Important Info - This story now has a really nice web site all to its pretty little self! "Wolven Behavior", "Eyes of Gold", and "Blood Moon" have re-aired the last few Tuesdays at www.pvtonline.com/wolflake/ successfully and the web site is up, complete with a few nifty graphics that all of you MUST see (one of which I consider to be the theme image of this virtual series… you'll know which one I'm talking about when you see it. I call it the "Prophecy" picture… ) and also very detailed episode summaries of the nine episodes that aired on TV before the show was cancelled. This will be the primary home for my virtual continuation of Wolf Lake.
So, you will need to bookmark the site listed above, because this WILL be where the new episodes for Season Two will be posted FIRST in about six months. I'll still post here at ff.net, but it will be a week or so after the ep. has already aired at my new site. I'm giving Phoenix Virtual Television first dubs…
Also, I wanted to let you guys know that it is now, more than ever, so very important that you review. Not only does this tell me how much you're enjoying the series, but, as each 'episode' is re-released at PVT, I send the owner of the site a document of the best reviews that I received for that episode, in order for him to see how much the fans are enjoying it. It's been a kinda a sticky situation because CTTWLS aired here at ff.net first, so its not getting the amount of hits at its new home, as it does here… but even so, I've shown him the kind of reviews I'm getting here, and how many hits I'm getting on a weekly basis (in the hundreds) and he seems to be impressed. So I'm not too concerned just yet. The only reason why I'm bringing this up, is because he will be taking in consideration how well a series is doing, in order to figure out whether or not he needs to 'cut' a particular series from pvtonline.com… In other words, he can make the decision not to keep a Virtual Series around if it does very poorly over a period of time… which he is well within his right to do, because he has to take into consideration the quality of what he's offering to the masses. And I have no problem with this.
I just wanted to share this with you, so you'll realize just how critical each and every one of your reviews are. I'm well aware that there are a lot of fans that don't review each chapter, and those that have never reviewed at all (shoot… I used to be one of those lurker types) but it really has become critical to whether or not I will continue with a Second Season, which I very much want to do. It's just that I made that decision, massively in part to the fact that I knew this series would get a large amount of exposure at PVT…
The reviews that I get for these last three 'episodes' especially, are going to be critical to the creation of VS2, and to the marketing of my series… So please, whether or not you make it brief and to the point about why you've enjoyed this series or a particular episode, or you become more detailed in your praise, in the end, its going to be those reviews that determine whether or not this series continues… And keep in mind that I won't be the only one reading your reviews, I'll be sending them to the owner of PVT to show him that I'm worth keeping around, and I'm guessing he'll be sharing that with the viewers of the site... So, make sure you spell check your reviews and that it's easy for one to read… (wink)
Also, if you would like to add reviews to some of the previous chapters, that would be greatly appreciated as well, as it will give me extra material to send along at the appropriate time. You guys are now and forever my critics, and I need every review of praise I can get in order for this series to continue.
On another note, the other thing I wanted to bring up with all of you, was to tell you about a new story that I've fallen in love with. I'm making this suggestion on the behalf of one of my devoted fans, Nightwriter, who has written the beginning to one very kick-ass original story that is really incredible. If you love Wolf Lake (and of course you do, or you wouldn't be here) you'll enjoy this story. Please check it out, and give him the support that this story deserves. You can link into his story below… Trust me, you won't regret it. Heaven knows I'm already addicted.
http://www.fanfiction.net/read.php?storyid=1169193
Keep in mind that after ff.net splits into two different web sites (one for fanfiction, one for originals) that this link will change…
~~~
Warning - The dream sequence coming up in the next part is rather graphic. I did my best to tone it down, but even so… Consider yourself warned.
Summery – As Sophia is haunted with a dream from the past, Damien comes to join the Pack in their battle against the Hunters – and his father. But who's side is he really on? As events begin to unfold, the next page in this chapter of their future turns…
~~~~~~
Sophia's body was curled protectively against Luke's, even in their sleep. The underground room was cloaked heavily in darkness, only the small muted glow from a lamp in the corner cutting through the blackness. Casting dark shadows against an already heavily shadowed surroundings. And only the soft, gentle sound of a clock ticking from an end-table nearby interrupted the heavy silence.
Lost deep in sleep brought on from the lack-thereof and extreme exhaustion, Luke failed to notice the slight tremors racing through Sophia's body. Or the frown that marred her smooth forehead, the whimpers that came from her throat, as strange, unfamiliar, and unsettling images began to dance within Sophia's sub-conscious as horrifying nightmares. Her mind lost to the past… Called there by some un-seen force from deep inside her soul.
The small lamp in the corner of the room suddenly burnt out. The bulb making a metallic popping sound as it died. Plunging the room into complete and utter blackness.
***
A part of her knew this was a dream. Knew that it couldn't possibly be real. But the other part of her knew that it could still harm her. Wrap her up in the horrific images of blood, death, and destruction. Wrap her up so tightly she would never be able to separate herself from the people, hundreds of people, dying all around her. Desperately trying to cling to their loved ones, as their lives slipped from their grasp.
Sophia looked around in horror. Not able to understand or comprehend so much carnage. Tears streamed, unchecked, down her cheeks. The smell that hung in the air was like an oppressive weight in her chest every time she inhaled. Thick with ash, and the scent of blood and burning flesh. The scent of death.
She was standing out in the open. Bare feet rooted to the cracked earth beneath her. Earth that was literally trembling from the atrocities taking place around her. The reverberation of the hoof-beats pounding harshly into the ground as figures from hell, clothed in black, and riding dark horses who breathed smoke into the cold night air, charged throughout the village, and in-between the small huts, that were currently going up as blazing torches. Greedy flames of hatred licking up to the night sky in triumph.
She trembled in gut-wrenching fear as her eyes went wide and her pupils dilated. Reflecting the scenes taking place around her.
Men were burnt alive, screaming in agony, while the women were brutalized and sliced open. Their hearts cut out, and their heads removed from their shoulders. Children were pulled apart by those riding the horses from hell, silhouetted by the black of midnight, the glow from the rings of fire surrounding them. The sounds of their tortured shrieks ringing painfully in Sophia's ears.
And the blood… The blood was everywhere…
Opening up her mouth to let out a cry of her own, her throat refused to operate. Her lips refused to speak. It was like her voice had been ripped from her, swallowed up by the violence, smoke, and agony.
Looking around her in hopeless confusion, she wanted to run. Wanted to get away from this place as fast as she could. Get away from the sounds, the images, and the smells.
But her feet wouldn't budge. She couldn't even turn her head. Her body was heavy and sluggish. Refusing to cooperate. But her mind was not. Her mind was hers, and the panic that was welling from within her was choking.
Turning away from the violence and the screams, she tried desperately to focus on something, anything, else.
And that was when her eyes were drawn to a woman – maybe a couple of years older than herself – Kneeling nearby. Her oval shaped face, which, once upon of time must have been filled with wonderment and innocence, was now haunted and smeared with blood. The now age-old dark eyes staring out at Sophia were no longer innocent. But the eyes of someone who had seen such horrors that even the ones happening around them paled in comparison.
They were the eyes of a woman who had been through hell… And was still there.
Their eyes met, and the strange female slowly stood. Her waist-length black hair fell in waves down her back. Matted and dirty. Dull with ill-care.
Sophia gasped as she saw the condition of the woman's body. Torn and bloody, her dress was hanging by shreds. The lacerations in her body from something that could have only been from a whip. Some of the cuts were still oozing blood, while others were caked with dull brown. And one particularly wicked slice that looked to be the freshest, that lay across the side of her cheek, Still trickling blood steadily that coated that side of her face and neck. Soaking at the neckline of the tattered dress.
