Abner hit the ground running seconds later, turning into a roll to break his roll as the other Hunters landed behind him.
“What the fuck was that for!” Abner stormed towards Gerard who was dusting himself off.
“Not going to let you fuck this up for us! You wanted to do this, so you’re not going to bail on me,” Gerard said.
“I could have died!” Abner said.
“But you didn’t, you caught the handles and that’s all you were meant to do. Besides that you’re a half-Vampire,” Gerard said. “Now if you can get your mind back on the task at hand we can get what we came here for and leave before we’re caught.”
Gerard moved to the stairwell and looked stopped to look at the lock. It was a keypad requiring a number for entry. Gerard pulled a tablet from his bag and went to work. “Watch my back.”
Seconds later and there was a beep from behind Abner and the door buzzed open. Gerard slipped his tablet back into the bag, and drew his knife from his belt, leading the way down the stairs. Abner followed him next, with nothing but his claws exposed. Paige brought up the rear, one of her pistols drawn. As they passed the second floor Gabriel started up in their ears again.
“Ok, from what I can see here, there’s a whole lot of shit going on inside this building. Gerard do you still have your retina camera in?”
“Yep, go ahead,” Gerard said.
“Ok, so oh shit. That’s fucking incredible!” Gabriel said.
“What do you see?” Gerard asked.
“The entirety of this facility is powered by the underground uranium energy source that runs under Rhorn. We can’t do anything that could potentially disrupt the power,” Gabriel said.
“What otherwise it’d blow?” Gerard asked.
“Absolutely. No incendiary rounds or anything should be used, you’re going to have to go at it with your swords.”
“Did you hear that, Dale?” Paige asked.
“Ah shit,” Dale said through the earpiece. “I left all my normal rounds in the van.”
“Then what do you have left?”
“Ah just incendiaries. I won’t be able to provide overwatch,” Dale said.
“Well go and get them and get back up there, ASAP,” Gerard said. “Gabriel do you have any eyes on anything else here.”
“Yeah, hang on,” Gabriel said. Abner heard the flicking of buttons and tapping on another tablet.
“Ah watch what you’re doing, not so rough!”
“You’re the one that volunteered to have that damn camera installed!” Gabriel said. “Ok, now this serum could be anywhere but the five floors down there looks like there’s potential place it could be held. Big container in the middle of the room. Looks like an incubator.”
“Let’s go,” Gerard said.
The Hunters burst into the first room off the stairwell moments later, all of them with their weapons raised. To their surprise the room was silent, save for a low hissing sound that came from a corner.
“Just ventilation,” Paige said.
“Don’t touch anything,” Gerard said.
The room had an odd green light about it, and the cold chilled Abner through his clothes to the bone. They walked around the room, following Gabriel’s directions, dozens of shelves reaching to the roof filled with numerous pieces of junk and what looked to be failed experiments.
“Exit this room and head across the hallway,” Gabriel said. “Apologies it was the next room. The scanning is out. There’s nothing here but rubbish.”
Gerard exited the room first, ducking his head around the corner to make sure that no Vampires lurked in the corridor. He beckoned to Abner and Paige to move through to the next room. Paige moved in first, her pistol raised, checking each corner for any sign of movement. The coast was clear and Gerard shuffled across the corridor to join them.
“Right, this should be it,” he said. “Grab it, then we haul ass and get the fuck out. Gabriel, any sign of anything yet?”
“Not yet, keep moving,” Gabriel said.
This room was larger and more like a warehouse than the previous room, with containers and other strange materials once again stacked to the ceiling. The green light radiated from the center of the room, a see through pillar that ran down to the ground floor. In front of it rested the incubator that Gabriel had mentioned and inside was a small vial.
“That’s what we came here for,” Gerard said. “Paige hit it.”
Paige raised her pistol, taking aim at the incubator from ten paces away. Her first bullet shattered the container, spilling clear liquid everywhere. It began to sizzle the moment it touched the floor.
