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The Feri Light
Chapter 25
'Ladies and gentlemen, the wolf-shifters have arrived,' the announcer's voice boomed over the stadium. The spectators roared. However, Wren and his kin remained stoic. 'In this match, their opponents will be the most noble of beasts, the...' he paused for effect, '... werewolves.'
Unlike the shifters, the werewolves arrived through a dark smoky ring portal laced with blue lightning streaks. There's only one person able to conjure this type of portal; Helledon.
Once again, we were overwhelmed by the noise coming from the spectators. Honestly, I was beginning to question whether saving these people was worth it.
'Don't blame them Rye,' Keene said. 'Not everybody has the courage to stand up for themselves. Self-preservation is a primal need and it can cloud the most sound of mind. They are doing it out of fear.'
'You don't need to make excuses for them, Keene. Intimidation or fear, right now I don't see the difference.' There was a lot I wanted to say but I kept my opinions to myself.
The portal closed behind the third werewolf. They were massive; their height ranged from six to seven feet. They snarled showing their four inch canines.
I noticed the wolf-shifters didn't flinch or even budge. They showed no fear whatsoever.
"Wren," I whispered. I was still a bit pissed at him for leaving me in the prison chamber, nonetheless I still wanted him in one piece. "There's feri light all over the arena. You can shift." He didn't use words only nodded his answer. With so many eyes around, he didn't want to draw unwanted attention towards me.
The werewolves snarled at my bond-mate and his companions. Calm and collected, Wren began to discard his clothes; first his tunic, then his pants and then his footwear. Confused, Kane and the others stared at him. In fact, the whole stadium stared at him, perplexedly, in silence. Inhaling, deeply, he morphed into a raven black wolf. The others quickly caught on that their powers were back. They also stripped and morphed.
As if that was the cue they were waiting for, the werewolves lurched forward. On all fours, they charged the wolf-shifters.
With a quick glance, I noticed Helledon was at the edge of his seat. He was enjoying this. In a split second my fear for Wren turned to anger towards the bastard. In my mind flashed a dozen ways to end the degenerate's life. Call it a reflex, I touched my core. Before I did something rash, Keene and Caleb had their hands on me. "Not yet Rye." Devlin's voice rang in my head.
"Why not? This is as good a time as any."
"Sorry Rye. I made a promise to Wren."
'What kind of promise?' I said out loud.
Keene nervously looked around. Someone might have overheard me.
'Keene!'
'We promised Wren that we would wait for the bastard to bring forth his father,' Keene said in a low voice.
That was shifters for you. Stubborn, irrational and reckless.
'Does he know that his course of action just sealed his father's fate?'
'I'm sure he does but, of all people, you know how the wolf-shifters are.' Keene said.
No. He should have said 'how the Graylards are' because any wolf-shifter in his right mind would weigh his options carefully before acting.
'Shit!' Caleb exclaimed next to me. 'The wolf-shifters are agile fuckers. Look! it looks like they have a strategy in mind.'
Following his line of vision, I saw that Wren and his kin where keeping their distance from the werewolves. They kept dodging the beasts' attacks by weaving between them, retreating and enticing the large creatures to chase them. Caleb was on to something. The shifters did appear to have a strategy. That was to tire their opponents. Already I could see the effects on the werewolves.
Suddenly, I saw Wren and a silver wolf break away from the others. They circled back behind the werewolves and tackled the slower werewolf to the ground. Instantly Wren was at his throat. The werewolf used his rear legs to push him off, but the silver wolf was on to it. He latched on to one of the beast's back legs and pinned it down while Wren brutally shook the beast by the throat. The beast's forelegs were free so he was clawing at Wren's side. Kane appeared and disabled the werewolf's front paws. The three of them managed to subdue the beast.
