by Christi Snow
Brooklyn continued to explain, “Yes, we’re all very connected, telepathically and physically. We can sense where the others are at when we’re not all together and depending how far away they are, we also know what they are doing. There’s also been a slight exchange of abilities. As you saw today, we are all able to tap into a small portion of Lori’s ability to shift matter.”
Malcolm turned toward Lori. “So you didn’t work alone to do the wall thing today?”
She shook her head. “No, they can do it on a small scale. But when the four of us work together we can do much bigger manipulations like that. Normally I could never do something that big by myself.”
Malcolm studied the four of them trying to figure through the implications of all this on a medical level, but on the other side Marcus could feel the worry coming off Lori. She worried that what they’d done would make her a science experiment again. He drew her to him and wrapped his arm around her waist. “He’s my brother. I can promise you…no matter how curious he is scientifically speaking, he absolutely won’t do anything to you that you don’t want him to do. I promise, Lori.” He lightly kissed her forehead to reassure her.
Brooklyn and Griff had unconsciously stepped in closer to protect her, too.
Malcolm watched the four of them move with a tilt of his head. “Fascinating.” When he looked directly at Lori though, compassion showed in every line of his face. “Marcus is right. I hope you’ll let me check some things just to make sure the four of you don’t suffer any bad side effects or have surprises down the line. But I would never do anything without your knowledge and approval.” He reached into a cabinet and began withdrawing files. “I already have everyone’s DNA and blood work on file.” He nodded at Lori. “When you were fighting off your infection, I took samples to make sure it was nothing more serious. I’d simply like to check and see what—if anything—shows up as changed. I’ll also want to do some follow-up work to see how long the effect lasts, if it diminishes over time, those types of things.”
Lori clenched Marcus’s hand, but didn’t ever take her eyes off Malcolm. “Okay,” she said, but her hand trembled through their grasp. “You can do some blood work. I would never want my blood to harm them in any way, and if you can keep that from happening, that’s fine with me.”
The initial blood work didn’t show anything abnormal, but Malcolm needed to find the scientific explanation for the link between the four of them with further comparisons of their blood analysis. But that would have to wait as the four of them planned a dream walk with the Others in the ES.
Waves of stress poured over Marcus, leaking from Lori at the prospect. His need to help and protect her pulled at him.
She’d never initiated a dream walk on her own and having so many people in on it added an extra level of stress for her. But the four of them needed to know what they’d be walking into and this proved the best way to do it. They also needed to know if anything had changed in the last couple of weeks since Lori had been in touch with them.
Secretly, Marcus worried that they hadn’t heard from any of the ES Others in so long. He understood so much better about the labs and what they did there after seeing it via the dream walk from before. Hopefully Lori’s friend, Savannah, would be open to them when they tried again this time.
* * *
To ensure the success of the dream walk, the four of them slept in the same room with Malcolm monitoring them in case he needed to pull them out of it early. This time they were attempting the dream walk without the aid of Savannah, so Marcus just hoped this worked and didn’t go horribly wrong.
Since Lori had the strongest connection to the Others and the ES, she took the lead. Without relying on Savannah, they were able to start the dream at the exterior of the BET-labs building. From the outside, the building looked simply like an abandoned old warehouse. But camouflaged, heavily-armed men hid in the forest surrounding the building. In this dream state, they were able to watch the men and their rotations without being seen, making notes for their plan of attack.
While Marcus and Lori observed the guards in the forest, Brooklyn and Griff examined the building from above for ways to get in once they were here in physical form. They’d all decided beforehand that the most viable option would probably be from the air since no one would be expecting that. When they were finished doing their respective jobs, they joined up mentally, and Lori pulled the four of them into the laboratory section of the building.
The lights were low when they arrived, but at first glance little had changed since the last time he’d been here. Savannah stood at the bars of her cage, her eyes wide with terror. Somehow she’d sensed they’d be coming.
“Lori,” Savannah whispered, looking around at the four of them frantically, “they took Shar. I don’t know what’s happening to her, but she needs help. I can feel it.” Her brilliant blue eyes filled with tears. “Something’s changed here, and I don’t think we have much time. They’re trying to get the last bit of information they can get out of us any way possible and then they plan to kill us. Shar is dying. Please…” Her voice broke as the tears flowed freely.
“Where is she?” Griff’s voice sounded harsh and the planes of his face grew fierce. “What are they doing to her?”
Marcus laid a restraining hand on Griff’s arm. “We can’t do anything right now. We aren’t really here, remember?”
He turned with a ferocious growl. “What the fuck? We’re just supposed to stand by and let them die?” He gestured at the cages in disgust. “What kind of people do this to human beings? We can’t just leave them here.”
“We’re not,” Marcus told him, trying to calm him down. “We’re gathering intel so when we come back, we do so smartly and don’t end up in those cages right alongside them. We are coming back, so just chill for a moment.”
Griff yanked his arm out of Marcus’s grasp and went over to the computer terminal in the corner to see what he could find.
Marcus threaded his hand through his hair and glanced around the room trying to cool his own temper and guilt. They shouldn’t have left them here as long as they had.
