The Talents of the Fallen - 13. Part Thirteen: Decisions

Chapter Thirteen Decisions

Ryan sat straight up in the high back brown leather chair. He looked nervously at the headmaster who gazed back at her with a near vacant expression. Since entering his office the two had not said a word. The report on the headmaster’s desk said everything.

It showed hematology results on the Taint addicts Jon killed last night. Next to it were the DNA results taken from Aaron. It also included the blood levels of rare proteins only those with Talent should possessed. From his chair he could see that some of the results looked promising. However, some key proteins were either missing or at insignificant concentrations.

Following the headmaster’s gaze Captain Harper saw Dr. Balthazar only concerned with the line of photos showing Andrew’s and Jon’s interactions with Aaron. There was something about his expression, as if his lips were a fraction of a centimeter from smiling.

After a long awkward silence the headmaster spoke. “Quite a mess… don’t you think?”

“Yes sir. If you want my resignation …”

Dr. Balthazar slammed a fist on the table. The force caused several documents to fall from his desk. “I’ll have no more talk of you resigning. You made a mistake, a big one, but only somebody as insane as Tom Mays would have predicted his suicidal attack.”

“It almost succeeded.”

“But it didn’t. Your inaction allowed for the full exposing of Mays conspiracy.” Greg stood from his desk. “You have gained the unique honor of earning the respect and gratitude of the Order and the Coven.” He made his way around the desk towards Jon. “You have also indebted me more to your undying love.” He pulled Ryan’s head against his body. As his fingers played with the dark curls of the man’s hair he weaved empathic and kinetic Talents into a web of sexual stimuli.

Ryan, shed his stiff formal persona and let his true feelings show. He unzipped the headmaster’s pants. Reach in he pulled out Greg’s already hard cock. He looked up waiting for the order. Receiving the expected nod he guided the engorged flesh into his mouth. He let it sit there, letting his tongue salivate with the taste. When he couldn’t hold back any longer he sealed his lips and sucked in.

Greg thrust his cock back and forth. His balls bounce on Ryan’s chin. With the head ramming the back of the throat the bottom of the shaft slid over the top of the tongue.

Ryan didn’t need to touch himself to join in the pleasure. Greg’s kinetic talent was caressing every inch of him. With a flick of his power this seams of his clothes split down the middle and fell to the floor. Greg then lifted Ryan off the ground, letting his cock slip from Ryan’s mouth. The kinetic energy kept him float midair in perfect position with Greg’s cock. He slid deep inside and held it there. As a skilled kinetic he applied pressure on the prostate trigging moans from his lover.

Between the two they didn’t last long. The intense sexual stimuli meant Ryan just couldn’t while Greg, tapped into Ryan’s mind could not stop from joining him.

While Ryan pulled out a set of clothes from a closet that had been set aside for that purpose Greg went over Dr. Harris’s report. “He does not seem to like Aaron much.”

“You noticed… The guy doesn’t like anyone not born from one of the original families.”

“A purist?”

“He takes it a step further. Most of them are satisfied with one parent having the Talent. Harris views such children as being watered down half Talents. It should have been expected with him being from the Order and all.”

“My father might be the head of the order but I find his attitude disgusting. How did he get assigned to investigate the boy?”

“Someone within the Council who thinks like he does. I can have my people investigate.”

“No… It would be better for me to handle it on my end. If Harris hates the Untalented as his actions suggest then your people wouldn’t get their foot past his door.”

“You’re probably right. But what about Aaron?

Greg sighed. Ryan was going to press the issue of the boy being admitted regardless of how hard he tried to evade the question. “The only Talent he seems to have is a resistance to it.”

“This is the sort of talent my people need.”

“Then take him to the Liaison school.”

“I would but you know he won’t be safe there. He needs to be here, at this school. It’s the only place where he belongs.”

“I might be headmaster but this is still a Council School. The Council strives to not get caught up in the rivalry between the Order and the Coven. For whatever reason, Aaron has drawn the attention of the Coven. His outward appearance makes him look like a Coven runaway. The Coven does not like runaways living out in the open. They see it as a challenge to their authority.”

“That’s exactly why Aaron needs to be taken in. It is only a matter of time before the Coven goes after him.”

Greg took a letter out of his desk and slid it towards Ryan. After Ryan had finished buttoning his new shirt he picked it up and examined it. The first thing he noticed was the broken black wax seal and hanging white ribbon. On ribbon, written in red, were the words: Chosen of Chicago.

“The Coven?”

“From the desk of the Central North American Chosen.”

“Oh one of their bigwigs.” Ryan unfolded the letter and read its contents. He read it a second time to make sure he had read it correctly. “What I am supposed to be looking for?”

“What does the letter say?”

“He seems to be saying you can keep the boy.”

“He is not saying… he demanding I keep him.”

Ryan sat down in the chair opposite the desk. “I see… Does the Order know?”

“When you last saw Aaron, was he still alive?”

“Yes.”

“Then you have your answer.”

“You mean if the Order knew about this letter they would kill him?”

