“No, Alessa and I just saw him back at his casino. I’d say he’s had enough of us for one night.” I hoped so, at least.
“Because you can’t expect me to be able to cast that spell straight away.” Danielle’s speech sped up, her words jumbling on top of each other. “I’ve only just—”
“It’s okay, we won’t need it tonight,” I said hurriedly. “Well done in finding it. Could be useful for another time.”
“I’m not even sure it’ll work. Just something I scribbled down.”
“Doesn’t matter. Good luck with those wards.”
I pushed through the door and into a darkened corridor. Alessa’s red aura wasn’t too far ahead, and as I caught up with them, I reflected that if Grimstar did arrive unexpectedly, Danielle’s spell and Becca’s broken maser were likely to be equally useless. I’d just have to stay well clear of his underworld reflection or hope Gabriel intervened.
Other than Alessa’s aura and my aura, the only light was provided by the seeing eye, a ghostly white glow that highlighted the lines of worry on Lionel’s face. He was the one who most knew what we were expecting, and he was the most nervous. That wasn’t comforting.
We slowed at a junction, and Lionel whispered to Becca, “It’s too late to send you back to Mom and Father, isn’t it?”
“Little bit,” Becca whispered back.
“No messing with maser tech, okay?”
She smiled sweetly. “Would I do anything reckless like that?”
Lionel sighed. “Just remember the most important things. First the balcony shuttering. Then use the codes to reprogram the magtroller.”
“Shuttering?” I asked.
“You’ll see,” Lionel said.
Becca reached into the side of her backpack, pulled out a flashlight, and ran down the left-hand corridor, switching it on when she was halfway down. Lionel continued forward, followed by Alessa. I started after them, then jerked to a stop, feeling a tug on my pant leg. I looked down.
Miss me? Harps’s little black face grinned up at me.
What are you doing here? I thought.
I was never going to stay behind, Harps thought. But you were too dim to see that, so I figured pretending to go along with it was the best way.
You’re just the worst, Harps. I lowered my arm to allow him to scramble up on my shoulder. Despite knowing that he could easily end up getting in the way if things got hairy, I felt happier. But I’m glad you’re with me.
Harps gave a lock of my hair a tug. Course you are. Course you are, Slate, you big fool, you.
Danielle’s voice came through the earpiece. “The door into the central atrium is open. Should I send the seeing eye to check ahead?” The seeing eye paused, hovering in a doorway.
“No,” Lionel said. “The atrium is where he’ll be waiting for us. Let’s walk blindly into Hadrian’s oh-so-clever trap.”
“I’ve succeeded in putting wards up outside,” Danielle said. “They won’t be too hard to break through, but they will stop basic attempts to raise the alarm.”
“You did?” Lionel was unable to keep the surprise from his voice. “Every time I think I know what you are capable of, you exceed it. Great work.” He turned back to Alessa and me. “Shall we?” Lionel took a breath, then walked underneath the seeing eye and into the darkness. Alessa and I followed behind.
The chamber beyond was dark, and we didn’t make it far before we all froze mid-step, a shimmer of white showing the magic that had trapped us.
Lights throughout the building were suddenly switched on, and although my limbs were frozen, my head was able to move, allowing me to look around. We were in a large atrium. Dozens of floors up, a glass ceiling showed the night sky. Overlooking the courtyard were the balconies of each floor, and standing on the first- and second-floor balconies were over two dozen Cressington mages, completely surrounding us. Some clutched their pendants, having cast the spell that was keeping us trapped. Others pointed machine guns at us.
Directly in front of us, on the first-floor balcony, was Alpha One.
I sure hoped Lionel knew what he was doing.
Chapter 25
“Lionel.” Hadrian voice came from Alpha One. “I’m disappointed but not surprised you’re here.”
With many mages working together, I wasn’t sure I could break free of the spell that held me. So I didn’t try to fight, instead conserving my energy. Don’t worry, I thought to Harps. Lionel has this under control.
