Moonlight Avenger

Ambush

The rain pattered around me as I got myself comfortable in Hades’ lap, and cuddling Cya close to me. “We should try to get some rest while we wait.”

Hades' hot breath fanned over my ear and the way he nuzzled against me told me all I needed to know for his state of mind. “We don’t have time to play, Hades. We have to be alert.”

“There’s always time for play, Morgan,” he replied as he kissed my neck. His soft warm kisses started to unravel me. “Just relax, I can take care of you from here. You need the stress relief anyway.”

Cya leaned against me to squish Hades’ roaming hands. “Brother, seriously? This isn’t the place for that. We’re in a tree.”

“I heard you had a lot of fun in a tree once,” Hades responded. “Is it so wrong I want a moment like that?” he lapped at the scar of our mating mark and I trembled.

“When we have a mission to complete, yes it is,” Cya growled. “Besides you’re the one that got to spend time with her last time. I’m up next.”

“Can you two stop bickering? Hades, we are not doing anything up here besides waiting. Since you’ll have trouble sleeping you can take the first watch. Cya and I will get some rest until then.”

Hades grumbled beneath me. “You spoil Cya too much, Morgan.”

I giggled. The sound felt strange after such a somber day. “You’re one to talk. You’re always the most spoiled, Hades. Now, look around. Tell me what you see.”

His body tensed behind me as he surveyed the area. “I don’t see them, yet.”

I nodded. “But what do you see?” I was curious if he had learned any of the skills I had tried to impart to him over the years.

“To the north, as Koda said, I see signs of their passing. Scorched land from where those fire cats walked. I smell the foreign wolves, their stench is bitter and bloody. Our pack, and the blood of this other. It’s faint, but I sense it.”

“Good, Cya, what about you?”

Cya swiveled his neck as he sniffed the air. This wasn’t as effective in our human forms, but I wanted to push them as far as they could go. “Smoke, and it’s close.” He sniffed again. “It’s getting closer but slowly. I think they’re coming from the East.”

I nodded. “Good job, but you missed something.”

“What’s that?” Hades demanded.

“There’s more coming from the South, and it’s the wolves. They’ll be here in an hour at most. No sleep for us, boys.”

“Hades?” Cya turned so he could make eye contact with his brother. “Whatever happens, we have to interrogate one. We have to know if they’re going after mother’s pack too.”

“We’re not losing any more pack members to them. Once we get that information from them we’re tearing them apart. All of them.” He sighed. “I hate that we’re working with Koda, he was friends with my father,so I know he has to be as black-hearted as him.” Hades shifted and stopped trying to seduce me. “I count seven of the cats, four of the wolves.”

“Close,” I whispered. “Six of the cats, and five of the wolves. They’re almost here. Are you two ready?”

Cya nodded. “I’m ready.”

I knew Hades was ready, and I hoped our companions were as well. The rain still fell around us like a curtain obscuring the enemy from sight. From sight but not from smell. One was beneath our tree. From its steps, I could tell it hadn’t noticed us yet. What reason would these beasts know that I preferred my own ambushes? I slipped one of my daggers out of its sheath. The weapons that Koda had found were superior to the others.

“Stop right there,” Koda demanded as he came out of his sanctuary to meet the enemies. Had my former alpha lost his touch? Why was he giving up the element of surprise? Even my wolf was surprised.

Koda wasn’t alone. Beside him towered Mana who growled low at the approaching fiends. A silver light surrounded him far brighter than it had been before and concentrated on his four paws.

“I’m only warning you because my Zeta insisted.” Koda shifted from his casual position resembling a snake uncoiling. “I’m not sure if you guys have a zeta, but it’s really not smart for you to be attacking us right now.”

The wolves chuckled amongst themselves. They didn’t approach us in their human forms but remained beast-like as the snarled. No doubt they believed they had the advantage with numbers. Wait, no I was wrong. One did retain that form as he walked forward past the beasts surrounding him. “You’re the one that escaped us, you and that brute of yours. We have no need for you anymore, we know where the rogue has gone, you led us half of the way, and our scouts discovered the rest.”

Koda’s handsome face broke into a frown. “What do you mean I led you?” Mana took a position in front of Koda prepared to defend his alpha to the death. “My people told you where she was, it wasn’t me.”

The wolf chuckled. “That’s cute, but you were a great help. And now we know exactly where she is. You can come down now, you won’t be surprising anyone, Rogue.”

