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I didn’t need to say anything—Piers and Gilbert sprang into action at once, darting off to assist injured members of the Snowmass Pack farther away from the fighting. Cody was only a few steps behind me as I unleashed my wolf, bounding through the snow further into the fray. I could hear the Snowmass alpha’s howl as she encouraged her fellow shifters, but Keziah herself hadn’t come into view yet.
If she was up and fighting, though, the pack had a chance. I answered her call with one of my own, rallying tiring wolves as several snarling lions came bursting out of the nearest pine stand, charging full speed toward the wolves.
I snarled as I dashed forward, giving into my wolf’s feral rage, my fur bristling. A few steps behind me, Cody lunged at the smallest lion, leaving me to deal with the larger two. It wasn’t ideal, but I hadn’t survived for this long by skirting danger. The largest lion lunged straight at me while the second one tried to circle around from behind. Flattening my ears, I raced forward to slide beneath the other shifter. The snow reduced some of the friction, but I didn’t get low enough, and the massive lion managed to rake his claws along my back, pulling up dark scraps of fluff.
Barely registering the pain, I whirled around, lunging at the shifter as he landed from his missed assault. His partner had to dodge around him, giving me a few precious seconds to grab him by the haunch. The lion roared as I sunk my fangs into his flank, clamping my jaws down like a vice grip, tearing and shaking.The blossom of blood on my tongue was like a jolt of electricity straight to my brain. No adrenaline rush could compare to the moment my wolf got his first taste of violence.
Forced to let go or be tackled by the second lion, I jumped sideways as the large cat yowled, slashing at my side. This one was a lioness, and I pivoted as quickly as I could, hoping to take advantage of her lack of mane. She swiped her claws across my chest, and I ignored the open wounds as I drove forward, grabbing her just beneath the chin. My boldness had clearly caught her off-guard, and soon her angry snarling turned into agitated, then panicked yowls. The air around us grew heavy with the stink of blood and fear. I closed my jaw tight, with no time for my wolf to feed off her growing terror as we choked the life out of her.
In that moment, the second lion righted himself and came charging back at me, using his massive bulk to throw me off his companion. As I hit the snow and rolled, I could see from the corner of my vision that the lioness, though still alive, was barely moving.
Now able to give the larger lion all my attention, I righted myself and darted forward. He could tackle me, but I could outrun him, especially with his limp. I ducked lower, snapping at his softer belly as he tried to grab me by the shoulders. Bright silver splashed across the snow. It didn’t matter—the large lion shifter was slowing down, and his fellows had already been dispatched.
Two Snowmass wolves suddenly came charging forth from the brush, tackling the lion in tandem. I was confident they’d finish the job, so I took off deeper into the woods, chasing the sharp ozone smell I’d come to recognize as magic. It looked like one warlock was well-surrounded, but a second one had managed to injure several wolves, throwing three through the air and into the surrounding trees before he turned his eyeson me. I howled defiantly and charged straight toward him, relishing the bright flash of fear in his eyes.
I’d nearly closed in on him before the warlock managed to ready his next spell. The warlocks had clearly been at this for some time before Delila had fetched us, and his exhaustion was showing. The dark magic blot smoldered as it hit me square in the chest. Though the spell burned and bit at me, it didn’t knock me off my feet, and within another few seconds, I lunged, my front paws hitting the warlock squarely in the chest as he threw his hands up in front of his face. He only managed to scream for a moment or two more before I ripped out his throat, his blood splashing against my muzzle.
My wolf reveled in the miasma of gore and fear. His violence usually aggravated me, but today it was a boon. I only just managed to rein him in when Keziah appeared from deeper in the forest, two wolves and a warlock from the neighboring coven following. Her sides heaved as she panted, blood splashing against her fur. I could see she was favoring one leg, but otherwise looked uninjured.
I loped over to her when I saw the warlock who’d followed her was drawing on a spell. I realized belatedly that he was usingdarkmagic, only recognizing the signs after watching Celeste perform.
Instinct took over as I charged forward, but I couldn’t get to the warlock fast enough, reaching Keziah only in enough time to throw my shoulder against her side, knocking the other alpha sideways. My entire body seized up as agony swept through me, my knees buckling as I fell into the snow just as Keziah scrambled back to her feet. I trembled, muscles screaming, close to an out-of-body experience as my body shook. I heard Keziah, now in human form, shouting to grab the warlock, but I couldn’t see anything until several more moments passed, and the pain subsided again.
As I staggered back to my feet, I reverted to my human form, swearing under my breath as I glanced around. Several of Keziah’s pack members were restraining the now bleeding warlock, already dragging him back toward the heart of the territory.
“Thank you,” Keziah muttered to me quietly, briefly meeting my eyes before turning to her pack, shouting orders to patrol the borders and get the injured to Wuta, her healer.
As I looked around, I realized Cody had followed me deeper into the forest. Gilbert and Piers were not far behind, checking to ensure any hostiles had been dispatched, not just left wounded in the snow.
“Fenris!” Cody shouted, his cheeks flushed and his eyes glowing even brighter. “You were amazing! Two lion shifters at once, and you didn’t even break a sweat. It felt like it was out of a dream…or a nightmare.”
Gilbert sniffed, giving the young shifter a disdainful look. “With all due respect, I’d rather avoid any fight Fenris’s wolf is involved in. Those teeth are just a bit close for comfort. It doesn’t feel controlled.” He sighed as he looked at me. “I’m glad the only casualties were the enemy shifters and those warlocks, however. You did make quick work of that.”
“That’s because my wolfisn’tcontrolled,” I said coolly, ignoring the vampire’s sharp gasp. “Come. I want to speak to that ‘friendly’ warlock.” I sneered, leaving my trio of allies to trail after me as I hurried in the direction Keziah’s packmates had dragged him.
It didn’t take me long to catch up. The warlock, though restrained, was putting up quite a fight. “Drop him,” I commanded, putting all the weight of alpha authority into my voice.
Keziah’s shifters didn’t even think when they let go of the warlock. I grinned when he landed face-first in the snow,spluttering angrily as he rolled over and began pushing himself back up. He didn’t even get on his feet when I flashed my teeth, red eyes shining.
“Who do you work for?” I demanded.
“Keziah,” he sneered, baring his teeth back.
My wolf howled in rage, and I fought the urge to rip out his throat without delay. Dead men couldn’t speak. “Do not insult me,” I snarled. “Who are you working for?”
He ground his teeth and looked me up and down. “If you’re so smart, you figure it out.”
My patience snapped, and I stalked forward, saying nothing before I stomped down on one of his extended legs. The warlock screeched as bone crunched, crumpling forward as he grasped at his limb, moaning and howling as he shook.
“Are you going to speak, or are you going to have two broken legs?” I asked coolly.
“No!” he screeched, trembling and crouching. “No, no, fine, I work—”
His screaming intensified as a burst of flame flared up from the air around him. I took a step back, preparing for an attack before I realized the fire was consuming the man in front of me.
“Put it out!” I barked to the nearest shifters, but it was already too late.
A burning stench filled the air, and what soon remained was a dark pile of ash.
