Capture (The Machinists Book 4)

by Craig Andrews

  “Prisoners? Why now? They haven’t done that before.”

  “We have no idea.”

  “Does the arch mage know?”

  “We’ve sent word,” Leira said.

  “Good,” Jaxon said. “Then we’ll meet him there. When do we move?”

  “Now. But, Jaxon… we?”

  “I’m coming too.”

  A ripple of surprise washed through the echo. Jaxon hadn’t been directly involved in a mission since the McCollum Family had retaken the contents of the McCollum library back when they were running from the FBI. But the situation was too big.

  After today, the war with the Knights of Rakkar would take on a different tenor, escalating to new levels, and the members of the Forum and Arch Mage Westarra himself would converge on the site of the battle to see its aftermath for themselves. That presented opportunities. At the very least, being present would ensure the McCollum Family was up to date with plans and strategies, and if the war really was changing, Jaxon would make every effort to ensure his Family knew how.

  “Load up,” he said. “I want to be there before the arch mage arrives.”

  Chapter 3

  Forty-nine minutes after Jaxon ordered the McCollum magi to load up, they arrived at the Friedl Family’s estate. Split evenly among three SUVs, which had recently been retrofitted with reinforced doors and bulletproof glass, they rumbled past a destroyed gate, racing down a private driveway. Signs of battle lined both sides of the paved path: vehicle wreckage, low-burning fires, and fallen bodies marred what had once been a well-cultivated property.

  Allyn watched through the tinted windows, wielding in short bursts. His red coils of electricity appeared and disappeared with a steady, anxious rhythm. Beside him, on the middle bench seat of the SUV, Nolan watched through the other window, his hand clenching and unclenching in a similar cadence. Even as veterans of war, the magi struggled with nerves.

  It wasn’t without good reason. Through the reinforced doors and windows, Allyn heard muffled bursts of gunfire and intermittent explosions. The battle isn’t over then.

  Allyn shared a look with Nolan. The former FBI special agent was clearly as surprised as he was. Since the Battle of Zurich, the Knights hadn’t engaged the magi in an extended battle. At the first sign of reinforcements, they retreated, preventing their forces from being boxed in and taking heavy casualties. It kept the magi forever on the defensive—a losing strategy, in Allyn’s opinion.

  The SUVs crested a gentle hill, and the Friedl Mansion came into view. Made of gray stone and whitewashed timber, the mansion was closer to a castle than a traditional home. The paved driveway forked in front of the mansion, the pavement turning to cobblestones that circled a large fountain. The front of the mansion reminded Allyn of how the McCollum Manor had looked before it burned, though that had lacked the natural-colored timber that accented the Friedl Mansion’s whitewashed walls. It had also lacked the enemy’s tactical vehicles that were currently parked in its driveway.

  A large tank-like vehicle with a twenty-foot steel rod had crashed into the front of the mansion, punching a hole the size of a car through the front entrance. The windows were shattered, the walls burned and stained with soot. Bullet holes and blood streaks further marred the once-majestic property.

  The SUVs rumbled to a stop where the pavement met cobblestone, and with practiced efficiency, the magi streamed out. Wielding fire, energy, and electricity, they jumped out of the vehicles, using the doors as cover. Gunfire and shouted orders suddenly became louder, but Allyn couldn’t see any individual Knights. Dressed in black tactical gear, complete with helmets, and often carrying man-sized shields, they wouldn’t be difficult to spot.

  “They’re inside,” Jaxon said. “Form up into your squads. Today, we smash the Knights against the strength of our Order.” Once the twelve magi formed their previously determined squads, Jaxon gave them their orders. “Leira, take your squad around back and enter from the rear. Nolan, hang back and watch our six. Give me a signal if anything goes amiss. Ren, we go first and enter through the front.”

  We.

  The change in command was as subtle as possible. In previous operations, Ren had led the assault, but because Jaxon had come, the chain of command had clearly changed. If Ren was surprised or irritated by the last-minute adjustment, she didn’t show it.

