"I don't understand," said Elizabeth. "I thought they were too far ahead of us."
Tlathia pulled the Shatkur Orb from beneath her cloak. "I'm going to link with you again, Lizbeth-Chambers, and once I see this bridge in your memory, I'm going to open a gateway to it. We'll be there in a moment, long before Ulfir and his prisoners."
Hope flashed through Elizabeth, a sensation she hadn't felt since the dragon attack. Hang on, Cassie. We're coming for you.
Tlathia looked to the others. "Make no mistake, though. Even taken by surprise, Ulfir Dunwalker is a most dangerous foe. Arm yourselves well. Honor binds Kargin and me to go—your friends were attacked because Ulfir hunts me—but none other need come."
Paco reached over and rested his hand on Leela's forearm. "Maybe—"
The young native woman snorted derisively, yanking her arm free. "I'm coming."
"I'm in as well," said Corinna.
"Let's do this, then," said Elizabeth.
30
Elizabeth lay prone at the edge of a small copse of trees from which she and the others had an unobstructed view of a small dirt road that ran through the clearing before them. Behind them was the southern side of the railroad bridge she had crossed earlier that day. Ulfir would have to lead his prisoners down that road and get past them before he could reach the bridge.
She wasn't going to let that happen.
Too many of her friends had died already.
Overcast had drifted in, turning the night dark, but through the green tint of her quad-eyed ground panoramic night-vision goggles—GPNVGs—she saw with near-perfect clarity. These particular next-generation GPNVGs were available only to Western Tier-1 Special Forces units and were so advanced that they produced only a fraction of the depth-perception issues that plagued other devices. They were also small and light enough to let the wearer aim through a riflescope while wearing them, a tremendous advantage in a firefight. While almost all of the ambush party wore the GPNVGs, Tlathia insisted she had no need of them. Kargin, on the other hand, jumped at the chance to try them out. Even now, a huge smile lit up his face as he waved his hand before his four lenses.
They had been waiting for almost a half hour now. Their arrival had been both breathtaking and instantaneous. Once again, Elizabeth and Tlathia had linked through the crowns, and Elizabeth, following Tlathia's instructions, had simply pictured the bridge in her mind. Tlathia, holding the Shatkur Orb in her palm, had nodded then channeled mana into the orb. A moment later, a fiery ring had appeared, through which they could see the southern side of the railroad bridge and the black surface of the Peace River.
While creating the gateway had been surprisingly easy, convincing the party to step through it had taken more effort.
Kargin had gone first, with Elizabeth following—in truth, it had been far easier to step across Tlathia's fiery ring than running through the Jump Tube beneath the Magic Kingdom a year earlier—this time, she wasn't traveling to an alien world. Leela, more comfortable with magic than the others, had come next. Corinna, her face pale, had closed her eyes and jumped through. Clyde had wanted nothing to do with it, and Paco had had to pass through twice—once with his Carl-G and its rockets, and a second time struggling with the whining, terrified Clyde in his arms. Once on the other side, though, it was business as usual for the happy German shepherd.
Once everyone was across, Paco and Kargin quickly worked out the details for the ambush, treating one another as if they were old army buddies. She had seen the same instant camaraderie among the Canadian and American members of Task Force Devil. Warriors, it seemed, bonded easily with other warriors.
The others, with the exception of Tlathia and Kargin, had armed themselves with M-4 carbines and stuffed their pockets with spare magazines. Elizabeth had taken the box of fragmentation grenades and placed a dozen of them in front of where she lay. Leela lay next to Elizabeth, her carbine resting on the ground, within reach. Leela had a crucial role, far more important than fighting, and Elizabeth's job was to keep the enemy away from Leela while she did that job.
Paco and Corinna were on the other side of Leela, to Elizabeth's right, while Kargin and Tlathia were to her left, so that Elizabeth lay in the center of the ambush party. Unlike the others, who lay prone, Paco crouched behind a tree, the Carl-G resting atop his shoulder, already loaded with one of the two high-explosive anti-tank—HEAT—rockets. Although they had found two piles of spent 7.62mm casings and links, the heavy C6 general-purpose machine-guns were gone, no doubt taken by the boggarts. The ever-present flies and mosquitoes continued to harass Elizabeth, and she resisted the urge to swat at them.
