Stark

It took a few days to get Starr back into the routine of school, but she was okay with Aleu and Jet tailing her everywhere. I was absolutely sure she cloaked herself to everyone except for our inner circle, anyway. There was talk around the entire House of Night about the mystery girl we saved during the battle, dispute over whether or not it was my sister. If she didn't feel ready to come back fully, we were hardly going to push her into revealing herself, let alone tell everyone who couldn't even see her.

Jet stuck close to Starr even when he got a break. His reluctance to leave her now kind of made up for their past in the first place. But forgiving him – that was her decision to make.

Fourth hour, Darius did most of the teaching while I kept half my attention on her. I knew the sick feeling that made my skin itch was there for a reason the instant Starr vanished; Aleu trotted in, getting under my feet. If the cloaking spell only held for three and some-odd hours, something was still wrong with Starr.

I motioned to Darius that I was leaving and then walked quickly out of the field house. As soon as I was away, I bolted for the east wall. Starr might have had a head start, but hopefully I could get there in time, before she collapsed.

"Lucky you've been near her all day," I greeted Jet, who cradled Starr's head in his lap. I dropped to my knees beside them solemnly. Her muscles were twitching slightly, almost as if her skin was alive on its own. "I shouldn't be as in tune with her as I apparently am, so what the hell happened?"

"She said she didn't trust herself with a blade yet, the way warmups were going. I think." Meaning he was a little easier on himself with the two of us there. "She started getting that look Kalona sometimes has, like a PTSD trigger or something along those lines." Her body spasmed. I shoved Jet out from under her and served as her pillow myself. Violently shuddering, Starr also began to breathe shallowly. "Whatever it is, her Marks are gone."

I remembered seeing her walk into the room with Erik the first time, as normal as she'd ever been. Until her tattoos blazed into sight. "Sometimes they do that." I propped her up on my shoulder. "Where're Kalona and Apollo?" I was borderline hysterically panicking, but you could never tell from my voice.

"Don't know. Haven't seen either of them all day."

A wolfish growl escaped my lips. I turned my face toward the night sky. Starr trembled again, the spasms coming in faster succession. "If you can't find them, get Aurox." As Jet took off, I called after him, "Don't let Erik know!" Goddess, if she was in any pain, he would be freaking out right now. Let him think she's just sore, I prayed, clenching my jaw.

Only a minute passed, yet it felt like an eternity in the silence. "Stark?" my sister rasped.

"Yeah?"

When she said, "Help me up," I could either comply or end up helping her stand anyway. I was not about to let her fall on her face. Starr frustrated me in her stubbornness that I just knelt to get her on my back. Her head rested in the crook of my neck, and every shudder that went through her pressed against my spine. "Kataigida," she murmured, breath fanning against my ear.

"You're a moron," I snapped at her.

Starr jutted her chin into my shoulder painfully (knowing her, on a pressure point). "So I've been told."

Well, she was okay enough to sass. That had to count for something. I made my way toward the stable, dragging my foot every few steps to leave a tiny trail for the others to follow. I was glad Jet had stopped her. She might have fallen into Kalona's cave under the broken tree, since it seemed that was where she headed, given the circumstances. Meanwhile, checking on Z wasn't a problem when my own nervous emotions strengthened my ties to her.

Lenobia started as I walked into the building. "Goddess, what happened?" She glanced behind her as if checking for Travis's presence before heading outside. A heartbeat later, she had the blue-gray mare walking into her stall.

"Put her down inside with Kata," Aurox told me. I glared at him, because I was already settling her against the stall door. She shook constantly now. "I am sorry for challenging you, Stark." Then, almost as abruptly: "Thanatos is doing the same."

"What?" If we weren't officially batshit crazy before, having the two most powerful… warriors, for lack of a better term, down would make us that way.

The Vessel slipped around me. "Kalona thinks Neferet's doing something. When Jet found us, Death's Warrior confessed he has no idea." He pressed the back of his hand to Starr's cheek.