They raced madly across her torso, chest, and thighs. With no pattern or consideration of her sex. These blows had been meant to slowly, excruciatingly, kill her.
Sophia's hand flew up to her mouth as she let out a moan. Unable to believe that the woman in front of her could still be alive after being beaten repeatedly with such a heavy hand.
But it was what she was holding in her arms that sent Sophia tumbling to the ground. Her legs no longer able to support herself. The sobs ripping soundlessly from her frozen throat.
It was a child. A young boy. Only about six or seven. Still a baby. The woman's arms were coated with blood, hers, and the child's, as she looked back at Sophia. Seeming to be oblivious to the rest of the world. The screaming, the pain, the torture. The destruction. She didn't even seem to be aware of the dead child she was carrying. For dead he was. The entire left side of his skull was caved in and a mass of bloody mush. Sophia gagged at the sight. Her fingers burying into the parched dirt she was sitting on. Looking down, she saw the stains of splattered blood soaked into the black ground. Tainted dirt that she was currently sitting on, but she couldn't find it in herself to care.
Looking back up with tears streaming down her face, She saw the strangely calm girl was almost standing over her. The boy still cradled to her chest like the most precious of jewels, but she never spared him a glance.
Sophia looked at her in desperation. Reaching for her voice once more, and not finding it. She tried reaching out to her mentally. Why, she didn't know. She felt strange with this woman. As if she should know her. As if she did know her. But she didn't. She couldn't. This wasn't a face of a woman you easily forgot.
'I – I don't understand. What is this place? What's happening?'
The woman looked down at her sadly. 'Yes, you do understand. And you know what is happening.'
Sophia shook her head wildly. Hair flying about her whitened face. A tiny tendril catching on her cracked and dry bottom lip. Leaning forward, she pressed her palms to her ears in an attempt to block out the horrifying sounds of the massacre taking place. She could hear everything. Men screaming in hatred and defiance. Trying to fight back, even though they knew they were on the losing end. Women pleading for the lives of their children. The cries of the innocent as their lives were taken from them by the worst cruelty imaginable or unimaginable.
Sophia squeezed her eyes shut. She couldn't take this anymore.
Suddenly lifting her head up, and finding her voice, she let out a scream. "No, I don't! Where am I?!" Why am I here?!"
The woman looked down at her. Dark eyes filled with grief. "To see. To understand."
Sophia's eyes were burning with emotion and smoke. Deep sobs welling up in her throat as she hugged her arms tightly around her body. Rocking her body slowly. Not only was she hearing them, but she was now seeing them. Every last one of them. The visions were intensifying. She couldn't turn them off. She couldn't stop them. Couldn't stop the pain, the death. It was never ending. An ocean of blood stretching out in front of her as far as she could see.
"To understand what?" Sophia whispered brokenly.
She started when she felt the woman kneel in front of her. Pulling her gaze back up from the ground to meet those dark, age-old eyes. She smiled softly. Gently. Her hand reaching out to brush a lock of hair, back from Sophia's eyes. Leaving a small trail of blood behind that cooled instantly on her skin.
"The Past, Sophia." She responded softly. Turning her eyes up to the night sky.
Sophia followed her gaze. Dreading what she was going to see, but unable to halt the instinctive movement.
Up until this point, Sophia had seen everything. Had seen it, and had responded to it as one in her position would, but the sight of the blood-red moon shining down from above greeted her. Both familiar and alien. The embodiment of the Prophecy.
Looking away from the truth, her breath stilled in her throat. And in that moment, she understood. She knew what the truth was.
Sophia looked away in a daze. Turning back towards the scenes of unspeakable violence taking place. She was in the past. In the Dark Ages of her people. She was witnessing just a small portion of the mass genocide that had taken place. Just a portion of their near extinction.
And, just a sample of the demonic hatred that possessed the Hunters' souls.
Looking back at the woman so close to her, Sophia shook her head again, softly from side to side.
"Who are you?"
The woman slowly closed her eyes, and her chin fell. Reaching her hand up, she pulled a leather cord out from around her neck. Pulling a strange pendant out from underneath her filthy dress. The familiar crystal flaring brightly, even in the surrounding darkness, as it glimmered unexpectedly at Sophia.
Sophia's gaze flew back up to lock with this haunting woman as her eyes slowly opened. Revealing faint golden flickers deep within the souls of her eyes. Slowly standing, her fingers dropped the crystal to where it glimmered in-between the valley of her breasts, despite the squalor of the dress it rested on. She began to step away, still carrying the dead body of the child in her arms
"I am the past. I am a part of you."
The words were becoming faint, as the woman retreated into the shadows. Leaving Sophia.
Sophia tried to call out in desperation. But her voice was immobile once more, and she couldn't even lift her arms or move her legs in an attempt to stand, She could barely manage to pull air into her lungs.
With her paralysis, came her panic once more, as she began to believe that maybe, just maybe, she really was trapped. Trapped within these memories. Trapped within this past. Trapped amidst the raging violence that didn't seem to want to stop.
This time, when she looked around, she saw not only the people. But the wolves. Wolves being slaughtered upon sight. Their hides cut away, almost like the Hunters believed that in doing so, they either gained their power, or entrapped their souls. The sounds of their snarls as they fought valiantly to save themselves and the lives of those close to them. Fought, and failed. The sound of their inhuman howls splitting the night, right alongside that of the cries of those still in human form.
A silent scream clenched the muscles in Sophia throat, and she turned her head away. Unable to bear the sight anymore, for fear she'd go mad.
It was then she realized that the fires were spreading. Racing along the ground at an incredible rate.
It's not possible, she dimly realized. There's nothing out there to burn but dirt and the spilt blood of her ancestors.
But burn it did. It swallowed up the visions and shared memories. It swallowed up her front-row seat to the Past. And for that, she was momentarily grateful.
But her relief was short-lived, when she saw that it was racing for her.
Eyes going wide, she tried in vain to move. To shift, to run away. To live.
But she was frozen just as if she were already dead. As if she was tied to this place, and the death surrounding her. Unable to run from her death, just like those that had died had been unable to run from theirs. She couldn't move, couldn't think, couldn't breath, as the intense heat hit her first, followed by the sight of the flames rushing closer and closer… Filling up her complete line of sight till she was completely surrounded by it. The brightness of it blinding her. Reflecting in the brilliance of the crystal hanging around her neck. Her own little fossilized flame.
It was hot, so incredibly hot. It would begin to burn her soon. And sure enough, as if hearing her thoughts, it began to swallow up the distance remaining.
Sophia screamed. Whether in her mind or with her voice, she didn't know, but she started screaming and didn't stop. Not even when the flames engulfed her…
***
Jerking upright on the mattress, the scream still on her lips, Sophia was greeted by complete darkness. Perspiration coated her body, causing the sheets on the mattress to wrap themselves uncomfortably around her flushed, trembling body.
And Luke was there. His arms wrapping around her. Pulling her into his embrace. She listened to the alarmed pounding of his heartbeat and just focused on breathing in the clean, clear air. Wanting to push away the memory of the all-too-real dreams and the smells. She imagined that they were still clinging to her, and she shuddered. Ignoring the hastily spoken questions that Luke kept repeating, asking her both on their mental link and vocally what in the world had happened to her.
