Jackal’s Gambit

by C A Ardron

  ‘A few more warriors wouldn't go amiss,’ Tiger agreed with a nod. ‘any idea what's going on?’ She watched as Leopard walked across the street.

  The other Feline brought out an electronic device no longer than her thumb. The air in front of her shimmered and then her pale-yellow, armoured motorbike appeared. It was a much slender style than Lion's heavy-looking bike. Tiger seated herself behind Lion.

  ‘We're not sure,’ Lion admitted. ‘Mantis and Rhino are about and looking for a boy on Jackal's orders, but I've told you that already. Didn't you say you saw other Sarpiens?’

  Leopard shrugged as she started her engine. ‘A few, Salamander, Scarab, Hyena.’

  ‘They're not Elites though,’ Tiger added. ‘They didn't appear to be doing much of anything.’

  ‘They were looking for someone,’ Leopard disagreed.

  Tiger grimaced. ‘Yeah, but they weren't causing trouble is what I mean. We decided to leave them to it.’

  Lion was about to reply but noticed the light on his radio flashing. ‘Lion here.’

  ‘Lion.’ Dove's worried voice came across, loud enough for Tiger and Leopard to hear. ‘Hawk's found them.’

  ‘Them?’ Tiger asked into her own radio. ‘Who's them?’

  ‘The boy,’ Dove told them, ‘and a Unician woman. Hawk's intervened because Jackal was on the street.’

  ‘What?’ Tiger exclaimed. ‘What does he think he's doing? He can't fight Jackal by himself!’

  ‘Where?’ Lion kept his voice calm. Tiger was becoming irate, they had to keep their heads.

  ‘Lister Road,’ came the reply.

  ‘We're on our way.’

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  Everyone had heard of the Red Jackal, even civilians. Hawk knew he'd been running in Sarpien circles for years. He was most infamous for his raids on central Sieffith. He would show up unexpectedly and attack small towns, killing half for fun, enslaving the rest.

  Hawk gripped his short sword, hoping his nerves weren't too obvious. He wanted to glance back at the woman behind him. Karen, that's what Jackal had called her. He hoped Dove had managed to contact Lion all right, he really needed back-up.

  ‘The Bronze Hawk,’ Jackal said lazily as he took another step back. The Sarpien was fingering his ruby-tinted sabre but had not yet drawn it. The weapon had a jagged edge all the way down to the hilt, as did the two daggers strapped to his thighs.

  The Bloodrunner, that's the name Jackal had earned for himself. The jagged edge of his weapons was his signature trademark, designed to create as much blood as possible when he struck.

  ‘I suppose the Predgarians have to step up their game,’ Jackal gave Hawk a knowing smirk, ‘with the Dakkonin missing from their posts.’

  He's about to attack.

  Hawk almost jumped out of his skin at the calm female voice speaking in his mind.

  Jackal taunts before he strikes, the Unician woman behind him continued with a textbook tone, as if she was giving a lecture in a classroom. He makes the target uneasy, angry or, ideally, scared. Then he will strike while they are uncertain.

  ‘A shame a Predgarian has no idea how to fight a Sarpien,’ Jackal continued to taunt.

  He'll start with a Canine Pounce and then straight into Pack Punches. You can make him hesitate by responding with Avian evasion tactics, but don't wait too long before you counter, or he'll think you're scared.

  Hawk was scared, who wouldn't be? He was given no more time to think because Jackal was through talking. Just like Karen had predicted, Jackal lunged with a Canine Pounce. Hawk jerked back as the Sarpien continued with a quick succession of Pack Punches.

  Hawk flapped off the ground, catching him in the face with a Wing-Flick. Jackal recovered instantly and jumped at Hawk, pulling him back down to the ground.

  Knife to left side incoming, Karen's voice popped back in Hawk's head.

  Hawk saw the flash of the knife and blocked, using a quick Dog-Chop on Jackal's arm. The serrated blade fell away, clattering onto the road.

  Jackal backed up a couple of steps, eyeing his dagger now a few metres behind Hawk and out of his reach.

  He shook his head, irritated. ‘That's not fair, Karen,’ he objected. ‘I know you're telling the Pred all my tricks, I can see it on his face.’

  Hawk glanced back at the woman behind him. Just how did these two know each other?

