The Bonding Chronicles Ch. 12

"What the hell am I looking for?" Sara asked, uncertainty dripping from her words.

Karen could feel tremendous pain echoing through the forest, and more than that, she could sense the approach of a wounded man. Sara spotted the small party before Karen could even hear them, and the athletic woman forced Karen to kneel as she studied the group. There were three of them, and the two who were healthy were supporting the third man, who was almost unable to walk.

She could see that all of them, save for the man who was missing his arm at the elbow, were carrying rifles across their backs and sidearms at their hips. A shot echoed out in the distance, and the men rested their hands on their sidearms as they looked back towards the darkened woods.

Karen stood and moved towards the men, shaking off Sara's hand, which tried to restrain her. One of the men pulled his pistol with a single smooth motion, the action having been performed hundreds of times in the past. She held her hands up and said, "Be still, my friend, I mean you no harm."

She could feel the grave wound of the man that they were supporting from where she stood, and could also sense the magical poultice that even in that moment seemed to be tending to the man's injury.

"Whatever you have gotten yourselves into, I promise, I mean you no harm." She looked back at Sara and said, "Neither of us do."

Sara flashed her a threatening glare before standing and saying, "Yeah, we're cool," with a huff. She hated giving up their advantage, but could tell that her mate had no such concern.

"You two should head back. It's too dangerous for pretty ladies to be hiking through the forest," one of the men said, as he turned his firearm towards the forest. "We have been lost for a few hours now..." His eyes looked panicked as he scanned the trees, everything appearing the same to him in the dark of night.

Karen came up to the men, her gift soothing their nerves as she got close, and as she caressed the wounded man's cheek, she gave him some of her strength. He was close to fainting, and had lost a lot of blood. She healed him enough to get them out of the forest, and for him to find help.

"You will want to remove that," she said, while pointing towards the wooden cap on the man's stump, before she continued, "before you take him to the hospital."

The men looked at her with shock, but nodded, the one man re-holstering his weapon as he pulled the injured man's arm further across his shoulder. He accepted that she was more than she seemed, and realized how dangerous it could be to underestimate a woman in these woods, visions of Tani'm dancing around the great wolf still drifting through his thoughts.

Karen could sense tremendous pain from further in the forest, and knew that she was needed.

"Head that way," she said as she pointed towards the road, "you should hit the freeway in about five minutes."

The men thanked her as she moved deeper into the woods. Sara was amazed at what she had just seen, realizing that Karen had used her magic to soothe the men's moods, and comfort their distress.

Sara took the lead again, guiding Karen deeper into the forest, towards the source of the gunshot they had heard moments before. They were both on edge; there was a terrible sense that something lurked in the gloom of the forest. Sara's eyes saw far into the woods, her senses seeming to provide her with a clarity she had never experienced before. Her eyesight had always been remarkable, but something about the full moon was bringing everything into crisp relief.

Karen clutched Sara's hand, her fear evident in the intensity of her grip as the mood of the forest threatened to overwhelm her. Sara turned her head in response to the sound of a large animal moving through the brush. Something about the noise seemed wrong, as if she was hearing it from the other side of a door, but despite the muffled nature, she knew that it was drawing close.

"Get down," she whispered as she brought her hands up, brandishing her fingers as if her nails were weapons.

"What is-" Karen began, before being stopped by Sara's open palm that came down into her view.

Sara crouched down, lowering her center of mass in preparation for whatever was coming their way. Her lips pulled back, revealing her teeth as the jackalope hopped out of the underbrush.

They both looked at each other, their eyes growing wide with shock. Sara at the sight of such a large rabbit with majestic antlers, and the rabbit at this fearsome woman whom he had not sensed lying in wait.

Karen somehow knew that this magical creature meant them no harm, and stood, pushing away Sara's restraining hand.

"Goddamnit, Karen! I have one fucking job to do, and you got to start letting me do it!" The frustration in Sara's voice was matched by the intensity of her glare as she turned on her mate.

