The Chosen One Universe Volume Three: An MM Paranormal Fantasy Shifters Series

by Macy Blake

  He savored the taste of Sawyer’s kiss as he transformed into his dragon form and took to the air. He’d prefer being on the ground by Sawyer’s side, but since Henry’s vision hadn’t been clear on what forces Palinourous had with him, they had decided he was best placed in the air. He was more nimble there anyway.

  Performing a quick aerial somersault, he glanced down at his mates, checking each of their locations. His dragon cousins flew alongside him, keeping their attention on the horizon and any movement coming their way. Henry walked toward the woods, no doubt concerned about Dakota’s front line status. Before he could focus on the rest of them, the air began to shimmer. His dragon cousins roared their displeasure; whatever was happening, it wasn’t only to him. His mates seemed to be impacted as well. Draco added his roar to the mix. He couldn’t see what was attacking him, though. His senses were dulled, everything murky and hazy.

  “Djinn!”

  Dakota’s yell jerked Draco into action. He spun and dove. Sawyer wouldn’t be equipped to handle a djinn. The demons were dangerous and deadly, and they always wanted power. There wouldn’t be a better resource than a god who didn’t understand the power he possessed. Before he could get close, something plowed into his side, and the rest of his senses dulled completely.

  He let out a burst of flame and heard the sizzle as it struck home. He may not be able to see what attacked him, but he could still do damage. He roared again, a burst of flame shooting out around him. He heard a shriek and a moment later a thud as something hit the ground.

  Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough. A dozen more hits, and he was overwhelmed. His senses dulled completely, and he couldn’t even draw a breath. The added weight made it hard for him to fly, pressing him down to the point where he couldn’t remain stable. His wings began to fail him. He heard screams beneath him and dug deep, finding strength deep in his core.

  No one hurt his mates. God or not, Draco would fight to the death to keep them safe.

  He performed one of his aerial tricks, twisting and spinning in a desperate attempt to free himself from the djinns’ clutches. He heard a few more thuds, and the slightest amount of weight shifted. It wasn’t much, but it was enough for him to gear up for another try.

  The magic in the air changed again, and this time he felt a tug at his core. He tried to flip again, but this time, he wasn’t successful. He lost control and began plummeting to the ground at a speed that would likely kill him. With one last act of desperation, Draco spun and moved his wings, dragging them through the magical sludge enough to slow his descent. It wasn’t much, but as he hit the ground, he knew he had to keep fighting.

  Whatever weighted him down eased that slightest bit more. He’d likely landed on a few of the demons fighting him. Draco transformed back into his human form, hoping the suddenness of his shift would give him an advantage.

  It didn’t.

  The demons swarmed and he went down under a weight of them as whatever attacked his magic struck harder. He tried to find his mates but couldn’t see past the haze of fog the djinn covered him with. Draco roared his rage at his helplessness, feeling the last of his strength drain away. And then everything went black.

  EDUARD

  Not even the sharpness of his vision prepared Eduard for the suddenness of the attack. Dakota’s yell was the only warning, and then everything blurred. Eduard fought his way through the air, locking his eagle eyes on his mates on the ground. He located Sawyer and flew like he’d never flown before. He could make out movement beside him, but nothing made sense. He refused to take his eyes off Sawyer, though, fearing he’d lose sight of him in the confusion of whatever was happening.

  He landed and ran, still laser focused on his target. He hit something head on, some unseen force that may as well have been a brick wall. It flung him backward, and stunned, Eduard found it hard to breathe. Something crashed into his side and he tried to use his wings to fling it off. Nothing worked. And he’d lost sight of Sawyer.

  Using a maneuver Andvari had taught him, Eduard spun and used his sharp, eagle’s beak to jab into the body of whatever held him. He hit home and heard a screech of pain. He pecked again, ignoring that he couldn’t see a damned thing, and tried desperately to free himself.

  It worked, until it didn’t.

