If the juniors had visions of them being part of a heroic rescue they quickly learned that they were present in a very minor role. They were camoflage for when masters went into villages and towns seeking information about Valentina; where a lone man would draw suspicious looks, a family group passed almost unremarked and could quickly learn what they wanted in everyday conversation with shopkeepers and railway staff. They were also there to provide the labour for the dull housekeeping chores around their encampments as they progressed southwards on the trail of the Master Supreme’s daughter as the Hand moved her. Finally the Hand stopped in the market town of Crossblinging and issued their proclamations that the Sinisterre Valentina Oldbridge was to be put on trial for her life for treason against the state of Britannia. They let it be known less publically, but no less effectively, that the price on Valentina’s head was the surrender of her mother Miranda. In the face of such blatant intimidation the masters had unanimously declared that they would force their way into Crossblinging and free Valentina. Now they gathered around the fire to hear the disastrous results of that adventure from its leader.
“Achh ! Hopeless!” Stannous spat out the words like they were venomous and bowed his head into his hands for a moment as he squatted in front of the fire, while around the circle the masters and few novices looked on silently.
“They have guards on every gate.” He said lifting his head wearily. “Guards and watchers.” He looked around the circle of pale faces painted red by the flames. “Either renegade members of our Brotherhood…”
“Never !” Someone said low and harsh.
“Or they have found those with the good arm before us and have turned them to their ways.” Stannous concluded. “By the Lords, it doesn’t matter which it is !” He insisted against the babble of voices his suspicions had raised. “They can sight us every time we approach.”
That brought a wave of shocked silence down upon them all.
“They caught Bobby and Gina before we even knew that the watchers were there. We barely got away by causing a stampede amongst the populace.”
“How ?” Miranda Bluesky’s husky voice demanded out of the darkness beyond the circle and it parted to admit her.
Stannous climbed to his feet and bowed his head to her.
“Master Supreme, I had to set fire to several vehicles.”
“Was anyone killed ?”
“No, but I think some may have been burned. I could not linger.” Stannous replied solemnly.
“Pray that none died or the Hand will finally have its proof and they will hunt us down as though we were rabid dogs.” Miranda declared icily.
“Your daughter….” Mikal Stormeye began.
“My daughter is not worth another’s life !” Miranda stated vehemently but all could see the pain she felt.
“The trial begins tomorrow, it will find her guilty.” Stannous said to her strained face.
“It is my life or my daughters, I will surrender to them.”
“It’s a trap Miranda, there’ll be no trade.” Stannous objected.
“Then you will have your way at last Stannous.” Miranda answered him bitterly. “For who would deny you the position of Master Supreme when I am gone ?”

The tense silence that ensued as the two longtime antagonists faced each other over the fire was seemingly endless until a very small voice said.
“I..I.”
Every single person was shocked to hear anyone stand out in that contest and even more shocked when they realised who had spoken, Freder.
“I..I have a suggestion.” He said looking around slightly anxiously at all the faces now turned his way.
“It wouldn’t work Freder.” Stannous said with a shake of his head. “The Hand want the Master Supreme, not you.”
“I can get into the town.” Freder said simply in reply. “At least let me try.”
Miranda looked him hard in the eye, she knew Stannous was cultivating Freder as an ally in the power struggle, the first dark aura in two hundred years, a talent that had yet to find its limits, but still only a barely trained boy of eleven.
“How can you achieve this Freder ?” She asked him. “Your dark aura is no defence against a well trained watcher.”
“I’ve been trying something, look.” As he spoke Freder removed the yo-yo from his pocket and awkwardly clutched it in his right hand, then released it. Concentrating totally on the toy Freder got it to cycle up and down, up and down.
“Look.” Catherine breathed excitedly. “Look at his aura.”
The dark mantle had diminished and around Freders slight figure there flickered a red and orange etheric glow, weak, but enough for a sighting, he looked for all the world like just another right hander.
“It’s hard to keep going for long.” Freder said as he mistimed his lift stroke; the yo-yo came to rest at the end of the string and his aura lost the reds returning once more to the dark shadow they all knew.
