Chelen City: Chapter Five, Part Two

Notes: Time to work through some stuff and lay the foundation for future conflict! And resolution, always resolution, but first–CONFLICT!

Title: Chelen City: Chapter Five, Part Two

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Chapter Five, Part Two

The Regen unit in Elanus’s office was enough to stabilize Ryu, but in the end, he had to go to a hospital. He got a private room and a private team, and really it was all probably overkill because the clot didn’t even have time to do a lot of damage as Elanus was able to target it efficiently—hell, he’s taken care of his own blood clots enough times to know what to do, even in the brain. Still, better safe than sorry.

People were informed. Information spread. Elanus watched it go out over the infonet and keyed in on whoever seemed particularly interested in accessing it and who went digging for more. It wasn’t that he didn’t believe Ryu has the drive to plan an assassination attempt himself, he was far from self-effacing, but he also wasn’t among the top tier of Gania’s elite. Elanus was. Deysan had been as well before he bit the hand that fed him. And while Elanus stood to inherit a large amount of Deysan’s research and facilities by dint of being owed a great deal as his former business partner, there were other interests out there too that he wanted to see for himself.

In the end, three people stood out. One was Caria Jayde, Deysan’s own sponsor back when he was a student. She was well over a hundred and fifty years old now, but Regen has worked wonders for her. She was aging, but like an elegant catterpet, slouching all over the planet from party to party and gracing her favored ones with her presence and, more importantly, her money. She didn’t seem to have been in contact with Deysan for the past fifty or so years, but Elanus wasn’t sure why. He’d have to dig to find out more.

Then there’s Fritz. One name only, a media personality and rising star in Ganian entertainment media. He looked like the sort of person Deysan would fuck on the side and otherwise ignore, but a deeper look indicated that Fritz had a hidden side—that of a very competent lawyer, all under a shell name of course. He had a particularly spectacular run defending the very wealthy in the courts—probably because he knew all the good blackmail. A person to watch.

The last standout was Restaria Sanclare. Restaria was…complicated. Not only because xe was Gania’s current vice president, but because xe and Elanus had once had a romantic relationship. In fact, they’d been introduced by Deysan, back when he was eager to deploy his protégé on the social scene and use him to snap up contracts. Restaria came from a long line of politicians, dirty and otherwise, and was the vice president in name only—in actuality, they did most of the work of running the planet while the actual president handled intersystem diplomacy. Elanus hadn’t talked to Restaria in years, not even about the refugees—he’d gone above xer head on that one.

There was the possibility that his choice would come back to bite him.

He closed his eyes and rubbed his temples, finally letting himself feel the fatigue that had been close to overwhelming him ever since he did a deep dive into his implant…shit, seven hours ago? He’d been sitting in this fucking hospital room listening to Ryu breathe and running himself ragged for seven hours? Where was Kieron?

A quick investigation showed him that Kieron had, with a little bit of difficulty, gotten himself back home over six hours ago. He hadn’t bothered to let Elanus know he was leaving—but then, how could he when Elanus had been so plugged into his own mind that he hadn’t even noticed the passage of time?

[Catie?] he sent out tentatively.

[Daddeeee!] At least she sounded happy to hear from him. [Where are you? We’ve been missing you for hours and hours!]

[I’m helping a friend.]

[That’s not what Keeeeeron says.]

Elanus sighed. [Don’t listen to Kieron, he’s not thinking straight about this. I’m fine. Are you all right?]

[Yes. Want to hear about the play Lizzie and I made up? We got to be every character, and I made speeeecial skiiiiins for both of us, and Kieron said we were so pretteeeeee!]

He had to smile. [Yes, baby, tell me about your play.]

While he listened to her lay out the basic plot—something along the lines of Rapunzel, but with dinosaur pets and a wicked witch who turned out to be a secret mother—Kieron packed up and set up alarms that would let him know when Ryu woke up, if he was moved, and where he went. It was invasive, it was intrusive, and he did it without a second thought. He did have a third thought, though, and it sounded a lot like Kieron asking him not to take on more trouble than he could handle.

I’m already involved. Ryu is a walking laboratory, and I need access to him if I’m going to cure Elfshot Disease. Speaking of…

[Daddee?]

Elanus squeezed his eyes shut. Kieron would never forgive him if he involved the girls in this.

Fuck, he would never forgive himself if he opened them up to the sort of oversight that painted an even bigger target on them.

[Nothing, baby,] he said. [I’ll be home soon, all right? I’m really tired, so I’m going to go straight to bed, but I’ll come and see you first thing in the morning.]

[Okay, Daddeeee. I love you! Say goodnight to Daddeee, Lizzie!]

[Goodnight, Elanus,] Lizzie said in her slower, calmer voice. [I love you.]

Was he tearing up? Shit, he needed to not be tearing up. [I love you too,] he managed, then cut the connection before they realized he wasn’t being completely open with them. He glared at Ryu, lying there on the bed, pale but recovering well.

“We’re going to have words after I fix this, you shit,” he snapped, then headed for home. Elanus took the highest, most out-of-the-way tubes, giving himself longer than he needed to get home. He had resolutely refused to look into what Kieron was doing, mostly because he believed in offering his partner privacy but also, a little, because he was…he was…

He was afraid that if he looked, he might not find him where he expected him to be. And if he wasn’t there, if this fight had been enough to change Kieron’s mind, then Elanus might as well get someone to nudge his brain and send him into a coma, because the idea of having a man who fit him so well and captivated him so completely like Kieron and then losing him the first time he was stupid—well, all right, not the first time, he’d been stupid plenty of times, but still…

Elanus was so tense when he got home that he was actually numb, driven around the bend the other way. He avoided the girls, keeping their chatter as a hum in the back of his brain as he took off his shoes, stopped for some water and a nutrient shake in the kitchen, and finally, tentatively, stepped into his bedroom, where he found—

Kieron. In bed, chest bare and legs covered by the thin sheet. He looked asleep, but when Elanus joined him after cleaning up he found himself wrapped in a tight embrace moments later. Elanus held his lover back with a sigh of pure relief.

“I didn’t ask the girls for help.”

“Thank you.”

“I’m going to figure this out, though.”

Kieron kissed his collarbone. “I know you will. I’ll help as much as I can.”

“And I’m not going to keep Ryu away. I need to see what was done to him in order to reverse engineer it.”

There was a pause this time before Kieron finally let out a petulant sigh. “Fine. But if he comes here, I’m watching him.”

“Totally understandable.” Elanus looked down at Kieron. “Are we all right?”

“I think so.” Kieron shrugged. “Ask me after therapy tomorrow.”

Oh boy. “Or maybe not.”

“Or maybe not.” Kieron kissed him again. “Sleep well.”

“I will.” Now that I’m with you, I will.