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McIntyre

He was lost in a world of pain. Some rat bastard was burning his nerve endings with a naked flame, and he was trapped at their whim. His body screamed to shift, but something was stopping him. Well, Mac assumed it wanted to change; having never done so before, he was more than confused.

A wave of darkness swept over him, sending him tumbling and spinning out of control. Mac had no idea where he was or what was happening.

He sensed something coming from his body and looked down to see a golden rope. Mac’s brow creased. That was incredibly important. Mac touched the bond, and his eyes widened as a wave of love and strength hit him. Mac recognised that aura.

Lamia! Lanie! They’d mated, and this was their mate bond.

So, what attacked him? Mac’s sight adjusted, and he saw an inky black bond in the darkness. He touched his mate bond, and the area brightened, and Mac flinched at the evil he sensed around him.

“She’s mine,” a distorted voice hissed.

“Think again,” Mac replied.

“Weak fool,” came the sneering reply.

“Who are you? What are you?” Mac demanded.

“Your death.”

Mac was blasted, and his golden rope dimmed a little. Before his disbelieving eyes, he watched as blackness tried to dim his rope’s light.

Mac fought back, somehow instinctively knowing what to do. This darkness needed to take a hike. Lamia was his soul mate.

◆◆◆

Mac was tired, so tired. It had been hours, and the darkness seemed to be holding steady while he grew tired. He longed to lie down and sleep but knew the evilness would overwhelm him the moment he did. Mac had no intention of giving up, but he wasn’t sure how much longer he could fight.

Worse, he didn’t know what he fought. Was this the manifestation of Anger or something else?

Mac rubbed his brows and readied himself for another bout when soothing blue energy floated over him. Mac blinked as his wounds healed and the bond in his hands strengthened.

“No!” the voice screamed in dismay, but Mac grinned. Someone had just cured him. He wasn’t alone. Lamia had got help!

“Come on, beastie. Let’s dance!” Mac growled as the voice howled in the darkness.

◆◆◆

More hours had passed. Mac was sure of it. The fight went back and forth, neither side winning, and Mac wondered if this would ever end. He sensed something poking around near him and reached out and slapped it.

“Foolish child,” Chimera moaned.

Mac closed his eyes as Chimera’s strength flowed over and into him. Moments later, Tisi joined him, and Mac stood strong, bolstered by love.

Mac stepped forward, and for the first time, he felt fear in the darkness surrounding him. Gritting his teeth, Mac took the battle to the blackness further, boosted when Lamia merged her power with his.

Vladimir/Vampire

Another day passed, and worry swept through the castle. Lamia, Tisiphone, and Chimera had been under two and a half days now. Sixty hours in total. Vladimir and Jase swapped glances. How could Mac still be battling on and not have succumbed? He was only human. Lilith and Baba Yaga had taken watches over them, sending them healing power every few hours.

Vladimir noted that Andie didn’t seem too worried, and until she did, he wouldn’t stress too much.

Achere was watching over her, and he was calm too. The again Achere was always composed. Even when he shifted into Quasimodo, he remained serene. Vladimir sat next to Rhett, who had his eyes firmly fixed on the tableau on the bed. Chimera stayed in his monster form, as did Lamia and Tisiphone. Tisiphone’s wings were tucked in tightly against her back, but they were visible. All of them now seemed pale, but Lilith, Baba Yaga, and Pandora had all agreed they were fighting and strong.

Vladimir watched as his siblings and his sister’s mate fought a battle he could only watch. The urge to protect them all was immense, and yet, for all his strength and cunning, Vladimir remained as helpless as a lamb. It was a horrible feeling.

There was a loud snap, and Vladimir looked towards the bed in panic. His eyes widened before he smiled.

Mac

There! He saw the weakness the blackness momentarily showed and jumped at it. The evil was as tired as he was, but Mac had no intention of backing down. His mate bond and future with Lanie/Lamia were on the line. Mac grinned and attacked. The evilness surged back and finally faded as Mac’s golden light lit the area.

Mac studied the black fading cord in front of him. What the hell was it? It flowed in the same direction his did, which meant it was attached to Lamia. Could this be another mate bond, one she’d had with Alainen?

The darkness flinched away from Mac as he approached and stared hard. Somehow, this was perverse. It had been forced on Lamia. Mac understood that this shouldn’t exist.

