Storm Of Shadows Ch 14

As promised, you don't need to wait another four year for the next chapter :) A special thank you to Alli for proofing the chapter and pointing out my blinding errors LOL. #you rock!

Enjoy!

Chapter Fourteen

Loud screams and animalistic roars sounded further down the mountain, and Agony immediately scooped Natalia into his arms and sped the final distance back to the clearing where they were currently camped. When they got there everyone was on their feet glancing behind them, Dara in the process of terminating a call on her phone and pocketing the device.

"Keep your eyes ahead too," he growled, his tone laced with disgust as he set his mate on her feet beside Mila and Dante. He was sightly mollified to note that Dante and Mila were watching the treeline ahead when everyone else was focused behind them. At least someone had some basic common sense to keep an eye on all directions rather than focusing solely on the direction the screams and roars had come from.

"We were being tracked from behind," Dara announced as the group reorientated themselves and started to spread out on high alert. "Demetri and his team took out those following us. He'll be here momentarily with Nors and Joshua. Something's happened that's led to Freya and Dayton to stay behind but they may still join us." Her tone was clipped and informative, her focus completely on the task at hand.

Her brown gaze was hard as it connected with Agony's before she let her eyes wander over the assembled group. "There are two Ancient vampires about to arrive plus one of your own vampires. I strongly suggest that you do not attempt to get in their way or you will be hurt. They're here to help and if they tell you to jump you bloody jump immediately. And if Freya Eriksson does turn up to the party with her black wolf, stay the fuck away from that wolf or you'll be dead before you can blink." Her gaze came to a rest on Louis whose expression was looking slightly pained.

"My coven is well acquainted with Freya Eriksson," he said with a nod. "I didn't bring any fools with me."

Dara managed a small smile at his resigned tone, her gaze turning back to Agony. "I guess there goes our element of surprise, if we ever had any that is," she commented. Her adrenaline was flowing, knowing the battle was about to begin. She had to admit that she was relieved to know that Demetri and Nors would be joining them soon too.

Agony's gaze went to Natalia, his big body tense. "You will stay close to Mila at all times," he said, his tone brooking no argument.

She swallowed hard, fighting to hide the fear that was bubbling up inside her. "What if either of my gifts alert me to something that you urgently need to know?" She was aware that she was useless when it came to fighting but she did have other skills that could help in the coming battle.

"I will be close," Dante replied, his expression making it plain to everyone that they'd better not question his decision. He had no intention of being far from Mila. Their enemies wouldn't balk at trying to take out what they perceived to be the weaker of their attackers presuming that the males would be overly protective of the females. They'd learn quickly when it came to Dara, but Mila and Natalia would be targets.

"That will work," Agony agreed instantly, his gaze turning to stare down the mountain. "They're coming," he said and his gaze once more turned to peer up the mountain. "Dara, you're with me. Louis, I presume you can direct your own people?"

"I can," the coven leader replied and he was quickly motioning his remaining team to spread out, their gazes fixated on the treeline above them. He nodded once to Dante who nodded back, and then he took off, heading to the right and beginning to move upwards, his coven following him.

Dara turned to look behind her hearing the faint sounds of Demetri's group not too far away now. "Demetri will be here soon," she told Dante, Mila and Natalia. "Be prepared and for the love of all that's holy, don't attack them. We're going to be far too busy to iron out any misunderstandings."

She looked at Agony and smiled grimly. "Let's go recover our pack members."

With one final glance back at Natalia, Agony followed his fellow Vârcolac. He didn't want to leave her care to anyone else, but his parents were up there somewhere waiting for him, and their enemies were on their way down to meet them. He couldn't be distracted with anything else right now.

"Mother, Father, battle is beginning. If you can free yourselves from your current location then the time to act is now."

Rayne and Gard tensed the instant they heard muted sounds below. It sounded like screaming and an animal roaring but it was clearly far away because it was so muted to their enhanced hearing. What wasn't muted was the muttered cursing and shuffling from outside the cave they were in. They tried to count the number of footsteps to determine just how many were outside. The drugs they'd been given had worn off completely and their captors hadn't returned to re-dose them so they were alert and ready to act but they needed to know how many they were up against.

