Free Spark (Legends of the Shifters) by J.B. North Page A

the forest,” she
whispered. “If you get high enough, nobody will be able to tell
the difference between you and a hawk.” She glanced up at the
sky. “Especially since it’s cloudy.”
    “ What
about you? Are you just going to walk the whole way?”
    “ No.
I suppose I’ll change when you do,” she answered. We came
across a small town before the forest came into view. Some of the
students stopped there to visit, but most kept onto the path.
    We
lagged behind all the other students to make sure no one would notice
when we disappeared into the pines. I kept looking back to make sure
nobody was following us, wincing at every twig that snapped under my
foot.
    “ Okay,
this should be far enough in,” said Roselle after a couple of
minutes.
    I
looked around us before nodding. She changed first. I watched as she
faded from my sight.
    I
squinted my eyes, trying to see her outline, but it was no use. It
seemed as if there was nothing there. “Roselle?” I asked.
    No
answer. I waited for a minute longer, and nearly jumped out of my
skin when I heard the whispered word, “Boo,” right in my
ear.
    “ Roselle,
that’s not funny,” I whispered back fiercely.
    “ Yes,
it is,” she laughed as she reappeared. “I trick all my
opponents like that when they challenge me. Not many people do
anymore.”
    “ And
you’re only a Level Five?” I asked.
    “ Yes.
Upgrades only come on Mondays and mostly only if the person has had a
challenge that week…which means that you’re probably
going to be upgraded tomorrow.”
    “ That’s
good,” I said. “The sooner I get away, the better.”
    “ And
speaking of that, our time is running out. We need to get going if we
want to get back in time.”
    I
nodded. “You’re right.”
    She
smiled as she disappeared again.
    I
transformed after her, and shot upward after a heavy push downward
with my wings. I got as high as I could, as quick as I could to
lessen the chance of someone seeing. The effort made me breathless. I
soared so high that I could barely see the pathway.
    Once
I had regained my strength and energy, I drove myself forward with
rapid strokes, impatient to get to my old, familiar home and friends.
I flew over mountain peaks and valleys, and before long, my wings
were sore with fatigue. I berated my slowness as the sun gradually
started to get lower and lower, and was relieved when I finally saw
the big clock tower after passing over a mountain.
    I
dove downward toward the stables, where I was sure Ayon had to be. My
whole body was trembling from exhaustion as I transformed back to my
old self, panting for air.
    I
entered the stables to see Ayon sitting at an old, rickety table,
eating a small meal. He looked up in surprise. “Ivy?” he
asked.
    I
smiled. “Of course it’s me!” I said between
breaths. “Who else would it be?”
    He
stood, and shrugged, wiping his mouth with a napkin. “Could be
Mr. Caper, coming in early for his evening ride.”
    I
collapsed in the chair that I usually sat in. The one I had sat in
almost every day before my life was pitched into confusion. “How
late is it?” I asked.
    “ Three-ish,”
he said. “I hadn’t had the time to eat lunch, so I
settled for an early supper.”
    It
had taken me three hours to get here? “I only have a few
minutes to talk, and that’s only if I hurry back,” I told
him. I rushed to say the next thing I had been waiting to mention.
“But first, I want to tell you that I was forced not to say
good-bye. The man I was with was a wizard, and he controlled my
actions. I so desperately wanted to say good-bye.” I held my
breath even though I really needed it at that moment.
    Ayon
frowned, and I worried what he was going to say next. “I know
it wasn’t you,” he said, allowing me to heave a sigh of
relief. “But I despise the fact that you weren’t allowed
to talk to us, even for just a second.”
    I
didn’t reply, thinking back to that day that felt like months
ago, but happened to be a