James narrowed his eyes. Shay had told him what Lieutenant Hall had said, but he hadn’t been sure if other Oricerans had been involved until now. The queen’s threats of war now explained the Light Elves’ actions. It didn’t make him any happier, but he didn’t plan to raid the consulate anytime soon.
Laena sneered. “Tell me why you’re here. Consider your answer carefully, because if it is poorly formed, you will die in the next minute. Your arrogance in presenting yourself to me here has almost sealed your doom, insect.”
James shrugged. “I just don’t like you. You keep trying to kill me, and you keep fucking with my daughter.”
“She is not your daughter,” Laena screeched. “She is a Drow.”
The bounty hunter shook his head. “You know, if I really thought you gave a shit this might be different, but I think this isn’t even about her, and we both know it.”
“Oh? What’s it about then, human?”
James tapped his head. “The fucking wish. But screw you. That’s for her, not for you, and not for anyone else. You can’t have it.”
Laena laughed. “I’m going to enjoy killing you. I’d love to take the time to flay you slowly and make you beg me to end it quickly, but I’ll be satisfied just watching the life go out of your eyes. Sometimes, it’s the simplest pleasures. I’m sure even your primitive human brain can understand that.”
The amulet’s eagerness flooded James’ mind.
Kill. Become stronger. Worthy enemy.
Okay, Whispy Doom. Let’s see how good you really are. If you haven’t adapted as much as I hope, we’re gonna get shredded here very soon.
James unsheathed his blade. “My primitive human brain understands that I need to beat your ass down.”
The Drow around the queen all summoned shields and shadow blades.
Laena raised a hand and shook her head. “I will face this human alone. The rest of you will not intervene.”
James pointed the sword at her. “If you swear to me that you’ll leave Alison alone, I’ll leave right now. Otherwise, I’m gonna end you.”
“’End me?’ How absurd.” Laena spread her arms out. Her eyes turned solid black, and a shimmering dark nimbus surrounded her body. “You stand no chance against me. I am the queen of the Drow. I am power.”
“I’d sooner stab myself than listen to you tell me this shit for a long time.”
Laena stared at him with hate in her eyes. “When I kill you, James Brownstone, I’m going to cut off your head, and send it to be paraded around your precious Los Angeles as a warning to any who’d threaten the Drow. I’m tired of hiding. Tired of pretending I should care what your pathetic species thinks or feels. I will make Los Angeles bend the knee to their new queen.”
James grunted. “Shut the fuck up and fight, you delusional bitch.” He raised the sword and jogged toward her.
The queen smirked and raised her palm. A black orb blasted out and slammed into James. He hissed at the burn, but other than a light abrasion, the magic didn’t accomplish much.
Laena blinked. “It’s not possible.”
Satisfaction spread from the amulet.
Guess letting those Drow blast the fuck out of us last time was worth something after all. All I need to do now is let every Oriceran race all but kill me, and then I’ll be great.
The Drow queen pelted James with more blasts. The attacks shredded his shirt and stung, but he didn’t take any serious wounds.
James smirked and slowed his pace. “And you’re the queen? Give me a fucking break. I thought this was gonna be a real fight. It looks like it’s gonna end up real one-sided.”
Laena glared at him. She lifted her arm, and a shadow spear appeared in her hand. She pulled her arm back and threw the spear.
James jumped to the side to avoid the spear, but it circled around and slammed into his shoulder before disappearing in a cloud of dark particles. He hissed at the pain spiking through his body and fell to one knee.
Fuck, that hurt.
New attack, the amulet whispered.
Yeah. Kind of figured that one out. Whatever doesn’t kill you, right?
Adapt or die.
James took a deep breath and stood. “Missed my heart.”
Laena’s smile returned. She summoned another spear and threw it at James. This time he didn’t dodge, and the spear only stung.
Whispy Doom, I think you’re getting better and quicker at this shit.
