Shadow Of The Ring: An Urban Fantasy Action Adventure (The Unbelievable Mr. Brownstone Book 16)

by Michael Anderle

  I wonder if I’ll even need him in the end. This place might be more hype than truth.

  James stepped through the gate first, then Shay. He didn’t feel anything. He’d expected a tingle or a buzz, given all the magic that was supposed to be in the place, but it felt the same as the other side of the gate.

  Shit. Kind of disappointing.

  “The witches put powerful magic on this gate,” the first soldier explained. “You can’t open it without the special key. We’ll check the gate every couple of hours. If you’re at the gate then, we’ll open it. If not, you can yell, but if there are creatures near you, we won’t open it. Our duty is to protect the country.”

  “Don’t worry,” James replied. “We won’t need your help.”

  The soldier watched him for a moment, a hint of a smile on his face. “Let’s see if a monster can defeat monsters.”

  The soldier pulled the gate closed and locked it, his partner still covering the forest with his gun.

  James and Shay were now sealed in. Other than the dense undergrowth, it didn’t seem all that different from any other forest.

  “Go ahead and bond Whispy,” Shay recommended as she took in the trees around them with a careful eye. She pulled a flat disc with a glowing green arrow on it out of a pouch.

  James reached under his shirt and removed the spacer from the back of the amulet. “What’s that?”

  “Secondary tracking artifact. This place is notorious for messing with people’s sense of direction. This little baby is pair-bonded with one in the truck. It’ll only last a few days, but as long as I have it, we should be able to find our way out of here. I figure it’s better than leaving breadcrumbs.”

  “Probably.” James let the amulet drop and hissed as Whispy sank into his chest and spread his tendrils.

  Initiation, Whispy sent.

  James took a few deep breaths.

  High probability of adaptation, Whispy reported. Unusual levels of compatible alternative energy sources detected.

  What the fuck does that mean?

  Continuing baseline matrix modifications potentially compatible with alternative energy sources. Adaptation analysis possible if concentrated source found. Find enemy. Engage enemy. Achieve maximum adaptation and primary directive.

  “What the fuck?” James muttered.

  Shay looked his way. “What’s wrong?”

  “It’s Whispy. He’s saying all this shit about alternative energy sources if I find a concentrated supply. I don’t know what the fuck he’s getting at.” James glanced around. He didn’t feel or see anything unusual.

  Shay’s eyes widened. “No fucking way. This is perfect.” She laughed. “Too damned perfect.”

  “I have no idea what the fuck you’re talking about.”

  She gestured around. “This place. The magic. Maybe he can somehow adapt to use it.”

  James shrugged. “There’s plenty of magic around all the time. You telling me he hasn’t been able to adapt to that shit after more than thirty years?”

  “No.” Shay shook her head. “Everyone acts like all this magic spilled over Earth when the gates opened, when in truth, it’s more like a drip. It’ll take centuries for the gates to open fully, maybe thousands of years. Most places don’t actually have that much concentrated magic.”

  “But I was on Oriceran, too.”

  “From what you described, it didn’t sound like you were there all that long.” Shay grinned. “But it’s concentrated here in a weird way. Maybe using magic as an energy source requires a different sort of exposure. And—”

  Shay whipped out her gun in one fluid motion and pointed it above her.

  A small blue portal appeared several yards away in front of them. A few seconds later it winked out of existence.

  “That’s different,” Shay muttered. “But I guess it’s not all that surprising.” She chuckled. “Don’t you see? This is why he has a chance of figuring something out.”

  James grunted. “I wonder if that means I won’t have to get as pissed.”

  If alternative energy source adaptation is achieved, primary power requirements will be reduced, Whispy explained.

  Guess that means I won’t.

  James frowned. “The bastard’s been doing long-term modifications ever since I took down the shepherd. I should have been asking him more about them.” He shook his head. “Whatever. Let’s find your crazy instrument. I might not even need my amulet abilities or any of the transformations.”

