The Stone Dragon

CHAPTER ONE The slapping of feet on pavement with the crunch of loose gravel, the soft sound of breathing and the distant noise of a delivery truck going by was all that she heard. Her attention wasn't focused on anything at the moment. She'd entered the realm where she was caught in the flow of her smooth runner's stride and was completely at peace. Her red hair had been tied neatly up in a ponytail, but strands had already started to stick to her neck and face, now flushed from exertion and the bright sun of late summer. She was alone, as she almost always was during her runs. She had a friend she could have called for company on the run who wouldn't have interfered with her peace, but she considered this time sacred. It was the part of the day when she could process her thoughts and just be alone. As much as Cat felt that she'd finally been accepted into her new town, she was an introvert at heart, and sometimes people just plain bothered her. She often thought she'd like to be more outgoing like her sister Vanessa, but other times she felt she could see others more clearly from the outside looking in, so was content to be herself. Cat slowed her pace, breaking into an easy walk and going over to a nearby light post to stretch out her calf muscles. She was even looking forward to going back to school for the first time. Grade eleven, her second to last year at school and her second year at the same high school. Most importantly, her dad had promised to let her finish grade twelve before even considering another job transfer, which significantly reduced the stress of being the perpetual new kid. She also had a few friends for a change and didn't have to worry about sitting alone at lunch. Her sister Vanessa had graduated the previous year and wouldn't be sharing the halls at school with her, although she hadn't gone anywhere yet. So far, Vanessa still lived at home while thinking about pursuing her dreams of movie stardom. Cat even liked her teachers passably well and had a spot on the cross-country team, her extracurricular activity of choice. When she thought about it, life was pretty good for her, maybe even a little perfect. Which was why, when she came slowly within sight of her house and saw her best friend Evelyn sitting on the steps waiting for her, Cat felt her heart sink into her stomach. Of course, she thought ruefully. I thought things were going a little too well at the moment. "What's up, Evelyn?" Cat brushed her hair back from her neck and wiped some sweat off her forehead. "You look a little too upset to be here for a leisurely visit. Please tell me it's just back to school jitters putting the storm clouds on your face." Evelyn smiled crookedly at her, her milky brown skin looking paler than normal. "I wish it was. That would be great. Why can't we just worry about normal high school crap, like cliques, pop quizzes, and mean girls? Seriously, what did I ever do to be worthy of this extra layer of bullcrap on top of being seventeen? Isn't that enough of a hassle?" Cat sat down on the steps next to her friend, trying to stay far enough away from her so that her post-run sweat wasn't in danger of rubbing off. "Okay, now you've got me worried. What happened? Please don't say nothing, because I don't think I've seen you look this nervous since last year's school play." Both girls cast their minds back to the event, briefly reliving the fear they’d felt when they went up against the most perfectly handsome and evil senior ever, then the soul crushing terror they'd felt after the battle with Declan when the hooded man had glided down the aisle to dismissively threaten them before disappearing. Cat hadn’t been able to put it behind her, even though the summer had been relaxing. The appearance of that dark man in her life had left her and her friends with many questions, not the least was if and when he’d return. "I've been having a lot of dreams this summer," Evelyn’s brow wrinkled with concentration. "At first, they were about simple things. It's like my power is finally starting to come in and get stronger. I wasn't sure it would you know, and I almost hoped it didn't, that I could stay a weak clairvoyant." She stopped and took a breath before looking at Cat with an almost pleading expression. "It's been kind of fun this summer, not worrying about anything after following Declan around last year. I didn't want it to continue, you know? I hoped it just went away, even if it meant I stayed normal and never saw another thing in my life." Cat nodded, totally getting it. It had been stressful enough to discover that Cat, Vanessa, and Evelyn all had powers that could have gotten them locked up as crazy, or as a test project in a government lab somewhere if anyone found out. But when they'd had to immediately face down a jumbo evil shortly afterward, they'd been in dire need of time off from the disorienting world that they'd entered. It was nice having the summer free to be stupid and irresponsible teenagers, not that they were either. Cat and Vanessa had already come fully into their powers over the course of the year, but Evelyn's had mostly been weak and inconsistent, which she'd professed happiness about, not eager for the responsibility that would have come with stronger gifts. Even Marie-Jean, her own mother, hadn't thought that Evelyn would get any stronger. Evelyn was already older than her mother had been when her gifts had become fully developed. Marie-Jean Baptiste had described the girls as the weapon, the shield, and the early warning in their fight against evil the year before. Vanessa's control of air elements and her natural charisma were the weapon, Cat's ability to heal and regenerate herself and others was the shield, while Evelyn