He reached out and grabbed it with both hands and it struggled weakly in his grasp. Mac shuddered as the negativity it held hit him with a final, nearly overpowering blast. But Mac battled back with love. Hate, despair, possessiveness, twisted desire. It all fled under Mac’s defence. Mac pulled his knee up and brought the evilness down hard. The dark bond shattered on impact with a loud snap, and there was a pained scream that echoed around him.

Someone was in agony, but Mac knew it wasn’t Lamia. She was fine, and as Mac watched their bond strengthen, the bright light almost overwhelming him.

Mac relaxed back and blinked. His body felt different, and Mac shut his eyes and allowed a miracle to happen.

“Damn, he’s pretty,” Tisiphone said with a croak. Mac opened his eyes, knowing that he’d shifted. Lamia lay next to him with her eyes closed as Mac checked himself. Torso, the same muscled form it always had been. From the waist down, he was a snake. His scales glowed with the same iridescence that Lamia’s did.

“Cool,” Mac muttered and gently slipped out of Lamia’s embrace. He nearly pitched headfirst as he was un-used to his tail, and Vladimir caught him.

“Tisi, are you okay?” Mac asked as she collapsed on the floor. Lilith sat next to her and poured a blue healing light over her.

“Tired. But you look pretty,” she said again.

“Not masculine and handsome?” Mac questioned as he moved towards Chimera, jittery. Moving wasn’t as easy as Mac might have imagined.

“Yeah, you’re all that,” Vladimir replied as he helped Mac across the room. Chimera had laid down in a corner and was refusing to move. Baba Yaya sat with him and offered him healing power.

“Chimmy?” Mac asked.

Vladimir reared back in horror. “Chimmy?” he cried, aghast.

Mac reached out with a hand and touched Chimera, who lazily opened one eye. “I’m fine, child. Just need sleep. Deal with your mate,” Chimera replied.

“Thank you,” Mac whispered.

Chimera smiled, a rather horrific sight, but it didn’t phase Mac. “I’ll always be here for you, son,” Chimera murmured and closed his eyes.

“Son?” Vladimir asked, wanting to know more.

“Chimera adopted me after my father died. He and Tisi were constants in my life. And Chimmy took in Ranson after my uncle passed. Chimmy is what all the kids call him,” Mac replied as he checked his ‘parents’ over.

Happy they were being looked after, Mac turned to Lamia. He knew she was okay because he could feel it in the bond. And what a glorious thing that was. The bond between them was strong and glowed brightly. Mac suddenly shifted again and was surprised as he glanced down at a strange form.

“What the hell?” he exclaimed.

“There it is. It appears Mac and all three of the mates have three forms. Emmaline and Willow have a shared monster form with their mate, but they also have a different human form,” Vladimir said with a grin.

“We think the Magic in the spell works differently with you. Because your human form is known and hunters could find you easily, the magic gives you a different one. That means you can go out in public with your mate and not be hunted down. Nor would you give away your mate’s identity, either,” Lilith explained.

“I prefer the snake,” Mac said, looking at the image in Lanie’s mirror. He looked like a young Jenson Ackles.

“You be grateful for what you’ve been gifted,” Vladimir snapped.

Mac turned and raised an eyebrow. “I don’t really care what you think, only my mate matters.”

Mac moved away and climbed onto the broken bed next to Lamia. He gathered her up in his arms and drew her near, dropping a kiss on her forehead.

“You need to wake up, babe, you got to see my cool new tail!” he urged softly.

Lamia smiled in her sleep and nestled into him. Mac cupped her head and was thankful he had won whatever fight he’d fought.

◆◆◆

Mac stared at Lamia in horror. They were both in their monster form and lounging down by the lake with some of the other water shifters.

“You’re telling me that Alainen basically forced himself on you?” Mac demanded, his temper rising.

“No. I accepted his sexual advances. But the bond that attacked you was imposed on me without permission,” Lamia replied calmly. She seemed unsure how to handle this information. It had been startling at the time, but the importance of it had been lost due to Mac’s battle. Now, they were confronting it, and she appeared more than puzzled. Mac saw that and tried to be patient.