  Something must have creeped up on his other side because he felt a sudden slash of pain across his side and then the searing agony of a deep, deadly wound.

  He moved his wings again, using the strength he had there to batter against the invisible foes who tangled with him. He called out for help, his caw loud and clear, but even he knew it was too little, too late. If his senses were muddied, then his mates were as well. He wondered briefly if they might have been spared, if they were even that moment fighting their way toward him.

  The brief flash of hope was fleeting, but he held onto its remnants for as long as he could. Even as the ground rumbled around him. Even as he realized something had leeched onto him and drained him of whatever magic he possessed. That flash of hope wanted it to be Sawyer, prayed that it was. It helped him hold on for those last few moments. If Sawyer needed his magic, then it was his to take. He just needed to hold on. His mates would save him. Sawyer would save him.

  He faltered, the wound in his side along with the attacks constantly hitting him from all sides finally taking their toll and zapping him of his last remaining bits of strength.

  “Sawyer!”

  He could barely make out his own words, his breath failing him as he crumpled to the ground. He shifted back to his human form against his will, but the griffin in him couldn’t hold his place any longer. Eduard tried to catch his breath, but he couldn’t. There wasn’t any breath left.

  LOCH

  Dakota’s shouted warning echoed through the clearing for the briefest of moments before it was swallowed by something. Dark magic, magic Loch didn’t know, flowed around them. He stepped closer to Sawyer, guarding his mate as was his duty. The others quickly became obscured.

  Loch reached behind him to the spot where Sawyer had been moments before and found nothing. He spun, sword at the ready, but was hit with a burst of that same unfamiliar magic. He sliced through it with his sword, letting out a pleased hiss when his aim proved true.

  “Sawyer!”

  No answer. His words flew into the void that was the clearing. How had this magic happened so fast? What were they fighting against?

  He flung up a shield and took several steps toward the spot where he’d last seen Sawyer. He barely moved, some force pushing back against his shield with a strength that surpassed his own.

  No worry. Loch hadn’t been the captain of the fae prince’s royal guard simply because of his pretty blue hair and wings. He was a warrior first. He spun and swung his sword again, slashing through another of the beasts who dared try to use magic to keep him from his mate.

  They would not.

  He would not allow it.

  “Sawyer!”

  Still no answer. Whatever magic worked against him, must be working against the others too. He couldn’t sense them anywhere near him. It frightened Loch for a brief moment before it pissed him off. Whatever this was would know the fury of his kind and the feel of his blade.

  He pushed forward again, using his sword as a machete to clear the path ahead of him. Each swipe hit home and he darted through the openings as only one with his training could manage.

  “Sawyer!”

  He had to be close now, unless Sawyer had run for cover. That’s what he’d been instructed to do if things took a turn for the worst, but of course, none of them expected it to happen within seconds of the attack beginning.

  They should have had more time. He should have made Sawyer stay beneath his shield. He’d been able to keep him safe from the attacks against them before, and he would do it again.

  He just had to find his mate. He had to find any of them. An angry whinny filled the air, the unmistakable sound of a pissed off horse. Saeward. Loch spun and moved toward
the sound just as a giant crack formed in his shield. He poured more energy into it and used his sword to batter at anything attempting to come through the breach.

  “Saeward! Here!”

  He couldn’t hear anything else but kept moving in the direction of at least one of his mates. The breach in his shield widened and Loch struggled to hold back the grappling energy that poured through it. Something latched onto him and he immediately grew weaker. It tugged at a deep, hidden part of him, some secret place in his core than he didn’t know existed.

  Whatever it was, it drained him quickly. He weakened, still swinging his sword and pushing his way through the sludgy air. If he could only get to Saeward…

  He couldn’t. His energy failed and he dropped to his knees. He tried to swing his sword once more, but his shield failed completely. He was quickly swarmed and pushed into the ground. It rumbled as other battles went on around him, ones he couldn’t see but could feel from the ground under his cheeks. His wings flattened as the magic continued to drain out of him.