  Focus! Karen told him harshly.

  Hawk gritted his teeth, angry with himself that he'd fallen for Jackal's ruse. Jackal's second Canine Pounce found its target. The Sarpien closed with him, drawing his sabre. Hawk went into the Veer-Off, an effective evasive manoeuvre whether in the air or on the ground. He managed to get his sword up just in time to parry the Sarpien's heavier weapon.

  Hawk grunted as Jackal brought his strength to bear, forcing him back. He spun away, not being able to stay in such close proximity, swearing to himself. He needed Lion. He didn't have the strength to go one on one with Jackal like this.

  Jackal chuckled and backed a few feet. ‘Not bad, Bronze Hawk. You might be fast enough to live out the day. I guess we'll see. We can finish this another time, if you survive.’

  ‘You're not getting past me, Jackal,’ Hawk responded. ‘You might as well go home.’

  ‘Hm.’ Jackal seemed to think about it. ‘No, I don't think so.’

  Hawk gasped in surprised shock as he was kicked firmly in the back from behind. As he clattered to the ground he grunted, rolling several times, the tarmac scraping and grazing his wings.

  He looked up, now on his back and saw the Sarpien in the air. The Avian's wings were grey and his armour silver. His mask looked disturbingly similar to his own.

  ‘Harrier,’ Hawk breathed.

  Jackal grinned at the other Sarpien and pointed down at Hawk. ‘He's all yours.’

  Harrier grinned back. ‘I was hoping you'd say that.’

  Hawk scrambled to his feet. He had to stop Jackal, the Unician woman might know her stuff when it came to fighting, but she didn't have a medallion.

  White Dove flew down from the rooftop where she'd been watching events and planted herself between Karen and Jackal.

  Jackal laughed at the healer. ‘You'd do well to get out of my way, unless you have a death wish, of course.’

  Dove seemed as serene as at any other time. ‘I'm afraid I can't do that, Red Jackal.’

  Jackal shrugged. ‘Have it your way.’ He lunged at her, all joviality gone from his face.

  ***

  Wolf looked down at his radio from his seat in Blue Dingo's hopper.

  Dingo turned his helmeted head to look at his friend. ‘I'm not going to like this, am I?’

  ‘Lion's not answering his radio,’ Wolf told him. ‘Neither are any of the others.’

  ‘Locations?’ Dingo suggested.

  Wolf slid out his tracking screen. He typed in Lion's radio code first, and then the other four. ‘Hawk and Dove are in Leston Estate,’ he said in his deep voice. ‘Lion, Tiger and Leopard are all together and heading towards Leston Estate.’

  ‘Well, I guess that answers that.’ Dingo put the new coordinates into the hopper's computer. ‘Let's get to the action.’ He hit the switch, initiating the hop straight away.

  ***

  From further down the street, Hawk saw Dove glow as she contended with Jackal. He felt the grazes on his wings disappear as her healing reached him. Even finding herself face to face with a Sarpien general, Dove was still thinking of her friends first.

  Dove was managing to keep Jackal at bay with her energy shields and aura shots, making sure she stayed between the Sarpien and his targets, who had backed off down the street.

  She seemed to have things under control so Hawk turned his full attention to Harrier, who had just landed on the street.

  Taking the initiative, Hawk sped into the silver Sarpien with the Avian Lunge, wings working furiously to give him extra momentum. He grunted as Harrier gave no ground and they fell onto the floor, grappling.

  Harrier
thrust one hand out, and Hawk was brushed backwards by a sudden gush of wind. He crashed into the wall of the house behind him.

  Harrier could use the Power? That sure complicated things. A burly, balding man rushed out of the house yelling about the noise and damage to his property. He stopped mid-sentence as he saw the four medallion warriors and rushed back inside. Hawk picked himself up.

  ‘Ready to die, Hawk?’ Harrier asked him.

  Hawk gritted his teeth, did he have to sound so cheerful? ‘By your hand? Not likely.’

  ‘Hah, you're full of yourself. You're only a bronze.’ Harrier rushed into a Wind-Kick.

  Hawk was too slow, and the kick knocked him off balance as he tried to dodge it. He got a hand out in time to catch himself as he came down and then rolled away. He grimaced. This was getting him nowhere, Harrier was too fast. He lifted off the ground and as he gained speed hurtled into the sky. No one in Steiron was his match in the air. It was time to see just how good the Silver Harrier was.

