Extinction Agenda (10 page)

Randolph shook his head. “No. Even if I did believe any of your lies, I would never believe that one. You stir the pot. Going back to legends spoken in forgotten tongues, that’s all you’ve ever done.”

Kawosa’s eyelids drooped shut and he lifted his snout. “You were here in those days,” he said. “You heard their songs. Heard the rattle of their beads when they danced. So many of those songs were for me.”

“Not just for you. They were for all of the Mist Born elders. I come to you now because I only need to find one of them.”

Randolph’s statement hung in the air for a minute.

And then another minute.

The wind blew. Branches shook. Finally, the silence became too much for one of them to bear.

“Which one?” Kawosa asked.

“Icanchu.”

“You only care to find one of the twins? Chuna will be disappointed.”

“Where are they?”

Some of Kawosa’s fur settled back down to cover his back, and a hint of the sly grin eased onto his face. “I could have told you as much without all this fanfare. You’ll need to ask Jaden. She hasn’t left the jungles even with the flap of the Breaking Moon, but you shouldn’t have any trouble sniffing her out.”

“I’ll need you to arrange the meeting,” Randolph said. “The Mist Born have remained hidden so well that we don’t even know the true name of their species. The only reason you were found was because of your propensity for toying with humans to earn a starring role in their myths.”

“They are here. They have never left.”

“I didn’t come all this way just to swap riddles with you, trickster. I sought you out because I need to know
exactly
where to find Icanchu. I also need to know how to defeat him.”

“Defeat Icanchu?” Kawosa chuckled. “I think the high and mighty Full Bloods truly have become full of themselves.”

Randolph lunged forward with brutal efficiency. “I know you were toying with me, telling me whatever needed to be said so you could pounce on the chance of freedom I offered. But you’ve gone too far in spreading Esteban’s voice across the world.”

None of the menace in Randolph’s voice was lost on the other shapeshifter. Kawosa moved like the top layer of snow that was just barely brushed aside from the white-capped field around him. With a minimal amount of effort he kept himself facing the Full Blood while also staying outside of the range of claws or fangs. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Don’t mistake me for one of the idiots who swallow your lies. The Breaking Moon may have given Full Bloods the power to unleash the Breaking at will, but not to the extent that has been ravaging the humans in the recent months. When he howls, humans drop for miles in all directions. They become another generation of wretches, and the only one who benefits from so many generations of wretches is you. You, who crafts them into something you can control. Perhaps you seek to replace the Full Bloods with your Half Breed abominations because you never could quite dominate us the way you do them.”

“This isn’t the best way to gain my favor,” Kawosa warned.

“You mean the favor you would have dangled in front of me until I turned my back long enough for you to sink your claws into it? Keep it.”

“If you wish to challenge the likes of Icanchu, then I’m the least of your worries.”

“You were a necessary evil,” Randolph said. “As long as you were free to roam, my brethren would be watching you, and the humans would be preoccupied with whatever chaos you helped unleash. I thought your manipulation of the wretches’ bloodline would take a lot longer, but that doesn’t matter anymore. Now is the moment I’ve known was coming from the instant I freed you from Jonah Lancroft’s dungeon. Now is when you pay for your freedom by giving me what I need to steal Icanchu’s prize.”

“And what happens if I don’t do as you ask?”

“Then I’ll be forced to assert myself.”

“That isn’t quite a threat,” Kawosa reminded him. “There’s a little room before you commit yourself that far. Back away now and I’ll assume you’re overly enthusiastic. Quite understandable in these volatile times.”

“All right. How’s this? Give me what I want, make good on repaying a debt that allowed you to smell this fine winter air instead of the dusty rock beneath Lancroft’s basement, or I’ll tear your head from your shoulders and take it to Icanchu to show that jungle demon I truly mean business. Considering your reputation among the older Mist Born, both of the twins will thank me for silencing you.”

“Killing me won’t get you anywhere,” Kawosa snarled. “That is, if you can even accomplish such a feat.”

“You’re not a fighter, Ktseena,” Randolph warned. “Perhaps you should make good and be done with this. I’ve gone too far to turn back now.”

“Just because you haven’t seen me kill doesn’t mean I’m inexperienced in that arena. You don’t want to do this.”

