Page 27 - DeepRestFlipFinal

DEEP REST
pressed PLAY on the small audio player connected to
the headphones.
The sound began.
It wasn't unpleasant, but it was extremely
unsettling. A deep, resonant thrum that vibrated
through her bones, followed by a series of high-
pitched, almost ethereal chimes that seemed to float in
the air around her.
She closed her eyes, focusing on her breathing,
trying to empty her mind as Finch had described.
Detachment from the constant noise of the modern
world. It was harder than she thought. Her mind raced,
a chaotic jumble of grief, guilt, fear, and a desperate,
almost manic hope.
Minutes stretched into what felt like hours. The
hum intensified, seeming to fill her entire being. The
chimes became more insistent, forming a matrix of
sound that bypassed her conscious mind and seemed
to speak directly to her neural pathways.
Her body felt heavy. Her limbs grew numb, a
pleasant tingling spreading through her. Her thoughts,
once a raging torrent, began to slow. The edges of her
awareness blurred.
She was drifting.
Not into sleep, not exactly. It was something else.
A state of profound stillness, just as Finch had
27