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She sat up sharply in her bed, the covers falling around her waist. Her heart pounded a staccato rhythm in her chest and she shivered from the night air striking her sweaty body. "Bloody..." She muttered, "Black shiny eyes, blood....the land....the skies...were crying blood....." She shuddered deep inside and rose. She knew the dream was more than what it appeared, she felt that it was a vision, and a bad one. She couldn't tell if the person was real, or merely a representation of a power or fight to come, but whichever it was, the danger itself was very real. She slipped her robe on over her bare skin, not bothering to put shoes on as she stepped out onto the balcony. She searched the night sky, reading the stars, looking for a sign. An owl hooted in the distance, and she listened. Absently her hand reached up and scratched between her eyes as her sensitive ears picked out all the sounds, from the lions hunting to the mice sniffing out grains of grass and wild wheat. Oddly, in spite of the sense of dread she felt, there were no signs of anything amiss, this night at least. Shrugging, she laid down again, draping her robe over her chair, relaxing into the cool satin sheets. "Looks like.." She yawned as she talked to herself, and nobody, "I will have to meditate on it." Another yawn escaped her lips. Her eyes drooped closed, and she muttered one last word, "Peyote."
The morning dawned bright and clear, the sky a beautiful blue, the sun shining brightly as it peeked over the edges of the trees surrounding Haven. Arania rose, the dream from the night before not forgotten, but placed in a file of sorts in her mind, neatly in order behind her morning shower and breakfast. She would have to eat light this morning, she knew that, since she intended to use a special herb to help in her meditations. Goodness knew that Sparrow and Mus would try to stop her, but they weren't allowed in her Dream Lodge, and what they didn't know wouldn't hurt them. She chuckled to herself as she rinsed the soap from her hair. If only they knew the things that she grew out in that herb garden for her ceremonies. She was careful though, there was a lock high on the door to keep the children out, and there were magical locks on the door to keep anyone else out. She shrugged, and climbed out of the shower, drying herself and getting dressed. Heading down to the kitchen, she was taken aback by the stares that she got from DragonKai and SilverSteelKai who passed her on the stairs. Silver even touched his own forehead as he looked at her. When she got into the kitchen, she found Blade cooking up a wonderful feast for the others for breakfast. "Lady Arania, good morning!" He greeted her cheerfully from his place at the stove. He turned around and almost dropped the measuring cup in his hand as he saw her face. "Ma'am, when did you get that?" "Huh? What on Earth are you talking about? Get what?" She was confused, first the two on the stairs, and now Blade was acting weird. "Look," He passed her a small handheld mirror and she took it, looking. "What the hell happened?" On her forehead was a tattoo that hadn't been there before, a V shape with two circles above it, right on her forehead between her eyes. The bottom circle the larger of the two, they stood out in black, a sharp contrast to the light blue of her skin.
She was dressed in a simple brown dress as she plucked the leaves from the plant and piled them into the basket she had brought with her. Since breakfast only a few hours before, two more tattoos had sprung up on her body, one on her left cheek, one on the small of her back. They didn't hurt, but she was still concerned. She muttered to herself, the ingredients for what she was making interspersed with swearing over the marks on her skin. She had not seen either of her clones that morning, and was still unsure of how they would react to the marks on her skin, not that they really had a say in it, hell, she hadn't even had a say in them. She narrowly avoided nicking her finger on the tip of her gardening shears as she snipped a last branch from the shrub. "This will have to be enough, I keep this up, and I won't have any fingers left." She cleaned her tools, and put them away before gathering the small bag filled with herbs. She stepped out the door, putting the padlock into place, then murmuring words into the air while tracing a pattern over the door with her hand. A soft glow showed on the door in the pattern, before fading. She looked around, listening again to the sounds of nature around her, slowly walking into the trees. She passed the clearing where the grave of Raven lay, muttering soft words of honor and respect as she passed. Her lodge was deep in the woods, secluded from the more commonly used places on the property, having been granted permission to build it on a site far from any other buildings. She smiled as she approached the simple teepee. It was a mound of earth and sticks, covered by deerhide and the skins of other wild animals to keep in the heat from the fire and steam that was part of the sweat lodge ceremonies. She stepped through the flap of cloth covering the entrance and a fire flared to life in the center of the lodge. The inside was dark, flickering in the light of the fire, very cave like, but a warm, comforting cave. The air was damp, and a short while later, a pot of water was simmering over the fire. She shredded the leaves from the branches she brought with her, muttering small prayers of thanks to the spirits of the plants, letting them steep in the water while she shed her clothing, eyes closing as she reclined on the pile of furs in the corner. She slowly let her stress fade from her body, dipping a small mug into the liquid and drinking it as soon as it was cool enough. "Oh Great Spirit, your child calls out to you. Please guide and protect me from harm as I travel from my mortal bonds. Show me the way and meaning I seek. Your child humbly asks this of you. Sister Raven, Brother Coyote, I beseech your help. My sleep is haunted. Please help me understand what I see." After a few moments she felt light, and knew that the herbs were taking effect. Muttering the words to a spell to ensure the fire spread no further than the stone ring that encircled it, she lay down, letting her spirit slip away from her body, seeking out guidance.
