by Rowan Casey
She then stomped on the instep of the bleeding woman to ensure she remained preoccupied with pain. With the blunt end of the baton, she rammed it into the temple of one man lunging towards her. Somehow, she was keeping six people at bay, which sounded ridiculous.
Then she heard something new in the air and it took her a moment, but she realized she was laughing, long and loud. She felt good, finally taking charge of her destiny. Not Charlene. Not Grimm. Not Daniel and certainly not Mordred.
Hannah the Knight whipped around once more, thrusting her baton into the solar plexus of one man. The whoosh of air escaping his lungs was audible, followed by the groan of pain.
Her partner was struggling to pry the horn from Mordred, but it made sense that if they were ancient knights with those powers, so too would Mordred be able to summon up his own innate energy. She saw from the look on Daniel’s face that he was calculating something, so she let him alone as she tossed her baton into the air, causing her rushing attacker to break eye contact at the motion, allowing her to kick out, altering his momentum and causing him to stumble over a chair. Quickly, she dipped low to grab the falling weapon while still in the air. The room was too small for them to coordinate their actions so it was every man and woman for themselves and so far, her size proved advantageous. She also mused as she caught her breath that knights no doubt never did hand-to-hand combat while wearing those heavy suits of armor. No way would she want to be trapped under all that metal; she was feeling free and happy.
An anguished cry caught her attention and she spared a glance towards Daniel who had somehow managed to gain control of the Horn. The Moderator, still in the chair, was sprawled on his back. The distraction, though, cost her as one of the men, blood staining his white shirt, his blazer torn in spots, came at her with the fire axe that had previously been her weapon. Rather than retreat, she barreled toward him, lowering her shoulder to come in under the swing and she heard a rib crack with her impact. Thankfully, it was his, and he fell aside along with the axe.
While these were security, they clearly weren’t combat-trained, something the Moderator arrogantly presumed he wouldn’t need.
Daniel stomped hard on the Moderator’s left hand, causing their would-be captor to cry out in pain and then he headed for the door.
“Come on!”
There was definitely a part of her mind that screamed to stay and slay their adversaries while a more familiar part of her brain counseled flight as the best course of action. Hannah studied the carnage she wrought, declared it good enough and, scooping up the axe, rushed towards Daniel, pausing long enough to add her own heel print to the Moderator’s right hand.
As the older man let out a second cry, the metal door splintered open and a very upset-looking Dvergr peered inside.
“Oh, shit.”
She had to agree with Daniel and she pocketed the baton, refreshing her grip on the axe.
“Lots of blood to smell,” the Dvergr said as it stepped over the wreckage. He had his sword out, cuts and bruises marring his hairy, grimy body. “You made it very easy for me to find you, young Knights.”
“You know what we are,” Daniel asked. He was drifting to the right so she took two tentative steps to the right, creating distance between them.
“What the hell is that?” one of the men said.
“Magic is in the air. There’s more of it every day,” the dirty dwarf said. “Merlin is at work again. So am I.”
It paused mid-stride and looked past them, directing his intense gaze at the fallen Moderator. For the first time, he didn’t look angry, but surprised.
“Merlin and now Mordred,” it rumbled. “The Veil crumbles and the old ones crawl from the woodwork.”
“What is he talking about?” the woman without a broken nose asked.
Mordred ignored the question and got to his feet, attempting to look regal but his physical appearance just didn’t sell it. Already stocky, his immaculate clothes were now spotted with blood, mucus, and dirt. His hair was askew and he just didn’t have the physical presence to pull off anything more than a schlub. And yet, he radiated power, she could feel it. He positioned himself by the fallen chair and took stock of the situation. Just as she had concluded the room was too small for a full onslaught, it was also tight enough to let a mad dwarf slaughter everyone.
“Give me the horn, boy,” the Moderator said.
“You lost the horn to a stripling?” the dwarf asked and then let out a laugh. It was a horrible sound, one Hannah wanted to unhear.
“A temporary condition, I assure you,” the man said. “I have a growing national network, he would never have gotten far. And I want it.”
“So do I,” it said. “This is a key to being reunited with my family, my loved ones who I have not seen for centuries. It has been very lonely here, without my brethren. The shadows are cold and companionship sparse. With that, I can be reunited with my kin so I am feeling rather motivated.”
“We have a dilemma don’t we?” the Moderator said.
“Like hell we do,” she said. All eyes turned to her.
“We have it and it’s not going to either of you,” Hannah added.
It was the Moderator’s turn to laugh, but it came out as a harsh bark. “There are six on my side and our friend the dwarf here is rather formidable. How are you expecting to escape with your lives let alone the Horn?”
“Your security forces look pretty beaten up,” Daniel observed. “We’ve escaped the Dvergr a few times already. What’s to say it can’t happen again?”
“I have found you each time, so what makes you think your good fortune will ensue?”
The dwarf wanted the Horn. So did the Moderator. If they teamed up to take it from the teens they might have an advantage. But then they’d turn on one another; it was obvious to everyone in the room, including the bewildered security force. This was a standoff with a specific name, but she couldn’t recall what it was. She’d have to do a hell of a lot more reading when this was over.
