by G. K. DeRosa
“Will do, boss,” he said with a grin.
Celeste looped around the outside of the stadium to the south gate, but when she got there, she didn’t find Nico standing guard. She slowed her pace, treading lightly and scanning the area around her. As she turned the corner, she heard footsteps coming toward her and felt a slight stir in the pit of her stomach. She pulled the small silver stake from her boot and held it behind her back.
“Whoa, whoa, it’s just me,” said Nico, coming around the corner with his hands up.
“Geez Nico, you almost gave me a heart attack!” she yelled. “Why did you leave your post?”
“I thought I heard something in the parking lot so I went to check it out,” he answered.
“And?”
“False alarm.”
“Okay good,” she said.
“How’s it going inside?” he asked.
“Everything’s okay so far,” she replied, “and the game is amazing! The Crusaders are kicking the Bulldogs’ butts!”
“Aw man, how did I get stuck with the boring outside post?” he asked. “Want to trade?”
Celeste considered for a second, then she shook her head. “No, I don’t think so.” She chuckled and turned back toward the entrance. “See you later and don’t let your guard down!”
Back inside the second half had just started and the Crusaders were up 48 to 32. Celeste took her seat in the front row and continued to scan the room, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. The three cute girls were back, she noticed, and sitting right behind her blatantly ogling Brian. Celeste had to fight the urge to turn around and slap them. Sure, she and Brian were only friends, but she had always felt unusually possessive toward him. She shook off the thought and focused back in on the game.
Suddenly, about half way through the fourth quarter, Celeste felt an ominous feeling emerging inside of her. Oh no! She quickly surveyed the interior entrance door, just a few feet to her left, but there was no one there. She glanced over at Marie who was standing in front of the emergency exit, but saw nothing there either. She quickly shot warning text messages to both Roman and Nico; Roman responded immediately, but she got nothing from Nico. She stared at her phone for a few more seconds, willing him to respond. When he didn’t, she stood up and made her way to the door. She pushed the metal lever as quietly as possible and peeked through the slit – nothing.
Celeste didn’t know what to do. If she asked Roman to check on Nico, his gate would be unprotected; if she had Marie do it, then the exit would be exposed. She tried to concentrate on her evil radar to get a grasp on the direction of the threat. After a few deep breaths, she was pretty sure that the entrance closest to her was clear so she abandoned her post and made her way toward Nico, but only after messaging Marie and Roman her plan.
Going around the outside again, Celeste kept her eyes and ears alert. She debated returning to the car for her sword, but she didn’t want to delay in case Nico was really in trouble. Instead, she freed the silver stake from her jacket pocket as she jogged toward his post. As she neared the south gate, the ominous feeling intensified. Celeste ran faster—and as quietly as she could. Turning the corner, she found Nico surrounded by five werewolves. She immediately recognized the shaggy brown hair of Vinny standing out in the group. She had never seen the other four before, but they reminded her of the wolves she had seen in Astor, definitely different from the young ones she had met last week. They were hairy and gruff with scars and overgrown beards. Nico was doing his best to fend them off, but it was apparent that he was struggling against all five. He, too, wore the wolfsbane bracelet and he waved it in front of them as they snapped and snarled at him.
Celeste wasted no time springing into action with her silver stake raised high. She managed to catch one of the men by surprise and sunk the stake into his back, piercing his heart. The werewolf let out an angry shriek before he crumpled to the ground dead. That was just the distraction Nico needed to lunge at the nearest guy and rip into his hairy neck. As Celeste and Nico fought side by side against the two remaining wolves, Vinny took off.
“He’s getting away!” yelled Celeste.
“Go!” shouted Nico. “I can handle these two.”
Celeste darted in the direction that Vinny had disappeared in, but as she ran, her cell phone chimed. She looked down and paled when she saw the message from Marie.
Come quick! A whole pack of them made it inside in the gym.
Celeste pocketed her cell phone and turned back toward the entrance of the stadium, praying she wasn’t too late.
