by Amelia Jade
Launching an attack on this gryphon, even as young as he looked, was likely a losing proposition for Luther. Besides, right then he needed all the allies he could get, no matter what form they took.
“Andrew, this is Captain Luther Klein.”
He extended his right arm automatically as the colonel introduced them, and he was surprised at the lack of hesitation as Andrew took his hand and shook it once firmly, without trying to overpower him.
“Good to meet you, Captain Klein,” the gryphon said politely, then turned back to the desk. “What can I do for you, Colonel?”
“I assume you overheard the conversation?”
“I did not purposefully eavesdrop, but yes, you were speaking loud enough to be heard,” Andrew admitted.
“How would you feel about helping Captain Klein on his mission? You could get him to Cloud Lake a lot faster than he could get there on his own.”
Luther felt his eyes widen as he realized what Colonel Richter was proposing. He wanted Luther to ride the gryphon. Was he insane? All it would take would be for Mr. Raskell to spin mid-flight, and good bye to Mrs. Klein’s favorite son!
One less bear shifter in the world wouldn’t upset the gryphons, that was for sure.
And yet, if he went along with it, Luther could get there far faster than any other method. The straight line to Cloud Lake from Base Camp was far shorter than even taking one of their few trucks.
It was his best shot at saving Allix.
Fuck me.
“You want me to carry the captain to the edge of Cloud Lake so that he may try to infiltrate the city and save his woman?”
“She’s not my woman!” Luther blurted out.
His bear snorted.
She’s not my woman. The thought repeated inside his head even as the other two looked at him and rolled their eyes.
She’s not…That much was true. They’d barely exchanged half a dozen words before things went to shit. Yet Luther couldn’t deny that he’d been overawed by her presence, by her personality.
By everything about her. Allix was special, he had to admit that. How and why were still a complete mystery to him, but he couldn’t deny the way his spine had tingled when he’d heard her voice over the phone, or the constant pull he felt dragging him to her.
“Anyway,” Colonel Richter said. “Yes, that’s mostly what I was proposing.”
“Mostly?” Andrew Raskell asked, his words echoing Luther’s thoughts.
“I don’t want you stopping at the edge. If Fenris is threatening humans in animal form, we need to get in there asap and stop them from fucking shit up for all of us. A war with Fenris is one thing. But if they start killing humans, we’re all fucked. So you take Captain Klein, and you drop him right on top of those motherfuckers, and you get this woman to safety.”
“And the Fenrisians?” Andrew asked.
Colonel Richter simply raised an eyebrow. “Collateral damage.”
The gryphon shifter smiled evilly. “I do enjoy breaking things that hurt others. I’m in. Captain?” he asked, turning to Luther.
“When do we leave?” the big bear shifter asked simply, not wanting to say anything more lest he betray his terror.
Heights were not Luther’s forte.
***
After being dismissed by Colonel Richter, the pair of them moved briskly out of the Admin building to the parade ground, the closest space nearby where the gryphon could shift safely.
“Move back!” Luther ordered, and recruits scurried to obey, their drill instructors shepherding their charges clear of the area with shouted insults to their troops as was tradition.
“Is this enough space?” Luther asked as he too backed away.
Andrew nodded. He closed his eyes and Luther watched the transformation happen.
His eyes picked out the details as Andrew’s body began to add mass, growing quickly in size even as he fell to all fours, his spine realigning his head so he could look forward. Arms became legs, and all four limbs lengthened and the muscles on them grew even thicker.
Although in human form gryphons were generally smaller than both bears and dragons, their animal forms were quite muscular. It always amazed Luther that they were capable of flight.
Large bulges appeared simultaneously at the shoulders, growing in size rapidly until they split the skin apart and massive wings unfolded, the feathers smoothing down into place as the gryphon shook them slightly. His face elongated and his nose hooked forward into a razor-sharp beak.
The gryphon looked over at Luther, the whole thing having taken perhaps two seconds from start to finish.
“Here goes nothing,” Luther muttered and approached the gryphon. The shifter knelt, and Luther pulled himself onto its broad back, just behind the wings. He was too big to sit farther forward, where he would have had a better seat.
Instead he had to clamp down and hold on for dear life as the gryphon spread its wings wide and launched itself high into the sky.
“Fuck me,” he said with a big gulp as the ground fell away beneath them, the wind stinging his eyes as they picked up speed rapidly.
Below him Andrew made a rather un-birdlike sound in response.
“Shut up, you overgrown duck,” he replied, then cursed as Andrew banked left and right rapidly in response. “Okay, okay. Truce!” he shouted over the howl of the wind.
Almost immediately the flight evened out. Luther still hung on tightly, not looking directly down. But at least the swaying had stopped.
The ground went by swiftly underneath, and in just a few hours, he could make out the outline of Cloud Lake on the far side of the mountains. They were challenged once by a red dragon patrolling the border, but their orders contained the clearance code for the day, and they were able to pass unimpeded.
Faster. We need to go faster.
