HOTSHOT BROTHERS: Coyote Shifters

by Hunt, Sabrina

“Cree, no,” Sky whispered.

  “Oh, I’m going to kill you, Cree,” it spat. “And do you know why? Of all the coyotes, you were the one who disregarded Silver Tail’s vision the most. Acting like it didn’t matter. Like your victory was so assured. You’re such a fool and I can’t stand fools.”

  “You know about that?” I asked, momentarily distracted. But fools made me think of Alaska. Guys, a little help here! I screamed in my head, having no idea if our telepathic connection was working. It had up north, but since then, it had been sporadic.

  “Of course,” it sneered and raised the gun. Sky let out a soft scream. “I saw the mountains burning, the sky black with smoke. I saw you Hotshots fall. And I will do everything to ensure that comes to pass.”

  “Let Sky go, then,” I said. “Here’s your victory,” I spread my arms wide. “You know we’re only as strong as our weakest link, only as strong as five working as one. Just don’t hurt her.”

  I’m sorry guys. Please take care of Sky. I thought I sensed their mutual anger and fear, but I couldn’t be sure. I love you all. Tell Aunt Sil I faced down my fear.

  “Why would I hurt her, coyote? I’m not you – making her fall in love with the walking dead.” It was panting now, something about his face more human and familiar to me than ever before.

  And in that moment, I knew.

  Rayner burst from the trees, his gold coat gleaming as he leaped, fire lashing out at Crooked Man, who leaped back howling, its arms aflame. The gun spun through the air and I easily caught it.

  Rayner shifted back a second later, hauling Sky to her feet and hugging her tightly. “Are you okay?” he asked gruffly, then he glared at me. “Is she okay?”

  “Ray, I-I’m okay,” Sky said, her voice muffled. “Let me breathe, idiot.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me what the hell was going on sooner?” Rayner barked at me, pulling her over as he marched towards me. The Crooked Man had fallen to its knees, cradling its arms.

  “I could ask you the same question,” I gestured. “His name was Soren, wasn’t it?”

  Sky looked up at Rayner who went rigid with shock. Then his face crumpled and I felt his agony as sharply as though it were my own. “I-I wasn’t sure at first.”

  Swallowing, I shook my head. “Ray,” I said, reaching out and gripping his arm. “What’s the call, here?” I’m sorry, brother. Sky told me everything. I understand why you kept this to yourself.

  You still trust me? His gray eyes were filled with gratitude and surprise.

  Of course, moron. And it works out. Now you can overlook the fact that I fell for your sister.

  “YOU WHAT?” Rayner shouted, taking a threatening step towards me and pulling Sky closer to him. “I mean, you bastard. Making jokes at a time like this.”

  “That wasn’t a joke, Ray,” I said softly, glancing at Sky.

  The Crooked Man was getting to its feet, red flashing at us. Rayner shoved Sky at me. Get her away from here. I don’t want her seeing Soren like this.

  Rayner, my friend, I said back as we both turned and its human skin shriveled into mottled black, ridged with burns and sores, I think that ship has sailed.

  “Soren,” Sky said brokenly. “Rayner, what happened to him?”

  “Cree, please,” Rayner said out loud.

  “Sky,” I tried to pull her away, but she was digging in her heels, staring between Rayner and the Skinwalker. “Please, we have to get you out of here.”

  “He died eighteen years ago,” Sky whispered to me. “I don’t understand.”

  “‘Unwrap him and let him go,’” the Skinwalker quoted and chuckled darkly. “I have defeated death, little sister. I can show you how. We can live forever, you and me.”

  “He’s quoting the Bible?” I muttered. “How boorish.” Sky looked at me. “What? I–”

  “Know things,” she finished. “Yeah, I know.”

  “You’re outnumbered, you know,” the Crooked Man announced, pacing back and forth. “You think I’ll just let you leave?” Its voice rose. “Gashak, followers. To me.”

  Around us there was movement, rustling in the woods, and then Pale Eyes emptied from the woods, a mass of blank gazes with yellow gleams. Immediately Rayner and I moved to either side of Sky. Both of us were poised, not even requiring telepathy to know what we’d each do next.

  Emerging from the path was Gashak the wendigo, his mouth stretched wide in mockery of a grin. “I liked what you wrote about me,” he growled at Sky, who gasped and moved closer to me.

