“Which part?”
“Any of it. How did you take over the link like that? That surprised me, then you took everything else! I was sort of all right, until it all went black. I don’t think I’ve ever been so terrified in my life.”
“Control of the link is a matter of will. The initiator has a slight advantage, but unless they’re close to the strength of the person that they’re holding, they won’t be able to maintain it in a contest.”
“I’ve been attaching to you easily enough, though.”
“That’s because I’m cooperating. It isn’t a matter of skill. It’s a matter of will, which is something that comes from time, experience, and what type of training you do.”
She stared at him thoughtfully. “Well you don’t have me on time or experience, so it must be whatever weird training your original master gave you, right?”
He grinned. “Probably.”
“Maybe you can teach me someday?”
“Maybe. It was pretty horrible, not to mention risky. Let’s talk about that some other time.” They returned to practicing, and after another twenty minutes Janice eventually had the hang of how to do what he wanted.
“All right,” he told her. “Let’s do it again, but this time don’t release it. Keep me locked inside myself.”
“For how long?” she asked.
That was an excellent question, one for which he didn’t have a good answer. Once she had locked him inside himself and disconnected him from his own source and senses, he would have no way to signal Janice when he wanted her to release him. He thought about it for a minute, then made up his mind. “Give it fifteen minutes. If it hasn’t been long enough then I’ll ask you to do it again.”
“And if it has been long enough?”
“Then I won’t say anything. I’ll seem like I’m asleep, or dead maybe. I’m not sure what my body will be like exactly, since I hopefully won’t be in it.”
“Are you sure this is safe?”
“Perfectly,” he lied, but when Janice tilted her chin downward in disbelief, he stopped. “It’s a little risky. I’ve only done it a few times before, and those were by accident.”
She seemed pleased by the honesty, but not completely swayed. “Tell me again why I should help you do this if it puts you at risk.”
“Because it’s the only chance I have to help someone I care about.”
“A fae woman who couldn’t possibly return the same concern,” clarified Janice.
“If she doesn’t, it won’t work,” said Will. “There has to be some sort of bond between us for me to find her.”
She seemed to come to a decision, and when she spoke again it was with no uncertainty in her voice. “Lie down and close your eyes.”
Chapter 23
Wrapped in a void, Will could sense nothing of the outside world. Losing his vision wouldn’t have been too bad on its own, but he couldn’t feel his body either, and perhaps most disconcerting, his source was gone. There was nothing left of him but a disembodied mind trapped in a sea of darkness.
Unlike the first time he had experienced it, he wasn’t panicked. When Aislinn had done it to him, it had been sudden and without him understanding what she was about to do. This time he had chosen it. Hopefully terror wasn’t the key factor. If it was, he likely wouldn’t succeed.
Rather than try to reach Tailtiu immediately, Will envisioned Janice in his mind. She was close, and they were friends, so there was no doubt in his mind that there was a connection between them. Focusing on her, he began to feel a pressure, as though he was trapped inside a bubble and fighting to pull himself out. It was similar to what he had felt when he had deliberately tried to escape his body, but it wasn’t as strong this time.
Losing all physical sense of myself must weaken the barrier, he thought, promptly losing his image of Janice. He tried again, keeping his mental image firm this time. Once more the pressure built, and then with a sudden rush of light, he was out.
Janice