Karen laughed while she smiled and studied the rabbit. It was watching her with worry in its eyes, its foot patting a trembling beat as it looked between her and the direction it had come. It took a couple hops back into the brush, before reappearing and looking at them. Sara thought she could feel worry from the creature, anxiety that they were not coming with it.

"I think it wants us to follow it," she declared with a dismissive tone, as if that was the worst idea she had ever heard.

Karen laughed and said, "Sounds like an adventure," before she started jogging after the rabbit.

The sound of Sara's grumbling followed them as the athletic woman watched the forest for any further sign of threat. Sara wanted to be excited about what was happening, but she hated not knowing what they were walking into, and knew she would do anything to keep Karen safe.

After a few more minutes, they entered a wide clearing. The signs of battle were evident everywhere they looked. The moss and stones had been torn apart, leaving large furrows scattered everywhere their gaze fell. Across the clearing, Karen recognized the source of what she had felt.

The jackalope rushed to Tani'm's side, where the man knelt, still aiming his pistol off into the forest.

He looked in their direction before declaring, "You need to help me get this woman to safety, before the wolf returns."

Karen crossed the clearing with as much speed as she could muster, Sara keeping pace with her easily, but refusing to leave her mate's side. Coming up on Tani'm's unconscious body, Karen knelt down and inspected the woman's injuries.

The small American Indian woman's long black hair framed her pale face, blood loss having drained her of much of her color. The man looked down, watching as Karen wiped the sweat from Tani'm's clammy forehead.

The hardened shell of bark that encased the stub at the end of Tani'm's arm felt much the same as the one Karen had seen earlier that night, magic working within the natural construct to mend the woman's wound. Despite the similarity and the efforts of the poultice, the wound refused to heal, and the only purpose the wooden construct seemed to serve was to stem the tide of blood that ached to flow forth.

Her gift informed her of the considerable damage that had been done to the woman's right leg. Massive lacerations and puncture wounds dotted over much of the leg's surface, while there were many cracks across the bone hidden within. Even with the makeshift tourniquet, blood continued to seep out of the small woman in a slow trickle, and as Karen studied the wound with her gift, she realized that the blood should be flowing with much more speed. The dark-haired woman seemed to have slowed her heart rate to an impossible degree, and after allowing her gift to process what was going on, Karen knew that the woman was in a state of hibernation.

This was something Karen had not seen since she had studied with the Master Healer, hundreds of years ago. The ancient man had mastered his body, and could control its functions at will. If not for this talent, the young woman who lay before her would have died from her wounds within a minute, but her gift had bought her the time for Karen to arrive.

Even as Karen studied the supine woman, she could sense the pain echoing out through the forest around her. Regardless of her peaceful appearance, the small woman was feeling every ounce of turmoil her body suffered.

Karen focused on the woman's leg, her wounds still exposed and threatening to flush the blood from her body. She channeled her magic, attempting to mend the arteries and veins first, and as she felt her magic pulling the tissue together, she struggled against an unknown force. Someone, or something, was working to prevent her from healing the woman, and what should have been an easy task, turned into a struggle.

After expending almost four times the energy she had expected, she completed mending the tissues, and had repaired the most grievous of the damage. The moment she released her will, content to rest and gather her strength, she could feel the small woman's wound pulse with malignant intent. Everything she had just repaired began to turn necrotic, the once-healthy cells sloughing off and falling away, until the mangled wound was back to where it had begun.

The man's eyes were wide as he struggled to understand everything he had just seen, his gaze taking in Karen's beautiful face, the alluring woman close to tears as she struggled to mend Tani'm's broken body. After everything he had seen that day, he focused his attention on the forest, intent on keeping them safe.

Thunderfoot pounded his foot on the ground in frustration, as he looked between Karen and the injured woman. Sara was getting a rush of anxiety from the rabbit as it glared into Karen's face. Karen panted while she considered what she could do, seeing the annoyed look in the jackalope's eyes, but unable to understand what it was expecting of her.

"I can't heal her wounds, I'm sorry," Karen explained to the rabbit in near tears, never having felt so helpless to save a life, as she did in that moment. "I'm stopped..." she stammered, "by some dark force."