"Fuck!"

Gard hissed,

"I lost count at thirty two."

"I lost count at thirty nine,"

his mate replied, trepidation in her mental tone.

"We can't take on that many, Gard. Not with our depleted strength."

He couldn't argue with her. At full strength even with their skills it would have been taxing to take on that many at the same time. After being drugged and starved for so long they'd be lucky if they could handle a dozen enemies. But he didn't like to hear the level of defeat or fear in his cat's tone.

"Do you remember when we first met, Kitty?"

he asked, his mental tone full of love as well as amusement.

"You dropped me from the top of a bloody tree,

" she snorted, her own love blazing through their bond.

"You were trying to detach my arm from my body at the time, Kitty cat. I claim mitigating circumstances."

Her soft laughter made his heart soar, it was so preferable to the fear he'd heard in her voice.

"We were two lost souls, alone and searching for each other even though we didn't know it,"

he continued in the same soft, loving mental tone.

"Millennia full of highs and impossible lows couldn't beat us, and this little escapade is certainly not going to beat us either. Because we've waited three thousand years to find each other and I have no intention of waiting all that time to spend a mere handful of decades with you, Sarayne."

"Nor I you, my love,"

she answered, steely termination entering her tone.

"And our boy is out there and he needs us. There's no way in hell we're leaving him out there alone."

A low growl rumbled in Gard's chest and Rayne turned her head to meet his fierce gaze. "I love you, Gard," she whispered softly not caring if any of the vampires outside heard her or not.

"I love you, Sarayne," he whispered back reaching for her and pressing his lips tenderly to hers.

"Mother, Father, battle is beginning. If you can free yourselves from your current location then the time to act is now."

Agony's words echoed through their minds and they moved as one, rising to their feet, their hands joined as they quickly stretched to loosen their tight muscles as much as they could.

"What about the wolf?" Rayne asked, her eyes alert as she watched the cave opening for any signs of someone noticing them.

"We'll come back for him later if we can," Gard replied. "The odds are against us as it is, Sarayne. We really won't stand a chance if we try to take him with us."

She nodded, her green eyes sad, and he noticed that the little silver rings that usually circled her pupils were more pronounced and had a tinge of red to them. His mate didn't need to drink blood as part of her hybrid nature, not to survive; but it appeared that going with no nourishment at all brought her hidden vampiric side more to the fore.

"Come on, let's show these bastards what it means to fuck with the Vârcolac," he growled and they took off running towards the entranceway, their steps silent as they streaked towards their captors.

Outside the cave, vampires were moving in tight formation, splitting into groups and slipping into the trees, heading down towards the threat moving towards them. They moved as a well-oiled machine, years of training turning them into an elite band of predatory killers. They had been waiting for this moment for over a decade, primed and ready to do their Master's bidding when they signalled the time was right. Finally, their moment had come and the sense of anticipation was thick in the air, their bloodlust driving them forward.

Half a dozen of them hung back to guard the captives and one of them looked towards the cave mouth, his green eyes going wide as he saw the two figures streaking towards them. "Blow the cave!" he screamed, taking off at a run towards the others a few feet away, diving to the ground as their leader depressed the handheld device that he kept beside him at all times.