Despite the speed of the gryphon, Base Camp was still on the far side of Cadia from Cloud Lake, and it took them several hours to cross the distance. Precious hours in which Allix might need his help.
But it couldn’t be avoided, and all he could do was plan for the arrival. Long ago Luther had committed a map of Cloud Lake to memory. With that, and the detailed information he’d gotten from Allix, he knew exactly which house was hers. Using as few words as possible, he directed Andrew to the right spot.
The gryphon eyed the property from above, and shook his head. The streets were filled with cars, and the yard was small.
“You can’t land there, can you?” Luther asked.
The gryphon shook its head once more.
“Okay, fly low, then meet me there,” Luther said, pointing at a park. “If that doesn’t work, we’ll find you on the far side of the city.” He picked out a landmark in the forests just beyond Cloud Lake and made sure the gryphon knew where he was referring to.
The gryphon dove, and as he coasted above the yard, Luther cursed himself for his stupidity, and rolled off the big shifters back.
He hit the ground, landing on one knee as he sank into two feet of deep snow, immediately noting all of the bear tracks in the vicinity, including some fresh ones that led up to the back door.
A back door that was still swinging.
Someone had just gone inside.
He snarled and launched himself at the house, the door smashing aside as he entered.
The immediate hallway was empty. There was an opening on the wall to his right about four feet down, leading to another room. Luther approached it, but he never got there.
The wall on his right exploded as someone came through the wall and attacked him. Luther grunted in surprise as a very solid feeling shoulder took him in the side, slamming him backward into the wall, crunching old flimsy drywall beneath the blow.
“Not this time, fuckhead,” he roared as his momentum stopped. He clubbed his fists down on the other shifter’s back hard, and his attacker growled in pain.
Luther spun in the other man’s embrace and brought his knee up before the Fenris shifter could recover. His jaw
cracked together and the big blond-haired brute stumbled backward, his blue eyes blazing with rage.
Never one to hesitate or back down from a fight, Luther waded in, fists flying as he delivered a vicious right jab, ducked below a haymaker, and connected with an overhand left. His opponent’s nose shattered in at least two places, leaning sideways across the other man’s face as blood poured from that and an open cut near the eyebrow.
Taking advantage of the fact the intruder could only see out of his left eye, Luther dodged to his left, and drove a powerful one-two combination into the ribs. As the big bear shifter bent over in agony, Luther delivered a brutal kick to the side of his head, snapping the man’s neck back and dropping him to the floor unconscious.
Grimacing, Luther dropped to his knees and finished the grisly business of dispatching his opponent.
They were at war; one less shifter now was one less his friends would have to fight later.
Standing up, he turned to look into the rest of the house.
“ALLIX!” he roared, his bear going nuts inside of him as it sought out the reassurance that she was still somewhere in the house.
***
Allix
She heard the back door shatter completely as something came through.
Into her house.
Allix knew she had but moments left to live. Despite everything she could be thinking of, she found herself regretting not having the opportunity to look up into Luther’s brilliant jade eyes one last time, or to find out what it felt like to be wrapped up in his arms, feeling safe and small within them.
What is it about this shifter that I can’t seem to resist?
Silence followed both her thoughts and the sound of the door slamming against the wall.
She listened carefully for footsteps, sure that a creature of such large size, whether human or animal, would be unable to walk through her creaky house without at least giving her warning they were coming close. But there was only silence.
Then she heard the door thud against the wall once more.
Great. More of them. May as well make it a party, right?
The silence lasted for another second, and then the entire house jumped. She heard something breaking, and the grunts of two men. There was the sound of punches being thrown and the house shuddered as something hit the walls again.
What the fuck was happening out there?
It seemed to go on forever, but in reality it took no more than twenty seconds before the house was silent once more.
She held her breath. Were they just demolishing her house?
But then the sweetest thing she’d ever heard came blasting through the house as Luther bellowed her name.
“Luther?” she cried out, pushing the bins in front of her aside as she fought with the door. It couldn’t open fast enough, and she fell through it as it finally slid aside.
Allix was on her feet in a split second, lunging for the doorway, but Luther was faster. The door flew open, and suddenly he was there.
His arms swept her up into a hug, lifting her clear of the floor as if she weighed nothing more than a feather. It felt just like she’d imagined. His muscles were as hard as steel, and yet somehow he held her as tenderly as if she were made of glass.
Allix wrapped her arms around his neck, burying her face between there and his chest as the tears of relief fell swiftly, soaking the white material in a heartbeat. Luther didn’t seem to care though, and he held her tight for several long moments.
Eventually he set her down, and she looked up at him.
Their eyes connected, and she felt herself immobilized by his stare, as if his verdant eyes could see into her soul and control her simply by gazing inside her. Any and all defenses she may have had in place were like nothing to him. He had perhaps the cleanest, and purest look into her that anyone had ever had.
And he smiled at what he saw.
Allix felt her tongue flick out, licking her lips and dampening them. Her head tilted to the side slightly, giving him the opening.
