"I flew north, back to the U.S., and I've been avoiding that man for the last three years," finished Julia. "I met Charlie after that first flight. He's a veterinarian, and he knew how to deal with bats."
"Not a giant half-bat, though. You scared me half to death." Charlie reminded her.
"So you're saying that those people in the helicopter were after these jars?" asked Peter. "But why?"
"Isn't it obvious? They want to use the five warriors as weapons. Give each spirit to one of their five best soldiers, and you've got one hell of an advantage over your enemy." Julia said. "And they're also ticked off because one of those spirits was wasted on me. The only way to get it out is to kill me, which I don't intend to let them do."
"Why don't you just let the other spirits go? Then those soldiers won't have anything to go after. They might give up." Peter suggested.
"And put four other lives at risk?" Julia snapped. "Change four other people into monsters?"
"You're not a monster," said Charlie gently.
Julia spread her wings. "Am I? You only see the likes of me in horror films. I can't be responsible for forcing others into my fate. Or into my family's fate."
"Um, about your family…"Charlie began.
"What?" Julia changed her wings back into arms and stared expectantly at him.
Peter, meanwhile, was inspecting the stone jars. Noticing something, he picked up the jaguar spirit's jar. "I think you should see this," he said quickly.
"Not now," said Julia. She turned back to Charlie. "What about my family?"
"You should really take a look at this." Peter shoved the jar into her hands and pointed to a small, almost invisible fracture.
Julia ran her finger over it lightly, then brought it close to her face. She opened her mouth, but no audible sound came out. She appeared to be listening intently. With wide eyes, she looked up at Charlie and Peter. "The spirit is gone!" she gasped.
Peter's spidey-sense tingled. He spun and faced the window, webs ready.
"What…" Julia trailed off as she heard the noise coming from outside, a low beat that was almost like a drum, the beat of a heart, coupled with a deep feral growl. "Charlie," she hissed. "Get back."
Charlie obeyed, not sensing what the two superheroes did, but knowing something they didn't.
With a screech, Julia launched herself out the open window, and Peter quickly followed suit. Julia spun in midair to face her opponent, but what she saw froze her. "Jared?" she whispered, unaware that she had changed back to human. She fainted as she plummeted to the ground, five stories below.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Julia woke up in her bed with a start. "Jared!" She shouted as she sat up quickly.
"Relax, I'm right here," said her brother, seated in a chair by the bed. With a strangled sob, Julia hugged him tightly, tears of joy streaming down her face. "Hey, sis, do you mind?" he choked. "I'd like to be able to breathe."
"I thought you were killed," said Julia, releasing him. "What about Papa? Is he alive, too?"
Jared looked away. "No, he's gone."
"But how did you survive? I heard the gunshots and…" Julia trailed off and added softly, "And I still hear them."
"Let me put it this way: you're not the only one those jerks are after." Jared stood, and closed his eyes. When he opened them, instead of dark brown, they were bright yellow-green. He grinned, revealing sharp teeth. Claws sprouted from his fingers, and his skin became spotted with the markings of a jaguar. The final touch to his transformation was a long tail.
Julia stared at him in shock and wonder. "You're a spirit warrior…but how?"
"I brought the jars to the cave by the trail, remember?" said Jared as he changed back into a full human. "The jaguar one must have gotten cracked when I was carrying them, because the next thing I know, I'm staring at a huge shadow cat. I got knocked out, but not for as long as you were, obviously."
"And after I left?"
"I fought them off and carried Dad into the jungle, but…" Jared cleared his throat, clearly fending off tears.
"It's not your fault any more than it is mine," said Julia soothingly. "When I saw you tonight, I…wait a sec, I fell! Who caught me?"
"I guess we're even now, huh?" said Peter, stepping into the room.
"Guess so," said Julia.
"By the way, who the hell is this guy?" Jared glared at Peter, who still wore his Spidey-suit.
"Brother, Ally; Ally, Brother." Julia made a very brief introduction. "And Charlie!" she yelled. Charlie entered the room with a smile.
"We've met." Jared said, dark eyes laughing.
"You have?" said Julia, confused. She rounded on Charlie. "You knew he was alive?"
"Well…" said Charlie, shrugging.
Julia chucked a pillow at him.
Jared laughed, but then grew serious once more. "The other jars, they're still safe, right?"
Julia nodded. "Of course. What do you think I've been doing these past three years?"
"Here's the thing," said Jared. "Slannen, the guy who's been after us, he's launching a bigger and badder assault, to capture us once and for all. But if he fails, he's done. The government won't fund any more attempts."
"So, we just have to beat him one more time, right?" asked Julia.
"Well, yeah, but even with this guy's help," Jared nodded towards Peter. "We don't stand a chance."
"What are you saying?"
"I've got a few friends…three friends…who are willing to help us."
"Three…?" Julia's eyes got wide. "You mean, they're willing to become spirit warriors?"
"Yes. And don't worry: they're completely trustworthy."
"How can you be sure?"
Jared grinned mischievously. "A snarling jaguar-man is better than a lie-detector any day."
"What I'm most worried about is whether or not they know what they're getting themselves into. I decoded the rest of the writing on the jars. According to them, only death can separate the animal and human spirits." explained Julia. "It's a permanent change. Do they realize that?"
"Julia, these are people who have seen enough bad things in this world to know that something needs to be done. They understand the consequences, and we need their help."
"Do we know when Slannen is going to launch his next attack?"
"No, but it will be soon."
Julia bit her lip, thinking. "All right, we'll create the other spirit warriors. Besides, we've got three years of experience. If they turn out to be untrustworthy, we can always kill them and get the spirits back." She grinned.
"What!" said Peter, taken aback.
"Relax, Spidey. I'm just kidding. You should go home. I'll find you when we're ready to release the spirits. We might end up needing your skills."
"Sounds good to me," said Peter. He jumped out of Julia's open window and swung away on a web.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Tolly: So tell me what you think. Go on, don't be shy! I promise I won't sic a spirit warrior on you!