Gard screeched to a halt grabbing Rayne as she went to fly past him. The vampire's words echoed in his mind and he had a split second to react. Picking up his mate he spun around and threw her back the way they'd just come, sending her crashing against the back wall to fall limply to the floor. He sprinted after her at supernatural speed, diving on top of her prone body just as there was a large boom and blinding flash of light, and then thousands of tons of sharp, jagged rocks exploded around them, slamming into Gard's back, burying them alive.

~~~~

The vampires exploded out of the treeline. Wave after wave of vampires of both sexes, some Younglings but most Elders. They had been expecting them but not in the sheer numbers.

"There has to be at least forty, maybe fifty of them!" Dara yelled over the resounding noise of boots thundering against rocks and dried tree branches.

"Twenty each then?" Agony yelled back. His laughter was on the manic side but with this amount of enemies, Dara was kind of glad to hear it. "We can let Louis and Dante deal with the other ten or so. Come on, Dara. Let's dance!"

She shouldn't have laughed. There was nothing remotely humorous about the situation, and yet some of Agony's gleeful anticipation appeared to be rubbing off on her because she was instantly itching to dive in and start paying back these enemies for the hurt they'd done to her pack and her best friend. Dara was a pack Beta and that meant protecting those she loved was second nature to her, but she was also a formidable wolf and a Vârcolac, and whilst her feral side was kept firmly in check most of the time, right now was the time to let it out.

Some of the vampires changed direction as they took in the number of vampires heading to their lair. A wave of them focused solely on Louis and his small coven team and they came together in a clash of snarls and slashing talons.

Dara barely had a moment to register that fact before they hit their first layer of attackers, and Agony began scything through them, blood splashing everywhere, heads rolling. She remained in her human form, knowing her wolf form would be more of a hindrance in this kind of fight. She ducked talons flying towards her head, kicking the vampire and sending him flying backwards, allowing sharp claws to spring from her fingertips and slashing through the next vampire's neck. As his severed his head fell to the ground, she was already turning to her next adversary.

"Hiding more skills, Dara?" Agony asked, tossing a dead vampire into the next group that launched an attack their way.

"Rayne didn't show you how to use your panther's claws in human form?" Her tone was surprised that his mother wouldn't have taught her son this skillset when she'd taught all the rest of them it when they were old enough to be trusted not to use it unless absolutely necessary.

His talons cut through the throat of the next vampire ripping the female's head from her body easily. "I guess she figured that I didn't need to know when I have these vicious talons," he laughed, the glee in his laughter chilling to the vampires he was calmly scything through.

They split apart, taking on three vampires each, cutting, kicking and even biting as they took them apart in a display of calm efficiency, leaving none alive as they continued up the mountain.

Behind them Dante flowed over the dead body at his feet and dispatched the female who had been standing behind her fallen comrade. It felt as if every time he killed one of them, another five were lined up to take their place. Louis and his coven were equally as inundated. They were holding their own but they were taking some damage and Dara and Agony were tied up with their own large band of attackers so wouldn't be able to offer any assistance.

Whilst the Vârcolac dispatched their enemies relatively easily, the vampires were well trained and could even be classed as highly skilled. They'd clearly been training for this fight and if the promised reinforcements didn't arrived soon they were going to start losing allies soon.

He took a moment to spare a glance back at Mila and Natalia. Mila was alertly watching everything that was going on, her body shielding the fragile human girl who only had eyes for Agony in the far distance. For the moment none of the vampires had managed to breach their line of defence and get anywhere close to the two females, but no matter how good they were, it was only a matter of time before exhaustion started to kick in and someone slipped past them. The thought made his blood go cold and he hardened his resolve, turning back to the oncoming hoard of vampires. He had to be stronger and faster and better than anyone who came at him. He was Mila and Natalia's last line of defence.

Demetri, Nors and Joshua burst out of the treeline and stopped abruptly as they almost barrelled into a small female vampire who was hissing loudly, talons drawn as she backed up against a young human girl who was staring at them wide-eyed.

"Tali!" the vampire hissed, and they stayed still, waiting to see what they female would do.

"It's okay, Mila. I think they're the cavalry," the girl answered, her body relaxing a little as she watched them intently. "I don't want to throw up or scream for Kothari so they must be his expected friends."

