And so I did. It took us less than thirty minutes to reach our destination since there was almost no traffic, but it was a very long half-hour. I was glad I could keep busy by directing Buck, because otherwise, the tension would have been killing me.
There had been one more message from Allard.
Vampires are disappearing off the streets. Elders think attacks may be imminent at nightfall.
I could feel it in my bones—the crushing dread and anxiousness, mixing with expectation and the desire to finally be able to do something about it. Waiting for things to happen was the worst. And while we actually were acting this time, sitting in a car still felt more like waiting.
Behind me, the very unusual mix of people in the back row seemed to be similarly uneasy. They barely spoke a word the whole ride. Octavian stared out the window with glassy eyes, Aaron sat in the middle, on his phone most of the time, and Ana… she just sat there, eyes blank, staring straight ahead into the back of the driver’s seat. Raina followed us closely.
But when the car finally stopped at the entrance to a factory, an old, rusty gate with an abandoned guard post, life returned to all of us. I put the phone away, my heartbeat quickening, and started breathing deeply to get into the zone. Octavian started tightening the straps of his armor, as well as that was possible while being in a car, and Aaron was cracking his knuckles, stretching his fingers. Whatever for, I could not tell. Ana just stared at the factory, her expression blank. I was glad to have her here, but she gave me the creeps.
I took another deep breath, then let out a long sigh. “Let’s go in then, shall we?”
Octavian looked at me in shock. “We can’t just march in there! There must be at least one powerful witch or something, maybe more, and possibly even a host of evil spirits and demons waiting for us.”
“He has a point,” Aaron chimed in. “Maybe we should scout ahead, first.”
I squinted, looking back and forth between them. “No shit. I didn’t mean we should waltz in there, throwing the doors open, and holler them a welcome.”
Octavian looked down awkwardly, uncomfortably smiling. “Uhm, yeah, I knew that, of course. Let’s sneak up, then.”
I snorted and shot him a teasing glare, then got out of the car. The air was chilly and smelled like it might rain soon. I took a deep breath and filled my lungs with fresh air and oxygen, finally feeling able to breathe again. The tension slowly left my muscles and my mind cleared up. Out here, in the dark, stalking our target and preparing a trap—that was where I felt at home. Not in a cramped car, on the way to the unknown.
But then the feeling of uneasiness returned. Octavian was right. We had no idea yet what we were about to face, what powers were going to be thrown at us. For all we knew, it could be a pharaoh who had been waiting for millennia to strike, immortal because they were actually an alien.
I chuckled at my very active imagination in a time when I should be focused, but I couldn’t completely discard the thought. Aliens might seem ridiculous to us, but so did vampires and witches to clueless humans, a.k.a. most of the population. So who was I to laugh about the idea of an ancient, alien pharaoh?
As we stalked quietly toward the factory, I carefully took in my surroundings, focusing on more practical questions again. How many escape routes did they have? Where were potential ambush spots and kill zones? We had been expecting a single attacker behind it all, but they had apparently used minions to do their bidding—so we might as well face an entire cult of supernatural bad guys.
When we reached the entrance door, right next to a large gate for vehicles, we stopped. There was a panel next to the door, equipped with a keypad, display, and a small camera. It didn’t appear to be in service, but I didn’t know whether that meant that the door was unlocked, or if we couldn’t unlock it.
Octavian stepped closer, pressing his ear against the door. After a moment, Raina started whispering, her eyes closed again. Her hands were wandering in front of her, palms facing the building. Ana was standing there, as usual, and I felt useless while the others were magically examining the situation.
To take advantage of the short pause, I closed my eyes and focused on finding my center, getting in the flow. I reached for my magic, just to make the connection, have it right there when I needed it. But without even wanting to, I plunged into my inner well again.
It felt like falling into a pool with my consciousness, followed by the world flipping over around me. Suddenly, there was no well anymore. Instead, my whole body was filled with magic, like I had set it free. It felt strange, as if I had given up control, given in, let my magic take over.
