Out of Darkness Ch. 16

Drago couldn't see what was happening behind the barriers. They were bringing the wounded there to get them out of further harm's way. How many would be alive when they were done?

Suddenly he caught movement out of the corner of his eye, movement that seemed familiar. He saw the giant wolf that used his own Betas as shields. He'd never noticed what a coward Erobos really was before.

Alpha, he's over there. Drago directed Leo's line of sight to the Dire Wolf that cowered from the onslaught.

It's time. Leo picked his way down from their precarious position, Drago and his Betas close behind. The panther Alpha was amazingly agile for a beast so large. His tail flagged behind him like a counterweight as he walked through the loose rocks.

Drago kept an open eye as they moved towards their quarry. They moved silently past the wolves engaged in mortal combat on either side of them. Their job was clear, to cut the head off the dragon.

Drago could see another group of wolves fighting behind the convoy of cars. Carr's Police Officer Betas must be attacking from the rear.

He watched with disgust as Erobos shifted and ducked into a vehicle to hide in the back seat. Did he only fight when he knew he could win? Drago and the panther Betas made short work of the twenty or so wolves who had been left behind to guard their so-called Alpha.

Leo and Drago shifted and stood next to the tinted windows. Leo nodded and Drago rapped his knuckles on the hard glass.

There was no response from the car. Drago knocked again. "Vieni fuori, capo." Drago waited a moment. "Ho hai trovato qualche pantere. Non è quello che volevi?"

Drago noticed his father watching him from nearby, drying blood on his fur. He cocked his head. What did you say, Drago?

Drago smiled and looked at his father. I said "Come out, boss. I found you some panthers. Isn't that what you wanted?"

Zsigmond laughed to himself. His son had a sense of humor. Yes, Erobos would have all the panthers he could handle.

"Come out Erobos. Face your enemies like an Alpha." Leo's voice roared in anger.

Drago thought for a moment and a grin slowly came to his face. He reached for the car door and pulled on the handle. Erobos never did know anything about cars. The door opened without a problem. Erobos flattened himself against the far door. Drago bent down and peeked into the darkened car. "What's wrong, Boss?"

Erobos looked about him for a way of escape. They would have to come in after him. He could keep them at bay that way.

Drago looked at a large black panther on the other side of the car and grinned. The male immediately shifted, and grinned back at Drago before opening the opposite door.

Erobos slid out of the car onto the ground, landing with a loud thud. He looked up and saw that he was surrounded by panthers!

Leo quickly strode to the other side of the car and looked down at the pathetic creature before him. "You will pay for your crimes now, Erobos. You have much to answer for."

"What crimes? I have only lived as a werewolf. I have committed no crimes." Erobos almost sounded convincing. Almost.

Leo stood tall in front of his prisoner. "For the crime of killing my brother and the remainder of the werepanther pack in Sardinia, I condemn you to death."

A large brown wolf shifted and Guillame stood next to Leo. "For the crime of destroying the Vlkolak of Hungary, I condemn you to death."

Zsigmond followed his Alpha, standing at his shoulder, staring down at the filth at their feet. "For the crime of stealing my cub, I condemn you to death."

The chocolate wolf shifted, catching his breath before speaking. "For the crime of setting a pack of Dire Wolves loose in my territory and endangering my pack, I condemn you to death."

"Does the condemned have anything he wishes to say before the sentence is carried out?" Leo spoke as the males stood over the contemptible beast at their feet.

Erobos kept glancing at his Betas who had slowed their fighting and looked in his direction. But none came his way to assist him. He looked around him at the ring of panthers surrounding him. His voice croaked, "I... I have nothing to say." He hung his head. A thought suddenly came to him. "Is Leona here? May I speak with her?"

Leo looked at Guillame. "Leona is long dead, Erobos. You killed her."

"But I saw her picture! Gary found her. She is living here, with this pack." He looked at the faces looming over him. "I swear, I saw her!" His voice sounded almost desperate.

Carr wondered if the Dire Wolf was even sane. From those few examples he had met, he highly doubted it. "That was not Leona. She is dead."

"No, no!" The long gaunt fingers covered his face as he began mumbling to himself. "No, Leona shouldn't have died. I could have made her what I am. She would have lived forever with me."

Leo growled menacingly. "My niece would NEVER have allowed herself to become what you are, Erobos."