The other werewolves sensed that they were going to lose one of their own. They stopped the chase and rushed to help their companion. The two remaining shifters weren't letting that happen. The tawny wolf repeatedly nipped at his werewolf's back legs. The beast got angry and resumed chasing him. The other shifter, a gray wolf managed to get in front of the other werewolf. The beast stopped and a snarling contest began. The werewolf wasn't impressed with the shifter, or perhaps driven by his friend's desperate cry, he launched himself in the air over the gray wolf and darted towards Wren and the others. Alas, he was too late. As my bond-mate released his grip on the now dead werewolf, he immediately targeted the charging beast. The others caught on quickly. They surrounded the beast on all sides. One by one they nipped at his rear end. He was forced to sit down to protect his hind. The shifters kept on nipping at the werewolf. Mouth open, he threw his massive head around hoping to snatch a shifter. But that proved to be a mistake. In doing that he kept exposing his neck. The silver wolf was waiting for just that as he latched on like Wren had done with the first werewolf. Instantly the other three shifters were on the werewolf. Pinning him down like the first, they tore him to shreds.
Two down, one to go.
Noticing his companions, the tawny wolf joined the group. The remaining werewolf halted in his tracks. He sniffed the air and realized he was all alone now. However, that wasn't going to deter him. He lurched towards the shifters. They scattered. Then they did something that left me in awe, each of them doubled back and latched themselves to a limb. The remaining wolf grabbed the tail. They pulled outwards, stretching the beast to its limit. Of course, the beast fought back but each time he brought his massive jaw to snatch a shifter, another would increase the pressure of their bits causing the beast to yelp and be distracted. It took me a while to realize what they were trying to do. They were attempting to split the beast apart. It took several minutes but they succeeded.
The spectators went wild with cheers. Finally, I was able to let out a huge breath to empty my lungs.
'They did it!' Caleb yelled.
I didn't see any cause for celebration because I knew this was far from over.
Just like I thought, three dozen armed warriors spilled into the arena and corralled the shifters into a tight circle. The wolves growled.
'That's not fair,' someone shouted in front of us. He was quickly hushed by another person standing next to him.
'Do you want to join them? If you do then keep it up, my friend.'
Glancing at the royal podium, I saw that Helledon had a very sinister grin on his ugly face. I thought he would get involved but it was Uren who stood with his hands in the air. The crowd understood the meaning of this gesture and the level of noise died down almost instantly. Throwing his cape back, he moved to the edge of the podium.
'Wolf shifters. You put up a good show today. I appreciate the effort. I have to say, you fought valiantly ... for a bunch of animals, that is. Alas, it wasn't impressive enough. You should know, I'm a hard man to please. That's why you'll get another chance to fight, but this time without your shifting abilities.'
With a flick of the hand, two warriors blow-darted the shifters. Instantly they reverted to their human forms. The murderous look on their faces reflected their disgust for this man.
'Come down and fight me yourself and you'll see how impressive I can be.' That came from Wren and his big mouth. Enticing Uren or even Helledon, for that matter, might not be a good idea.
Helledon jumped to his feet and joined his son. 'If it isn't Wren Graylard, the feres sidekick. I thought I recognized you. Honestly, I am delighted that you could make it to our little celebration. By the way, where is your little feres lover? I hope wherever he is he's hiding. Hiding from what is to come.'
'You speak big for a freak,' Kane shouted. Helledon turned to him. He seemed to recognize Kane.
'Well, two princes of Wyrmer. I'm touched.' Suddenly, his face lit up with excitement. That was not a good sign.
'It's fortunate that you're here. I have a surprise for you. I was saving it for a better occasion but today will do just fine.' He turned to his son and Uren grinned.
'Bind them,' he ordered the guards.
With great difficulty the guards subdued the shifters and dragged them to the east wall. To make sure they couldn't break free, inhibitor collars were placed around their necks.
'People of Koff, you're in for a treat today as you'll get the chance to witness the death of a king. To be more precise, the death of the Alpha King.' For once, no one cheered. The whole stadium had gone mute. That didn't bother Helledon at all. In fact, it seemed to have the opposite effect. This guy loves the smell of fear.
