Champions of Serenity: Destiny Fulfilled
Chapter Nine

Chapter 9

Debra sat down on Phil’s couch on Saturday and sighed. She was the first one there and Phil had let her in with a little surprise. Looking up, she smiled at him and then closed her eyes for a moment.

“It is so peaceful here, Phil. You have such a nice ordered mind; it doesn’t throw random thoughts at me with the speed of light. Karen is nice to room with, but I wish she would control her thoughts.”

Taking the opportunity presented, Phil sat down next to Debra and wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her close. She rested her head in the small of his neck and sighed again softly.

“So other than Karen’s unordered mind, how is everything?” His voice sounded deep in her ear as she rested against him. Snuggling a little closer, she breathed in his warm scent and enjoyed the warmth of his arm around her.

“Well, I start work on Monday for an ogre of a boss, at least that’s what HR tells me.” She smiled as she heard him scoff. “And everything was delivered on time yesterday and Karen and I set up things as we like them; although I’m having second thoughts about that third bedroom. Right now it’s set up as a double home office, two desks and two computers, some file cabinets and a couple of book cases. But I’m thinking of shuffling some of the office stuff around and making it also a Circle room; a place to store weapons and clothing and such for us for when we go into superhero mode. Karen is okay with whatever I want to do, as long as she has what she needs for school and social and such.”

Debra sat up and stretched. She looked over at Phil and studied his face. It was strong and handsome, but it wasn’t the plastic handsome of so many of the current celebrities. Right now he was in thought and his eyebrows were pulled down over his eyes a little. She reached over and brushed a lock of hair from his brow and smiled as she got his attention.

“I wanted to ask your opinion on the matter. Do you want your home to be used as headquarters or mine? I would prefer mine because it’s a little more centrally located and we have used this home for shelter in the past and I would like to keep it open for such in the future.”

“And here I thought you had come early just to see me.” Phil said lightly and gave her a smile to take any sting from the words. “I agree, the supplies should be kept locally. Are you going to have Jared make special clothing for us?”

Debra shrugged. “I don’t know. I hadn’t thought that far yet. Probably, since that is his area of expertise. I’ll ask him about it later. So, how does it feel to have your house back to yourself?”

“Empty.” Phil stood and walked over to the window and smiled. “Looks like Grant and Jared are here. I wonder who will be next.”

As everyone gathered it felt like family coming together after a long separation. They all spoke of their new places and how wonderful it was to finally be back on their life tracks. All but Debra, who was a little distracted.

Jared looked over at Debra and frowned, stopping the current conversations. “What is it Jared?” Grant asked.

“I don’t know. It’s just…look at Debra.” Everyone turned to look at Debra. Debra was standing at the window looking out at nothing. She didn’t hear the comment Jared made or feel everyone’s eyes on her, she just wasn’t there. Phil walked over and touched her shoulder and she jumped.

“Is everything okay, Deb?” Phil asked softly; turning her around so she could see everyone watching her in various stages of concern. “The last time you were this distracted at a party held by this group an earthquake hit and we became something more than what we were.”

Debra shook her head and gave everyone a small smile. “I’m sorry, everyone, I don’t mean to throw a damper on anything. It’s just this feeling I have that something is about to happen, something big and I’m not sure what it is. I wish I could explain it better. Why don’t we go to dinner now and see if maybe it’s just my stomach complaining since I haven’t eaten today.” She had to chuckle at the scolding she received for her announcement of not eating regularly, but it effectively changed the subject for everyone but Jared and Phil.

Both men exchanged a look and made sure to keep an eye on Debra. Debra rode with Phil to the restaurant, making small talk about what she could expect on Monday at work as well as what movie to see that night.

At dinner, conversation was light and filled with plans for the upcoming week. School wouldn’t be starting for a couple of months yet, so Grant, Karen, and Emily were all talking about getting jobs to help save some more money for college. Darin and Mike were talking about scouting around for a small place to open up shop; up until now they had based their business out of Darin’s parent’s home. Now it was time to grow up and actually go into work instead of working from home. Jared was nervous because his first fashions were being debuted this fall on the runways and he hoped they would make it big. Phil was talking about all the business he was going to be getting with the rebuilding of Los Angeles and was grateful for the extra help Debra would be providing.

