Page 115 of Bound to Three Fae Beasts

A whinny broke through the trees, causing me to come to an abrupt stop. Freta slid to one side and squealed as she bit harder. I whimpered in pain. Both Seb and Gareth swung their heads toward me, lips curling back in snarls. I wagged my tail and licked first Seb’s face, then Gareth’s to reassure them. Jasper landed with a solid thud behind us.

A unicorn stumbled through the trees. It was a beautiful, pearly-white color. When it saw us, it stopped and tossed its head. Bands of magic rippled around its body and its eyes rolled wildly. It reared back, screamed, and charged for us. Gareth leapt in its path and batted it away with a massive paw, but it wheeled back around and nearly skewered him with its horn.

At the same time, a half-dozen other creatures burst from the forest. None of them were recognizable as any animal, constantly shifting pieces of themselves as they struggled to hold onto any singular form. My heart stuttered. They had given into the Surrender.

Gareth, Seb, and Jasper made a protective ring around us. I drew on my magic, sending out spells to defend them as they fended off our attackers. Blood and screams rent through the air as they fought viciously.

The unicorn saw an opening and charged for me, lowering its head to try to stab me. I dodged, but it wheeled around and kicked at me. My mates were all fending off multiple attackers at once, so I snapped my jaws, trying to get a firm hold on the unicorn.

Freta flew from my back and landed on the unicorn’s head, narrowly missing its horn. She snarled a terrible, black sound as she clawed at the unicorn’s eyes. Blood spurted over her and the white stripe down her nose turned red. The unicorn threw her off and attempted to trample her, but I lunged, knocking my shoulder into the unicorn’s flank. It stumbled and collapsed onto its side, screaming in pain.

I grabbed Freta by the back of her neck and took off again. She squirmed, snarling and howling as I raced with her dangling from my mouth. Jasper flew over us once more while Seb and Gareth stayed close to my sides.

We were nearly to the edge of the dark woods when we found Silas. He was still human—mostly. Different colors of patchy fur sprouted along his skin. He’d ripped off his shirt. One hand ended in wicked-looking claws, the other had swollen and changed shape. His face kept twitching, as though it was trying to change.

My stomach knotted when I saw him. I dropped Freta and she immediately ran toward him, squeaking in distress. Silas stopped and turned toward us, his gaze sweeping over us before landing on the badger.

“Freta?” he gasped, then let loose a savage howl. He seized her and flung her into a nearby tree.

She dropped to the ground, limp.

No! I howled and raced forward, throwing myself between Silas and Freta as he came at her again. Seb knocked him aside, then shuddered. Jasper let out a groan as the color of his scales shifted from gold to bronze. Even Freta was twitching in her unconscious state, her claws inching longer and longer.

Gareth was the only one not showing any sign of distress. He slapped Silas off his feet and pinned him beneath one massive paw. His green eyes latched on to me, and he seemed to be telling me I couldn’t save them.

I closed my eyes and reached out through the bond. I felt them there, Seb and Jasper, felt them fraying at the edges. They’d get through the Surrender, I knew that in some deep part of me. The power that flowed through this wolf form made me feel like something else, something more than what I’d come to the Academy thinking I was.

Confidently, I released the wolf. My physical form dissolved but I reached through the ether and found me again. I came back to myself, forming into my human flesh. Then I raced to Freta. She was coming undone, the bands of magic loosening from around her. Gareth let out a warning growl, but I ignored him as I pulled my friend’s badger form into my arms. She felt light and loose, as though she wasn’t entirely there.

The unbinding magic flowed off her, and I absorbed it. She grew heavier in my arms, until she was at last solid again. Her badger looked different somehow, but I didn’t take the time to study her. Not when Silas was letting out painful whimpers and groans. Seb and Jasper both shook themselves, stabilizing, as I crawled to Silas.

Gareth butted his head in my chest, growling again. I pushed him away. “He’s my friend. He’s important to me.”

Silas’s body twitched and twisted between his paw. Panic sliced through me, raw terror. Unlike Freta, he showed no signs of unbinding magic. He simply changing, mutating into something unrecognizable. Fangs erupted in his mouth, but they were too big. The skin over his face split as his bones changed shape, without any give to the muscles over them.

What should I do?

What could I do?

My hands fluttered as I gasped, nearly blinded with the terror. I couldn’t lose him, too! I couldn’t let him die! I yanked at my clothes, finding the vials of healing potions, and started to pour them over him. My mates gathered around, with Jasper collecting Freta and cradling her in one massive hand. I dumped the healing potions over Silas, but even as the potion took effect, another part of him tore open.

Gareth took human form and grabbed my wrists. “You’re only prolonging his pain. Let us—”

“No!” I screamed, twisting free. “NO! I won’t!” A sob ripped up my throat as I held Silas’s face, squeezing as I tried to hold him together. “Silas, you can’t die. Not like this. We need you. I need you. Please. Please.”

Tears blurred my vision. A hand touched my shoulder and I threw it off as I bent over Silas, shielding him with my body.

“I will destroy this world,” I gasped. “I will kill them all and I will burn it to the ground if you don’t come back. Please. Please, I don’t want to be that person. So come back. Please come back to me.”

A screech filled the woods. My head jerked up as my mates whirled. A huge griffin dropped from the sky, going straight for Seb. He jumped out of the way, but the griffin’s talons tore through his side, sending bursts of blood through the air.

Gareth and Jasper both jumped the beast at once. Gareth caught it around the neck and kicked viciously into its stomach while Jasper leapt onto its back. They subdued the beast quickly, and Gareth bit down on the griffin’s skull. I turned my face away, pressing it into Silas’s chest.

Something shimmered around me. I opened my eyes but couldn’t see anything different. I felt Silas’s heart beneath my hands. I gazed down at him as his back arched and his eyes flew open.

The griffin had wrestled itself free and was defending itself from the attack, clawing and striking out as it tried to get away. Jasper spewed venom at it and it narrowly escaped. The venom dissolved the tree behind it and it careened toward the fighting group. Jasper quickly threw himself over them, spreading his wings to deflect the falling tree.

Silas jerked. His hands came at my throat and I gasped, but he only grabbed my shirt and stared at me as though it was the first time he’d ever opened his eyes. The skin on his face stitched itself back over as the claws on his deformed hand touched my cheek.