Myka's Tail Ch. 07

"Yes, Myka, you know this place, yet you don't know it as well. I will explain in a short while but first we must make haste to where you and Kelli are."

"Kelli and Kass are at the circle, but here in the dream world we won't be able to see them, right?"

"This isn't the dream world, foolish child," she sighed, leading us off at a hurried pace, and I could tell that she was once again more irritated at me than fearful. "I don't know what possessed you to come into this place as you have without asking or learning the dangers first."

"But Nana," I replied, and I was certain she heard my confusion. "I didn't come here. It felt like it did when you transported us here. It was really strange, and not very pleasant. There was a similar twisting and stretching feeling, but I wasn't as nauseous. And then when I woke up and looked around, I was there in that forest, near the ruin you found me in."

When I had mentioned what had happened, Millicent stopped us and looked at me with a terribly intense gaze. It was as if she was trying to see into my soul, and after a few moments she closed her eyes and placed her hand on my forehead. She again whispered a few words I did not understand, and I felt a sudden shift in my senses, though I couldn't put my finger on what had changed.

"Child, take a good look at yourself, and tell me what you can see when you do," she asked, and waited for my answer.

"I don't really know what I should be seeing," I answered with complete honesty. "I feel like I should notice something, but I'll be damned if I know what it is."

"Myka, close your eyes and listen to my voice," she whispered, and I did as she had asked. "Think about who and what you are. About everything that you are, from the tiniest hair to your whole person. Once you have that image in your mind, hold it there and then look again and tell me what you see."

Her words seemed to resonate with me, and I did my best to focus on myself as she had asked. It was like trying to hold water without cupping your hands, but after a few minutes of concentration I felt that I was ready to open my eyes and look. What I saw nearly made me gasp, and that was even though could only glimpse it from the corner of my eye. And If I tried too hard, I couldn't see it at all.

"What did you see child? You must tell me, quickly!"

"It was like a thick silver rope, glowing with light and running from me into the forest. If I didn't know better, I would say that it runs right into the clearing. What was it Nana?"

"It is the cord that binds your spirit to your body child," she answered with a heavy sigh. "This is not the dream world you are in, but the real world. Your astral body was pulled to that evil place, and was left there to find that ruin and that crystal."

"Wait a minute," I gasped in surprise. "Are you telling me I'm a ghost? Am I dead?"

"Oh goddess no sweet child," Millicent cried out and pulled me close in a hug before starting us moving towards the clearing again. "Your astral body, which some call the spirit or the soul, is what is here. If you have the ability, and the proper training, you can move about the real world in this form, and doing so has its advantages. In this state, however, we need to be in close proximity to your body, and I pray to the goddess that I can put you back with no ill effects."

"If you need to have the talent and the training to use it, how did I end up here? And if it is so dangerous without knowing what you are doing, is there any way to keep me from being pulled here like that again?"

"Yes, there is certainly some basic training that I can give you that will allow you to rebuff all but the most skilled attempts to force you out of your body. And child, before you ask, I believe that we are guarding you against the Betrayer. Of this, I am certain."

"My god," I cried out as Millicent picked up our pace just a little bit more. "It isn't really a surprise, but am I ever going to be able to protect myself from that woman? It's like she just keeps pulling new tricks once we think we've figured her out."

"You are very right about her capacity for deception, and you are wise to be cautious and somewhat fearful of her skills. That will help you stay alive and keep her from her goals. Where this struggle will end, well... Even those details are too clouded for me to see. As far as being able to pull your astral body free from your real body again, from what I could sense of her magic, I don't think we have to worry about that once I teach you a few skills that you can protect yourself with."

"Are you sure, Nana? She has been nearly unbeatable every time that I have had to face her or Mathias. If just one little thing had gone wrong in any of those fights, they probably would have succeeded."