“The Order does not take orders from the Coven, which is exactly what that letter implies. If he wanted me to keep the boy safe he should have demanded I kill him.”

“Not under the protection of one of the families the Coven could have killed him last night.”

“This means we can make one of two assumptions. The Regional Chosen might have an honest reason to want to keep him safe or he plans to use Aaron as a suicide bomb. I do not need to tell you which one the Order will suspect.” Taking the letter from Ryan, Greg went to the fireplace and tossed it in. Once it had burned he scattered the ashes with a poker.

“Your father won’t be happy if he finds out about this.”

“Fine by me. There’s no pleasing him either way. As for the boy… I’ve not yet decided to grant him admission but if I don’t I’ll let you take him under your wing.”

“It would be better if you were to…”

“Don’t press me Ryan. The Council expects me to maintain certain standards. A basic one is the standards we expect from our students. Without a significant Talent he can’t be admitted. If he passes the entrance exam so be it. If not he’s out.”

“But he’s nothing like the other students who’ve been admitted. They had a chance to train for the tests.”

“And so will he… he just won’t be given years. If his interview goes well he will be given conditional admission. He will have a year to train for the entrance exam. If he passes he’s in. If not he’s yours. Sound fair enough?”

“Two years would be better but I know when not to press my luck.”

“Good, now bring the boy in.”

Ryan buckled his belt as he headed for the door. Poking his head out, he saw Jon and Sam sitting across from Aaron in the waiting room. “Dr. Balthazar is ready to see you Mr. Mays.” Before Aaron could stand the two other boys were halfway to the door. “Not you two. Just Aaron.”

“But we got stuff, important stuff, to tell the headmaster.” Jon elbowed Sam to get him to speak up.

“Wouldn’t he want to know our observations? It could help him decided whether to take Aaron in.”

“The headmaster prefers making his own observations not those of two heavily biased students. Ryan pushed the two aside and let Aaron in. Once inside he locked the door and leaned against it. Until the headmaster said otherwise he was to keep the boys out and Aaron in.

Aaron looked around the room and was amazed by its side. Compared to the principal’s office it was a mansion. The distance from the door to the headmaster’s chair was about the length of a bowling lane. Along the wall were floor to ceiling cheery bookcases. Above the desk was the school emblem… a shield with a green background marked by a triangle of three blue spots.

The headmaster who had curly black hair and mirror blue eyes sat on a corner of his desk. “Come along Mr. Mays. I’m short on time and we have much to discuss.” He pointed to the empty chair in front of him.

Aaron took in a deep breath and began to walk forward. He was nervous if not scared. He had to force himself to take each step as his feet felt weighed down like bricks of iron. When he reached the head master he was tempted to fall to his feet and kissed the man’s shoes but resisted the temptation. Slowly he went to the chair and sat himself down.

“Comfortable?” The headmaster asked once he was seated.

“Not really.” Aaron replied.

“You’re not the first potential student to say that. Don’t worry it’s not going to be as bad as you think.”

Aaron sank deeper into the chair and sighed with relief and noticed he no longer felt so uncomfortable.”

Twisting around Dr. Balthazar picked up a fist sized boiled sugar skull. “Here catch.” He threw it at Aaron with the speed of a major league pitcher.

Before it reached Aaron it shattered into a cloud into tiny piecel. Aaron jumped onto the leather seat and screamed.

The headmaster was impressed. So far Aaron had shown resistance to physical, mental, and kinetic attacks. The only one left was empathic. With the boy trembling with fear Greg decided he would show some kindness and try to ease his fear. He radiated an aura of peace and calm but after a minute it was clear that even benevolent use of the Talent would be deflected.

Greg pulled out a few tissues and handed to Aaron. Before he could withdraw Aaron jumped on him. Wrapping his arms around the back of the headmaster’s neck and his legs around his waist he clung to him like a baby chimpanzee.

“Now just wait a minute.” He tried using his mental talent to order Aaron to let go. When that didn’t work he tried to shake him off with his kinetic talent. He could have used physical force to separate them but he didn’t want to hurt the boy. He had to calm Aaron down and that meant he had to use his empathic Talent. This time it had the desired effect. Aaron relaxed his legs and slid down. He didn’t let completely go. He kept his arms around the man’s belt and rested his head on his chest.

Greg sighed. The boy indeed had Talent. He just couldn’t classify it. The boy also needed help. His life was a hell he had yet to escape. Therapy could help but his resistance to the other Talents would make helping him a challenge. Physical contact seemed to be the key but combining physical touch and mental and empathic Talent tended to confuse the relationship between patient and therapist. He certainly couldn’t use one of the adults and to leave Aaron in the hands of someone like Sam or Jon was just laughable. He could do it himself. To be honest he was greatly tempted to. That was exactly why he shouldn’t get involved… not yet at least.

“Come with me Aaron.” He led Aaron out of the office then closed the door. He turned to Ryan. He gave his lover a sharp nod. “Aaron will be our guest for a while. Before we can start his training in the Talents we will need to build up his self-confidence. Do you have any Liaisons in crisis training?”

