See How She Fights (16 page)

“I missed you,” I sighed as I
wrapped my arms around him.

“What is going on here, Izzy?” he
asked slowly. He pulled my body against his own and I immediately felt like I
was home once more. All of my fears washed away to be replaced by the comfort
of his protection.

“I am teaching her to soul walk,”
Aberto said, eyeing us steadily.

“How long have you known you could
do this, Izzy?” Kennan asked, pulling back to look down at me.

“I didn’t know what it was. I did
it the night of the tattoo ceremony,” I shrugged, pulling myself back against
his body and leaning my head against his chest.

“Did you not think to tell anyone?”
he asked Aberto.

“It was not the right time. She was
not ready,” he replied. “We must return to our training. If you feel the need
to remain in the room you must not interfere.”

“Can’t I just take a break and come
back tomorrow?” I asked. All I wanted to do was go up to my room and wrap
myself around Kennan.

“You do not have the luxury of
following your whims. Learning to do this is imperative if you wish to save the
Seers trapped between planes. Do not balk at your responsibility just to
fulfill your personal delights.” Disdain dripped from his every word.

I felt the angry tears start to
rise in my eyes and I tamped them down. I didn’t know what I’d done to deserve
such censure. I swallowed down my pride and nodded. I pulled back and reached
my face up to kiss Kennan deeply. I knew that Aberto was right. I needed to
worry about someone besides myself. It didn’t excuse how he had talked to me,
though. I pulled back from the kiss and looked in Kennan’s eyes.

“Are you sure? You don’t have to do
this right now. We can find another way,” Kennan said, running his hand down my
cheek. I leaned into it. He looked over to Aberto. “Don’t push too far, Old
One. She is still new to this. Remember that,” he said before turning to leave.

“You can’t protect her from her
destiny, Guardian. You know this,” Aberto said.

“I can try,” Kennan said before
slamming the door.

“What was that?” I said, wiping at
my eyes.

“Get back to work,” Aberto said
coldly.

I threw myself back on the couch,
fuming. I could not stand this rollercoaster I’d been on for the past few days.
I would master this and then leave Aberto to find Kennan. I longed to surround
myself in his comfort. I wanted to forget about my responsibilities for a
while. Most of all, I needed to belong to myself again. I swallowed my anger
and concentrated on ripping myself apart. I did it more quickly than I’d done
all day. I stood outside my body and looked over to find Aberto assessing me
with steady eyes. He nodded toward my body.

“Again,” he said.

I mended myself back together and
did it all again. I repeated the process another ten times. Each time he said
again. Each time I let my anger fuel me. Finally, I sat up on the couch and
looked at him steadily.

“I’m done,” I said, getting up to
leave.

“You can’t allow him to hold you
back from what you are meant to be,” Aberto’s voice was calm and steady,
causing my nerves to be set on edge.

“Do not pretend to know anything
about me or Kennan. You weren’t there last year. He may be trying to protect
me, but he is not doing it just to keep me to himself. I’m done for today. I’ll
look at the ceremony tomorrow and if I find that I can’t do it on my own I’ll
find you.” I got up from the couch and headed to the door. “Thank you for your
help,” I added. I knew that he had helped me and I felt guilty for not at least
acknowledging it.

“I am ever at your service,” he
bowed as he faded from my sight. I looked around the room wondering where he
had poofed to. I wondered if he was still floating around where I could not see
him.

“Whatever,” I mumbled and left the room
in search of Kennan. I didn’t have to search far. I found him sitting just
outside the room, next to Conall.

**********

CHAPTER NINETEEN

“Are you done?” Kennan asked.

“I am for tonight. Want to get some
food?” I asked, heading toward him.

“I would love to.” He wrapped me
under his arm and placed a kiss atop my head causing me to smile up at him.

“I love you,” I sighed into him.

“As I do you,” he replied.

“If you need me, you know where to
find me, Brother,” Conall said before bowing.

“Thank you for your help. I am
indebted to you,” Kennan said.

“It was my honor to serve her,”
Conall said as he made his way down the hall.