“Baby, it’s still a huge violation of you. Alainen forced something on you that you didn’t want.” Mac turned to Lilith. “Can one person have a soul mate, but they aren’t their soul mate’s soul mate? Damn, that’s convoluted.”

“Mac, we only have three soul mates to compare. We have no knowledge of them before Emmaline came along, and it’s been a real learning curve. We’re unsure of what this all means. And the big question we’ve unanswered is, why now?” Lilith responded.

“Because the Saviours are ready to make a move,” he replied, and Lilith frowned. Mac’s brain worked furiously.

“You said Vampire and Poseidon are stronger because of their mates. Lamia, do you feel the same?” Mac asked, beginning to work it out.

“Yes, I do, actually,” Lamia answered after a few moments’ consideration. “And I feel unbalanced, like the power hasn’t settled yet.”

“The Saviours are ready for war. We’re gathering intel from across the globe on where Hunter settlements are. We have an army at our back and five Shifters. Now we’ve contacted you and located your village. And this is a village, let’s not argue. Things are moving towards one point,” Mac said.

“A battle,” Loch Ness breathed.

“Yes. Three mates found within a year? We’re heading for something, and I’d agree it is possibly a war. One between Hunters and Saviours. And children being born. And by the way, love… I think I might have knocked you up too,” Mac announced with a shrug.

Lamia reared back and blinked.

“Oh my!” Lilith muttered, her eyes checking Lamia. “It’s… um… oh boy.”

“What!” Lamia screeched.

“Snakes lay clutches,” Lilith murmured.

“What? I’ve a nest of eggs inside me?” Lamia cried, horrified.

“No. But I am picking up five heartbeats,” Lilith announced.

Mac’s jaw dropped open before his chest puffed out. “Five babies? Go, me!”

“Four kids, one of the heartbeats is Lamia’s,” Lilith said.

“Four!” Lamia screeched. “Jase can’t cope with triplets, and I am having quads?”

“We’ll be fine,” Mac said blasé.

“Jase’s children shifted to Merpeople and uber Merforms on birth. Tentacles and everything!” Lamia cried.

“Oh, ours won’t have them… um, Lilith, our kids won’t have them?” Mac asked.

“No. You’re not a merman. But they will quite likely change into Lamias. After all, Callidora does,” Lilith continued.

Loch Ness snickered at the look on Lamia’s face. Scylla winced and shook her head.

“No babies for me!” she declared.

“Yes, wait till your mate knocks you up!” Lamia hissed.

“Not happening,” Scylla said far too confidently.

“Yeah, who’s opening a book on that?” Mac asked.

“Don’t speak. Shut up. You’re in my bad books. How could you get me pregnant?” Lamia wailed.

“You need me to explain how?” Mac shot back with a wink. “Or should I show you?”

“Shut up!” Lamia cried and began laughing.

Lanie/Lamia

She was going to be a mother again. Holy hell. After all these thousands of years, she was pregnant. What would Callidora say? Lanie was about to find out as her daughter appeared in Mary Worth’s tower.

“Mum!” she cried and flung her arms around Lanie.

“Hello, baby,” Lanie replied as she held Callidora tightly.

“I’m glad to be home. Is everything okay?” Callidora asked, staring intently into Lanie’s face. “You seem different.”

“A lot has happened since we last talked,” Lanie delayed.

“We spoke a few days ago,” Callidora responded.

“I’ve a mate,” Lanie said, linking arms and walking Callidora away from the portal room.

Mary sent Lanie a thumbs up, and Lanie smiled weakly.

“Yeah, my asshole father,” Callidora retorted.

“Not quite, sweetheart. See, some stuff happened…” Lanie led Callidora to the gardens as she explained. Callidora listened intently, and when they sat by the fountain, she stared at Lanie in shock.

“Let’s get this right. Alainen forced a bond on you. You were his soul mate, but he wasn’t yours. Yours is some hot security guard who is a Saviour. He also knows everything about us because he was brought up by five formerly thought dead shifters. This Mac is a leader in a Saviour army that the five shifters have been building. And Chimera and Tisiphone think of him and his cousin as a son.

“Then you mated, and he can shift into a different human form and a Lamia. Oh, and he had to fight a battle against Alainen’s bond and won. Then, in addition, this Mac has knocked you up, Mum? And with quads? So, I don’t get one sibling but four at once?”