  Loch had never felt so helpless. Or so alone.

  He heard the whinny again and the ground began to thunder.

  “Ward.”

  His mate’s giant hoof appeared in front of him as Ward took up a protective position over him.

  “Find Sawyer,” Loch gasped as the last of his energy faded and his heart stuttered to a stop.

  SAEWARD

  Saeward had no idea what was happening. Everything dulled around him, like he’d reached the deepest depths of the ocean. He adjusted his senses as he shifted into his horse form. He’d been tasked to watch Sawyer’s back and to get him the hell out if something went wrong. He’d been ready to do just that, but he hadn’t even had a chance. Everything went to hell before he’d even known anything was happening.

  He shifted into his horse form and leapt toward the area where Sawyer stood. Dozens of dark, shadowy creatures filled the clearing. He didn’t think his mates could see them. They were fighting blind. He had to help them.

  One of the dark creatures flung itself toward him. Ward lifted up on his front legs and trampled it with a huff. It drew the attention of several others.

  Loch battled several more a dozen feet away from him. His shield held. Ward leapt forward and trampled two more who tried to sneak up behind Andvari on the other side of him.

  Two more leapt onto his back. Ward rolled and crushed them beneath his weight before finding his feet again. Another snuck up behind him. Never get behind a horse, Ward thought as he raised his back legs and kicked out with enough force to send it flying over twenty feet away. It landed with a thud.

  A magical force flowed through the air as a man emerged from the trees. He pulled the energy toward him, its waves subtle but visible. He walked toward Sawyer casually, like there wasn’t a battle raging around him.

  Saeward had known fear before, but never like this. He glanced up and found Draco inundated with the dark creatures. Eduard was as well. They went down as he heard Henry scream and then Pip and then…

  His mates.

  Loch was closest, but he could barely walk. The creatures had him surrounded, eating the magic he used to form his shield. He stumbled and Saeward ran, trampling two more of the creatures who tried to sneak up on him and ignoring the tug as magic left his core.

  The ground rumbled. Sawyer.

  Ward turned to check on him and found him struggling against a half dozen of the creatures. Ward charged toward Loch, knocked several of the creatures off, but he was too late. Loch fell.

  “Find Sawyer.”

  Saeward paused for a moment, hovering over his mate’s fallen form. They were all down. All of them. He was the only one left standing.

  Ward charged, dashing toward Sawyer as a dozen of the creatures ran toward him. They covered him, but he kicked and fought, ignoring their tugs at him as he made his way toward his mate.

  Others came. They’d done their duty with his mates and turned on him. So many of them. Still he ran. The distance seemed to grow further away, one of those never-ending hallways from horror movies Saeward refused to watch. He’d seen enough, though.

  He rolled once more, crushing several of them with his immense weight before kicking out and shaking off another few. Sawyer counted on him; his mates needed him to stay strong.

  “Only one to go.”

  The man, Palinourous— Saeward hated even thinking his name— gestured toward Saeward. Sawyer glanced his way. His mate looked scared. Lost. Defeated.

  Saeward reared up on his back legs and batted the shadows in front of him before charging the last few steps.

  The ground rumbled again. Sawyer’s nose began bleeding. He had a bleeding scratch down his cheek. Their eyes met for only a moment. More of the shadows swarmed him.

  Sawyer drew in a breath and turned as his brother held out a hand in Saeward’s direction. Magic poured from him, a gaping wound. Still, Ward refused to leave his mate’s side.

  The ground rumbled once more and shards of metal flung up.

  Palinourous laughed.

  Sawyer looked terrified. He glanced at Ward once more, begging for something. Help, guidance, hope. Ward didn’t know, but he couldn’t provide it in this form.

  He shifted back. His human form was no match for he shadows, but his mate needed him. “Sawyer.”

  The last of his magic poured out of him. Ward stumbled, his knees growing weaker.

