Chapter Nine: Showdown at the Black Fury caern

Garrett and John rushed back to the caern, hoping that Ursula would have enough time, hoping they wouldn't be too late to save Karen. There was no such thing as fatigue right now … they had been running off and on all day, but now none of that made a difference.

They didn't expect what they saw when they made it there.

Ursula was there but she wasn't alone. The two Black Spiral Dancers were also there. Apparently their little ruse had not worked as well as they had intended. She was attempting to fend them off, but had her hands full … literally. The large crinos ahroun was locked in close combat with her while the theurge stood back in hispo form, appearing to be locked in a sort of spiritual combat with her. They also saw Karen, tied to the stone in the clearing, bleeding from a few open cuts on her torso. The shallow cuts formed what looked like a ritualistic design. She appeared to be unconscious.

John and Garrett didn't waste any time. They shifted, John to crinos and Garrett to chatro, and joined in the fight. John charged toward the ahroun and Garrett leapt at the theurge.

Garrett let out a roar as he bore down on the large wolf in front of him. It jumped back, avoiding him at the last second. The theurge, his concentration diverted from the Gurahl, bared his teeth and growled as his body once again began to blur. He charged.

Garrett also charged and leapt. The supernatural blur coming from the werewolf in front of him did no good to distort his position. They collided in mid-air, claws slashing, blood and fur flying from superficial wounds. The ground shook as they hit, and jumped back from one another to regroup. The theurge charged forward again, but Garrett stood his ground this time, drawing him in. The hispo was sent sprawling by a hard swat from Garrett's forepaw. Blood trickled on the ground from a gash opened up on the theurge's shoulder. He bared his teeth again, this time wincing in pain. Garrett smiled in the chatro equivalent.

The crinos ahroun was gaining little ground against the impossibly large bear in front of him, but he was holding his own. As John charged forward, the Spiral shifted his attention only slightly and caught John with a hard back fist as he sidestepped. John's feet came out from under him as he flew past, landing on his back and tumbling across the clearing.

The ahroun's shift of focus was all Ursula needed. As John flew past, she lunged forward and embedded her claws in his back, pinning him in, well, a bear hug.

The ahroun howled in pain as blood ran down his back. He struggled to get free, to no avail. In a desperate effort, he raised his hind legs and tore into her abdomen, ripping hide and flesh. Ursula screamed in pain, but didn't let go. There was an audible snapping sound as three of the Dancer's ribs broke when Ursula tightened her grip.

John got up and shook the cobwebs from his head just in time to hear a howling roar coming from the edge of the clearing. Jessica Potter had run to the clearing, unsatisfied with Garrett's promise. When she reached the clearing and saw her sister on the rock, the rage had consumed her. She had just undergone her first change.

The jet black crinos form flew through the air toward the battle. Her claws and teeth found purchase in the ahroun's back and flanks. He howled in pain again, but continued to rip into the Gurahl that had him mostly immobilized.

The arrival of a new combatant had temporarily distracted both Garrett and the theurge, but the Bastet regained his focus just a little faster. He lunged at the distracted Dancer and struck before it could react. His claws sank into the side of the theurge's face and ripped it off, simultaneously breaking the creature's neck. It fell to the ground and stopped moving.

The ahroun raked his feet into Ursula's midsection one last time and finally forced his release. She took a few steps backward and collapsed, reverting to her homid form as she fell. The Black Spiral Dancer wheeled around and struck Jessica, cutting gashes into her chest as he flung her aside. The ahroun was still in the fight, but severely wounded.

John charged forward again, this time catching the ahroun off guard. His right came downward in a vicious swipe, cutting down across the Dancer's face, removing one of his eyes. The crinos Pumonca whirled about and made a lateral claw swipe, catching him in the upper chest and neck. The attack opened a deep cut in the ahroun's neck, spurting dark, viscous blood.

Now mortally wounded, the last remaining Black Spiral Dancer frenzied. He let out a garbled roar and turned on John and Jessica. He was still hurt badly, but he was no longer feeling pain. He was only feeling rage.

John and Jessica attacked, John not wanting to give the ahroun time to heal, Jessica attacking out of instinct since she was in frenzy mode as well.

Garrett, satisfied they could handle the weakened Spiral by themselves, ran to Karen and shifted to sokto. He freed her from her restraints and laid her down beside the caern stone. She was still alive, but her breathing was shallow. She appeared to be in shock.

The ahroun gave out one last garbled scream as Jessica delivered a killing blow, crushing his skull in her jaws. She stumbled backwards and went to all fours. She began to shrink in size as she downshifted. A second later, she became aware of her surroundings and ran to Karen. She realized she was naked and hesitated. John, who had already shifted to homid when the Dancer fell, threw her his coat.

A look of fury came into her eyes when she saw the cougar beside her sister, licking the wounds on her chest. Before she could make a move to stop him, John grabbed her arm.

"Hold on," John said gravely. "He might be the only thing keeping her alive. He's trying to heal her."

Jessica turned away, not wanting to gaze upon what she perceived as a carnal violation of her sister, and instead looked out onto the battlefield that was the caern clearing. The mutilated bodies of two men lay there, along with the body of a woman. Ursula was beyond help. She lay dead as well.

When the wounds on Jessica's chest had closed, Garrett shifted out of his feline form to homid and wrapped his long trench coat around her.

"We have to move, now," he said, turning to his two comrades. "Her wounds are healed, but I think she's in shock. She needs someone with better skills than me. Let's get her back to the hotel."

Garrett picked Karen's limp body in his arms and ran in the direction of the hotel. John and Jessica followed. Garrett prayed there would be someone who could help this girl when they got there.