"Has anyone sought out Aphrodite?" Lenobia asked, hovering worriedly.

Aurox did not look away from Starr. "Darius mentioned she was cross-referencing something with Kramisha and Shaylin, I believe."

Another animalistic sound vibrated my chest, but I stayed quiet. Zoey was fine, and Jet probably ignored me and went after Erik. I took up pacing in the aisle, never turning my back on my sister. Some of the fledglings thought that even if she was back, she could still go Dark. The way she convulsed reminded me of a human dying, so I hoped to hell she wasn't rejecting some bizarre Change. Or Changing at all.

Rephaim hurried in. "My father is asking for Starr." He glanced from me to Aurox. "All three of you, actually." Almost as an afterthought, he dipped his head in respect to Lenobia.

"No!" Starr shied away from Aurox. "It hurts out there. The souls don't know!"

I jerked, electrocuted by her words. Goddess of the Soul. And Thanatos was the High Priestess of Death, so of course the winged immortal would want the two of them together. I would, too.

"Will you come if I get you to your Mentor's side quickly?" Aurox asked. "He can take the pain away."

Starr's eyes flashed. "Don't touch me," she snarled, expression full of fear and agony. My heart broke a little. "You don't know that for sure. You could have just lied to me without realizing it." Kataigida nosed her owner's dark hair. Starr slouched against the wall, obviously still in some pain.

Ignoring the fact she could very well kill me later, I swept her up bridal style. She yelped in surprise. "I can move pretty fast, but not with her. You can." There was no way I would make the run cleanly. Mostly because my vamp speed only took me so far, and Aurox had the whole Old Magick thing going on.

"You really trust me to take care of her?"

His back and shoulders seemed to broaden a bit with the beginnings of a shift. Lenobia closed the stall door behind us. Kataigida whinnied pitifully during our walk away. I forced Starr onto Aurox's back, hoping she would be mad at me and not him once this was said and done. Aurox took several halting strides before picking up the kind of speed that made him a blur to the eye. Thanking the Priestess, I shot out after them. Rephaim flew overhead.

The Vessel put Starr down next to the writhing Thanatos, seemingly unaffected by the sounds of protest and ferocious shivers that racked her. Kalona wrapped his wings around the two of them. "Maybe it is a human massacre."

"And we have a winner." Expression devoid of that sarcastic note, Erik crossed the distance between the door of Thanatos' office and where they sat on the floor in a few heated strides. I shot him a warning look that swiftly changed to confusion when Starr flinched away from him, too. Kalona tucked her closer. Blue eyes darkening with some deep bond or other, Erik informed, "The 'ferret has created more death. She pronounces herself to the citizens as the Goddess of Chaos."

Starr shrieked at the title. I had never heard a wail that shrill come from her mouth.

"Sorry, my Starr," Erik added, concerned. "Anyways, because of her, the souls aren't moving on, and the Runes aren't too happy."

Thanatos' closed eyes became narrow slits against the candlelight. "I am helping as many as I can…" she whispered, voice ragged. Kalona did not bring her closer to his massive body, only curled his wing tighter. Her eyelids slipped shut with a faint, "So much destruction."

"None that we can help?" I exclaimed fiercely, giving Aurox such a venomous stare I knew more than a few fledglings who would cower under it. The Vessel frowned. "We should be out there trying to stop her–"

"There is nothing you can do," Starr interrupted automatically. Kalona did not release his grip when she shifted position; Erik moved closer to her. The Marks burned along her skin in a furious blood-red color, and her irises were so black they swallowed what little light the candles provided. The shadows seemed to lash out at Jet, who was quickly shielded by Aurox. I felt Darkness crowding the room. "She is a Queen and will soon be Goddess."

When Starr launched to her feet, I whipped around to catch her. She struggled against my hold. Yet as suddenly as it had started, the weird power control stopped, and she became deadweight in my arms.

Thanatos had stilled, as well. Probably resting after all that, I mused.

Looking from Vessel, immortal, human, then finally to Tracker, I demanded, "What the fuck just happened?"