Demetri's cold green eyes searched off into the distance, sighting Agony and Dara fighting together. The Vârcolac appeared to be trying to take on the bulk of the hordes of vampires coming their way, leaving the stragglers to a group of four vampires further to the right and the lone vampire who appeared to be closer to the females as if to protect them.

The lone vampire turned once more after having dispatched another two vampires since they'd arrived and he scowled darkly. "A little bloody help here would be good, Joshua!" he roared before he had to refocus back on his attackers.

"I'll join Dara and Kothari," Demetri growled, speeding off in the direction of the two Vârcolac.

"I'll head over to meet this Louis character," Nors sighed, flexing his big arms. "It's about time I met the mighty coven leader who had the misapprehension that he could keep my wayward sister in check." He nodded at Mila and Natalia and then he took off towards the battle.

Joshua stayed long enough to give the females a reassuring smile. "Call us if you need us," he said and then he too disappeared into the fray, reaching Dante quickly and backing him up as the next line of vampires tried to get past him.

"Why does it feel as if things have just improved on our side?" Natalia whispered, a note of hope in her voice.

"Because we have two of the most powerful Ancients helping us along with another equally powerful Elder," Mila answered, her gaze following each grouping. "We just need to remain vigilant, Tali."

Demetri flew into the battle, his feral side exulting as he quickly started slashing his talons through flesh and bone, separating three heads in less than ten seconds. It had been so long since he'd be able to let go of his humanity, to be the true predator that he truly was. He tossed a corpse into the treeline and grinned at the younger male beside him.

"You're in deep shit when you get home, boy," he laughed softly.

Agony met his gaze unflinchingly and shrugged one shoulder. "If that's the case then I will deal with it when we return home, Demetri. But for now, the only thing that matters is bringing my parents home. Everything else is just white noise."

The darkhaired Ancient gave him a stern glare for a long moment and then his grin widened. "Caleb will likely be displeased with me, but I will back you one hundred percent when we return home, young one. Sometimes doing wrong is the only way you can feel right." He knew that from personal experience. He'd destroyed an entire coven once because they'd murdered someone he'd cared about. It had been wrong. But it had been the only thing that had made him feel right.

"Seriously?" Dara muttered, ducking a talon slicing through the air and then rolling to the side as Demetri took the offending vampire's head. "Rafe's not going to like it if you get in his pack business, Demetri." She was smiling as she said it, because they all loved the volatile vampire and knew that he'd willingly lay down his life for all of them, even when he pretended to be all snarly and unapproachable.

"That's where my special friendship with Annie comes in," he grinned back at her. "If he gives me a hard time then I'll sic her onto him. Everyone caves to that redhead, vampire, wolf or hybrid." Demetri wasn't afraid of the wolf Alpha, and he understood that he probably shouldn't get involved in the way Rafe ran his pack, but he felt a kinship with Kothari. He understood what it was like to have a volatile, feral side that sometimes just had to come out and take dominance.

"Be it on your head," Dara laughed softly, her expression turning resigned as another wave of vampires started coming towards them. "This lot are like the bloody mythical Hydra," she sighed. "Kill one and two more take their place."

"Then you just need to kill them faster," Agony grinned shooting them both a quick glance. "If you can't keep up with me, just say so." He ran at three males as he finished speaking and Demetri rolled his eyes.

"Fuck knows how Gard and Rayne birthed a child more insane than I am," he muttered with a short laugh, and then he joined Agony, Dara quickly on his other side and they began carving their way through the oncoming wave with deadly precision.

~~~~~

Gard groaned and tried to move, but there was a heavy weight on his back and he could feel blood running down his temple from a deep wound to his head. For a moment he was disorientated and then memories of what had happened sprang back to life, and his heartbeat stilled for a second, his eyes trying to focus and pierce the darkness.

"Sarayne!" Her name was a tortured cry, both verbally and telepathically. There was no response and his chest tightened, his heart refusing to beat.

"Sarayne!"

A faint groan reached his ears, and his heart started to beat again.

"Stop shouting," she muttered, her voice sounding weak but clear to understand. "First you drop me from a tree and then you throw me into a cave wall? We're seriously going to have a chat about your idea of how to protect me." She was deliberately injecting some humour into her tone, feeling his terror through their mate bond. Now that her head was beginning to clear, she was filling in the blanks and understanding what had happened.

The cave had been rigged with explosives in case they had been able to withstand their drugging. Why neither of them had considered that possibility was likely because it was not the type of tactic they would have used stateside. They didn't use guns and explosives to fight their battles, but it appeared the European vampires were not so averse to using human technology to achieve their goals.