by K. V. Wilson
As if in answer, the soldier states, “This plane was rigged from the get-go. It was never meant to reach London.” His whisper grates against my ears, which have now begun to pop with our descent. If I were closer to one of the windows, I know what I’d see. Ocean. We’re over the middle of the Pacific. We will die in open water.
“Let. Go. Of. Him!” I grunt through gritted teeth, but my chest heaves as I draw in rapid breaths. They’re going to kill us all. Lycans, shapeshifters, and humans alike.
“He’s a dead man,” the soldier whispers. Raising his voice, he addresses the restless cabin. “Tonight, we take another step towards purifying the world! We will continue the Saint’s legacy and rid Earth of the monsters that have plagued it for so long—”
“Go!” Xunnu’s voice cuts through the soldier’s speech, and a roar ensues from the Lycans and Yeva’si on board. Their cries are punctuated by horrified screams of the passengers.
I don’t have to glance behind me to know that a riot is taking place. I blink twice as a portion of the aircraft’s energy is rerouted into my own body. The overhead lights flicker again, and this time they wink out entirely. The only light is coming from…me.
“Now, Skye!” Conall yells, and I don’t hesitate any longer.
I leap forward, knocking the Covenant soldier down while he’s distracted. When it’s clear that he’s dropped hold of my uncle, I grab him by the arm and send a bolt of electricity through his body. His circulation lights up for a split second before he falls limply to the ground. His eyes spark to life one last time before his spirit fades into the void. I gasp as my stomach knots up in disgust.
Life, and then…nothing.
“Thirteen! Behind you, mate!” Damian calls out. I turn to see more dark figures converging on the group of Lycans. None of them has Shifted; it would be unwise to make such a move in a crowded airplane. Besides, in the darkness, we can see a lot better than they can.
“Thanks,” Conall mutters, throwing a punch at the nearest soldier.
I approach the crowd, slowing my breathing so I can more easily connect with the spirits around me. I sense more soldiers at my back and they’re rapidly closing in on me.
“Look out!” one of the Lycans yells.
“Got ‘em,” I whisper to myself, whipping my body around to face the attackers head-on. I reach into the near-darkness, grabbing a limb and willing the energy to take it over. Lightning sparks across the fabric of one of the plane’s seats, and I gasp at the glow of a small flame just under the armrest.
“Attention passengers,” the pilot announces. “We are experiencing some mild turbulence. Please keep your seatbelts fastened.” The accompanying ding of the seatbelt sign ensues.
Something hard strikes my face, sending my body reeling. I hit the floor, the breath knocked out of me. Hard-toed boots kick my downed body and I bite my tongue to keep from crying out. Hot blood streams from my nose. A cacophony of angry voices and screams drowns out my words but I say them anyway.
“Damn you, Covenant!”
I feel my mind begin to sway, and all I can see is the fire my rogue spark had created. It surges to life before my eyes, burning brighter and brighter. It lights up the face of the nearest soldier as he brings his gun forward, clasping it with both hands in a death grip.
“Die, demon.” The soldier’s words are meant only for me. The firelight glints off the metal of his weapon. I throw my head to the side, kicking at his boot with my free foot.
The electricity isn’t flowing through to his skin. I have to get higher.
“You dare to call the Guardian of Nature a demon?!” I scream, grabbing the side of the seat – the one that’s now alive with flames – and pulling myself up.
Keeping one hand pressed against my nose to curb the bleeding, I grab the startled soldier’s gun with the other just as he pulls the trigger. A shot rings out, rendering me deaf for a few seconds. I can only hope that the bullet buried itself in the floor and not in one of the bodies nearby.
“Dealanaich, sgrios!” I call out in Gaelic. Lightning, destroy! I close my eyes, picturing the spirits of the soldiers as I commune with the energy around me.
One, two, three strikes.
Three kills.
I fall to my knees, gasping at the exhaustion. No! Not now. I need to keep myself conscious. I still need to put out the fire… I need to stop…them…
The world begins to blur at the edges and all that I’m aware of is the enticing embrace of a cool mist, the overwhelming darkness drowning out the screams of the Lycans and shapeshifters as they resume their battle without me.
