Kissed by Lightning Ch. 17

****

After a quick rundown of their strategy and packing up the camp, Rain gave the orders for the day and they started their trek, knowing full well they'd reach their destination by the afternoon. It was a couple of hours deeper into the woods, down the valleys and past what she assumed used to be a rapid river what was left was huge bouldering rocks. They'd made great time and they moved as a unit.

Stefani could sense the heartbeats of the creatures around her. The loudest were the wolves, the numerous heartbeats were tuned to Rain's and beat at the same pace. The witches had their own fluttering beat, which was much dimmer and delicate, she was proud to be able to distinguish the difference between human and creature. The vampire's heartbeat was much slower and calmer, and she tapped into them the easiest. She maintained speed by focusing her energy on their calm almost frigid essence but the only sound she actively sought out was Rain's. Even through the massive heartbeat of his pack, she could hear his individual heart clearly. His wolf's hard pace did nothing to accelerate his heart, proving the great power and stamina he must have. She flushed at the memory of that heartbeat beneath her palms.

The vampires kept a pace much slower for the benefit of the wolves carrying the witches, they didn't let their frustration show, much. Stefani ran over the branches nearest to Katrina, who wore a new gown. 'Where the hell did the vampire hide extra clothes?' Stefani wondered. Katrina wore a cool sleeveless navy blue gown with a turtle neck top and matching short gloves. It reached her knees and it's material molded against her thin curves perfectly. Stefani had watched her strap on a set of daggers to her inner thighs. Katrina was something straight out of a movie, she ran like a wind nymph. Her short- red tipped hair flashed dangerously around her making for a fierce look. There was no doubt in her mind that Katrina was bred for war. Stefani took notice of her own attire and recognized how dull she looked in comparison. She was ready for stealth, wearing black leather pants and a long sleeved black jacket. The boots she wore had a small titanium heel and were meant to be effective when attacking an opponent. Raven had produced the clothing for her, which actually explained the color palet. She kind of wished she had a pop of color. Stefani shook her head, clearing her silly thoughts.

Rain made sure to keep his pace fast, leading his pack and most importantly keeping track of his elusive mate. He listened as her hard breathing ran above him and when she shifted from branch to branch he made the subconscious decision and moved after her instinctively. Even though it was daylight, the clouds covered most of the sunlight. The trees around them were lush and wet and smelled moldy which was strange to him and his beast. The trees here just didn't smell right.

The witches, held fast and steady as they gripped onto the fur of their designated wolves. Syfien felt exhilarated as they raced through the woods. Her wolf wasn't the fastest but he was strong and kept up surprisingly well. Whenever she felt him tense, probably due to his alpha's unease, she would pet his throat and use a calming weave to settle his beast.

Ostara on the other hand, felt the whole experience to be cumbersome. She wished she could keep up on her own without the need of the wolves, though she appreciated her wolf's speed. She held onto the harness and focused her energy on tasting the strange essence around them. Her magic hovered within her, ready to be call forth at a moments notice. She watched her priestess and elder sister up ahead making sure to drain some of Lithinia's tension away. Something had seemed strange in her elder sister's mood this morning. Lithinia had said very little and simply stared off into space, her mind was elsewhere, which concerned Ostara greatly. Her sister was rarely as spaced as she seemed today, absentmindedness was Syfien's forte, not Lithinia's. Ostara smiled at the thought. Behind her closed eyes she could sense something pulsing ahead of them. Initially it was beneath the ground, then within the trees until it shifted into the air around them, hovering, waiting. She'd never experienced anything like it and wondered if it was a power of great good or great evil. She prayed to mother earth that it was not the latter.

Stefani felt a strange humming feeling cross her senses and cleared her throat. She shook it off, figured it was her already ill body. With her acute vampire eyesight her gaze fell on a small rock in the distance, several miles away. The little stone was harmless enough and sat at the base of a great wide tree. Stefani couldn't explain why her eyes were drawn to that one spot, but time and again, that's where her eyes would land. She felt Rain push up his speed, causing them all to do the same. Although the woods around here were creepy and oddly silent, no animal was in sight, which was even stranger. She could feel Rain's wind touch her, surround her completely and it soothed her inner buzzing. The energy within her calmed subtly settling into her gut. The vampire inside her mentally paced, edgy and agitated.