"Yes, child, they might have. That, however, is life, and it is no different for any of us. That you have faced them many times, and have come out the victor, even at great cost, speaks volumes about your own power, intelligence, and resilience. But to answer your question, from what I could feel of the magic that the Betrayer used and left behind, her attempt to pull your astral form and place it where you were awakened, felt crude and poorly executed. If I were to guess, I think that her knowledge and skills of astral projection are weak and poorly trained. You will be safe, child, once I have given you the knowledge you need to guard yourself."

I gave her a nod as we continued through the trees in the forest that I was familiar with, knowing that Millicent was a person that I could trust with my life. If what she guessed was true, however, then the Betrayer was trying to gain something from pulling me from my body and putting me in the path of that crystal. Damned if I knew what she wanted, and whether or not she had succeeded, but once I could talk it through with Kelli and the rest of the Circle, I was sure that the answer would be fairly obvious.

Walking the remaining distance to the circle did not seem to take much time, and within a few short minutes, we made our way out of the tree line and into the outer ring of standing stones. The bizarre feeling that occurred from looking at my own body as I approached where Kelli, Kass, and I lay sleeping sent chills down my spine, and elicited a chuckle from Millicent. She must have known exactly what I was thinking because her chuckle turned into laughter in an instant.

"The first time you see your own body once you have figured out how to travel in your astral form is always unsettling, child," she said with a sly smile. "It is always best to refrain from thinking about it, at least until you have had more experience outside of your physical shell."

"I will keep that in mind Nana," I said with a slight grumpiness in my voice that just made her smile all the wider.

As her warm laughter faded away, I watched as she again became the wise and serious witch that was the only person that many knew her as. Her eyes darted over the clearing, and the three of us sleeping at our feet, and I could see that her mind, sharpened by years of experience, was pulling in every detail that there was to observe. It was as if she was using all of her human senses, and a few senses that hidden from all but her, to study what only she could perceive.

"My dear Myka, I must say that your mate is one very clever witch," Millicent said, her voice little more than a whisper. "The powers that you all drew upon this night are very old indeed, and she crafted her magic in such an unexpected way. Your Kelli is truly an artist when it comes to ritual magic, and when she eventually realizes her full potential... Well, that will be a day that we witches have never seen, and most likely will never see again. Your destinies make me want to both tremble with fear, but shout for joy at what you will bring about."

What she was saying had caused a knot of fear to begin in the pit of my stomach, but to my surprise, Millicent turned back to me with tears in her eyes and pulled me into an emotion filled hug. She held me tight and my fear melted away in the burning light of the love she had for me, which was blazing from her like a roaring bonfire.

"What are we going to do that's so bad," I asked with a slight hesitation.

"Nothing child," she replied when she finally let me go. "I cannot tell you much more, or the patterns that I can see will be thrown into chaos, but I can tell you this. For centuries, we witches have kept to traditions and covenants that have blunted our potential and made us nothing but fearful. Your arrival, though, heralds change, and most of us have been so secretive and unchangeable for too long. You are both needed, but you will have to show all others why that is."

When she stopped speaking and pulled me in to give me one more hug and a kiss on the forehead, I knew that I had learned all that she was going to reveal for now. It certainly gave me a lot to think about, and combined with the events of the previous hours, there was almost too much that I needed to figure out. That would have to wait until tomorrow, however, because I still hadn't made it back into my body.

"Come child and stand here close to yourself," Millicent instructed, and I did so with no hesitation. "I must apologize. The lack of skill that the Betrayer used means that putting you back as you should be will be much more uncomfortable than when she pulled you here. There is nothing I can do about that."

"Well, that sucks," I replied with a shake of my head. "But I'm guessing that not going back would be way worse."

"That it would child. Prepare yourself."

I wasn't sure what to do, so I closed my eyes, and on instinct I held my breath. A moment later I heard Millicent's voice begin speaking the words of a spell, and in an instant I was feeling that same stretching and twisting I had previously, but now it was many times worse. Rather than discomfort, the sensations that I was feeling now hurt in ways that are difficult to describe. It was as if I was feeling a raging pain throughout my entire body, but if that wasn't enough, I was also feeling the same from a deeper, more primal level, and the combination made me scream out in agony.

