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Do you truly believe they won’t hold your past against you? Do you truly believe they TRUST YOU? Or ever will?
—Shorak to Daniel, Gryphon Paladin 2: Chapter 7

Chapter 12: Visions of the Past and Future, Part 2

~Panel.~

She stopped dead in her tracks, ears perking as she heard something. She looked around, but none of the others had reacted to the voice or seemed to even hear it. Ben had returned to his usual spot and had his eyes closed. She looked toward the window, but there was no one there. Confused, she sat down, figuring it was just her imagination…

~Wall.~

She was startled as she heard the voice again, and again only she heard it. It sounded more forceful this time, more insistent. Jess looked up at her, probably noticing her acting strangely. “What’s wrong, Claire?”

She shook her head and turned back toward the wall she’d punched. Now that she really looked at it, she saw there was something…off about it. She shifted into human form and gripped the edges of one of the panels, the one she’d hit. She tried pulling it to the left and was surprised when she did so easily.

What surprised her even more was the hole it revealed, a gap between several of the panels. Someone must’ve meant to seal it with this sheet of metal but forgot to weld it into place. She could see sunlight through the hole.

Jess was quickly at her side, staring in amazement at the gap. It was just big enough for Claire to fit through, and more than big enough for her. “How did you know this was here, Claire?” Then she paused, clamping her mouth shut as she looked worriedly at the door and the guard beyond.

Claire shook her head, wondering that herself. That voice in her head…maybe it wasn’t just her imagination, after all… “I don’t know,” she whispered. “I just…something about that panel seemed weird.”

Ben was alert now, staring at the hole as well. He hadn’t moved from that spot but was definitely curious. “We could use that,” he said, keeping his voice down too. Then he paused. “Or rather, YOU TWO could use it.” His expression fell.

Suddenly she heard a noise from the door and realized it was the lock turning. Quickly, and as quietly as she could, she slid the sheet metal back into place and retreated to the opposite side of the room. By the time the door opened, no one would’ve guessed by appearances there was anything wrong in the room, that anything had changed. Ryder had buried himself in the book she’d seen him reading the day before and Ben was feigning sleep.

Their visitor was a Naga with food, several bowls full of stew. He didn’t say anything and left them arrayed on the floor before leaving.

They ate silently, though Claire’s mind raced. Could they use this to escape, somehow? Ben wasn’t even close to small enough to fit through the gap, though Ryder MIGHT manage to squeeze through. The thought of leaving Ben, a kid who would never intentionally hurt a fly, behind appalled her, but…

The hours passed and she remained uncertain. In time, the others had fallen asleep with nothing else really to do, though Claire remained awake for a while longer. She had just started to nod off herself when she heard something off in the distance, a commotion. Her ears perked and she looked towards the window. “What was that?”

Jess yawned, blinking open her eyes. “What’s what?”

There was suddenly a shout heard, followed by another a short time later.

“Just let it go, Claire,” Ben muttered, eyes still closed. “I’m sure we’ll find out soon enough.”

She moved towards the loose panel in the wall and removed it, setting it aside quietly.

“Wait,” Jess said, running up. Then she quickly dropped her volume. “I’m going with you.”

Claire shook her head. “Stay here, I’ll be right back.” With that, she slipped through the gap and, with a little effort from the tight squeeze, emerged on the other side. She tensed as she realized she was about 4 feet from Silver’s tail. He was blocking the door with his body and had his back to her exit point. Backing away carefully, she crept away from the building, then picked up the pace as she got a safe distance away.

~Hide.~

Instinctively, she swung around the side of the building ahead of her. She looked back around the corner, seeing Silver looking up in her direction. He hadn’t seen her, just heard her. He quickly lost interest and looked away, laying his head back down between his forepaws.

That voice…that WASN’T her imagination…was it a telepath talking to her? How could he see what she saw?

She wasn’t very good at telepathy, she couldn’t initiate communication, but if they had already contacted her and created a link with her, she might be able to…

~Who are you?~ she asked tentatively, not sure if she’d even receive a response.

She was surprised when she actually DID receive one, very quickly: ~Friend. Here to help.~

She didn’t know whether to believe that or not, but for the moment he at least didn’t want to see her get caught. ~Do you have a name?~

His response was long in coming this time: ~Jason.~

Jason…that name sounded familiar…did she know any telepaths named Jason? None that she could recall at that time - and the list of telepaths she knew by name, admittedly, wasn’t very long. That voice, though…THAT sounded familiar to her. Male, maybe young adult, reserved but not hostile…

Her thoughts were drawn from this enigma by her arrival at her destination, the source of the noises. ‘Jason’ fell silent at this point, withdrawing.

She hid around the corner of a building in the shadows, watching from a distance the goings-on. There were soldiers, 7 of them, all armed and with rifles at the ready. She couldn’t see it very well from this angle, but there was a Peregryphon off to the left side of the group. This show of aggression unsettled her. They weren’t opening fire, but the man in the lead sounded pissed off. Maybe she should wait and see what happened before going out there…

That man, though…he looked VERY familiar. The messy brown hair…the heavy jacket…she KNEW she’d seen him somewhere before! But where? As Daniel stepped forward towards the mystery man, she figured it was time to make her presence known. Shorak would have one helluva time keeping them here once Daniel knew SHE was here.