Randolph blinked and cringed as he was assaulted by those last few words. Whatever power Kawosa put behind his lies to make someone immediately believe them, he was using it to its full extent. Somehow, whether through his shared lineage with the shapeshifter or through sheer force of will, Randolph withstood the barrage. “There are ways for us to benefit from ending this war.”

“But you want it only to end by your hand. To do that, your hand must be balled into the mightiest fist there has ever been. The quiet you seek will come at the expense of too many lives.”

“There are too many lives in this world as is,” Randolph growled. “Shapeshifter and human alike. If that number continues to grow, one species will devour the other and the landscape will be forever scarred. Both sides need to be culled, and the Balance needs to be preserved. Esteban is helping you create more wretches, and the wretches are cutting a bloody swath through the humans. When that is over, the wretches will tip the scales through sheer numbers. Esteban thinks he can control them, but I know
you
are the one waiting for your moment to show it is your hand at the reins.”

“If you know so much, you should have left me in Lancroft’s pit.”

Randolph had taken a form that was bristling with raw, elemental might. Saliva flowed off of fangs the size of a man’s fingers, only to freeze in the thick fur that hung from his chin. “The noise that fills this modern world has become deafening. In order to silence it, the Full Bloods needed first to be heard above the commotion. Liam knew this, but all he wanted was to rage against them all. The Skinners were a larger obstacle than any of our kind ever realized, but it was the leeches that suppressed them long enough for us to mobilize like never before. The Breaking Moon rose and you were free to make the best of it. But I have read the legends. I know that you are the First Deceiver. The first Full Blood. While your lies may not sink as deeply into our minds, your influence burrows like a worm that sinks further and further in the longer you infect our kind with your presence. That is why I spent most of the Breaking Moon far away from this place.

“I know the Skinners better than anyone. I have learned all there is to know about my brethren. I even knew where to find you when the time came. All I need is a source of the Torva’ox that is stronger than what now flows through even your veins. When I have that, there will be a culling that will silence the yapping population of human and shapeshifter alike.”

“And you believe Icanchu will help you do this?” Kawosa asked. “You are a fool.”

“I did not start this bloodshed, but I offer you a chance to be one of the survivors after I finish it.”

“I’ll take my chances on my own. Gambling with Death offers better odds than siding with an angry pup like you.”

“And I’m through with taking chances. Since you won’t give me what I need, I’ll take it from you.” Randolph lunged. He dropped to all fours and barely allowed his front paws to touch the ground before springing forward and baring almost every fang in his mouth with a wide, vicious snarl.

Kawosa planted his paws in the snow, bobbing his head down and to the side before rolling away as the Full Blood’s jaws clamped shut above him. He might have avoided getting his head snipped off, but a good portion of his fur along with a patch of flesh on the back of his neck were sheared away.

Twisting his head to take another snap at Kawosa, Randolph clamped down on empty air. When he opened his mouth again, he spat out the little piece of Kawosa he’d claimed as if the furry patch of flesh had put a foul taste in his mouth. Then he kicked up a frozen white wave as he scrambled to turn back around and face his opponent. Kawosa was there waiting for him.

The trickster wore a weary smile. His black eyes shifted to a cloudy green and then became perfect crystalline orbs similar to a Full Blood’s. Randolph tensed for an attack, and when he’d committed himself to a defense, Kawosa attacked a spot that was left open. Compared to the Full Blood’s claws, Kawosa’s were like curved, bony needles. They didn’t have enough brute force to peel a car down to the frame, but they punctured Randolph’s flesh with every swipe.

Knowing it was only a matter of seconds before his flesh was stripped to the bone, Randolph stood up and tried to grab hold of the other shapeshifter. When he got a hold on him, Kawosa bit his hand and shook his head until narrow, pointed fangs met inside the Full Blood’s wrist. Howling wildly, Randolph tore Kawosa from his back. The pain from the bite was more than enough to wash away the agony of ripping those claws from where they’d been lodged.

Kawosa landed on all fours, and as soon as his paws were under him, put some distance between himself and Randolph. Once that was done, he circled around and leapt at him.

