walker saga 06 - dronish (7 page)

To demonstrate, I sucked energy from Fury, Ria and Talina, and sent it into Delane. All of a sudden we had a massive hundred-foot-high twister on our hands. Walkers, pixies, faeries and sprites flew through the air around us.

Whoops; I quickly dialed it back. The five of us worked together, each lending control so we could safely set all our victims back on the ground. I was surprised and impressed by the finesse we demonstrated; it was a group effort, all the girls helping to anchor me. We got more than a few glares as those near us scurried away. Surprisingly enough, our sacred animals had not been affected. They were unmoving at our side.

Okay, so our power seems to have increased just a little.
Ria grinned, showing all of her perfect white teeth.
I’m liking this.

I could feel the surge of emotions in Delane. Connected like this, it was hard to keep them private, but I also knew she was struggling after so many years of subjugation and training to individualize herself.

We’re a weapon.
She finally voiced her emotion.
Unbelievable. And you say we’ll only become more powerful with each half-Walker we add?

Yes,
I said.
The strength seems to increase ten-fold with each female. I just hope we can control this in the end, because although the power is ours, it’s damn strong and, as we’ve seen with Josian, even the strongest of us can be dominated by those more powerful.

Josian had been a sobering but important lesson for us to learn.

We spent the next few hours testing ourselves and our elemental powers. We learned that if we focused together, the girls could help me control the energy, including directing and targeting it. In fact, I relied on them quite a lot, because no one knew the inner facets of their individual powers better than they did.

Despite the very real possibility of being blown into the air by a whirlwind, we had drawn quite the crowd around us by the time we were finished. Brace was standing to the side. I’d known he was there the moment he strode up. We were attuned to each other, our bodies craving the togetherness. I’d had to stop myself from breaking our power chain so I could run to him.

The golden bond that lived inside me, the one which I used for tethering, was also the force trying to push me into melding again. I wasn’t sure how much longer we could be around each other before it was taken from our control. I was afraid that Josian was right, we’d have to stay separated for a while. This very thought made me want to take the masses of power I was wielding and blow shit up. Like maybe a laluna.

Talina distracted me.
The more we’re joined together and use our power like this,
she said,
the stronger my energy feels. I can’t even believe how afraid I used to be of my abilities. I did my best to keep them locked down, and then they’d overwhelm me and take control. Now it feels as if there’s a bond; we exist together, not in battle.

It was a long speech from the normally quiet Spurn half, and it was clear that she was excited and happy. Which was nice. After losing Raror, I’d worried that she was broken, that her gentle soul was damaged beyond repair. I think it was Ladre’s love and acceptance, plus the bond with us half-Walkers, which had given her a reason to live.

I was afraid of my abilities too,
Fury confessed, with what sounded like a little reluctance. She didn’t like others to know of her weaknesses.
Afraid I’d hurt someone because I couldn’t control them.

Ria spoke formally.
It sounds like we’ve all gone through something like this.
But I’m forever grateful for my abilities now. My energy and the meditation of the packs are allowing us to slow the death of Artwon. Of course, we still have to return the sacred tree or the jungle will eventually fall, but we’re giving it time that we wouldn’t have had.

I’d been meaning to ask Ria how Artwon was managing after the Seventine destroyed the most important tether in their jungle: the sacred tree which had housed their gods.

Have you heard from your mother or any of the nature spirits?
I asked her.
Since the loss of the sacred tree.

No.
She sounded sad.
I can feel that they’re there, but there’s no way now to communicate between the mortal realm and theirs.

Effing Seventine,
I growled.
Those effers are getting on my last nerve.

There were a few chuckles as I started cursing my head off.

You sound like Lucy now,
Fury snorted.
And I’d never thought I’d say this, but I miss her annoying pixie butt.

I was missing her so much and she’d only been gone for like half a day. I wondered who the seven witnesses to their mating would be. Apparently they were called by the great mother and Walkers had no idea who it would be until they arrived.

The entire time we’d been chatting, we were still exercising our abilities. We started with one girl and one element at a time. We’d run through the range of abilities and together we’d form the power into weapons. Our control was still not the best. Sometimes we missed our target completely; other times the energy fizzled out before it could become anything dangerous. But sometimes, when the stars aligned and we all worked together, we created something so crazy powerful that it was a little scary.

A perfect example occurred in the five minutes before the end of our training. We were just about to pull apart, when Fury and Delane got into an argument. I won’t go into details, but suffice to say the Crais half did not like to take orders from the Nephilius half, despite the fact that Delane was full to the brim of useful little battle tactics. Fury fired up, and we all knew what happened when she did that. She sent her blue flames into massive spiraling turrets into the sky. The only problem was, she was still connected to the rest of us and suddenly every single half-Walker’s power was shooting up into the air around us.

Water, fire, wind, and earth.

For the first time the elements were not individual. The powers started to swirl around each other in a massive storm above our heads. I parted my lips to let out an extra exhalation of breath. As the conduit I could feel that the five of us were connecting further than we ever had before, the elements blending into each other, fire merging into the air, which swirled to the water and earth.

In the last minute, just before the storm grew large enough to descend and surround us, I pulled the energy into myself and severed the connections. I wasn’t sure, but it felt like we were about to lose control of what we had formed. It was going to take off from us and gods only knew what damage it might have wrought.

“Why did you cut that off, Abigail?” Fury got right into my face, hands on her hips. “We were just starting to create something powerful enough to be useful.”

I stared at her for a few moments. My eyebrows rose of their own accord as I fought against my instincts to smack some sense into her.