She found herself in the familiar field from the time of her tests. Before her, sitting before a fire waited Raven, and a man she had not seen before. Looking at him closely, she could recognize the eyes of Coyote, her teacher and spiritual benefactor. "Greetings child, you asked our help, and we are here. We await your questions." He spoke, She took a seat on the log beside them, eyes gazing into the fire. "Brother, I have had haunted dreams. The sky and earth crying blood, a woman watching from the shadows. Please, help me understand." Raven and Coyote exchanged a long look before they spoke. "The dreams are a sign of a battle to come, as you suspected. The woman is very real, and as ancient as I." Coyote looked into the fire. "You must face her, but you will not do so alone. Have faith in that. You have another question though, one much easier to answer fully." "Yes, these marks on my skin, what are they?" Raven chuckled faintly. "They are of deep meaning young one. The mark between your eyes is the symbol for the Earth, sun, and moon. The mark you now bear on your cheek is the name you wear on the mortal realm, Arania. On your back, hidden from the view of most, is your spirit name. You are She-Wolf Blue Storm. Our Father has given you that name, so wear it proudly." Coyote stood, looking to her as she absorbed the information she had been given. "The time is coming when you will face the woman behind your visions. Watch your dreams carefully, they will show you the way. We will watch over you as we can, as will they." He raised his hand, pointing behind her. She stood and turned, finding herself face to face with the guides of her best friends, Jadelia and Angelique, both gently smiling. They nodded their agreement, and faded from view. "You are strong enough to face what comes, or you would not bear the marks of our Father. Be prepared." Her eyes opened, and she was once more in her body, the ceiling of her lodge above her.
The days had past with no sign of the danger she had been warned about, even though her dreams were getting more and more troubling. She had awakened in cold sweats every night since. Dreams of the slaughter of innocents, the Earth dry and dying, the sun the color of blood, the moon black. Other dreams of a woman hovering in the sky above Haven, strings coming from her hands, controlling everything beneath her. She was losing sleep and it was showing. The dark circles under her eyes were purple, and only barely covered by the makeup she had been wearing. She had awakened twice with bruises in places she didn't remember hurting. So far the boys hadn't noticed, which she wasn't sure if that was good or bad. True it meant not having to explain, but it wasn't like them to be so unobservant. She shrugged as she put on a long sleeved shirt and long pants. She knew that it was a little warm to be wearing something like that, but better safe than sorry. She felt really off this morning, after the nightmare she had last night, she didn't remember anything till this morning. There was a lot of yelling and running around downstairs. She could hear the lioness and DiscoKai going back and forth, which was normal, but Disco sounded even more furious and loud than normal. She descended the steps and the words became clearer. "Why the HELL were you in my office you mangy feline?!" "I wasn't in your lousy office, there's nothing in there I would want anyway. Now leave me be science experiment." The lioness tried flouncing into the kitchen and away from the irate clone, but he would have none of it. "Get your ass back here, I am not done with you yet!" He tried grabbing her arm, and got a handful of sharp talons for it. "I said let me be." She hissed warningly. He didn't listen, and tried again, this time ending up with three glowing scratches on his face where her talons struck. Arania had seen enough. "ENOUGH YOU TWO!!!" She bellowed from the steps. Her tone startled both the combatants, her eyes glowing oddly as she walked towards them. "I don't give a damn who did what to whom this time, but it is WAY too early to listen to your childish bickering and arguing. Lioness, go eat. Disco, leave her alone." They had never heard her speak in that tone to anyone before, and they had both heard her angry. Even the lioness was shocked and she was there the night that MusiKai got the wrong name on his tattoo, she had sworn up a storm that night but even then her voice was not as menacing. They looked at each other, eyes promising to finish this "discussion" later. Neither of them chose to mention the strange color in her eyes, figuring it was only anger that caused it. They separated, with the lioness being followed by Arania into the kitchen. "What the hell was that all about anyway?" She asked, the glow in her eyes dimming back to normal. "Someone tore his office up, and I know it wasn't me." Her voice lowered to a barely audible whisper. "I was with Kai all night, not that he can know that, you know I'd hear no end of it from him." She headed for the fridge, pulling out some steak. Oddly, Ari wasn't as hungry as she thought she was. "Oh, well, I have stuff I gotta do, see you later." She walked outside, feeling the sudden urge to go and pay her respects at Raven's grave. When she got there she screamed, unheard. The cairn she had built was torn open, the bones underneath scattered and marked. Written across the ground in front of the grave was "I am coming". It was in red on the fresh green grass, written in someone's blood. She shuddered, and tried to fix the damage, reburying the bones, trying to sanctify the grave once more. She returned home covered in dirt, only to find that hours had passed, where she thought it was only minutes. She cleaned up for dinner, confused at the time loss, and came down to the dining room to Disco yelling at the thetas over something they had done. "What now," She grumbled to herself as she stopped beside Blade in the door. "They tore down some stuff in the barn, least that's what Disco said." "What do you mean, at least that's what he says?" She was even more confused, this had been one odd day. "I know Jewel was in the kitchen with me all afternoon, and