by Morgan Hawke
"Sam, it's gone.” Tyrone smiled. “It's over.” He coughed and blood spilled from his lips. “I'm not ... a monster ... anymore.” He looked up. A soft bubbling sigh escaped. His eyes stared skyward, at nothing.
Sam threw back his head and howled his grief to the dead sky.
~ Twenty-Three ~
Sygni groaned and twisted to relieve the ache in her shoulder. She was curled into a ball on her side with one arm folded under her, and her shoulder was violently protesting the position. Her heels struck a hard surface. Huh? She couldn't straighten her legs; the space she was in was too small.
Her eyes snapped open. A dim and slightly mirrored surface danced before her gaze. What in Hel ... ? She pushed up onto her knees—and promptly hit her head. The surface above her gave, bending under the impact of her head, but it still smarted. She thrust out her hand and encountered a smooth, curved surface. Using both hands, she discovered that she was enclosed in some sort of bubble, and it was small. The sword on her hip scraped the sides.
The good news was that she still had her sword. The bad news was that the space she was in was too damned small to draw it.
Sygni pressed her hands to the curved wall and reached for her power. She felt the wind of her magic rise. It swirled around, but could not penetrate the bubble. She was trapped in a containment spell. And it was viciously strong. Blood and damnation ... She reached for more power and...
Nothing. Her connection to Galen was missing. She was completely cut off. Without his link, she didn't have the power to break the spell from the inside. Sygni punched the side of the bubble, and then kicked it for good measure. Not that it did a damned bit of good. Blood and night! She sucked on a bruised knuckle.
Light blazed under her, rendering the bubble transparent and illuminating Gruber's face. His reflective goggles hid his eyes. His white lab coat blazed in the light coming from beneath. Her bubble floated about chest high on the dead sorcerer with no sign of any support or frame to hold the bubble up. The light below came from a slowly spinning pentacle star riddled with power lines that looked more like circuitry than magic. Everything else was bathed in utter black. She couldn't see any type of wall or ceiling. Even the floor was indistinct.
Gruber smiled. “Comfortable?"
Sygni smiled back. “Where's Galen?"
"The vampire? Not far.” Gruber turned and looked behind him.
Behind him, light blazed, illuminating another bubble about four yards away. Galen was curled in a fetal position within the round prison.
Oh, Mother ... “Galen!” Sygni pounded on the curved surface.
Galen's head snapped up. “Sygni?” His voice was slightly muffled. He twisted and his sword jammed against the side. He lunged up on his knees, and immediately slammed his head on the top. He winced and pressed his hands against the sides of his bubble, and pushed. It stretched a very small amount. He slammed a fist against his prison wall. The bubble wobbled, but remained intact.
"Both of you have been sealed.” Gruber's smile broadened as he looked from one bubble to the other. “I will not underestimate either of you again.” Gruber turned to his right. “Are you satisfied?"
Henri stepped into the light shed by Sygni's bubble. He bent to light a cigarette. His gaze flicked to Sygni and the heart of his eyes reflected coins of red fire in the lighter's flame. “Quite satisfied.” He lifted his head and released a stream of smoke. “As soon as we have the werewolf, the money will be transferred into the account you requested."
"Great!” A battery of lights snapped on revealing a massive snarl of mechanical equipment riddled with blinking lights. In the very center was pilot's chair surrounded by floating images. A slender young man smiled from his massive electronic throne. His eyes blazed pale blue fire under a thatch of dirty blond hair. “I have plans, big plans for that cash."
Sygni did not like the sound of that at all.
Henri raised his chin. “Remember, I want the wolf, not the dog."
"No problem.” The young man focused on an image floating by his left hand. “The werewolf is on the premises."
Gruber nodded. “Excellent, son.” His gaze focused on the golden vampire. “We'll have your beast—"
"—Packaged and ready to party, in just a minute.” The young man spliced into Gruber's sentence; and his smile echoed Gruber's perfectly.
Sygni found it perfectly frightening. Gruber was deeper into that kid than she had thought. How, by Hela's tits, was she going to get them apart?
