Ghosts of Winter: A Dark Shapeshifter Urban Fantasy (Echoes of the Past Book 2)

by H B Lyne

  They entered another chamber and on the opposite wall was a solid, metal door. In the way, however, were half a dozen huge rat demons; all of them locked their red eyes on the intruders. They were far more monstrous than the wererats that the Lightning Lords had encountered before. These beasts were as big as their own Agrius forms and just as ferocious-looking.

  A shot rang out and one of the demons dropped to the ground. Every eye in the place darted to Claws and his smoking gun, only for the briefest moment before utter chaos ensued. The air was filled with snarling, howling, biting and ripping, punctuated by gunshots. The stench of blood was overpowering. Weaver's torch lay discarded on the floor, and huge black shadows jerked and writhed across the light it cast.

  Stalker shifted form mid-stride, still gripping her dha, and took out one of the demons with relative ease. The next was quicker and dodged her attack. It caught her arm with a massive claw and tore through her flesh. It stung like hell but healed in seconds. The next blow was more damaging; the demon slipped under one of her blades and tore into her thigh. Her leg buckled and a snarl escaped her lips.

  Before she could react, the demon dropped to the ground and was dragged along by its leg. She whirled around to see Weaver yanking it away from her. She ripped the demon's leg right off and tossed it aside. The demon writhed around, yelping in pain. Stalker strode over to it and plunged both of her swords into its chest. It fell silent and its blood poured onto the dirt beneath it.

  She looked at Weaver and nodded in thanks. The cave fell quiet and still. The demons were all dead, their bodies broken and scattered around the floor. Claws was leaning against the wall clutching his side and Stalker ran to him, shifting into human form as she reached him. 'Are you all right?' she asked.

  Claws nodded and coughed as he tried to speak. He winced and clutched himself harder. Stalker could see blood all over his clothes and seeping out between his fingers.

  'We have to get him out of here,' Weaver said quietly.

  There was a loud clang behind them and Stalker spun around to see the metal door swing open. There was a lit room beyond it and Tar Peter stood in the doorway, blood and dirt all over his hands and clothes.

  'You're going to want to see this,' he said.

  Stalker moved towards him cautiously, Eyes and Wind Talker close behind her. She glanced past him into the room and saw a hole in the ceiling with tar dripping from it. Tar Peter had found his own way into the room, there were no other doors. The room was made up of metal struts holding up densely packed earth. An electric strip light was rigged up on the ceiling and in the centre of the small room was a metal table with a body bag on it. The zip had been partially undone and left hanging open.

  'Have you been taking a sneak peak?' Stalker asked Tar Peter. He shrugged in reply. Stalker edged closer and peered into the bag. A corpse lay inside, nothing but bones. Wedged into its chest between two ribs was a large wooden stake.

  'What happens if we take that out?' Eyes asked, gesturing at the stake.

  'I don't think we want to know,' Wind Talker replied.

  'Hello?' They spun to face the source of the quiet, rasping voice with a slight echo to it. Before them stood the Plague Doctor. 'Have you come to pay me?'

  'Pay you?' Eyes spat.

  'I did what you asked, now it is time to fulfil your side of the bargain.'

  Stalker looked at Eyes, he looked confused and torn between wanting to pounce on the demon and talk to it. Stalker felt the same. Her hand loosely gripped the hilt of her dha.

  'Who do you think we are?' Stalker asked, her intention curious, not demanding.

  'You raised me, brought me back.' The Plague Doctor looked at each of them, his huge eyes were empty sockets and yet he seemed to see everything. 'I have walked the lines, called the host and prepared the way. Give me what you owe me.' There was just the slightest edge to his voice now, the threat was clear.

  Stalker's grip tightened on the hilt of her dha, ready to strike at the Alpha's command.

  'We didn't raise you,' Eyes said incredulously. Wind Talker placed a gentle hand on the Alpha's arm.

  'Of course you did,' the Plague Doctor said. He didn't sound confused, he was absolutely certain of it. Stalker felt terribly confused and looked from one face to another to try and work out what to do. Tar Peter stood absolutely still, his face unreadable. Weaver had moved into the doorway and was looking shocked and confused.

