Wolf Tales 12 (46 page)

Change for the better of his world and his people. And, in many ways, it had, even though the demon king still lived.

Artigos the Just, a leader they’d long thought dead, had been freed from captivity and now governed Lemuria with his son beside him. The new Council of Nine—one untainted by demonic possession—would be seated in a couple of days. This would be the first council including both women and common folk since the great move to this dimension in the depths of Mount Shasta. The women, those brave Forgotten Ones, were no longer slaves. Now Paladins, they had become honored guardians of Lemuria, ready to usher in a renewed age of strong women warriors.

So many amazing changes in such a short time—unheard of in a world that was slow to embrace change of any kind. But where was Taron of Libernus’s place in the new order? What role would he be called upon to play?

If he were called to play any future role at all.

He stared at the sword, running through all that had occurred since that moment just four weeks ago when he and Alton had first spied what they thought were normal humans sitting forlornly in their Lemurian prison cell. Dax and Eddy had looked absolutely pathetic, and the silly dog hadn’t been much better.

And Willow. Dear, beautiful little Willow. Unexpected tears stung his eyes at the thought of her. He’d been fascinated with the sprite from the very first moment he saw her. Not even as tall as his smallest finger, she’d stood there in the palm of his hand and actually flirted with him.

The others hadn’t noticed, thank the gods, or he’d still be getting teased, but the little flirt had spoken mind to mind with him, and every word had been loaded with teasing innuendo. It should have sounded ridiculous, coming from such a tiny creature, but there’d been something special about the sprite. Something that tugged at his soul and made him smile even now, though, inexplicably, his heart was breaking.

How could he grieve so for a creature he hardly knew, one that could never be more to him than a friend? Still, the thought of that perfect little body being eaten by the demon king as the tiny sprite bravely battled evil made Taron’s failings even more painfully obvious.

Ginny said Willow was handling it well. Just one more change among many—new life for Willow, new leader for Lemuria, new way of life for a people who preferred to debate a subject to death rather than deal with it.

Taron wished he was as good at dealing with change as Willow appeared to be, but there were just so many changes, so much to do . . . it made his head spin.

He closed his eyes and leaned back against the sofa. Consciously, he slowed his breathing, eased the taut muscles in his shoulders, and hoped the knot in his gut would finally settle.

Nine hells, but what a long month this had been . . . and yet it felt as if all that was familiar had been upended in the blink of an eye—which was quite close to reality for a man with a near-immortal span of years. What was one month in thousands of months? One year in millennia? He drifted, falling deeper and deeper into a sea of calm, relishing the sense of utter relaxation, if only for a moment.

A thought flittered through his mind, that it was probably not the smartest thing, to steal this time for himself . . . sort of like inviting chaos or tempting the gods.

As if merely giving freedom to that thought had opened a door, a brilliant blast of light flashed brightly across his closed lids.

Nine hells . . .
Blinking, Taron opened his eyes. Shut them tightly, opened them again, and stared.

The entire room glowed. His crystal sword flashed again—blue fire almost blinded him. He blinked and jerked away from the shimmering light, then slowly leaned forward. Heart racing, he gazed, transfixed by the glowing blade. There was a sense of portent about the moment, a feeling that power gathered.

Tempting the gods, indeed!

Chills ran along his arms. He rubbed them, barely aware of the act, at least until a voice filled the room. A man’s voice, speaking with strength and conviction.

His gods-be-damned crystal blade was actually speaking.

“Nine hells and then some . . .” Taron swallowed back another curse as the voice rang out.

“Taron of Libernus? Prepare. The final battle draws nigh. It is time.”

Holy shit, as Ginny would say . . . time for what?

He took a deep breath. “I’m listening. What should I do?”

“Go now to Evergreen. Posthaste. Time is short.”

The glow faded. The blade went silent.

Evergreen? It wants me to go to Earth’s dimension?

He thought of Alton’s brief message, received a short time ago. His friend was probably there now, slipping into Earth’s dimension as if it were no big deal. He’d done it often enough over the past few weeks as one of the soldiers on the front lines of the battle against demonkind.

But not Taron. His work had all been here, in Lemuria.

Until now.
Time is short.
How short? And why?

Still in shock, Taron ran his fingers over the faceted surface. The crystal felt cool to his touch, though it pulsed with a new sense of life.

His fingers trembled as he stroked the blade. His throat felt tight. He gazed at the crystal he’d carried for thousands of years, lost in wonder.

He couldn’t wait to tell Alton, but his friend was already out of reach, already in Earth’s dimension. Well, if Taron followed his blade’s orders, he’d be seeing Alton soon. He couldn’t wait to tell him his sword had . . . “Nine hells and then some.”

Taron burst into laughter. Shoulders shaking, he laughed like a veritable madman until the tears ran down his cheeks and he knew he looked and sounded like an idiot.

Finally he got himself under control. Wiping his eyes, he stared ruefully at the silent sword. “The least you could have done after all these years,” he said, “was tell me your name.”

WOLF TALES / SEXY BEAST TIME LINE

A
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CHANKU
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IRTHDATES
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IN
W
OLF
T
ALES
12

Montana Pack

Anton Cheval 2/1/1955 (58)

Keisha Rialto Cheval 8/3/1971 (42)

Daughter: Lily Milina 6/4/2007 (6½)
Son: Gabriel Fane Cheval 10/31/2009 (4)
Son: Marius Nicolai Cheval 10/31/2009 (4)
Daughter: Lucia Camille Cheval 4/28/2013 (5 mos.)

Stefan Aragat 7/20/1963 (50)

Alexandria Olanet Aragat 4/29/1975 (38)

Son: Alexander Anton Aragat 5/29/2007 (6½)
Daughter: Amber Leigh Aragat 9/15/2009 (4)
Daughter: Ariel Mei Aragat 11/1/2011 (22 mos.)

Oliver Cheval 11/3/1965 (47)

Mei Chen: 6/23/1981 (32)

Son: Leonard Adam Cheval 12/5/2009 (4)
Daughter: Emeline Isobelle Cheval 1/18/2013
(9 mos.)

Adam Leyton Wolf 7/10/71 (42)

Liana Wolf ageless/once a goddess

Daughter: Eve Elizabeth Wolf 7/14/2009 (born
a month early) (4)
Son: John Charles/Jace Wolf 6/14/2010 (named
after Adam’s father) (3)
Daughter: Phoenix Olivia Wolf 9/25/2013

Logan (Rupert Logan Pierce) 2/12/1977 (36)

Jazzy Blue Pierce 1/1/1987 (26)

5 months pregnant with daughter

San Francisco Pack

Lucien (Luc) Stone 8/20/1965 (48)

Tianna Mason Stone 3/3/1980 (33)

Daughter: Camille Rose Stone (Cami) 4/7/2008 (5½)
Daughter: Shannon Olivia Stone (Shay) 4/7/2008
(5½)
Son: Mason Andrew Stone 11/20/2010
Son: Eric Michael Stone 11/20/2010

Andrew Jackson (AJ) Temple 2/7/1967 (46)

Miguel (Mik) Fuentes 4/18/1971 (42)

Tala, aka Mary Ellen Quinn Temple-Fuentes: born 3/15/77 (36)