by J. C. Diem
“Thank you for the update, Leroy,” I muttered and received a strange look from Cindy. A sinking feeling hit me hard at hearing that there were far more trolls than we’d expected.
One of the creatures roared, making us all flinch at the ferocity and rage in its tone. We stood side-by-side with our flamethrowers held at the ready. The lead monster burst from the trees, heading straight for us. Ten feet tall and far more muscular than any human I’d ever seen, it resembled a gorilla more than a human. It was covered in dense green-grey fur from head to toe. Its head was like a cross between a bear and a dog, with long fangs that would be good for tearing at flesh. Its fingers were tipped with long claws that it could use to rend and tear. Like Rudy had said, its eyesight was poor. It only saw us when it was two hundred yards away and roared in triumph when it caught our scents.
“Here we go,” Harley said softly, then the troll stepped on a trap. Fire burst to life, consuming the creature’s fur in seconds. It bellowed in pain and rolled on the ground to try to put the magical conflagration out. More trolls burst out of the trees, intent on punishing us for our theft of their food and for invading their territory. These were the fastest runners and others weren’t far behind them.
Leaping over or veering around their fallen comrade, the pack of monsters triggered more spells. Howling in rage and pain, some burst into flames while others were seared by acid. Seeing the first troll already beginning to regenerate, I put my flamethrower down and pulled one of my machetes from its sheath. Sprinting around the spells, I quickly crossed to the fallen monster. Its fur was growing back and the horrible burns were being repaired even as I watched. Its eyes latched onto mine and it opened its mouth to snarl, but I brought my blade down on its neck before it could reach for me. Brown, viscous blood splattered my cargo pants and dripped from my weapon.
The moment I severed the beast’s head, the other trolls roared in loss and anger. I used my machete to cut down the others that were caught in snares. Veering towards me, the new batch that emerged from the trees were intent on tearing me apart. Before I could call for help, Leroy swept forward and used the veil to take me to safety. “Thanks,” I said when he placed me behind the white line. The traps began to reset themselves and would be operational again within seconds.
“No problem, bro,” the phantom replied, then turned to survey the confused creatures. “I think I’m going to enjoy this,” he added, then his clothes changed from purple to black as he embraced his darker side. The color bled out of his hat and peacock feather until it looked like he was wearing funeral black. He zoomed towards the closest troll, grabbed it by the arm and tossed it towards the traps. Acid burst out to coat the monster and the spirit cackled loudly. “That’ll teach you to mess with us, you ugly mahfas!” he shouted.
“What the hell is going on here?” Sheriff Callahan asked in confusion, but had no more time for questioning us as the creatures resumed their attack.
Seeing another troll frozen by a stasis spell, I sped towards it, leaping over a trap to land beside the monster. My blade swung in a vicious arc, decapitating it moments before the snare dissipated and it became free. More roars of pain and fury sounded from the fresh wave of trolls that were spilling from the trees.
Leroy was busy battling one of the monsters and couldn’t come to my aid this time when I was surrounded. A meaty fist caught me in the back and sent me flying. A second troll caught me and slammed me to the ground. It brought its foot up, intending to stomp me to death. I rolled away and leaped to my feet, then gave it a hard shove. Stumbling backwards, it triggered a trap that sent magical shards shooting directly upwards, shredding it to pieces. Its head was still attached, which meant it would be able to regenerate the limbs it had lost. I lopped its head off before it could begin to heal.
Fire burst to life as one of the monsters reached the center of the killing field. Harley and Cindy bathed the troll in flames, sending it stumbling backwards onto a trap. Magical fire consumed it, forcing it to fall to the ground. The kid braved the snares he couldn’t see long enough to use his machete to hack the beast’s head off, then quickly scurried back to safety behind the line again.
Only a few of the creatures were dead, but the rest were even more enraged and determined to kill us now. Leroy was cackling with glee as he did his best to disrupt them by tossing them towards the spells. He couldn’t see the snares, but he got lucky a few times and triggered more fire, acid and magical shards. “This is awesome!” he crowed, then targeted another victim. This time, he gripped the troll’s head and yanked it hard, pulling it from its shoulders.