It wasn't until she started hearing warning bells in her head that her steps faltered, and in that nanosecond she felt Luciano pass her. His gaze was trained ahead and his perfectly chiseled face was clear and smooth, stoic almost. His body was muscular but lean, like that of a swimmer. He was a captivating creature to watch, no wonder Katrina was so taken by the vampire.

Stefani looked around as she moved. Raven was higher above and ahead of them, more in tune with the pack alpha. Stefani let herself fall to the ground, feeling a calming sensation by being in contact with the soil. She would run amongst the wolves instead. She moved in seconds, startling the wolves around her who hadn't expected her appearance. Oblivious to their discomfort, Stefani's eyes once again locked on the small rock she'd seen as they approached and swallowed hard.

Something wasn't right.

Raven noticed the second Stefani touched ground and slowed, waiting for her to pick up speed again. Below, he noticed Rain do the same. His eyes scanned his surrounding knowing there was no threat present. He felt his brother, Katrina and the rest of the wolves catching up to them. Maybe she needed a break, her body required more rest and blood in it's current state. He considered this briefly as he waited for her to catch up.

Rain pushed into Duncan's vision, while in this form their minds became one and Rain being Alpha gave him the ability to push into any one of those minds at will. He watched Stefani run through the woods alongside the wolves. Her beautiful black hair snapped behind her like the tail of a dragon. Stefani on the other hand was running but wasn't really seeing anything. Her speed sometimes made everything blurry around her. She knew to avoid bumping into one of the wolves but the pressure in her mind was bothering her. She felt the beginnings of a headache and pinched at the bridge of her nose and groaned. She heard Rain's bark, could sense that he was calling out to her but he was dim, in her background. 'What's happening to me?' She wasn't overly worried because the buzzing energy inside her was in place and calm for the moment. The scent of fresh river water filled her senses. 'Where is that coming from?' It was soothing, lulling her into a calm. She moved ahead. Her head cleared for a moment and her gaze locked on Rain, who had already passed the point she'd been fixated on. Just a couple more steps and she'd cross the little boulder. Almost immediately after she did, her body started shivering, alerting Stefani. Her hands trembled and she felt pressure against her mind again with every step she took away from the rock. She struggled for breath, everything around her fading. Suddenly and without conscious thought her body came to a halt. She felt herself cross over an energy line beneath the ground as a calm sensation entered her. Ice cold water rushed through her veins, she felt something take hold of her consciousness and yank her downwards. Stefani wanted to scream as fear gnawed inside of her but found her lips lightly closed. She felt her consciousness fall and everything went dark.

*****

Rain heard Stefani stop and his wolf came to a screeching halt too. Then he and Raven moved in sync to see what had caused her to stop. The group around them more slowly, a lot slower in comparison, sensing something had changed. Rain ran back towards his mate. Passing his warriors on the way, he could see her body in the distance and in just minutes reached her. He saw her eyes were closed, hands to her sides and she was oddly still. He huffed and felt the vampire elder fall behind him. Rain shifted back into his human body as the vampire elder stepped forward addressing her.

"Stefani? Is everything alright?" Raven looked at his ward's stiff body and noticed her breathing was calm and even, almost as if she was sleeping. His eyes looked around and didn't see any direct threat. He could feel the pack closing in on them. When she didn't respond, Rain placed a hand on her shoulder. Raven heard Rain's sharp intake of breath and was beside him instantly.

Rain looked down at his mate and was stunned to see her dual colored eyes. Her right eye was glowing red and the other glowed a splendid solid gold. Her gaze was empty and somehow he could feel her absent stare as if she was looking through him, not seeing him at all. 'What the hell?' A thought mirrored in the vampire elder who was equally concerned over her eye color change. His elder bond to the girl was muted, almost as if in suspension.

"What has happened?" Lithinia's voice filled the silence, she spoke to no one in particular, waiting for a response, she felt the ground beneath her pulse steadily, could sense that the vibrations were coming from beneath Stefani. She rushed to dismount the wolf to investigate.

