“Don’t shoot them!” Nero commanded as he dropped the tee. Then he took a breath, his gaze going again over every single one of them—even Pauly, with his smirk and his cell phone hidden behind his back so he could take a pictures of Nero in the T-shirt. Especially Pauly, who dropped the tease and was taking a defensive stance beside Nero.
“God, it’s good to see you guys,” Nero said, his voice choking up. He wanted to hug every one of them. He had so much he wanted to say to them, about how he’d missed them and that they were more important to him than he’d ever realized. All of those words crowded into his throat, but they didn’t have the time.
“Are you okay?” Mother asked, her gaze still trained on the shields. Cream and Coffee had come closer as well, their noses working overtime as they sniffed the things.
Focus!Nero ordered himself. Reunions could happen later. “Look, I don’t have time to explain. This is a fairy mulligan, and I’m trying to save all your lives.”
All of their heads snapped up at that, but it was Paul who asked the question. “We die? From the demon?”
Mother had a different reaction. “We don’t make fairy deals! You know that!”
“This is different. This is your lives.” And before Mother could voice her next objection, he answered Pauly’s question. “The demon has a fire blast that takes all of you out. You need to carry the shields and drop them in a defensive place. You’ll have about twenty seconds to get behind them when the blast starts building.”
“Sticky eggs?” Mother said as she pointed to Bitterroot’s addition. “How is that going to help?”
“I have no idea. But you can carry the shield in your wolf form. It’s got a harness I can strap onto you. Over the hoodies.” He picked one up and shook it out. “Just before the blast, you flatten out behind the shields and under one of these.”
Pauly shook his head. “We can’t attack wearing one of those.”
“Yes, you can.” He hoped. “We’ve run simulations.”
“Simulations!” Mother snapped. “You mean these haven’t been tested?”
Nero ground his teeth. “No! Becausethere wasn’t time! Now stop arguing. Coffee, you first. Pauly, you help Cream. Mother, get furry.”
Everyone moved into place, working in a coordinated fashion even with the unfamiliar equipment. That’s what happened in a good pack. When the time came for action, they all worked seamlessly even with the unpredictable. And hell, these shields were unpredictable. The hoodies were obvious enough. They worked like a wolf sweater vest with a long back to cover the tail. But the straps to attach and release the shield were confusing, and worse, Josh’s compound smelled awful.
“What are these supposed to do?” Pauly asked as he was closing the buckles across Cream’s chest.
“Channel the plasma fire that turns all of you to ash. It’s a one-time deal, so if he looks like he’s going explosive again, run away from the blast area as fast as possible.” He jerked his chin to a tall oak tree. “That’s the edge there. The van stayed whole.”
There was a pause as everyone turned to stare at him, at the tree, then at the van, and back to him. They were processing, calculating distances, and probably dealing with a massive “holy shit” factor. But to their credit, no one said a word. They just returned to work.
Mother was full wolf now, so Nero started putting on her harness. Coffee and Cream started moving around in the things, testing how easily they could run, pivot, and strike. It wasn’t easy, but they were professionals. They adjusted, and the shields wouldn’t be carried into the battle itself.
Pauly was the last to strip before going wolf, but then he paused as he looked at the remaining two shields.
“How are you going to get yours on?”
He’d… hell, he hadn’t thought about that. God, that was something they’d have figured out if they’d been able to test the things. “I don’t need it,” he said. “I survived the first time.” He didn’t explain that it had only been sheer luck that he’d managed to live. The timing had to be perfect, and since he didn’t intend for Coffee to get shot, he wasn’t sure he could be in a full energy state when the blast went off.
“Nero…,” Pauly said, obviously guessing at the problem.
“If I don’t make it, finish off the damned demon. And don’t mourn me. Believe me, my dying today might be the more pleasant of outcomes.”
All of them stilled at that. If they hadn’t understood the gravity of the situation before, they did now. But Pauly was the only one still able to talk. “Nero…,” he said, his voice choked.
“No time,” Nero barked out. “Get furry.”
Then suddenly a familiar voice sounded from right behind him. “Huh. No tinglies. Somehow I always thought transporting would be tingly.” Nero spun around as Josh shrugged and dropped his backpack on the ground. “I kind of miss the sound effects too. But this was just, bam, I’m here.” Then he grinned at Nero’s shocked face. “What, did you think I’d let you face this alone?”
“Josh,” Nero breathed, and then he bellowed. “What the fuck did you do?”
Josh’s expression softened. “Not everyone leaves when you tell them to. Some of us choose to stick around.” Then he looked around at the wolves, identifying them one by one. “Cream, Coffee, you’re both a lot prettier than in Nero’s pictures. Pauly, stop bristling. I’m here to help. And Mother, please don’t pee on me. Trust me when I say I’ve already endured the Nero initiation. I don’t need any more hazing, thank you very much.”
Nero’s gaze shifted to Mother. It did indeed look like she wanted to piss on the newcomer. They all did. “He’s….” What? His lover, his best friend? “He’s one of us. I trust him with my life. More important, I trust him with all of your lives.” And that was the best endorsement he could give for anyone.
“All right, everyone,” Josh called, “let me check your harnesses. When it’s time, they’re quick release. Tug here.”
