"Nobody messes with my grandbaby!" Nana's voice cut through the chaos. She came charging up the path like a geriatric Valkyrie. Her walking stick crackled with power.
Mom and Nina flanked her, already weaving shields. Selene and Layla brought up the rear, looking ready to rain magical hell on whatever this thing was. Layla shifted without bothering to remove her clothing. That seemed to set off Not-Clio because she snarled and changed shape. She became something resembling a praying mantis crossed with a crocodile. It had razor-sharp angles and too many teeth, with scaled skin that gleamed like oil-slicked metal.
Chaos erupted then. Layla bounded toward us in wolf form and skidded to a stop with a yelp when several tiny versions of Not-Clio pounced on her. At the same time, a small army of creatures emerged from behind Not-Clio. Each one was a twisted mirror of the first. Though, they were smaller and moved in jerky, insect-like motions.
"The ancient ones have claimed these children," Not-Clio hissed.
"Ancient ones?" Mom's shields flickered with her surprise. "What ancient ones?"
Instead of answering, the thing launched itself forward. Aidon met it mid-leap. He had conjured his sword and wasalready swinging it. The rest of the shapeshifter’s twisted mini-me army surged toward us.
I blasted two, making them explode. Mom and Nina's shields deflected claws and snapping jaws while Selene hurled spell after spell at the creatures. Layla, still in wolf form, took down several of the smaller ones with savage efficiency. The ceramic garden gnomes suddenly sprang to life. Either Clio had a secret army, or she’d enchanted her statuary to defend her house.
"Formation Delta!" the tallest gnome bellowed. It brandished his little shovel like a war hammer. "Protect the pregnant one!" Apparently, Clio hadn’t enchanted them.
"For the garden!" another squeaked, launching himself at one of the creatures with surprising ferocity.
I moved down the steps and into the yard as I continued lobbing small magical bombs at the creatures. Nana was in her element, her walking stick crackling with power as she faced off against three of the smaller creatures. "Stay away from my family, you overgrown gecko!" she shouted as she sent one flying with a well-aimed blast.
Aidon and the leader clashed in what looked like a deadly dance. His blade met those scales with a shower of sparks. The creature was fast, but Aidon was faster. Centuries of training with the God of the Underworld were evident in every move. When it tried to flank him, he spun and caught it with a strike that should have cut it in half. Instead, the thing split into two identical versions of itself.
"Oh, that's just cheating," I muttered, instinctively throwing up a shield as one of the smaller creatures got past Mom's defenses.
A garden gnome intercepted it with a battle cry. The gnome smacked it with a tiny rake. "Nobody threatens the lady!" he declared proudly before being punted across the yard.
The leader - now leaders - taunted Aidon. "The time approaches," they eerily said in unison. "The children must be examined. The old powers stir."
"Yeah?" I shot back, channeling power into a magical bomb. "They can take a number and wait in line like everyone else trying to get their hands on my kids."
“No one is touching our children,” Aidon roared as I was speaking.
The symbol on my belly flared like a spotlight at that exact moment Aidon's sword erupted with flames from the Underworld. The distinctive blue-black fire burned hotter than any earthly flame. His blade caught both versions of the leader in one sweeping arc. The otherworldly fire seared through those scales like they were tissue paper. The creatures shrieked and writhed as the divine flames consumed them from the inside out. The smaller minions fell a second later. Their bodies crumbled into ash that quickly scattered in the breeze, leaving behind nothing but the acrid smell of burnt bugs and defeated magic.
"Well, shit," Nana said, lowering her walking stick. "That's new."
"We need to get Phoebe home," Aidon said, already moving to my side. "Selene, can you collect some of that ash for analysis?" Selene nodded, pulling a small vial from her pocket.
I called Clio on the drive back, trying to sound calmer than I felt. "So... funny story. Your house might have some scorch marks on the lawn. And your garden gnomes deserve a raise."
“What?!” Her shriek echoed through the car.
Clio took hearing about the shapeshifter and its minions in stride. She’d become accustomed to magical attacks over the last eighteen months since I became the Pleiades. "I'll grab my portable equipment and meet you at your place. I definitely wantto get a closer look at those babies after hearing about that." We thanked her and hung up.
The rest of the drive was short but tense. Tarja met us at the door. Her tail twitched as she assessed me for injuries. "You're unharmed?" Her voice echoed in my mind.
"I'm fine," I assured both her and Aidon, who was stuck to my side like glue. "The gnomes had my back. Who knew garden decorations could be so tactical?"
“Gnomes can be quite ferocious,” Tarja acknowledged.
Binx wound around Mom's legs before jumping onto the back of the couch, his eyes fixed on me. "Those weren't ordinary shapeshifters," he projected to all of us. "They were sent for you."
"They were ancient," Tarja added before I could respond to her son with my snark. She settled next to me as I eased onto the couch. "It reminds me of stories from the Before Times."
"Are you sure that wasn't Lyra? She has sent more monsters after me than I can count," I replied as I watched Selene get ready to analyze the ash she'd collected. She had her serious face on, telling me she was about to go full magical scientist.
"No, this wasn't her style at all," Mom interjected. "Lyra's creatures always have this signature to them. She wants us to know it's her."
"Plus," Selene added as she laid out her detection crystals, "Lyra's creatures tend to be more vicious."
