by K V Deal
“Why the hell are inquisitors here?” He asked as Charlie helped him to his feet.
“Who the hell knows?” She wrinkled her nose. “Maybe they just caught on to his little trick.”
“Whatever,” Carah said. She had her saber out and was already peering out into the corridor. “All I know is that we need to hurry now. Edward might need her alive, but those inquisitors will kill her in a heartbeat.” She was already moving into the hall.
“Carah, wait up! Damn it! If we’re going to be fighting inquisitors, we need my lamp, and it only works if it’s in the same room they are!”
I yanked it off my belt and hurried after her. Shadows danced and leapt as I followed. She hit the end of the hall and looked around. I spotted the rickety wooden staircase first and took the lead. Like hell I was going to let her be first into a potential ambush.
As I transitioned from upstairs to down and into another room, the lamp began its work, overwhelming the light in the room. It looked like a storehouse for the shop. There was a forest of crates around the edges. A large open patch was in the center where the stairs ended.
There was a startled curse from the middle of the room. “Aw crap! It’s the dragon!” A male voice called out.
“That faceless son of a bitch was involved with him? Damn it!” Said another. The second voice was accompanied by the sound of a metal weapon being drawn. “Warn the Sentinel!”
Looks like they hadn't been expecting us to be here, but they had a rather large group. Glancing down, I pinpointed three shadows in the room. Two were heading towards the stairs as the third made a break towards the center of the building. I pulled out my dagger and let its heat wash over the room around me. It might not have that much effect on these bastards, but it was better than…
“Damn that’s hot!” The second voice cried out, and I saw one shadow retreat a few steps.
The first inquisitor kept coming. He hit the bottom of the stairs and began to climb. “Wuss! I’ll handle this fucker right now!”
Alright. So, the far one isn't fire proof good to know.
Also? These two felt like common street thugs, rather than the zealots that we had been seeing up till now.
It was hard to judge where the first man was on the stairs, as the shadow jumped back and forth along the steps. I narrowed my eyes.
Fine. Let’s do this the brute force way.
I leaned back and gripping the railing along with my lamp, I lashed straight out with the heaviest kick I could managed. My foot connected, and I could feel the thug lifted off the stairs and heard an explosion of breath. At the same moment I felt the railing crack under the pressure of the maneuver.
“Shit!”
The railing gave out, sending me tumbling to the floor below. A barrel burst open when I landed on it, sending rice scattering. My lamp skittered away behind a crate and inquisitor’s shadows disappeared as the light was blocked.
Double shit.
“Jake!” Carah shouted, bounding down the stairs.
“Damn it, look out!” I wheezed as I scrambled up after the lamp. The fall had knocked the wind out of me, but thankfully, I wasn't hurt. I heard a cry as I dove after the lamp, grabbing it by the stem instead of the handle in my haste. Carah!
There was a snarl, a cracking sound, and then another cry, this time from a male voice.
Flipping the lamp around, I rushed out from behind the crate.
Carah was climbing to her feet. A line of blood was coming from a deep cut on her shoulder. The arm below it hung limp.
She watched as Charlie struggled with an inquisitor, a completely visible inquisitor. One of their invisibility cloths fluttered to the ground between them, obviously torn free. The man began to scream curses into Charlie's face as they struggled over a sword that looked more like a giant razor blade than a weapon of finesse.
I looked around for the second inquisitor as I ran to help. There was no second shadow. Where the hell had he gone?
I reached Carah as she fumbled a potion out of her pouch. I grabbed it and popped the cork, leaving her to handle the rest.
The goon saw me coming as I charged. With an effort, he managed to wrench the sword free and shove Charlie into my way. I stumbled as I dodged past her, losing my momentum. The thug narrowed his eyes as he hauled back to swing the sword at my head, treating the weapon like it was a baseball bat. An arrow materialized out of the thug’s shoulder with a meaty thwack as Axle let loose from the stairs. The inquisitor screamed, dropping his weapon as he reached up to grab the shaft.