Clyde, lying next to Paco, growled softly.
The wind gently brushed her face, carrying with it an odd, foul smell, and for the first time, she realized that Paco and Kargin had positioned them here in the woods so that they were downwind of the enemy. Clever, she mused.
"They're coming," Kargin whispered.
God, please, let us save Cassie. Please!
Elizabeth peered through the scope of her carbine. Her heartbeat racing, she saw the boggarts appear, moving down the road in an unorganized mass about three hundred meters away—at least fifty or sixty of them, including several massive trolls shambling along with large sacks over their backs. Marching in a cluster between the boggarts were prisoners—nine of them, all with their hands bound before them.
Thank you, God.
One of the prisoners stumbled along, blinded by a hood. The boggarts had tied a rope around that prisoner's neck like a leash, and a boggart soldier held the other end, jerking it to keep the prisoner moving.
Cassie. That has to be Cassie.
Elizabeth exhaled, resting the aiming reticule of her scope on the boggart warrior holding the rope.
"Where's Ulfir?" asked Tlathia softly.
"There, at the back," whispered Kargin.
Following along at the rear of the gaggle strode a single dark elf warrior, smaller and thinner than the boggarts but sauntering along as if he were out for a stroll. Across his shoulders, he carried a long black spear. At his side prowled two massive manticores with their spiked tails and lionlike manes.
"Oh shit," said Leela softly. "They're way scarier alive."
Clyde made a noise sounding like a cross between a snarl and a whine. Paco reached over and placed a reassuring hand on his head. "It's okay, buddy, we're gonna light them up, too."
Elizabeth's nerves tingled with the excitement that always seemed to precede battle. What's wrong with me?
Paco shifted, aiming through the sight of his Carl-G. "Get ready, sis. I fire first."
"Ready, brother," answered Leela.
Elizabeth, worried that Ulfir might detect her, resisted the urge to fill herself with mana. Please, God, please, don't let me mess this up.
ULFIR'S GAZE drifted in the direction of the river to the north. A mesmerizing curtain of shifting green light danced above the skyline. He shivered, yet again cursing how much colder it was now that the sun had set. If he ever returned to this world, he'd bring warmer clothing, furs, and thick blankets. Curse this world.
Soon enough, he'd find himself before a fire at Horlastia's camp, perhaps with a cup of warm spiced wine. Tlathia had evaded him, but her luck couldn't hold. He always found his prey, and he was certain she remained close. I'll have her head soon enough.
His fingers trailed over the pouch on his belt, containing the marvelous black glove he had taken from the manling mage. He couldn't feel the talisman's magic through the leather of the pouch, but the hairs on the back of his neck stood up just the same. The mage with hideous yellow hair would tell him all she knew of this talisman before she died.
His gaze drifted to the manling mage who had murdered his pet, now stumbling about, hooded. He'd start by taking her nose. His breath quickened with excitement at the thought of cutting pieces of her away. He could—
A bright flare of light blinded him as a comet roared out of the trees ahead of them before smash
ing into the first of the boggarts, exploding into a huge fireball that sent boggarts and chunks of boggarts flying in all directions. The earsplitting blast smashed Ulfir down. Witch-Bane fell from his fingers. He was only vaguely aware as manling fire weapons blossomed into flashes of light, the air above him cracking as their missiles passed overhead. His boggarts screamed, flailing about stupidly as the missiles cut them apart. The boggart captain holding the leash on the mage fell back, his head shattered like a piece of fruit. Dozens of other boggarts were already down, dead or dying.
Ambush!
A series of smaller explosions erupted among the boggarts, scattering them farther. He saw a huge troll cut in half by another comet, and the troll's lower torso moved forward on its own for several steps before tumbling over. His manticores, confused, leaped about, snarling and killing several of the boggarts, ripping their throats out and adding to the pandemonium.
The prisoners fell to the ground all at once, as if pushed by a giant invisible hand. Even more bizarre, although the prisoners lay at the very center of the carnage and exposed to the manling fire weapons, they all seemed unhurt. Shards of metal winged through the air, killing boggarts but leaving the prisoners untouched. Another explosion sent a trio of boggarts flying through the air to bounce away from the prisoners.