Just as she stepped forward to leave her hiding spot, she stopped dead, eyes widening as she realized where she’d seen that man before: ~That man from the forest! That man that shot Daniel!~

So…THIS must be Jack, the mysterious savior that came to her and Daniel’s rescue that morning. Ben and Jess couldn’t tell her much about him except his name, sadly. Her thoughts immediately went to the other Jack in her life, her older brother Jakora, but she couldn’t get a good enough look at him from this distance to make a comparison. She couldn’t even scent him to find out if he was a Kitsune: there were too many people near him, too many clashing odors. She didn’t have the all-powerful nose of a Canine Mystic, though if she was closer, she could maybe confirm a few things.

She was about to break cover and move closer for a better look when something stopped her, a nagging at the back of her mind. She immediately thought of Jason, but the closer she went, the worse the nagging feeling grew.

~Don’t,~ he whispered in her mind.

She shook her head and finally pushed through the paralysis, but then she stopped herself. She frowned. She couldn’t see them well from here, but this man clearly had blue eyes.

Jakora’s eyes were brown, just like her own.

She didn’t fully understand why she continued to hesitate after that. Jason’s influence retreated from her mind, so the hesitation was entirely her own. It was a small difference, one easily done with contact lenses. He fit the bill in every way but that…why did she feel there was something horribly wrong here? Instinct screamed that at her, that something wasn’t right here.

Male Kitsunes…Domin Jing…they were an oddity no one could fully explain the existence of, even Kitsunes. Normally, all Kitsunes are female and male children are normal (if slightly bigger) foxes, but sometimes, about 1 in 100, a male is gifted with the abilities and many tails of a female. They were known to be powerful spell-weavers and lived longer than females, sometimes as long as 150 years. Her brother Jack was one such Domin Jing, the only one she’d ever met.

This man unsettled her. She knew it would’ve been wisest to go to Daniel regardless of whom this man was, but the uncertainty won out and she chose to return to her friends.

As she slid the panel back into place and turned toward her friends, they looked at her expectantly. She took a deep breath and said quietly, “Danny just left with the Army.”

“Then we can finally leave,” Ryder said excitedly, rising to his feet.

“We’d never all make it out together,” Ben said with a shake of his head. He was maintaining a low volume, unlike Ryder. The expression on his face was crestfallen and it sent a pang through Claire’s heart. “Why didn’t you leave, Claire? You could’ve reunited with Daniel and figured out later how to get the rest of us out.”

She hesitated at this, unsure of how to respond. Should she tell them about her suspicions? And about Jason? The former made her sound paranoid and hearing voices in her head made her sound crazy, even if she was a telepath. She shook her head. “I wasn’t about to leave the rest of you here alone, not without AT LEAST telling you first.” It sounded like a valid enough reason.

Jess nodded and nuzzled her gratefully. Ben, however, frowned uncertainly, gazing at her intently. He didn’t call her out on the lie, though. Ryder looked sad for a moment, then nodded.

“I’ll try sneaking out later tonight to go find Daniel,” she continued, dropping her volume even further. It was a plan, if nothing else, more than they’d had a few minutes ago. “They’re probably at the local police station. If not, that’s a good place to start looking.”

“Wouldn’t it be best if I go?” Jess piped up. “You’re sick, remember?”

She immediately shook her head. “I’m fine. I’m older than you, I’d be able to handle myself in a fight better if it comes to that.” This was a flat-out lie, she was a terrible fighter, but she did have seniority and she wasn’t about to let her cousin up-stage her.

“I guess all we can do now is wait, then,” Ben said. “It’ll be easier for you to sneak out when it’s dark out, anyway.”

So yet again the hours dragged by. The window eventually darkened and with it so did the room. Ryder turned the hanging lantern on when it started getting difficult for him to see the words in his book. They didn’t speak again of the coming escape attempt, figuring the less it was spoken of the better. Best to keep the plan simple. Either it’d work or she’d end up thrown back in here and they’d have to come up with a new plan. The others had been asleep for hours when she finally decided it was time. It was about 1 or 2 in the morning at that point.

She hesitated outside, unsure of which direction to head in. The police station was to the north, deeper into the city, but walking out the front door was sure to get her caught in a heartbeat. It was far more likely to be guarded. With that in mind, she started heading towards the edge of the Camp. There was no real ‘wall’ erected around the Camp, but most of the buildings around the edges were close together, leaving few direct paths to the exterior. There was, however, a small alleyway near here that connected directly to the outside.

The Camp was very quiet as she stealthily made her way through. Even Silver had been asleep, though his position made it impossible to open the door without waking him. She could feel Jason’s presence again, though he made no comment on her actions this time – at first, anyway. He seemed to just be observing.

She had just reached the mouth of an alleyway and saw the open and shallow hill leading down to the nearby city when she heard crying nearby. Her ears pricked at the sound. It wasn’t a baby crying (human or otherwise), but the sound was unmistakable. It was coming from a building a little further back.

~Come on, Claire,~ Jason’s voice whispered in her mind. ~Just ignore it and keep going.~ That was a lot more wordy than when he’d last spoken to her, which surprised her. However, his words mirrored her own logic and tempted her to ignore the sound. She knew she shouldn’t investigate, that she should just keep going, but Kitsunes are very curious creatures by nature. She hesitated for a few seconds, gazing out on the city, then like an idiot went in search of the source of the sobbing. Jason issued an annoyed sigh at this foolish decision, then fell silent.

