Andboywas it violent.
I’d witnessed a lot in my life, had seen so much bloodshed, so much death, that it rarely bothered me. I didn’t even think about it anymore.
Maybe it was because it happened in front of Soshi, but it suddenly took on a more sinister feeling. She was too young to have a front-row seat to such violence, to have to worry about this in her life, and the barbarism I had grown used to took on a new light.
Deacon moved like Brax, both large and hitting hard, though given that Deacon was smaller than Brax’s berserker form, he was quicker. Brax swiped his claw-tipped hands, able to knock down enemies without trouble. A spray of blood splattered the wall and left a long, red streak.
Since Deacon lacked the claws and fangs, when he struck a soldier with his fists, the hit was hard and loud. They fought, but Deacon outmatched the soldier with ease.
Kit had transformed into his other form, the tall ceilings of the main room allowing him to stand at his full height. Had I ever seen him like this? I’d seen sketches before, had heard of what a wendigo looked like, but I’d never seen it myself.
I kind of wish I still hadn’t.
He was something out of a nightmare, and he moved in a way that was wholly unnatural. It was fluid and ethereal and terrifying. His claws made Brax’s seem like dull stubs, and he used them with a practiced motion that suggested he was extremely comfortable with them. In addition, when he cornered someone, those elongated hands of his would turn the body to dust in moments.
Knox didn’t move like the others, not by sheer strength. Instead, he slid through the fight with lethal grace. Where the other three men hit hard, clashing, Knox moved with a fluidity that felt more like a dance. HIs green eyes were incredibly bright, and each time he neared anyone, the person stumbled as if distracted by his presence. Then again, it only took one sniff to know the room was bathed in his pheromones.
Incubi were scary in a different way than other shades. They were less obvious, less brawn but more sinister. They hide beneath the veneer of seduction, able to turn people mindless with nothing more than their bodies and a promise of something more. Beneath that, under all that temptation, rested a beast just as willing to kill as anything else.
Knox showed that side of himself then. He didn’t need claws or fangs, didn’t need brawn. He moved so fast, it was as if he anticipated anyone else’s moves. When they swung for him, he bypassed it, almost faster than I could follow. When one charged him, he easily grasped their wrist and rolled over the other’s back like some acrobatic feat. It meant that after avoiding a strike, it took little for him to maneuver the enemy into slamming their own face into the wall, by using their momentum against them.
It gave me a good reminder that incubi were nothing to laugh at.
Hera stood behind the rest, her hands moving quickly. She snapped, then directed a blast in one direction or another, focusing on wiping up those who got past the men or the occasional stupid soldier who tried to get in behind one of the others.
Bowen was beside Hera, creating barriers with an ease that said he’d done so many times in the past.
And Soshi stood behind Bowen and Hera, her blue eyes wide. She’d been targeted before—like the time with Hera—but I doubted she’d seen a true fight likethis.There was as fair difference between how Level 4 shades were treated—especially outside Larkwood—and the sort of response four escaped Level 1s would get. As much as I hated the idea of her feeling fear, it was probably good for her to see exactly how dangerous the world was.
Not that I’d let her get hurt for it.
Before I could reach her, one of the stray soldiers caught sight of her. He probably thought her an easy target, someone he could grab without much work and use as a bargaining chip against the rest of us. It meant he knew deep down that we valued one another, that we weren’t just animals out for ourselves as they liked to pretend.
He dove forward, headed for Soshi, but I wouldn’t allow that to happen.
I rushed ahead at the same time, not giving a damn about my own lack of skills against him. I’d been that child before, frightened and unsure of what to do, of how to react. I’d survived alone against people who had hated me for no good reason.
I struck the side of the soldier hard, taking us both down just before he reached Soshi. We hit the floor, the linoleum rough from years of use and lack of maintenance. The soldier was far stronger and better trained than I was, and when his elbow struck my cheek, I hissed. It shook me, made it hard to think for a moment, but I still didn’t release him. Instead, I struggled for control of his weapon.
My focus remained on the gun, which let him land another hit on me. Because I didn’t resist it or protect myself, I got hold of the gun and shoved it aside, skidding it across the floor.
He went for it, but when he rose, something struck him and threw him to the side. His body hit the wall hard, and when he fell, he didn’t move. I twisted, finding Hera offering me a smile, a clear sign she’d been responsible for it.
And here I thought I couldn’t fall in love with her any more…
I didn’t let the help go to waste, though. I scrambled to my feet, ignoring the pain in my cheek, the way my thoughts felt sluggish, to search for Soshi. I found her on the other side of the room, her gaze on Bowen. He hadn’t seen her, his attention on the fight, but she hadn’t gone unnoticed by the enemies. She seemed like a beacon for them, but then again, they were cowards.
They used weapons to prove how tough they were, willing to inflict any sort of pain they needed to in order to get what they wanted.
Which was Hera and us back in their custody.
I bent low as I crossed the fight, narrowly avoiding when Deacon and another soldier barreled past me, then again dodging Brax—who I’d bet hadn’t even recognized me—until I reached Soshi.
“We need to get you out of here,” I told her.
She shook her head. “I’m helping. This ismyhome, and these people are my family. I won’t just leave them.”
“Don’t you think Bowen will be in more danger if he has to protect you, too?”