I saw red, albeit my body still refused to transform. But it would have to be enough. Later I would cry. For now, I focused all of my rage, grief, and outrage into savage action, baring my fangs and charging forward.
No more!
The combination of death magic with that green lightning caused a feedback of power that arced out from where Sally had stood – weak enough to not affect me much but more than enough to stagger the witches who’d killed her.
Good enough for me.
Gan lay unmoving at their feet. But the fact that she wasn’t dust spoke volumes. She would have to wait, though. My window of opportunity wouldn’t last long, and the first rule of any dungeon encounter was take out the ranged fighters first.
I reached the witch closest to me just as she was regaining her footing. She looked up, delicious terror on her face as she saw me close the gap.
“Masenko!” I cried, clocking her hard enough to ensure they’d need a spatula to rebuild her nose.
To my right, Sheila tackled another of the witches from the side, dropping her, too. It wasn’t the most graceful move I’d ever seen her perform, but considering everything she’d just gone through, I wasn’t about to critique her performance.
She popped the witch in the jaw with a sloppy right, putting her out of the fight, then turned toward me. “Masenko? Seriously?”
“It’s a move from Dragonball...”
“I know what it is, dumbass,” she replied. “Next time yell Final Flash or something cool. Don’t embarrass me with that pussy shit.”
Huh?
Before I could say anything to that, movement registered in the corner of my eye. There was one witch still standing and we were both caught flat-footed as she let loose with a blast of explosive green energy.
♦ ♦ ♦
“Oh shit!” Sheila cried as the bolt of death flew toward her.
Her aura flared up just as the spell hit home, dissipating it harmlessly around her. I was already on the move but realized I had, at best, a fifty-fifty shot of reaching our attacker before she got off another shot.
Time seemed to slow as I closed in. The witch raised her hands and ... stumbled?
The blast she’d meant for me flew wide and I realized why a moment later. A quivering ball of eyeballs had pooled around her leg, pulling her off balance.
That was all I needed. I let loose with a backhand, hard enough to ensure she’d be enjoying a good long stay in traction before trying any shit again.
Satisfied she was out of the fight, I turned to the little snot ball. “Thanks, Glen. I owe you one.”
“My pleasure,” he bubbled excitedly. “But watching you and the Icon in action is all the payment I require.”
The Icon? Oh, shit! I spun back to make sure Sheila was all right.
She was alive but looking down at herself wide-eyed, as if surprised she’d survived the attack. “Um, Bill?”
“Yeah?” I replied, worried that maybe she wasn’t as okay as she looked.
“When did I grow these?”
ESCAPE FROM THE CENTER OF THE EARTH
“Excuse me?”
Sheila opened her mouth to reply, but was cut short by a groan from nearby.
“Oh fuck! She’s still alive.” Sheila drew her sword and held it out tentatively in front of her, the blade shaking in her grasp.
This was definitely not normal Icon behavior, especially coupled with her newfound knowledge of Dragonball Z moves. I mean, heck, she’d watched it with me a few times while we’d lived together, but I’d gotten the impression it had been in that way couples had of humoring their significant others by doing things they didn’t give a shit about.
That would all have to wait, though. Gan was rising. There was a bullet hole above her right eye but even as I watched, the skin around it bubbled and then the slug itself was pushed out as the bone beneath it began to knit back together. Sally’s shot had been dead on, but alas, the bullet hadn’t been high enough caliber to get the job done.
Not good. We stood no chance against her, not with Sheila acting all squirrely.
There was only one thing to do if we wanted to win this, something I would have traded my left nut to avoid.
The thing was, Sally had bought us this chance with her life. Could I dishonor her sacrifice for something so petty as personal disgust?
That was all the answer I needed.
Before Gan could fully recover, I grabbed hold of her and sunk my teeth into her neck.
♦ ♦ ♦
I’d forgotten what it was like. Blood, human blood anyway, was the greatest feast one could ever hope for. Vampires were attuned to it in a way that made human food pale in comparison. Your favorite chocolate chip cookies? That burrito place down the road that was to die for? A home cooked meal by someone who knew what the fuck they were doing? They were crap compared to the drug-like euphoria of a mouthful of blood.
But that was human blood. Freewills like me had an extra trick up our sleeves. We could also drink the blood of other vampires, something they couldn’t do in return. Better yet, doing so temporarily added their power to my own. Gan was, as far as I knew, one of only two other vampires left on the planet besides me. And she was by far the most powerful.
♦ ♦ ♦
With that first bite, Gan’s blood tingled in my mouth. Then I swallowed and it hit my gut like liquid fire, her power becoming mine. I grasped hold of her arms, now with strength rivaling her own, and held tight so she couldn’t escape.
Of course, that assumed she actually wanted to get away.
“Oh, my love.”
Fuck me! There I was, tearing into her throat, and she couldn’t even do me the favor of screaming in terror. She really took the joy out of kicking her ass.
I pulled back before she could really get into it. Blood oozed out of a ragged wound on her neck, but she was looking at me as if we’d gone back to my place at the end of a date. Ugh, I was going to need a lot of alcohol to purge that imagery from my mind.