Sophia couldn't answer. Couldn't speak. Part of her was afraid that she wouldn't be able to. That the dream's hold on her would still have her silent. Instead, she wrapped her arms tightly around Luke's neck, and cried while he rocked her gently in the embrace of his arms. Cried in the soothing blackness, where she didn't have to see anything. Her crystal pendant cutting into her breast from where it was caught up against Luke's rock hard form. The pain a relief in its simplicity.
She cried like her soul was breaking. The sound echoing in the soothing silence of the underground room for some time to come. Reflecting against the gentle whispered inquiries voiced by Luke as he held her. Her grip on his torso unyielding, despite his attempts to get her to look up at him and tell him why she felt like she was flying apart, both mentally and physically, right there in his grasp.
Maybe because she felt like she was.
******
Presley breathed in a deep shuddering breath. Holding it for a few moments before releasing it in a lingering sigh. Forcing all the muscles in her aching body to uncoil and relax.
Dawn was breaking outside, and she could see its tiny fingers of light trying to penetrate through the small gaps in her heavy curtains.
She was currently stretched out on her mattress, fresh from a shower that she had taken to clear the cobwebs from her mind, and rinse away the lingering scent of the warehouse and the torture she had been forced to endure.
Bare legs gleamed in the soothing shadows of her room. The simple long white t-shirt she was wearing was, in actuality, longer than some of the dresses that she tended to wear. But the tail was riding up to where it clung against her upper thighs, and she couldn't find the energy within her to even bother tugging it down.
Staring unseeingly up at the plain cream-colored ceiling, she really couldn't find the energy from within herself to do anything. Not even the sleep that her body was desperately craving. She only knew that if she went to sleep, the nightmares would begin. And she didn't want that. She knew once they started, they would never stop. Never leave her dreams. The torture, the restraints, the drugs, the mutilations.
Yeah, sure… her body was already pretty much healed except for a few lingering scars and bruises, but the damage was still impressed upon her soul. And she had no idea on how to erase it.
What had happened? What was happening to their world? The life that they had all known? Would anything ever be the same again?
Turning her head, she leaned her cheek into the cotton sheet underneath her head. Her mass of blond curls still damp and pressing up against the back of her skulls she shifted her position. Knees drawing up to her chest in a fetal position. Eyes continuing to gaze outward soullessly.
The only good memory she had of the past few days, the only memory amidst those of pain and cruelty, of darkness and blinding light, was of Damien.
And even those memories were rather vague, up until he had come to her and Sophia, and had helped them escape.
She had brief images, only bits and pieces. Throughout the tests they had run, throughout the harsh questions and drugged answers, she remembered the sensation of someone clothing her. Someone treating the worst of her wounds when an experimental anti-clotting agent had been administered. Someone stopping that monster, Eric, from going too far. Hearing the impact of a large body hitting the wall, when he would have ignored the order. The shadow of Damien's form falling over hers soothingly. Welcome in the hell she had found herself in. Her body being lifted up and off the dead weight of her lower torso as he removed the manacles, and carrying her over to the corner of the room, laying her down gently. Careful not to jar her injuries.
She must have passed out then, because the next thing she recalled was waking up to the familiar sight of Sophia chained up against a wall that she had just had her own back against. The crimson of her blood staining the concrete. Still wet.
Her memories flashed to the last one that she had of him. Right before her Change and during. The way he had held her gaze, unflinching. Even slightly awed by her ability.
She had never felt more proud of what she was, then she had been in that moment.
And the fact that he hadn't turned away in fear… hadn't turned from what she was in revulsion… that was a gift in and of itself. He knew their secret, he knew what she was. So there was no issue of having to protect the secret of the Clan. No smoke screens to be fanned. No lies to be made. No threats to be subdued.
Only problem was, he was a Hunter. Maybe a traitorous one at that, but still a Hunter.
Presley slowly shook her head. She was crazy for thinking so much about him. Chances were she'd never see him again. If they didn't kill him for his assistance to her and Sophia, then he'd fall back into the ranks of the Hunters… continue playing out his part.
He could only do so much, and he had had his chance when he'd refused their offer for him to come with them when they had escaped.
So his fate was left up to a higher power now. She just had to forget him and move on, pretend that none of this had ever happened. Forget the sensual but hard lines of his face. Forget the black heat of his eyes. The surprising warmth of his fingers… funny, one would think that, given his frigid demeanor, his skin would be cold to the touch. It wasn't. It was all heat and pale strength and beauty. Much like himself…
Despite her resolve not to fall asleep, she slowly dozed off, mind drifting on the more pleasant memories, as the sun continued to rise.
And, unbeknownst to her, silhouetted the form of a man standing outside her curtained window. Observing her coolly through the small space between the panels. His mind working as to how to set his plans in motion.
******
"So what are you saying? That this dream was some sort of a flashback to the past?"
Sophia glanced over at Luke mid-pacing. "What else could they be, Luke? You didn't have them, didn't experience them... You don't realize just how real it felt. It was like I was right there. Living it."
Luke leaned forward from where he was sitting, watching her with concern. "Baby, you've been through a lot, it would only be natural that you were hav – "
Sophia cut him off abruptly. "Damn it, Luke! Don't patronize me! I know what I saw, and what I felt, and that was no dream. And it sure as hell wasn't something brought on by post-traumatic stress!"
Luke ran his fingers tiredly through his hair, looking up at her from where he was seated. They had only been asleep for about five hours when Sophia's… whatever the hell it had been… had awakened her. She had been in a state of shock for a little while afterwards, not even speaking for almost an hour. And then the words had come so fast, he had had a hard time trying to keep up with them and her, as she circled the underground room like an encaged wild animal. Not even realizing how feral her expression had become.
"Then it was what, Sophia? A vision? A message from the past?"
Sophia crossed her arms and frowned at him in an expression that he had seen all to many times, brows arching, and eyes glittering darkly as she stared him down. "Why not? I mean, considering everything that has happened, it's not any wilder than what's been going on for the last two weeks."
Luke shook his head in disbelief. A distant corner of his mind recognizing that they were in the middle of what could only be considered one of their first major fights.
"Although I won't argue with you on that view point, I'm sorry, Sophia, but you've got to realize how crazy this all sounds."
Sophia let out a snarl and whirled away, showing her back towards him in exasperation. Luke's voice rose an octave to follow her swift movement.
"I mean, a message? From Rianna? What makes you think it was even her to begin with? You've never even seen a picture of her."
Sophia was silent for a moment. "She was wearing the crystal." Still having her back turned, Sophia ducked her chin and tried to ignore the burning behind her eyes. Shoot, if the situation was reversed, she wouldn't be too sure about her own sanity. But it still didn't mean that Luke's disbelief didn't hurt.
Silence fell as Luke contemplated the lines of her back. Noticing the tension to her muscles and the slight quiver to her skin. Letting out a deep sigh, he leaned back into the plush backing of the chair.
"Okay. Let's follow this line for a moment, shall we? Let's say that this dream was everything that you're saying it is – "
"It is." Sophia broke in defiantly, but Luke ignored her.
"Then what is the purpose for them?" Luke finished. "What reason is there for you to be having them?"
Sophia turned to look at him over her shoulder, and saw that he was looking at her seriously. Waiting for an answer. She shrugged slightly.
"Maybe it's her way of trying to warn me."
"Of what?"
"Of what happened the last time that the Hunters attacked. Showing me the massacre that followed." Sophia self-consciously raked her fingertips through her long mass of dark hair, pushing it back from the strained paleness that was her face. Luke noticed the faint shadows beneath her eyes that were starting to appear from the stress and the exhaustion, but knew that there was nothing he could do to alleviate that for her.