27
FAMILY
Aelshen
The train ride back from Edinburgh was mighty pleasant. Now, the taxi ride – that was one worth whining about. I just had to be the gentleman and offer Bryce shotgun. So now I’m sittin’ in the middle seat, squeezed between Emily an’ one of her clan members – a giant if ye ask me. If I can barely make me way through a room without knocking into somethin’, I don’t see how this fellow can even cross the threshold. He’s bloody huge.
“And yer next left,” I call out to the cabbie. “Ah, ye just missed it.”
I swear a vein is popping out on the poor man’s forehead. I don’t blame him; we’re a wild bunch, we Lycans. MacLarty and Flint are in the backseat of the cab van, arguing over who-knows-what.
The cabbie sighs, a vision of patience. “I’ll go ‘round the block.”
“Ye do that.” I grin and then lower me voice. “Uisge,” I mutter, uttering the Gaelic word for water.
“Did ye say something?” Emily asks from beside me. I shrug, feigning confusion. Ace’s mother loses interest, staring out the window once again.
Raindrops glide on the glass, picking up pace little by little until water streams down from the sky. The cabbie swears, forcing his wipers to top-speed and likely regrettin’ that he hadn’t gone to med school. I mentally thank the First Guardian fer the fact that me powers have been fully restored. Patercius’ Knights had taken me down, that’s fer sure, but I was most certainly not out. The only thing missing was the telepathy; I still couldn’t make contact with Skye.
Before long, the cab pulls up alongside the pub that belongs to Flint an’ me.
The dated windows reflect the noonday sun, an’ its emerald paint peels at the edges. The decals Flint & Flockhart shine in gold letters o’er the heavy oaken door.
Ah, me old pub. Aren’t you a sight fer sore eyes? Such good times I’ve had inside those doors.
“Finally!” Ace grumbles, pushing past so he can enter first. Emily gives him a disapproving glance but says nothing. It must be strange to start disciplining a son ye haven’t seen in years. I give her an apologetic smile, hopin’ she doesn’t think I’m the boy’s biggest influence.
The cabbie gets a big tip and a wink from yours truly. “Ale’s on the house, if ye like,” I suggest, wiggling my eyebrows at him. He thanks me but graciously declines, telling me he’ll pop in another time. Something tells me he won’t, but ye never know. As soon as we’ve closed the doors behind us, a hand grabs me arm.
“Mac Tíre!” The lad’s eyes tell it all. The six of us follow him up the stairs to me own quarters. I frown as I realize that the Lìog Airgid has made itself at home in me absence.
“What’s the meaning of this?” I demand when I meet eyes with Todd Matthews, leader of the army. And Skye’s father.
He stands slightly shorter than I, with dirty-blond hair that’s laced with grey. I rub me own head absentmindedly, feeling a tinge of envy at his lack of bald spots. He’s placed himself at the head of a cheap wooden table which clearly wasn’t a part of me house afore now. Ten other Lycans are sitting ‘round it and all eyes are on me now.
“Mac Tíre.” The alpha nods solemnly. “Sorry about the intrusion, but our latest hideout is no more.”
I clear me throat. “An’ ye thought it best to bring ‘em here so this place could be destroyed next? Do ye know what this pub means to
me?”
I glance at the walls, whereupon rest more murals depicting our journeys, Nwyfre’s and mine. The paintings span multiple generations, and someday I’d hoped to add one of me own up there somewhere. Ye know, if I end up doing something heroic in this life.
“An’ do ye know what it means if the Covenant catches us, stray?” a familiar Scottish accent barks. Beside me, Ace stiffens. I cross me arms firmly, eyeing the deposed beta.
“Who gave you the right to be here, Mr. MacLarty?”
In response, Duncan tips his nose up a little farther. He glances around the room, taking in – with much distaste – the appearances of his son Ace, the young dragon Flint, and the huge Lycan who’d accompanied us in the taxi. Upon catching sight of Emily, however, Duncan’s face pales.
“Em,” is all he can say.
