Chapter Twenty-Three

FOR AS LONG as Sparks had been a part of the magical community, he’d never seen a werewolf. He’d seen werewolf wounds—working at a hospital, you got to see all kinds of things—but what crawled out from the underbrush wasn’t an accurate depiction of the selenophilic beasts. The fiend lumbered forward on limbs too long, the gait irregular for a bipedal animal. It consisted of a hodgepodge of bizarre parts.

The combination of witch, werewolf, and fae had united to create something even more terrifying. Blood-red cat’s-eye pupils glared at them while the beast’s lips pulled away, revealing several rows of razor teeth. Pointed inky-black horns protruded from its skull but were almost concealed by thick dark fur.

Its muzzle continued to extend, evident the shift to wolf hadn’t completed. But the creature only had a passing resemblance to Ev’s werewolf.

Regardless, the monster had morphed into its version of a werewolf in full daylight. Despite the fact the dinner hour drew near, the sun wouldn’t be setting until after nine at night in late August. So how the creature had shifted into its beast mode a full day before the full moon, and in the middle of the day, created another mystery. The worst part was there were human eyes everywhere. The Shadow Realm had been exposed.

“We have to get him away from these people,” Tully shouted.

“Let’s try to lure him onto the hiking trails. At least there’ll be fewer folks than an open parking lot at a city rec centre, along a major road going into downtown,” Everton bellowed with authority. Despite Everton’s nudity, he commanded respect and authority by merely being present, and as he turned toward the wooded park, the rest of them followed his lead.

As he headed toward cover, Addas roared. Sparks gambled on glancing back only to see Byron cowering before the creature on his knees.

“Oh shit, guys…” Sparks stopped and turned to watch.

They had crossed the parking lot toward a line of trees planted to demarcate the sports fields from the concrete pad. From here, they would slip through the empty fields to lure Addas into the hiking paths affording a semblance of cover.

But Byron had screwed up everything.

Supplicated on the ground in front of the wolfed-out Addas, he spread his arms wide and lay before his lover, but Addas rejected the plea. With long talon claws, Addas swiped at Byron, raking his back.

The scream of agony pierced Sparks’s ears, making him look away. But the continued shrieking forced him to peek. Like a bad accident, or a horror movie, the scene before him burned itself into his brain. He would never forget this day.

Addas grasped Byron by the scruff of the neck, sharp nails piercing his skin, and dragged him across the cement, scraping his face along the blacktop. Byron flailed and attempted to protect himself, but Addas’s brute strength bested him. The beast’s snout lifted, and its nose twitched as the monster scented the air. Red eyes squinted as he zeroed in on Sparks and crew, then hoisted Byron and came charging toward them.

“Book it. He’s seen us and caught our scent.” Ev turned and wound his way through the trees to get deeper into the wooded area.

The rest of them followed.

Trees crashed behind them, as howls of anger announced Addas’s advancement.

The late summer season maintained an adequate coverage of foliage on the plant life, even though they were starting to yellow with the advancement of the fall season. The leafy camouflage would, at the very least, shield the Shadow Realm atrocity from the humans.

As Sparks burst through a particularly dense row of bushes and emerged into a clearing, the others joined and flanked him. Standing in knee-deep prairie grasses, already browned with seed heads swaying in the gentle summer breeze, the terror of their situation contrasted oddly to the idyllic setting of a field covered in creamy-white yarrow flowers.

The Glade wasn’t large, perhaps thirty feet across. In the background, the gigantic white arches of the Walterdale Bridge gleamed in the late afternoon sun, and beyond that the towering skyscrapers of Edmonton’s downtown core rose like sentinels along the steep cliff of the northern riverbank.

They huddled as a group on the far side of the Glade. Sparks crouched close to the ground. He peered down a steep embankment, where the rushing water of the river gurgled. Sliding down this slope would be hazardous. But, if necessary, a hasty retreat down the hill and into the water provided one escape route. But the North Saskatchewan currents were notoriously violent. The waterway had claimed many souls to careless daredevils. Rip currents made the river deadly. This route would be a last-ditch resort to use as a getaway plan.