Miranda walked around the fire to where he stood to look down upon him.
“Give me the chance.” He asked of her. “I think I can rescue Valentina.”
She went down on one knee before him and hugged him tightly, much to his embarassment.
“Thank you Freder.” She whispered in his ear. Then she stood up and looked around the gathered members of the Brotherhood. “Remember this well my brothers, my sisters. There is always a way that does not rely purely upon the strength of the good arm. Come we must prepare Freder for his attempt, bring the maps.”
The dawn light was grey and cold, a heavy mist lay over the tops of the hills around their camp but there was a lighter mood than there had been for many a long day as the novices prepared the breakfast for the little party that would escort Freder to within a mile of the town. Stannous was leading it and with him was Mikal Stormeye and Catherine Deepsight. She would be able to track Freder as he entered the town and feel his emotions; win or lose, Catseyes would know first. Freder felt nervous, excited and frightened in equal measure; he badly wanted to prove his worth to the brotherhood but he was all too aware what would happen to him if any of the Hand caught him. The Stone.
They set out just after sunup, the whole camp silently watching them walk away down the little track. The whole way that they were in sight Freder could feel one presence more than any other; Miranda Bluesky followed his movement until the land cut them off from view. At that moment, free from her intense presence he took out the yo-yo and began to practise with it. Walking and keeping the yo-yo going at the same time was hard but he needed to get the rhythm fixed before he attempted to enter the town. Catherine watched him silently as he gained in proficiency and the action became smoother, his aura remained a ‘normal’ red-orange as long as the little toy rose and fell. She intercepted any attempt by Stannous to engage Freder in conversation, this all rode on the boys success in looking like just any other lad; Stannous well meaning intervention could spell disaster. Only when they had reached their vantage point did she allow him to speak.

“Remember Freder keep it simple. No heroics, set a diversion if you can and then run like the devil were on your heels. We’ll handle the pursuit.”
Freder nodded solemnly.
“Good lad.” Stannous beamed down at him and offered his left arm which Freder gripped strongly. Mikal offered him no words but again took his left arm with a tight smile.
Catherine bent down slightly to him and kissed him on the cheek.
“You can do this Freder.” She told him softly and then stood back.
He turned towards the town and started down the hillside towards the road, he could feel them behind him but he did not allow himself the luxury of one last look at them, from here he was on his own. He felt the hard round shape of the yo-yo in his pocket and as he stepped out onto the road he pulled it out and carefully wound the string around the central slot. Then he began walking. The yo-yo absorbed his attention and he had walked about halfway to the town before he noticed the loud drone approaching him. It broke his concentration and the yo-yo dangled uselessly on its string as he looked up to see the zeppelin circling towards him, but not just him. He was near a major road and the airship was coming in low to spy out the people on the road. He walked onto the big road and slipped into the midst of the chattering throng as it headed for the town, one among many would be hard to spot as an outsider, and as the bulky shape thundered over head he looked up with the rest of them and waved to the figures who looked down from the gondolas. The ruse worked and the airship passed on towards another major road. Freder rewound the string on his yo-yo and began to play with it again, up and down, up and down. The crowd slowed and then moved forward at a shuffle as they were all challenged one by one by guards in the distinctive garb of the Righteous Hand, still the yo-yo went up and down.
“Next.”
Up and down, up and down.
“Come on boy we haven’t got all day.” The heavily bewhiskered guard growled at him and thrust out a version of the Aumeter at him.
Up and down, up and down.
Freder put out his left hand and touched the disc on top, all the while keeping the steady rhythm going, apparently as totally unconcerned about the test as only a boy on a record breaking streak with his toy could be.
“Clear.” The guard called as the indicator remained motionless and looked over towards a small hut where a figure sat in the shadows. The figure waved him through.
“Go on boy.”
Up and down, up and down.
His heart was beating swiftly, he mustn’t lose the rhythm until he was out of sight of the watcher, the yo-yo wobbled but his upward flick was perfectly timed and the yo-yo serenely rose once more. Only when he was around a corner did he stop and put it away. He was inside the perimeter, but now he had to find Valentina and the other two captured masters, but how was he to do that without raising suspicions ?