“Are you okay?” Kennan looked me
over as if to make out any small thing that might have altered in the last day
and a half.

“I’m fine. I just want to put an
end to all of this and get back to Alabama. I know I probably won’t be able to
stay there for long, but there has to be some sort of vacation time associated
with this job. Right?” I looked up at him with wide eyes. I really hoped I
would get some time off from saving the world. Doing it for another two hundred
some odd years with no break was not something I was interested in.

“I’m sure, as the head of the
Council, you can make your own schedule, Izzy. Just don’t overexert yourself
before then. I’m worried about you.” Kennan pulled me closer.

“I’m fine. Really, I promise. I
don’t feel bad. I’m just a little tired from popping in and out of my body all
day.”

“What did he say to you today about
your destiny?”

There were secrets hidden in
Kennan’s voice that I did not like. Once again, I knew he was keeping something
from me.

“What aren’t you telling me
Kennan?” I pushed away from him so that I could look him in the eyes. I wanted
to watch and see if he would lie straight to my face after everything we had
been through the past week.

“I am not keeping anything from
you, Izzy. There are rumors, or rather prophecies, that center around the
regeneration of the soul walker. Since you can soul walk, Aberto seems to think
they are about you. But it is not certain, so it is nothing that you should
think about right now. Right now, we need to eat so that you can go and save
those Seers,” Kennan smiled brightly. I knew there was something he was afraid
to tell me, just as I knew I would be doing everything in my power to find out
just what these prophecies said.

“You’re right. I need to focus on
one thing at a time. No sense in worrying about something that may or may not
be about me. I need to run by and see if Eleanor can help me with the ritual to
separate Xavier from the Seers. If she can’t, then I will have to call on
Aberto for help tomorrow. Whatever is going on between the two of you needs to
be put aside until this is over, okay?” Kennan looked at me steadily for a
moment as if he was weighing every possible option.

“I don’t like it, but I promise not
to interfere. I want to keep you safe, Izzy. Sometimes I get a little crazy
thinking about the danger you throw yourself into. I wonder if you ever stop
and think before dashing into the middle of things. I don’t want to wake up and
find you gone again.” The haunted look in his eyes told me everything I needed
to know.

“I know. I also know that I don’t
have a choice in all of this. Not a good choice at any rate. I either put myself
in the middle of it, risking it all to save the Seers, or I sit back and do
nothing. You know that the last one is not an option I can live with. I promise
that I will be as careful as I can be. That is why I put up with Aberto yelling
at me all day. I won’t go in unprepared. Plus, you will be there to keep me
safe this time.” I smiled up at him, trying to lighten the mood. I needed to
eat and forget about what the next day might hold.

“Let’s get you something to eat.”
Kennan wrapped his arm back around me and led me into my second favorite room
in the house, the dining facility. The smells of dinner pulled me in. I was
absolutely famished.

“So, how goes the training, Pip
Squeak?” Ian startled me.

“Fine,” I muttered.

“Soul walker, who woulda thunk it?”
he snickered as he made his way over to sit down next to Molly. He looked down
at her with a mixture of fear and love. I could hardly begin to guess what was
going on with the two of them. I wished they would just get together and be
done with it.

“Food,” I said to Kennan. He
laughed causing his body to shake. I loved the way his laugh rumbled around
inside of him like tiny thunder claps. It seemed like an eternity had passed
since I had heard it.

“Yes, let’s feed you,” he smiled.

We sat down and ate our dinner in
companionable silence. Mostly because I was, once again, trying to suck down my
food as quickly as possible. I was sure I looked quite ridiculous, but this
whole soul walking thing left me famished. By the time my plate was cleared,
Kennan had only made it halfway through his meal.

“Hungry?” he asked with a raised
brow.

“Yep, but not for food anymore.” I
eyed him steadily. I needed him tonight. It had been too long since we’d been
able to be together. Far longer than we should ever have to go.

“I think I am full,” he said,
standing up. He moved towards me and pulled me from my seat before tossing me
over his shoulder.

