First Battle

First Battle
Lyra's POV

The supply wagon burst right in front of me.
I threw myself sideways as burning wood and metal flew everywhere. My ears were ringing, and smoke made it hard to see, but I could hear Darius shouting directions somewhere behind me.
"Ambush! Everyone take cover!"
This was meant to be a simple supply run to the nearby village. Just me, Darius, and five other wolves picking up food and drugs. Nothing dangerous. Nothing that should have ended with our wagon on fire and dark shapes moving through the smoke.
A snarl came from my left, and I spun around just in time to see a covenant wolf jumping at me. Its eyes glowed red, and its teeth were way too sharp to be normal.
Without thinking, I threw my hands up to protect myself. Silver light blazed from my hands, and the attacking wolf hit it like running into a wall. It bounced back with a yelp of pain.
"Lyra!" Darius appeared beside me, his sword already bloody. "Stay close to me!"
"I'm trying!" I yelled back, dodging another attacker.
More covenant troops poured out of the forest. There had to be at least fifteen of them, and they moved wrong - too fast, too quiet, like they weren't really alive anymore.
"We're outnumbered," Jake called out from behind a fallen cart. Blood was running down his arm.
"I can see that," Darius answered grimly, cutting down another enemy.
One of the covenant dogs got past Darius and came straight for me. I'd never been in a real fight before, but my body seemed to know what to do. I ducked under its claws and punched upward, silver light wrapping around my hand.
The wolf screamed as my power burned it, then turned to ash and blew away.
"Did I just do that?" I gasped.
"Focus!" Darius shouted. "More coming!"
He was right. A whole pack of the red-eyed creatures was charging toward us. We were going to be overrun in seconds.
But then something strange happened. I felt angry. Not scared-angry, but protective-angry. These monsters were trying to hurt my friends. They were trying to hurt Darius.
I wasn't going to let that happen.
"Everyone get behind me!" I yelled.
"Lyra, what are you-" Darius started to say.
I didn't let him finish. I planted my feet and held out both hands, reaching for the power I could feel burning inside me. Silver light poured out like water, but instead of just shooting forward, it curved around us in a perfect dome.
The covenant wolves slammed into my shield and bounced off. They clawed at it and bit it, but nothing they did could break through.
"How are you doing that?" Seraphina whispered. She'd been hit in the leg but was still awake.
"I don't know," I admitted. The shield was taking a lot of energy, but it felt right. Like this was what my power was meant for - protecting people I cared about.
Outside the dome, more covenant troops were arriving. But these ones looked different. Bigger. Meaner. And leading them was someone who made my blood turn to ice.
Marcus.
My fake mate was alive, and he looked angry. His left arm was in a sling, and there were burn marks on his face that certainly came from my power.
"Well, well," he called out mockingly. "Look what we have here. The little slave girl playing fighter."
"I'm not a slave anymore," I said through hard teeth, keeping my shield up.
"Oh, but you are," Marcus laughed. "You'll always be a slave. That's all you know how to be."
His words hit harder than any physical attack. For a second, I almost believed him. Almost let myself think that maybe he was right, maybe I was just trying to be strong.
But then Darius stepped up beside me inside the shield.
"You're wrong," he said quietly, his words carrying clearly to Marcus. "She's the best person I've ever met. And she's going to destroy you."
The confidence in his voice made me stand straighter. He believed in me. They all did.
"We'll see about that," Marcus growled. He raised his good hand, and dark power swirled around it. "Attack the shield together! Break it down!"
All the covenant wolves began hitting my shield at once. I felt each hit like a punch to the stomach, but I held on.
"I can't keep this up much longer," I told the others.
"You don't have to," Darius said. "Jake, when Lyra drops the shield, you and the others run for the forest. Lyra and I will hold them off."
"No way," Jake argued. "We're not leaving you."
"That's an order," Darius said strongly.
My shield flickered. The covenant wolves felt weakness and attacked harder.
"Now!" I yelled, letting the barrier fall.
Chaos occurred. Our people ran for the trees while Darius and I stood our ground. I threw bolts of silver light at anything with red eyes, while Darius moved like a dangerous dance, his sword cutting through enemies.
But there were too many of them.
Marcus hung back, letting his soldiers do the killing. He was smart enough not to get close to me again, but I could feel his eyes watching every move I made.
"Having fun yet, little slave?" he mocked.
That's when I realized something terrible. This wasn't just a random hit. They'd been waiting for us especially.
"Darius," I called out, blasting another covenant wolf. "This is a trap. They knew we'd be here."
His face went pale as the same thought hit him. "Someone told them our route."
"But who would-"
My question was answered when Seraphina stepped out from behind a tree. She wasn't hurt anymore. In fact, she looked perfectly fine.
And she was happy.
"Surprise," she said sweetly.
"Seraphina?" Darius stared at her in shock. "What are you doing?"
"My job," she answered. "Did you really think Morgana wouldn't have spies in your precious sanctuary? I've been reporting your every move for months."
I felt like someone had punched me in the heart. Seraphina had been one of the first people to be kind to me at Haven's Rest. She'd helped train me, laughed with me, made me feel like I belonged.
"Why?" I whispered.
"Because I'm loyal to the true rulers of our kind," she said. "Not some exiled prince and his pet slave."
The betrayal hurt worse than any physical pain. But it also made me angry.
"I trusted you," I said, silver light starting to glow brighter around me.
"And that was your mistake," Seraphina responded. She pulled out a strange device that looked like a crystal. "This has been recording every spell you've cast, every method you've used. Morgana knows all your flaws now."
The crystal started to glow, and I felt something horrible happen. My power started draining away, being sucked into the device.
"What is that thing?" Darius commanded, trying to reach Seraphina.
"A power siphon," Marcus answered, walking closer now that I was getting weaker. "Very useful for dealing with troublesome StarBlood wolves."
My knees hit the ground as more of my strength disappeared. Around us, the remaining covenant troops formed a circle, trapping us.
"Don't worry, Lyra," Seraphina said mockingly. "This won't kill you. Morgana still needs you alive for the process."
"What ritual?" I gasped.
Marcus grinned, showing teeth that were too sharp. "The one where she uses your blood to become ageless, of course. Why do you think we've been chasing you all this time?"
The crystal was almost done draining me. I could barely keep my eyes open.
But as my vision started to go dark, I heard something that made my heart stop.
Howls. Dozens of them. Coming from the direction of Haven's Rest.
"What's that?" one of the covenant troops asked nervously.
Marcus's grin vanished. "That's impossible. Our main force isn't supposed to attack the refuge until-"
He didn't finish the sentence, but he didn't need to. I understood.
While we'd been trapped here, Morgana's real troops had been attacking Haven's Rest.
All the people I'd come to love were fighting for their lives, and I wasn't there to help them.