by MJ Caan
“Dr. Garner,” said Cody, “I know. My father confirmed who and what I am.”
“What brought you here?” said Dr. Garner. She slowly placed the blade back in the drawer and eased it shut.
“You sent a message to my father,” Cody said, “telling him that you had a cure. It was the same message that went to all of the parents of us wolves.”
Eugenia Garner’s head snapped up sharply to look Cody in the eye. “It wasn’t me who sent that message. You have no idea how much danger you are in.”
“Then tell us,” I said. “Tell us how much danger we are in, and help us figure out what’s going on around here. Starting with this: who did you think we were, and what is the Order of the Fell?”
“The Order of the Fell are the servants of Mallis,” she said. “They want to bring down the forbidding that keeps magic from flowing freely in this world.”
“The same magic that keeps the Shifters locked in human form, right?” I said.
She nodded her head, and she didn’t question how I knew that. She knew who I was.
“Yes, that’s right,” she continued, “but it goes beyond that. That forbidding has locked the natural flow of the ley energy in Trinity Cove. The mystical energies that wind through the bedrock underneath the town, as well as the ley lines, are natural occurrences in this world. Your mother created a spell that altered that flow. Over time the energy has become vulnerable to outside corruption—corruption in the form of black magic.”
“So the person you’ve been dealing with,” I said, “what is her stake in all this?”
“The forbidding has become frayed,” Dr. Garner replied. “Some of the magic that it contains is seeping out into the world again. The Order of the Fell want to restore not only Shifters, but bring back other, older forms that lived in this world at one time. Trinity Cove will be the aperture for that magic. It will also, once again, serve as the wellspring for all things supernatural on this plane.”
“Including the warlock that is locked behind it,” said Cody. “And any other power-hungry warlock that fancies themselves a boss, I’m betting.”
“Exactly.” Dr. Garner nodded. “If the forbidding can be brought down, then there’s no telling what manner of creatures can once again walk the earth.”
“But I don’t understand,” I said. “If my mother created the forbidding, where were all these creatures before she raised the barrier?”
“A couple of decades ago there were more witches than there are now,” she said. “It was their job to maintain order and keep the darkness relegated to the shadows. Your mother had a greater role than you probably know among those who practiced magic.”
“Yes, I know,” I said. “She was a Reliquary.”
“The meaning of which I’m sure goes far beyond anything your aunts would have told you,” she said. “Did they tell you that the truest translation of that word is ‘warden’?”
“Sorry to butt in here,” said Cody before I could answer. “But these cracks in the forbidding that you spoke of, are they why we’re seeing Shifters again? Are they why I was able to Shift?”
Immediately, Eugenia rushed over to Cody. “You’ve Shifted?” She took his hand and pulled him over to the table, bidding him to sit down. She hurried over to her shelf and picked up an ophthalmoscope and shined it into one of Cody’s eyes. “How were you able to manage that?” She turned to look at me, her mouth hanging open.
“I think it was my magic that caused his Shift,” I said. “Magic is also what brought him back to human form. Isn’t that how it works?”
“No, not normally,” she said. “An adult Shifter who transforms into a wolf for the first time is completely at the mercy of his bestial self. Shifters learn at an early age how to control and channel their energy. They learn this from their pack. But Cody, and the others like him, were never exposed to that. Therefore, as adults, their wolves are savage and feral. That’s what I warned her would happen.”
“You mean the member of the Order of the Fell that you’ve been in communication with?” I asked.
“Yes. She wants the wolves. She told me I could either help her to gather them, or she would hunt them down and kill them and their adoptive families one by one. She has a list of everyone and I didn’t know what else to do. But I warned her that forcing a werewolf to Shift like that, for whatever reason she had in mind, could have unforeseen consequences.”
“The body at the Falls,” I said. “That was one of the parents, right?”