She pressed her left ear to the door, listening closely. It was open just a crack. She didn’t recognize who was…

“Go away!” a familiar voice yelled at her from within, causing her to stumble backwards onto her rump. “Just leave me alone!”

She pushed the door open to find Wes curled up in a ball on the floor, weeping and trembling violently. He was turned away from the door. “Wes…?”

Suddenly, he spun to face her and snarled, “I said-!” Then he paused, the tears stopping for a moment as he recognized her. “Claire…? How the hell did you get that window open?” He raised a forepaw and wiped the tears from his eyes.

She shrugged. “Does it matter?”

He sighed and shook his head. “I guess not.” He looked away, uncertain. “You’re starting to press your luck, Claire. I won’t turn you in, but if someone ELSE sees you…” he trailed off.

She laid down on the floor near him. “Are you alright? You were crying.”

He hesitated for a moment. “I…” He shook his head. “Shorak asked me to do something earlier tonight and…and it ended very badly.” He closed his eyes and a tear leaked out from under his left eyelid. “Please, Claire, just go back to bed. I want to be alone right now.”

She poked him with a paw, undeterred. “I’m sure he’ll forgive you for failing.”

He trembled at this, a sob escaping his throat. “That’s just it: I didn’t fail.” There was a long silence. “He said…he promised me there’d only be 4 or 5, AT MOST. There were 21, and they’re all dead BECAUSE OF ME. I didn’t think so many would chase me. It wasn’t even all that big of a fire and the building was empty.” He broke down in sobs again.

A fire? What was he talking about? “What’re you talking about?”

He took a deep breath and finally looked at her, his bright green eyes puffy around the edges from crying. “Shorak decided to accept Charon’s offer. Claire…if you won’t go back to bed, then leave while you can, tonight. Things are going to get much worse around here very soon, for ALL of us.”

Charon’s offer? Slowly realization came to her. She remembered back to the day only a handful ago, in Charon’s throne room where Charon offered to make a deal with Shorak: Shorak and his grandson’s freedom in exchange for completing 3 tasks. But freedom from WHAT, exactly? What kept Shorak from leaving with his grandson and going a long way from here? Did it have something to do with his grandson?

She had been hesitant to leave without her friends before then, but now she knew she HAD TO warn Danny.

The Blue Dragon nodded back. “The Army…they’re at the Cambridge Police Station north of here. If the others find you gone within the next few hours, I’ll throw them off your tail for as long as I can, buy you some time.”

She nuzzled him, then turned towards the door. “Thank you.”

“Good luck,” he said quietly as the door closed behind her.

Claire wanted to get there as soon as possible, but something stopped her. She felt woozy all of a sudden, dizzy. She leaned against a nearby wall, shaking her head to try and clear it.

~Claire…?~ Jason’s voice suddenly sounded in her head. ~What’s wrong?~

She shook her head again and started towards the edge of the Camp. ~I’m fine.~

It was strange. She knew this voice should, more than likely, just be a figment of her imagination, but it sounded so REAL, the warmth in his voice almost comforting, like an old friend reassuring her, encouraging her to keep going. Was she just hearing things or was someone (or something) reaching out to her? She shook her head again as she stumbled out of the Camp.

~Who are you?~ she asked him.

~I already told you, my-~

She cut him off before he could finish: ~You already said that. If you won’t tell me who you are instead of just your name, then tell me this: why are you helping me?~

His response was long in coming and confused her when it finally arrived: ~I was sent there to protect you.~

This stopped Claire in her tracks, about 15 feet past the nearest building in the Camp. ~Sent THERE? What do you mean, ‘There’? Don’t you mean you were sent HERE to protect me?~ Instead of answering, Jason immediately began to withdraw from her mind, realizing he had revealed too much. Desperately, she reached out with her mind, something she was never very good at, and shouted telepathically, ~Wait, tell me who sent you to protect me!~

She expected him to slip away easily, to pass into the abyss outside her head, but instead she immediately latched on and reflexively pulled him back to her. She couldn’t figure out how she’d reached him so easily, but then an image entered her head. It was a thought, a memory Jason was trying and failing to hide from her, now at the forefront of his mind…

Fire…

An inferno blazed, licking the sky and scorching the earth with its flames…

She could hear screams rising from the inferno, felt the fury and anger from Jason’s mind as he beheld the Holocaust (translation from German: inferno) before him.

Her blood turned to ice, her heart stopped beating as she realized what place this was, that she knew it all too well…

The trees…the fire…the rioters…the Hunters…the Mystics…she was seeing the destruction of Camp Ranelk on New Year’s Eve…

Suddenly, a figure rose from the fire, 5 wings spreading from the blaze in a fan. 5 gray wings and a single orange eye. Her breath caught as it turned its single orange eye toward her.

“Let it all burn…”

She turned and ran, not realizing the memory had warped into something far more sinister and appalling even as Jason screamed at her to wake up, trying to draw her away from the horrible vision. The world changed around her, warping and altering. The forest disappeared, replaced by the ruins of a city…

She skidded to a halt, staring at a tall figure before her…

The world fell into silence as she and the Gryphon regarded each other. The eyes were blood-red, the feathers stained black and matted with blood, several wounds marred his hide, but she knew with only a glance who this being was…

“Danny…?”