  'You've got the wrong shifters,' Eyes roared and he leapt across the body on the table, shifting form as he vaulted and grabbed hold of the demon, wrapping his arms and legs around the thing. Wind Talker and Weaver were in there in an instant, punching and tearing with teeth and claws. The Plague Doctor writhed around, hissing and spitting. He folded in on himself and then burst outwards, pushing the three Agrius beasts off him as if they were rag dolls.

  Stalker slashed at him with her dha but he dodged easily and put the table between them.

  'I'm going to find my payment,' he hissed and then disappeared. The Lightning Lords exchanged troubled looks and slowly shifted back into their human forms again.

  'What the hell was that about?' Eyes roared. He rounded on Tar Peter and grabbed his slick, black jacket. He pushed Tar Peter against the wall and shook him hard.

  'What?' the demon cried, squirming. 'Why are you attacking me?'

  'Was he talking to you?' Wind Talker said. He didn't shout, his voice was quiet and dark, full of the threat of thunder. 'Did you raise him?'

  'Absolutely not,' Tar Pater said, his voice full of venom.

  'He's telling the truth,' croaked Claws from the doorway. 'Grab the body, we need to go.'

  Eyes released Tar Peter with a snarl, and he and Wind Talker each picked up an end of the body bag.

  The six of them moved quickly through the tunnels back to the boiler room, then up to the back door they had entered through. They ran quickly to the car, Stalker looking all around them for signs of trouble. They bundled the body into the boot of Eyes' car. There was movement in the woods around them and Stalker looked around anxiously. There was smoke rising on the other side of the building and Stalker's eyes settled on Tar Peter.

  'What did you do? To draw them away?' she asked.

  'Just caused a little accident. There are a thousand rats drowning in hot, molten tarmac over there now.' He had a sickening smile playing on his lips. 'Good luck with finishing that thing off.' Before anyone could stop him, Tar Peter melted into a pool of tarmac.

  'Let's go to the telecoms tower. We might be able to get some information there about what the hell is going on,' Eyes suggested, and they climbed into the car. Stalker sat next to Claws and made him lean back so that she could lift his shirt and look at his wound. He'd been gouged deeply, but it was starting to heal.

  'You'll be okay soon,' she reassured him. He tried to smile.

  'Why did he think we had raised him?' Eyes demanded, turning on Wind Talker.

  'He's a very old, very powerful demon,' Wind Talker replied. 'To him, all shifters are like the rats. Numerous and identical.'

  'We are all Raigo,' Stalker said quietly. Everyone looked at her.

  'Exactly,' Wind Talker replied.

  'So what's his payment?' Eyes asked.

  'Maybe the plague sample?' Weaver replied. 'My vision might not have meant that he already had it, but that he would have it soon. When he talked about the work he had done to fulfil his side of the bargain he didn't mention spreading disease. Maybe that's his payment. In exchange for these other things, he gets to spread the plague.'

  Nobody spoke. Stalker shuddered at the thought. It seemed plausible. But the most terrifying thing that they had to consider was not the Plague Doctor spreading plague, but the fact that one of their own kind had clearly raised him. The Spiral Hand was at work in this and a sick sensation filled her stomach to think that it could be Rhys.

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  The car skidded to a halt at the foot of the vast tower.

  'Claws, wait here
, you still have some healing to do. Rest while you can,' Eyes instructed. Claws snarled but reluctantly sank back against the seat. Everyone else climbed out of the car. The dark clouds in the sky above looked ready to burst and high at the top of the tower, the Lord-of-Storms-and-Rain was circling.

  Eyes strode over to the tower and placed his hands on the cold metal. He had blood all over them from the fight and he smeared it on the struts of the tower.

  'What are you doing?' Stalker asked, looking around at the small elementals that scuttled around them, just out of sight.

  'I'm not interested in the man at the top,' he replied. 'I want the communication spirits to make themselves known. We need to know if anyone is moving a sample of the plague across Caerton today. We need news broadcasts monitored, radio frequencies scanned, phone lines tapped, anything like that.'

  Wind Talker hung back by the car and Stalker heard him open the boot. She watched Eyes carefully and kept a lookout for any sign of trouble approaching. Weaver circled the tower, and Stalker caught her eye a few times. She looked worried. Everything was far too still.