“Yes,” she said. “The Order of the Fell have learned how to force the werewolves to Shift, but it can only be done at the Falls, where the energy leaking through the forbidding is the strongest. When she forced that transformation, the wolf was uncontrollable and tore apart its own human parent.” She placed the instrument under the table and covered her eyes with one hand. She seemed to be weeping uncontrollably at the thought of what she had helped bring about.
“That’s why you have to help us if you can,” I said. “You seem to know an awful lot about what’s going on here, more than anyone else that’s been willing to talk to us, and that includes my aunts. All I want is to find out if my mother’s alive, get her back if she is, and make all this, whatever it is, right again. And stop this Order of the Fell from letting demons back into our world.”
Dr. Garner whirled around, a look of abject terror suddenly crossing her face. “No, you need to stay as far away from all this is possible. Don’t you understand, this is exactly what Mallis wants.”
“No, I don’t understand any of it!” I replied. “That’s why I want you to tell me. And who is this Mallis? I know he’s the teacher of the warlock that’s trapped behind the forbidding, right? So what’s one more warlock in the grand scheme of things?”
“No,” said Dr. Garner, shaking her head emphatically. “Mallis is not a warlock. Who told you that? Mallis is a…”
She was cut off mid-sentence by a sharp thud that suddenly pierced the air. The doctor’s head and arms arched backward as her chest suddenly thrust forward. I could see a good six inches of a shiny metallic blade, now streaked with blood, exiting her breastbone. Cody was able to catch her in his arms as she collapsed forward.
“And that will be enough talking,” said a voice from behind her.
I looked up and saw a tall, thin woman with jet black hair dressed all in black standing ten feet behind Dr. Garner. The woman raised her hand in the air, and the knife that had just impaled Eugenia Garner flew backward to her, with enough force that it cast off a line of dark blood to coat the ceiling and walls.
Whoever she was, she didn’t waste the precious moments of shock that her sudden bloody action caused. She held the dagger that had just seconds before been thrust into the body of Dr. Garner in front of her face. I could see her lips moving rapidly in incantation, and in response, the blade lit up with orange flames. Grasping it by the hilt, she once again hurled it. This time it was headed for my heart. Without much conscious thought on my part, my magic flared to life. A hastily erected blue shield appeared before Cody and me, taking the brunt of the attack. The knife struck it and bounced harmlessly away before it once again zipped through the air to land in the stranger’s hand.
“I don’t know who you are,” the assassin said, “but you’ve just made me waste a perfectly good asset, and I’m gonna make you pay for that.”
She took a step forward, and for the first time I noticed she was not alone. In her right hand she held her flaming dagger; in her left she held the end of the chain. It was fastened to a collar around the neck of a tall, muscular man that stood behind her. He was half concealed in the shadows that divided the office from the kitchen, but I could make out that he was shirtless, wearing only a pair of nylon basketball shorts.
“Who are you?” I said. “What are you doing here?”
“I might ask you the same thing,” she said. “But honestly, I don’t care.” She dropped the end of the chain from her hand, and unfastened the link from the collar
around her companion. “Kill,” she breathed.
All I could think at that moment was, Oh God, no. Not again. I watched in horror as her companion pounded fully into view, his body contorting as his limbs twisted unnaturally back on themselves, his neck elongating, his face melting into something filled with gnashing teeth and harrowing yellow eyes. He dropped to all fours just as he finished Shifting into the form of a large gray wolf. The wolf launched himself claws first at myself and Cody, covering the space between us in a single bound. I poured more magic into the shield, hoping that I could strengthen it to withstand the impact. Three hundred pounds of gray fur and fury smashed into the barrier. It felt like I had been physically struck, but the shield held, flaring beneath the weight of the werewolf.
I so was focused on the wolf that I didn’t see the woman as she approached. One moment I was trying to keep Cujo from biting through my force field, and the next, the woman—who I assumed was a member of the Order of the Fell—was at the Shifter’s side, her fiery blade stabbing at my shield. With both hands on the hilt of the knife, she was attempting to cut through my magic barrier, and I could feel the sweat gathering on my forehead as I concentrated to keep my shield in place. Despite my newfound levels of power, I wasn’t exactly sure I could fight even one of these attackers, and I knew that I absolutely could not take on both at the same time.