The vision abruptly and without warning ended. She staggered, throwing up against the ground as her vision swam. She vaguely heard Jason screaming her name and saw the blackness of her vomit before she collapsed on the ground…

When she awoke again, she wasn’t surprised to find herself back in that shack with her friends. They were looking down at her worriedly. She tried to sit up, but the movement made her light-headed so she closed her eyes again and lay back down.

“Are you alright, Claire?” Jess whispered, nudging her. “They found you passed out just outside the Camp hours ago.”

Claire shook her head, then immediately had to stop as the motion made her feel nauseated. “I don’t know,” she whispered. “I…I don’t feel very good.” She slowly opened her eyes and looked towards the door. “Daniel…”

Ben shook his head. “You’re sick, Claire. I don’t know what you’re coming down with, but you’re in no condition to go ANYWHERE. Jess should’ve been the one to go last night, not you.” His expression fell. “They’re watching us a lot more closely now. They don’t know about the hole yet; they think you used magic to get out.”

Claire closed her eyes, laying her head back down on the floor. She could barely move…what was happening to her? Was it that ‘Soyronn’s Disease’ Razur mentioned?

She gradually, over the course of the next hour, regained her bearings, though it still hurt to move and she thought it best to just stay where she was. The pain in her chest wasn’t going away this time…

When the door finally opened after a while, there were any number of people she expected to see enter: Shorak’s head, Razur, Weston, Sinar. The person she WASN’T expecting to see was…

“Danny…?”

The young Royal stopped as he was turning back around, staring down at her in shock and surprise. “Claire…?”

He looked normal now, not that horrible, black-feathered monster she saw in that vision. She forced herself to stand up and approach him. She smiled up at him. She was overjoyed to see him again, though the dizziness and pain made it hard for her to express it.

“What the hell are you doing in Cambridge…?”

“That Blue Dragon…that Blue Dragon tortured me and kidnapped us.”

His expression changed, showing confusion, then anger. “Wes would never do that!”

It took her a moment to register that he already knew Weston. He WAS right, though: Wes would NEVER do that…but his big brother would. “No, it was his brother William.”

He suddenly turned and walked out of the building, muttering an oath under his breath.

“Shorak, whatever you want, you can have it, just-“

“That’s not your call to make, Daniel,” a familiar voice cut him off.

“They have Claire!” Daniel snarled at the unseen man.

There was a long silence. Then: “Bullshit! She’s in Michigan!”

Claire slowly walked towards the door, then leaned against the frame and looked out. The other 3 soon joined her at the door.

There were several people gathered, including Shorak himself near the opposite building. She couldn’t figure out what was going on. Why had Shorak changed his mind, decided to reveal her presence after keeping her a secret for 2 days? Daniel’s words made her even more confused.

Her eyes inevitably turned to the man Daniel was currently arguing with…and she paused, eyes widening in surprise. It was a male Kitsune! The 7 tails, the orange fur…could it actually be Jakora? She sniffed the air hopefully…then frowned. She sniffed again, her frown deepening.

“You can have 30 minutes to talk with them,” Shorak suddenly said. “I’m not heartless and she’s undoubtedly missed you. After that, we’ll talk more.”

“Wait, hold on just a second,” a voice called out. She was surprised when she realized it was WES that had spoken out. He glared at the old Gryphon. “This WASN’T the plan, Shorak. You never said anything about holding them for ransom!”

“The plan’s changed. We need supplies and this isn’t an opportunity we can afford to pass up.”

Ransom? The situation was starting to make a lot more sense, though Shorak’s change of plans still confused her.

“You’re going to regret this, Shorak,” the male Kitsune growled, baring his teeth. “Daniel, talk with them and find out what they know. In the meantime, I need to make a phone call.” He spun around and stormed off. With the speed and ferocity of that turn, she thought he could’ve taken Shorak’s head off with one of his tails if he’d been standing close enough.

Daniel hesitated for a moment, then turned to Claire and the others. “Are you guys alright? How long have you been here?”

“Only a few days,” Jess responded. “It’s Claire I’m worried about, though. She’s getting worse and worse. They’d been treating us pretty well up until yesterday.” Claire coughed violently after this, covering her mouth with a paw.

The young Royal looked down at Claire worriedly. “Shorak didn’t try getting you help?”

“Both Sinar and Razur had a look at me.” She paused, looking towards where the male Kitsune had departed. “Danny…who is that Kitsune?”

He opened his beak to answer, then paused, looking confused. “You don’t recognize him?”

“I thought I did, but…” She shook her head.

There was a long silence. “He told me he’s your brother.”

Claire took a moment to register these words. She wanted to believe those words, but the more evidence she saw, the less she believed it. “My brother has brown eyes, just like my own. Kitsunes, even males, can’t change their eye color and the color is the same between forms.”

“Contact lenses, then?”

She shrugged. “Maybe…but there’s one fool-proof way to know for sure.” She reached up and tapped her nose with a paw.

“Your snout?”

“My NOSE,” she corrected. “I don’t have a canine’s powerful nose, but we Kitsunes can identify family members by scent. It’s a pretty common ability among Mystics.” She looked him dead in the eye. “Danny…I don’t know who that man is, but he’s NOT my brother.”

