Filed To Story: The Perfect Luna by Marissa Gilbert
He had questions, but they would have to wait. After all, life in the mortal realm had to weaken Fenrir at least a little.
Gods needed to be present here, close to the Source, to replenish their divine powers.
Vidar made the decision.
“I accept your challenge!” He raised his hand, summoning flames that ran through his skin and materialised in his fire sword. “After all, how can I deny your request to have your soul perished? This time, there will be no banishment!”
“You are right,” Fenrir agreed. “Only one of us walks out of here. Or none of us. I am fine with both.”
Vidar did not like this turn of events. He would have preferred to have more options
“No one helps either of them!” Magnus announced loudly, rendering any alternative to a one-on-one battle implausible.
“Thank you, Nephew,” he locked his eyes with the God of Strength, “your help today will not be forgotten.”
“Of course, Uncle.” Magnus bowed his head respectfully. “I owe to have your back just as you did for my father and grandfather.”
The words made a mocking snort escape Fenrir, and Vidar charged at him in a fit of raw anger. Minutes ago, he was at the top of the world, and now this mutt was in his way again.
The blade missed just two inches from the Wolf God’s throat as he dodged the attack, not putting too much effort into this. The air between them crackled with tension as Vidar wielded the fire sword, trying to s***h his rival in his vital points. One agile assault after another, he tried to gain superiority in the fight while Fenrir, with the spear in one hand and the other held behind his back as if he demonstrated he did not need full force, countered each blow with deft parries and expertly timed lashes.
Sharp lunge, and all Vidar managed to cut was a strand of Fenrir’s hair.
Anger simmered in his veins, and he couldn’t control it anymore, the fire slowly taking control over him.
This wasn’t right! From the very beginning, Fenir wanted what he shouldn’t have desired a place in his home and his woman! When Vidar won the first time, it felt so right, but he spent all those years alone in Asgard, not able to enjoy his mate.
This wasn’t right! He was entitled to his revenge! He earned it! And they earned what he gave them! He couldn’t lose this stupid fight! Not now! Not ever!
***
Joran shifted mid-flight on his way out of the window, taking a bunch of winged dark creatures along with him.
Flames erupted from the dragon’s mouth, followed by the smell of burnt flesh as he went through rows and rows of demons.
Bjorn managed to spread his wings before the shards of glass reached Niki, covering Riannon and Fenrir’s body as well. In the meantime, Gideon, already in his enhanced royal form, caught two demons and ripped their heads off, throwing their bodies outside to clear the space.
“Strawberry, can you hide?” Bjorn asked, knowing they had mere seconds until the next wave.
“I can fight!” she parried, slightly offended by the suggestion, and although this was not what he wanted to hear, he respected her choice
“Stay safe!” He pulled her for a quick, sloppy kiss. “Please.”
“Darius-” She wanted to tell him so much, but he had to retract his wings to be able to leave the room, and he couldn’t hear her. Just like the Serpent, who was slaughtering big groups of ugly creatures in the sky, Bjorn fully shifted into his new form as he leapt out of the shattered penthouse.
Niki ran to her hidden stash of weapons and got her knives out, darting one of them instantly at a demon who reached the broken window, attempting to get inside. Another followed, and then one more. She was running out of knives quickly, and, to her astonishment, the three creatures were not dead.
“Aim for the head!” Riannon told her, trying to detect any kind of rhythm in Fenrirs chest.
“Gotcha,” Niki nodded and evaded a st*h of sharp claws, getting her blade out of the demon in the meantime and piercing its temple with it swiftly, enjoying how the sharp silver-coated steel went through his skull. Just like a knife through butter.
Another two were standing up
“If you see the future and know a trick for us to get out of this mess, this would be a great time to share!” she said to Riannon, who crushed a healing bead over Fenrir’s body and started applying compressions to his chest, praying to gods knows who for their plan to work.
There weren’t too many reliable gods left, though.
Fenrir was not a mortal, so there was a chance that luck would be on their side. Mortal rules did not apply to him, and this was what they counted on. However, this chance was slim. Their time was almost up.
“I am afraid it doesn’t work like that,” Ria sighed, wishing she was able to fight instead of watching the man her sister loved lingering between life and death.
“Thought so-” Niki threw her last dagger, getting it right between a demon’s eyes this time and watching him fall breathless. “Do you at least know what these are? Where do they come from?”
“They are-” Riannon was afraid to look at her pocket watch. “Wild vampires, I think. The lowest of their kind.”
“Damn!” Nikiah whistled. “And I always thought vampires were hot. We had a couple on the Firstborn Island. I wonder if they survived the sweep… Never mind, I am clearly dying today anyway, so who cares?”
