Page 35 of Through Battle and Blades (The Wolf Queen 2)

“Then you die, everyone in Aramoor dies and then we start again with another girl.”

As the world reverted back to its normal state, all the ire and the determination seemed to bleed out of me, the crushing weight of my own inexperience forcing my sword points into the ground, my hands clinging to the hilts to keep me upright.

“It’s alright, lass,” a gentle voice said, and then I felt the weight of Weyland’s hand on my shoulder. As it was joined by others, by Dane’s, then Axe’s and finally Gael’s, his fingers prising mine free of the swords and then gripping my hand, I felt that golden light flare harder again.

“You’ll know when it comes, my love, and when it does, know that I love you. I will always love you.”

My mother’s words from my dream echoed in my head, a memory or part of whatever these strange visions were, I didn’t know.

And perhaps I’ll see you soon, Mother, and you can explain what the hell this was all about, I thought, right as I straightened up.

A long howl from the other side of the manor told us what was coming

They were many, we were few. We had something we dearly wanted to protect, but I was willing to bet that the commander was waging a strange war with the world, feeding the Morrigan with all of the sacrifices he wantonly took. Bloated with her power, he raised more and more Reavers and they ravaged the land to gain more. The Strelans said they conducted rituals where precious things were burned to honour the crone, but he was willing to give her every single living thing in the world.

But his men.

“If we’re to have a hope of succeeding,” Selene snapped, “you know what we must do.”

“We can’t go berserk!” Weyland snarled. “We give into battle fever, we’ll kill everyone ourselves, including the women and children. We won’t know friend from foe, just becoming mindless killing machines.”

“But we used to use the berserk state, didn’t we? We fought the Granians like devils without losing our minds,” the Wolf Maiden shot back.

“But we had the queen leading us then…”

Axe’s retort started out strong and then trailed away as he turned to stare at me. I found myself taking a step away from him and the rest of the pack.

“We have a queen,” Dane said, and there was a rumbling response from the soldiers around us. They were too tired, stretched too thin to be polite, so they eyed me suspiciously, especially at the reverent sound of their crown prince’s voice.

“No,” I said, then more firmly, “no, Dane, I—”

“So we do this?” Wonder crept into Weyland’s voice. “What if she’s not ready? What if this is too much?”

“Hasn’t Darcy already shown us what she can bear?” Gael’s hand slid up under the matted strands of my hair, rubbing against the nape of my neck. “You don’t know what it’s like yet, brother. You think you do. You think you’re there with her now, but you’re not. The night Darcy and I became mates I saw it so fucking clearly. There are no guarantees with anything, and the higher the stakes, the more terrifying that is. Falling in love, letting her into your heart so bloody absolutely”—my eyes slid sideways then, daring a glimpse over my shoulder to catch the moment that my mate’s face became utterly radiant— “that you know any attempt to pull away will tear your soul in two. You can’t do anything other than jump in, just as we do now. We need to fight the Reavers on an even playing field and we’ll do that by finally letting the battle fever have its head.”

A quiet fell over the group now, but Gael broke it by continuing.

“Feel it, brothers.” His instructions were for everyone, not just our pack. “Feel that yearning inside you. Something powerful, something dangerous, a thing that burns like wildfire inside you, ready to flare higher and out of control. They want to tear Strelae apart.”

Growls came in response to that.

“They want to burn everything we’ve built to the ground, in an attempt to earn the Morrigan’s favour.”

More sinister snarls.

“They want to tear everyone and everything you love to pieces and will laugh as they do so.”

That, that was the thought that dropped like a burning hot coal inside us, tinder to the flames he was trying to fan. And in me, in all of us, something caught alight.

I straightened then, stronger, taller, harder, my hands becoming claws again as they gripped my swords and then I stared off into the distance where the Reavers ranged. They should’ve just attacked, taken the moment we had given them to press their advantage, but something stopped them. As if in answer, I heard a slow snicker inside my head. I jerked my swords from the ground, raising them with what felt like a deadly intent.

“For Strelae,” I said, my voice breaking, cracking, as I was caught part way in a shift between woman and wolf. “For Aramoor. For the people who need us within those walls. And because those fucking bastards need putting down like rabid dogs!”

That came out almost as a howl and I wasn’t alone. Roars joined mine and when I turned back, I saw that every man that could had shifted into the half wolf form and more besides.

Some clawed at their muzzles or stared at their hands as they transformed, a process that was obviously new, but I couldn’t bear witness. Whatever time we’d bought, it was coming to an end, now.

“This wolf pack hunts!” I snapped and with it came a strange energy.

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