by TR Cameron
Morrigan asked, “Are we going to try to stop them?”
“As much as I’d like to, a preemptive strike plays into the bastard’s hands. He’ll claim we’re working for the humans, and since we’ve coordinated with Alejo in the past, he might be able to make that stick. No, they have to act first. But we won’t waste a second after they do.”
A few moments later, the group took a turn that made it apparent where they were heading. Morrigan exclaimed, “Holy hell. Taka Tower.”
The sense of danger she’d been feeling doubled. Taka Tower was Ely’s tallest non-casino building, topping out at twenty stories. The condos within provided a gorgeous view of the Strip and the mountains, and it was home to the wealthiest humans in the area. It was an eminently logical selection on the Drow’s part. “Tree, set off the fire alarms, call for an evacuation, do whatever the hell you have to do, but get that place cleared out. Bomb threat, if you have to.”
“On it.”
Ruby made a difficult choice. “Screw it. We’re going in, regardless of how the bloody Drow wants to spin it. Morrigan, get your butt moving.”
Her sister replied, “Save some for me.”
Idryll snarked, “Not if I can help it,” and leapt from the roof, landing cleanly three stories below. She charged at the rear of the troublemakers’ formation, which had spread out to form a semi-circle facing the tower.
Ruby shook her head, urged, “Move fast, Mo,” and followed her impulsive partner into battle.
Chapter Sixteen
Ruby took stock of the situation as she ran toward Taka Tower. The attackers—since their plans were clear at this point, she felt comfortable naming them as such—had formed double ranks. Those facing the building were already almost in range, and the ones walking backward to guard against those who might intervene were aware of their presence, judging by their actions. Fireballs flew at both her and Idryll, forcing them to break off their direct rush and circle.
She reinforced the magical shield surrounding her body, then mentally reminded herself about the capsules underneath her costume on her shoulders—health on the left-hand side, energy on the right. That had seemed the most logical placement to avoid accidentally triggering them. Idryll had a pair as well, attached to her fur under her equipment belt. It’ll be interesting to see how that turns out.
She threw a force blast at the ones who’d attacked her, but their shields intercepted and dispersed it, and more attackers joined. “Well, being outnumbered makes everything so much more fun.”
Idryll replied, “Take out the back rank, or blow through them?”
“We have to protect the building. These idiots are obstacles. Knock them out if you can on the way past but focus on the others.”
“Got it.”
Ruby’s instinct was to take to the air, but the calm, rational part of her mind pointed out she’d be awfully vulnerable while soaring over a bunch of enemies. Damn it, Idryll, if you’d waited a little longer, we could’ve approached under a veil. Still, they would’ve wound up in the same situation, maybe with a couple of the bad guys down, so it wasn’t a huge game-changer that her partner’s enthusiasm sent her running into the fray. Like always.
She layered force shields around herself and ran, no longer worried about actively defending against the ones in the back. She trusted her magical defenses to absorb whatever they threw while she burst through to the front line. She lost sight of Idryll as she careened into the attacker on the end, slamming bodily into him and sending him flying toward the building.
Ahead, residents flooded out of the emergency exit doors on the bottom level. Good work, Tree. I owe you another date for that.
The shapeshifter asked, “Nonfatal?”
She ground her teeth together in frustration, really wanting to be able to give a different answer. “Yeah. We have to try to stay clearly on the good guys’ side of things.”
Morrigan, her tone dark and serious, remarked, “Even if it kills us?”
Ruby replied, “Right up to that line, but if you have to do it to survive, do it. Now, shut up and fight.”
Idryll performed a series of acrobatic moves to avoid blasts of fire and shadow from the back rank of enemies as she closed. She ran directly at one and vaulted over him, using his presence to dissuade his partners from attacking her. A somersault in midair allowed her to land and run without sacrificing speed, and she wound up only a few feet away from a front-row attacker, a dwarf who held growing balls of flame in each hand.