Blue and Feather are denying it, which I believe them. Usually if they do something wrong, they will admit it." Arania thought about this for a long moment, then stepped between Disco and the trio. "Disco, shut up." She stated, not giving him the opportunity to argue. "Boys, did you do any of what he thinks you did?" The shaking of their heads almost made her nauseous from their ferocity, not adding to her mood at all. "I believe you." She told them to sit down, then turned to see the even more angry DiscoKai glaring at her for interfering. "What the hell do you think you're doing. They need to be punished, they messed the barn up." Arania glared right back at him. "They didn't, they said as much, and unlike you and your temper induced closed ears I believe them. They might cause trouble, they might cause property damage, but none of those three boys are liars. Now if you want to continue this rant, and try to punish them for something they did not do, then you will deal with me. Blade himself said that Jewel was with him all afternoon, or do you want to tell him he's lying too?" Disco's jaw dropped, he was still fuming, but it was covered over by the shock of her raising her voice to him. "But...but.." "BUT NOTHING!" She yelled, her eyes glowing a ruby red as she altered her stature to meet his eyes. "They are to be left alone, you say another word about it to them or anyone else, and I swear by the Great Spirit you will not be able to find your head for a MONTH!" With those words she stormed out of the dining room and out the backdoor, leaving a silence that the thetas didn't even dare disturb.
She left the mansion and made her way into town. She wanted out of there for a while and headed for the seediest, darkest, most dangerous part of town, and found a very bad looking bar there. She sat at the bar, on a stool too tall for her feet to touch the floor, sipping an icy beer. She stared into the glossy wood under the glass, mind thinking. She was worried, she hadn't meant to snap so harshly at Disco, it wasn't like her, but the spaces of time in her memory, combined with the lack of sleep were really getting to her. The boys always seeming to be gone when she wanted to spend time with them only served to make her mood more bitter, and she was taking it out on people who had nothing to do with it. Of course, to top off the whole thing, she was feeling pressure at the back of her skull, an almost consistent thing since the dreams started. She felt a large hand gripping her shoulder. "Hi there.." A huge scruffy looking man stood there with his hand on her. "Nice tats there chica." "Yeah.." She looked at him warily. "What of them?" "I ain't seen you round here before....maybe you and I could get to know each other a little better." He stood a good six and a half foot tall, well over 250 pounds. His face was half concealed in a chest length scruffy gray and brown beard, his shoulder length hair matching in color, but greasy and stringy. He smelled strongly of sweat, booze, grease and dirt. "Don't think so buddy, go find some biker babe to party with, I ain't in the mood for company." Her voice lowered menacingly. He was too thick to notice the tone of her voice and pushed it, grabbing her arm in one of his meaty fists, trying to drag her off the stool. "I said I wanted us to get to know each other better chica, that means your scrawny ass is comin' with me." She growled angrily. "Get your filthy hands off me now!" Whirling on him, she startled him, making him release her. He stepped back once, but he didn't get further than that when her fist met his face, breaking his nose, the blood gushing out and staining his shirt and part of the sleeve of her own. "Anyone else wanna fuck with me?" She growled again, red eyes looking around at the other patrons of the bar. The few who were actually paying attention raised their hands and shook their heads, so she turned back to the bartender. "I want another beer." He wasn't going to argue with the woman, and did as she asked. She woke up staring at the ceiling, naked, sweat pouring off her body. She had had another nightmare, this one more frightening than the others. She bit hard on her fist to fight from screaming out and disturbing the other people in the house. When she had gathered enough control of herself she stood, grabbing a big sleep-shirt and putting it on. She didn't bother with slippers, or any other clothing, but headed out the bedroom door and down to the kitchen. As she reached the top of the stairs, she could faintly hear the rustle of papers coming from Disco's study, and the faint tapping of a keyboard from the security room. Slowly she walked down the stairs, rubbing her eyes clear of sleep as she went. The smell of chocolate soon hit her nose when she opened the kitchen door to see Blade there baking. "Lady Arania, what are you doing up so late?" "Hmm? Oh, what time is it Blade?" She asked, trying to avoid answering the question. "It's approximately 3:30 in the morning. I was preparing some sweets to have ready for snacking on tomorrow, a good way to kill time when I have no need to sleep after all." He smiled, and she nodded, heading for the coffee pot only to find it empty. "Is there any instant stuff left Blade, I want some coffee." "I believe so, I will make you some if you desire." "Thanks Blade, will you just put a pot on for me, I'll make myself the instant for now." She smiled at him, and went to make it, adding cream and a healthy dose of sugar before taking it out into the garden and sitting in the gazebo, watching the night sky. She was so tired, but the dreams kept her from sleeping. She had the strong feeling of being watched, but couldn't see anyone or anything that could be the cause of it. She was growing frustrated, she was tired of waiting for something to happen, but she had no way of knowing how to find the threat that loomed over the horizon. She growled, and threw the mug into the hard wooden post of the shelter, watching the pieces shatter and scatter, the dark liquid marking the wood where it landed. "Damnit!" She cursed into the night, then headed back in for more coffee and another long night without sleep.
