Soul Mate Service - Chapter 32: Chapter 32

"Alright, you've got about thirty seconds to explain what the fuck is going on before my patience decides to take a hike." I tried my best to maintain composure, but through my cocky facade, my leg betrayed me, bouncing restlessly from the place where I sat across from Aria's parents.
They'd already requested that I pile all of our travel tablets in the farthest corner of our Housing Pod before burying them underneath multiple layers of blankets, and now, both of those nerds were perched uncomfortably on our couch, looking unnaturally rigid.
Their fidgeting only fueled my frustration.
This... situation was seriously not good for my sudden bout of incredibly overprotective urges, or the way that my fingers were twitching toward the bedroom. My rampant desire to be both anywhere that was not here and everywhere that was Aria was fucking with my already short attention span.
Attempting to keep my emotions in check, I ground my teeth until my jaw popped audibly.
I'd changed Aria into a nightgown and tucked his exhausted form safely into our bed before dragging myself out here to face whatever the fuck this bullshit was. But yet and still, the desire to shield Aria from anything and everything continued to gnaw at my soul, eating at me from the inside.
Quite honestly, the only thing that was keeping me from hurtling across the room and wrapping him up in my body like a life-sized shield was the fact that through our bond, I could clearly tell that he was still sleeping comfortably, completely oblivious to the fact that – not unlike a bomb on the brink of detonation – I was approximately two point six seconds away from blowing a fucking gasket.
Fortunately for her, that was also the very moment that Aria's mother began to speak, her voice trembling slightly as she fiddled with her fingers.
"We would truly prefer if we could discuss this with Aria present as well–"
"No." I was quick to respond, cutting their stupid ass request off before it gained any traction. "Aria's been through enough. You either tell me now or you leave."
A beat of tense silence passed, during which Bea and Milo shared a hesitant glance. And as I leaned back on the couch in challenge, crossing my arms across my chest and letting my legs fall open wide, I reveled in it.
Let them hesitate. I wasn't going to budge.
Milo sighed, reaching up to brush back a few strands of his salt and pepper-colored hair that hung in front of his sweat-streaked forehead. And when he spoke, his voice was low, as if he thought that at any moment, one of those decrepit ass Elders was going to jump out of the walls and arrest him for existing.
... Honestly, after the encounter Aria and I had just endured, I couldn't even fault him for it.
"W-well. We didn't think that things would escalate to this point. And quite honestly, there's still much we're unaware of." He said.
"Get to the point." I grumbled, unable to hide my annoyance any longer, a slight twitch forming at the corner of my lips.
"What we are trying to explain is that according to The Elders' plans, both you and Aria are not even supposed to exist!" Bea suddenly hissed, the words erupting from her lips like steam shooting from an air compressor.
And me?... Well, I was stunned.
So stunned in fact, that when the sound of hysterical laughter began to reach my ears, I barely even realized that it was coming from me.
"Hahahaaa, that's a good one!" I told them between hacking chuckles, holding out a hand as if to signal that I couldn't take any more. "Now if you're done trying to fuck with my head even more than The Elders have already done tonight, you two can see yourselves ou–"
"You need to wake up, boy," Milo's sudden, uncharacteristically serious voice caught me off guard a lil', I'll admit. And with it, my laughter disappeared, dissolving into the air as if it had never existed in the first place. "Not everything is a joke. And if you want to know what The Elders have planned for the future of your and Aria's mating, I suggest you start taking what we have to say very, very seriously."
For just a moment, I felt my tough exterior waver at Aria's dad's words. Because as much as I wanted to kick them the hell out of our Housing Pod on their bare asses, Aria's safety was now my number one concern. And just like that, I knew that there was no way in hell I could ignore this, no matter how much I kinda enjoyed the way I managed to make the nerds squirm under my blazing gaze.
"Alright," Running my tongue along my upper gumline, I shifted slightly on the couch, eyes narrowing, "I'm listening."