was the apologetic dreamer and psychic, who continually denigrated her ability to be more helpful. Cat and Vanessa had argued with Evelyn, repeatedly trying to reassure her it was enough that she could catch glimpses of Declan's activities. But now she was sitting on the steps of Cat's house, telling her that things had changed and not looking at all comfortable or happy about it. "I've been dreaming about the dark man." Her face looked even more ashen than it had when Cat had arrived and Evelyn's eyes were puffy, as though she'd slept badly. "I keep seeing the same thing, but it's a little different each time, like I'm seeing it from another place every time I fall asleep. It's really weird, Cat." Evelyn looked at her, eyes sparkling with moisture. "He's standing there, in the middle of total destruction, with buildings crumbling all around him and fire everywhere. There are people crying and there's blood. God, there's so much blood. And he just stands there, laughing. And every time, I stand there looking at him and scream until I wake up. I can't make it stop or change the dream. It just keeps happening, more over the last few weeks. Not every night, but often enough to make me think that I'm seeing something that really happened or might still happen." Cat patted her friend on her back awkwardly, trying to think of how to console her. Cat knew that there wasn't anything she could say to take away the horror of her dreams. "What does it mean? Have you seen anything that might explain it?" She tried to skirt around the obvious trauma on her friend's face while asking a more specific question, but the answer didn't make her feel better and didn't appear to help Evelyn. Evelyn leaned forward with her shadowed eyes, looking directly at Cat. "He's coming, Cat. The dream is trying to tell me something. This time, it'll be so much worse. This time, he wants to punish us." They sat there completely still, as if they'd been cast in stone, stuck in the same thought. From the outside, they looked like two normal high school girls chilling on the front steps of a nice Edwardian house. But the reality was very different. A year earlier, if they'd been asked if they were typical teens, they would have said yes. But the year had brought them together and opened their eyes in very real and scary ways and neither was thrilled about it. Sure, they'd gained some cool powers and had each other, but the downside was that they had to worry about a lot more than high school drama and finals. They'd been sitting on the steps for close to ten minutes before either spoke again. This time, it was Cat who broke the silence. "So, do you want to stay for supper? We should probably fill Vanessa in, if the team's getting called back to action." Evelyn sighed deeply, then forced a smile. "I'd like that. It's not like I have much else going on. Mom's working nights this week, so she's not around. And I'm always up for your mom's cooking. It's way better than the sandwich I was planning to make myself. I'll just call my mom to let her know where I am." Evelyn made a face then pretended to sniff Cat, as a way of changing the subject. "Maybe you should take a shower while I do that, unless you like smelling like a boy's locker room." Cat sniffed her shirt then wrinkled her nose. "I was going to stick my tongue out, but on second thought, I'm pretty rank. Why don't you sit in the living room, see what's on TV? I'll see if Vanessa's around and send her down when I find her." Evelyn gave her a thumbs up and the girls went inside. As it turned out, Vanessa was home and was very interested in hearing about what had been going on in Evelyn's head. After she'd been filled in, Vanessa leaned back on the couch and nodded with satisfaction. "I wondered when this would happen." Cat looked at her, startled by her nonchalant manner. "You don't seem very upset." Vanessa shrugged and flicked a piece of lint off her arm. "I've been expecting this since the play finished. You can't meet up with a big scary dude like that and have life continue on like nothing ever happened." She paused for a sip of pop before continuing. "The first time we saw him come out of the fire in Declan's backyard, I knew we'd have to face him. In fact, I'm kind of relieved you've started to have dreams about him, Evelyn. At least this means we can start doing research. We should start practicing again, too. I don't know about you, Cat, but I've been pretty lazy over the last two months ever since summer started." Cat had to agree with her sister. For all of them, it had been such a relief to have things over with Declan that they'd gone out of their way to avoid anything otherworldly. Maybe not consciously, but they'd kept themselves busy with normal summer stuff and avoided more than the occasional recap of the previous year's events, and then only rarely, when other conversation was exhausted. It looked as if their hiatus was over and the peace had merely been a summer break instead of the end of a one-time adventure they could tell disbelieving grandchildren about someday. Evelyn looked resigned, the corner of her mouth rising slightly in a half-smile. "I didn't figure my sudden increased abilities for a good thing. Mom always said to be careful, because whatever you get there's bound to be equal cost somewhere else. Looks like we're in for another busy school year hey, Cat?" Cat looked back glumly. "Yeah. I was hoping the craziest thing happening to me this year was our English teacher, but I guess that was a childish fantasy. Well, if we have to do this all over again, you'd better tell us every last detail. Everything you remember from every dream you've ever had about him." Evelyn sighed and the girls listened to her start at the beginning.