Description
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Do you truly believe they won’t hold your past against you? Do you truly believe they TRUST YOU? Or ever will?
—Shorak to Daniel, Gryphon Paladin 2: Chapter 7

Chapter 12: Visions of the Past and Future, Part 2

~Panel.~

She stopped dead in her tracks, ears perking as she heard something. She looked around, but none of the others had reacted to the voice or seemed to even hear it. Ben had returned to his usual spot and had his eyes closed. She looked toward the window, but there was no one there. Confused, she sat down, figuring it was just her imagination…

~Wall.~

She was startled as she heard the voice again, and again only she heard it. It sounded more forceful this time, more insistent. Jess looked up at her, probably noticing her acting strangely. “What’s wrong, Claire?”

She shook her head and turned back toward the wall she’d punched. Now that she really looked at it, she saw there was something…off about it. She shifted into human form and gripped the edges of one of the panels, the one she’d hit. She tried pulling it to the left and was surprised when she did so easily.

What surprised her even more was the hole it revealed, a gap between several of the panels. Someone must’ve meant to seal it with this sheet of metal but forgot to weld it into place. She could see sunlight through the hole.

Jess was quickly at her side, staring in amazement at the gap. It was just big enough for Claire to fit through, and more than big enough for her. “How did you know this was here, Claire?” Then she paused, clamping her mouth shut as she looked worriedly at the door and the guard beyond.

Claire shook her head, wondering that herself. That voice in her head…maybe it wasn’t just her imagination, after all… “I don’t know,” she whispered. “I just…something about that panel seemed weird.”

Ben was alert now, staring at the hole as well. He hadn’t moved from that spot but was definitely curious. “We could use that,” he said, keeping his voice down too. Then he paused. “Or rather, YOU TWO could use it.” His expression fell.

Suddenly she heard a noise from the door and realized it was the lock turning. Quickly, and as quietly as she could, she slid the sheet metal back into place and retreated to the opposite side of the room. By the time the door opened, no one would’ve guessed by appearances there was anything wrong in the room, that anything had changed. Ryder had buried himself in the book she’d seen him reading the day before and Ben was feigning sleep.

Their visitor was a Naga with food, several bowls full of stew. He didn’t say anything and left them arrayed on the floor before leaving.

They ate silently, though Claire’s mind raced. Could they use this to escape, somehow? Ben wasn’t even close to small enough to fit through the gap, though Ryder MIGHT manage to squeeze through. The thought of leaving Ben, a kid who would never intentionally hurt a fly, behind appalled her, but…

The hours passed and she remained uncertain. In time, the others had fallen asleep with nothing else really to do, though Claire remained awake for a while longer. She had just started to nod off herself when she heard something off in the distance, a commotion. Her ears perked and she looked towards the window. “What was that?”

Jess yawned, blinking open her eyes. “What’s what?”

There was suddenly a shout heard, followed by another a short time later.

“Just let it go, Claire,” Ben muttered, eyes still closed. “I’m sure we’ll find out soon enough.”

She moved towards the loose panel in the wall and removed it, setting it aside quietly.

“Wait,” Jess said, running up. Then she quickly dropped her volume. “I’m going with you.”

Claire shook her head. “Stay here, I’ll be right back.” With that, she slipped through the gap and, with a little effort from the tight squeeze, emerged on the other side. She tensed as she realized she was about 4 feet from Silver’s tail. He was blocking the door with his body and had his back to her exit point. Backing away carefully, she crept away from the building, then picked up the pace as she got a safe distance away.

~Hide.~

Instinctively, she swung around the side of the building ahead of her. She looked back around the corner, seeing Silver looking up in her direction. He hadn’t seen her, just heard her. He quickly lost interest and looked away, laying his head back down between his forepaws.

That voice…that WASN’T her imagination…was it a telepath talking to her? How could he see what she saw?

She wasn’t very good at telepathy, she couldn’t initiate communication, but if they had already contacted her and created a link with her, she might be able to…

~Who are you?~ she asked tentatively, not sure if she’d even receive a response.

She was surprised when she actually DID receive one, very quickly: ~Friend. Here to help.~

She didn’t know whether to believe that or not, but for the moment he at least didn’t want to see her get caught. ~Do you have a name?~

His response was long in coming this time: ~Jason.~

Jason…that name sounded familiar…did she know any telepaths named Jason? None that she could recall at that time - and the list of telepaths she knew by name, admittedly, wasn’t very long. That voice, though…THAT sounded familiar to her. Male, maybe young adult, reserved but not hostile…

Her thoughts were drawn from this enigma by her arrival at her destination, the source of the noises. ‘Jason’ fell silent at this point, withdrawing.

She hid around the corner of a building in the shadows, watching from a distance the goings-on. There were soldiers, 7 of them, all armed and with rifles at the ready. She couldn’t see it very well from this angle, but there was a Peregryphon off to the left side of the group. This show of aggression unsettled her. They weren’t opening fire, but the man in the lead sounded pissed off. Maybe she should wait and see what happened before going out there…

That man, though…he looked VERY familiar. The messy brown hair…the heavy jacket…she KNEW she’d seen him somewhere before! But where? As Daniel stepped forward towards the mystery man, she figured it was time to make her presence known. Shorak would have one helluva time keeping them here once Daniel knew SHE was here.

