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“It would be more of a scouting type of thing. It isn’t usually done alone or at all unless we have no seers or RV Hunters around. Our souls give each Hunter the gifts, speeds and senses, and our bodies have been formed for our souls. Having our soul leave our body asks for a demon or unclean soul to take our physical form leaving our soul unprotected. A powerful demon could then capture our soul,” I explained. We made our way down the stairs and out-the-doors leading to the front of the property.
“That is what demons do, though, right? That is all they want is souls.” Dax said as he took in his beaten and broken land. I could feel his anger and hurt at seeing it, but pride at the shifters, who were already beginning to put things back together.
“It is their ultimate goal at gathering souls, but when you have a soul of a Hunter, it is worth a thousand human or supernatural souls.” Dax stopped at that information and turned to me when Dimitri called out to everyone.
“It is almost time!” We both turned our attention to Dimitri, and I felt the rush of anticipation and fear. I looked up at the sky, realizing that it was getting late, but I could see everything as if it were mid-day. I shook my head because I had to remember what I was now, and the mission I was on wasn’t just to save my family but to bring two families together. We had to help them in this fight so that Dax and I could bridge the gap between wolf shifters and Hunter.
* * *
DAX
There was no more time that I could give my Mate to keep her emotions in check. Devana’s newly changed status was the one thing I was worried about because we had no time for her to get to know her wolf as one should. I was banking on the fact that she is a skilled Hunter and that her discipline in that life will help her when it came to her wolf. Just by this small conversation, I realized how little I did know about Hunters, even though I claimed one as mine long ago. Devana had given me far more trust and knowledge than that one I thought could have been my Mate. Cassandra hid so many things about herself that she would close up and leave even when pushed. My mind kept going back to the Astro projection and the many times I saw Cassandra do it. Every time she did it, she would come back just a little more different from before. Listening to Devana had me thinking that I may have missed something important all those times. Each time that Cassandra left her body, where did she go, and what did she do? Maybe the more important question was who or what was riding back with her as she entered her body?
I looked down at Devana, who stared at her sister. I followed her gaze and saw Dali with her head down and hands clenched into fists. Max stood close to her with a hand on her shoulder and speaking so softly I couldn’t make out the words. Dali shrugged her shoulder, dislodging Max’s hand as she walked away. I started to say something to Devana about what the hell was up with those two, but we both turned as Journee’s chanting turned into shouts as her body jerked. The tones and pitches in her voice weren’t a natural range. It also held an accent that I know wasn’t present when I first met the Witch. Dimitri sat in the middle of the large circle formed on the ground as Journee held onto his shoulders. His shock of white hair in the front began to glow brightly as the mark on his skin that was barely noticeable just yesterday grew and seemed to form into the head of a snake.
“Malic, this land is left to you until we return.” Malic looked at me sharply, and I knew his ass was about to protest until he followed my gaze to a still-healing Leodora.
“Also, Thomas needs this,”I stated mentally. We all could feel Thomas’s rage as if it were our own, and he needed this outlet.
“I got you. We can handle things here,” Malic nodded. I saw Ezra and Jamel nod as well, with two other enforcers who would stay behind. Many were hurt, but many more died last night. We have many shifters going with us, but not as many as Aeron has, but we differ because we are a genuine Pack.
“We do this for those who we have lost. We fight to protect the meaning of the word Pack. Aeron is a demon-possessed wolf who thinks he is an Alpha and calls himself a True Alpha. We know this is wrong, and what he stands for is not the “Pack” way of doing things. He and his followers have broken Pack Laws. It is time for them to pay the consequences of their decisions.” The commanding tone hit every ear and reinforced their courage at what we faced tonight. I turned to look at Dimitri, who was now standing and chanting along with Journee in this strange language I didn’t know. I knew my Beta’s bloodline held Witch blood, but I didn’t realize that he may be more potent in witchcraft than we both thought. I smelled the sharp tainted scent of demon blood in the air as the droplets of blood in the circle raised into the air and spun counterclockwise. We all watched as the blood droplets formed a dark mirror that shone in the center of the ring. It was like we all stared into a mirror that had been fogged over, making it hard to see our reflections inside of it. Dimitri stepped forward, holding up an arm, and began to shift, but I could tell that it wasn’t voluntary. He let out a howl so loud and long it split the dark mirror in half, making an opening for us to step through. Journee stopped chanting and swayed slightly without Dimitri there to hold her up.
