“Enough. Do you really think you could win against us? This is so much bigger then you could ever dream, little shifter.” The snow pelted across his face, the army disappearing with each passing second as the world whited out around him. Until they were the only two left. Throwing the sword down, his golden eyes stared at her and all she was. Her lips curled, the challenge clear, and he was running. Shifting in a fluid motion, he barreled toward her, baring his teeth.
She shrugged, taking him in. “You have a valiant heart, I will give you that much.”
All he could smell was smoke. The tang of winter. Of blood. His heart breaking with every footfall. Bresslin smiled as she snapped her fingers, the storm ceasing. The snowflakes hung in the air, transcending gravity, gleaming like diamonds in the afternoon light. Each intricate pattern was amplified as the sun touched the defined edges, shining like stars among the carnage. Bresslin whistled merrily. The ranks of demons split, as he slammed to a stop. They created a pathway of savagery, and his world tilted as the Gortach loped down toward him, Emory chained and in tow behind him. Shifting back, he sprinted toward her, roaring. The world became washed in red as his sanity was cut loose.
“What did you do to her?” he screamed as Bresslin prowled around him, assessing his reaction.
She tutted. “Now, I take offense that you think I did that to her. It was all too easy, really, to overtake such a legendary school. One that of course doesn’t need any form of protection, the residents were always enough.” She smiled bright and sharp. “Our acclaimed heir was found trying to enter a tunnel, but she won’t say who she was following.” The Gortach had reached them, Emory not meeting his gaze as silent tears slipped down her cheeks.
Bresslin grazed the sword’s end underneath her chin, forcing her to look up. “I was upset to see someone had beaten me to the pleasure of killing your parents.”
Rushing up to her, Brokk’s fist slammed into her stomach as his left connected with her jaw with a sickening crack. She laughed, darkly spitting blood as he stood there, his chest heaving and his mind reeling with what she had just said. “Ah, I finally touched a sore spot. Yes, it’s true, the King of Kiero is dead, along with his weak wife. It is finally time true leaders step up to the task of ruling this country.”
Emory’s chin wobbled, but her voice was strong. “My parents were not weak.” The Gortach snapped the chain attached to her collar, wrenching her back. Brokk could not resist the current of wrath that burned in his blood. His world was one of tooth and claw, of instinct and reaction. The ground shuddered underneath him as the dabarnes lunged toward him, Bresslin giving the order with the swipe of her sword. Emory was pulled back, screaming his name. Charging toward her, straight into the heart of darkness itself, all he saw was her.
Sharp teeth pierced and ripped into his haunches, but he leapt, missing another set of talons swiping toward his heart. The dabarnes were fast. But he was faster. There were maybe fifty in front of him, the rest falling behind. He snarled as they stomped their feet in dominance. Emory was about ten yards away. The creatures bared their teeth, racing toward him. Flattening his ears, he pushed faster, his surroundings becoming a blur. Five yards. The thick torso of a creature slammed into him, crushing the wind out of chest, pinning him. Its teeth snapped toward his throat but sinking his back claws into its hide, he pushed down, slicing clean through. Blood and sinew tore, as warmth spilled onto his side. Rolling, he leapt over the body, adrenaline roaring through him. Only to be met midstride with talons sinking into his haunches. Teeth sinking into his shoulder. His howled, pierced through as they pinned him, and all Brokk could see, all he could smell, was the blood and decay dripping from their jaws as they came closer. Panic settled into his chest as his body reeled from healing and rehealing, as the monsters around him feasted on his pain. Sinking their talons into his side, his ribs cracked and shattered underneath their pressure. Snapping, he thrashed, the vital drive to survive thrumming in his blood. All that he saw were gleaming teeth as they closed in on him, his howls tearing through him. No, no, no! He felt the shudder roll through the ground first. The dabarnes stopped, raising their heads, their attention caught by another. The group hissed around him, wrenching their gazes from their killing blow, their drool dripping onto his snout. His ears twitched as he craned his neck, catching a glimpse as the doors of the Academy exploded completely off their hinges. Adair stood in the doorway, smoke curling around him. At first, he just stood there, his mother and the army thrown off as he looked at the ground.
Fear lurched through him as he heard the throaty chuckle. Adair looked up, his pale skin streaked with shadows, his eyes burning with malice. Tipping his head back, his lips curled back over his teeth. And the world erupted into mayhem.
19
Adair
He bowed to this body, this skin, this man, barely containing the darkness churning in him. The
