Changer's Blood (Balancer's Soul cycle)

by Lee Morgan

  He walked over and opened his bag to put on his sleeveless black shirt. Mark took the hint and also put on a fresh silver t-shirt. As the boys finished tucking their shirts in; they put on their camping packs and Sarah did the same. Connor helped her fasten the pack securely to her abdomen and her breast.

  Taking one last look at the campsite Kara noticed that everything was secure and nothing of theirs had been left behind. She looked beyond the clearing, to the adjacent mountain and smiled at the majestic beauty of nature.

  The four of them walked back to the brown jeep, following Connor as he led them safely back. Kara sat in the front passenger seat on the way back home. It was now about midday when he broke the peaceful silence. “I have thought about it and I think that the two of you should meet at my house tomorrow at around five in the morning, before the sun rises.”

  Connor held Sarah’s hand as she rested her head on his arm, on the way back home in Mark’s jeep. He caught her off guard and half asleep when he told Mark and Kara his plan. Kara turned in her seat to look back at Connor while Sarah spotted Mark’s eyes glancing in the rear view mirror. “Why should we be there so early in the morning, Brother?”

  “So that we can all get there beforehand.” He squeezed Sarah’s hand gently.

  “What else are you planning?” Mark asked warily, smiling in the mirror.

  “You’ll find out soon enough.” Her mate said in a dismissive voice. Fully lucid now she contacted Connor’s mind. “Can you tell me?” Sarah said, almost pleading because he was heavily guarding his mind for some reason. All she could see is his mental block of green eyes that were closing off that part of his mind.

  He looked down at her and smiled warmly. “Sure, but make it quick Princess. We are almost within range of your parent’s mental reach.”

  Sarah glanced out the side of the vehicle and realized that they were only a few miles away from their destination. She turned to look at him as she pushed her thoughts into his now unguarded mind. When she found his plan Sarah giggled at the mental picture of what Connor is going to ask Mark to do.

  Sarah turned slowly to see Kara intently reading her expressions and trying to decipher it. “What was so funny?”

  “We’ll see how things turn out in the morning. Then I might explain the joke.” Connor put in. He turned to look at Sarah “Make sure your mind is guarded. I don’t want to tip off either Jillian or Jack. They’ve been good in that they’ve yet to touch my sister’s mind. She instantly erected a mental barrier of the mark that was seared into Connor’s chest. Her mind became closed to all, except to Connor. “Thank you. Well, let’s visit them first, to keep off suspicion. The only worry we will really have is if they read Kara’s mind. Mark will be unreadable to them because he’s protected as a Changer, but Kara is like an open book for them. It is a must that we keep them from jumping the gun, but especially from Jillian because she can tell that you are lying from a single glance.”

  “But she isn’t as good as you are in that department.” He leaned in and gave her a quick kiss on the lips, but it was just enough because Sarah could still feel the warm impression of his lips as if he were still continuing.

  “Get a room!” Kara exclaimed while she turned around in her seat, looking forward.

  “Remember he built a house for her instead?” Mark added, rolling his eyes.

  Connor fired back at them instantly “I can see that you two want to do the same. So why don’t the two of you get a room.” And they both went into silent shock after glancing at each other’s red faces in the front seat.

  A few minutes later they arrived at the destination; Jenny’s home.

  Their white house still looks the same as ever. The only difference being that since they left for the weekend, the front yard was cut and the driveway swept.

  Turning off the jeeps ignition, Jenny walked outside after hearing the motor’s familiar arrival. She remained a stunningly beautiful middle aged woman who has a taut figure. She was wearing a blue shirt and grey shorts and walked through the grass barefooted. Her shoulder length blonde hair and dark brown eyes made her look quite young. Connor and Sarah were getting out of the back of the jeep when she asked “How was the camping trip, kids?”

  Kara quickly said “The weather was very beautiful, but Brother just had to find the coldest stream for us to bathe in.” Sarah saw her shudder involuntarily. It really was a cold stream.

