Page 54 of Outcast
I grabbed my now empty bag and stuffed my clothes into it.Can you carry this bag with you so I can change when we get where we’re going?
She huffed an affirmative in my mind, and I crept quietly through the house so as to not wake up Seth. Grabbing an apple from his bowl of fruit on the kitchen island, I tossed it into my bag for later. Praying that no one was right outside, I gently nudged open the broken door to slip out and slid it back into place behind me.
Glancing around, I heaved a sigh of relief and gave over control to Lux. My consciousness slipped behind hers as the shift occurred swiftly. Dropping down, she picked up the bag in her jaws and took off.
Where to?
I sent a mental image of the elders’ hut to her and a general direction of where to go, and she adjusted our direction. Passing through the small cropping of houses, we thankfully didn't come into contact with anyone as we neared the edge of the forest.
Keep running for a bit, just don't go too far with the Daimona sighting last night. I don't know if the one that attacked Jameson is still alive.
Skirting the edge of the forest, she ran to her heart's content for a half hour, and I enjoyed not being in control for a bit. The scent of a rabbit caught her attention, and our stomach rumbled. She tracked it down, killing it swiftly, and I shut my mental eyes to avoid watching.
I knew it was the cycle of life, but it grossed me out to think of having a rabbit stuck between my teeth when I shifted back.
As if I would leave any pieces behind.
Thank the goddess for little blessings like that.
After satisfying her hunger, she picked my bag back up and plodded along towards the cabin, stopping a few feet away and relinquishing control to me once more.
I grabbed my clothes and yanked them on. Picking up the bag, I crossed the distance to the door and pushed it open hesitantly, peeking into the room to make sure it was empty. Surprisingly, I found Seneca at the table, pouring over the Cognitionis.
Clearing my throat to get her attention, I asked, "May I join you?"
A genuine grin graced her face, and her smile lines creased, somehow making her look more beautiful. "I was actually waiting for you."
Huh?
Stepping into the room and closing the door behind me, I padded over to the chair across from her at the table and sat. "How did you know I'd come?"
A knowing look passed over her face as she admitted, "I didn't know, but I hoped you would after our talk yesterday. I was banking on your thirst for knowledge to bring you. I believe in you and want to assist you, despite the other old crones’ naysaying." She winked at me, smiling warmly.
Her belief in me was touching, and I rubbed at my chest absentmindedly as I answered, "Thank you. I haven’t known much kindness in the pack, so this is a wonderful change of pace. But, why do you believe me?"
Shifting in her chair, she looked back down to the book and flipped through its pages, "I am one of the few, along with my mate Nicholas, who still maintain a strong faith in our goddess and her words through her Oracle." As she spoke, she reached up to clutch her necklace in her hands.
When she let go of it, I took note of the worn metal in the shape of a crescent moon that was threaded with a soft leather cord around her neck.
A twisted look crossed her face as if pained, and she looked up to me, admitting, "I want you to know, child, that there were a few of us who wanted to open our homes up to you when you were deemed fit to be on your own at such a young age." A soft sigh escaped her as her shoulders sagged. "The alpha made it clear that you were to be left alone or we would be in direct defiance of his orders. I should have said to hell with him and helped you, but we feared becoming outcasts and packless in our old age."
Suddenly the elders’ cold shoulders made sense, and I chuckled humorlessly. "I don’t blame you, Seneca. But I appreciate you telling me that. It brings me some peace of mind."
She reached out to grip my hand in her’s, and I was shocked by the strength behind her grip and the words that followed. Piercing me with her steel grey eyes, she warned, "A darkness exists within the alpha that extends past what is acceptable for one in his position of power. Be cautious, Kira."
Her words spiked my distrust of the alpha and once again brought to the forefront of my mind how Selene had reacted to his ignorance of my wolf within. It wasn't uncommon for pack mates to be unable to scent the kids who had yet to shift, but an alpha was supposed to be able to sense that second soul within and have an understanding of where their dominance would fit into the pack.
It was his job to ensure the smooth transition and stabilize disruption of the pecking order by incoming wolves. That’s how the fights had been determined in the past. He would pit similar dominant and submissive levels to establish their place.
Shaking my head in annoyance and confusion, I focused back on what I’d come here for: answers.
Squeezing her hand back once, and then retracting my own, I explained the theory brewing in my mind. "It occurred to me when you mentioned the creatures from Hell in the Shadow War, that the Daimona could easily fit the bill. With the Dark Prophecy’s words about the return of a defeated foe, I can't stop thinking that they overlap."
Nodding for a few moments, she sat back in her chair and rubbed her chin in thought.
"I would have to agree with your deduction. If that is the case, finding the legendary sword wielded by the Quis Fortis is of the utmost importance." Fixing me with a pointed look, she seemed to peer into me as she questioned, "Have you found balance within your soul? You appear to be doing better."
How could she tell these things?