“You are going to survive,” Riannon muttered, blowing off a strand of hair that stuck to her forehead covered with crystals of sweat. They were almost out of time. “You will live a very long life. I saw glimpses of it.”
“Really?” Niki grinned at her, and Ria realised she shouldn’t have said that. “Thanks for letting me know! That unties my hands right now!”
“No!” Riannon wanted to grab the girl’s hand and warn her not to do anything stupid, but the Firstborn had already shifted into her wolf form and lunged at the new creature who got past their defenders.
“Come on, come on, come on!” Ria whispered, biting her lips nervously. She knew the outcome of today and that this burden would stay with her forever. Sometimes, her gift felt like a curse, but she already knew by trial and error that letting the knowledge out into the world was only making things worse.
The Queen of the West looked around. Niki’s wolf sank her teeth into a demon’s neck, decapitating it almost instantly.
Gideon was holding three vampires back at the other end of the room, not letting those get to her. Outside, Bjorn and Joran were working in perfect sync. It all went well.
Only that the time was up, and Fenrir wasn’t waking up.
“Come on!” she whispered. “You can wake up and then go back again. I am sure we can work something out!”
Something tall and weighty thudded before her, prompting Ria to lift her gaze gradually to the repulsive creature towering over her. Its grey, wrinkled skin resembled that of a decaying corpse. Draped in torn rags that hung loosely from his muscular body, which still resembled a skeleton in some places, the monster bared his sharp, jagged teeth at her as his bat-like wings spread, preparing for an attack.
They did not look like the majestic wings of a creature of the night. Instead, they were tattered and worn, with ominous holes scattered through. His eyes gleamed red with bloodlust, convinced that he had, at long last, discovered his elusive prey.
Once upon a time, Riannon thought that wild vampires were a myth. Vampires, in general, were considered to be demons, and wild vampires were the ones who were lost to the curse of bloodlust. Not being able to control themselves in their beast form, they stayed in it forever, decaying and only looking for blood. Same as lycans, who couldn’t typically use their third form without going mad.
But she had never seen a wild vampire before, never heard of anyone actually seeing one.
This right now… was as unreal as it gets.
He was about to pounce at her, and Ria was still performing CPR on Fenrir. She had to keep going. She could swear she could still hear a weak, irregular rhythm inside as the power of the bead he’d used was wearing off.
Riannon heard Gideon’s possessive growl as he probably noticed his wife in danger, yet the woman crushed another bead between her fingers and stretched her hand, emitting lightning and frying the vampire on the spot.
She watched his still-convulsing body fall to the ground when the alarm clock on her watch rang, letting her know Fenrir had no more time to spare
Not thinking twice, Riannon placed her hand on his chest… and charged it, hoping to hear anything resembling a strong heartbeat again.
Nothing
“What is going on?” Joran shifted effortlessly, stepping into the room straight from the sky. Worry washed over his face despite him trying to hide it. There were barely any demons left, and Bjorn was dealing with those.
“I have no time to speak” Ria brushed him off and sent another charge to the Wolf God’s chest. “I am saving your brother. You will help if you deal with the demons.”
Joran watched her with distrust. It all seemed surreal. How could his own brother trust these people instead of him?
The thought came and left. He knew how that happened…
Niki stood near a shattered window and watched Darius battling the beasts all by himself. There were four of them now, and in all honesty, Joran left him too early. It was evident that the dragon bear hadn’t yet mastered the art of using his wings effectively, unlike his adversaries, who faced no such challenge. Helplessly, she witnessed their relentless assaults, aware that she couldn’t help him from her current vantage point.
Niki shifted back to her human form and pulled on an oversized shirt she found on the floor among shards of glass, not caring who it belonged to. She began scouring for her knives, discovering two embedded in the vampire corpses. With precision, she extracted them both and returned to the window.
“Here!” She shouted, trying to attract their attention. “Bring them here!”
Bjorn looked at her just for a second, and her heart clenched painfully. He would do no such thing.
“Stupid bear!” she muttered.
A demon landed on Bjorn’s back, digging his claws into his flesh and ripping one of his wings in the process, causing the bear to roar from the pain and lose balance. A second more, and the vampires would kill him.
Niki threw one of her daggers at the attacker and got him straight in the temple, making him fall off her Darius.
She darted the next one, aiming with precision, and killed off one more, allowing the dragon bear to grow his talons and stith them, decapitating the third demon.
New Book: Veiled Desires of the Alpha King Novel
Dayson was the alpha of the largest pack in North America. Powerful figures from other packs sought to offer gorgeous girls as potential mates for Dayson. He steadfastly rejected these advances, he was not a pawn to be manipulated. But eventually there came a mysterious girl he could hardly say No. Who was she?