Coven of Wolves (2 page)

"You really didn't think we couldn't find you, did you?"

"I'd be a fool if I didn't try."

"You're a fool for wanting to at all. That Protection Circle isn't going to help you. We're going to break through and then you're going to have to answer to Malik." Cole raises his hand and a green pulse shoots through the ceiling. "The family should be here soon."

"What do you care if I stay or leave? All I am to you is competition. If you let me go you'll have one less person standing in your way."

"Whether you stay or not isn't up to me. Malik is our head and if he says you stay, you stay."

"Like a possession with no will of my own? I'm sorry you still feel that way."

I concentrate on a hanging crate dangling above Cole. In my mind I see the cable holding it up snapping in two, and I push my will outward. Realizing what is happening, Cole jumps out of the way as the crate crashes down beside him. He flings his arm forward in rage and releases another blast, directly at me. The Protection Circle shrugs it off easily. I envision Cole flying backward and slamming into the wall. I push my will outward again. After impacting the wall Cole collapses into an unconscious heap on the floor.

I have no idea how soon the other coven members arrive so I run out of my circle towards Cole. I check his pulse - he's still alive. I grab him from under his shoulders and drag him into the shadows. Across the way I see several ropes. I close my eyes and mutter an incantation. The ropes come to life and begin binding Cole's hands and feet. I turn around and race back. Just as I'm about to reach the circle I'm hit with a painful bolt. I try to push past the pain and blindly fling my hands, causing several items in the room to be thrown in several directions. I hear a thud. This provides me enough time to fall back into the circle and catch my breath.

I look around for my hidden attacker and find him. Luke is dressed all in black but his pale skin almost glows in the moonlight. He smiles and slowly moves toward my circle, hands behind his back. He stops short a few feet away, never breaking eye contact as I stand up.

"Devin. Why drag this out longer? You know what's going to happen eventually. Let's make this easier on everyone. Come willingly. It'll be over quickly. I promise."

"Would you do the same?" His bolt is excruciating but the pain is subsiding.

"I wouldn't have put myself in this situation to begin with."

"No, you're more than happy staying Malik's slave."

"A position I remember you yourself enjoyed not so long ago."

"What can I say? Things change."

"Won't matter in a few moments anyway. Malik will be here and you'll get what's coming to you."

"What happened to you Luke? You were my closest friend."

"What can I say? Things change."

"I'm sorry to hear it."

I will the Protection Circle to pulse outward, striking Luke and knocking him backward. I take advantage of Luke's confusion and pelt my own force bolt in his direction. He surprises me by revealing a black cane from behind him. He holds it in his outstretched fist, deflecting my bolt, sending shards of energy right and left. It's then that I get a better look at his new weapon. It is a long slender black staff about four to five feet in length. On top I see a large jewel. Within the jewel I can sense Luke's pendant.

"Nice toy. When did you upgrade?"

"If you'd been around more, you'd know."

Luke taps the bottom of his cane to the floor and is enveloped in shadow. The shadow disappears and Luke is nowhere to be found. In a few moments the entire room goes black. Darkness is Luke's forte. He's learnt to weave in and out of shadows at will and manipulate it in the most unusual ways. He could be anywhere in the warehouse and I wouldn't know it. I decide to level the playing field. I go to the middle of my circle and sit. I relax my breathing and find my center. I pull forth every bit of light in the surrounding area and will it into the room. The warehouse becomes a flashing light beacon for a moment then begins to ebb. Luke cries out in agony, and I know where he is. Before he can adjust his vision I send out another force bolt and hit him in the chest. He falls to the floor as his controlled darkness recedes, restoring the building's normal light levels. I mutter a binding incantation and, as with Cole, stray ropes begin to bind Luke's hands and feet. Before he can yell out for help or manage an incantation the last of the ropes tightens around his mouth, shutting him up. When the ropes finally cease their movement I hear clapping from a single pair of gloved hands.

"Bravo. Your growing skill still amazes me. You're a natural with the Craft." I turn and see Malik flanked by Zack, Tobias and Kevin. Zack steps closer to Malik and smiles at me wickedly. Malik stops clapping and locks eyes with mine. "Unfortunately, my skill level is a lot higher."