“Quiet a moment.” Debra said and focused on something that wasn’t there. “There is danger, on Sandeenai. We have to get to the nearest of our homes. Handsome is invading.” Debra stood and rushed from the table, followed by all but Phil who stayed just long enough to pay the tab before joining the others outside by the cars.

Debra gave directions to Phil and led the entire Circle to her and Karen’s apartment. Once inside the door, she locked it and called for everyone to gather in a circle and get comfortable because it was going to be rough.

Tris looked up from her dinner when she felt Debra join with her. She looked around at the others and only Jehro seemed to notice he was no longer alone. Then she felt the first traps of her forest being sprung and she growled low in her throat.

“What is it, Leader Tris?” Korol asked, looking around at the darkness outside the cave they were all sharing.

“It appears that Handsome has decided our time for peace is over.” Tris said and stood by the opening of her cave, watching as men dressed in black and green crept through her home, flushing out the animals that made their homes in her forest. One shadow broke away and made its way to the cave entrance. Tris wondered for a moment why the men had been able to get as far into her forest has they had without actually seeing the cave where the Circle currently lived.

“Tris,” Noshtra said as she entered the cave. “There is something about these men you should know. One of them has evil in his feet. Where he walks the ground cries out and blackens. The other men refer to him as “Highness” and what he says is treated as law. I have been watching them since they entered the forest and they haven’t even tried to hunt, they are happy creating havoc. But they haven’t killed yet, just destroyed dens, homes, and thickets. It seems to me they are heading for Drianne’s glade.”

“Who is it, Tris?” Shrina asked softly as she watched Tris’s eyes turn from blue to green with Noshtra’s words. But the entire Circle knew Tris didn’t hear as her fists clenched at her sides and a low warning growl grew in her throat.

“It isn’t Handsome, Tris. Listen to me, I’ve tasted his evil before and it isn’t in this woods. I know there is evil there, stolen power being used, but it isn’t Handsome’s!” Jehro said, trying to get Tris to listen to him before she rushed out into a trap.

Just before she sprang, Airidon stepped in front of Tris and grabbed her shoulders, shaking her. He was sweating as he stared down the burning green of Tris’s eyes, waiting for her to recognize who he was and not attack and kill him. The muscles on his arms bulged and strained as he did his best to hold onto the Demon Elf in his grasp. “Tris, it’s a trap! Don’t you understand, if you go out there seeking death, you will replace it! But it won’t be their deaths, it will be yours! Tris, think about it, don’t just react!”

Closing her eyes, Tris tried to focus on the words both Jehro and Airidon kept shouting at her. When her breathing calmed down and her fists eased open and her hands relaxed again, she felt Airidon let go of her arms and sag in relief against the stone entrance of their cave.

“You are all right, it is a trap and it will be sprung, on them.” Tris opened her eyes and they shown a brilliant purple. “Do any of you remember what Airidon called my home before you all came to live here?”

“Uh, Leader Tris, that was before Meckin and I joined, so we missed that part.” Korol said, not wanting to miss whatever brought a smile to the voice of his friend and leader whom he almost lost just a few seconds before.

“The Haunted Forest, that is what Airidon called it.” Shrina said and then a sly smile curved her lips. “What do you have in mind, Tris?”

“Let’s make it so to these men. Everyone use whatever skills and magic you possess to bring the legends to life. Haunt this forest; make it a place for men of all races to fear for a lifetime. Don’t kill the men on land we claim, let them leave the boundaries of our home and then you can kill them.”

“What if it’s an accident, Tris? What if what we do kill them because they have weak hearts even if they have strong sword arms?” Meckin asked, knowing that some of the magic available could do just that.

Tris thought a moment and nodded. “If that is so, get rid of the body before it can stink up the land. The magic-user is mine!” Then she left the cave to begin her hunt, knowing the others would follow her example.

Fog grew from the ground and started to swirl around the legs of several of the men, cocooning them in mist. Howls that didn’t sound animal started low and grew in strength as the swirling white enfolded more and more of the men. Lev, the magic-user, ordered the men to stick close together and not get lost in the cursed forest.

The snarl of a wolf was all the warning two men had as a large beast broke from the underbrush and took one away in its mouth. The second followed, calling after his buddy, only to replace himself hopelessly lost the in ever increasing fog. He started to call for anyone and thought he saw a light just up ahead, the light of a camp fire perhaps, perhaps the very campfire they had been looking for. Running toward the light as fast as he could, he was startled to replace himself waist deep in icy water as he fell into the river, the fire still just beyond his reach. A wave of cold washed over him and the fire vanished and he saw a few trees in a thinning of the fog and ran for them. Once past the trees, a whistling caught his ear just before something small hit him and all he knew was black.