There was a crashing sound, and I flicked my eyes to the side just in time to see something invisible yank itself out of a crushed-in chunk of a crate. Charlie rose to her feet and forced her crossbow up. She was trying for a point-blank shot.
“Jake!” Carah’s scream brought my eyes back to the goon in front of me just in time to let me duck a clumsy one-handed swing of his retrieved sword. Clumsy or not, I could feel the magic in the blade. I really didn't want to let that thing hit me.
“Take him alive!” Axle called out from the stairs as an arrow whizzed past, just missing my goon’s other shoulder.
Alive? Well, that makes things more difficult.
“You motherfuckers think I'm gonna let you…”
I feinted an attack with the dagger as I brought the lamp around with a hard swing, clocking him upside the head.
He hit the ground, hard, his sword skidding past me across the floor. But he was not out of the fight. He began to shakily push himself back up to his feet.
Man, it’s a lot harder to knock someone out than they make it look in the movies.
“Gimme.” A recovered Carah yanked the lamp from my hands and brought it down on the thug’s head again. “Go help Charlie!”
I turned to see that Charlie really didn't need my help. The woman stood over the now visible body of the other goon. Her point-blank bolt stuck out of the man’s chest as he lay on the ground, the life fading from his eyes.
She turned and looked over at us, panting slightly. “Come on! Ya know we don't have time to stand here!” She strode towards the door, loading another bolt as she moved.
“The prisoner…” Axle reminded us as he hurried down the stairs.
Carah was picking up the two bits of cloth from the ground. “I say leave him. We aren't splitting up so somebody can watch him. Period.” She shoved the lamp into my hands and one of the cloths into Axle’s before she headed after Charlie.
I shrugged at him and scurried over to grab the goon’s sword. “Don't have to be stupid at least.” Then I followed after Carah.
Charlie was already at the door by the time I rounded the crates, but Carah was nowhere in sight.
“Ready?” Carah’s voice echoed from a patch of empty air, making me jump slightly.
Oh. Right. Wear a cloth and you can see other people who are wearing them.
Made me wish I hadn't given mine to Charlie. Charlie must’ve remembered that too, since I saw her take MY cloth out of her belt pouch and tie it on. Then she was gone.
Axle ran up behind us and looked around. “Where are the girls! Don't tell me you lost them already!”
“Axle. Put on the damn cloth.” Charlie’s voice echoed, making Axle jump.
“What? Oh! Right!” He began to wrap the cloth around his wrist.
“You know this is going to make it really hard for me to fight, right?” I couldn't help but grumble.
“Aw, suck it up, Dragon,” Charlie quipped as the door swung open. “Next one we get’s yours.”
“Sure. ‘Suck it up’ until you guys need me to fight someone, then… Holy…” I trailed off.
The sounds of a fight could be heard the minute we opened the door. We were looking into a back office, but that’s not what had my attention. Through an open door, on the far side of the room, we could see the front of the shop. There, in the middle of an open space, Edward and the armored guard from the ambush were going toe to toe. The guard’s spear flashed as he le
t off stab after stab only to have Edward dodge them by inches as he tried to counter with a new mace. His strikes bounced right off the guard’s armor, leaving dents but doing no damage.
“I know. There’s a bunch of them,” Charlie said grimly.
Frowning, I shook my head. “What are you talking about all I see… Wait. Damn it.” If they could see it, and I couldn't…
The door to the front room shut with a bang, seemingly by itself.
“Jake?” Carah said, sounding like she was behind me. “Aren't you going to, you know, charge in?”
“I don't know where you guys are!” I wasn't in the room yet, so my lamp didn't control the light in there. Hell! Even then, I’d have no idea which shadow went to which person, even when I could hear them.
There was a twang. Something sped past me and struck somebody. At least, I hope it was somebody. If not, then doors scream. A shadow came into sight as it rushed through the doorway at me. Something hard hit me, grating its way from my shoulder to hip, but it failed to cut through my scales.
