RETH

There was no time to prepare. No moment to consider or plan. Not even a breath.

The wolves surged towards them and Reth froze, watching death roll in.

"RETH!

" The scream came from only a few feet behind him. He turned to find Tarkyn, the young guard he'd evaluated and been impressed by, appointed to Elia's personal guard, tossing him a thick spear, his mouth open in a scream of warning.

It was little more than reflex to catch it and turn, roaring, to meet the rippling wave of wolf warriors, watching the crowd becoming a ripple of black and gray as the warriors took beast form.

The wolves had lost their preferred element of surprise, and been thwarted from their ploys and tricks. But they were fierce fighters and raging. Reth's heart sank.

Many, many would die today.

Once again, the Hallowed Grounds would be covered in blood.

Then, from his left, and just behind, Lerrin screamed,

"WOLVES WITH HONOR, I SUBMIT! HONOR THE GROUNDS! DO NOT SHIFT! DO NOT FIGHT!

"

"ANIMA!

" Reth roared.

"DEFEND! DO NOT OFFER DEATH ON THE GROUNDS!

"

The end of his scream was drowned out by the howling of those in beast form as they flowed forward to clash with his own fighters—the flashing teeth of the prides and black hooves of the herd meeting claws and coiled fangs.

It was chaos. All around him the barks and yelps of dying wolves, the screams of injured horses, and roars of the lions, bubbled around him and made the hair on the back of his neck stand up.

Then they were upon him. A massive brown-gray wolf throwing himself across the last ten feet, straight for Reth's throat.

"Forgive me!

" Reth pleaded to the Creator and dropped to a knee, thrust the spear he'd been tossed high to impale the wolf right in the center of his chest. The wolf screamed, snapping at the spear buried in its chest, but even as Reth jerked the butt of the spear up to turn the wolf over and slide if off so the weapon could be used again, the body shifted, returning to its human form in death, and Reth grieved.

Forgive me, he pleaded as he whirled, a hurricane of death, the spear whipping into a blur around him taking cheeks, necks, snapping mouths, and one large serpent right in the throat.

Forgive me, he begged as he turned from slaying one wolf to find another leaping on Tobe—who had lost his weapon, so had taken his Beast form, kicking and squealing, mouth open to use his teeth on his long neck, clearing space near Reth—but had missed the wolf that sprang over the bodies of his brothers to snap at Tobe's belly in an attempt to disembowel. Reth roared and threw the spear straight into that gaping maw of teeth, then raced after it, jerking it out of the wolf's throat before it had stopped convulsing and shifted back to its human.

Again and again he prayed for forgiveness as life after life was ended on the Hallowed ground, as wolf blood mixed with equine, mixed with the lifeblood of the pride. And still it raged on.

Then, in one stunning moment that would always remain crystal clear in Reth's mind, he'd leaped into the air to bring the spear down like a hammer on the neck of a wolf that had its jaws locked on one of the equines. He successfully severed its neck, but his spear caught in the bone and it took two jerks to free it. As Reth braced for the second a short sword whirred over his head and he ducked—just in time to see it come home on the throat of another, massive wolf, near-black in its coat and eyes red with bloodlust, aiming straight for Reth's back.

Startled, Reth whirled, pulling the spear free, to find Lerrin, still in human form, sliding the sword out of his own warrior's neck.

They stared at each other for a blink, then Lerrin screamed,

"BEHIND YOU!

" and Reth whirled to counter the onslaught.

He was aware of Lerrin behind him from that moment on, the two of them fighting back-to-back and together as if they'd done it for years, leaning and spinning, Reth's spear and the sword Lerrin had found keeping every claw and fang at bay.

Reth roared and Lerrin snarled, and together, slowly, slowly, they cut through every wolf that came for either of them, because it was very quickly clear to Reth that the wolves were as determined to kill Lerrin as they were to murder Reth himself.

But soon another pattern emerged—worried, grieving faces all the way around the bowl, even on the Lupine side. A line of warriors that had heard their Alpha submit and followed his orders stood between their defiant brothers and the rest of the rebels who had ignored the order and continued to fight. Many of Lerrin's people had not sought to dirty the Hallowed Grounds.

A corner of Reth heart celebrated even as he was forced to continue slaying wolves and serpents, even as he bellowed at them to submit and be freed.

He began to tire, his arms becoming heavy, but still he fought, the blade of his spear rending through fur to find the flesh beneath—and he and Lerrin remained at the center of the storm.

"Protect the Lupine Alpha!

" he screamed endless minutes later when he realized Tobe and the others had come to his aid, but were still eyeing Lerrin and not stepping in to help him.

"Protect your King and the Lupine Alpha!

"

His warriors were disciplined and submitted. They obeyed.

And then, finally, the tide began to turn.

Reth wanted to sob with relief the first time he took a breath without swinging the spear, it was a small break, little more than a blink, but there was more sunlight, fewer shadows in his peripheral vision. And still, Lerrin, at his back, fighting in human form with remarkable skill. Enough skill that Reth found himself grateful they hadn't actually fought hand-to-hand.

Then, suddenly, a wolf howled and behind him, Lerrin slumped.

*****

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