His tone was distinctly condescending, and I couldn’t stop the irritation scalding my throat. So many times in this godforsaken plane I’d been treated like I was a fool, and now Gate Maker, acting like a smug bastard, was giving me vague warnings.
"Cut it out with this mystical, magical crap,” I snapped. “Don’t talk down to me after everything I’ve done to save you, even lying to my friends to make you feel safer. If you have a warning to give me, then give it. If you have information that will be of use to Dorian and me, tell us, especially if you want us to be able to help you. Enough with the tricks and riddles." Frustration fizzed in my throat. "We know you can make portals and shapeshift, but so far that's the only thing you've proven.” I gritted my teeth. “And you know what? If you know so much about this curse that I’ve been dealing with for months, the one that I’ve finally found a cure for that you’re now saying is dangerous for my health, then why don’t you just give me the real cure?"
Gate Maker sized me up, and I hated how my skin crawled under the judgment of his gaze. I knew I’d let my emotions get the best of me and the shame over that was enough for me to rein myself in. As I forced myself to breathe deeply, I wondered if he really could fix the curse, and the pain in my head eased, and the acidic anger began to fade as I regained control. Before I could form the question, however, Gate Maker spoke.
"I know that answers are required at some point," he said, voice flatter than before. "And you do need them in order to help me, but I cannot give away that information in this labyrinth of conflict filled with curious ears. What I plan to tell you only increases the chances that someone will try to manipulate or force me to aid your cause."
I softened my posture and voice. “You know that Dorian and I wouldn’t let that happen. You can trust us.”
"You think this is the first time I’ve been given such assurances?" Gate Maker asked bitterly.
I’d assumed that Irrikus managed to overwhelm Gate Maker with sheer numbers, but the deep sadness that flickered in those purple eyes as Gate Maker watched my face suggested something else.
"I trusted them," he breathed. "Irrikus and his lackeys gained my trust, then lured me into a trap with lies. That mistake cost me nine hundred years of my life, and I won't make it again. If I hadn't guarded the secret of my true home from them, this world would be a much darker place, if it even existed at all."
His admission left me speechless, but I remembered the historical journals we’d read from Juneau’s collection which described how charismatic and charming Irrikus was as a newcomer to the Immortal Council… the type to win Gate Maker over and then betray him.
“I’m sorry,” I said quietly. “For everything.”
Footsteps thundered down the hall outside, and Gate Maker shrank back to his lizard form, scuttling back into my pocket. I hurried out, seeing Coalition members of all castes exiting the workshop with the prototypes that Reshi had been working on to match the hunters’ gem gauntlets.
"Lyra," Arlonne said, tone brisk. "Kono’s scout, Oz, spotted a patrol of hunters using velek to follow tracks around the edge of the lake."
"How many hunters?" I asked urgently, hurrying after her into the workshop, watching as she grabbed a contraption of metal bands and leather straps with her one hand.
"At least three hunters and two velek. Maybe a wildling,” she said. “The regular scouts have hidden, and Kono is mounting an attack." Her voice rose. "If we don't strike now… the hunters will find the entrances."
Her words spun around me. This was it; the hunters were out there. The time for debate about whether we would be found or not had run out because where there were a few, more would follow. The Coalition would take a stand to protect the Hive, even if it went against the wishes of the elders
"Give me two minutes," I told her. "I'll get Dorian and the team from the Mortal Plane. We’ll meet you at the top exit."
Arlonne nodded and took off. Gate Maker stuck his head out of my pocket as I began to run.
"I shall wait in the storeroom," he told me. "Battle is no place for me in my current weakened state, but I hope you get the pleasure of killing many hunters and returning alive to fulfil our pact."
I grinned, finally able to fully use the rage that plagued me as the promise of battle beckoned. Here, my anger would be useful. “That might be the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me.”
Chapter Fifteen
Tucked inside a twisted copse of blue-gray saplings just outside one of the several hidden entrances to the Hive, our Coalition prepared for battle.
"I can’t see through the branches," Zach whispered, face smeared with streaks of mud.