It was like two different parts of myself that were never meant to be separated, were now being mashed back together like globs of clay. Thankfully, the amount of time it took to get through the entire thing was short. After several seconds I realized that I was no longer screaming, and the pain and discomfort that I had felt were fading away into nothing more than unpleasant memories. Once I felt somewhat normal again, I opened my eyes and discovered that Millicent and I were now the only ones in the clearing, and for a moment I began to panic.

"Calm yourself, child," she admonished and put her hands on my shoulders. "Look and tell me where you are at?"

"We're in the clearing at the circle," I answered after taking another look around. "But... Kelli and Kass?"

"And where would your mate and your friend have gone, Myka? Think for a moment."

When Millicent chastised me again for not being observant, I took an extra few moments to look at our surroundings. It hit me that the colors were still somewhat washed out, and the normal sounds were not present. It didn't feel any different from where we had just been, and the last thing to cross my mind was the fact that even though Kelli and Kass were missing, my body was as well.

"This is the dream world, isn't it," I asked as total realization forced its way into my head. "I'm back in my body and you pulled us into the dream world."

"Good. That I did, child, and it was a good thing. If I had not, then your screams would have awakened your two companions, giving them an awful fright. I shifted us here to avoid that unpleasantness. Now, before I send you back there are some things I need to make clear."

I lowered my ears and my tail curled between my legs at the tone of her voice, and it was clear that Millicent was going to demand obedience with no argument. Even though I had not had an active hand in anything that had been done this evening, I felt as if I should be somewhat guilty about it anyway. After only a moment's hesitation, I nodded my head in agreement.

"I will be calling you into the dream world each night, for as long as it takes to educate you in recognizing the difference between here, and walking in your astral body. You will do exactly as I say, with no question. It is for your own safety, and the safety of those around you."

"I understand Nana," I replied and I waited for her to continue.

"Good. Once you and your mate have figured out what has happened to you this night, you will get word to me immediately. Is that clear?"

"I would have done that anyway, but yes. In order for Kelli and I to know exactly what has happened, I think I am going to need Gina's help and advice. I have a feeling that the Betrayer wanted something tonight, but I'm not sure exactly what it was. I'm also afraid that, while I feel that we will have gained a critical piece of the puzzle, she gained much more than we did."

"My heart is telling me that you are undoubtedly right, child, and we must be wary, or the Betrayer will find a way to destroy us all. But that is a discussion for another time. Sleep well sweet Myka, and I will see you here on the morrow."

Millicent gave me a final hug before she turned and walked away into the trees. It might have been a trick of the light, or of my own perceptions, but I was sure that she faded from my sight before actually being hidden by the forest. I truly envied her ability to be sneaky when she needed to be.

I had had enough roaming around for one night, so I decided to just lay down and go back to sleep, even though I was in the dream world. After getting comfortable in the bed of leaves that I had made I closed my eyes and let my mind wander where it would so that I could rest. The connections I had to earth and water seemed to push themselves in, almost as if they were trying to comfort me, and they were joined by the strange power that I couldn't quite grasp the significance of yet. Time would reveal the truth, though, and I drifted off knowing that I had a lot of work ahead of myself.

Eventually the early light of the sun, which touched my face with a gentle kiss, pulled me from slumber and I was able to focus on the two warm bodies that still held me tight. Kelli was still on my right, and I shivered a little when she gripped my breast just a little tighter with her hand. And on my left was Kass, who seemed to love having her arms around my middle, whether she was awake or asleep. And to top it all off, I wasn't sure where any of the six legs that we shared between us began or ended, because they were so tangled up together.

Yes, I could feel a sense of foreboding on the horizon, and yes, there was more to do to prepare ourselves than we could probably accomplish. I also had to tell myself that it was possible that we wouldn't come out on top in the end. But in that moment, with my mate and my friend, my lovers, surrounding me, I knew that there was hope. And with hope, I knew that we could overcome any challenge.