  Jenny started laughing. “Anything exciting happed during the outing?”

  All eyes zeroed in on Kara to see what story she went with. Kara said in a giddy way “We did see several tracks from wolves, but we didn’t get to see what they looked like. Brother counted seven different tracks in the pack. He said they had about seven in that pack.”

  I forgot about that. When the four of them were trailing through the woods they discovered a pack of wolf prints and Sarah understood what the prints now meant. She reached for Connor’s mind because she couldn’t wait to tell him later. “Connor, when we found those prints you said that they were either chasing something or running away. Do you think that the grizzly ran them off?”

  He didn’t let on that they were having a private communication, but he did reply as he pulled out the bags from the rear. “A bear that big… I suppose that they would run away with a pack that size… You have a point. Thanks, well that solves why the bear tracked us.”

  “Why would it track us?” Sarah’s mental voice became confused, but her expression remained calm.

  “I noticed that the fruit trees, shrubs and most of the foliage was completely stripped bare. The bear was hungry and too slow to catch prey so it did the next best thing; it came after some careless campers. To him, we would be an easy meal or be able to scare us away so he could scavenge for any food we might have brought with us.”

  Jenny caught Sarah’s attention by asking “… so did you have fun with everyone?”

  “Yes I did, Jenny. It was informative.” Kara turned to offer a tight lipped smile her way. Sarah returned a smile back to her. She really had relaxed from the earlier meltdown.

  “I’m just glad you were all safe.” Jenny gave her a loving smile. Sarah could always respect a woman who raised her kids as single mother and still have love to give. “Did you learn anything new?” Apparently Jenny wanted some more details.

  “Let’s see…” Sarah tapped her bottom lip with a fingernail. “I saw how well the boys made a shelter and it was placed so that the night winds didn’t freeze us.”

  “That was a smart idea.” She turned her head to the side to look at Connor. She was up to something, but what could it be? “Was there any trouble that you aren’t telling me about?”

  “Nothing Mark or I couldn’t handle.” He said nonchalantly, wearing his handsome smile while Kara coughed, to cover up a laugh.

  “Connor, are you trying to give her enough information to figure what happened?” Sarah mentally chastised.

  “Watch…” and he was right. Jenny took Connor’s answer with a smile of reassurance and walked with Kara back into the garage. “Mom knew something was going on between the four of us and I told her just enough to keep her satisfied and off our trail. She is anything, but stupid.”

  Mark turned to Connor saying “That was a slick comment. I will have to remember that trick for the future.” and ended up smiling.

  “Listen Bud, I think you should go home and do whatever you need to do for tomorrow. It might get a little…intense.” Connor said just enough to give Mark time to fill in the blanks.

  Now it is time to prepare for the next deadly event.

  Both Mark and Connor balled up their fists and pressed them together. Mark turned and yelled to Kara and Jenny “I’ll see you in the morning.”

  Jenny and Kara turned, waving goodbye and suddenly Kara tapped her temple while looking at Sarah and she took the hint. “Sarah, tell Mark I will meet him at the backside of the house by Brother’s room.” She pulled Mark close and relayed the message. When Sarah finished
the relay he turned and waved as he entered his jeep then he soon left. He left for the day.

  “Are you two hungry?” Jenny asked, being a gracious host.

  “Thanks Mom for the offer, but we have some things to do before the day is done.” Connor said as he hooked both his and her pack over each of his shoulders, with grace.

  “Ok then. I’ll see the two of you later. Have a good night.” She said, walking inside the front door to the house.

  Connor turned to her and said “I’ll quickly run home and drop these off. I will meet you at your parent’s. I think later that we need to go into town and get some groceries.”

  “Why? We should still have enough stocked at the house.”

  “Tomorrow might get a little difficult and I think that we need to have enough stored energy just incase we need to keep the piece.” Connor emphasized carefully. She could see how worried he was. This wasn’t a game to be taken lightly. His little sister’s life is on the line and he wasn’t taking any chances.

  “Better to be safe than sorry.” Connor nodded in agreement with her words as they walked across the street, to her parents.