“Going to see the wizards trial then ?” A voice asked behind him.
For a moment he thought he had been spoken to but as he turned he saw that the speaker, a townsman by his fine clothes, was addressing an acquaintance.
“Most assuredly. It’s the biggest trial we’ll ever likely see here. Wouldn’t miss it.”
Freder ambled after them, sometimes close, other times well back, just a boy out and about, nothing suspicious. Ten minutes later he was presented with a new challenge. The two gents had vanished into the huge throng of people all around the building where the trial was to be held. It stood in a green space well clear of the surrounding roads but not a blade of grass could be seen for the mass of people all anxious to see this spectacle.

How to get through ? Freder looked at the seething horde and thought about an occasion when he had become separated from his Dad and Josef at a football match, pushing did no good against such a throng, but a small boy looking for his father, that had opened a corridor.
“’Scuse me.” He said in his best pathetic voice while pulling on the coat tail of a burly fellow. “Me Da’s in there, can I get through ?” He whined at the round face that turned to him.
“Sure lad. Here make some space there, this lads Da is up ahead.”
Magically a corridor opened for him as he pointed this way and that towards his distant Da and concerned adults made a passage for him. He was one of the last to slip through the doors before they closed firmly on any further members of the public. He wormed his way to the front of the public section at the back of the courtroom and stood with the rest of the hoi poloi waiting for the ‘show’ to begin.
The magistrates came in through a side door, three magnificently garbed figures, their black robes edged in elaborate gold thread, real gold Freder noted, and took their seats. Only then were the heavy shutters opened around the dock on the left side of the court, to reveal three figures; an excited buzz started up in the public section until an official turned towards them.
“Silence !”
Now the prosecutor stepped up into the small arena before the magistrates and bowed to them.
“Honourable sirs I bring before you three members of the outlaw gang, the Brotherhood of the Arm.” He said gesturing grandly at the three behind the heavy wooden bars.
Freder bit on his lower lip to stop himself interrupting to correct the mans error in naming the Brotherhood.
“One, Valentina Oldbrige, who was sent to infiltrate our noble institutions and pass information of a most secret and sensitive nature to her masters. The other two, self styled masters, wizards if you will noble sirs, who did heinously attack the good people of this town to effect the release of said defendant Valentina Oldbrige. These subversive sinisteres hold us in such contempt that they will not even divulge their names to this court.” He paused to allow the public to chatter excitedly, playing his audience.
“All three are thus charged with membership of an outlaw group, with acts of sedition against the good county of Doobyshire, acts of violence against the people and property of Crossblinging and most serious of all…treason against our most noble state of Britannia.”
There was a few minutes of loud shouting and agitation in the court while the chief magistrate ineffectively banged his gavel for order and the prosecutor looked on with barely disguised glee.

“Prisonners of this court, how do you plead ?” The chief magistrate demanded when some semblance of order had been restored.
One slight figure stepped up to the bars and peered out at the magistrates.
“I plead not guilty honourable sirs.” Valentina said in a small and very frightened voice.
“And the other prisoners ?” He questioned irritably when neither approached the bars to make their plea.
“They cannot plead honourable sirs.” She answered him. “I fear they have been drugged.”
The three magistrates looked at each other in dismay, drugged prisoners !
“Noble sirs.” The prosecutor was on his feet in a moment. “For the safety of this court the two criminals have indeed been drugged to prevent them from perpetrating acts of untold violence. Their actions have already hospitalised no less than fifteen good and innocent people of this town.”
The revelation brought an angry rumble from the gathered public and further gavel banging from the chief magistrate.
“This is most unusual.” He commented upon quiet being restored. “However in accordance with our long cherished tradition of innocent until proven guilty…”
Uproar threatened to break out again.
“Silence !” He barked. “Silence or I shall have you all removed.”
He gave a little nod of stern approval as silence fell again.
“Innocent until proven guilty, the record shall show a plea of not guilty for the two unnamed defendants.”
