Hunted by Magic (The Baine Chronicles #3)(28)

The tiger shifter came into view just as the white light faded from my eyes, and I watched as he skidded to a stop in front of the tree. His orange eyes glowed malevolently as he snarled, but before he could jump up into the tree after me, I shot out my hand and shouted a Word. Ice blasted from my palm, and the tiger yelped, jumping back out of the way before the stream of magic hit him. It hit the ground instead, and a sheet of ice crackled across the surface like the top of a frozen lake. Except this was summer, so the ice started melting immediately.

Okay, so maybe using ice wasn’t such a great idea. I would have preferred fire, but I didn’t want to risk catching the entire forest ablaze.

Growling, the tiger shifter stretched a tentative paw toward the ice. He yelped as his pads came into contact with the frigid ground, then snatched the paw back and growled at me again. I lifted my hand threateningly in the air again, magic glowing around my palm, and he froze.

Stalemate.

Fuck this, I thought as the ice on the ground rapidly melted into a puddle of water. Iannis had been training me to rely on Words to cast spells, but my Loranian repertoire was limited, and that shifter’s friends were going to be arriving soon. I could already hear them blundering through the woods, though still some way off. So instead I aimed my glowing hand at the shifter and willed him with all my might to freeze in place.

Magic shot out of my palm and blasted him straight in the chest. A blue-green glow rippled over the tiger as he froze in place, mouth still open in a soundless snarl. He stood stock-still, like a statue carved from orange, black, and white marble. If marble were fuzzy. And had really long fangs.

A ripple of fatigue washed over me, which was typical whenever I pulled magic directly from the well inside me instead of using Words. But I pushed it back, then used an illusion spell to make myself blend in with the tree. I watched the three humans charge into the clearing, weapons drawn as their eyes darted around anxiously.

“Fenris,” I called out mentally, scenting him and Annia nearby. “Hang back. I’ve got this.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes. Stay back unless I call for you.”

“What the f*ck is going on?” the red-haired man snarled as he caught sight of the tiger shifter. “Daresh, why the hell are you just standing there?”

“Whoa,” the blond said, crouching down in front of the tiger and waving a hand in front of his face. “He’s like a statue or something.”

“By the Ur-God.” The third man, a stocky guy with long brown hair pulled back into a tail, grabbed blondie by the belt and dragged him away. “Someone’s cast a spell on him! There must be a witch in this forest.”

“It must be one of those shamans!” the redhead howled. “Daresh must’ve run across the Coazi, and now look what’s happened!”

“Are they still somewhere around here?” Blondie swiveled his head around frantically.

“I dunno, but I’m not gonna wait to find out! I knew this was a bad idea, having them send us out without any kind of protection against these magic-wielding savages. You guys do whatever you want, I’m getting out of here before they come back and turn us all to stone!”

Red sprinted from the clearing as though his pants had caught fire, and his companions quickly followed, not even sparing a glance at their shifter comrade. I arched an eyebrow at the tiger shifter, who was still capable of glaring daggers at me – his eyes were practically shooting flames.

“Guess your buddies aren’t real big on loyalty, are they?”

Surprise radiated from the tiger – he’d been so shocked by my spell he hadn’t realized he could still use mindspeak. “Their loyalty is to the Resistance, not to me specifically,” he growled. “I don’t blame them for running from an abomination like you. What the f*ck are you?”

I dropped from the tree, landing in a crouch about ten feet away from the tiger, and gave him a taunting smile. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”

“A hybrid.” Disgust rippled through his words. “I’ve heard rumors a shifter with mage powers existed, but I thought it was a legend.” He didn’t sound impressed.

Ignoring him, I turned my head in the direction I’d scented Fenris and Annia from earlier. “You guys can come out now. It’s safe.” Sitting down, I rested my back against the tree, then drew my knees to my chest and rested my forearms across them as I waited. A few minutes later, Fenris and Annia entered the small clearing. Their eyes widened at the sight of the frozen tiger shifter.

“Is that guy still alive?” Annia asked, awe in her voice as she crouched down in front of the tiger shifter and waved her hand in front of his face, much like his companion had done to him earlier. “He looks like a taxidermist went to town on him.”

“Tell her to get her hand out of my face,” Daresh growled.

“Or what?” I sneered. “You’ll bite her hand off?”

The tiger shifter said nothing, but the scorching fury burning inside him was so palpable I thought he’d set the tinder-dry forest on fire.

“Yes, he’s still alive, and really put out about the fact that you’re waving your hand in front of his face,” I told Annia. “He told me to ask you to stop.”

“Really?” Laughter tinged Annia’s voice. “That is just too weird.” Grinning, she patted the tiger on his head, then stood up and turned to face me. “How the hell did you do that to him?”