Mayne

24. Defeated

                         Ardor and Rime had their research spread out across their beds. They were passing things back and forth over the edge of the bunk beds and talking quietly so as not to wake up Mayne. Rime dropped the papers in concern "What if we can't find a solution to this?"

                         "We do our best" he sighed "that's the best we can do sometimes" Ardor was just as concerned as Rime was about if they were going to be able to heal Miss Reynolds or not. "Clearly Vivian doesn't want to be healed... but Miss Reynolds" Ardor was saddened by all that she has gone through.

                       "We have this," Rime handed something down to Ardor "it's the research for healers and filers."

                        "Maybe that is how Ethan can help." Ardor smiled "he is a filer, a rare one... could that be why Mayne saw that he is the solution?" A filer was classified as a lower-level Elite. Being a cross between a Healer and a Mental Elite they have extrasensory scanning and projective abilities. "The highest level can learn and see the patterns and details of things then project it back out like a hologram, so others see things the way they saw it. I fail to see how that is going to fix mind-bending fallout."

                     "It won't, that's only the higher-level Filers, the more gentle-ish Filers like Ethan are different remember." Rime was rifling through papers. "He's so gentle he's not even a classified Elite."

                      "Wouldn't it be funny, two of the Elite's most shunned...one that people fear and one that people laugh at. Imagine them as the heroes." Ardor compared something on the paper to something he had "Mayne, the Elite they fear because of her power level and Ethan the person not allowed to be called an Elite, someone who they laugh at because they think he is useless." Ardor laughed as he tossed some papers up to Rime.

                        "Yeah," Rime compared the papers and sighed contented that they figured it out "Well, maybe the solution has something to do with how they see the best way to train troubled or complicated Elite's like us..."

                       "Or because they have been known to clear the chaos that troubles a mind without the person realizing they are doing it." Ardor adjusted on the bed, excited "Ethan is one of the gentlest filers out there, his abilities are nonexistent in regard to the visual aspect of things like projecting but he's hella powerful in a way that is easy to miss,"

                    Rime finished Ardor's thought "he can clear your head without you ever realizing he was an Elite." Because of this he was classified as a Non-Elite, partially to allow people to use him secretly, but the higher ups didn't want the boys to know that.

                   "I think we have a solution." Ardor smiled

                    "Does this mean we get to go to bed?" Rime yawned

                    "Yes." Ardor gathered all his papers then gathered Rimes and tucked him in. "Get some sleep, I'll put this away and check on Mayne." He set the papers down on the desk and turned to check on Mayne, he kissed her forehead gently and pulled the blankets around her tighter with a smile. With a yawn he turned back to the desk and tucked the papers into a folder and slipped it into a drawer before climbing into bed. It was nearly three in the morning when they were both finally asleep.