The Lambert House, Planet Denver

[Manticore]

March 9th, 822 A.S.

"There are ways to help combat this...but...would you like to continue with other topics...or first go over treatments for this...?" Therai paused. "I am not a doctor...but I am aware of several methods that may help..."

He looked up, meeting her gaze. "Let's just... keep going. Might as well get all the problems out on the table before we start talking about fixing anything."

Therai nodded. "I agree...is there anything you would like to address next...?"

He shrugged. "Nothing comes to mind."

Therai gazed back at Lambert for a moment, before nodding. "I can only help with what you choose to share...but you need not...share anything if you do not wish to..."

Without warning, she winced and let out a small cough, covering her mouth with her sleeve.

"I don't know," he said, reaching around to rub the back of his neck. "I've got a lot of problems, to be honest."

Therai nodded slowly. "...That is...alright...

"...We could...talk of...your difficulty sleeping..."

"Alright. Sometimes I just can't sleep, sometimes the nightmares keep me up. My mind just won't rest - it has to... like... torment me."

"Describe them..."

"They vary. Sometimes they're about that creature... playing with my mind. Sometimes I'm losing someone I care about. Sometimes I dream about the things that I've lost..." Lambert trailed off.

"Anything else...?"

"Honestly, the ones that make me wake up in a cold sweat are about people. People close to me, who... turn their backs on me, or die, or leave. Yeah, those are the ones that really hurt. I dream about dying a lot, too. Million different ways... but those don't bother me so much anymore."

"Do any particular people recur...?"

"Of course. Pita. Rachel. Siara. Rohj. Chloe. Polstari. And others from the more distant past, though their faces are hazy in the dreams now..."

"...These people are important to you...?"

"Yes," Lambert said, simply.

"Are there specific actions...or means in which they die...that they take...that are recurrent...?"

"Yes," he repeated. "Pita doesn't always die - she's taken back to the Rogues sometimes. Rachel usually dies in battle - her ship will disappear in a fiery ball and I… won't be able to get to her. Siara tends to just... fly off into space. Not really dying, I guess. Just... losing interest."

"...I see..." Therai didn't write for the moment, simply eyeing him. "...I would like to try something...if you are willing..."

"Uh, sure..." Lambert responded, feeling slightly anxious.

Therai paused, tilting her head very slightly. "...If you are...not interested...then we should not...as I do not wish...to distress you..."

He visibly gathered himself. "If you think it'll help, I'm willing to try."

"...It would...be easier...for me...than asking...endless questions..."

"Sure, go ahead then."

"...Do not panic...please..." For the first time, a glimmer of doubt seemed to rise on Therai's face, the first true emotion to surface.

Lambert's features hardened, visibly steeling himself for whatever was to come. "Go ahead," he repeated.

Therai's hand moved to the cuff of her sleeve, tugging it gently, and she closed her eyes, taking a deep, slightly uneasy breath. When she opened them again, she was staring down at Lambert's knees, half-lidded, but the sheer blue glow unnaturally emitting from her eyes was plain to see.

A very, very gentle and warm presence surfaced in Lambert's mind, not at all intrusive, simply making him aware of its existence.

Therai met his gaze, then nodded silently. Once again, she had shrugged up her shoulders, shrinking a little bit.

Lambert shuddered, closing his eyes for a long moment. Finally, he spoke. "I know you were probably expecting a more dramatic reaction but... I have also been exposed to your kind in a positive way. I don't believe you will do to me what the... monster... did."

Lambert raised his chin and opened his eyes, looking at her with a defiant cast in his eye, as if daring her to say otherwise.

Therai's face said nothing, but the presence in his mind surged with warmth and relief.

As he gazed at her, Lambert slowly and deliberately allowed the presence in - as he'd done once long ago.