Protector of the Flight. Robin D. Owens

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      Yeah. Right. Calli narrowed her eyes. Marian looked like a woman who would call the Supreme Being “Goddess.” Calli hadn’t often run into that religion, except the time when a pagan group held some sort of retreat on a campground near town.

      She licked her lips.

      “Want some water?” Marian asked. She went to an elegantly carved wooden corner table topped with marble and poured water from a pitcher into a heavy glass goblet, then brought it to Calli.

      Calli sniffed, it smelled minty.

      “Only water with peppermint,” Marian said.

      Calli didn’t drink.

      Alexa heaved a sigh. “On my word of honor, only minty water.” She touched her baton sheath.

      Marian nodded. “On my word of honor.”

      Alexa was from Denver and Marian from Boulder. Both city types. Would their words be good? Calli considered them and decided to trust them. It might just be a dream, after all.

      As the water slid down her throat, leaving a tang of peppermint on her tongue, Calli thought it tasted awfully good and was pretty damn wet for a dream. She finished the glass and handed it to Marian, who put it back on the table.

      “First things first,” Alexa said, starting toward the door. Bastien tucked Calli’s hand in his elbow and he and Calli followed Alexa.

      Alexa continued. “This is the main healing room in the Keep of the Castle.”

      “Keep?” asked Calli. That didn’t sound too familiar.

      “Uh, the Marshalls’ Headquarters,” Alexa said. They exited into a wide hallway made of gray stone. Rustling behind her told Calli that others would be leaving, too. Now that they’d healed her. Huh. She wondered who would accompany her on the “tour.” She had an idea Marian and Faucon would come along.

      “We’re on the second story of a five-story building, near the front that faces the Temple Ward. A ‘ward’ is a courtyard, and this one has a big, round Temple at the end. That’s where we Summoned you and where you came through the dimensional corridor this morning,” Alexa said.

      They turned left and walked to the end of the hallway to a set of stairs.

      “We’ll give you a map,” Alexa said.

      “When we brief you later,” Marian said. “In private.”

      That might be good. So many new faces were a little intimidating. Calli really hadn’t believed she had such an imagination to populate this dream. All of her other dreams—until recently—had been of simple stuff.

      She suddenly recalled the dream that had woken her that morning. Alarms. People needing help…like several she’d had lately.

      They tromped down the stairs and sounded like a bunch of people clattering down a stone staircase. The floor was hard under the soles of her boots, too.

      “My tower’s diagonally behind us.” A smile flickered over Alexa’s face. “I have a whole tower to myself, here at the Marshalls’ Castle. I also have an estate of my own. You’ll get one, too.”

      “A spread of my own?” Calli pounced on the statement.

      “Yes.”

      “Are there mountains?” Even walking down the large hallway, Calli could tell the air was more humid, felt different in her nose and on her tongue than the air she was used to. All her senses fed her unfamiliar information. She had to be dreaming, or there was a really big catch.

      A shadow passed over Alexa’s face and for the first time she answered hesitantly. “There are mountains, but I don’t think you should live in them.”

      “I can handle anything the mountains throw at me,” Calli said. She’d been through blizzard and fire and drought. But that was Colorado. If she was in some other dangerous place, she didn’t want to stay. She wanted her land, her ranch.

      They reached a door. Alexa threw it open.

      And Calli saw dozens of winged horses. Once again a flood of affection came from them.

      Bastien urged her forward, but as soon as she took a step outside into the yard, the horses trumpeted in greeting.

      She couldn’t help herself. Fascination at their beauty mesmerized her. She threw off Bastien’s hold and strode into the yard and was immediately surrounded by horseflesh. No, volaran flesh. Warm and fragrant and strong and just completely marvelous.

      They pushed against her, noses snuffling at her hair, her shoulders, everywhere.

      She was buffeted and…passed around.

      What was even more fabulous was that she heard—whisperings—brushing her mind.

      Our Exotique.

      Our Calli.

      Our friend.

      She reached out and stroked a neck, patted a nose and finally touched the wing of the dappled gray stallion.

      The volarans moved several lengths away from her and the gray. The courtyard fell silent. Quietly, with infinite grace, the gray stretched out his wing for her to study.

      It was simply the most beautiful thing Calli had ever seen. Huge and soft with feathers. But this was a big horse. She didn’t know how it could fly.

      Magic. She heard the word clearly in her mind. And our bones are strong but hollow.

      She swallowed.

      Quick, small footsteps advanced and Alexa joined her. The woman’s face was alight with wonder.

      “They love you,” Alexa said. “You’ve only just met them and they all love you.”

      Once more Calli became aware of the delight emanating from them. This time it wasn’t words or just a feeling. This time it was a Song of welcome, blended of harmonies that sang of wild flight with the wind, of running, of pirouetting and playing in the air.

      Like the sound that she had heard as a child when riding free and fast across a mountain meadow. A sound so sweet it made tears sting her eyes.

      There were quick notes that skipped like her pulse before a barrel-riding competition.

      The tune changed, became a song of fighting in battle.

      An alarm clanged, echoing around the stone castle walls, pounding danger into the silence, breaking the mental song into a hundred fragments.

      “Horrors invading through Arde Pass!” Alexa shouted.

      Suddenly Bastien was there, running past them and grabbing Alexa. Saddles appeared on the backs of many volarans. Calli goggled. Had to be magic.

      Bastien flung Alexa up onto the back of a big, black volaran, sprang into the saddle behind her and they rose in an upward spiral.

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