6. Ell-rom

6

ELL-ROM

E ll-rom searched his mind for any inkling that he had an opinion on the matters of divinity and the afterlife. There was nothing in his memories, but he often found himself invoking the Mother of All Life, so the belief must have been planted so deep in his subconscious that it hadn't been erased along with the rest of his memories.

Not erased, he corrected himself, suppressed.

Since some of his memories had resurfaced, then the rest were still buried deep in his subconscious and would, at some point, emerge as well.

In a way, it was a blessing. He was free to reshape himself and become the person he strived to be. The problem was that he didn't know who that person was either.

Did he want to be like Annani? A powerful leader who was loved and admired by the people?

If he ever had to assume a leadership position, that was how Ell-rom would like to be perceived, but he wasn't sure he wanted to be the center of attention like Annani. She seemed to thrive in the spotlight, but he wouldn't. It would be a burden to have to put on a show at all times. Ell-rom preferred to work as a backroom advisor, but the problem was that he couldn't even be that because he didn't have any knowledge or wisdom to impart.

Perhaps Morelle was more like Annani, a born ruler, and he had always been meant to assist her and protect her. Deep inside, on a visceral level, that was the role he felt most comfortable with.

His mind and heart didn't rebel against it.

They embraced it.

Would Jasmine be satisfied with a mate whose ambitions were so modest?

He cast her a sidelong glance, admiring the beauty of her profile. She was such an amazing woman, and her physical beauty was just a small part of what made her so. She was intelligent, kind to a fault, friendly, outgoing, and upbeat. She was soft when softness was needed and resilient when resilience was called for.

He didn't deserve her, and not just because of his modest ambitions.

He couldn't even give her something as basic as a venom bite.

"So, Ell-rom," Frankie pulled him out of his thoughts. "Have you considered what you might like to do with your life once fully recovered? Any interests you want to explore?"

He hadn't been paying attention to what had been discussed since Margo's comment about divinity and the afterlife, and he had no idea how they had shifted from talking about the funeral rites of the Kra-ell to his life plans. Perhaps Frankie had read his mind?

"I don't know yet. There is so much I need to learn about this world, starting with the language." He patted his earpiece. "This is a wonderful invention, but I would like to learn all the intricacies and nuances I'm sure are lost in translation."

"Hmm." Frankie scrunched her nose. "Immortals are fast learners of languages, so maybe that's what you can pursue."

"Is there much need for a Kra-ell English translator?"

"Probably not," Aru said. "By the time you learn English, the Kra-ell in the village will be fluent in it as well."

Frankie pursed her lips and turned to Margo. "Maybe Ell-rom could join the Perfect Match testing team? Since he has no experiences whatsoever to compare to, he could be good at evaluating the different adventures. He's completely unbiased."

Jasmine had mentioned the service but in the context of exploring her world and all it had to offer, not as an option of working for the enterprise.

"There is plenty of time for choosing an occupation." Aru pushed to his feet. "If you want a quick lesson on shrouding, it will have to be now before I return to my tinkering, as Gabi calls it." He cast his mate a fond look.

She grimaced. "It's Saturday. Can't you take the weekend off?"

"Not today, but perhaps tomorrow."

"That's better than nothing," Margo said.

"Let's go to the other penthouse," Aru suggested. "You will need to concentrate, and having people watching you is a distraction."

Ell-rom stood up and looked at Jasmine. "Do you want to come? It might be a useful lesson for when you turn immortal."

As soon as the words left his mouth, he stifled a wince.

He still wasn't sure how they were going to overcome the hurdle of his aversion. Maybe he should swallow his pride and ask Julian if it was possible to harvest his venom and inject it into Jasmine without him having to bite her.

She shook her head. "I want you to be fully focused. I'll stay here and chat with my friends until you are done."

"Actually, we need you," Aru said. "Ell-rom's shrouding will probably not work on me. I won't know if he's managing to do it or not."