Ezekiel pooled all of his energy into his lungs and legs. Even so, he had barely made it a few dozen yards before the sounds of pursuit were gaining on his heels. Ezekiel had knew that he could never have out run the lions on foot but he hadn’t really planned to.

He just had to stay ahead of them until he made it to the central compound. Holding Brandon close to his chest Ezekiel ran until his arms ached and his legs were burning and the sounds of large padded feet faded slightly and still he carried on. Spongy pine needles blanketed his footsteps, while shafts of sunlight fought to pierce the canopy of pine needles above. The silent trees bounced back his furious breaths as he traveled at the speed of a leopard.

But Ezekiel had only made it three fourths to the central compound, almost 4 miles of nonstop running in mortal form before it happened. He hadn’t heard the lion stalking closer until it was too late. A scuffle of pine was all he registered then something large and sharp slammed into his back.

Ezekiel screamed as he stumbled and fell to his knees. In the back of his mind he registered the blood gushing and soaking into his shirt and running down his back. He felt three very large, very deep cuts stretch painfully, as he quickly sat an increasingly paler Brandon on the ground before him.

Something about his appearance registered in Ezekiel, told him that something was terribly wrong with Brandon’s breathing and pulse, but all further thoughts were swallowed up in red. Ezekiel knew that he shouldn’t fight them, that he shouldn’t attack back and risk igniting a war, but his blood was boiling, his Leopard seething to inflict pain for pain but foremost in his mind was Brandon.

He had to protect him and even though he didn’t have a clue what was going on or why this Lion was pursuing them. But Ezekiel knew he had keep Jacob away from Brandon. Jacobs’s behavior made Ezekiel that much more certain that Brandon was not only hiding something bigger than his supernatural powers, but that he had good reasons to fear whoever was chasing him.

Ezekiel knew that he hadn’t made it close enough to the Mansion. There was nothing left for him to do. But to fight.

So between sitting Brandon down and turning to face his attackers Ezekiel released the energy holding his Shift at bay. He marveled as he did at every Shift in the way that that same energy that had constricted around him, was now changing him, allowing skin and bone to slide painlessly away and reform. In moments his leopard’s thick fur and powerful jaws took the place of human flesh.