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Frost
Attack!Quinton bellows, and the shadows surge forward.
My brothers don’t hesitate. They meet the shadow beings head on as Quinton’s voice echoes through our minds. We’re lucky, in that we incapacitated much of the pack before our old alpha called his shadows to play. Regardless, we are now facing two threats at once.
But one of them is entirely too dangerous for Amora.
I swing my head around and knock a shadow away from Amora before it can reach her. Even in her wolf form, I can see the stark fear in her large emerald eyes.
Fuck. Motherfucking dammit! How can we stand up to this?she asks, her hackles standing on end. Shadows and wolves?
One threat at a time, I tell her.
These are the same types of shadows that have attacked us before. Judging by Quinton’s words, I suspect that some of them are the exact same ones we’ve faced off with previously.
It comes as no surprise that our old alpha has somehow taken control of the shadows Felicity summoned against us. The man who created my brothers and me is strong and cunning, and he’s dedicated years to mastering every bit of shadow magic he’s been able to access. He has found a way to wrest control of these shadow creatures from his mate. He’s found a way to control and manipulate them.
The same as he did to us.
Kian appears behind Amora, his giant paws slashing through the air. A high-pitched screech fills the night air, then a shadow darker than the rest that stretch across the ground darts away, trailing smoke.
Fear creeps in to my consciousness. I didn’t even see the creature coming. In this darkened landscape, it will be difficult to fight them.
Kian nudges Amora with his snout to get her attention. Focus on the wolves. Let us handle the shadows.
She nods and shakes out her fur, some of her fear seeming to vanish now that she has a goal. I respect that side of her. The fact that she can compartmentalize her emotions, execute a plan, and do it with unrelenting determination.
We have that in common.
Come on. Kian motions with his head for me to follow, and the two of us leap into battle with Malix.
I keep Amora in my periphery as she takes on the remaining pack members. I worry for the briefest moment that Quinton will jump into the fray. But the alpha remains sitting where we left him, shrewdly watching the battle play out.
Perhaps because the shadows require his direct attention? Maybe he needs to keep his focus on them to keep them from rebelling against his control?
I’m pulled from my thoughts as a shadow surges through the air toward me. I snap at it, catching an edge of the creature’s formless body before it dodges my grasp. The shadow whips around me, arching over my back. I’m not fast enough to turn and counter, and a sharp tendril lashes out, slamming into my spine.
The blow is surprisingly strong. It cuts like a knife, sending shadows and blood pouring from my skin. Angry that it got the best of me, I whirl around and latch on with my teeth, tossing it to the ground. Bracing one paw against the struggling shadow, I rip it in half. As I eviscerate the thing, its formless body vanishes in a puff of smoke.
Watching it disappear raises my spirits. These creatures are powerful and vicious, but they’re not indestructible. Just like the one we tore apart inside the jail, they can be destroyed. Perhaps we can beat them after all.
Malix rushes past me, leaping on another shadow. I’m distracted by a second one, bigger than the last, and for a moment, we simply lunge and avoid one another in a primitive dance of death.
I chance a look at Amora to make sure she’s holding her own, but the shadow takes the opportunity to land a blow. The arm-like tentacle punches my nose with preternatural strength, and I fly sideways, sparks exploding in my vision. I land on a couple of wolves, flattening them out beneath my bulk.
With a growl, I scramble to my feet once more and bound back into the fray. I take down the wolf fighting viciously with Amora, then continue onward to assist Malix with his shadow. Blood is seeping from a wound in his side.
I’ve killed three, he tells me, stumbling to the side as I pounce on the shadow. But there are more of them than I expected. They just keep coming.
After I tear the shadow to pieces, I glance around the darkened clearing. Most of the pack is down, but Amora is surrounded by five of the stronger shifters. Behind her, Kian is weighed down by several shadows, lashing out with his massive paws and sharp teeth, and four more of the dark shapes undulate toward the two of us.
Quinton has an army,I say. They just keep coming.
Then we keep fighting, Malix replies grimly. He shoots a glance at Amora. Help her.
I nod, and we separate—Malix lunging toward the oncoming shadows while I race to help Amora.
I’m intercepted before I can get anywhere near her though. A shadow whips around me with vicious speed and accuracy. It wraps around my torso, pinning my legs against my body and sending me sprawling face-first to the ground before I even realize what’s happening.
The air pulses with shadow magic, and the shadow binding me draws energy from that constant throb of power. The shadow tightens around my legs, squeezing so hard my own claws begin to dig into my skin. I snarl and struggle against the binding, doing my best to twist around and bite at the creature. But it was too smart when it grabbed me—just far enough away that I’m useless to fight it.
Then Amora’s voice cuts into my thoughts. Get off me! Son of a bitch!
Fury pulses through me. As angry as she sounds, the fear in her tone is real. And I can’t reach her.
I buck wildly, snarling, growling, snapping, and kicking with everything I have. My muscles ache, and my lungs burn with the effort. The shadow only squeezes tighter, making it harder to breathe.
I finally flop to my side, panting.
A few feet away, Malix lies on his side facing me, trussed up by a shadow. Beyond him, Kian has been restrained by two shadows, although he’s still fighting to break free.
A fatal flaw in our makeup, I think, focusing on my breaths so I don’t pass out from lack of oxygen. We are made of shadows, so the shadows can defeat us. Stronger than a shifter… weaker than a true shadow.
Quinton appears over me in his human form. His black gaze drifts from me to Malix to Kian—who’s still fighting—then back to me. He sneers down at me, his face twisted with hate.
“I should have known you were useless. So many years spent trying to reach the shadow realm, yet none of you could do it. I continued to give you the benefit of the doubt. Continued to let you chase shadows you couldn’t reach. Now…” His cold voice trails off, and he glances down at the shadow restraining me. “You’ve been defeated by the very thing that should have made you great.”
The bond connecting me and my brothers reverberates with a harsh sense of failure. Regret. Despair.
Amora speaks up, her tone hard and angry. Don’t listen to him. He’s a fucking liar. A petty, vindictive liar.
Just the sound of her voice sends a rush of strength through me. The shadows inside me waver restlessly, and I latch on to that power to lash out against my bindings once more. I fight like a rabid wolf, trying to tear through the shadows with my pinned claws.
Quinton kicks me in the head. “Stop fighting.”