Another day passed, Arania's mood got no better. She had even snapped at one of the children when they spilled milk on some paperwork she was trying to concentrate on at the kitchen table that morning. Angel and Lilly looked at her in shock, and when she realized what she had done, she started crying, fleeing the room. She had gone out to the herb shed to try to do something, anything, to vent and release some of the tension she felt. "No, no way. I couldn't have..I must of left it unlocked..." She stood in the open door in shock, staring at a vandalized garden. Her plants and herbs were dug up, scattered, the soil poisoned with salt, the seeds destroyed. "What is happening here?" She cried out. "Wani....what wong?" She could hear the innocent voice of BlueKai coming from behind her, and she jumped, tripping over the remains of a clay pot and falling to the ground. "I sowwy, didn't mean to scawe you." He helped her to her feet, still fresh and clean from his morning grooming. "Not your fault Blue, I'm too jumpy. Did you see anyone near my gardens?" She stood, trying too brush the dirt off her jeans, and hide a gash on the inside of her arm from him. "Nowon but you Wani...." He looked into the shed. "Oh..messy...I didn't do it!" He was feeling defensive, he and the others being blamed for the incident in the barn, as well as a few other things that had happened since, thankfully Disco listened when they were given alibis by various brothers. "I know Blue, I know." She sighed, and sat on the grass by the door, trying to hold herself together. The pressure was growing to a steady insistent ache in her head. "Go and get me some stuff to clean up with will you?" "I hep if you wan.." Blue offered before he left, but was met with no's, with various excuses. Honestly she needed something mindless like cleaning to calm her, not to mention if he ingested some of the herbs in there, she had no idea what they would do to a Kai when combined with their protoblood. She had not reached any sort of stage of experimentation with it yet. He returned with enough cleaning supplies for a month, and carrying the mop bucket on his head when he ran out of places for things. This got the first genuine laugh out of her for the first time in days, and oddly this made her head stop aching for a good long while after. She started to clean up, and when she reached the very back of the shed, the sun was going down. There on the floor was a rune, written in someone's blood, a symbol of warning. "I must be losing my mind. I have to be." She mused as she lay in the bed staring at the dark ceiling. The half moon shone in through the window, but she moved her hand, a small cantrip closing the shade from where she lay. Her stomach grumbled, loudly protesting. She couldn't remember dinner, or anything after finishing the shed and finding the rune written in the dirt there. This was getting more and more troubling. She had no idea where her lovers were, she was to the point she was snapping at the children, and this was what scared her the most. Reluctantly she rose, and headed down to the kitchen. Thankfully, there was nobody there tonight, so she put a pot of coffee on, and fixed herself a sandwich, settling at the table. She had to figure out why this was happening, the time lapses at least. The snapping could easily be explained by her lack of sleep shortening her temper. Suddenly the mug was spilled as her hand reached to the back of her skull, as a sharp piercing pain went through her head.
