Always the Vampire

He grinned, that schoolboy smile that used to spell mischief.

“There are two trees about ten yards beyond your cars. Both are diseased, but one has a chance of thriving while the other does not. You will locate the trees using your enhanced senses then use the amulets to heal the one tree and kill the other. Come.”

She led the way to the general area and set us loose. Within minutes, we found the fifteen-foot oak that didn’t have a squirrel’s prayer of surviving. Saber saw the rot in the tree, I smelled it, and Triton’s small burst of sonar confirmed the oak’s core deterioration.

“Cesca, Triton, hold your amulets against the trunk. Saber, stand close enough to sense the energy. Focus your intent that the tree should pass over, and remember, Cesca, this is an act of mercy, not malice.”

We moved into position, not on opposite sides of the tree, but with me on the left, Triton on the right, and Saber in the middle. We placed the amulets on the rough bark, and Saber held his hands above ours. Squeamish as I was to kill anything but spiders and roaches, I projected my intent that the tree should die. In seconds, pure white light rays burst from the amulets. They weren’t as intensely bright as they had been in the comedy club. In fact, they seemed almost gentle as they pierced the tree, as if escorting its life to a leafy ever after rather than blasting it there.

Then the amulet suddenly sucked the rays back into itself.

“Back away now,” Lia instructed.

We’d moved about eight feet when the tree imploded. Sawdust rained in the spot where the oak had stood.

Wow, would these babies wipe out invasive vines? We could retire as billionaires in months. No, megatrillionaires.

“Cesca, focus,” Lia scolded. “Go locate the tree that can live.”

I followed the guys, and we found a sad-looking palm sending the vibe that it was fighting for life. Again, we positioned ourselves roughly on either side of the trunk, placed the amulets on the bark, and sent healing intent. A lizard dashed over my fingers, scampering for safety and startling me so much that I started to jerk away. Saber grasped my wrist and held the amulet tight to the tree. This time when the rays shot from the amulets, they circled and climbed the trunk like Christmas lights. And the lights didn’t all retract into the amulets. Instead, the rope beams continued to glow on the bark and slowly be absorbed into the palm.

I exchanged a glance with Saber and Triton.

“Super cool,” I breathed.

“No shit.”

“I felt it just holding your wrist, Cesca.”

Lia chuckled. “Lovely job, all of you. Your last tasks of the night are these. Saber and Triton, you’re doing twenty minutes of martial arts drills. Cesca, you practice distance flying and jump-flying. I’ll return the amulets to Cosmil’s care.”

I started to ask her to define jump-flying, but I saw the image in her mind of me leaping into a fray or out of one. The only difference between jumping and jump-flying was that I’d stay airborne longer.

Okay, so I didn’t make it through a whole twenty minutes in actual flight. Maybe I was a natural sprinter instead of a distance flyer. I did cruise higher over the tree line than before, and when an owl out hunting caught my eye, I followed it. The owl was faster, of course, but then I flew upright, feet toward the ground. That created wind resistance, right?

Cosmil emerged from the shanty and called a meeting just as the guys and I quit for the night. The wizard stood beside the cabin door, Lia and I took the chairs, and Saber and Triton sat with their backs propped against the pillars supporting the porch.

“First, the forensics lab will send a tissue sample. The Veil is still in flux and safe only for short trips, but the sample will arrive with all possible speed. In the meantime,” he continued with a twinkle, “it occurred to me that we have clippings of both Triton’s and Lynn’s hair from the healing ceremony.”

“Oh, well done,” Lia exclaimed. “The Void’s essence is so distinct, even a small bit of it may help overcome any cloaking spell Starrack is using.”

“Just so,” Cosmil agreed, a blush tinting his cheeks as the continued. “Next, Lynn is responding well, but she is weak. I believe she should stay another day.”

Triton leaned forward. “Is she awake?”

“She is stirring, and you may see her when we are finished here, but we must consider her immediate future.”

Saber turned to me. “We told Lia and Cosmil about our research on Lynn.”

“Yes,” Lia said, “and from our own reading of her, we agree she’s probably not under Starrack’s control.”

“What’d you do?” I asked. “Mind-probe her while she was sleeping?”

Lia waved a hand. “But of course. A case of simple self-preservation. She was not sent to harm any of us or to steal the amulets. Odd as it may seem, her meeting Triton seems to have been pure synchronicity, not part of a malicious plot.”