  “Let’s go,” Jaxon ordered.

  “Wait,” Canary said. The young machinist in Nolan’s squad cocked her head to the side, listening to something only she could hear. Her lips moved, inaudibly repeating the radio broadcasts and communications she heard as part of her ability. Unlike the rest of the machinists the McCollum Family had found, Canary couldn’t turn her abilities on and off. She was constantly bombarded with radio waves, cell phone communications, and other electronic signals.

  It wasn’t until after fleeing the McCollum Manor, where Canary had been sheltered from the onslaught by Liam’s jammer, that her abilities had first appeared. Unable to relax or sleep, and constantly repeating what only she could hear, she’d been rendered inept. Jaxon had thought Canary mentally broken and had ordered her separated from the rest of the Family. Once they were safe within the walls of the Hyland Estate, they had discovered Canary was, in fact, another machinist with abilities about as unique as they came.

  “What is it?” Jaxon asked.

  “I don’t know.” Canary closed her eyes, a pained expression pinching her face. “There’s a lot of chatter.”

  “What kind?”

  Canary didn’t answer. She didn’t even so much as show she had heard Jaxon.

  “Canary,” Jaxon said again. “What kind of chatter?”

  Canary began to speak, but the words that came out of her mouth were not her own. She spoke in a monotone voice, almost like a child repeating the words of an adult, oblivious to their true meaning.

  Confused, Jaxon watched the young girl. “Okay,” he said, turning to Nolan. “Stay on it. Tell me if it changes or begins to make sense. The rest of you, move out.”

  The two squads moved at his command, leaving Nolan’s group behind to watch their asses. Allyn followed Jaxon and Ren, Nyla and Rory at his side. Each of the squads were mixed with a balance of magi, clerics, and something only the McCollum Family could provide—the machinists. That unique ability had quickly proven their Family’s worth and earned them a spot as one of the arch mage’s go-to squads—a far cry from the ostracized position they had held only months before.

  Entering the Friedl Mansion was like stepping through the mouth of hell. The dead, dying, and wounded were scattered across the marble floors of the main entrance. Fallen magi and Knights lay in pools of blood, water, and the remains of what had once been a grand chandelier. Their moans and cries of pain echoed through the chamber, dampening the sounds of battle deeper within the mansion.

  The entrance opened into a wide chamber with vaulted ceilings and a single grand staircase looming directly ahead. As they advanced, the other four magi branched out, peering into nearby hallways and ensuring an unexpected force wouldn’t flank them from behind. Knowing their rear was covered, Jaxon made for the staircase and the high ground it would provide. Before he got there, though, a squad of Knights emerged from behind the staircase. Engaged with another magi force, they were retreating and didn’t see Jaxon’s squad approaching.

  The air in front of Jaxon warped as he unleashed a massive concussion of air. The shockwave struck the Knights in the back, hurling them forward, and back toward the other advancing magi force, who made quick order of them.

  “Jaxon,” the squad leader said in a heavily-accented voice. He was a middle-aged man with a strong face, prominent nose, and salt-and-pepper hair. Allyn had met Konrad Blackburn when the Knights had attacked the Blackburn Family. “Thank the First Families. You’re here.”

  “What’s going on?
” Jaxon asked. “The reports were strange.”

  “It’s a full-scale attack,” Konrad said. “Larger than anything I’ve seen.”

  “How many Knights?”

  “Two platoons, at least. Maybe more.”

  Two platoons… almost eighty Knights. Except for the Battle of Zurich, that was a larger force than anything the magi had encountered.

  Why now? And why the Friedl Family?

  Having been misled by the magi leadership before, Allyn wondered what they were hiding now. What other secrets or ancient artifacts could the Friedl Family be privy to? And how had the Knights known about them?

  “But the Friedl Family gave them a hell of a fight,” Konrad continued. “Even taken by surprise, they made the Knights earn every inch with blood. The mansion was overrun by the time we arrived, but the Knights had lost nearly half their force. With you here, I have no doubt we can repel them.”

