If that happened, I knew what I might have to do.
“Hey, what’s with the light show?” Meg asked. “You sensing something off?”
She didn’t know the half of it. Whatever the case, we’d wasted enough time. We had a mission to complete, a master vampire to kill. More importantly, I had to know what was happening, that my friends were okay, and – if they weren’t – steel myself for what was to come.
“That’s enough!” I said, raising my voice above the din of prayer still going on nearby. “It’s time for us to move.”
The Templar raised their heads. Bernadette turned, a brief look of annoyance crossing her face, before quickly adding, “Amen!” to whatever she’d been saying.
Her men echoed the response and got to their feet.
I drew my sword and held it high. “Weapons out. The enemy has taken enough from this city. It’s time we take it back for those who can’t stand up to this evil.”
As far as speeches went, it wasn’t something that would win anyone an Academy Award were this a war movie, but I didn’t care.
I next turned my gaze upon the three witches. “Ladies, if you wouldn’t mind. I think we should let the bad guys know we’re here and that we’re coming for them.”
CHAPTER 24
It was like watching a daytime fireworks display. Red, green, and even a few balls of purple energy exploded in the sky above us, high above the nearby building tops. Had this not been deadly serious work, I might have enjoyed the show. Judging by the looks on Kelly and Veronica’s faces, they definitely were.
We marched down the empty streets of Chinatown, heading in the direction of the car wash that had once served to hide the former seat of vampire power in the northeast.
Assuming we met with no resistance, we’d easily make it there within the hour.
However, I was expecting resistance. Heck, I was counting on it.
We’d started this mission as one of stealth. That hadn’t worked out so well for us. Now we were out in the open, blatantly thumbing our noses at the powers that be. If this didn’t draw their attention, well, then we’d have to get creative. Considering the disparate group I was with, I was both curious and a little terrified to see what that could mean.
However, such concerns were for naught. Within fifteen minutes, we heard the first sirens. They were quickly joined by more – a lot more by the sound of it.
The night before, we’d been taken by surprise. This time, it was our turn.
I nodded toward Meg. A half dozen Templar stepped toward her, most of them looking quite nervous.
“Gather round, boys,” she said, “but watch those hands. Anyone cops a feel and I’m leaving you in Limbo.”
“She’s kidding,” I quickly added.
“You take all the fun out of life,” she replied with a smile.
“Just remember...”
“I know, I know. I heard you the first twelve times, Mom.”
Before I could say another word, she and her team vanished in a flash of unearthly light.
I spared a glance toward Kelly.
“She’s a bitch, but she’s our bitch,” she said.
I repressed a grin and grabbed the radio clipped to my belt. “They’re coming.”
“Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil,” came the response from Bernadette.
“As apt a quote as I can think of right now.”
“Lord be with you.”
“You too.” I ended the exchange just as the first police cruiser came into view.
“White Mother, watch over us,” Veronica said to my left. Kelly turned to stare at her, to which she amended, “Sorry. Force of habit.”
I wasn’t sure what they meant, but I replied, “I think it’s safe to say we should take whatever help we can get.”
♦ ♦ ♦
We assumed a modern-day phalanx position. Me and the witches were out front and center. Templar knights, led by Vincent, formed two rows on either side of us, the front low while the one in the rear prepared to aim high.
It wasn’t lost upon me that I was potentially sandwiched between two groups who would very shortly exchange gunfire. Disciplined as the Templar were, the chaos that was about to ensue could cause nearly anything to happen.
“Are you okay?” Kelly asked quietly.
“Huh?” I turned toward her. “What?”
“Your hands.”
I glanced down and, sure enough, they were trembling.
Kelly took my right in her left. “Be who you are, not who they expect you to be.”
Her words of encouragement touched me, perhaps even deeper than I was willing to admit. For a moment, my vision became blurred with wetness, not an ideal scenario when an enemy convoy was quickly bearing down upon you.
Nevertheless, I wouldn’t have traded that feeling for the world. Not for the confidence of a thousand Shining Ones.
Still, there was work to be done. I gave Kelly’s hand a brief squeeze before letting go. “You’re up,” I said. Mindful of the mixed company, I lowered my voice and added, “Give them hell.”
♦ ♦ ♦
The first wave of police cars came at us three wide, one careening up onto the sidewalk, seemingly not caring what it plowed through along the way. More were behind them, quite the parade from this angle, and all in our honor.
At the speed they were moving, they would barrel over us in seconds.
We had slightly different plans, though.
Kelly and Veronica spread their hands wide out in front of them.
“Thirty seven!” Kelly shouted.
Wow, they really did have everything numbered.
Both of the witches glowed, a shimmering aura of dazzling hues. Unlike mine, the visible spectrum of their abilities seemed to change with the purpose of the spell.
As they gathered their energy, my power sprang to life in unconscious response to it – one of the many instinctive defense mechanisms I seemed to have acquired with my station. Not wanting to interfere with the witches, I forcibly reeled it in until it was a few inches in radius at most.