Lev kept turning around, looking for some kind of landmark to tell him which way to head. Suddenly, he realized he was all alone, the men in the squads sent with him were all gone and he didn’t remember them leaving him. Reaching out with his hands and magical sight, he tried to replace anything that could guide him. Frowning, he noticed a thin purple track, a foot print outlined in magic, leading from his current position to where he thought he was headed before getting turned around. Looking carefully, he found another foot print outlined in purple magic and followed them.

Keeping the foot prints always in his sight, Lev found himself moving at a fast clip deeper into the forest, and if he knew it, away from his men. When he reached a clearing of the fog, he found himself on the rock strewn shores of a lake. The moon was high and stars filled the gap between the trees like gems winking against dark blue velvet. A little mist rose from the lake, but not enough to obscure it from view. Standing on the far side, waiting for him, was a blond girl who taunted him.

It would be too easy now, Lev thought to himself as he watched the girl crouch down on her haunches to watch him. She picked up a stick and started rearranging the stones on the shore, if she was doing anything else; she was too far away for him to be able to discern it. Wrapping himself in his magic, he made himself invisible and started to walk carefully across the stones around the lake.

On the other side, just as he was about to pounce on his prize, she vanished in a puff of smoke. Looking around, Lev tried to locate the girl and once again found himself wrapped in the cursed fog. Then he felt a shiver run up his spine as cold, clawed, hands curled around his shoulders near his neck. Rancid breath chilled his ear and turned his stomach as a green tinged steam joined the mist around his face. Turning his head ever so slightly, he felt his heart stop with the sight that met his terrified eyes.

The apparition had mated golden hair with weeds tangled throughout the masses. Where eyes should have been, red dots burned in empty sockets. No skin covered the bones, but tattered rags of the cloak he had seen the girl of earlier wearing were wrapped around the skeleton. The chest moved, as if breathing and steam in fetid green trails slipped from between the lipless teeth. The bones of the fingers tightened their grip around his throat and began to tighten their hold on him.

Lev screamed, threw the decayed remains from him in fear and disgust and ran away from the lake back into the forest; the sound of ghostly laughter following him. Air burned his lungs as he ran and the pain in his side and feet tried to get him to slow down or stop. Still the laughter chased him through the trees, branches whipping his face and body without mercy.

Drawing his sword, Lev started hacking at the trees in his path, trying to make the running easier to endure. It wasn’t until the fourth man died that he realized he had stopped cutting into trees and started carving up his own men. The laughter changed from haunting to mocking as he realized what he had done. Then the remaining men noticed the fog was lifting.

When everything was once again clear and the sounds of night returned, they took stock and found only half of their number remained. They couldn’t even replace the bodies of those that Lev had slain in his panicked flight from the stone lake. One of the men then pointed out they were no longer within the forest at all, but back at the stream that bounded the forest on the southern side.

“Lord Dreybrenic told us to get to the heart of the forest at all costs and do as much damage as possible. He warned us that it would be protected.” Lev started saying then was cut off by a moan from one of the remaining men.

The fog was returning.

“Lord Dreybrenic told us to get the Circle! We can’t abandon our posts now!” Lev screamed as the men pulled their swords and started backing away from the trees.

“Lord Dreybrenic isn’t here and even if he were, nothing could make me go back into that cursed woods ever again!” One of the men yelled and turned tail, running as fast as his leg could carry him away from Tris’s home. Several joined him in his retreat and the story of what was seen and heard in that forest spread throughout Sandeenai faster than lightening caused wildfire. It didn’t matter if that is where the Circle was supposed to be found; no one wanted to dare the borders of the Haunted Forest on northern Taniry ever again.

Those that stayed with Lev looked back to the safety of those who ran with longing. It was the fear of Dreybrenic and what he would do to those who failed to follow his orders that kept the ones that stayed with Lev there. Four squads of men plus one magic user had been reduced to a single squad.

“There has to be some weakness we can exploit. I know this fog is magical in nature, I just can’t tell how it was created to know how to counter it.” Lev paced on his side of the stream, watching the mist curl around the trees, warning them to stay out. “Can one of you shoot an arrow into the mist and see what that does?”

