“You can,” Cara affirmed. “Bree will shift to equine. And Riggs will lift stones.” Now we all stared at her. She huffed a laugh. “I’m getting the nonverbal equivalent ofyou’re a crazy lady.But I’m not crazy, trust me. And you are each capable of what I just asked you to do.”
“You are a crazy lady,” I stated.
“Crazy like a fox,” she said.
I frowned at her. “What’s a fox?”
“It’s a small reddish canine,” Tez replied very quickly, and then he side-eyed Cara. “Or so I hear.”
When she smirked at him with a satisfied air, he looked away. “I don’t know if I can call the birds out of the blue.”
“That is why we are here. So that I can show you how,” Cara said. Then she clapped her hands. “Okay. Let’s get this show on the road.”
I grimaced, but turned my back to her and surveyed the ground beneath the thick grasses. It was littered with stones that ranged in size from wee pebbles to something as large as my hand.
From beside me, I sensed a surge—Breana had drawn the sword. It glowed like the sun, and the energy coming off it penetrated through to my very soul.
I wanted to push it away, but it didn’t listen to me. Instead, it coursed through me as I envisioned the stones rising?—
The ground trembled beneath our feet and then heaved as rocks emerged to hover in the air. Beside me, Breana uttered small sounds of pain as she writhed her way to horse. I didn’t know how to help her, so I just stood there surrounded by floating rocks.
“You’re halfway there,” I told her. “Looking very—equine.”
Her breath hissed through her teeth as her body expanded, rippling with muscle.
As Breana rose on four strong legs, Cara coached Tez. “Call upon the emotions you experienced when the birds came to you before.”
“That’s not a good idea,” Tez said.
“There is nothing you can unleash that I cannot handle,” Cara assured.
Tez didn’t answer, but I got the feeling he didn’t agree. He did, however, take a deep breath, and held his hands aloft.
I was unprepared for the sword’s energy to reach for him, too. As it took hold, he gasped, his body going rigid?—
And they came.
They rose from the grasses and emerged as tiny dots from the far-away forest to swirl in a giant flock above our heads. Birds in every size and description, the raptors flying with the songsters, formed a vortex with Tez in the very center.
The sword rippled his power back through me, too. The ground beneath us heaved as it did so. For just a millisecond, I felt as though I could fly.
Wings, no. But I stared down at hands that had sprouted talons.
Beside me, a glossy black mare snorted and tossed her head. Her eyes were wide as she stared at the birds dipping and diving around us. The surrounding air vibrated with energy. As though the birds were only the beginning…
Then Tez shut it all down. He lowered his hands and turned it off like flicking a switch. The birds scattered in an instant, and my talons dropped to the ground.
“That’s all I’ve got,” he said, but his voice shook.
Was I the only one who didn’t quite believe him? Breana poked me with her nose. I got the distinct impression she didn’t believe him either. What had caused that tremendous surge? Had the sword’s energy fed something within him, or was it the other way around?
“For a first effort, that was remarkable,” Cara stated briskly. “Okay, Bree. Back to human with you. I want you to do a few more shifts. And Riggs—your efforts with the stones were admirable. Try to refine your focus so we are not knocked off our feet, though.” She flexed her fingers like claws, making sure Tez didn’t see. “Those were a nice touch.”
My heart raced. She’d seen the talons. A clear sign that the Dragon in me wasn’t as dead as we assumed.
The Watcher didn’t make a big deal of it, though. Instead, she turned to Tez. “Let’s try calling just a few birds this time.”
We all stared at her until she clapped her hands. “Come on now. I’m not only crazy, I’m determined.”
