For five days, the settlement was filled with intense activity. The prefabricated houses were completed, and the Reborn were decorating them, storing the utensils Soyo had delivered early each morning.
What caught my attention was that, unlike the villages on Earth, the houses had electrical appliances. Still, I chose not to question it. They were different species, different intelligences.
The sun had just cleared the mountain, and the cold still lingered, yet some Seliums were already bathing naked in the lake. With its rocky bottom, crystal-clear water, and shallow area near the village, it had always been their favorite place for leisure.
“Come stay with us, William,” Warrian called, brushing her red hair from her face and revealing her beautiful, almost golden eyes.
The day before, when I had kissed her navel, Warrian hadn’t cried like most of the others. Instead, she had clung to me and kissed me with such intensity that I nearly lost my composure. My mind was numb with so many emotions and doubts about them. I felt like tearing my own heart out, because what I felt didn’t align with reason.
“I’ll pass,” I smiled, and without realizing it, looked at her with affection. “It’s too cold for me.”
I headed toward the Mirtis, which would soon depart carrying the Sekvens. That night, everyone would sleep in their houses—three people in each. The Sekvens had already said goodbye the night before with a small celebration, enchanting the Seliums with music, dancing, and delicious food. Still, I wanted to talk about what to do next. That was why they were still there.
“Good morning,” I greeted Zircon at the ship’s entrance.
“Come in. They’re waiting for you.”
In the same room where everything had begun for me, I found them seated together, exchanging kisses and smiles. I sat down and waited, struggling to withstand the energy of their bond without losing myself in it. I wondered how it was possible to spend more than a third of the day clinging to one another and still radiate so many emotions.
“So, my love…” Melissa said, smiling. She smiled again, and I no longer knew why I was there. “Put it into words,” she insisted.
“How do I deal with the Seliums?”
“We don’t know. This is the first time it has happened,” she replied, as if it were perfectly natural.
“But you love hundreds—thousands—at once,” I said, almost letting my despair show.
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“Loving all of them is normal,” she replied. “Are you worried about sex? You’ll have something we don’t.”
My expression made Sacha smile.
“We’re talking about love in its purest form. We know you’ll manage and be happy. Let love carry you, as it has so far.”
“I’ll never be able to give all of them the attention they deserve. What you’re asking is impossible.”
Melissa wrinkled her nose, but Kane spoke instead.
“You’re bound to mortality. You think in terms of thirty-six-hour days, but for us, a single day can last years.”
“Your concern makes sense,” Melissa said, trying to see things from my perspective. “What you feel is immense love for hundreds of women who love you just as intensely, and you don’t want—and won’t be able—to treat them like objects. That happened because of our influence, and there’s no going back.”
She paused, exchanging silent information with her partners.
“Tariel has already told you. We’re going to turn you into another species, because without that, you won’t be able to have children with the Seliums.”
“I won’t be human anymore?” I asked, pressing one hand against the other.
“You wouldn’t be anyway,” Sacha replied. “The original idea was to turn you and your partner into Sekvens, but, like you, we were surprised. And it’s been exciting.”
I had always found them fascinating. Being a Sekvens was a dream—belonging to them, understanding them. But it was enough for them to make me even slightly similar—especially in the way love flooded my chest—for me to lose my balance. I felt small. Incapable of understanding my own feelings.
“Selium DNA is complex and extremely stable. Human DNA, on the other hand, is malleable—and that’s why we exist,” Melissa explained. “It’s also easy for us, Sekvens, to access human thoughts and memories. That being said, the only path is to turn you into a Selium. You, Anastácia, and Ana.”
“We’ll also modify the Reborn and Tariel,” Kane continued. “We’ll give all of you the ability to bond, not age, and make other necessary changes.”
“We’ll do this so you can love all of them,” Melissa concluded.
I understood what they intended. They would make it possible for me to express my love and receive love from all of them through union. Something extraordinary—especially since it would also allow me to bond with them. Still, it didn’t hide the fact that we would, in part, be objects of their experiments.
“How long will this take?”
“Two or three Donna years.”
“And until then, what do I do?”
“Love and enjoy yourself the same way,” Melissa smiled. “We’re eager to meet your daughters. They’ll be beautiful!”
All they gave me was the future. The Sekvens never make mistakes when it comes to love. I should listen to them and do as they said—let my heart guide me—but for me, it was the most lost of all. It’s easy for a being made of love to surrender to it…
“William,” Sacha pulled me from my thoughts. “Do you want our help?”
She could calm my anxiety with a single look. Still, they rarely offered choices.
“Thank you for trusting me.”
“You don’t need our help, William. You have what it takes,” Kane said gently.
“By the way, you said daughters… but boys could be born too,” I smiled.
“We discovered that the first child born from a Selium body is always a girl. After the first, they can choose the sex of the others. They can even do it consciously,” Melissa explained.
“I’m glad to know that. Thank you. And don’t take too long to come back.”
I said goodbye and turned to leave.
“William,” Melissa called.
This time, she wasn’t smiling.
“You are not an object.”
I bowed in respect, but I didn’t apologize. It would have been a useless gesture to them.
