Luneth
June laughed as I reached for her throat, not to actually strangle her, but to make her at least regret opening her mouth.
She stepped back, effortlessly catching both of my wrists. "Damn, I'm just saying, if you're going to keep dragging mysterious boys home, at least let me know in advance so I…" She looked past me and winked at Riven, "can make the house look nice."
"He's not just a-!" I cut myself off after covertly looking at Riven, realizing how useless that correction was. I pulled my wrists free and turned away, not wanting to give June the satisfaction of seeing my face go deep red.
Behind me, I felt Riven's eyes on my back. I could tell he was unsure whether to laugh or disappear, but it was probably both.
"Well," June said, stepping aside with a dramatic bow, "since he's clearly not a threat, come on in."
Riven muttered something as he stepped past her. I didn't quite hear it, but I wasn't sure I wanted to.
I watched Riven glance around the warm interior before I nodded toward my room. He took off his wet jacket, hung it on a wooden coat rack, and cautiously opened my bedroom door.
"Dinner's cold now, but feel free to warm it up after you're done." June excused herself to the living room after throwing me a smirk.
I followed Riven into my room and gently shut the door behind us.
He looked at me, clearly unsure of what to do. I gestured toward my bed, allowing him to take a seat as I turned on the light.
The room was quite small. My bed and a wooden desk took up about half of it while the rest was empty space with white carpet.
I sat down on my desk's wooden chair and remained silent.
I mean, what were we supposed to talk about? Sure, I had come off a little harsh earlier, but I was still in shock from our… touch… bringing back his memories. I had hounded him with questions about the operatives simply because I needed information and was a little worried he would forget… again.
Not because I didn't know what else to ask.
An awkward silence filled the room as I glanced at Riven, who was lying back with his eyes closed. I realized how long this day must've felt to him. A near-death experience in a fight against a Double, reliving the darkest day of my life—and maybe his—, and having to deal with me.
He seemed to be the same as when we had been together four years ago, but me?
I didn't know.
Had I changed?
I didn't know.
Did I still have feelings for him?
I didn't know.
Everything was happening too fast for me to even have time to answer these questions and analyze how I felt. I was usually able to understand my emotions, but this was just too much. I was overwhelmed.
Unlike when he recovered his memories, questions—that I was too nervous to ask—flooded my mind.
How are you feeling?
What do you think of me now?
How much of our relationship do you actually remember?
Why didn't we just stick together?
Do you know how it felt having the person I cared for the most in the world… telling me to leave him behind? With no clue whether I would ever see him again?
My eyesight turned blurry. I was on the verge of crying.
Too many unspoken questions.
Thankfully, he broke the silence, preventing me from getting too deep into my thoughts. "What did they do to me, Luneth?"
I discreetly wiped the rim of my eyes and leaned back. "I have some guesses. First, however, it would probably be best to tell my side of that night."
Riven sat up, getting a better look at me. His green eyes still sparkled like they used to whenever he looked at me… but it felt distant now.
My voice choked for a second before I continued, "I had made it to the forest, just like you. I must've gone a different direction since I hadn't heard any of a struggle against the operatives." Pausing for a moment, I gathered my thoughts. "I found a small, abandoned white building deep in the forest. It was some kind of outpost. What for, I don't know.
"Inside was a long white desk with a bed next to it. Of course, I looked inside the desk and found…" I reached down, pulled open a drawer, and grabbed two papers out of it, placing it on the desk. "These."
I glanced at Riven, and then to the papers.
I got up, grabbed the papers once again, sat down next to him on the bed, and put them on my lap.
It was one document that I had found important enough to carry through the forest and back to the town. It took a lot of time and predictions before understanding what any of them meant.
The paper on top had a large dark blue circle with the words 'QRP Site-0' inside of it. I passed the paper to Riven, who looked at it for a few seconds before setting it down next to him on the bed and nodding.
The next paper was a nameless letter that I had read over more times than I could count.
