Chapter 170 – 'Uncle'

[2009 – October]

Waking up from her short slumber, Celeste felt a strange sense of 'lightness', on top of feeling well-rested. She wasn't quite sure what had changed but it felt as if someone had reduced the gravity that acted upon her lithe form.

Slowly opening her eyes, she realized that she was still laying on the sickbed in the medical ward, and while Emma wasn't sitting by her bedside, Celeste saw her mother sleeping on the bed next to her while someone else was resting on the small couch that was placed before the wall opposite to her bed.

The stranger was a dark-haired young man and a very handsome one at that, at least that was the case according to her limited judgement.

He seemed somewhat peculiar though as he was playing some kind of game with a tiny black bird in his lap, laughing lightly with a gentle smile on his face as he intermittently teased and stroked the hooting avian with careful gestures.

It was a curious sight for Celeste as she had never seen a real animal, much less one so tiny and fragile that was being cared for by man many times its size.

Her telepathy didn't allow her to connect with the mind of the tiny featherling as something seemed to obstruct her, but that didn't stop her from sensing its joy, nor the incredible affection that it had for the young man, its emotions radiating off it into the psionic field.

Celeste wasn't an empath as she couldn't control another person's emotions directly, but as an incredibly powerful telepath, it was comparatively easy for her to take note of the emotions of other sentient beings.

Generally speaking, empathy and telepathy weren't two completely separate disciplines when it came to the manipulation of another's mind.

While an empath could only read and manipulate the emotions of someone else, a telepath had the ability to manipulate the mind in its entirety, they were however not able to directly alter someone's emotions.

What most telepaths did could be considered an indirect form of emotional manipulation as they could place specific thoughts and/or memories in the mind of another being that affected their emotions.

It was impossible for them to control emotions that did not exist though, which was the most crucial difference between an empath and a telepath, as an empath could directly 'implant' emotions into the mind of another being.

Still, it was difficult to tell the difference sometimes as a skilled telepath could seamlessly alter the mind and force someone to develop emotions that one normally would not have. This though required a level of skill that hardly a handful of telepaths possessed.

Celeste was naturally aware of all this and she also knew that her mother was one of the few people that were said to be capable of such feats.

But as she quietly watched the exuberant little owl play with the young man, the smile that had unknowingly found its way onto her face disappeared as a hint of fear appeared in her eyes, goosebumps spreading over her skin.

It had taken her a moment but Celeste suddenly realized that she couldn't sense the young man's emotions. In fact, she couldn't sense the presence of his mind at all with her psychic powers.

It was as if he didn't exist for her psychic senses.

Even when she had been held captive in the Facility, Celeste had never met someone that she couldn't sense. Her abilities had been nullified by suppression devices most of the time but that had only caused her to be unable to actively use her psychic powers, it hadn't stripped her of her inborn senses.

Being unable to sense the mind of the young man caused Celeste to be instinctively fearful of him.

It was somewhat similar to being unable to see someone even if one's other senses made it clear that there was indeed another person besides oneself. Most people would feel frightened and uncomfortable when coming across such a strange thing.

Still, having survived horrors that would have broken lesser minds, Celeste managed to overcome her fright and calm herself as she addressed the strange young man.

"W-Who are you?", she asked lightly, causing the dark-haired teen to look up, though his gaze lacked any surprise at her sudden question which had broken the quiet atmosphere that had settled over the room.

Smiling lightly, he parted his lips and replied calmly as he simply stated: "My name is Elijah."

Nearly gasping out loud as she heard this short sentence, Celeste's eyes widened in no small amount of shock as she realized that she was looking at the powerful mutant that had not only saved her from the fangs of the Facility but was also her mother's younger brother.

It was easy to recall her mother's words when describing the power that the young man in front of her possessed. In fact, it was only a single word, though since it was spoken by one of the most powerful mutants on the planet, the weight it carried was rather significant.

Immeasurable.

That's what her mother had said.

With gratitude and no small amount of curiosity in her heart, Celeste spoke up again.

"I am Celeste.", she introduced herself, hesitating for a moment before she continued, "Em- … M-Mother told me that you helped her save me. T-Thank you."

Feeling a bit strange at calling Emma her mother, Celeste did it anyway, a surge of comfort sweeping through her heart at the knowledge that she wasn't alone even after having lost her sisters.

"There is no need to thank me.", Elijah stated with a light shake of his head while placing the tiny avian in his palm and leaning back into the soft cushion, "You are Emma's daughter and a Frost. That alone is enough for me to save you."

Unfathomable green eyes looked at her as he said those words, faint hints of compassion and care in them.

Biting her lower lip as an unfamiliar warmth spread through her form, Celeste gave a quick glance in Emma's direction. Seeing that she was still asleep, she couldn't help but tentatively voice out a question that weighed on her mind.

"She said that I don't have to worry about them finding me again with you around.", she began hesitatingly, "I- … Am I really safe?"

Raising a brow in what seemed like surprise, Elijah sighed as he smiled lightly, helplessly shaking his head as he gave his sister's sleeping form a look.

"It seems that she didn't tell you how I saved you.", he said quietly before adding, "Though I think you should know. It will set your heart at ease."

And suddenly, from one moment to another, Celeste felt the unfamiliar mental presence of her 'uncle', which made her wonder about the nature of his abilities. With just a superficial sweep of her psychic senses, she also caught a few glimpses of some images, part of Elijah's memory seemingly easily accessible to her.

Taking it as the invitation that it was, Celeste said nothing as she just quietly closed her eyes and watched what he wanted her to see. Though it took less than half a minute before she gasped out loud, wholly terrified by the sheer power and destruction that Elijah had unleashed in the memory.

Opening her eyes a few long moments later while trying to calm her breathing, Celeste wasn't sure what to say as she looked at her uncle, who was practically the living embodiment of calamity.

Her heart couldn't help but tremble a bit as she suddenly had a completely new understanding of her mother's description of Elijah, not to mention that she now also understood why Emma had been so confident that the Facility would not try to find her.

Not to mention finding her, it was nearly impossible for the organization to survive Elijah's assault even if some members had been lucky enough to not be in the base at the time of the attack.

As for others who might be after her gifts and wanted to use her as a weapon? Well, no one in their right mind would risk angering her uncle as he was destruction incarnate, his wrath more dangerous than any strategic weapon on Earth.

His mental presence once again vanished without a trace and his deep eyes looked at her with serenity as he said: "I don't know who or what you were before we saved you, nor do I have any idea what your plans are from here on out. But as of this moment, you belong to this family, and I will protect you as long as that is the case."

There was no caring or grave undertone in his voice as he spoke words that could be understood as a promise as well as a warning. Like his eyes, his words were filled with calm and truth, as if his will alone could make it so.

He didn't say anything else, there being no need for any threats as she had seen the nightmarish demon that was hidden beneath his charming exterior.

Rising from his seat, he turned to the door and placed the tiny avian on his shoulder while telling her: "Rest well, I am going to get you something to eat. I am sure that you are hungry."

"