"Stefani? Stefani, can you hear me?" Rain gripped Stefani's shoulders and forced her to look up into his eyes. His wolf growled at the empty expression in her eyes, she wasn't even blinking. A chill went down his spine. Those familiar eyes held nothing of the woman he knew. Lithinia reached them and watched the girl with curious eyes, her magic reaching out to sense her immediately recoiling as she was pushed back viciously by a power burst . Stefani snapped her attention towards the witch, her eyes narrowing. It was Katrina's hands that kept Lithinia from falling from the jolt. Silence filled the clearing as seconds ticked by. Tension filled Stefani's empty expression then faded and she looked back in Rain's direction, dismissing the witch.

""You are going in the wrong direction."" Rain stumbled backwards. It was Stefani's mouth but the voice that came through was definitely not Stefani. He didn't know what it was. It didn't sound male or female. The voice was layered with multiple voices, as if many people spoke through her mouth, something he'd never heard before but it made his skin ripple and his spine stiffen. 'Not natural.' Lithinia moved forward trying to look into Stefani's set of red and gold eyes while the pulsing beneath the ground made her tremble slightly.

"What are you?" Stefani turned West from the direction they'd been heading, ignoring the witch's question. At that moment, everyone simultaneously noticed the strange way Stefani was moving almost robotically, as if her body were being moved instead of moving on it's own.

"Has she been possessed?" Luciano finally voiced what they all wondered. Lithinia shook her head negatively. "I don't think this is a possession. It doesn't quite feel like that."

They all watched as Stefani's body stepped forward and, to Lithinia's human eyes, she simply disappeared. In seconds movement exploded all around Lithinia, strong male hands pushed her out of the way as the alpha jumped into the air. She heard Rain's growl as his skin exploded and his wolf emerged mid air following after Stefani. Raven roughly placed Lithinia on the back of a wolf and the vampire elder disappeared after Stefani. To Lithinia's human senses, it all came back seconds after and fast. Sounds exploded in her head, the wind rocked her and she winced as a blast of heat hit her. The group broke into action following the seemingly possessed hybrid as she headed in another direction.

"Stefani!" The vampires shouted after her. Raven could see her just a couple feet ahead and was surprised when she managed to keep ahead of him even when he was using his top speed. It wasn't possible that this infant could out run him! Raven hissed, his fangs throbbing. The tension within the group was palpable, especially when Rain started howling after his mate.

Rain pushed his body hard to chase after his mate. He flanked her side and noticed the empty expression in her face. She didn't react to his howls nor to Raven's calling, it was as if her body moved without consciousness.

Stefani jumped off a high branch and hit the ground running, bringing her palm up to her lengthened fangs and slashing a deep gash along the length of her hand. Rain howled so loudly in anger that he felt the trees shake from the force. The wind brought the scent of her sweet blood urging the group forward.

"Stefani! You must stop." Katrina shouted, pushing off a low branch as she used her healing energy in weaves, sending them out hopefully toward the hybrid. But her weaves would fizzle and dissolve as soon as they left her own skin. She hissed as one of the wolves carrying a witch passed her by, taking her by surprise. Cole and Hale howled after her, trying to catch her attention as they ran harder.

Stefani's body was rigid, scarlet dripped down her hands and touched the ground. She leaned her head back before jumping high and smearing blood among the tree trunk.

'One'

Raven caught up with her for a fraction of a second, his fingers almost grazing her dark locks before she vanished back onto the ground. Stefani ran fast, her body weaving back and forth between the thickest set of trees. Her hand automatically moved to smear against another large trunk in her path.

'Two.'

The strange voice coming from Stefani spoke again, louder this time, speaking to no one in particular. The woods around them got thicker, the fog heavier and the small rays of light did nothing to brighten up the mood.

'Three'

Another tree marked with her blood and this time the tree took on a strange glow. Raven passed the tree following closely to Rain. His keen eyes took on the strange sight of the tree but didn't have time to inspect it.

'Four'

Stefani pressed her hand to the last tree in the set. Her red and gold eyes pulsed slightly as her feet raced forward. It was at this moment that the drumming began. The group startled as they felt the strange drumming beneath their feet. The strokes strong, steady, and calling. Just as suddenly as the drumming started, Stefani's body halted. Rain and Raven broke through the cover of trees first, surprised to see the huge dark opening of a cave. Stefani stood frozen again, Her contrasting eyes were fixed into the dark abyss. The vampire elder took hold of her arm and yanked her back, staring at down at her.