  “Join me, Sky,” the Skinwalker crooned. Its loneliness echoed through the clearing in those words. A stark, endless circle of days without a friend or light to guide by. Sky squeezed her eyes shut and even my heart broke a little for the creature. Eighteen long years alone. “Join this side. I’m going to win. Either way, I will come for you.”

  “I think,” Sky said slowly and clearly, opening her eyes and glaring at it. “You should go back to whatever hell you crawled out of. You are not my brother.” Her voice was shaking. “He is dead.”

  For the first time, in its Skinwalker beast form, I saw blue in those red eyes.

  But then it was gone.

  “You is no choice in this matter,” it growled.

  Rayner muttered, “Quickfoot…”

  “Hey, snakeskin,” I called out, my veins fizzing with adrenaline. “You have an army, yeah. But we’ve got a family.”

  Behind him there was a slight ripple, and Hazel, Kalin, and Willow appeared. Clad in their bright gala dresses, they looked like the goddesses of wind, spirit, and flame.

  Emerging seconds later from the woods came three coyotes, one black with tips of white, one a shaggy red-brown and the last a dark umber. Ben, Burr, and Wes.

  “Did you just quote The Fast and the Furious?” Sky whispered in my ear.

  “Paraphrased,” I murmured back. “Sets the tone. Good guys win.”

  “You are something else, Campbell,” Sky said, squeezing my hand.

  The Skinwalker’s lips curled back and it sprang onto the picnic table, a heaving mass of limbs and rattling lungs. “Still outnumbered, little brother.” It seemed to be struggling to hold onto its form and again I saw a flash of blue in its eyes.

  Ben, you know what to do. Have the girls to help you. Rayner said to us as he shifted back. Cree, try to get Sky out of here. But most of all keep her safe. Burr and Wes, handle the wendigo. His head swiveled. I’ll take the Skinwalker.

  A Pale Eye darted up on my left, but I was too fast and then I had the man on the ground. Ben was at my side in a flash, his nose brushing the top of the Pale Eye’s head and he went limp, the poisonous control of the Skinwalker healed.

  Ben had finally learned how to heal in both forms and he streaked off, a black blur darting to where Willow, Kalin, and Hazel were attempting to knock out more Pale Eyes.

  I grabbed Sky’s hand and pulled her after me, but she was gazing down at the man. “What did you do? What is he?”

  A rueful laugh burst from me. “I keep forgetting you don’t know about any of this. He was a Pale Eye, that’s what we call them. A human turned into a mindless extension of the Skinwalker’s will, slowly being consumed by his darkness. They become fast and strong, but the price is high and they don’t live long. Ben can heal them, though. And then it becomes nothing but a bad dream.”

  “Skinwalker…” Sky looked at me as I carefully drew her away from the fight, not trying to alert it to our leaving. Gashak had charged forward and was keeping Rayner, Burr, and Wes from getting anywhere near him. Its arms swept back and forth wildly, lusting for drawing blood and death. “You mean Soren.”

  As she glanced back, I caught her cheek. “It’s not him,” I said. “It only wears his face.”

  “I know.” She shuddered. “For a minute, I thought it was, but I could sense the difference.” Her gray eyes were shadowed. “I could sense the corruption and hunger. And loneliness.”

  I was about to answer when there was a faint crack beside me and
I swept Sky aside as a nirumbee darted from the underbrush, fangs bared.

  She let out a high-pitched scream. “What is that?” More poured out and I backed us away, knocking them aside as I tried to protect her. “Why aren’t you shifting?”

  Surprised, I turned to look at her and one of the ghouls got my shoulder, causing pain to swim through my body in a hot rush and I almost passed out. Somehow I knocked it down, but it was coming back. As were the rest. Bastards.

  Without thinking, without even knowing what I was doing, I pulled.

  Water from the bay streamed around us, knocking the nirumbee back in a wave. They chittered and shrieked, trying to get away, but the rush of it was too strong.

  I panted, staring down at my hands in disbelief. “Whoa. I’ve never done that before.” Some minor tricks with water, maybe, but not the full ability to manipulate my element in human form. Burr had been the first of us to learn how to do that. “Sky!” I whipped around.

  She was staring at me and put a hand to hear head. “Every time I think I’ve come to grips with what is happening, something else has to happen.” Then her eyes flashed. “Those were the things that got you the other day, huh? I knew that was a tooth and not a rock.”