“Hadrian, just the person I was looking for,” Lionel said. “If you’ll just hand over the swirl key, we’ll be on our way.”
Hadrian laughed. “As Christian Cressington’s firstborn son, you have been given opportunity after opportunity, and you’ve thrown them all away. After what you did in Cress House and now this, you’ll soon be no better than a hood mage.” Alpha One put its metal hands on the railing in front of it.
“I was going to drag this out, but I’m already sick of talking to you,” Lionel said. “Becca, now would be a good time.”
“Becca? What’s Becca got to do with anything?” Hadrian asked.
“Good time for what?” Becca asked through the earpiece. “I’ve opened the maser gun and checked the quartz crystal. I think I’ve found what’s been causing the problem.”
“Becca,” Lionel said warningly. “That better be one of your bad jokes.”
“Oh, the atrium shuttering,” Becca said. “Yes, I’ve accessed the controls for that. Bringing them all down now.”
A grinding noise sounded, then metal plates descended from the roofs of each floor. It took all the mages by surprise, and most of them didn’t react in time to do anything. One managed to aim his machine gun and fire off a few bullets that didn’t get close to anyone. Another tried to jam the handle of his gun under the shutter, though he couldn’t prevent it from closing.
Once the atrium was cut off from the balconies, the white shimmer around us disappeared and we were able to move again.
“Come,” Lionel dashed to a side door. “We’ll take the back stairs. The magsafe is on the fourteenth floor.”
As we started to run, a robot fist came through one of the shutters, followed by a second metal fist. Alpha One then wrenched the entire shutter free, threw it out into the atrium, then jumped after it.
Alessa and I quickly overtook Lionel, running down a narrow corridor.
“Straight ahead for the back stairwell!” Lionel shouted, panting. “Becca, how’s it going with the magtroller?”
“Connecting it up now,” Becca said. “Pray to whichever god you think will listen that the codes haven’t been changed.”
“Slate doesn’t need to pray; he’s got a direct line to his god,” Alessa said.
Harps was clinging on to my shoulder for all his worth. If we are going to be fighting, you might be better on your own two feet, I thought, slowing enough to help him off my shoulder and onto the ground. Holler if you are in trouble.
I glanced back to see Alpha One gaining quickly on Lionel, its arms and legs pistoning. I stopped and grabbed a side door, twisting it and wrenching it from its hinges. I waited until Lionel passed me, then threw the door at the robot. Alpha One slowed, raising its arms to deflect the door. The small delay was enough to get Lionel into the back stairwell. I ran in behind him and slammed the door shut.
“You two head up,” Lionel said. “Get to the fourteenth-floor balcony. I’ll take the magtroller from Becca and send it up to you through the atrium.” He started to descend the stairs.
“What about Hadrian’s robot?” I asked, the thunder of crashing footsteps reverberating against the walls.
“You are bigger than me,” Lionel said. “Distract it. Thanks.” He disappeared down the stairs.
“You’re welcome,” I said. “I think.”
The door exploded open, smashing against me, knocking me back against the wall. The robot leaped high, then straightened its legs into a double downward kick. I rolled to the side. It landed where I’d just been, its
feet cracking the bare concrete, sending splinters of rubble splashing upward and stinging the skin of my face and hands.
I spun to the side as a metal fist hammered down toward me. Before the robot completed its strike, though, Alessa dragged it backward, throwing it against the far wall.
“Come on.” She sprinted up the stairs.
I followed Alessa, keeping an eye of the progress of Alpha One behind us. It leaped back to its feet and sprinted up the stairs after us, taking several steps at a time, its feet surprisingly nimble. As we reached the second floor, the door crashed open, and two Cressington mages stepped toward me, raising their machine guns and firing.
I immediately jumped back the way I had come, but a bullet caught me in the shoulder, spinning me around. I plowed straight into Alpha One, and we both fell down a story. As we hit the stairwell landing, Alpha One wrapped its arms around me, attempting to squeeze me. I gave a roar of pain as its metal fingers tightened on my wounded shoulder.