It wasn’t that I didn’t trust Kelly and Veronica, just that I was aware there was a reasonably good chance of being hit by debris.
The power lanced out from both of them at once, but it wasn’t aimed at the cruisers rapidly converging on our location. Instead, the ground exploded roughly twenty feet in front of us, the asphalt and concrete curling up as if a titan had reached down from the heavens with the mother of all ice cream scoops.
The end result was an instant barrier erected in front of us.
All other sound was momentarily drowned out as the squeal of tires rent the air, followed closely by that of metal impacting on metal as some of the drivers were slower on the draw than others. One cruiser, a Chevy Caprice near the rear of the formation, swerved to avoid the car in front and ended up flipped onto its side, finally skidding to a halt when it ran into a crosswalk sign.
I raised a hand to give our side the signal, hoping all eyes were on me.
My hand was halfway down when two bright flares of light flashed right in front of my eyes. Pain blossomed in my head, an all too familiar bolt of agony, and for a moment I felt myself lifted from my feet and airborne before the light faded abruptly away, leaving me once more in boundless darkness.
CHAPTER 25
After what was surely an eternity, the darkness receded, replaced by a cacophony of pain and noise. Thunderous reports rang out everywhere, as if a storm had been unleashed. Perhaps it was the trumpets of the afterlife greeting me to whatever awaited beyond, not realizing I was unworthy of their herald.
No, wait ... not trumpets. It was gunfire. That was my Hell, a world in which I would be forced to relive that awful moment over and over again until the end of time. I was the Icon, but I had dared to open my heart to my opposite number. It was not to be. Fate would not allow it, and this was the punishment for my transgression.
“Come on! Wake
up!”
I opened my eyes and screamed as I found Remington’s cold gaze staring back at me.
Hands gripped my shoulders and I lashed out with my power, but I was held fast. Of course I was. Remington was already dead. What more could I do to him?
“That’s okay, I didn’t really need corneas.”
The illusion faded as the cadence of the voice registered with me. I blinked several times and Remington disappeared, replaced by Kelly’s far more welcome smile.
“Welcome back.”
“Back?” I managed to croak. “What happened?”
“Oh, just our plan going to hell. The usual.”
“I could use some help here!” Veronica cried from somewhere outside of my current field of vision.
“Coming!” Kelly reached down a hand. “Can you move?”
I still saw little beyond her face save the glow of my aura. I tried to concentrate on pulling it back and winced. It felt like I’d been kicked in the head by a mule.
“You might want to keep that thing up,” Kelly said, shielding her eyes with her free hand.
“Why?” I asked, easing myself into a sitting position.
“Snipers.”
♦ ♦ ♦
I cursed my lack of foresight. The vampire nation had mostly engaged me in hand to hand combat or with melee weapons, while mages relied on their magic. However, we weren’t fighting against either of those. We were fighting against humans, whether enthralled or not, and that meant the rules changed. While I couldn’t know for certain if we were dealing with an organized police response, it didn’t matter. What did is we should have assumed we were up against a trained task force.
I’d been so afraid of staring down the barrel of Remington’s gun again that I hadn’t even considered the guns I couldn’t see.
Kelly stepped back out of my aura and raised her arms. A purple half-dome of energy expanded around her. Veronica was doing the same. Gunfire sounded from beyond their positions, but nothing seemed to be penetrating ... for the moment.
I shook my head to clear it, then immediately wished I’d downed half a bottle of aspirin first. The attack had caught me completely by surprise and I was paying the price. Thankfully, my aura had already been up, albeit reined in considerably. The bullets had gotten close, close enough that their kinetic energy hadn’t been completely dispersed by my powers. Even so, the effect was far less than had I been completely powered down. Though Kelly and Veronica didn’t realize it, their powers had inadvertently saved me.
It was time to repay the favor.
The firefight currently seemed to be a one-sided affair. The spell that the two witches were casting appeared to create an almost physical barrier. That meant the incoming bullets weren’t doing any damage, but it also negated any chance the Templar had of firing back. At least it meant our side was conserving their ammo.
I scrambled back to my feet, wobbly at first, but managed to stay upright. I’d been intent on taking over my share of the defensive duties when a flash of greenish light and fire caught my attention from several blocks away.
The entire top of a building at the edge of my line of sight burst aflame. A moment later, the rumbling roar of an explosion filled the air, temporarily causing a cease fire as those attacking us stopped to see what was going on.
“Yes!” Kelly shouted. “Meg. It’s gotta be. She got those bastards!”
Her instructions had been to cause as little harm as possible to any people in our way. Looking at the debris raining down from blocks away, I had to assume she had a very liberal definition of what that meant. Considering the ringing in my head, though, I couldn’t bring myself to feel all too sorry for her intended targets.
If there were any regrets to be had, it would have to be later.
“Now, while they’re distracted!” I cried out.
“Number three?” Veronica asked.
“Always a fan favorite,” Kelly replied.