  The electric garage door had already pulled the door up and Sarah saw her blue car and her mother’s ostentatious red sports car parked inside. The log house had a new coat of red paint and it looked like her mother added some new wild flowers in the flower garden. They did much during the weekend.

  Connor quickly walked away from Sarah’s side and took to the tree line at the end of her parents property and suddenly vanished from her sight. Through the bond Sarah knew he was running at an unbelievable speed towards their home.

  He really was hurrying as she knocked on the front door.

  “Coming!” A deep voice announced from inside and a few seconds later Jack opened the door. “Good afternoon, Sarah. How was the camping trip?” He was wearing blue jean shorts and a white t-shirt. His long silver hair and azure eyes are a trademark of his seven hundred year old Icelandic heritage. His is as tall as Connor, but of slim build and also looks like a middle aged human. Don’t let his size fool you because he is faster and far stronger than any human.

  “It was a good experience for me, Father. May I enter?” And he smiled, letting her inside the house.

  A few second later Sarah noticed Connor swiftly heading back in this direction. She waited at the door as her father looked at her with an odd expression. Sarah then opened the door and Connor stood there, breathing normally and evenly. His fist raised in preparation to knock on the thick wooden door. He still wore his black shorts and black sleeveless shirt, but Tool no longer hung from his hip and she guessed he left it at home. Also on Connor’s chiseled arm is his solid silver armlet. The armlet held a pentagram, which is the symbol of the Balancers, and the symbols for the elements were etched on the band as well in meaning of her. And on his left hand is his steel wedding band which is identical to hers, but larger to fit upon his fingers.

  Her father then started laughing a quick laugh. “I keep underestimating the bond you two share.” He shook his head. “Come on in, Son.”

  Jack led them into the yellow walled living room. Connor and Sarah sat down on the love seat, facing the window. Her father left them and came back in from the kitchen carrying three two-liter bottles of soda and four glasses, filled with ice. As Jack sat across from them, on the other sofa, he sat the glasses down on the coffee table and started filling them. After he handed Connor and her a glass, Jillian glided into the room. She immediately became excited.

  “Welcome home you two. I see that you look like you just got back.” Jillian chirped. She had her dark brown, almost black, hair tied back in a single braid. She was wearing tight, hip hugging jeans and a snug red shirt that exposed her ample cleavage and she also didn’t wear any shoes. She looked them both over with her golden eyes, trying to find something to talk about that would keep her entertained. She looks about Sarah’s age, at about eighteen to early twenties, but she is well over seven hundred years old.

  “That we did Jillian.” Connor said with a gentle smile. “So how was your weekend without us being so close?”

  “It was quiet and relaxing…” She said, sitting down next to her mate, took a filled glass and began drinking it. “For the most part. I did some minor gardening around the front and side yard while Jack finished painting.” She then arched an eyebrow at Sarah provocatively and then glanced happily at Jack.

  The four of them talked pleasantly for awhile and had finished off the bottles of soda until Connor said evenly “There’s been another new development.” Sarah choked on her drink as she took a sip. She was afraid that Connor might tell them before tomorrow.

  Jillian’s golden gaze zeroed in on her daughter.

  “What kind of development are we talking about?” Jack asked flatly while leaning forward, giving over his undivided attention.

  “Early this morning while everyone slept I worked on manipulating metal.” Connor said seriously. Sarah now knew where he was now taking the conversation and mentally sighed. It wasn’t the conclusion she first jumped to thankfully. He really likes to keep her on her toes and is an expert at it.

  Jillian jumped in quickly, asking “Are you ok? Did you get caught or something? Did something go wrong?”

  Connor waved off her questions absently. “A few weeks ago it almost killed all of us doing the affinity test for metal.” Both her father and mother nodded simultaneously in remembering that vividly stressful experience. “This morning I turned a fork into a spoon and it felt that I could have manipulated it all day without running out of my energy stores.”

  Jack turned his blue eyes on Sarah. “What about you? Did you try it?”