Using my speed, I was able to escape its clutches before it trapped me. I glanced upward to see if I could expect any more bullets. Alessa was spiraling between the two mages, her katana in hand, keeping them well and truly occupied. I turned my attention back on Alpha One in time to dodge two punches.
On the second punch, I grabbed Alpha One’s arm and gave it a wrench, using its own momentum to send it careening against a wall. A machine gun bounced down the stairs, and I bent down and picked it up, and pounded the butt of it against the metal head.
I got four solid hits in before it staggered away from the wall. It had lost some of its precision of movement, and when it swung wildly with both hands at once, I found the strikes easy to dodge. I stepped to the side and aimed several more blows into the side of Alpha One’s head.
The butt of the machine gun broke into pieces but not before it had done enough damage to knock Alpha One to its knees. I gave it a firm shove and sent it down another flight of stairs, then ascended back up to where Alessa was. Both of the mages were lying unconscious, and she returned her katana to its sheath.
We continued up the stairs. On the fourth floor, we passed Harps.
Try to keep up, Slate, he thought, giving me a wink.
You want a lift for a few floors?
Hardly, Harps thought. Being around you is rather dangerous right now.
So we left him to ascend at his own speed. We were on the tenth floor when we heard Becca’s voice. “It worked!” she said excitedly. “The codes were still valid. The magtroller has been reprogrammed for the magsafe.”
“I’m close to the ground-floor labs!” Lionel shouted. “Coming your way. Which room are you in?”
“I can hear running footsteps,” Becca said. “That must be you.”
“It mightn’t be,” Lionel said. “Stay where you are and let me come to you.”
“Too late,” Becca said. “I see you.”
“We’re on the fourteenth,” I told them as we reached that floor. We exited the back stairwell, seeking the balcony. “Danielle, what happened to you?”
“My seeing eye was destroyed by the mages’ magic when we first entered the atrium,” Danielle said. “I’ve created another one; sending it your way.”
“I have the magtroller, and I’m returning to the atrium courtyard,” Lionel said. “Becca, join Danielle at the entrance.”
“Going now,” Becca said.
“That’s the wrong way!” Lionel shouted.
“Seems the right way to me,” Becca said.
“Damn you.” Lionel groaned. “Be quick with whatever you are doing. Alessa, Slate, I’m nearly at the courtyard. Are you ready for the magtroller?”
“The shutters are closed,” I said as we reached the balcony. I thumped lightly on shutters in several places, trying to figure out how strong they were. “But I think we should be able to—”
“Behind you!” Alessa shouted.
I didn’t need the warning, hearing the metal footsteps at the same time she did. Alpha One no longer looked as intimidating. Dents and scrapes marred the metal surface, and the robot’s arms and legs twitched as they moved. Its head kept swiveling to its left, then jerking to face forward again. “You’d have done better to have armed yourself with a machine gun, Hadrian,” I said. “That robot isn’t as deadly as you thought.”
“Don’t worry, the next version will be better, and the next, and the next,” Hadrian said. “Being able to beat this model means nothing.”
“It means enough for today,” I said.
Alpha One charged.
I glided to the side, ducking under a flailing metal fist, then I moved in behind, grabbing a piece of metal sticking out on the robot’s lower back. On Alpha One’s other side, Alessa did the same. We pushed it forward, at first using its own momentum, then lifting it and using our combined strength to speed it up. We threw it against the balcony shuttering, and it smashed through. Both robot and the thick metal sheet fell end over end as they plummeted down the atrium.
“Lionel!” Alessa screamed. “Watch out. Above you.”
I ran to the edge of the balcony. Lionel was emerging through a doorway, and he quickly retreated the way he had come. The robot smashed into the courtyard, making the entire building shake and sending cracks rippling through the floor. An instant later, the metal shuttering hit with a loud clanging that echoed around the atrium.
“Lionel, we dealt with our shuttering issue,” I said.
