“Yeah,” Picasso said. “Your dad wanted you to know that he has every confidence you’ll defeat the enemy. General Winters also said your dad can’t wait to see you and will arrive the moment he hears we’ve won the battle.”
Highbrow laughed. “Of course he did. I can’t wait to see him.”
“General Winters wants us in position before the bombs hit. They’re already in route, so that doesn’t leave us much time.”
“I can’t believe it! He came through!” Highbrow had so many things he wanted to ask. He hadn’t spoken to his father in over a year. He turned to Cadence. “My dad! He’s coming here!”
Cadence smiled. “You always said he’d come through. Let’s get ready, folks. We have a battle to win.”
* * * * *
Chapter Twenty-Two
Cadence gazed across the smoking ruins of the Citadel. The five bombers from Cannon Air Force Base had leveled the former Academy in seconds, vanishing into the blue sky. Seated in the front of the vehicle, she watched the teams fan out across the battlefield. Picasso flew overhead, scouting for enemy troops that might have escaped the air strike. Buildings were reduced to rubble and several major fires raged through the campus. Twisted vehicles fused to their parking spaces, and whatever may have remained of the stadium after the bombing was demolished.
Smack sat behind the wheel, monitoring communication between the teams. Freeborn and Whisper watched from the truck bed, diligent.
Dragon led the first team into the tunnels beneath the Citadel, while Thor’s team combed through the rubble of the stadium. Tandor led a third team of vampires and searched through the burning buildings. So far, there were no sightings of Shadowguard or Vescali. The Air Force did their job well.
Cadence glanced at Smack. The girl clung to the wheel, chomping her bubble-gum, worried. Cadence touched her slender arm.
“Relax, kiddo. It will be okay. Dodger is with Blaze.”
“I see people,” Smack said, popping a bubble. “It’s the Shadowguard.”
Black forms ran in scattered groups throughout the ruins, and Freeborn and Whisper began firing their weapons. The Dark Angels also arrived and, as more Shadowguard emerged from bunkers beneath the ground, the two opposing vampire forces engaged in combat.
Whisper thumped the cab of the truck. “We got zombies!”
The explosions had attracted the living dead, and every zombie within earshot staggered toward the Citadel. Whisper picked them off, but they kept coming.
“There are thousands of them,” Smack said, scanning her surroundings. “Should I warn the teams?”
“Yes,” Cadence said. “Get Dragon and Thor top side. We've got a fight on our hands.” Smack honked the horn. Cadence looked up as a company of zombie cyborgs and Shadowguard raced toward their position, leading a black limo.
The vehicle came to an abrupt stop fifty yards from Cadence’s truck, and flame-throwing cyborgs marched forward. The Dark Angels continued to engage the Shadowguard as gunfire and groans from the living dead rose to a deafening level.
“I’ll bet Balan is in the limo,” Freeborn said. “And the vampire lords. We can either wait here and watch or…”
Smack leaned out. “I reached Dragon,” she shouted. “He’s met resistance. Thor isn’t answering.”
A zombie with a half-shredded face stared at Smack and aimed its weapon at her. Several more joined it. The girl smacked a bubble and pointed at the limousine.
“Yo, zombies! Go kill the vamps in that limo. Tell your friends, too. They’re the bad guys. Not us.”
The zombie nodded, and the small group sauntered toward the limo. More zombies joined them and surrounded the limo.
“Did you see that?” Cadence asked. “They understood Smack! Keep talking, Smack! Send them to attack the Kaiser!”
“You got it, Commander!” Smack jumped out of the truck and directed a zombie and its ragtag group to fight the Shadowguard. “They’ll do it, Commander! Said that’s why they’re here. They came to help us!” She found another group and directed them.
The Shadowguard flanked the cyborgs, leveling the zombies surrounding the limousine. Cadence expected to see the Vescali crawl from the tunnels beneath the ruins, but it was Thor’s team that arrived instead, and they engaged the Shadowguard from behind.
An immense, ferocious werepuma fought beside Thor. Highbrow was as large as a horse, and he caught the Shadowguard with ease, shredding them in his monstrous jaws. Loki was with them, arrayed as an arena warrior. He flew above the vampires and landed on top of them, staking them to the ground with his trident.
“Someone is getting out of the limo,” Whisper said.