Someone's shielding them! He felt the magic-use now.
They're after the prisoners!
Then twin bolts of lightning struck one of his manticores, picking it up and sending it flying. It smashed against a tree trunk, whining in pain, its powerful legs twitching. From where he lay, he stared at it in shocked disbelief, choking with rage. A moment later, magical fire washed over the wounded beast, finishing it.
That was no manling mage!
Terror coursed through him when he realized the truth—Tlathia is here.
And I could be next!
THE ROAR of gunfire was deafening even though Elizabeth had once again stuffed cigarette butts in her ears. Just before Paco had fired the first of his Carl-G rounds, Elizabeth had channeled telekinesis at the feet of the prisoners, sending them sprawling like bowling pins. Then Leela channeled another of her invisible shield-domes over them, holding them in place, safe from the carnage around them.
No longer able to see well enough lying down, Elizabeth rose to a knee. The boggarts reeled under the rifle fire and Tlathia's magical bursts of fire and lightning. The dark-elf mage's skills were breathtaking, far beyond anything Elizabeth could have managed without the Brace. She shuddered to think what Tlathia could do if armed with the ancient-one talisman.
Elizabeth reached her hands out before her, levitating two of the hand grenades into the air. With barely a thought, she sent the grenades flying into a knot of terrified boggarts. Then she levitated the pins from the grenades, arming them. Finally, she used telekinesis to bunch the boggarts together around the grenades, holding them in place. Double explosions ripped through the densely packed boggarts, their screams reminding Elizabeth of what a slaughterhouse must sound like.
"Forgive me, Lord. Forgive me."
Nearby, his Carl-G rockets used, Paco now fired a carbine, sending short, two- to three-round bursts into the boggarts, dropping several. When his weapon clicked on empty, he mechanically loaded another before resuming his murderously accurate burst fire.
Breathless with excitement and sickened by it at the same time, Elizabeth levitated the next two grenades and sought out more lives to end.
ULFIR REMAINED ON HIS BELLY, hiding, watching as his boggarts broke and fled, screaming, back the way they had come. The manling fire weapons continued to cut them down, and another fireball appeared from the wood line, setting several boggarts on fire as it brushed past them—headed straight for Ulfir!
Tlathia's trying to kill me.
His fingers grasped desperately for Witch-Bane where he had dropped it. When they closed over the black wood and he felt the weapon's familiar surge of magical power, he cried out with relief. The fireball vanished into a cloud of sparks more than ten feet from him. "You're not the only one with tricks, heretic!" He rose to his feet, his blood racing. "Where are you? Come face me. Die with courage."
A shadow raced from the woods, charging at him, fire trailing from a glowing ax in each hand. Kargin Ice-Hand!
A chill ran through him at the sight. Dwarven warriors were terrifying enough, but Kargin Ice-Hand had been a legendary dwarven hero during the Secession Wars—and he had good cause to hate Ulfir. Even the best fae seelie warriors avoided one-on-one combat with dwarves.
Two boggarts, trying and failing to flee, interposed themselves before Kargin. The dwarf barely slowed as his axes, blurring crimson, cut them apart, severing heads and limbs with nonchalance. Kargin burst past the dead boggarts and slowed as he approached Ulfir, smiling wickedly beneath a bizarre set of four-eyed glasses. "Fight me, elf," the dwarf taunted. "I don't care if you die with courage or your breeches filled with piss."
Ulfir’s last manticore darted before him, protecting him. It raised its tail and let loose its barbs at the dwarf from only a dozen paces away. This close, the dwarf couldn’t possibly evade them. The barbs, however, shattered against an invisible barrier, falling to the grassy field. Tlathia again. Damn her! How?
Before the surprised manticore could react, something unseen struck it, sending it tumbling back with a shriek of pain.
Kargin charged Ulfir, swinging his burning axes.
