by Tijan
“Who are they?” Spencer grabbed my arm.
Cal surged to my other side. “Yeah. Were those fangs on that chick?”
I couldn’t answer. I didn’t know what to say, not yet anyway.
“Davy.”
I shrugged off Spencer’s hold and said to him, “When this is done. I’ll tell you everything when this is done.”
“When the crazy, freakish fighters are done fighting?” he shot back.
Cal frowned at Spencer, but didn’t say anything against him. His Adam’s apple bobbed up and down as he surveyed the battles once again.
“Davy!” Spencer’s hand wasn’t on my arm anymore, but he stepped close. His presence was demanding answers.
“When it’s safe,” I hissed at him.
“We should be running for our lives, not waiting to see who wins.”
Cal added, “Let’s go. They’re all freaks.”
“Sounds good to me.”
Before they could leave, I grabbed both of their arms, and because I knew there’d be no words to explain everything, I showed them. Using The Immortal’s power, I slipped into their minds. Okay. When I say that I slipped, it was more like I burst through their door and charged my way in. I showed them everything using my memories, of when I first became an empath, of when I lit a vampire on fire, how I enjoyed watching him burn, when I went to college and tried to be normal. They were there when I first met Roane, my first college date that Roane ended coming along with, how I kissed him to distract him, later when we kissed more in a professor’s office, and the first time I realized I was The Immortal. After that, the memories were coming in quick spurts and all at once. I introduced them to Brown, to Kates, to the werewolf, to who Jacith is supposed to be, to Pippa, and lastly they were shown my time in the cage. They were there when I was tortured by the witches, and again when we escaped. The last memory they were shown was when I stumbled upon them in the forest.
I released their arms before anything else could slip through. I didn’t want them to hear the conversation I had with The Immortal and how I learned it was my fault they were pulled from their group.
“Whoa. Holy—” That was all Spencer got out before he ran a few feet away and bent over, throwing up.
Cal didn’t look too far from the same. He raised his arm and pressed it over his mouth, but his face turned a slight shade of green.
“You going to throw up, too?”
He started to shake his head, but as he did, his eyes bulged out, his cheeks puffed up, and his entire top half of his body lurched upward. He sprinted next to Spencer, and the two were throwing up in sync.
I sighed. Maybe I shouldn’t have done that . . .
“Friends of yours?” Gavin was behind me. He was sweating, bloody, and his chest was heaving up and down.
I grinned, though I didn’t feel it. “Apparently, I’m not so in control of my powers as I used to be.”
He frowned at me. “Were you ever?”
I shrugged. “I thought I was better.”
A deep and ferocious roar came from behind us and we looked over, just in time, as Gregory stopped, grabbed the wounded Mori in front of him on both sides of his head, and he twisted the head completely off. The body fell back to the ground with a thud, but Gregory wasn’t done. Tracey yelled at him as she lit her Mori on fire. She tossed the lighter to the Goliath-sized vampire, and Gregory lit the head on fire instantly. He dropped it on the ground as he lit the rest of the body on fire, too.
Both of them, Gregory and Tracey, looked at where Gavin had left his Mori on the ground.
He hadn’t burned the body, but it wasn’t needed. The body had been pulled apart, literally. Arms, fingers, legs, parts of its stomach and chest were scattered all around the beach.
Gavin remarked, “I was mad.”
Gregory grunted. “Got that.”
Tracey didn’t reply, but she began to gather the body parts. Gregory did the same until every part of the Mori were thrown in one burning pile. By that time, Cal and Spencer were done throwing up and we gathered around the fire. It wasn’t enough. The flame should’ve been higher, and without thinking, I held my hands out and began to mutter a spell. The fire began to grow.
“Who-a . . .” someone muttered.
