"

"HEY!"

And she smiled. A smile which he hadn't seen before. A genuine one.

* * * * * * * * * *

Chapter 11.3 – Friends

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A clatter at the door indicated the presence of visitors but Vincent had known about their arrival a while ago. Ever since he had experienced the intricate flow of thoughts at Daniel's and had learned to get that under control, he had been more and more able to filter what he wanted to hear and what could be reduced to mere static. He hadn't been able to make the noise go away entirely, but having the low static hum was good enough for him. He had been glad to know he was still able to do so after waking up in the hospital because he was kind of afraid the damage would've been too great to be able to keep his mindreading under control. But due to his control over his abilities he could hear them even before they entered the hallway. He might've been incapacitated in physical ways, his mind was still as clear on things as ever – except for the pounding headache that still hadn't decided it could go away entirely.

The conversation with Talitha was all done in the mind, but by then he had realized that he had been able to talk a bit already. His throat wasn't as dry and thick as when he woke up and apparently he needed a little exercise to get back the hang of it. Jenny had told him that she had informed the others that he was awake and he hadn't told her to keep them back since he wasn't able to talk to them yet; their visit would be welcome, not only for being able to talk a bit. He felt he hadn't done so in days – which was fairly accurate in the first place.

"Hey guys," he greeted them with a croaked voice. "Nice to see you guys dropping by."

"No way in hell I'm gonna let you be pampered by sexy little nurses here without me to look at them to see which ones are suitable enough for you!" Richard exclaimed. "I care for my brother with his sexy hoarse voice! Besides, I need a date for next Saturday."

Eliza poked him in the side. "Keep it down, Richard; it's still a hospital."

Hanako squirmed herself inbetween Richard and Eliza and asked him how he was doing.

"Decent enough to get visitors, I suppose. I've received one hell of a beating but at least I don't have many lasting injuries. I should be out soon enough."

"You really should've called us though," Frank said with a concerned voice, but a slight tone of accusation. "I appreciate what you've done, but you really should have called us to join you. We might've been able to prevent this whole situation you're in now."

Join me? For what? Getting clobbered even worse than I was? he wondered, but then remembered how Talitha said that she had conspired a story about Vincent coming to Talitha's rescue when she got kidnapped. And any normal – well, what's in a name – kidnapping would warrant a police squad or at least some backup fighters.

Talitha had sort-of implanted that story in Jenny's memory, so she was the backup for Vincent rather than being the subject of the kidnapper, which Jenny then relayed to their group of friends. He remembered that before the fight he had contacted Jenny to warn Talitha in a roundabout way, so he supposed that was still a thing. It meant that Talitha got kidnapped not long after Daniel had warned her, which meant that their group of friends had gotten involved slightly.

"I didn't think there was time for that. Jenny and I saw it happen and we simply followed them. Jennydoes have a degree in martial arts and I had a baseball bat. I have a mean swing, in case you wondered."

"I don't care which way you swing, my friend," Richard joked, "but if you attempt this again I'd be glad to stand next to you whenever you get to dish out some damage. I have a degree too, although sexual ones might be less suitable in such situations. But you never know; you might get captured by a succubus or something."

Hanako had been silent while the others had made small conversation. But when she spoke up, the others fell silent. "What happened?"

You wouldn't understand, he thought to himself, but he knew that they wouldn't accept that answer.Besides, I have no clue what Jenny has told you. Will I be shooting myself in the foot if I say something that doesn't match her story? Or do I get away with it due to me still being in the hospital?

He decided he could always blame it on the medication for messing up his memory and said: "Jenny and I were together when we saw Talitha. All of a sudden she was being swept away by someone, dragging her into the car and we simply chased after them. He stopped at that warehouse and he rushed inside, her over his shoulder. It felt like we didn't have a choice but go after them after seeing that and well, here I am."

"That's a pretty short description of what happened," Elroy remarked.

"I'm pretty short-winded too," Vincent grimased. "But that's what happened in a nutshell. I'd love to elaborate and reminisce the time where someone beat the shit out of me – or wait, I actually don't." He stopped talking for a bit, trying to get his second wind and followed up with: "I'm nohero or anything. It was a spur of the moment; we saw him going in there and we had to decide in a split second if we dared to wait or not. We didn't. And yes, I'm fully aware it could've ended so much worse than this."

"It's not that far off though," Hanako said sullenly. "You being in a coma doesn't really feel like it has ended on a good note."

"I got out though."

"That's true. But we don't know if there is any damage that hasn't shown itself so far."

He sighed. "Fair enough, although the doctor has told Jenny that they didn't see any permanent physical damage. They also don't believe there is any mental damage except for some traumatic experience."

And traumatic is exactly how I'd describe it, he thought to himself.Getting slaughted in a telepathic battle is not something I'd wish upon my worst enemy. And I honestly have no idea how I got out there mentally unscathed. Well, except I didn't. If it wasn't for Talitha and what she had done to me to restore me.

He did notice how he didn't receive a pummeling onslaught of thoughts though, so he believed it was due to the mental attacks that his ability might have dwindled. He could still hear the thoughts of his friends – which was mostly worry – but he had trouble trying to catch anything from a nurse or doctor whenever they visited to check up on him or when he tried to catch a whiff of anything happening outside his room.

"Is that a belief or a fact?" Hanako asked, clear-headed as always.

He smirked. "You're not easily satisfied, are you?"

