Lothaire rammed the heel of his boot atop the Wendigos' elongated fingers, dropping them one by one.
Across the divide, La Dorada shrieked at him, her expression promising pain.
"Come and finish me, then!" he bellowed, but his muscles were shuddering, his body too weakened from the Wendigos. ... So this was how it would end?
Dorada would keep him from what he desired so violently? The centuries of toil, the sacrifice.
At the thought, fury spiked within him, coursing through his ancient royal blood. Think of her. So young, beautiful. Think of those innocent eyes gazing up at me with delightful fear.
A red haze covered his vision. The ground quaked once more. The crone teetered at the precipice.
With the last of his strength, he sprinted to the edge and vaulted to a ledge of rock just beneath her. His hand snaked out to seize her ankle. He gave a vicious yell and yanked.
La Dorada screamed as she crashed to her back.
Holding on by the fingertips of one hand, he pulled against her mighty strength ... dragging her ...
She dropped over the edge. But as she fell, she caught his right leg with her claws, dangling below him.
"Join your dogs, bitch!" He slammed his left boot into her hideous face, crushing one side. Another kick took her sole eye. A last kick--
Dorada plummeted, her fading scream carried up for long moments. ... Then silence from below, what had to be hundreds of feet down.
His relief was short-lived. The rock face began to grind forward, closing the distance between the sides. A stone mouth with rebar teeth.
Sweat broke out on his body, dripping into his eyes. He reached for the steel rods above him ... stretching ... higher still ...
Missed.
Again, he tried to climb. His muscles were too deadened, starved for blood. The urge to release his grip grew undeniable.
One finger slipped. Then another. ...
THIRTY-THREE
Battles. Everywhere. Directly in front of Regin and Natalya. But just out of reach.
As the mountain continued to rise, the entire building wobbled. The glass of other cells succumbed to the pressure, but theirs held strong.
All she and the fey could do was watch the havoc outside their cell. Though all the creatures in the Vertas had their torques, none of the Pravus did.
Regin laid her palms against the glass. "Put me in, Coach ..."
"I'm bloody ready to play," Natalya finished.
Packs of shifters wrangled, the Vertas mammal shifters versus the Pravus amphibious ones.
Winged demons skulked through the ward, dragging humans into dark corners to share for sex. Horde vampires fed from the mortals at the same time.Volos thundered up and down the corridor, his long mane of hair tied back in a queue, his hooves matted with gristle.
Mere feet away, five starving succubae waylaid Uilleam MacRieve. The females were torqueless, which meant they were probably a hundred times stronger than the Lykae would be right now. They attacked as one, launching him directly into the glass wall of Regin's cell.
She cried, "Break the glass, MacRieve!"
His fists were flying, but the females were dusting off his blows. "Wee bit busy, Valkyrie!" He fought as if his life depended on it, roaring and flailing.
Regin murmured to Natalya, "Most guys aren't usually too keen on getting away." The succubae had ways to make males crazed with lust. "If he falls under their spell, I'm gonna look away. Really. I am."
"I bet he's fighting it because he's found his mate."
Regin frowned. Then it would destroy him to be with another female, even under these circumstances.
Eventually the ravenous succubae took MacRieve--a Lykae male in his prime--down, pinning him to the ground. The shock he must be feeling ...
When one of them ripped off his shirt, he spat in her face. "You bluidy whores! Rot in hell!"
Beneath her hands, Regin felt the glass cell wall bulging out. More splinters fractured across it. "Natalya, on the count of three, we charge the glass. Hard. You harder than me. Because of my recent fileting and all."
Natalya nodded, and they crossed to the back of the cell. "One ... two ... three." They ran, ramming their shoulders against the glass. Impact. The wall shattered, sending them sprawling forward. The pressure shot shards like bullets into the corridor, riddling the succubae, tearing them apart.
Lying flat on the ground, MacRieve was mostly unscathed. He leapt to his feet and attacked the five, his claws slashing through their necks, finishing them off one by one. "My thanks to you, Regin." Slash. "And to your friend."
"De nada, werewolf," Regin said, scanning the area for a sword, a freaking pipe, anything.
Natalya snatched up larger shards of glass, stabbing them through her jacket sleeves for later use. She collected still more, carrying them between her knuckles, ready to throw.