I didn’t care. Every last part of them had to become ash and even then, the pile of ashes would need to be spread all over. I didn’t know the Mori lore and how to kill them, but I wasn’t taking a chance. I kept chanting and the flames doubled in size. A white twinge started to grow on the outskirts of the fire, but that was from The Immortal. I couldn’t see myself, but I knew my eyes had changed to The Immortal white. I kept them lowered so no one could see them until the Mori were completely gone. Then, as the last piece of ash fell to the pile, I raised my hands and made a motion to the left. A strong gust of wind swept through the clearing where we were and picked up the ashes. I sent them off, directing where I wanted them spread, and once I was content, knowing they would never return and never come back to life, I stopped.
I could still feel The Immortal in my blood. She was on an adrenaline high, like she was intoxicated. I was buzzing, but I still waited until an ounce of calmness settled over me. Cal and Spencer had come up behind us, and I turned to look at Tracey, so my back was to the hikers.
I asked in my head, “Are my eyes still white?”
She answered back, “You’re fine.”
Reassured, I looked back over the group.
All of them were staring at me with mixed emotions. Cal and Spencer looked like they were crapping their pants, while Gavin was closed off. I felt his anger. It was just underneath the surface. He was keeping it contained until the humans were dealt with. Gregory and Tracey had similar reactions. I felt the awe in both, but they were also resigned. They were waiting for Gavin and me to fight, then to keep on with whatever we decided.
I grinned slightly, but felt regret, too. “I shouldn’t have left.”
That was all Gavin needed. He erupted, “YOU THINK?”
“AGH!”
Cal and Spencer fell back again, their fear spiking once again.
I took a breath and held a hand out to Gavin. “You didn’t need to come.”
He bristled back. “You had three Mori about to rip your spine out, and you’re telling me we didn’t have to come?”
Tracey said quietly, “You knew we would.”
“You cast a sleeping spell over us.”
I stiffened, hearing the accusation coming from Gregory. I started, “I’m sorry—”
“Wren is alone,” Gavin interrupted. His eyes were narrowed to slits, and his jaw clenched. “She continued to Roane.”
“I didn’t ask you to come with me,” I argued back. My blood started to pump again. “I came here on my own.”
“To do what?”
His words felt like a slap in the face. I winced. “To save Kates.”
“You’re lying to them.”
I closed my eyes. This is not the time.
“Too bad,” The Immortal snarled at me. “You’re going to have let me talk. You have to stop lying to them.”
“Davy?”
I shook my head at Gavin, turning half away from them.
“They can smell your lies.”
I grew still, hearing her answer. It was simple and given to me so calmly. I asked, “What?”
“If you want to be rid of them, stop lying. Believe your truth. They’ll smell that instead and will do what you want.”
“I want them to be safe.”
“So send them to safety.”
I frowned. “What are you talking about?”
“It’ll cost you, but it’ll be worth it. Send them back to Roane. They’ll be safe with him. They won’t be with you.”
“I . . . I don’t have enough strength.”
She laughed at me. “You do. You’ve been restoring it since you woke. You just have to tap into it.”
“What have I been using since I woke?”
�
��You have a back channel of power. It’s all stored up. It’s where I’m speaking to you from. You are me. I am you. I am this back section of power. Open up your mind and let me in.”
“I . . . can’t . . .” I was going to say I didn’t know to do that, but it wasn’t true. I did. It was the same way I had gotten into Cal and Spencer’s minds. I had my own door closed off to myself. I just needed to find it and burst through it, but . . . thinking about it, I hesitated.
“Come on, Davy,” she started to chide.
“Stop it!” I screamed back, the words coming from my throat as well. My heart was pounding. I could feel her wanting to get in. That was when I realized it—that door wasn’t keeping me out, it was keeping her in. It was keeping The Immortal from completely taking over me.
“Davy?”
I didn’t know who said my name, but I looked to Gavin. Seeing concern and his anger lessening, I almost whimpered. “It’s The Immortal. She’s trying to take over.”
A wave of alarm swept over all of them.
Gavin froze in place and asked, his voice dipping low, “What did you say?”