  “Yes Father, and it felt the same way for me as well.” She said quietly while looking at the ground.

  “What do you think it means?” Jack asked and Connor answered a few moments later. “I think that since Sarah and I can manipulate so many elements that we can store more energy than usual. How much, I’m not certain.”

  They’ve suspected all this before, but now it became fact. They truly could store more energy than the first time they worked the elements.

  “If what you felt was real, I’d believe that you’re correct in that assumption. It might be an effect of being able to use all five elements.” He took a slow and deep breath before continuing. “Have you noticed anything else?”

  “I’m not completely sure, Jack.”

  “What do you mean?” Jillian asked attentively and Sarah finally lifted her gaze to look at her confident husband. She then felt her mother trying to gain access to her thoughts, but she didn’t allow her to enter. Sarah glanced at her and saw the strain pressing her delicate brows together, but Jillian wasn’t near strong enough to enter her mind anymore since she bonded with her knight.

  In the very least her mind would warn against any intrusion.

  “When I know that it’s real and not simply my imagination playing tricks; I will let the two of you know.” Connor interlaced his hands together and sat still.

  “Fair enough.” Jack said, closing the subject for now.

  Connor changed the subject and asked her mother “Jillian, do you still have that dagger that I made from the affinity test?”

  “Do you need it?” She had a coy smile on her plump lips.

  “Yes please.” Connor said politely. She stood and walked into the kitchen and returned with the solid metal dagger and its metal sheath. “Here you go, my boy.” Connor accepted it while saying “Thank you.” Connor then rummaged in his pocket and pulled out a solid piece of scrap metal. Sarah would bet that he brought it from the house.

  Suddenly she felt Connor gathering his power as he pulled the sheath off the dagger and laid the knife down on the table. He then put the metal sheathe and the metal scrap in one hand. Releasing his energy into his palm they all witnessed the metal rise and hover an inch above his hand. The scrap metal changed first and then while it was red hot, it fused itself to the she
athe flawlessly. Not even the best welder could make such a fusion possible. It looked to have been molded. It blended into a perfect oval, just large enough for a belt to slide through.

  “That truly and honestly didn’t take much out of you, did it?” Jack asked evenly.

  “No, it truly didn’t.” He admitted truthfully.

  They could all observe that he didn’t show any outward signs of fatigue.

  A few minutes later Connor stood saying “We need to go shopping before we go home. We are both famished. I also wanted to ask if you want to meet us at the training grounds tomorrow morning?”

  “You bet we will. I need a little excitement.” Jillian stated for the two of them as she rubbed her mate’s back.

  Little did she know that her excitement might be more than she will suspect.

  Getting up at three in the morning Mark took another warm shower to further remove the fog of sleep. During the long shower he remembered what he did after leaving Kara’s home and her side. He first went by the grocery store and bought fifteen pounds of meat, three gallons of milk, five cartons of eggs and five loaves of sliced white bread. When Mark entered his apartment he began to cook everything he bought.

  After the meat and bread thoroughly cooked and toasted Mark ate and drank everything that he bought. A warm, welcoming shower came next. Eventually the night culminated by falling asleep in bed.

  After completely waking up and stepping out of the shower Mark walked over to the dresser and thought about what he should wear. Mark took Connor’s warning about this day being potentially dangerous seriously so he opted to wear his hardened leather pants that he’s had for a very long time. It fit perfectly and it also moved easily, giving a perfect range of motion without hindrance. It also has a small flap that cover’s a small hole at the base of his bottom, just incase he need to transform quickly and grow a tail.

  Prudence in any situation always needs to be addressed. Shoes were usually a good idea to wear, but for a Changer they sometimes get in the way. For the unexpectedness of today he decided not to wear shoes, but to lessen risks he changed the bottoms of his feet from being soft to calloused. The calluses will keep his feet from taking any damage while he traveled through the woods to Connor’s place. He decided not to cut his hair thinking it looked ok as it is as he walked out the apartment door while locking it.