"What the hell?" She spoke aloud, her voice echoing hollowly around her. This was weird, it didn't feel right. "Hello..anyone out there?" She called out, again the echo responding back to her, followed by haunting laughter. She whirled around, searching out the source. Off in the distance were mountains, wreathed in smoke and fog. She started walking towards them. "Caution child." A familiar voice came from somewhere nearby. "Danger young one." Another voice, just as familiar warned. "The answers lie here, but it is dangerous." The third voice came from right beside her, but nobody was there. The last voice she knew well, Raven. "You are safe here, but when you find this place, you will not be. Remember the Trojans..." "What?" This last warning confused her. She knew who the Trojans were, but why them. She continued walking, the fog and smoke dissipating for her as she stepped closer to the mountains. Once at the foot she saw a deep cave there. Just as she was about to step into the darkness..... "Lady Arania....are you alright?" Blade stood over her, a cookbook under one arm, his hand on her shoulder. "Hmmm....Blade...oh...yeah...okay.." She looked around, the sun was just starting to come up and peek through the kitchen window. "Must...have fallen asleep.." She answered slowly, mind still in somewhat of a haze. "Oh, okay, well, I am going to go make breakfast then." He nodded to her and went to the other side of the kitchen. She got up and made her way back to her bedroom, and ran herself a hot bath. She felt a lot more rested, but was confused, she could see and remember everything from the vision. A cave, and something about Trojans. She sank into the hot water after the tub filled, closing her eyes. She knew she had to find that cave, but there were two major problems. The first problem was easy enough to solve, who she would tell. The boys hadn't seemed to want to be around her at all lately, so she knew they were not going to be involved. She would probably tell Angel and Ketana, they would be able to help her find the place at the least, after finding it they could resolve whether they would join her for the trip there. The bigger problem was the fact she knew of no mountains around the area that looked like the ones in her dreams. Of course there were others who knew the area better than she did, so hopefully she'd get some help there. She made up her mind then and there, she would take action before she lost anymore sleep, before she could cause any more hurt feelings inside the house she shared with the others. If she didn't, there was no way she could stay there. She sat in the library, a book on Greek myths held in her hand. The page she had it opened to was the old story about the Trojan horse. She understood what the story meant, she had read the myth many times when she was in school, both for classes and because she did love reading the old stories. Her nerves were worn thin with worry and exhaustion. She thought she knew what was going on, that she had figured out what the warnings her dream had given her meant, but she hadn't figured out what to do about them yet. She had seen MusiKai and Sparrow for a while over the past day, and knew they weren't avoiding her, they had just been really busy with stuff from the shop, the theater and around the mansion. She knew what she could do, but who could she trust to watch her while she did it. She sighed and closed the book, setting it on the table beside the chair and rose, heading to the dining room as she heard the grandfather clock chiming the dinner hour. She walked into the dining room, not looking at anyone, and sat at the table, the seats on either side of her empty. Her clones were not free for dinner again. Mus mentioned doing building repairs around the shop, stuff that had to be done, but not worth paying anyone else for. Sparrow had work at the theater, he was directing a new play, and rehearsals were every night now. She sighed, attempting to hide it from the others. She picked at the food as it was set in front of her, she should have been hungry, she knew that, but with all that was going on, wasn't. Once she could see that everyone was done eating, she stood, and walked to the end of the table, where everybody could see her. She tapped her glass of wine and everyone raised their heads from their conversations. "I need help. I have reason to believe something is wrong with me." The looks she got prompted her, "I have no idea what it is, or what to expect. I might be wrong, in any case, I would like someone to stay with me, in my room for the next 24 hours, maybe more, maybe less. I need someone to be there, in case I am right."
Disco, Angel, and Ketana all agreed they would take turns watching her, with the first two doing it through the night, so if Angel fell asleep, Disco would be there just in case. Ketana was to take over come sunrise. Arania fell asleep fairly quickly, after taking a hot bath and sharing some hot cocoa with them. Disco half watched her, but most of his focus was on the form of his lady while she read a book she hadn't had the chance to read before, with all the day to day activity between the children and other things in the house. ~~She is so beautiful~~ He thought to himself as he watched her. He smiled, eyes riveted as she licked her finger to turn the page. Shifting in his seat, he tried to adjust himself without her noticing, his mind was running rampant again. It always seemed to do that when they got any time alone. She glowed from within and it only served to make her more beautiful and sexy to him. He slipped off his own chair and kneeled on the floor beside the divan where she reclined. He turned his head briefly, to check on the person they were watching, and saw Arania tossing and turning a little in her sleep, her face unreadable. She had warned them she might have nightmares, but not to disturb her if that was all that happened. He smiled and nodded to himself as he insinuated his body between his love's face and her book. "Disco, what are you doing, I am trying to read here." She laughed good-naturedly, but making sure to be quiet, well aware of not being alone in the room. "Let's just say I was jealous of the attention the book was getting." He said jokingly before capturing her mouth in a body heating kiss. "Mphh" She tried to protest, but his gently insistent hands on her body got and kept her attention. He smiled to himself as he nibbled softly on her neck, hands gripping her soft round hips. Her red hair shone in the red light from....red light? His head shot up, alternately cursing the absence of her skin and wondering where the hell the red light was coming from. "If she turned on some weird nightlight.." He muttered to himself, but shut up quickly. Arania's body was arched, floating off her bed, bathed in the red glow from some sort of orb hovering over her form. "Angel, get Ketana, I don't think I can touch this thing...and hurry!" She rose to her feet, and ran off as fast as her pregnant body could manage, leaving Disco there wondering what in the hell to do.
