Serpent Moon

by Unknown

  Three actually. I learned tooth-and-claw fighting from Raphael.

  So obviously she didn’t hate being a wolf so much that she wasn’t prepared. Eric just didn’t know if he was ready to face Derek in battle.

  THE BLOND MAN raced ahead of her, his feet barely touching the ground. But she wasn’t letting him go. She might be out of bullets, but he was not getting away. They needed that knife if the vial around her neck was going to do any good.

  The man moved sideways suddenly to avoid a stream. The sun was nearly set and it was going to be impossible to follow him if it got dark. She didn’t want to pull power, because if Eric was fighting, he could get hurt. But she needed just a tiny bit more speed. Just a little. Maybe he won’t even notice.

  She pulled on the nebulous power inside her and felt an answering flood. It was so sudden and strong it took her breath away. She leapt forward into the air and felt her teeth connect with the man’s arm. The box went flying into the sand and opened, spilling the black knife under a sagebrush.

  The man screamed and shook her off, blasting her with enough power that she went flying. Then he was a wolf—massive enough that he towered over her. One eye was circled with black, making it look like he wore a pirate patch. “You’ll pay for that, woman.” Blood dripped down his forearm, but the scent of it made him growl even deeper.

  When the big wolf attacked, she moved instinctively, but he twisted and raked open her flank with sharp claws. She hissed in a breath and tore teeth into his neck, urged on by another flood of power.

  Holly, don’t. Back off. Let me handle Derek.

  She could sense Eric coming, but he was too far away. No, she’d have to finish this. Just get the knife. I’ll be okay. But then Derek rose up on his hind legs and threw himself forward. She had to rise up as well or risk him finding the back of her neck. The problem was he was so much taller that it took everything she had just to keep him from doing just that. She ripped at his neck with her teeth, but his power pressed against her so hard that it loosened her grip. No wonder he’d been able to stay pack leader, despite his pack being against him. They simply couldn’t beat him in a fight.

  Derek grabbed her by the scruff of the neck and tossed her hard. She sailed through the air and landed on a bush. Pain erupted in her shoulder and she realized she’d fallen right onto the knife. It was embedded in her arm and hurt so badly all she could do was scream and howl, over and over.

  Holly! An answering howl came from the distance, so piercing that it filled her entire mind. It was the same pack call Eric had used when Marduc was attacking them. But she couldn’t answer. She couldn’t do anything but scream as the knife carved at her very mind.

  “I’ll take that.” The wolf had turned human again and grabbed the knife and yanked it free. Another howl knocked him back and he looked up to see Eric coming his way. “Wait. Are you his mate? Is that why he’s so upset?” He laughed darkly. “I’ve always wanted to deprive him of something important. I think you fit the bill.” Before she could move out of the way, Derek slammed the blade into her.

  There was no way to describe the sensation as the stone ripped into her heart. Her body began to thrash and she could taste blood in her mouth as the knife chewed at her.

  “You bastard!” Eric hit his brother with enough force that the knife—still in Derek’s hand—was pulled from her to fly into the distance. Holly heard a tiny splash as she struggled to catch her breath. The two wolves began tearing at each other with a frenzy she’d seen only once before. This wasn’t a dominance battle. One of them was going to die. If she could only get air enough to tell Eric to stop, she would. But every breath made pain flood her. She couldn’t get her mind to function long enough to contact him. The moon had taken most of his senses. There was only his animal left, filled with anger and hate, determined to survive.

  “Well, well, what have we here?” She recognized the voice over her but could do nothing to stop the slender, olive-skinned man from removing the chain around her neck. “I knew we’d meet again, Holly Sanchez. And while I don’t see the knife, I do see something far more interesting.” Nasil fingered the silver vial and then tucked it into his pocket. “I was going to kill you, but I see Derek managed to do the job. You won’t last long now, healer. The blade doesn’t require a head and heart kill. You’ll die soon from this wound unless you get treatment.” He motioned toward the wolf battle. “But I don’t think they’ll be finishing in time to save you. And honestly, I’m not sure who’s going to win.” He grinned sarcastically. “But I’ll root for your beau. He looks like the underdog.”

