"What?" She asked
as she took another step back.
"I will provide the
necessary stimulant to awaken your senses." I answered, no
longer moving toward her. "How do you identify the creatures you
hunt?" I asked.
The girl offered a shrug.
"Normally they introduce themselves by attacking. Some of the
less human-like critters show up in the park or by the cliffs.
Usually they find me before I find them."
I frowned. "You always
let the hunt come to you?"
She nodded. "What else
can I do? Its not like critters have neon signs that tell me where
they are."
With a soft moan, I shook my
head.
How has she survived? How
could I have been caught by someone so ignorant?
"Most creatures have a
distinct aura. Sensing auras is how the vartija were trained to
hunt."
"Okay. How do I sense
auras?" She asked, taking another bite from the food she had
brought out.
It was possible for djinn to
consume the food from this layer, but a majority of it lacked flavor
to my species. There was a small selection of delicacies on this layer
that I would choose to eat. They were not especially tasty, but the
would suffice during my exile.
"Focus your mind on
me." I told her. Forsaking the limits I had set at the beginning
of my exile, I fully released my aura. By my senses, my aura was the
smell of wet charcoal and a lingering mugginess in the air. "Allow
your senses to roam. Let them seek for anything out of place,
anything that contradicts the surrounding environment."
I waited, considering her
aura. I knew that as a vartija, her aura modified itself for each
individual that sensed it. Taking a form pleasing to its pray, the
aura acted as bait to bring the hunt to the hunter. A wise tactic for
one prepared, but idiotic for one as ignorant as this girl.
Pulling myself out of my
musings, I spoke.
"Well?"
She frowned. "The air
seems more humid then earlier."
"Where? Pinpoint the
source."
The girl slowly turned, then
met my gaze. "From you. Is that your aura?"
I gave a small nod. "Part
of it. Now focus inward, search for something similar in yourself."
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