Like this, I felt more in tune with myself. Like I had now merged with it for the first time, becoming one. As I let my focus drift, I could feel more magic tugging at me. Turning my attention outward, I could sense another source of magic close by. Green and flowery. Soft. That must be Raina.
Another metaphorical look around, and I could feel a second presence. Cold and hard. Like a freezing mist that passed through me and left me shivering. Ana.
I tried to feel Octavian, but just like a vampire’s magical smell was weaker, I could barely feel his presence.
Then I tried pushing further, extending my attention into the building. I didn’t see anything physically in this state, but I remembered that the building was in front of me, so that was where I focused.
It was like trying to pick up a faint scent from a distance, I could tell there was something there, but that was it. Frustrated, I opened my eyes. As I looked around, I saw the others, even Ana, were staring at me. “What?”
“You… uhm… glowed a little. Like, magically,” Raina stammered.
“Really? I didn’t see anything,” Octavian frowned, tilting his head at Raina. “I just felt her… vibrate, like she was charging up energy or something.”
I looked between the two of them. “You could… see what I was doing?”
“Well, whatever it was, I hope you’re ready. There is movement inside.”
I looked at Octavian, pursed my lips, then nodded. I wanted to spend more time exploring this new feeling, but right now, it was time to kick some ass.
20
Octavian took a step back from the door and look at it as if he was about to kick it in. I wanted to tell him that it wouldn’t work, that the door was too thick and opened to the outside, and even with his vampire strength he couldn’t kick it in. I’d had made quite a few experiences like this in the past, and not even my magic could break a door like this.
Then he kicked before I could say anything. But instead of kicking the door and breaking his foot, he kicked against the wall next to it, at the height of the handle. Then came another kick. A big dent was already deforming the metal wall. Then, with one forceful pull, he ripped the door open.
“Works every time,” he grinned. “Well, more like every second time. But it works. Sometimes.”
Before I could even open my mouth for a response, Octavian had already marched in.
I quickly followed and heard the footsteps of Raina, Aaron and Ana behind me. As we entered the building, we found ourselves in a big hall. The main production area, apparently.
Old machinery, boxes, and waste were littered throughout the room. Many machines were taller than us—big bulky devices with unknown purpose. Others were smaller, and many machines were connected by conveyor belts. There weren’t many clear paths through the hall, as much of the floor was covered by machinery.
I pulled out my phone, trying to see how accurate the tracking device really was. It was advertised as ‘accurate enough to find the exact spot you forgot your keys in,’ but I knew better than to trust advertisement.
As I zoomed in on the map, I could see that the book was supposedly way ahead of us. Judging by our environment, it was beyond the production hall.
“It’s not in here, it’s further inside,” I whispered. “Let’s sneak forward.”
I took one step, then felt Octavian’s arm against me. I look
ed up at him, but he was intensely staring into the factory, ignoring me. “We're not alone,” he whispered.
As I let my eyes scan the hall again, I saw something move. It was a person, meandering slowly through the hall. They had appeared behind a big, bulky machine and I couldn’t yet make out any details. The five of us were still standing at the entrance, completely without cover. But with all the machines, crates, and racks scattered throughout the building, there were few lines of sight, so maybe they hadn’t seen us yet. Better to assume they did, though, I thought as I ducked.
We could see one, but there could be a dozen people in here if they were quiet. While the windows up high let some light in, it was still rather dim in here. They could easily hide, and we were plain out in the open.
“Guys, we need to get behind cover,” I whispered, gesturing toward the nearest machine.
“What is that?” Raina whispered, her voice trembling with worry.
As I looked closer, I could see what she meant. It was a man, about 5’9”, average built. Didn’t look like a supernatural, either. But the way he moved, the way his eyes stared blankly, it made me think of the woman who attacked the vampire at that first meeting.