  “Fuck you.” Eric was pulling energy from her now; Holly could feel her magic seep away as he battled for his life. He probably didn’t even know he was speeding her toward her own death.

  “Really . . . right here? With them watching?” Nasil laughed lightly. “Tempting.” He nudged her stomach with a boot playfully. “But no, you’re not my type. Not anymore.”

  “Then go . . . fuck Bruce before . . . he’s dead. Just . . . leave us alone.”

  The words had an immediate impact on Nasil. He stared at her for a long moment while the wolves fought inches away. He blinked and shook his head. “Dead? Bruce?”

  “Snakes probably . . . got him.” A deep cough made her whole body heave and shake. It wouldn’t be long now.

  Nasil left without another word, heading toward the camp. She was having a hard time focusing, but the moon looked really odd tonight. It looked like stars were flashing across the surface, leaving trails of smoke in their wake. Soon there were so many tiny trails that it looked just like a coiled snake if you squinted.

  She began to feel . . . strange. Sparkles began to dance in her vision, like little colored fireflies. If this was death, it wasn’t so bad. But then her heart, which had begun to stutter to a halt, gave a sharp stabbing sensation and began to beat faster. Her lungs could hold oxygen again and sound flooded her senses.

  “Come on! Don’t leave me, Holly. Not yet.” She looked up to see Eric sitting in the sand, in human form. He was covered with blood and so was she.

  “No use,” she said when she could finally catch her breath a little. “Lost the knife. Lost the—” She paused, but what the hell. Why not? “Lost the drug.”

  He shook his head. “No, you didn’t.”

  She tried to raise her eyes to look at him, but it was hard to see in the strange golden light coming from the sky. “Nasil took the vial. I was going to tell you, but I was afraid—”

  “Afraid I’d turn you in?” Holly nodded. God, she felt like a heel. “I thought about it.”

  That made her eyes focus. “You knew?”

  Eric let out a small, embarrassed chuckle. Her nose could nearly make out the scent of his fear over the scent of blood that filled her nose. “There were two vials in the box, not one. I took one.” He showed it to her. Bluetomcat had added a note. Yours if you decide to go back.”

  Holly was actually starting to feel good enough to be angry. That seemed like the wrong emotion to have, but she couldn’t help it. “Why would you do that? You followed me, spied on me, and then took something meant for me? Can you really not stand the thought of me being human again? Is it that disgusting to you?”

  Holly only realized she was standing up when her eyes were nearly level with Eric’s. He shook his head and smiled as he looked at the vial. “Just the opposite, actually.”

  The damn sparkles in her vision wouldn’t go away. They were making her dizzy. “Would you please lay off the power surge? Thank you for saving me. I hate that I needed saving, but fine.”

  Eric shook his head, this time with a furrowed brow. “Not me. I didn’t have enough juice to even save myself. I don’t know where it’s coming from.”

  Where is it? Give me the knife! The voice was everywhere. Holly looked up to see the massive flying snake just over their heads. I know it’s nearby. I can feel it. Give it to me and I’ll spare you.

  Holly started to back up. Eric looked aro
und in confusion, but followed her lead. “No, you won’t. You’ll take it and kill us.”

  The laughter that sliced through Holly’s brain was like the screech of girders in a collapsing building. She continued to back toward the scent of water.

  You’re right. But I’ll make it less painful if you give it to me. I must have it in my hands before the end of the serpent moon.

  “You don’t have any hands.” Another laugh made Holly nearly drop to the ground in pain. She took another step back and felt her foot squish into mud.

  Marduc fluttered to the ground almost delicately—except for the tremble of sand underfoot when the massive talons came to rest. Her form shifted until she was the naked, dark-skinned woman with silver hair. Holly hadn’t noticed it before, but the hair gleamed in the moonlight like the multihued feathers of her other form. She seemed plumper than before, but not precisely pregnant.

  “Guess you didn’t find an alpha strong enough to get you knocked up.” Holly shifted forms and had to adjust her balance in the mud.