“Look out!” Pru shouted, pointing at something behind me. I spun around to see a giant fist zooming towards my chest. I was about to see just how durable a half fae hunter like me really was.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Without consciously calling on them, wings burst from my back, magically not tearing my shirt apart. A cross between dragonfly and butterfly wings, one beat carried me backwards so I was out of range of the troll’s reach. It gaped at the bright patterns on my nearly transparent appendages, then flinched when it saw the four inches of blackness around the edges. It now knew what I was and it also knew the black edges meant I was dangerous.
The beast tried to back away, but making my wings manifest had unleashed the beginnings of my Unseelie rage. Another beat of my wings made me glide forward. I swung my machete, but the troll blocked the blow with its forearm. Far swifter than I’d anticipated, it swatted me with its other hand. Deep furrows raked across my side as I spun through the air. I landed on a fire trap, but instinct made me smother the enchantment with fae magic before I could be consumed by flames.
In my peripheral vision, I saw Asha and Pru targeting one of the monsters that had breached the safe zone. They drove it back with their flamethrowers, directly onto a stasis spell. The witch acted quickly and unsheathed her machete. She reached up and clumsily hacked at its neck. She hadn’t quite finished it off when the enchantment wore off. Its head hung at an awkward angle and it let out a gurgle, then fell to its knees. Now within her reach, she finished it off with a final blow, then staggered backwards behind the line.
A shot rang out as Sheriff Callahan fired at a troll that was bearing down on her. Its hands reached for her, but Rudy appeared beside the sheriff and conjured up a puddle of glue to anchor it to the ground. “Who the hell are you?” she asked, then shrugged her question aside. “You know what? I don’t even care right now,” she said, then fired her Glock at the troll’s face again. It tried to pull its feet out of the glue and bellowed in frustration when nothing happened. The bullets weren’t even fazing it at all.
Leroy zoomed over, grabbed the beast by the head and tore it off. “That’s how you kill these things, cop honky,” he said derisively to the human who couldn’t even see or hear him.
I took all this in while climbing to my feet. My wings had disappeared as soon as I’d landed on the fire spell. Now that I was in the thick of battle, I surrendered to my instincts and allowed my fae half to surge forward. I didn’t have the sort of power I could call on in the fae realm, but I was far from helpless. Pulling my other machete from its sheath, I held both weapons ready as I advanced on my enemies. My wounds had healed without a trace, so they wouldn’t slow me down.
Seeing more of its kin being cut down, one of the trolls roared in defiance, then sprinted at me. Using my unnatural speed, I dodged its blows and struck with lightning fast strikes. I lopped both of its hands off, but it snapped its fangs at me and managed to latch onto my shoulder. Cursing at the pain of my bones being crunched beneath powerful molars, I rammed both weapons into its chest. It released me and staggered backwards, using the already healing stumps of its arms to push me away. Still clutching my weapons, I flipped through the air and hit the ground, then rolled over and over until I came to a stop. New hands would grow in place of its old ones, but it would take a few minutes. I wasn’t going to give it the time it would need.
Rushing at my enemy, I feinted to one side, then immediately dodged in the other direction as the troll took a clumsy swing at me, leaving itself wide open. I hacked at its stomach, slicing a deep gash in its abdomen. Its guts spilled out, steaming and reeking horribly. Letting out a despairing roar, it tilted its head back, looking up at the dark moon almost accusingly. I swung my other machete, neatly decapitating the creature before it could rally.
To my dismay, another fifty or so trolls joined the battle. Most already had bloody mouths and hands. They’d fed on something that had had the misfortune to come between them and their targets. A howl rent the air and the monsters paused. Their heads swung towards the trees as the last few stragglers of their gigantic colony arrived. Whatever had made the noise wasn’t one of them.