No fool, Ulfir parried only with Witch-Bane's foot-and-a-half-long spearhead. The moon-forged blade swept the burning ax-heads away, trailing flames and sparks. Then Ulfir attacked, stabbing out at the dwarf's face in a feint before changing his strike at the last moment to go low instead in an attempt to gut the dwarf. But the dwarven warrior, as good as the stories claimed, deflected Ulfir's spearhead and danced out of the way with remarkable agility. Twice more, they came together in a series of lightning-fast feints and attacks—and both times, Ulfir only narrowly avoided death. The damned dwarf's axes seemed to come from every direction at once, moving at the same time with perfect ambidexterity. No one was that good. Ulfir was as fine a warrior as had ever blessed the Fae Seelie Empire, but Kargin, unbelievably strong, had him on the defensive. His chest tightened with fear. If I don’t get away now, I'll die.
To the Red Ether with the heretic. I have the talisman!
He darted back, trying to make space to turn and flee. As fast as the dwarf was, he'd never catch Ulfir, but then tragedy struck. Ulfir tripped on a dead boggart and fell onto his back.
No!
The dwarf roared in triumph, sweeping one of his axes up and down at Ulfir's skull. Ulfir kicked out, catching the dwarf's knee, and the ax-head slammed into the ground, searing into the side of Ulfir's head instead of cleaving it in two. Unbelievable agony coursed through his skull, galvanizing him, and he scrambled back as the dwarf ripped his ax free of the ground. A blur swept over Ulfir as his manticore slammed into the dwarf. Both tumbled away.
Ulfir, Witch-Bane in hand, sprinted for the woods. He made it only a handful of paces before something bit his thigh, sending him tumbling forward to skid along the ground. His right leg throbbed with agony, as did the entire right side of his head.
I'm hurt.
Then his manticore was back, loping toward him, its flank scarred with a burn wound. The beast skidded to a halt only long enough to grip Ulfir's left ankle in its jaws and bite through the tough leather of his boot and into Ulfir's flesh. Agony flared through Ulfir's ankle, and he screamed as the manticore—biting his ankle so tightly that Ulfir felt its teeth grind against his anklebones—bolted away, dragging Ulfir into the trees. He grasped at Witch-Bane, his fingers closing over the shaft as he was dragged away. The pain was almost as bad as the humiliation.
But he lived.
31
Even as the boggarts began to break and run away, Paco moved forward, firing short bursts into the enemy, finishing off anything that still moved. The first time Elizabeth had seen soldiers shoot the in
jured had been on Rubicon, and at the time, it had horrified her. Clara explained that a wounded foe could kill you as easily as a live one and that if you didn't have the manpower to guard them, you couldn't leave them behind you. Mercy came later, when the enemy was no longer a threat.
Elizabeth looked at Leela and saw her staring at Paco, her eyes wide with horror. "He has no choice," she told the other woman. "I don't like it either, but I understand it now. It's just the ugly practicality of war."
Leela looked away.
Elizabeth rose with her carbine and followed Paco, as did the others. Leela had finally dropped her shield and was no longer channeling. The ambush had been a stunning success, without a single injury among them. And it looked as though the prisoners were all safe as well, protected by Leela's shield. Thank you, God.
Corinna and Leela moved among the prisoners, cutting them free, while Elizabeth rushed over to the small hooded figure and yanked the hood away, revealing Cassie's frightened face.
"What… who?" Cassie said, squinting at Elizabeth, trying to draw back in fear.
Elizabeth lifted the GPNVGs she still wore so that they sat atop her forehead. Then she flicked on a small flashlight, shining it on her face. "You're safe, Cassie. You're with friends."
"Elizabeth. Oh, thank God," Cassie whispered, her voice breaking.
Elizabeth snapped open the blade on her multi-tool and used it to cut the ropes from Cassie's wrists. "I thought you were an atheist," she said with a tiny smile.
"I'm starting to come around," Cassie answered before surging forward and wrapping her arms around Elizabeth and burying her face in her neck. Elizabeth felt the wet tears on her skin. "Thank you. Thank you. Thank you."
Cassie's shoulders trembled as she sobbed, and Elizabeth rubbed her back, whispering that she was safe now. "Hey, it's okay. You'd have done the same for me," she said softly, knowing it was true.
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