Almost like a zombie, his movements were erratic, like he didn’t know what he was about to do, re-deciding every second while fighting for control over his limbs.
“We have to get past them,” Octavian whispered with determination. Grimly, he stared at the back of the hall. “The book is over there, right? Let’s sneak over and deal with the mastermind directly.”
The others nodded, and we started sneaking close to the wall, Octavian taking the lead. His vision was probably the best, and so was his hearing. It smelled rotten in here, like an old dumpster, but more… gross. Like someone had dumped a corpse in it and let it rot for weeks. I wasn’t sure if it was a magical or real smell, though. Either would be bad.
I had no clue how the zombie-man hadn’t noticed us yet, but maybe his senses were as bad as his coordination. But best not to underestimate them. I had seen what that one fragile witch could do while possessed. If there were more of these in here, it would be a bloodbath.
Carefully, I looked around me as we moved forward. I watched every step, cautious to not kick anything. Whoever left the factory didn’t bother to clean up before abandoning it. There were tools scattered on the floor, screws, pieces of paper, and empty plastic bottles. Like everyone just got up and left and never looked back.
As we made our way along the wall, I could catch glimpses of more zombies. Possessed, I corrected myself. I was quite sure—we were dealing with a spirit-raising bad guy, after all, not with an apocalyptic virus. Although, in the end, it made little difference. There were a lot of them around. A handful would be bad, but I had already seen about a dozen so far.
The complete silence around us was grinding my nerves. It was that feeling again, the calm before the storm. All I wanted was to jump in, embrace the storm, fight. I didn’t mind being sneaky, laying a trap, prowling through the dark streets and hunting for my target. But here, we were completely vulnerable and had no idea what we were up against. We weren’t stalking prey. We were stalking our hunter.
My grim thoughts were interrupted when Raina missed a screw on the ground and accidentally kicked it. My breath stopped as it was catapulted into the hall. Almost in slow motion, it sailed through the air, then hit a machine.
The metallic clang sounded hollow as it echoed through the factory. In the absolute silence, it was as loud as a hammer crashing down on an anvil.
RIP sneak attack.
As one, we froze. We anxiously looked around, scanning the area for movement.
At first, nothing. Silence.
Then, from all across the factory, movement. Possessed spilled out, suddenly going toward us very purposefully. There was clattering and scuffling, but no words or sounds came from them. Eerily silent, they stumbled at us like determined ghouls.
“Shit,” Octavian cursed quietly, straightening himself up and getting ready to fight. “Well, let’s give ‘em hell.”
“But… they are still people!” Raina yelped. “We should try to knock them out, rescue them later.”
Octavian grunted, clenching his jaw, but then nodded. “That is not going to make it any easier.” He moved the others behind him, getting himself between our attackers and us.
He was right. This would have been a hard fight if it was fair. With us holding back, it was madness. I wouldn’t hesitate to kill if I didn’t see myself making it out alive another way. Which would be probably right about now, usually. But the others inspired me to try harder, to do the right thing. I stepped behind beside him, raising my fists and drawing magic in.
And then, the first possessed jumped at Octavian.
One hit, and the man was thrown back against a rusty machine. His head smashed against metal, then he collapsed.
Another stumbled around a conveyor belt, coming straight at me. Instead of hitting him in the chest like Octavian did, I placed a quick and controlled punch right on his forehead. With a satisfying thud, the guy fell back like a wooden board and remained unmoving on the floor.
I glanced to the side as Octavian kicked away the next attacker, a slightly bigger man who had come at him faster than the others. But he was no match for an angry vampire. He was thrown back, stumbled over something on the ground, then fell into a pile of rubble. With an ugly, wet sound, a broken metal pipe suddenly emerged from his chest, sending a spray of blood over himself and speckling the ground.