Milo took a deep breath, as if relieved that I'd somehow managed to see reason. And then, he took a moment to collect his thoughts before starting his speech.
"As you already know, Bea and I are the scientists held responsible for the genetic mutation that enables Aria to bear children," He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, "However, what The Elders have not disclosed about this 'breakthrough genetic technology,' is that..." He momentarily glanced back at Bea for reassurance, and his Soul Mate nodded, as if lending him the strength to finish his sentence, "Is that it was never meant to exist in the first place. At least, not according to what The Elders would have wished."
My brow raised, suddenly even more intrigued at the prospect of hearing anything about those bitchass Elders getting thrown off their proverbial high horse.
"What do you mean, according to The Elders?" I asked, my gruff tone revealing a hint of interest, "I mean, it seemed like they were fuckin' ecstatic about that science-y shit during the Soul Mate Ceremony."
"What we mean is that contrary to what The Elders would like everyone to believe, Aria's existence," Aria's mother paused, leaning forward with a very similar intensity to that of her husband. If I wasn't already so damn freaked out right now, I probably would've found it creepy. "It wasn't planned. His condition was a random genetic anomaly, and we still haven't been able to trace its origin. And that unknown is the issue. Not knowing – not having control – is what scares The Elders most."
Milo took over once again, and like a marionette, my head immediately swiveled over to him.
"The only reason that The Elders have even allowed Aria to get this far in life is because by the time we discovered the full capacity of his ability to carry a child to term, he was already almost of-age for the Soul Mate Ceremony," he explained, "and, because of you."
"Me?" I sputtered, leaning back into the couch cushions in a way that I was certain gave away my discomfort. "What the fuck does this genetic anomaly shit have to do with me?"
"You, young man, have everything to do with it." Milo chuckled incredulously then, as if the answer should have been clearly apparent, written across my forehead in permanent marker or some shit. "Do you happen to have experienced any... changes lately? Whether it be physical, mental..."
As he trailed off, I couldn't help but run my tongue over my upper gumline, remembering the sensation of canines, the euphoric feel of sliding them deep into Aria's nape, joining our very essences into one. And as I sat there with his words gradually sinking in, it all became alarmingly clear – the mood swings, the fiercely overwhelming need to protect, the bond between Aria and I, the way our bodies remained connected after...
My jaw ticked as my dull nails dug into the skin of my bicep, an odd kind of discomfort making my chest feel heavy.
"What does this mean." My words were an order, not a question. "Talk."
Milo took a deep breath.
"Somehow, you and Aria are... deeply connected," he began, "and it goes beyond that surface-level, genetic compatibility that the Soul Mate Service concerns itself with. No, this... it's something else, something deeper, something... that our science does not yet have the capacity to explain."
Bea continued, "We call it the Splice Deviation," Bea took over where Milo left off, "And based on what we do currently understand of it, we believe that our core genome sensed the inherent threat of our current environment and has essentially... adapted. And as a result of this, we believe that both you and Aria possess the first generation of genetics that make up a new type of human – a human capable of communication and connection far beyond the basic, six senses that homosapiens possess. A human designed to be resilient, to communicate through instinct, to protect one another at any cost, and to be much more in touch with our most basic of natures – the need to survive as a species."
"You see, Aria's genetic makeup, what we call the Bearer Genome, comprises of phenotypes that lean towards somewhat submissive tendencies, like those we once observed in those ancient, primal species that roamed the Surface before the war. And your genes, Thad, which are made up of what we call the Defender Genome, it's even more intriguing. From what little research we have been able to successfully conduct, we've discovered that your genome is inherently more aggressive, taking an active role in safeguarding both your chosen mate who possesses a compatable Bearer Genome, as well as any potential offspring you two might create together. And based on the physical manifestations that we hypothesize also come along with the Defender Genome... let's just say The Elders consider you a threat. And a majorone, at that."