“I don’t think so,” she muttered and planted her lead foot. She channeled all her momentum into a torso twist that brought her knee up at his ribs, made vulnerable by his dramatically upraised arms.
She quashed the instinct to smash him in the head. Ruby was right. Killing meant losing the support of Alejo, which they couldn’t do if any other option existed. Her knee smashed into his ribs and shattered them, sending him to the dirt, keening in agony.
She threw herself to the ground and rolled as the dwarf next to him reacted quickly, taking the fireballs she’d been generating and whipping them at Idryll instead. She managed to avoid one entirely, but the other gave her a burn that extended from shoulder to knee on her left side. Fortunately, her magic deflector had consumed most of the blast, and the resulting wounds weren’t bad, just painful in that unique way that burns could be.
She popped up and rushed the dwarf, but her advance turned into a frantic evasion as a shadow sword appeared in her path. Her instincts threw her to the ground again narrowly in time to avoid the slash of the second blade, and she rolled up with her claws extended. The Drow had lost his fedora, but it was unmistakably the one they’d met in the warehouse.
Purple swords smoked in his hands, magic coming off them as if they could barely contain his power. The edges looked as sharp as any blade she’d faced. He said calmly, “Go away. I have no conflict with you. Our objectives are more aligned than opposed.”
Idryll growled, “Attacking noncombatants is unacceptable. Always. Period.”
He glanced over his shoulder and gave a half-smile. “Seems like most of them are out of the building. Wonder how that happened?”
She touched a claw to her forehead in a mocking salute. “Guilty as charged.”
The Drow reset his feet, shifting to a combat stance. “Last chance. Leave. It’s only property damage at this point. No reason for you to die here today.”
Idryll shook her head. “Can’t guarantee that everybody’s out. You and your minions could depart peacefully, though.”
He twirled the swords once. “Seems as if we’re at an impasse.”
“Seems like.”
He didn’t offer any more words, simply charged in and swung his blades at her face and torso. She danced nimbly back and let them pass a few inches away from her body, then tried to slip in and slice his arms.
A sword disappeared, and a blast of force smashed into her, his speed and power both unexpected and impressive. She flew backward as though she’d taken a punch from a giant, her chest combining surface agony with an instant deep ache, but managed to land on her feet and slide to a stop.
Idryll slammed her fist against the healing capsule under her belt and shuddered as it banished the pain of her burns and went to work on the fire in her chest. “Okay, buddy, if that’s how you want to play it, let’s see how many pieces I can slice you into without killing you.”
Ruby spun toward the next in line, a Drow male who she momentarily misidentified as the leader. No, that would have been too easy. She ignored the shadow bolts he dispatched at her, trusting her defenses to absorb them. The magic deflector consumed the first salvo, and her shields dealt effectively with the second.
She grabbed one of Margrave’s flash-bang grenades from her belt and threw it, looking away as it detonated. Two lightning grenades followed as fast as she could dispatch them, and when the blast finished, the enemy was down to five in the back row and two in the front, plus one engaged with Idryll.
T
he pair attacking the building stayed on task despite her efforts and threw two fireballs each. They slammed into its walls and set the exterior ornaments, flags, and a large banner proclaiming Taka Tower had been voted the best housing in the city, alight. Stone flew out as the impacts damaged the walls. The attackers immediately started gathering up magic for their next volley.
Ruby was in mid-rush toward them when her legs flew out from under her. She fell to land on her hands, her feet in the air. New fitness craze, mid-combat push-ups.
She twisted to find that the one she’d initially sent flying had snagged her with a shadow rope, wrapping it around her shields somehow, and yanked on it hard enough to bring her down. Force magic severed the line, and she smashed him with another blast of it, knocking him down again.
She popped to her feet and spun back in time to see the second round of fireballs smash into the building, blasting out more sections of the walls and intensifying the flames that had already taken hold. Ruby gathered up her magic and threw ice at the conflagration, but she’d never been strong with that element. Plus, it’s two on one, and they have a head start.