"But what good would that do?" Luke asked after a moment's pause. "We already know what happened – "
"No you don't." Sophia interrupted softly. Her voice filled with unspeakable pain as she looked back at Luke. The shadows beneath her eyes suddenly looking even darker in the dim lighting. "You have no idea what it was like. No idea at all."
Luke's eyes narrowed as his facial features fell into emotionless lines as he weighed her words, and sensed her pain. It was then, that he put aside all pretenses of denying that what she had experienced was what she was saying it was. It was then, that he realized that what she had gone through in that dream, was far worse than he could have imagine, and something twisted painfully in his chest to think that she had faced those demons alone.
"So…" Luke hesitated. "What does that leave us with?"
Sophia shook her head, un-consciously rubbing the frown marring her smooth forehead. Even more lost then he was. "I don't know, Luke. I don't know. I just know that I don't want to go back to sleep any time soon."
******
When Presley awoke, she was aware of two things. One, was that it was nearing the afternoon, and she had been asleep longer than she would have thought possible so soon after her stay at the warehouse, and that two, she was not alone.
Growl rumbling deep in her throat, in one swift motion, she was up and crouched on her mattress. Blond hair going wild, and eyes shinning bright gold.
Gold that stuttered in shock, and then blinked out completely, as she stared in stunned surprise at her visitor… sitting in a chair across from her bed. Elbows resting on the arms, and fingers steepling in front of his unreadable face. His eyes dark shadows as he observed her in silence.
Presley frowned in disbelief, and looked around her room. Eyes darting to the large window… now open and the curtains pulled away. Wafting slightly in the cool breeze stirring against their tails.
Presley looked back at him, remaining crouched on her bed cautiously. "How did you get in here?"
Damien smiled to himself. Almost.
"You honestly think it would be difficult for me to open a window, considering everything else I've been trained to do?"
Presley swallowed. Once again reminded of what his profession was. What he had been trained to do since his youth.
She noticed then that the over-sized t-shirt she was wearing (with the over-sized neckline) had slid off one shoulder. A shoulder which still bore the remnants of a fairly nasty wound. Reaching up self-consciously, she pulled the shirt place in place, and kept one palm protectively over the mark. Stomach fluttering because she could feel him watching her movements. Gaze brushing over her skin and dancing across her features. Studying her openly. Unhesitant in his perusal.
"I think your real question is why I was able to get in without you hearing me."
Presley quirked a brow at that, palm still in place. "The thought had crossed my mind." She couldn't help but revel in the sound of his voice. Like velvet rubbing against polished stone. That huskiness echoed with the presence of an erotic accent she couldn't quite place. Its quality unique to her.
This time Damien did smile. A small twisting of his lips that looked even more intimidating than the lack of one.
"I'm a Hunter." That last word was almost a hiss. Like it left a bad taste in his mouth. Presley noticed that he didn't elaborate, and she realized that she didn't care for him to. She didn't want to know what he had been trained to do. Somehow, she figured that that would only make things worse.
"How did you find me?"
Damien didn't answer. He just watched her.
"Why are you here?" Presley tried again.
Damien's hands dropped and he leaned forward. Black eyes intent upon her face.
"I've come to help."
******
"How long are we going to have to remain here?" Ruby asked Sherman as she munched on one of the sandwiches he had made the previous night. Looking up at him from where she sat cross-legged in an old over-stuffed chair that had definitely seen better days. Her and John had spent the night down here in the underground medical facility used for their kind. The dark and sterile environment slowly starting to bug the hell out of them.
John hated remaining underground when he felt his services would be better spent elsewhere… he was, after all, a cop. But Sherman had explained to him the precarious situation they had found all of themselves in… Ruby needed John. And the Pack needed Ruby. Which meant, that both of them had to be protected at all costs for the time being.
"Probably until later this afternoon. Vivian and Matt are working out the last details of the evacuation."
"Won't such a large amount disappearing from Wolf Lake so suddenly cause a little bit of a stir with the local media?" John asked tensely from where he was standing.
"Probably, but not as much as a few hundred half-naked dead people would. The Hunters aren't exactly known for their clean up work."
Ruby let out a breath. "I hate this," she breathed out. "I can't help but think I'm supposed to be doing more than I am right now. Aren't Sophia and I supposed to perform some huge miracle and save everyone?"
Sherman grinned at her. "Like what? Zap them with your laser eyesight? The real world doesn't work that way, Ruby. You know that better than most."
Ruby groaned. "Then why is it so important for us to remain hidden?"
Sherman looked at her obviously. "Oh, I don't know… Maybe because you've already been focused on once by the Hunters, and your ex-mate is trying to kill your new mate, and that there are those of your own kind that would kill him simply because he is an outsider and not deemed worthy of owning Skinwalker blood and abilities. Not to mention that you, as a white female, represent hope to the rest of the Pack's survival, a hope that, unfortunately, some of your own species might wish to crush."
Ruby looked away. Having not gotten the answer she would have preferred.
John glanced over at Ruby, before turning his gaze over to Sherman. "When do you think the evacuation will take place?"
"Matt and Vivian won't want to waste any time. Probably tonight."
John's eyes widened slightly. "Is that enough time for everyone to prepare?"
Sherman looked back calmly. "Prepare for what? They are leaving their homes and everything else behind, John. The only thing they will bring with themselves is their loved ones and the fur on their backs."
Ruby closed her eyes and sighed heavily. "I can't believe this is happening. I can't believe that we're really going on the run."
Sherman looked back at her steadily, but didn't answer. John observed them quietly as the silence stretched.
******
"This is crazy, you know. Regardless of the fact that you saved Sophia and me, I can't guarantee that Matthew Donner will be able to keep you safe. Or, if he would even want to."
Damien turned to look at Presley as they made their way to her car. "That's a chance I'm willing to take."
Presley turned away from the intensity of his gaze. "Even if it means your death." It wasn't a question.
Damien smiled secretively. "I'm not that easy to kill."
Presley tried to appear calm and collected as she slid into the front seat of her car. Listening to Damien as he also slid into the passenger seat beside her. Trying to ignore the leap to her pulse when his thigh brushed against hers in the tight confines of the small vehicle.
As she pulled out of the driveway, and onto the road, she thought back on the brief discussion that they had had back in her room, and realized just how little he had said.
Glancing over to see that he was watching her, she turned her eyes back to the road. Unable to deal with the heavy silence suddenly pressing in on them, she turned on the radio, and clicked to one of her favorite rock stations. Listening to the strains of an eerily familiar song, that strangely made more sense to her now than it ever had in the past.
(Soundtrack Suggestion – "Only the Strong" by Flaw on the albums "The Scorpion King" and "Through The Eyes"
I knew that when I heard this song I had to use it in here somewhere, and I thought that this would be as a good a time as any. I think that those of you that are familiar with this piece will agree that this is a perfect song for this 'episode'.)
Presley was confused. She wasn't sure what she was supposed to feel. She didn't know if Damien's intentions were what he said they were, or if she was inviting the devil's advocate into the Pack… But he had saved them. And he had cared for her, when things had been at their worst.
And, try as she might, she couldn't turn away from the fire she saw in the icy depths of those black eyes.
Damien was the first one to speak. The gentleness in his tone at odds with his cool mask of indifference.
"How are you feeling?"
Presley swallowed reflexively against the sudden flashbacks his question sent through her, but kept her eyes on the road. "Better. The effects of the drugs have worn off."
"And your wounds?" his words were barely above a whisper, but she couldn't ignore him because he was watching her. Observing her body language, and studying her expression.
"Healed."