All ten of the remaining men notched arrows and shot them into the trees. Lev watched as they disappeared into the vapor and heard the sudden stillness of nightlife. Something silver flew from the miasma and struck the best archer in the eye, killing him instantly. Lev walked over and picked a thin dagger from the dead man’s skull and turned back to the forest.

“For daring to kill one of the Lord Emperor’s men, you have been sentenced to death. Burn the forest down.” Lev gave the order and then lost his voice as a bolt of green edged lightening shot from the trees and struck him in the chest.

A voice filled the night. “Any who dare to harm this forest will parish in ways more dire than lightening through your heart.” An uneasy silence filled the space between the announcement and the fall of Lev’s lifeless body.

The nine remaining men looked at each other, looked at Lev, looked into the trees, and then back to each other. They were without leadership and in a peril more horrendous than any could have imagined. Then one of them gathered what courage remained to him and gave the order that ended the siege.

“Burn the forest!” As the torches were lit, the men fell dead without a mark on their bodies. When the last heart beat the final beat, the fog vanished with what almost sounded like a pop. Eight people stepped up to the stream and looked over the running water to the corpses on the other side.

“They should have run.” Tyra said simply, then turned her back on them and returned to their cave to finish dinner. The others nodded and left, leaving only Tris and her shadow, Noshtra, to continue watching the dead.

With a wave of her hand and a swirl of purple magic, the eleven bodies vanished from Taniry, just as those who had died before had vanished. If she had been able, Tris would have laughed to hear the yells of frustration in Dreybrenic’s main hall when the bodies just appeared on the steps to his throne.

“I hope we can finish out the winter without another attack, Noshtra,” Tris said softly. “But somehow, I doubt that will happen. Let’s go back to the cave.”

“Whoa, that was…intense.” Mike said when Deb and Karen’s apartment swam back into focus. “I didn’t realize Korol’s shadow play could be so….deadly.”

“I don’t think any of us realized just how deadly our new talents could be, Mike.” Emily said softly. She looked a little green as she tried to put into place everything she had just done in another world. “I guess before, I really wasn’t paying as much attention to Tyra’s thoughts as I was this time. Before it was more like….watching a really good 3d movie with a lot of action. This time it was more…intimate.” She looked at her hands and shook her head. “We’ve only used our powers here for good so far, what will happen the first time we have to use them to kill?” Emily looked at the others, hoping they would have the answers.

“We do what we need to,” Phil said. He stood and walked around the living room, really looking at it for the first time. There was a hallway that led from the front door to the large open living room. Another hallway branched to the left that led to the three bedrooms and two bathrooms. On the other side was a dining room and patio/balcony overlooking a courtyard. The kitchen was directly ahead of the entry hallway and had a large prism shaped island breakfast bar between it and the living room and dining room. Over the island was a hanging rack with slots for glasses in the center and cooking utensils around the edges. The island itself had cupboards underneath on both sides and was topped with the same aqua tile as the kitchen counters.

Debra had picked out a living room suit in soft blues with yellow throw pillows. A large corner fireplace blocked the view of the door and from the fireplace was a built in wall-sized entertainment center. It held a large screened television, dvd player, stereo system with speakers, and what appeared to be some kind of gaming system. The shelves had yet to be filled with movies and games, but there was plenty of room for them. In the entryway hung a long, rectangular mirror, on its side, above an equally long narrow table. On the table was a turquoise vase filled with white carnations and plenty of room to drop off keys, books, and mail.

“You have a nice place here, Debra, it’s nice and calming.” Phil said, nodding his approval. “And before you say anything, yes, Karen, I know it’s your place as well.” Phil then looked at everyone else in the room. “Debra and I spoke earlier today about where to locate our…headquarters…for use of a better word. She suggested here, dedicating some space in the extra bedroom to store weapons, special clothing, and such. Now that I’ve seen the place, I have to agree with her, it would be ideal.”

“What kind of special clothing?” Jared asked.

“What kind of weaponry?” Darin asked at the same time.

“What is included in the ‘and such’?” Grant asked, also at the same time.

Debra finished catching her breath and walked into the kitchen. Taking a glass from the rack, she got herself a drink of water. When her hands no longer shook, she returned to the living room and took a seat in the corner of the smaller loveseat. The others had waited for her to return before asking more questions or seeking the answers to those on the table.