Regin cocked her brow at a dead guard's machine gun. She hooked her foot under it, hiking it up to catch it.
Natalya said, "Have you ever fired one of those?"
Lorekind scorned them. The weapons were so tackily human. "Look, I've seen Terminator. How difficult can it be? Now, let's go find Tiger!"
MacRieve said, "Whoa, where are you going, Valkyrie? The exit's the other way. I'll help you get there safely."
"No dice. Got someone back there."
He pointed in the opposite direction. "And I've got someone up there. Gods speed, females." He loped off.
She and Natalya raced away as fast as Regin could manage. While they searched for Thad, Regin also had her eyes peeled for Fegley, Dixon, and most especially Chase.
"Is that Tiger?" Regin pointed far down the corridor. "At the edge of that big gap?" Through the smoke, she couldn't be sure.
Natalya swiped her hair out of her face. "It's him. Wait ... what's he doing? Isn't that where Lothaire's been kept?"
"Yeah. Exactly where La Dorada was heading." They tried to get his attention, but there were too many skirmishes. "Nat, go snag him! Quick, I'm right behind you."
"I've got this!" Natalya bolted away, with Regin lagging behind, limping over uneven ground. The floor was still swelling up and collapsing as if it bubbled. Flaming rafters had begun hurtling down all around them.
Yet even over the din, Regin's ears twitched. "We've got company," she called to Natalya. Pravus shifters had picked up their scent and were trailing them.
Within moments, she and the fey were surrounded by the dregs of the Lore--a motley collection of creatures with viper eyes, forked tongues, and scales. Some had crocodile fangs and plated skin.
Regin cocked her weapon, brought it to her hip. "You don't want to mess with us. I'm about to mince meat and make hay with this thing."
The largest one laughed. Until Natalya's glass shard plugged his jugular. Regin aimed and pulled the trigger. The gun kicked as bullets sprayed.
It was shredding their torsos like cheese, halving their bodies. "Let's do this! Rock out with your cocks out!"
When they'd all been dropped, Regin's injured chest was screaming in pain, her ears ringing. Her gun was hot, and she thought she might be a little infatuated with it.
Natalya said, "Let's go!"
"Right behind you--"
Volos stepped in front of them, blocking their way, his body stretching nearly the width of the corridor.
"You killed that evil woman, Mister."
Lothaire gazed up, spied some young male peering past the edge of the overhang. In no way had Lothaire destroyed La Dorada. He'd only bought himself time.
"I saw you do it--we're going to be all right now!"
He wanted to sneer, "Do I look all right, boy?" But his cause was greater than merely himself. And now victory was possible. He simply needed assistance with this predicament.
His lips curled at the naive immortal above him. And then I need to replenish my strength. "A hand, if you please."
"Sure thing." He lay flat at the edge, extending his arm down. "I'm Thaddeus Brayden. Ca
ll me Thad."
Lothaire took his hand, his eyes locked on Thaddeus's neck, on the spot just below the metal torque. His fangs throbbed for that skin.
As always, he had to be very careful whom he fed from--he balanced forever upon a razor's edge--and younger was ever so much better for him.
With a surprising strength, Thaddeus hefted him up to safety. "What's your name?"
What manner of creature was he? Usually Lothaire could tell at once, but this boy's species eluded him. "I'm Lothaire. The Ally of Old." Not a lie. A female had once called him that. "On to terra firma, then."
"Terra whatta? Oh, yeah, sure thing." Once they'd moved from the gorge to more stable ground, the boy said, "Good to meet you, Mr. Lothaire."
"Seems I owe you a debt of gratitude, Thaddeus." Lothaire seized him by the neck, yanking the boy's back to his own chest.
"Wh-what the hell are you doing?" he demanded, futilely struggling.
As Lothaire lowered his head, he murmured, "Now I'll owe you a blood debt as well." He sank his aching fangs into the male's hot neck, drawing deep. ...
THIRTY-FOUR
You don't want to mix it up with us tonight, Flicka," Regin warned the centaur king. Of course, he did not have a torque and had somehow scored not one but two swords. "Just let us pass."
