Page 27 of Claws for Celebration (Hollow Oak Mates #3)
LUCIEN
T he Council safehouse felt like a tomb, its sterile walls offering none of the warmth and character that had made the bookstore feel like home.
Lucien sat at the small table in the main room, surrounded by ancient texts about dimensional prisons and shadow lords, trying to research their enemy while ignoring the way his panther clawed frantically at his control.
Twenty-six hours since he'd walked away from Moira. Twenty-six hours of watching Hollow Oak's magical grid flicker like a dying lightbulb as her emotional distress destabilized everything the town's defenses relied upon.
His plan to slow her magical development through separation wasn't just failing. It was making everything catastrophically worse.
"Malphas the Destroyer," he read aloud from a particularly grim Council archive, his voice echoing in the empty room.
"Shadow lord of the seventh realm, banished during the Great Convergence of 1692 after nearly consuming the Eastern seaboard.
Known for feeding on magical energy and corrupting supernatural bloodlines to serve his purposes. "
The description matched everything the grimoire had implied about the prisoner Seraphina had bound.
An ancient entity that specialized in turning powerful magic users into weapons for his own resurrection.
No wonder the Shadowheart Codex had been so focused on accelerating Moira's development while encouraging their mate bond to provide additional magical amplification.
His phone buzzed with another text from Maeve: Perimeter breach on the eastern approach. Magical surges from downtown getting stronger. Whatever you're doing isn't working.
Lucien's hands clenched into fists as he read the message.
Every instinct he possessed screamed at him to return to Moira's side, to provide the stability and support that would help her regain control of her abilities.
But the research spread across the table painted a terrifying picture of what could happen if her power reached the threshold Malphas needed for release.
The sound of breaking glass from somewhere outside made him look up sharply, his enhanced hearing picking up the distinctive whistle of something moving fast through the night air. Then came the screams.
"Shit," he muttered, grabbing his weapons and communication gear as emergency alarms began wailing throughout Hollow Oak. His phone lit up with incoming calls from every Council member simultaneously.
He answered Varric's call while running toward the commotion. "What's the situation?"
"Coordinated vampire assault on three fronts," the elder's voice crackled with tension. "They're taking advantage of the magical instability to push through our weakened defenses. We need all available personnel."
"On my way," Lucien replied, but even as he spoke, his attention was drawn to a glow emanating from the direction of the bookstore. Golden light pulsed erratically against the night sky, visible even through the buildings that separated him from Moira's location.
"Lucien," Varric's voice carried a warning that made his blood run cold. "The magical surges are centered on your mate's position. If the vampires realize she's the source of the instability..."
"They'll go straight for her," Lucien finished, his panther roaring to life with territorial fury that made his vision blur red around the edges. "How many vampires are we talking about?"
"Viktor's entire coven, plus reinforcements. At least a dozen hostiles moving through the downtown core."
Lucien ended the call and shifted into a dead sprint that carried him through Hollow Oak's winding streets faster than human speed should have allowed.
The sounds of battle grew louder as he approached the town center: the clash of supernatural abilities, the distinctive hiss of vampire movement followed by the chaotic pulse of uncontrolled magic that made his shifter senses scream with alarm.
The scene that greeted him outside the bookstore was worse than his worst fears.
Viktor's coven had surrounded the building, their pale forms moving with predatory coordination as they tested the flickering barriers that protected Moira inside.
But the golden dome of protective magic wasn't stable anymore.
It pulsed and sparked with wild energy that spoke of power on the verge of complete breakdown.
"There," Viktor called out as he spotted Lucien's approach. "The mate arrives just in time to watch his beloved's magic consume her from the inside."
"Back away from her," Lucien snarled, claws extending as his panther pushed against his human control. "Last warning."
"Or what? You'll fight all of us while she destroys herself trying to maintain barriers she can't properly control?" Viktor's pale eyes gleamed with satisfaction. "Your separation gambit has failed spectacularly, shifter. She's more vulnerable now than ever."
As if to prove his point, the protective dome around the bookstore flickered and nearly collapsed before surging back to unstable brightness.
Through the chaotic golden light, Lucien could see Moira's silhouette, her hands pressed against the glass as she struggled to maintain defenses that were clearly beyond her current ability to sustain.
"She needs help," said Elena Ashford, who had appeared beside him with several other local witches. "The magical feedback is too much for one person to handle, especially in her emotional state."
"Then help her," Lucien replied, but even as he spoke, three vampires launched themselves toward the weakest point in Moira's barriers.
The protective dome shattered like glass.
Lucien's panther exploded into full control before his human mind could process the threat.
The transformation took him mid-stride, human form melting into two hundred pounds of lethal black fur and righteous fury.
His enhanced vision locked onto the vampire closest to the bookstore's entrance, and he launched himself through the air with claws extended and fangs bared.
The impact sent both him and his target crashing through the front window in a shower of glass and snarls. Lucien's panther wasted no time with tactical considerations, ripping through the vampire's throat with efficiency born of centuries of evolution as an apex predator.
But even as he dispatched the first threat, his enhanced hearing picked up sounds that made his blood freeze. More vampires had breached the bookstore's interior. Moira's voice, raised in what sounded like a spell but carried an edge of panic that made his territorial instincts scream.
Underneath it all, a new sound that didn't belong to vampire assault or magical defense. Something vast and hungry stirring in response to the chaos, as if the dimensional barriers were weakening with every surge of uncontrolled power.
"Lucien!" Moira's voice cut through the sounds of battle, tinged with relief and terror in equal measure. "The grimoire! It's responding to the magical instability. I can't control it anymore!"
He spun toward her voice, his panther form still locked in protective mode, just in time to see Viktor himself materialize behind her with inhuman speed. The vampire leader's fangs were extended, his pale hands reaching for her throat with predatory precision.
Lucien's roar of challenge echoed through the destroyed bookstore as he launched himself toward them, but even as he moved, he realized he might be too late.
Viktor was faster, closer, and Moira's attention was divided between the grimoire's mental compulsions and the magical chaos surrounding them.
The vampire's hands closed around her shoulders just as something else began manifesting in the space above the open Shadowheart Codex.
Something dark and terrible that spoke of ancient evil stirring in response to the perfect storm of uncontrolled magic, emotional trauma, and supernatural violence.
Malphas was awakening, and they were all about to discover exactly what three centuries of imprisoned rage could accomplish when given the opportunity for revenge.