Dark Blood(143)

Giant worm underground,

I call you forth from your mound,

Encompass all, leave none behind,

So from your core our magic may be entwined.

The ground beneath Tatijana, Ivory and Skyler shifted ominously and then burst apart, as if it had been ripped in two and a giant sinkhole had formed. From the hole a giant worm burst into the open, serrated teeth catching all three women, driving them thirty feet into the air and then disappearing just as fast down the hole.

This worm is one of their pets, Ivory warned. Don’t fight. There are venom sacs everywhere, the poison preventing all of us from shifting. I mix this venom with a few other chemicals and coat my weapons with it to prevent vampires from shifting. Try to relax. Razvan will come, she added with complete confidence. We’ve fought them before.

Branislava felt the instant Xaviero’s power shifted and she struck at the first of the trees where he had attached his weave of black magic. He had used multiple layers, all foul and powerful, a testament to the fact that he’d worked on the inverted pentagram and barrier for years to create such a strong force. No, that was wrong. She felt the touch of each of the brothers. She recognized them separately now. As long as she could block out everything happening around her, she could concentrate on what the three brothers had done. And she was growing in confidence.

She had successfully, without drawing Xaviero’s attention, taken off several of the layers. One by one. Peeling them back carefully. She felt as if he’d created a giant spider’s web and she had to delicately remove the silken threads without warning the spider sitting there waiting for a feast.

Without his sustained power feeding the grid he’d created, she could work a little faster, although just as carefully. She was confident she could find a way to stop him.

I call to alder,

Battle witch,

Isa’s calming treacherous ice,

Focus my will,

Hear my call,

Fox of the wood, it is our day to battle,

Move silently following this unknown path.

I call to that which is unseen,

Guide me through this web of darkness,

Crystalline essence light my way,

So that I may unbind that which has been bound.

The tree shivered. The sickening grayish white of the trunk and branches dulled. Branislava took a deep breath and pushed more power at the first of the five points. Tiny sparks leapt around the tree like dancing fireflies. She was wrapped in fire. In passion. There was no way to contain what or who she was. She’d been lucky that Zev was as passionate as she was, was able to take her fierce heat and wild cravings. She poured that same fire into her spells, using her love, not allowing hatred or fear into her craft.

Alder protect me as I pass from one form to another,

Fire, I call your spirit,

Be mindful of my call,

She who bleeds feeds forth your fires of life.

As a spider spins her web,

I now unweave this charm.

That which was woven in darkness,

I bring forth light’s fire to encompass and disarm.

The tree’s bark went from a sickly white to a darker, more natural hue. Branches and leaves took on a normal tone and the fog receded from the tree, driven back away from it by the glowing fireflies. The sparks danced read and orange, leaping about joyously through the limbs of the tree, and flickering through the leaves, bringing back life.

Xaviero threw back his head and roared with rage. Roared. The ground shook. Nearly everyone fell hard. The mage’s arms shot out, encompassing the field. The air vibrated with his anger. Electricity crackled and snapped, sizzling like whips overhead. The fire leapt, flames roaring.

“Feast, my pets. Kill them. Kill them all. Tear apart the woman. Devour her and leave nothing behind. Feast. Kill. Devour.”

The hellhounds sprang on the Lycans between them and Branislava. The hellhounds leapt through the air to land on the Lycans and Carpathians nearest them, holding them down with great claws while razor-sharp teeth tore chunks out of flesh. Vipers sank teeth into ankles, regardless of having no venom. The Sange rau launched themselves at Branislava, determined to get past her guards and kill her as their master desired.

Zev actually used three hellhounds as a springboard, hitting the Sange rau closest to Branislava squarely in the chest with both feet. He used his mixed blood strength and speed as well as his momentum of flying forward and the Sange rau’s momentum of blurring speed. The two crashed so hard together Zev felt every bone in his opponent’s chest smash under his assault. The shock ran up his legs, but he dropped harmlessly to the ground in a crouch.

A hellhound knocked him flat, but he sliced open the beast’s belly as he went down. When it lifted its muzzle to scream, he slit its throat. Rolling, he came up and slammed one arrow into its right eye and left it for Fen to finish off as he raced to protect Branislava.