Page 69 of All That Has Flown Beyond
“If you want me to leave—”
“I want to help you.”
“Why? What do you want?”
“Man, we sure are going in circles, huh? Look. I’ve…been where you are. I mean, I would try to wash more regularly, but who am I to judge? Point is, I was a meanderer once too.”
“So?”
“So, look at me now! You, honey, look like someone dragged you through a bush backwards. I look fabulous,” Amaya said, flipping her hair over her shoulder. The man frowned.
“You’re trying to trick me.”
“I can see why you would think that, but—”
“You’re trying to trick me,” he repeated, not quite shouting but clearly aggravated.
Suddenly, he took a few steps closer, his face starting to ripple with the rest of the half-moon shift. Amaya straightened, opening her mouth, but she didn’t have time to say anything. A moment later, Ahmik had jumped from his hiding spot with a resounding growl, already half-shifted. The meanderer instantly finished his half-moon shift, turning with a roar towards Ahmik.
“Fucking hell,” Kaiyo muttered. He clapped his hands, having already been more than prepared for this eventuality. He ran his right hand over his arm, reaching a rune on his bicep. He drew it forward, slicing through the wind. Instantly, a high-pitched sound rang out, like a needle pierced into a werewolf ear. Before Ahmik could do more than posture, all of the werewolves doubled over, their hands over their ears.
Knowing they’d become accustomed to the noise enough to function soon, Kaiyo strode towards the meander, injecting him in the neck with a soporific substance that would last a few hours with minimal side effects. Kaiyo jumped out of the way before the meanderer could catch him with a blind slash of his claws, stepping forwards again to catch him before he fell.
“There you go,” Kaiyo said softly, placing him on the ground as the whistling noise dissipated. Thea stumbled out of her hiding place as Amaya and Ahmik straightened.
“What the hell was that?” Ahmik growled.
“I could ask you the same thing. What were you thinking, instigating a fight when Amaya had things under control?”
“Under control! He was about to attack her!”
“Ahmik, you idiot,” Amaya jumped in. “He had his teeth and claws sheathed! He was just testing to see what I would do! Don’t you think it was normal for him to be fucking wary? I just showed up at his refuge!”
“I…” Ahmik looked around. For a moment, he looked blindingly young.
Sometimes, Kaiyo forgot that, apart from Amaya, they were all still in their twenties, having to carry the burdens of maintaining a healthy pack.
“I just, I just saw him come after you and…fuck.” Ahmik ran his hand through his hair. Amaya sighed.
“Let’s just…get him somewhere safe. He’s just knocked out, right?” she asked Kaiyo.
“Yeah. We’ll take him to the visitor’s cottage at my place. I’ll be able to keep him calm when he wakes up.”
“But—” Ahmik started. Kaiyo held a hand up, cutting him off.
“Ahmik. You need to trust us.”
“It’shimI don’t trust!”
“No, it’s us. He’s just scared. I can show him that he doesn’t need to be. Trust me,” Kaiyo said, not looking away from Ahmik’s eyes. Ahmik looked back. Stubbornness. Fear. The silence stretched until it broke with a crack in Ahmik’s expression.
“Fine. Fine. But we’re staying with you.”
“The moment you step onto my land, you’re not Kephale anymore. Remember that.”
Ahmik clenched his jaw, but he nodded. “Okay.”
They all looked at the filthy werewolf and then at Ahmik.