ROANE
Roane and Bastion had been tailing the Romah army for three days. They were trying to go around them, moving higher on the mountains to give the entire army a wide berth and their progress was painstakingly slow. More than once they were almost discovered and each time, Roane worried about what they’d have to do if that happened. No matter the consequences, whoever discovered them would have to be murdered. If the body was found, that could start a war before he was ready for it. The only plan he had was one he didn’t want to do. It put them at risk as well, but so far, he hadn’t needed to put it into play.
So far.
They were high up, at the highest line of trees on the mountainside. If they broke free from their cover, they’d be seen from below and every time there was a clearing, both had to drop to the ground and crawl across, going as fast as possible.
They weren’t moving as fast as Roane wanted. They needed to get ahead, but the break hadn’t come for them. The Romah army didn’t rest. They slept in shifts. While some would walk, the others would sleep on some makeshift carts. The awake ones would pull them ahead, then switch places and progress even further. The weight of their comrades slowed them down, but not enough.
They were being assisted with magic. Roane felt it in the air. It was covering all of them and it was a problem. It’d be a problem in the future as well. He wasn’t sure where the magic came from, but he knew it was there and he knew it was protecting and helping them to go at an unnaturally faster pace.
He and Bastion were running, sprinting from tree to tree, when suddenly they felt a shift in the air. Both vampires froze as one, looking like statues now.
“Do you see anything?” he asked Bastion in his head.
Bastion leaned forward and his nostrils flared. He closed his eyes and smelled the air, like a wolf would do. Roane knew the answer was nothing before Bastion thought to him, “No. Whoever it is, is beyond the next ridge.”
He edged farther. Instead of their break-neck speed, he and Bastion snuck ahead, keeping to the trees for camouflage. They were going at a snail’s pace now. He wanted to see whoever or whatever it was before they saw them, and as they cleared the hill, both froze in place. A wolf scout was thirty feet in front of them, resting against a tree. Its head was down with closed eyes, and the wolf panted for a moment. In and out. It sounded like it was struggling for breath, but that was from the speed the group was traveling at. Even the wolves were tired.
Roane thought to Bastion, “Hold. The wolf will move forward.”
Bastion didn’t move an inch, but he replied, “The wolf will keep moving ahead of us. We’re stuck behind him.”
Roane grimaced. There was no way around it. If the wolf didn’t move down, but kept going straight ahead of them, he knew Bastion was right. A confrontation was imminent. He was about to signal Bastion to move around when a wolf’s howl filled the air. The wolf in front of them immediately responded. His eyes opened and his head fell back. A long howl ripped from deep in its throat and the two vampires shared a look. From the intensity of closeness of this howl, both knew they wouldn’t forget the sound. It was haunting, sounding from a deep sorrow.
As the wolf finished, he lumbered forward. His head went back down, and he took two quick breaths before bounding ahead.
“He’s keeping to the same path.”
Roane nodded, knowing what Bastion meant. They had to kill the wolf. Giving him the signal, Bastion took off to the left as Roane sprinted forward. Instead of going upward, Bastion would circle around the wolf, coming from below. The wolf would sense Roane’s presence and prepare for an attack, assuming a second opponent, if there were one, would circle up and out of the army’s territory.
That would be his death then.
But before Bastion could go far, the wolf ripped through the foliage, coming straight at them. Roane felt the wolf’s surprise. He had doubled back, not knowing what he’d find, and before he could call for help, both of them were on the wolf.
As Roane impaled the wolf, drawing his sword and shoving it deep into his enemy’s chest, a sadness filled him. He had come to know that creatures such as this one followed orders. That was their only reason for its death. If he had been born or turned by the Christane bloodline, his blood wouldn’t have been spilled on the ground that morning. But this wolf hadn’t been and because of that one fact, Roane reached in and yanked out its heart.