Pandemonium had erupted inside the arena in the few minutes that Celeste had been gone. Dozens of wolves, growling and snarling, weaved in and out of the terrified crowd. Both basketball teams had still been on the court when the pack broke in, and the players seemed to have fared the worst. Some were lying on the floor, clutching at wounds. Celeste saw cuts and scrapes on the long legs of members of both teams. Most of the people in the audience had scrambled up further onto the bleachers trying to get space between them and the howling beasts. Celeste did notice that the wolfsbane seemed to be helping. Though the wolves chased their prey, once they caught them, they only circled menacingly but were unable to attack.
Celeste searched the court frantically for Brian, but she couldn’t find him anywhere in the sea of blue and gold uniforms. From across the room she could just make out Marie who had summoned a small but effective wind tunnel to force the wolves at bay while she directed the panicked crowd out the emergency exit. Among them were the Kennedys, causing a wave of relief to pass over Celeste as she quickly thanked God that she had instructed them to sit near the door.
“Brian!” she screamed as she caught sight of a tall sandy-brown haired player whiz by. He stopped running when he recognized her voice and jogged over to her. “Are you okay?” she asked as she scanned his body for any gaping wounds.
“I’m fine,” he said, holding one of his hands behind his back.
“What’s wrong with your arm?”
“Nothing,” he said. “Cel, I gotta go help get people out of here.”
“Not until you show me what’s behind your back,” she said grabbing his arm.
He rolled his eyes at her and revealed an eight-inch kitchen knife he was hiding in his hand.
“What in the world are you doing with that?” she asked, her eyes widening.
“You never let me help! I couldn’t just sit around and do nothing while my best friend and my girlfriend risked their lives. So I took matters into my own hands,” he said.
Celeste was shocked and completely speechless, but the truth was they needed all the help they could get right now. “We’ll talk about this later,” she said threateningly. “For now, please stick with Marie and don’t try anything stupid with that knife.” Brian nodded and sprinted in the direction of the emergency exit where Marie was busy ushering people to safety.
On the opposite side of the arena, Celeste saw Roman battling three werewolves in their human form. Roman took every chance he got to shove the wolfsbane bracelet in their faces as they hissed and howled in pain. Nico, too, had finally appeared and was busy with two wolves of his own. Celeste was about to run toward them when she was pummeled to the ground by a big hairy monster who got the drop on her from behind. She pushed up on her hands as the huge wolf growled and snapped at the back of her neck. With a mighty push, she managed to hurl him off her back. She could feel the power surging through her as the blue glow of the Albsurori ring fueled her energy. She turned toward the black wolf and swiped at him with the wolfsbane bracelet. He shrieked as the thin twine made contact with his snout, leaving behind a bright red wound. Backing up a few steps, he took a running leap at her with sharp fangs extended. Celeste darted to the side in the last moment and plunged the silver stake deep into his furry chest. The wolf’s lifeless body landed with a thud on the lacquered floor.
Finally free of her attacker, Celeste ran toward the bleachers where a couple dozen people were corner
ed by a group of wolves. They had climbed to the very top of the stands and the benches were wobbling and creaking perilously. As Celeste made her way up the stairs, a huge grey wolf blocked her path.
“I don’t have time for you!” she shouted as the wolf snarled at her with yellow eyes blazing. She lunged at him with the stake, but he was fast for such a big guy. He ducked underneath her legs and threw her off balance as she teetered on the edge of the stands. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the metal of the bleachers begin to crack where all the people were huddled. She grabbed onto the hand railing and steadied herself just as the wolf sprung at her again.
“Roman!” she cried. She had lost sight of him in the chaos, but she knew wherever he was he would hear her. She stabbed at the wolf’s chest with the stake, but missed, only grazing his leg. Another werewolf appeared in human form and as he raced up the stairs toward her, she heard the distinctive sound of metal breaking and wood splintering. Flanked by two werewolves, Celeste’s instincts told her that she would never reach those people in time. In the blink of an eye Roman appeared before her, and while he looked scratched up, overall he seemed okay. He dealt a mighty blow to one wolf and caused him to stagger back.
