Forever Luna

astute

adjective - having or showing an ability to accurately assess situations orpeople and turn this to one's advantage

NOVA

Kasper's words rang through my head. Reality distorted, leaving behind a faint buzz of electricity and the rapid humming of my heart. My vision blurred, shifted, tilted; my lungs struggled for breath, but... but I knew I heard him correctly.

I staggered forward, stumbling over my own two feet as desperation fuelled me. I pushed Phoenix aside, barely putting in the effort to shift such a large man. His hand left Kasper's throat without a word, his eyes wide as he stared down at me.

But I ignored my mate, my breathless, raspy voice directed towards the brown-eyed man.

"What did you just say?"

Kasper hesitated, pushing himself away from the wall. I saw the faint bruising forming and healing on his throat, along with the small drips of blood from Phoenix's claws.

He swallowed, shifted his weight before sighing. "I've seen him. He's held captive."

"He was kidnapped." I rushed.

"How do we know you're not just saying this?" Phoenix seethed.

I felt his own desperation like my own, burning through the bond. Phoenix wanted this just as much as I did.

"I've seen him." He stated, glancing between us. "With my own eyes."

My gift reacted, startlingly loud as it urged me to listen. I inhaled sharply, reaching out towards him. Phoenix called my name, hesitant, but my eyes remained locked onto Kasper. They creased with concern, but the moment my fingers brushed his forehead, the world swayed into blurs.

I gasped, floating in a world of dream and reality. Or perhaps... the past and the present.

I was in Kasper's body, that much I was certain. My hands were larger and tanned; my stature was tall and towering. I bumped into the doorframe when I tried to move through it, cursing under my breath.

I was following someone. He was following someone, but I couldn't see their face. It blurred whenever they reached back to talk to me, and somehow, in all the blurs, I answered.

It was as though I was underwater, not quite hearing what they were talking about, the context floating past me.

We strolled down some corridors, my eyes scanning each door and recess that we passed. In case of an attack, Kasper was thinking. He was wary and on edge, and whenever the man before him talked, he stiffened considerably.

"...waiting for you." They huffed.

I picked up the pace, jogging past a T-junction, but then something caught my eye. Between the white, sterile walls and the squeaking tiled floor, two men dragged a smaller figure by the underarm. I hesitated in the middle of the walkway, staring at the dishevelled, dirty blonde hair that piqued my curiosity.

Kasper didn't know who it was exactly, but something in his mind made me realise he had an inclination.

"What's going on?" he wondered, his voice deep and rumbling.

"None of your concern." The words distorted, echoing loudly. "He's waiting. You are delaying the inevitable."

I inhaled deeply, glancing at the body once more as the two escorts dragged him past me. And as I turned to follow the other man, I saw the blood that pooled down the inside of the unconscious man's arms.

But before I could call out, before I could scream his name, the past blurred and tilted, and I staggered away from Kasper with a gasp.

Phoenix was beside me, his arms instantly catching me as I fought to recognise where I was.