“Now what?” Dev asked. Sweat glistened on his forehead.

“He’ll find us. This is going to end in a battle. A standoff. I will do what I can to stop him, but given his size, and the fact he’s not all wolf, I don’t know how long I can hold him. I suggest as soon as I engage with Addas, you all take that as your cue to leave.” Everton surveyed the brush on the other side, his gaze darting back and forth.

“I am not leaving you to be ripped apart by that asshole.” Cam crossed his arms over his chest while his wings beat in defiance. He hovered slightly above the ground.

“Cam, I don’t want you to die. Please just do as you’re told.”

“I know you’re attempting to be all chivalrous and shit, but your manliness is not going over well. We fight this thing together. Got it?” Cam shifted position so he floated near Everton.

“Please, Cam!”

“I’m not listening to this garbage. Besides, I’ve got a few tricks up my sleeve. I’m not as puny and weak as you seem to think.” Cam jerked his head, and as he made the motion, a ripple of magic flickered over his body. His wings grew points, sharp, bone-like spears, and they were deadly looking. His mouth filled with rows of teeth, similar to Addas’s. His eyes grew red, and his nails on both hands and feet thickened and elongated into spikes.

Addas appeared across the clearing.

“Boys, please?”

“Nope, we’re with Cam on this one. We all fight together. Besides, we got some tricks of our own.” Dev slapped a hand on Ev’s back. “We got you covered on this.”

“Why won’t anyone ever listen to me?” Everton shook his head, then morphed into his werewolf.

Sparks called upon his magic.

And found nothing.

No spark, no bolt of electricity, no response.

A wave of panic washed over him.

I’m dead. There’s nothing there.

Tully and Dev glanced at Sparks, confused looks on their faces.

I’ve got nothing! There’s no current in me!

“Oh shit.” Dev’s eyes went large and round.

Ev growled as he glanced back to glare at Dev.

Addas took a step forward, bellowing out a challenge.

He still had Byron grasped in his one hand. Glancing down at his captive, he threw Byron to the side like a discarded toy. Byron’s body tumbled and rolled, limbs flailing as if he’d been thrown down the stairs.

Sparks continued to flick his hands, trying to ignite anything, when movement across the field caught his eye. Byron hoisted himself up. Being raked and punctured by wolfen fae claws hadn’t killed him.

“Sparks can’t access his magic,” Dev shouted to the group, then glanced over his shoulder toward him and asked, “Is it because of the chaos?” He gestured toward the howling werewolf.

“No! There’s nothing there!”

“Tully?” Dev turned and asked.

Tully shook his head, then closed his eyes and placed his hands palms down to the earth.

Nothing.

Tully’s eyes popped open. “Holy fuck, what the hell is going on?”

“I think I know—when you were in the soul trap, there were two of you. One version floated behind you much like a shadow. Byron kept those. He has them in his pocket. He called the stones his insurance to ensure I’d help him. How much you wanna bet your magic is in there?”

But you can still hear me?

“Yeah, I can hear Sparks!”

“Incoming!” Cam yelled as Ev howled.

Everyone’s attention focused on Addas. He raised his snout, releasing a cry as he balled his clawed fists.

He disappeared.

“Oh my Gods. He’s using fae magic,” Cam whispered.

“Shit! Everyone in a circle, backs together,” Tully commanded. Everyone huddled together, eyes searching the immediate vicinity.

Dev gasped first, Addas reappearing in front of him.

Tully and Sparks pulled on each of Dev’s shoulders, lurching him backward as Ev loped over the boys and swung a paw.

His fist connected with the side of Addas’s muzzle.

Addas’s reaction to the punch was lightning fast as he snatched the hand delivering Ev’s blow. The mutant werewolf twisted the limb, forcing Ev into a tumble and landing them tangled on the ground.

As the two rolled, Ev kicked with his massive hind legs, knocking the wind out of Addas. The dark wolf rolled to one side, pulled himself up onto all fours, glared menacingly at Ev, and spat out a mouthful of blood while heaving in air.

