A New Destiny

Embrace It

"Ruechari?" Geronimo came around to where Ruechari sat deep in thought.

She knew she had to get to Reaper, but he was not alone. She doubted even with her newfound abilities she'd be able to take on his entire posse. She had to get him away from the rest.

Then there was the other problem of Billy. How to sneak away without him knowing? She feared he would get hurt in the process. She would like to think him invulnerable but obviously, that was not the case. She almost killed him.

"I have something for you little one," Geronimo held out a wrapped package. "Go on take it."

Ruechari pulled the strings and unfolded the paper. Tears sprung to her eyes. "It's beautiful," she said running her fingers along the native traditional buckskin dress and beaded moccasins.

"I had it made for your mother, as a wedding gift. It has special properties, you can shift into all of your totems and when you return to this realm you will be dressed, in this," he said unfolding the buckskin.

"If you are to be the Shaman of the West it is time for you to dress the part."

Ruechari shook her head, "I feel so unprepared. I'm not ready. I do not know if I will ever be ready."

Geronimo smiled at her, "Ready or not it is who you are. You can choose to continue to run from it, or finally embrace it."

Ruechari nodded that she understood. She took the dress from him, hugging it to her body.

Geronimo waited with Billy outside the tent. They heard a howl, and then they heard several answering howls coming back from inside the town.

"This just keeps getting worse," Billy said starting to see the Vampires from the White Queens coven gathering in the center of town. "They are preparing for a fight, but whose side are they on?"

Geronimo chuckled, "Their own of course. They serve the Queen, she is an ally against the Wraith gaining more power then her but she will do whatever it takes to stop the Wraith from obtaining that power even if it means Ruechari's death."

"I was afraid of that. I have to get her away. We have to go now," Billy said, turning to go back into the tent, but stopped dead in his tracks when suddenly Ruechari stepped out.

"Whoa!" Billy said taking in the site of Ruechari in her native garb. Up until now it was hard for him to think of her as anything more than a sweet innocent young woman, who needed to be sheltered and protected from this world.

Now, however, she looked like a force to be reckoned with. Dressed in a buckskin dress, a black pelt about her shoulders, her long hair plaited and decorated with turquoise and silver. Her face painted. She moved silently in her moccasin covered feet.

"I'm ready," she said.

"Good, let's go!" Billy said taking her hand about to lead her away but was pulled back when he realized she was not moving.

"I make my stand here," she said. Her head lifted when she heard the howls coming from the town. She suddenly let out a similar sound and a wolf appeared. Billy knew it was no ordinary wolf but one of the Skinwalkers.

"What are you doing?" he asked pulling her back from the beast that was snarling at her.

She pushed him back behind her and knelt before the beast, staring it in the eye, down at its level. 

"Delivering a message," she said. The wolf suddenly sat obediently in front of her. She grabbed its furry face and rested her head against his, never breaking eye contact. She mentally gave him her message.

The wolf barked and ran off back through the town gathering others as it moved towards Reaper and his gang.

"What did you say?" Billy asked.

"I told him, to tell the Queen and his Master, they may take out as many as they like but Reaper is mine, and is to remain unharmed. If they cross me in this, they will pay the price."

Billy wondered, what happened to Ruechari in the last hour. Where did she go?

Geronimo approached her and knelt before her. She shook her head and helped him rise. "You are never to kneel before me. You are my guide and I will expect you to be there when I need you. You are to leave this place, and we will meet again at the burial grounds."

Billy had enough, he grabbed Ruechari by the shoulders, "This is crazy, Rue! You don't have to do this. Come with me now. I'll keep you safe. I promise."

"No more, running. This is not the life I would have chosen for myself, William but it is the one I am meant to have."

"Great! Now you're starting to talk like him," Billy said waving his hand towards Geronimo who only shrugged and walked away to gather his things.

"I appreciate all you have done, and gone through but I cannot walk away. There IS no running from your destiny. Too many have already suffered from my Mother trying to do that very thing. I won't be guilty of the same," she said hoping he would understand, but knowing that he wouldn't.

"What do you owe these people? They don't care about you. You are just a means to an end for them. You sticking around means they get to keep their given status and power. Is that worth dying for?"

"For them? No, but for you..., and every other person who deserves a chance at redemption, a chance at life. I have to fight for that right, as someone wants to take it from me."

"You don't even know who that someone is? Reaper is just a puppet but he'll use you all the same to please his master the Wraith. He'll trick you into giving him just what he wants. He wants your soul, Rue. With it and the totem he'll have the power to take over the West."

"I am aware," she told him.

"And you're still going to go through with it? You're still going to track Reaper down?"

"I must."

"What you MUST to do is come with me. Please? I don't... I don't want... I don't want to lose you," Billy pleaded.

"You won't."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because I'm giving you this," Her hand touched his face, she leaned in and she kissed him. He felt her pour her heart and her very soul into him. Billy staggered back when she broke the connection.

"Now your job is to stay alive. Or we both die."