The Stone Dragon

by H. M. Gooden

  Glory continued to watch her, considering her words carefully before answering.

  "Fire can sometimes burn out of control. But with these examples, the fire needed to burn everything to cleanse the area. The two you destroyed were, as you have already surmised, no longer human. They were the dark, evil remains of the bodies of two humans who were evil while alive and that is why they were chosen to carry the darkness of Dub. They were much stronger vessels than the boy you faced the first time. This is nothing to mourn and that is why you do not. Fire burns clean. Had there been anything decent left to save, you would have saved it. Your power wouldn't burn out what is light, it can't do that. It calls to the lightness of the soul and matches it, amplifying it. This is why Declan wasn't burnt the first time that your power rose. He had residual soul remaining. Although just a scrap, the light within him allowed you to grow and nurture it with your power."

  Glory continued to watch Cat with her shrewd blue eyes.

  "I do not worry about you becoming dangerous to those around you. It is not in your nature. You have wind and water to balance you and I also see Earth in your future. Above those things, you have your friend Evelyn to ground you in reality, to serve as a conscience and emotional compass, as well as loving parents to support you. Truly, you are well on your way to being a great asset in balancing the darkness and light. Your powers have not yet reached their apex my little one, so continue to work, practice, and learn."

  Glory stretched her wings wide then stood up on her long, flamingo-like legs, readying herself for liftoff.

  "Thank you, Glory, that helps a little," said Cat.

  Glory accepted her thanks with another head tilt, then she took off, flying straight up into the sun. Cat watched her disappear into a speck, higher and higher, then felt her vision blur and saw nothing.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  San Francisco at Christmas time was an interesting and different experience for the girls. It wasn't a typical white Midwestern Christmas and it wasn't cold exactly, but it was much more grey than what any of them except Mai were used to. Peter, Mindy, and Marie-Jean did a great job making it feel like Christmas in Vanessa's apartment, going as far as to put up a tree and decorations, and even found a blowup Santa for the porch that almost obscured the entryway. They'd left the rental alone, due to the effort of decorating two places, as they'd been having the majority of meals with the girls at Vanessa's place anyway.

  Christmas Day was spent opening small gifts and introducing Mai to their typical British-American holidays, with stockings and a Christmas brunch as well as a big meal for supper. Mai was overwhelmed and touched as their parents treated her like another child, having to wipe a few tears away while opening her gifts before the rest of the festivities continued. Cat sat back as always and watched, pleased by how right the holidays felt this year, even though it was the first time she'd shared it with anyone other than her mom, dad, and sister, while being away from home on top of all of that. It was like she'd found more family and that was the best Christmas gift she could've received.

  Marie-Jean had to leave on Boxing Day to go back to work, but allowed Evelyn to stay with the girls as they'd hoped.

  "You behave yourself, you hear?"

  Marie-Jean gave Evelyn a stern look, causing her to roll her eyes.

  "Yes, Mom. I'll listen to Mr. and Mrs. McLean and I won't give them any lip."

  Marie Jean raised an eyebrow at Evelyn's flippant tone and she ducked her head, meekly adding a promise. "I'll be good."

  Marie-Jean nodded in satisfaction, giving Cat, Vanessa, and Mai tight motherly squeezes.

  "You girls stick together like glue, you hear me? The darkness is close and you'll need to be strong. I wish I could help, but I have to go and make sure I can put food on the table for when you get home. Call me if you need anything, understand?"

  The girls nodded at Marie-Jeans words, then watched as she got into the car and drove away, leaving Evelyn behind. Cat looked at her friend and noticing her downcast look, gave her another hug.

  "Are you okay?"

  "Yeah, it's just hard sometimes. I mean, I know she's got to work and all, but it would be nice just once to have a whole Christmas break with her around," Evelyn said, then shrugged one shoulder. "But I get it. I really do. At least we had a nice day yesterday."

  Cat smiled, thinking about Christmas day with fondness, even the rather vicious game of Rummikube that had ensued after dinner was over. She'd never thought Marie-Jean would be so cutthroat at games and had been surprised.