She switched tactics and launched a dart at the nearer one’s face, hoping it wouldn’t turn into a “lucky” shot and hit him in the eye. Fortunately, it struck him in the cheek, and he wobbled and fell. Then she dropped to her knees as simultaneous attacks from several in the rear ranks washed over her shields.
This is going perfectly. Not. At least we’ve reduced the number of enemies. Demetrius shattered that belief, announcing, “Drones incoming, ten seconds, want me to delay them?”
Ruby growled, “No. We can handle this. Morrigan, where are you?”
The answer was an arrow plunking into the middle of the trio who had attacked her, its sonic discharge dropping them to the ground. Her sister arrived at her side and helped her up, and Ruby slapped the energy potion capsule, letting out a satisfied growl as the power flowed through her. “Okay, let’s finish these guys.”
Unfortunately, Demetrius’s estimate had been uncharacteristically incorrect. Drones swooped in and attacked and forced her and Morrigan into evasive moves. Suddenly, unexpectedly, Ruby pitched backward and fell as triple blows slammed into her chest. Her breath exploded out of her, and she sat on the ground stunned and trying to inhale as three women in matching tactical gear came into focus, rifles in their hands.
She coughed and forced out the hoarse words. “New enemies. Anti-magic bullets. Watch out.”
Chapter Seventeen
Morrigan moved to help her sister, but Ruby waved her off. She spun instead toward the identically clad trio, drawing a knockout gas arrow and nocking it before her turn was complete, then launched the projectile at them. Bullets thudded near her and forced her to run for cover, but the arrow hit exactly where she’d intended.
In an uncanny mirror image, each of the three calmly reached into a pocket on their vest, withdrew a small mask, and fitted it over their mouth and nose. A thin black tube led back into the protective gear. Morrigan muttered, “Dammit,” and drew a lightning arrow. She pulled the string back and was about to release it when her brain processed the fact that she had drawn the wrong one, selecting the heavy-duty version that would probably kill her targets.
Returning it to her quiver would be wasted time, so she twisted and shot the nearest PDA drone out of the sky. Particles rained down on the magicals in the front row, distracting them momentarily after their third volley. The tower showed signs of wear, and if they didn’t get the situation under control soon, they would have a full-fledged fire on their hands.
She grabbed the three lightning discs from her belt and hurled them in sequence, one for each enemy. A wave of the center one’s hand sent the objects flying back at Morrigan, which forced her to drop the arrow she’d selected to redirect them with her force magic. “And they’re magicals to boot. Probably hiding pointy ears under that amazing hair.”
Each had what she thought of as supermodel's hair, long, well taken care of, and full of body. Their coifs dramatically moved as they lifted the rifles as if they’d brought their own perfectly positioned breeze. Frankly, it made her jealous. I’m not embarrassed to admit it. I have hair envy. So what?
She drew the sonic arrow and sent it their way, but it met a wall of force that halted its flight no more than halfway there. Then she was forced to run again as their rifles chattered. “You know, these folks would fit right in with Diana and company. Except for the part where they’re playing for the wrong team.”
Ruby groaned. “That’s not a good sign.”
Morrigan jumped over the low wall that surrounded Taka Tower’s inner courtyard and paused to catch her breath. “No, no it’s not.”
Idryll heard her partners’ conversation, but the words didn’t stick. She was hard-pressed to fend off the Drow, and he had captured her entire attention. Her opponent was a spinning dervish with the swords, letting them vanish at times to cast other spells, then seamlessly bringing them back into existence an instant later.
His magical pool, or whatever gives him power, must be deep. Or he’s on an energy potion high. She’d heard of drugs that could increase arcane prowess as well but wasn’t sure if those were real or just late-night commercial nonsense.
In any case, his assault kept her busy, dodging, ducking, and occasionally managing to sneak in a hit or a slice. One of his arms bled enough that he’d have to do something about it before too long, and she considered that a great success given the situation. But it was clear that unless she could intercept his swords and not lose a hand in the process, she wasn’t going to beat him.