James sheathed his sword. The Drow queen wasn’t the only one who wanted to enjoy kicking the ass of a hated enemy. He charged toward the woman. A few punches and kicks to punish her for her bullshit were in order.
The ground exploded all around him, jagged shards of glowing obsidian tearing at his flesh. Ignoring the pain, he pushed through. Another blast annoyed him, but it didn’t do much more than sting this time.
The rapture of the bloodthirsty amulet sang in his mind. Kill. Stronger. Kill. Stronger. Adapt or die.
Laena screamed. “I am the queen of the Drow, and you are nothing, James Brownstone. You will burn.” She snapped her hands up, and a huge purple fireball roared toward James.
He threw himself to the side but hissed in pain as the explosion singed his arm and side.
Another fireball exploded in front of him and knocked him backward. A few minor burns covered his chest. A third fireball accomplished little other than destroying his shirt.
James forced himself to stand. His entire side hurt now, but he wasn’t bleeding much. He had one healing potion in his pants pocket, but he wanted to save it until he needed it. There was no way in hell he’d use Alison’s wish to save his life, which meant the potion was the backup plan.
“That all you got, Laena?” The bounty hunter stumbled forward and regained his footing. “This is the terrible power of the Drow?”
A shadowy crescent shot toward him and slammed into his chest. He stumbled for a moment, grunting more from the pain of his existing wounds than the mild sting of the crescent blade.
James shook his head and continued toward the queen. “All I ever wanted was to be left alone. All Alison ever wanted was a loving family.” He pointed at Laena. “The fucking Harriken got greedy and took her mother, and now you’re greedy, and you want to take her father. Fuck you. You don’t win today. You didn’t win in court, and you won’t win here.”
“You are not her father,” Laena shouted. “You’re nothing.” She lifted her arms to the sky again, an eerie purple glow suffusing the area around her.
The nearby Drow all ran from her.
“I’m the queen of the Drow, and you are just a human with a few trinkets. You are nothing but a worm before me.”
If James didn’t know better, he would have thought the amulet snorted in his mind.
Kill. Become stronger.
Don’t worry, Whispy Doom. I’m gonna give her a beatdown so hard they’ll be singing operas about it on Oriceran for centuries.
James charged Laena and pulled back his fist. The woman didn’t move. The purple light grew in intensity. Closer. Closer.
Twenty feet…ten…five…three.
The bounty hunter grinned. It was time to end this. He threw his fist right at her face.
A bright flash followed and hurled him back. He slammed into the hard obsidian path and rolled several feet, his side and shoulder aching.
Using one hand, the bounty hunter pushed himself up and then stood.
“Okay, so not gonna end this with one punch. Fair enough.” James unsheathed the blade. “How about a magic sword, then?”
He sucked in a few breaths, trying to block out the pain.
Kill. Become stronger.
I’m working on it.
The queen’s form shuddered for a moment, and another blast of light forced him to look away. When he looked back the queen was gone, replaced by an undulating mass of shadowy arms outlined in a violet glow.
“DO YOU UNDERSTAND YET, BROWNSTONE?” The sound came as a chorus of reverberating voices from the a
rms.
“What the fuck am I supposed to understand? That you’re ugly as fuck now?”
James took a deep breath. Everything had a weak spot. He just needed to find it.
“ON YOUR PLANET, YOU ARE A GOD. HERE YOU ARE AN INSECT.”
“Maybe I’m a roach. They are fucking hard to kill.”
The bounty hunter let out a loud bellow and charged. He slashed toward the shadow mass with the sword and the light flashed again, but this time it didn’t knock him back.
A chorus of shrieks sounded as one of the shadow arms ripped off and fluttered into the sky like black dust. Several of the other arms shot out at him, their tips sharpening.
James grunted with each hit and growled as one slammed his wounded side, but they were scratching him or only giving him minor cuts.
The amulet’s drunken joy at being in battle almost distracted him.
Get it in check, Whispy.
Another few slashes separated more shadow arms, but two grabbed him and flung him away. He landed hard with a grunt. A second later, violet lightning blasted from several of the arms and slammed into him.