What are you doing, girl? Are you really telling him it’s okay to kiss you right now?
The craziest thing was, that’s exactly what Allix was doing at the moment. Not only was she opening herself up to the possibility, but she found that she wanted it, too.
Badly.
But there was something in Luther’s eyes that told her it wasn’t to be.
“What is it?” she asked, coming back to reality, trying to ignore the urges surging through her body just then.
If she ever got him alone though, she took no responsibility for what might happen. None.
“We need to go. Now. Others will have heard that. We need to get you out of town right now.”
“Did you come alone?” she asked, surprised. Allix had thought if he came, he’d come with enough friends to kick the others out of Cloud Lake.
“Not quite, but this is just a rescue mission for you. We’re not retaking the city just yet. So we need to get moving.”
Allix nodded and rushed to the front door as Luther took a peek out the window from the living room, watching for anyone coming up the walkway while she put on boots and a warm jacket.
“Ready,” she announced, snatching gloves and a hat from a shelf above the coat rack and putting them on.
“Back door,” Luther said, and Allix found herself leaping to obey.
It was something in his tone she figured, as he slipped by her and led the way down the back steps. It was as if he simply expected her to do as he said, so utterly and thoroughly, that she found herself needing to follow his orders.
Perhaps that’s why he’s a captain in whatever organization he’s a part of. Because he commands others so easily.
Part of her liked the thrill of doing as he said, but she clamped down on that. Now was not the time for her devious sexual fantasies to come to life. Maybe once they got out of the jam they were in…
Stop it. Your life is still quite literally hanging in the wind. If he makes one mistake, not only do you die, but he does too. Focus on him, do as he says now, and then get yourself off to fantasies of him taking charge of you while you’re naked.
Allix blushed slightly at the bluntness of her subconscious, but she couldn’t fault the logic. Now was time to get to safety.
“Where now?” she asked.
“Over the fence,” he replied, turning and picking her up before she could say anything.
Allix clamped down on the surprised squeal that came from her mouth as she was lifted clear off the ground and into his arms.
“How are we—”
This time she couldn’t stop herself from crying out as Luther’s legs bent and then straightened. They cleared the seven foot wooden fence in a single bound. The landing jarred her slightly, but Luther absorbed most of the impact for her.
“Oh, okay,” she said as he set her down, looking around warily.
His hand rose to his mouth, index finger across her lips as he indicated he wanted silence.
Allix nodded and found herself crouching down, though she wasn’t sure what good it actually did.
“The forest. Three blocks from here,” he said so softly she had to lean in to hear him.
They took off together. Allix was moving at a fast jog, while Luther’s long strides kept him at her side with ease, while he constantly looked around them. They moved off the sidewalk and through a pathway between houses.
If it were possible, she thought, Luther became even more alert as they moved along the bike path that ran behind her house and the others. It was narrow and bordered by fences on one side, and trees and brush on the other.
“Down!” Luther commanded without warning, barking the order at her, and Allix threw herself flat into the snow without hesitation.
The fence to her left exploded outward in a shower of wooden fragments, and she tried her best not to scream.
Luther grunted, though in pain or effort she wasn’t sure. Snow flew everywhere, obscuring her vision as the two figu
res dodged and spun around her. At one point the ground slapped up to meet her as something hit it hard, but it was all happening so fast she couldn’t really process it.
Finally she heard Luther swear at his opponent. That was followed a moment later by a loud snap from behind her that sent shivers down her spine.
She put her hands into the snow and pushed herself to her knees, starting to turn around.
“Look away!” Luther said sternly.
Allix halted her movement and put her eyes forward.
Luther came up to her side, breathing heavily, but not seeming to favor himself in any way.
“You don’t need to see,” he said gently, picking her up and depositing her on her feet. “Just trust me on that,” he told her, his voice much softer and more compassionate as he looked into her eyes.
She could see his face swelling from where he’d taken at least two blows, but he didn’t wince at all when she reached up to touch him. Instead he just nuzzled his face into her hand, his eyes closing for a brief moment as he enjoyed the contact.
Then they opened, and once again it Captain Luther Klein in front of her, not just Luther.
“We need to keep moving,” he said, urging her along.
Allix nodded and they continued. The path would take them to the park. All they would need to do was stay on it, and avoid any more unpleasant encounters.
“I think we should be okay from here on out,” he said. “I only scented two shifters at your house, and that was the second of them. So unless someone has already noticed them missing, we should be in the clear for a bit. Someone will have noticed how I arrived, and where, but once we get to the park it should be too little, too late for them.”
Allix just nodded, saving her breath as she jogged along, the thick snow on the ground and her heavy winter clothing weighing her down. She wasn’t the most athletic individual to begin with, and by this point she was being driven along by adrenaline alone.
The path began to widen, and the houses fell away on their right, replaced by more trees as they entered the park.
Luther led the way, head turning left and right as he peered into the cluster of trees, a miniature forest that they had to pass through before reaching the park itself.
