Grady's Awakening by Bianca D'Arc Page A

emotion that sometimes plagued him—most often longing for something he couldn’t understand.
    Eve was another adopted human member of the clan who had a strong gift of prophecy, and it was her gift that often guided the Patriarch in his seemingly quixotic moves. Gina had just a touch of foresight herself, and she’d felt the rightness of his request that she take on this mission. Though she might very well be going into a lion’s den, she knew she was the right person for the job. Why? She couldn’t say exactly. But this was as it should be.
    “I understand, Patriarch.” She had bowed her head, but hadn’t broken eye contact—a show of utmost respect.
    “You must make contact with these people and put them in touch with the others. It is vital they discover each other’s existence and learn to work together in whatever small ways they can as soon as possible. Things are moving fast. We must all be ready when the time comes.”
    “Yes, Patriarch. I’ll do my best.”
    “You will succeed, daughter.”
    Gina had stilled. He’d never called her that before. It was a sign of respect reserved for those students granted the highest rankings in the Zxerah way. Gina had come to the Zxerah as an adult, already highly trained in traditional human martial arts. The way of the Zxerah was even more intense. She’d learned a great deal in the years since her adoption into the clan, but none of the human adoptees had ever been granted the title of daughter or son of the clan. It was a high honor and totally unexpected.
    Tears had gathered in her eyes. She had refused to let them fall. The Patriarch had noticed anyway and a kind smile graced his face.
    “You deserve the honor, Gina. You are the best of the human students in our clan. And it is good to see evidence that this honor touches your emotions, though I cannot fully comprehend such things. It gives me…hope…if the ancient ones allow me to take such a word to describe the echoes I feel when I look into your eyes. I pray all our clan will one day be able to feel as you and your human brethren do.”
    “I hope so too, Patriarch. We human Zxerah will keep the flame of hope alive for you until you can join us in feeling its warmth.”
    He had grasped her hands and she felt the tingle of his power. He wasn’t an old man, but he was one of the holiest, strongest, most powerful and at peace beings she’d ever known. He had vision. Not the kind granted to some psychic humans. It was the powerful, non-psychic kind of vision. He knew what he wanted and believed in his convictions strongly enough to act on them in a way that would change not only his life or his clansmen’s lives, but the lives of all Alvians and humans on earth. He was a visionary with no psychic gifts. Only the power of his own beliefs.
     
     

It was enough.
    It had to be.
     
    Gina set out on her mission later that morning. She had said farewell to Grady Prime as they left the small clearing that had been their own private Eden for the night. He was utterly devastating, but she had a mission to perform that was more important than anything else. No matter how much she might wish otherwise.
    She felt his eyes on her as she left the compound accompanied by the two winged soldiers the Patriarch and Sinclair Prime had chosen for this mission. The team of winged brethren was tasked with flying her across the many miles she had to traverse. They would take turns carrying her short distances, then they would rest a few moments and tackle the next leg of the journey.
    Hanlon was a strawberry blond who would be cute if he ever smiled and Shaugness had dark blond hair and a constantly dour expression. This was the first time, to her knowledge, that the winged brethren had been asked to work closely with one of the human adoptees. She knew they were curious about her—as curious as they could be, seeing that they had little emotion to call their own—but they didn’t ask any questions other than to inquire