James cried out as he sailed backward, pain spreading from both his side and chest. Another series of lightning blasts shot into him, and he hissed as they deepened the ache in his previous wounds.
Using the sword to brace himself, the bounty hunter forced himself back to his feet.
Come on, Whispy. Does she have a heart or something? Help me out. We’re not gonna win a battle of attrition.
Agony blasted into his eyes, and he squeezed them shut.
Laena’s combined voices cackled into the darkness.
“BEG NOW, BROWNSTONE, AND YOUR DEATH WILL BE QUICK. OTHERWISE, I WILL PULL YOU APART PIECE BY PIECE.”
Open, partner. Open. See.
James forced his eyes open. Through the pain, he could see it now—buried within one of the arms, a beating heart.
“AFTER YOU DIE, I WILL GO AND TAKE THE GIRL. I WILL PUNISH HER FOR HER INSOLENCE. SHE WILL GIVE HER WISH TO ME AND SUFFER FOR TURNING HER BACK ON THE DROW. IF SHE WISHES TO BE A HUMAN, THEN SHE IS DISPOSABLE LIKE ONE.”
Cleansing rage washed away the pain. James roared and sprinted right toward the heart, his sword pointed forward.
“I will fucking destroy you, bitch,” the bounty hunter bellowed.
Blast after blast shot debris around him or struck him, but the pain didn’t reach his brain. He kept running, ignoring everything but his target.
James’ sword pierced the arm and went into the heart.
The deep screams echoed over the entire plateau. A wave of force slammed into James and knocked him back a good ten yards. The tachi clattered out of his hand, sliding off the obsidian path onto the packed, smooth pebbles beside it.
Stronger, the amulet whispered.
James sat up. Laena lay on the ground, back in her humanoid form, bleeding from her mouth, but still breathing. Several cuts covered her body, but shadows were seeping into them, and the injuries were already closing.
Fuck. Maybe the head, not the heart?
James squeezed the bridge of his nose, the pain throbbing all over his body now, including his head.
The bounty hunter reached into his pocket, grateful that the potion was still there. His shirt was nothing but a collar at this point, and his pants had more holes than Swiss cheese. The scabbard was a burned mess, and he hoped Shay wouldn’t be too pissed since the sword was still fine.
He downed the potion and waited. Fifteen seconds later, he was a new man in need of an equally new outfit.
James stood and grabbed the sword. He marched over toward the queen, but a dozen Drow moved toward her.
Shit. Even with you, Whispy, I don’t know if I can take them.
Fight. Become stronger.
“I’ve got no beef with you,” James shouted. “My only beef is with her.”
The Drow ignored him and marched toward the queen. They surrounded her, spacing themselves out equidistantly. They raised their hands and chanted something in a hissing, sibilant language James didn’t understand.
Laena shook her head, sitting up. “No. You can’t do this. No!”
Dark purple lines of energy formed around the queen, trapping her in a cage of light. She screamed as tendrils of light shot into her. She twitched and thrashed inside the cage, her smooth skin wrinkling. After a minute of unearthly keening, the regal and beautiful woman from before was replaced by a withered crone whimpering inside the energy cage.
James made his way over and shook his head. “What the fuck just happened?”
One of the twelve Drow stepped out of line. James recognized him as one of the guards from the courthouse.
The Drow nodded toward the queen. “Most of her power has been taken, and because of that, the magic she used to resist time has taken its toll. If she were on Earth, with its still-limited magic, she would likely wither away into dust.”
“I don’t get it. Is this some sort of coup shit?” James pointed with the sword at the queen.
“Of a sort. It is a new era, a new time. No one on Oriceran can survive by mindlessly doing what they did before.” The Drow shook his head. “You had already defeated her most powerful supporters, but none of us were brave enough to face her. Tonight you gave us our opportunity. It’s time for a new age of the Drow.”
James nodded. “Like I said, I’ve got no beef with you.”
