It was over. Shadow was destroyed.
X felt the deepest dread of his life. He forced himself to watch the warship sink and vanish. Again he tried to move his body, but he was having a hard time breathing now, wheezing every few breaths.
Horn walked over with an axe in hand.
“Es hora de morir, Inmortal.”
X didn’t know what he had said, but this had to be the end. He lifted his chin as high as he could.
“I may have lost the fight in this life,” X said. He coughed. “But I’ll kill you a thousand times in hell.”
Horn twirled his axe and moved over to X, looking at one leg, then the other. It appeared that he would start on the right. He waved one of the torchbearers over.
X didn’t fear the pain. He didn’t particularly fear death, either, but he feared what would happen to everyone out there. Michael, Layla, Bray, Miles, Les, Rodger… The list went on and on.
Moreto joined her son, arms folded across her chest. They exchanged a few words in Spanish, something about a perro.
X knew the word for dog. Had they found Miles?
Letting out a scream, he pulled with his left hand on the rope while kicking with his feet as hard as he could.
Horn watched for a moment, then laughed. Moreto joined in with the other soldiers until everyone was laughing uproariously.
“You sick bastards!” Magnolia shouted. “I’ll kill all of you! all of you!”
Horn glared at her and licked his lips again, then turned back to X as Moreto walked over and kicked Magnolia in the gut.
X felt his sinewy muscles bulge as he fought to get free. His face burned with rage.
Horn tilted his head, but not at X.
A whooshing sounded. Something hit the dirt behind X. Then something else.
The guard in front of X slumped over onto his torch, two arrows sticking out of his back. Another guard grasped at an arrow through his face mask.
Muzzle flashes came from the scrapyard, and several more skinwalkers fell. Horn grabbed the second torchbearer, using him as a human shield.
Bullets riddled the man’s armor and the dirt behind him. Horn tossed the limp body aside, and the torch landed right in front of X.
The flames licked up between his boots.
Horn brought up his axe to finish X, but a bullet hit the blade, and another punched into his arm. He hunched down and bolted away from the gunfire, no longer the gloating victor.
Shouting broke the momentary lull.
“For X!”
The voice sounded familiar, but he couldn’t place it.
Barking rose above the war cries. That voice, he could place.
Miles came running from the scrapyard, flanked by a dozen soldiers in militia and Cazador armor. Ton ran in front, his assault rifle blazing.
The skinwalker guarding Magnolia and Victor took several rounds. Moreto hit the dirt and scrambled for cover while the other skinwalkers knelt to fire.
X could feel the heat of the torch, but he couldn’t take his eyes from the battle.
Magnolia pushed herself to her feet and looked over at him. Blood dripped from the corner of her mouth. She staggered a few steps, righted herself, and kicked Moreto in the face as she tried to crawl away.
“How ya like it, ya withered old witch?” Magnolia shouted.
X couldn’t do anything but watch the chaos unfold around him. Ton, ten militia soldiers, and four Barracudas laid into the dozen skinwalkers still standing.
Horn returned to the battle to fight with his men. He brought an axe down on a militiaman’s shoulder, splitting his upper chest in half. Then he yanked it free and threw it into the back of another soldier.
Magnolia kicked Moreto once more and then grabbed an assault rifle from the ground. She lined up the sights on Horn’s head.
“Die, motherfucker!” she yelled.
She pulled the trigger, but the gun didn’t fire.
“Spear!” X yelled at her.
Tossing away the gun, she ran over to the spear still sticking out of the ground.
The bone beast roared as a burst of rounds hit its handler. Free now, it grabbed the nearest person, another skinwalker. It twisted off his helmet, head and all.
“X!” Brett yelled.
The militia soldier that X had told to look after Miles was waving.
“Shoot that thing in the eye sockets!” X yelled.
Brett aimed at the monster’s head and fired a burst that broke away a shard of bone. The creature roared, muscles flexing under its bony armor.
Then it lurched forward, blind and pawing at the air.
The beast slammed into the armored back of a skinwalker swinging a cutlass at Ton. He skidded across the ground, and the creature sniffed to find him before he could crawl away. Claws ripped through his back armor.
Ton pulled a blaster and walked toward the feasting monster. He held the weapon up toward the bone beast’s mouth as it turned toward him.
The buckshot blew through the mouth and out the back of the skull, cutting short the beast’s final roar. The boom of the weapon was one of the most beautiful sounds X had ever heard.
Ton ran over to Victor while Magnolia stumbled over to X with the spear she had plucked from the ground. She cut his restraints, and he slumped to the earth, arm and legs numb.
“Finish this,” she said, placing the half spear in his hand.
Summoning the little strength he had, X got to his feet. Miles ran over, nudging against him.
The fighting was mostly over. Five militia soldiers and three Cazadores had Horn and his remaining two men surrounded. Yelling in Spanish, the bastard prince swung his axe through the air at the encroaching circle of enemies.
Moreto was sitting, hands clasped behind her head.
Dozens of bodies littered the dirt. Magnolia picked up another assault rifle, then suddenly stopped, staring into the boatyard. X saw two more figures emerge. One hobbled on crutches made of broken oars, and the other wore a robe.
“Imulah! Rodger!” Magnolia yelled.
She ran over to them while X limped over to Horn and his mother. Brett and another militia soldier backed away to let the king through.
Horn swung the axe once more, cutting only air. He went down on one knee, bleeding through the gauze that plugged his armor. His two men lowered their weapons and put their hands behind their heads.
“Everyone back,” X grumbled.
He walked up to Horn, who had to know he was defeated.
But as soon as X got close, Horn swiped with his axe again. X stepped back, easily avoiding the blow. Horn fell to his stomach, and Magnolia used a knife to pin one hand to the ground. X used the spear to pin his other hand.
An animal howl of pain followed. He centered his obsidian eyes on X, then Magnolia.
X didn’t finish him off. He had a promise to keep.
Turning, he gestured to Rodger and Imulah. Magnolia grabbed Moreto, dragged her over, and dumped her next to her son.
Rodger joined Magnolia, looking down at the two skinwalkers.
“You okay?” she asked.
“I will be soon,” Rodger replied. “You?”
“Same.”
“Someone hand me a blaster,” X said.
Brett said something to Ton, who handed his over. X flipped open the breech and found a buckshot shell and a flare loaded. He flipped it shut and handed the weapon to Rodger.
“Not until I tell you, Rodge,” X said.
Magnolia helped steady Rodger as, with a shaky hand, he pointed the blaster at Moreto.
X coughed deep. “Imulah,” he said, “I want you to interpret for me.”
Imulah scurried over.
“As king of the Vanguard Islands, I sentence—”
Horn interrupted, talking fast. He followed up by spitting on X’s boots.