"What are you doing?" Raven's voice was low and teetered on angry as he looked at Stefani. Rain huffed as he pushed the vampire to the side, rubbing his fur on his mate. He whined urging her to look at him, to see him. Stefani moved her blank gaze to him, the same see through stare watched him, not a hint of the Stefani he knew was there. Katrina, Luciano and the witches broke through the clearing, finally catching up with them along with the rest of his warriors who circled the area, staying vigilant.

Rain shifted. His bones rearranging and popping allowing him to return to his human form. His wolf gladly gave over if it meant bringing his mate back to herself. He grabbed her shoulders and looked into her eyes searching for a trace of the women he knew. Lithinia and her sisters gasped as they dismounted and touched the ground, the power filled within the soil was immense, practically overwhelming. It was thick and heavy, weighing them down. Lithinia kept her glances short as she watched the stoic hybrid and her lack of movement.

"Stefani, why are we here?"

'"It's almost time.'"

Rain forced his body not to react to the multilayered ominous voice coming from that sweet mouth. For a second he saw something flicker in her eyes, but just as soon as he noticed it disappeared, he wondered if he'd imagined it.

"Who are you?"

'"We have many names.'" With that, the voice and Stefani turned around walking towards the cave. Rain growled, his naked body glistening with perspiration and radiating frustration. One of his men handed him a pair of sweats, which he slipped on easily as he followed after her. He was cautious as he stepped into the dark mouth of the wet cave, the high rock ceiling was cast in shadows. "Duncan, stay close to the witches." With a nod, four of his warriors moved around the witches, guiding them into the cave. Duncan stayed close to his Alpha, his first and foremost mission as beta was to keep the stubborn man safe. Duncan's eyes narrowed as he watched Stefani walk aimlessly into the darkness. This woman was nuts and she made Rain equally so. He prayed to Luna that it would work out.

Syfien looked around and swallowed, the creepy cave looked hundreds of years old, 'aka unstable as crap.' The cold wind that breezed through made her shiver, she stepped closer to Ostara whose face was calm and calculating. Syfien grunted as her foot slammed into a heavy rock and she almost ate the floor, if it wasn't for the thick heavy arm of a werewolf stopping her. She puffed and thanked him quietly. She knew the only ones who couldn't see clearly in the dark were she and her sisters, everyone else saw perfectly.'Totally unfair.' With that in mind she let her magic rush through her as she lifted her palms and released small light orbs. They floated upwards towards the tall rocky wall and looked like light blue fireflies as they surrounded the group.

Katrina clapped and oohed at the charming little lights surrounding them. She saw perfectly in the darkness, having forgotten completely about the humans lack of eyesight in the dark, but she found something undeniably charming about the little lights, it was like walking through stars. She smiled absentmindedly. Lithinia looked back at her sister, who was happily releasing the small lights, and she smiled to herself. The lights definitely helped their movements inside the cave. The deeper they moved, the longer she wondered if Stefani knew where she was going at all. On the surface it seemed like a regular cave. Creepy, cold and yet there was something more, the strange drumming beneath her feet grew stronger as they progressed. She rubbed her arms trying to keep the cold out. The deeper in they went, the narrower the cave became, until they were walking in what seemed like a hallway. Up ahead Stefani's body moved heavily, her feet dragging. "Where do you think she's going?" Ostara asked, her voice echoing through the cave. She felt her face flush at everyone's narrowed gaze in her direction. Lithinia reached over and gripped her hand tightly in reassurance.

"As all foreseeing as you see me, I truly don't know what the future holds little sister, but it is my belief that she is headed where she needs to go." Lithinia's eyes were trained in Stefani's direction. Ostara gave a small nod to her elder sister and kept up her pace. She bristled slightly as one of the wolves placed a hand on her arm to keep her from hitting a jagged edge sprouting from the cave wall. Even Syfien's lights couldn't replace proper sight. She thanked the wolf, Alex, and carried on with the rest of the group.