“Acid!”
Paige shot the incubator again and this time the container burst, sending acid out in every direction. The serum remained, firm in its holster. Abner had started to run forward to collect it but was stopped by the sizzling on the floor. It was just out of arms reach. Abner drew his sword and moved around behind the incubator, avoiding the acid that was now working its ways through the tiles. He unsheathed his sword and placed it underneath the serum.
“Paige I have an idea. I need you to shoot it free of the holster. Don’t miss.”
Paige widened her stance and brought her pistol to eye level, pulling back on the trigger. Her first shot missed Abner by millimeters, but her second found it’s mark. It pinged off the metal and out of sight, but not before the serum had fallen from its home and began to roll out of the incubator.
It landed on the tip of Abner’s sword, who immediately reacted, flicking the blade up into the air, sending the serum upwards and back towards him. Abner caught it in freefall with one hand and slid his sword back into the scarab. He walked back over towards Gerard and handed him the vial.
“Want this for safe keeping?”
Gerard smiled back at him. “Pure brilliance. Alright let’s haul ass.”
There was a crack from behind the Hunters as they turned to leave the room and the floor had begun to sunk into the level below. What remained of it landed with a thud, meters below and they heard someone cry out in alarm.
“Let’s haul ass,” Paige said.
12
Break Out
Moments later an alarm began to sound a piercing sound that rung in Abner’s ears. The Hunters started back for the stairwell, bursting into the first room they had walked through. They run up the five floors in under a minute and tried the door that had since locked itself. Gerard knelt and whipped out his tablet again, trying to override the lock.
“Fuck, we’re trapped. Soon as the alarm went off it must have sent the system into lockdown.”
“Yeah I can’t do anything to override that,” Gabriel said. “I’ve just jumped into their system and literally everything is on lock. Best case scenario you’d need to get to the central controls on the… twentieth floor and have them overridden manually. I won’t be able to help you until you get there.”
“Dale are you on overwatch yet?” Gerard asked.
“Yep, want me to blow some shit up yet?”
“No! If you can see any movement in the building that isn’t us I want you to drop ‘em. Understand?”
“Yeah roger that, boss,” Dale said.
Abner heard the first roar of the rifle through his earpiece a second later. A second shortly followed as the Hunters made their way down the stairwell, their footsteps echoing off the strange white material the stairs were made from. A Vampire stuck its head out a few floors down and looked up the stairwell to see the Hunters approaching. Abner ran down the stairs to meet it.
Another shot from the rifle filled his ears as he drew his sword. The Vampire attacked, its claws sailing over Abner’s head. He ducked under the blow and his shortened blade allowed him to spill open the Vampire’s guts before sending it toppling over the edge. Abner didn’t hear the impact of it smashing into the ground floor. More shots from the rifle filled his ears.
“I’ve got a shit ton of Vampires headed your way, boys and girls,” Dale said. “Got a few c
oming my way too. Might have to bail.”
“Hold your fucking ground!” Gerard said. “You bail when I give you the order!”
“Fucks sake!”
“We’re here,” Paige said.
“Alright, let’s get to business,” Gerard said. “Gabriel where is this fucking thing?”
“Middle of the floor, straight ahead. About a hundred meters ahead then take the first door on the left,” Gabriel said. “But shit, you’ve got a lot of company.”
Abner walked out into the main corridor that neighbored the stairs and on either side found guns pointed at him. They opened fire and he ducked back inside the stairwell drawing one of his pistols.
“Dale! Change of plans, get your incendiaries. Aim for the twentieth floor!”
“Make up your fucking minds! First you tell me to not use them, now you are?”
“Fucking do it!” Gerard said.
The Vampires stopped firing for a moment and Abner ducked his head out around the corner only for another bullet to whiz past his head. Then an explosion rocked the building, sending everyone to their knees. Abner regained his pistol and crawled across the corridor as another explosion rocked the building. He reached back on the trigger twice, sending two bullets into the heads of two different Vampires, one bouncing off a third’s body armor.