  The woman smiled. “Oh, but I did. He just left. It’s why he wasn’t interested in taking you in front of the wolves. He’s already had me enough times to fertilize my eggs. All I need is the knife to finish.”

  Shit. Nasil was the father? That was not good. That was so not good.

  Eric was holding her hand now, but there was nowhere to go, unless they swam away. She felt the press of something into her palm and realized Eric was giving her the vial. But what could she do with it? She’d never even looked to see how it opened. She’d figured there’d be time later.

  That’s the thing about time, Berrybelle. There’s never enough of it. He leapt with no warning toward where Holly was staring. It took Marduc by surprise and they tumbled to the ground. Holly turned quickly and reached into the frigid water, searching for the knife. But she didn’t have to. The moment her fingers touched the stream, the knife came racing through the water. It stabbed her in the hand so hard it nearly came out the other side. The pain was intense, but she couldn’t think about that now. She pulled it out of her hand and laid the vial on a rock. With a sharp slam of the blade down, she cut off the top of the vial. Blue liquid sprayed into the air, landing on her hands and covering the knife. She turned and raced toward Eric, but something was happening to her vision. One moment she could see Marduc, and the next not. Back and forth the images switched until she was getting dizzy and Eric was fighting an unseen foe.

  No! This can’t be happening! She couldn’t be turning human. Not this fast. Not now!

  But there was no time to worry about it. She grabbed the knife handle and crawled over to where Eric was struggling to keep Marduc steady. She had no choice. She blinked over and over, hoping for just one final glance. She was granted her wish. The woman appeared under Eric for a flash and Holly slammed the knife into the woman’s chest.

  Marduc screamed and Holly sighed in relief. But her blood chilled when the woman began to laugh. “You fools! I could have gotten away at any time.” She proved it as Eric went flying through the air to land heavily on the ground a dozen feet away. “This is exactly what was supposed to happen. What must happen for my children to be born. Someone had to be tricked into performing a blood sacrifice under the serpent moon. My life energy will flow to my eggs, hidden deep in an undiscovered cave. They’ll hatch tomorrow, born with all of my thoughts, all of my memories, and all of my hatred for the shifters called the Sazi. The world will burn as you watch and your precious humans will become nothing more than food to breed more of us.”

  “Not this time, Marduc.” Holly looked up to see Charles walking toward them. The sword he carried didn’t look like a sword at all. It looked like a boat paddle with black glass accents.

  Marduc must have recognized the weapon he held, because she began to shriek. “You can’t have found that! I destroyed them all!”

  Charles smiled, and it was a darker smile than she’d ever seen before. “A friend left one with me. You remember Colecos, don’t you? The jaguar god you supplanted? He swore revenge and crafted these blades himself in the burning volcanic fires.”

  But then Charles froze in place and he dropped to his knees, pain etched on his face and rolling from his skin. The weapon dropped from his hand, and Holly prayed it wasn’t close enough for Marduc to grab. You thought you closed off that door, didn’t you? But I can still get in if I concentrate.

  Holly blinked as Marduc the woman appeared. She was writhing on the sand, her hand stretched out to reach the club. She would kill Charles. Holly knew it without a doubt in her mind. “Hold her!” she screamed to Eric and grabbed the blade. He looked around, unable to see where Marduc was. He started to slide his hands around on the sand, but it was too late. She’d have to do this. Holly tried to approach, but was thrown backward by a blast of power. Charles shook his head and life came back to his eyes for a brief moment. That was the ticket. She’d have to keep parrying in. Maybe Charles could get his shields up.

  She blinked again and Marduc disappeared, just as she was starting to rise to her feet. Damn it! Holly backed up a pace and reached inside her mind, to that tiny thread of power that she’dp ulled on before. She used every ounce of her strength to pull. Eric gasped so hard he started coughing.

  I’m sorry. I have no other choice. Whether or not she wanted to be a wolf, she was one until the drug took it from her. She pulled and he went. She flooded her body with power and felt her strength return in a flash. But Eric was so weak that it might take everything he had.

  Her head snapped sideways from a blow that sliced her cheek wide open. Another quick slash hit her in the chest and she dropped to her knees.