Another thought struck her. She and Galen were floating in bubbles, but where was Coventry? Sygni looked around but couldn't see into the darkness around her. “Gruber, what did you do with Coventry?"
Gruber turned to face her. “The beta-mage? Oh, I have him working on a project."
Sygni sucked in a breath. “What project?” Gruber's last two projects had involved making werewolves.
"I have him right here.” The boy laughed from his chair. “He's powering your containment spells."
A light flickered into being. Coventry was stretched out on his back, in the center of a platform within slowly turning pentacle right at the foot of the boy's massive chair. He eyes were open, but it was obvious that he saw nothing. Wires snaked from the platform to the boy's chair.
Sygni felt her skin crawl. They were using him as a living battery. If this spell was like the one that had been used on her, then he was probably aware of what was being done to him, as she had been aware when it was being done to her. However, she had been a kid at the time and used to grown-ups having all the power. Coventry was a grown man. Being used like this could break his mind—if they didn't kill him by sucking him dry of power first.
Sygni shook her head. That stupid idiot just had to come along, and now she had to rescue the bastard! It would serve him right if she left him. She sighed. It would have been so convenient if she really were the heartless bitch he claimed she was. Too bad it just wasn't her way.
Gruber turned to the boy in the mechanical chair “What is the status on our intruders, Son?"
The young man glanced around at his floating images. “The soldiers are pushing the cops back toward the door, Father. About time, too...” His fingers flew across an array of keyboards. “I still wanna know how the fuck they got in. The damned door is supposed to be keyed...” He hissed. “I can't close it! Someone is holding the door wide open from the outside."
Gruber lowered his chin. “The storm-troopers will drive the intruders out and deal with whatever is holding the gate open."
Sygni sucked in a sharp breath. Morwyn was in danger. The storm troopers were true ghosts, not figments. They could pass through the door and Morwyn was locked into her spell. I have to get out of this! She used her power to explore her prison, but there wasn't even a trace of a flaw, and the space was too small to draw her sword and dispel the binding that way. She slammed a fist into the curved wall of her prison. Hela's tits!
The boy looked from image to image. “For only a handful of cops, they sure took out a lot of our boys."
Gruber shook his head. “They cannot destroy all our men."
"Not tonight.” The boy chuckled. “Tonight, we have an endless supply."
"No,” a voice rumbled from a throat too large to be human. “Tonight you die!” A wind seemed to rush from the darkness. An enormous wolf leapt into the light. His ears were flat to his long skull and his lips were pulled back baring teeth like scythes. His fur stood all along his spine. It was Sam, and this was the form he took to hunt, and kill. Sam lunged straight for Gruber.
The sorcerer moved aside with incredible speed. “Catch him, Son!"
"I'm working on it, Father!” The boy in the chair tapped on his keyboards with insane speed.
The oversized wolf skidded to a stop and turned sharply. His hindquarters collided with Sygni's globe. It rolled, tumbling her within.
"Ow, shit!” She shook her head and rolled onto her knees. She looked over and found Galen's bubble less than a yard away from
hers.
Galen sat up as far as he could, pressing his palms to the wall of his prison. “Are you okay?"
"I'm fine.” She glanced over at the werewolf and discovered Sam leaping straight up into the air. He landed with a loud double-thump and looked up. Gruber must have levitated out of range. He hunched down to spring again.
Sygni pressed her palm to the side of her prison. She could feel a tendril of Galen. She reached but couldn't get more than a hint of her soul's mate. “Galen, I need you to open the door behind your soul, and reach for me."
Galen frowned in concentration. His head came up. Flame danced in the heart of his eyes.
Sygni felt the touch of his power brush hers. He was cool and a touch of darkness flavored his power. The tendrils of power coiled around each other and grabbed. Sygni poured herself into the connection, braiding her power into Galen's—and pulled.
The two bubbles inched closer together.
Behind them, Coventry moaned.
Galen flashed a grin. “It's working."
Sygni grabbed with everything she had. “Pull, Galen, we need to make contact to break the spell."
Galen pressed both palms to the curved side and frowned in concentration. His eyes brightened to red fire.
