don’t…I don’t know what you mean.”
“Close your eyes,” Emeric instructed.
She did. She heard the cries of birds overhead, and felt a moist breeze against her cheek. In this quiet space, it was easy to forget where she was. “Clear your mind,” he said. She tipped her head back, experiencing the warmth of the sunrays pouring into the cave. “Try to distance yourself from where you are right now.”
She frowned. “I can’t,” she replied. She opened her eyes then and looked around, but found herself in the same spot she’d been in before. “I don’t understand.”
“Try,” he encouraged.
“I can’t ,” she huffed, frustrated. “I don’t know what you mean.”
She heard him sigh, and then, all at once, the world tilted off of its axis. She let out a cry of shock and felt a wave of nausea roll over her as, before she could blink, she was thrust back into the present.
She stumbled forward, reaching out blindly to catch her balance. But then she opened her eyes, and saw that she was standing on a wooden floor again. She blinked, and looked up. The two men stood before her once more, and now both were able to see her. Alex stood a small distance away.
“What was that?” she asked.
“You projected yourself into Alexander’s mind,” Emeric replied. “Well, rather, Alex allowed you to enter his mind.”
“But…how?” Callie asked.
“I discovered yesterday that fear triggers your ability to Perceive,” Emeric explained. Callie remembered, as he spoke, that she had seen him murdering the girl yesterday only when he was about to attack her. “I told Alexander to focus on a vivid memory, and then to approach you in what you might consider a violent manner. In this way, you were able to enter his memory.”
“Great, thanks,” she bit off sarcastically.
“It was a worthwhile experiment,” Emeric said, offering no apologies. Callie shook her head in disbelief, understanding that, as a lab rat, she wouldn’t be receiving any four-star treatment. No one cared about stepping on the lab rat’s tail.
“Why couldn’t he see me? And why could I hear you?” she asked.
“When you are Perceiving, it is as though you are undergoing hypnosis,” Emeric explained. “You are using a deep part of your subconscious, but you are still fully aware of the world in which your conscious mind is living. You are able to hear what is happening in the present world, while simultaneously experiencing the memory with all of your senses. And, as I explained, no one in the memory is able to see or feel or even hear you. You are a bystander, a witness, and that is all. You cannot change the events of the memory; you are virtually powerless. But in equal measure, the memory cannot harm you. You might stand in a pit of fire and feel a burn, but your skin will be unscathed. It is nothing but an illusion, do you understand?” he asked.
“Not remotely,” Callie retorted. “But yeah, I get the idea.”
“Callista, you must learn to control this ability,” Emeric said. “Soon you will be able to enter whichever memory you choose without provocation.”
“How?” Callie asked.
Emeric nodded subtly at Alex. “Try to enter Alex’s mind again,” he urged. “He’ll be focusing on the same memory. See if you can penetrate the walls of that thought, escape the memory and enter a new one.”
She looked uncertainly towards Alex, who remained still on the other side of the room.
“Close your eyes,” Emeric instructed.
She did. She heard the cries of birds overhead, and felt a moist breeze against her cheek. In this quiet space, it was easy to forget where she was. “Clear your mind,” he said. She tipped her head back, experiencing the warmth of the sunrays pouring into the cave. “Try to distance yourself from where you are right now.”
She frowned. “I can’t,” she replied. She opened her eyes then and looked around, but found herself in the same spot she’d been in before. “I don’t understand.”
“Try,” he encouraged.
“I can’t ,” she huffed, frustrated. “I don’t know what you mean.”
She heard him sigh, and then, all at once, the world tilted off of its axis. She let out a cry of shock and felt a wave of nausea roll over her as, before she could blink, she was thrust back into the present.
She stumbled forward, reaching out blindly to catch her balance. But then she opened her eyes, and saw that she was standing on a wooden floor again. She blinked, and looked up. The two men stood before her once more, and now both were able to see her. Alex stood a small distance away.
“What was that?” she asked.
“You projected yourself into Alexander’s mind,” Emeric replied. “Well, rather, Alex allowed you to enter his mind.”
“But…how?” Callie asked.
“I discovered yesterday that fear triggers your ability to Perceive,” Emeric explained. Callie remembered, as he spoke, that she had seen him murdering the girl yesterday only when he was about to attack her. “I told Alexander to focus on a vivid memory, and then to approach you in what you might consider a violent manner. In this way, you were able to enter his memory.”
“Great, thanks,” she bit off sarcastically.
“It was a worthwhile experiment,” Emeric said, offering no apologies. Callie shook her head in disbelief, understanding that, as a lab rat, she wouldn’t be receiving any four-star treatment. No one cared about stepping on the lab rat’s tail.
“Why couldn’t he see me? And why could I hear you?” she asked.
“When you are Perceiving, it is as though you are undergoing hypnosis,” Emeric explained. “You are using a deep part of your subconscious, but you are still fully aware of the world in which your conscious mind is living. You are able to hear what is happening in the present world, while simultaneously experiencing the memory with all of your senses. And, as I explained, no one in the memory is able to see or feel or even hear you. You are a bystander, a witness, and that is all. You cannot change the events of the memory; you are virtually powerless. But in equal measure, the memory cannot harm you. You might stand in a pit of fire and feel a burn, but your skin will be unscathed. It is nothing but an illusion, do you understand?” he asked.
“Not remotely,” Callie retorted. “But yeah, I get the idea.”
“Callista, you must learn to control this ability,” Emeric said. “Soon you will be able to enter whichever memory you choose without provocation.”
“How?” Callie asked.
Emeric nodded subtly at Alex. “Try to enter Alex’s mind again,” he urged. “He’ll be focusing on the same memory. See if you can penetrate the walls of that thought, escape the memory and enter a new one.”
She looked uncertainly towards Alex, who remained still on the other side of the room.
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