  Her hair was sparkling with drops of water and she’d never looked more brilliant, more like a starry goddess fallen to earth who’d taken pity on a mere mortal. I found her hands and pulled them to my chest. My heart was thundering from the adrenaline of the battle, but also because that fear was receding, like the tide from the shore.

  “Sky,” I said, my voice filled with wonder. I’d seen it on her face earlier, but I had to know, and I had to know now. “You…you’re not scared? You don’t think I’m a monster?”

  “Cree.” Her voice was full of reproach but her face was gentle. “Of course not. Especially now that I’ve seen real monsters.” Her eyes went dark but then she smiled up at me. “You’re Cree. My friend. My more than a friend.” Sky paused. “And a hero. Especially my hero.”

  I moved in closer, “Like I said before, I never should have doubted you.”

  “Well, I do hate to break up this precious moment, coyote, but the Crooked Man wants the girl. So move aside.” Gashak was standing beyond us, panting, his eyes wild and claws bloody.

  Cold hit my chest and I looked beyond him, but all of my brothers were fine, only now dealing with the annoyance that were the relentless nirumbee. Rayner was fighting tooth and nail to get to us. The Skinwalker was still perched on his table, eyes glittering as it watched the tableau before it.

  Pushing Sky behind me, I realized we were trapped. Woods hemmed us in on every side. The water was just behind us, deep and cold. While I could survive it, I didn’t want to take that risk with Sky. Who knew what surprises the Skinwalker had in store, hidden in the depths?

  I was poised to shift, hoping I could drive the wendigo back and protect Sky when a voice whispered through my mind.

  A coyote shifter is not only brute strength. He is cunning and wily, using his wits when his back is against the wall. Such is my trickster lineage.

  I grinned at Gashak and his scarred face twisted. “What are you grinning at, pup? Remember, I’m old enough to remember dozens of your past lives.”

  “I know,” I said. “That’s the joke, Wolfy. A wendigo and a Skinwalker walk into a bar…” His nostrils flared and he bared his fangs. “No? Hm, how about this one: the Skinwalker brings home a sucker of a souvenir from Alaska and uses it as the perfect pet to set on the Emerald City. Although that sounds more like a fairy tale or a limerick…”

  “As I said, I’m no fool, coyote pup, to fall for your tricks,” Gashak snorted.

  “Maybe not mine,” I said mildly. “But the Crooked Man’s, sure. There’s a reason it’s called that, you know. Ask Sorvang. Oh, wait.” I laughed. “She did wise up and still went poof.”

  Gashak’s eyes flashed and he glanced back. There was uncertainty on its face now. “We are partners. It swore to me. Although not on blood over water as I’d have preferred…”

  “Oh, buddy. The partner line? Yeah, Sorvang thought that, too. But everyone knows Skinwalkers are the introverts of demons. Sure, it has minions, the Ash Walkers, and the nirumbee, apparently. Mindless evil, easily swayed.” I shrugged. “I guess I never thought a wendigo of advanced years would be so cheaply and stupidly bought. Ah well, live and learn.”

  Gashak snarled, eyes flaming, and he launched himself backward, racing towards the Skinwalker. It saw him coming with seconds to spare, leaping neatly backward off the table.

  “Gashak,” it rumbled. “What are you doing? Did I not tell you to retrieve my sister?”

  “You promised me the blood of this city, Skinwalker. Instead, I’ve tasted one mortal and since then, I’ve been stuck chasing down bone-dry animals and nibinabe children.”

  The Skinwalker could no longer hold its beast form. I saw it wince and become what was once the Hess’s sibling. Its human face was twisted with contempt. “So?”

  The nirumbee were scattering, falling back, and all the Pale Eyes lay on the ground, healed and dreaming. My brothers and the girls were now watching the scene with interest.

  Wes glanced back at me, an affectionate, knowing gleam in his eye. Your doing?

  I raised my eyebrows and grinned, pulling Sky forward with me a little.

  “‘So?’” Gashak screamed, his claws pointing at the Crooked Man. “So, I want assurance of this partnership. The old spider witch dropped you and still perished. If I join you to fight in this war against these guardians, I want a prize. A symbol of goodwill in our alliance. Now.”