The purple domes of energy faded away, replaced by an angry red glow that surrounded both witches.
As they let loose with beams of burning-hot fury, the Templar opened fire.
♦ ♦ ♦
Had it been a straight up gunfight, we’d have been outclassed pretty quickly. Though the Templar’s renewed assault caught our assailants off guard, it would have been only a matter of time before they regrouped and overwhelmed us. They had more men, guns, and ammo, not to mention better cover.
However, we’d been ready for all of that.
Oh, and we also had witches.
The cars immediately in front of our makeshift barrier were fused into heaps of smoking slag. Had this been an action movie, they’d have surely blown apart in a spectacular explosion, but real life didn’t work that way. Regardless, this wasn’t exactly a run of the mill occurrence for most.
The gunmen at the very forefront of the assault turned tail and ran. A promising start, but that still left a whole lot of firepower pointed our way.
Now it was my turn. We’d planned for this, and I knew it had to be done.
But that didn’t mean I had to like it.
Kelly must’ve sensed my hesitation because, in between fiery blasts, she called out to me, “Even if the Icon can’t do this, you can.”
There was little doubt she was getting added to my Christmas card list this year.
I lifted my sword high and ran forward, leaping atop the barrier of broken concrete. Once there, I called upon every bit of my power, especially the cold confidence it instilled. I was counting on that last part.
My aura exploded outward, covering me in a shining fury of power.
Though it was mainly for defense, it also had one useful side effect at a time like this.
It made for a hell of an enticing target.
CHAPTER 26
I’ll admit that I might have closed my eyes. Thankfully, though I could hear the gunfire, nearly deafening in the urban canyon upon which we battled, I couldn’t feel it. As a result, it all took on a sort of surreal aspect. So long as I didn’t see the guns pointed my way, the part of me that was certain of my invincibility held sway, if just barely.
It was a childish trick, akin to pulling the blankets over your head so the monsters in the closet couldn’t find you. But it worked.
Even if our attackers had those black-bladed weapons at their disposal, they couldn’t get close enough to use them. The Templar had orders to fire high if possible, but our enemies didn’t know that.
Almost as if on cue, the full brunt of our counterattack began.
I opened my eyes a sliver and was rewarded by the sight I’d hoped to see. Many of the uniformed thugs who’d been firing indiscriminately at us were now scrambling for cover as bullets and magic converged on them from all sides, including above.
Our position on the street had merely been to confront the enemy and hold the line. Bernadette’s troops had split up to hit them from either side further down the block, while Meg and her team hammered them from above.
The faux Boston PD before us began to fall into disarray. Their snipers taken out, they were now pinned down from three different directions.
Now, all we had to do was hope their master hadn’t ordered them to fight to the death.
They tried to regroup, concentrate fire on targets other than me, but the witches were making it difficult. They’d turn one way, only to have a concussive blast knock a group off their feet. They’d turn another, and a hail of white-hot sparks would rain down on them.
I jumped down from the barrier and strode forward, my aura blaring out brilliantly – a beacon meant to be seen by all in the immediate vicinity.
One of our assailants, using his ruined car as cover, saw me coming and decided to risk an attack. What I’d been doing was a ceremonial move at best, meant to convey a message to those aligned against us, but that didn’t mean I was a mere figurehead.
He pulled a knife as he charged, somehow managing to avoid being hit in all the crossfire. Though I could see by
the metal it was one of those corrupted blades, I felt no fear at all.
He was bigger than me, most likely stronger, too. But I was better. This was the type of fighting my kind were made for.
I kicked out, and the dagger went flying from his grip, clattering beneath one of the cars. A moment later, the pommel of my sword collided with his face, dropping him like a bad habit.
My instincts demanded that I finish the job, but I chose not to heed its call. Instead, I turned back in the direction I’d been headed, hoping that more would be foolish enough to engage me in my element.
Imagine my disappointment to instead find our enemies breaking rank. Some dove into their vehicles. Others gave up all pretense and simply ran.
The barrage from our end began to slow. The Templar were sensing victory. I wanted to shout for them to continue on, to show no quarter, but that other part of me, the part that wasn’t a warrior, reminded the rest this had been the plan all along. We’d meant to divert the enemy’s attention away from the north. We’d done that. Now they were broken, and it was up to us to scatter them and then push onward.
Once we reached our target, the battle would be joined again, but this time with an enemy more worthy of my time.
Disappointment warred with elation inside of me as the cop cars began to back away. The rumble of engines replaced the roar of gunfire.
A voice, tinny and small, echoed from the walkie talkie by my side. “Look at them run!”
A smile creased my face. Our enemies had left plenty of their wounded behind, many of them scorched or bleeding from gunshots. It was unfortunate, but it could have ended much more badly for them. I wondered briefly if they either realized or appreciated the restraint on display.
The rumbling of engines grew louder as I considered tending to the most badly injured. It would need to be quick, though. Enough time had been wasted alre...
Shining Fury: from the Tome of Bill Series Page 11