but this was better.

much better.

the lykan took his female...

well, before marcus killed her, he'd just have to kill her mate and make her watch while he did it.

and there was no doubt in his mind that the brawny male lykan escorting her out of the motel room was her mate.

he waited five minutes before jumping into his car and following their exit. he had refreshed himself with the females scent by breaking into their room and sniffing her clothes. he would be able to tail them until their next stop...

and then he'd make his move.

7 - new friends, old acquaintances

caia was in awe. the fact that some of the students in the huge hall were clearly uncomfortable with her presence didn't even dispel how excited she was to be watching young magiks and faeries learn communication training from their elders. she could feel marion beaming beside her, caia's apparent enthusiasm rubbing off on the older magik.

"have you watched enough, caia?" mordecai smiled. "you want to try?"

that morning she had opened her guest room door to marion, a perkier marion than caia had ever encountered. she was eager, caia was beginning to realize, to show off her protege. apparently lucien had already gone with his escort to check out the second unit. at first she had felt a little anxious about being separated from him, but now she was too caught up in the activities of the center. their first stop had been to pick up their 'tour guide', mordecai. he was a stocky, bookish-looking magik in his late twenties, with kind eyes and an easy smile. from his warm reception, caia was guessing marion had not only picked him as her escort because of his being a powerful water magik, but because he obviously didn't care about the fact that caia's mother had been a midnight.

caia beamed like a little girl. "can i? i mean, i wouldn't know where to start."

he chuckled, enjoying her keenness as much as marion. "well, we'll keep it simple. you haven't seen much of the center so the furthest we can allow you to travel is from here to your guest suite."

little butterflies awoke in her stomach, churning her breakfast back into action. "wow. i want to, you know, but... those guys make it look easy. i'm guessing dematerializing and re-materializing isn't exactly popcorn?" her wide eyes drank in the bright room, watching as magiks and faeries popped in and out of the room at the quiet instructions of their teachers. as if sensing she was about to attempt the spell, some of them stopped what they were doing along with their instructors to gaze across the space at her. she could make out what the closer ones were whispering to one another.

"she doesn't look like much. what is everyone afraid of?"

"i can't believe they let her in here. what if she's a spy?"

"i heard she eviscerated her uncle without any remorse. apparently she was smiling while she did it. ugh."

"i think we should give her a chance. if marion says she's trustworthy then she's trustworthy."

caia drew in a shuddering breath, her eyes finding solace in marion's gaze.

"i don't know what you're hearing with those ears of yours, but just block them out, caia." marion smiled gently. "mordecai will talk you through this."

"but they're all watching."

"yes. so? just forget them. and remember, it can take many, many attempts to pull off your first travel. no one here," she sneered around the room at them, as if sensing their disapproval of her for bringing caia, "has ever done it first time."

exhaling, caia turned to mordecai, who was smiling reassuringly. "let's give it a go."

he nodded, brushing his thick locks off his forehead, pushing the frame of his glasses further up his nose. "now, marion has explained that you can differentiate with ease the two energies that make up your lykan and your magik. is that correct?"

"yes."

"ok. the tricky thing for you in a communication spell is that other energy bobbing in the background. you see, for any other use of your magik you tap into the energy and expel it from whichever part of your body you want... usually your hands. but to travel you need to grab hold of that energy, and wrap it around your body's system... cells, muscles, bones... everything, everywhere. you'll know when you've done it, believe me. it's hard to explain, but you will. thing is though, it takes a lot of concentration, and at first a lot of time to go through the process. you have the added complication of having your lykanthrope energy. what we need you to do is wrap your magik around that energy without merging the two energies together."

caia blinked, her heart suddenly picking up speed. "what happens if they merge?"

mordecai glanced briefly at a stoic marion and then back to her. "we don't know. we just don't want to take that chance. we need you to treat that energy as carefully as you would an artery, wrap around it, but don't rupture it."