Clerks duly recorded this in their big open books.
“Who speaks for their defence ?”
A very young man stood up and bowed to the three magistrates, clearly unhappy at this thankless and unpopular task.
“Noble sirs.” He said nervously, then sat down again on a slight hand signal from the prosecutor.
“Proceed.” The chief magistrate waved to the prosecutor who stepped forward once more.
“Noble sirs, members of this court, it is my task…my unpleasant task to reveal to you the depths to which these sinisteres would sink to overthrow the fair and equitable institutions of our great country. It is also my task to convince this court that these despicable crimes in the making warrant not a sentence of penal servitude, but the sentence most fitting for these crimes. A sentence of death by decapitation.” He finished with a dramatic downstroke of his arm.
There was absolute hush in the court, the death penalty.

“’Ere, when’s the show goin’ to start ?” A cheeky boys voice sounded from the back of the court causing an intake of breath all round and heads turning. “I din’ walk all this way jus’ for some arm wavin’ speechin’. When’s them wizards goin’ to do sumfing ?” Freder called out. In his mind were Stannous’ words ‘Remember Freder keep it simple. No heroics, set a diversion if you can and then run like the devil were on your heels’ and this seemed like a good time to start the diversion.
“Young man.” The chief magistrate addressed him directly. “This is a court of law, not a circus.”
There was a polite ripple of laughter to this but Freder came straight back at him.
“How you goin’ to prove thems wizards if they don’ do sumfing eh ? They don’ look like wizards, could be anyone.”
The chief magistrate looked at Freder then sat back, the boy actually had a point. Somewhat perplexed he turned to the prosecutor.
“You can prove that the accused are members of this outlaw society ?”
“I can noble sirs, very easily indeed.”
He strode over to his table and picked up an Aumeter then presented it to the court for their inspection.
“Noble sirs, members of this court, please take note of this device. It is known commonly as an aumeter, it can identify the members of the outlaw society, the Brotherhood of the Arm, without fail. I shall demonstrate.”
He carried the aumeter over to the dock like a black vampire stalking it’s prey.
“Valentina Oldbrige, you will place your hand upon the disc.” He ordered thrusting the device up towards her.
Slowly she put out her thin arm through the bars and touched the disc, the little indicator lifted to about a third of the way up the scale.
“Proof positive !” The prosecutor exclaimed jubilantly.
“Oi ! I can’ see nuffink from ‘ere.” Freder shouted out, this was risky but he had to maintain their attention whilst he was seeking out the nearest energy streams.
“Noble sirs.” The prosecutor said turning smoothly to the increasingly agitated magistrates. “Perhaps if the young man were able to witness this test in person he would act as a witness for the whole of this court.” He said gesturing around the room expansively, he knew how to play a court and this noisy boy was going to be putty in his hands.
“Proceed.” The chief magistrate assented.
“Allow the boy through.” The prosecutor waved to the guards and waited as Freder walked nervously forwards, in this at least he was not acting.
“Now young man this aumeter will only respond when one of the outlaws touches it, see for yourself, touch the disc on top.”
Freder reached out with his right hand and touched the disc, no movement.
“It don’ move.” He announced.
“But when…” The prosecutor began to say as he turned back to the dock.
“’Ere, it might be broke. You touch it.”
The prosecutor raised his eyes towards the ceiling.
“It is not broken young man.” He said in an exasperated tone. “But as proof.”
He touched the disc. The indicator slammed straight up to its farthest limits.
Valentina gasped in surprise.
“It moved !” Freder shouted pointing to the aumeter. “’E’s one o’ them, e’s one of them ‘Arms !”
All the nearby members of the court had seen the unmistakeable movement of the aumeter indicator, they were in complete shock whilst the prosecutor looked at the aumeter in total disbelief.
“It moved, ‘rrest ‘im, ‘rrest him !” Freder shouted at the top of his voice and stepped back towards the dock as if in horror.

His cry seemed to have the desired effect as three burly guards converged on the hapless man and complete pandemonium erupted in the court. Just to increase the confusion Freder decided to blow the water main that he was tapping for energy, which happened to run under the public section of the court room. The broiling column of water came surging up through the floor and women screamed in shock, yes this was a pretty good diversion.
