Page 40

Story: Bonding Beasts

The light bounces off the fence's boundary and rolls back like a tide before ramming it again. If it can’t pass, then that is where the barrier starts.

“Ben, how far can a ward project from its focal point?”

“Find the edges; it should be in a central location.” He winces and crouches down, darkness beginning to leak from his eyes.

Peacemaker:“What are we seeing here?”

“Quiet,”Mitri intones and steps towards the gates. I stumble behind him, trying to stay focused on the light. So much for staying still.

He studies the gate in front and turns in a slow circle, looking at all the posts around the fencing. He lets go of my hand as he steps away from me and hesitates.

“I can only see if we are in contact,dorogoya serdtse,” he says, offering me his hand. I take it in confusion, the light wavering at my lack of attention.

“Focus again,”he looks down at me, and I nod, trying again. The light becomes brighter and steadier.

“Close your eyes and walk with me,”He holds my hand and wraps his other arm around my waist.“I will guide you. All you need to do is whatever you are currently doing.”

“Walking blindly through the yard, yippee.”

I close my eyes, and all I’m left with is the light shining through. I can’t see what I’m physically touching, just the gold glow and Mitri’s string leading to my chest.

“I will not let you fall.”

“Bees, hurry,” Ben says through gritted teeth, and I feel a cold dread infiltrate the warmth of the glow. He'llbecome ravenous if he starts getting sick and his stomach empties. He’s warned me repeatedly that he’s dangerous in that state. I’m not in the mood to get eaten today.

I bring the spark back and tell it, “Find it now. Ben’s suffering.”

It jolts into motion as it listens to mefor the first time ever.

Mitri stays silent and continues leading me through the grass. I allow myself to relax in his embrace and let him take charge, only altering direction when the spark starts bouncing. I’m not sure what he can see through me, but following it is instinctual.

“Very good,”he approves, and the spark flutters before becoming a beacon to a specific spot. He guides me to it and bends to pick something up.

I open my eyes to see Mitri holding a tiny glass ball in his hand, covered in little symbols. He drops it back to the grass and pulls one of the guns to shoot it, causing me to jump in surprise. My ears ring at the sound, and I stare at Mitri in disbelief.

“A little warning next time?” Am I yelling? I can’t tell.

Mitri replaces the gun and presses his hand back to my lower spine, guiding me to the others.

Mal pops his neck and nods to himself. Ben straightens from his crouch and takes a deep breath in and out. Kimi jumps onto the car's roof and screams, “I’m back, baby!”

So, everyone seems much better, and now everyoneelseknows we’re here. Between the missing ward, a gunshot, and Kimi yelling like a lunatic, that is. Stealth, thy name is not TGT.

“So sneaking in is out,” I comment, and I still can’t tell how loud I am because of the tinny sound in my ears. It’s not like we could have kept our arrival a secret with the plan to burn incense all over the place anyway.

“Okay, that’s it,” Mal growls and marches to Mitri’s vehicle. I think he’s going pull Kimi onto the ground, done with his antics and ready to rage quit. Instead, he simply reaches inside and grabs something to hold above his head.

“Hey!” He shakes it like a Human about to play fetch with a dog. It gets Kimi’s attention as Mal walks over to where Mitri and I have stopped by Ben.

It’s the giant ball of duct tape Kimi was carrying around with him yesterday. Mal’s hand is so big his fingers and thumb almost touch as he grips it.

“Oh!” Kimi lithely jumps down to hop over to Mal’s side. “I almost forgot you, Mitri the Second!”

Just as he reaches up, as if he could reach it with Mal towering over him, Mal rears his arm back and throws it. After an impressive arc any football player would envy, it goes over the fence and out of sight.

“NO! I’m coming, Mitri two!” Kimi cries out and begins running in the direction it flew.

Ben lurches towards it, even taking a few steps, before stopping to glare at Mal with a curled upper lip. He’s such a puppy sometimes.