"you don't have to do this, caia," marion assured quietly.

she felt the stares of the trainees burning her cheeks and willed her heart to slow down. there was no way she was going to fail in front of these guys. that was exactly what they wanted. and if she was going to make a difference in this war, then she was going to need to prove herself to the daylights first hand.

"no. i'm doing this."

mordecai grinned. "good. now close your eyes... and do as i asked."

quickly and easily, caia grabbed a hold of the steely vapor that was her magik energy, and completely disengaged from the heat that allowed her to change into a wolf. now the hard part. so, she was to what... wrap the energy around every molecule of her being...

ohhhkkaaaay.

she started with her toes, and mordecai was right. she knew when a part of her body was complete in the process. she followed it through until her very hair tingled with energy.

"done," she said, and was surprised to hear a flurry of whispering.

"uh..." mordecai seemed to hesitate. her eyes flew open and he was staring at her incredulously, while marion smiled, almost smugly. "caia, are you sure?"

she nodded, holding on tight to her transformation. "yeah, you said i would know, you were right... it's a weird kind of certainty."

"but you did that in seconds?" he gaped like a fish.

she frowned. "is that wrong?"

marion chuckled. "it usually takes a lot longer the first few times. you've done it like you've been doing it for years."

oh. well, that was good right?

mordecai gulped. "i see what you've been talking about, marion."

"what?" caia quizzed, looking between the two.

"uh, caia, now for the next part." mordecai now seemed even more excited to move it along. "i want you to visualize your guest suite. think of a suitable spot you can materialize in and go there. but... you have to have an extremely clear vision in mind."

she closed her eyes and imagined a spot on the thick beige carpet that felt like clouds beneath her bare feet; a spot that stood just in front of the chaise longue placed at the end of the opulent bed. yeah, there was plenty of room to crash land there.

"ok."

"you're sure?"

"pretty much."

"ok. now tighten your hold on your energy and picture yourself in that spot; move yourself into that spot with your mind."

she did as he asked.

"ok. now what?"

she was met by silence.

"guys?"

wait. the floor had gotten awful squishy beneath her feet. and was that lavender air freshener?

her eyes flew open, and she stumbled back gasping. holy moly, she was in her guest suite. she had done it! she had done it!

"aaaahhh!" she laughed, jumping up and down like a little kid. she had freakin' done it on her first go! she grinned out into the city of paris. "take that, daylight snobs!"

her face was about to crack under the pressure of that grin, her adrenaline shooting through every part of her body, sending her into shaky excitement. ok, she had to calm down... it was time for the finale.

following mordecai's instructions, she visualized her place back in the hall, and suddenly a flurry of excitement hit her ears.

"caia!"

her eyes opened and mordecai was gazing in stunned amazement. marion rushed forward to grip her arms, laughing. she looked around, and all the trainees were babbling excitedly, their eyes peeled to her, their bodies involuntarily moving closer.

"you did it! i knew you would do it!" marion squealed like a little girl, her usual cool completely abandoned.

"i've never..." mordecai took off his glasses to rub a non-existent smudge from them. "wow." his eyes flit between her and marion before a huge grin broke out on his face. "this is going to be fun. i want to see what she can do with natural materialization."

lucien was having a great time.

that morning he had woken up early to a banging on his door that belonged to a lykan around his age with an attitude and bad hair. julian was a pain in the ass, and lucien had a feeling he had been given to him specifically because he was a pain in the ass and would irritate the life out of him. he made deliberately malicious comments about the pack, about caia, anything to try and make lucien lose his temper. if only he knew that the transparency of his attempts merely irritated rather than angered. he was like a puppy, nipping you in frustration because you won't play back.

however the second unit? now that was fun.

the center had set up a simulator of a large woodland arena where the lykans could work out strategies in human form but execute them as wolves. the arena was amazing, the smells, the mud, the trees, the air, all of it as real as can be. and he was getting to stretch his legs, battling sandbag dummies and holograms of midnights. the sweat was thick in his fur, and his muscles were screaming, his jaws aching from ripping so many faux midnights apart. but hades it was a buzz. what a frickin' way to work out the frustration.