THE GIRLS SET OUT INTO the slowly darkening night. Cat was hyper-vigilant after hearing about the day the others had experienced and as her heart raced, she could feel her inner phoenix waking up, eager to spread its wings over the impending evil. Ever since the battle on the bridge and the destruction of Dub, Cat had felt the need to restrain herself more often, appreciating that the wildness inside her wanted to fly. Now that her bird had been out, it wanted to be free all the time, not trapped inside a human body going through the motions of normal life. She wished she could just be free to be her true self, but knew that was impossible.
Cat walked with her aura vision tuned, looking at every passerby with suspicion. All she saw were normal auras on the way home from the library. They
