Noble had witnessed the Skinwalker do exactly that in Australia. The creature had quietly taken over a whole community of a million people without the government being any wiser.
They had only left the governor and his wife untouched while living out the lives of the other members of the city. It was contrary to everything researchers knew about Nightmare Creatures, who only killed and destroyed anything uncorrupted. In hindsight, Noble could recognize the brilliance of the action.
As long as the people in power were able to communicate with the leader of the city, they wouldn't have any reason to think anything was amiss. The level of intelligence to think that far ahead was frightening. How was one creature capable of all that? What was its rank and class?
Or was it like the Others and a being that the Spell did not know?
'Ah, that idea makes my head hurt…'
Another terrible thought entered Noble's head. What if the gate entry had been a diversion?
Her emotional sense, which she had retracted slightly after searching for the source of her gift, suddenly spread wide.
'Oh!' Noble felt her head spin. Before her transcendence, she could gauge the emotions of a large swath of people around her, but it usually didn't stretch much more than a few city blocks.
But now…
Now she could sense the signatures of most of Ravenheart! And the radius kept expanding, giving her more and more people for her to filter through.
It was overwhelming!
Noble grabbed her head and gasped.
Dropping the bag of flour, Sarai rushed to her friend's side. "What's wrong?"
"Too much!" Noble cut off her essence from use, instantly retracting her emotional sense, but also removing her levitation. Her toes touched the ground, sending pain through her body.
The pain was more manageable than when she had been a Master, but that didn't make it enjoyable. Noble yelped a second time.
"Too much what? Heat?" Sarai furrowed her brow. The temperature had never bothered her before.
Noble reinstated her telekinesis, taking a deep breath as she fought the nausea that too often accompanied the activation of her flaw.
"Too much emotion." Noble blew out the breath slowly. "I wanted to see if there were Skinwalkers in the city, but I overdid it."
"Let me get you something to drink." Sarai went to the wall and pulled a hanging cord twice. "I get thirsty quite often back here. Abyss had this installed so I could…"
Two knocks at the door precipitated a server appearing with a cup of chilled water.
"Thank you." The redhead accepted it and handed it to her companion.
The server dipped his head and left the room.
Noble drank deeply. She was thirstier than she realized. In the pause, she examined her essence usage. It had taken a considerable amount of it to spread across the city like that, but not nearly as much as she thought it would. With her new reserves, she could sustain big expenditures for much longer.
That was nice. The sudden influx of emotions from more than ten times the number of people she had ever handled before was not.
Her brain was not prepared for that amount of information. It was a jolt to her system.
"Thank you." Noble smiled at her worried friend and lifted her cup. "I'll be fine now."
"Are you sure?" Sarai studied her friend's face.
Child of Promise nodded. "I guess I'm going to have to get used to being back in civilization again. I am glad it happened with you here. I know to be more careful."
"Please take care of yourself. We all need you." Sarai hugged her friend. "Ah, am I glad you are back!"
A warm feeling grew from Noble's chest, strengthening the connection she already had to Sarai.
Her Kingdom Keeper…no Kingdom Crafter Attribute–it was doing something she couldn't explain. It wasn't quite like the tether that connected her and Flint, but it had a similar binding agent.
What was the purpose? Was it a stronger version of how she kept people safe before?
Whatever the purpose, it could only mean good for Sarai. That was what mattered right now.
Looking at Noble, the redhead's face changed slightly. "Did you find any?"
"What?"
"Skinwalkers, of course." Sarai tried not to show how nervous she felt, but Noble knew better.
Noble shook her head.
"I didn't get a good look, sorry. Let me try again a different way."
"It can wait. I don't want you passing out from overexertion!" The baker folded her hands.
"I made the mistake of sorting through everyone. I am going to try another method this time. I won't be at ease until I know, and I would rather you be here if I pass out." Noble didn't think she would, but it was better to have someone with her when she tried.
This time, Noble flooded her Ability with essence and manually expanded her range, but instead of taking in everyone who came within orbit, she looked for a very particular signature—the one belonging to the Skinwalker.
She had been around it enough times that calling it to mind was easier than breathing. Closing her eyes, Noble became very still and focused.
'If one is here, I will find them.'
A minute passed and then two. Sarai began to wonder if Noble had lost consciousness while upright when her eyes finally popped open.
"We are clear."
Sarai whistled softly. "That's a relief. I don't like the feeling that every person I pass might be an enemy in disguise."
"Yeah, that would be terrible." Noble rubbed the back of her neck. She had lived through that experience all too recently.
Oblivious to her thoughts, Sarai began a new batch of dough.
"With you back, I'll sleep a little easier. You won't let them go undetected."
"You can count on me anytime." The floating woman promised. "Speaking of time, I need to go for now. I only just got back this morning, and I promised Fort I wouldn't be long."
"Oh, of course. Give Fort and the kids my warm wishes," Sarai chuckled at her pun. "I'll stop by to chat soon in one world or the other."
"Sounds good."
Noble turned to leave.
"Oh! You never got your scones!" The baker looked at the bag of overcooked bread. "Rain check?"
"I will come and get something later on my way home. The kids will be expecting me to bring them a treat from Auntie Sarai's shop anyway." Noble winked.
The redhead beamed. "I'll have something special ready. Perhaps a celebration cake!"
Noble left her friend planning whatever confection pleased her. Something sweet sounded amazing after weeks of mostly meager rations.
Ah, the best thing about civilization was the food. Now that she was a Saint, she theoretically did not have to eat nearly as often, but at the same time, she could easily consume more food.
What a funny conundrum!
Well, Noble would certainly be eating well tonight! Just the thought made her mouth water.
But first, she had one more stop to make before returning to her home and the man she loved.
The Dreamer Academy.