“Tris had her Circle make special cloaks and boots before Serenity accepted them. We didn’t have to go through that; we just received our gifts without really doing anything but surviving an earthquake. We have our stars, but we didn’t make them, we were given them already made.” Debra reached down and touched the silver symbol that rested against her upper chest. A feeling of peace spread throughout her whole body as she touched the tri-colored gemstone in the center of the star.

“I feel that we need at least cloaks, in our colors, and perhaps tunics and leggings and boots, also in our colors, to use as a focus for us. I’m saying this badly, but I don’t know how to say it right. Call it our uniforms, for when we have to perform our services on a large scale.” Debra lifted her hands and let them fall in her lap in helplessness. “I just know that I see us dressed as our counters in Sandeenai, doing all kinds of special things.”

“It’s okay, Debra, you don’t have to explain it any better.” Karen said and sat down next to her roommate. “We understand. So who do you want to make these cloaks and such? Jared?”

Debra shrugged. “He would be logical, seeing as he is a designer in this world. But I think that I would rather do it, it’s just something I feel I need to do.” Debra gave Jared a smile and let him know it wasn’t him, it was her. He nodded and told her if he could get anything for her at cost, to let him know. “As for the weapons, I just don’t know yet. I think we can probably buy what we want and have Phil modify them with his special gifts, but that would be for Phil to say. He’s the weapon specialist.”

Phil chuckled and held up his hands. “Don’t confuse me with Airidon. I know I have his talents and such, but unless I’m linked with him I don’t have a clue as to what I’m doing.”

“I can help with the weapons.” Mike said and shrugged when several of them lifted an eyebrow. “What, you all know my mom is a state prosecutor and several of her cases have had to do with weapon trafficking. I’ve sorta been like an advisor for her, studying different weapons and such. Well, I use them in my games and I have to have some idea what I’m talking about when I write them.”

“You don’t need to explain, Mike.” Debra said and smiled at him, resting a hand on his shoulder a moment. “I’m just glad there is someone here who knows something about weaponry. I think it would be smart if we all took a course in handgun safety and then replace some way to learn how to use more traditional Sandeenese weapons. And we should all make an appointment to go out with Mike and replace the right weapons for our personality.”

“I hate talking about this.” Emily stated simply. She leaned back as Grant wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “I know it’s part of who we are now, but that doesn’t mean I have to like it.”

“This coming from one of the best warriors on Sandeenai,” Grant said, kissing the top of her head. “But I have to agree; I don’t like the thought of us turning into a small militia. There has to be another way.”

“We won’t need weapons and such for most of the work we will be doing. Rescuing people from disasters doesn’t take guns and swords; it takes strength, a strong stomach, and a big heart.” Darin said coming to sit on the other side of his sister. “Don’t worry about it, Em, when the time comes, we will be able to face whatever we have to.” He also kissed the top of her head and lifted his eyebrow at Grant sitting on the other side of her.

“I, for one, am looking forward to figuring out if I have Shrina’s talents with marksmanship. I wonder if I’ll be so fanatical about eye shots.” Karen said, stretching and looking around. “God, this feels so right. It’s like we’ve done this our whole lives, even though it’s only been a week or so.”

“Speak for yourself, Karen.” Jared said, leaning back and rubbing his temples. “I know that it hasn’t been longer than a week, very well.”

“What’s wrong, Jared?” Debra asked, coming over and touching his head softly, a tingle of healing flowing from her to him.

He looked up as the pain in his head receded, amazed. “How do you do it, Deb? It’s driving me nuts, all the unguarded thoughts flying around the room and they are all so strong. And the constant barrage of emotions, pounding at me day and night. I thought getting into a place with just Grant would be enough to lessen the effects, but it’s never ending.”

Debra smiled and nodded. “I know, Jared. That first day, it was very painful for me and then I had a dream of how to keep it all out. Let me show you.” Sitting back on her heels, she lightly laid her fingertips on Jared’s knees and projected into his mind. She led him through the winding path in his mind and body to replace his true self. When she saw him grab at it and hold on, she showed him how to protect that inner self with a barrier that could be thinned or thickened to his will. Jared toyed with it a few times and then she showed him how to use that shield to keep out the entire world if he wanted and how to do it even when he was sleeping.

“Did it work, Buddy?” Grant asked when Debra sat back and broke contact with Jared.