“It sounds like a lot, I know,” Lanie said.

“You can also call me Dad,” Mac replied, and their heads shot up. Mac leaned against an arch, his legs crossed at the ankles, and looked incredibly sexy.

“Holy shit, you picked a winner!” Callidora exclaimed.

“Yup,” Lanie agreed, her lady parts standing up and paying attention.

“I’m Joe McIntyre. You can call me Mac. The Dad thing was a lame joke,” Mac stated, walking forward and holding out a hand.

Callidora took it and smiled weakly. “Seems you and Mum have been up to a lot of stuff.”

“Just a bit. It’s good to meet you. You’re famous where I come from,” Mac said.

“I am?” Callidora asked, surprised.

“Yeah. The only child of a Legend? Very famous. There’s been tournaments fought over who got to watch over you,” Mac replied as he sat down.

“What do you mean?” Callidora demanded.

“Our plan is simple. If we discover a Legend, then we send a team to watch over them. If a Hunter gets close, we take them out if possible. We have not always succeeded,” Mac explained, his eyes taking on a faraway look, “But we’ve done our best.”

“And you’ve watched over me?” Callidora asked.

“Only for the last five hundred years of our time,” Ranson said.

“Your time?”

“Refuge moves at a slower rate than out here. It gave us time to rebuild our numbers and create the army we now have. It also lets us train our people properly so they could survive and protect those we swore to,” Mac replied.

Callidora sent Lanie a dry look. “Seems you missed some stuff out. Tell me about Refuge, Mac.”

Mac grinned.

◆◆◆

“I like him a lot. Mac lights up when he speaks of Refuge and the shifters there. There’s a lot of love inside him for them,” Callidora said as Mac walked off.

“Yes. Mac thinks of them as family. Tisiphone called him a leader. And they need him there,” Lanie replied.

“What does that mean, Mum?” Callidora asked with some worry.

“It means that I can’t keep Mac away from Refuge, but I don’t want to leave here either,” Lanie admitted.

“You love him?”

“Yeah.”

“Then take your chance at happiness. Hell, Refuge sounds intriguing enough. I might pay it a visit if I’m allowed to,” Callidora said.

“You mean that?” Lanie asked hopefully.

“Yeah. Wherever you, Mac, and my siblings are, I want to be, too. Life just got a whole lot more interesting,” Callidora replied with a grin.

“Didn’t it just,” Lanie agreed as she pulled Callidora closer. Her baby girl was amazing, and how she’d taken all these surprises proved that. Despite Alainen being Callidora’s father, there was nothing of the man in her. And Lanie couldn’t be prouder.

Mac

He watched as Lanie and Callidora hugged one another. The sight softened his heart.

“You are going to take them from us, aren’t you?” a guy said, and Mac turned to face Jase.

“What do you mean?”

“You’re important. More than I gave you credit for. You’ve not told Lanie how important,” Jase started.

“She knows I am a leader,” Mac replied.

“Does she know you’re actually the leader?” Jase asked.

“I’m one of several,” Mac refuted.

“I spoke to Chimera. He warned me before leaving that not a hair on your head is to be harmed. My brother made that very clear,” Jase said.

“The truth is that after the Legends, I am in control. I’m a general, and I’ll march into battle. Lanie, as my mate, will be revered twice over. Lanie’s opinion will hold weight in Refuge, and people will seek her out for advice. That is who I am. I take Refuge’s security very seriously, and I rule beside the Legends.”

“Makes you a king,” Jase said, and Mac snorted.

“No. Makes me a man with a load of responsibility and several hundred thousand lives on my shoulders. It makes me tired and shitty at times, but fills me with pride when I see a kid conquer a move that has bothered him. Or a baby is born. I’m proud when a line that was nearly wiped out flourishes once again. That’s what being in charge means,” Mac replied.

“Chimera told me you were a good man. I needed to check. Lanie was fooled before, and it almost destroyed her,” Jase said, rubbing his brow.

“And Alainen will pay for that error. And for the bond he forced on her. That is beyond a violation,” Mac growled.

“No argument there,” Jase agreed.

“Alainen has a reckoning, and it’ll hurt. And I’ll ensure he stays down this time!”

“Do that, and give her peace,” Jase replied, and Mac nodded.

Alainen’s twisted deeds were coming to an end.