  "Yeah, your Mom's pretty competitive, hey?"

  Evelyn laughed, her mood lifting.

  "Always. And pretty much with everything. Not only does she push me hard, but it's in her DNA to be the best as well, I guess." Evelyn smiled and Cat knew that she'd be fine without her mom around for the week.

  "Well, you aren't getting rid of us that easily."

  Her Dad broke the moment with a nudge and a smile as he came to stand next to her on the sidewalk. Cat and Vanessa's parents had stayed, with the full intention of having an adults-only mini vacation together within reach of the kids, if they needed anything.

  "Won't bother me any," Vanessa said, nonchalantly. "I'm going back to work tomorrow and so is Mai."

  Cat knew that the series had only held off on shooting for the 25th and 26th, but Vanessa had suggested that they come along to pass the time.

  "Cat, I'm sure that if you and Evelyn want to tag along tomorrow, no one will notice or care. There's usually tons of extras around and people often bring guests. We just have to sign you in and then as long as you stay out of the way of the action, you shouldn't get kicked out."

  "Sounds fun."

  Evelyn nodded and turned away as her mom's car disappeared from view.

  "Let's go back inside. I'm getting cold."

  AND THAT WAS HOW, ON December 27th, Cat entered the fantastical world of acting for the first time. It turned out that a backstage set looked an awful lot like an empty warehouse with food tables. Vanessa shared a trailer with a few of the other lesser actresses who also weren't big enough to have their own star trailer, but big enough that they weren't extras. Mai was currently an extra, and either had to get ready in the open whenever she was on or else share a crammed female trailer with all the other extras. There was always a lot of sitting around, so Mai showed the other girls the table where they could get food and drinks first. Mai then introduced them to a few other extras who were sitting on folding chairs, playing cards or chatting.

  Cat felt instantly bored and knew for certain this wasn't something she could do for a living, or even temporarily. There were way too many people, way too much noise and light, and people shouting directions in a bossy way. Nope, Cat out, she thought to herself, as she watched Vanessa go up to someone. She thought maybe he was the director, based on his position right up front and centre and his ugly hat. Only someone that was in charge could get away with that hat, she thought while chuckling.

  Vanessa worked her usual magic with charisma and the man smiled before waving in a grandiose manner in the direction of Cat and Evelyn. Vanessa gave him a big smile and a fake kiss on the cheek before returning to the others.

  "Boss man says it's fine if you stay, just make sure that you don't interrupt the shoot in any way, okay? I have a scene coming up, so I have to go and get ready, but you guys can just hang out and chill. Mai knows her way around, so she should be able to answer any of your questions. Do not bug anyone, okay? There's a lot of cranky people around during the holidays, so don't make any waves."

  Vanessa turned to leave, before pausing and turning around again.

  "If you want to watch my scene, it's taking place in the fake alley over there." She pointed near where the director was seated. "Just stay out of the way of the cameras and out of my light, okay?"

  Cat and Evelyn nodded and Vanessa sprinted off to a trailer, closing the door behind her.

  They found a place to sit near some of the other extras an
d waited until Vanessa came out. Cat was impressed with the makeup lady, as Vanessa not only looked much more glamorous, but also appeared about ten years older. The costume she was wearing was more revealing than her usual style, but Cat guessed it had something to do with the alley scene. She watched, fascinated, while her sister completely morphed into another person right before her eyes. If she hadn't seen it, Cat would have denied it was possible, but Vanessa went from being her normal bold self to a woman who was frail and damaged, crying very convincingly to one of the actors on the set. After what seemed like a million takes, the director yelled cut and everyone looked happy. Vanessa spent a few minutes chatting with the others on set, before looking over at the girls and waving, then walking back over to where they were sitting.

  "That went well. We should be done in about an hour, if we get the next scene done in a few takes. Are you guys hungry?"

