Raiden lunged forward, teeth snapping at Arcann's throat. The vampire sidestepped and wrapped his arms around Raiden's torso, squeezing until there was a sickening crunch and pain speared through Raiden's entire body. Arcann dropped him, and Raiden collapsed to the ground, wheezing as he desperately tried to breathe.
"Not so tough," Arcann sneered, slowly circling Raiden's broken form. "Astrid's memories of you were far more impressive than the real thing."
Get up, a voice inside Raiden snarled. Your mate needs you. Get. Up.
Raiden obeyed, one large paw at a time. He was still clumsy in this form, untrained and unfamiliar with the way it moved. But he knew battle tactics. He knew that Arcann's left leg twitched before he moved from side to side, knew that Arcann's eyes always betrayed h
