by Craig Zerf
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Emily Shadowhunter - Book 4 - Day Walker
Chapter 1
Emily had been gone for almost a month. But William had not been that worried about her until now. After all, she had been with Tag, Sylvian and Troy. And even without them she could take care of herself.
Besides that, like the rest of the Pack, William could feel her existence. On the very periphery of his consciousness. Constantly aware of her presence. Her life force.
Until yesterday.
As he had lost contact, the Pack started to howl and, mere seconds later, the two Alphas were at his door.
They had simply stared at him, saying nothing. It was left to him as Omega to acknowledge the fact.
‘She is gone,’ he admitted. And he felt his heart tear from his breast as he uttered the words.
Emily Shadowhunter was no more.
The Pack gathered in front of the house, changing as they did. Howling their grief. Barking and growling. Snapping at each other in their anguish and frustration.
Feeding off the misery of the Omega.
Then they had run. Moving together through the surrounding forest. Not hunting, merely running.
Pack.
Affirming their life force.
Acknowledging their loss.
That evening they had stayed in their wolf forms. As they had onto this next morning. Sleeping in the open. At one with the outdoors. Allowing the wind and rain to help cleanse the loss from their souls.
Together.
Pack.
Strangely William was not the first to hear the vehicle approaching, such was his grief. One of the female wolves scrambled to her feet, head cocked to one side. As the Landrover grew closer more of the wolves shook themselves out of their reverie and stood, their lupine forms dark and indistinct as the sun had not quite yet risen.
The vehicle crunched up the driveway and stopped in front of the Pack.
The doors opened.
Troy stepped out followed by Sylvian, Tag and a stranger.
And finally, Emily.
Almost as one the Pack threw their heads back and howled. But it was not a sound of joy. Instead it was a cry of relief. A visceral release of pain and loss.
Such was the collective volume that the very trees shook in sympathy and as far as the eye could see, birds flocked to the skies in an explosion of wings and feathers.
Tears came to Emily’s eyes as she walked amongst the Pack, touching them softly as she did so. An almost religious benediction. A physical affirmation of her return.
Then the sun rose above the horizon, a huge red ball of light. And the rays bathed Emily in scarlet and yellow and silver.
And the Pack knew.
She was the Daywalker.
Chapter 2
‘But you knew we were going,’ argued Troy. ‘The money, the passports, your signet ring.’
William nodded. ‘Technically, perhaps I assisted. Or, more correctly, organized enough help so that your transgressions did not lead to your death. However, the fact remains, you disobeyed a direct order from both your Alpha and your Omega. For that you must be punished. It is the lore of the Pack.’
‘But he did it for me,’ stated Emily. ‘He saved me.’
‘And for that he must be commended,’ agreed William. ‘But his transgressions must be paid for. The Potestatum and what it has done to you is a different issue and we shall deal with that at a later stage. First, discipline. It is the Pack way.’
Troy went down on one knee and bowed his head. ‘That discipline I gladly accept,’ he intoned.
There was a low growl of approval from the gathered Pack.
William stood up and faced the wolves. ‘The lore of the Pack states that punishment for disobeying one’s Alpha is straight forward. Trial by combat. As no one has ever disobeyed the Omega before there is no specific aspect of our lore that encapsulates this particular transgression. As Omega I decree that the wolf known as Troy shall face trial by combat against the ten best wolves of the two packs. However, unlike the usual trial he will not face them one at a time but instead will fight the entire ten at once.’
There was a growl of surprise amongst the Pack. But no one argued against the Omega.
No one accepting Emily. The Daywalker.
‘No,’ she shouted. ‘For a single wolf to face ten is a simple death penalty. I will not allow it.’
‘It is not for you to allow or disallow,’ stated William. ‘You are not Pack.’
Emily stood tall and faced the Omega. ‘I am more than Pack. I am the Daywalker and I say that this travesty of justice will not take place. I insist.’
A palpable wave of power rippled out from the young girl and her eyes bored into the Omega Wolf. As one the entire Pack dropped to their knees, heads down, postures submissive.
William stayed standing but the effort to do so sent spasms through his body. He gritted his teeth as Emily’s coercion slammed into him, hammering at his mind in an effort to drive him into submission.
Merlin, who had been standing to the side, watching over the entire procedure, stepped forward and placed himself between Emily and the Omega. His blue eyes crackled with power as he raised his hand. ‘Stop,’ he commanded. ‘What do you think that you are doing?’ He asked of Emily.
The girl shook her head. ‘I’m simply trying to stop this Pack stupidity,’ she answered. ‘I’m also a part of this and I want my say.’
‘Look around you,’ said Merlin as he gestured to the Pack.
Emily turned to face them and raised an eyebrow in surprise. ‘Why are they all on their knees?’