  When they shook their heads, Vanessa absently looked around. "Okay, well, grab something if you want from the table whenever. And Cat, Evelyn, keep your eyes open. I can't read auras like you guys can, but a few of the people on set seem a little sketchy to me, so be careful."

  Cat and Evelyn nodded and Mai came over from where she'd been chatting with another extra, having overheard Vanessa's words.

  "I'll show them the ones that have us worried."

  Vanessa smiled in thanks, then with a little waggle of her fingers she walked away, once again transforming into the lost and broken woman they'd been watching moments earlier.

  Cat looked around, flipping back into aura vision. For the most part, she saw people with auras in what she associated with artistic colours, mostly golds or silvers with faint tinges of purples, blues, or reds. Nothing alarming or very strong. She kept her eyes open as Vanessa had requested though and after a while, Cat noticed two people who had very sad and dingy looking auras, although they appeared to be normal humans otherwise.

  She examined them carefully. They were assistants of some kind and were frantically running items back and forth to people sitting in the chairs at the front of the set. One was a young woman with dark brown hair and large glasses, her hair up in a messy bun, wearing jeans and a t-shirt that said, 'Just did it'. She looked stressed and her aura was a faded silver-gold with dark stains on it, reminding Cat of how auras of people near Declan had looked.

  The other person that stood out was a thin man wearing tight yellow pants and a striped blue shirt who was holding a clipboard as he sat next to the director. The man appeared to have more importance than the woman but his aura was much worse, almost completely dark. Cat breathed a sigh of relief that it wasn't missing the way Declan's or the other two that she'd encountered had been and thought that both auras appeared salvageable. Cat perked up, motivated by a new challenge that could potentially have a happy ending. Without drawing attention to herself, Cat focused on her thoughts and directed them towards Evelyn.

  Evelyn, can you hear me?

  Evelyn looked over, her expression curious.

  Yes, what's up?

  Cat tilted her head slightly towards the two people with the nasty auras in front of them.

  Do you see those two? Girl with the shirt that says 'Just did it' and the guy wearing the sunshine pants?

  Evelyn looked over at the front, nodding when she saw them.

  Yes, I do. Boy, that doesn't look very healthy, does it? What do you think?

  Cat looked over at Mai.

  I think I can save them. If we can get closer, maybe we can figure out who's been draining them. Can you tell Mai what's going on?

  Evelyn nodded and Cat saw Mai's head turn toward Evelyn, before she nodded as well. Evelyn turned back to Cat.

  I'll try to read them and see if I can get anything. What about if we have Mai go over and talk to them first? See if she can get anything out of regular conversation?

  Cat nodded, waiting for Evelyn to relay everything back to Mai, who agreed with the plan. As a unit, they got up and casually edged closer to the food table near the two people with the dingy auras. Cat grabbed a donut from the table and ate it without delay. Donuts were delicious, especially the Krispy Creme ones they had on the set. Mai waited next to Cat until the girl with the brown hair came over, looking even more frazzled up close.

  "Hey Linda, how are you today? You look stressed." Mai handed her a bottle of water, which she accepted with a smile.

  "Yeah, everyone's cranky today and I feel so drained and tired. Ever since helping Kevin with the costumes, I just haven't felt good. I hope I'm not coming down with something." Linda looked stricken at a new idea. "Oh, God, I hope it's not Mono or Lyme Disease. That would ruin everything."

  She turned and rushed back to the front.

  Mai looked confused, turning to Evelyn and Cat for answers.

  "Lyme disease? Mono?"

  Cat and Evelyn just shook their heads.

  "You don't want to go there, really," said Evelyn, pursing her lips.

  Cat smiled, thinking that these modern day diseases wouldn't have been an issue during Mai's original time in San Francisco. It was more likely that she'd be familiar with tuberculosis and smallpox. Things that killed you nice and quick instead of creating chronic illnesses. She also had a name to research now. Kevin.

  "Try to get over to the other guy, see what he has to say." Cat whispered to Mai who nodded before slipping over to the side of the stage where the man with the tight yellow pants was standing.