“Not me! You have to help them!” yelled Celeste as she pointed at the group huddled on the top bench.
“I can’t leave you,” he said, sensing how precarious Celeste’s position was as she dangled over the edge of the bleacher, facing wolves.
“Roman, please! The stands are going to collapse any second. You need to save them!”
Roman looked at her and then back at the dozen or so college kids clinging onto the splitting benches as the beams cracked underneath them. Then he glanced back at Celeste, his stormy blue eyes piercing her own, and he took off.
Celeste could just see Roman disappear under the stands when the grey wolf leapt at her again. She scrambled to grasp the railing just as the hundred pound beast collided into her, knocking the breath out of her. Celeste could feel her hold slipping as the weight of the animal became too much. In seconds, they both went plunging over the railing. There was a moment of weightlessness as her body soared in midair and then everything went blank. Celeste felt nothing as she floated in a sea of oblivion, yet something in her mind told her she should be in major pain. Another random thought drifted into her subconscious as well – where was Brazen?
Suddenly Celeste’s eyes snapped open as her mouth filled with an oddly familiar coppery taste. She found her head in Roman’s lap and his bleeding wrist positioned over her lips. She coughed as she tried to sit up and resisted the urge to gag.
“No, stay down,” came Roman’s commanding voice.
“What happened to the bleachers? Are the people all right?” she asked, her voice wavering.
“Yes they’re fine,” he answered.
“Okay good,” she said and shut her eyes again. She felt so tired for some reason and though she tried to fight it, she couldn’t keep her eyes from closing.
“Maybe she needs more blood.” Celeste could hear muffled voices all around her, but she couldn’t quite make them out.
“Please tell me she’s going to be okay,” said someone else.
“Maybe we should take her to Stellan,” said a female voice.
Celeste felt like she was floating in a bubble of warm water. She could hear sounds around her, but they were muted and seemed to hang in the distance. She could breathe, but it felt like she was inhaling Jell-O instead of oxygen. Her body felt extremely light, like she could drift away at any moment. Then she felt the warm tangy liquid in her mouth again, and her eyelids began to flutter. Celeste opened them finally, painfully, and saw her friends’ worried faces all around her.
“Celeste, can you hear me?” asked Roman, his voice rough with emotion. She nodded slowly. “Can you wiggle your toes for me?” Celeste thought that was the oddest request, but obliged him anyway when she saw the desperate look in his eyes. Everyone stared at her toes expectantly as she wiggled one, then two, then all of them at once.
A huge smile of relief crossed Roman’s face, and he pulled her up and into his arms to squeeze her tightly. “I thought I lost you,” he whispered into her ear. His soft breath in her hair sent a pleasant tingling sensation coursing through her. She tried to focus on that instead of the soreness spreading throughout her body.
“What happened?” she asked as she looked around at the empty basketball arena.
“We kicked some werewolf butt,” said Nico with a smirk.
“So everyone’s okay?” she asked.
“Yeah, everyone’s okay Cel,” said Brian squeezing her hand.
“We got all the humans out with minimal bumps and bruises,” said Marie. “Roman was awesome. He practically held up the bleachers with his bare hands until Nico, Brian and I were able to get everyone off of them.”
Celeste looked up at Roman with a giant smile. “You did it. You saved them.”
Roman blushed. “It wasn’t just me. I couldn’t have done it without the three of them.”
Celeste sat up and looked around at the ravaged stadium. One full side of bleachers had collapsed, blood pooled on the floor, and dead wolf carcasses littered the court – not to mention the plastic cups and containers strewn about everywhere. Still, no one had died. Celeste was relieved and thankful for that.
“Did anyone see Brazen?” she asked abruptly.