His ex-wife bristles. “Don’t ye ‘Em’ me, ye arrogant, selfish—”
Matthews coughs, making everyone in the room turn back towards him. “Duncan, if you insist on interrupting this conversation, you’d better leave the room.”
“M-me?!” Duncan sputters. “It’s her! I don’t want any part of this if it’s that woman yer bringing into this!”
The alpha sighs deeply, ignoring the Scot’s outburst. “Mac Tíre, we’ve missed you greatly. There have been more and more attacks on our various hideouts, forcing us to split the Lycans up to avoid casualties. What we need is to go on the offensive.”
Missed me greatly, eh?
“Ah. Ye know how I feel about going on the offensive, Matthews.” I sigh, shaking me head. “There’s always a better way.”
“I know. My brother points that out to me on multiple occasions. But something has to be done. Someone with your power needs to be on the front lines.”
I scratch me beard in thought. “Maybe we can wait until Skye gets back.”
Matthews’ face lights up at this. “That’s exactly what we’re doing. I mean, I’m not waiting for her opinion on the matter, but—”
“Ye’d better shove away that type o’ thinking now, Matthews. Yer daughter is more than just Skye now. She’s the avatar of the ancient spirit Ru-Yeva. Her wisdom far outweighs yours.”
The room grows silent and all eyes flick towards the alpha. Todd raises his eyebrows at me. I grimace, wonderin’ if this possibly wasn’t the best time to drop that little tidbit. Thank goodness Elspeth isn’t here to ridicule me for it.
“But, regardless,” I begin, feelin’ me cheeks heat up as the Lycans stare at me, “I think that we need to find a much better place to meet. The city is rather safe fer the most part, due to the sheer number of people, but Skye an’ I need a place to train.”
“To train?” Matthews raises his brows once again. They’ve fallen into a subtle pattern of rising and sinking, like the ebbing and flowing of the tides.
“I need to teach her all I know,” I tell the alpha proudly. “Teach her how to fight. It’s the best way to succeed against the Covenant and the Knights—”
“I thought you said she had infinite wisdom,” Matthews points out.
“That’s not exactly what I… Well, that’s not the point,” I correct meself before repeating the whole ‘yer daughter is smarter than you’ thing again. “The point is that she needs to develop her talents. In doing so, she’ll remember who she once was.”
“In case you haven’t noticed, Skye is my daughter, not yours,” Matthews states, anger flooding into his voice. “She won’t fight and she won’t train.”
I smile, but fer the first time in forever, it’s without feeling. “That’ll be up to her when the time comes.”
Matthews shakes his head. “You’re overstepping your boundaries, Guardian.”
“An’ I will continue to do so until this world is set right. Just like yer trying to do here, Matthews.”
I glance at the Lycan’s hands, which are balled into tight fists. He’s been spendin’ too much time with Duncan, he has.
“I want my daughter safe and sound. I didn’t authorize her trip back to Canada—”
“She had to visit her people.”
Matthews clears his throat. “Xunnu will have to answer for that, but for now—”
“Alpha,” I begin carefully, “with all due respect, you an’ Skye have been separated fer seven years. She’s grown up in your absence, an’ soon as the two o’ ye reunited, she was placed on the backburner once again.”
Skye’s father stares at me, mouth dropping open before he regains his composure. “I was leading an army, which is more than you’ve ever done in this life! What, you think sitting on your ass at the pub all day will fix life’s problems?!”
I narrow me eyes, crossing my arms over me chest an’ leaning back against the door jamb of me own living quarters. Matthews breathes deeply, shutting his eyes in an attempt to calm himself.
“Skye died the night of the Ritual, Alpha,” I whisper. “She died never having known her father because he was too busy to give ‘er the time of day.”
“I will change that,” Matthews vows, an’ I raise me eyebrows, surprised he isn’t chastising me. “And I’m grateful to Sejka for bringing her back to life. But this is my family, not yours.”
He’s right; I’m overstepping me boundaries. But if I don’t say something, who will? Skye’s a fine young lass, an’ she deserves a loving family. ‘Specially growing up without a mother. Which is why I’ll be there for her when Matthews isn’t.
