Chapter 7: The Pain of Transfer

Dinner seemed to last an eternity. I kept to myself for most of the dinner. I couldn’t concentrate on anything but the request Grace had asked me. Was I really going to go through with whatever she was talking about? I understood how serious the situation was, but if something happened to me… what would happen to my sister? Felicia awoke me from my thoughts.

“Eli, dinner has been over for fifteen minutes. Why are you just sitting here?” I hadn’t even realized that dinner was over. I had entirely muted the world outside.

“Oh… sorry. I got caught up in my own thoughts I guess.”

“It’s about what Grace asked… isn’t it?” Felicia looked at me with concern.

“Yes. I really want to help, but I’m positive I’m not a ‘Divine One.’ It sounds like what she is wanting to do won’t accomplish anything but kill me.”

“I understand. I’m not going to lie to you. It is dangerous.”

“What is transfer exactly? How does it work?”

“Well, transfer is basically a way of absorbing the life force from someone through touch. However, it isn’t used much because it requires several individuals with high capacities of transmaculation to actually be effective.”

“Wait… so what is this supposed to accomplish? I feel like trying to absorb the life force of a Divine One isn’t exactly the smartest thing to do.”

“To be honest… I’m not really sure what King Vulcan told the Empress. The details allude me.”

As Felicia finished, the doors to the dining room opened abruptly.

“Ah, there you are Eli. I was wondering where you were when you didn’t come back to the room.” Grace was standing in the doorway, a bead of sweat rested on her forehead. She seemed flustered.

“Have you given any more thought to what I asked earlier?”

“I-I don’t know Grace. I have a little sister back in my own world who is waiting on me. If something happens to me, what will happen to her?” I wasn’t trying to guilt trip her. I was simply stating the facts of my situation. This wasn’t a decision I could make lightly.

“I know Eli. I wouldn’t ask you unless I was desperate. The people that depend on me are helpless, and I-I can’t do anything about it.” Her voice became quivered. “I’m not going to force you to go through with this, but I really need your help. Even if there is a 2% chance this could work, it’s the highest chance we have of stopping this destruction.”

She looked up at me in desperation. I couldn’t imagine the pain she was going through. Was I being selfish? Hundreds of thousands of people were dying, and I didn’t want to go through with the transfer because I was scared. I had avoided everything else in my life because I was “scared” of something. Scared of what others may think of me… scared that something bad would happen. I had missed so many things in my life just because I wouldn’t take the leap of faith. It was time for things to change.

“I-I’ll do it.”

“Eli! Are you sure?! This isn’t something you should take lightly.” Felicia spoke up. A look of worry spread across her face. For someone so calm, it was cute to see her so worked up.

“I’m sure. I’ve thought about it, and if there is a chance that I can save the people here, I’ll do whatever I can.”

“Thank you, Eli. This means more to me than you know. You’ve given up a lot already.” Grace smiled and became flushed on both cheeks. She could be extremely warm when she wanted to be.

“Alright. Well, if we are going to do this, let’s do it before I change my mind.”

Felicia looked over at Grace. “I don’t think we can do it with just the two of us. We are going to need Suri also. I’ll go and prepare the room.” Felicia left the room leaving Grace and I at the table.

“So, I know that, by using transfer, you will be absorbing my life force, but what is that supposed to accomplish?”

“Well, according to King Vulcan, the documents indicate that a Divine One’s power may be stunted when they first come through the portal. The only way to bring out their power is to take their life force to such a low level that it forces their powers to activate to save their host.”

“I guess it makes sense. It doesn’t make me feel any better though.” I smiled wryly.

“It is dangerous, but we will do our best to make sure that nothing goes wrong during the process. Suri and Felicia are two of the most powerful transmaculators I know.”

Grace’s reassurance didn’t exactly put me at ease. I mean they were literally taking my life from me. I doubt anything she said could make me feel better about the process.

“We are ready.” Felicia entered the dining room and called over to Grace and me.

I stood up from my chair and made my way out of the dining room behind Grace and Felicia. This is crazy. What am I doing? Worried thoughts swirled in my head.

We made our way through the maze of the underground city and entered a room that resembled an execution chamber from the 1940s. In the middle of the room sat a wooden chair with straps for both the feet and the hands. On the far wall, King Vulcan sat with, what I guessed, was his advisors. There was nothing else in the room and only one candle lit chandelier hanging from the ceiling for light. It was eerie to say the least.

“I give it a 1 out of 5 stars.” I grinned toward Grace, Felicia, and Suri hoping to break the tension, it didn’t.

“We know how it looks, but we can’t risk having too much in the room because this is a first for all of us. We don’t know what will happen. The straps are for your safety. We need you to take your shirt off also.” My safety? Sure… sure.

“Well, I guess standing here is just delaying the inevitable.” I removed my shirt and took a seat on the rickety wooden chair. Felicia and Suri began strapping my arms and legs. It was uncomfortable being so out of control of my own body.

“Alright. Eli, are you ready to begin?” Grace looked at me with concern.

“Yeah. Let’s do it.”

I felt a pair of cold, sweaty hands land on my chest. It was Suri, and she looked as if she might faint.

“Suri, you ok?”

“Yeah. It’s just my first time using this much transmaculation at once.”

Seconds later, Felicia and Grace placed their hands on my chest. This would be nice if they weren’t about to suck the life out of me.

“Alright Eli, on the count of three we will begin by starting with Suri, then Felicia, and then myself. We have to go in the order of our own transmaculation capacity or risk overloading you too quickly. I’m not going to lie. This is going to hurt.” Huh, who would have thought that Grace was the person with the highest capacity for transmaculation here.

“One… Two… Three.”

As soon as Grace finished counting to three, I could feel Suri’s hands begin to warm, and it felt as though blood was being drawn from my body. Next, Felicia’s hands began to warm, and finally, Grace’s hands warmed. For the first few seconds, it wasn’t any worse than getting blood drawn. However, after a minute, the pain set in. It felt as if someone was stabbing me in each location where their hands made contact with my body. The pain continued to rise steadily.

“AHHH!”

“Are you alright Eli?”

“Yes, just keep going!” I could barely speak at this point, and I found that moving made my joints feel as though they may collapse.

The pain began to amplify at a more rapid pace. I wasn’t sure if I could tolerate it for much longer. I began to squirm in my restraints.

“Maybe we should stop… this is clearly painful for Eli.”

“If you stop now, he will die.” King Vulcan spoke up from behind my chair.

Grace and the others gave me a sympathetic look but continued the transfer. The pain was at such a high point that I couldn’t speak or move. I didn’t know whether I was in shock or whether my body had just given up at this point.

Another thirty seconds passed by and black dots began blurring my vision until finally, my vision went black completely.