Black Moon Rising (DarkLife Saga) (19 page)

The Banshee laughed and took a step forward.  “You’re going to have to do a lot better than that.”  Her voice was a little softer, but still much too loud for the distance between us.  That's when I knew I was on to something.  It looks like the shields did more than contain Fazion’s flames and her scream.  She may have kept Fazion from roasting her with his flames, but her ears suffered for it.

I tilted my head and shrugged a shoulder.  “You would say that, but you seem to have forgotten about the other one.”  The sound of wood splitting and breaking echoed through the air, but she didn’t hear the far off sound.  I pointed toward the sky at the dark shape of a tree that was getting closer.  My orb had swung wide and struck the base of a massive pine.   That pine tree was speeding toward the ground, knocking other smaller trees down in its path.  Dominos anyone? 

She cocked an eyebrow and spun around in time to see the trees right on top of her.   If we were going to act, now was our time.  She couldn’t avoid us and the falling trees at the same time.

She leapt away from a smaller tree and into the path of Valerian’s claws.  The instant she began moving, he slipped into a flash.  His thick talons dug into the flesh of her arm, wrenching a scream from her lips.  The scream hit Valerian dead on, sending him careening through the air.  I launched myself into the air and caught my brother by the collar, pulling him to safety before she could launch another scream.

“Thanks, S
is,” he huffed, but I didn't stand around to say 'you're welcome'.  Tamerlane was already rushing toward her with an oversized gun aimed at her head.  I had to keep her attention divided.  I pulled another energy ball into existence and threw it.

What happened next was akin to a slow motion scene from an action movie.  Tamerlane fired but instead of ammo, there was a displacement of air, and circular ripples began rolling through the air, like a wave on the water.  The
ripple moved toward her in a wave, getting larger as the closer it got.  In a few seconds, the undulating circle was as large as her body.  Now, aside from a barrage of trees and my energy ball to avoid, she also had whatever it was that Tam fired at her.  I just knew that we were about to put an end to the bitch, once and for all.  I was wrong.

When Valerian said that she was fast, he wasn’t kidding.  She adjusted to the falling cluster of trees and nimbly avoided them; jumping out of the way of some and leaping onto others, riding them to the ground.  While somehow avoiding my attacks, she began using them to her advantage; twisting through the air, using her screams to knock some of the falling lumber into the paths of my orbs.

I was about to question her using my orbs to destroy the falling trees instead of doing it herself, when I saw the discharge of Tamerlane’s gun finally dissipate.  The undulating circle contracted and seemed to disappear.  In its place was an ear shattering noise was so loud it brought tears to my eyes.

I’ll be damned if Tam wasn’t armed with a sonic pulse rifle.  I thought the damn thing was still in the design stages, but apparently I didn’t know jack.  Constantine, Valerian and I dropped to our knees and pressed our hands to our ears as wave after wave of the decimating sound crashed into us.

The Banshee was pushed back a few feet, but otherwise Tam’s efforts had little effect on her.  Her screams negated any advantage the wave may have given us, causing them to disrupt before they did any substantial damage.  She shook her head and made a ninja-worthy somersault off of a downed log.

“You three remind me of dogs too stupid to come in out of the rain,” she hissed as took a step
toward us.

“Yeah well, these dogs just gave you a run for your money, bitch,” I spat as I tried to stand up.  That proved to be a little tricky.  Besides slipping around in the mud, my head swam, sending me stumbling sideways.  I held up a hand and saw both of them covered with blood.  Shit.

“And look at you know,” she laughed.  The sound was one of those cackling; mad scientist laughs that irk the hell out of you.  The crone had already counted us out.

“Don’t come any closer to the princess and princes,” a nearby Manticore yelled.  I had almost forgotten about them.  Some of them had left to take up position around the entrance to the Vault.  From the looks of it, they took Fazion with them.  The three that were left formed a loose semi-circle around us.  All of
them had some wicked looking swords at the ready.  Go team Fae.  I somehow managed to pull myself straight and rolled my shoulders.

“Look at us,” I spat, pissed all over again at the situation and the circumstances that placed us here.  For all I knew, Tristan was dead, sentenced by the CMS to die for his actions a few months ago, but in this way, he was still fucking with my life.  It was because of him that I’d ended up in the FaeLands in the first place.

I pointed a finger and took a few steps toward the Banshee.  “This is between you and me.  My brothers and these men have nothing to do with what happened to those guards.  Let them go and the two of us will settle this like women.”

“Your suicide won't save them,” she frowned, “Merely delay the inevitable.”  She reached behind her, and when she brought her arm around, there was a large sword clutched in her hands.  “But if choose to die with dignity, the least I can do is grant you a warrior's death.”

Gee thanks.  Any other time I would be elated at the opportunity to show off my skills with a sword, but not now.  My swords were all back in the forest strapped to my discarded jacket. Damn it.  At least I wouldn’t be blasted to bits by her funky breath.

She was on me before I saw her move.  The only thing that alerted me to her position, inches away from me, was the small glimmer of moonlight that reflected off of her sword as it headed
toward my neck.  In a move worthy of Neo, I bent over backward, just avoiding being beheaded.