  Shay sighed and reached into another pouch. She pulled out a small chicken figurine atop a black base, which rotated and pointed into a dense patch of forest. “Looks like it works.”

  She uttered the activation phrases for her pendant and rings. Her skin started glowing silver, something that only happened when both were used together.

  She marched forward, and James followed her, scanning the forest.

  “You know what I don’t see?” he asked, looking around.

  “Birds or insects?” Shay replied. “Or any animals at all.”

  “Exactly. Just the trees and plants.”

  They continued walking in near-silence, only the jangling of their equipment keeping the quiet at bay. Whispy occasionally murmured about finding enemies, but even the amulet was acting like they were in an unnatural place and he was scared.

  The forest grew denser and darker as the minutes passed, and the trees more gnarled. Trees with curved trunks became more common, and the bushes and grass grew sparser. There were still no signs of any animals.

  “I wonder what weird shit is gonna jump us,” James mused aloud. “No way they locked down this place without real shit to worry about.”

  “Yeah,” Shay replied. “Peyton found a few incident reports, but mostly it was about recovering bodies after they’d been killed. From what he could find, the potential threats vary by season. All the government’s attempts to use satellites, drones, and scrying magic to perform a census has failed.”

  A hissing, spiraling portal appeared high up and disappeared in less than a second in a puff of smoke. Another portal, this one translucent, appeared half out of the ground at a forty-five-degree angle and lingered for about five seconds.

  Shay pointed up. “Stuff like that doesn’t help.” She gestured around. “The thing is, the trees look weird, but they are still alive, so it’s not like this area sucks away life or something.” She glanced down at the chicken figurine and shook her head. “I swear, the next time I see the Fixer, I’m gonna punch him in the nose. I refuse to believe this thing isn’t some sort of joke.”

  James frowned as he looked between the trees. There were no normal trees left, every single one having a curved trunk that made them resemble upside-down candy canes. A mix of iridescent greens and dull browns dotted the leaves. The extremely patchy grass was more brown than green, although occasionally there were blood-red streaks.

  He narrowed his eyes as something glowing seeped up from the ground and out of the darkened shadows in the forest. “Do you see that?”

  “Yeah, I do.” Shay frowned. “What is it?” She stowed the tracking instrument and grabbed the hilt of her sword.

  James pulled his .45 as Whispy beamed excitement into his mind.

  Engage new enemies. Achieve maximum adaptation.

  The glow grew brighter as its source filled in the empty space between the trees. A dense fog of glowing particles wrapped around the trunks and stretched toward James and Shay.

  Something hissed in the fog, and James aimed in that direction. Shay drew her sword with a frown as the fog thickened. The mist flashed.

  Now what?

  Chapter Sixteen

  Adaptation in progress, Whispy reported.

  Huh? What are you talking about? I wasn’t even attacked.

  Adaptation in progress. Unexpected spatial displacement.

  I’ll worry about it later. I’ve got someone to chat with.

  Bipedal reptilian creatures emerged from the fog. They were covered in th
ick dark-green scales and held swords in their clawed hands. The short, curved blades appeared to be made of a semi-reflective metal, and James wondered if they were magic.

  The creatures hissed, their tongues licking the air and their slitted yellow eyes focused on James. A few let out quick screeches.

  “What the fuck are you bastards?” James muttered. “I’ve got a few ideas, but you mind telling me?”

  Whispy reiterated his litany of death and destruction, and the bounty hunter was half-inclined to agree. A group of creatures with weapons hadn’t shown up to get ready for a dance.

  In the truck on the way to the forest, Shay had mentioned something from Romanian legend called a Zmeu. In the old stories, the intelligent and dangerous creature sometimes took the form of a half-man, half-dragon. In others, they took on human form to trick their enemies. The monsters before him were good candidates for Zmeu, even if they lacked wings. Whatever they were, they didn’t look friendly.

  The thick glowing fog stopped its forward spread and instead started to encircle James as if it were alive.

  James frowned but kept his attention focused on the Zmeu.

