My skin crawled as their power seeped into every available space in the corridor, and I had to swallow twice before I could form the words. “The Wild Hunt.”
“Bloody hell,” Kai whispered, real fear in his voice. “Who are they after?”
Primal fear held me captive as memories assaulted me. Images flickered through my mind, each one more soul-crushing than the last. Logically, I knew I was standing in the catacombs, but a core part of me was curled up in a ball in the center of their labyrinth, blood, and sweat coating every inch of my naked body.
“Drystan,” Lilith whispered, slipping her hand into mine. “Come back to me.”
“How did they find us?” Malice asked.
The stupidity of my earlier actions slammed into me with all the gentleness of a bullet train. Now that I’d removed my collar, my magic was traceable once more. I’d known of the consequences when I’d done it, but I hadn’t been thinking when I summoned that ball of light. I knew better, but my carelessnesshad likely just cost all of us our lives. They were with me, which meant they were going to be seen as obstacles to be removed by force.
“You have to get out of here,” I urged.
“Not without you,” Lilith countered.
“Go!”
I tore my hand free of hers and used a burst of magic to push her away. If I escaped this, I’d be in for at minimum a stern talking to, at the worst, the silent treatment. Lilith knew how much I loathed being ignored.
“Leaving so soon?” asked a voice that haunted my nightmares. Guttural and dark, it called to mind every horror he’d unleashed during my captivity.
Bile raced up my throat as my eyes found the leader of the Hunt at the other end of the passageway. He moved like liquid shadows, his form not wholly of this world. And behind the stag’s skull he wore as a mask, his eyes were pits of endless darkness. The antlers crowning his head were wide enough to scrape along the walls on either side of him, the passage almost too narrow for him to manage.
“Crombie, what is going on?” Malice asked. “Why is the Hunt after you?”
“Did he not tell you he was a fugitive?” The second of the three asked, his mask made of a ram’s skull with enormous curling horns. With every step he took toward me, his oily power spilled forward from under his feet. I didn’t want it to touch me. I knew what would happen if it did. I’d lose every ounce of my magic.
Even with full access to my power, I was no match for them. Together we might stand a chance, but I couldn’t risk Lilith being harmed. Not because of me. The others had to get out of here. I might be able to freeze time long enough for them toescape. They wouldn’t have long, seconds at most, before my hold on the Hunt broke, but it would be enough. It had to be.
The third figure tsked, his deep voice sending ice through my veins. “I thought a prince would have better manners. Don’t you want to say hello to your old friends, Drystan?”
This one was hidden behind a wolf’s skull, the animal’s decaying pelt draped over his shoulders.
“Not particularly.”
“And what of your new compatriots? Do they not deserve an introduction?” Stag asked, his steps as slow and sure as ever.
“Leave them out of this. Your fight is with me.”
“So noble of you to remind us,” Wolf crooned.
As one, the trio charged. Power erupted out of me, but instead of freezing them in place as I’d intended, a hand fisted into the back of my shirt, interrupting my spell. Nearly simultaneously, another hand latched onto my throat. The world went fuzzy, and I knew with undeniable dread what had happened. My Lilypad had done what she did best. She took charge and teleported us back to our safe haven. Unfortunately for all of us, she also brought all three of the Hunt along for the ride.
In less time than it took to draw breath, we were back at Sanctuary, the brilliance of the light nearly blinding after the dark of the catacombs. A few startled shouts rang out as our allies realized we had returned.
Or more importantly, that we were not alone.
“Holy masked hot guys,” Remi said, his voice unmistakable even with Stag’s hand around my throat.
“Intruders!” Caspian shouted, the sound of swords being drawn following his cry.
“Stop!” Kai called. “This is the Wild Hunt. If they kill you, you’ll be forced to join them for eternity.”
“He’s correct. You do not want to pick a fight with us. You will lose more than your life,” Ram warned, violence lacing every word.
“I don’t know about that. I sort of like our odds,” Alek said, standing in front of a dozen Novasgardian warriors.
Wolf’s head turned in his direction as even more of our allies poured into the room to ring the intruders. “Then you are not familiar with your history, Odin-kin. Otherwise you would recognize it isyouwho are outnumbered.”