My tone was short when I finally answered her. I seemed to be lacking in patience without my melding bond. “You’re always so caught up in the power. The fire drives you, Fury, which is the main reason you didn’t even notice that that was too much energy for us to control. We were going to lose it, and then what would have happened?” I waved my hands to indicate the masses surrounding us. “People would have died.”

She slammed her mouth shut then, and the dark gray of her eyes glistened as she breathed deeply. I could see her trying to gain control of herself, of the fire that rode her emotions.

She threw her hands into the air. “Shit. Sorry. I know better than to let the energy control me.” She lowered her eyes and shook her head a few times.

I reached out and gripped her forearm, my hand gentle. “That’s why my conduit abilities are important. You all control elemental powers. They’re strong and link to your base instincts. I’m here to make sure we keep control of such immense energy. That we’re responsible with what we wield.”

Fury surprised me by reaching forward and yanking me into a strong hug. “I never say things like this, but I need you to know, I’m so happy to have met you and all the other girls.” She pulled back and looked at everyone. “I … care about you all.” Her hesitation spoke volumes. She’d wanted to use another word there.

“I love you all too!” Talina was always the sweetest, and most loving.

And then suddenly it was group-hug time.

Delane seemed a little uncomfortable with the affection, but I could see the softening of her eyes. She’d only been with us a short time, but the bond between us was strong, unbreakable. We half-Walkers were formed of past lives and old power.

“I’ve never had many friends, besides Klea,” Ria said. “But you’re all my best friends, and even though the Seventine are trying to destroy everything, I’m so glad we found each other.”

It was such a perfect friend moment, where you’re surrounded by so much love and strength that you kind of feel you might burst from it. If only Lucy were here.

“Please don’t tell me you biatches are having a bonding moment without me?” We all spun around to find a fluttering pixie-doll about ten feet from us. “Cause I’m totally owed some love now.”

Lucy held her arms open and we ended up in a huge girl pile. I had arms and knees digging into me, but I didn’t care. By this time, we’d lost most of our curious onlookers. They wanted to see power, not girls crying, hugging and bonding with each other.

Colton and Brace both braved our pile, their long arms reaching in to fish us out. The wolf-Walker hauled his mate free. She was the smallest by a fair amount and had been on the bottom of the pile. I felt muscled bands surround me, and before I could blink again I was in Brace’s arms. He set me on my feet. We were trying to keep our distance from each other, but he hadn’t been able to stop himself from ‘saving me’. Protective as always.

Lucy and Colton drifted to our side. “So I’m guessing your mating was accepted?” I asked the happy, glowing, way-too-beautiful-for-their-own-good couple.

“Yes!” Lucy exclaimed. “It was incredible, floating in space, no gravity, and then all of this stuff happened at once.” Her blue-and-gold eyes softened as they rested on my face and then looked from Brace to me. “You’ll see for yourself soon enough.”

I closed my eyes briefly, her words reminding me that she didn’t know about Josian and everything to do with his laluna.

“Actually –” I started to say, but she interrupted me.

“I already know about Jos. We ran into Grantham over the other side of the field.” She waved a hand dismissively. “That’s not what I’m talking about. I see that you and Brace will bond soon.”

“You don’t seem worried or surprised about Dad and the lalunas.” I furrowed my brow.

“Josian is a good man, and he’ll become a great man now,” she said cryptically. “The secrets were holding him back; now he can be free.”

Fury snorted as she crossed her arms tightly over her body. “I might have missed some aspects of Lucy, but her weird ‘I’m a pretend soothsayer’ babble was not one of them.”

“Hey, fiery Fury,” Lucy said, smiling or kind of baring her teeth, “I have a surprise for you.”

Fury stilled, her animated face shutting down as she regarded Lucy. “Why do I have a feeling you’re about to drop a bombshell on me?”

Lucy shifted her head to the right, her chin lifting as she searched for something. I followed her line of sight and was surprised to notice a man standing across the field. Walker, most definitely.

His energy felt a little like Fury’s, which meant he was from Grantham’s clan, Relli. The man started to move in long strides, eating up the distance toward us. As he closed in I registered the broad planes of his features. They were harsh, weather-beaten.

Which was very strange on a Walker.

He looked like a man who had seen too much and had been systematically washed over like the side of a rock face. No longer smooth, his experiences had shaped an entirely new face. When he drew closer, my lips parted as recognition shocked me.

Without any doubt in all the worlds, he had Fury’s very expressive gray eyes. Same shape. Same sardonic slant to the eyebrows.

Lucy’s voice was low. “He was one of the seven witnesses called for my bonding.” The Walker was almost upon us. “I knew as soon as I saw him. I had Colt mentally contact him and explain about Fury. Your father decided to come and find you.” She directed the last part to the stunned-looking Crais half.

Fury lifted a hand to cover her mouth, before taking a staggering step toward him. She seemed to halt herself, shaking her head a few times when she realized what she’d been doing.

“I’ve waited a long time to meet my father,” she whispered, “and now I feel that this is a big mistake.”

She turned to run, but at the last moment Lucy stepped in front of her. “Put your big-girl pants on, Fury. You’re tough; you can manage five minutes of small-talk to see if there’s anything there for you to build upon. All of us have had to come to terms with our messed up families. Now it’s your turn to suck it up.”

Lucy could be beyond blunt; right then, though, Fury kind of needed it. She’d wanted to meet her father since we first found her on Crais, and the big moment was here now. She would regret running from him.