Damien turned away to look out the window. Muscle tightening in his jaw. "I'm sorry that that had to happen to you. I wish I could have stopped it sooner than I did."
Presley blinked away the sudden burning behind her eyes and gritted her teeth. She never cried. Never. And she wouldn't start now.
"You did what you could, and I won't forget that."
Damien looked back at her curiously. "You remember?"
The corners of Presley's lips curved slightly, as she glanced over to him for the first time in the last few moments. "I remember."
Meeting his gaze, she took in a small breath sharply as she saw the awareness in his expression. His frigid eyes briefly turning molten as those eyes held her. Held her, and then turned away. Releasing her.
Presley quickly turned her eyes back to the road in front of her. Trying to calm the pounding of her heart in her chest.
What are you doing to me? She asked silently. Not sure whether she was mentally directing the un-voiced question at herself or Damien.
******
It was almost one in the afternoon when Sherman received the call from Luke.
Listening to what the young male had to say for a couple of minutes, expression growing and more serious with every word he heard, before quietly reassuring him that he would be there momentarily.
Hanging up, he walked back into the sitting area where John and Ruby were curled up together. Both looked up at him in confusion. Having heard what Luke had been telling Sherman over the line.
"What's going on, Sherman? I can't reach Sophia on our mental link."
Sherman shook his head at them, as he quickly pulled on his jacket. "I don't know, and I don't have time to speculate with you. I'll be back in a little while."
As he left a bewildered John and Ruby behind, he turned once to look at them before slipping out the door. He pointed his statement at Ruby.
"Till I have a better understanding of what's going on, don't go to sleep." Looking over at John, countenance stony. "Don't let her go to sleep."
Ruby's eyes widened at his statement, and before she could ask him what the hell that meant, he was gone.
She turned to look at John in complete bafflement. He just shrugged. A frown present in his features as he rubbed her back soothingly.
******
Not much had changed in the past for Sophia and Luke, as she only continued to grow even more stressed with every passing hour. The memories of the dream riding her hard. She kept racking her brain to figure out what the hell it all had meant. Just what exactly had happened. But all she succeeded in doing was making the confusion worse… And her head just wouldn't stop pounding against the invading visions. Like demons that would never quit their constant battering at her senses.
After seeing little to no change in her over the last few hours, Luke had finally decided that it was time to call in reinforcements, and had given Sherman a call over at the underground medical clinic. He had listened, unspeaking, to Luke as he filled him in on everything that Sophia had told him about the dreams, and he had reassured Luke that he was on the way to see what he could do.
In the meantime, he watched helplessly as the shadows beneath Sophia's eyes darkened, and stress-lines became visible in her pale face. Eyes filled with pain as she fought the images crowding her mind. Each hour becoming more difficult than the last as with each that passed, the pressure only built.
Whatever it was causing this – and he wasn't sure if he believed that it was Rianna – it wasn't happy about Sophia not submitting to it.
She was curled up into a ball on the couch. Chin resting on her knees as Luke sat behind her. Her back pressed up against his chest, seeking comfort as his arms remained tightly clasped around her torso. Just holding her till Sherman arrived.
Sophia didn't think she could have held it together as well as she did if it hadn't been for Luke being there with her throughout all of it. Keeping her fingers entwined with his, she was able to find some semblance of grounding as she waited for whatever news Sherman would bring with him that would hopefully provide her with some way of turning the memories of the dream off from their constant replay in her mind.
******
After monitoring the public mental pathways of their Clan, Presley was able to pinpoint Matt and Vivian's location – currently at the Diner – and pulled up in front of it. Still not sure if she knew what she was doing.
Maybe it would have been best if she had contacted Sophia. She knew that Sophia would side with Damien after all he had done for them, and she would have a much easier time of convincing her father, than Presley would have convincing her Alpha, that Damien's intentions were what he said that they were.
As if sensing her nervousness, Damien leaned over and placed his palm over the back of her hand, Lean, pale fingers grasping hers in reassurance.
Presley couldn't hide the start that her body gave at the contact. Unprepared for the warmth in his touch. Looking up at him in surprise, her light-colored eyes locked on the darkness in his. Uncertainty warring with her attraction to him.
He's the enemy, one part of her mind screamed. Not only a human, but also a Hunter. A member of the race that was currently planning on destroying hers.
He saved you, another part whispered. He knows the truth of your species, and he's seen you with your fur on. And he's still touching you.
"It'll be okay." She was barely aware of his words as he spoke them soothingly, velvet sliding against stone. The sensual rasp tinted by that strange accent causing her eyes to darken noticeably. She felt the way his thumb rested casually over her pulse, and knew that he could feel it racing out of control.
It's fear, she told herself. Fear for his life, and fear from her worry if she was doing the right thing by bringing him before Matthew.
But she knew the truth. And she knew that the frantic pulse had more to do with the tiny little circling rubs he was stroking across the inside if her tender, still healing wrist. Almost as if he was trying to erase the memory of the manacles that had only a short while ago, been cutting into her flesh. Erasing the brutal memory, with one of erotic gentleness.
He was doing a pretty darn good job of it too.
"I wish I believed that." She answered slowly. Never taking his eyes off of him. Watching the way his cold eyes thawed bit by bit, the sudden stillness in his body.
And then he was kissing her. Leaning closer and closer to her, till his lips hovered over hers. His eyes urging hers not to break away from his as those lips gently pressed down on hers. Shocking her with their warmth and taste as his hand released hers and came around the back of her neck. Tilting her face upwards to the desired angle, as his tongue slowly slipped through her parted lips.
And she was lost. Lost in the taste, and feel, and warmth of his mouth on hers and the sensations it sent through her body. Her kissed her with carefully restrained passion. Giving only what he wanted. Her taking only what he gave. Her eyes lost in the swirling blackness of his, so close to hers.
"Believe me." He whispered as he slowly pulled away. Putting distance between them once more.
Presley blinked. Slightly stunned at the skill he possessed. Quickly remembering where they were and why, she quickly stepped out of the car. Escaping the small confines and the temptation to pull him back to her and finish what he so carefully started.
Damien slowly followed suit, sliding out of his seat in the vehicle. Eyes sweeping over the parking lot, before coming back to hers as they looked at each other over the hood of the car. The light click of the door as he shut it firmly sounding in their ears.
Presley slowly turned away from him, and began to walk up to the doors, feeling the heat of his body pressing in close behind her as he followed her in. His unique taste still on her lips as she quickly licked them. Secretively savoring the flavor.
Setting her mind on the task at hand, and blocking out the memory of that kiss, she stepped into the familiar interior of the Diner, strangely bereft of any customers.
Turning towards the back, she spotted where Vivian and Matt were seated. Deep in a discussion with several of the Elders. The older and wiser members of the Clan.
Discussing the evacuation.
Squaring her shoulders and walking over, she was aware of Damien's eyes on her back as he stayed behind. She was aware of the curious looks in the group's eyes as Matt and Vivian saw her approaching them. Both of their gazes turning towards the strange young male standing a little ways away.
Matt's eyes narrowed slightly, and Presley didn't have to turn, to know that the two were staring each other down.
Matt whispered something to Vivian, and she nodded. Turning back to continue the conversation with the others, as the Pack's new Alpha slowly stood and met Presley halfway when the younger woman faltered at the sight of his approach. The lines of his body aggressive.
"Not here." he stated quietly, as he took her by the arm, and walked back over to Damien. Jerking his head towards the other end of the Diner, which led into the motel wing of the complex. Damien nodded slowly, and followed. Walking past the glass double doors into the Lounge, and deeper into the shadows of the abandoned Bar and Meeting Room.
