“I hear you,” Storm replies across our mental link.
We turn off the headlights and roll along in the dark. There’re no cars out this way, which is for the best, but the faster we get off this road, the better.
The thumping against the sky gets louder until it’s almost thunderous, then everything around us lights up with a beam of intense light.
“Out of the vehicle! Now!” I scream across the mental link, grabbing Ansley in my arms before I kick the door.
I’m not strong enough to budge it in this form, so I have to open it like a human. We pour out of the SUVs, right as the missiles whisper through the air, then detonate behind us. I have to cover my eyes from the blinding light, but I don’t stop moving. I zig and zag, not wanting to give them a target they can hit as I shift into my true Human Form, and take cover.
A few missiles hit, but everyone is safe. The helicopters start landing. More are approaching.
“Run!” I call out, then I shift into my wolf, lowering myself so Ansley can get on.
We dash out of cover as more helicopters show up. We run as fast as we can, but then Remy lets out a scream of pain that pierces my eardrums. I feel it down my spine and Ansley does too. She jerks at my fur and spins, looking back.
“Remy!” she screams.
I turn to see my brother on the ground, some sort of wire wrapped around his legs. He shifts into his true Human Form, but that just makes it worse. It’s cutting into his skin. Ansley jumps off my back to try and help.
“Fucking bolo,” Remy moans.
“We can’t run, we’re going to have to fight,” Jaxton calls out.
I look up to see that the helicopters are landing, at least a half dozen of them. They almost have us surrounded. They’re not shooting missiles now. No, now they’re coming for us.
Crimson Templars pour out of the helicopters. There’s a lot more of them than there are of us. I count two dozen, before I have to take a fighting stance. They look different than I remember, but their form fitting red plate armor is still recognizable. The white cross decorating their chests still branded into my memories, every one of them painful.
“Finish the wolf shifters, but don’t kill the women!” A Templar yells. “Them we burn,afterwe figure out what they are.”
They advance on us and Ansley pulls her sword out of the scabbard. She tries to focus on it, but nothing happens. We don’t have time to wait for it. We’ve got to defend our mate, even if it costs us our lives.
“Been waiting a long time for this,” Jaxton growls, moving in front of Daisy. “Ansley, even if that sword lights up, you don’t fight these guys. They’re not like vampires. They will kill you.”
The Crimson Templars get closer and we form a line in front of Ansley and Daisy. The Templars stop and aim weapons that look like rifles, but are more futuristic than anything I’ve seen.
“Time to find out if I’m faster than a bullet,” Remy growls.
“Let’s hope we all are,” Storm mutters.
We rush the armor-clad men and bullets ring out. We dodge them, and I glance back to make sure Ansley is safe, then catch one in the shoulder. It goes into my tough hide like an arrow cutting through paper. I howl with pain and hear the same echoes from my brothers.
Jaxton makes it to one of the Templars and while he can’t tear through his armor, he tears his head off his shoulders, which accomplishes the same thing. Then he goes for another, and I push through the pain to sink my fangs into one too.
Shots still ring out. I feel more pain and burning as bullets sink in. Wyatt goes down, and I want to rush to his side, but then I see Storm fall beside him.
“No, no!” I scream, then a bullet knocks me to the ground.
Remy is on the ground next, bleeding, wounded, whimpering as he tries to crawl away. Jaxton is the last to fall, and he fightsvaliantly, but even he is no match for the multitude of bullets, or the knives they use to finally take him down.
“I’m sorry, brother,” he whispers across our mental link.
“Grab the women!” a Templar yells. “The wolves can watch them burn at the stake while they bleed out.”
I crawl on my belly towards Ansley. She’s standing her ground, holding her sword, but it’s not on fire. Daisy looks like she’s ready to fight, if that’s what it takes. A true Mitra, ready to die by her best friend’s side. She’s a blessing to this pack, and her death would be mourned for generations if this wasn’t the end of ours.
“Ansley!” I transmit, choking on blood. “No!”
Then something above my head catches my attention. It looks like a falling star, descending to earth, and it’s moving fast.