"Probably that mutha' fuckin' wolf," the large man spat, as his gun swept across the edge of the clearing.

Thunderfoot felt hopeless, realizing that the healer could not sense his intentions like Tani'm could. He turned his gaze on Sara, sensing within her a familiar kinship, and knowing that she was his last hope to save his new friend.

Sara was scanning the dark woods, sensing danger, but finding only thick shrubs and trees, and she felt the rabbit's anxious mood, as a fuzzy image attempted to take shape within her mind. Sara looked down, locking eyes with the two-and-a-half-foot tall rabbit, and as the image crystallized, she watched as happiness spread through her body.

She saw a large wound on a furry leg, the large padded foot trembling in pain as the creature struggled to remain conscious. Bone was visible through the torn flesh, and blood was pouring from the exposed meat. Sara watched as the muscles began to mend, feeling a tremendous strain within the creature as it tapped into its magic to heal itself.

Pain distracted the jackalope, and as its concentration slipped, she watched as the wound reopened, every bit of healing having been undone. The creature grew frustrated and refocused its efforts, and this time, as the wound healed, the jackalope remained vigilant, focusing its will until the entire injury was sealed. Only once every trace of damage had been removed did the animal stop its healing, and that time, the flesh remained intact.

"I think you need to heal the entire wound," Sara said, the jackalope pounding its foot and bouncing its head with happy excitement. "This little guy just showed me."

Karen took a deep breath, nodding at the large rabbit, before resting her hand on Tani'm's chest. She started with the smallest puncture wound, wanting to test the theory. She healed most of the damage, expending more energy than she had wanted, thanks to the malevolent force that fought her actions. Once Karen had mended most of the wound, a deep scratch was the last sign that a hole had ever existed, and as she released her power, she watched as the sickening smell of rotting flesh filled the air, while the new tissues rotted and fell away.

With her next attempt, she focused her will and began her healing, fighting her way through until the puncture had been removed, and all that remained was clean, reddish-brown skin. She was nervous as she dropped her spell, but was pleased when the flesh remained intact.

"Okay, I think I can do this," Karen said, in an attempt to convince herself that she possessed the strength to perform the task that loomed before her.

The man reached over, placing his hand on the unconscious woman's healthy leg, before saying, "Hang in there, Tani'm." His eyes returned to the forest, as he felt hope for this amazing person.

Karen started with the most grievous wound, the long deep gashes that had been torn clear to the bone. She screamed out in frustration when she healed the first of the deep injuries, and released her will to find that it began to decay immediately. The old healer realized that the deep furrowed wounds were all bound together, because they had all been made with the same attack.

She used a vast amount of her energy to heal the family of parallel trenches that ran down Tani'm's leg, and after five minutes, all that remained were several large puncture wounds on the athletic woman's calf. Karen was exhausted, but knew she had to be prepared when she dropped her spell, and as her magical influence left the unconscious woman's body, Karen sighed with relief when the flesh remained intact.

Collapsing against the torn-up terrain, Karen fought her fatigue, knowing that many of the deep holes in Tani'm's leg needed to be healed, or she might still bleed out. Taking a deep breath, Karen continued her work.

Wildfang took shelter in the safety of a den he had discovered, the cool stones feeling wonderful against his abused body. He had used a lot of his magic to heal that final series of attacks. The unexpected assault from the jackalope had been more devastating than he had thought possible, but it was the gunshot wound that demanded the most of his efforts.

His nature had made him aware of the magical influences which were trying to heal the wounds he had inflicted to the pesky human, and he was determined not to let that happen. She was the one thing in that entire forest that could stop him, and he had worked hard to end her life. No matter what happened, he would not allow her to be healed.

As the minutes passed by, he focused his will on fighting the immense force that was used to mend her body, and he was growing frustrated as more and more of the damage he had inflicted was cured. With the closure of each wound, he could feel his control over it fade away. The one hope he had, was that whoever was performing the healing would struggle with the woman's hand.

Karen laid back against the cool soft dirt, sweat dripping down her face as she scanned the canopy above. She was struggling to figure out how she could possibly mend the woman's missing hand.

