Shade wiped his daggers on his pants without a second glance toward the dead men at his feet. He didn’t want to see his handiwork. Twirling the daggers he slid them home at his belt and studied the fight before him. Caleb was hard pressed by three swordsmen though one seemed to be wounded. Not nearly as wounded as Caleb appeared to be however. As Caleb parried a man’s blade and dodged away from another blow Grace moved in for an attack with deadly speed. Caleb darted aside barely missing her claws but the effort put him too close to the third swordsman. The Rivasan crowed with delight as his short sword sank deeply into Caleb’s side and the priest grunted in response, but didn’t slow in his fighting. Grace backed away from the fight once more and circled the men.
It took an effort of will to rip his eyes from the fight, but Shade forced himself to acknowledge the other threats. There were at least eight more swordsmen, and all of their attention seemed to be focused on the fight. They were waiting for an opportunity to draw the Black Bastard’s blood, but they were too well trained to throw themselves into the fight. Too many men in one battle were a hindrance and they knew it. Shade wasn’t sure if any of them had even noticed Derrick’s fall. If they had they weren’t showing any signs of remorse or rage over their fallen lord. If they hadn’t noticed, he still had an edge. They wouldn’t know he was here.
His gaze moved back to the fight as Grace moved in once more and landed a savage blow across Caleb’s back. Teeth gritted in frustration Shade made his choice. He needed to stop Grace and he knew he couldn’t drop a fellow Changeling with stealth alone, especially not with as much as Grace was moving. His mother never held her position for more than a breath.
“Grace Morcaillo step away from this fight!” Shade’s voice rang through the open street as he slid once more into his true form. There was no point in keeping the Blight form any longer if he didn’t need stealth. The fight waned for a breath then regained its tempo as the Rivasan’s took advantage of Caleb’s shock. Shade cringed inwardly at the expression of fury that lit Caleb’s features at his words. If he had been following Caleb’s plan he would have been safely away with Syrah by now, and Caleb would be dying faster.
Two of the idle Rivasan’s closed on him and Shade summoned claws in response. A sword would give him more range, but the venom he could summon to his claws would drop a man with one scratch. The downside to that plan was that the venom wasn’t a Changeling trait; it was something he had borrowed from various creatures on Sanctuary. A concoction of his own devising that was difficult to summon and part of his concentration would be lost on maintaining it. He used the last spare moments before the swordsmen were closed on him to enhance his speed and regeneration.
“Derrick is dead Grace! You have no reason to continue to follow his orders!” Shade yelled once more as the first of the swordsmen sprinted forward for the first attack.
The Guard underestimated his speed and Shade spun easily away from the blow still managing to land a blow across the man’s cheek as he passed. The guard’s sword fell from his hand the moment the venom touched his skin and the second swordsman slowed to a cautious approach as his comrade fell. Foam began to speckle the fallen man’s lips and his legs kicked feebly against the cobbles.
“I don’t want to kill you. You should probably run.” Shade advised him in a low voice, but he could tell the man wouldn’t listen and several more of the Rivasans were turning their attention his way. “Stop fighting now Grace!” Shade called loudly and tried desperately to add warning to his tone. If he could just get her out of the fight things would be much simpler.
“Your father sends his regards Christian.” Grace returned casually in a voice that wasn’t quite loud enough to be considered a yell, but carried easily to his ears.
A cold chill rose along his spine as Shade realized what Myth had done. Somehow his father knew he would be here. Somehow he had known what they had planned, and so he had sent Grace. He almost missed the second guard’s attack as certainty washed over him; Grace wouldn’t leave the fight. He would have to face her or watch Caleb die. Almost mechanically he raised his arm and pushed the Rivasan’s attack aside. Still numb he drove his claws through the guard’s leather armor and deep into his side. A second man fell then a third before the rest seemed to lose their interest in attacking him. Dazedly Shade turned toward Grace in time to watch Caleb drop another guard to the blood covered street. Caleb was barely standing and Shade silently wondered if he would even recover from his wounds if they managed to escape dying at the Rivasan’s hands.
“Last chance Grace. Don’t make me choose here. You won’t like the choice I make.” Shade called as he began to advance slowly. The remaining Rivasans backed away from him with expressions of uncertainty clear on their faces. He could see their eyes moving from the still convulsing forms of their fellow guards and then back to him. “Just run and think of an excuse later. No one will survive here to speak of cowardice to your superiors.” Shade said bitterly. A faint smile creased his lips as one of the younger guards dropped his sword and bolted for the fortress. At least someone here today has common sense he decided sourly.
Grace moved in again with the speed of a serpent and Caleb reeled off balance toward one of the guards as her claws raked viciously across his back. With a grunt of surprise Caleb twisted at the last moment putting his shoulder into the guard and barely managed to avoid being impaled on the man’s sword. His form flickered like a guttering candle then blurred into a form that towered over the guards facing him.