“Oh wow, would I say it worked.” Jared said, opening his eyes. “Thank you, Debra, I don’t know what would have happened if you hadn’t taught me that. I was slowly going insane.” Jared leaned forward, but didn’t actually touch Debra. “You’ve saved my life, thank you.”

“For the love of Pete, just kiss her already and be done with it.” Mike said with something like disgust. Karen threw a pillow at him and he caught it. “What, it isn’t like we all don’t expect it.”

Phil looked on and wondered for a moment if he was going to lose the one woman he had truly loved to a man he also cared a great deal about. If Debra chose Jared, would he be able to live with that decision? It made sense for those two to make a couple of it, the chemistry between them was palpable, even a blind man could see it.

Jared shook his head, smiling a special smile just for Debra. “No, Mike, I’m not going to kiss her. Debra is too special a friend to ever toy with. I will, though, give her a hug.” He stood and lifted Debra off her feet in a tight bear hug. Neither Debra nor Jared noticed Phil’s relief when their relationship was so clearly defined.

“Put me down, you silly man. I’m no more a special friend than Emily or Karen is, and you are welcome.” Mentally, Debra added a few more remarks. “Thank you, Jer, for not kissing me. I would be lying if I didn’t admit an attraction, but when all is said and done my heart already belongs to another. I just need to finish reconciling my past with my future before I can act on it.”

“I know, Deb, I know. Phil is a very lucky man, because believe me, if I didn’t know how you felt about him and about men in general, I would be crushing you in a kiss you would never forget about now. I won’t lie either, I am very attracted to you, but like you, my heart also belongs to another. I guess we’ll just have to let our particular story play out in future generations.”

“Are you guys thinking at each other?” Karen asked when neither Jared nor Debra responded to anything for a moment. She reached up and tickled Jared’s neck and he almost dropped Debra in his surprise. “Yep, they were thinking at each other. I guess they won’t be physically intimate but mentally, we probably won’t be able to get them out of each other’s minds.”

Debra scowled at Karen and returned to her seat with something very like insulted dignity. “Being able to share abilities does not mean we will be living in each other’s minds. Now then, we have decided that I’m going to be making cloaks and special clothing for us and Mike will be handling customizing the weaponry for us. We will store it all here, and use this as a central meeting place. Phil, I’m sorry that the movie didn’t work out tonight. Maybe we can do it another time?”

Phil smiled and walked up behind Debra, putting his hands on her shoulders and nodded. “That would be fine, Debra. We had more important things to do tonight.” He smiled down into her face as she looked up into his. He shook his head when he didn’t see the invitation in her face he wanted to. “I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’m beat. I’m going to head home now and get some sleep. I’ll see you at work on Monday, Debra.” Then Phil left, signaling the breakup of the party.

When it was just Karen and Debra, Debra relaxed a little. “Why, Debra?”

Debra looked at Karen, confused. “I don’t understand the question, Karen.”

Karen sat down next to Debra and pulled one leg into her lap, facing her friend. “You could cut the sexual tension between you and Jared with a knife. You can also tell that Phil is dying a little every time you turn from him and won’t accept his overtures. It’s also plain that Mike is trying very hard to get your attention, in his own boyish way. You’ve been with Darin and it’s starting to look like Grant is firmly attached to Emily. So, I want to know why; why not Jared, why the waiting game with Phil, why not shut Mike down?”

Debra nodded, understanding. Gathering her thoughts, she also drew one leg up, turning to face Karen. “Mike is still just trying to process what has happened to us. He’s having a harder time accepting it because he sees things a little differently than most of us. He’s still waiting to wake up and so he’s acting like he did back in high school because it’s familiar and it’s what he thinks we expect of him.” Karen nodded, accepting that and recognizing the truth of it.

“As for Jared…” Debra lowered her head a moment, gathering her thoughts. “Jared and I share something special; I won’t even try to deny that. But it has more to do with being able to share emotions and thoughts in a way no one else can, than with sexual attraction. I won’t lie and say that I don’t replace Jared attractive, I do. He’s a very handsome man and I am drawn to him. But when I think of Jared, I don’t think about kissing him or sleeping with him or anything like that. I think of Jared as a port in the storm, a warm shoulder to cry on, and understanding when there is nowhere else to go, someone I can trust with anything and know it will never be betrayed. Does that make sense?”

“Actually, it does, Deb. But I do think about sleeping with Jared, a lot. I just wonder, how much of that restraint on your part is because of me and Phil and how much is something else?”