“Go! Go now before it closes. Dimitri can only hold it but for so long.” She said, falling to her knees in the dirt. Remi was beside her, but she waved us on. “Hurry!” She cried. I heard two blades slide in Devana’s palms as we both took a step forward in ending this shit once and for all.
It wasn’t where I expected it to be wherever we came out. We were close, but we weren’t on the property. We had homes spread across the world, but this one is used for the ceremony of the New Moon and to initiate the new Hunters into the family. Two families would come together to gather the energy from the New Moon to be used in our weapons. This time it was House Okar and House Diya. At the least, it should be ten from each house attending the ceremony.
“Devana, we are nowhere near the house,” Dali said suddenly next to me. I wasn’t surprised or surprised by her appearance. My wolf seemed to notice her angling toward me, and my Hunter instincts didn’t feel a threat. I could feel the two halves of myself trying to click in sync and merge all my instincts for a more effective predator.
“Yeah, I see that. I know our house is to the west of this location, but why would we end up in the middle of the woods?” I said. I felt Dax move, and it was eerie because he moved silently as big as he was. No one else had moved or said a word as they all took in the scents of the land. We were still in Maryland but now in the city of Brunswick. We were close to the state’s border that could go into Virginia.
“Journee said that it wouldn’t give us an exact location, but it will bring us close to the intending target,” Dimitri said. I looked over at him, and he was in human form but completely naked. I raised an eyebrow because more experienced wolves knew damn well how to materialize their clothes on, but he just smiled. Dax didn’t even look at us or acknowledge Dali, and I am staring Dimitri down because damn. His body had nothing on Dax, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t perfection to its finest. The wind shifted at that moment, and the scents of over thirty tainted wolves flooded my nose, making all of us except Dali turn to the east as one.
“They are coming,” Dax growled. “If we can smell them, then they can scent us as well,” Dax said as he scented the surrounding air. His violet eyes seemed to make things brighter than what I saw as his eyes lay on what was around us.
“Yes, but he isn’t with them. Something isn’t right,” I stated. I stepped forward toward where I would go to our property and felt something slightly off. “Dali,” I said sharply. She moved and was standing close to me with one of her Glocks in her right hand.
“What?” She said, but I could tell that she was staring off in the direction I was watching and seeing something entirely different.
“What do you see?” I asked. I could feel the loosening in my limbs as I prepared for the run. Things were off, and the night was entirely too quiet.
“It’s happening! The battle is already happening, and the Hunters are not on the winning side!” Dali shouted. She took off toward our people, and Max was beside her in an instant. I hadn’t noticed that he was standing close behind her, almost as if he was her shadow. Like Max was a part of her and wouldn’t be seen unless she wanted it to happen. I turned back toward Dax, just as he sent Alex and half of our Pack to deal with those coming up from behind. He sent Jarod and the others along with Max and Dali to help the Hunters. I was ready to go. I knew my people were going to need help and would be confused about what was happening.
“We need to go!”
“We will Mate, we got this, but we need to think first. Where is the demon, and what is it that we are missing?” He asked. Thomas and Remi stood back to back, looking up into the trees at the sky. The moon was full, but it wasn’t at its full power just yet. Why would Aeron or the demon that is riding him wait until his Pack would be slightly weakened? That just made little sense to me whatsoever.
“Dax! Do you see that?” Thomas growled. My eyes moved over toward him and Remi at his words. I followed both of their gazes up, and I scanned the trees. I was about to ask what they meant and tell them we didn’t have time for this when I saw it. There were winged forms in the trees looking down at us and as I focused on them. They were not natural at all as they stared at us with their seven eyes. Three were black, and the other four were crimson. Hundreds of birds lined the trees. Just as I was about to go for my pistol, they all opened their beaks to screech. All you saw were rows and rows of needle-like teeth.
“Oh shit! Vucub-Caquix!”
“What the fuck is that?” Remi yelled. Her teal eyes grew wide just as her hands covered themselves in a bright teal glow with a razor’s edge.
“Demon birds! They are demon birds!” Dax growled. He didn’t shift or turn his hands into claw-like, I thought. That was good because the only thing that was going to take these things down was Holy water.
“We need to get to the river! Now!” I screamed. We all took off as hundreds of birds dove from the trees after us. One look into their eyes and your soul will get caught as they tear your body piece by piece and devour you. “Do not look into their eyes!” I warned and prayed I remembered the words to bless the waters.
* * *