“I just ate Kennan. I am going to
puke all over your back,” I giggled.

“Better not,” he said as he swatted
my butt.

We made our way up to the room,
turning several heads along the way. I really didn’t care what anyone thought
of me at the moment. I was tired of worrying about everyone else’s needs. For
tonight, I would just worry about Kennan and me. I could get back to saving the
world in the morning. Kennan put me down outside of the door and reached for
our key.

“You sure you don’t want to talk to
Eleanor tonight?” Kennan’s voice had dropped to a deep rumble and every word
spoke of unimaginable delights that had nothing to do with the actual words he
was saying.

  “It can wait,” I said, pulling
him into the room.

“Thank the gods.” He picked me up
so that I could wrap myself around his body. He carried me into the room and
threw me on the bed, settling himself between my legs before thoroughly
ravishing my mouth. I was breathless and felt the most alive I had felt in
days. I threw all other thoughts aside and submersed myself in the moment. I
breathed Kennan in. I needed more. I needed it all.

I turned him over so that I was
atop him. I looked down into his face and was struck by the love I saw there. I
knew undoubtedly that I would never love anyone again the way I loved him. I
bent down and brushed my mouth against his. Whispering, “I love you,” between
kisses. I left all else behind and surrendered myself to Kennan. For one night,
I could be just his.

I inhaled deeply as he flipped me
back over on the bed, brushing his lips down my neck as he went. He ripped my
shirt from my top with little effort. My pants were yanked off in a similar fashion.
Kennan devoured me. There was nothing sweet in that moment. He took what he
needed and I took it all back in turn. We were greedy, and by the end, we were
both left empty. We’d both given everything we had until neither of us had
anything left to give.

I lay there, breathing hard, trying
to bring myself back down. I looked over to find Kennan staring at the ceiling.
His jaw was clenched and it seemed like he was about to say something.

“What is it?” I whispered. I could
hardly speak.

“I don’t like this. Any of it,” he
said, rubbing his hand down his face. I suddenly felt self-conscious. I didn’t
understand. I moved to grab my clothes and get dressed. I wasn’t sure what was
happening but I suddenly felt very exposed. As I started to get up he pulled me
back to the bed. “Where are you going?”

“Well, you said you didn’t like
it.”

“Izzy, don’t be ridiculous. You
know I’m not talking about you. I’m talking about what is happening here. I
don’t like that I can’t be there to keep you safe. I don’t like that once again
the fate of the Seers is on your shoulders. I just want to protect you. Aberto
is right, if I could keep you from your destiny, I would. If I could keep you
to myself, I would in a heartbeat. I know it is selfish and I know that it goes
against everything I was raised to believe, but I don’t want to lose you.
Almost losing you last year nearly killed me, Izzy. I can’t do that again,” he
swallowed deeply.

I looked down into his shimmering
eyes and wanted to take that pain away, but I couldn’t. We both knew that there
was absolutely nothing either one of us could do to stop this. I lifted my hand
to his cheek and brushed my thumb across his cheekbone.

“I love you more than I have or
ever will love anyone. You know that right?” I looked down at his lips as I
lowered my own to kiss him. That was all it took to pull him back to me. We
spent the next few hours slowly exploring one another’s bodies. There was no
anger this time. There was no urgency, just love.

We lay there exhausted, entwined in
one another as I struggled to keep my eyes open. I wanted that night to last
forever. I didn’t want to fall asleep and miss a single second I had with him.

“Sleep, Iz,” Kennan whispered, his
lips across my forehead as I fought to keep my eyes from closing.

“I don’t want to,” I mumbled
against his chest as he finger combed my hair.

“Neither do I, but we must,” he
smiled against my forehead, causing my heart to skip a beat. I knew that smile
by heart. I could picture it even with my eyes closed. That was the last image
I had before I fell into the dreaming.

**********

CHAPTER TWENTY

I looked around me, confused for
a moment. I knew that I was in the dreaming but something felt different. I
moved forward trying to figure out what had changed. It was still the foggy
landscape I had grown accustomed to. I tried to decipher what was different and
realized it was the feeling emanating from the fog. There was something
malicious lurking there.