"Let me help," came a gruff voice. Gren, a large, bear-like wildling with stubby horns, pushed his way to the front and whispered to the trees, opening up a dozen peepholes at various heights.
Interspecies teams for the win. I quietly thanked Gren. Dorian met my serious gaze before we lined up at the peepholes. Down below, I could see three hunters, two velek, and an ant-like wildling. Behind them, Lake Siron's glowing water fed into a river about fifteen feet wide that slowly narrowed as it flowed toward the crack in the hills leading to the cave concealing the Hive. The three hunters paced back and forth on the side of the river closest to us.
My throat tightened as I realized how close to the entrance they were. However, I knew that Lily lay in wait with two of the Scottish guards, Fraser and Melrose, along with several Hive scouts. They were deep enough inside to be out of sight. Their job was to guard the entrance in case the hunters did find it and attempted to enter. If any hunters got past, a scout would hurry ahead to alert the Hive. Hank led another team of several vampire scouts and wildlings, guarding the entrance Kono had brought us through several days before.
Suddenly, one of the hunters, tall with a smoky blue tint to his skin, pointed excitedly at the ground. Another, an albino female with silver armor who I’d seen during Kono’s capture and again at the destruction of the Hive safehouse in Itzarriol, shook her head. The third, bald with dark gray skin and a blue gem in his forehead, crouched to examine the ground. The ant-like wildling scuttled nearby. The two velek wandered near the hunters, the blue gems in their foreheads teeming with sickly power. My mind went to Inkarri's gem-controlled velek, and I knew the grey hunter was using the creatures to sniff out potential vampire tracks.
My team, currently hiding in this copse to the left of the grassy basin that unfolded in front of the hills hiding the cave, included the bulk of our forces: me, Zach, Gina, Roxy, Colin, Bravi, Dorian, Drinn, Neo, Arlonne, Laini, MacGregor, as well as Kono and his young scout, Oz, who had first spotted the hunters. Two Hive scouts and Gren accompanied us and our medic, Sylas, hovered in the very back, carrying his medical kit and a handgun.
Everyone gathered was a competent warrior, and we were all ready to fight. As I tried to convince my racing heart to settle, Gate Maker's words prodded the back of my mind. The rising frenzy in my body was a good thing, just a natural reaction to the coming battle. The blood wasn’t making me lose control.
"I sense two more hunters, farther around the lake," Drinn whispered.
A piercing cry broke in the sky above us, far from our hiding spot.
Gren made a face. "Sounds like they brought a chirrok, too."
A what now?
“It’s similar to a redbill,” Dorian explained in response to my confused look. “But uglier and stupider.”
"These hunters sure like to hunt with a lot of fancy extras," Zach remarked dryly next to me.
I glanced at him, seeing a serious glint in his eye as he focused on the hunters’ chainmail, looking for places where his weapons could get through. This would be interesting for the humans in the group who hadn’t faced hunters before.
"I’m sure there are gaps in their armor," Gina muttered. "Aim for the joints or the neck if we can. They're tall though. We’ll need to find a way to bring them down to our level."
I nodded, but my thoughts weren't on armor. As
we’d all headed for our positions, I’d carefully studied my fellow humans. The adjustment to the Immortal Plane had been tough, but Colin, Zach, and Gina had at least dealt with the supernatural before. Lily was holding up all right and had headed off to her post with concentrated focus. Hank had been pale since we’d arrived in the Immortal Plane, but he’d knuckled down and done his best. It was a steel nerve that I was grateful for, one shared by MacGregor, Fraser, and Melrose, who kept up stoic faces during all this. Roxy was looking weary but was a seasoned pro by now.
I peered through my rifle scope, breathing deeply to focus as I clutched the firearm. We had surprises for the hunters this time around. Reshi had provided many of us with gauntlets of her own design, the ones based on the magic-stripping abilities of Lanzon’s stone. The original stone sat safely in the pouch around my neck, and even though I didn’t know if it still worked, I wasn’t going into battle without it.
Abruptly, the ant wildling raised its fuzzy head and glanced up at our entrance. His mandibles clacked, and the antennae wiggled as he picked up on the aura of a fellow wildling: Gren. The albino hunter drew her long, curved sword, picking up on the wildling’s reaction first.