She paused her thoughts at that. There was no hesitation to that conclusion. She had already decided she would prevail, would survive to live another day. The certainty rang out through her soul but her mind kept asking how that was going to be accomplished.
Hannah looked over at Daniel, who had a death grip on the velvet bag and its magical contents. They’d come pretty far and endured a fair amount to get this far. He seemed just as determined to survive this encounter. On the other hand, he didn’t look like he had a plan, either.
“Screw this,” one of the men said and withdrew a pistol, which Hannah guessed was not standard issue, otherwise they’d have used them earlier.
The Moderator glanced his way and his eyes narrowed at that. He knew full well a stray shot could be fatal.
The Dvergr, for his part, seemed curious and was calculating what to do. His own sword was not a shield and he could be vulnerable to a bullet.
“You want the trumpet, boss, take it,” the man said. “And you, Frodo, back away.”
“Frodo?” the Dvergr asked.
“From fiction,” Daniel said. “Never mind.”
The dwarf shrugged but didn’t move other than to shrug, letting his chain dangle to the floor.
“We appear to have a stalemate,” the Moderator said. “May I propose a solution?”
No one said anything one way or the other, so he continued to speak. “We all want the Horn for different reasons. Any one of us possessing it will have the others as adversaries. Down here, that means an incredible amount of pain and bloodshed. I’ve been preaching unity for some time now and it appears to have become part of my worldview.”
“You want the four of us to team up?” Daniel asked. “We all want the Horn for different reasons.”
“The stripling speaks true,” the dwarf grumbled. “I want to deny it to Merlin as, I suspect, you do, too. How can we share it?”
“We certainly can’t take turns,” Hannah added.
“No, my dear, we c
an’t,” the Moderator said. “But, imagine the concessions one can wrest from the all-powerful wizard were we four to present it to him? What wouldn’t he give to possess it?”
“If Merlin and Mordred are here, so must your mother,” the Dvergr said. “She would give nothing but our lives to obtain it.”
“We deal with Merlin, he may deal with my mother,” Mordred said, an edge of anger seeping into his voice. Hannah was curious about this relationship but it would have to wait for another time.
“No deal,” Daniel said. “Whatever we were once before means we’re Knights. We’ve been tasked with preserving life on Earth or die in the attempt. Dying would suck, you know, but I’d do it if it meant everyone else lived.”
“Admirable,” Mordred replied with a nod in his direction. “That can be arranged.”
He began to gesture, at what Hannah would never know because at that moment, the nervous guard fired at the Dvergr. She would also never know if the shot was intentional or a nervous trigger finger. What happened then was chaos. The bullet flew towards the dwarf, who had preternatural senses and merely stepped aside, avoiding being hit. He flicked his wrist and the length of chain came alive, crossed the room quickly and snaked around the man’s throat. The dwarf gave it a sharp yank and Hannah heard the small snap of his neck. The Moderator lunged towards Daniel and the horn, but he, too, sidestepped and let the man’s momentum carry him into a couch. Hannah resumed her football player’s stance and rushed the Dvergr to clear the doorway, Daniel right behind her.
The impact was like running into a brick wall. However, this was a brick wall in motion and her impact spun the dwarf aside. Daniel’s rushing form also barreled into the dwarf, furthering his off-kilter fall. They cleared the doorway and ran.
Neither had a clue where they were or where an exit might be. If they had seen a red-lit sign earlier, they couldn’t recall. Her breathing was hard from the exertion, her arm ached and ear throbbed but she needed to keep moving, allowing Daniel, the less-physically taxed, to lead the way. This was the shape their partnership was taking. He’d see things and think things, and she’d do the hard work. For now, she could live with that until both had a clearer sense of their new personas and abilities.
Right now, the order was to get out with the horn and keep from being followed. This was proving easier said than done. They tried to retrace their steps, pausing long enough to try the occasional door that presented itself but they all seemed locked, possibly by the Moderator’s design. There was no sense of geography so they could be under some other building or under the White Mountain headquarters. Either way, they needed a door leading them to the street.
Finally, there was one with a bent frame, meaning the lock wasn’t properly set and they could muscle it open. Daniel practically leapt up the steps and Hannah scrambled to follow, urged on by the growing sounds of pursuit. She tried to recall if she saw anyone with an earpiece or walkie-talkie setup but nothing was conjured up in her mind. If it was a foot race, they had youth on their side. On the other hand, the carnage they left behind would mean police would be heavily in the area and seeing two teenagers emerge from nowhere, clutching something in a royal purple bag would certainly raise questions. As Daniel bounded up the stairs, she yelled, “Where are we going from here?”
“I was thinking the Bronx.”
“Why there?”
“Because it’s the opposite of where we were.” Clearly, he’d given this thought and it made sense. All they had were their ratty backpacks with their contents. They needed somewhere to gather themselves, then summon Grimm or Hautdesert. She idly wondered if he could magically transport them to Avalon. She concluded he probably couldn’t, otherwise he wouldn’t have spring for the plane tickets.