Just as she stepped forward to leave her hiding spot, she stopped dead, eyes widening as she realized where she’d seen that man before: ~That man from the forest! That man that shot Daniel!~

So…THIS must be Jack, the mysterious savior that came to her and Daniel’s rescue that morning. Ben and Jess couldn’t tell her much about him except his name, sadly. Her thoughts immediately went to the other Jack in her life, her older brother Jakora, but she couldn’t get a good enough look at him from this distance to make a comparison. She couldn’t even scent him to find out if he was a Kitsune: there were too many people near him, too many clashing odors. She didn’t have the all-powerful nose of a Canine Mystic, though if she was closer, she could maybe confirm a few things.

She was about to break cover and move closer for a better look when something stopped her, a nagging at the back of her mind. She immediately thought of Jason, but the closer she went, the worse the nagging feeling grew.

~Don’t,~ he whispered in her mind.

She shook her head and finally pushed through the paralysis, but then she stopped herself. She frowned. She couldn’t see them well from here, but this man clearly had blue eyes.

Jakora’s eyes were brown, just like her own.

She didn’t fully understand why she continued to hesitate after that. Jason’s influence retreated from her mind, so the hesitation was entirely her own. It was a small difference, one easily done with contact lenses. He fit the bill in every way but that…why did she feel there was something horribly wrong here? Instinct screamed that at her, that something wasn’t right here.

Male Kitsunes…Domin Jing…they were an oddity no one could fully explain the existence of, even Kitsunes. Normally, all Kitsunes are female and male children are normal (if slightly bigger) foxes, but sometimes, about 1 in 100, a male is gifted with the abilities and many tails of a female. They were known to be powerful spell-weavers and lived longer than females, sometimes as long as 150 years. Her brother Jack was one such Domin Jing, the only one she’d ever met.

This man unsettled her. She knew it would’ve been wisest to go to Daniel regardless of whom this man was, but the uncertainty won out and she chose to return to her friends.

As she slid the panel back into place and turned toward her friends, they looked at her expectantly. She took a deep breath and said quietly, “Danny just left with the Army.”

“Then we can finally leave,” Ryder said excitedly, rising to his feet.

“We’d never all make it out together,” Ben said with a shake of his head. He was maintaining a low volume, unlike Ryder. The expression on his face was crestfallen and it sent a pang through Claire’s heart. “Why didn’t you leave, Claire? You could’ve reunited with Daniel and figured out later how to get the rest of us out.”

She hesitated at this, unsure of how to respond. Should she tell them about her suspicions? And about Jason? The former made her sound paranoid and hearing voices in her head made her sound crazy, even if she was a telepath. She shook her head. “I wasn’t about to leave the rest of you here alone, not without AT LEAST telling you first.” It sounded like a valid enough reason.

Jess nodded and nuzzled her gratefully. Ben, however, frowned uncertainly, gazing at her intently. He didn’t call her out on the lie, though. Ryder looked sad for a moment, then nodded.

“I’ll try sneaking out later tonight to go find Daniel,” she continued, dropping her volume even further. It was a plan, if nothing else, more than they’d had a few minutes ago. “They’re probably at the local police station. If not, that’s a good place to start looking.”

“Wouldn’t it be best if I go?” Jess piped up. “You’re sick, remember?”

She immediately shook her head. “I’m fine. I’m older than you, I’d be able to handle myself in a fight better if it comes to that.” This was a flat-out lie, she was a terrible fighter, but she did have seniority and she wasn’t about to let her cousin up-stage her.

“I guess all we can do now is wait, then,” Ben said. “It’ll be easier for you to sneak out when it’s dark out, anyway.”

So yet again the hours dragged by. The window eventually darkened and with it so did the room. Ryder turned the hanging lantern on when it started getting difficult for him to see the words in his book. They didn’t speak again of the coming escape attempt, figuring the less it was spoken of the better. Best to keep the plan simple. Either it’d work or she’d end up thrown back in here and they’d have to come up with a new plan. The others had been asleep for hours when she finally decided it was time. It was about 1 or 2 in the morning at that point.

She hesitated outside, unsure of which direction to head in. The police station was to the north, deeper into the city, but walking out the front door was sure to get her caught in a heartbeat. It was far more likely to be guarded. With that in mind, she started heading towards the edge of the Camp. There was no real ‘wall’ erected around the Camp, but most of the buildings around the edges were close together, leaving few direct paths to the exterior. There was, however, a small alleyway near here that connected directly to the outside.

The Camp was very quiet as she stealthily made her way through. Even Silver had been asleep, though his position made it impossible to open the door without waking him. She could feel Jason’s presence again, though he made no comment on her actions this time – at first, anyway. He seemed to just be observing.

She had just reached the mouth of an alleyway and saw the open and shallow hill leading down to the nearby city when she heard crying nearby. Her ears pricked at the sound. It wasn’t a baby crying (human or otherwise), but the sound was unmistakable. It was coming from a building a little further back.

~Come on, Claire,~ Jason’s voice whispered in her mind. ~Just ignore it and keep going.~ That was a lot more wordy than when he’d last spoken to her, which surprised her. However, his words mirrored her own logic and tempted her to ignore the sound. She knew she shouldn’t investigate, that she should just keep going, but Kitsunes are very curious creatures by nature. She hesitated for a few seconds, gazing out on the city, then like an idiot went in search of the source of the sobbing. Jason issued an annoyed sigh at this foolish decision, then fell silent.

