{"id":426,"date":"2011-07-20T00:00:43","date_gmt":"2011-07-20T04:00:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/?p=426"},"modified":"2011-07-20T00:00:43","modified_gmt":"2011-07-20T04:00:43","slug":"day-7-chapter-8-marin-04","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/?p=426","title":{"rendered":"Day 7 – Chapter 8 – Marin – 04"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Smoke curled above the knot of small houses sheltering behind the wall that had grown since I\u2019d last seen it.\u00a0 My heart swelled so much I thought it might burst.\u00a0 How long had it been since I\u2019d seen this place?\u00a0 Years; I\u2019d lost count of how many.\u00a0 I took a deep breath and just stared at it for a few long moments.\u00a0 I\u2019d never seen anything look so wonderful in my whole life.<\/em>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Thom took my hand and squeezed.\u00a0 \u201cWelcome home,\u201d he murmured in my ear.<\/em>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cDo you think he\u2019s here?\u201d\u00a0 I whispered, fingers tightening around his.<\/em>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The smile he gave me was a weak one.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ve been too lucky so far.\u00a0 I don\u2019t think we\u2019re going to get quite <\/em>that lucky.\u00a0 They\u2019ll know where he\u2019s gone, though, right?\u00a0 Just think about that.\u201d<\/em>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I nodded, staring the walls looming above us.\u00a0 Someone was pointing and shouting from on top of one.\u00a0 The sun was just rising; we\u2019d walked all night.<\/em>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cHow much do you think it\u2019s changed?\u201d\u00a0 He murmured.<\/em>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s been a long time.\u00a0 Probably everything.\u201d<\/em>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 He laughed.\u00a0 \u201cHopefully not <\/em>everything.\u201d<\/em>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The gates opened.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The ground heaved, bucked like it was strapped to a wild animal\u2019s back.\u00a0 All I could hear was screaming and the sound of my heart.\u00a0 Then I heard the horns.\u00a0 Someone was here, someone was here to hurt us.\u00a0 I cursed, stepping away from the wall and pressing a blanket-wrapped toddler into Jacqueline\u2019s arms.<\/em>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWho are they?\u201d\u00a0 She asked, taking the dark-haired boy I\u2019d thrust at her.<\/em>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d I said.\u00a0 \u201cJust take Lin and the other kids and go down into the cellars.\u201d<\/em>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cBut Mar\u2014\u201d<\/em>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cDamn it, Jac!\u00a0 We\u2019ll need you to patch us back together, now <\/em>go!\u201d\u00a0 My heart hammered against my ribs.\u00a0 I could hear Thom yelling.\u00a0 <\/em>At least he wasn\u2019t out with a hunting party.\u00a0 At least he\u2019s here to get them all organized.\u00a0 Damnation.\u00a0 She hesitated a moment longer and I winced.\u00a0 \u201cStop, Jac.\u00a0 Just make the kids safe and don\u2019t come up until someone comes and gets you, okay?\u201d<\/em>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cAll right,\u201d she said, grimacing as she looked toward the wall again.\u00a0 \u201cBe careful.\u201d<\/em>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/em>As careful as I can afford to be.\u00a0 I just nodded.\u00a0 \u201cWe will be.\u201d<\/em>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Archers and people with our few remaining guns mounted the walls on our side.\u00a0 I took a deep breath and muttered a prayer that we\u2019d be able to turn the tide of whatever had blown those horns out there, marching toward our walls.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 A shadow crossed over the moon and I stopped dead in my tracks, squinting up at the star-laden sky.\u00a0 I felt cold and the old mark on my arm burned.\u00a0 I took a deep breath, turning back to look toward the rest of the settlement.\u00a0 The tents the new arrivals were living in were quiet, only one or two lit by lamplight this late in the evening.\u00a0 J.T. and Rory were both walking the night patrol with me, but neither of them were anywhere to be seen.<\/em>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I took a deep breath.<\/em>\u00a0 Maybe it was just my imagination.<\/em>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Something hissed behind me, perched on the wall above.\u00a0 Waves of malice beat against me and I took an involuntary step back.<\/em>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/em>This doesn\u2019t make any sense.\u00a0 It shouldn\u2019t be able to get this close.\u00a0 The wards\u2026how did it penetrate the wards?\u00a0 But the wards were old, now.\u00a0 They needed attention they hadn\u2019t gotten in the past few years, since we\u2019d gotten down to the business of taking in new folks, most of whom didn\u2019t quite understand, weren\u2019t Awake.\u00a0 They were people who had never seen what I was seeing, were still blind to the newer dangers in the world reborn.<\/em>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cBegone,\u201d I told the creature, willing strength and power into my voice.\u00a0 Rory and J.T. had to sense the thing if I had; they were probably on their way right now.\u00a0 I\u2019d be all right.\u00a0 \u201cThis place belongs to us, not you.\u00a0 Begone and trouble us no more.\u201d<\/em>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 It shrieked and dove at me.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I was standing on a deck somewhere, feeling the ground tremble beneath my feet.\u00a0 Then came the explosion and the red light, the ground ripping open beneath me, glowing bright.\u00a0 The hot wind came and seared the flesh from my bones\u2026
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u2026and then I was back on campus, head ringing from the sound of an explosion that sounded like a cannon shot only a few feet away.\u00a0 The ground started to shake under my feet as the strange light faded in the west\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cMarin?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I came to with a startled gasp, starting to lurch upright.\u00a0 I was shaking all over, from fingertips to toes.\u00a0 Thom\u2019s arms wrapped around me and I took a deep breath, trying to steady myself and sort out the rush of images I\u2019d seen while unconscious.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cIs she okay?\u201d\u00a0 Tala asked.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cShe\u2019s fine,\u201d Carolyn said quickly.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cHow long was I out?\u201d\u00a0 I whispered to Thom.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cThree minutes, maybe less,\u201d he murmured, arms tightening.\u00a0 \u201cAre<\/em> you okay?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cI think so,\u201d I whispered.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Thunder rolled outside the tents.\u00a0 I tried to regulate my breathing and to not<\/em> listen to the speculation about what had happened to me just now.\u00a0 Kellin, Matt, and Carolyn were all trying to assure the others I was fine.\u00a0 J.T. was starting to make a show of checking my eyes and I was having to struggle not<\/em> to push him away.\u00a0 He knew I was fine.\u00a0 I took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, tasting the coming rain on the wind.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Instinctively, I knew I\u2019d seen more than the three visions that were clear.\u00a0 They were part of a tangled mass lurking just beyond the reach of my conscious brain, images that would be plucked up and out as my subconscious saw fit at inopportune times in the future.\u00a0 My gaze flicked up toward Thom, who was grim-faced as he held onto me tightly.\u00a0 I wanted to tell him.\u00a0 I wanted him to know what I\u2019d seen, to warn him that he had a lot of work to do.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 What few words came got stuck in my throat and died there.\u00a0 I couldn\u2019t.\u00a0 Not yet.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t ready.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 None of them were ready.\u00a0 Not even me.\u00a0 Some visions I\u2019d just have to live with until the right time came to talk about them, or they happened\u2014whichever came first.<\/p>\n

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\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Smoke curled above the knot of small houses sheltering behind the wall that had grown since I\u2019d last seen it.\u00a0 My heart swelled so much I thought it might burst.\u00a0 How long had it been since I\u2019d seen this … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,28],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-426","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-chapter-8","category-day-7"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1EBlN-6S","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/426","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=426"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/426\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=426"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=426"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=426"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}