Page 64 of Shaped By Discovery

I don’t even want to think about what she’s been dealing with during that time.

The pull in my chest is almost painful now as we continue toward her. It takes everything in me not to leave them behind. It would be too easy; just a few flaps of my wings, and they would be nothing but specks. Serena would want me to keep them safe, especially here, where they know nothing. And as much as they might not like me, there isn’t anything I wouldn’t do for her, not to mention the fact that we’re all mated to her.

Fuck, I don’t even want to think about that right now.

Thankfully, I don’t have to, at least not yet.

I feel the bond pull tighter and drop lower into the forest before shifting. Being in the open air of the kingdom is amazing after so long away. I missed it more than I ever thought I would, but having my beast’s true form back after so long makes it feel almost foreign. The same way it had when I’d learned to deal with being an Argentavious in their world.

The only real similarity between the two is their ability to fly. Other than that, I’m like a child learning my beast all over again, and to say that my landing is less than graceful is an understatement.

I’d intended to shift back and land on one of the higher tree branches, as I often did as a child. From there, it would be easy to jump down. Our bodies might not be as strong when in human form, but they can take a beating. A jump from the tops of these trees wouldn’t be too bad, given I land on my feet.

As luck would have it, being out of touch with my beast isn’t the only issue I seem to be facing. I miss the branch I’d been aiming for. I reach out, intent on grabbing it to swing down, only to have it slip between my fingers.

Damn it.

I have just enough time to get my feet under me before slamming to the forest floor, hard enough to drop me to my knees. The impact isn’t pleasant, but it isn’t enough to cause any lasting damage, and I thank the gods for magic. I would have been much worse off if that happened in the other realm.

Graceful.

One of the guys says, and I don’t need to focus to know it was probably Lyle or maybe Storm. Of all of them, I think those two hate me the most. Storm, I can understand. He started to claim her as his mate, even if not on purpose. To have that incomplete must be slowly eating away at him. Hell, I’m surprised he’s been as calm as he is so far, though I doubt that will last much longer. Lyle, on the other hand, seemed to have already been an overbearing asshole before I showed up.

I can’t blame him, though. If the roles were reversed, I’d probably hate him too.

Hearing them is going to take some getting used to, though. For as often as Serena and I used to communicate in our minds, I’d never imagined it would expand to others, especially outside of our shifted forms.

I’d never heard of any but those who are bonded being able to communicate through their bond. The fact that they aren’t bonded to her but can hear each other is another oddity. But things with Serena are usually far from normal. It’s one of the many things I love about her.

I choose to ignore him. Instead, pushing myself to stand. Among the advantages of this being my home, I also keep my clothes after shifting—something the rest of them will have to learn or face running around naked all the time.

The list of things we have to handle seems to grow by the second, but all of them can wait until after we’ve found Serena.

My feet move of their own accord. I don’t need to think when it comes to her. My body craves her like she’s the oxygen it needs to survive. The others follow without question. For all of their earlier mistrust, it seems they at least believe I will take them to her.

Night is rapidly approaching, quickly dropping the dense forest into darkness. I call my light, stretching it out in all directions and running as fast as my feet can carry me toward the piece of my soul that resides outside me.

I see her before the others.

Even in my human form, I’m faster than they are while shifted. Years of training here and the ability to use more of this realm’s magic help me. I have no doubt that with some training, they, too, will be formidable. To have beasts of old in a realm with less magic tells me they have a connection far beyond what the average shifter of their realm does. Maybe it says more than that, but I don’t have time to dwell on it right now.

Not when we’re so close.

My eyes see her, but my mind takes longer to process what I’m looking at. She isn’t the vision I’d imagined when I felt her down in the forest. I’d pictured her much like we had been as children, exploring, talking to animals, and climbing trees. Instead, I look upon her lying on the grass, a crumpled heap that sends my heart racing while my stomach plummets.

My wings press through as the need to get to her urges me forward, demanding I go faster than my feet can carry me, even with the help of my magic. Partial shifts take a lot of time to master and magic to sustain, but right now, it’s as effortless as calling my beast to shift.

I need to get to her now, and my magic bends to that whim around me.

The guys’ thoughts echo around my head. I can feel their disbelief as if it’s my own, but I push it aside. One hard beat of my wings is all it takes to clear the remaining distance. Dropping to my knees, the fabric of my jeans splits as it drags against the forest floor, but I don’t spare it more than that passing thought.

“Serena!”

My voice is too high, sounding foreign to my own ears as I quickly look her over for any sign of injury. I check her twice before I take a breath, happy to find her in one piece, but the relief only lasts a moment before my panic starts again. In our realm, she shouldn’t be as fragile as before. Without some physical sign of injury, any of the reasons she would be lying unconscious on the forest floor can’t be good.

I feel more than I see the guys as they finally catch up. Each of them shifts back to their human form before crowding around her, much like I am.

“What happened? Why is she unconscious in the middle of the woods?” Lyle demands, his words clipped and angry.

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