"Malik."

"Cute little cocoon you got there. Why don't you come on out and play?"

I look over my shoulder. In a few more minutes the moon will reach its peak. Her sway engulfs me, giving me strength. I look over to Malik and the others and see that they are just as empowered. Malik walks over and inspects me, a picture of desire.

"You are as beautiful as ever, Devin. You have no idea how much I will regret killing you."

"I'm still alive, Malik, and I intend to stay that way."

"For now, but where are you gonna go, hmm? You have nowhere left to run. Nowhere left to hide. You could have stayed with us, living like royalty in the mansion, but instead you choose to die in a dirty abandoned warehouse. You're beautiful, but you're not very smart are you?"

"You're probably right. Only an idiot would have gotten into your car."

Anger flashes across Malik's face. I tap into the natural world around me, ask it to attack my enemies. Dirt and dust from the warehouse floors and walls takes shape and flies around Malik and his acolytes. I've only a moment so I quickly ask the earth to fill my enemies' lungs. All four intruders fall to the floor, gasping for air. It only takes seconds for Malik to will the dirt and soot to reverse its flow. A second later Tobias is able to do the same. As Luke mastered darkness, so Tobias tamed the earth. After forming such a bond, it's no surprise to see him recover from my attack so quickly. Zack and Kevin are not so skilled in the counter spell and have to be helped by Malik and Tobias. Once Zack is able to breathe again he looks at me with the coldest eyes and mutters, "You're dead."

Malik gives the others a nod and the four of them surround my circle, at each of the compass points. They chant and an icy chill goes up my spine. Their life force energies glow around them and merge with that of the person to their left and right. Soon a second circle forms around mine and attempts to overtake it. I concentrate all my energy to maintaining the circle. Sweat forms on my brow and chest. A water droplet falls onto my face, down my neck, zigzagging its way down my chest and stomach. I know I can hold my own for a few more minutes but ultimately the others will overtake me.

An inner voice instinctively calls to the earth mother Gaea, begging for assistance. My will to keep the Protection Circle whole holds, but I also see strange images in my head. A throne made of earth, rock and wood. It has a high back and at its base an intricate series of roots support the majestic chair, reaching down into the earth itself. Sitting ghost-like on that throne is a magnificent woman, old, wise and kind. Looking at her I am overcome with the feeling of safety and security. A long white cloak covers her head all the way down to her ankles. Her eyes shine through me with love. Around her throne is a forest of trees, as old as she, and as regal. I realize that the cloak isn't a cloak at all. It's life itself. She smiles at me and outstretches her hand. "Don't be afraid young one. You are safe. You are home. You are loved. You are with me."

Tears begin to form from my eyes as I listen to her melodic words. The words engulf me and I am aware of just how tired I am. Suddenly the world has no meaning. My trivial dreams, desires, fears...they slip away from me. In my lady's eyes I know none of that matters anymore. I feel my spirit self move out of my body towards Gaea. In bliss I look down and see my physical body sitting within the circle as my four enemies continue their attempt to destroy all that I am. They are unaware of what is happening and I turn my head back to the goddess and outstretch my arms. Euphoric, I continue to move forward to her smiling face. When I finally reach her and succumb to her embrace I am overwhelmed with joy. My tears flow now as I am wrapped in her love. I close my spirit eyes and allow the feeling to permeate all of me, as the world around disappears. I know that with Gaea I am a child again, cared for by the most loving of beings. I never want to let go of that feeling. I am drunk with ecstasy as I realize that the lady Gaea is no longer there but instead is now somehow a part of me, ever present, ever living. I'm now holding myself, a being of light and spirit. My spirit self drifts backward into my physical body content in that knowledge.

Feeling whole again, I open my eyes and look around. Malik and the others are close to breaking through my protective wall but it is of no consequence. All that matters is that I'm a new person with a whole new outlook. I turn to face the moon, shining through the window. It is beautiful. I weep. The moon is slowly falling into her highest station. In those last seconds of transition I am energized with primal magic. I rise off the ground. My arms drift upward as my body hovers and spins clockwise. My remaining clothing loosens and falls to the ground. A gentle breeze surrounds my bare form, as the moon's strength shines over all of me.

