by Bianca D'Arc
He hoped she understood everything he was trying to say but couldn’t. For one thing, they didn’t have time. Those who had breached the wards were growing ever closer. For another, how could Ray encapsulate, in just a few words, how much having Evie back in his life meant to him? How would he ever be able to explain the depth of his love for her? He didn’t think it was possible. Spoken or written communication could not capture the breadth of his emotions when it came to this woman. Words were simply inadequate.
He tried to put it all into the kiss, but there wasn’t enough time to do it right. He prayed they would have more time together—as much as the Mother of All would grant them in this life and any future existences they might be blessed enough to share. He drew away, letting her go, though he didn’t want to ever let her go completely.
“Stay out of sight. Let me try my hand against them, first, and join in if either it looks like I need help or you think you can do some good without putting yourself in too much jeopardy.”
“Ray, I’m a werewolf. A predator. I can definitely help.” She rolled her eyes at him, and he found himself grinning. How he loved his spirited mate.
The wolf spirit that shared her soul was fascinating to him, and he loved when Evie followed her instincts as she was doing now.
“Just have a care for my delicate sensibilities,” he teased her. “Stay low and let me take the initial barrage, if there is one. Watch and pick your moment. That’s all I’m asking.”
“Well, of course,” she said, exasperation in her tone. “Now, let’s get in position before they get too close and we lose all possibility of stealth.”
“Were you always this impatient?” His lips curved upward, even as he sent a little tendril of magic out through the small crack he’d made by opening the door less than an inch.
He wanted to scout the situation, as it were, as much as he was able before he stepped out there. The area in front of the cabin was empty. The third ward had not yet been breached, but even so, those approaching seemed to be coming at the place from different directions.
“One coming straight for the front door, but he’s too far out to see much of anything unless he has binoculars,” Ray told her, closing his eyes to concentrate on what the magic was telling him. “One approaching from either side at forty-five degree angles to the front. They expect us to be inside the cabin, and they’re concentrating their firepower toward the only door.” He opened his eyes, having learned all he could at the moment.
“Human?” Evie asked as they snuck out the door and closed it behind them. They crouched low, taking cover behind whatever they could find. Mostly that consisted of snow drifts and rocks covered with snow.
“Mages, certainly. Most probably of the human variety.”
Evie sniffed the air. “Wind is wrong. I can’t smell them yet.”
She made a little spot for herself behind what he remembered as a decorative pile of the striped rocks that made up some of the formations near here. She’d be safe behind the rocks, even though they were covered with a thick layer of snow.
Ray set himself up as the obvious target, not completely visible behind drifted snow and more of the rock displays they’d set up ages ago in front of the cabin. Evie was on his right and close enough that he could keep an eye on her, but she wouldn’t be visible, even to the mage who was making from the front right corner of the cabin.
“Keep an eye on the one coming in from your direction. I’ll keep the other two occupied,” he told her, hoping the mage on the right was one she could handle if things got too hairy for him to deal with them all.
“Just pay attention to what you’re doing, Ray. I’ve got this. Don’t worry.” Her low voice settled his nerves. She was such a good match for him.
“I love you, Evie.”
“I love you too, Ray. Now, give ‘em hell, so we can go back to our enjoyable vacation in the snow.”
Her words made him smile, and at that moment, the third ward was breached. He could see the middle mage now, walking boldly through the snow toward him, and Ray knew the exact moment when the trespasser saw him. Now, they’d finally find out what these three intended, though Ray suspected it was nothing good.
Ray was about to speak a greeting, though the man was still about fifty yards out. But just then, he saw a fireball rise to life between the man’s outstretched hands. Shit.
Ray prepared as best he could, hoping the hasty protections they’d put on the cabin would protect the structure. It was clear these visitors had destruction in mind and didn’t even want to take time to chat before launching an attack. They weren’t really trying to be stealthy anymore. They’d felt the wards.
They’d probably hoped to sneak up on the cabin, which was why they’d come in on foot, but the moment one of them crossed the first ward, they must have realized stealth wasn’t going to work. Overwhelming force was the next logical tactic in this case. Hence the frontal assault.
Ray glanced at the two other mages, who he could now see approaching from each corner. Both of them had energy growing between their outstretch palms, as well. All three mages were forming their own versions of fireballs to lob at him—probably all together. The next few minutes would tell the tale of whether or not Ray was strong enough to withstand their combined power, because there was no way he’d dodge and allow any of that to hit Evie directly. Just the peripheral contact was going to be a lot for her to handle.
He wanted to look at her before the volley of hellfire was launched, but he didn’t dare. The enemy was concentrating on him. With any luck, they didn’t even know she was there. The final ward that was only about ten feet from the structure of the house should keep out any magical probes. Until the mages actually walked across it, the ward would keep out their probes, though it probably wouldn’t withstand the hellfire they were about to throw.
It would be soon now. All three had dangerous balls of glowing fire between their palms. Ray took a second to analyze each. The mage on the left was female, and her energy was a dark, sickening gray. Smoke, it looked like, more than fire, but he knew such things were often deceptive. That roiling mass would burn him magically, just as bad as the much larger ball of red between the center mage’s hands.