"The government managers from the IOQR gave us an ultimatum.
My best guess was that something had been leaked. Why else would they threaten the most successful branch?
Apparently, they found someone with a Quantum Resonance Frequency having to do with memories, so they're setting him to work to shut down any resistance movements happening in North America. It seems my job rides on his shoulders.
Believe it or not, they also plan to send him into Site-0. Some operatives defected and are now working with the subjects, so I know that'll be a pain for him. We may have a lot of plants, but even they won't be able to root out everybody.
Anyway, just thought I'd apprise you so you aren't shocked by an operative striding around inside without any concealment."
I read it over once more and passed it to Riven.
He spent some time reading it before looking at me and giving a sheepish smile. "I don't know what half of these words mean."
I let myself gaze at his lips for a few more seconds than I should have and coughed. "I'll explain what I believe the terms mean from top to bottom. First of all, IOQR. QR most likely stands for Quantum Resonance, but I don't know about IO."
I paused for a moment before continuing. "Second, we have Quantum Resonance Frequency. The letter and your encounter with the operative Echo basically confirmed my suspicions. The Quantum Resonance Frequency has to do with what abilities you have. For example, most people have physical enhancement Frequencies while others can gain perception Frequencies—including us. I assume there are other Frequencies that have to do with the environment as well-."
Riven raised a hand to stop me. "What do you mean 'us'? I have a perception ability? Wait… you have a perception ability?"
I let out a deep exhale. How perception abilities worked was still a mystery to me, but I still had to give my best explanation. "Yes, you do. Yours… appears to have to do with time. You've always had instant reaction time, but it also seems that you can see things before they happen. I noticed near the end of your fight with Rynin that you were dodging perfectly before he would even give any hint about his attack."
He nodded slowly. Perhaps he had noticed it as well. "That makes sense, but… what is yours?"
No one explained it to me, so I had been forced to figure it out alone.
I had learned from a young age that I could easily stay hidden from people—even though that wasn't what I chose to do—, so that could be part of it. It might not even be a perception ability, but something else.
What I wasn't going to say was that it allowed me to feel what was going on outside of what I could see, sometimes being able to sense things from hundreds of meters away. The other side of it was the truly important part… but also something I couldn't quite put my finger on. "It has to do with seeing light when people use their abilities. In the arena and training grounds, I often see people glow, albeit very subtly. In your fight with Rynin, I was able to see your eyes light up and the back of your neck had a soft radiance."
Riven's eyes narrowed. "Maybe you can see the use of these… Frequencies."
It had crossed my mind, but I wasn't able to think about why I would have an ability like that or how an ability like it made any sense.
I had set the thought aside, but Riven bringing it back up again made me rethink it. It was a plausible explanation, though. The radiance of people—Riven, at least—was definitely brighter when they tapped deeper into their Frequencies.
Glancing at Riven, I continued my analysis of the letter. "The next thing I had focused on was the operative with an affinity to memories. I had already viewed it as a terrifying ability from the moment I first read it, but now after hearing your side of that night… Terrifying isn't nearly a strong enough word. Echo is truly a dreadful operative to be up against."
Riven stared at the letter for a few more seconds before shifting his eyes to mine. "Memory affinity, huh. That means he was the one that did something to my memories… and can do it to others as well."
He rubbed his face before continuing. "Any allies we might gain could instantly lose everything they remembered about us. Even worse, what if he has the ability to manipulate memories as well? He may have been able to back then, but even if he couldn't, maybe he can now. It's been four years, after all." A chill went down my spine at the thought.
The way he had said allies made me realize he was already thinking about trying to do something about our situation. I wasn't surprised, really, but it was a comforting reminder that he hadn't changed too much.
I glanced at him. "Lastly, I noticed 'Site-0' and 'plants.' Assuming we are in this 'Site-0,' that means that there are operative plants in our town. Not a good sign, especially for two fugitives."