Dorian looked back over the group, tightening the straps of his rustic gauntlet. "Let's go," he said.
Gren gave a low hum, and the saplings bent out of our way, allowing us to surge forward with a low roar, all of us clutching our guns, knives, and gauntlets. Since I was still running off the effects of Dorian's blood from last night, every sound came clearly to me. My rifle sat comfortably in my hands, and I let the adrenaline pulse through me, allowing my heart rate to rise and my rage to burn. It was like putting a match to a gas-soaked bonfire and I welcomed the feeling, ready to protect those who could not protect themselves.
Sylas stayed in the tree cover, guarded by MacGregor and a Hive scout, ready to administer medical care when needed. Colin, carrying his sniper rifle, nimbly scrambled farther up the hill to perch in a small alcove, keeping watch for the other two hunters and their chirrok, who would soon be drawn by the sounds of battle. As most of the vampires split into two groups to flank the hunters, I gritted my teeth and, along with Roxy, Gina, and Zach, released a spray of bullets from our silenced assault rifles. We aimed at the hunters, the ant wildling, and the two velek.
Covering our backs, Neo, Drinn, Oz, and Bravi kept pace with us, following like shadows. The two male hunters drew their weapons. The blue-skinned male carried a quarterstaff with a blade fixed to each end, and the bald hunter with the gem drew two dark iron swords. The albino female protected her head from the hail of bullets by crossing her forearms, which were covered in her rose-gold, bejeweled bracers, in front of her face. One of the two veleks yelped with pain, collapsing as our bullets struck, but the armor on the hunters pulsed pale green in several places, the magical wards on their chainmail sending several bullets flying back at us. We immediately held our fire; ammo was precious. Neo snarled as a ricocheting bullet sliced across one of the shaved sides of his head. Fear rose when I saw blood start trailing down past his ear. He was lucky he hadn’t died.
Moving at lightning speed, Dorian took Kono, Arlonne, Laini, Kane, and Gren to positions behind the hunters, their backs to the river leading to the Hive’s cave. The second velek fell to the ground, giving a final pained whimper. I had a flash of regret, but anger and adrenaline replaced it in an instant. This was war. Those velek would have led the hunters to the Hive, following the scent of the vampires and wildlings. The wildling hissed as it stepped over the fallen velek, snapping its spiny mandibles.
Our forces spread out as the tall hunter with blue-tinted skin took a step forward, spinning his huge quarterstaff, the jagged blades at each end catching the dull light from the floating souls. The female albino hunter raised her gauntlet. There was a momentary pause as she spotted Kono.
"You,” she snarled, hatred in her red eyes. “Don't assume I’ll be dragging you back to Itzarriol this time, vermin.”
For a moment, the scene of the albino hunter choking out Kono as my team and I watched on in helpless horror snapped into focus in my mind. I wanted to watch her fall limp in the same way.
Kono raised his own gauntlet, a more rustic contraption made of dark metal that wrapped around his wrist, connecting to a ring around the middle finger with two strips of metal studded with scraps of enchanted stone. “Don’t assume you’ll be going back to Itzarriol at all.”
Gren, armed with a huge spiked mace, charged in to attack the ant wildling, driving the beast away from the hunters to split the group.
The albino hunter released a series of blasts from her gauntlet, aiming for Kono, then spinning to fire at my group. I leapt to the side, but one blast struck Bravi in the shoulder. She cried as she was flung backward, scorched by the blast, but almost immediately scrambled back up, a tight grin revealing her fangs.
On the other side of the hunters, Arlonne flexed her new weapon and jumped into the fray. The metal, skeletal arm had no fingers and fit over the remnant of her missing arm, attached to her body with leather straps around her shoulder. It was a prototype, courtesy of Linus and Reshi, meant to strip the magic from hunters’ armor and weapons then fire it back out like the prototype gauntlets.
