Hot Blooded

out by knocking us to the ground with a boulder, and then crush our bodies beneath its feet before we could recover. Do not underestimate a mountain troll.”

“But it doesn’t smell like anything,” Danny complained. “I would assume a troll would have a scent. I’ve smelled many a bridge troll and they have a nasty, fishy stink.”

“It doesn’t matter. We’re about to find out exactly what it is,” I said. “It’s cresting the top now.”

All eyes focused on the dark edge of the mountain. Behind me, Ray staggered into an upright position. “I can’t see a thing,” Ray complained. “Are you telling me we’re about to be attacked by a giant creature who carries a club with spikes on it and eats people?”

“That sounds about right,” I said. My eyes were riveted on the other gigantic hand as it sailed over the edge in a loud crash, sending pieces of the mountain flying down into the gorge.

There was noise behind us as Tyler burst into the trees, the cooler hoisted strategically above his head. “I heard an explosion. What happened?” He set the metal box down with enough force to bury the bottom. “I ran all the way back here. It sounded like part of the mountain sheared off—”

A huge body emerged over the edge, ending all discussion.

Its dark stony eyes arched in our direction. It wasn’t a troll. It appeared to be made up completely of rocks. My wolf let out a long howl. What is it? She barked in rough staccatos.

“No,” Naomi whispered. “It cannot be.”

“I take it that’s not a troll,” I said impatiently. I hated being a newborn. Everything was new to me.

“Whatever. I don’t care what it is. We just have to find a way to defeat it.”

“I believe it’s a Mahrac,” Eamon said with a touch of awe in his voice. “They are very rare and very strong. It is much worse than a troll. A troll bleeds and breathes and has a heart that beats,

making it possible to bring down. A Mahrac is the stuff of nightmares. A spirit being. Impossible for us to kill. We will not be able to best it.” He made a move to leave. “We must turn back.”

I grabbed ahold of his arm before he could go anywhere. “We aren’t going back,” I said, my voice just short of full-on rage. “I am not leaving.” My wolf snarled her agreement, teeth flashing. “Tell me what a Mahrac is and then we’ll figure out how to defeat it.” As I spoke, the thing hoisted itself to its full height. It towered at least fifteen feet high and six feet across, completely massive. Its whole upper body was made up of a series of rocks hanging together in space. “The rocks don’t look connected. What’s holding it together? If we can disconnect the parts, it falls apart. Correct?”

“Wrong,” Eamon snapped. “It’s a spirit being made entirely of the rocks from its environment. If it loses one, it pulls another. It is not sentinel. I told you, there is no way we can defeat it. We do not have the right skills,” Eamon said with confidence. “We must clear the area. It can sense us better than a troll.”

The thing let out a deafening howl. From someplace other than its mouth, because it didn’t have one. Then it leaned over and grabbed hunks of stone from the ground, like a child scooping sand from a sandbox. It started to pace toward us, the mountain shaking under its weight in a seismic vibration.

“We have to split up,” I yelled. The thing arched a stony arm and launched its booty. Rocks and boulders crashed into the trees, breaking them perfectly in half like some sort of cartoon. A huge boulder raced straight toward Danny. “Danny,” I screamed. “Move!”

“Already a step ahead of you,” Danny called. Using his preternatural speed, he dodged it no problem. “No need to worry about me. Get yourself under cover.”

I turned to Ray, who appeared to be in shock. “Ray! Wake up! We might recover from a crushing blow, but you have zero chance. Run back to the Humvee and wait for us there. Crawl under the damn thing if you hear it coming down the hill.”

Ray didn’t move. The spirit monster turned and lumbered toward my voice. “There’s no getting away from that thing,” Ray said quietly. “Its parts aren’t even fully connected. How is it moving?”

