Theft of Light Read online

  Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter One

  Saturday, September 17th

  Lance had agreed to show Kandice how to use the seals to change, but he had yet to do anything besides lecture and train her to fight to his standards. After four days of back-to-back training sessions, he insisted they go to a remote location.

  They drove to a state park that was an hour outside of Austin. He hadn't spoken the whole drive, and wouldn’t answer any of her questions. They had been at the park for almost an hour, and she was fed up.

  She stopped him mid explanation. “I know the risks,” she said. “Telling me it’s dangerous at this point is moot. You’ve gone over how aware I need to be of my surroundings and to only change if there is no other way to win. So how about we get to the damn changing already?”

  Lance’s brows tightened. “I agreed to teach you. Which means you agreed to learn. Slava spent almost a year teaching me before I changed for the first time. If it wasn’t so important that we kill the mayor, I’d not be showing you how to change now.”

  “Well,” she said. “He’s dangerous, and you need my help. So, here we are.”

  “What are the three costs when changing?”

  “My energy will drain at three to four times its normal rate,” Kandice said. “Which is why I have to build up endurance. Second, my vision will blur, and I’ll only be able to see what’s in front of me, though it will seem that everything is standing still, or moving in slow motion.” She stopped, her mind blanked on the third cost.

  “Third, your body temperature will drop,” Lance said. “This is the most dangerous cost, because every time you change back, your body might go into a state of hypothermia, which is why you might lose consciousness, and some even die.”

  “I know the danger,” Kandice said. “I just forgot what caused it. Will it hurt?”

  “Extremely. It’s one reason we drink so much.”

  Kandice steadied herself. She’d been swimming in a lake during winter and hoped it would be a similar experience. “I’m ready,” she said. “How do I activate the seals?”

  “That’s the easiest, and hardest part.” Lance said. “All you have to do is put it against your skin, but first, you have to find your symbol.”

  He pulled out a stack of seals carved into what Kandice realized was tanned animal skin. She looked through the pile, they were all the same. Lance pulled another seal from his pants and showed her.

  The seal looked the exact same, except there was a small mark in the top right of the circle. It looked like an X, with a circle at the top right, and a star at the bottom left.

  “This is my mark,” he said pointing, to the extra symbol. “You have to find a shape, or combination of shapes, that resonates with you, and can represent you on the seal.”

  “How do I do that?”

  He tossed a pocket knife at her, which she almost missed. “Practice. It took me about ten tries. I’ve given you twenty seals. Let’s see how you do.”

  He reached into his pack and pulled out a bottle of vodka. He poured himself a glass, and offered to pour Kandice one, but she refused.

  “I’m going for a walk,” he said. “Think about the mark inside your mind first. When you feel confident, carve it without thinking.”

  He turned back around. “Do not put the seal on until I’m here,” he said. “Do you understand?”

  “Yes.”

  “Good,” Lance said, and walked down the trail.

  Once he was out of sight, Kandice tried to focus on what mark would represent her. The pentagram came to mind first, but that seemed cliché. Though it was part of Lance’s, there was the simple X, it would be an Iron-cross if she turned it, but that didn’t seem right either.

  The sun was high in the sky, and the trees were no longer shading her. Kandice took her top shirt off. Her tank-top was sticking to the small of her back. She pulled it away from her body repetitively to cool herself off. It had been at least thirty minutes since Lance left. She coudln’t remeber last time she had sat in one place, outside of school, focusing on a single problem. The way it made her brain hurt was refreshing.

  She wiped the sweat from her brow and stood up to stretch. Maybe a moon would fit, like a crescent moon. That had to be part of it. A tentacle crossing the moon, maybe? No. That wasn’t it. A knife? No. A spear? No… a staff!

  It made sense, while her staff form in Taekwondo competitions was weak, she was brilliant at sparring with a staff. She’d been able to defeat her fellow team members, despite them using swords or spears.

  Lance hadn’t come back yet. She called out. “Lance?” There was no reply. She picked up the knife, and was about to draw the symbols onto the seal, when she realized there was no guarantee that her mark belonged in the top right like Lance’s.

  Fuck. She stared at the seal. There were infinite amount places to put her mark. It might make a huge different if she placed the mark in the wrong spot.

  She carved the mark four times. One in each corner. The concentration it took to keep the knife from slipping as she carved made her sweat. She kept wiping her hands on her pants to keep them dry.

  Lance showed up just as she was about to carve the symbol in other random places out of boredom.

  “I think this is it,” she said. “I didn’t know where to put it.”

  “Luckily, for this seal, placement of your mark doesn’t matter,” Lance said. “Are you sure this is your symbol?”

  “Well, no. You said not to put it on without you here.”

  “Try it.”

  Kandice’s heart raced. The tension grew inside her chest as the complete seal came closer to her stomach. There had to be a way to clear her mind for what was about to happen. Every hair was standing on end, so she regulated her breathing as she held her shirt up by the hand not holding the seal. Lance was looking around, not paying the slightest attention to her. She slapped the seal against her skin…

  Nothing.