“About the girl…”
The bounty hunter brought up his sword. “I’m still her dad.”
The Drow raised a placating hand. “We don’t wish to earn your wrath, James Brownstone. We simply wonder if she could visit on occasion.”
James lowered the sword. He pursed his lips and nodded. “When she’s ready. It is her mother’s heritage, after all, but not without me at her side.”
“Of course. We understand now, all too well, how far you’re willing to go to protect the girl.” He nodded toward the queen. “If you wish, we will allow you to finish her.”
He stared at the now-unconscious former queen and shook his head. “Fuck her. I want her to suffer for a while. Death’s too quick for her after all the bullshit she pulled.”
The corners of the Drow’s mouth turned up in a slight smile. “You’re more like us than you realize, James Brownstone.”
“I might be a loving father, but I’m not a good man.”
James reached into his pocket to pull out his portal stone. It was gone, thanks to the hole burned into his pocket.
“Son of a bitch. Hey, one last favor to ask. I need a ride home.”
25
Multiple grills filled the park. Sergeant Mack and the men of Camp Brownstone worked on preparing food: barbeque, hot dogs, and burgers. A meat lover’s paradise.
Tables decorated with colorful cloths surrounded the cooking area, neighborhood locals at some, cops at others. Father McCartney sat with Charlyce and the kids from the orphanage at yet another.
James smiled as he surveyed the area. It was a nice environment for his men to practice their cooking skills. His smile faded as he eyed the charred wreck on his plate.
“How the fuck do you burn a hot dog, Trey? If you can’t handle hot dogs, barbeque’s gonna destroy you.”
Sergeant Mack laughed from a nearby grill and shook his head.
Trey shrugged. “This shit ain’t like dropping a bounty, big man. You’ve got to deal with heat.”
Lachlan hissed when he burned himself trying to turn a burger. “Fuck. We need to be all strategic and shit with this. Tricky-ass flames. I think I prefer a microwave.”
“Wonder what Sun Tzu has to say about barbeque,” Shorty mused aloud.
Royce wandered over and laughed. “The closest thing I can think of is, ‘When the men do not hang their cooking-pots over the campfires, showing that they will not return to their tents, you may know that they are determined to fight to the death.’”
Trey furrowed his brow. “So a motherfucker who doesn’t get the wood in his
pit burning is ready to fight to the death?”
James grunted. “They deserve to die anyway for disrespecting the barbeque.”
Everyone laughed.
Alison and Shay wandered over from Father McCartney’s table.
“What’s so funny?” the teen asked.
“Barbeque,” Trey explained.
Alison and Shay both groaned.
A couple of hours later Alison was on her way back home from the park, a smile on her face. She loved the School of Necessary Magic, but being with James and Shay had reminded her what it was truly like to be loved and cherished by a mother and father, even if Shay wanted to keep insisting she was nothing more than her aunt.
Just wait and see. I’m sure Dad will make a move sooner rather than later.
Alison grinned at the thought.
“Aren’t we a sweet young thing?” came a voice from behind her.
The teen spun, frowning. She shuddered at the lust and general vileness in the energy of the man behind her.
“Excuse me. I was on my way home.”
The man shook his head. “Ain’t no one around, girl. Maybe you should keep me company. Or you can give me anything you have on you, and I’ll walk away. Nice necklace. Pretty sweet deal, don’t you think?”
Alison took a deep breath. She didn’t need the Aegis Pendant for an idiot like this.
Okay, how would Dad or Aunt Shay want me to handle this?
The girl painted her face with an arrogant smirk. Confidence was key in the early part of a battle.
“Walk away, dirtbag, and you won’t get hurt.”
The man snorted. “You keep running that mouth, little girl, and this is gonna hurt a lot more than it needs to. Now give me the fucking necklace and anything else you got on you.”
Alison shook her head. There were so many things she could do to him, but for some reason, she wanted it to be a little more visceral and a little more painful. If she were too subtle, he wouldn’t learn his lesson.
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