I shift as I hit the ground, welcoming my wereshape, the strength it gives me, the supportive embrace of my wolf. I can't cry or sob or crumble when I'm in this body. I'm strong when I'm a werewolf. The weakness of my human skin I leave behind as I race through the California hills after Sage.
He's easy to track, I know him so well, even if his scent wasn't so strong. His energy trails behind him like a flaring beacon. I cut off as much as I can from outside touch, muffling the feeling of him with my own power, though the Enforcers, I'm sure, will find us shortly. They have to. There's no way they can miss the pulse of what is happening to him.
And what is happening? I can't tell, he's too far beyond me though I'm gaining, from the feel of him ahead. He's struggling with something as his magic shivers and shifts, almost like his body did. The ground flies beneath my paws as I push myself harder than I ever have to reach him. To be with him when whatever is coming completes itself.