Page 15 of Centaur Bolt

I had only an instant to fix a place in my mind—and with a brilliant flash, we both fell through the gate.

* * *

Marcus landed on me.

Or rather, his beast did. We hit the ground on the other side of the gate hard enough to drive the breath clear from me.

Blinking the last bits of random gate energy out of my eyes, the Deranger’s reflexes saved me. I jerked my head sideways just as Marcus’s beast jaws snapped closed only an inch from it.

I was already half Dragon, and the burst of rage gave me the strength to heave the sharp-toothed beast clear off me. Which bought me the few extra seconds I needed to complete my shift.

We were in a small wooded area, surrounded by a high fence, and the gate guardians scatter when Marcus’s mongrel Wyvern beast whirled, its long tail whipping toward them. Stone buildings, some a few stories tall, rose just beyond the trees.

As my Dragon expanded to loom over him, Marcus hissed and backed away. Then he spun, and launched himself into the sky.

My jaw dropped open as I watched the bastard go. No way anyone who spent most of his life on four legs would know how to fly. But he did, his wings beating rapidly as he climbed.

The guards wisely remained in the shadows as I expanded my wings to full flight status. It was a more painful process than it should be—my reserves were running on empty. I couldn’t remember the last time I had such difficulty taking my beast form, and the finished result was much smaller than usual.

Damn that Sorceress’s black soul.

I glanced to the gate. Rafael was still back there. He’d face the full wrath of that bitch for what he’d done.

He’d be lucky to survive it.

As I hesitated, the gate fluoresced. Something was coming through. And I had a pretty fucking good idea what it was.

There was nothing I could do for Rafael. If I went back for him, they’d have me. I was under no illusions of just how narrow my escape had been.

I leaped into the air just as the first Dragon tumbled through the gate and began to expand in size. I wasn’t a free Dragon yet. Brock and the Isobitch would be out for blood.

Wings beating hard, I aimed for the clouds that Marcus’s creature had vanished into. I should just let him fucking go. I’d done my bit—got him through the gate. That was all I’d promised to do.

But I was pretty damn sure that the thing he’d become wasn’t controlled by any human brain. And no animal was going to outmaneuver Brock’s pinions.

The collars could be tracked. It wouldn’t be easy to recapture him—but they’d do it. Anyone who failed her would likely find themselves next on the bitch’s bloodpower donor list.

It provided excellent motivation.

The slightest tickle from beneath my neck scales reminded me that I’d regained my rather annoying furry conscience. Fang had once gotten so angry at me that she’d bitten me. My healing ability had no problem dealing with her venom, but it hadn’t been fun.

I didn’t need to listen to her. But I caught a glimpse of a green and gold scaled tail and banked toward it.

My peers didn’t come through alone. As the clouds closed around me, I saw Brock himself come through. In moments, he was full Dragon, with the distinctive bitch form riding on his neck. The pinions’ beasts each carried a Bellati, who hefted dart guns.

The Deranger in me laughed, eager for the fight. But the human in me knew we were in serious trouble. The bitch and her coven had drained me dry—my wings trembled as I pushed them faster.

There was only one way out of this mess.

Someone had to die.

I pointed my long nose up and pushed my wings as hard as I could. My jaws dropped open, my breath wheezing as the air grew thin. I couldn’t see my pursuers, but I sensed ‘em. And despite the clouds, their aim was spot on. If I’d had any doubt that they could track the collars, this erased them.

Time to mess with their brains.

I ducked and spun, twisted and turned. My eyes scanned every break in the cloud cover, and at last, I spotted one. An older pinion. The Bellati on his neck scanned the clouds for me, dart gun held ready.

Perfect.

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