  She was standing under the sun holding a tanned skin against her, but nothing was happening. She flipped the seal over and tried again, but still nothing.

  “What the fuck?” she yelled at Lance.

  “I told you, it took me ten tries to come up with the right combination of symbols.” He laughed a little. “I was considered a quick learner. There was no way you would get it the first time.”

  “So, what now?” Kandice asked.

  “That’s up to you,” Lance said. “This is all about you finding what represents you. It’s a personal journey. I can’t really help you. You might be on the right track, and just need to add to it. Or, you could be completely wrong, and need to start over.”

  Kandice threw the seal to the pile and crossed her arms. It had taken her the better part of an hour to come up with that design.

  How did it not represent me?

  “Think about it some more and carve several options. I like the trails here. I’ll come back in an hour or so.”

  “Remember,” he said. “Don’t try the seal without me here.”

  “Okay.”

  Fucking a, I heard him the first time.

  ♦ ♦ ♦

  When Lance returned, Kandice had made four new se
als, each with a different mark on it. She tried each one, bracing herself before each attempt. None worked. Kandice asked for more advice, but Lance said it was inside her own mind.

  “Try to make them without thinking,” he said. “And remember, don’t try before I get back.”

  “Yeah, I get it,” she said. “It’s dangerous. I won’t try without you. Fuck!”

  Lance was already walking down the trail again.

  This is ridiculous. She could spend her whole life making up these damn symbols and never find the right one.

  Maybe that’s what he meant by not everyone is able to change.

  She picked up a fresh seal and carved, trying to not think so much about the symbols, but just to allow her hands to guide her work.

  ♦ ♦ ♦

  When Lance returned, Kandice had five seals done. She wasted no time and slapped one after another against her stomach. The heat was getting to her and almost all the water they brought was gone.

  “Did you expect any of them to work?” he asked.

  “I don’t know. I don’t get how I’m supposed to pick a symbol that represent who I am.”

  “It takes time. It took me ten tries, but it also took me three days. Slava didn’t let me try more than one at a time.”

  “That’s crazy,” she said.

  Changing needed to happen then. There was no way they’d be out there two more days.

  “Remember!” Lance yelled over his shoulder, as he walked down the trail.

  “I know. Don’t try without you,” she yelled back.

  Her hands ached from carving. The knife kept digging into the bottom of her knuckles, and she’d slipped and cut her left thumb. Lance had brought a small first aid kit, so she put a bandage on her thumb, but it didn’t help with the throbbing pain.

  More than half the stack of seals was gone. It wasn’t clear what would happen once all the seals failed. She hoped it didn’t mean it wasn’t possible for her to change. There had to be something missing, her mind just couldn’t think straight in the heat.

  It had to be over a hundred, but the sun had moved enough so that the top of the trees were casting a shadow against her.

  She tried to clear her mind and let her hands do all the work.

  ♦ ♦ ♦

  “How many this time?” Lance asked, coming through a patch of trees.

  “I’ll have four when I’m done with this one. I don’t get how you managed to find your symbol in only ten tries.”

  “I was lucky, I guess,” he said.

  Kandice didn’t believe him. There had to be more to it. She stood up when she finished the last mark and wasted no time putting it on. The seal did nothing. The next three failed too. If she was honest with herself, she hadn't thought they would work.

  “I give up,” she said. “It’s hot, and I need some food.”

  “You can’t quit,” Lance said. “Maybe your hunger will help you. You’ve got three more. If you fail with those, too, we’ll go get food.”

  “I’ll give you another hour,” he said. “Think hard about who you are and then carve. But don’t try a seal before I get back.”

  “Yeah, yeah,” she said annoyed, and waved him away.

  Instead of picking up another seal, she tried to analyze herself, and what kind of symbol would represent the different parts of herself. Lance’s symbol seemed so simple, how did that sum up who he was as a person.

  She reached over and grabbed one of the first failed symbols. It was hopeless, nothing represented her as a person. She was about to throw it back but looked at the staff again. The moon has to be right. Her mom had died under a crescent moon so that seemed to represent a major part of her. The staff, though, that had to be the issue.

  The knife moved without her thinking about it. Three quick lines and her eyes refocused. Her hand had put a tip on the staff to make it a spear. It was right, it had to be.

  She called out for Lance, but he wasn’t around. Damn it. Her eyes fell on the pile of seals. At some point the whole pile had felt right. It made little sense to wait for him to watch her fail again.

  Fuck it.

  The seal felt right, more right than the previous ones. Her body tensed as it accepted what was about to happen. It was time to do it; with or without Lance. As the seal got close to her skin, it tingled. This is it! The tanned skin stuck to her stomach.

  In an instant, everything shift into a red tint. Even the green of the trees looked pink. The brown of the bark, like flowing blood.