By the time they’d regained their senses as a third explosion hit, Gerard and Paige had made their way across the hallway. Gerard moved backwards with his rifle taking pot shots at any Vampire that dared try to duck around the corner, often resulting in a bullet finding it’s mark. Abner grabbed Paige by the wrist and turned down the first left they came across.
“Gerard, get in here so Gabriel can see what he’s doing!” Abner said.
Paige ran out with her pistols drawn to hold off the Vampires still trying to make their way down the hall. Gerard threw his rifle to Paige who caught it and immediately began firing.
The control room had the same green glow as the other two rooms in the building he’d seen thus far. A humming came from underneath the one of the four greyed walkways that were raised above what appeared to be a massive computer system, buttons and lights all blinking at random intervals. Abner stood on the center platform that linked all of the walkways and an observation deck together. The deck looked out over southern Rhorn, the moon slowly rising over the horizon. The lone high back chair on the deck swiveled around and in the darkness Abner made out a face that he’d never forgot. Abner took the earpiece out of his ear and crushed it under his foot, no longer concerned with Gabriel ranting instructions.
The considerable bulk of an Alilletian rose from the chair, unmistakable even when it was pressed inside a dark blue suit. His hair had been cut down to almost nothing, a centimeter of hair remained trimmed close to his head. He had a thin blond beard that tucked neatly under his chin and was well groomed. On his middle finger he wore a massive black ring engraved with the Graytooth family crest of a roaring bear.
“Abner,” Gareth said. “My old friend, it’s been far too long since I’ve seen you. What’s it been? Four hundred and sixty-two years? Gods doesn’t the time fly by when you’re having fun.”
“It flew like a breeze for myself personally,” Abner said. He removed his jacket and threw it to the side. “I mean I had nothing else to do for almost five hundred years trapped in some device that you and my wife put me in. I was so bored I slept the entire time.”
“Ah dry humor, I haven’t had much of that in the new world. It’s refreshing. I’m starting to wonder why Tal’davin decided to put you through that if that was the quality of comedy I’ve been missing out on all these years,” Gareth said. “But then again, I had Lois warming my bed so was it really wasted? I thank Tal’davin for that even though he stole her from me.”
“He stole you from her?” Abner asked. He chuckled. “She never had any interest in you.”
Now it was Gareth’s turn to laugh. “That’s where you’re wrong, Toldar. She lost interest in you long ago. And that was before I came along. For the last few years that she knew you, she was only acting at Tal’davin’s request. That time you had with her was borrowed time. That night we went off alone together was very productive.”
“You shit, she was my betrothed and you knew that,” Abner said.
“Like I said, Abner, she was acting as a vassal for Tal’davin. That engagement was nothing but a direction of his will, imposed against you to derive you of all happiness,” Gareth said. He stepped down from the observation deck and onto one of the walkways that encircled the room. “Needless to say I’ve been waiting for this day. The day I could tell you all this.”
“And when did she turn you?” Abner asked. “What promises, and other services did you need to provide to her before she granted you immortality? That was what you wanted wasn’t it? An empire with your family’s name on it?”
“She didn’t turn me. Tal’davin did. After she bore me a child, who’s also risen to prominence in this new world. Not quite how I’d liked it to have happened as I wanted more children with her, but I have everything else,” Gareth said.
“Not for much longer,” Abner said. “I intend to take it from you. Gerard, have you got it yet?”
“Yep when you’re ready to go, Abner,” Gerard said.
“Get out of here. Take Paige and go,” Abner said. His claws and fangs were growing as Gareth began to transform into his natural grey skinned, monstrous self.
“You’ve got this?” Gerard asked.
“I’ve got this.” Abner said.
“They won’t get out of here alive,” Gareth said. “Lois has made this building impregnable. There’s a hundred more guards on the way.”
