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But she wasn’t without a lot of power and added a burst of speed. She saw her target in front of her, who was almost on an already battling Stone. She leaped, bit hard into the vampire’s fleshy thigh then melted back into the forest, heading away from where she’d felt the wraith’s touch. The bite into her mate would also help keep the wraith somewhat incapacitated. The uninjured mate always suffered when the other was wounded.
The wraith made the mistake of shrieking her agony. Rosamunde shifted from her wolf back into Aralynn then flew at her from below. Using her knife, she cut her hamstrings, then flipped back into the forest, shifted to wolf, and once more remained still. She loved that shifting allowed her to keep her weapons and clothes.
She was breathing hard and felt exhilarated as she always did during battle. She was fighting the enemy, those who had kept the Nine Realms in a state of ongoing terror for centuries.
She knew better than to distract Stone by pathing. They were a team and he called out the orders. She had no trouble obeying a man who had fought the Invictus since he’d become a Guardsman over three-hundred-years ago.
Through the trees, she watched him battle hand-to-hand against the vampire. In a sudden, quick maneuver, he levitated, caught the vampire around the neck and snapped. The vampire dropped as did his wraith-mate.
The two that Rosamunde injured, rose together into the air and disappeared.
The last pair, however, had also taken to the air, circling the forest canopy slower and slower. After a full minute, they also took off. Rosamunde could sense they’d left for good.
Stone pathed. That’s it. They’re gone. I’ll make sure these four that we brought down are either dead or unable to do harm. Make a broad circuit of the battle area, both on the ground then in the air.
Will do.
From experience, she knew he wanted her to hunt through the forest to make sure the enemy really was gone. Still in her wolf state, she began to run. I’m heading south. I’ll pace at a distance of fifty yards and lope the circumference around you.
Good. I’m contacting Harris next to see where we’re at and to arrange for clean-up. He’ll get the process started.
She slowed her speed for a moment. She knew the tone of Stone’s voice well. Something was troubling him. What is it?
I keep forgetting how well you know me. On this last vampire, I found a chain around his neck with all kinds of souvenirs. I’ve found a ring that belonged to one of my troll aunties. She was killed during the original attack at Charborne.
Stone, I’m so sorry.
Hey, at least I avenged her death. How does the forest feel to you?
Very quiet.
She made the fifty-yard circuit in good time, but the forest had a stillness that said the enemy had left. Heading out to do a hundred-yards then I’ll hit the skies.
Let me know when we’re clear so I can give the order for the trolls to come in.
Will do.
Her wolf loved this final part of Stone’s procedure. She loped another fifty yards south to begin her second much wider circuit. As she weaved swiftly through the trees and her wolf senses kept her moving in a near-perfect one-hundred-yard orbit around Stone, she neither saw nor smelled anything that would indicate the Invictus were nearby.
She was just returning to her starting point, when the earth rumbled.
The elf-lord power!
She stopped where she was, her heart pounding, then transformed back to Aralynn. A vision so close on the heels of a battle was rare.
Stone. A vision.
I’m feeling the rumble. Should I come to you?
No. Stay where you are. Let me see what the vision means.
But you’ll be in pain.
Nothing I haven’t endured for a long time. Please, stay put til I know what’s going on.
She could feel a terrible prescience coming toward her, though not from Margetta. For that piece of grace, she was grateful.
She took the power in and accepted the painful cramping of her legs for what it was: A warning. The vision followed and it was bad. Within seconds, Margetta would be on Stone in the forest. Apparently, the team of Invictus had relayed their location and Mastyr Stone was their target.