Ev took the slight delay to get himself right, then went on the offensive.

Claws swiped and blood spray flew. Tufts of fur were ripped out as the werewolves battled each other in a fierce combat, intent on each other’s destruction.

Everyone fixated on the two monster werewolves as snapping jaws ripped hides. Wounds bled, fists pummelled, bones snapped, but Addas, using fae magic and dominating Ev in size, gained ground.

Addas launched himself toward Ev. He latched on to his midsection, then wrestled and tussled until he had Ev pinned. Addas opened his maw, exposing several rows of pointed teeth. Saliva dripped off their dagger-like ends.

Sparks caught movement out of the corner of his eye, but this time, not from Byron, who stared transfixed on the fisticuffs like everyone else. No, black mist snaked its way through the underbrush creating a circle around them.

The atmosphere in the Glade thickened and weighed heavy.

Sparks recognized the fog from the other night in the Glade with Tully.

Addas lunged downward, snapping teeth as he went. Ev pulled to one side, narrowly missing a nasty bite. But that gave him a chance to fling a fist into Addas’s midsection.

The mist thickened and expanded as a deep well of terror surged through Sparks’s guts.

Darkness descended.

Snarls and teeth clamped, growls and grunts echoed as the deadening thud of punches and kicks rumbled through the clearing.

At the diminishing daylight, far too early for sunset, Sparks tapped Tully on the shoulder and pointed in the opposite direction to the monster mêlée.

“Tully. Look!” Sparks pointed toward the edge of the Glade.

Tully tore himself away from the beast fight and squinted. “Is that what I think it is? Oh Gods, it can’t be, not now.”

“What is going on?” Dev asked, fear written all over his face.

“Remember Tully and I had a brush with a wraith?” Sparks grimaced as he pointed in the mist’s direction.

“Fuck off. Now?”

“Okay, I’ll go tell it to come back later.” Sparks shot Dev a dagger-filled look.

Around the circumference of the wooded area, the mist thickened into a wall, and towered upward until the darkness formed a dome, blacking out the sun’s rays. As a false night descended, the whispers of ghostly voices scampered across the clearing.

“Those two fools haven’t even registered there’s a wraith here.” Dev grabbed Cam. “Can you do something to maybe get them to take notice?”

“Like what?”

“I don’t know, but we better act fast. Look!” Dev pointed near to where Addas and Ev were still tangled around each other, desperately trying to rip each other’s throats out.

From beneath the ground the wraith emerged like a zombie hauling itself out of a grave. Ghostly vapours ascended from the earth, twisting and swirling until they coalesced, forming its skeletal body.

As one of the darkest creatures within the Shadow Realm pulled its torso out of the ground, Ev rolled within swiping distance of the wraith. Brief physical contact would allow the spectre to absorb life energy, granting it additional strength.

Cam shot forward as fast as his wings would carry him, flipping head over tail so he hurtled feet first toward Addas, landing dead centre on his chest. The unexpected aerial assault caught the creature off guard as Addas plummeted backward. Cam launched toward the sky and shouted to Ev.

“Unexpected guest to your right!” Cam yelled.

With a moment’s reprieve, Ev glanced in the direction Cam alerted him to, only to find himself face to face with the decaying entity.

“Tully, can you call on Phineas? Maybe he can help. If I can still think thoughts, and you guys can hear them…maybe the God-gifted talents are still ours to control?” Sparks suggested. “If we don’t do something, Ev’s about to be turned into a desiccated corpse.”

The wraith floated above Ev, hissing and lashing out. Vapours and wisps unfurled, the smoke swirling around, steadily increasing in size. An audible wheezing intake of air had everyone holding their breath as the spectre gathered strength.

“I don’t even know how to—” From the crook of Tully’s arm, a vine lashed out. The tendril spun around a few times before diving toward the earth.

The thick tendril burrowed into the soil and as Phineas extricated itself from Tully’s arm, Tully grabbed his wrist and screamed as blood flowed down his hand and pooled on the grass beneath his feet.