Two smoky portals opened in the sand pit not far from the pile of corpses. Their sudden appearance frightening the crows. They flew everywhere blinding the spectators for a minute. As they returned to the carcasses, I saw Elron standing in the middle of the arena facing three angry werewolves.
Wren and the other shifters roared and fought their chains. That amused Helledon who gave a short sinister laugh. 'Let the game begin,' he yelled before he and Uren regained their seats.
"Now! We should move now," I said to Keene.
I touched my core, ready to teleport myself down there when Keene stopped me.
"Rye wait," Devlin projected. "Goran and Ned haven't arrived yet. We have to wait for them before we can do anything. We can't put the mission in jeopardy for the sake of one person."
For the sake of one person! I nearly screamed my head off. I pinned Keene with a deadly stare. "Give me one good reason..."
Keene sighed. It was Devlin who answered, though. "I know how restless you are. However, Helledon and Uren have the upper hand right now. Have you forgotten the guards? There are hundreds of them around. What's more, Helledon has the portal. He can bring forth any number of werewolves here in the blink of an eye. Sure, under normal circumstances, you and I would be a match for them, but right now it would be suicide. My powers are limited in Keene's body. If I force it, it might kill him. And you. Targeten can't risk losing you right now. You're the glue keeping all of us together. If you fall, we all fall."
Trembling with rage, I glared at the werewolves in front of Elron. I didn't have a comeback for Devlin because the annoying bastard was right. I can't reveal myself, but I can do something to help Elron. I reached out and latched on to the werewolves' cores. They were so vile that I almost let go. As they neared Elron I froze them long enough for him to tackle the first one to the ground. He was as fierce as his sons proclaimed him to be. While I kept the others back he quickly made short work of the one he had. The third werewolf fought my bond as Elron challenged the second werewolf. Within minutes his wolf managed to bring down all three werewolves.
The crowd didn't cheer when it was all over. They were in shock.
Uren jumped to his feet. 'Wolf-shifter. I don't know how but you cheated!'
He returned to his seat and pulled out a sword. 'You're going to fight me now. See if you can cheat your way out of this.' He said casting aside his cape. 'Dart him,' he yelled at his guards who were back in the sand pit.
As Wren and the others had, Elron reverted to human form.
In one leap, Uren was in the arena. He rotated his blade like an expert sword master. 'Say your last goodbyes because now you die.'
The shifters rattled their chains as they struggled to break free.
It seemed hardly fair for Uren to fight an unarmed man. He attacked Elron. The old man was surprisingly light on his feet. He managed to stay out of Uren's sword's path as he delivered a blow to the younger man's side. Uren didn't flinch. Instead, he got an opening to Elron. He jabbed him in the face with the hilt of his sword and sent the shifter flying with a kick to the stomach.
Again, no one cheered.
Helledon grinned and nodded from his seat.
Another attack from Uren left many open wounds on Elron. It was then that I realized the dart they used on him was poisoned and was slowing him down.
Uren didn't dart the other shifters with poison because his father wanted them to watch their leader die. He knew that neutralizing Elron's wolf wouldn't ensure his victory. The shifter was indeed powerful, but Uren intended to win.
Soon he got Elron on his back, panting out of breath. Blood and sand caked his body.
The shifters snarled in their chains.
Uren turned to his father. Helledon put his thumb up and swiftly turned it downward. In doing so, he sentenced the Alpha King to death.
With Goran or not, I wasn't waiting any longer. Anticipating my decision, Caleb grabbed my shoulder. He was coming with me, although at first, I thought he meant to hold me back.
I looked at Keene. I wasn't asking permission, I was just letting him know that I've made my decision. He felt my determination of course so he only nodded.
Caleb was already in beast mode when we materialized a short distance from where Uren held his sword above his head poised to deliver the killing blow. He stumbled back when I pushed him with my telekinesis. Before he realized what just happened the tiger disarmed him.