Sygni felt a tug on her power, then a steady pull going from her soul to his. She choked in surprise. He was pulling power from her, drawing it into himself. What the...? Of course ... Tonight was Halloween, the day the dead ruled, and Galen had come from the dead. Tonight, his hold on their shared power was stronger than hers. Tonight, he was Master and she was his familiar.
The bubbles moved to within inches of each other.
"Hey!” The boy shouted from his mechanized throne. “What do you think you're doing?"
We're escaping, what does it look like? Sygni bit her lip. “Almost there, pull, Galen!"
Galen pressed his body against the wall of his prison. His eyes blazed from red to bright sun-gold. He trapped her gaze with his. “Come to me, he whispered. His power grasped hers—and pulled.
Sygni gasped as her soul lunged for him.
Coventry gasped and writhed in his pentacle.
The bubbles made contact.
"Father!” The boy went from keyboard to keyboard, his fingers moving to fast to see. “They're going to break the spell!"
Sygni's palm overlapped Galen's. Power arced and bled into the spell holding them both. The pentacles below them spun at dizzying speeds. Both bubbles suddenly blazed with blinding incandescence.
Coventry arched and howled.
"Stop them, Son!” Gruber called from somewhere overhead. “Don't let them escape!"
"I'm trying, Father! I'm trying!"
Sygni pressed both palms against her prison wall and stared into Galen's sun-bright eyes. A small smile played on his lips. He was whispering, but she could hear his words in the chambers of her soul.
"Come to me..."
Her blood pounded in her throat. Her body trembled with the burning need for him rising in a tidal wave of ferocious desperation. She reached for him, and he enfolded her in his power.
The bubbles thinned between them. Their palms made contact and pressed. Their fingers curled and interlinked. He leaned forward and their lips met. They closed their eyes against the searing light around them, and kissed.
Coventry shrieked in his binding.
Explosion...
* * * *
Deep in the shadows, Henri's cigarette fell unnoticed from his fingers. “Such power,” he whispered.
* * * *
Sygni lifted her head from Galen's shoulder. Her arms were locked around his waist under his open coat, as his arms were locked around hers. Their coats flapped and their hair floated in the eldritch wind of their power. She looked up. “Well, that was different."
Galen grinned. “What, breaking a spell with a kiss? I thought it was traditional?"
A growl rumbled from their feet.
Sygni looked down and discovered that they were floating on a wave of their combined power three feet off the floor. Sam's fanged muzzle was about even with their ankles.
"Great, I'm happy you're free...” Sam suddenly rose up on his hind legs and transformed into an eight-foot, two-legged monstrous beast. He stared at them eye to eye. “But could you do me a favor, and kill that fucking bastard!” He pointed a clawed finger above their heads.
Gruber floated in the deep shadows of the distant ceiling.
"Sure.” Sygni pushed back from Galen, floating on her risen power. She drew her night-black vorpal blade. “We can do that."
Galen smiled grimly as he drew the Murasama. “No problem."
"Good.” Sam turned to stare at the mechanical throne. “I'll take care of the brat.” He dropped down to all fours and back into his massive wolf form. The fur along his spine rose as he stalked toward the boy in the chair.
* * * *
The boy moved from keyboard to floating screen to keyboard muttering. “Damn system overload ... Gotta get the power back up ... Reboot the system ... Fucking servers..."
Sam reached the chair unnoticed. He stood up, and up, setting his paws on the mechanical body of the throne for balance. He laid his ears flat back and shoved his muzzle right in the boy's face. “Hi there.” He grinned with every fang in his mouth. “Remember me?"
The boy shrieked.
"Mr. Kensington?"
What now? Sam looked down.
Coventry's face had a gray cast and his eyes had deep circles under them. His mouth was almost blue. He looked like crap warmed over—and he had a really large gun pointed at Sam's ribs.
Shit. Sam laid his ears back. “Lemme guess. You don't want me to eat him, right?"
Coventry nodded tiredly. “Correct."
Sam snorted. “And your bullets are silver, I suppose?"