Idryll shouted, “Jewel, switch.”
Ruby replied, “Affirmative,” sounding a little hoarse, and Idryll poured on the speed, running as fast as she could in an arc that would take her past him outside his likely strike range. He turned to follow and met Ruby’s sword coming down with both of his, smoothly accepting the change in partner. Idryll spotted the ones that Morrigan must’ve been talking about, on the far side, and had a moment of indecision, weighing attacking the magicals pouring fire into the building against going after the odd trio of newcomers.
Demetrius solved the problem for her by announcing, “PDA drones seem to have retasked to target the Drow’s group. Disengage if you can.”
Morrigan's response summed the situation up well. “That’s a little easier said than done, my friend.”
Idryll charged at the similarly clad women, and the one nearest her dropped her rifle and fast-drew pistols from each thigh. Without slowing, Idryll partially transformed to increase her speed, her body growing faster and stronger in a matter of steps, and she leapt for the woman. The guns barked, and bullets raked along her sides, but she’d narrowed the distance quickly enough and unexpectedly enough that she was inside her foe’s defenses. The other woman had long, straight, blonde hair and a stylish mask covering her eyes.
Her nose was pretty, and Idryll chose it as a target, snapping her head forward to smash into it while her hands controlled her opponent’s arms so she couldn’t bring the guns in. The blonde fell back with a curse, her voice strangely melodious despite the vitriol spewing forth. The next closest, a brunette, slammed an elbow into Idryll's head, knocking her stumbling to the side. Ow. Wench hits hard. She transformed the stumble into a cartwheel, then dove behind a decorative bench as bullets from the woman’s rifle sought her.
Morrigan growled, “Find new cover,” and Idryll scrambled away as the bench ripped off its moorings and flew at the women. It deflected up and over them and forced the archer to smash it to the side before it reached where she stood behind a low wall.
Idryll said, “Okay, there’s some competence there.”
Morrigan replied, “Right? These people suck.”
Ruby snarled, “Keep them busy but work toward the edges. I’m going to see if I can portal this guy back to the bunker. The moment I say go, Morrigan, you get Idryll out of here.”
Ruby momentarily wished tha
t she had two swords as her opponent used his pair to keep her at bay. The healing capsule had taken away all the damage from the bullets, along with most of the pain, but she felt the natural fatigue that came with using the potion. Her single advantage was that his hands were both occupied, and her empty one gave her options. She was out of lightning grenades and didn’t want to try an explosive, so her belt had nothing to offer. But the dart gun that she’d moved to her left arm after returning the dagger to Shentia had possibilities.
She coated that hand with a thick layer of force and grabbed one of his blades as it came by. Her magic fought against his as he twisted the blade to break her hold. She strained her muscles, pushing for the right angle, then depressed the stud to fire the dart. The projectile whipped out, and he jerked his head to the side just in time for it to miss.
He observed conversationally, “Well, that was unfair.” His voice was as condescending, smooth, and confident as she remembered.
She disengaged her sword and slashed it low, and when he jumped over it, tried to cut upward. But his blade was already coming down in a crescent block to bat it away. She growled, “What the hell are you doing, attacking a building full of innocent humans? You can’t be that stupid. Any positive opinion you’ve built up will turn against you because of this.”
He let one of his swords vanish and cast ice at her. She crafted a shield of fire to absorb it and stabbed through the conflagration, hoping he wouldn’t be able to see the attack coming, but his sword intercepted it, nonetheless. Damn, he is good. No wonder Idryll wanted to switch. We might have to go two on one to beat him. Unfortunately, she could see that her partners also had things going on.
Ruby muttered, “Okay, here we go.” She released magic into her muscles as she dodged, parried, and deflected, readying herself for a final attack. She reached for her power to create the portal, and suddenly it all fell out of her grasp. SUVs screeched into place, and PDA troops barreled out wearing their damned backpacks. Ruby shouted, “Disengage, go, now.” She spun away from her opponent and ran.