  Extreme spike in background energy levels, Whispy announced. Analyzing exposure to alternative energy source and integrating with previous modifications for additional power.

  “Back the fuck off,” James bellowed, pointing his gun at the nearest Zmeu. “If you don’t screw with me, I won’t screw with you. I’m not here to fuck with you Zmeu or whatever the hell you are. I’m here to help my woman get some stupid-ass evil instrument, not clean up the magical zoo.”

  Additional monsters emerged from the fog, each armed with the same type of black metal sword.

  Damn. Surprised Shay’s been so quiet.

  “These are Zmeu, right, Shay?” James called out. “Or are they something else? Should I fuck them up, or do you have a different idea?”

  When Shay didn’t reply, he looked to his side and growled. His heart kicked up. She wasn’t there. He jerked his head back and forth, seeking his woman. The monsters surrounded him on all sides now, but there was no sign of Shay or any evidence she’d been anywhere near him.

  “What the fuck did you bastards do with Shay?” James yelled. “You’ve got five fucking seconds to tell me or bring her back, or I will end you. Do I fucking make myself clear?”

  The monsters’ only response was a chorus of hisses and low screeches. A few brandished their swords.

  “Don’t spew that dinosaur shit at me,” James called. “Back the fuck off, or I will make you back the fuck off.”

  The Zmeu spread evenly around him, raising their weapons. They gave no indication that they cared, or even understood his words. A few jogged toward him, readying their weapons and screeching.

  “Time’s up, assholes.” James fired his .45 at a Zmeu’s head. The bullet bounced off with a spark, but all the creatures leapt back, gripping their swords tighter and hissing even louder. He lowered his gun and tried to put three rounds in the creature’s scaly chest, but the armor there didn’t seem any more vulnerable to his gunfire than the head had.

  Well, fuck.

  Whispy grew excited

  James narrowed his eyes. He’d expected them to charge once they realized his gun didn’t work, but they’d moved backward after each shot, their tongues flicking in what he interpreted as a mixture of fear and agitation.

  Afraid of guns, huh? Is that it? You get used to the Romanian Army shooting you with anti-magic bullets? But how long is my shit gonna hold you, since it doesn’t even work?

  The creatures continued to watch him warily, their fingers flexing on the hilts of their weapons, but they didn’t charge. If guns didn’t work, it was time for something different.

  James took his chance to yank out, prime, and toss two grenades into different groups of Zmeu. They exploded among the dragon men, knocking several of them down, but the creatures scrambled back to their feet with loud screeches and hisses but no obvious wounds. His frag grenades had accomplished nothing more than annoying them. Again, the attack was at least enough to keep them from launching their own.

  No wonder the Romanians keep this shit locked down. Maybe I should throw in an anti-magic magazine? No, I’ll save that. There might be something a lot worse than these things in these woods. I’m not here to clean out this forest. I’m here to help Shay get that damned cobza.

  James holstered his gun and growled as he spun, again seeking any sign of Shay. There was neither blood nor any of her equipment on the ground, but the damned glowing fog was still surrounding them, even if it did seem less dense than before.

  The Zmeu edged forward with careful steps, letting out the now-familiar mix of hisses and screeches and shaking their swords.

  “Is that supposed to intimidate me? Fuck you.”

  James didn’t give a shit about the dragon men. He needed to find Shay. He wasn’t losing her to a bunch of fucking reptiles in the middle of some Romanian forest. He clenched his hand into a fist.

  Sufficient power for advanced transformation.

  James grunted, surprise eroding his concern. There is?

  Additional background energy source interface achieved. Compatible with previous extended baseline matrix modifications.

  That was one way to save his special ammo.

  James dropped his backpack to the ground. Let’s do it, then.

  Silver-green tendrils shot from his amulet, covering his chest, legs, and arms with armor. The Zmeu leapt back, startled. A blade extended from his right arm, and he let out a low growl. The monsters hissed and pointed their swords at him, his sudden transformation throwing them off-guard.