“No,” said Roman and the others all shook their heads as well.
“Could we have missed him in the commotion?” asked Celeste.
“Doubtful. I think an immortal werewolf would have been hard to miss,” answered Roman.
“And Vinny never came back either,” said Nico. “He ran off when you arrived and I never saw him again.”
“That’s so weird,” said Celeste.
“Come to think of it, most of the werewolves that were here today seemed like the ‘B team,’ if you know what I mean,” said Nico.
“Yeah, with the exception of a few big mean ones, the rest of them just seemed to be playing around,” said Celeste.
“Geez, if that’s playing around, I’d hate to see them really pissed,” said Brian, running a hand through his ruffled hair.
“Do you think some of them were those young ones we met the other night?” asked Nico.
“I hope not,” said Celeste, “but it would explain why they stayed in wolf form throughout the attack.”
“Speaking of – how are we going to explain a wolf attack at a basketball game?” asked Brian.
“I don’t know, but luckily we don’t have to,” said Roman. “Let’s get out of here before the police arrive. I’m sure the local media will have lots to say about a rabid wolf attack.”
“Thank goodness you’re all safe,” said Stellan’s holographic form appearing before them in the middle of Roman and Nico’s apartment.
Celeste was stretched out on the couch and Marie was beside her, tending to Brian’s cuts and scrapes. Roman’s and Nico’s wounds had already healed and both were hovering anxiously over Celeste.
“There was something off about tonight,” said Roman.
“How so?” asked Stellan.
“For one thing, Brazen was nowhere to be found, and for another there didn’t seem to be any purpose for the attack,” he explained.
Celeste was still feeling slightly woozy, but she sat up anyway. “He’s right. Brazen doesn’t do things without a purpose. Besides causing some mayhem, there was nothing to gain by attacking a college basketball game.” Celeste glanced down at her hand to make sure the Albsurori ring was still there, and she was relieved to see it. She had been so out of it that she had completely forgotten to check earlier.
“Maybe the pack just wanted an excuse to let loose,” said Nico, shrugging.
“I gotta go,” said Celeste abruptly. “I’m being summoned by the Council.” She stood up and had to hold onto the side of the couch for support.
Roman was at her side in a flash, holding her up. “You’re in
no shape to be traveling by yourself between realms.”
“I don’t really have much of a choice,” she answered and was gone before Roman could object any further.
The feeling of wading through Vaseline was even more intense than usual and when Celeste opened her eyes in the Council’s chamber, she felt exhausted. She must have looked it too because Dante eyed her curiously when she materialized in front of him.
“Is everything all right?” he asked, his normally cold voice tinged with a hint of concern.
“The Black Devils just attacked the community college basketball game, but we were able to stop them,” she responded. “There were no casualties.”
“I’m glad to hear that,” said Dante. “It explains why you completely missed their infiltration of the Albsurori coven’s compound.”
“What?” asked Celeste, looking around and suddenly noticing Dalla’s empty seat at the end of the elevated bench.
“The attack at the college must have been a diversionary tactic,” replied Balthazar. “While all of you were busy protecting college students, Brazen and a few of his men ransacked the Albsurori library. Dalla is with Marja now trying to determine what was taken.”
“And how about Marja’s daughter, Sofie?” asked Celeste, remembering the young girl Vinny had kidnapped.
“They used her to get through the protection wards and into the compound, but luckily she was left unharmed after they escaped,” answered Sierra.
That’s why Vinny snatched her. This had been their plan all along.
“They need to find out what was taken. It had to have been something important if they went through so much trouble to stage an attack and abduct Marja’s daughter,” said Celeste.
“We are very aware of that,” answered Seraphina.
“Perhaps they were after the Albsurori ring again,” commented Balthazar.
Celeste glanced down guiltily at the cloaked ring sitting on her finger, then shoved her hands in her pockets.
“No, Dalla is quite certain that Alek still has it. Brazen must have been after something else,” said Dante.