  “Where’s the main battle?” Jaxon asked as a new barrage of gunfire echoed through the mansion.

  “It’s hard to say,” Konrad said. “Best we can tell, the Knights took down the front door and streamed inside. Others entered from the back, but they’re not fighting in a coordinated fashion. It’s almost as if every squad is on their own.”

  “Are they looking for anything?” Allyn asked.

  “I don’t believe so. Why?”

  “Nothing,” Allyn said, catching a sharp look from Jaxon.

  “Stick to the main level,” Jaxon said. “We’ll take the second and third. But keep your head. Something feels different about this.”

  Konrad nodded and ordered his squad forward, disappearing deeper into the mansion.

  “Let’s go.” Without waiting for a response, Jaxon took to the stairs.

  Allyn followed, the carpeted steps squishing underfoot as he ascended. The staircase opened on a landing that branched off into two hallways, leading to the northern and southern wings of the manor.

  After a glance in each direction, Jaxon moved left, toward the sound of battle. But before he had taken more than a few steps, an explosion rocked the mansion, stopping him midstride. His eyes instantly found Allyn’s. The explosion hadn’t come from a powder or chemical—it had a more natural quality about it. Allyn and Jaxon recognized it immediately.

  “Nolan!” Allyn said.

  Jaxon bounded past him, racing down the stairs. Allyn was on his heels, followed closely by Nyla, Ren, and Rory, who reassembled their formation. As Allyn exited the mansion to where Nolan and his squad remained, his eyes immediately fell on five heavily-armored tactical vehicles racing down the driveway.

  “Inside the mansion!” Jaxon bellowed. “Now!”

  The entire magi force obeyed, hurrying through the wrecked entrance. Allyn found cover against the wall and watched through a shattered window as the five vehicles formed a V. The lead vehicle drove straight toward their SUVs, showing no signs of slowing down, and a crash of metal on metal wailed as the lead vehicle drove through the SUV, flipping it up and tossing it aside.

  “What the fuck is going on?” Allyn said.

  “It’s a trap,” Nolan said. “And we just fell into it.”

  “Silence,” Jaxon said. “We have the fortified position. We still have the advantage.”

  “A fortified position that’s crawling with more of those assholes,” Nolan said.

  “I said cut it out,” Jaxon said, more sharply this time. “How many Knights do you think are in those vehicles?”

  “That’s a Lenco BearCat,” Nolan said. “They’re used by SWAT and police forces around the world. Each one will be able to hold up to ten Knights.”

  “Fifty Knights,” Jaxon said.

  “Fifty more Knights,” Nolan corrected. “When do we order the retreat?”

  “We’re not leaving the other Families behind.”

  “Jaxon,” Nolan said. “Those are damn near tanks on wheels. They have us outgunned and outnumbered. This is not a battle we can win.”

  “I said we’re not leaving the other Families behind.”

  “Jaxon—”

  “Enough!” Jaxon bellowed, tearing his eyes from the threat outside to the one splintering his squad. “I am in command here, and my word is law. Does anyone have a problem with that?”

  Nolan clamped his mouth shut, and nobody else spoke up.

  “Good,” Jaxon continued. “Nolan is right, though. We can’t compete with that kind of firepower.”

  “Whatever you’re thinking, think faster,” Allyn said. “They’re almost here.”

  “They’re going to be invincible inside those vehicles,” Jaxon said. “We need them out.”

  “You want to poke the hive?” Nolan asked.

  “Yes. Can you hit one of them with an energy blast?”

  “You’re damn right.”

  “Do it, then.”

  “My pleasure.”

  Nolan stepped into the open mouth of the mansion and wielded. The ball of light in his palm quickly grew to the size of his head, but Nolan wasn’t finished. He continued to project his energy into the blast, increasing its size and intensity. By the time it was nearly four feet in diameter, the ball of energy was white-hot and distorting the air around it.

  With a bellow of rage, Nolan hurled the blast forward. A separate concussion sounded half a heartbeat later, propelling the blast forward with even greater intensity.

