LINKAGE (boyxboy)

CHAPTER 5: ICY MEMORIES

Gavin already got tense when she mentioned him being born, even fixed his posture, and put his hands between his legs to warm them a bit. He was looking at the floor while thinking about what to ask her or what to say about the comment about his born. It seemed something so specific to just throw aside.

"I know you may be lost and confused right now, but you are important to all of us, Gavin. Every single person that lives in Qorjal depends on the blood that runs through those veins." Gavin was looking directly into her eyes, and she didn't seem like a liar or someone who would say such things from the inside out.

"Can you explain to me why? Why all of a sudden I'm thrown in the middle of the desert and can't remember anything before it? Why do you keep saying that I'm important and all that kind of stuff because I'm trying to be comprehensive but..." He gave up on talking since he was almost breaking down. His mind was full of bad feelings of fear, uncertainty, and sadness. He was so sad over the fact that he had a life before all of this, he could have a job, friends, parents, and family, but at what cost since he can't remember a single breath he took on the other side of the planet?

"Dear, listen to me." Angelina put her hand on top of Gavin's, trying to make him feel welcomed and comfortable. The tension was visible in Gavin's body like radiation in a damaged nuclear power plant. He just couldn't focus while his fingers wouldn't stop curling between themselves. That's why Angelina touched him, to calm him. "I know you want answers and I'm going to give every single one in my knowledge, okay? Now, let's begin."

"I know you from the day you were born. Your parents were amazing people and I was friends with your mother since our college years, her name was Chaly. Our friendship was something out of this world, you know?" She said while smiling, the memories gave her an incredible feeling of nostalgia and happiness. "And then you came. You were going to be your mother's first child and she couldn't be happier about it. It was her life's dream to have these big families with lots of children." Her smile suddenly dropped. She was looking at the window now, the view of the skyscrapers from downtown in her eyes while she prepared herself for the worst.

"And then Kyedoth came." Angelina took a deep breath and returned to look at Gavin's eyes. "That man, known as Kye or Kyedoth, is our current president, and he's been in that charge for almost 2500 years. Nobody here lives more than 200 years but somehow he made almost triple it. Your father was Chemeris Malone, but we always called him Meris. Kyedoth and Chemeris were brothers and they were walking this planet for who knows how long, but none of them looked old, always looking like they never left 35 years old."

"The thing at stake right now is that your father wanted to get Kyedoth out of the presidential office and obviously, the devil refused and probably he's gonna stay there until his last breath. He's extremely powerful in many ways, that's why nobody defies him even though a lot of people do not approve what he does. He's an evil and dangerous man that needs to be excluded from that powerful position."

"And what's my role in all of this?" Gavin said, calmer now. He was more intrigued to know more about the past of his family.

"You being Kyedoth's nephew makes everything easier because power runs through the family. Some people say your father and Kyedoth said this phrase in Qorjal's early years and that is why only the two of them were eligible to the highest office. When our society was well stablished, they came up with a law that the only people able to replace Kyedoth from the Presidential post was a member of the Malone family. The only one able to do it was Chemeris, but now we got you."

"He didn't know about me?"

"Your father sent you away the moment you were born for two reasons. First, Kyedoth would kill you as soon as he saw you; second, he would kill your parents too, and he did. Chemeris couldn't avoid the inevitable anymore, he knew what destiny held for him and Chaly. So they both agreed and sent you away so one day you would come back to save us from him. How did he send you? Nobody knows. And how you came back? Nobody knows either. Actually, you and Isaac specifically have the ways to do so, we just don't know how yet. But believe when I say that your father provided everything for you to thrive."

Gavin closed his eyes and took a deep breath, holding back liters of tears. He just knew that he had parents that loved him but had to sacrifice themselves for a bigger reason and also that was why he was not coming back home so soon. Angelina sat in the armchair aside from Gavin and hugged him tightly. The boy accepted it with no complaints, but still without dropping tears. He was just there, feeling a slight smell from Angelina's shampoo.

"But the important thing is," Angelina said. "you're with us and you're safe here. If you don't want to stay in the bunker you can stay here and make yourself home. My husband would be happy to meet you some other time but he works a lot so he's only at home for more than 12 hours at the weekend." Angelina released Gavin and they laughed weakly. After that talk, Gavin has his mind more clarified. Obviously, he had tons of unanswered questions, but he was aware that everything takes its time. For example, it took 22 years for him to find out that the place he used to live wasn't his real home, and that everything he did before, even though he didn't remember, wasn't his real faith.

"I... appreciate your kindness, Angelina. It is hard... I want to remember so bad but nothing comes to my mind but the snow desert. It seems like I was just born three days ago because I don't remember anything."

"We can work on that too, don't worry. But everything at the right time, okay? We need to get you settled, get you to train... get you to learn about things. It will be a long journey, but you will do just fine. I know you will. You have the blood of your father. You are meant to succeed, my dear."