The mage on the right—the one closest to Evie’s hiding place—was male, and his fireball was a sickly yellow. It wasn’t anything near the sparkling gold of the power that rose when Ray and Evie came together. No, this was from some dark place. It was the yellow of infection. The yellow of evil. And he knew it could burn. He’d come across that disgusting color in battle with evil before.
He’d prevailed then, and he prayed to the Lady he served that he would prevail once more.
There was no time left to think. Everything went into slow motion as he saw the mages launch their hellfire in a coordinated move, only split seconds apart. Ray reinforced his magical shielding and extended it to cover a diameter that included Evie and the little rock formation she was hiding behind.
When the hellfire hit, Ray staggered, but his shield held. It flared so bright that he couldn’t really see for a several long moments, but he was undamaged. He looked at Evie and saw the grim determination on her face as the flare of the shield hid them from the bad guys for a moment. She was unharmed and ready for action, thank the Goddess.
“That answers that question,” Ray said, just loud enough for Evie to hear. “They’re strong, but if they didn’t take us out with that combined blast, we stand a good chance.”
CHAPTER NINE
Evie took heart from Ray’s words, but she knew this battle was a long way from over. She took aim between two of the rocks she hid behind, just waiting for the optimal distance and angle to unload both barrels of the shotgun.
The attackers drew closer, but it was the one in the middle who seemed like the leader. He moved faster than the other two. Evie didn’t have an angle on him, but she was waiting for the shot on the male mage closest to her position. He wasn’t quite there yet, but in a few moments, s
he’d have him in her sights.
“You might as well give up now,” the leader called out as he walked closer. His steps were very deliberate as he began forming another fireball. “I felt the disturbance when you arrived, but judging by the weakness of the signal, you’ll never stand against us. Not for long, anyway.”
“Leave now, and I’ll let you live,” Ray replied. Damn. Evie was proud of his defiance. Her mate was brave, which impressed her wolf all over again.
The mage didn’t slow but scoffed as the fireball grew between his hands. It glowed an evil red that hurt Evie’s eyes when she dared to glance at it.
“If it weren’t for the taste of fey in your energy, you wouldn’t even be worth stalking,” the man said. “We normally go after bigger prey, but we’ve already bagged all the shifters we could get out from under the bear’s nose.” He sneered.
Evie knew he was talking about Fred. Fred was both a bear and a shaman. Great magic flowed through Fred’s veins, and he was in a protector role for all those around him. If these three were scared of Fred, they would never be able to harm Ray.
Well…not Ray at full strength…but she didn’t know how well his magic had recovered after his ordeal.
Some things started to make sense to Evie. The mages thought Ray was weak. They knew enough to know the flavor of his magic was fey. But did they realize he was a full-blooded fey at low strength when he poofed over to North Dakota? Or did they think he was a part-fey hybrid of low power to begin with?
And was Ray’s magic recovered enough now to defeat these three human mages? She wished she knew, but that was something only Ray could know.
Evie steeled herself. She would do everything in her power to help her mate in whatever way he needed. She’d start by blowing a couple of holes in the nearest mage as soon as he…stepped…into…her sights.
Bam!
Evie loosed the fury of the shotgun at her target, taking the man to his shattered knees. The second blast caught him in the shoulder as he dodged, and she regretted the split second that meant the difference between a clean kill shot and this. Now, they’d still have to deal with the guy, once he recovered a bit.
For now, though, he was down. The other two were engaged in magical battle with Ray, a cloud of dark gray and red pounding against Ray’s magical shield. Evie was far enough away to scoot out around the edge of the shield, if she chose. She checked the status of the mage she’d shot, and he was flat on the ground. No chance to get him with the shotgun again at the moment, and the other two were surrounded by shields of their own that Ray was assaulting magically.
Mundane buckshot would never make its way through such magical protections, so it wasn’t even worth trying. Worst case scenario, anything she shot at those other two would bounce off their shields and come right back at her. That wouldn’t be good.
Deciding she couldn’t do anything about the other two, right now, she thought about her next move. The shotgun was useless at the moment, so she put it down. The mage she’d shot was still writhing around on the ground. She couldn’t shoot him, but her wolf scented his blood and was prodding her to do things the old-fashioned way. The wolf wanted blood.
Stripping quickly, Evie let the shift happen. The wolf burst out of her skin, happy to be free and ready to fight.
She slunk as fast as she could around the edge of Ray’s shield and headed out, bounding across the space between herself and the downed mage. There was so much magic flying, the other two didn’t even seem to notice her. The one she’d shot, though… He saw her coming, and he tried to lob some of that evil yellow magic at her.
It didn’t really work. The lightning he tried to shoot at her dissipated against her fur. It tickled a bit in an unpleasant way, but it didn’t hurt her. In fact, it only made her angrier. She moved faster, but the closer she got to her foe, the stronger the ochre lightning bolts became. It started to piss her off, even as the unpleasant tickle became painful.
Little daggers pricking through her fur into her skin in a million places enraged the wolf as it went in for the kill. The mage was sitting up now, bleeding profusely, but using his magic in a way that had him healing before her eyes. The blood seemed to empower him, which she knew was a seriously bad thing.