As we raced toward the fight, bloodlust like I'd only felt once before, in the sanitarium, filled me. I felt my control slip away but allowed myself to embrace the wildness. Here I needed it; here it was necessary. All at once I could feel Dorian’s blood, that shadowy vampire blood, flowing through me. I began to burn, letting the effects of the vampire blood consume me. Gate Maker’s vague warnings and Dorian’s concerns were meaningless at this moment. I had only one task in mind: destroy the hunters.
Abandoning my gun, I pulled a dagger from my utility belt and ripped Lanzon’s stone out of the pouch around my neck as the vampires descended on the hunters. There was an immediate flurry of blows as the vampires moved in to strip the magic from the armor. Dorian and Kane teamed up on the hunter wielding the quarterstaff, the two of them leaping and dodging the whirling blades, each trying to press their gauntlet to his armor. The albino hunter growled and swung her sword out at Arlonne, Kono, and Laini. I raced in with Bravi and Drinn to attack the gray-skinned hunter. There was a flash and a heat in my hand as I managed to press my stone to his black metal armor, and his eyes widened in panic as his ability to move lessened.
I gave a savage grin and gripped the glowing stone tighter in my hand. It still works.
"Up above," Dorian shouted.
The chirrok’s cry sounded like tearing metal. The hairs on my body stood to attention as a shadow fell over us.
The albino hunter grinned upon the bird’s arrival, but her hope was short-lived, as the distraction allowed Arlonne to release several blasts from her now charged weapon, striking the albino hunter in the side.
The two hunters raced up from the lakeshore as the chirrok circled overhead. It had the silhouette of a vulture, with leathery bald skin. It was massive compared to us, easily the length of a Cessna plane. As Drinn and Bravi wrestled the gray hunter to the ground, I grabbed my rifle and sent several bullets up toward the chirrok at the same time that Colin fired from his place on the hillside.
The vampires continued to remove the enchantments, and the blue-skinned male snarled as he attempted to move, but his armor weighed him down. Gren smashed his spiked mace toward the ant wildling as it attempted to aid the hunters, but the wildling’s sheer enormity made it a fierce opponent.
The chirrok dove, reaching out for me with talons as long as my body. Dropping and rolling away, I felt a sharp pain as one claw caught the back of my shoulder. As it rose once more, circling to attack again, Colin fired four more times, an action I seconded from the ground, aiming for its vast wings. With several bullets in its wings and one in its skull, it tumbled from the sky with an agonized dying squawk.
As it landed in Lake Siron with a thunderous splash, Roxy helped me to my feet, and we turned to face the other tw
o hunters.
"Let's get them," Bravi yelled to our human group, seeing that the other vampires had the first three surrounded.
Neo and Drinn left the gray hunter to Laini and Oz, leading the charge with us humans toward the unwounded hunters.
One, a female armed with an elaborate golden gauntlet, fired at Zach. He flung himself to the side but cried out as a blast seared his forearm, leaving it blistered and scorched. I snarled, my fury exploding into a wildfire in response, vision narrowing in on the hunter who had hurt my brother. Wounded but alive, Zach clambered to his feet, picking up his dropped pistol. Like a pair of wolves, Roxy and I slammed into the hunter almost simultaneously. She shoved the hunter's arm upward, forcing her to waste her next three shots in the sky, and I dropped low, stripping the spells from the hunter’s boots and jamming my dagger into the back of her knee. As she screamed, I was knocked to the ground as the second hunter, a male with pearlescent purple skin and carrying a long, barbed chain, kicked me in the side. But the pain from his blow was dulled by the blood roaring in my ears. Somewhere deep inside, I could hear the rational side of me yelling that I needed to get myself under control, that letting myself be driven so totally by rage would make me sloppy and reckless. But I was in freefall, feeling the energy and power seep into my cells as the battle continued.
Roxy slammed her magic-stripping contraption against the female hunter's gauntlet. Finding her weapon no longer worked, the female hunter grabbed at Roxy, but she elbowed the hunter in the throat, knocking her back into the arms of Neo and Drinn, who immediately ripped open her throat, feasting on her black blood. The sound of such a violent death used to horrify me, but now it made my heart leap with victory.
Darklight 5: Darktide Page 12