Hanako blushed and looked down for a moment. He continued: "They haven't noticed anything – so far – but they have said they would like to schedule a brain scan every few weeks to monitor me. And if they're still not sure, they'll fly in some expert on brains at some point to give closure on the case. I'm in good hands."

He started to cough immediately afterwards and Hanako offered him the glass of water from the table next to him. He sipped for a bit, then exhaled deeply.

"Still a very dry throat," he apologized. "Not used to talk so much yet."

"Do you need to rest?" Frank asked and Vincent could feel he was worried that they were tiring him.

He shook his head. "Not exactly tired, just ... banged up. That's a different sort of tired. It feels like my body's trying to get used to the fact that it can move again. That'll take awhile, I'm afraid."

"You don't mind that Jenny's not here anymore?" Eliza inquired. "I thought she was here a little while ago."

He nodded. "She was here when I woke up. I sent her home to get some rest, now that I'm awake and all. She's been pushing herself ever since I've been here, so she should take some time for herself and rest up properly. I'm okay now." He hesitated, then added: "Talitha's been here too. Apparently she felt guilty for me being here, but I tried to convince her that it's not her fault. So if you see her, please don't blame her."

"We weren't planning to," Daniel mumbled. He had been silent ever since they got there and although Vincent was used to him not saying much, he had expected him to say a little more. Even when they came in he had only raised a hand in greeting.

Vincent nodded again. "Good. I don't want her to feel like she's the one that has landed me here in the hospital."

"Talking about the hospital," Richard remarked. "You've got yourself a pretty nice place. Didn't even know they had a wing like this."

Vincent felt a little tingle on his back and realized that the remark had more to it than it just being casual.

"I don't get it?" he said. "Why's this wing different from the others?"

"Be-cause," Richard drew out the word, "this is a private wing. People whowant their privacy come here."

And those who have money for it, which you obviously don't.

The thought struck him. Not so much because Richard never made remarks that were right, rather than joking, but mostly because he did realize that it was weird for him to have a room to himself and that Jenny, Nicole and Talitha were allowed at his side at all times.

Could it be that Kevin has arranged this? Or Talitha? he wondered. The idea that Kevin or Talitha had manipulated someone's mind in order for him to be able to have a room of his own, in this private wing or whatever it may be, didn't sit well with him. Although he did appreciate the gesture; he was worried that it might cost a significant amount of money, since the current wing was mostly silent. He had the feeling that the rooms were actually soundproofed to ensure people to get the rest they wanted. He didn't know how much such a room in a hospital would cost to stay in.

The others had gone on talking why he was musing and he hadn't been following the conversations, so when he suddenly felt a hand touching his he was startled. Apparently Hanako had gone around and sat at the other side of the bed he was in. She had taken a seat and had started holding his hand. He felt the feeling of worry pulsating out of her.

He patted her hand and smiled.

"I'll be okay," he assured her softly. "I woke up and I intend to be up and running in no time. Give me a week and I'll be doing crunches again."

She smiled warily and he could understand why; it's not every day that a friend ends up comatose and wakes up again. He vowed never to let this happen again. He didn't want his friends to worry about him.

But first he had to get himself back up again.

* * * * * * * * * *

Chapter 11.4 – The Puzzle Queen

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Instead of going home, she drove towards the house where Nicole and Vincent lived – and where Jenny resided for the time being. Considering how only they knew about Vincent newly discovered powers, they sought solace with each other.

Talitha didn't know them very well, but after the fight where Vincent didn't come out unscathed, she had started to know them better. They showed up in the hospital and stayed long days and some nights, just like she did. Talitha hadn't told them anything, didn't know if she should and realized that she was eyed suspiciously by them during the times they met. They never asked her what happened though, and she had respected them for that.

Eventually she had told themsomething – not a complete lie, but also not the entire truth, that Vincent had helped protecting her from an assailant. That he was ahero. But also that she was afraid that they would hold her responsible for him being in the state he was. They didn't. They hugged her and told her that they were happy that his efforts helped someone, that he was in this state not because he fell of the stairs but because he sought to protect a fellow human. They were warm. Sincere. She had felt bad about altering Jenny's memories after she had dragged them out of there and brought them here to the hospital, but it was better if she wasn't asking herself questions of how she got into that mess with them in the first place.

And after today, when Vincent had told them everything that went down when they were under attack, she felt like she should be there, answering the questions they couldn't think up when they were told it was a deliberate attempt at kidnapping them. She knew how hard it was to ask the right questions when you're put in a situation where you're grasping at straws to comprehend what's going on. She also knew that questions would form later on, when the time had passed to ask them. That's why she was going there, to satisfy their needs. They would have questions, after what Vincent had told them.

She had only been here once before but hadn't noticed anything except figuring out where the back door was, but when she found the right number and approached from the front she was surprised; she didn't expect them to live in a house this large. Vincent had told her before that he lived together with his sister, seperate from their parents. She knew he didn't live in the dorm, but she had expected them to live in an apartment like herself. Not too expensive on the rent, yet not too spacey to find it comfortable.

Now she was standing in front of a house which seemed like it could house a family – or three.

How the hell do they manage to live here? It'shuge. Or is it simply a sort of dorm after all, not sex-separated?

Her gaze wandered across the lawn, which was significant enough for her to acknowledge it as a lawn. The house had a driveway, although not large enough to house more than 1 car, but it ended at the point where she believed was the door to a garage. Right now there was no car on the space except hers – she had parked there without realizing it and only now seemed to wonder how they could afford this house.