The fog here is unnatural and not made by any Carpathian, Dimitri reported, using the common Carpathian path. It has a foul feel to it. Skyler says she detects a darker spell within the mist. All wildlife, including birds are retreating from it. Insects are pouring out of the ground.
Smoke rose in the air, the purifying leaves burning white and giving off the sweet odor of jasmine in preparation for the burning of the bodies. Arno and Arnau lay within the flowers and branches of the funeral pyre, high up where their spirits would have an easy ascension.
Daciana, Makoce and Lykaon joined him.
“We’re going to be attacked. Rolf and the others won’t listen to anything I say. They’re insisting on completing the ceremony. Be ready. Stay close to the council members. Any other guards you really trust, warn, and get them to surround the council.”
They didn’t ask questions. He’d known they wouldn’t. He was alpha of their pack and his word was law. They nodded and moved into the crowd surrounding the ceremonial pyre.
Branislava reached out to him, settling her fingers around his wrist as he came up to her. “He’s here, Zev,” she whispered, leaning into him. “I feel his presence.”
Just her light touch made him feel as if he had a home. A haven. She had a way of looking at him that made the world right, even when everything around them seemed to be falling apart.
“We knew he would come, Branka, if for no other purpose than to see the grief his handiwork caused. We knew he wouldn’t be able to help himself.”
Branislava looked around at the precautions and intricate safeguards the Carpathians had used to protect the Lycans as they gathered for the service. “He’s here for a purpose. Not just to thumb his nose and prove his superiority. I know you feel it, too. And now Dimitri has found the mist. It will come creeping out of the forest surrounding us, and there are foul things he could conjure up that can kill.”
“You know him better than anyone else, Branislava. You’ve done a study of these three mages for centuries when no one else knew of their existence. You’re our authority. Tell me what you think he’s going to do.”
He had faith in her ability to defeat Xaviero. She was every bit as skilled and she had the advantage. She’d seen him cast, knew his every spell, where he had never considered her a threat and hadn’t known the three mages were educating a very bright pupil. She just had to believe in herself. He knew she had to overcome the terror instilled in her from her birth.
Branislava chewed nervously on her lower lip. “He’ll want to get as close to the funeral pyre as possible. He would most likely want to give the talk . . .” She trailed off, her eyes meeting Zev’s. She shook her head hastily. “But he wouldn’t dare.”
“It’s exactly what he’d do,” Zev countered. “Can you imagine how smug he would be if he got away with it? Standing in front of Carpathian and Lycan alike and giving what essentially would be a eulogy for the two men he murdered? He wouldn’t need to exact revenge—that alone would reaffirm his superiority.”
Dimitri, how fast is the fog moving toward us? It was imperative to know Xaviero’s timetable. Zev needed to clear out the civilians and prepare the available warriors for battle.
It’s building very slowly. And thick. And very, very foul.
Branislava glanced nervously toward the surrounding forest. That’s not good. I don’t like that insects are pouring out of the ground, either. He’s up to something, something much deadlier than we first thought.
The fog started about a foot off the ground and is now winding up to the top of the trees like thick snakes, Skyler added.
Stay away from it, Branislava advised. Don’t let it touch your skin. And whatever you do, don’t get inside of it.
I see glowing eyes. Red. Yellow. And we’re beginning to hear voices—or I am, Dimitri said. Skyler feels things moving, but she hasn’t heard anything yet.
Zev’s heart seemed to skip a beat. His army. The Sange rau. We knew he was building an army. Dimitri can feel them because he’s mixed blood as well. Xaviero has an army of Sange rau and hellhounds waiting to annihilate us.
But if that were the case, why aren’t they here already? Branislava asked. Why send the fog. We’re in the middle of a clearing.
Zev frowned. He’s holding them back. To what purpose? he mused aloud, inviting the others to speculate. Why is he taking the chance that we might discover them before he unleashes them on us?
“Who from the Sacred Circle was scheduled to give a talk?” Branislava asked, whipping around to look toward the funeral pyre.
“Roberto Hans,” Zev answered slowly, avoiding looking too hard at the Lycan considered one of the greatest leaders of the Sacred Circle. “He’s speaking now.”