Blood magic was among the most evil. And, unfortunately, the most powerful weapon the enemy could employ.
Damn. If Evie had felt even one qualm about killing the man, the fact that he was a blood path mage would have convinced her. He had to be stopped, and she didn’t have the luxury of just knocking him out and hoping he didn’t pop back up again at an inopportune moment.
No. In this situation, with two others attacking Ray with all their combined power, this third guy was one too many. He had to go down with no possibility of rising again. The wolf wanted to howl. It wanted the kill, and Evie consciously sent her human awareness to the background and let the wolf instinct take over.
She pushed through the pain and closed on her prey. He was wily. Even injured, he still had teeth. Those lightning bolts he was firing hurt like the dickens!
“Dirty shifter scum,” he muttered, redoubling his efforts with the lightning. The bolts caught her in the flank, and she bit back a whimper. Sonuva…
Evie stalked closer, using her mind as a weapon. Mind over matter. Thought over pain. Shifter magic rose and allowed the evil lightning to dance off her fur and dissipate into the ground around her as she moved closer a step at a time. It was like walking into a hurricane force wind. The closer she got to the eye of the storm—the mage—the stronger the force that came against her.
But Evie was made of tough stuff. Her wolf was a fighter, and she was protecting her mate. She could do anything. Anything. For Ray.
The mage raised his hands one more time, but she was close now. She snarled, reaching out to bite him. She bit straight through his hand, wrenching her head and yanking the mage by the arm. Positioning him just so… His bare neck was within her grasp… And then, she struck.
Ray felt the change in the energies when Evie shifted to her wolf form. He’d seen her down one of the mages with her shotgun, but he knew the guy on the right wasn’t dead. The three mages who were arrayed against him had linked their power, though they fought individually. He could feel the sickly yellow power of the guy on the right in the mix as the other two threw their magic at Ray’s shield.
Only a few minutes after Evie loped away in her wolf form, Ray felt the yellow mage’s energy go. He was dead. The trio was now a duo, and the two remaining enemies staggered a bit as the yellow mage’s energy was lost to them.
Good.
Ray wanted to know where Evie was, but there was too much magic flying. His pure golden sparks fought against the roiling red and gray miasma that tried to slip through his shield.
“Give up yet?” Ray called through the fog of the battlefield. He could just make out his opponents some yards distant.
Ray was glad he’d had time to recover after porting them to the cabin. If these three had found him when he’d been so vulnerable, this battle would have turned out much different. As it was, Evie had taken one out of the battle already, and Ray was closer to full strength than he’d believed possible. Being with his mate again had restored him more than he’d expected.
Only the need to defend them had made him explore the depth of his magic, and what he’d found surprised him. The channel that connected his soul to Evie’s was pulsing with power. It was going back and forth between them, amplified by their nearness, one strengthening the other as they were strengthened in turn. It was the miracle of true mating. They made each other stronger just by being together.
How he’d missed her while he’d been away. It pained him to think that he’d brought this battle down on their heads by using the porting magic that was so noticeable in this realm. He should’ve waited to find out what was going on in that stone circle when they’d brought him back, instead of panicking and grabbing Evie to port out here.
He hadn’t been in this
kind of battle in too long. He’d held up well to this point, but he couldn’t let Evie do all the work. It was time Ray called upon the power he’d dared not try yet since being released. He wasn’t altogether sure of his welcome, but if ever he needed the approval of the Mother of All, it was now.
Ray looked within himself and prayed to Her for the grace She had promised him when he’d agreed to serve her as a Knight of the Light. A benevolent feeling flowed through him as he felt the familiar sensation of the energy armor She empowered Her Knight to wear materialize around him.
He dropped the shield. He didn’t need it anymore. Almost nothing could get to him through the armor, and Evie was out from under the shield already, anyway. If she’d been next to him, he’d have kept it up in order to protect her, but as it was, the very best way to protect his mate was to end this battle quickly.
The fog was clearing as the enemy regrouped. He could see them more clearly now. The red mage facing him squarely in front of the house, the female smoke mage off to Ray’s left. Both were watching him closely.
“What are you?” the woman asked, as if she hadn’t consciously let the words form. She had a puzzled expression on her face. She’d never seen energy armor before, no doubt. It was a special thing afforded only to the Goddess-sworn Chevalier.
The red mage looked grim. If Ray didn’t miss his guess, the man had just realized exactly what he faced. He’d bitten off more than he could chew, but he was engaged in the battle now. The only options were to run and be pursued, which wouldn’t end well for the red mage, stand and fight, which might give him a small chance of success, or surrender, which Ray saw from the man’s expression, he would never do.
Fight, then, seemed to be the order of the day.
Ray reached behind him and unsheathed the double swords of pure golden energy that he wore strapped to his back when he wore the armor of the Lady. Most Knights fought with a single broadsword, but Ray had always favored two curved blades since he was ambidextrous. He’d studied sword work with the great masters of the mortal realm and of faerie before he’d even been asked to serve as a Chevalier. With such a background, the Goddess had allowed the small modification to the armor She gave all Her Knights.
