Tyson stepped up. He would be the least showy. Much of his power relied on spells and nature. Yet, as he spoke rhythmically, spell casting, chanting too low for me to hear, energy cascaded over him, a subtle glow, which like Maximus enhanced his already dangerously beautiful features. Grace drew forward now. I’d been mostly focused on my boys, so I hadn’t realized that the healer witch and vampiress had left the wall and were now just on the outside of the barrier, as if they had to move closer to the Compasses – the quads’ overabundance of life force drawing all of us like magnets.
Tyson and Maximus had predator eyes locked on their girls. Their energies filled the huge space, and I was starting to understand what everyone was worried about. Individually, the quads were so powerful. What the hell was going to happen when they fully joined with each other?
All coherent thought fled when it was Braxton’s turn. He would finish the quartet of energy. I knew he couldn’t shift into dragon, there wasn’t enough room in the dome. He dropped his head, light reflecting off his black hair, and then it hit me what he was going to do. I scooted further forward, not wanting to miss a single thing. This was something very few shifters had ever achieved.
A fusion shift.
I’d seen Braxton succeed at this once, in shifting class. He had been the youngest to ever achieve this feat. This wouldn’t be like the dragon spirit Mischa had called, this was attaining a form somewhere between man and beast. Almost like the loup-garou myth, which humans both feared and worshipped. That Braxton could fusion shift so young was one of the reasons he was considered to be so very powerful.
Lines of scales formed on his cheeks, before spreading down his neck and across his arms. There weren’t enough blue and black scales to be creepy, but enough to look scary and dominating. His eyes glowed the yellow of the dragon, and his body became much bigger, his clothing tore as it stretched to accommodate his new form. Which was almost double his regular size. Suddenly I was just like the other girls, my dragon straining inside to get to her mate, my feet pushing me forward, fear of the unknown flooding me. As I moved Jonathon stuck to me in the same way bitch stuck to Giselda. Permanently.
The four Compasses, their powers surrounding them, was a true sight to behold.
One of the mystics moved closer. “Now you will join.”
Shit. He probably should have stated that as less of an order. Sure enough, all four Compasses turned blazing eyes on him, their stares hard … scary as all hell. Especially with so much power riding them.
“Apologies.” Quale, always the diplomat, stepped forward. He’d been standing off to the side with Louis. “We’d really appreciate it if you’d attempt to merge as one now.”
I swear everyone in the room rolled their eyes right then. Seriously, what a condescending dick. But I was coming to expect that from these fey hybrid tools. The Compasses fell into a circle of sorts, their backs to us in the room. I saw them lock eyes, and I knew they were communicating.
Mirroring expressions rippled across their features. After a few moments they started to chant, and I was close enough now to hear the words. My dragon had won in her quest to move toward Braxton.
“How will they join?” I whispered to Jonathon. I’d always been under the impression that these sort of callings came to the supe, not the other way around.
His reply was almost inaudible. “Their joining should have been allowed to arrive naturally.” He confirmed my thoughts. “Time and growth of powers would have taken care of the timing. Now they will have to use a spell to push forward the process.”
“How do you know this?” I needed to understand what was happening to the boys.
“All multiples can join, the quads are just on another level, and involves a calling,” he said.
The quads started to chant.
Brother as one, we will be, brothers as one. Power of four, join as one, power of four will never be undone. United!
They chanted the first part, before shouting “united” to finish. Three times they repeated the phrase and each time the energy coating them rose, moving above their heads, swirling, and then as the four of them bled their individual power, it formed a peak above them. Energy flashed outward, filling the room with a single wave of light. I tensed as it shot through me, but there was no kickback at all. It just flowed through our bodies and off into the universe.
I looked up after the wave had passed me and froze.
Grace’s voice was barely a whisper. “Holy fuck me.”
Cardia and the witch healer were slowly moving closer to us, and I couldn’t blame them. The boys were even scaring me, and I had never been scared of them in my life.
The quads were not like the Four – they didn’t look identical or anything – but they were the most alike I’d ever seen them, as if facets of each of them had blended into the others. Braxton’s hair was a little lighter, Jacob’s a little darker, all of them with a highlighted golden brown sheen. All of their eyes were black, their skin the same shade of tawny brown – at least their faces remained true to them. Braxton’s scales were gone, as were the four elemental powers which had surrounded Jacob. They were awash in a glowing energy, power thrumming in the room. Four sets of black eyes leveled on me.