The three of us together

Vera

The beast comes at me full speed and I swear I've never been so grateful for my ten-mile-a-day running habit. Without it, I'd be chimera food right about now. All those wolves tearing at it, all those lycans throwing themselves at its body, and still its only focus is me. It wants me dead. Nothing else matters to it.

Then I hear something new. More wolves. Running hard from the direction of the packhouse. Within seconds, around fifty of them burst into the clearing, teeth bared and ready. They must be the ones who were guarding the other borders.

I need to end this fast. We can't leave the borders open for long and I can't stomach losing any more of our people.

I sprint toward the incoming wolves, scanning for their lieutenant. I spot him quickly and cut my way over to him. The beast will be occupied with this fresh wave of attackers for a few seconds. That's all I need.

"I need you to buy me time! I have to get that spear out of its eye!"

My voice comes out desperate. I can see more and more wolves going down, their bodies scattered across the ground.

The lieutenant gives me a quick nod and charges. He sinks his fangs deep into the beast's leg.

I run to where Noah, Lucas, and Eli are pulling themselves off the ground. I drop to my knees in front of Noah and look him right in the eyes.

"Noah, I need you to throw me at the spear."

All three of them stare at me like I've lost my mind.

"I know how that sounds. But I need that spear back so I can blind its other eye. At least then we have a real chance."

Noah hesitates. Just for a second. Then he's on his feet. He positions himself and waits for the right moment. When the beast turns its side to us, Noah places his massive paw against my midsection.

Thank the Goddess for core strength, because he lifts me from my torso like I weigh nothing and hurls me through the air.

It becomes very clear very fast that Noah overestimated his own strength or underestimated my weight, because I go flying straight up. I'm looking at the beast from directly below, nowhere near my target. But from this angle, I see something. A bright point of light at the very top of its head.

I feel something pulsing from it. Energy. Power. That's where its strength comes from. That's my real target.

I come down hard, far from the beast, and Eli is there to catch me. His silver coat catches the light.

"Please tell me you're not the one who taught Noah how to throw."

He makes a sound somewhere between a scoff and a laugh, then positions me for his own throw. He aims me directly at the spear.

I'm airborne, flying on a perfect line toward the creature's face. Eli's aim is flawless. The beast doesn't even notice me coming.

I grab hold of the spear. The pull on its eyeball makes the beast scream and thrash its head wildly. I plant my feet against its face for leverage and yank the spear free. With my other arm, I grab a fistful of its fur and hold on. It tries to claw at me but only manages to rake its own face open as I climb. I move fast, scrambling up to the top of its skull. When I get there, I see the light clearly. It's embedded in the bone itself, buried under layers of thick hair.

I raise the spear with both hands and drive it down toward the light. The beast goes insane, thrashing and roaring, trying to throw me off while wolves tear at its legs.

The spear only goes halfway in. I pull it back and reposition. The beast drops to its knees, fighting with everything it has to stop me. I dodge its hands, almost losing my footing, nearly sliding off its head more than once. I grab hold of its fur and pull myself back into place. The wolves and lycans are still attacking, following my position, using me as their guide.

I find a better angle and take advantage of a moment when the beast is distracted. I ram the spear down with everything I have. A horrible shriek tears out of the creature. I'm getting closer to the light. But it's not dead. Not yet.

I need to go deeper. I need to drive the spear further in. But no matter how hard I push, it isn't enough. I'm not strong enough on my own.

I look down, searching for something. Anything. Help. Then I feel a large body climbing up behind me. Every nerve in my body knows who it is before I even turn my head.

Noah.

He climbs over me, his body covering mine, and together we push. The beast shrieks louder. We're both giving everything we have but the skull is too thick. Too strong. I start to fear the spear will snap before we can finish this.

Then I catch movement from the corner of my eye. Eli is crawling toward us. He positions himself beside Noah and grabs the spear too. Pushes with us.

The three of us together. It's barely enough. But it is enough.

The spear drives deep into the light and the beast collapses. A final, awful scream rips out of it as it crashes to the ground. All three of us fall with it. Noah wraps himself around me as we drop. We roll across the dirt, gasping for air, staring up at the sky, completely spent.

It's finally over.