Holding onto my anger, I balled my fists.
However, Gan merely stood there smiling at me, the wound on her neck stitching itself back together before my eyes. She glanced back at where Sheila stood, then shifted her position so that neither of us could make a move without her seeing it.
Smart, but possibly also pointless, seeing that Sheila still looked too freaked out to do much more than gawk. Guess whatever had happened to her and Tom inside that pillar of energy had been seriously messed up...
Tom!
Knowing it was risky, I dared a quick glance back to where it had all happened. The smoke had finally cleared, revealing ... nothing. There was no sign of Max Adventure, Tom’s ghost, anything. It had all been consumed in the maelstrom. Nothing but cracked earth remained.
In an instant, it all became clear. Gan had meant for Sheila to be her thirteenth sacrifice, but he’d taken her place instead – completing the unholy covenant but ensuring the Icon remained alive to fight whatever evil Gan had consorted with.
I should have focused on the task at hand, but all at once I couldn’t. Thoughts of my best friend filled my head and I couldn’t shake them loose. I’d mourned him five years ago, thought I’d moved on, but to be given him back only to have him taken away again reopened those wounds, making them feel as fresh as they once had. What a sick joke by cruel fate.
Worst of all, Christy didn’t know yet. What would this do to her, losing him twice?
I turned back to find neither of the two women had moved from their spots. Sheila still looked like a deer in the headlights, her faith aura nowhere to be seen. I thought perhaps Gan was waiting for me, her twisted sense of honor insisting I make the first move. But she was actually staring past me, at the spot where...
Oh God!
The pause in the action brought with it a cessation of the brain chemicals keeping me from facing the awful truth.
Tom wasn’t the only casualty this day.
I forced myself to turn and look. Sally
’s body, blackened and charred, stood fused to the spot where it had been consumed by magical energies – much like the doomed citizens of Pompeii had been entombed by volcanic ash.
Even the expression on her face was still visible – surprise, with maybe a tinge of annoyance. In some ways it was a fitting, if awful, memorial to the person she’d been.
“How bothersome,” Gan said with a sigh.
“Bothersome?” I snarled, turning back toward her. Fuck it. I didn’t need Sheila’s help for this. “She was more than you could ever hope to be and you killed her!”
“Doubtful, although I must admit,” Gan replied nonchalantly, “the whore has always been something of a wild card. I regrettably failed to plan for her interference.”
“Regrettably? Plan for this!” I launched myself at her, willing my claws to extend, and swung hard enough to knock her head right off her fucking shoulders.
Sadly, fast as I was, it wasn’t enough.
At the last second, she raised a hand and blocked me, knocking me off balance. I expected a counterattack, but none came. She continued to stand there, staring at Sally’s remains, as if too preoccupied to pay me any heed.
Fine by me. I went after her again, looking to rip her spine out and enjoy the feel of her combusting around my arm – even if it would probably give her one last thrill.
As if I needed that thought in my head.
“Go, Freewill!” Glen bubbled.
Sadly, his shout of encouragement tipped her off because she side-stepped me neatly, sending me stumbling past to land at Sally’s feet. I looked up at her remains, tears in my eyes, and realized she smelled like burnt barbecue. Fucking vampire senses.
Forcing myself to focus I spun, quick as the wind, and prepared to try again. If I could tackle Gan, get her down, then she’d be at my mercy, advanced combat skills or not. Even she wasn’t powerful enough to...
There came a low rumbling from off in the distance, causing the cave floor to vibrate beneath my feet.
I glanced up, afraid that whatever had tried to enter this world had returned to kick down the door for good, but the energy that had been arcing across the ceiling was gone. Nothing but the twinkling lights of this place remained.
Yet the floor continued to shake.
“Bill, look out!” Sheila cried, finally snapping out of her funk.
Movement from behind caught my attention, and I turned to find Sally about to tip over. No!
Using Gan’s stolen speed, I stepped in and caught her before she could hit the floor. Sally was beyond help, but the least I could do was ensure her body wasn’t further defiled by this accursed place.
Gently laying her on the ground, I once again prepared to take the fight to Gan.
However, she merely sighed as if annoyed. “Go.”
“What?”
“It would be prudent for you to leave this place, beloved,” she said. “Take your friends and depart.”
“What are you...”
“That sound you heard was my people breaking through the Damascus tunnel. A sizeable force will arrive here within minutes to secure this location and all remaining within.” At my questioning gaze, she continued. “I assumed, quite correctly, there would be resistance to the dawn of this new age. So their orders are to quell any such ... disputes.”
She gestured for me to take a look, forcing me to realize I’d been so focused on her that I hadn’t paid any heed to the small war being waged all around us as mage battled mage.
Casualties littered the ground as myriad spells continued to flare throughout the cavern, lighting this place up like a lethal Fourth of July.
Guess more people had taken offense to what Gan had done than I’d first guessed.
I caught sight of Christy. She and Liz – of all people – were lobbing spells at a group of black robes while Kelly held a protective shield around them.
The problem was, even without Gan’s reinforcements, I could tell it was a losing fight. There were flashes of light as mages all over the battlefield cut their losses and ran. And why wouldn’t they? Come tomorrow, I was willing to bet most would probably change their tune and hail Gan as the savior of their race.
