The Hunt for Freedom

Chapter Twenty Six

    The sun rose over the horizon in shades of blue and purple stunning enough to hurt the eyes. Off the coast the clouds formed and dissipated, the winds carrying the remnants far and wide. A group of fifty or more met on the beach, looking none too rested.

Katalea studied the group and saw the look of determination and hope on their faces. Tiredness showed in the hollows of their eyes,but our Pride was resilient. They would train as a unit, as they had almost every summer. Groups would be formed and leaders would emerge. Classes would start again in all aspects of training.

Mr. Kalb would supervise as Abe and Dalya taught Tahtib to the younger generation and honed the skills of the more advanced.

Maggie would help her father with teaching conjuring and telekinesis for those blessed with those gifts.

I was to teach weather manipulation class as I was the only one as of yet to have tried it.

Penny was to work with all the groups, learning and teaching how to use her invisibility as a weapon.

Together we would work on hand to hand combat, and weapon practice. There was never a dull moment. We wanted to prepare to go on the offensive as soon as we knew where to strike.

The older generation, Grandfather included, was content to conspire and speculate. We had not heard much from Dakari, but we did know that wherever he was. It was dark and cold.

He told us he was in a small round cell that had no windows but he wasn't too far from the kitchen. He could hear the clanking of kitchen appliances and smell the horrible sulfuric stench of dragoon's at they consumed their daily meals. They spoke in a tongue foreign to him but he could see pictures inside their minds.

They thought to keep him drugged, and only paid attention to him occasionally. He had worked a spell to vanish the drugs they fed him before they could ingest them. They didn't notice as he pretended to sleep around the clock. The conversations that took place were thought to be in private. Occasionally they would speak Egyptian, Dakari passed on what he could.

We learned that they had no intention of attacking for now. Our rescue mission had pointed out their flaws and they were rebuilding. They would continue to work in the human town to bewitch the women to try to come on our island. Their plan was simple: send beautiful women our way, our men would fall to their charms, and babies would be born that were not Werecats. They had been imploring this tactic for so long with so much success it made sense to just keep it up.

I remembered Mom telling me how she ran to the arms of a human so she might not have werecat children. I wondered how many young werecats did the same. There needed to be a way to find more werecats. I formed a plan to put our computer geeks on the problem...

After lunch was a two hour break for naps, healing, or whatever needed doing. I would teach my class, but it was not progressing at all. We had started with gathering clouds, and could even have them darken with water. We had not gotten them to release anything more than a fine mist, certainly not enough water to stop a fire breathing dragon.

For me, the only way to create a large-scale weather catastrophe was to see one in my mind. I had the class draw the worst storms they could think of in the most extreme detail. I took pencil to paper, creating a large wave bearing down on frightened sunbathers. In my drawing I gave detail to the swirling clouds heavy with rain, burning trees in the distance that had been struck with lighting and cracks and crevices in the grounds caused by the massive earthquake that created the tidal wave. I drew in the seagulls trying to escape, flying into the wind gaining no ground as palm trees bent so low they could snap in two at any moment. When I was done I concentrated on my drawing.

I felt the heat rise up in me and I pushed it outward. My hair swirled around my face as the wind picked up. Rain began to slash my uncovered arms, and the ground began to shake. Abe yelled my name from off in the distance and I came out of my vision. Just as fast as it started the weather returned to peaceful, the ground stopped shaking and the wind died down.

The group stood with months gaping, this was the power we would need. A group of three enterprising young boys tried concentrating on their picture of a sandstorm. Individually, they had not been able to do much more than cause a low breeze to barely fill a bucket with the sand they pushed. Working together, all concentrating on the same picture the air turned into punishing little pellets of hot wind. Before they could be stopped an entire picnic table had been covered in sand. We now had inspiration.

Groups were formed and little storms started popping up everywhere on the beach. The warriors training in the soft sand grew irritated with the interruptions, swearing as they moved their combat to the training yard. I was proud of my group, but we still needed more.

I could see Abe sauntering over my way. I watched him closely from behind mirrored sunglasses. He was a pleasure to look at, and I took advantage of my view.

He watched the group attempt to form a thunderstorm, and smiled encouragingly. The clouds they had pulled together were a bit too thin to do any real damage. I decided to give them a boost. I imagined thunder and lightning striking about a hundred arcs off the shore. I let the glorious powers rise up in me like heat and I pushed it or. Heads jerked as a storm raged where moments before calm stood. Abe looked at me in awe.

"That was you?" He asked.

"I just gave them a boost. They did the majority of it." I winked at him.

"If you guys are done, I'd like to walk with you back to the training grounds." He looked so sweet, I could feel my resolve weakening.

"Guys, let's give it a rest before we have the news helicopter out here again!" I yelled into the wind.

I could see everyone grabbing their packs and heading home. By this point in the day,rest was essential. We would meet again after dinner.

"I am actually headed down to see Jade, you may join me if you like," I offered.

His grin split his face in two. He grabbed my hand as we strolled in comfortable silence. After being on the beach all day we could probably both use a bath, but our friendship had grown on the training field, sweating was a normal part of our day.

"I'd like to spend some time with you, just us. Do you think we could watch a movie, or listen to some music one night this week?"

It was decision time. I wasn't sure how I felt about him. I had been purposely avoiding any one on one time with him and apparently he had noticed.

"Abe, I'm sorry. I am not ready for that. You really scared me. I just want to stay in a group setting for now. Are you ok with that?"

"I'm trying Katalea, but everything in me wants to touch you. To make you mine. It's killing me everyday when we act like we're just friends. I think I love you."

"That sounds like a mate bond. I haven't got that vibe yet." I knew he hadn't either, but it was strange that he would use those words on me.

Out of nowhere he conjured a single white rose. He tucked it behind my ear and kissed my cheek. "I will wait as long as you need me to."

I hugged him, as I did I felt him try to pull me close, too close. I pulled back but he wasn't ready to let go.

"Abe!" I yelled at him, pushing him off of me physically and mentally.

"Sorry, I'm so sorry! I gotta go!"

He shifted, and tore off down the beach. What was I going to do?