The Lioness came tearing into the bedroom to see Arania floating over the bed covered in a strange luminescent red light, Disco standing at a safe distance away, "What's going on here?" Angel's beloved clone
could only shrug as Angel finally came lumbering into the room, "this just started
Ketana." As her mind went out, seeking guidance, Ketana could feel the malevolence radiating from the red glow. As she looked at it on this plane of being she could make out an evilly beautiful face's features hidden within it. "Careful dear one." She heard her goddess before she saw her. "The creature causing this is angry and vengeful, well absorbed into the dark side of magic." "What is it doing to her?" A second form appeared in the lioness's vision, and she recognized this one as the spirit guide Raven. "It is trying to steal her body, but thankfully it does not have the skill or finesse to do it for more than short periods of time." Raven looked over to the spirit forms fighting for control over the earthly body. "Why, who is this?" The lioness was confused. "Can I do anything?" "The why is a long story. I am sure you know of the one your friend calls the Great Spirit, her Father. In the ways of the spirit world, he could be considered our kin, or brother. A long time ago there was a rivalry between two medicine women of the tribe Arania's ancestors belonged to, one of whom was of your friend's blood. Both women tried their best to please their Father, one with sacrifices, the other with gifts of healing and kindness." Raven spoke up once more. "Our Father chose the kind one, she had the strength to fight should it be necessary, but chose not to flaunt it and use it only to protect her people. The other, when she learned of this, was taken in by foul spirits, and gifted with dark powers. She was granted eternity to live. When she came to seek revenge on my ancestor, she was defeated, trapped within a seedling tree. Over time the tree grew, as they do and because her essence was within it, it could not die either. Recently, the tree was cut down by loggers, and she was set free. Once more she seeks revenge on the chosen, and that is why your friend is going through this." Jadelia nodded a little. "There is not much you can do, at least to free her of this fight. When you return to your body however, tie her up, and tape her mouth shut. If she cannot speak, she cannot cast magic to change her form, and will not be able to escape her bonds. Whatever you or the others do, do not set her free until her eyes return to normal. When she does awaken and is herself again, ask her about the cave." Ketana could see that the red form won out,
and was working it's way into the body below it. "I understand."
She opened her eyes to see Disco leaning over her, and tape on her mouth. "Mphhh" She squirmed. 'Why are my hands tied,' she wondered. She looked at him, the frown on his face and her eyes grew panicked. 'Oh shit, what did I do. Oh please, I hope I didn't hurt anyone.' She grew afraid. 'Please oh please.' She prayed silently, as Ketana joined Disco above her. "She's okay, you can take the tape off Disco." He nodded and quickly pulled the tape off Arania's mouth. "OUCH!!!" She shrieked. "Damnit Disco that HURT!" "I'm sorry, it couldn't be helped." He leaned over her to untie her hands. "Right." She said sarcastically. She sat up as soon as she was free, rubbing her wrists. "What the hell happened, my wrists hurt like hell." Around the wrists where the ropes were tied was red welts, they stood out purple against her blue skin. Her ankles hadn't fared much better, a small trickle of blood running down one side and staining the sheet. "Your body was taken over by an evil spirit." Disco stated matter of factly. "That is why you have been so tired, while your mind slept, your body was causing trouble with someone else in control. Nobody has been hurt, but we were told to ask.." Ketana interrupted him. "Look, what do you know about a cave? Raven said you'd know what it meant." "I do. I had a vision of a cave in mountains, and that whatever this threat is is hiding there..The only caves I know of are the caves where the lioness has held her hoard." She sighed and manifested a bandage on the bed, then wrapped it around the ankle that was bleeding. "You could have padded my ankles you know. Damnit!" She cursed loudly, punching her bed hard. "I was the Trojan horse the whole damned time!" Disco looked thoughtful. "I know of another cave, on the opposite side of Kaitown there is a large hill, it was probably a mountain thousands of years ago, but it's been worn down. I heard that there is a cave there, not as big as where the lioness lived, but about the size of a couple of these bedrooms put together." Ari nodded a little, closing her eyes and thinking. "That has to be it then. Thanks Disco." She sat silently, the eyes of the clone on her. She knew he wouldn't let her go alone, but she felt that she had to be alone to do this. She racked her brain, she knew a sleep spell wouldn't work on a being that can't sleep. That was when it hit her. "Les puissances de la pierre l'entourent." She pointed at Disco, a blue glow encompassing the man before her. "Lioness, he's going to be pissed when he comes out of this spell. It will take only a few hours. If I'm not back by then, go ahead and let him come after me, that should give me time to do what I have to."
She crossed the back yard silently, a sword strapped across her back, a thin stiletto dagger in her belt. She wore a tight body suit made of soft leather, making it easier for her to move and providing protection without weighing her down. She had managed to avoid the other clones, the she-cat providing a distraction when she was nearly spotted by Gen. She laughed, the lioness had been discussing something with him in the hall, and saw that Ari was trying to sneak by. The kiss she gave her clone to grab his attention thudded him to the floor and almost through it. Quite an effective way to distract them. Night was still keeping hold of the land, and there was a strong chill in the air. As she took to the air to avoid the lions, she was not afraid of them, but she didn't want any noise to give her away, she felt the edges of the other pressing on her consciousness. She murmured senseless children's rhymes out loud to give herself something to focus on. "The itsy bitsy spider...went up the water spout....." It grew harder for a moment to remember the words to even those simple songs. "Down came.......the rain..washed the spider out...out came the sun..." A shrill shriek resounded through her head as she said the words, anger from the menace grew and tried to pummel her, attempting to bring up all of her negative memories. She was washed in them, the words said in anger by her parents, her loneliness as a child, the fights and imprisonment at the hands of Mitchell and the Master. She fought those with the thoughts of her friends, of her joys with her lovers, of all the good times she had known throughout her whole life. The thoughts defeated her foe, forcing her from Ari's mind, and driving her back to herself. She smiled, and muttered prayers to the powers while she prepared herself mentally for the fight ahead. She did the best she could to keep her thoughts focused, she didn't want the other to know that there was a backup plan, of sorts. She knew well that should she not return by the time the spell wore off, Disco and the others would be following her, she would have help. Deep down though, she knew that she would have to do this herself. She landed in a small grove of trees within sight of the cave she sought. She knelt on the ground, tips of her fingers touching the soil beneath her. She had a plan, and was hoping it would work.