  Bet these bastards have never seen this before.

  Although James was worried and irritated, he wasn’t anywhere near as angry as he’d been during any of his previous transformations, and he certainly didn’t feel the nearly mindless anger that had consumed him during his initial advanced transformation. Even in the odd situation he was currently in, the usefulness of better control of his abilities didn’t escape him.

  The previous anger-based system made perfect sense if he thought about it the right way. It’d seemed odd to him when he’d first achieved advanced transformation that he needed to be so furious. A mindless warrior couldn’t execute good battlefield tactics, but the realization that the symbiont was supposed to be in control had clarified everything.

  James was supposed to be nothing more than the Vax version of a Swiss Army Knife, along with a glorified battery. Anger didn’t matter if the symbiont was focusing on the tactics. He’d upended that system by maintaining control, and now he was going around the system again by finding a new way to fuel his powers. He had no idea if it would work anywhere except this magically-damaged forest, but he’d take the advantage for the moment.

  He pointed his blade at one of the Zmeu. “Where is she?” he demanded. “Where the fuck is Shay? Did you teleport her somewhere? Push her through a portal?”

  If grenades or regular bullets didn’t work, it was time to find out if his Vax weaponry did. He stomped forward. He’d yet to encounter anything he couldn’t defeat with Whispy’s help, and he doubted the Zmeu would be the first.

  “Bring it, you reptile assholes,” James roared.

  The creatures charged, their swords held high, their keening screeches piercing. James thrust his blade at the nearest enemy, and it pierced the Zmeu’s head with ease. Dark blue blood sprayed from the wound.

  James yanked out his weapon and slammed an armored foot into another monster, sending it flying into a nearby curved tree.

  One of the creatures managed to close the distance and slashed with its curved sword. The weapon cut through the armor on James’ side, and he grunted at the throbbing pain.

  The swords aren’t just for show, and they aren’t normal.

  New adaptation in progress, Whispy announced, faint satisfaction suffusing the thoughts. Moderate damage. Regeneration in progress.

  James stumbled as
another Zmeu stabbed him in the back. He threw back an elbow, a satisfying crunch following as he caved in his attacker’s face.

  He wasn’t sure why shooting the monsters didn’t work but crushing them with his armor-covered elbow did, but at that moment he didn’t care as long as it provided him another way to fight back against the horde surrounding him. A few more Zmeu appeared out of the fog.

  James’ wounds seeped blood, emboldening his enemies. Several of the monsters surged forward at the same time and hacked at him, and another blow cut into his arm. The next attack damaged his leg, but the wound was far shallower than any of the previous hits.

  With a loud roar, the wounded bounty hunter flung out an armored arm and knocked an attacker away before slicing across another’s body. He grunted. The horde screeched and banged clawed fists on their chests in defiance.

  “You fuckers should have finished me off the first time if you wanted to win,” James yelled.

  Primary adaptation achieved, Whispy reported. Continue to sample enemy for maximum adaptation.

  “Now you lose, assholes.”

  James repaid the Zmeu for his existing wounds by decapitating one of the monsters with a clean slice of his blade. Quick stabs into the chests of two others sent them to the ground hissing and gargling blood. Their heads crunched under his powerful stomps.

  “It didn’t have to go down like this,” James offered through gritted teeth. “I just want Shay and the fucking cobza. You didn’t have to attack me.”

  “You will die,” hissed one of the monsters. “And we will feast on your flesh, human.”

  “So you fuckers do understand me.” James bared his teeth. “Where is the woman who was with me? Tell me, or I’ll finish you all off.”

  “The forest has taken her. She will die, just like you. You’ve won nothing.”

  The monsters tried another group charge from all sides. They hacked at him with their swords, but their blades now bounced off his armor, leaving only the lightest of scratches, which repaired themselves in seconds.

  James let them attack him for a long moment before thrusting his arms out to knock several of them to the ground and kicking a couple more away. “You can’t fucking win.”