Whisper (Whisper #1)(46)
“Come on, man, not the face!” Enzo wails, slapping a hand to his bleeding cheek.
Crew just grins in response. “No one gave me any limits. If anything, I’ve made improvements.”
The two of them descend into a verbal battle, but I turn my attention back to Ward, letting them argue it out in the background.
“As you heard,” Ward says, “Crew didn’t need to use a specific word to make his Speaking power work. ‘Avalanche’ has nothing do with ‘face punch’ or whatever he did to Enzo. So it wasn’t the word itself that caused the damage — it was Crew’s intention. What he imagined, happened. And he brought that imagination to life by focusing his mind and Speaking his intent into being, all in a tightly controlled manner.”
I tilt my head to show I understand, at least in theory. The practical application of control still eludes me.
Ward notes my silent response and reminds me, “Don’t forget, you can talk in here.”
Strangely enough, I had forgotten that. The idea still makes me anxious, if I’m being honest. But that’s also because with his words, I’ve just realized that the black Karoel might protect the outside world from whatever I can conjure down here, but what about Ward? What about Crew and Enzo? They’re in the room with me, not outside its protective walls.
Without thinking, I move forward until there’s no space between us. His body tenses at my proximity, but I’m too lost in my worries to care about just how close we are. Instead, I rise on my tiptoes to whisper in his ear, as if hoping my words will be less powerful since they’re nearly silent.
“What about you guys?” I lean in even closer, my voice barely audible. “You’re in here, not out there. What if I Speak something that can’t be undone?” I hesitate and confess, “It’s — it’s happened before.”
His hands move to my waist, and he pushes me back down so he can see my face again.
“That’s what I’m here for,” he tells me quietly but firmly. “Nothing will happen unless I allow it to.”
He must read my skeptical look, because his hands on my waist — and I’m certain he doesn’t realize they’re still there, even if I’m all too aware of them — give a comforting squeeze.
“Think of me like a filter,” he says. “You can’t see it, but I’m using my ability to monitor the power behind every syllable that comes out of your mouth. And I’ll continue to do so until you’ve learned enough control that I’m confident you’re not infusing your words with unconscious intent. I wouldn’t ask you to Speak if I thought you would do any permanent damage. You need to believe that.”
I hold his eyes for a long moment, until I finally nod my acceptance and breathe out a single word: “Okay.”
It’ll be his fault if my training goes to hell — and takes innocent victims along for the ride.
“Okay,” he repeats, and only then does he release me, take another step backward and return to his lesson on intention. “As I was saying, the words we use don’t directly affect anything, but for Speakers like you who are in the early stages of learning control, they help provide a focus of sorts. For example, if you had used the word ‘avalanche,’ given the scope of your ability, I’d be willing to bet that the results would’ve been a lot different to what happened with Crew.”
I look at him with alarm, afraid of what he’s just so casually revealed, but he tilts his head toward where Enzo and Crew are still throwing insults at each other, oblivious to our conversation.
“When we say things, the language centers in our brain call forth visual imagery,” Ward explains. “I say ‘elephant,’ and you automatically see an elephant. You don’t see a spaceship or a tablecloth — you see a hulking gray beast with a long trunk and big flappy ears. That’s just how our minds are programmed — to recognize and match what we say to things we imagine. And that’s why, even though it’s the intent that matters, often our words come automatically with their own pre-attached power. Are you with me so far?”
Am I with him? I’m practically hanging on his every word. Despite that, I play off my desperation with a flippant, “Say ‘elephant’ — see elephant. Got it.” Before he can call me on my attitude, I add, “It’s not rocket science, Ward, and I’m not an idiot. You’re good to move on.”
His face darkens, and he opens his mouth to respond, but before he can, Cami prances into the room.
“Looks like I arrived right on time,” she says, moving directly over to Enzo.
She places her hand against his cheek and whispers something too low for me to hear. A soft light glows around her fingers, and when she pulls her arm back, Enzo’s face is completely healed.
I’m staring at them in shock, more answers suddenly sliding into place. More questions, too.
Cami notices my wonder first and takes pity on me. “I can use words to heal physical injuries — some mental ones, as well.”
A memory flitters across my mind from the morning I first met her. After I broke down and ran to the bathroom, she embraced me and told me everything would be okay. I remember that despite thinking she was wrong, her soft words still calmed me, offering an almost unnatural sense of peace.
“You’ve used your ability on me before,” I guess.