“My name is Morgan,” I snarled. How had he sensed us? I jumped down from the tree and landed in the midst of the beasts. “So you used Koda to track me down? You slaughtered his people and my own, why?”

The wolf crossed his arms over his chest as he studied me from head to toe. “Collateral damage, if you had given her up to begin with we wouldn’t have had to have fun. The leader did have a bit too much here though. Some of the younger wolves got sick from this c*****e. But maybe that was the point, to toughen them up. You have another chance now. Give her up, and we won’t fight. Refuse, and we’ll make what the boss did look like he was playing with cubs.”

I hoped that Hades and Cya would stay up and out of view. Just because they had found me didn’t mean they had found me. A thump beside me erased that thought. Hades had grabbed Cya in his arms and jumped down with him. Cya fell to the ground and dug his nails into the fresh earth as he shook. His fear was so intense I almost fell to my knees as well. “Cya, you’re fine, calm down.”

“Easy for you to say,” he wheezed. “Hades didn’t pick you up over his shoulder and jump so you could see the earth coming at you while you were helpless.”

“We’re not handing Morgan over to you, but you’re a fool if you think this small of a group can bring her down. She was one of my warriors, I know what she’s capable of.”

“Two wolflings barely older than pups, an old alpha, and a zeta, and we didn’t bring enough?” The wolf threw his head back and cackled. “You must be joking.”

“They’re not.” I pulled out my dagger and his laughter stopped.

“You’re going to attack us looking like a human? Not as a wolf? Just how foolish are you? How could someone like you be an obstacle to the boss and his ambitions? You’re nothing.”

I pulled my other dagger out as I prepared. “I’m not shifting because then you’d have no chance at all, and how sporting would that be?” I answered. As the words left my lips I sprung for my first target, the youngest wolf in his pack. My daggers dug into the beast’s side before he even noticed my attack. With a quick punch with the dagger still in hand, I slit his throat. One down.

The wolf leader howled and sprung at me. I ducked beneath his heavier bulk and dodged out of the way as his wolves attacked me from a circular formation. I could handle the wolves, these were a tight unit, but something I was familiar with. As claws dug into my side, I realized that I hadn’t expected the hellcats to attack. As quick as the claws sunk in though, the wounds filled with a bright light and stitched themselves up, even the blood from the injury had faded.

“What is this?” The wolf leader stopped his attack completely as he stared. “You were hit, I saw the claws!”

Koda chuckled again and this time it reminded me of brittle ice. “I told you it wasn’t smart to mess with us right now.”

Mana moved forward. The glow around me faded and my skin was as good as new. I took the opportunity to turn toward the hellcat and struck. Its fire had abated at least because of the rain but its heat still baked my flesh. I didn’t care though, the more of these creatures I could kill the better. “Looks like you weren’t the one prepared,” I remarked as I cut deep into the cat’s throat and spun to grab another.

Hades and Cya were even in the midst of the fray. Like me, they neglected to shift and used the weapons from Koda’s personal stash that I had liberated. Cya was doing wonders with his dagger and I had to force myself not to watch his graceful deadly dance. There would be time for appreciation later. Meanwhile, Hades had picked up a whip with barbs on the end and was taking pleasure in raking the bodies of those who got close.

Koda too dove in. He shifted into his wolf and tore through the other wolves. The last cat fell by my hand as one we turned on the lone wolf. “Now, I think it’s time for you to give me some answers,” I demanded.

He raised his head to stare at me and smirked. “You think you’ve won?”

I nodded. “You’re all out of allies, and I killed them while not even a wolf.”

“Your confidence will be your downfall someday, Rogue. We don’t get captured nor do we go quietly. This isn’t the end for you, but it’s the end for me.” He threw something into his mouth and before I could stop him he fell to the ground as he thrashed around with his mouth foaming.

“Mana! Heal him!” I ordered as I tried to sweep the substance from his lips. I couldn’t let him die until I had information from him.

Mana stood by my side and shook his head at me. As I looked down at the human-like face I understood. It was already too late. The poison he had ingested was far too strong. That left me with only one puzzle now. Did I go back to Maya’s to make sure she and her pack was safe and waste even more time? Or did we head north and track these creatures down and take out their boss?

“We should get some rest,” I announced. I would have to make a decision, and soon, but I was going to get what sleep I could first. My pack and Koda’s were exhausted and Mana no doubt needed to recharge his power. Whatever choice I made, I just prayed it was the right one. Too many lives were counting on me and once more I was reminded why I never wanted to be an alpha in the first place.