“We’ll see about that,” Abner said. “Now are you going to stand around talking all day or are we going to do this?”
With a shriek, Gareth flung himself across the walkway at Abner. Abner immediately took a back step, during Gareth in. The Vampire attacked with his claws, swinging furiously in an attempt to cleave Abner’s head from his neck. Abner continued to fall back, tracing the steps back out of the control room, following Gerard and Paige.
“You haven’t fought anyone in a long time, Gareth,” Abner said. “Your movements are slower than I anticipated, and I imagine your father would be disappointed with the lack of skill you now possess.”
“He’s nothing but a memory and from memory I was not the one trapped inside a cage for over four hundred years,” Gareth snarled.
“Yet even without the battleaxes you two fight much the same. I hope he’s watching you and feels ashamed.”
Gareth shrieked again and charged Abner, leaping forwards. Abner dove again, reaching for one of his pistols as he slid under his foe. He spun, unloading three bullets into Gareth’s soft stomach. The Vampire threw its head back and howled, it’s cry this time deafening Abner, making him clasp his hands over his ears. A Banshee.
He angled the gun around and grimaced turning his body to measure his shot. The gunshot deafened him even more, leaving his ears numb in the process. Before he could recover Gareth was upon him again, the Vampire’s fangs attempting to close down on his neck. Abner got his hand under its jaw, snapping the fangs shut together. Kicking with both his legs, Abner launched Gareth off him, sending it skidding along the hallway. He flicked the second pistol from his belt and opened fire, feeling each shot load into the chamber before it was fired. The first took Gareth in the shoulder. The second left a burning hole in the monster’s chest before it was upon him again.
Abner scrambled to his feet, again blocking and ducking away from Gareth’s onslaught. There was no time to fire the gun and it was evident that Gareth was slowing. His strikes started to become slower and Abner now pressed the attack. He shot the pistol again, this time the bullet punching straight throw Gareth’s fleshy exterior, leaving the arm to go limp.
With his free hand Abner reached out and grabbed the Vampire by the throat, his roars matching the Vampires in audacity. He now dropped
the pistol as the Vampire struggled to use its one good arm to get free of Abner’s iron grip. With his rage behind him and the red all but fading from Gareth’s eyes, Abner lifted the struggling Vampire off his feet and marched over to the glass panels that overlooked northern Rhorn.
His right hand smashed the glass just behind Gareth’s ear, a whole panel tumbling down to the street below. Abner then raised his index finger and pushed the claw into Gareth’s face. Gareth howled again, trying to escape the pain. Abner dragged his claw through the Vampire’s flesh leaving a wound as long as a dagger down its face.
“This is something to remember me by and something to show my father,” he said. “I will come for you, I will come for your whore and I will come for him in whatever form he finds himself. You are still nothing, Gareth Graytooth. Time has not changed that. You will always be that weak Hunter back in Alilletia that lost his wolf to a far superior hunter. You are my prey and I will feast on your blood.”
Gareth coughed as Abner removed his claw. “How does it feel, Abner to know with all of your rage and all of your raw power, you still pale in comparison to what Tal’davin can and will do to you. Kill me!”
“No, you need to suffer before I will allow that to happen,” Abner said.
With one final roar, Abner threw Gareth like a rock out of the Indoforce tower and down onto the street blow. His body crumpled as he connected with the concrete, a pool of blood gathering around his head. Abner stepped away from the window, picked up his weapons and ran after the other Hunters.
13
Broken Spirit
He used his Vampire sight to track Gerard and Paige to the lifts of the Indoforce building. A strange scent lingered along their trail and Abner wondered if it was from the serum they had recovered. He rounded the corner and found Paige with a rifle raised in his direction. The elevator’s arrival bell rung, signaling for the Hunters to step inside.
“Oh, it’s you,” Paige said. Her smile showed she was happy to see him.
The Toldar Series Box Set Page 66