Page 44 of Magic & Secrets (Twisted Magic #1)

HAVEN JUNCTION STOOD eerily quiet. The bodies were gone. The normal bustle had been silenced along with my friends’ lives. I walked slowly into the village and allowed my heart to embrace their loss. I was a different male now than the one who left to find vengeance.

Calla held my hand as we stood at the center of Haven Junction. She had seen the slaughter take place. I recognized in her expression how the memory haunted her.

“Are you ready for me to summon my pack leader?” I asked Calla.

Her soft gaze sharpened, and she nodded. “I don’t sense my sisters here. You should assume we’re the first ones to the mountain.”

Inside a meeting hall, I pressed the siren before returning to Calla. Behaving nervously, she kept touching the blade holster at her hip.

“If someone attempts to harm you, allow me to handle them,” I warned her. “Just flee and I will bring them to their senses.”

“You are well aware I’m incapable of deserting you.”

“Can’t you obey me? I recall you saying you’d submit if we were mates.”

Calla shrugged. “I don’t recall ever saying such a thing.”

“It was at the ruined outpost. Since I claimed we weren’t mates, you refused to obey me. You claimed you would obey if we were mates.”

Calla rubbed her chin and murmured, “Hm, strangely, none of that sounds familiar.”

Grinning at her lies, I accepted the Sagesse had gifted me a stubborn mate. I kissed the top of her head and listened as Bane Shifters approached.

My packmates lingered in the woodlands, hesitant to welcome me once they caught sight of Calla. They chose to wait for Tempe’s arrival.

The alarm droned on. Tempe could be anywhere on the massive mountain. He might take hours to find his way here.

While we waited, I wrapped Calla in my arms and swayed. She stroked my jaw and lifted her lips. I tugged her up into an embrace and kissed her without concern for the eyes on us. My packmates would know the truth soon enough.

My pack leader eventually appeared from the tree line and shifted into human form. I leaned into the office and turned off the alarm. Tempe’s black hair clung to his sweaty face as he prowled closer. His golden gaze locked onto Calla until he was several feet from us.

“Where are Koda and Delta? And who is that?” Tempe snarled at me.

“The world has changed while we were on our mountain. I need you to prepare yourself for what I must share.”

“First, you will answer my questions.”

“I don’t know where Delta and Koda are. An ancient one’s magic was used to separate us during battle.”

Tempe scowled at my explanation before jutting his bearded chin toward Calla.

“This is my mate, Calla.”

On our trip here, I had imagined many possible reactions from Tempe: anger, disbelief, mocking laughter. I never suspected he would show no reaction at all.

“What other changes have come to the world?” Tempe asked while October, Recon, and Charlie left the forest and shifted while joining us.

Heartened by how Tempe hadn’t reacted poorly, I explained, “New enemies are on the rise. Some of them plan to come for us.”

Tempe glanced around Haven Junction. Even with the bodies removed, I could still smell the blood and death.

“We will send a platoon to find Delta and Koda.”

“You need to listen to me,” I said, stepping closer. “I was forced to flee Elatalora. The Elves tried to kill Calla and me. An ancient god’s cult wants to harvest the Bane Shifters for sacrifices. There’s no telling the dangers coming.”

“Why would the Elves turn against you?” Tempe asked me as his gaze fell upon Calla.

“The Elves were led astray by a traitor within their ranks.”

“Were they angry with you or her?”

“Both because we’re mates.”

“What is she?”

“Before I answer, did you know the Murade used the magic of the ancient one called Vyanlpoth to make us?”

“Yes,” Tempe said, startling me along with October, Charlie, and Recon. “When we had the Murade destroy their research on our creation, we also insisted they kill the Sorcerer involved.”

“Why not say anything?”

“What point was there in you knowing?”

“The ancient ones are orchestrating changes within Lavinia,” I explained. “One called Ivitithi sent the creatures here to kill our friends in Haven Junction.”

“What does that have to do with her?” Tempe asked. “Who made her?”

“Magic folk called the Gathering want Calla dead now that we’ve mated.”

Tempe studied the woodlands behind us. “I’ve had strange dreams for many full moons now. I need you to say the words to make this real.”

Understanding Tempe’s meaning, I glanced at my packmates and gave voice to our leader’s dreams. “Calla and her sisters are the New Armgard. They were made using the magic of an ancient one called Solme Divige.”

My packmates growled immediately and prepared to battle, yet Tempe only watched Calla.

“The Bane Shifters are my family,” I told them. “But Calla is my mate, and I am compelled to protect her.”

“Are you threatening us?” October asked as claws slid from his human fingertips.

“Yes.”

Tempe lifted his hand to calm the others. “Where do you think Koda and Delta are?”

“With Calla’s sisters.”

“They’re mates, too, yes?”

“Is that what you dreamt?”

“I’ve dreamt of war. I didn’t understand what I was seeing. I tried to protect Haven Junction, but I hadn’t planned for ancient magic. Once it happened, I put together other parts of my dreams.”

“We are pawns,” I said and glanced at each Bane Shifter. “Just like we were with the Murade. An ancient one orchestrates our fates. We can’t fight her, but we can use the power she awakens within us to defeat our enemies.”

“Awakens how?”

“In Elatalora, I shifted into a dragon and breathed fire.”

“Impossible,” Charlie muttered.

“I flew for thousands of miles. It came as naturally as shifting into a lion,” I replied before shrugging. “Landing was a little tricky, though.”

“How is this possible?” October asked Tempe.

Rather than wait for my pack leader to answer, I said, “The mate bond has supercharged the magic within me.”

“The Armgard can’t stay here,” Recon told Tempe. “She shouldn’t be trusted.”

“Calla carries my youngling.”

Backing away, October insisted, “These things can’t happen.”

“The Gathering fears what Calla and I have created together. It’s likely the same for Koda and Delta with their mates.”

Tempe rubbed his jaw. “Do the Murade know about this New Armgard?”

“Unlikely. The Gathering won’t want a single rogue Armgard to upset their plans to replace the Murade. This Cult of Ivitithi thinks sacrificing us to their ancient god will provide them the power to defeat the Murade.”

Tempe studied Calla. “You’ve gone rogue, yes? Will your kind come here to hunt you?”

“Possibly, but sending the New Armgard to the mountain will tempt the loss of the Gathering’s army of warriors.”

“Because we can kill them?”

“And my kind seems destined to mate with your kind. Either way, sending the New Armgard here might mean the warriors never return to the Citadel.”

“They fear our offspring,” I said and stroked Calla’s stomach. “They ought to be worried if our two groups link up and create order in the Territories.”

“I don’t trust you,” Tempe told Calla. “But I do trust my instincts. I should have followed them more closely, and maybe Haven Junction would be filled with our friends now.”

Exhaling, Tempe turned his golden eyes to me.

“I also trust your instincts. If you say danger is coming for the Bane Shifters, we will prepare. Bring your mate with you onto the mountain where we can speak safely. We’ll assign a guard to Haven Junction to keep watch for when Delta and Koda return. If someone wants war, we’ll be ready.”

Calla smiled at me before turning her gaze toward the woodlands at the mountain’s base. Taking her hand in mine, I guided her toward her new home.