Page 8 of Forging Bonds: Part One

"True," Van says. "Wait, didn't Sully mention having a kelpie? Couldn't we just ask him if there are limitations to where they can travel?"

I nod, "We could, but I kind of want to see it for myself. Especially since if we do call them, then chances are we will be in trouble. I want to know with absolute certainty that they will show up if we call."

"Yeah, I agree. I would like to know without a doubt that we can call on them too," Doc replies.

"I agree too. Well, even though we want to find out for ourselves if they come, we can still ring him and see if he can tell us the whistle," Ransom points out.

I grin, yeah, that probably should have been more obvious. In my defense, my mind has been full of the Choosing and, admittedly, the fact that we're going to be bringing in Dimitri. A pang of guilt spears me, and I shake it off, he's not who he was. I know that he's done stuff, really bad stuff, but there's still a part of me that's clinging on to who he was, and no matter what I say to that part, it refuses to let go completely. I honestly don't think that it ever will.

Pulling out my phone, I dial Sully's number, and I copy what Van usually does when he makes a call to Ty and put it on speakerphone so that we can all hear.

"Neith, are you on your way back yet?" Sully asks.

"No, not quite. I'll send you a text message when we're at the portal at Niamh's, like usual," I tell him.

"No problem. What's up?" he asks.

I am so tempted to ask all of the things that we want to ask him, but I remind myself that it's better to ask him in person so I can see his facial expressions in case we ask something that falls under the silencing spell and if he can't tell us, his facial expressions will.

"While we are still here, and since we aren't going to be able to come back here for a while, we thought we would call the kelpies," I begin to explain.

"That's a smart idea. It can sometimes take a while before they will respond, and that's something that you want to figure out now and not when you're in the thick of it," he replies.

"Exactly," I reply. "The only problem is that we don't actually know how to do it."

Sully chuckles, "That's easy enough. Do you remember me saying that all supes that were bonded with kelpies were taught the same whistle to call them?"

"Vaguely," Reed replies, while I nod in agreement because I have no recollection of that, and I'm glad that I'm not the only one.

"Well, I can teach you the whistle that we're taught, but don't panic if yours sounds different," Sully continues to explain. "There is old magic in the tune that will shift and change it so that you only call your kelpie. It's specific to you, and even if someone tried to replicate it, they wouldn't be able to do so."

"That is so cool," Raiden grins.

"It is," Sully agrees, a smile in his voice. "Are you ready?"

"Hell yeah," River replies immediately.

Sully chuckles. He takes a breath and then whistles, it's a haunting tune and beautiful.

"I recommend that you do it one at a time," Sully says. "Just the first time that you call them. You don't have to, but I always find it interesting to see how the whistles differ even though you are all doing the same tune."

"Can you do it one more time, please?" I ask. "I want to make sure that I remember it right."

"Of course," Sully replies.

We all listen intently one more time.

"Thanks, Sully," Evander says, looking like he's concentrating hard so he doesn't forget it.

"No problem. You can tell me how it goes when you get back," Sully says. "Give me another call if you forget how it goes. It can take a couple of tries to get it right anyway."

"We will," I reply and then hang up.

"Okay, so who goes first?" Griff asks.

Raiden looks at me, "I think Neith should. If any of the kelpies are likely to reply, it's going to be Mael. He's got a stronger bond with Neith than we have with our kelpies."

"Good point," Doc agrees.

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