‘Because of you, my girl,’ answered Merlin. ‘You coerced them. You crushed their thoughts with your own. Basically, you glamoured them. Now stop it this instant. These are your friends. One doesn’t go around brainwashing your friends. It’s simply not done.’
Emily’s hand flew to her mouth. ‘I didn’t know,’ she whispered. ‘I was just talking. Putting my point across. I would never…it’s like mind rape.’
Merlin patted her on the shoulder. ‘I know that you would never do that on purpose,’ he said. ‘But it is obviously something that you shall need to watch from now on. And there may very well be many other anomalies that you will have to deal with. I think that you, the Prof and I need to sit down together and attempt to get a handle on it all. Now, enough of this silliness. It is not your place to stand against the Omega. And even if you did I rather suspect that young Troy would not be happy with th
at, after all, he is Pack and to him, Pack is everything. The strength of the Wolf and all that.’
‘But they’ll kill him,’ urged Emily.
‘Pack business,’ stressed the Magician. ‘Stand back.’
Emily nodded and stepped away, moving to the periphery of the proceedings. As she did so the wolves all rose and once more faced their Omega, some of their expressions a little shamefaced at how easily the Daywalker had forced her will on them.
William said nothing. He merely started to point out the wolves that would take on Troy. As he gestured towards them they stood forward. The fastest, the biggest and the best. Amongst them was the Alpha of Bad Moon M.C. Jack Wishbone as well as Rufus Gray, the ex-Beta, now Alpha of The Protectors M.C.
Silently they stripped down, shedding their clothes, readying for the change.
Troy did the same.
‘As always,’ said William. ‘It is up to the participants to decide whether this fight is to the death or not. However, before you start, I add one more point for consideration. I deem that, if Troy Wolf wins he is to become the new senior Alpha of the whole Pack. In charge of both Bad Moon and The Protectors.
There was a ripple of surprise amongst the Pack members. Some even let out small whines or low growls of shock.
‘I have spoken,’ said William. ‘Now let the trial begin.’
Troy changed instantly into his Wolf/Man mode, growing to over seven feet in height, jaw extending and limbs bulging with muscle.
His adversaries changed as well, all assuming their usual wolf forms.
But even before they had fully changed, Troy had attacked, smashing three to the floor with mighty overhand blows, breaking their backs and crushing their bones. The wounds were savage and dire but they would survive, albeit they would take a while to recover.
Then the rest were onto him. Fur and flesh and blood flew as the massive animals fought, their jaws as strong as industrial hammermills, limbs as powerful as hydraulic presses. Moving so fast as to appear as if the whole episode had been filmed in stop motion photography and played back at ten times speed.
But as fast as the wolves were, Troy was faster, his Wolf/Man mode more agile, his strength almost exponentially greater than theirs.
He was truly a wolf apart.
And then there was only him, Lucas and Rufus left.
They circled each other, feinting every now and then in an attempt to draw the other into making a mistake. A fatal flaw.
Rufus attacked first. But it was a half-hearted attempt. Almost as if he had already given up and simply wanted the whole thing to come to an end.
Troy clubbed him to the ground without effort and the Alpha lay still, the slight rise and fall of his chest the only sign that he was still alive.
Then Troy attacked the last remaining wolf. Lucas fought back, but it was like trying to fight a force of nature. Troy had eschewed any form of tactics or subtlety and he merely threw himself at the remaining Alpha, claws flashing and teeth clashing as he did so. He bit down on Lucas’ shoulder and shook him hard from side to side, flinging him to the ground. Then he picked him up one last time and hammered a massive fist into his jaw, knocking him senseless and dropping him to the floor.
And slowly Troy changed back into his human form, his body covered in blood. Both the Pack’s and his own.
‘It is done,’ he said quietly. ‘There shall be no death. And even though it is a position that I did not seek, I declare myself victor and senior Alpha of both Bad Moon and The Protectors.’
‘No,’ shouted Lucas Caine as he stood up. He too was once more in his human form. ‘I will not serve under this stripling. This disobedient cub.’
‘I am your Alpha,’ stated Troy. ‘And you will obey me.’
Lucas changed as he leapt forward, his massive teeth bared and jaw opened wide.
Emily screamed in shock because she knew that if Troy didn’t change in time, he would stand no chance against the werewolf that was setting to tear his throat open.
But Troy did not change.
Instead he moved forward, grasping the huge wolf by his throat and using its weight and momentum to smash it into the ground. Then, with claws extended, he struck Lucas Caine in the chest, tearing through the muscle and bone until he reached his beating heart.
And with a savage and primal howl, Troy ripped Lucas’ heart from his body and held it above his head.
Senior Alpha.
