A Touch Of Lightning (COMPLETED!)

Chapter 32 Ahleena and The Armor

       

Chapter 32 Ahleena and The Armor

Finally, he had his power in his control. It was control shaken by the demands of the killer creature he was, but he was able to think clearly enough to begin to do what he needed. He crouched next to Ahleena and gently laid his hands on either side of her face. Her heartbeat was evident even through the bone armor, and blood quickly stained the stark white of his armor. He had his eyes shut, searching inside for the link to his armor. Finally he felt it, and he threw himself at it with total determination.

A ripple of power spread from his head and went down his body. Where it passed, his bone armor began to sway and slide, almost like thick liquid. In seconds it had begun to slide upwards, gathering on his shoulders, leaving him bare. He focused further, using the techniques of the Ninja Ahleena had been teaching him to keep his mind completely on track. His bone armor began to slide down his arms in slow waves, rippling like syrup, and began to flow over and around Ahleena. To wrap her head to toe.

Long minutes passed, but finally Callin opened his eyes and looked down. Ahleena was covered entirely in his bone armor, except for a tiny slit for nose and mouth so she could breath. His armor was smooth, featureless, wrapping her every contour like a second skin.  She looked like an impossibly detailed, white, marble statue lying at his feet. Callin felt a surge of victory, knowing his armor was so tightly bonded to her it would successfully function like a skin. To keep her from bleeding out. He dove back into his mind, now chasing something he didn't know if he could do but willing to try. Desperate to try.

He felt about inside his mind, inside the core of his body, trying to find the link to his healing power. He wanted to transfer it to Ahleena, to accelerate her healing. To save her. His bone armor on her would not save her by itself, she was far too wounded to recover. It would buy him time, but even that was limited. He suddenly felt exhaustion rise up inside, a freezing vacuum sucking him dry and pulling him down. He landed on his back among the leaves, bouncing his head painfully off a rock, his body like Jell-O. He blinked in surprise. He hadn't expected the battle and sending his armor onto Ahleena to drain him like this. It felt like he hardly had enough energy to even stretch his chest to draw a breath!

With a determined snarl, he shook it off as much as he could, instead closing his eyes and once again diving into that single-minded focus like Ahleena had shown him. That razor focus of a Ninja. He wasn't good at it, could barely bring his mind even to the beginning of what she could do, but it had been enough to let him control his bone armor. Now, he hoped it would be enough to let him send his healing power to Ahleena. If that was even possible.  If that wasn't possible he wouldn't know what to do. 

As he lay there, focusing, some part of his mind was still aware that the woods were alive around him.  Creatures and things around him still moved.  The natural sounds of the forest were a comfort to him.  If there were Flayers about, it would be totally silent. Deadly silent.  As if nature itself knew that an aberration moved amongst it.  The exhaustion that lay on Callin like a wet blanket dragged at his mind, eroding all coherent thought, and he found his mind drifting instead of focusing like needed.

Although his mind wandered his keen hearing still worked.  The sound of approaching footsteps snapped him into reality violently, a frigid rush of adrenaline pouring through him, giving him the strength to stand up and see what was coming. His claws were bared and held ready, but his arms shook and he could feel his center of gravity shifting erratically. He was in no shape to fight. He shied away from that realization, instead putting every bit of what little strength he had into putting forth as ferocious an image as he could. Maybe, if it was an enemy, he could frighten it off long enough for him to get his strength back.