Covington gave him a pained smile. “Also correct."
Sam groaned. “Can I at least make him bleed a little?"
Coventry shook his head and sighed. “What you can do is get him out of that machine."
Sam smiled, well aware that it wasn't a pretty sight. “My pleasure."
The boy screamed and threw up his hands. “No! You can't take me out!"
"Wanna bet?” Sam chuckled viciously and reached for him with both clawed hands.
Covington pressed the barrel of his gun into Sam's side. “Do not harm him!"
Sam rolled his eyes. “Kill-joy.” His claws retreated, leaving massive fingers on the end of his furry forearms. He closed his hands around the boy. “Come on, out you get!"
"No!” The boy screamed and thrashed. “Don't!"
Sam lifted. The boy disappeared, leaving an old skull in Sam's hands. He was so surprised he almost crushed it from reflex. His ears flicked forward. He sniffed. The scent of musty earth clung to it. The skull was decades old and had been dug from the ground. “Coventry, we have a problem."
"Did you kill him?” His voice was bitterly tired.
"No, but I think someone else did.” He turned and held the skull out to the inspector. “When I pulled him out, he turned into this."
The inspector placed his hand over the skull. “Mother of God..."
Sam's ears dropped. “What?"
Coventry looked up at the ceiling. “The boy and the ghost switched bodies! This is Gruber's skull; the boy's body is up there! Son of a bitch, that damned witch is going to kill the boy!"
"What?” Sam shook his head. “I don't get it, say that again?"
Coventry started limping away. “The skull is what's left of Gruber, the boy was inhabiting it, leaving his body for Gruber to use."
Sam followed at Coventry's side. “But Gruber doesn't look anything like the kid."
Coventry snorted. “A powerful enough sorcerer can look like anything they please.” He groaned and peered up into the inky blackness above them. “That is the boy's body. If that witch kills him, the boy will be lost."
Sam looked up, his wolf eyes piercing the shadows. He spotted the three
shadows flitting among the distant rafters and groaned. “Shit...” He held out the skull. “Here, you take this, I'll go tell her not to kill him.” He turned away.
Coventry turned with the old skull in his hands. “Where are you going?"
Sam strode for the staircase. “They're all the way the hell at the top of the building. It'll be faster if I climb to the roof from the outside."
"Hurry, Mr. Kensington!"
Sam dropped to all fours and loped. Hell, yeah he was gonna tell her not to kill him—because he wanted to do it himself. Kid or not, that menace had caused enough misery.
And he had a personal bone to pick with that little shit...
~ Twenty-Four ~
Sygni chased the flying sorcerer up and up through the factory's stories, squeezing through holes in the different floors. Galen was behind her, struggling to keep up. She nearly caught Gruber in the upper gallery, but he turned at the last second and shot out a broken window.
Sygni turned to follow and hit the window frame. “Ow, fuck...!” She rubbed her shoulder and pulled herself through the window. The human form was just not built for flight maneuvers. She needed wings and a tail to catch the bastard.
She burst out into the gray twilight of Gruber's pocket universe and called her power. With incredible speed, she wrapped her body in the shape of a raven. Wings churning the air and feathers rustling, she rode the air currents gaining speed and altitude. Her sharp raven eyes found him skimming along the treetops. She closed her wings and dropped from above, stooping like a falcon on a fat pigeon. She stretched out her clawed feet and made a grab for the sorcerer.
Gruber turned at the last second, but this time, Sygni was able to turn fast enough to rip a long tear in his lab coat. She turned again and dove for him.
Gruber twisted to avoid her outstretched claws, and sped back toward the factory.
Triumph boiled in Sygni's heart. Yeah, that's right you sick bastard, in this form I can out-fly your ass! Cawing from her oversized throat she harried the sorcerer—right into Galen's path.
Sygni was impressed. Inexperienced in levitation as he was, Galen had pretty much stayed on her tail as she followed Gruber all across the factory's upper gallery, but he hadn't been quick enough to follow her out the window. He was out of the window now, and floating in mid-air, sword poised for a swing that would cut Gruber in half.
