Hell Hounds

Ian saw enough of the first dragon shifter’s appearance he understood they were old and formal. First, they wore a modern take on medieval clothing. They looked like they were part of a Viking documentary. Tunics, pants, and boots. The women wore simple dresses that ended just past the knee. In place of winter jackets, they wore a heavy type of cloak. Ian realized the packages they carried were the cloaks wrapped around their clothing. He left the scene. Ian wondered how many generations of dragons flew that same way?

                Walking through the woods in the dark. It was his job to make sure that none lagged or became lost. Behind him there were vehicles, trucks, SUVs, trailers, and several campers. Ian overheard a child ahead of him asked his mother if they’d stay here for a while or would they be moving again. They didn’t have a stable home. This wasn’t the first event they needed to run from. It broke his heart.

                Once they handed off the community of bear shifters, Ian’s team returned to their patrol. This time Mario stayed in human form. Ian whispered to them as they walked the tiny path through the trees. “Is it that bad for the Bears? I heard a kid ask if they’d need to move again.”

                “We were lucky after the Lich. Wolves live in packs like this estate. Bears, though, live in family units like humans, but not in close-knit communities. The Lich used that isolation to prey on them for victims. No time to mourn any deaths. The Bears decided to start a community like ours. The time to build buildings, security, and services wasn’t there. Our Alpha has tried to help them. Lend them equipment and supplies. He offered services until they set their own up. He helped them connect them with vendors. Even offered our construction services. Time, however, wasn’t on our side. Winter and then this happened. We can’t leave them exposed. It’s wrong, and a breach of the secrecy of our existence. In my opinion. It’s an enormous mess. This started three months ago. We’ve been working to fix it, and stop one disaster after another.”

                “Yet, every human around is ignorant of the chaos your lives are. Your struggle to survive, and not force this on the human population.”

                “If history tells me one thing. We’re forced to rely on humans the first time. But humans are the ones that changed. It’s our place to protect others this time. We aren’t the slaves this time.”

                “Last time?”

                “We’re taught that the Fae created us as slaves and foot soldiers for their private armies. We were beasts to be slaughtered for their whims and entertainment. Humans banished the Fae after a great battle that lasted ages. In doing so they broke our bond with the Fae, freeing us. Our ancestors pledged to protect those in need of protection from things beyond their control. In other words, the supernatural.”

                “The Lich, and now the Fae.”

                “Our rogue elements. Other mythological creatures wake from sometimes. Magical mishaps. The list goes on. Our reach and power aren’t just to keep our secret. It enables us to do what we must do. Humans wouldn’t react well to some of our rulings. Our punishments can be severe, but it matches the need for peace, and safety.”

          “The ‘yeah

            “How do you imprison something that can’t be imprisoned? How do you kill the unkillable? You kill the ones that can’t be imprisoned, you imprison the unkillable

         “Drain the magic from the thing he keeps his soul shard in. Then execute him. Otherwise, he lives

             “So you’re saying if I see

          “Don’t joke. The fae race called Pooka favour turning into bunnies. Those are not friendly creatures once they have

Ian realized with that information, he was out gunned, outnumbered, and uneducated. He’s so far out of his element that he was endangering himself and others. The overwhelming urge to run and hide plagued him for the rest of his shift. Nothing

A dragon shifter in Gregory’s office demanding to know the why of something. He seemed panicked and angry. Ian stopped a shifter as she

           “Yeah, Fae spotted in the Dream Realm and the Dragons are taking exception to the fact they didn’t receive an invite to participate. The Alpha is trying to explain to him he didn’t plan this. They

             Someone else stopped beside them. “They found a monster called a Barghest. Think giant dog with nasty temper. Their teeth and

              “Not sure, actually. Sorry. We’re

              “Yeah, I don’t know about you. But if I was in the Dream Realm, a Dragon could cover my

            “Wouldn’t it be better to keep them in the background. Pretend the human belief ‘dragons have gone extinct or never existed’ is real and let the Fae hear it. Then, use a combined force with dragons in the mix to attack? It’s just the thought of a

the entrance way. The lobby now boasted a take-out counter of sorts. People from the kitchen could pass out food and keep drinks stocked there. The kitchen was blocked off from the rest of the house this way. Ian figured it made sense with all the extra people to keep the number people crowding it. The dining room was now a large briefing area. Ian discovered a set of doors open now, led