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"Kyoka?" I asked.
The Autumn Lord cleared his throat. "A thousand years ago, Kyoka was a shaman here, on the North American continent. He led his tribe ruthlessly, and in the end, his greed caused his downfall. He lost sight of the balance and natural order of things and used his magic on his own people to turn them into abominations. I cast him out of my service and named him pariah. He defiled the nature of spiders."
He turned to Zach. "Einarr, one of your ancestors, traveled the seas to the New World and ran afoul of Kyoka."
"My ancestor?" Zachary looked confused but sat up straight and paid attention. Family roots meant a lot to him, that was for sure.
"You are a direct descendant of Einarr of the Iron Hand. When he reached the shores of North America, Einarr lost his first wife and several comrades to the werespiders. So he took an oath to track down Kyoka and kill him. And many years later, he managed to avenge his kin."
"Why didn't you kill this Kyoka, if you knew he was evil?" Zach asked.
The Autumn Lord barely glanced at him. "Why should I? Kyoka disturbed the balance, but so do many creatures and events. If I were to intervene every time the web is broken and rewoven, I'd never have a moment's peace."
Morio touched Zach's shoulder, shaking his head, warning him not to argue. He looked unhappy but kept his mouth shut.
"To continue," the Autumn Lord said, "as a sign of my respect for his bravery, I gave Einarr a gift. I gave him the power to turn into a mountain lion, and all of his descendents who bear his blood are born with that ability and walk under my shadow, whether they know it or not. Puma, panther, mountain lion, they are all my children."
And then I knew—I knew the secret the Autumn Lord hadn't revealed. "And did you give Einarr something else? A pendant perhaps?"
He looked into my eyes, and once again, I felt pulled toward him. I wanted to crawl inside his cloak, to nestle deep and sleep for a thousand years.
"You see too much," he said. "Yes, I gave him one of the spirit seals, but where it is now, I have no idea. It's been over a thousand years. I doubt that the Hunters Moon Clan has a clue as to what they're seeking, but the demons they work for probably do. Of that you can be certain."
I felt like I'd been punched. So the Degath Squad wasn't just out for a little rampage. They were in search of the second spirit seal, and they had a head start. I turned to Camille. "They must believe that the Rainier Puma Pride still has the seal, passed down from Einarr."
"When you're right, you're right, and I wish you weren't." She glanced at the Autumn Lord. "And Kyoka's return was the marshal needed to get the Hunters Moon Clan to work for the demons?"
He nodded and blew another tablet of ice, reading it slowly. When he spoke, his voice was angry thunder, rumbling through the grove. "Apparently he hasn't returned as one of their own. It seems the demons are more insidious than that. When Einarr destroyed Kyoka, his soul was sent to the depths, down to the Subterranean Realms. And there he remained until Shadow Wing took power. And Shadow Wing has given Kyoka a new body and a mission: rally his people and destroy the descendants of Einarr. Meanwhile, the demons slip in and steal the spirit seal. Kyoka returned in the form of a man. A Were, yes, but not a werespider."
"I knew it!" I jumped up. "The werespider who killed Cromwell and strung him up was accompanied by a werepuma. That must have been Kyoka!" I whirled around, grabbing Zach's shoulders. "He's hiding in plain sight—right in the middle of your compound, Zach. He's trying to find out where the seal is while he kills off members of the Puma Pride."
Zachary paled. "Then that means one of the newcomers is a traitor. I have to get back to the compound. What if I'm too late?"
I stared at him, realizing that his panic was going to increase tenfold once he realized just what the spirit seals actually were. As of now, Zach was clueless as to just how bad things were about to get.
"Another question," I said, turning back to the Autumn Lord. "Where can we find the Hunters Moon Clan? Do you know where their nest is?"
He blinked slowly. "Past a city east of where you dwell, where the water falls over rocks, you will find a foothill covered in tall timber. Look for a golden road and follow it back up the hill. There you will find their nest." The Autumn Lord rose and turned back toward the veil of flame, pausing briefly to look over his shoulder.
"You aren't too late. Not yet. But you must hurry. Now go and destroy them. They are abominations, no longer a part of my world, no longer my children." And with that, he vanished through the pentagram, and the barrier closed. We were left alone with our panic.
Smoky was the first to speak. "The second spirit seal?" He looked at Camille.
We'd done our best to keep him from knowing about the spirit seals, but when he accompanied us to visit the Elfin Queen, he'd found out about them. Our hopes that he'd forgotten were tempered by the fact that a dragon's memories are long and precise, especially when it comes to treasure.
I wondered if he'd turn on us and try to find it himself. He was helpful now, but it wasn't a good idea to forget that first and foremost, dragons were mercenaries, out for themselves.
"Didn't you hear him?" Zach jumped up and pointed to the trail. "There's a traitor living at the compound, and he could be killing off another one of my friends right now! I have to go home."
"Wait a moment," Smoky said. "I'll be right back. Don't attempt the trail without me." He disappeared through a door I hadn't noticed before, leading into the side of his barrow.
Camille stared up at the sky and raised her hand to salute the Moon Mother, who was peeking through the clouds. With a sigh, she glanced back at Zach and then at me. "Zach, we'd better fill you in on what's going down," she said. "You have a right to know what you're up against, but you have to swear to us you'll keep this on the q.t."
He blinked, then glanced at me. I nodded. Mad as I was, I'd have to put my ego on hold for a few moments. "She's right. You can't tell anyone what we're about to tell you."
"All right," he said, a touch of hesitance in his voice. "I promise."
"Not good enough," she said. "I want a blood oath. We can't take any chances. You have no idea how many lives could hinge on your secrecy."