He stalked closer, swinging those swords with super-natural speed. Eyes on Natalya, he said, "Vengeance is mine."
"You have no quarrel with the Valkyrie," Natalya said. "Let her go."
"She's a leader in the Vertas. This is our opportunity to crush all of you."
Regin calmly aimed her rifle. "You're an easy target. Lots of surface area to wound. Big-game hunting's my new fav--"
He charged them; Natalya screamed, "Regin, fire!"
"I'm going to grease him right now!" she yelled, pulling the trigger.
Nothing.
She banged the gun against her upraised knee, then tried again. Oh, shit.
Volos bore down on them with his swords swinging, one ton of irate centaur male.
Regin ducked and chucked her rifle at him--he sliced through it. Natalya flung six shards of glass at him. They plunged deep into his flanks, but he didn't seem to feel them.
With a scream, the fey leapt for Volos's side, swiping her poisonous claws across his body. But the centaur was unaffected.
Regin realized why. The torque had neutralized all her powers--which meant her poison.
While Natalya gaped, Volos kicked out his back legs, his hooves speeding for Regin's chest.
Fire. On me? Wake up. ...
Declan forced his eyes open, shaking off the blackness.
Fuck! His armored vest was on fire. He jerked upright, shrugging free of the armor, knowing it was the only reason he still lived.
He scanned the area for the Sorceri. But they were gone, no doubt certain they'd killed him.
And while he'd been out, the Queen of Stone's mountain had risen until the facility's entire framework shifted.
Realization sank in. There was no containment, no retaking the installation. This structure was about to crumble to the ground. It was done. There'd be no self-destruct override.
So how long until the sequence timed out? He squinted down at his watch.
Less than half an hour left.
Mere minutes to get Regin to safety, and only one shite option available to him.
As soon as he'd lurched to his feet, nearby creatures turned their heads in his direction, ears or noses twitching. Eyes zeroed in on him. "Blademan," they whispered. "It's the magister."
They attacked in a wave. He reloaded the rifle and opened fire, burning through another clip.
Too many of them. No time to reload. He shouldered the rifle and drew his sword, slashing his way toward Regin's ward.
In midstride he slowed, canting his head. Regin's scream.
Over the pandemonium, the roars and explosions, somehow Declan had heard her.
He pushed hard in that direction, evading opponents instead of engaging them. Sounds seemed to dim until all he could hear was his heart thundering.
His body began to change. Blood pumped to his muscles--they drank it in as though starved for it, growing, strengthening.
Finally he knew what to call this.
Berserkrage. A beast stirs within me.
For the first time in his life, he didn't resist, gave himself up to it. Never had he felt the transformation like this. Because I've never done what I was born to do.
Protect her.
Lothaire recoiled from the boy, spitting a mouthful of blood.
Blood that was part vampire, yet masked by something else he couldn't place. Lothaire wasn't often surprised, but this had taken him unawares.
Blyad', we don't drink our own! He spun Thaddeus around, clutching his upper arms. "What are you?" He gave him a shake. "What--are--you?"
The boy turned owl eyes up at him. "Th-they told me I'm a vampire."
Lothaire spat once more. "Then they've only got half the story." He released him with disgust, his fangs aching so badly they'd likely turn blue.
"Are y-you gonna bite me again?" he asked, his gaze darting toward the frenzied combat ahead.
Lothaire scanned for another victim. "Consider me immune to your charms." He started forward, beings diving out of his way.
"Uh, okay. I'm just gonna trail behind you, mister, if you don't mind. Let you run interference."
Without slowing, Lothaire said, "You are as insignificant to me as a fly."
"I'll take that as a yes. So where're we headed?"
Lothaire absently said, "To find the Blademan." And get my ring. Finally. He stormed toward Chase's office.
When ghouls mindlessly rushed them, Lothaire dispatched them readily. Any creatures stupid enough to attack him paid with their lives.
The boy had begun gazing up at him worshipfully.
As he should.
"Wait, Mr. Lothaire," Thaddeus yelled from behind him. "Those're my girls up ahead! Or they used to be. Might wanna kill me now that I'm a vampire and all. But they're fighting with that gigantic horse thing. Can you take him out and save them?"
