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Thantos called, “Air, you are the first of the elements, and I call you to this circle.” After she lit Damien’s yellow candle, she moved to Shaunee, invoking fire in the same way. When she stood before the True Sight fledgling, she took longer, saying, “Water, you are ever changeable, always adapting. You have been called to this circle and manifested many times for your fledgling, Erin Bates. But that fledgling has, like water, changed and adapted to another environment. This new daughter of Nyx stands here, open and excited to accept your gifts. As High Priestess I invite you to this circle. Come, water, and show Shaylin she may blessed be!” Aurox watched as Thanatos lit the fledgling’s blue candle, and then she gasped in pleasure.

“I can feel it! Water is here, all around me!”

Thanatos smiled. “And for that gift we thank Nyx most profoundly.” The High Priestess moved to Stevie Rae, invoked earth, and lit the green candle. Aurox could smell grass and earth. He breathed deeply as it reminded him of the morning he’d woken to Grandma Redbird’s singing.

I must do this. She believed in me and I will not desert her.

Then Thanatos was standing in front of Zoey. “Spirit, you are the last element to join a circle. You open and close our union. I call you here with a resounding, merry meet! Come, spirit!”

When she touched the lighter to the purple candle, there was a sizzling sound and Zoey’s candle flamed a pure, silver color. It grew and flashed, and suddenly the silver flame became a glowing rope, connecting each of them around the circle. Aurox could feel the power stir the air around him. He drew a deep breath and readied himself.

“Let’s do this,” Zoey said. “Warriors, bring him pain!”

This time Stark attacked him first. Aurox had thought himself prepared, but the vampyre surprised him. Instead of punching, he kicked his legs out from under him. Aurox went down hard. He was trying to collect himself and get up when Kalona kicked him in the stomach as Darius sliced the knife’s blade across his other shoulder.

Aurox reacted automatically. He grabbed the immortal’s legs and twisted as he turned and struck out with his hand, which was already solidifying into a cloven hoof, and struck Darius in the back. Both Warriors grunted in pain and that pain lit within Aurox like a match on dry tinder. The beast within him exploded to the surface. He roared and charged Stark.

“It’s time!” Thanatos said.

“Command your elements to fill Aurox! Show him what it’s like to feel the joy of air, fire, water, earth, and spirit!” Zoey shouted.

Aurox could dimly hear Zoey. His head swung in her direction. The silver flame she held before her caught the beast’s attention. He roared, wanting to change course, wanting to attack the flame.

“Watch him, Z!” Stark was yelling. “Over here, you bastard! Don’t you fucking look at her!” The Warrior rammed Aurox with his shoulder, knocking him backward. Aurox pretended to stumble, but instead he feinted right and his left fist, now a fully formed hoof, caught Stark in the middle of his gut, doubling him over. Aurox was lowering his head, ready to gore the Warrior when the elements hit him.

This time his stagger was not pretended. He felt spirit first. Felt it deep within him. Something stirred. Something that was the opposite of the beast of Darkness that shared his skin. Joy leaped to life. It was an oddly familiar sensation, and with it Aurox turned his head, his gaze automatically seeking and then finding Zoey. Their eyes met. Hers had tears in them. In one hand she held the silver-flamed candle. Her other hand was pressed against the middle of her chest.

“Don’t cry, Zo. You’ll get snot everywhere,” he heard himself say in a perfectly normal, perfectly human voice.

Then air whooshed into him and he gasped—and laughed. It felt like a mini-tornado. Fire was a sizzling rush, which water cooled. Earth was a fragrant field of lavender, calming and strengthening.

Aurox laughed. He looked down at what had been hooves, cloven and deadly. He had hands and feet again!

“Don’t take a victory lap yet. This doesn’t mean shit if you can’t fight.” And Stark punched him. Hard. Blood rained with pain from his nose.

Aurox grunted and threw his own punch, which caught Stark on the side of his chin. “I can fight!” he shouted. Stark went down.

The beast quivered within him, but Aurox thought of the elements and their presence strengthened him, and as it did, he felt the creature shrink and cower.

Aurox was grinning when Darius struck at him. Aurox deflected the blow, knocking the Warrior’s wrist so hard that his grip on the knife loosened. The blade skittered across the basement floor. Aurox was still grinning when he kicked Darius’s legs out from under him and the Warrior fell back on his ass.

Kalona wasn’t so easy. His speed was otherworldly, and now that Aurox didn’t have the beast’s reflexes, he was only able to block a third of his blows. But it didn’t matter. What mattered was that Aurox was still fighting, and he was still a human.

“Okay! That’s enough!” Thanatos’s command came as Stark and Darius rejoined Kalona and were closing on Aurox. The Warriors halted, though Aurox thought they did so reluctantly.

“Spirit, earth, water, fire, air—I thank each of you for your powerful presence. You may depart now, and until next time, merry meet, merry part, and merry meet again!” Thanatos closed the circle. As one, all of the candles flamed high and then went out.

“Huh, it worked,” Zoey spoke into the silence.

Using his shirt, Aurox wiped the blood from his nose and mouth. He didn’t actually think about what he was doing—he just followed his legs as they strode over to Zoey. Then his arms were lifting her and his body was twirling her around and around as his voice shouted, “You did it! It worked!”

A burst of laughter escaped from her, but as soon as he put her down she was stepping away from him, moving to stand by Stark’s side.

“It wasn’t just me who did it. It was all of us.” She took Stark’s hand and, ignoring Aurox, smiled at everyone else. “You guys were all awesome.”

“Okay, yeah, the circle worked,” Stark said. “But how does that translate to helping him get Grandma out of Neferet’s penthouse? Neferet isn’t gonna let you cast a circle up there.”

“Well, I didn’t think that far ahead,” Zoey said.

“Must you see Aurox to strengthen him with the elements?” Kalona asked.

“Actually, no,” Zoey said. “It’s harder, and I don’t know how long we could keep it up, but we don’t have to see someone to send our element to him.”

“I believe a spell of protection is the answer.” Thanatos spoke slowly, reasoning aloud. “Surround the Mayo building. I will open the circle and cast the spell, binding it with salt. Zoey, as long as spirit is at the center of the circle, in the heart of the building, the circle should hold.”

“The lobby of the Mayo is big. There’s a bar and a restaurant in it,” Aphrodite said. “Food’s pretty good, and they actually have a decent champagne list, and it’s dark and romantic.”

“I care because?” Zoey asked.

“Because you and I can sit there, in a corner booth. I can sip good champagne. You can read a boringly huge textbook while you really are lighting a smaller, less obvious version of that purple candle and zapping bull boy with all of the elements.”

“Where will we be?” Stark asked, not looking happy at all.

“Outside, watching over the nerd herd so that some street crazy doesn’t stagger into, say, Queen Damien and cause him to shriek, drop his candle, and fuck everything up,” Aphrodite said.

“I would not drop my candle,” Damien said.

“What if he smelled really, really bad and you thought he had lice?” Aphrodite asked.

“Eeew,” Damien said and shuddered.

“Told you so,” Aphrodite said.

“Aurox, can you do it?” Zoey asked.

He met her gaze and didn’t hesitate. “Yes. I can do it. I will do it. As long as the elements can strengthen me.” Aurox paused and couldn’t stop a smile of pure joy. “Me! I am more than a beast. I am more than Darkness.” He turned from Zoey to Thanatos. “You said I had a choice. I choose Light and the path of the Goddess.”