The Crow King's Wife (The Elder Blood Chronicles #5)(98)
Two of the idle Rivasan’s closed on him and Shade summoned claws in response. A sword would give him more range, but the venom he could summon to his claws would drop a man with one scratch. The downside to that plan was that the venom wasn’t a Changeling trait; it was something he had borrowed from various creatures on Sanctuary. A concoction of his own devising that was difficult to summon and part of his concentration would be lost on maintaining it. He used the last spare moments before the swordsmen were closed on him to enhance his speed and regeneration.
“Derrick is dead Grace! You have no reason to continue to follow his orders!” Shade yelled once more as the first of the swordsmen sprinted forward for the first attack.
The Guard underestimated his speed and Shade spun easily away from the blow still managing to land a blow across the man’s cheek as he passed. The guard’s sword fell from his hand the moment the venom touched his skin and the second swordsman slowed to a cautious approach as his comrade fell. Foam began to speckle the fallen man’s lips and his legs kicked feebly against the cobbles.
“I don’t want to kill you. You should probably run.” Shade advised him in a low voice, but he could tell the man wouldn’t listen and several more of the Rivasans were turning their attention his way. “Stop fighting now Grace!” Shade called loudly and tried desperately to add warning to his tone. If he could just get her out of the fight things would be much simpler.
“Your father sends his regards Christian.” Grace returned casually in a voice that wasn’t quite loud enough to be considered a yell, but carried easily to his ears.
A cold chill rose along his spine as Shade realized what Myth had done. Somehow his father knew he would be here. Somehow he had known what they had planned, and so he had sent Grace. He almost missed the second guard’s attack as certainty washed over him; Grace wouldn’t leave the fight. He would have to face her or watch Caleb die. Almost mechanically he raised his arm and pushed the Rivasan’s attack aside. Still numb he drove his claws through the guard’s leather armor and deep into his side. A second man fell then a third before the rest seemed to lose their interest in attacking him. Dazedly Shade turned toward Grace in time to watch Caleb drop another guard to the blood covered street. Caleb was barely standing and Shade silently wondered if he would even recover from his wounds if they managed to escape dying at the Rivasan’s hands.
“Last chance Grace. Don’t make me choose here. You won’t like the choice I make.” Shade called as he began to advance slowly. The remaining Rivasans backed away from him with expressions of uncertainty clear on their faces. He could see their eyes moving from the still convulsing forms of their fellow guards and then back to him. “Just run and think of an excuse later. No one will survive here to speak of cowardice to your superiors.” Shade said bitterly. A faint smile creased his lips as one of the younger guards dropped his sword and bolted for the fortress. At least someone here today has common sense he decided sourly.
Grace moved in again with the speed of a serpent and Caleb reeled off balance toward one of the guards as her claws raked viciously across his back. With a grunt of surprise Caleb twisted at the last moment putting his shoulder into the guard and barely managed to avoid being impaled on the man’s sword. His form flickered like a guttering candle then blurred into a form that towered over the guards facing him.
Shade paused in surprise and stared at Caleb in awe. He had never actually seen a Shifter in full combat form. Most Shifters were not strong enough in their magic to attain the form, and the few that were kept the secret very well hidden. At full height Caleb stood close to ten feet, and there was nothing awkward about the blending of man and wolf. Shade had heard the combat forms were grotesque things, but nothing could be further from the truth in Caleb’s case. His long slender muzzle was curled into a snarl and his ears were pinned giving him the sort of fierceness that would have most enemies dropping their swords and running.
The Rivasan’s before him back stepped their sword points drooping toward the ground as Caleb took a menacing step toward them. His white tipped fur stirred briefly in the evening breeze without a trace of the blood that had been coating his armor. A snarl rose in his throat as the powerful muscles in his back rippled as the slender black sword he held slowly began to shift as well. The thin graceful blade seemed to gather shadows as it balanced itself to match its master’s new form.
“How lovely a bigger target.” Grace mused cheerfully. Her own form shifted slightly as she adjusted her muscles for more speed and then she was charging Caleb again in a blur of movement.
Caleb met her first two blows easily, but the third slipped by him and a rough snarl rose from his throat as fresh blood darkened the fur on his arm. His jaws snapped shut just inches from Grace’s face as her claws tore vicious gouges into his stomach. The Changeling bent nearly double under a swipe from Caleb’s claws and the Shifter barely managed to dance back away from her counter attack that would have hamstrung him.
“She is too damn fast for him.” Shade muttered. He needed to help, but he wasn’t sure how to without getting in Caleb’s way. Gritting his teeth in frustration he circled them frantically searching for an opening.
Caleb took several more blows and staggered visibly under the assault but managed to land a solid blow on Grace that sent her sliding across the rough cobbles on her back. Shade moved the instant she hit the ground and brought both hands down for a slash across her chest as she rose. It wasn’t a lethal blow with claws alone, but the venom should drop even her and the chest was a difficult target to miss. He braced himself for the impact of his claws in flesh, but Grace’s body seemed to curl inward on itself and he staggered forward off balance. No one can be that damn fast. The thought hit him at the same moment his mother did. The air in his lungs exploded outward at the force of her blow and he struggled to stay on his feet.