“Be very quiet, Izzy. Please
don’t make him come back,” Ren whimpered from behind me. I swirled around and
my breath caught in my throat. Her runes were now glowing under her blood caked
skin. She was covered in gore.

“What happened?” I whispered as
tears formed in my eyes. Had I been too late? I had spent the night fulfilling
my selfish desires and this is what it cost her. Aberto was right, I couldn’t
just think of myself anymore.

“If you don’t hurry all will be
lost. Not just for us, but for you. It is coming. Leave, Izzy. Leave now. Get
out of the dreaming.” Ren was panicked. She shoved me out of the dreaming.

**********

I sat up screaming in my bed,
drenched in sweat.  My leg felt like it was on fire.  When my eyes finally made
sense of what they were seeing I wanted to scream.  There, on my thigh, was
another bloody rune. When I finally got myself under control, I looked over to
find Kennan staring at my thigh in abject horror.

“Get Conall,” I said. I knew I
needed to get something on the wound quickly. It burned from within. I needed
to end this quickly. It couldn’t wait another day. “What happened in the
dreaming, Izzy? You blocked me out again.” Kennan got out of bed throwing his
clothes on as he went.

“Conall and his medical skills
first, then an explanation, please!” I was struggling to keep it together. I
was tired of being marked up. I thought the tattoo on my back was supposed to
protect me.

“You’re right. I’ll be right back.
Don’t move,” Kennan said in a rush. His eyes mirrored the panic in my own.

I stood there, looking down at my
leg as tears started streaming down my face. I wanted to end this. Had I not
spent the night worrying about just myself I would’ve been closer to a
solution. No more. Until this was over, my only focus would be severing the
connection between Xavier and the Seers.

I rushed to throw some clothes on
before the guys came back, leaving my legs bare so that Conall could treat my
newest mark. 

Conall came rushing into the room,
followed closely by Kennan. He looked down at my leg and back at Kennan. A
silent conversation passed between the men and I knew that they saw in me
something they had seen long ago. They wanted to put a stop to this as much as
I did.

“Sit down on the bed and let me
treat it.” Conall motioned for me to sit down. His voice was steady and calm
but his eye told an entirely different story. There was barely masked fear staring
back at me.

“What happened?” Kennan asked,
moving to stand behind Conall as he fixed my leg.

“There is something wrong with the
dreaming. It feels wrong. Ren was there and she was terrified and covered in
new blood. Her runes were glowing. Something is really wrong, Kennan. We have
to stop this now. We can’t wait any longer. I need his help,” I said, looking
up at Kennan. I pleaded with my eyes. I didn’t like the thought of depending on
Aberto any more than Kennan probably did. If I wanted to put a stop to this
quickly he was the best bet.

“She’s right, Kennan. He is the
best chance we have of stopping this. He seems to have a vested interest in
Izzy’s well-being. We should use that to our advantage,” Conall said with all
the pragmatism of a well-trained soldier.

“That’s what bothers me so much. He
has not surfaced in over three hundred years. Why now? Why her?” Kennan looked
at me as if I held the answer to his question.

“I have no idea. I’m seriously just
trying to keep my head above water here. I’m doing good just to follow along,”
I said, looking down at my freshly bandaged leg. Conall’s dark, tanned skin
stood out in stark contrast to my pale leg as he finished taping the bandage
down.

“Whatever it is, we can use it to
our advantage now. We cannot continue on this course, Brother. We both know how
this ends if we do not stop it now.” Conall placed his hand on Kennan’s
shoulder before turning to leave. “I won’t see you suffer my fate, Brother.”

“Summon him,” Kennan said as Conall
shut the door.

“What?”

“Aberto, summon him, Izzy. We don’t
have time for this,” Kennan said through gritted teeth.

“He isn’t a genie Kennan, I can’t
just rub a lamp and make him appear.” I once again wondered if he did have a
lamp somewhere that he was hanging out in.