“I’m sorry,” I said between gritted teeth to Cody.
Cody was on one knee, withdrawing a small pistol from an ankle holster he wore beneath his khakis. “Don’t be. We’re not going down without a fight.”
“No,” I said, “I’m sorry that I have to do this.”
“Do what?”
“Forgive me, but i have to cash in that insurance policy,” I said. I was worried I wouldn’t have the strength to do what I had planned and still maintain the force field. I glanced over at Cody and held one hand up in his direction. Closing my eyes I breathed out the incantation that I hoped I would never have to use. Instantly, my magic stabbed into him, triggering his body’s most primal response.
“No!” he cried, dropping his gun. Both hands went to his head as his back arched, and his voice became a guttural growl escaping his now expanding chest. As he began to Shift, I focused one last invocation his way. “Saierre nephrem!” I shouted.
Know yourself.
The break in my concentration seemed to be all the woman needed to take advantage of the situation. She raised her blade high overhead and plunged it down with all her strength into my shield. There was a flash of blue light around us as my shield splintered into fragments, raining down all around Cody and me. It felt like someone had just punched me between the eyes, and I fell backward, momentarily disoriented.
Through the haze of pain, I could vaguely make out a gray blur streaking across the floor towards me. I knew I didn’t have the time or the strength to erect a barrier, so I raised one arm, hoping in vain to protect my face from the gnashing teeth that were about to descend on me. Had I closed my eyes, I would’ve missed the jet black blur that rammed into the side of the gray wolf with the power of a locomotive. The gray was flung sideways and out into the kitchen, and I looked up into the yellow eyes of Cody. He stared at me briefly for a second before unleashing his own growl and sprinting after his adversary.
I had wanted to say I was sorry, but the truth was I was pretty sure we would have both died had I not just cast that transformation spell. My attention returned to the here and now just in time for me to avoid being stabbed in the chest by a red-hot knife. I rolled to one side just as the glowing blade plunged into the floor where I had been lying just a second before.
The woman stood slowly, drawing herself up to nearly six feet of intimidation. Her arms hung loosely at her side, one hand gripping the knife she had nearly just gutted me with.
“My name is Katrina,” she said. “And you are?”
Yeah, right. Good try, bitch. I knew there was power in knowing your opponent’s name. No way had she just given me her real name, and I could only hope that she was stupid enough to think I would give her mine.
“Nice to meet you, Katrina,” I said. “I’m Glinda, the good witch.”
She either didn’t care or didn’t get the reference as she advanced on me, her eyes growing pale and milky as she adjusted the grip on her knife. I saw her lips moving silently, invoking dark magic. Immediately the room began to swirl, and I felt an overwhelming sense of vertigo. She was trying the same tactic as the man we had encountered at Hope’s house. This time I was ready.
“Fool me once…” I said, waving my hand at her. I summoned an augmentation spell and threw it at her. It was a type of magic that was meant to be used internally by a witch to boost her senses as needed. When used correctly it would allow me to see at night, or follow an enemy by their scent. When I had first read about it, it seemed kind of gross at the time, but I had memorized the spell, thinking that it might come in handy. This time, instead of focusing it inward, I cast it outward in Katrina’s direction. I sent it to her ears, increasing their sensitivity a hundredfold.
The roars and the howls that accompanied the crashing bodies of the two wolves fighting in the next room hit her like sledgehammers. She screamed and whirled to face the sudden onslaught that was assailing her, and the break in her concentration also broke her spell. The room stopped spinning and clarity returned to me. The magic I had cast on her wouldn’t last long, so I needed to make the most of the distraction.