  As expected, Harrier was not far behind him. Hawk had to try and outmanoeuvre him. The Sarpien's fast pace and Power abilities made him too formidable on the ground.

  He went into a steep dive, swerving underneath his enemy. Harrier was adjusting his flight to follow but it was already too late for that. Hawk drove upwards into the Sarpien, both of his boot knives already drawn.

  Harrier grunted at the surprise Upwards Body-Slam. Hawk felt one knife scrape past armour but the other cut deep into Harrier's right wing.

  Harrier veered off course, but as the silver warrior spun out of control Hawk felt a knife slice him neatly down the arm. He flapped out of range before Harrier could do any more damage, and the Sarpien disappeared amongst the buildings below.

  Hawk turned his gaze downwards now that Harrier was out of the area. Dove was still holding Jackal at bay. The woman was deceptively strong in the Power and could be a challenging opponent when she took the offensive. He noticed that the Unician woman had retreated to the end of the street and was stood with the boy. They hadn't fled though. He wasn't sure if that was a wise decision or not. Even with Sarpiens nearby they were possibly safer staying where Predgarians could see them.

  Hawk was about to head down and help Dove when he saw a hopper heading in his direction. His radio bleeped. Keeping an eye on the fight below, he switched it on. ‘Hawk here.’

  ‘Hawk, can you see us?’ Wolf asked.

  Hawk grinned. ‘Naturally, you're only about fifty feet away. Who are you with? You don't know how to fly a hopper.’

  ‘Neither do you,’ Dingo interjected.

  ‘Blue Dingo?’ Hawk asked in surprise.

  ‘How’s it going?’ the Canine asked.

  Hawk thought Dingo was being unnecessarily calm about the whole situation but wasn't going to be caught out. He had a reputation to uphold. ‘Wouldn’t you like to know,’ he shot back.

  Below, Hawk saw Lion, Tiger and Leopard approaching Lister Road from a few streets away. The tables were about to turn.

  He swore, the grin sliding from his face as he caught sight of Mantis almost directly behind Karen.

  He closed his wings, allowing himself to fall out of the sky like a rock, diving faster than ever before in his life, but he knew he was already too late.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Karen backed off slowly when the white Avian warrior appeared. She'd expected another Predgarian to be nearby, most warriors in the Orders worked in pairs on patrol after all.

  She did wonder why a bronze bird of prey was partnered with a healer holding a non-predatory medallion. She only dwelt on the oddity a mere second, needing to stay focused. If Jackal got past the Predgarian then she was in trouble.

  ‘We should run,’ Jay told her shakily when she came closer to him.

  Karen shook her head. ‘We'll stay here for now.’

  ‘What?’ Jay exclaimed. ‘We'll get killed if we stay here!’

  ‘The bronze and white are Predgarians, the ones we were heading to in the first place. We're safer if we stay where they can see us.’

  Jay sighed heavily and looked around. He seemed about to bolt at any second. Karen was more concerned with the battle taking place down the road. The Bronze Hawk, she assumed that was his name since that's what Jackal had called him, had taken his fight with the second Sarpien into the sky.

  The white warrior was surprisingly good. She looked angelic with her shining armour and huge, pale wings. She was not displaying much in the way of the medallion warrior's standard martial arts but was keeping Jackal at bay with Power attacks. Brilliant beams of aura energy and opaque shields were making the Sarpien hesitant.

  Jackal was becoming irate, his prizes only a matter of yards down the road. The white warrior took advantage of his divided attention and blasted him in the chest with an aura shot.

  Karen gave a small smile. That bundled globe of energy had been large, potent. This Predgarian was clearly powerful; it wouldn't be long before Jackal and his warrior retreated if she kept throwing out attacks like that one.

  ‘Karen!’ Jay yelled.

  She spun round, her eyes darting around for danger before coming to rest on the green-armoured Sarpien closing the distance between them. She noticed a hopper in the sky and saw Hawk dive steeply downwards. The Predgarian had seen the danger and was coming to help, she just had to play for time.

  Her options limited, she had a deep sense of foreboding as the Insecta warrior advanced. She grabbed Jay's arm and pulled him with her, walking backwards towards the fight where Jackal was.

