Kian
What the fuck?
Frost lunges at Amora, and shock explodes inside me, cutting through my relief. I react instantly, moving faster than I can think as I reach out and shove her sideways with all my strength. She sprawls awkwardly into the dirt, arms and legs akimbo, but out of Frost’s attack path.
Frost slams into me instead.
I absorb the blow on my left shoulder, latching on to his arms as we go down, even as we hit the ground so hard it rattles my teeth. Twisting around, I throw Frost to the ground instead, using his own momentum to get him down. I follow him, landing on top of him to try to pin him. He thrashes violently, inhuman noises coming from deep inside his chest. Snatching at his wrists, I get a grip on him and slam him to the grass and dirt, one knee slanted over his thighs to hold him down.
Malix jumps in to help, but Frost begins to buck as madly as a wild mustang. His shadows flicker and convulse all over him, the shadow magic fueling him from the inside. Despite the fact that I started out with the upper hand, I quickly lose control of his limbs.
He backhands me across the face with the full force of his body behind the blow. I hurtle sideways and hit the grass, barely able to catch myself on both hands. I land awkwardly, my arm twisting under me so that I go down hard on the same shoulder Frost barreled into seconds ago. My vision goes black for a split second from his punch, and when I finally shake it off, Frost is shifting to his shadow wolf form.
Malix’s hands wrap around my biceps, and he hauls me to my feet. He keeps one hand on me, steadying me, as we both watch Frost’s transition with growing horror.
Shadows spill around his body like liquid smoke. He morphs larger. And then larger. Even larger than he was before Quinton overloaded him with shadow magic. He looks more like a horse than a wolf. Like a goddamn Clydesdale. Long limbs of rippling muscles, a barrel chest big enough to take down trees, and a vicious snout large enough to bite through my own shadow wolf head.
Our shadow wolf forms are already massive, deadly weapons, but he’s on a whole new level now.
Worse than the physical damage that’s been done to him, something feels different about him. The three of us have always been close—closer than normal pack mates, so deeply connected that it’s as if we each hold a piece of the other’s soul. And I can feel a change in him through the bond we share, as if the essence of what made him Frost has been irrevocably broken.
He’s drowning in darkness. Too deep for me to reach.
His shadows have taken over, filling him with nothing but rage, pain, and fury.
Malix curses under his breath as the shift completes, releasing his grip on my arm as we stare up at our brother.
“Well,” he mutters. “That’s new.”
Ignoring his ridiculous attempt at levity, I flick my gaze toward Amora. “Run. Now.”
She’s still on the ground where I knocked her away, looking shocked and fearful, which isn’t an expression I’m used to on such a badass woman. For once, she doesn’t question me. She darts to her feet, as graceful as a deer, her skin pale against the backdrop of the dark forest. With a single leap, she shifts to her wolf form before she hits the ground. Her dark brown fur helps conceal her as she flees over the flat terrain, skirting around trees.
Frost’s attention snaps to her, drawn by the movement, but we don’t give him a chance to react. My shadows shift restlessly, itching for a fight, and I let them loose. Magic pours over my body, stretching ligaments and tendons, lengthening my limbs, and filling me with the buzz of shadow energy. Before the shift has fully completed, I’m on top of Frost, with Malix right behind me.
I’ve already figured out that Frost has grown physically from the influx of shadow magic Quinton forced into him, but the level of his new strength is much more apparent once I latch on to his scruff. He tosses me off like I weigh nothing at all, then swings his massive head around into Malix’s body like a wrecking ball. We both slam to the ground inches apart and scramble back to our feet.
Frost! I call out in mind speak, darting ahead of him to try to catch his gaze. I need to restore the connection between us. I need to bring him back from the darkness. Listen to me. Do you rememb—
He swipes at me with a massive paw. I manage to duck the blow and dance several feet away to consider my next move.
Malix circles around to the opposite side of Frost’s heaving form, his head swinging toward me as his lupine eyes meet mine. Can he hear us?
Frost lunges at me, and I feint right. When he reacts, I dart left, then roll my body underneath his legs. I slam into his back legs in an attempt to take him down, but he barely even wobbles.
He howls, the sound loud enough to send birds fleeing into the sky from surrounding trees.
I manage to disentangle myself from Frost’s stamping paws and roll away.
Fuck. I don’t know, I reply to Malix’s question, baring my teeth in a snarl. It doesn’t seem like he can.
Or he just doesn’t care, Malix shoots back grimly.
Frost snaps at him, and while our brother’s attention is divided between us, I launch myself through the air to go for another takedown.
My teeth snag on to the back of Frost’s neck. I yank, but he doesn’t go down. At least, not the way I want him to.
Instead, he thrashes wildly, tossing himself to his back.
All the breath in my lungs is forced out as I slam into the dirt with Frost’s considerable weight on top of me. I’m too stunned to move, unable to drag another breath into my body. Frost leaps off me, then I hear Malix yelp, followed by the heavy sound of fading steps.
Shit! He’s going after Amora!Malix shouts through mind speak.
I’m on my feet in an instant, urgency burning through my veins. I sprint after Frost, not even pausing to make sure Malix is with me.
I don’t know how to subdue Frost. He’s our brother—I don’t want to hurt him. I don’t want to break bones or shed blood. But he’s fucking wild. There’s hardly anything consciously human left in him. Coupled with the fact that he’s bigger, stronger, and fighting dirty, we’re all in danger.
But no matter what, we can’t let him hurt Amora.
No more holding back, I tell Malix gruffly as I put on a burst of speed to catch up to Frost. I can see Amora just ahead, running for all she’s worth.
Not fast enough, though. Never fast enough to outrun a shadow wolf, and especially not one on goddamn steroids.
Malix’s growl echoes in my mind. Right. No more holding back.
My paws barely touch the ground. I fly after Frost’s larger form, gaining speed on him thanks to the sheer dumb luck of being smaller. A larger size doesn’t necessarily equate to greater speed, and for that, I count myself lucky.
Size does, however, mean strength. We need a plan. Fast.
I draw up alongside Malix, both of us only a couple feet behind Frost. The forest spreads out ahead of us toward the distant mountain, the trees thinning out to our left and growing denser to our right.
If we could knock Frost out...