Chapter 3
If Nathan Tremblay was a politician running for office he might well be suffering what would be termed a ‘loss of popularity in the polls’. His abortive attempt to capture Emily Shadowhunter and retrieve the fabled Corona Potestatum had resulted not only in a huge waste of time but also absolute failure. He had not gained possession of the Potestatum nor Emily, he had lost seven Elder Bloodwraiths in a battle with an old wolf and a large muscle-bound human and he had absolutely no idea where to search next.
Regardless of his personal power, people were starting to talk. Whispers of incompetence were in the air. Not to his face nor even spoken in his vicinity…but the rumors were being circulated.
And Nathan had to find a way to put a stop to it.
After all, his power had already been eroded by the Capo’s insistence that he report to the council of elders before he committed any major plan to action, so any further erosion of perceived power could not be tolerated. He needed some sort of coup. A bold plan of action that would show all that he was on his game.
A leader.
Invincible and unstoppable.
Chapter 4
Emily concentrated, and the axe appeared in her right hand. It was the first time that she had been able to call the weapon forth since she had been bitten. And it felt good. Right.
‘Deathwalker,’ she murmured.
Then she distinctly heard the axe answer. A sibilant whisper of wind in her mind. Not so much a greeting as an acknowledgment.
‘Daywalker.’
Slowly at first and then with increasing speed she went through her forms with the weapon. As no one had actually fought using a double bladed battle axe for over five hundred years, Emily used a variation on her Katana, bo-staff and karate moves, blending them together to meld into a seamless, free flowing form of axe-combat.
The rising sun glittered off the polished blades and the weapon sung softly as it cut through the air, a scarlet web of light and movement, as beautiful as new-spun gossamer and as deadly as a heart attack.
Merlin watched her from the sidelines. His advance had been silent, and he had approached from behind the teenage girl, staying in the shadows and not talking so as not to disturb her.
Emily stopped mid swing and placed the twin spikes of the blades on the ground.
‘Morning, Merlin,’ she said.
The magician raised an eyebrow. ‘You heard me?’ He asked.
‘No. I simply knew that you were there. I knew before you left the house.’
‘How, some sort of prescience?’
Emily laughed. ‘No, nothing as esoteric as that. I heard your heartbeat. Could smell your blood.’
‘I would have thought that the Potestatum stopped that,’ noted the magician. ‘Along with the need for blood.’
Em shook her head. ‘No, it stopped the need to feed on human blood to survive, but it did nothing to effect the want. The desire is still there as strong as ever. But it’s controllable. As I said, a want as opposed to a need.’
‘What else?’ Continued Merlin.
‘The sun, obviously,’ said Em. ‘I can take sunlight.’ She pulled her lips back in a fake smile. ‘For some reason my fangs are now a permanent fixture, they don’t retract. Also,’ she lifted the axe. ‘I can conjure up Deathwalker again. Apart from that, pretty much all of my faculties have been enhanced. Some more than others. I’m faster, stronger, have better hearing, sense of smell. My peripheral vision is almost three hundred degrees, eyesight is off the charts both day and night.’
‘All good then,�
� commented the magician. ‘Any down sides? What are the cons if any?’
Em took a deep breath. ‘Rage. It’s like I have a constant fire burning in my belly. A need to lash out. It’s real strong. Killing strong. It’s only been a few days now but I also find myself looking on others with scorn. Detachment. Everyone seems so feeble. Particularly normal humans, they’re pathetic. Soft, breakable, weak. Fortunately I haven’t seen many of them but when I have done so I have had to restrain myself from simply hitting them. Crushing them.’
‘So the new guy, the Catholic Knight, Sergeant Muller,’ asked Merlin. ‘You feel that way about him?’
‘No. He’s different,’ admitted Emily. ‘Not even sure that he’s fully human. Perhaps the Prof should take a look at him, might discover something interesting.’
‘I’ll tell him,’ acknowledged the magician. ‘But it sounds as if you have things under control. For now. Any problems do not hesitate to speak to one of us.’
Emily nodded, picked her axe up and continued her forms. Swinging, parrying and cutting at imaginary enemies.
Dealing imaginary death.
Bathing in imaginary blood.
***
Tag stared at the teapot in bemusement. To be more accurate, he stared at the remains of the teapot. It was nothing fancy. A standard, caterers size large stainless steel teapot. He had taken it out of the cupboard to make tea, filled it with water from the kettle and then realized that he had not yet boiled the water.
So, in a fit of childish pique, he had crushed it. Well, he had attempted to crush it knowing that even his prodigious strength would do little more that dent the thick stainless steel.
Instead he had effortlessly compacted the steel kitchenware into a nugget the size of a baseball. In fact, water had squirted out so fast that it had literally become steam.
Being the man that he was, Tag put the nugget in his pocket, walked out of the kitchen, approached the first medium sized tree that he saw and wrapped his arms around the trunk.
And then, with a grunt of effort, he literally tore it from the ground and tossed it over his shoulder. He contemplated the uprooted Oak for a while and then went back inside to find the Prof.
