{"id":687,"date":"2011-09-19T00:00:33","date_gmt":"2011-09-19T04:00:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/?p=687"},"modified":"2011-09-09T13:19:39","modified_gmt":"2011-09-09T17:19:39","slug":"day-15-chapter-10-marin-06","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/?p=687","title":{"rendered":"Day 15 – Chapter 10 – Marin – 06"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Kellin caught up with Carolyn and I as we were partway back to the tent, her expression tight and grim.\u00a0 I stopped walking and looked at her, brows knitting.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cHow many this time?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cFour of the seven,\u201d she said grimly, shaking her head.\u00a0 \u201cPretty much every other ward.\u00a0 It\u2019s like someone\u2019s trying to create deliberate gaps in our defenses.\u201d\u00a0 She shivered, glancing at Carolyn, who frowned.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWho would want to do that?\u00a0 I mean, I know I don\u2019t really understand all of this yet, but that doesn\u2019t make any sense.\u00a0 Those things out there\u2014the stuff that you\u2019ve got the wards to stop<\/em>\u2014they\u2019re dangerous.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cOf course<\/em> they\u2019re dangerous,\u201d Kellin said, sighing as she stared toward the tent.\u00a0 \u201cMaybe it\u2019s time we finally told everyone.\u00a0 Just so folks stay the hell away from the wards and don\u2019t dick around with them.\u00a0 I don\u2019t know if it\u2019s something doing it maliciously or doing it because they think it\u2019s somehow satanic or what<\/em>, but these wards keep getting messed up and if that keeps happening, it\u2019s only a matter of time before something crosses them when it\u2019s not<\/em> chasing, but hunting.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The idea of anything that I\u2019d seen or read about hunting<\/em> us in our camp made me uneasy, stomach twisting into knots like the shifting leylines.\u00a0 That had started to settle down a little in the past few days, but they\u2019d by no means stopped rewriting themselves\u2014simply stopped getting as unpleasantly tangled as they had in that first desperate week.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cDo you really think they\u2019d do that?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Thank all the powers that may or may not be that <\/em>she asked the question so I didn\u2019t have to.<\/em>\u00a0 I shoved my hands into the pocket of my sweatshirt.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Kellin frowned, then nodded.\u00a0 \u201cYeah.\u00a0 I think they\u2019re angry enough to come hunting us here.\u00a0 Why else would they have attacked Marin down in the ravine, or chased you and Drew and J.T. back here?\u201d\u00a0 Her lips thinned.\u00a0 \u201cAnd then there\u2019s the radio.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I stiffened.\u00a0 \u201cWhat about the radio?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 She glanced at me and grimaced.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t think it exploded\u2014or popped<\/em>, as everyone\u2019s insisting\u2014because of how Matt and Davon jerry-rigged the thing.\u00a0 It doesn\u2019t feel right for that at all.\u201d\u00a0 She took a deep breath and exhaled it slowly as she continued, her voice low as we drew closer to the tents.\u00a0 \u201cThere was something oily and wrong about all of it, something dark.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Oh shit.\u00a0 That\u2019s what I was so damn afraid of.\u00a0 That it wasn\u2019t just an accident.<\/em>\u00a0 \u201cAre you saying something attacked my brother?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cNo,\u201d Kellin said.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m saying that something attacked the radio<\/em> and Matt getting hurt was a bonus.\u201d\u00a0 She sighed a little and shook her head, glancing at Carolyn.\u00a0 \u201cDid your\u2026y\u2019know\u2026did they say anything about what happened?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 She shook her head slightly.\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u00a0 None of them were nearby.\u00a0 It\u2019s safer during the daylight hours for them to be out and about, so not many of them were in camp at the time.\u00a0 The few that were just knew something bad had happened, but not what.\u201d\u00a0 She paused for a moment, head half-tilted as if she was listening to something.\u00a0 \u201cSomething about a black cloud and being sleepy.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 What the hell does <\/em>that mean?<\/em>\u00a0 I wondered, frowning.\u00a0 \u201cWhat do you think, Kel?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cI think I\u2019m not sure what to think,\u201d she said, shaking her head slightly.\u00a0 \u201cAll I know is that someone\u2019s screwing things up and that\u2019s letting other<\/em> things penetrate camp, which is something none of us want.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cThe fairies don\u2019t feel any less safe here than before,\u201d Carolyn said softly.\u00a0 \u201cBut that may be because we\u2019re all here\u2026and they really don\u2019t have anywhere else to go.\u201d\u00a0 She sighed and shook her head.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know.\u00a0 I\u2019m still trying to figure out how this all works, y\u2019know?\u00a0 They talk, I listen, but I mostly keep my mouth shut because I don\u2019t know who\u2019s going to freak out if I say something.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Kellin shook her head slowly.\u00a0 \u201cSomeday you\u2019re not going to have to worry about that, Care.\u00a0 At some point, it\u2019s going to be undeniable.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Is it?<\/em>\u00a0 The thought bubbled up from somewhere in the deepest recesses of my subconscious, a tendril of doubt.\u00a0 I bit my lower lip, frowning and trying to shake it loose.\u00a0 Why did I suspect that Kellin was somehow wrong?
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYou think so?\u201d\u00a0 She asked.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Kellin nodded.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, I really do.\u00a0 There\u2019s just too much that\u2019s going on for people to stay unaware of it forever.\u00a0 It\u2019s only a matter of time before they either experience things themselves or we have to tell them.\u201d\u00a0 She shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know which one to lay better odds on yet.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cHope for the latter but expect the former,\u201d I muttered with a slight shiver.\u00a0 My stomach settled and I took a deep breath.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve got a bad feeling.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 They both looked at me.\u00a0 \u201cDid you see something?\u201d\u00a0 Kellin asked quietly.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I shook my head.\u00a0 \u201cNothing in the near future,\u201d I murmured.\u00a0 Not yet, anyway.\u00a0 If something comes, it comes.\u00a0 If it doesn\u2019t, it doesn\u2019t.<\/em>\u00a0 I shook my head.\u00a0 \u201cAnd I\u2019m not about to try to stimulate something, either.\u00a0 All that usually happens is false positives when I do that, like back when I had the original dream.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cThat was a long time ago.\u201d\u00a0 Kellin\u2019s voice was quiet.\u00a0 \u201cThings are different now.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I shook my head slowly.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m still not about to go looking for answers by trying <\/em>to have Visions.\u00a0 We don\u2019t know what would happen if I did that.\u00a0 Hell, I could end up in some kind of semi-permanent fugue state and be lucid less than a few hours a day.\u00a0 I don\u2019t want that.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cNo one wants that,\u201d Carolyn said, frowning.\u00a0 \u201cBut do you really think that could happen?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d I admitted.\u00a0 \u201cBut I really don\u2019t want to find out.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cAll right,\u201d Kellin said, shaking her head.\u00a0 \u201cI won\u2019t bring it up again.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cGood.\u201d\u00a0 I\u2019m afraid that I don\u2019t have enough control.\u00a0 Until I can figure out what I\u2019m imagining versus what I\u2019m really seeing, trying to have Visions isn\u2019t going to do any of us a damned scrap of good anyway.<\/em><\/p>\n

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\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Kellin caught up with Carolyn and I as we were partway back to the tent, her expression tight and grim.\u00a0 I stopped walking and looked at her, brows knitting. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cHow many this time?\u201d \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cFour of the seven,\u201d … 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":[23,27],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-687","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-chapter-10","category-day-15"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1EBlN-b5","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/687","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=687"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/687\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":704,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/687\/revisions\/704"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=687"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=687"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=687"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}