What could he say? Each time he tried resisting the urge to speak the truth, a wave of exhaustion overwhelmed him. It was as though he was using his bare hands to stop a tsunami. There was a strong compulsion to look at Epona. He wanted to see her reaction. Yet he held himself back, choosing to look at the entrance of the security room.
"If you really want an exit, then you are going to find one at the end of this month," said Brigid. "But before then, why not do something valuable?"
"That wis no necessary," said Epona, her voice still managing to hold a certain tone of respect. Despite what she felt, it seemed that she would never let go of the idea that Brigid was still the team's leader. It was understandable. After years working together, it would be hard to forget that fact, especially when the leader was the one who had been guiding them forward all along. Without Brigid, the entire structure of the team would fall apart. They would be aimless and perhaps, without any purpose.
"If you speak again against the team next time, I will step down and you shall lead us." That was an ultimatum. The reaction from Epona spoke a thousand words, each one telling the story of just how much she didn't want to bear the burden of leadership. Yet she didn't cower. She looked up at the ceiling and closed her eyes.
Maitho thought back to what Epona had told him in the car. The team was the only thing that was keeping her from self-destructing. "Before I say anything, why do you need to know so much about my power?" he asked.
He knew what to expect. Brigid was taking every advantage she got to hold a level of superiority over him. She was making up for all those times when he had, without intending to, taken the power away from her. It was a petty reaction, but it was all so that she could be the most commanding person in the room.
Brigid surprised Maitho when she started speaking. "I will do anything to save my team. Anything. I will use any advantage, even if that was in the form of a person." She lifted up a finger to make it point at him while her palm was still pressed against her knee. "You might not like what I say, but you must, at the very least, agree to what I have to do." She leaned forward. There was determination in her eyes. No, not just that. There was something even more potent. A purpose. This was what she wanted to do and she meant to see it through to the end. Maitho felt even more unnerved. But he kept his face as straight as possible. "I also think that this is what you want," Brigid continued. "Go ahead and harbor a ball of hate with my name on it. It does not matter. If that makes you feel better, then I shall not deprive you of that freedom. But regardless of the host of feelings you have about me, you can't deny that you will be saving a few people."
The resistance within Maitho was growing. It was like a creature that was multiplying at an alarming rate. The only way to rid himself of its presence was to let it all out. "You want to save just a few people?"
Brigid shrugged. "We just discovered today that the people we want to save don't deserve the second chance that they received. Far better to save the people you know deserve it, than those whom you probably think deserve it."
"So just the four of you?"
Brigid frowned, then her eyes widened in understanding. "You mean Quinn? Oh, no. Not at all." She wagged her finger like a metronome. "He isn't a Guardian."
"He is one of you," said Maitho. Even though he was trying to be careful about the way he sounded, he couldn't entirely hide the plea in his voice.
"He is a tool by the Gods. One that has lost its purpose."
"Whatever he did, it was for a good reason. He simply wa—"
"That's not your concern, Maitho. You're not part of our pantheon, so you don't get to speak about its politics." She scoffed, layering her words with a tinge of disbelief and condescension.
Maitho took a moment to take in a deep, but inaudible, breath. "If you have something planned, then you include him. That's the only way I'm helping you."
She clicked her tongue in a show of annoyance. She reached forward and traced Maitho's jawline. "That was quite impressive. I might just tell the car how you stood up for him. But you don't realize that you are not the one to create any contracts between us." She flicked at his chin, chuckling when he jerked his head back.
"Why go to this extent?" he asked, trying his best to ignore her action and try to think of another avenue of approach. After all, if everything else failed, he wanted to at least make sure that Quinn was not harmed. "What is wrong with all of us working together?"
The transformation on her face was in stark contrast to the mocking visage she had displayed before. It was like watching the late afternoon transform into the dark hours of the night in an instant. She made no attempt to hide the raw fury she was feeling. Her cheeks sunk inwards as the corners of her lips shifted towards each other. "Everything is wrong with trusting an outsider to do what's right. The last time we did that, we lost one of our own. Someone we cared about. Someone I—". Her voice trailed off, but her anger remained. "The person responsible for all of that is still out there. He has gone back to his own pantheon without consequences. And now he has turned against the very people who accepted him in the first place."
"I'm not responsible for what Raiden did."
"But you are responsible for what you are going to do."
Maitho exhaled loudly through his nose. "We're going back to where we started. I have—"
"Good," said Brigid. "That's where we should have remained until all of this had blown over." She was leaning so far forward that it almost seemed as though she would tip over and fall. Her face was inching closer to Maitho's. The angrier she got, the closer she moved, as though she was trying to show what she was going through but she felt as though Maitho was not paying enough attention.
Maitho felt some of his fighting spirit return. He realized that because he was not paying attention to himself, he had let loose some of his true character to slip through. But that only meant that when in control, he actually wanted to avoid a conflict. Why? What was he so afraid of?
"I don't care if I have to use a hundred people. Or a hundred more. I will do it to make sure that the three of us make it out of this unscathed." Her face reverted to its previous state and she allowed herself to sit up straight. "I don't care about you. I do want to use you. But in the end, you want to make sure," she pressed her lips, as thought she had tasted something detestable, "that your friends are okay. I'm talking about the precious Quinn and perhaps even Bevan and Epona. That is, if you do care about them."
