Barron's Prey

Barron

Chapter 10

Fire surrounded him, flickering around him, close enough for him to feel the heat, but far enough that he didn't get burned. 

"That's the trick."

He looked up, startled at the voice, and as soon as he moved, his concentration broke.  Flames grew wild, eating anything in their path, shooting towards the person who had broken his hold on the magic.

The older man held up a hand, taking the flames into himself, not allowing them to go any further than they already had.  "Now," he said with a smile in his eyes, "you need to learn to concentrate, Barron.  There will be times where a war is surrounding you.  Learning how to tune that out will be the hardest lesson you will ever learn."

"I can do it."

The man bent down as the flames too died down.  Green eyes glowed with pride that couldn't be masked.  "Of course you will, son.  You can do anything you put your mind to, but you know what that means, don't you?"

"I have a responsibility to do good things."

"Right.  Just remember that, Barron.  Remember that no matter what tempts you, you must always do what is right.  Never let the darkness take you."

His eyes flew open, but he didn't move.  Memories, more strong than the dreams he was usually plagued with, flew through Barron's mind, and he tried his hardest to hold onto them, to remember, but the harder he tried to grasp them, the quicker they fell through his fingers.

When the last image disappeared from his mind, hiding until it wanted to return, Barron threw back the sheet that covered his body.  The light streaming through the window let him know that it was daytime, but the clock on his bedside table showed he had only gotten five hours of sleep the night before.  Frustration spurred his movements as he jumped out of bed, slipped on a pair of sweat pants and walked towards his bedroom door. He wasn't making the mistake of wearing only boxers around the compound anymore, not when the rest of the guys had chuckled at him every time they saw him the day before.

He walked out of his room and hesitated at the door next to his.  He knew he needed to talk to Sara, needed to ask for her help in finding the other hybrids, but that could wait until his stomach stopped growling and his mind was clear enough for the vocal sparring he'd have to endure.

"I've noticed she isn't a morning person."

Barron jerked towards the voice.  "Namir."

"Barron," Namir greeted with a slight bow to his head.  "Did you wake up this early to make more pancakes?"

Shaking his head at the man, he passed Sara's door and continued down the hall towards the kitchen.  "I was thinking cereal would work."

"Cereal," Namir repeated as he caught up to Barron.  "I haven't had cereal in a decade."

He paused for the second time that morning.  "Where have you been living for the last decade?"

"Here and there.  Wherever I could go and wherever I was needed."

"You were needed here."  Barron mentally winced when the words slipped from his mouth, but he didn't let his expression show how he felt.  The man standing next to him with his bright eyes and leopard tattoo had refused to answer too many questions.

Namir's eyes narrowed.  "We all know that sometimes, being away is just as much help."

"You mean with my family," Barron conceded, taking the insult.  "With them, they usually are safer with me gone, but now, with whatever in the hell this is after us, I'm bringing them here to make sure that they stay safe, even if I have to be around to do it.  How about you, what did you do when Ally needed you?"