  Movement in the sky caught Stalker's attention, and she looked up to see Unchained Lightning soaring towards them. He circled the tower and moved up to greet his father briefly. The Lord-of-Storms-and-Rain returned the greeting with a flash of lightning and a clap of thunder. Unchained Lighting flew to the ground and weaved in and out of the tower's supports, crackling slightly.

  'Guys,' Wind Talker called out. Stalker turned just in time to see him pull the stake out of the corpse in the car. He turned to face them, a triumphant smile on his face.

  'What did you do?' Stalker shouted and stepped towards the car.

  'It's okay, I figured it out,' Wind Talker called. His smile dropped from his face as his eyes came to rest on something behind Stalker. She whirled around and saw the Plague Doctor striding towards the car.

  'Pay me, now!' the demon roared and as he strode towards Wind Talker his form changed. His dirty, grey robes disappeared, the long beak-mask exploded and he rapidly grew to three times his former size. A huge, pulsating creature towered over Wind Talker, it was red and brown with sickly green slime moving just under the skin.

  'C-Caerton Plague,' Wind Talker stammered.

  The Demon reached out a massive hand, scooped Wind Talker up and tossed him against the tower. There was a loud crunch of breaking bones and he fell to the ground. Caerton Plague, formerly the Plague Doctor, grabbed Eyes' car and lifted it off the ground as if it were nothing but a toy. Stalker heard Claws yelling inside and ran forwards, with no idea how she was going to help him. The demon ripped the sleek, black, luxury car in two and threw the pieces away. The front of the car skidded across the dirt and crashed into the chain link fence that surrounded the tower. A few sparks flew and the engine caught fire. The back of the car landed with a thud at the demon's feet and he began clumsily searching it for the body.

  'Stop it!' Weaver yelled at Stalker. She shifted form and charged towards the demon. Eyes was next and Stalker wasn't far behind. She bounded on all fours towards the huge demon and lunged at it, ripping into it with her talons. Thick pus poured out of the gashes she made and stung as it touched her. She recoiled but the pain continued and she stumbled backwards, watching in horror as her clawed hands smoked and the smell of burning skin and fur reached her nostrils through the mask.

  Weaver ran around the demon and pulled the door off the car. Claws came crawling out, scrabbling across the dirt and away from the car and the demon. Eyes was laying into Caerton Plague, tearing and slashing at it, managing to ignore the pain of the poisonous pus. Stalker drew her dha and went in for another attack with her blades. The demon was huge and any attacks that landed seemed to result in nothing more than minor cuts and scrapes. Stalker did her best to get under its feet and managed to trick it away from the car, while Eyes tore chunks out of it. He couldn't maintain his assault, however, and Eyes soon stumbled away from the demon and collapsed at the foot of the tower. His whole body shook and smoked. Stalker looked around, Wind Talker had disappeared. She tried to keep the demon distracted whilst also looking for her pack mates.

  Weaver and Wind Talker were dragging the body bag across the dirt to the flaming wreckage of the front of Eyes' car. Unchained Lightning swooped overhead and Stalker felt him charging up for an attack. She leapt out of the way as he discharged his power down on top of Caerton Plague, landing like lightning and scorching the ground. The demon roared and stretched out its terrible, tentacle-like limbs. It caught hold of Unchained Lighting and the two of them merged into this terrible, writhing ball of diseased flesh and bright white light. Sparks were flying in all directions and the ground burned and smoked everywhere that the two of them touched it.

  Stalker sprinted towards the car; Weaver and Wind Talker were holding the body bag, hesitating as they watched the fight. Stalker shifted form as she reached them.

  'What are you waiting for?' she yelled.

  'What about Unchained Lighting?' Weaver asked, looking shocked and desperate.

  'I don't think fire will hurt him,' Stalker said, grasping at straws. 'But even if it does, we have to do this, we have to destroy that body. I'll bet my life that fire is the only way to get rid of the demon.'

  Wind Talker nodded solemnly. He and Weaver threw the body onto the burning car, and as the plastic body bag slowly melted, the body inside it caught light.

  Caerton Plague shrieked and hissed. Unchained Lightning managed to disentangle himself and slipped away from the demon. He looked hurt, his light had faded and he flickered feebly as he settled himself under the tower, next to Eyes.

