Sorry

I have a resolution to be back here at least once a week...this will start on Sunday...as I am writing the next piece now...please be patient with me.

Katschka’s Story: Chapter Two

As she left the woods Katschka thought back to The Guardians statement.  Keep the Santinela close, well that would be easy.  She liked the easy going watcher and had been sad to cancel their last meetings.  Glad to know that she could keep her friend Katschka remembered the other part of The Guardians message.  Someone from inside Karin’s pride was worried about his actions, not liking that Karin was trying to make war on humans and a Santinela.  Who?  Thinking over those in the pride that she knew were unhappy with Karin’s leadership Katschka couldn’t come up with anyone strong enough to challenge Karin.  Maybe that is why the guardians had told her to be ready for him to approach her.  But what could she do?  She was not a part of the pride, even though she had never done anything to hurt them. 

Making sure she could hear the Sentinela behind her Katschka left the woods and headed back for her car.  Getting into her vehicle she backed out slowly, seeing her watcher slowly exit the woods, still scribbling furiously in the notebeook that Katschka had never seen her without.  Smiling to herself Katschka though back over her meetings with Brigit.  Such a scholar she had never met before.  Not afraid to step into the middle of things, even though it was against her orders. Those Brigit named friend were lucky and Katschka knew herself to be in those numbers.  The watcher would have none of standing on the sidelines when those she cared about were threatened.

“Brigit,” Katschka had rolled her window down and called to the watcher.  “Meet me soon, at our place.  I have news.”

Katschka saw Brigit lift a hand in acknowledgement of the words brought to her on the wind.  No more was needed.

Unbeknownst to Katshcka Brigit was not the only one who had heard the words.  There would be one more at the meeting.  Whether she was prepared for him or not, he would watch over his mate and those she cared about.  He would also get retribution on Karin for the damages he had done both in the past and those he intended to do soon.

Katshka: Chapter One

                   Slipping into the trees I knew that the Santinela would follow me.  Having to break off our meetings was harder than I had imagined.  I loved Brigit.  She was sweet and careful to make sure she got everything recorded accurately.  A perfect Santinela.  I also knew she was a rule breaker.  She would follow her subjects, those she chose to chronicle closely.  She wanted the whole story.  Never letting the rules of the Consiliul get in the way of making sure fairness was happening. 

          Glancing at my surroundings I realized I had slipped into the very heart of the forest much quicker than I thought.  The tree guardians must have sensed my fear for they didn’t stop me or put blocks in my way. I was headed to the sacred stone in the middle of the forest. Normally only witches and vampires used the stone.  However, as Brigit could tell you, it isn’t reserved for them only.  Any creature, even humans, could commune with the stone.  It just wasn’t very comfortable if you weren’t human born as witches and vampires were.  For me this was a trip that had to happen or everything that mattered to me would be destroyed.

          The local Pride Leader hated humans.  I don’t know why, I just know that they are low on his list.  Since I was raised in a human household, having been abandoned by my parents, I was equal to them in his eyes, even though I was a full blooded cat shifter.  Tiger to be exact.  It wasn’t like he could deny that, but he could shun me because of where I was raised.  And right now, he was after my family and maybe the Santinela, although that would be war.

          Hearing a noise behind me I stopped.  Turning my head slightly I cocked it to the side and raised my nose.  Ahhh, the Santinela. I should have known she would follow.  Smiling to myself I realized in my heart I had hoped she would.  This was not something others often saw.  I was going to the Sacred Stone to ask for help with my future.  I was only hoping it could offer some.

          I turned back towards the forest.  As I got closer to the Sacred Circle, the barrier around the Sacred Stone the trees grew denser.  I stopped to look at the nearest tree and speak to the guardians.

          “Guardians of the forest, I ask of you, no I beg of you, please allow me passage into the Sacred Circle.  I fear for my life, my family’s lives and the Santinela.  Kiran is planning to wage war on humans and I need guidance to help save those I love.”

          “Shifter to Tiger, we hear your plea.  You are not the first shifter to come this way recently, worrying over Kiran and his plans.  We grant you entrance to the Sacred Circle and thereby the Sacred Stone.  We sense a follower, do you wish us to detain them?
          “No.  If you look carefully you will see that it is the Santinela.  She should be allowed passage to watch, record and take note.”

          “A Santinela?  We have not had one of those in the forest for a hundred plus years.  How wonderful Tiger Shifter, that you have a watcher.”