I lashed out with my dagger. The person attacking me grunted, then let out a scream as blood flicked through the air.
“Not so tough when I can see you, huh?!” Carah taunted.
Something snapped past me and into the room. Someone screamed.
Being the only guy who couldn't see what was going on was getting old. I swung my arms forward trying to feel for the inquisitor in front of me. The air was empty.
“Jake! Duck!” Axle called out.
I dropped to the ground as something cut an arc right where my neck had been. Son of a…! I spat a ball of fire ahead of me. It struck thin air and splattered. A woman screamed, but more out of fear than pain. Guess she was fireproof too, but I could hear her stumbling away as she franticly beat at her clothing.
I reached out to shove myself up, and my hands hit something. I felt around the shape. Leather armor--I could feel the helmet. Nobody on my side wore one of those. I began to scrabble around, trying to find the…
Something hit me in the head, hard, throwing me away from the body. I rolled to a stop and began to push myself to my feet as the room swam around me. It may be hard to hurt me but a blunt blow to the head? Give it as much force as the one I just took, and I feel it.
Just as I finished surging up to my feet, there was a cry from right in front of me. I knew that voice! Carah! Damn it! It sounded like she had gotten hit!
“Die, demon!” someone screamed just ahead. There was a whoosh, and then the voice screamed again--this time in pain.
“Carah!” Charlie called out from the other room. “Damn it, Dragon! She’s on the floor right in front of ya!”
I didn't think twice. I dropped to my knees and crawled forward, feeling with my hands. The sounds of battle continued in the other room as my fingers found her. It had to be her, too. Who else would wear a shirt that exposed her belly in a fight? She was curled into a ball and seemed to be holding onto something. Dear god! She had a sword sticking into her!
“It’s going to be okay! We got this!” I spoke rapid-fire, saying anything I could think of to keep her calm as I pulled a potion out of my inventory and ripped out the cork. My fingers found her mouth, and I pressed the bottle into it. Reaching down, I gripped the sword and slowly pulled it out, as I hoped against hope that the potion was doing its job.
As soon as it pulled free, the sword became visible. It was a rapier, thank the maker. Hopefully, that meant a smaller wound--though still deadly if in the wrong place. I dropped it to the floor with a clang and felt for the wound. Carah began to cough, and I felt her sit up. “Thanks…” she managed to get out between the coughs. I could see blood splatters appear on the floor as she cleared her now-healed lungs. “We really need to get a healing item.” From her voice, she was already standing up.
“No kidding!” I muttered. “For that, I'll pay!”
“Out of your own hoard? You care for me that much? Why, I'm just overjoyed.” There was a seductive tease in her voice. Guess she was feeling better.
There was a last scream in the other room and then silence.
“Did we win?” I asked.
“If they were having trouble, don't you think I would have said something?” Carah responded.
“Point taken.”
The door to the front room burst open, and Edward ran in, covered in wounds. Seeing me, he skidded to a stop, a furious expression on his face. “You! How the hell are you here!” Then he waved a hand as if brushing off the question. “Whatever! Get the hell out of here if you don't want to die!” With that, he bolted to the right. Heading for a side door I hadn't noticed. Shit! He was gonna get away again! This would be the fourth time!
Just as I was about to rush after him, something caught my eye through the open door to the front room. The armored guard stood over Rachel, looking down at her prone body. As I watched, he pulled back his spear to finish her off.
Hell, no!
Without a second thought, I charged.
Out of the frying pan and into the fire.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
Chapter 18
I led off my attack with a ball of fire. It soared through the air, heading towards the inquisitor.
His helmet turned towards me, and I could just make out his eyes as they coldly regarded the flames. He yanked his shield up and let the ball smack into it. The fire splashed onto the ground around him.
Well, at least he broke off his attack...
His spear was now poking out from around his shield. He stood ready for my charge.
I retrieved my great sword mid-run and swung.
