A Healer's War

Chapter 61 - The Other Alpha

Chapter 61: The Other Alpha

A predator had arrived.

Stretched from all corners of the dark, swirling stormhead, the lightning converged. Bolts touched and fused, flickering occasionally until another bolt rebuilt the structure. A figure formed with great beating wings and a long, jagged beak; an eagle with talons outstretched as it boomed its war cry. With each beat of its wings, bolts raked the roadway in the distance, renting the pavement like a plow through the earth. When its beak opened, thunder vibrated the air.

Dawson felt a chill cool his burning skin, watching the massive Aspect lock eyes on him. He'd put down several greater Aspects before, even fusing one to his Stain. It wasn't the bird whom the Heart of Wrath demanded their blood—it was the Wyth who'd been able to summon it. Caroline. Only a Path Master could pull off such a feat without dying for their hubris; those Wyth were indeed rare and had an irritating habit of taking too long to die.

"Speed up." He said.

"Sir?" His young driver said, shaking. The boy had just joined, filling in for the casualties inflicted by the golems. He reeked of fear.

"Fas-ter." Dawson growled.

The driver went white, and they sped up. The farms and tree-coated hills around them turned into a green blur.

Beneath the bird, a boxy campervan raced down the highway behind them. Caroline leaned out the window with one hand on the wheel and the other holding a blazing yellow mythstone high above her naked head. Forked tongues of jagged light danced between bird and stone like a lightning rod, tethering them together. Dawson marveled at the Aspect's raw power and felt the Heart bristle. Another predator had come. Another alpha. Seeing the thunder Aspect summoned an old loathing from deep Dawson - a loathing not his own, like an ancient grudge rekindled. He could hear his heartbeat in his ears, and he snarled the Heart's challenge. Next to him, the driver sunk into his chair with a grim expression. Good. He understood.

Dawson snatched the radio and bellowed, "Engage the Wyth! Keep her away from the Seed!"

"Roger," Captain Adams's voice came over the speaker. In the mirror, he saw the rear SUV detach from the convoy and drift back towards the Wyth. Black shapes leaned out every window and took aim at Caroline. Dawson waited, the Heart warming and filling him with jittery energy.

Gunshots popped from the rear of the column, and a dazzling curtain of lightning descended from the Thunderbird, shielding Caroline. The bird dimmed as it absorbed the fire. There. Dawson smiled to himself. He didn't need to defeat the Wyth when he could outlast her. Energy was the currency of casting, and even a Master had a budget.

Dawson shoved his finger in the twelve-volt cigarette lighter on the dashboard. "Not too much," Dawson said as the cab lights flickered as the Heart sang, siphoning heat and wrapping it inside his chest. Merging provided a significant advantage over other casting techniques. Where a Wyth needed time to recover and rest, a Merged stole more energy. Attrition would be Dawson's ally.

He caught his driver staring at his smoking and now glowing finger. "Steady, or I'll throw you to the witch." The driver's eyes snapped forward as he white-knuckled the steering wheel. He spared a glance into the back of his SUV where Jane Kim sat bound, gagged, and hooded, with armed troopers on either side. Yet despite the security, Dawson didn't trust the little woman not to pull something. Emmett sat in the seat before her, twisting around, watching the firefight.

Dawson slapped the back of Emmett's head to get his attention.

Emmett's expression had a stupid look of disbelief. "That's a Wyth?!"