More howls sounded and I realized what was making them even before a werewolf loped into view. Standing on his hind legs like a human, his scent told me it was the alpha I’d seen in the diner. Snarling in rage, he dropped to all fours and sped towards the closest troll. The rest of his pack swarmed into view and the two bestial species clashed. While the shifters were smaller, they were faster and even more vicious than their foes.
Hearing Rudy’s shrill giggles, I turned to see he’d mired a few more trolls in glue. The team had split up and were blasting their targets with flames. Pru cast a spell that made one of the monster’s heads explode, then gagged in reflex. The others kept up their barrage of fire until their targets were charred lumps. Leroy waited for the flames to die down, then tore the closest one’s now hairless skull loose. “Just to be sure,” he said, then tossed the skull aside. It landed on a trap and another burst of fire flared to life.
The others followed his example and used their machetes to chop the heads off the creatures before they had a chance to regenerate.
Even more vicious than the trolls that had invaded their turf, the werewolves tore their rivals apart. They seemed to sense I was an ally and didn’t attack me when I waded into the fray. Each time they took down one of their foes, they held it in place with their jaws or paws while I hacked their heads off. Within minutes, we finished off the colony of interlopers.
Dropping the points of my machetes to the ground, I leaned on them and panted for air. The alpha rose to his full height again and stalked over to me. I shook my head at my team to stop them from coming to my defense. The werewolf came to a stop a couple of feet away and bent to sniff me. Recognition flared in his black eyes when he took in my scent. He didn’t remember what I looked like when he was in his human form, but his beast knew I was an ally. With a final glare at the creatures he and his pack had torn apart, he dropped to all fours again and raced off into the trees. Howling in triumph that they’d been victorious, the others followed in his wake.
“Is it over?” Cindy asked in a daze when they were gone. She turned in a slow circle to survey the dozens of bodies that were lying on the ground. She was the only one who hadn’t seen Leroy in action, although she’d seen something throwing the trolls around.
“I think so,” Harley replied. We were all covered in soot, sweat and dark brown troll blood. My own blood stained my clothes, but my wounds had fully healed. Even my bones had regenerated completely. I healed even faster than the trolls did, thanks to my fae heritage.
“The moon is still dark,” Asha said, looking up at the shadowy disc.
“What are you talking about?” Sheriff Callahan asked. “It looks normal to me.” Shifting her attention to Rudy, her frown deepened. “You’re not a midget.” It was more of a statement than a question. Her grip on her weapon shifted when she saw me picking my way through the traps that had all been reset again. “You had wings,” she said almost in accusation, examining me to see that they were now gone. “Exactly who the hell are you people?”
“We’re Jake’s Jackasses, cop honky,” Leroy declared, then let out a cackle. Rudy had told him the nickname Harley had come up with for our team and he’d gotten a kick out of it. He was still in his poltergeist form and it didn’t look like he was about to change back of his own volition.
“Leroy, go to your cell,” I ordered. “I’ll send someone to let you out soon.” He needed time to calm down. Being locked behind the fairy spells would help him change back faster. He sent me a poisonous glare before he vanished.
The sheriff was gripping her flamethrower tightly and switched her attention between us all as if expecting us to attack her at any moment. “We’re not your enemies, ma’am,” Harley said in a soothing tone that did nothing to placate her.
“You aren’t normal hunters,” she said, backing away. “I want to know what you are and I want to know now. Did you call that werewolf pack here?”
“I wouldn’t take another step back, darlin’,” I warned her. “There’s a trap right behind you.”
She flicked a look over her shoulder to see she was standing on the white line. Her gaze went back to me and I sensed her conflicting emotions. “You’re not human,” she said.
“No, ma’am, I’m not,” I confessed.
“What are you?”
“I’m half fae.”
“What the hell does that mean?”
“His father is a fairy, lass,” Rudy said. “Before you ask, I’m a leprechaun.”
“You’re a leprechaun,” she said in a faint voice, as if she didn’t quite believe it. “What are the rest of you?”
“As you already know, I’m a witch,” Pru said.