The sword harmed him, but it wouldn’t kill him. His own touch delivered that fatal blow and as he stood there, with the heart still beating in his grasp, he said a small prayer honoring its death. Bastion was beside him, and without saying a word, both knew what had to be done. One by one, they took the heart and spread its blood all over them. It would aid in their travels and they could move at a faster rate. They would smell as one of their enemy’s own, which would turn an invisible eye to them. The wolves wouldn’t be looking at their own.
Once they were done, both completely covered in its blood, Roane put the heart back. It was his way of paying homage to the wolf, giving back its heart. After that, knowing they only had limited time before they realized one of their own was dead, Roane and Bastion sprinted ahead. This time, they could move farther down the hill. They didn’t need to travel along the highest tip of the ridge. The wolves were scouting the mountains, and their noses would allow them camouflage.
It was time they made up their lost time.
As they ran forward, weaving around trees and giving every wolf ahead of them a wide berth, Roane glanced down. The army had changed their positioning. The Mother Wolf was in the middle of her men, along with Romah guards behind her.
They were nearing his army. They wouldn’t risk leaving their leader in the back. It was too vulnerable of a position. She was more guarded this way and for a brief second, Roane knew he could fly down and rip her heart out, as he had one of her brethren just now. It would be a suicide killing, but for the briefest of moments, he considered it. It would be a harsh blow to this army, one that could assist in their victory, but Bastion reached back and grabbed Roane. He pulled him forward with him, and as he did, the moment was gone.
Roane knew he’d have to find an opening later. He couldn’t regret that moment.
Roane and Bastion were nearing their camp. Roane could sense his own men and knowing it was safer, they began killing the wolves and any Romah guards they came upon as they made their way out of enemy territory, closing the gap into their own. They still needed to cover twenty miles, but once they came upon the last of the Romah scouts, and let their bodies fall to the ground behind them, they slowed their pace. They still kept to a brisk speed, but this was their resting time. Once they hit their encampment, he knew their army would have to pick up its own speed to stay ahead of their enemy.
They cleared a tree line, and he sensed an attack from behind. Roane twisted around, his sword drawn before he
realized the body hurdling at him was a Christane wolf.
“Halt!” a voice cried out in a commanding tone.
The wolf couldn’t, but Roane tucked his sword down and ducked, evading the wolf’s attack. It hit the ground where he had been standing, but rolled once and was immediately on its feet and rounding to attack again.
“Stop.” Roane held a hand out, showing his Hunter hand symbol. “I’m one of yours.”
“It’s the Hunter.” The same voice from before materialized out of a foliage. It was Christian. He lifted his head, sniffing the air, and he frowned at Roane. “You reek.”
“Your rival’s blood.” As he spoke, Roane signaled to Bastion to keep ahead. Once the other vampire took off, with instructions to ready the rest of their men to move forward at a faster rate, Roane fell in step with Christian. The other wolf moved back to its hidden post, ready to attack anyone else that followed them. Roane said, “It camouflaged us the last few miles. I sent Bastion ahead. The group needs to go faster.”
“Roane—”
“They’re moving faster than us. Your Mother Wolf is in the middle of their group. She’s protected by her wolves and Romah vampires. We need to get ahead and get Davy on our side if we’re going to stand a chance. Or—”
“Roane—”
He ignored Christian, continuing to talk as they grew closer to the main camp. “And I couldn’t find Jacith. He’s not traveling with his family, but he’s a sorcerer. I’m sure he’ll be with them at the battle line.”
“Lucas!”
“What?”
He twisted around, a fierce frown on his face. They had just cleared the last opening, leading to where the others had all congregated. Christian wanted to say something, and he stopped to listen, finally, but he felt one of his own coming toward him. He paused, distracted from whatever Christian was saying when he looked. It was one of his that shouldn’t be there. He hadn’t felt her for so long, since she was taken, and as he searched for her, or whoever it was, Christian’s words broke through his concentration the same time he spotted her.