“I noticed,” he said dryly. “Next time, try to solve your problem without dropping heavy objects close to my precious head.” He stepped carefully around the mangled shuttering and into the center of the courtyard. “I’m sending the magtroller up.”
“How?”
“How do you think? Magic.”
I leaned over the edge of the balcony, but the magtroller was too small to see at this distance. All I could do was guess at its location based on where Lionel’s upturned face was looking.
“How’s the shoulder?” Alessa asked, leaning over the balcony beside me, nodding at a blood stain.
I twisted my arm through a half turn and winced at the flare of pain. Still, it wasn’t that bad, considering I’d been shot. “Could be worse.”
Alessa leaned further over the railing. “I can see it,” she said. “It’s only at the fifth, no, sixth floor. Lionel, can you make it go faster?”
“I would if I could,” Lionel said.
The floor shuddered at my feet. I stepped back, looking around as a grinding noise came from deep within the walls. Then the shutters on the balconies all around us began to rise.
“Becca, the atrium shuttering is opening.”
“It’s not me,” she replied. “Someone else must have accessed the system.”
“Lionel, get out of the courtyard,” Alessa said. Mages on the first- and second-floor balconies were becoming visible.
Lionel backed into the shelter of a doorway. “I need to keep line of sight to the magtroller. Otherwise, it’ll fall.”
The magtroller was close enough that I could see it. It crept up past the eleventh floor.
“These mages don’t follow my orders anymore,” Lionel said. “But they are still family. They won’t shoot me.” He came out from the doorway, walking into the center of the courtyard, holding his hands up. “I surrender!” he said loudly, raising his hands above his head. Even while surrendering, Lionel’s attention was on the magtroller.
Alpha One, amazingly, could still move. It forced itself into a sitting position. “Fools!” Hadrian shouted. “Don’t just stare at him. Block his spell. Stop him from getting the magtroller away.”
The magtroller has passed the thirteenth floor. Alessa leaned out, reaching for it.
“Grab it!” Lionel shouted. “Grab it fast.”
The magtroller stopped ascending, then started to fall and Alessa dived for it, leaping over the balcony. The fingers of her left hand closed around the cube, and at the same time, her right reached for the balcony ledge. She missed and be
gan to fall.
I flung myself after her, throwing myself over the edge. I got a grip on her wrist with my right while I blindly flung my left hand upward, flailing for purchase. My fingers closed on a corner of the balcony. Alessa’s momentum swung her against the wall, and the impact almost jolted her loose from my grip.
Almost.
I wasn’t given a moment to pause. Gunshots rang out as several mages shot at us from below. One bullet hit the wall by my head. I pulled upward with all my might, raising Alessa enough so she could get a grip on the balcony herself.
Once able to release Alessa, I got a good grip with both hands and, from there, was easily able to swing myself up. I reached down to help Alessa.
Alessa was looking up at me. “Are you sure you don’t want to let me fall? I haven’t forgotten what you said about me during Grimstar’s truth game.”
“It’s not that long ago, but a lot has changed.” I pulled her fully inside, hurrying as another round of bullets passed close by.
“Not that much has changed,” Alessa said. “Unless you have.”
“If you didn’t have the magtroller, it might have been different,” I said. Again, I realized that I barely noticed her red aura; I was becoming disturbingly comfortable in her presence. That couldn’t be good. I was still who I was, and she was still who she was. “This is still only a temporary alliance.”
“Anyway, thanks.”
“I owed you one. Or two.”
Blasts of gunfire echoed through the atrium, and we both looked back down into the courtyard.
“Don’t shoot!” Lionel said loudly. “What are you doing?” More gunfire was his only answer. Lionel sprinted. Bright orange sparks flared up close to him as bullets struck concrete by his feet. He threw himself through a doorway and out of the courtyard.
“So much for Lionel’s certainty that his family mages wouldn’t fire at him,” I said.
“Why would they?” Alessa said. “It doesn’t make any sense. He’s still Christian Cressington’s son.”
Magic After Dark: A Collection of Urban Fantasy and Paranormal Romance Novels Page 82