Looking up at the cold edge to Matt's eyes, and the devil-may-care glint in Damien's, Presley's pulse began hammering painfully in the base of her throat once more, as her stomach tightened in nervousness.
What the hell had she just gotten them both into?
******
"So you're saying that you believe these dreams are coming from Rianna?"
Sophia nodded slowly, answering Sherman's question. "Yeah, maybe. I don't know. I don't know what else it could be."
Sherman frowned slightly. "And you're sure that these weren't just dreams? Possibly brought on by the stress of the last few days?"
Sophia glowered at him, despite the exhaustion written across her face. "Don't you dare start, Blackstone. I've been taking this from Luke all day. I don't need it from you. Not now."
Sherman held up his hands defensively. "Okay, don't get your fur all bristled at me. I'm just trying to help."
"Then help already!" Sophia groaned out as she dropped her head back into her hands. "It was so horrible…"
"It was a horrible time." Sherman replied gently. "Many suffered then."
Sophia picked her head back up to look at him. "But why did I have to experience those memories. What could it possibly be trying to accomplish?"
Sherman shrugged. "Maybe whoever is sending you these dreams, believes that it is imperative that you see what happened back then. Just what kind of brutality the Hunters are capable of inflicting."
"But why?"
"So you could understand what they went through. What your people went through, and could still quite possibly go through again. And then you would understand why it is so important that the Hunters can't win."
"But we're already preparing to evacuate. By this time tomorrow, we'll probably be in Canada. Wouldn't it stand to reason that the dream would have occurred days, or even weeks ago?"
Sherman let out a sigh. Lips pressing together wryly. "Maybe you just weren't ready to receive them back then."
Sophia groaned. "I'm not ready for them now."
Sherman let a few moments stretch by silently, before finally speaking. "Sophia, I can't tell you what you want to hear. I can't tell you where this dream came from, because, to be honest, I've never heard of a member of the Pack experiencing them. I can't tell you their purpose, because I'm not the one having them, and even if I was, there's only been one. That's not much to go on."
"So what do a you suggest she do?" Luke interjected. Frowning down at Sherman from where he standing a couple of feet away. Sherman met his gaze briefly from where he was seated.
"Well…" Sherman drawled out. Looking back at Sophia thoughtfully. "We won't know more until she has another one, so maybe she shou–"
Sophia started shaking her head vigorously. Knowing where the Keeper was heading with this. "No. No, damn it. I'm not going to go back to sleep, so I can willingly have that dream again. I can't, Sherman! I can't. I can't do it again."
Sherman scratched the top of his head thoughtfully. "Well, then there really isn't anything else that I can offer at this moment."
Luke looked at him is disbelief and a slight twinge of anger started to boil. "What? That's it?"
"I'm drawing a blank here, kids."
Luke ran his hands forcefully through his hair in agitation. "So you're saying that there is nothing else that you can do or say for her?"
Sherman turned back to Sophia, who was watching him in hurt confusion. She had honestly thought that he would have had more insight into this thing than what he had already said. It had never occurred to her the possibility of it being an event that he had never heard of and had no knowledge of.
Sherman looked back at her helplessly. "I'm sorry. I wish there was something more that I could do, but there simply isn't."
Sophia nodded slowly in an attempt to reassure him, Luke and herself. "Well, hopefully it was only a one time thing. Maybe some delayed message like you speculated. I'm sure everything will go back to normal."
Luke and Sherman exchanged glances, but didn't say a word. They didn't have to. Their disbelief that that would be the case was written all over their face, and to be honest, was reflecting within her own.
Normal just wasn't going to be on the agenda for them for a long time to come.
******
"Give me one reason why I should trust you." Matt stated simply as he stared a hole in Damien. Body tense with aggression. Damien just observed him calmly. Not appearing to be the least bit threatened.
Fists balled at her sides, Presley watched the exchange cautiously. Knowing that it could blow up at any moment. Teeth scraped nervously over her dry bottom lip as she waited to see what would happen. So far, Matthew hadn't shown any heavy signs of aggression (i.e. trying to rip Damien's throat out) and had listened to what Damien had had to say.
"Because I know them better than you could ever hope to. I know their weaknesses, and I know their strengths. I know what they're planning, and I know how to avoid them. You'd be a fool to turn away what I'm offering you."
Matt's lips twisted humorlessly. "Some would say that I'd be a fool to take it."
Damien tilted his head to the side. "That's your problem, not mine."
Presley allowed herself a mental eye-roll. Obviously, male posturing came in ALL species. She just hoped it didn't get Damien killed. She didn't care how well he had been trained. A human male couldn't hold out against a Skinwalker male. Not in an honest fight.
Could he?
Presley shook that thought away. No need to think about that right now. You're nervous enough as it is, without trying to figure out just what exactly Damien is capable of doing. That's all stuff you can figure out later, when he isn't in danger of having his head removed from his body by your newly appointed Alpha.
Matt studied him carefully, as if looking for something. Maybe for a sign of fear or nervousness and finding none. Finally, he nodded.
"I know that if my daughter was here, she would want me to give you the benefit of a doubt. And I know without even trying to contact her, that, because you saved her life and Presley's – not to mention already having provided us a ground-base of information to work with – she would be willing to trust you." Matt's eyes narrowed slightly. "Seeing as how you already appear to know quite a bit about us already, and you had no trouble locating one of our members, I can't exactly deny your request, because it might reveal our 'secret'.
"And then there is the interesting subject of your genetics. Even though you are incapable of the Change, you are a descendant of a Skinwalker ancestor. As such, I can hardly turn you away."
Presley blinked in surprise. What? What did he just say?
Ignoring the look of shock on Presley's face, and suddenly shifting demeanor, Matt slowly leaned forward, a distinct rumbling in his throat causing Presley's heart to leap into hers. Damien never changed his demeanor. The layer of ice over his gaze never broke, and his eyes never wavered. Calmly locked onto Matt's.
"If I ever so much as suspect that you are not on our side, I will kill you. Make no mistake about that. You get one chance. One chance, and that's all. I don't care if you lead us right to the sons of bitches, I don't care if in that process, I lose every member of this Pack. I don't care if you succeed in killing me…Rest assured, I will bring you down with me."
Damien didn't look away, as he calmly replied. "I wouldn't expect anything less."
Matt leaned back and nodded, glancing over at Presley, before turning his stern gaze back to Damien's and nodding again. Then he turned his back and left the two of them alone in the Inn's meeting lounge. Not having the time nor the luxury to watch the human male himself right now. He only could trust that Presley was capable of keeping Damien entertained till tonight, when everything else fell into place.
As soon as he was out of sight, Presley couldn't resist letting out a huge sigh of relief. Looking over at Damien, she watched him as he never took his eyes of the glass doors that Matt had already walked past. His black gaze strangely calm and unreadable.
******
Exhaustion beat at Sophia like a living, breathing thing. Constantly ramming her skull with its intensity, and causing the muscles in her limbs to protest harshly with every movement. Her body cried out for sleep. Sleep that she refused to give it.
Standing in front of the small mirror in the also rather small bathroom, she turned on the water. Watching as it began to fill the bowl. Slipping both hands under its flow, she slowly scooped a small amount up, and pressed it to her face. Sighing as she felt the cool liquid slip across her tired flesh.
Letting her hands fall back to the sides of the sink, where she braced the palms on the rim, she looked up at herself. Studying her now damp reflection.
She didn't know what that creature was, currently staring back at her.