Having already gotten a taste of Kawosa’s speed, Randolph didn’t try to dodge the incoming attack. He shifted his muscles into thick bands and planted his feet in preparation for catching the wily shapeshifter. Somehow, Kawosa pivoted in midair so his claws could swipe at him from unexpected angles. The instant Randolph grabbed his midsection, Kawosa slashed at Randolph’s face. The Full Blood craned his neck to avoid the deadly weapons, howling as one claw snagged the corner of an eye. It was only a matter of determination mixed with a bit of luck that he wasn’t blinded. Realizing this, he flung Kawosa into the air, shifted into his four-legged form and broke into a loping run. Not once did he take his eyes from Kawosa as the shapeshifter turned and kicked through empty space. All he needed to do was keep his prey in sight while gauging where Kawosa would land.

And then the trickster disappeared like a mirage that had been made of cloud vapor and drifting smoke.

Randolph slowed his steps while searching the blue Canadian sky. There was nothing to mask the sight of an airborne shapeshifter. In the distance he heard the impact of something landing in the snow, followed by the scraping of claws against hard, frozen earth. Panting with renewed vigor, Randolph raced in that direction.

“You know nothing of what I can do,” Kawosa said while pacing less than fifty yards in front of the Full Blood.

Randolph rushed at him, eyes narrowing to keep out as much of the icy wind as possible. When Kawosa sprang from his hind legs, Randolph jumped to meet him at the top of an arch formed by their two trajectories. Instead of colliding the way two physical bodies should, however, Randolph slashed apart the vision of Kawosa that faded without so much as a hint of anything solid that had been there. Before Randolph could touch the ground again, something slammed against his ribs. It was Kawosa, clinging to him, biting and clawing in a frenzy of sharp edges and insatiable hunger. Peeling him off and casting him away this time was even more painful for Randolph than the last.

“I’ll give you one chance to think, pup,” Kawosa said upon landing. “Think about what you’re doing and maybe you’ll come to your senses.”

But Randolph wasn’t going to be swayed. Although there were no energies trying to assert themselves on his mind, he recognized the feral gleam in the shapeshifter’s pale gold eyes. There was too much blood dripping from his tapered snout, too much torn flesh dangling from between his teeth, for him to simply give up now. Any werewolf knew the hunger that came after tasting the tender perfection of freshly shredded meat. Rather than put his insight to the test, Randolph allowed his muscles to relax and his head to hang to one side as if he was truly considering the offer.

Sure enough, Kawosa charged. Although the trickster was the one snapping at the bait dangling in front of him, he didn’t go about it recklessly. He covered the small patch of ground between them in a series of darting steps, each one sending him forward at a slightly different angle than the last. Even his head sent mixed signals as it bobbed in the wrong way from the rest of his body. Rather than try to compensate for all of those factors, Randolph stood up and swept both arms out. If another creature had been standing directly in front of him, it would have been ripped in half by both sets of claws that raked out in opposite directions to cover as much area as possible.

The swings were wild enough to clip Kawosa in several places. Having underestimated his quarry, Kawosa now found himself in the midst of an onslaught akin to several sets of propeller blades converging on him at once. He snapped at Randolph’s legs and brought the Full Blood down. He then kicked his lower body to an awkward angle so another powerful swing could pass him by, and scrambled away.

Like any predator, Randolph’s killer instinct swelled at the sight of his prey trying to flee. His howl was a terrible sound that sent smaller animals fleeing for miles in every direction. After all that had happened, even the humans in nearby towns knew to shut their doors and seek shelter instead of poking their noses out to investigate the unearthly riot.

Kawosa kept his steps swift and glanced over one shoulder to find the other shapeshifter bearing down on him. Shifting into a lean, scraggly canine built for running, he bolted toward the north. But Randolph knew better than to chase after him right away. Instead, he slowed down and strained for his other senses to detect any hint as to something else that might be moving around him.

Kawosa didn’t exactly disappear from where he’d been, but he did show up in a spot that Randolph hadn’t been expecting. When Randolph tried to follow his prey, he found himself simply looking in the wrong direction. Now that the trickster had built up a head of steam, he had enough speed to put a simple ruse like that to good use. Keeping that in mind, Randolph charged over snowdrifts, leapt over fallen logs, and stormed through forests. Kawosa’s ruse bought him enough time to veer away to the south, but the Full Blood surged onward with enough force to catch up to him. Randolph’s claws snagged the trickster’s tail, but Kawosa ripped himself loose at the expense of his own body and ran away again.