"Holy shit... You're amazing," the man's voice declared.

She looked at him, and saw reverence in his eyes as he scanned the almost-perfect skin on Tani'm's leg. Just two large holes remained, and they were far from anything vital, so Karen was content to leave them for the time being.

Karen leaned further forward, noticing for the first time that Sara and the jackalope were gone.

"Where's the woman I came here with?" she asked with fright in her pleading question.

"I'm not sure... She got excited, and said she would return with help."

The man looked confused as he stared off in the direction Sara had vanished. Karen collapsed back down, sensing that Andrew was anxious but exhilarated, and she recognized the sexual anticipation that only Sara could instill in the small man.

"What?" the man asked, having noticed the smile that spread across Karen's face.

"Help is almost here," she responded.

A couple of minutes later, Sara and Andrew came sprinting into the clearing, the young lovers sliding in on Karen's side. Andrew kissed her on the lips before saying, "You crazy woman, I thought you were trying to kill yourself."

"Who are you?" the man asked, annoyed at having been ignored by the small boy.

Andrew looked up at him, smiling before leaning down and whispering into Karen's ear, "You were healing in front of this guy?"

Karen laughed as the guy grumbled at having been ignored again, his presence acting as a topic of conversation.

"Yeah, if I wanted to save her, I kind of had to."

Andrew looked up, watching as the jackalope bounded towards them from the edge of the clearing. He marvelled at the strange-looking creature, recognizing it from many sources of lore. The animal came up to the unconscious woman and rested its forehead against her side, distraught at her condition. Andrew shook his head at the surreal scene that he had stumbled into, and seemed to consider his surroundings for the first time.

The terrain had been torn apart, large clumps of dirt and rock ripped from the ground as something had moved through the area. He could tell that this had been the stage for a large battle, and as he studied the prone woman, her beautiful face framed by her black hair, he noticed the dark patches of earth where blood had soaked into the soil. The scent of copper seemed fresh and rich in the air.

Andrew stood, before extending his hand and saying with a smile, "Sorry for being so rude, sir. My name is Andrew."

The man couldn't have been more confused by the teenager who was standing before him, and how oblivious he seemed to the danger they were in. Still, he shook the boy's hand, and was surprised by the strength he felt in his small grip as they finalized their greeting.

"Hi, Andrew. I'm Carl." He looked away from Andrew, into the woods, and his eyes traveled a nervous path through the dark.

Andrew studied the tall man, and noticed the stoic posture and iron gaze of someone who had been through military training. Everything from his pant legs — which were tucked into his boots — to the exacting standards for where all of his equipment had been placed on his body screamed to Andrew of his military service.

"Well, Carl, thank you for keeping everyone safe."

Carl squinted at Andrew, and struggled to make sense of the respectful boy, before returning his attention to the forest. Whatever was going on was way outside of his pay grade, he figured, and the sooner these strange people finished their supernatural tasks, the sooner he would be home drinking a beer and trying to forget everything that had happened.

Andrew looked down, and could see that Karen was drained. The woman was breathing heavily while she considered her options. After deciding to give her a few more minutes, he knelt down and looked at the jackalope, asking, "And what is your name, little fella?"

The jackalope lifted its head, its large horns swinging through the air with seeming ease. "Help companion," a high-pitched, childlike voice said within Andrew's mind.

Andrew shook his head, staring into the innocent eyes of the rabbit, while blinking back his own shock. Inspecting the monolith within his mind, he could see a few new devices listed — a couple of GPS walkie-talkies, a new phone — and buried within that list, was an object with an icon he had never seen before.

Every object within the list had always had a small circuit icon on the far left, beside its name. The icon was a detail that Andrew never thought much of, but now as he looked upon the silhouetted outline of an animal, he was stunned. The electronics were all in white, their names bright and their icons lit up, indicating that they were powered-on. This new object, appropriately labelled "Jackalope", was rendered in green, and as he heard the words, "Help. Help. Help." repeat in his mind, he could see the icon light up and fade as the words entered his consciousness.