Shadow Warriors fought alongside us, steadily dwindling the hordes’ numbers.To the untrained eye, it might have looked like we were barely surviving, but that couldn’t have been further from the truth.We knew approximately how many hellhounds the Federation ships could carry along with the numbers of those planted in the water.Knet thought he had betrayed our plans and that we were oblivious.His treason gave us the edge we needed.This current battle was ours.
Explosions lit up the distant sky, a sign that one or more of our planes had found their target.The jets wouldn’t be able to completely destroy the Federation’s heavily armed ships, but their purpose was to keep them occupied long enough for us to execute our plan.
After cutting down three more hellhounds, I scanned the beach, searching for Marinah.She was surrounded by several hounds, her sword moving in lethal arcs.I expected her Nova to take over, but it didn’t.Instead, with amazing skill, she rotated her hips, putting power behind every strike.
One, two, three, they dropped around her like puppets with their strings cut.She moved with an otherworldly grace, a dance of death and power, her body following an unheard rhythm.She anticipated each attack before it came, striking with flawless accuracy.
A larger-than-average hellhound lunged at her from the side.Her sword moved with blinding speed, driving in at an angle that cleaved the beast cleanly in half.Marinah never hesitated or faltered.She hadn’t been trained since infancy like I was, but you’d never know it.She moved like she had a lifetime of preparation.
It took me twice as long to reach the level of skill she’d achieved.She was unstoppable because of the single-minded training she put in daily.She never slacked off.Marinah had something to prove to herself and only herself.The rest of us knew what she was capable of.Her Warriors would follow her into the depths of hell, or more precisely, straight into a horde of hellhounds.Put a weapon in her hands, and she would obliterate her enemy.It was simply who she was, and I could watch her fight for hours.
She was everything the Shadow Warriors were meant to be.
Marinah finally signaled for us to fall back.We sprinted for the cliffs, where the archers held their positions.As we retreated, arrows rained down, peppering the remaining hellhounds, small explosive charges thinning their numbers further.We jumped onto our bikes and roared off toward the next rallying point.
About a mile into the winding, twisting roads, a pack of waterlogged hellhounds blocked our path.
With a bloodcurdling shout, Marinah revved her bike and picked up speed.At the last possible second, she executed a flawless slide, laying her bike down and taking out the front row of hellhounds like bowling pins.
We wore stretchy pants to accommodate shifting, and while they offered some protection from road rash, they weren’t perfect.The material shredded, leaving one of her thighs bloody and exposed.She didn’t care.
As she came off the bike with her sword drawn, I almost wanted to step back and admire her sheer ferocity, the grace, the unrelenting power she radiated.Marinah was breathtaking in battle.But standing there watching would make me look foolish, especially with hellhounds attacking.
I jumped into the fray, taking on the beasts two at a time.Our Warriors joined in, their roars and strikes adding to the battle.When the horde was destroyed, we regrouped and headed to the next area.
After two more changes in location, Marinah’s radio crackled.
“Inbound,” snapped a voice.
That was the signal.Federation soldiers were closing in on the citadel.
“Do you think we’ve taken out enough hellhounds to make this work?”Marinah shouted as we ran for the bikes.
“Alpha One, do you copy?”
“Copy,” she answered into the microphone without missing a step.
“Sub spotted near the inlet.Boats are storming Warrior Bay.”
“Heading in,” Marinah responded.
She threw a wicked grin my way.“It’s time to fly, baby.Eat my dust,” she called before taking off like a rocket.
I couldn’t help but laugh and follow.
Her version of flying meant pushing her modified bike past a hundred miles per hour, the engine roaring beneath her.She laughed, the sound carried by the wind, as we tore through the night.A ride that should’ve taken forty-five minutes took us sixteen.Marinah didn’t just thrive in battle, she commanded it.
Chapter Twenty
Marinah
Energy coursed through my veins as we sped down the winding roads.I felt alive with fire so hot, I soared.There was nothing left of the old me who clung to King’s back, gripping a man she didn’t trust.That man, riding beside me now, was the reason I’d become an entirely different person.
My fingers tightened and released on the motorbike’s handlebars, anticipation bubbling just below the surface.Hellhounds were one thing, but humans; thinking, plotting, murdering humans were the real enemy.Bloodlust surged within me, a dark hunger I didn’t bother suppressing.I’d kill them all.
As we hit the city, we weaved through the narrow side streets at breakneck speed.The bike roared beneath me, its power a thrilling vibration between my thighs.I leaned into the corners, the wind rushing against my face.Who knew I’d turn into a full-fledged biker?
We glided through the open metal gates of the citadel and abandoned the bikes, hitting the ground running.Shadow Warriors and humans scattered from our path as we barreled toward the roof.By the time we crashed through the door, I had shifted to human form, my body humming with energy.
