My heart pounds. I narrow my eyes and focus my attention on the one who keeps attacking Bones from behind. It’s almost looking my way…almost…
Swish! The emerald blade flies out of my hand and lands squarely between the glowing red eyes. There is an ear-piercing squeal as the hound falls back, legs twitching in the air. For a brief moment Bones and the other hound seem distracted, but Bones for a fraction of a second less than his opponent. He spins and clenches his razor-sharp jaw on the animal’s jugular, and shakes his head back and forth mercilessly.
The other two hounds continue lunging at Jax, apparently unaware of what has happened. Kieron races over to the fallen beast and retrieves my dagger. He hands it back to me. “Kill the other ones…” He sprints back to pick up the fallen Otium torch, using its bright flame to set fire to the stunned animal.
My eyes shift from Bones to Jax. One of Jax’s attackers turns and spots Bones pinning its comrade, and instantly guns for him. “No!” I scream, before letting the dagger fly again. It hits the charging beast mid-air squarely in the forehead, knocking it back. Kieron races over with the torch, yanks out my dagger, and engulfs the hound in flames.
Bones drops the wounded dog from his deadly grip, and leaps over to where Jax lies squirming and bloody beneath the last remaining hound. He jumps on its back and sinks his teeth in the animal’s neck. The hound lets out an anguished cry and crumples to its side. Bones furiously paws, claws and bites, ripping the flesh to shreds until there is nothing left but bloodied fur.
After Kieron finishes setting fire to the remaining creatures—including the blonde leader—he jogs to where Bones and I are standing over Jax’s body. In death, he has shifted back to the form of a man.
“Stupid fool,” I mutter. Kieron comes to stand beside me, and Bones, still in hound form, lies at my feet. I reach down to pet him and he whimpers. I pull back, surprised by the dampness in my hands.
Blood…Bones is soaked with it. But how much is his? And how much came from the other creatures?
I wait for Bones to shift back, but he doesn’t. Instead, he stands on four wobbly legs and limps away.
“Kieron look, he’s hurt.” Kieron leans down to set the torch to Jax’s quiet form. His body will take longer to decompose, and it’s essential we clear our tracks and wipe away any evidence of what has transpired. The Hlbafa will soon realize they are missing five hellhounds, but without any clues as to what happened, we should be able to minimize our danger. We have enough to worry about as it is.
“I imagine he is,” Kieron replies, rising. “That was a serious battle, and he’s lucky to have survived it. You saved his life.”
“No, you did…I was paralyzed just watching…I didn’t even think to throw my dagger.” I shake my head and tighten my grip around its handle. No way am I putting it away until we’re safely back in Dryndara.
“Suppose that’s why he’s not shifting back?” he muses. “Perhaps his injuries are too severe—”
“No,” I quickly reply. “I’m sure he’s fine. He’s just staying on guard until he knows we’re safe.”
“Then why isn’t he running?”
I lower my eyes. It’s clear that Bones is badly wounded, dripping with blood. “We just need to get back to Dryndara,” I say, as I run up to walk alongside him.
******
“Lucky, look at him. Something is definitely wrong.”
I chew my lip nervously and stare down at Bones. He’s curled up on the ground, somewhere between asleep and awake. He still hasn’t shifted back, even though we’ve made it safely back to Dryndara. The three of us are camped out at a small meadow by the ice-river Valkis.
“Maybe he’s just tired,” I say, kneeling beside him. I gently stroke him, and in his sleepy state he flinches. My hand is covered with blood from several deep gouges in his side. “This is bad…very bad,” I whisper. “I’ve never seen him hurt like this before.”
“It’s because he was attacked by his own kind. Their powers are stronger against each other. Naturally he’s never fought with one of his own here…”
“I just wish he’d talk to me…tell me what to do!” I whisper frantically. I can’t help but notice how dangerously close Illyria’s moons are. My time is already running out. But even scarier, so is Bones’.
“Perhaps he’s too weak to shift…”
I pat his head gently. “Bones…Bones, can you hear me?”
He lazily opens an eye and lets out a small whimper.