“Call on him, I guarantee he will
come.” Kennan’s tone held so much animosity it made me afraid to do as he
asked. I looked down at my bare leg and decided to throw on some pants before
summoning Him of the Oldness. I pulled on a fresh pair of sweats and sat down
on the edge of the bed.

“Come out, come out wherever you
are,” I said half-jokingly. I honestly had not expected him to just pop in
whenever I called. Boy howdy, was I ever wrong. Just as the last word left my
lips, he appeared, wearing a pair of jeans and form fitting green thermal. I
wanted his magical wardrobe abilities.

“Told you,” Kennan grumbled.

“Are you spying on me?” I wanted to
know. I knew there were more pressing matters at hand, but the thought of him
just drifting around watching me gave me the heebie jeebies.

“No. I am not, as you say, spying
on you. You have to want me to be here to pull me to this plane.” Aberto looked
incensed by my question. As far as I was concerned it was a perfectly
legitimate one. I still had no idea what he really was. He looked me over as I
stared back at him and his gaze stopped on my thigh where the newest rune had
appeared. I looked down to make sure I had really put on a new pair of pants.

Aberto moved more quickly than I
had ever seen anything move, Guardian or otherwise. He had Kennan lifted by the
throat against the wall.

“HOW?” he raged.

“PUT. HIM. DOWN!” I yelled, pulling
Aberto’s attention back to me. He lowered his arm and Kennan with it, his jaw
clenching the entire time.

“The dreaming,” Kennan choked out.
I could tell he wanted to throttle Aberto but something always held him back.
Whatever an Old One was, it commanded a great deal of respect.

“When?” Aberto, ever the wordsmith.

“Listen, I just woke up and it was
there. I blocked Kennan out of the dreaming again, or something did. We still
aren’t sure on that one. At any rate, something is wrong there. Ren is covered
in glowing runes and blood and the fog feels, well it feels wrong. Malevolent
almost. She shoved me out saying something was coming and I woke up with this.
Conall came in to patch it up and then we called for you. End of story.” I
looked between the men, hoping that they could both cool their tempers long
enough to deal with what really mattered.

“We need to strengthen your
protections,” Aberto said, moving toward me. He kneeled in front of me and
brushed his hand along the rune that had surfaced on my leg. He closed his eyes
as if to seek out some hidden message in the mark. I wasn’t sure how he was
seeing anything through my clothes and the bandage, but once again, I knew
nothing about him.

“Right, but now we should probably
focus on the Seers being sacrificed and how to sever that connection,” I said,
standing up so that I could move away from both men. The room was feeling
uncomfortably small with the two of them there.

“You need protection before you can
go in there again. Your soul is being marked, Izzy. I will not allow you to do
this ritual if you do not abide me in this.” Aberto stood and moved to tower
over me. I glanced over at Kennan to find him staring back at me. He didn’t
look angry at all. In fact, he looked like he agreed with Aberto for once. Of
course he did, the traitorous bastard.

“Fine, but it better be a faster
process than the first marking ceremony,” I huffed.

“It is. I am just going to
strengthen the mark I already forged,” Aberto promised. “I shall return. In the
meantime, prepare her for more markings. We can do it here or out on the
platform. It matters not. The sooner we start, the better.”

“Here is fine. I don’t want the
others to know what is going on,” Kennan said, moving to stand next to me.

“So be it. I will return as quickly
as I can.” he bowed deeply before vanishing.

“Where does he go when he does
that?” I asked. I knew I probably wouldn’t get an answer. Some things just
needed to be said out loud.

“You need to take your shirt off
and lie on the bed, Izzy.”

Yep, no answers from him.

“Can’t I get a robe or something
like last time?” I hated the idea of lying there so exposed.

“No, it would raise too many suspicions.
We can move the covers so that you are guarded but we need to move quickly. He
will be back soon.” Kennan gave me a hard look that set me into motion. Nothing
like a tattoo to finish off such a pleasant evening.