Raina gasped behind me, and Aaron wheezed. “So much for…”
His voice trailed off as the man grunted, then pushed himself up. He slid off the metal pipe in his chest and already stood shakily on his feet again. He took an awkward step forward, struggling to keep balance as blood was drizzling down from him. His head wiggled left and right with each step, but within moments, he was stumbling toward us again.
“Uhm… I think it might be too late for them already,” I muttered dryly.
“One more reason for us to kill our magical thief,” Octavian hissed through his teeth. He swung his fist at the zombie-like man, and I could see in his movements that this time, he wasn’t holding back anymore.
With an ugly crack, the man’s neck broke as Octavian’s fist connected with his face. He was thrown back, flipped over, then landed on the ground with a loud thump.
This time, he stayed down. We looked at him, watching suspiciously for a moment longer, for a second that seemed to drag on forever. Nothing. Whatever had possessed him was gone.
But the others were already catching up and gave us no chance to reposition. One after the other, possessed kept stumbling into view. There had to be at least two or three dozen people in the hall, mostly men between thirty and fifty, but some women, too. Sadly for us, they all seemed to be fit and in good physical shape, like our bad guy had specifically picked them out for this.
As the fight broke out, Ana quickly joined us in the front and swung her dagger ferociously at anything that came close to her. Behind us, Raina was muttering, chanting in a language I didn’t understand.
As I swung my own dagger at the throat of a guy coming straight at me, he suddenly stopped, just out of reach. I stumbled for a moment as my strike cut through air instead of slicing flesh. The man reached for me, but his movements were slow, like he was fighting for every inch. Then his face started to… age. Like his life was suddenly on fast-forward, his skin dried up within seconds, sinking in, and his hair turned gray before falling out. Two others, a man and a woman trying to flank me on my left, were then inflicted with the same spell.
They had been maybe five steps away from me, but when they dropped to the floor next to the first attacker a second later, they were nothing but withered husks.
I turned my head slowly, staring at Raina, who was panting, her eyes wide in horror. “Damn girl, I did not expect a spell that nasty from you.”
“Me neither,” she whispered fearfully
. Her eyes stared at the corpses for a moment longer before blinking and refocusing on the next attackers.
Meanwhile, Aaron was moving erratically behind us, picking up anything he could find and throw it at anyone who came close. “Dammit, I can’t… ugh!” He cursed as he threw an unopened soda can through the air, hitting a possessed right in the head. She barely seemed to notice. “There’s too much—" He straightened up suddenly, dropping the wrench he just picked up. “Oh, but there! I got it!”
I looked at him in confusion as he dashed away to my left. Then a hand clawed at my face and brought me back in the zone. I dodged it just barely, almost receiving a few nasty scratches. The man looked like he had been a banker or something, still in a dust gray suit. But when he snarled at me, his mouth opened like a predator ready to rip into my throat, and I acted without hesitation. I spun back, ducking through another swing, then buried my dagger through his jaw deep into his head. Now, he was just another possessed in a nicer outfit.
Blood squirted on the ground as I pulled my dagger out, and the man collapsed before me. I crinkled my nose at the stench of death and gore as I stepped to the side, and readied myself for the next possessed.
To my right, I could hear Ana muttering in a deep, guttural language that gave me the creeps. A possessed was charging at her, but in the last moment, she stretched her hand out like a stop sign. Obediently, he stopped, his face maybe four inches from her open hand. His whole body went rigid, though his face kept snarling at her. But only for a moment.
Then his mouth opened in a silent scream. I could see a ghastly face being pulled from his head, like Ana was literally ripping the spirit out of the man. It screamed and wailed silently, hatred and fear written on the spirit’s face. While it was pulled further and further out, blood started oozing from the man’s nose, ears, and even his eyes.
A shiver ran through my body as I watched blood stream down from his face. He collapsed a second later when the spirit was ripped out of its host. I already knew I would have more nightmares from Raina and Ana’s spells than I would have from a couple possessed people. Once again, I was glad we were on the same team.
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