Where her skin had been a light golden bronze recently, it was now pale and translucent. Pasty. Her eyes were blood-shot and swollen, and she was having a hard time focusing them. Very unsettling given her enhanced senses. Her mouth was extremely pale, almost blue, and her dark hair fell in tangled waves around her drawn oval-shaped face. Thin tendrils alongside her temples damp with the beads of water clinging to her skin.
Swallowing painfully, she dropped her gaze back into the still filling sink, and turned the faucet off. Bathing her face a few more times before the remaining pooled water slid down the drain.
She knew that what she was going through wasn't brought on by normal causes. Granted, the last week had been far from normal, and hadn't been that great on sleeping, but she had been getting enough to make by. Had even gotten a few hours last night before the dream had even begun.
But it was almost like the dream had fed off of her. The memories of it still feeding. Gorging itself. Depriving her of her strength and her will with each passing hour. Driving her closer and closer to the edge, and back into the dream's embrace. It was like the damn thing was real, a demon that was clawing from inside her. Battling her resolve against it, to be loosened in her mind.
Sophia looked back up at the mirror. Well, she wasn't going to let it. She wasn't going to go back to sleep, just so she could experience another dream like the one she had had. No way. Not a chance in hell. She may have done some stupid things in her life, but she wasn't a fool. And she wasn't about to become one now.
She knew that whoever or whatever had sent her that dream wasn't done yet. It wanted her to go back to sleep. That was why her body was being so brutally attacked by exhaustion.
And that was why she wasn't going to give in to it. Hell, if she could hold out against her Flip, she could hold out against this. This, whatever it was, wasn't going to win. Not at the cost of Sophia's sanity. Or what little of it she had left.
Steeling herself, she exited the bathroom and slowly walked over to where Sherman was preparing to leave. Her eyes widened slightly at the sight.
"Are you leaving?"
"I have to." Sherman answered apologetically. Turning up the collar on his over-coat. "I need to go back by my house and secure a few things. Pack up the more important documents of the Pack's history, and store the others. I've also got to take care of some minimal paper trails and burn some of the more recent evidence of the dealings within the Pack. We can't leave anything, no matter how minute, behind for the Hunters. By the time I'm done, The Pack should be ready to move."
Sophia's eyes widened farther, seeing out of the corner of her eye the way Luke crossed his arms in front of his chest as he listened to their exchange. "This quickly?"
Sherman shook his head wryly. "Let's just say that your species knows nothing if not how to pack light."
His attempts to lighten the mood failed, and he let out a sigh. "Matt and Vivian aren't taking any chances. Not with what the Hunters have on us. Currently, they're rounding everyone up. Letting them know what is happening individually to hopefully keep Tyler out of it."
Luke's eyes narrowed. "What about Tyler's goons?"
"What about them?"
"If they're still loyal to him – "
"Why would they still be loyal to him, Luke?" Sherman interrupted. Arching a brow arrogantly. "Matt is now in command. Those pups are not that dumb. Besides, Tyler betrayed all of us. Including his companions."
Sophia shuddered at the thought of Tyler. The memory of their last encounter still vivid in her mind's eye. "I still don't understand why he would have turned so suddenly against the Pack. It doesn't make any sense."
"Actually, it makes perfect when you think about it. Granted, he's always been ambitious… always believed that he would rise to the Leadership of the Pack. But in truth, he never had what it took to lead. Regardless of what type of leader he would have been. Ruby was his sure-fire way to rise to the top, or so he thought. But she was doing more towards destroying his image than improving it, by constantly desiring to be with John. Now, take into consideration what has happened recently. Vivian is now in power, Ruby went on the run, right into John's arms. John turns out to be a descendant of a Skinwalker, and because of the transfusion of Ruby's blood, has now Flipped and joined our ranks, with Ruby standing formally at his side as the white female. His number one enemy's daughter has become the second most powerful female in the Pack, a white female who has mated, if unofficially, with the Alpha's son. Also not one of his big fans. As soon as you Flipped, Sophia, Tyler knew the game was up. He knew that Matthew wouldn't be held to his vow anymore, and, as believed would happen, he has become the Alpha.
"The Hunters agenda just happens to come in here at the right moment in time. Tyler knew that he was in serious danger, what with five enemies that were now strong enough to take him down like the mangy mutt he is. He had to do something. Things aren't looking too bright here in Wolf Lake, either way you look at it, so he makes a deal with the devil, so the Hunters will turn a blind eye to him making an escape. His side of the deal, obviously, was to capture you."
"Or at least just a portion of it." Luke interjected. "There's really no telling what else they asked him to do. He could very easily still be around. Waiting to follow through on the next part of the deal."
Sophia shook her head slowly. "I'll have to disagree with you on that one, Luke. Judging by the conversation that I had with him yesterday night, it sounded like he was scrapping the deal. He was going to leave Wolf Lake before the entire mess hit the fan, and the Hunters came looking for him anyway."
Sherman nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I would think so too. I'd figure that he is at least smart enough to realize that once the Hunters get what they want, they won't leave any survivors of the species."
Luke chuckled darkly. "Unless they figure he won't be able to do much in the way of procreating without the use of a female in order to continue the Skinwalker lineage."
Sherman shrugged. "Possibly, but I doubt that they would take that chance. Their hatred runs deep. And they are nothing if not efficient."
Sherman turned back to look at Sophia. Visible concern etched into the lines of his face. "Are you sure you won't think about what I said?"
Sophia shook her head. "There is nothing to discuss, Sherman. I'm not going back to sleep right now. At least not until we leave Wolf Lake."
"What good will that do?"
Sophia frowned slightly to herself. "I don't know. I just have a feeling that once I'm away from here, whatever it is that is causing this will have no further hold on me."
Sherman was quiet for a moment as he fastened the buttons of his over-coat. "You know, Sophia. Sometimes things aren't always what we believe them to be."
Sophia rolled her eyes. "Another quote from the ever-philosophical Sherman Blackstone handbook of "Helpful Hints"?"
Sherman chuckled. "Something like that." He became serious once again. "Remember the warning you received a couple of weeks ago when I was in the Diner that afternoon?"
Sophia nodded warily.
"Well, it's like that. There are some things, that no matter how frightening the experience itself is, that are absolutely necessary for your own personal journey. And there are some things that simply cannot be fought. I don't believe that whatever it is that brought on that dream – whatever it is that you are currently struggling against right now – has any intention of harming you. But I do believe, that it won't take no for an answer."
Sophia looked away as her heart gave a strange little leap in her chest at the truth of his words. Her words barely a whisper. "I don't think I can go through that again, Sherman."
"Sophia, look at me." Sherman gently beckoned her to turn back towards him. Once she did, he smiled slightly. Repeating the words that he had told her just a few weeks ago, back in the Diner. When he had sat in that booth for a couple of hours. Knowing full well what was going to happen. That she was going to receive the initial warning that came right before the Flip. Signaling the mind that the body was ready and nearing the Change. Craving it. Screaming for it.
"You're stronger than you think."
Sophia's eyes flickered back and forth over his face, before she too, smiled. Recognizing that phrase, and remembering the last time he had said them to her. He had been right then. She could only hope that he was right now.
Sherman grinned as he watched Sophia's body visibly relax. The glint of determination that suddenly came back to life in her tired eyes. Yeah, she'd be okay. A little rattled or confused maybe, but she'd be okay. And as much as he would have preferred to stick around to see the drama that was sure to play out – a drama that he knew was coming, but was pretty sure that she didn't – he knew that he had a lot of things that needed to be taken care of, and he only had a limited amount of time to do it in.