As they reached the main floor door, Daniel tested it, found it open, and eased into the building. As it turned out, it was fortunately not the White Mountain building but some office building. It was older with interesting sculpted crown molding, worn marble floors, and a uniformed security guard rubbernecking by the revolving doors. He clearly didn’t hear them so Daniel paused long enough to look left and right, looking for some service exit.
He spied something to the right and took off at a trot, hoping his rubber-soled sneakers would keep things quiet. She was right behind him when she heard something heavy thudding behind her. It had to be the Dvergr. Would he be willing to show himself in public just to get the Horn? Probably.
“Daniel!”
Her companion skidded and turned to watch as the dwarf emerged from the doorway. It spotted the guard, who was just turning from the door. Another flick of its wrist and the guard clutched at his chest and toppled over, dark red blood pluming over his uniform shirt.
“Well done, my Knights,” the Dvergr said as it stalked closer to Hannah. “We have evened things up. Mordred could never be trusted. Should he survive this, keep that in mind. My gift to you.”
He then held out his hand, expecting the horn as if in reward for stating the obvious.
“Never,” Daniel said, standing still.
“I have centuries of experience, a sword, and lots of strength. You are whelps who do not yet know your full range. I like my odds.”
“Two on one,” Hannah shot back. “I prefer ours.”
The dwarf reached into its belt and withdrew more of his deadly darts. Who knew how many it had in there and how far his throw could reach with deadly accuracy. She had to get out of range, let Daniel run with the Horn. If there was any sacrificing to be done, it would be her since it had become clear she was the athletic knight.
“Want to dance?” Her question echoed in the high ceilinged lobby and she advanced towards the dwarf causing him to pause.
Daniel shot her a pained and quizzical look, as he realized she intended to hold off the dwarf to let him escape. Indecision crossed his face but Hannah didn’t want to distract herself from engaging the dwarf. She played with the axe as if it were a cheerleader’s baton, trying to look cool, calm, and collected when inside, she was roiling with conflicting emotions and feelings. She didn’t really feel like dying just yet, especially now that she had this newfound power.
“Toss me the axe,” Daniel demanded, newfound steel in his voice.
She shot him a questioning look as the Dvergr continued to stalk him. He impatiently gestured for the weapon but she refused to toss it. Instead, she moved toward him and when she deemed the distance appropriate, she shoved the axe along the floor toward her friend and out of the dwarf’s reach. Daniel placed the velvet bag gently to the marble floor, stepped forward, and hefted the axe in his hands, where it now looked appropriate.
“I slew a dragon so I think I can stop a dwarf,” Daniel said. He then sniffed at the air around them. “And a stinky one at that.”
With a roar, the dwarf charged and Daniel, showing a grace and power he had not demonstrated previously, parried the sword. Metal clanged against metal and he had the advantage of height and reach, which should help him, Hannah concluded. The two swung, dodged, danced apart and came together. It was almost comical watching the much taller human hold off the attacks of the far smaller dwarf. Both were sweating after the first minute. She wanted to interfere but this was now his fight and she felt proud of him.
However, she could not remain idle and crept against one wall until she came close to the bag and the prize. Her fear was that the Moderator or one of his men would turn up. As she picked up the bag, she felt its power as if the bag contained not a metal instrument but a living thing. It weighed more than she expected and her heart said it was now her job to protect it.
The fight continued across the cavernous lobby which was thankfully empty on a Sunday. They moved left, then right, then in a circle but Hannah began to notice a pattern. Inch by inch, Daniel was forcing the dwarf towards the door. Was he trying to expose the dwarf to sunlight or the public, which continued to gather around the police barriers by the White Mountain building next door.
No, she figured
out his plan just as the dwarf was forced back a step and he slipped in the guard’s blood. His feet went out from under him and he fell heavily on his back.
“A short trip,” Daniel said mirthlessly. With his right foot, he stomped on the dwarf’s wrist and the sword was released. The axe head was now resting against the dwarf’s thick neck.
“I surrender,” the Dvergr said.
“Not good enough,” he replied. “I don’t know the rules. Your word may not be your bond, you may be from a race of liars or tricksters. I can’t let you live.”
“You would kill him?” Hannah asked.
“Do we have a choice, Hannah?”
“I don’t know, do we?”
“You always have a choice,” the dwarf said. “You’ve bested me. The Horn is yours.”
“What happens if I let you get up? I could take all your gear but you’d still track us and find some weapon. This doesn’t belong to you.”
“Let me traverse to the other side, let me be with my kin,” the dwarf said and almost sounded like he was pleading.
“I don’t know how the Veil works,” Daniel admitted.
The dwarf looked in Hannah’s direction and she just shrugged. He let out an anguished growl and lay unmoving.
“What do I do, Hannah?”
She paused in thought while the dwarf remained still. They didn’t have much time before someone outside the building spotted the dead guard by the door or the teen with an axe standing before what might be perceived as a child. Mordred was still loose, too.
None of the options felt right to Daniel who had been going on instinct all this time. He considered scenarios as he looked around the space. Finally, he saw a solution that wouldn’t be elegant or perfect, but would buy them the time they needed. Carefully, he moved the axe a hand’s breadth away from the dwarf’s neck.