"What's he doing?"

"Look at his pendant! It's changing!"

"Look at his eyes! They're yellow!"

"Kevin! Wake and unbind Luke and Cole! NOW!"

I look around and am amazed. Where once I saw an abandoned warehouse I now see beneath it a living earth. I feel the plant life around me reaching deep into the ground beneath it and stretching as high into the air as possible. I hear small animal life scurrying to and fro, searching for food and caring for young. I smell the wind outside carrying the scent of the sea. Miles across the water I sense a light storm brewing, gathering its strength.

"He's growing!"

"Look! He's changing!"

"Gods! He's not human!"

I look across and see that my arms are morphing into something different. Where I usually had bare skin on my hands and arms, fur is growing. Where I once had human fingernails, claws are appearing. My bare chest is now a pelt of black and white fur. A strength I've never known courses through my body. As I gently touch ground again I realize that I am no longer standing on my normal feet and legs, but upright on furry padded canine legs and feet. I turn to the moon again and bellow out a long and joyful howl of gratitude.

Its then that I feel my once protective circle give way and I'm blasted with a powerful bolt. The force knocks me against the wall beneath the moon's window, but this time the pain is bearable. I turn and see the full coven standing before me. Malik's eyes are wild, darting

to different points of my body in shock. Zack looks on in disgust and takes a defensive stance. Luke and Cole look physically sluggish from their previous experience but are at full attention now with the others. Despite the odds, I know this is an even fight.

Malik's face boils with rage. "What did you do?"

I try to laugh but hear a coarse sputtering growl. Tobias steps forward and says, "He's one of nature's children now. I can sense Earth Magic all around him."

This was true. I've known magic before but never on this level. Now not only do I have access to my own inner magic, but I feel as if the Earth itself is opening up its secrets and power to me. I feel one with every living thing around me.

Zack steps forward. "We need to kill it before it gets stronger!" Before Malik can protest, Zack lunges his arms forward and shoots out an electric bolt. Watching the energy come towards me, it feels as if time has slowed down to a still pitch. I see the energy differently now. Not something of destruction, but a tool I can use. I put my wrists together and open my claws, almost like a catcher's mitt. Once the energy reaches my hands I roll it around as if in a bowl, adding my own special energy to it as well. Once it gains enough counter momentum I release it back out toward Zack. The force hits him like a sledgehammer. He's knocked backward, slamming into a series of crates. Most of his bones break before hitting the ground. Zack screams out in agony.

Initially shocked at what had happened, the remaining coven let go their own fury and release their own trademark attacks at me. Malik, helpless to stop them, can only shout his protests in vain. Cole shoots another green bolt at me, but ultimately was wasted as Tobias causes the earth below me to shoot upwards in a pillar. The bolt hits the pillar instead as I somersault off of it, landing on all fours. Kevin throws a series of fireballs at me, which I easily dodge via a series of rolls and tumbles. Luke disappears into darkness again and reappears on my back, ready to pierce me with his cane. I reach back, grab him by his shirt and fling him forward. He hits the ground and rolls to a stop, unconscious.

"Enough!" Malik throws up his hands and everything in the room stops in place. I can feel what he is doing and wave off his magics from affecting me. He moves in front of the others but keeps his eyes on me at all times. "You're all acting like a bunch of amateurs! I've taught you that a coven acts as one, so start acting like it!"

Once his words end, the room takes movement again. Taking his place in the middle of Tobias, Cole and Kevin, Malik chants. The others follow suit. Soon every crate in the warehouse lifts off of the ground and hurls toward me at a breakneck speed. I jump from crate to crate, knocking some aside and dodging others, creating a blinding cloud of dust. The chanting continues and soon the dust swirls around me. They want to give me a taste of my own medicine by having the dust fill my lungs as it did theirs. I use the others limited vision to my advantage and will the dust to continue to swirl in one place as I quietly move to a hiding spot among the rubble. Once most of the dust settles they stop chanting and are angered to see the swirling funnel surrounding only open air.