“I’m a dryad,” Asha told her. “That’s a tree nymph, apparently,” she added when the sheriff’s confusion didn’t lift.
“What about you?” Cindy said to Harley.
“I’m just a normal human, ma’am,” he replied. “I used to work for a team that hunted supernatural creatures, though.”
“We didn’t call the werewolves here,” I told her. “Devil’s Peak is in their territory. They heard about the bodies and disappearances and came here to kill the perpetrators themselves.”
“You’ve killed the monsters. Will you all be moving on now?” she asked hopefully.
“Nope,” I replied, holding my still dripping machetes away from my body so I wouldn’t get covered in more goo. “This house is our base. We’ll be staying here for the foreseeable future.”
“Why here?” she demanded. “Why choose Devil’s Peak?”
“Why not?” I said philosophically. “It’s as good a place as any.” I wasn’t about to divulge the real reasons why I’d returned to my home town. No one needed to know my private business.
“I need a shower,” Pru said, looking down at her filthy clothes.
“I need coffee,” Harley added.
“I need to burn these clothes,” Asha said mournfully, eyeing her ruined outfit.
“Let’s head inside and get cleaned up, then I’ll answer all of your questions, Sheriff,” I suggested.
Nodding reluctantly, she loosened her grip on her weapon slightly, then went to retrieve her backpack. Rudy returned the rest of our weapons to the armory with a click of his fingers. Pru would have to dispel the traps, but that could wait for now. We’d all earned a rest after our intense battle with the trolls. The fire traps hadn’t raged out of control like we’d feared. The small fires had died down without spreading far.
Flicking a final look at the carcases over my shoulder, I knew we wouldn’t have all survived the carnage if the shifters hadn’t turned up when they did. I silently thanked the old werewolf who had passed on the tale of a long ago slaughter to his grandson.
Chapter Thirty-Six
Harley politely allowed the sheriff to use the bathroom that was closest to his bedroom first. I headed for my room and stripped naked. My clothes were ruined, so I balled them up and tossed them into a corner to be thrown out later. Standing beneath the hot water, I ran the battle through my mind again. We’d worked well as a team to destroy our foes and no one had been hurt. Thanks to the werewolves, we’d prevailed against overwhelming odds. It was the best possible outcome, but something still
niggled at me.
Rinsing away the vestiges of my rage that I’d thankfully managed to control, I dried myself off and beat everyone to the kitchen. I had coffee and sandwiches ready and waiting by the time they all began to file into the room. Rudy teleported himself onto his tall chair. Cindy kept sneaking glances at him when she took a seat at the far end of the table. “I’m not going to throw a spell at you, lass,” he said in exasperation.
“You saved my life,” she said. “That troll was going to rip me to pieces, but you appeared out of nowhere and glued it to the ground.” She’d wisely brought a change of clothes with her and was wearing a fresh pair of jeans and a t-shirt.
“That is one of my favorite pranks,” the leprechaun said in self-admiration. “It’s come in handy more times than I can count.”
“Someone needs to let Leroy out of his cell,” Pru reminded me.
“I’ll do it,” Rudy volunteered, then vanished. He returned a few moments later with the ghost in tow. The phantom had shed his poltergeist form and was back to normal again.
“Who’s Leroy?” Sheriff Callahan asked in confusion. Her hair was wet and her makeup had been washed off, revealing that she had natural beauty that didn’t require enhancement.
“He’s a ghost who died in this house in the eighties,” Harley replied. “His spirit remained and he’s stuck haunting the house.”
“Leroy Lacrosse?” she asked for clarification. “The pimp?”
“Huh, I didn’t realize I was famous,” the ghost said, puffing his chest out.
“That’s him,” I said dryly. “Pru cast a spell that lets us all see and hear him.”
“I read that he was shot in the back during a drug deal that went bad,” the sheriff said. “He was just a small time criminal.”
Leroy gasped in outrage at what he saw as a grave insult. “I’ll show her who’s a small time criminal,” he threatened, clothes and feather darkening slightly in his anger.