  Cat watched as Mai spoke with the man. She later told them his name was Dave, a production assistant. Cat noticed the dinginess of his aura and an overall feeling of wrongness. She wasn't sure what was off, but it looked like more than just casual contact with a person who was stealing his aura. Rather, he appeared sick. Cat wondered if he had a substance abuse problem, due to his overall twitchiness and the fact that this was show business, after all. Mai didn't look worried though, and the interaction appeared to be friendly, supporting Cat's initial thought that he wasn't a bad guy. She stayed on the sidelines with Evelyn, giving Mai a chance to do this on her own. When Mai left him with a friendly wave and came back, they headed to a more secluded area where they wouldn't be overheard to discuss her findings.

  "So, what did he have to say?" Evelyn asked.

  Mai shrugged. "Initially, not much. I asked how his Christmas was. We have talked in the past in passing, so he was pretty open with me. Just regular conversation, although he also mentioned some issues about his parents not approving of his 'lifestyle', although I am not quite sure what that means."

  Evelyn and Cat shared a knowing look before Evelyn delicately explained to Mai what that particular euphemism usually meant in modern society.

  Mai blushed, but continued talking.

  "Anyways, he mentioned something about a party and some friends, and how they were mad at him too, and that he was really hoping that this project continued or else he would be in deep trouble. He asked if I knew of any other work he could get, but I said that I am just an extra and I am only holding on to a job day by day myself. He was not really upset, but he seemed resigned and sad with my response."

  Cat nodded. This supported her hypothesis regarding a possible drug problem. Needing extra money, parties, upset friends, all of it was the perfect set up for that kind of situation. She wouldn't be surprised if one of his 'friends' was responsible for the darkness she saw in both Dave and Linda. Maybe a guy named Kevin. What were the chances they'd attended the same party? They did work together and likely knew each other.

  Cat turned to Mai with rising excitement. "Do you know a guy named Kevin on set? I wonder if both Dave and Linda had a run in with him and that's why they have sick auras."

  Mai thought carefully before answering. "I think that he may be one of the actors, kind of in the same type of position that Vanessa has. Not the star, but a supporting character. I have seen him on set many times, although I do not know what role he has. We should ask her when shooting is done for the day, as she would probably know more."
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br />   Cat and Evelyn agreed. They decided to sit and wait for the shoot to be done before doing anything else. Cat took the chance to work on her remote healing powers, starting with Linda, who had less of a taint on her aura. It took some effort, especially after the recent run in with the British psychopath, but she was relieved and pleased to see Linda perk up within a few minutes as her aura took on a normal silver-gold glow.

  Evelyn noticed and nodded approvingly. "Good job," she whispered. "She looks much better now. What about the guy?"

  Cat nodded and went back to work. Dave was more difficult, likely because it wasn't just a one time contact, which seemed to be the case with Linda. He had layers of encrusted darkness and she knew that his issues had been building for a least a few weeks, maybe longer. She felt around the edges of the aura, sending warmth wherever she found an opening. It was slow and tiring, but Cat gradually began to notice a small amount of brightening. Mai and Evelyn watched as she worked and both could see when Dave began to relax as his twitchiness steadily decreased.

  Cat stopped and took a few deep breaths. It was still very tiring for her to try to heal remotely, especially with more established darkness staining the soul. She shook her head.

  "It's no good. I need to get closer, guys. This'll wipe me out long before I finish if I stay this far away. And what if this Kevin guy is around? I can't use up all my energy on this right now."

  Mai and Evelyn agreed, then Mai pointed out the change on set.

  "Well, I think the shoot is over. You can see the camera guys packing their equipment."

  They looked up to find that Mai was right and the actors on set were standing around talking to each other and the other people who were sitting nearby.

  Cat caught her sister's eye, trying to will her into inviting them over. Vanessa caught her drift, motioning for them to come over so that she could introduce them to two of the guys standing with her once they arrived.

  "Hey guys, this is my sister Cat and her friend Evelyn, and my friend Mai. You've probably seen her on set before."