I rushed forward to reach around her and grabbed her throat from behind. I fully intended to summon a blast of magic and use it to rip open her neck, but before I could take action, I felt a sharp jolt as she drove her elbow backward and into my stomach. The blow knocked me backward a couple of steps as she screamed in rage and swung around, slashing the knife horizontally at me. I heard a slight rip and looked down to see my tee shirt had been split in across its center. I briefly touch the flesh beneath it and breathed a sigh of relief when I realized my skin was still intact. Still, that was a little too close for comfort.
I danced forward and slammed my fist into her jaw. Her head snapped backward, but the pain that suddenly flared up in my wrist told me that I could’ve just done as much damage to myself as I had to her. I stepped back and looked around, trying to find any object that I could charge with magic and use as a weapon. The augmentation spell was starting to wear off and I could see Katrina regaining more control of her body. She looked around, trying to locate me as she touched one hand gingerly to her ear. She looked down at the dark, red stain on her fingertips and then up at me.
“Bitch!” she spat. “I was going to make this fast, but not now.”
She started toward me, but stopped as the entire house seemed to shake on its foundation and the two wolves crashed through the wall and tumbled into the office where we stood. I marveled at the sheer size of the beasts. They were far larger and more ferocious than any wolves I had ever seen. They were each well over three hundred pounds, nearly twice the size of the largest wolves on record. The old wooden floorboards in the office creaked under their combined weight as they circled one another.
I watched as Cody lunged for the gray wolf, the snap of his jaws landing a bite on his opponent’s haunches. The gray wolf howled in pain and anger and wheeled about to slash at Cody’s ears. The snarling of the two massive animals deepened as they latched onto one another, rolling in a ball that caused the entire room to shake. I took full advantage of the distraction and dove behind the exam table. I began pulling drawers open, trying to block out the horrific sound of teeth gnashing, claws raking against bristled fur, and the mad growls that accompanied teeth snapping.
I could hear the woman cursing and screaming at the two wolves in a language I didn’t recognize. I wasn’t sure if she was invoking more magic to work against Cody, or was simply caught up in trying to help her wolf survive the encounter. Either way, she had taken her attention off of me for just a second, and that was all I needed. I continued rummaging thro
ugh the content of the drawers, looking for something, anything, that I could use.
I picked up something that looked like a small mallet. I wasn’t sure what it was, but it looked vaguely familiar, tickling at memories from childhood physicals in the city. I held it by the handle and wasted no time charging it with magic. I stood up from behind the table just in time to see the woman advancing on the two wolves, her flaming knife drawn back to attack. She must’ve sensed my presence, and whirled around just as I threw the mallet at her.
She had time to turn her face to the side and throw her hands up in front of her before the mystically charged instrument struck her in the chest. There was a loud grunt as she lost all the air in her lungs, accompanied by a flash of blue magic that lit up the space around us. She was driven off her feet and across the room, where she struck the far wall with an impact that dropped her to the floor.
“Wow,” I said to myself. “Efat your heart out, Thor.”
A roar thundered across the room and struck my ears as I turned in time to see the gray wolf shaking off Cody and gathering himself to launch at me. Rolling away away from him I felt along the floor for any object that I could charge. I looked up just in time to see him bounding across the floor towards me, but before he could reach me, another shape latched onto the wolf.
It was Cody, but he was no longer in wolf form. He wasn’t human either, but had somehow managed to Shift into a form that was an amalgamation of both. He was a good foot taller in this form, heavily muscled and still covered in jet black fur. His arms were long and powerful, ending in razor-sharp two-inch claws that glistened at the end of his fingers. His sinewy legs seemed to have lost their flexibility at the knee joints and gave him the appearance of standing in a slight crouch. He was balanced on the balls of his elongated feet, and they too possessed preternaturally lengthened nails. While there was no sign of the black tail that he possessed in his wolf form, his head and neck still resembled the powerful, long canine shape complete with high, pointed ears, a protruding snout, fangs, and those intense, yellow eyes.
