The Silent War

Chapter Seven

I laid on the cold steel table in Rochelle's on-site medical station. I had not been here before and surprisingly unlike the rest of Serenis. This room was as sterile as possible, with the only blush of color being a green leaf that had been tracked in when Josh came to visit.

Rochelle had used an herbal remedy on my wounds that according to Josh were 'completely insane.' He had likened the deep grazes and ripped off skin to road-kill, he didn't want to look, but he couldn't seem to look away. Rochelle petted down my back with damp gauze, sighing as she rinsed it off and repeated the motion.

'These wounds should not have been this bad. You are definitely behind in your development.'

I winced as a stray drop rolled down my back, seeping into a cut that was on my side. 'I thought I was supposed to be indestructible or something...What happened to that benefit of being a Soul Snatcher?'

Rochelle moved over to a cabinet and pulled out more gauze, this time she dampened it in a pink solution and laid it flat on my back. A cooling sensation soon followed relieving the prickly feeling I had almost grown accustomed to. 'Well, living off energy alone for over a month will weaken any super, especially one that is still developing into their new body. Were you not curious as to how you managed to stay alive this whole time?

I paused, thinking back over the past four weeks and trying to forget the reason why I had been in that situation to begin with. 'I was kind of preoccupied. Other things on my mind.'

Rochelle continued, unimpressed and unsympathetic to my attitude. 'Well. As supers, we have the ability to feed off the energy around us. We do it naturally on a daily basis; it is what provides us with our strength, though in extreme cases we can use it like an additional lifeline, a substitute for food and sleep, it will keep us functioning, but as a result, we become malnourished and weak. Your body needed and needs nourishment to come into its new strength fully. You will probably find that as you begin to rest and eat again, you will sense more and become stronger.' 

She walked over to the sink and washed her hands, tipping out the bloodied water and leaving the steel bowl to soak. 'Okay, I will be back in a few hours to change your bandages. I suggest you use this time to rest; you want to try and let your body accelerate its healing as much as possible. I will make sure nobody comes in as you do not need to use any extra energy right now. If you need anything, I'm sure Ben will feel it and can send for me.'

I opened my mouth to say thank you, but Rochelle had already left, her bedside manner had certainly not improved since the last time she treated me - though this time I knew not to take it personally.

Uncomfortable in in the silence of the room, I searched for distraction. Staring at the side of the sink as the tap dripped methodically, my eyes closing briefly as I became mesmerized by the rhythm. I let my mind wander as I tried to become more in tune with my body and more importantly wondered if I could somehow help it with this accelerated healing. The pain had subsided, though I had to stay completely still so the skin would bind together precisely as Rochelle had placed it. Apparently, even though it is ridiculously hard to injure a super, we do scar. Rochelle had been kind enough to cater to my vanity and place the skin edges as close together as possible to reduce scar tissue.

I was fascinated by the promise of my new body; to look at you would know no different. My skin looked and felt the same, but it was thick, so thick that it sometimes felt as if I were wearing a tight wetsuit. I hadn't had any defense classes yet, but I remembered how I felt when I activated my protection shield 'aka the burning skin feeling' back in the office. Rochelle had said that it acts as an extra layer of skin and can shield us even more from harm as well as providing an invisible sting to attackers.