Lori comforted Savannah. Brooklyn stood between the men’s cages, frowning while she flipped through their files. Neither one appeared to be in very good condition.
“What’s your evaluation of them?” Marcus asked her.
“That one.” Brooklyn gestured to the man curled in the corner of the cage. Lori had called him Tim the last time they were there. “He’s just under heavy sedation from what I can tell. It looks like he’s been recently beaten or tortured, though, so I would guess he’s very weak. There doesn’t appear to be any lasting damage…this time.” She crouched in front of his cage to try to examine his many wounds, bruises, and old scars. “I think I can bring the right mix of medicines so we can transport him fairly easily so he’s not in a lot of pain.”
She stepped over in front of the cage that held the panther shifter. He was sprawled naked and unconscious, like he’d been thrown in and discarded where he fell. “This one, though, I’m not so sure about. His files say he’s extremely dangerous. He’s also sedated right now. When they take off his restraints, he immediately shifts to his panther form and attacks. I’m not sure what will be the best way to get him out of here without him killing all of us.”
“If we can get Shar,” Savannah called across the room, “she and I have worked together to calm him, but he’s so far gone now that it takes both of us.”
Brooklyn pressed her lips together and nodded. “How long can you all hold the connection? We have a few hours’ journey from here to the Veil boundary.”
Savannah, eyes filled with hurt and compassion as she looked at the two men, squared her shoulders. “It doesn’t matter. We’ll do it however long we have to. No one can stay behind. No one. That’s not even an option anymore. They plan to kill all of us.”
Marcus could feel the external tug from Malcolm. They needed to end the dream walk. “Okay, everyone, we have
to finish this up. Make sure you’ve gotten all the information you need, because we won’t be coming back again until it’s the real deal.”
Lori turned her tortured expression to him as her hand stroked over Savannah’s. Her eyes filled with tears. “We’ll be back the day after tomorrow,” Lori whispered to her. “Just keep everyone hanging on until then. We will be back and get all of you out.”
“Shar?” Savannah asked, doubt showing in her expression. It was obvious she didn’t expect them all to make it out.
“Shar, too. I promise, Savannah. Look at these badass Warriors. They can do the job. We will get everyone out. Two days.” Lori held up two fingers. Savannah mimicked the gesture and pressed her fingers to Lori’s as they faded out of the dream.
When they woke up in Malcolm’s lab, Marcus was once again shaken by the barbaric treatment the Others received in the ES. How could anyone treat another human being that way?
Brooklyn shot off her bed and dove for a trashcan, heaving. Griff’s head hung down against his chest.
Marcus pulled Lori to him to comfort her. “We’ll get them out. All four of them,” he said to the others, putting as much conviction in his voice as he could. They had to succeed at this mission. Failure was not a viable option.
Malcolm’s eyes were wide as he rushed to help Brooklyn. “What the hell happened?”
Brooklyn shoved past him. He’d been trying to soothe her, but she didn’t want any part of it. “I need your help figuring this out. They have two people, maybe three… Hell, by the time we get back it will probably be all four of them. They’re in really rough shape and it’s going to be hard to transport them. I need your help to make up a medical kit that will sustain them until we cross through the Veil.”
“Maybe I should go with you, if it’s that bad.”
“No.” Marcus shook his head. “We can’t risk you that way. You’re too valuable to the WS.”
They all planned for a successful mission, but that didn’t mean they could take unnecessary risks with one of their most valuable citizens. Malcolm was too vital to WS life.
Marcus glanced over at Lori who stood lost in thought chewing on her nails and experienced a frisson of alarm. She had to make it out of this unharmed and whole, too.
Would she still want to be with him after that? They hadn’t discussed the future, because they were so focused on getting the Others out. But he fully planned and wanted her in his life for the foreseeable future. Did she feel the same way? He wanted to discuss it with her, but didn’t want to change her focus which right now needed to stay with her friends and the goal of the mission. They’d have time later to discuss their future. He hoped they would, anyway…
* * *
Mid-day the day after their dream walk, Lori was practicing her mental abilities in the yard out in back of the cabin when Griff walked out to join her. Her powers were growing by leaps and bounds now. Every time she worked, she got better, stronger, and faster at manipulating the elements and energy it took to use her talent.
He watched her for a moment which was odd. Griff didn’t search her out if he could help it.
“Is something wrong?” she asked. Things had gotten easier between them but he still never chose to engage her unless he had to. This couldn’t be a good thing.
His expression appeared sheepish as he examined the boulders she’d been working with, not exactly meeting her eyes. “I need to apologize.” He glanced up at her and pain filled his eyes. “I judged you harshly and you didn’t deserve that. I didn’t realize until yesterday what exactly you came from. I thought you were weak and making up drama just to get Bethany to bring your friends here. Now, I’ve learned just how fucking strong you really are. I had no idea. You’re good for Marcus. He’s happier with you than I’ve seen him in years. You’ve healed something inside of him that I didn’t think would ever heal again. I’m sorry for how I’ve treated you—”
“It’s okay, Griff,” Lori interrupted him, hating to see him wracked with guilt over simply trying to protect his friend from getting hurt. “You didn’t know me, and I can appreciate you didn’t want Marcus hurt.”
