Dark Lycan (Dark #24)(67)
Author: Christine Feehan

"I’d really like to get back to how to fight the Sange rau. There must be a way. Dimitri successfully managed to battle with the one you call Bardolf," Vikirnoff pointed out. "He’s Carpathian. Was he able to do that because he has some of your mixed blood, or because he used some kind of special strategy?" Curiosity and a hint of eagerness edged his tone.

"I feared turning, just as most ancient Carpathian hunters do," Fen said, "so we practiced with war games each time we got together. Dimitri found the things that worked as well as the things that didn’t."

"Hit and run is always the best approach," Dimitri said. "I had a few tricks I devised, but they could be used only once, at the most twice and only if I spread them out. The Sange rau learn and adapt very quickly, so the name of the game is always to change things up."

"Fortunately," Fen continued, "a vampire is a vampire is a vampire. The same with a rogue werewolf. They don’t always have the patience they should. The Sange rau definitely take longer to anger, but they’re actually more puffed up with ego than the vampire, so you can rile them enough that they make mistakes."

"It’s definitely better for hunters to go after them in pack form," Dimitri added. "A single hunter doesn’t have nearly the chance a group would have."

"But to fight pack-style takes skill. Bardolf will know every pack move, while Abel less so," Fen continued. "The thing you have to know about each Sange rau is where they came from, what they were before they mixed blood. Bardolf is comfortable as a wolf and when pressed, he goes back to what he knows best. The same holds true for Abel. Clearly in this relationship, Abel is the master and has acquired more skills because he’s been Sange rau much longer."

"We’ll need a crash course in fighting these bad boys," Vikirnoff stated. "Are the two of you willing to stick around and help us out?"

"That would be the idea," Dimitri said. "That and devising a strategy for destroying both Bardolf and Abel. If they do move the pack, we’ll have to track them."

"Don’t discount the pack. We don’t have exact numbers and many were killed during the two battles. But even if we killed thirty or forty of them, if the pack is a hundred strong, as I’m afraid it may be, they still have a large army they can throw at you," Fen said. "They’ll come at you during the day because Abel knows that’s when they can do the most damage to you."

"Another good reason for the two of you to stay and help us out," Gregori said.

"They fight like a well-synchronized army. They strike fast, do as much damage as possible and kill as many as they can before they disappear. They nearly always go for the belly, ripping their adversary almost in half," Fen told them.

"I’ve got the scars to prove it," Dimitri said with a small self-deprecatory shrug.

Gregori smiled at him. "You’re not alone. I think half our men had their bellies ripped open, me included. They definitely made us look like amateurs."

"I knew better than to let him get that close," Dimitri admitted.

"Packs are dangerous fighters and very skilled," Fen said.

"Think about the wolf packs in the forests," Dimitri added. "The Lycans are even more of a threat than an animal pack when they come at you because their very best strategists lead the hunt."

"But the Lycans don’t hunt humans or Carpathians," Mikhail said quickly. "When you talk about pack hunting you’re actually talking about the rogue, werewolf packs."

"True," Fen agreed, "but they start out as Lycans. Most of the time individuals within a pack drop out to become rogue. The rogues form their own packs."

Natalya, Vikirnoff’s lifemate suddenly frowned. She was Tatijana’s niece, daughter of her long dead brother, Soren, but the Dragonseeker features were there, including the changing eye and hair color. Having come to know Tatijana as he had, Fen wasn’t surprised to see Natalya fighting by her lifemate’s side or entering the cave of warriors with absolute confidence.

"What is it?" Fen asked.

"The elite hunters like Zev. Everyone’s talking about him and how skilled he is."

"I saw him in action," Gregori said. "He’s every bit as good as our best."

"So I’ve been hearing," Natalya said. "Do they ever go rogue?"

"It’s possible," Fen said. "But I’ve never seen it happen. Our best hunters eventually succumb to the darkness and become vampires. Our species aren’t that different. We’re both born predators and we do have to submerge that part of our natures in order to keep our honor."

"You’re part Lycan," Natalya persisted. "Do you have to fight the inclination to allow the animal side of you to take over?"

She knows the right questions to ask. Can you imagine Zev being a Sange rau? There was pride in Tatijana’s voice.

She’d never had the chance to know her niece while she was growing up. In a way, Fen knew, she was grateful for that. She’d endured watching her father torture his own grandson and use him in horrendous experiments.

Tatijana was firmly merged with him as she had been since the moment they’d entered the cavern. She’d been so determined to protect him from the slightest insult, but it left her open to Fen reading her thoughts. She wanted a relationship with Natalya. Natalya had helped to rescue her aunts, but both Tatijana and Branislava had been so frail they’d been put in the earth almost immediately. She hadn’t had the time to get to know her relatives.

She certainly does ask the right questions, Fen agreed. She’s definitely a Dragonseeker.

"On the other hand, my friend, Vakasin, became Sange rau while we were hunting." Fen paused, shook his head and corrected himself. "Not Sange rau, he was a Guardian of all."

Once again Tatijana filled him with-her. Pure love. Closeness. The moment he felt sorrow for his lost comrade, she was there, sharing the emotion with him, comforting him. She was such a miracle.

Each rising, I hope to give you happiness. He didn’t know how else to put into words his feelings for her. He could only hope that she felt that overwhelming emotion he had for her each time she merged with him.

Wolf man, don’t get too romantic on me with your brother eyeing us both like he is.

You started it, he teased, but she had a point. Dimitri was sharp and he was watching both of them with a faint, knowing grin.

"We have to be far more creative and prepared for attacks during the day," Mikhail said. He’d been quiet through most of the discussion on fighting the packs. "Sara and Falcon’s adopted children are human and they must be protected. We have only Jubal and Gary to help fight off the packs if they come while we’re at our most vulnerable, and Gary is not in a position to help us at all for some time."