“We have a few but wouldn’t someone with full Talents be better.”

“Therapists with the Talent tend to over depend on their abilities. In Aaron’s case it would not be a good idea. Too much touching and not enough talking.”

“I see… but I will need the help of at least one with the Talent.”

“So long as it’s not Jon…”

“Not him… I was thinking of your brother.”

“Andrew?”

“The two already know each other. Having a reassuring familiar face could help. There is also the fact that your brother is the only one at Lakes who has experienced anything close to what Aaron’s gone through.”

“I can’t say I feel completely comfortable about the idea but so long as you make sure my brother keeps his pants zipped you can have him. Who among the Untalented do you think you will pair him with?”

“I’m thinking about using the twins.”

“The Nelson brothers?”

“Oh god… not those two pranksters. I’m thinking of their younger siblings Trey and Tracy… you know affectionate and not at all that aggressive. They’ll never be good at field work. That’s why I’ve been preparing them to work at the Settlement.”

“You know them better than I do.” Greg sounded less than enthused.

Ryan was slightly offended by the demand. “Doubting my judgment?”

“If it was not someone in as fragile a state as Aaron I wouldn’t. Whoever works with him will have very impressionable patient at their mercy. I want to be extra careful. That’s all.”

“If there is anyone I’m going to worry about giving Aaron some bad habits it’s going to be your brother. You better make that clear to him. I will not tolerate any Coven nonsense.”

“He will even if that means I must imprint it in his mind.

When he had finished talking with Greg, Ryan went into the waiting room to tell Aaron the headmaster’s decision. Jon and Sam who had waited to hear the same news were not pleased. They had already been planning out the welcoming party. When they were told Aaron would start off at the Lakes Liaison Program for the Untalented Jon wanted to rip the place apart.

“But Aaron is Talented.” Jon insisted. He had a firm hold on Aaron’s left hand and was not about to let go.

“He does have Talent but he also didn’t grow up a part of your world. He needs time to get use to his new status before he begins his education at the main school. Don’t worry. If he passes his entrance exams he will be joining you two in at least six months.”

“But…” Jon was about to let his hopes be dashed. “Then transfer me too.”

“No… you are one of the strongest physical Talents in the Central Region. You would have too great an advantage against the Untalented for you to be taking classes with them. Anyway the headmaster had already selected someone to watch out for him.”

“Who… tell me and I’ll break his neck.”

“Since it is only a matter of time before you find out I might as well tell you. It’s Andrew.”

“What the hell?” Jon was furious. The headmaster was clearly showing favoritism. “Andy had his chance. It’s my turn. For god’s sake it should have been me in the first place.”

“Be as it may the headmaster feels that Andrew is the best one suited to help him.”

“What about me sir?” Sam asked. Where Jon was a very promising physical Talent, Sam was growing into a skilled empath. “I could do a lot towards helping him emotionally.”

“The headmaster believes Aaron would be better off with an Untalented or low Talent therapist.”

“Why? Strong empaths make the best ones.”

“In most cases yes but to reach Aaron with your Talent you two would have to maintain physical contact. Do I need to explain why that would be a bad idea.”

Jon glared at Sam. “No. That would be a bad idea.” He didn’t want anyone to love Aaron as much as he did, let alone develop a romantic relationship with him.

Sam could not block out the angry rising in his friend. “I see your point.”

Seeing no reason to continue the discussion Ryan turned his full attention on Aaron. ”Well Aaron, ready to see your new home?”

Throughout the exchange Aaron hadn’t said a word and to this question he barely nodded and continued to stay silent.

“Good. As for you two… don’t you have rugby practice Jon?”

“Uhmmm, yeah. I guess I better get going. Before he could make himself leave he needed to kiss Aaron one more time. “Well Aaron, it was nice seeing you again.” He offered to shake his hand. When Aaron took it Jon yanked him towards him and pushed his lips against his. Jon felt the same rush of excitement run through him. He wanted Aaron as his boyfriend so very badly and if he has his way, he would be.

Ryan pulled the two apart. “Enough of that. You, Jon, have earned yourself a month’s worth of detention.”

“It was worth it. I’d do it again in a heartbeat.’

“It is going to be a long time before I’ll give you the chance to. Now off to class.”

Sam had to drag Jon away to get him to leave.

Looking out the window Ryan waiting until they were a good distance away before turning to Aaron. “Sorry about that… Jon is not a bad kid, hot headed yes, but not mean spirited.”

“I… I didn’t mind.” Aaron whispered. He touched his lip to remind himself how Jon’s lips felt against his.

“I’m sure you didn’t but the sooner I get you to the other campus the better.”

“What… what about grandma?”

“I’m not going to lie to you Aaron but you are likely never to see her again.”

“Did she die?”

Ryan knew it would be better in the long run if Aaron thought that but he couldn’t do that. “After what happened last night it was decided you would be better off here.”

“O-kay.” Aaron looked away. He didn’t want Mr. Harper see him cry.

He put a reassuring hand on Aaron’s shoulder. “It’s going to be okay. You’ll see. Everything is going to turn out just fine.”