  “What would you have, then, Gashak?” The Crooked Man sounded bored. “Take your pick of mortals to feast upon. Perhaps one of those three useless girls.” It sneered as Kalin lunged forward, Hazel and Willow holding her back. “They mean something to the coyotes.”

  “No. I want something from you,” Gashak said.

  “And what is that?” The Crooked Man raised one eyebrow, an oddly human gesture.

  Gashak turned around and stared right at Sky and me. “Your sister.” He grinned as I stepped in front of Sky, my jaw clenching. “Give me her sweet flesh and my vengeance on that most galling of Hotshot Brothers.” He shrugged. “Then I’ll eat as many deer as you want while we seek victory.”

  “I think not,” the Crooked Man said delicately, cold fury crossing its face.

  “What use has a Skinwalker of a sister?” Gashak said with utmost contempt. “Your kind would laugh at such weakness. To gain their power they shed their humanity. They don’t cling to its shreds as you do. They make their alliances, yes, but a Skinwalker always walks alone.”

  There was a roar. Black shadows built up in a mass as red eyes flashed and teeth snapped. The Skinwalker had shifted into a form I’d yet to see. I stumbled back, pulling Sky with me.

  It was big, a monstrosity of wolf and bear and fire demons.

  Gashak let out a high scream as its maw closed on his neck.

  Sky let out a sound of horror and I wrapped her in my arms, turning and pushing her face against my chest so she wouldn’t have to see. Nausea roiled in my gut as I watched.

  It tore into what was left of Gashak, blood streaming down its face.

  Burr, Wes, and Ben shifted back, moving towards the girls, but Rayner stayed where he was, watching the beast finish off Gashak. Once done, it shifted back and spat out black blood.

  “Take that as your gesture of goodwill, ally,” it snarled, wiping at its mouth.

  Silence filled the clearing for one endless moment.

  “Let us help you, Soren,” Rayner said, shifting back and spreading open his arms. “Please.”

  “Oh, Rayner, always the good, obedient little son. No wonder you became a coyote – you were basically a dog, willing to roll over for any praise. At least Sky had some backbone.” At her name, she raised her head and broke away from me, looking at them. “‘Please,’” it mimicked. “Oh, baby brother, do you know what I did to ga
in this power? You must have wondered.

  “In the dark of the night, when your heart told you it was me, your own blood – you wrestled with theories and hope, striving in madness for your big brother’s salvation.” It sneered. “It’s all over your face. But don’t waste your precious time on that. Let me assure you, this was not my fate. This was my choice. And my reward.

  “The darkness found me in those lonely woods, did you know that? When you and my fake mother left me, when our father sat drinking and lamenting his sad lot in life, all his fortune turned to ash, never paying me mind or even remembering to feed me.

  “That’s when the shadow came and gave me the truth…ah, so terrible and wonderful. It gave me visions of you, a hero – always a hero. In every lifetime. With your brothers.” Its mouth twisted.

  Something flickered at the edge of my mind, a memory, long-buried. I saw a great starry sky over a mountain range, my brothers’ furs gleaming under the moon and the clean earth under our feet. Another time, when the world was young. A time when the Ash Walkers were locked away.

  Then it was gone as soon as it had come.

  The Crooked Man rushed on, its eyes fanatic now. “The shadow told me, sadly, I was no hero. I had no great fate. I would become as worthless as our father was. He had squandered his opportunities for a conscience. Such was my kismet.

  “And yet, it said, if I was so inclined, the shadow would be willing to change my destiny in exchange for aiding him in the war against you. At first I refused, but then it told me the darker truth. You and your kind were nothing but aberrations. Freaks. Not heroes as everyone thought, but pretenders. I would have true power; I would be more than a man. I’d be something closer to a god.”

  Rayner’s fists were clenched by his side. “You’re no god, Soren.”

  “Don’t call me that,” it hissed. “I have no name.” Its eyes flicked to Sky, who flinched. “No family. I walk alone.”

  “You have us, Soren.” Rayner was begging now. “Me, mom, and Sky. Come home.”

  It rubbed at its chin with a closed fist and grinned. “Do you know what I did to ascend, baby brother? You must remember that day. When the forest screamed as it bled with flame and ash.” It took a step forward. “I sent you away on that little blue bike. Once you were gone, while our useless father lay drunk in the middle of the day, I set fire to his house and let it burn.