  A mournful sound came from her right and she turned to see Eric in wolf form, his muzzle raised to the sparkling moon. He howled, the sound totally different than a calling howl. It started low in his chest and expanded outward. Holly’s hair began to blow across her face. Eric took another deep breath, lowered his muzzle, and opened his mouth wide. What came out wasn’t so much sound as power. For a brief moment, Holly could see Marduc again. She reached out to slash at Holly with fingernails that looked like claws. But she couldn’t get past the press of air that forced her backward, step by step. But eventually Eric had to breathe and the snake goddess shook her head and started forward again.

  Open your mind, Holly. I have an idea. Something Tony taught me. She wasn’t quite sure how to open her mind, but she relaxed, continuing to spin the blade around her to keep Marduc away until he did whatever he was going to. She felt an odd sensation and was suddenly seeing the world from two different locations. It was dizzying. But in both views, she could see Marduc. Keep the river on your left. I’ll keep it on my right, and we’ll meet in the middle.

  Holly tried to turn her body to follow Eric’s directions, but it was hard. Every time she moved, the perspective changed. She crouched down, watching Marduc as she tried to drag herself to safety. The moon was making the land glow with reddish fire now. They had to move soon. Holly stood perfectly still as she saw Eric’s muscles flex. He leapt onto the snake-shifter.

  Just as she shifted forms.

  Eric screamed as sharp feathers sliced into his skin. But he held on as Holly raced forward. She could feel the club in her hands move of its own accord, as though Eric’s hands were on top of hers, guiding the path. Marduc’s head was massive, but where the neck joined her shoulders wasn’t too thick. Holly slammed the blade home and felt the obsidian edges cut through the feathers like butter. Marduc screamed so loud that it felt like Holly’s ears would burst. But she kept sawing, using every ounce of her strength, combined with Eric’s.

  She didn’t remember falling as Marduc dissolved under her. But her head slammed down onto a rock hard enough that she heard the snap of her own neck.

  And then red fire dissolved into black and even the glow of turquoise magic couldn’t make her feel warm.

  Chapter Twenty-four

  WAS SHE EVER going to wake up? Eric paced across
the small room, back and forth, like he’d been doing for nearly a day now. Holly was finally breathing on her own, after Charles and Raphael and several others had thrown enough power into her still form that she glowed bright enough for even those without second sight to see in the darkness.

  “Eric? You need to get some food into you. You won’t do her any good if you pass out.” Lucas stood in the doorway, the bandage on his arm stark against his skin. The fang wound in his face that had nearly taken his eye was still puffy and oozing. Tatya had helped heal him instantly, but the odds were still even on whether the Great White Wolf would wind up a great black snake.

  “You’re lucky you didn’t lose that eye.”

  Lucas shrugged. “Maybe. A direct hit on my eye would have killed me instantly. Now I just get to wonder until the full moon next month.”

  “Any news on Nasil? Did he really get away?” Lucas nodded. “He left a note, though, which was odd.” He passed over the sheet of paper and Eric moved over to the light to read the carefully printed words.

  I’ve taken Bruce as I have finally managed to fend off Marduc’s control. Hopefully that means you’ve defeated her. I’ve decided to take no chances on ever again feasting on blood and fear. I’ve taken the cure, and now that your new healer has fixed Bruce, we’ll find somewhere to live where nobody will ever find us again. I gave you the chance to have alpha strength and speed again, Lucas. If your woman is quick with her magic, you might be wolf again. If not, then I look forward to learning who will hold the snake council seat.

  My money is on you.

  Nasil.

  Eric read the note a second time, and then a third. Nasil had attacked Lucas intentionally? As a favor? The thought made his stomach hurt and he suddenly realized what Holly had been saying all along. There’d been no choice. “You okay?”

  Lucas’s chuckle was rueful. “As much as I can be, I suppose. Tough call on whether to be grateful for this. I suppose if I wind up a wolf, it won’t be so bad. If not, I’ll probably have a hard time bowing to Ahmad every time he walks in the room. How are you doing?”