Tom Dowd - Burning Bright

Doctor Douglas leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes. "I suggest we look for the signs of an essence-drainer in the aura that remains."

"Vampire?" he asked.

"Possibly," she said, "but that doesn't explain the catatonia, unless the actual act was so terrifying that his mind refused it."

"I think he might be involved with one or more spirits, probably free, but of a type I couldn't determine."

Her eyes opened and she leaned forward. "Really?" That gave her pause for thought. "An essence-draining spirit of some kind. It certainly makes sense."

She thought about this and then shook her head. "We don't have enough information." She looked in the direction of Mitchell Truman's room. "I think it's time to look deeper… if I can get them to leave him alone for a minute…"

"The D-CAT scan showed nothing abnormal, nor did the encephaphasic or neurochemical batteries," she told him some hours later. "His brain is normal. It's just not working." Dr. Douglas and Kyle were reviewing the results of the medical and magical tests they had run on Mitchell after persuading the Truman family to go home and rest.

Kyle studied the boy lying listlessly on the bed, the sheets twisted slightly around him. Moments ago his eyes had sprung open as he searched the room for something unknown and then collapsed.

"Seeks-the-Moon," Kyle said, and the spirit slipped into physical existence alongside him. Doctor Douglas looked up from where she was watching the small monitor screen that displayed the boy's vital signs. She frowned, squinted, and then looked back at the screen.

The spirit stood regarding Mitchell for a moment, then stepped forward to look at him more closely. Moon's lips were pursed. "Excuse me a moment," he said, then grew translucent and faded away to nothing.

"Your ally spirit?" the doctor asked.

"Yes."

She nodded. "I thought I saw a resemblance."

"Gee, thanks."

"You're welcome."

Seeks-the-Moon returned, fading back in a meter or so from where he'd been standing before. He was facing away from the bed, and when Moon turned, Kyle could see that he had visibly paled. That took him by surprise. He'd never seen his ally spirit react that way before.

"What's going on?"

The spirit shook his head. "I've never seen anything like it"

"We thought maybe a vampire or some other essence draining spirit was involved," the doctor said.

"No," said Seeks-the-Moon. "This is not the work of one of those."

Kyle was startled. "When have you seen the result of a vampire attack?"

"Never," he said, staring at the limp form on the bed.

"Me neither," Kyle said. "So how could you-"

The spirit raised its hand. "You formed me from the loose energies of astral space, yes?" When Kyle nodded, he said, "The world remembers."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means that sometimes I know things that you do not. And sometimes I know things that I perhaps should not know. This is one of those times."

"Of course!" said the doctor. "It only makes sense!"

"I'm sorry?" said Kyle, turning toward her.

"Where does the collective unconscious reside?" she said, her face bright. "Why, in astral space, of course! He said the 'world remembers', and he's formed of those same energies, the same energy that interfaces with every living thing on the planet. It only makes sense that he can somehow tap into that."

Kyle turned back to his ally spirit, somewhat disturbed by the discussion. "You've never been able to do that before."

Seeks-the-Moon nodded. "I've not been allowed to."

"Not been allowed to!" said Kyle. “This is getting absurd."

Seeks-the-Moon held up his hand again, and it seemed to be shaking slightly. "Please, I understand this less than you and find it equally disturbing. All I know is that Mitchell Truman was not attacked by a vampire."

"Then what?"

"It was a spirit, yes," Seeks-the-Moon said, "but when it tried to devour his soul and failed, the boy went mad."

"His soul?" asked Doctor Douglas.

"His primal spirit, his Self, his ka-the names are endless," said the spirit. "But I do not believe the spirit wanted his soul, rather it wanted his body. His soul was simply in the way."

"A failed possession?" asked the doctor.

Seeks-the-Moon shrugged. "I don't know. I've told you what I sense."

"That would explain much about-"

A ball of deep blue and white exploded into the room, moving at blinding speed, hitting Kyle in the chest and rebounding across the room. Instantly, a gray-green shield sprung up around him as he tried to protect himself from another attack. Seeks-the-Moon moved with the speed of thought across the room and placed himself between the ball of energy and Mitchell Truman.

"MASTER!" the ball screeched as it careened across the room, finally slowing to a comprehensible speed.

"Delta?" said Kyle as he lowered his hands.

"I FOUND YOU! I FOUND YOU!" the watcher spirit squealed as it quickly hovered near him.

"Great Coyote," muttered Seeks-the-Moon, relaxing.

"I told Charlotte I could find you!" It darted around him, obviously pleased with itself. "She didn't think I could! But I did!"

"Yes, you did, Delta," Kyle said sternly. "Now why did you come here?"

The watcher spirit paused and regarded him wide-eyed. "Um…"

"Delta…"

"Oh!" it said, bouncing again. "Charlotte said another spirit came!"

"Another spirit?"

"Yes!"

"Did she fight it?"

"I don't know." The watcher sounded concerned that it didn't know. "She just told me to find you!"

Kyle sighed. “That's good. Delta. You did fine."

It jumped into the air again. "I told her I could! I told her I could!"

Kyle turned to Seeks-the-Moon. "I'm going to see about the Trumans," he said. "Guard my body and the boy's while I'm gone."

The spirit nodded. "Of course."

Kyle sat down in one of the room's chairs and relaxed. He turned his astral senses inward and examined his own body and spirit. His form was tired, running on hyperkaf and adrenaline, but soon that would not be enough. His spirit, however, was alight with energy. He willed himself to be solely spirit, to loosen the connection to his physical body and float free, and he did.

Kyle's spirit separated, and he stepped clear of his body and into astral space. The room, filled with plants, was bright with life. Both Seeks-the-Moon and Doctor Douglas also glowed warm, strong, and healthy. Mitchell Truman was the only living source not radiating brightly. He was dim, a meat shell barely holding life.

Seeks-the-Moon, who could sense simultaneously in both the physical and astral realms, regarded Kyle in his astral form. As an expression of Kyle's idealized self-image, his astral shape sparked energy off its lean, muscular form. For a moment he was unmasked and his aura showed all his potential as a mage initiated into the higher mysteries of the world. A single throbbing silver cord connected his astral body with his physical one. He knew he could see that connection clearly now, but as he moved away from his body, the cord would dim into insubstantiality.

“I’ll be back quickly," he told Seeks-the-Moon, and the spirit nodded.

Kyle turned toward the window, which, along with its frame, was dull and lifeless in astral space. His astral form would be able to pass through it easily. The plants in the room, however, being now or once alive, he'd have to fly over.

And fly he did with the speed of thought.

Kyle flew out beyond the medical facility and high into the still-dark morning air. The city was alive beneath him, stretching away in a glowing haze to the north, west, and south. To the east it abutted the vivid glow of Lake Michigan, which hummed with life almost as brightly as the city.