Zsigmond gnashed his teeth, gritting them as he spoke. "Why did you take my cub?" His nostrils flared as he breathed deeply, trying to control the rage that had been building since that day, thirty years before.

The pale face looked up at the Beta and sneered. "That was just fortuitous chance. He served a purpose, that is all. If I had known he was Vlkolak, I would have killed him where he stood and then slaughtered your entire family!"

Zsigmond had been growling quietly to himself but erupted with the fury that had been growing deep inside him since learning of his son's kidnapping. He leapt forward before Guillame could stop him and shifted in mid air.

Zsigmond, no! Guillame reached for him but his arm slipped through his fingers as he shifted.

Erobos transformed in response, and the much bigger Dire Wolf was able to deflect the black wolf in time and save himself from major injury. The wolf was sent several feet into the air before crashing down onto the hood of the car, stunned for the moment. The concussion caused the car alarm to sound off, echoing through the remote mountain pass.

The sound reverberated around them, loud in normal circumstances, unbearable to the wolves with their sensitive hearing. Leo stood with his hands over his ears, trying to keep the noise out.

The fighting had essentially ended, and both sides stood staring at the group near the car. One of the rogues ran to the car, bowing to the Alphas. "Alphas, would you like me to turn off the alarm?"

They looked at him in disbelief. "Yes, please do." Carr watched the male closely as he got into the front seat and found the keys where he had stashed them in the console. He disabled the alarm and backed out of the car, standing in front of Carr, his head bowed.

Carr looked out at the dead and dying bodies strewn around the roadside. He looked back at the male in front of him. "Why did you fight us?"

"He is our Alpha; we had no choice." The male spoke with remorse.

"Where are you from?"

"Sardinia, Sir."

"How long have you been in this country? You have no accent."

"I came here in 1753, Sir. Many of us were sent about that time to search for living panthers."

"And did you search?"

The male hung his head. "I did for a time, Sir. But after a few decades, I had found a mate and settled with her pack."

"Why did you come here to fight for him?" Carr nodded in the direction of the Dire Wolf.

"When I mated I never formed a bond with my mate's Alpha. When Erobos came to this country, I felt the bond with him immediately and was drawn here. I had no choice, Sir. It's the same for most of us, Sir. We couldn't go against our Alpha." The male couldn't look up.

"And do you still feel the bond with your Alpha?"

"No, Sir. It's been broken. He is no longer an Alpha. He's shown himself the coward he probably always was."

"Do you have cubs?"

"Yes, Sir." The male grinned. "My mate and I have several. They range in age from two hundred years old to two, Sir."

"And are any of them here?"

"Oh no, Sir. I would never let them meet Erobos, Sir. Never!"

Carr looked at Leo and Guillame. They nodded solemnly. Carr turned back to the male, but looked out at the others who had gathered around them.

"All of you, go back to your homes and families. We know you had no choice; he was your Alpha and ordered you. Now that you are free of him, maybe you'll bond with other Alphas. Go, now!"

The male bowed again to the Alphas and ran to his friends who scoured the landscape for their brothers, dead or alive. The packs watched as Erobos' army left him in the dust. The line of cars drove away, past the barrier that had barred their escape earlier.

Now only the one car remained, with Erobos cowering behind it. His wolves had deserted him.

Carr finally took a moment to look for Cole. He spotted him walking slowly behind the barrier, tending to the wounded. He knew he'd been badly wounded and, for a time, Carr had thought him close to death. But he had regained strength enough to heal. It must not have been as bad as he'd first thought.

Bryant and Brett appeared at his shoulder within minutes of the retreat of their foes. "Gather the wounded and get them back to the pack. Jeff and Logan are waiting. Make sure Cole goes with you."

"Nathan, you stay here with me."

Nathan nodded. This was an honor, to be asked to attend the Alpha in the absence of his second. But why? There were others that outranked him.

"I saw what you did for Cole. I will always be greatful, Nathan." Carr turned away and walked quickly back to Erobos, the tall blond Beta on his heels.

Carr took his place next to Guillame. The three Alphas stood in front of Erobos. His fate was decided and there was no turning back. Zsigmond had regained his senses and stood behind his Alpha, still fuming, but far more under control.

"Well, Erobos. Do you want to fight for your life?" Leo stared into the small dark eyes of his lifelong enemy.