“Yeah, maybe, but that still doesn’t excuse how I’ve treated you. So, to make it up to you, I have a little gift.” His face turned red and he rubbed a hand over it to cover his reaction. “Don’t worry. I’m still a selfish bastard. By giving this to you, it helps me and all of us on this mission.” He reached behind his back and pulled out a fabric-wrapped item from the back of his pants. Laying it gingerly onto a nearby table they sometimes used for outdoor meetings, he instructed her, “Go ahead. Open it.”
She untied the jute string and slowly unwound the coarse fabric from the heavy item. She gasped aloud when she saw the long knife. The handle was made from copper and inlaid with several gems. The blade appeared to be carved out of the crystal from the ley lines. It boasted of the incredible workmanship, skills of the artisan who made it…Griff.
“Griff, it’s amazing, but I can’t—”
“Yes, you can. Believe me, this will help you harness your power, which helps all of us in the long run. Use it to channel your energy and it should be easier for you. The stones are supposed to hold their own powers, too. The sapphires help to guide your judgment in what you’re trying to achieve while the rubies help with protection. I’m not big into the whole Earth mumbo jumbo, but Bethany and Brooklyn believe in it. I figure it can’t hurt to add a bit of extra oomph with the gemstones.”
Emotion clogged her throat as she held the handle of the knife gripped in her palm. She could feel the incredible balance of the weapon as well as the power coursing through it. “It’s amazing, Griff. Thank you so much. Can I try it?”
“Of course.” He gestured to the boulders she’d been rearranging before. “Just point it at them and do what you normally do, channeling the energy through the knife rather than through your hands.”
She nodded, lifted the knife, and a mere two seconds later the huge stones sat in a completely different configuration. She hadn’t even had to touch them. Her mouth dropped open in shock. Even more surprising she didn’t feel any drain in her power at all. The necklace Bethany had given her enhanced her abilities, but this knife was so much more focused and powerful in its effect. Stunned, she stared down it and then back to Griff’s knowing grin.
“Better?” he asked.
She set the knife down on the table very gently and then ran to Griff, throwing her arms around his neck. “Thank you! It’s perfect. Oh wow, I’ve never had my gift work that easily, ever.”
“I know I’ve pushed you to get along better.” Marcus’s droll voice echoed over the empty yard. “But I’ll be honest. I’m not sure I’m comfortable with this level of affection between the two of you.”
She let go of Griff’s neck and grinned at Marcus. She ran over to the knife and lifted to show him. “Did you know about this? That he planned to make me this?”
Marcus’s eyes softened as he looked toward his friend with gratitude. “No,” he said quietly. “I had no idea. Making one of those knives is very difficult for him because the crystals are so hard. He only does it for the people he cares about most. You won’t receive a better weapon than one of his handmade knives. Even the ones made from normal steel are incredible. The ley line ones…well, they’re very rare, just because the crystal is such a premium commodity for the power they channel. Thank you, Griff.”
Griff’s face reddened again in embarrassment. “Well, it’s better for all of us if her gift is working at maximum capacity.”
Marcus chuckled. “Sure, we’ll let you stick to that story. But seriously, thank you.” They embraced with a guy-hug.
The next day, the three Warriors and Lori were up long before dawn, ready to head out and cross the Veil. A mix of anticipation and adrenaline sizzled through Lori’s veins. None of them had slept for shit the night before, nerves too taut, worried for those they were headed to rescue and for each other. No one wanted to end up trapped in one of
those cages in the ES.
The four of them had practiced their skills using Lori’s gift as a team and had developed it to the point where they were fairly confident in their abilities. The thing that Malcolm had drilled into them was their need to conserve energy. They had to be able to get all of them and the four Others back through the Veil when the time came to escape. It would take a great deal of energy to get that many people through, especially after they battled to get the Others free. Everyone remained concerned that they would be completely cut off from the WS. There wouldn’t be a soul to help them if they ran into trouble. No one from the WS would be able to cross to save them if things went badly.
They planned to take a different route to the labs than Lori took the first time across. For their escape and the transport of the injured Others, they needed a bridge that would hold a car they planned to steal. They also didn’t want to cross anywhere near Springlake, just in case. It was a risk, but the whole trip was a risk. They just wanted to minimize those risks to the people they left in the WS.
While they didn’t regularly use them, the WS had kept a few cars running for emergency use, so the Warriors were familiar with the concept of driving. Because their road system had become so decimated by time and elements, it really didn’t provide a viable means of travel anymore. Wings also were just not meant for riding inside cars. But with the physical liabilities of the Others, they thought getting out via vehicle would be easier so they’d decided to steal a car in the ES. Their plan remained fluid depending on the circumstances they couldn’t predict. But Marcus trained specifically so he could now hotwire a car in less than a minute.
Malcolm, Aaron, and Bethany accompanied them as far as the bridge. Even with her weaker telepathic skills, Lori could feel the worry and doubts each of them had the closer they got to their destination for crossing. The biggest risk to this mission and these incredible Warriors remained the unknown of what they were walking into.