“It’s enchanted in some way,” I heard myself yell as I grabbed on to Ray and ran. “Selene is using it to do her bidding, like a golem. If there’s a way to break her mind control over it, it might fall apart or lose interest in us.” I shoved Ray behind a big tree, pinning his back to the bark, and ordered, with a finger up, “Stay here. If one of those rocks hits you, you’re dead.”

I didn’t wait for him to answer. I slipped behind the trunk and sped for Tyler. The Mahrac turned slightly when it noticed me running through the trees. It didn’t seem overly hurried in its assault on us.

I reached Tyler, leaping behind a mass of earth to land next to him. Danny darted through the trees toward us. Naomi started doing a little jig in front of it to keep its attention.

“She’s going to distract it as long as she can,” Danny said, joining us. “Anyone know how these things operate?” There was another deafening sound as a boulder exploded into the trees. “I’ve never even heard of a bloody Mahrac before. Golem, yes; Mahrac, no. It must be regional to some faraway land. Where does she come up with these things?”

I looked around. “We need Eamon,” I said. “None of us knows what it’s capable of besides him.

Eamon!” I yelled, glancing around me. “Where did he go?”

There was wind in my ear one second before he landed in front of me. “I’m here, but I will not stay for long.”

“Does Selene have mastery over it completely?” I asked. “Or does it have its own soul?”

Eamon’s lips curled. An expression I currently wanted to slap off his face. Hard. With an open palm. My fingers twitched. “I do not know. I have already told you, I don’t know how to best this monster. Mahracs live deep in the Altai Mountains. They were created by Mongolian shamans centuries ago to protect their people. They defend what is theirs, to the end. I know this only because Selene bragged about learning spells as a young witch from a very powerful shaman. The technique shamans use is very different from a witch’s magic. It took her years to perfect it.”

“It’s like brain control, then,” Danny urged. “The shamans control the monsters that way and now

Selene does.”

“It takes trained power to manipulate them,” Eamon said in an exasperated tone.

“How do they do it?” I asked. “Come on, Eamon. You know more about this than anyone else.

Think!”

“I know of a sorcerer who wrested control of a golem,” Eamon finally said. “I witnessed him dip his hand into the clay body and physically grasp its mind. But none of us is a witch or a sorcerer. It’s doubtful the Vampire Queen could even achieve it. We cannot defeat this being. We must leave here.”

And go where? The only option was to go back down the mountain. But there was no guarantee the

Mahrac wouldn’t follow us. Likely, now that he had us in his sights, we wouldn’t shake him. We had to stay and fight.

My wolf brayed in my mind and showed me a picture of us glowing. I know we have power. I can feel it—especially since we came together—but nothing like what Eamon is talking about. Even if we could put our hands inside, how would we know what do once we had it? We aren’t skilled in wielding magic. She barked and then scratched at the ground. Slowly something appeared in my mind. It was a box of some kind. It had a lacquered top, inlaid with some kind of Scripture. I didn’t have time to see what it was because the Mahrac turned and bellowed, done with Naomi’s dance.

The thing flung a huge piece of earth the size of a couch at us.

It took out everything in its path. I dove to the side, my wolf fueling me with a big dose of adrenaline. My claws extended as I flew through the air, my canines dropping to points. We’re going to need more if we’re going to defeat this thing. I rolled once and was on my feet. I turned to see where Tyler and Danny had gone right as the Mahrac let out a cry of joy.

A prone figure lay on the ground.

Tyler.

The Mahrac headed toward him gleefully, each step sounding like a trash compactor crushing everything in its path. If it reached Tyler, it would step on him, crushing him and his spinal column.

Before I could react, Danny shouted, “Come here you pansy-arsed piece of shit! Why don’t you come and get me? Don’t bother with that one; he’s already dead. I’m still alive and ready to nail your rocky bum to the wall.” Danny launched the canteen we’d used to douse the venom at the Mahrac. It hit him in the side of the head with enough force to knock a small piece out. It had no physical,

weakening effect on him, but it was enough to gain his attention.