Freder turned round to the dock.
“Tina.” He called to her shocked face as she looked out, her eyes swivelled down and recognised him.
“Freder.”
“I could use some help to get you out of here.”
“I can’t do it.” She replied desperately. “I can’t harvest the vatenloeker, I can’t do it.”
Freder had seen her in class, she had a precision of control that made all the other novices efforts, and especially his own, look crude. He needed her to show that skill right now.
“You can do it Tina, take my hand.” He reached up with his left hand.
“I can’t.” She sobbed. “I’m just not strong enough.”
“Tina ! Take – my – hand !” Freder shouted furiously, he hadn’t risked this much for it all to fall apart now.
She seemed shocked by his authority, reached out, found his small hand and gripped it. Energy surged to her command like never before, Freder provided a conduit that she could not provide for herself. Suddenly she was powerful, she had the energy to do anything she desired, even to obdurate wooden bars, that few masters could manipulate. In turn each bar snapped in two as she clamped them with pincers of flux, then tore them free and flung them away across the court room into the massive chaos that reigned there. She could feel so much metal around her, lamps, brackets, nails everywhere, just what she needed.
A guard surged forward from the melee to grab her, but her slender hand upon his face was contact enough to lock his muscles and he crashed to the floor like a felled tree. Creaking sounds from all sides heralded her seizing nail after nail and ripping them free to release wooden panels and beams to come crashing down, but she had more plans for those nails. She sent one into each guard still on their feet and used those painful needles of iron to ground stunning bolts of electricity.

“Freder, there’s a steam wagon outside, get it here, stove the side of the building in.” She cried as she fired more nails at anyone who looked like they might try to stop them.
Freder felt the huge mass of iron and ‘pulled’ at it causing the vehicle to swerve off the road and plunge towards them. The driver couldn’t straighten its course and yanked hard on the whistle to warn the crowds around the building as he struggled in vain to redirect his machine.
“Runaway !” He yelled and they scattered before the slow but inexorable advance of the snorting, hissing behemoth.
At the last moment before it hit he jumped safely clear and there was a horrible sound of splintering timber as the heavy lorry rammed into the building just to the left of the dock.
“Get it back out of the way.” Valentina shouted. “Make a hole for us.”
Freder wasn’t sure he could ‘push’ but he could certainly lift and the front end began to carve a huge slice out of the wall as it soared skywards, no finesse here just urgent unstoppable movement. It crashed over onto it’s back spilling hot coals everywhere and spitting steam from cracked pipes, no-one was going to approach that wreck, their escape route was clear.
Valentina half hauled Freder scrambling up into the dock and they were presented with their next problem, the two masters.
“We can’t lift them, can they walk ?” He asked her.
“I don’t think so, the guards pretty much dragged them here.”
“We need something to put them on, something…” He bit his lip in concentration but he couldn’t think of anything that would help them.
“I…I think I have an idea.” Valentina said haltingly. “It’s wild but we haven’t anything to lose.”
“What ?” Freder demanded of her.
“I need something metal, large enough for us all to sit on.”
“Okay.” He said matter of factly, the adrenalin surge was so great that he had absolutely no fear, with Valentina holding his hand he felt he really could do anything. Two streets away he sensed a heavy security grating on a warehouse and at his whim it ripped free of its solid masonry fixing and showered hapless pedestrians with chunks of stone and cement as it soared away into the sky and over the roofs. Freder had no trouble getting it to move but stopping it now that it was in motion, that was another matter.

“Incoming !” He yelled and heaved on the seat of the two drugged masters so that everyone ended up on the floor just moments before there was a tremendous bang and clatter as the grating slammed into the wall and fell on top of the smoking spitting wreck of the steam lorry.
“Sorry.” He said with a grin as they clambered to their feet.
Now, how to get the two somnolent figures out of the jagged hole and onto the grating ? Valentina looked around the courtroom, most of the crowd had fought their way out and nobody looked likely to try to stop them. But the three magistrates were sitting bolt upright in their chairs, too scared to even move.