The Shadowguard surrounded the limo and secured it against the zombie lines. A vampire stepped out of the vehicle and undressed as he stood before them. Cadence thought the vampire insane, until he morphed into something that looked similar to a Vescali, but larger and more powerful. The demon lord was colossal. Talons emerged as his bat-like face stretched, revealing dreadful fangs. He reached skyward and screamed. Focusing hellish eyes, he targeted Cadence.
“I’ll take care of this loser,” Whisper said, lifting his rifle. He fired a round that struck Balan in the forehead. The bullet bounced off his scaled hide. “You better get your spear, Cadence. Here he comes!”
Like a furious banshee, Prince Balan screeched and beat the air with his vast wings as he swooped for their truck. A monstrous shadow followed him. Balan moved faster than any Chameleon or vampire, giving Cadence mere seconds to employ the spear before the demon lord was upon her. Balan’s eyes widened at the sight of the spear, and Cadence had a moment to relish his fear.
That moment was short-lived.
Balan tore at her head and shoulders, cutting her flesh. His shrieks drowned out the shouts from Freeborn and Whisper. They screamed in terror as the shadow guardian enveloped both teenagers, draining energy from their bodies. Freeborn and Whisper crashed to their knees, reeling under a shroud of darkness. Cadence released a savage cry and struck Balan with the spear, which sent him rolling through the air. She jabbed at the shadow. The blackness was sucked into the tip of the spear and then exploded outward, spattering across the sky. Inky tendrils spread through the air, consumed by the sunlight. What remained of the shadow fell to the ground. Trembling with rage and blowing fire from his nostrils, Balan flew away from the truck.
“Are you alright?” Cadence asked, pulling Freeborn to her feet. She yanked Whisper up by his coat.
Both nodded, pale and weak, but eager to fight
The war raged around Cadence as she thrust the spear toward the heavens. She shouted, “Are you afraid of me? If not, come back and let’s try that again!”
The demon prince soared by her, followed by a reanimated shadow. Together, the dark lord and his familiar flew over the battlefield, giving encouragement to the bedraggled Shadowguard. A war cry echoed through the air, and the vampire troops rallied.
Whisper cleared his throat, lifting his rifle. “Should you really be taunting a demon? I don’t think I can handle having my energy zapped like that again.”
“Me either, but curse him anyway!” Freeborn said. She lifted her shotgun and took a wild shot at Balan, missing him but striking the shadow. The pellets tore holes in its wings, healing seconds later.
“You shall die, Cadence,” Balan said in a thunderous voice. He and his shadow made another pass over the truck. “You and your Earth Corps will be sent to the pits of Hell, and the Dark Angels will be my slaves. All of you cowards will be made to suffer!”
“Just think,” Freeborn said, “Raven slept with that thing.”
Prince Balan appeared above. A blow from the back of his large hand knocked Cadence off her feet, and she fell into Freeborn. Freeborn tumbled over the side of the truck into a mob of zombies. The shadow guardian scattered the zombies and reached for her throat. She scrambled beneath the truck, with the in creature pursuit.
Balan caught Cadence by her arm, breathing fire into her face. She leaned away
, lifting the spear in reflex, and its metal tip deflected the flames and fried a nearby zombie. He recoiled from the spear, laughing, as the demon’s shadow dragged Freeborn from under the truck. Freeborn blasted the inky familiar with her shotgun, and it dropped on top of Cadence, wrapping her in its cold embrace. She felt light-headed and sick to her stomach.
Whisper swung his rifle at Prince Balan’s face, but was knocked aside by a swipe of the demon’s wing. He landed on his side, hurting his arm.
“Leave her to me,” Prince Balan shouted. He slapped his guardian to the side and swiped at Cadence with his talons. She jabbed with the spear and missed but dodged his fist as it slammed into the ground where her head had been. She jabbed again and left a bleeding gash the length of his arm. Balan flew back, crying out in pain. With his guardian, he circled high and prepared for another attack.
Freeborn appeared at the side of the truck. “That thing nearly sucked the life out of me. A zombie tried to pull it off of me. Don’t know why, but I guess the shadow didn’t like its touch because it let me go.”
