Tany stepped out of the circle of standing stones just as the moon cleared the ridge, her high heels crunching on frost-rimed pine needles. The Groken tree loomed ahead, older than Damon itself, its black bark scarred with claw marks and old blood. She didn't think she would see it so soon after what transpired some time ago, but here she was, making up for her misdeeds-kind of.
"Subtle," she muttered, flicking a speck of bark-dust off her sleeve. "Real subtle."
She didn't bother hiding her approach. Why would she? Anyone with half a brain already knew a witch was coming; the wards around the tree had screamed the second her foot crossed the border. Let them sweat, she smirked and flipped her hair. It was the least she could do: fight the Alpha and help bring the pixies back to their province.
A low growl rolled out from the shadows. Six wolves stepped into the moonlight, hackles raised, eyes glowing amber. Awwe, they were pack enforcers, how cute!
"Evening, gentlemen," Tany said, voice syrupy. "I'm here for your boss. Be dears and fetch, would you?"
The biggest wolf lunged without warning, jaws wide enough to take her thigh off. Tany sighed, snapped her fingers, and whispered, "Vincula."
Silver threads of light whipped out, looping the wolf mid-air and slamming it to the ground, legs bound tight. The others charged. She spun, left hand sketching a quick sigil, right foot already lashing out. Her heel caught the second wolf under the jaw; the crack of bone was satisfying. A whispered "Flamma" sent a ribbon of violet fire curling around her forearm. She flicked it like a whip, carving a burning line across the ground. Two wolves skidded to a halt just short of singed fur.
"Next," she called, almost bored.
The remaining three tried flanking. Tany laughed, short, sharp, delighted, and leapt. She landed on the back of the nearest, fingers digging into fur as she vaulted over, twisting in mid-air. "Scindere." The word sliced the night. Invisible blades of force sheared through muscle and tendon; the wolf collapsed with a yelp, hind legs useless.
She hit the ground in a crouch, rolled under a snapping bite, and drove her elbow into another's throat.
CRUNCH!
"There goes your cartilage," she mocked; at the corner of her eye, she saw one leaving the area. Hmm, she thought that was smart of them.
Tany straightened, brushed a leaf off her coat. "Run along," she told it. "Tell your Alpha the witch is in a mood."
The wolf bolted.
She continued toward the Groken tree without breaking stride. More wolves spilled from the underbrush (twelve this time). The more the merrier as they say.
Tany cracked her neck. "Finally, a warm-up."
She moved like water and knives. A spinning kick shattered a ribcage. A murmured "Glacies" flash-frozen the ground beneath three others; they slipped, crashed, and she was already past them, palm pressed to the nearest flank. "Tonitrus." Lightning forked from her hand, arcing wolf to wolf in a chain of sizzling yelps.
One got close enough to rake claws across her coat. The leather held. She grabbed the offending paw, twisted until bone snapped, and used the wolf's own momentum to fling it into a tree trunk.
BAM!
Bark exploded.
Another leapt from above. She dropped flat, let it sail overhead, then rolled to her feet and punched a sigil straight into its exposed belly. "Detonare." The wolf burst apart in a harmless spray of silver light (illusion shattered, real body hurled twenty feet back, unconscious before it landed).
The last four circled warily. Tany lifted both hands, fingers dancing. "Anyone else want to dance?"
They charged together. She grinned, savage and bright.
"Perfect."
She clapped once. The air folded. Every wolf froze mid-leap, suspended in spheres of rippling force. Tany strolled between them like a general reviewing statues.
"Listen carefully," she said, tapping one sphere so it spun lazily. "I'm here for the lead Alpha. You have ten seconds to point me before I start getting creative."
A deeper growl answered from the darkness beneath the Groken tree itself (older, rougher, laced with authority).
Tany's grin widened. "There he is."
She flicked her wrist. The spheres popped; twelve wolves dropped in groaning heaps. She stepped over them without looking down.
"Lead Alpha of Damon," she called, voice ringing clear under the ancient branches. "You've been avoiding my letters. That's rude. I know, I know, Zhiliary gave you this position but things changed."
"You are our allies," he said.
"See...see, no, witches...we are loyal to no one," she reminded him.
A massive shadow detached from the tree, moving with deliberate calm. Moonlight finally caught him (broad, powerful, every inch the province's top wolf).
Tany tilted her head. "Took you long enough. Shall we talk, or do I have to break more of your toys?"
He stopped three paces away, arms loose at his sides.
"Witch," he rumbled. "You've made your point."
"Have I?" She arched a brow. "Because I can keep going. I'm very motivated tonight."
He studied her for a long beat, then inclined his head, just barely.
"Speak, then."
Tany smiled, all teeth and honey.
"Excellent. First, you're going to listen. Second, you're going to agree. And third," she glanced at the moaning pile of enforcers, "you're buying me a drink after, because I just did half your security audit for free."
She stepped forward until they were toe to toe.
"Now," she said softly, "about this land that you'll be giving back to the pixies..." The wolves in this area fell faster than what she was expecting but as she stood near the tree, it reminded her just how bad the Apex pack really wanted power. Maybe the other Alphas simply didn't want it strong enough. They tried but this Damon leader was by far the weakest compared to the four. So...that left only one Alpha left: Zhiliary.
Tany turned her head in the direction of Red Woods; it all felt so sudden how quickly things were coming to an end. One minute, she was in school with her friends and here she was as an adult, fighting wars. She smirked and flipped her hair once more. So it was to be.