“You three !” She barked. “Here, now !”
When none of them moved she was at a loss but Freder reached out with his etheric hand and grabbed the masses of gold braid on the chief magistrates robe and gave it a very savage yank upwards.
“Now, noble sirs.” He insisted with genuine authority and caused the trio to scramble over the wreckage to them.
“Help us get them outside.” Valentina ordered and the two younger ones stooped down to pick up Gina. “Gently.” She added as they heaved her off the floor and struggled down to the gaping rent in the wall.
Freder and Valentina kept the senior magistrate close to them, a hostage against any assault. With much puffing they laid Gina on the grass outside and then came back for Bobby who was an altogether more difficult prospect. Valentina gave the old magistrate a nudge.
“Help them.”
It would have been a comedy if the circumstances had been different as these three senior members of the judiciary, clad in all their finery struggled to carry one man. Their wigs fell off and dust mixed with water to splatter their black robes with mucky grey, they themselves were all bright red from their exertions and panting fit to drop.
Freder flipped the grating off the steam wagon onto the grass and pointed to it. Gratefully they deposited their load onto it and then went over to Gina and carried her across to it too. Then as they stood half doubled over from their efforts the boy and girl confronted them once more, they seemed to have grown much taller.

“We are members of the Brotherhood of the Good Arm.” Freder told them. “We didn’t want to have to do this.” He waved his free arm around at all the damage. “But the Righteous Hand forced us to do it. We aren’t your enemies. I’m sorry for the injuries we have caused.” He looked at Valentina. “Now we should go.”
Before the startled gaze of the trio they sat down on the grating and it began to rise into the air like a magic carpet.
“Can you keep contact with the vatenloeker ?” Valentina asked anxiously as they passed rooftop height, they wouldn’t survive a fall from this position.
“I think so, give me a moment before you move us forward.” He let his aura sweep outwards and located a strong silver river of energy flowing out of the town. “That one.” He said confidently. “Stay near that one.”
Slowly at first but then more rapidly they began to move forwards along the path of the hidden vatenloeker, Valentina concentrated hard on her task, lifting and pushing. Freder had his aural self deeply immersed in the river of energy and the electrons rushing past ‘him’ felt oh so good, he simply let the energy flow. His cares seemed to be a million miles away as the wind of their motion lightly tousled his air, he leant towards Valentina and snuggled up to her comfortably.
Freders movement nearly broke her concentration but as his warmth penetrated her thin robe she leaned on him too, this felt so right and for the first time since they had met she smiled at him.
They were over the towns perimeter and moving faster than a man could run when they felt rather than heard the zeppelin as it gunned its engines and came in pursuit.
The grating wobbled and Freders eyes snapped open to look up at Valentina’s panicked face.
“Oh no.” She cried as she saw the massive airship move to intercept them.
She felt Freder grip her hand more tightly.
“Don’t worry Tina, we’re not alone, never alone.” He said with absolute certainty and as if in answer the darkening clouds overhead unleashed a fearsome lightning bolt that grounded near the lumbering behemoth.
Before the crew could respond another strike flashed past them so close that they could smell the ozone, then a third and fourth. The captain had no doubts, they were being warned off and he took the message, sending the ship on a slow wide turn away from the little black speck that he had been ordered to intercept.

“Who ?” Valentina breathed in relief.
“Stannous and Mikal, and Catherine.” Freder replied with a smile. “I’ll bet she knew the moment we got airborne. They’re over there.” He pointed to their right. “On that hill with the crooked tree near the top.”
“Can you keep it up ?” She asked him as they veered off towards the hill.
“Ummm.” He ruminated and felt the task become more difficult, they were using an awesome amount of energy and losing more and more as they moved further away from the source. “Uh, no.” He admitted after a minute. “Better get us down, quick.”
The landing was abrupt but they had nearly stopped moving forwards by the time the grating gouged into the soft ground and tumbled them off in a giggling bundle. Valentina let go of his hand and wrapped her arms about him.