“There’s nothing you can do to help me,” Cadence shouted. “If Balan would hold still long enough, I might be able to stab him in the heart. Take Smack and help the city crawlers finish those cyborgs. Whisper, go with her. I can handle this!”
“I’m not leaving you,” Whisper said. He tapped on the top of the truck cab. “Get out of there, Smack. Go kill something. Take Freeborn with you. When he flies down again, say his name, Cadence. You’re the one who has to do it.”
Smack climbed out of the truck and joined Freeborn, and they pushed through the zombies to the front of the battle. Whisper shouted as Balan and his shadow made another pass. The shadow moved faster this time, and it knocked Whisper off his feet. Cadence lifted the spear and stabbed into the dark shadow. Blackness slithered up her arm, and squeezed until she dropped the spear as the familiar sucked life from her body. She felt like the meat was being pulled from her bones, separating in rough tears.
Cadence weakened, unable to break free from her attacker or scream out Balan’s name. The demon came for Whisper. They struggled, trading blows, but the demon lord was stronger and sank his teeth into Whisper’s shoulder. The sniper screamed in fear, like a frightened child about to die. It jarred Cadence into consciousness, and she found the strength to raise her voice.
“Balan, stop!”
Cadence felt the shadow release her and watched it slam into the bed of the truck, thrashing. Prince Balan stood in front of her, frozen. He was deadlocked in an immobile arch above Whisper. The truck shook from an unseen force, and Cadence retrieved the spear. With a cry of rage, she thrust the tip into Balan’s paralyzed chest.
The truck shook with violence as the spear glided through the demon’s tough hide. Cadence gripped the spear tight, speaking Balan’s name in rapid succession. The shadow evaporated beneath their feet, vanishing from sight. The truck stopped trembling, as Prince Balan’s body hardened. In seconds he turned to stone and Cadence released the spear. Kneeling beside Whisper, they watched the brown scales turn white and porous like limestone.
“Is he dead?” croaked Whisper, massaging his shoulder.
Cadence found Lachlan’s sword in the truck. She swung the blade with every ounce of energy and rage she had left. The galloglass shattered the stone and the demon lord’s head flew into the horde of zombies, lost. Cadence struck again and again, until she reduced Balan’s remains to ashes.
“The Kaiser is dead!” Cadence shouted, embracing Whisper. He groaned in pain, and she let him go. “Sorry. That’s a nasty gash, Tiger. Stay here and heal, while I go finish the battle.”
“Yeah, go do that,” Whisper said, smiling through the pain.
Lachlan’s sword in hand, Cadence rushed into the heat of the battle and took out several Shadowguard before her army killed them all. Zombies fought beside her, consuming vampires that fell beneath them, while Freeborn helped destroy the cyborgs. The battle turned to slaughter, and the remaining Shadowguard fled from the Citadel. Dark Angels surrounded the limo, guarding it as Luna and Moon Dog pursued the Shadowguard. Their furry tails streaked through the zombies, as they chased down the stragglers.
“Go help them,” Cadence shouted, flagging Freeborn.
The Chameleon dropped the remains of a cyborg, and, joined by Thor’s team, she raced after the shapeshifters. They surrounded the Shadowguard at the main entrance, and the enemy laid down their weapons and raised their hands in surrender. Phoenix and Smack laughed as they whizzed by Cadence, joining their friends to take the Shadowguard prisoners. Whisper walked over to Cadence and the Dark Angels surrounding the limousine.
“We were waiting on you,” Pallaton said. He nodded to Cadence and opened the door, reaching inside. He pulled out D’Aquilla, who placed his hands on top of his head. “Game’s over, Salvatore.”
“You might have captured me, but the battle isn’t over,” D’Aquilla said. He snarled as Pallaton pushed him against the side of the limo. “I see you’ve changed sides yet again, captain. I’m not surprised. You loyalty is like a pendulum and it will swing back to our side the moment your Cadence looks the other direction.”
“I’ve always been a Dark Angel,” Pallaton said, angry. “Consider yourself our prisoner. You won’t be going back to Italy, so I suggest you shut up and accept defeat with humility.” He looked inside the limo as Tandor took hold of D’Aquilla. “Commander, there are more vampire lords inside. What are your orders? Shall we shoot them or put them in irons?”