Almost as if reading my mind in that creepy way she had, Gan proclaimed, “The day is won, beloved. Once more the veil lies open to us, its mysteries even now permeating the stale husk this world has become. I know you may disagree with me now, but I have faith that soon you will come to understand. Until then, I shall count the days.”
“Wait. What do you...”
She turned and walked up to Sheila, who continued to stand around like some newb at a ren faire. Gan looked her in the eye, as if daring her to attack.
Come on, do something!
“Um, hi?” Sheila said.
Fuck it. If she wasn’t going to be useful, I’d at least say my piece. “You haven’t won shit. You failed. My friend sacrificed himself, but you missed your true target. And, believe me, that’s something you’re going to regret.” Hopefully.
Gan glanced back toward me, an enigmatic smile on her face. “In that, my love, you are incorrect.”
She stepped past Sheila then spun, quick as a rattlesnake, pulling something from her pocket in the same instant. Her blood must have already started wearing off because my eyes were barely able to follow her, much less do anything to stop it, as Gan took advantage of the moment and stabbed Sheila in the back.
No! Please, not another!
Sheila’s faith aura flared to life in response, but only for a moment. Before I could step in to do something, anything, it began to falter, growing dimmer, until finally her eyes rolled into the back of her head.
“What a twat,” she slurred before collapsing in a heap onto the ground.
“My gift to you,” Gan replied with a brief nod of her head, before turning and walking away, heedless of the fighting going on around her.
Gift to me?
I debated for a moment between trying to take her down and helping Sheila, but there really wasn’t any question which was of greater importance. Revenge would have to wait.
I bent down and checked for a pulse, finding Sheila’s strong and steady. She was merely unconscious. Rolling her over, I saw a syringe protruding from her shoulder blade. I pulled it out and took a closer look, already knowing what I’d see – tar black residue.
It was the blood of Baal, an unholy corrupted substance, the only thing that could harm an Icon.
I didn’t understand. In the past, vamps had coated their weapons with it. Injected, though, it merely robbed an Icon of their powers, leaving them vulnerable for a time. Gan could’ve easily twisted her head off but had instead chosen to walk away. Why?
“I’m gonna go out on a limb and assume you won’t be fighting the Icon today.”
“Not now, Glen,” I snapped, but then a thought hit me. There was one advantage to an Icon’s power being taken away. “Actually, you could do me a favor.”
“Anything, Freewill.”
I looked around, then pointed toward where Christy continued to battle Gan’s forces. “Go over there and convince my friends to come back with you.”
“Oh? Are you going to fight the witches instead?”
“No. We’re gonna get the fuck out of here.”
♦ ♦ ♦
A part of me desperately wanted to go and help Christy pound the crap out of every asshole I could get my hands on, but I couldn’t leave Sheila unguarded. I was also well aware that once I started punching mages, I might not want to stop.
None of that would bring my friends back, though. We’d already lost. Continuing to fight was pointless.
Mind you, that wouldn’t have stopped me from gutting anyone who dared try to start shit with me at that moment. But none did. The black-robed mages, if anything, appeared to be fighting defensively. And why not? They were the victors. There was no reason to press their advantage.
Still, it was probably best to not push our luck.
Fortunately, Glen
quickly slithered over to where my friends continued their attack.
I couldn’t hear what he said to them with all the other ruckus going on, but it didn’t seem as if Christy – or Liz, for that matter – were too enthused to call things off. Not that I gave a shit what Liz did. She could get blasted to her component atoms for all I cared.
Kelly, however, seemed willing to listen. She stopped what she was doing and started talking, eventually getting the other two to drop their assault. Thankfully, the black-robed assholes didn’t seem interested in pushing the matter. Once my friends disengaged, they did the same. Hell, it was probably fucking Miller time, as far as they were concerned.
No matter. There would be a reckoning later.
After some more cajoling, Christy finally turned back toward where I stood guard over Sheila. Less fortunate was that there seemed to be a two-for-one sale on witches going on as Liz followed in her footsteps. Good thing for her I was beyond caring. Otherwise...
Christy’s eyes met mine and it was as if the fight drained out of her. She doubled her pace back toward where I waited and stopped in front of me. For several long seconds we just stared at each other, communicating with nothing but our eyes. Then she stepped in and buried her head in my shoulder.
♦ ♦ ♦
“I saw what happened,” she whispered in my ear, her voice cracking now that the rush of battle had begun to fade. “I’m so sorry.”
There was nothing I could do except repeat her own words back to her. She’d lost as much as me down here, maybe more.
Kelly caught up to us and knelt down over Sheila. “Is she...”
“She’s ... okay,” I croaked. “Just out cold.”
She stood up, a look of relief on her face, then glanced past us to where Sally lay. “Oh my God!”
I wanted to laugh. I’m sure her husband would have agreed that no loving God had anything to do with what happened down here.
Kelly stepped past where we stood, but I didn’t try to stop her. I was too busy taking what small comfort I could and offering what little I was able to.
Strange Days (Bill of the Dead Book 1) Page 31