“Most of it has to do with something else, Karen. Something happened to me, in Coeur d’Alene, which has left me pretty damaged. I’m doing the best I can to repair that damage and both Darin and Jared have helped me a great deal with it.”

Karen frowned and studied Debra. “Did the bastard get what he deserved?”

Debra looked at Karen with surprise. “What…”

“It’s pretty obvious, Deb, once you said something. I remember meeting you just after you graduated from high school and you weren’t as restrained as you are now. This last time, even though I didn’t let on, I did notice a huge change in you, we all did. You were quieter, more reserved, restrained, and afraid. I wasn’t really interested then, in what was going on with you, but now I am.

“So, from what I know about you and about what you just said, I would say some guy took advantage of your nature and raped you. Now I want to know, did the bastard get what he deserved?” Karen said, taking hold of Debra’s hands to keep her on the couch, not allowing her to run away.

“He was executed for his crimes of rape and murder in five different states as well as rape in four other states. I wasn’t the first, but I was the last. I made sure of that. I don’t know which was harder though, the rape, the trial, or the miscarriage.”

“Oh god, I didn’t realize there was a baby as well. I’m really sorry, Debra. Want to talk about it some more?” Karen pulled Debra into a hug and held her a moment. “And Jared knows all of this, no wonder he won’t ever try to make a move on you. Wow, he really is in deep; you have to admire a man who can get that close to a woman and not press the advantage. And he’s all mine….”

“Yes, Karen, he’s all yours. And just as you dream of sleeping with him, he has thoughts like that about you as well. He has this fantasy of you in white lace and nothing else.” Debra said and giggled as Karen blushed.

“Okay, enough about Jared’s fantasies about me, what are you going to do about Phil?” Karen said to get the pressure off of her. She did make a mental note to get a white lace teddy though and try to replace a way to make sure Jared saw her in it.

Debra leaned back into the corner of the couch and groaned. “I don’t know, Karen. I just look at him and I get weak all over and want to run into his arms and let him protect me from the whole world. But I can’t do that, even before all this happened, I wasn’t the kind of person who could ever let someone else take charge; not that I have to be in charge all the time, but…oh hell, I don’t know how to explain it.”

It was Karen’s turn to chuckle. “You don’t have to, I understand. You aren’t the kind of person who can let someone take care of you, you have to be doing something for your own care or you feel like a failure. I, on the other hand, would be perfectly content to allow someone else take care of me and do nothing but whatever makes me happy.”

Debra nodded. “Yeah, I guess so. Anyway, when it comes to Phil, I get so confused. I can still taste his lips against mine and feel the pressure of his hands against my body and I like it, a lot. I want more from him, I want everything from him. I want to strip him and spend hours and hours just admiring his body and listening to his voice caress over me. I want to touch him and I want him to touch me. I want…I don’t know…I want him. I just don’t know what to do once I have him.”

“Everything, Debra, you do everything to him and with him.” Karen laughed. “Meow, I love talking about men, especially handsome ones. Yeah, I would say you have it pretty bad for Phil and I’ll do what I can to help you get him.”

Shaking her head, Debra held up her hand. “No, Karen, I don’t think that would be a good idea. Phil knows I want him and I know he wants me. We just have to replace our own paths to each other and be patient while we walk those paths. I have a feeling this isn’t going to be easy for either of us.”

“Okay, Debra, I’ll respect that. But don’t think for a moment I won’t tease you about it.” Karen said and then stood, yawning. “I guess it’s later than I thought. Good night, Deb, see you in the morning.”

Debra watched Karen go back to her room and sat for a moment in the living room alone. She thought about all that had happened over the past several hours and just sighed. “What am I doing?” she whispered to herself. Then she stood, turned out the lights, made sure the door was secured, and went to bed herself.

Chaos smiled and nodded. This was what he wanted, the Circle stirred up a little. He was glad that Karen and Debra were friends and that Debra had yet another champion in her corner. He wasn’t so sure he liked the fact that Debra was still dealing with what that man had done to her. He would have to think about that some more and see what he could do to help her. Then he hit on the way and set the spell in motion.

Turning from his mirror, he smiled. Sheagnek had done a wonderful job creating a little chaos for Tris and the Circle on Sandeenai. Just a few more weeks and winter would be finished, and then the whole of Sandeenai would see just what happened when you messed with the Champions of Serenity.