“Tygrys, stay with my brother!” Emma ordered. Tygyrs gave a growl as we raced off, giving a shake of his wings before he flew off to protect Arthur.
We sprinted toward our destination, planning to enter university grounds through the western gate, like we had when we’d rescued Kiara and Odette. The university was a few miles off, but it was better to go on foot than try to portal there, just in case our magic set off any traps. I changed back, and the rest of the shifters followed my lead.
Eventually, the looming spires of the university broke into view over the trees. As it did so, I heard shouts from far off, accompanied by the blaring of war horns and the skirmish of battle.
“Sounds like Finlay is struggling to hold them off,” Theo mused.
“Which means we have to hurry,” Emma insisted.
I observed the university walls, and saw that they’d been fortified with a ward, along with covered with barbed wire… that was made with iron. I could feel the burn of the meta from here, warning me to stay back.
“How are we supposed to get through that?” Stefan growled. “We won’t be able to cross the iron.”
I froze as a wretched scent crossed my nose. “Do the rest of you smell that?” I asked.
Before they could answer, a rumbling shook the earth underneath our feet, and shadows crossed over the trees as a monster came into our view.
This hybrid was haunting. It was a combination of thebiezand some other horrid creature I had no name for. The creature stood on four scaly legs, blood dripping down its sides from wounds that festered and stank. A pointed, triangular head revealed dagger-like teeth that were six-feet long, antlers pointed and ten-pronged. The creature had hundreds of yellow eyes sticking out on its head and all over its body.
Just looking at it made me sick. These weren’t monsters— they were twisted creations of Droga, and with the Crystals of Harmony, he’d been able to overpower nature and create beings to his own dark liking. This beast needed to be put out of its misery.
Beside thebiezemerged three more monsters. One was the shape of a tall, shrouded woman, her hair nothing more than twitching scorpion legs, her face that of a withered skull, body merely a moving corpse. The second was a giant harpy. The naked body of a woman was covered in feathers, branches toppled from the trees at her strength as she spread her wings. The harpy had the face of a crow, but when she opened her beak, I saw with horror that she had a row of sharpened human bones for teeth. The last was abukavachybrid, a massive horned toad with twelve legs that stuck out at all angles on its body, and a tongue that was covered in barbed razors.
Each one was more sickening than the last. If we wanted to get to the stones, these creatures had to be taken down first.
The rest of us held back, waiting for Emma. Her face took on a twisted expression as she attempted to work her magic.
“I can’t overpower the minds of these monsters,” Emma told us. “Droga’s already got a hold on them, so I can’t break through.”
“Guess we take care of it the old-fashioned way.” I withdrew my sword and prepared to slaughter these beasts.
Theo and Odette took the scorpion woman, Stefan and Delmare went after the harpy, and Kiara and Alexei took thebukavac, while Emma and I handled thebiez.Spells exploded across the area, and the monsters roared loudly as battle orbs and shields bounced off their skin.
The moment magic left our fingertips, an alarm went off over the university. It was ear-splitting and loud, a siren that blared three times before becoming silent.
Gabby knew we were coming. Emma moved in first, too eagerly. She went to plunge her sword into the monster’s chest, but it knocked her away with a hoofed foot, and she went rolling sideways. I raced in, but thebiezput down its antlers and charged. One of the antlers hooked me, and the monster tossed me up into the air. I went sailing several feet before I fell onto a tree branch. It cracked underneath my weight, sending me collapsing onto the ground.
Emma had gotten back up. She pulled magic from the amulet her father had given her, and sent Unseelie tendrils at the creature to hold its feet. Yet thebiezbroke them with ease. It stampeded at her, doing its best to trample her underneath its hooves. Emma’s back hit a tree as the monster’s antlers pinned her to the spot, opening its mouth wide to take a bite.
With my mate cornered, I felt the red fringes of rage begin to overtake me again. That haze nearly came over my eyes, causing me to slip away and become a beast without any thought.
No. I promised Emma I wouldn’t allow myself to be carried away by my emotions again. I had to remain in control. Instead, I channeled that anger into the Unseelie energy inside of me, which it fed on eagerly. I pulled it out and created a sizzling battle orb, one that pulsed with violent energy that fizzled like a firework. I sent it flying into the monster’s mouth.
The orb surged past the monster’s teeth and down its throat. It didn’t give much more than a discontented rumble before my Unseelie magic exploded outward in rage, ripping the monster to pieces. Emma hardly had time to shield us before we were both covered in the creature’s insides, its hollowed corpse falling to the ground with its innards ripped out.
I instantly whipped around to see how the others were faring. Stefan ripped one of the harpy’s wings off, while Delmare used her red battle magic to carve out the monster’s chest. Her magic looked like the edges of burning paper, feasting away at the monster’s feathers. The harpy dove its beak down, attempting to pin Delmare to the spot, but only managed to get its beak stuck in the earth. The harpy wiggled and batted its one good wing as Delmare’s battle magic exposed its beating heart. Stefan plunged his sword into it, and blood spilled out as the monster died.
Alexei had changed into a griffin, and he’d pecked out thebukavac’seyes. He was circling the creature, distracting it as Kiara approached, digging into her bag. While Alexei had thebukavacblinded, Kiara sent potions flying at it. The potions exploded over the monster and began eating away at its skin. The large toad attempted to spear Alexei on its horns one last time before the earth shook with its demise, the body falling to the ground limply.
There was a horrid wail to the right of me, and I staggered backward. The scorpion woman had latched the legs on her head onto Theo’s face, holding him tight. It appeared she was sucking the life force out of him as his limbs wriggled. Theo attempted to break the hold the scorpion woman had on him, but her strength was overpowering. His body began going limp as she suffocated him, feeding on his flesh.
Odette flung out her hand and created a shield that blasted the monster back. The scorpion woman was ripped off of Theo’s face and thrown to the ground. Theo clutched at his face, blood streaming from his wounds as Odette pounced. With a vengeful yell, she sank her weapon into the belly of the scorpion woman, and cut her open. The monster gave an angry screech as scorpions began trickling out of her insides, eating her alive until her form was nothing more than a collection of insects withering on the ground.
“Theo!” Odette fell to her knees as he crumpled to the ground. I helped turn him over onto his back, and cringed. His face was bloody and full of holes from the scorpion woman’s legs, but recognizable.
“I’m all right,” he grunted. He cringed as we helped him up, touching the marks on his face. Theo would survive, but he’d have a collection of memorable scars for the rest of his life from the scorpion woman’s attack.
“Can you keep fighting?” Alexei asked.