She held the small precious item in her hand. It was the most important thing to her plans, and she had to protect it and keep it in her hand to use when the time was right. Murmuring soft words a sphere of light appeared and hovered beside her shoulder, lighting her path. Her footing was steady and constant as she walked deeper into the dark dank cave. The tunnel that led to the cave was littered with debris, and she found a brace when she struck her toe on it. She frowned and knelt, picking the precious piece of metal up. "I hope.." She whispered, eyes peering into the darkness, she dimmed the light with a thought, seeking certain patterns ahead of her. She could not see deep enough, but felt the menacing presence of the woman she came to face. "Onward I go." She tucked the brace into her cleavage, as the belt she wore was too tight and it would not fit into the sheath with her dagger. Finally she reached the entrance to the cavern, Disco's description was about right, it was the size she expected, but there were many dangerous stalactites sticking out of the floor. More than one of them was twice her height, many more reached her waist, sharp and glittering in the scant light from her globe. She stepped out of the shadows, one taloned hand brushing back her black hair. Her red skin glistened from the moisture in the air around them, her eyes glittering and black as a spiders as they sized Arania up. TO say she was beautiful would be true, but it was the cold beauty of an ice storm that rages across the land, uncaring and biting in it's fury. "So you are the new chosen one." She purred, her voice both oily and seductive at the same time. "A mere child, they have chosen foolishly again. You may call me Lillith, a name from the white man's books that suits me. Soon enough though, you will call me mistress, like the others before you, and your friends after you." Arania's eyes crackled in anger at the threat. "I am nobody's slave, you chose the wrong woman to fight." Her icy laughter echoed in the cavern, and a soft moan caught both women's attention. "Ahhh, my pet is awake." Her brooding giving Arania a moment to see where the moan was coming from. Strapped to a column of stone on the edge of the cavern sat a naked man, his hair covering his face. Arania recognized the energy as that of a clone, and knew it was his brace she found. He was weak, but perhaps if she could somehow give him his weapon, he might be able to help, even a little. She had no time to figure out how, for Lillith chose that moment to advance on her, and she whirled, sliding her sword from it's scabbard, meeting the blow of the evil woman's scythe, the ringing of metal clanging loudly throughout the cave. The battle had begun.
Lillith cackled with glee as she rained blow after blow upon Arania, driving her back into a wall. She could feel the cold stone grabbing at her clothes, the sharp edges tearing through it into her skin. Launching herself into the air, Arania took a swipe at her opponent's arm, cleaving a wide bloody wound across her shoulder. Her blood dripped black and thick onto the floor. She took the second she had to throw the brace to the clone, praying to all the powers that he would be aware enough to see it and free himself. If nothing else happened, he had a chance to get away. That second cost her a gash on her back, causing her to hiss out against the pain and turn to face Lillith once more. "This is fun, I haven't had this much exercise in a long time." She laughed evilly, her voice sounding like a snake's hissing. "Enjoy it while it lasts bitch" Arania hissed back at her, feline in her voice and mannerisms in comparison. She felt the presence of someone, or something with her, and let her mind seek that out, blocking the blows put upon her. ~The spell, it is within you, use your heart, you will know when the time is right~ he presence faded to a distant watching. She smiled to herself and went on the offensive, drawing her dagger and raining a series of her own blow, sword then dagger, then sword again. She thrust and slashed, cutting Lillith's skin many more times, backing her against a far wall. She could tell that she was weakening, but Arania was as well. If she was going to do this, she would have to do it soon, but she needed time. She managed to keep the bitch on defensive, gashes growing on her arm, but she was knocked back by a blast of icy air, hitting her head on the stone floor, knocking her for a loop. She shook her head, trying to regain her sense of balance, and get rid of the ringing in her ears. Her vision blurred she could barely make out the form of the woman approaching her and pointed, a jet of lightening launching from her hand and striking the woman. She shot back to her feet, the words to the spell on her lips. She could feel blood running down her back, sticking to her legs, the fall had reopened the wound there. She threw the dagger at Lillith, pinning her arm to the wall behind her, and raised the item she held. "Recognize this don't you. " She smirked at the widened eyes of the cruel woman. She held forward the acorn, and started chanting, her eyes glowing a brilliant blue and green, her hair blowing about her face as though whipped by a wild wind. " De nouveau à la nature, de nouveau à la lumière. Revenez à votre prison, de nouveau à votre nuit." Over and over she repeated the words, the room filling with a bright glow, Lillith's form distorting and stretching, her