"Yes, I will fight!"

"And you will die!" Leo shifted and stood, waiting for his foe.

Erobos shifted and faced the panther. He had forgotten how big some of these panthers were. When he had fought Leo's brother he had been strengthened by the blood of the Dire Wolves. It had been hundreds of years since he had slaked his thirst on the strong blood of a Dire Wolf.

Leo circled the wolf, watching closely for any hints at his fighting style. It was quickly apparent that he had none. He relied exclusively on his size and speed, but had no skill. The panther smiled to himself. He would make the Dire Wolf suffer. He jumped forward and nicked the wolf's forearm with his fangs.

Erobos howled in pain. Impossible. He barely touched me. Why does my leg feel on fire? The wolf limped as he moved, trying to block out the searing pain.

The air was filled with the sounds of the panthers growling and roaring, cheering on their Alpha as he made the abomination pay the price for sending them into exile, killing their families, and destroying their pack.

Leo jumped in again and bit down just enough to break the skin on another of Erobos' legs. Again he backed off and enjoyed the sounds of painful cries from his opponent.

Erobos could feel the blood in his veins, and it felt like it was burning him from the inside. What was this? What had the panther done? He went on the attack and jumped forward, only to land on the empty ground, the panther having easily evaded his attack.

He realized he was now facing the brown wolf. He watched it carefully, unsure what was happening. The wolf flew into the air and came down on his back. Erobos reared up on his hind legs, trying to use his front paws to dislodge his attacker, but to no avail. He felt teeth sink into the his neck, severing the muscles. His head dropped, and now he was unable to raise his head. He was reduced to watching his enemies from lowered eyes.

The Dire Wolf now saw his next opponent. It was the chocolate wolf. He saw the bright green eyes approach him. He watched it warily. He tried to follow the wolf's movements, but his blood felt cold, his legs heavy, his head unmoving. The emerald-eyed wolf bowled him over with a body slam and tore into the Dire Wolf's belly, ripping him open from navel to the bottom of his rib cage.

Erobos was confused when he saw the long loops of pink bowel laying on the ground. Had he injured the wolf? But soon he realized it was his own! He was doomed. There would be no hope now. They were exacting their revenge. He was reminded of the red panther's last words to him a millenium before.

You have sealed your fate, Erobos. Your end will come, and it will be horrible to behold. But you will have brought it upon yourself.

Again another wolf hovered over him, tearing at his throat, laying it open to bleed profusely, but still they did not kill him.

He lay there, breathing deeply, but his life lingering. Why didn't he just die? None of his wounds healed. He blinked up at the wolves and panthers that were now human and looking down at his body. He could hear their faceless voices.

"Do we leave him to die on his own? Or kill him?"

"I say we let him suffer, for as long as it takes."

"I want to rip his beating heart out!"

Leo looked up at the setting sun. "It will be night soon." He heard the coyotes in the distance. "We need to make a decision."

Guillame still harbored a hate for this thing that he'd never thought possible. "Stake him out for the carrion eaters. The more he suffers, the more he pays for his atrocities."

The other two Alphas exchanged a look and nodded.

"Agreed." Leo called Drago over. "Do you wish to have someone else do it? You have known him since you were a cub. I won't make you do it."

"Alpha, he destroyed a part of my life that I can never regain. Who knows what he would have done to Kelly if I hadn't stolen her away. I will do whatever you ask."

Stake him out!

Leo turned on his heel and with his Betas in tow, returning to their vehicles. "Help the wolves gather their wounded and dead."

Drago worked with his father to tie the wolf spreadeagled to await death. Drago looked down at the thing he used to call Alpha and was sickened. How could he have been so duped?

Zsigmond stood back, his hand on his son's shoulder. "We will wait in the darkness until he is dead. Then we will bury his body. I hope the animals rip him apart as he lives. Whatever he is, he isn't a werewolf. Any werewolf would be long dead by now."

"The older panthers told me even a regular Dire Wolf would be dead. They said their saliva can poison a Dire Wolf with a single bite, and yet he continued to fight." Drago looked up at the darkening sky. He could see the taillights from the departing vehicles on their way back to the pack compound.

"When the darkness lifts, our lives will start anew. No more shadows, my son. Only the light to guide us." Zsigmond smiled and sat down on a rock, his son next to him, to await the day.