Nodding once in reassurance, both to Luke and Sophia, he turned around to leave. "I'll see you later tonight. Matt and Vivian will come by to pick you up when it's time."
Sophia and Luke didn't respond as Sherman slipped on out. Heading up the hidden staircase that led into a deserted area of the Brewery. This place was nothing if not hidden exceptionally well from the public and the Pack.
Sophia tried to stifle a yawn as she slowly walked over to the fridge. Opening it up in search of something to drink. Spotting a soda – that was loaded with caffeine – she snatched it up and popped the top. Taking a deep sip before walking back out of the little nook and into the living room.
Looking around her, she once again noticed the rock walls and ceiling, devoid of all windows. She couldn't halt the shudder that suddenly ran up her arms.
She didn't care if they were leaving Wolf Lake, just so long as she could get out the hell of this underground room, and back into the openness of the forest.
"It's been an interesting few weeks, hasn't it?" Luke asked as he plopped down on the couch. Beckoning at her to join him. Concerned by just how pale she was becoming. She was starting to look like death warmed over.
Sophia grunted a reply as she settled down beside him, bringing the can back to her lips for a drink. Luke pulled her into the circle of his arms, and he was stunned at how cold her skin had become.
Swallowing nervously, he rubbed his open palms up and down her arms in an attempt to bring heat to her chilled flesh.
"Baby, you are not in any shape to be going anywhere tonight. What's happening to you?"
Sophia shook her head slowly. Rocking it back and forth from where it was resting on his chest. "I don't know, Luke. But I really think that once I get out of Wolf Lake I'll be fine."
Luke didn't answer. Letting his silence be his answer. He hoped she was right. As it was, he couldn't think of anything else that might help. He had been with her all day, and with every passing hour, it had only gotten worse. He could sense the struggle going on in her body. Very similar in a way to the battle that a Skinwalker would have between his or her human side, and that of the Wolven.
And in the end, he knew how that battle always ended. Either the wolven rose to the surface in a partnership with the human nature, or it escorted the human nature straight into its own death.
So what did that mean for Sophia?
"Sophia… I think it would be a good idea for you to – "
"Don't."
"Soph…"
"I mean it, Luke. Don't you dare get started." Pulling away from him in exasperation, she sent a glowering look over her shoulder as she stepped away. Icy soda can still held firmly in her grasp. Her fingers were so cold by now that they were numb from the chilled aluminum, but she couldn't find it within herself to care.
"I know you're worried. I am too. But I really don't think going to sleep is going to fix this. What if it only gets worse? What if the dreams only start to intensify with each successful one that slips past my barriers? What then? I don't even think I could survive it once more… much less have to relive it night after night after night."
Luke started to say something, but Sophia held up a hand in protest. "Not another word. We'll be leaving here soon enough, and then this whole day will be nothing but a really bad memory. Until then, Luke…Please… respect my decision."
Luke flexed his jaw but didn't answer. Leaning back into the sofa cushions as Sophia eased past him and the coffee table. Heading towards the kitchen.
She had only made it about 15 feet when it hit. A very deep, and extremely heavy shudder swelled up from within her. Coming in one large wave that completely shocked Sophia's system. Eyes rolling back into her head, and her entire body trembled with sudden weakness. Her view of the room starting to sway and become disorienting. She imagined that this must be what being drugged felt like, because all of a sudden, she had no control over her body. No control over her non-feeling legs as they gave out from underneath her. Sending her spiraling to the ground. No control over her dead-weight arms as they fell limply at her sides. Unable to catch her body as she fell, or even cushion it, as her face suddenly fell limply into the coarseness of the carpeting. Lids fluttering closed regardless of what she would have preferred otherwise, and she was distantly aware of someone calling her name. The sensation of butterfly wings brushing across her mind as someone tried to reach her through a shared mental link.
Even as her eyes closed and the blackness came cascading over her prone body, she felt ice-cold liquid pouring against her side, and realized that if she opened her lids, just a little bit, she would probably see a large, dark brown stain of soda spreading across the carpeting and staining into her shirt.
That was all she was aware of… That, and the echoing sound of her frantic heartbeat in her ears, slowing down as the dream world overcame her. Swallowing up its prize in victorious triumph after pushing her past her physical limitations and now carrying her off into oblivion.
******
Final Note – (Pleased sigh) I think I find myself enjoying cliffhangers far more than is truthfully necessary…
It is just me, or did that one seem a little short? I don't know why I keep thinking that… it's over 11,000 words… Maybe it's because I've been writing close to 20,000 word chapters lately. =p
Oh well, don't worry… I plan on getting the next one out soon… There won't be such a long wait like there was with this one, simply because I already have almost half of the next episode written, and the rest planned out in detail… Just a matter of finding the time to wrap it up.
I realize that I already wrote a pretty extensive author's note at the beginning of this thing, but I find it necessary to write another about something else that I wanted to inform you of… But instead of typing out a message purely for you guys (because, frankly, it's almost midnight for me right now as I type this, and I want to get another thirty or forty minutes of writing time on the next episode before my eyes start getting blurry, and my brain turns to cotton from lack of sleep… You always know when its time to quit writing when you delete more than you type.) I'm going to just paste a post that I put up in about a dozen places on the Internet… Sorry it took me so long to get it up here…
Wolf Lake – The Virtual Seasons
Note
to all Wolf Lake fans. This is an announcement to inform those of you that are
not already aware of its existence, of the Virtual Continuation of Season One,
currently being 'aired' at www.pvtonline.com/wolflake/
I originally created the virtual continuation of Season One to be the ONLY
season… ending with about 16 episodes… but, I have since changed my mind, and
decided to proceed with a Virtual Second Season once the first one is
completed.
My reason for doing this is simple… I loved the show. I loved the world of Wolf
Lake, and even though it is long gone, it continually surprises me, to just how
many fans have come to it, just from reading fan-fiction and seeing the few but
priceless web sites centered around it. People that have never even seen an
'actual' episode…
But, despite its loyal fan base, most Wolf Lake sites and groups are dying out.
Many are already dead. That, in part, is why I've decided to keep going with
the virtual seasons, and to hopefully share with others this stunning,
ever-evolving (if 'unofficial') world.
Which is also why I have created a new Yahoo! Group, entitled Wolf Lake – The
Virtual Seasons, which can be viewed at the following link…
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wolflakevirtual/
It is my hope, that the fans of WL will treat the Virtual Seasons, like they
would an actual TV series that sadly, only aired for nine episodes before being
cancelled.
And that is why I created this Group, in the hopes that the fans will come here
and continue to talk with other fans and myself - friends new and old – about
Wolf Lake… whether it be to speculate, review, comment, or ask questions anew
about the Virtual "episodes" as they are released every Tuesday night… or to
talk about the actual TV series, its stars… web sites of interest, fan fiction,
petitions, soundtracks, and anything else related to the story of Wolf Lake…
This Group also has the largest selection of Wolf Lake pictures, screen caps,
images, wallpapers, and graphics available on the Internet… One-hundred and
Twenty-Nine (129) to be specific, and I hope to add to them. These alone are
worth seeing, because I'm willing to bet that there are some stunning ones here
that you haven't seen before…
Hopefully, this Group can be the new source of Wolf Lake information and
enjoyment… even if it isn't being aired on the TV screen… but hey, that is why
we were given imaginations, right? (wink)
Please drop by both sites listed above, and hopefully I'll see you around the
message boards!
Till then, here's to keeping the spirit of Wolf Lake alive and howling…
(Sapphira)
~~~
TBC Soon in Virtual Chapter Fifteen, Episode 22 – "Treacherous Intentions"
~~~