  The BearCat swerved to avoid the blast, but its lumbering mass was too great to turn in time. The blast struck the right-front corner of the vehicle, and a shockwave of white light hurled the front of the vehicle into the air. Metal shrieked across stone in a wave of sparks as the BearCat slid to a halt on its side, the right-front tire billowing blue smoke.

  The other four BearCats skidded to a stop, their sides angled toward the mansion.

  “Down!” Jaxon shouted as the sides of the BearCats opened up and gun barrels emerged.

  Allyn hit the deck just before bullets punched through the face of the mansion, shattering windows and destroying wood and stone. The assault continued for five seconds, ten, maybe longer, before Allyn lost count. By the time it stopped, his ears were ringing, and he could barely hear Jaxon issuing more orders.

  Nolan didn’t appear to have the same issue, though, and was wielding again. He wasn’t alone this time—Jaxon and Ren readied fireballs, while the air warped around Rory as he prepared a concussion of air.

  “Now!”

  Nolan shot up from his position of cover, launching a second energy blast toward the nearest BearCat. Rory immediately propelled it forward, and Jaxon and Ren unleashed their attacks a moment later. The energy blast struck the side of the BearCat, tipping it onto its driver’s side wheels, exposing its underside for the briefest of moments. But that’s all it took. The two fireballs struck the underbelly of the BearCat, exploding against the fuel tank. A ball of fire threw the tactical vehicle high into the air and then sent it crashing into a third one on its descent.

  More gunfire erupted from the remaining two vehicles, but with three of the five destroyed, the counterattack lacked the intensity it had before.

  “Again!” Jaxon ordered, and the team of magi readied their next attack.

  The second attack wasn’t as successful, however—the fireballs failed to ignite the fuel lines—but it was enough to prove to the Knights that they weren’t safe inside the BearCats. The rear hatch fell open, and a full squad of ten Knights streamed out, guns blazing.

  Bullets peppered the walls around Allyn, and someone in his squad cried out in pain. He wielded, ready to repel the Knights, but when he rose and prepared to unleash his first volley of attacks, he realized they weren’t making for the mansion. The single squad had split into two sub squads, each one moving to a separate crash site.

  Th
ey’re rescuing the wounded.

  “At will! At will!” Jaxon bellowed, and the two full squads of magi unleashed their full strength.

  The Knights arrived at the first crash site before the first wave of magi attacks hit. Taking cover behind the reinforced steel of the BearCat, a pair of Knights took aim and provided cover fire while the other three were out of sight, presumably helping the injured. Fireballs and ice blasts struck the side of the tactical vehicle but were nearly completely ineffective.

  Allyn’s trio of static charges struck next, crashing against the broadside of the BearCat. Red coils of electricity unwound, expanding in a wave that enveloped the vehicle like the tendrils of a great kraken ripping a ship apart. Conducted electricity hit the Knights who were in contact with the BearCat’s steel exterior, frying them where they stood.

  The Knights from the other crash site saw their comrades fall and moved so they weren’t in contact with the vehicle’s exterior. Behind them, the remaining BearCat rumbled into position, its rear hatch open, allowing the first wave of survivors to rush inside. Allyn readied another attack, aiming to pick off the fleeing Knights before they could get inside the vehicle, but before he could launch the attack, gunfire erupted behind the magi.

  Allyn cursed, ducked, and dove into a nearby hallway. The gunfire continued, striking magi who hadn’t been as lucky, while others found new cover in the adjoining hallways. Allyn watched in horror as the fallen magi were riddled with bullets. In a single instant, a third of their number was cut down.

  “Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!” Nolan shouted.

  Allyn reassessed the situation. Nolan, Nyla, and Rory were on his side of the entrance. Across the corridor, Jaxon, Leira, and Ren had found refuge with a small number of other magi. Jaxon’s eyes found Allyn’s, and the elder magi pointed at him then motioned back down the corridor to where the gunfire had originated.