She pressed her left ear to the door, listening closely. It was open just a crack. She didn’t recognize who was…

“Go away!” a familiar voice yelled at her from within, causing her to stumble backwards onto her rump. “Just leave me alone!”

She pushed the door open to find Wes curled up in a ball on the floor, weeping and trembling violently. He was turned away from the door. “Wes…?”

Suddenly, he spun to face her and snarled, “I said-!” Then he paused, the tears stopping for a moment as he recognized her. “Claire…? How the hell did you get that window open?” He raised a forepaw and wiped the tears from his eyes.

She shrugged. “Does it matter?”

He sighed and shook his head. “I guess not.” He looked away, uncertain. “You’re starting to press your luck, Claire. I won’t turn you in, but if someone ELSE sees you…” he trailed off.

She laid down on the floor near him. “Are you alright? You were crying.”

He hesitated for a moment. “I…” He shook his head. “Shorak asked me to do something earlier tonight and…and it ended very badly.” He closed his eyes and a tear leaked out from under his left eyelid. “Please, Claire, just go back to bed. I want to be alone right now.”

She poked him with a paw, undeterred. “I’m sure he’ll forgive you for failing.”

He trembled at this, a sob escaping his throat. “That’s just it: I didn’t fail.” There was a long silence. “He said…he promised me there’d only be 4 or 5, AT MOST. There were 21, and they’re all dead BECAUSE OF ME. I didn’t think so many would chase me. It wasn’t even all that big of a fire and the building was empty.” He broke down in sobs again.

A fire? What was he talking about? “What’re you talking about?”

He took a deep breath and finally looked at her, his bright green eyes puffy around the edges from crying. “Shorak decided to accept Charon’s offer. Claire…if you won’t go back to bed, then leave while you can, tonight. Things are going to get much worse around here very soon, for ALL of us.”

Charon’s offer? Slowly realization came to her. She remembered back to the day only a handful ago, in Charon’s throne room where Charon offered to make a deal with Shorak: Shorak and his grandson’s freedom in exchange for completing 3 tasks. But freedom from WHAT, exactly? What kept Shorak from leaving with his grandson and going a long way from here? Did it have something to do with his grandson?

She had been hesitant to leave without her friends before then, but now she knew she HAD TO warn Danny.

The Blue Dragon nodded back. “The Army…they’re at the Cambridge Police Station north of here. If the others find you gone within the next few hours, I’ll throw them off your tail for as long as I can, buy you some time.”

She nuzzled him, then turned towards the door. “Thank you.”

“Good luck,” he said quietly as the door closed behind her.

Claire wanted to get there as soon as possible, but something stopped her. She felt woozy all of a sudden, dizzy. She leaned against a nearby wall, shaking her head to try and clear it.

~Claire…?~ Jason’s voice suddenly sounded in her head. ~What’s wrong?~

She shook her head again and started towards the edge of the Camp. ~I’m fine.~

It was strange. She knew this voice should, more than likely, just be a figment of her imagination, but it sounded so REAL, the warmth in his voice almost comforting, like an old friend reassuring her, encouraging her to keep going. Was she just hearing things or was someone (or something) reaching out to her? She shook her head again as she stumbled out of the Camp.

~Who are you?~ she asked him.

~I already told you, my-~

She cut him off before he could finish: ~You already said that. If you won’t tell me who you are instead of just your name, then tell me this: why are you helping me?~

His response was long in coming and confused her when it finally arrived: ~I was sent there to protect you.~

This stopped Claire in her tracks, about 15 feet past the nearest building in the Camp. ~Sent THERE? What do you mean, ‘There’? Don’t you mean you were sent HERE to protect me?~ Instead of answering, Jason immediately began to withdraw from her mind, realizing he had revealed too much. Desperately, she reached out with her mind, something she was never very good at, and shouted telepathically, ~Wait, tell me who sent you to protect me!~

She expected him to slip away easily, to pass into the abyss outside her head, but instead she immediately latched on and reflexively pulled him back to her. She couldn’t figure out how she’d reached him so easily, but then an image entered her head. It was a thought, a memory Jason was trying and failing to hide from her, now at the forefront of his mind…

Fire…

An inferno blazed, licking the sky and scorching the earth with its flames…

She could hear screams rising from the inferno, felt the fury and anger from Jason’s mind as he beheld the Holocaust (translation from German: inferno) before him.

Her blood turned to ice, her heart stopped beating as she realized what place this was, that she knew it all too well…

The trees…the fire…the rioters…the Hunters…the Mystics…she was seeing the destruction of Camp Ranelk on New Year’s Eve…

Suddenly, a figure rose from the fire, 5 wings spreading from the blaze in a fan. 5 gray wings and a single orange eye. Her breath caught as it turned its single orange eye toward her.

“Let it all burn…”

She turned and ran, not realizing the memory had warped into something far more sinister and appalling even as Jason screamed at her to wake up, trying to draw her away from the horrible vision. The world changed around her, warping and altering. The forest disappeared, replaced by the ruins of a city…

She skidded to a halt, staring at a tall figure before her…

The world fell into silence as she and the Gryphon regarded each other. The eyes were blood-red, the feathers stained black and matted with blood, several wounds marred his hide, but she knew with only a glance who this being was…

“Danny…?”