I stripped my shirt off and lay down
on the bed with my face on the pillow. It was completely uncomfortable. I
missed the enclosed chair. Just as I got myself settled, Aberto reappeared,
with the top of his hair tied back and a leather bag in hand. He moved toward
my back looking it over slowly. I felt naked being laid out for his eyes, and
tried to pull the covers up around me to hide at least a portion of myself.

“It seems whatever force is working
to sacrifice these Seers is stronger than we had anticipated. I will endeavor
to reinforce the shield so that nothing else may break through.” Aberto brushed
his fingers over the tattoo that covered the entirety of my back. I shivered at
the contact causing him to pull his hand away quickly.

“Make it quick, Old One,” Kennan
all but growled.

“I will do what must be done in the
time it must be done, Guardian,” Aberto replied.

“Right, so, could someone please
tell me what I am about to do? Is this going to hurt as bad as last time?” I
was getting sick of their manhood measuring contests. It seemed like they were
always just two seconds away from breaking into an all-out brawl with one
another. I knew it was not just me that made them this way. Something had
passed between the men before. If I wanted to, I could just sift the memories
from one of them.

I thought about the two men
together, and reached out to Aberto with my mind. Somehow I didn’t feel so
guilty sifting through his memories. Just as I latched onto the frenetic
buzzing of his mind, the connection was severed. Aberto leaned down next to my
head so that his lips were a breath away from my ear.

“Seer, my memories are not for
you.” He stood, and moved back to unloading his tools. I looked over to Kennan
to find him looking at me quizzically. I shook my head in his direction hoping
that he would let it go. “As to your question, no, it will not hurt as bad as
last time. It will hurt though. No soul walking this time either. Your soul is
what needs to be reinforced.”

“Can’t you just tattoo my soul? Is
that possible?” It seemed like a completely valid question to me.

“No, the ink must seep into your
skin and bond with your soul. It must be placed on both parts of you to
maintain the balance.”

“But the runes are just being
burned into my soul aren’t they?” I was not getting them on my physical body
until I woke up from wherever I had been.

“You surprise me,” Aberto said,
barely above a whisper.

“Why?”

“You grasp things far beyond your
years and knowledge stores.”

“You didn’t answer my question and
you are still talking like you are from a bazillion years ago,” I mumbled into
the pillow. Maybe if I kept talking I could distract myself from the pain.

“No, and I will not answer. Now I
must concentrate on the task at hand. No more words,” he said before placing
the cold metal of the tattooing implement on my back. I winced as the first
wave of pain burned through my body. “Remember, embers,” he said calmly.

I tried to remember the last
markings I had received. I pulled myself inward and sought out the place that I
felt most at home. I surrounded myself in an imaginary version of our Alabama
home. Kennan was in the kitchen cooking as I attempted to plant yet another
patch of garden. I allowed the imaginary scene carry me through the pain. My
life as it could be. Perhaps my life as it should be. I swallowed that thought
back. If I allowed it to seep in it would sow seeds of bitterness in me.

 I wouldn’t choose a life of what
ifs. This was the life I chose. I pulled myself back from the farm house and to
the present. I would take the pain because I needed it at the moment. I could
no longer think back on my life in Alabama. That future was no longer a
possibility for me. The sooner I let it go, the sooner I could move forward and
fulfill whatever purpose God had for me. The memories would hold me back if I
allowed them to. Tears streamed down my cheeks as I said goodbye to the life I
longed for. I mourned its loss in the throes of my pain. I didn’t want Kennan
to know that I had let go of that future. I knew somewhere inside of him, he
held onto the hope that it was still possible. It was enough for me to have him
here.

“It is done,” Aberto said. I wasn’t
sure if he was referring to the tattoo or my new resolve. The way he spoke in
hidden messages, I could never be sure.

“What now?” Kennan asked from the
corner. He looked at my face and his expression grew concerned. “Are you
alright, Red?”

“Yeah, it just hurt. I’m fine,” I
lied. I had learned earlier in the night that giving into my personal whims
could be destructive. Kennan and I were fine and I knew we would survive
whatever came our way. I just hoped he could adapt to our new future. I was
going to have a hard enough time adapting myself.