  Palinourous laughed once more, but the air began to shimmer, an electricity in the air that hadn’t been there moments before. Saeward crawled his way toward Sawyer even as his vision began to fade.

  An explosion filled the air, ricocheting out from where Sawyer and his brother stood. They both went flying and something struck Ward so hard he saw stars. And then he saw nothing, as the world went black.

  SAWYER

  His guardians were all on the ground around him. Sawyer tried. He did. He tried, but he couldn’t stop Palinourous. He drained them— why them? Why focus on them?

  It took him only seconds to realize the truth. He looked up in horror, still stumbling from the burst of magic that had knocked him back. Ward had gone down and was no longer moving at all. And that explained it all, didn’t it?

  They weren’t guarding him. They were guarding his magic. Palinourous didn’t need him at all. He needed the guardians. They held the magic. They guarded it, not him. Sawyer could have taken it back himself and ended this long ago. But not like this. Never like this. It explained why he needed them all together. Of course, the god of mating had only trusted his magic to his mates. What else would he have done?

  “No!”

  Palinourous hadn’t received a single wound from Sawyer’s hand, not even after the vicious slap that had left a bloody claw mark down Sawyer’s face. He hadn’t been able to do it, even as his guardians fell. Even as he felt the earth rumbling beneath him as the metal readied to do his bidding.

  “What did you do? What did you do!”

  Palinourous raged as another burst of magic rolled out of him. It knocked Sawyer off his feet. He landed with a thud, blood dripping down his neck.

  He’d failed them. He’d never been so afraid. Palinourous raged and the dark shadows swarmed. Finally, Sawyer summoned his metal to his side, forming a barrier around them all. The shadows battered against it, determined to get inside. They weren’t really after him. They wanted his mates and the power they kept safe. Sawyer didn’t even understand what had happened and why the plan hadn’t worked. They were all down. Why hadn’t it worked? Palinourous had won, and yet… he hadn’t. He hadn’t been able to take the magic from them.

  “Draco!”

  Sawyer begged for his mate, needed them all so much. He’d failed them. How could he have failed them?

  It had been Palinourous’s plan all along, of course. So obvious once Sawyer realized. He’d thought the plan hadn’t changed: go after the Mother and take her place. But of course, his brother was more clever than he’d given him credit for. He
always had a plan B. Always. He needed to get Sawyer’s magic for his own. Any power would do when you were desperate, and Sawyer had a full collection of it right beside him. He couldn’t believe he hadn’t seen it sooner. How stupid could he be?

  A sudden roar broke through the silence and bright white light formed all around him. Byakko.

  “No.”

  Sawyer tried to warn him away, but his guide wasn’t having any of it. He ran toward Sawyer, and Sawyer remembered the first time he’d seen his tiger, not so long ago. Byakko had pounced on him then, covering Sawyer’s body with his, shielding him, protecting him, even though Sawyer hadn’t understood at the time. Byakko did the same now, but this time, it was in a futile attempt to keep Sawyer safe. It wouldn’t work.

  “Byakko,” Sawyer groaned. “Go home.”

  He didn’t want to be without his mates.

  The tiger had a mind of his own, though, as well as millennia of experience and knowledge that Sawyer couldn’t even begin to fathom. Byakko’s magic built once more, and Sawyer realized what his guide dared to try.

  “No,” Sawyer groaned again. “No.”

  He wished he could go back to those first moments with his guide. He wished he could have his mates around him again. He wanted to see Dakota’s scowl, and Pip’s beaming smile as he realized what they were to him.

  The darkness gathered, battering against Byakko’s defenses. His guide was his last hope, and yet there was no hope for him anymore. But he could see the depths of power in Byakko’s brilliant blue gaze. A pulse of energy bounded through him, and Sawyer disappeared.

  Sawyer

  Sawyer opened his eyes, and nothing made sense. Everything around him seemed out of focus, a swirling mass of nothingness. But even as he had that thought, the swirls began to form something new. Something… ethereal.