Sparks gasped as Phineas erupted from the soil all around Everton, creating a thick tree-root shield as the wraith descended, clawing with its bony fingers. The gaping maw of the skull opened, releasing a shriek as it met the Earth elemental’s wooden resistance.

Recognizing the prey under the solid wood defence was no longer viable, a skull with no eyeballs scanned the vicinity to find Byron a close victim. Shifting direction, the wraith pulled itself toward the ex-high priest.

From across the field a fireball shot forward.

The ball of flame blew through the centre of the wraith. Another shriek pierced through the darkness. The death ghost refocused its sights on a different victim. It spun toward Addas, who was still shaking off Cam’s kick to the chest.

The flame torpedo hadn’t destroyed the undead creature. Instead, it arched across the Glade. Dev jumped to the side, pulling Sparks down with him. As the two tumbled, the fireball singed the back of Sparks’s head.

The aroma of burnt hair choked everyone in the area. Sparks’s hair continued to ignite and burn.

“Goddamn it!” Tully pulled his shirt off and wrapped the cotton material around Sparks’s head, trying to suffocate the burn.

Sparks yowled in pain as the flames created embers from melted hair. Strands of his long flowing locks fell out around him. The unbearable odour resembled the reek of sulphur.

“Is it out? Is it still burning? Are you okay?” Tully cried out.

Dev rushed over and swiped any live embers away from Sparks’s shoulders.

“Fuck me! It burns!” Sparks screeched.

Tully removed his shirt from Sparks’s head. There were several burn holes in the material. He discarded it on the ground, then spun Sparks around. “You’re sure you’re okay?”

Sparks reached to his scalp and vigorously rubbed his head. He regretted that action, cringing as he hit the flesh burnt the worst. “I…I think so,” he stammered, but the skin had formed a multitude of bumps. Sparks pulled his fingers away, wet with fluid. The heat from the fire had produced blisters. “I’ll live, but my fucking hair!”

Dev turned him and inspected the damage. “You’re not gonna be happy; there’s a lot missing. And the skin is still bubbling. You might have scars.”

Everton howled.

Cam floated several feet in the air as the wraith encircled him.

Everton jumped up and clawed at the trailing wisps of the spectre, but the creature hovered beyond his grasp.

The dark ghostly syphon had one skeletal hand grasped around Cam’s neck. Cam closed his eyes and remained dead still. The wraith had subdued him with a single clenched fist.

Leaning in close, the phantom inhaled as its skull came within inches of Cam’s forehead. Trickles of energy, sparkle fairy lights, wafted off Cam and disappeared up the empty nostril holes.

The darkness within the Glade coagulated. The deepest dark of night soaked the area in nothingness, and as Sparks glanced across the clearing, the blond fur of Everton’s wolf flashed in and out of sight. Addas, as dark as his beast’s fur, had disappeared.

But a single shining light pierced through the black and everyone glanced up to see Cam radiating light.

It got brighter.

And brighter.

Until the glow turned nuclear, blinding so bright all heads turned away from the searing luminescence.

The wraith screeched, caught in the direct impact of Cam’s fairy light.

Sizzling and hissing, the spectre dissipated. As fast as the deadly apparition had appeared, the light banished the creature.

Cam dropped like a lead weight to the ground.

Ev waited directly below him and caught his falling fae, preventing a collision with the hard ground.

A rumbling growl bellowed out from the edge of the clearing. Addas wasn’t done.

He charged forward, claws raised, teeth brandished. Sparks cringed as Addas advanced, a wildness lurking in the wolf’s eyes—crazed, irrational bloodlust intent on death.

Unless Phineas pulled out a miracle and stopped Addas, or Dev charged and threw out a rune spell in a few short seconds, Everton and Cam were goners.

Addas launched himself forward, knives for nails directed forward, maw open, teeth exposed.

From the edges of the woods, several black-robed, hooded figures appeared.

Sparks spun, and everywhere he paused to stare, more hooded figures emerged from the bushes and trees.

One stepped forward, raising its hand, as a strong-willed but feminine voice cried out, “Somnus!”