... The amount of silence hanging in this Pod today would probably be enough for The Elders to find a way to use it in one of their public executions. Luckily though, the pause gave me enough time to re-play these crazy people's words in my mind again, trying my best to make sense of them.
By the time I started talking, I'd nearly fully understood their cryptic ass fucking riddle-speak.
"So..." I drew out the word, trying my best to act as if the sensation of my nails digging into my skin wasn't the only thing keeping me anchored to sanity right now. "you're saying that both Aria and I are actually some sort of experiment?"
"Not an experiment," Bea shot back, her eyes fierce, "Evolution."
"So... we're not experiments, but some kind of superior beings?" I felt a little lopsided smirk pull at the corners of my lips, unable to suppress the arrogance that flooded my veins, "I mean, even I could've told you that before you guys marched up here all nerdy and serious."
"You are not superior either, Thaddeus," Milo retorted, honestly making me deflate a little, "Just... different. Don't you see? Both you and Aria possess the ability to bridge the gap between where we currently are and what we have the potential become."
Suddenly lost in thought, my gaze faltered, slipping down to the coffee table that separated the space between us.
If what they said was true, did that mean that Aria and I would be subject to The Elder's fucked-up concept of discipline and control forever? Or at least, until they got what they wanted?
And even then, once they did achieve their goal of finding out the secrets of this genetic anomaly that Aria and I apparently were, what was stopping them from fabricating some bullshit accusations against us just to justify giving us three strikes and eradicating us from their impeccable gene pool for good?
Fuck.
Fuck.
This had the potential to be bad. Like really, really bad. And as my muscles flexed, gearing up for some unseen – but apparently very real – threat, my mind reeled. "And what if we don't want any part in this? What if we just want to go to our Work Units and live out the rest of our damn lives in peace?"
"But you see, that's just the thing," Milo continued, using his hands to emphasize his words, "Regardless of the fact that you didn't ask for this, the reality is that you two are at the forefront of it. Both you and Aria's existence are intertwined in a secret that The Elders will do anything to bury. And because of this, your lives will never be normal. Not until they put an end to this anomaly that they fear so much." He explained, confirming my own fears. "And you are the source of it."
Bea leaned back on the couch now, her expression now grave. "We have to admit that we've known about this for some time. But it wasn't until today that we became aware of the true extent to which they are willing to go to to get what they want." She paused, giving me at least a second to try and cope with all of this new information. "You see, The Elders don't lie because they think that it will hurt your feelings. They lie because they know that the truth would provoke you to make choices that don't serve their interests."
Her voice wavered, tears welling in her eyes, "But now, no matter what might happen to us for this... we can no longer stay silent about what they have planned. Not when it involves..." The tears flowed freely now, and Milo leaned over, pulling his Soul Mate into a close embrace, "not when it involves our son."
They exchanged tiny glances, but despite their tears, I was in no mood for their secrecy. And as my narrowed eyes bore into Bea and Milo, it suddenly became clear that there was obviously something significant they hadn't revealed to me yet. And whatever it was, I was going to find out. And this time, I wasn't even doing it for myself.
This was for the man that I loved.
For the man that I would give everything to protect.
"Tell me." I ordered, fire burning in my voice. And when they continued to hestitate, I stoked the coals. "Tell. Me."
It took Bea another long moment to finally find the ability to choke out the words, but when they finally came... rage became me.
"Today, our Genetic Research Unit was issued a warning," she started, "We are preparing to receive a new genetic specimen in the coming months, one directly related to the Splice Deviation Project. And our instructions related to it were to extract as much living genetic material from the specimen before performing a full autopsy to understand and permanently eliminate the anomaly."
A sinking feeling took hold of my gut. "A genetic... specimen?"
"Yes," Bea confirmed, just affirming my worst fears, "And it is our firm belief that this specimen that they speak of is none other than the very child they The Elders have relentlessly insisted on you and Aria conceiving."