He did. Even though he wanted to somehow try to say that he didn't just so he could make things a little easier for himself, he knew that he cared about them enough to worry about their fate. He had no idea what Cray or Raiden were up to. But if they were going to challenge the Gods, then they had to have planned something huge. Something that could cause harm to the people in the room.
"What if Cray's plan does not involve any casualties?" said Maitho. He knew it was a weak attempt to reason. But what other choice did he have?
Brigid raised one eyebrow. "I knew you were no different from Raiden. He took the side of the enemy and now you do too."
Maitho cursed himself inwardly for not predicting that she would twist his question to her own benefit. He was about to say something in response when Brigid shook her head.
"You're more unpredictable than I thought," said Brigid. "Possibly more dangerous." She looked at Bevan. "This is what happens when you try to trust without reason. I hope, with all my will, that this serves as a lesson."
For the briefest of moments, Maitho saw the doubt spread across Bevan's face. The Celtic Guardian quickly recovered, but it wasn't too fast to prevent the jolt of contraction that gripped Maitho's chest.
Brigid twisted in her seat to look at the woman behind her. "Still want to try to speak for him?" Epona didn't react. "What a naive girl you are. I should have sharpened your will when I had the chance." The disappointment on the Celtic team leader's face was either truly strong or was one of the best displays of acts Maitho had ever seen.
"Let's not waste time, Maitho," she said. Her palms tapped her thighs in anticipation. "Please answer the goddamn question about your power. What does it do? What does it not do?"
They had finally stopped the dance of words and had reached the heart of the matter. More of Maitho's defenses started restraining him. He felt like a mental filter was trying to hold back the words from forming in his mouth. Yet, he knew that Brigid was right. He thought he would not let it happen, but he had nonetheless formed a connection with the Celtic team. Maybe not with all their members. But that didn't matter.
He was going to die. That possibility was becoming truer as each hour passed. He found it funny that he had reached a point where he was counting towards his own death in hours. He did a rough math. There were a little under three hundred hours left before darkness came for him. That wasn't a lot of time to come up with a solution for all the obstacles he faced. In fact, he didn't feel as though there was enough time for him to do a lot of things.
"I can't just see the future," said Maitho. He noticed Brigid began to relax. She displayed her victory with the broadening of her shoulders and the upward tilt of her chin. Behind her, Epona gave a slow shake of her head. He understood. He was revealing the very reason that Cray and Raiden wanted him on their team, or at least according to Erik. "I can see if a calamity is about to fall on someone. I can see from anyone's perspective, provided I have been in their presence for a while. I can't just jump to a point in time. It's just a few minutes in the immediate future." Maitho shrugged, trying to make it seem like it wasn't a big deal. In reality, he felt that he could not breathe in a steady rhythm. He could feel the flush spread across his face. "That's really all it is. I guess it is a form of foresight." He stopped, thinking if he should continue further. There was of course the one bit of information that he still hadn't revealed yet.
He couldn't use his ability more than three times in a day.
He didn't know why that was and he had often tried to push himself to use his power more often. During one month, he had managed to save the victim within just ten days. The remaining days of the month were spent finding ways to force his powers to activate beyond the three-per-day limit. He tried yoga, focused on happy thoughts, and even changed his diet. Nothing seemed to work.
Brigid gave a short laugh. She shook her head and pushed her tongue against the inside of her cheek. "I don't believe this," she said, staring off at nothing in particular. "Goes to show that hope is a bad thing." She got up from the armrest. Maitho was genuinely confused. "You're as scheming as the rest of them, yet for some reason you think you are better."
"I haven't lied," said Maitho defensively.
"Uh-huh. I guess that's supposed to make me believe you."
Maitho's hand clenched. "Is there something specific you want me to say?"
"I guess I need to give a hint for the meager brain cells that inhabit your head," said Brigid. "How about the truth? How about the fact that you can see anything you want? Don't give me this ridiculous notion about the immediate future."
"That's nothing else to say," roared Matiho. His hand had gripped the sofa. The other hand had punched into the soft surface.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Bevan flinch so hard, it seemed as though he was electrified. The Celtic Guardian had pushed himself far against the other side of the sofa. Epona's mouth had dropped open an inch. Her eyes had widened, yet she wasn't showing all traces of shock. Her expression still retained some of the stoic control she had always displayed.
Brigid, on the other hand, was fuming. Maitho had watched her flinch, then become furious because he had caused her to react that way.
Too stunned to say anything, Maitho got up and began walking towards the only place he could think of at that moment. He headed towards the door that entered into the second hallway attached to the security room, which provided access to the small rooms. On his way, he vaguely remembered muttering something along the lines of, "I just need sleep." He didn't know if that was what he had said. He didn't care.
He heard Brigid speak behind him, her voice sounding as though it was traveling through water. "Keep an eye on him."
"Where are ye going?" Epona's voice asked the question.
"To save Jennifer. I'm not about to die because of him."
Maitho didn't remember entering the hallway. It was as though he was in a trance. He vaguely remembered walking past the door to the room he was given to rest when he had first visited the base. He had then doubled back, realizing he had missed his destination. There was also the stray thought that made him question if it was okay to use the Celtic team's room. They hadn't exactly given him permission. But he didn't bother answering it. Let them kick him out, if they so wanted to. He was tired.
The opening of his door cleared the fog of his mind. Something occurred to him.
He looked at the dark brown wood. Then turned his attention down the hall. There were four other doors. One of them belonged to Brigid's room.
This could be his opportunity.