body stretching and melding with the seed in Arania's hand. It glowed red as the seal was finished, Arania's finger tracing a rune on the shell of the seed. As the glow faded the seed shook a few times. She smiled, then remembered the clone. She wiped her sword in the soil, getting as much blood off of it as she could before resheathing it. She would have to clean and oil it later, but there were more important things to worry about now. She walked over to the spot where the clone remained bound, unmoving. As she walked she tore a strip of cloth from her suit, tying it into a makeshift pouch and fixing it to her belt. She slipped the acorn into it, making sure it was secure before kneeling beside the clone. He hadn't moved from the spot, his head still hanging, the brace laying where it landed. He was naked, his body paler than she had ever seen a clone before. She untied him, and saw his wrists had been mangled and bruised form being tied to the rock for so long, the cables from his brace dangling loosely from the socket, the ends frayed and torn. She sighed, lifting his head with a hand, and saw yellow bruises on his face and frowned. Even without proper protoblood, she didn't think that clones would have bruises. Slowly his eyes opened, and he looked around, unseeing. He was too far lost in protoblood failure to see her there. She frowned and murmured softly, both reassuring words and the words to open her "pocket". Reaching her hand in, she bit her lip as she felt the wound on her back spreading ore, she ignored her own pain, digging through the stuff she had stored there until she found a small canister of protoblood. She pulled the tubing out as well, but only had a length of about two or three inches, she managed to get enough into his protoport, but it would not fit into the canister too, so she sucked it into her mouth and pushed it into the tube as best she could, trying to get enough in that he could speak. If worst came to worst she could shift forms and carry him out, or wait until the others came for her. He moaned out, his eyes slowly regaining awareness, and his body jerked in pain. "Shh, you're safe. Do you have a name?" She wiped the fluid from her lips where it had escaped from the corners of her mouth. "I am ValerianKai" He let out a harsh rasping cough, unusual for a Kai. She was concerned, and attempted to shift forms, but the pain from her back would not allow it. "Looks like we're stuck here, until my friends come, I can't lift you, and I don't have enough protoblood to get you up and functioning properly." She sighed and sat beside him. "Why don't you tell me about yourself."
It turned out he was different from the others. He had been an herbalist in town and had used some herbs on himself, to test their effects and to make sure the herbs he used would not harm a Kai should they become ingested. He was right, they hadn't hurt him, but they had given him some peculiar traits. He could be bruised and he could catch cold, but he still healed from other wounds easily, and never got anything worse. He had been out in the woods near the cave when he came across Lillith, but she had been weaker at the time. She was near a fallen log, and he helped her back to the cave. He never was allowed to leave after that. "I'm not sure if she was faking it, or what, but she said some words and got me chained to the rock. She ripped my brace out and I've been here since. Hell, I don't even know how long I've been here." "Can't tell you...." She heard noises from the entrance to the cavern and jumped to her feet, ignoring the fresh flow of blood, she stood at the ready. The familiar ranting that grew in the cavern gave away who it was. Disco was coming, cussing her out, and leading the others. MusiKai ran to her side when he saw her, with Disco going to aid the new clone. Once she told them what had happened they made their way out. Waiting outside was the lioness and Genesis. "I can't go back to the house yet." Mus started to protest, but she ignored him. "I have to finish this, lioness, come with me, I will need your help, I can't dig a hole in my condition, and none of them can help me. Valerian, I will see you back at the house." They reached the gates to the mansion grounds and the two women split off from the group. Arania managed to keep walking, she was growing tired, but if it wasn't finished now, they would all be going through this again too soon. She led the way towards her sweat lodge, the most isolated part of the property. "Dig the hole deep enough for the seed to grow." She told the lioness what to do, and went into her lodge, looking for a piece of bone, and returning with it. "This should ensure that it is not bothered, before or after it grows again." Once the hole was dug, she knelt, placing the seed and the carved bone into the hole. Before covering them, she told the lioness what to say, and they spoke the words together. " Les créatures de la nature, êtres de lumière, nous scellons ce mal dans la nuit éternelle. Laissé aucun qui marchent ici dérangez sa prison, n'en laissez aucun qui demeurent ici lui donnent sa liberté." With that they together pushed the soil into place, leaving a stone to mark it's spot. Together they walked back to the house, where dinner and their loved ones awaited them. Arania felt joy and peace, and from some distant watcher, pride.
Images and
content © 1999-2001 Robin Greco
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