Before Cadence could answer, Thor dashed to the limo. He ignored everyone and gave Raven a bear hug, then walked over and kissed a startled Rose on the cheek. He spun and saluted Cadence, grinning ear to ear.
“We’ve won,” Thor shouted. “The Kaiser is dead, the Shadowguard are dismantled. Victory is ours!”
“This isn’t a football game, Thor,” Raven said, smiling. She holstered her gun and leaned against the hood. “We still have survivors to look for. Dragon hasn’t returned with his team. They could be in trouble.”
“Then I’ll go and find them. But first, I want to chain up these vampire lords and take a picture standing over them. I don’t care what you say. We won and I’m going to enjoy it as long as I can.”
A few curious zombies had gathered nearby, watching but not interfering. Cadence watched as Pallaton and Raven pulled the vampire lords out of the limo and lined them up. Rose, Picasso and Micah kept their weapons aimed at the vampire lords as D’Aquilla stood before Cadence and lowered his head. It was a defining moment for Cadence. She felt many things, but most of all she felt a sense of pride that despite the odds, she had done something extraordinary. For herself, her friends, and for everyone threatened by the Kaiser and his vampire lords, the reign of vampires was finished. The only thing that would have made it more complete was Lachlan’s presence. She held his sword, felt his spirit, and realized the hole in her heart did not feel quite as large.
“We surrender,” D’Aquilla said. “The day is yours, Commander.”
“Put them in chains, Pallaton. Rose, take it from here. I want to take some time to savor the moment.”
Cadence walked away from the limousine, the enormous sword over her shoulder. Luna padded over, her pink tongue hanging from her mouth, and walked beside Cadence across the battlefield. The only sounds she heard were fires still burning among the buildings. Snowflakes fell, settling on motionless bodies. Zombies continued to feed on slain vampires, and Freeborn dismantled any cyborgs she found. Cadence looked away. Not all of war was about glory. The truth was horrifying and brutal. She was glad for Luna’s company; she didn’t have to speak, but wasn’t alone.
Cadence hoped Dragon and his team found their friends, and that they had survived. Finding Monkey and Skye remained a top priority. She turned to glance at Luna and found the werepuma gazing across the battlefield. Her fur stood on end as a fierce growl rose from her throat.
Someone was watching them.
Near the stadiu
m ruins, she spotted an ominous figure. It was a zombie cyborg bigger than any she had seen before; a mammoth beast of muscle and machine. The only human skin that was visible was charred black. She recognized the cyborg from a poster promoting the Death Games. Aries of Athens was to have fought Dragon the previous evening. His hatred was palpable, even from a distance, and yet, the sadistic glint in his smile told Cadence something was wrong. This was not a simple cyborg.
While they were watching, Aries suddenly disappeared from sight. Cadence ran across the field toward the stadium, followed by Luna. The werepuma kept at her side as they raced to where the cyborg had stood. Expecting to find a tunnel, Cadence gazed at the rough ground, unable to fathom where Aries of Athens had gone.
“We have a problem, Luna. Go tell the team that Aries is on the loose. Dragon is down in the sewers. We need to warn him. Tell Thor to gather a team and find Dragon.”
Luna sped across the field with a vicious roar, breaking the eerie silence. Cadence gazed up at the sky, letting snowflakes fall on her face. Her optimism disappeared with the rays of the sun. It was Christmas, and they had defeated the Kaiser, but something in Aries’ mechanical eyes told her a beast had just been unleashed.
She turned and watched Luna race toward her friends, celebrating their victory and the capture of the remaining vampire lords. She couldn’t shake the feeling that things had just taken a turn for the worst.
# # # # #
Also by Susanne L. Lambdin
Dead Hearts Series:
Morbid Hearts
Forsaken Hearts
Vengeful Hearts
Defiant Hearts
Immortal Hearts
About The Author
Susanne L. Lambdin is the author of the Dead Hearts series of novels. A Trekkie at heart, she received a ‘based in part’ screen credit for writing a portion of Star Trek: The Next Generation: Season 4, Episode 76, titled ‘Family.’ She is passionate about all things science fiction, horror, and high fantasy. Susanne is an expert on the subject of zombies, and is affectionately known by many of her fans as ‘The Zombie Lady.’ She lives in Kansas with her family and two dogs.
Dead Hearts (Book 3): Vengeful Hearts Page 25