A collective gasp rippled through the crowd. I ignored them and strode towards Uren, who was now holding his injured hand. Caleb disappeared from my line of vision. Screams filled the arena as he took the guards down one by one.
'Who the fuck are you?' He spat.
I didn't answer him. I just reached for his core and stunned him. His eyes grew big, and fear dripped out of him.
As he was half Northender, feri light was his downfall, so I added some through the connection. At that moment, I heard a thud.
'Rye, watch out!' I heard someone shout.
I turned around in time to deflect a blue lightning bolt coming from Helledon. He was standing over Elron with Uren's sword in his hand. Without breaking eye contact with me, he plunged the weapon in the Alpha King's chest, right through his heart. He gave it a twist and within seconds Wren's father was dead.
Wren and Kane growled in outrage. They were still chained and I saw that Caleb-tiger was trying to break them free of their bonds.
Helledon produced another bolt of lightning. He didn't say a word, but his angry face spoke volumes. I let go of Uren long enough to counter Helledon's lightning with an energy ball.
By that time, there was a lot of noise coming from the stadium. I didn't dare look. I knew a fight had broken out. Goran and Ned had finally arrived.
Helledon produced another thunder bolt but I didn't give him a chance to throw it. Like bullets out of a machine gun, i fired energy balls at him. He was forced to drop the bolt and shield himself.
I thought I had the upper hand when I felt a sharp pain in my back and heart. What came next took me by surprise. My whole body began to spasm, my blood was on fire and my skin was turning charcoal black. Stunned, I fell to my knees.
Helledon grinned and produced more lighting. This was it. I was going to die.
Wren, shouting my name, drew my attention to him. He stopped struggling and locked eyes with me. He was far away but he had better vision than me. 'I love you,' I lipped. At that instant, he knew he was going to lose me just like he did his father.
Helledon was strolling towards me when a loud inhuman roar stopped him in his tracks.
My eyes never left Wren, so I saw the whole transformation. Yes, transformation. Engulfed in rage, Wren's body contorted just like I had seen him do countless occasions when he was shifting. But this wasn't a normal shift. He was growing way too large. All activity around us ceased as he began to morph into a humongous beast. I recognized the creature he was morphing into instantly. Ten feet tall, huge talons, a stocky yet elongated snout, bony spines that runs along his back to his muscular tail, fiery breath, he was a dragon.
Roaring mad, he shook the pieces of chains that still hung on his body. He took two steps in our direction as a pair of giant bat wings sprang from his back. With two quick beats he flew and landed behind me. He grabbed Uren and shook him like a ragdoll before throwing him at his father. Helledon looked down at his son solemnly but he didn't attempt to touch him. Like all of us, he knew he was dead. Spread out, Wren moved towards Helledon. The bastard threw lightning bolt after lightning bolt at my bond-mate, to no avail. Just before Wren reached him, he glanced at his son one last time, then at me before vanishing in one of his portals.
Just then, Keene appeared next to me with the professor. The older man, pulled out a syringe and stabbed me in the chest. Instantly, the lava inside of me calmed. Moments later my skin regained its normal color, but I could still feel something inside.
'You were hit with the Northender dark energy,' Devlin said through Keene.
'It felt like I was dying,' I croaked.
'Yes. And you're lucky you didn't. So many of your kind die from far less in their system,' Devlin said.
I glanced up at Wren who was towering over us. I could see the relief in his eyes that I was going to be fine. He glanced at his father's corpse.
'Go.' I told him. 'Take him home.'
He gazed down at me. I smiled back, knowing what he was trying to say. A minute later he walked to where Kane and the other shifters were kneeling next to their fallen King.
When Wren-dragon arrived they moved out of the way. He roared and breathed out fire skyward scattering the crows and sending them on a cawing frenzy once more. And then another part of the vision acted out before my very eyes. The dragon gently scooped up Elron in its mouth. Looking at Kane, Wren bent down low enough for his brother to climb onto his back. Taking to the sky, they set off homeward.
........................
End of chapter 25