  The demon burst into flames, screaming and spitting poisonous pus all over the ground. The stench was terrible, even through the flower-scented mask on Stalker's face. They all just stared as Caerton Plague burned, gradually shrivelling away into a charred and smoking lump.

  Once she was satisfied that the demon was dead, Stalker ran to Eyes. Claws had crawled over to him and was checking him over, despite an obvious head injury of his own.

  'Are you all right?' Stalker asked. Claws nodded. 'Is he?'

  'Yes, he's unconscious and badly burned, but he'll recover, he's already healing,' Claws explained.

  'He is going to be so pissed off about his car,' Stalker said with a sigh. She looked around and saw several big, black birds perched on the fence, watching them. They weren't ravens, they were something else, and their big eyes never blinked. Stalker shuddered and turned away from them.

  Unchained Lightning flickered suddenly and then went dark. His dragon-like body lay still and black, coiled around the base of the tower.

  'Oh my goodness,' Weaver said, pressing her hands to her face. She ran to the elemental and carefully reached out to touch him. She didn't receive an electric shock, nothing happened.

  'Is he dead?' Claws asked.

  'No,' Stalker replied. 'I don't think so; we're still connected. Can't you feel it? When Grins-Too-Widely was killed it severed the bond we shared. This is different.'

  'He is alive,' boomed a voice above them. The Lord-of-Storms-and-Rain hovered just above their heads, a sad look in his ancient eyes. 'He needs to rest and recharge. Leave him here with me.'

  Stalker sensed pride in his voice and allowed herself a small smile. The Lightning Lords slowly took off their masks. Claws carefully removed the one from Eyes' face and Stalker watched as Winding-Breeze-of-Petals floated out of them and reformed. She settled over the remaining husk of Caerton Plague, and there was a disturbing crunch as the beautiful fae crushed it and it turned to dust.

  'Thank you,' Claws said. She flickered in reply and floated away, like spores on the wind.

  'It burned our skin, but I don't think any of us inhaled anything life threatening,' Weaver said.

  'It seems that way,' Stalker replied. 'Let's go home.'

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  Stalker sat on the park bench, a coat wrapped tightly around her against the cold, though she could b
arely feel it; the coat was mostly for show. There was the very distant sound of passing cars and the occasional noise from a bird or small animal in the trees and bushes. The crescent-shaped lawn in front of her sparkled with frost, and the last of the path lights flickered out; finally enough daylight reached into this sheltered place from the grey sky above to turn off the electric lights.

  The sound of quiet footsteps on the path drew her gaze. Rhys walked slowly towards her, a heavy fleece done up to the neck. Also for show, she now realised. His breath was visible on the cold air and he came to a halt a few feet away. He didn't quite meet her eyes, looking slightly to her left instead.

  'Thank you for agreeing to meet me,' he said. His voice had a slight crack to it and Stalker detected his nerves.

  'That's okay,' she replied. She fought to maintain her composure, but inside she was a wreck.

  'May I sit down?'

  Stalker nodded and scooted along the bench to one end. Rhys sat down at the other end and turned sideways to look at her. She couldn't look at him, not yet. They sat in uncomfortable silence for what seemed like eternity. Stalker heard a few guttural noises from his throat, like he was about to speak and then changed his mind. She sighed and turned to him.

  'Right, so you're a shifter.'

  'Yes,' he said quietly. 'But I'm not in a pack, I never changed my name. I live entirely cut off from that whole life.'

  'Why?'

  'I was raised by my kin in a community in the forest, about fifty miles from here. I grew up in full knowledge of what they were. I saw them change, I saw them fight. I was being prepared, groomed, for changing myself.' He paused and took a deep breath. He still couldn't quite look at her, but she fixed her eyes on him, determined to detect any trace of a lie. For a second she wished she had brought Claws with her, but swiftly dismissed the idea.

  'What happened?' she asked.

  'They were killed. An enemy pack came through the forest and destroyed them all. That was when I changed for the first time. I fled and ended up here.' His voice was hard and strained, he was holding back the rage and sadness. Stalker almost wanted to reach out and touch him, to comfort him, but she held back. She thought over what he had said and an uncomfortable cog clicked into place.