  Karen glanced at the obviously poisoned dagger in Mantis' right hand and then at his deep green medallion. Finally, recognising the coin and dagger all too well, she looked directly at his hideous helmet with its huge eyes.

  ‘Well, look who it is,’ he hissed, his voice sounding tinny. ‘I thought you were dead.’

  Jay looked at Karen. ‘You know him?’

  She shook her head. This was not the time or place for such a discussion.

  ‘This is my lucky day,’ Mantis continued in his sinister drawl. ‘Do you remember? I always said I'd add you to my death list one day.’

  ‘I remember.’ She surprised herself at her calm tone. No one would have guessed she was screaming inside. Jackal and Mantis? Working for the same sclithe? Steiron had major problems, that was for sure.

  Mantis lunged, wanting his kill. Karen had been waiting for this. Ignoring the voice in her head, which told her any resistance was useless, she shoved Jay sideways and let herself fall backwards.

  Jay cried out as he lurched onto the pavement, but he was out of immediate danger, and that's what mattered.

  As Mantis altered his lunge now that his target had moved, Karen reached behind her, her fingers finding Jackal's fallen dagger. The top of the hilt was moulded into the shape of a jackal's head, the pale-red blade jagged with the Sarpien's preferred serrated edge.

  It felt an age since a medallion weapon had been in her hands. She warded off Mantis' lunge with the dagger and then grabbed at him, pulling him down in the Cat-Flip, using both her arms and legs to toss him over her. She had to put every ounce of strength she had into it just to move the armoured warrior.

  Karen merged the Cat-Eye roll with the Cat-Slink, performing a shortened version of the evasive manoeuvre, coming out of it on one knee, knife at the ready. She slowly flexed her fingers, gripping the hilt, hoping she still had it in her to fight like she used to.

  Mantis had recovered quickly and was rushing back towards her, his gossamer wings buzzing.

  Hawk intervened at that point. Karen stumbled backwards anyway, she'd been so focused on Mantis that she'd completely forgotten about him.

  Karen heard Jay cry out again and turned, scanning the road for him. She gaped at the Sarpien that had picked the boy up in one hand. He was huge! She stared at the man in his hulking grey armour, his helmet very clearly stating that his medallion was the rhinoceros.

  ‘Karen, help me!’ Jay shouted, his voice terr
ified.

  Just what was she supposed to do? She'd had no business trying to stand up to Mantis, let alone this monstrosity.

  ‘Let the boy down, Rhino,’ a steady voice commanded.

  Rhino half-turned, and Karen gave a sharp intake of breath as she saw the large man sheathed from head-to-toe in gold armour. She was going to hazard a guess that he was this Sector's Predgarian captain. On either side of him was a Feline woman, a tiger and leopard, judging from their medallions and armour.

  Karen took a few steps to the side, wondering what she was supposed to do. As the three Felines attacked the over-sized Sarpien, she glanced the other way, seeing Hawk still engaged with Mantis and even further down, Jackal being baited by the healer.

  She was just turning her attention back to the three Felines when Hawk swerved sideways, narrowly avoiding Mantis' dagger. The Sarpien took his chance and left the swift Avian behind.

  Karen turned quickly, knowing she was his target again. Mantis had always been like that. If he decided someone was going to die, nothing got in his way.

  She backed away as he advanced and inhaled sharply as she saw the silver Avian appear in the sky again. He dived down towards her, and she lurched sideways, the only direction she could go with so many Sarpiens near her.

  The Avian did not want her though; he flew past, taking Jay from Rhino.

  ‘No!’ Jay yelled and erupted into fire.

  Everyone jerked back in surprise. Karen rolled sideways on the floor, staring at Jay who had now fallen onto the road. Rhino had released his grip on the suddenly flaming child in his hands.

  Karen's mouth hung open in surprise as Jay stopped burning. His clothes and hair were not singed in the slightest. He looked directly at her, his eyes guilty.

  The kid could use the Power? Why hadn't he told her? A lot of things fell into place. Why would Jackal be willing to pay for a boy? Why would Jackal come himself to pick him up? The answer, of course, was now obvious.

  The silver Sarpien landed next to Jay and punched him in the side of the head with a simple Claw-Strike. He caught Jay as he fell unconscious and lifted off of the ground, taking the boy with him.