“We’ll be leaving your pub before the week is done, Mac Tíre. As for the present plan, I’m taking a small party of Lycans to meet Skye and David at the airport.”
“Already? Well, it’s good we got here fast as we did, then. We can come along an’ aid ye.”
Matthews narrows his eyes. “No. Stay here. We’ve got enough help as it is.”
“Very well,” I frown, glancing at Flint. Maybe the young Ddraig would be willing to accompany me. Or else I could ask Ramsey; he an’ Elspeth would be arriving soon enough. “Well, anyhow, we’ve got a bunch more Lycans arriving on the next train. They’re clans from Edinburgh. And we’ll also have two dragons. They’re a bit of a fright in terms of manners, but they’ll do.”
I wait fer Matthews to thank us fer rounding up more recruits, but the alpha only nods dismissively as if I’ve just shown him a documentary on paper clips. He then engages the nearest Lycan in conversation.
I have to reach Skye before she falls back under her father’s influence. I need to offer her a choice: train with me an’ remember who you once were, or stay huddled under yer father’s wing.
“I'm warning the lot of ye,” I tell the assembly. “When the Knights of Saint Patrick rear their ugly heads, yer going to wish ye’d listened to me. The Knights and the Covenant are bad enough on their own, but now that they’ve joined forces, we’ll be history.”
I turn on me heel, leaving the room of Lycans behind to ponder me words. Hearing footsteps on the worn carpet, I glance around to see young Flint staring up at me.
“She’ll listen to you, Mac Tíre. She listened to Sejka, remember?”
“That she did, lad.”
I sigh, ruffling the young dragon’s hair. He rolls his eyes, smiling faintly before heading fer his bedroom.
As I saunter down the hallway towards me own room, I flick my fingers at each sconce in turn. They come alive with firelight, their tantalizing patterns dancing like thieves upon the worn walls of me pub. At least now I’ve fully recovered from what that secret weapon had done to me powers and me strength.
It certainly takes more’n a stab wound to take down the Father of Lycans, no matter how dire such a wound was. Ah, isn’t the world such a delightful place?
Snorting, I take a detour down to the bar.
If today’s not the day fer a drink, I don’t know when is.
28
GANGWAY
Skye
“Head up, feet apart.”
“I don’t want to—”
“Silence. Feel the energy. Remember.”
I jutted out my chin, peering at him out of the corner of my eye. “Father, I’m done for today. I’m hungry.”
“One more time, Sejka. Just once more. You almost have it.”
“If we wait, I will remember on my own.”
Father shook his head. “You are our Guardian. You must practice if you want to become the powerful daughter I know you are. Once more. For me.” His eyes pleaded with mine.
I sighed deeply. “Fine. But what if the chieftain or his son find out?”
I meant Xáan rather than Xunnu, but he would not know the difference. Father still thought I’d been keeping this secret from everyone, including Xunnu.
“Do not worry about them. When you are grown, you may put them in their place.”
I gulped. I did not want to put them in their place. I wanted only to be accepted by my people as I once was. Xáan was turning my own brother against me. And I was forbidden to spend time with Xunnu because it would tarnish his future as the next chieftain. Xunnu disobeyed his father and visited me every so often, but I had forced myself to distance myself from him. I was not yet ready to show the world who I really was and I did not wish to burden Xunnu any more than I already had.
I felt lonelier than ever. But my father’s love for me kept me going. He would help me to become the Guardian I was meant to be. If I were to be respected, I wanted it to be borne of admiration, not power. Sehwen ruled our tribe by force, but he would never be loved the way other chieftains had been.
“Thank you, Father. For being there for me when others were not.”
He nodded. “The Yáahl owe many debts to the Ru-Yeva, and many more to you, Sejka. Someday the others will see that.”
I did as Father asked, planting my feet a shoulder’s width apart and tilting my head towards the sky. I reached deep down into my soul and into the earth beyond my physical form. I could feel it seeping across the soles of my feet, the buzzing energy enveloping the cells of my body and seeking reprieve.
