Half the Power

The Morning

When I woke up, Ava was sitting with a packed gray bag beside her. The pad that she had been sleeping on was rolled up and the top was poking out of the top of the bag, now deflated. Ava had changed, once again, into a gray hoodie and light jeans. She was brushing her hair, working her way through the ginger waves.

I sat up, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes. The sun was well above the horizon, and I turned with wide eyes to Ava. "Why didn't you wake me? We need to leave!"

She laughed. It was a calming sound, that reminded me of sitting by a fireplace, sipping hot chocolate with friends. It reminded me of happy times, before all of this started yesterday.

"Trust me, I tried. You're impossible to wake. I decided I would just wait for you to get up on your own."

It was impossible to stay mad at someone so bright. She helped me make an outfit out of the random clothes I had packed. Soon, I was dressed in a dark purple t-shirt, dark blue jeans, and running shoes. My hair was braided to one side, and tied off with a black ponytail holder. I looked like I could be going to school on a normal day.

We ducked out of the tent to meet Ryan, or was wearing the same clothes as yesterday. His hair seemed hastily combed, and he seemed well-rested. His tent was already taken down, his bag on his back.

Orion was waiting for us with packs of food and water bottles. When we set down our bags, he stuffed the supplies into them.

"So, Orion. Where are we going?" I prompted.

"Oh... yes, that." He sounded like he was trying not to let that topic come up. "There is one thing I could suggest you could do, but I'm not sure that that will even work. You would be risking your lives, too."

"What else is new?" Ryan said under his breath.

Orion shot him an annoyed look.

Ava cleared her thought. "Risking our lives...?"

"Oh, yes." Orion seemed to remember the conversation. "You must go to the person who started this. He cannot be persuaded easily. If you want everyone to awake, however, you need to find a way to change his mind."

"I told  you it would be something impossible," I complained quietly to Ava. She let out a small giggle.

"What's stopping him from simply killing us?" she asked.

We all looked hopefully at Orion. Maybe he would reveal some major weakness that we could easily manipulate? "Oh, nothing. He could dispose of you without lifting a finger." 

Our hope kind of crumbled. We would be walking into a trap, where he could easily get rid of us, the closest thing he had to a threat. Then there was nothing to stop him. The pegasi might be able to slow him down a little, but I was sure that he could defeat them without breaking a sweat.

Orion seemed to notice our dark expressions. "You do, however, stand a chance." How reassuring. "You are the only ones ever to be known with these powers. Others have had powers, but none ever impressive or  strong as yours. You may very well succeed."

"Hold up." Ryan made a time-out symbol with his hands. "Others? You mean this has happened before?"

"Oh, yes."

"What happened after they failed?"

Orion hesitated. "Well... those enemies were mere minions of your current enemy. Now, your strength may outweigh those of the adversary."

We all stood, apparently clinging to that hope.

Orion allowed a few moments of that, then cleared his throat. "You girls should start packing up your tent. Ryan... come with me."

***

Ava and I worked together to get the tent down. It involved much tangling in nets, kicking out of frustration, and nearly getting smacked in the face with poles. Eventually, we had managed to get the material in one pile, rods in another. 

"Orion just had to take Ryan," I said. "Why couldn't he take me? You and Ryan could've gotten this down in a minute!"

"Well," Ava said, trying to stay positive. "We have it down now. And look, here they come!"

Sure enough, Orion and Ryan were walking towards us. Orion had a solemn expression, and Ryan was very pale. It made his freckles stand out.

When they reached us, Orion spread his wings. I thought of a dove, seeing his snowy white feathers. "You children seem ready to go! I fear you can't wait much longer. Every second gets your friends and family into a deeper sleep. The deeper the sleep, the more energy it will take to wake them."

I was a little annoyed that he was giving such negative news. "Where are we supposed to go anyway?" I asked.

"I have talked to Ryan about that." He shot Ryan a warning look, (how could a pegasus have so many expressions?) and a silent understanding went between them.

"Um... yeah," Ryan said. "We can talk about it on the way. We're really walking on thin ice, trying to leave this late."

"Exactly! You must be on your way!" And so the pegasus nudged our bags, and we shouldered them. Ryan took the lead, showing us the way into woods.