  Stinging pain erupted from the back of her skull, and down her spine, as small spikes grew from her back, ripping her shirt.

  Her skin morphed into black scales that shimmered crimson in the direct sunlight. It was as if they had always been there just below the surface, waiting to come out.

  Lance came running out of the trees. He’d changed himself into his blue-wolf form. Kandice realized she’d grown to over eight feet tall. She was looking down on Lance. There was a smell of raw steak coming from him, and her stomach longed for food. She lunged at him, mouth wide-open hoping to sink her teeth into him and feast.

  They fought for several minutes. Kandice was stronger, but with Lance being trained and faster he had the advantage. Each time she grabbed hold, he would spin away out of her grip. He kept reaching for her stomach and blocked her advances.

  Lance pulled out another seal and struck Kandice’s arm with it. Her arm burned and became immobilized. She snapped at him, but he was too fast. He pulled the seal off her stomach, and Kandice fell face first into the dirt.

  ♦ ♦ ♦

  When she opened her eyes, Kandice’s body screamed in pain. She bit down as hard as she could to avoid screaming out. Lance poured an awful smelling liquid on her that burned from being boiled.

  “Ouch!” she screamed.

  “Sorry,” Lance said, and wiped it off.

  Her skin had already turned red.

  “You put the seal on without me,” he said.

  “You kicked my ass,” she said. “My whole body feels broken.”

  “It will, for a couple days. You’re strong. I had to use a disabling seal.”

  “Was that what caused my arm to feel like it was on fire?”

  “Yes,” he said. “I didn’t know you’d be so powerful. You about crushed me in one of your bear hugs.”

  The liquid Lance was rubbing on her smelled worse than road kill, but it took the pain out of her bones.

  “Sorry,” she said. “I didn’t mean to change without you, it just kind of happened. I wasn’t thinking.”

  “I know,” Lance said. “It’s how it happens to all of us. It’s all part of the test. Once you found the right symbol, you would never be able to wait. It calls to you.”

  “What?”

  “It’s part of you. At first, your body feels lost without it. Over time, you’ll learn to live with the pain of separation. Until then, you can’t keep a complete symbol on a seal. You’ll have to finish it right before you use it.”

  Kandice thought she understood, but she felt so sleepy that it had become hard to think.

  “I’m tired,” she said.

  “That’s good. You rest, and I’ll drive us home.”

  Kandice noticed the moon was already out, and the sun was close to going down. She walked to the SUV with Lance’s help, but the moment she laid the seat back, she was out.

  Chapter Two

  Sunday, September 18th

  Sunday morning, Kandice awoke with a splitting headache as Slava was applying a metal seal against her back.

  “What the-” she said, not realizing at first what was happening.

  “We did not expect you to wake until this afternoon,” Slava said. “How do you feel?”

  “My head hurts.”

  “Yes, that is to be expected.” He reached over to the coffee table and grabbed a glass of vodka. “Drink. It will help.”

  Kandice was reluctant, but Slava tipped the glass up, so she took a small, then large, drink of the
vodka. It burned her throat worse than usual, but the relief to her throbbing head was instant.

  “Where’s Lance?” she asked.

  “He is out,” Slava said. “He said he would be back with food and more vodka.”

  “If it’s not too rude. How much vodka do y’all drink?”

  “Maybe,” he said, pausing a moment. “Five, six bottles a week.”

  “Together, or each?” she asked.

  “Each. You will too. I heard how well you did. We are both proud of you.”

  The amount they drank was shocking. During their time together it was clear they drank a lot, but at that rate, they would have to be drunk all the time. She struggled to imagine needing, or wanting, to drink that much, but hearing Slava was proud of her made her heart soar. Slava was becoming a kind of surrogate grandfather. It seemed a little dirty though to view him like that, given her feelings for Lance.

  She sighed. Life shouldn’t be so complicated; if only there was a way to go back before her parents died.

  “What is it?” Slava asked.

  “Nothing, I was just thinking about changing. I didn’t know I would be so strong.”

  “Yes. You will be a great fighter. Lance is glad he changed his mind. Now you rest. He will be back soon.”

  Kandice closed her eyes again. Soon, her mind filled with thoughts of Lance. They were alone again in the forest, but they weren’t training. She grabbed his arms and pinned him to the ground. His eyes shimmered in the sunlight. As she ripped his shirt off, his teeth shone white through a massive smile. His lips were soft, and his tongue moved with grace.

  He flipped her to her back, and his hand worked its way down her pants. First, undoing the button then, sliding the zipper down. When his fingers pushed back the top of her panties, she moaned.

  “She woke up for a moment,” Slava said. “She has been asleep since.”

  “Good,” Lance said. “I can’t believe she woke up. I worried when she passed out in the SUV.”

  “She is a fighter.”

  “I think she might become a better one than you,” Lance said. “Maybe even me.”