          Smiling Katshka bowed her head, knowing that the watcher had come closer and that the Guardians were watching from above.  Slowly the density melted away and the Sacred Circle was visible. Walking slowly towards it Katshka began her shift.  Imagining the tiger she was, white with bold black stripes she flowed into her form.  Crossing over the magic in the barrier made her shiver with power and she roared.  She could sense the Santinela, scribbling in her pad, and watching to see what the process was.  Moving closer to the stone in the center of the circle Katshka prowled.  She paced around the stone twice before seeing the glimmer she was looking for.  Moving towards it she placed her paw on the spot and felt herself fade into the stone.

          “Tiger, Katshaka, we welcome you to the center of power.  To the very essence of what has made you what you are.  How can we be of assistance?”

          The voices seemed to meld into one and reverberate around and through her.  “Majesties, I fear for the Santinela, for my family and for myself.  Karin, the local pride leader, is planning war on those who raised me, on me for being an outcast and on the Santinela for choosing my story over his.”

          “What is this?  We have heard this already this week, from another Tiger, one within the pride. He too was asking for help.”

          “Please, what is it that we must do to save those we love and salvage the pride from Karin?”

          “White Tiger Shifter, you must open your heart to the one who seeks to help from within.  Only together will the two of you be able to overcome the evil that seeks to unbalance the balance we have so carefully maintained.  Watch for him to come to you, be careful and keep the Santinela close.”

The Beginning

My name is Brigit.   I am a Santinela, a watcher, a note taker, a chronicler of stories that seem so outrageous most believe them to be fiction.  They are not.  You may not believe the stories I have to tell, and for some that is good, for they are your worst nightmares.  For some that will be sad, for those are the ones that you may have learned from, or could have perhaps been your friend.

The story I am about to tell is one of those.  One where you may recognize the person as your best friend, and not be able to handle what you discover.  Hopefully you are more open minded then that, and you will recognize that she has more to offer than you have to lose.  After all, sometimes, having a cat shifter for your best friend can come in handy.

Katschka

She was lithe, graceful and clearly afraid.  I watched her from my spot on the park bench.  I had been assigned to this city because of its high number of paranormal citizens as well as the many happenings that seemed to follow them. Katschka was one of the first shifters I had come across.  I decided to watch and report on her first.  After all, she seemed to be living a fairly ordinary life for a cat shifter.

However, after a week of discreetly being the places she hung out, the bookstore she worked at, the coffee shop she took her break and the bar down the street from her house, I discovered that her life wasn’t quite as ordinary as it had first seemed.  Katshka wasn’t afraid of me.  She knew who and what I was and had welcomed me into her life.  As a matter of fact she wanted me to chronicle her past as well.  She was a kit with a family life like no other, and she knew it.  She had been raised here, in the open, where she was welcomed by the townspeople even if she was different.  Katshka knew that this was unusual and wanted the credit due to be given.

She was afraid now though.  She had started cancelling our meetings about 2 days ago, saying something had come up and she didn’t have time to meet with me. This is very odd as most love to meet with the Satinela, knowing their story is going to be told, chronicled forever.  To stop meeting with me raised all my alerts.  Now, I am not supposed to get involved, just be an impartial observer, but I have never been very good at that part of my job.  As a matter of fact, sometimes I think the Consiliul sends me places because they know I can’t stay out of things. 

Back to Katshka. I started following her when she stopped meeting with me.  She had to know I would.  It was my MO.  Everyone in the paranormal and Consiliul community knew about me because I was a rule breaker.  There were those who were happy to see me come and those who knew I meant trouble for them.  Those were the ones I had to always be on the lookout for.  Fortunately I had made some friends high up in each of the breeds so there were few who would mess with me for fear of their own Consiliuls or families or whatever they had running them and setting down their rules.

In this case I had already contacted Katschka’s pride leader to see if he knew what was going on with her.  He didn’t.  As a matter of fact he wasn’t even all that interested.  He told me that I was free to figure it out, but that those of his pride that had been raised with humans didn’t warrant his undivided attention.  Snob.  I hate those that feel they are better than others because of their breed.  Humans fell to the bottom of the list no matter what, because there wasn’t anything special about them.  Fortunately I wasn’t quite human.  Of course I wasn’t quite a full anything either, which is why it was good to have friends in high places. 

Glancing up from the notes I was going over I noticed Katshka heading into the forest that was on the edge of town, across from the park.  Usually on the werewolves and gnomes voluntarily headed into those woods.  It wasn’t that others weren’t welcome, but that the tree guardians were partial to the wolves and gnomes.  As a cat shifter, even a large cat like Katshka was, didn’t go into the woods without a purpose.  Standing up slowly I actually had to think about whether I was going to follow her.  Tree guardians didn’t like to be interfered with and they saw Santinela as interfereing…even when we weren’t.  But Katshka was my friend and her story deserved to be told from beginning to end.   With that thought in mind I went into the trees…