Happy hi, lovely Sparks!
I’ve told you I live on a farm, right?
Maybe once, long ago.
I live on a farm with my husband of 16 years and our THREE daughters.
I started formulating this story before I met him. I was a few years older than Logan is here, my mother had just gotten really into fostering welfare kids. I felt ignored, isolated, vulnerable and I was surrounded by all these sad stories of little kids who had been through horrible things. It affected me, kind of broke my brain at the time. But I didn’t know at the time what psychological trauma was. I’ve only experienced it second hand. But I lived in the stories I’d heard, for months. That was many years ago.
About four months back, my eldest daughter got hurt.
It wasn’t so bad. A little bump on the head—she barely lost consciousness. A few scrapes and bruises. (The cow that did it is delicious though.)
But in those first moments, when I wasn’t sure what would happen, I nearly died. I thought that I might lose my first baby and I kind of lost my will to live for a little while.
Even though it was only her who got hurt. Even though I saw it happen and couldn’t have done anything to prevent it… For hours afterward she was delirious. For days afterward she was frail, pale and shaky after the tiniest exertion.
Now daughter dearest—is fine. She’s perfectly fine. A lot more respectful of cattle and a little more careful than before, but nothing major, and no long-term adverse effects to speak of.
But I still have flashbacks. Every time I drive past the spot where it happened, I get chills. Every time she’s playing and being dramatic and makes that same face she made when she was coming round, I have to look away and catch my breath.
Living through something traumatic has lasting effects, and they aren’t rational. You can’t think your way out of it. Watching someone you care about get hurt, that helplessness, that moment where you realize this just happened, and it almost cost me someone precious, someone irreplaceable—it stays with you.
Here’s our last episode in case you want to refresh.
TLDR
The Vigil, tracks Logan’s state of mind as he keeps watch over Elle. For days, he sits in a chair, holding her hand, while she suffers from what they see as an inexplicable illness that none of their medicines can touch. Every attempt at treatment fails or harms her further. Logan stops eating, sleeping, caring for himself, held in place by guilt that turns into a connection he doesn’t fully understand.
All the while Misty (Elle) knows exactly what’s wrong, and that there’s nothing they can do.
Luke has followed the protocol and come up empty. Nothing works. And even with his primary skill, his very identity as a telepath, he can’t reach her. Luke steps aside. Recognizing that Logan is the one she’s bonded with, who she smiled at, who she allowed to touch her without flinching—he allows his teenage son to torture himself, for her sake, because it’s the only way he can think of to offer her succor.
The terrible illness finally reaches its inevitable conclusion, all that pent up Raw Energy—explodes—taking Luke’s infirmary, his lab, and his home, with it.
Now, fellow nerds, let’s focus on Elle’s illness. What do we know?
Elle is not like other Telerans. She’s Talented. The nature of her Talent is the fact that she has a doubled Vital Energy Barrier, because somehow when she was born her mother’s VE latched onto hers and stayed there. So she has the potential to be the most powerful Teleran there is, right off the bat. Added to that she has a genetic flaw that makes her Raw Energy regeneration uncontrolled.
When Telerans use RE, their body generates more, to fill up their Vital Barrier. Usually, the generation slows as the barrier fills, but Misty’s doesn’t. It builds and builds and builds, until the barrier can’t take it any more.
That’s what happened here.
She was on the run, pushed past her normal limits to dead empty. She was rescued, treated, her regen kicked in at full bore, and—never stopped.
You might be wondering: How did this come to be?
Well, you know by now how Telerans are born level 100, while other races have to work a lifetime to get there, right?
There were once Telerans who thought that a level 100 cap, wasn’t good enough. Scientists. Geneticists, who thought that with some clever GM they could make it so the cap, is just a headstart.
But messing with genes can have unintended consequences. And the uncontrolled RE generation meant the modified kids, lived in pain, (known as Penitent) and eventually exploded, like Misty does. Only they didn’t recover afterward.
You see, Misty’s Vital Energy Barrier, isn’t just strong. It’s dynamic. And it repairs. Something that isn’t supposed to be possible. That’s her real Talent.
Not only that.
When her energy regen happens in a controlled way, like when she’s whole, and in training—when the regen is SLOW. Because of her doubled VEB, the Raw Energy concentrates.
Now how’s that for a lore-nugget?
—Jenny, out*
That’s it for this week. New chapter starts on Friday, with a little surprise for you guys that I’m super excited about. As for unBottled… Happy speculating, till the next Meta-Tuesday and happy bye!
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Need more and can’t wait - check out the Bottled Embers INDEX for the rest of the story.
This is a very deep and meaningful share today, and I appreciate the connection to your investment in this world as a rich and real universe that lives and breathes! The additional character and back history development that you bring adds layers that I didn't see before and levels the playing field for those who may be new to this epic. I continue to be enthralled Jenny!