The guard caught the blow on his shield. He grunted at the force of the blow, but didn’t move an inch.
“I didn't intend to fight you today, Dragon…” The man’s voice was cold as ice.
I skipped back a few steps. Swinging one-handed wasn't going to do it. Keeping my eyes on the man, I moved to clip the lamp back onto my belt.
There was a flash. The spear lanced out, almost too quick to see. I moved my sword up to block but was too late. The spear hit home in my left shoulder. It cut through my scales as easy as a hot knife through butter. “…but I can still show you how bad an idea it is to mess with a Sentinel,” he finished.
I let out a cry as the lamp fell from my now unresponsive fingers and hit the floor.
“Jake!” Something flew past my shoulder and pinged off the sentinel's shoulder, leaving a divot in his plate mail. Seemed arrows weren't going to do much good here.
“Let all be seen!” the guard chanted as power surged in his spear. There was a flash of light from the tip.
I heard the others behind me cry out in surprise but didn't dare look away. Instead, I spit another ball of flame. The man, again, raised his shield to block.
Good.
His vision blocked, I dashed forward along the side farthest from his spear.
As he lowered the shield, I swung my sword one-armed but put as much strength into the attack as I could. The Sentinel cursed and took a step away from me, trying to get his shield back into position and barely managing to catch my blow with its edge. With a clang of metal on metal, the shield was knocked away. I’d ripped it clean off his arm.
Another arrow lanced through the air, pinging off his armor. It, again, had little effect, but it did knock him off balance.
“Damn it, Dragon! Ya just had to light the place up!” Charlie yelled, as a bolt whiffed past the Sentinel’s head.
What was she yelling about? I gave a quick glance around.
Oops.
My flames must have hit the wooden floor! The planking had caught, and the flames were already beginning to dance.
The Sentinel had glanced around too. But he quickly looked back up, his eyes filled with cold calculation. Without a word, he yanked something from his belt, a jar of some kind, and hurled it into the flames. With a flash, the contents of the jar ignited and turned the flames around it almost white and accelerated their sprea
d.
“Shit! Jake! Save Rachel!” Charlie cried.
Axle and Charlie began a barrage of fire, trying to keep the inquisitor off me. They needn't have bothered. Not even stopping to grab his shield, the Sentinel turned and ran for the front door of the shop. I stared after him for a second, my instincts at war with my brain.
Then, with a growl, I ran over to Rachel, wincing with each step. The flames had already almost reached her. I stored my sword, and came to a stop at her side. She was lying in a crumpled heap at the center of an almost-completed circle of that same red powder. She looked beaten to hell and back. Bruises covered her face.
I tried to lift her up with my one good arm. I managed, with some effort, to get it under her enough to scoop her, headfirst, over my shoulder.
I ran through the flames back to the others and made it about half-way through the room before the flames reached that powder.
Then, there was an almost inaudible pop.
A huge pressure wave slammed into me from behind. It tumbled the both of us across the floor as flaming timbers flew through the air.
I clutched at Rachel, doing my best to shield her from the worst of it. I was really wishing I had my ring of second chances right before I slammed to a stop, headfirst, into the wall. The shock of the impact ripped Rachel from my grip and bounced her off the wall. She landed on top of me limp as a rag doll.
Oh no.
Hands gripped her and pulled her off.
My head was spinning. I tried to stand, only to find that my horns were stuck in one of the building’s wooden supports. I yanked again. Not budging! As I began to panic, my tail rattled like crazy. It smacked into something metal over and over.
Another set of hands tried urgently to haul my horns out of the wall. They gripped right where horn met head and yanked. As they did, I braced my hands and pushed as hard as I could. With a crack, the wood splintered, and I could move my head.
Carah stood beside me, fully visible, as she tried to haul me to my feet. “Come on, Jake! We have to move!”
My head was still swimming, but that nagging little voice in my head was speaking loud and clear. “Lamp…” I mumbled.