Dark Light of Mine by John Corwin Page A

for a second.  I wondered if he'd seen a squirrel.  He circled the rubble, nose to the ground for several minutes before he looked at me and made a yipping noise.  I followed him into the gloom away from the rubble.  As we drew closer to the edge of the warehouses, my night vision picked up the hint of something wet amongst the leaves.  I touched a finger to it and sniffed.  The coppery odor of blood tingled in my nose.
    Ryland picked up the pace then stopped in his tracks, ears pointed like radar dishes and alert.  With a low growl, he stared back across the destroyed warehouses, ears flattening.  He looked at me and pawed the ground, evidently wanting me to wait there.  I sniffed the air as well, but caught nothing unusual.  Ryland flashed away, his black fur camouflaging him perfectly against the wrecked buildings.
    Leaves rustled behind me.  I spun, arms cocked and at the ready.  A young girl with long black hair cowered at the edge of the woods.  I took a deep breath.  She was naked as a newborn, her small breasts reacting predictably to the chilly weather.  I had never seen her before and wondered briefly if Stacey could alter her human appearance, or if she had a felycan friend she'd neglected to tell me about.  The girl's dark olive skin was smooth and flawless.  Bright green eyes with a slight slant peered at me with curiosity.
    "Is that you, Stacey?" I asked.
    She smiled shyly and shook her head.
    "Who are you?"
    Her silent gaze was the only response.  After a moment, she took a cautious step toward me.  I stayed perfectly still, wondering if she was going to sprout fangs and eat me, or if she was as harmless as she looked.  She came within a foot and stopped, her breath fogging the air between us.  Her petite hands reached for my face.  I resisted the reflexive urge to jerk away and remained perfectly still as she touched my face, my lips, my ears, and ran a hand through my hair, her body shivering slightly.  She was a little more than a head shorter than me, and beautiful in an exotic way.  She smelled slightly of ginger and flowers in a warm spring breeze.
    I heard a howl in the distance and my blood froze.  She heard it too.  But instead of fear, her eyes reflected anger and a cute scowl settled onto her face.
    "Do you know where Stacey is?"
    She looked back at me, her head tilted to the side.
    "Stacey.  Where is she?"
    Her eyes widened in understanding and she motioned me to follow.  More howls rang out in the night air.  I couldn't tell if they were wolf howls or hellhounds, and my blood felt like liquid nitrogen in my veins.
    The girl stopped next to a tree.  I looked down and saw blonde hair and fair skin peeking from behind a black shredded skirt, similar to the one Stacey had worn while helping me rescue my dad.
    "Stacey!"  I dropped to my knees and turned her on her back.  She was breathing, but barely.  A huge bite wound festered on her thigh.  One of her arms had a deep scratch with a foul-smelling white fluid pooling in it.  "What's wrong with her?" I said, looking up at the girl.  Except she was gone.  I looked around, heart racing as more howls pierced the air.  I shook Stacey, trying to wake her up, but it was no good.  Carrying her like an infant cradled in my arms, I ran from the woods, not knowing what else to do.
    A loud yelp echoed nearby.  Massive shadows flickered against a brick wall that had somehow remained standing.  I raced toward it and spotted a massive black hound battling with Ryland, its yellow eyes glowing like pools of irradiated urine.  The two seemed evenly matched, though the hellhound was missing a large chunk of one ear and had a limp.  Ryland looked no worse for the wear.
    The hound growled, its sharp blackened teeth bared.  It lunged.  Ryland dodged with ease.  His jaws opened wide.  He lunged.  Sharp teeth snapped onto the hellhound's neck and bit down with a savage crunch.  The hound loosed a strangled yelp before its body