He had left that retreat, but now, after so many battles, he knew it was time to return, or to leave the world for good. He had that decision to make and he had to make it alone, away from his brethren. They would seek to influence him to stay with them in the compound set up on the outskirts of the more rural part of San Diego.
You are very conflicted.
The voice came out of nowhere, filling his mind in spite of its softness. Feminine. Gentle. A statement but definitely tentative, as if she knew she was intruding and didn’t want to but feared he might really be contemplating suicide. He remained silent, studying each note, wondering how she gained access to his mind and why the sliver of moon over the water suddenly appeared a different shade of gray.
I don’t wish to disturb you, but sometimes talking things out can help.
That was a clear offer. Her voice. He blinked rapidly because all around him the world was changing. There was white froth on the waves. The few people on the sidewalk were in brightly colored clothing. His stomach lurched, and behind his eyes there was an explosion of agony, which he quickly cut off. He toned down the way he was seeing, fading the hues to almost shadows so his brain could get used to it.
Who are you? He kept his tone strictly neutral. Nonthreatening. He tried to get a direction on her, but it seemed impossible, as if the notes were far off and being dispersed through several filters.
I am Adalasia. I’m sometimes called Lasia.
She didn’t hesitate to give him her name, and her soft voice, although muted, rang with truth. In these modern times, few women were called by that name. It was very old Italian, mostly used around the twelfth to fourteenth centuries. There was no way she was that old unless she was Carpathian. Even mages wouldn’t be that old. Many times, when someone set him up to be murdered, they feared giving him their true name, yet she hadn’t hesitated. He was suspicious of the way she had slid so easily into his mind, and he couldn’t quite get a direction on her—yet.
I am Sandu. And yes, there is a decision to be made.
A journey. She made it a statement.
In many ways. It is not a single journey, but in many directions, and it is a dangerous path I will travel. I will have to ask another to embark on that path with me. Deliberately, he tested her. He had been contemplating going on a journey alone, but no longer, not since the moment color had been restored to him.
Time passed while the waves crashed and foamed. He thought Adalasia might have slipped away from him she was so still, but there remained a feminine presence in his mind. He had been alone for endless centuries, a long gray void of nothingness, but even with her being so still, she brought him comfort.
He heard her sudden intake of breath. What is it?
This person you speak of embarking on the journey with you? Is this a new relationship? A love interest?
He considered that. A love interest was a way a human would define a relationship. A lifemate was so much more. His other half. He couldn’t survive without her. He was speaking with her right at that very moment. Was she as moved as he was? Most likely she was unaware of the significance of their exchange. No other would have been able to penetrate his defenses.
I have yet to meet her, but she is within my reach. That was honest enough.
This journey is not without risks, but it is worth it. You may need to expand your views, be willing to experience new visions that are not your own.
She sounded reluctant to say the least. She also sounded as if she was giving him a bit of a lecture, telling him to expand his views as if he was too narrow-minded to see other people’s ideas that weren’t his. Did that mean she thought he didn’t listen to other people’s opinions? That could be true. At least not human opinions. He had been around for centuries and seen countless scenarios. In the grand scheme of things, humans were babies, thinking they were experts.
The journey I must undertake to another land?
Again, there was silence, as if she was mulling something over. Must you? Go to another land, or do you want to go to another land? You have to decide for yourself if it is a want or a need.
The reluctance was much more pronounced.
Adalasia, you have an idea you do not wish to share with me. Are you a seer?
I can sometimes be a guide. The admission was hesitant.
For the first time, Sandu heard a discordant note, as if she wasn’t telling the exact truth. That displeased him. Lifemates didn’t lie to each other. She didn’t realize she was his lifemate, but she was the keeper of the other half of his soul. Did she know that? Was she aware? He knew there was no mistake. She had restored color into his world. Color and emotions. As he sat on the roof watching the waves come and go, catching the sheen of the moon, he experienced a variety of unfamiliar feelings he had to sort through in order to identify.