“Freder.” She laughed. “Freder we did it !”
“Told you you could do it.” He replied, hugging her too. “What a team.”
“Freder !” A distant shout brought them out of their reverie and they looked about to see three figures running down the hillside towards them. They separated and stood up to meet them.
“You got them all out !” Stannous exclaimed breathlessly as he arrived. “By the Lords lad I thought you were going to end up with them.”
“I might have done if not for Tina.” He answered his mentor.
“Ahh Valentina.” Stannous said in a disapproving tone.
“Enough.” Catherine interrupted, this was no time to start casting blame, and went straight to the two prone figures, running her hands over them gently. “They have been bruised but there are no serious injuries.”
“They were drugged master.” Valentina told her.
“I guessed as much. Well we shall have to carry them.”
“That will slow us down.” Stannous began to say.
“We will not leave them.” Catherine hissed angrily at him.
He raised his hands in front of himself.
“You misconstrue me Cat. I was about to ask Freder if he could do his levitation again.”
“Oh, sorry.” Catherine replied and looked to Freder. “Can you do it ?”
“It wasn’t me, it was Tina.” Freder said with a shrug.
“She hasn’t demonstrated the strength.” Catherine said slowly, looking from one to the other. “Whatever you two did, can you do it again ?” She asked them pragmatically, pursuit would not be long in coming.
Freder cast around for a new vatenloeker, he could find only a few streams in their direction of travel up into the hills, it would be difficult.

“We can try.”
“That’s all we ask of you.” Catherine said with smile, then turned to Stannous and Mikal. “You must cover our retreat.”
“My pleasure.” Stannous grinned.
“Cloud, rain and fog will serve us better here than lightning strikes Stannous. Miranda wishes us to minimise any harm, remember that.”
“As the Master Supreme wishes it.” He said ungraciously and jerked his head to Mikal. They set off towards the town and the clouds began to swirl lower, growing a more and more menacing grey black.
Catherine re-arranged the two sleeping masters on the grating and stood up.
“Is there anything I can do to help you ?”
“It would help if you could pull the grating.” Valentina said and held out her right hand to Freder. As he took it Catherine witnessed an event unparalled in her experience of sighting, their auras merged seamlessly to form a single bright blue and purple fringed darkness. The grating lifted into the air and Catherine caught hold of its front and pulled. It moved easily and she was aware of the many shifting energy currents as Freder pulled it in from distant sources while Valentina directed them in a continuous dance to maintain the grating in the air. She was present at a unique moment in the Brotherhoods history she reflected as she sweated up along the little track into the hills that led to the camp, present and very happy. It was late afternoon when the little party rounded the final shoulder and came in sight of the cluster of tents and a figure who was fairly flying down the path to meet them, red hair streaming.
“Down.” Catherine said releasing the grating.
There was a soft sigh behind her and she turned to see Freder quietly fold into Valentina’s arms. As Catherine crouched down beside her, to run a hand over his pale forehead, Valentina was hugging him protectively, on the verge of tears.
“He’s exhausted, no harm done Tina.” She said softly, putting a comforting hand on her arm and then nodded towards the figure who had come to a halt behind her. Slowly she surrendered her precious burden to Catherine and stood to face her mother.
“Tina.” Miranda breathed. “Tina.” She lunged forward and hugged her daughter to her breast. “You’re safe, you’re safe.”
A second person came running up and clasped the pair of them in his big arms.
“Mother, Father.” Valentina sobbed quietly. “Sorry, so sorry.”
Only now did they notice the small prone figure that Catherine cradled gently in her lap.
“Freder, is he ….?” Vernon began to ask.
“He is exhausted. Nothing a good rest won’t cure. Gina and Bobby have been given some drug. They should be given a proper examination for any signs of toxicity.”
“Of course.” Vernon nodded and took charge as the other masters and novices crowded around.
“We should leave immediately.” Catherine cautioned. “Young Freder and Tina have stirred up quite a hornets nest in Crossblinging. Stannous and Mikal are impeding any pursuit but we would be a lot safer if we put some distance between us and the Hand.”