The vision abruptly and without warning ended. She staggered, throwing up against the ground as her vision swam. She vaguely heard Jason screaming her name and saw the blackness of her vomit before she collapsed on the ground…

When she awoke again, she wasn’t surprised to find herself back in that shack with her friends. They were looking down at her worriedly. She tried to sit up, but the movement made her light-headed so she closed her eyes again and lay back down.

“Are you alright, Claire?” Jess whispered, nudging her. “They found you passed out just outside the Camp hours ago.”

Claire shook her head, then immediately had to stop as the motion made her feel nauseated. “I don’t know,” she whispered. “I…I don’t feel very good.” She slowly opened her eyes and looked towards the door. “Daniel…”

Ben shook his head. “You’re sick, Claire. I don’t know what you’re coming down with, but you’re in no condition to go ANYWHERE. Jess should’ve been the one to go last night, not you.” His expression fell. “They’re watching us a lot more closely now. They don’t know about the hole yet; they think you used magic to get out.”

Claire closed her eyes, laying her head back down on the floor. She could barely move…what was happening to her? Was it that ‘Soyronn’s Disease’ Razur mentioned?

She gradually, over the course of the next hour, regained her bearings, though it still hurt to move and she thought it best to just stay where she was. The pain in her chest wasn’t going away this time…

When the door finally opened after a while, there were any number of people she expected to see enter: Shorak’s head, Razur, Weston, Sinar. The person she WASN’T expecting to see was…

“Danny…?”

The young Royal stopped as he was turning back around, staring down at her in shock and surprise. “Claire…?”

He looked normal now, not that horrible, black-feathered monster she saw in that vision. She forced herself to stand up and approach him. She smiled up at him. She was overjoyed to see him again, though the dizziness and pain made it hard for her to express it.

“What the hell are you doing in Cambridge…?”

“That Blue Dragon…that Blue Dragon tortured me and kidnapped us.”

His expression changed, showing confusion, then anger. “Wes would never do that!”

It took her a moment to register that he already knew Weston. He WAS right, though: Wes would NEVER do that…but his big brother would. “No, it was his brother William.”

He suddenly turned and walked out of the building, muttering an oath under his breath.

“Shorak, whatever you want, you can have it, just-“

“That’s not your call to make, Daniel,” a familiar voice cut him off.

“They have Claire!” Daniel snarled at the unseen man.

There was a long silence. Then: “Bullshit! She’s in Michigan!”

Claire slowly walked towards the door, then leaned against the frame and looked out. The other 3 soon joined her at the door.

There were several people gathered, including Shorak himself near the opposite building. She couldn’t figure out what was going on. Why had Shorak changed his mind, decided to reveal her presence after keeping her a secret for 2 days? Daniel’s words made her even more confused.

Her eyes inevitably turned to the man Daniel was currently arguing with…and she paused, eyes widening in surprise. It was a male Kitsune! The 7 tails, the orange fur…could it actually be Jakora? She sniffed the air hopefully…then frowned. She sniffed again, her frown deepening.

“You can have 30 minutes to talk with them,” Shorak suddenly said. “I’m not heartless and she’s undoubtedly missed you. After that, we’ll talk more.”

“Wait, hold on just a second,” a voice called out. She was surprised when she realized it was WES that had spoken out. He glared at the old Gryphon. “This WASN’T the plan, Shorak. You never said anything about holding them for ransom!”

“The plan’s changed. We need supplies and this isn’t an opportunity we can afford to pass up.”

Ransom? The situation was starting to make a lot more sense, though Shorak’s change of plans still confused her.

“You’re going to regret this, Shorak,” the male Kitsune growled, baring his teeth. “Daniel, talk with them and find out what they know. In the meantime, I need to make a phone call.” He spun around and stormed off. With the speed and ferocity of that turn, she thought he could’ve taken Shorak’s head off with one of his tails if he’d been standing close enough.

Daniel hesitated for a moment, then turned to Claire and the others. “Are you guys alright? How long have you been here?”

“Only a few days,” Jess responded. “It’s Claire I’m worried about, though. She’s getting worse and worse. They’d been treating us pretty well up until yesterday.” Claire coughed violently after this, covering her mouth with a paw.

The young Royal looked down at Claire worriedly. “Shorak didn’t try getting you help?”

“Both Sinar and Razur had a look at me.” She paused, looking towards where the male Kitsune had departed. “Danny…who is that Kitsune?”

He opened his beak to answer, then paused, looking confused. “You don’t recognize him?”

“I thought I did, but…” She shook her head.

There was a long silence. “He told me he’s your brother.”

Claire took a moment to register these words. She wanted to believe those words, but the more evidence she saw, the less she believed it. “My brother has brown eyes, just like my own. Kitsunes, even males, can’t change their eye color and the color is the same between forms.”

“Contact lenses, then?”

She shrugged. “Maybe…but there’s one fool-proof way to know for sure.” She reached up and tapped her nose with a paw.

“Your snout?”

“My NOSE,” she corrected. “I don’t have a canine’s powerful nose, but we Kitsunes can identify family members by scent. It’s a pretty common ability among Mystics.” She looked him dead in the eye. “Danny…I don’t know who that man is, but he’s NOT my brother.”