Lothaire cast him a chilling glance over his shoulder. "Aid a Valkyrie and a fey?"
The boy swallowed. "For that debt of gratitude?"
Lothaire eyed the centaur. Volos had pledged no allegiance to him.
If you're not with me ...
Regin leapt back, narrowly avoiding Volos's hooves, tripping over a headless body. Natalya was still ducking under Volos's swords, but he was too fast. Just a matter of time.
Surveying the area, Regin spied another gun--this one attached to a downed guard's hand. She clambered across the floor to it, but the man was still alive, barely. When she yanked on his rifle, he yanked back with one hand, holding in his entrails with the other.
As she played gun tug-of-war, she saw Thad a short distance away. "Tiger! Ah, thank gods."
He turned to her with a wobbly smile, calling out, "You don't wanna kill me?"
"You're such a douche!" she yelled in answer, which made him grin wider. Then she noticed who he was with.
Thad was following Lothaire like a puppy; the kid hiked a thumb at the vampire, then gave her an okay signal.
"No, Thad, get away from him!" She snatched the gun free, aiming at Lothaire.
Click. Click. Empty? Balls! Hate guns.
But as she watched in disbelief, Lothaire stole behind Volos, casually raking his claws across the centaur's back legs, severing tendons. Volos began teetering, his legs bending at weird angles.
Like a shot, Lothaire was in front of him, calmly sidestepping Volos's swords as if he could predict exactly where the centaur would swing. The vampire stretched out one long arm and severed Volos's throat in a rush of blood.
When Lothaire cupped a handful of it to his mouth, Thad cried, "Dude! That's disgusting."
"It's mother's milk." The vampire walked on as if he'd merely stopped to tie his shoe.
Still scram
bling for purchase, Volos dropped one sword to clamp his gaping throat; Natalya took advantage, catching the weapon. She used it to lop off Volos's forelegs, sending him toppling forward.
"Give your nephew my regards!" With a scream of victory, the fey took his head.
Revenge. One down, one to go. "Grab your trophy, Nat, and let's book."
As Natalya sliced the queue from the back of Volos's head, Regin grabbed Thad's shoulder. "What were you doing with Lothaire?"
Thad pointed. "He's getting away! We've got to stick with him."
"No way, kid. That leech is bad news! Evil as hell."
"Not all vampires are evil--I'm not! And he saved you two, didn't he? He's strong enough to get us out of here. After we find the Blademan."
"Blademan?" Regin gazed at Lothaire fearlessly striding forward through the commotion. He was like a snowplow as beings cowered. Lothaire can take me straight to Chase. "I'm following him." She snagged Volos's second sword from his clenched fingers.
"Oh, fine!" Natalya said. "Just be wary, Thad. And take this." She handed him her sword, preferring to load glass shards between her knuckles again. "Swing first, ask questions later."
When the three of them caught up to Lothaire, he frowned at his new retinue of immortals but didn't deign to annihilate them.
As they passed Carrow's cell, Regin peered inside, but the occupants were long gone. No piles of ash remained either, so Regin was hopeful. Brandr too was missing.
She spotted Chase just as Lothaire tensed in front of her. The magister was fighting his way through the ward, somehow fending off waves of creatures.
Regin and the vampire said in unison, "He's mine."
Lothaire turned to her with silky menace, his bloodstained face as hard as a marble statue's. "Chase remains alive for now. Or you do not."
Regin was raising her sword and opening her mouth to argue when vampires traced all around them.
Red-eyed Horde vampires. Who looked surprisingly enraged at Lothaire.
"We've been searching for you, Lothaire," the largest one said. "Did you think we wouldn't find out that you betrayed the Pravus?"
Another added, "The Enemy of Old has clearly allied with the Vertas, now working with a Valkyrie, a fey, and a..." He gestured toward Thad.
The leader said, "You freed the rage demon king. He guards the well with his queen. There's no retaking it."
"Was that I?" Lothaire shrugged nonchalantly, but his eyes were reddening. "Ah, yes. It was."
Regin had heard about him freeing Rydstrom, a Vertas demon king, and had mulled the vamp's motives. But then she'd learned that Lothaire had extracted a high price for his cooperation: Rydstrom's vow to give the vampire anything he wished in the future.