The Manticores were a flurry of coordinated action.  They moved like a well-oiled machine, drawing swords and jumping into battle.  The clash of sword-on-sword made my overly sensitive ears ring with pain.  In spite of the pain, I itched with anticipation.

Here were some of the best warriors the FaeLands had to offer, defending me and my family while we stood by like helpless children.  My hands curled into claws at my side, and I prepared to jump into the scuffle with nothing but my talons.  My baser, feral instincts, were overriding my rational mind.

Constantine pulled me away from the danger zone and shook his head.  “I know you
, woolybooger.  There’s nothing you can do right now except stick to the plan.  That means we need to get out of here.”

Chapter
19

T
he idea didn’t sound so bad when I proposed it, but now that I was actually doing it, running away put a bad taste in my mouth.  I left good men fighting that thing while I turned tail and split.

“Don’t think of it that way, Val,” Constantine called out as he ran beside me.  “They knew what the deal was when we left the complex.  And it’s got to look real, or she won't follow us.”  We were traveling down a side street, avoiding the interstate at all cost.  It may have been a more direct route to the Trumaine complex and the trap that lay in wait, but if she caught up to us while we were running down interstate seventy-seven, there was no telling how many humans could get caught in the crossfire.

My oldest brother threw out a hand and began to slow down.  The three of us, Vedo, Tamerlane and I, came to a stop and gathered around him.  Constantine leaned forward on his elbows and closed his eyes.  “Give me a minute, guys,” he said.

“Are you
okay, Tino?” Valerian asked.  He threw an arm around our brother’s shoulder and pulled him upright.  “I don't know what that Banshee did, but you look awful, Bro.”

Now that he mentioned it, Constantine was awfully pale.  His eyes were sunken into his head.  His fangs were extended, and a little longer than they normally were.  Tamerlane reached up and carefully grabbed one of Constantine’s ears.  The four of us were bleeding from our ears and noses, but Tino more than everyone else.

“Blood loss,” Tamerlane, grunted.  “We need to get him back to the complex so he can feed.  If not he's going to pass out and we’re going to end up carrying him the rest of the way.”

“I’m fine,” Constantine tried to argue, but the bags under his eyes and ashy tone that his cinnamon colored skin had taken on, said otherwise.

“He’s out guys,” I said, pushing past my brothers to throw an arm under Constantine’s.

“Like hell I am,” he tried to argue. “And what are you doing?”

“Carrying you,” I replied.  “We can't afford more stops and leaving you isn’t an option.”  My mind jumped to Irulan, and I almost turned around.  I left my wife unconscious in the woods.  God knows what was going on back there.  Geez, this was so not how this night was supposed to turn out.

“I’ll take him.”  Tamerlane grabbed my arm and tried to tug me away from Constantine, but I held my ground.  I felt Tam pulling at me, but he got nowhere.  Valerian sighed, and Tamerlane frowned.  It was the first time my brothers had an opportunity to see how much stronger I had become since taking FaeVar’s blood.

“On second thought, you take him,” Tamerlane said.  I scooped up my brother and threw him across my shoulders.

“Alright ladies and gents, let’s get the show back on the road,” Valerian said and took a few steps.  “If we take Allegany it should take us pretty close to the service road that runs perpendicular to the main driveway.”

“Not so fast little brother,” Tam, said as he drew his phone from his pocket and pulled up a gps program.  “Mother text me earlier.  We can't take the main entrance.  It seems our failure to issue a formal statement, has caused a bit of speculation.  There are twice as many news crews camped out at the edge of the property.”

A few finger swipes later he held up his phone.  “If we follow this path, we can gain entrance to the grounds through the woods at the southern end of the property.”

“Isn’t that area protected by a thirty-foot electrical fence and laser weaponry?”  I asked.  I was all for protecting the public and keeping our Fae problem out of the news, but getting my ass fried trying to avoid the main entrance wasn’t on my bucket list.

Tamerlane held up his phone.  “It is, but there’s also a small access gate there.  I’ve got the clearance codes to shut down the defenses for the gate and get access to it.”

It looked like we were bound for another trek through the forest.  I rolled my eyes and jostled Constantine on my shoulders, trying to get him into a better position for running.

“This is far from dignified,” he complained from his upside down perch on my shoulders.

“Keep complaining, hard-head, and I’m going to tell Mama how you refused to call for help,” I warned Tino.  No, I was not above threatening one of my brothers with our mother.

We broke into another run, and made it to the fence that surrounded our property without any sign of the Banshee, or the Manticores that we left fighting her.  I slid Constantine to the ground and looked
toward the sky.  There was nothing, not even the rain that was falling so heaving a few minutes ago.  “Where the hell is everyone,” I wondered.  “They shouldn’t have been that far behind us.  We agreed upon a three minute lead at the most.”

“Maybe the Manticores finished her off,” Valerian said as he scanned the darkened thatch of woods for the creature or signs of the Fae guards.

“I’m not that lucky,” I mumbled as I closed my eyes.   “Come on, Ire,” I whispered.  I threw my mind away from me and searched for signs that Irulan had regained consciousness.  For a few tense seconds, I got nothing, and then her voice filled my head.

“Are you
okay?”  She asked me.

“Me, you're asking about me,” After everything that she's been through tonight she was worried about me.  “I’m fine, baby.  Where are you?”

“In the sky,” she said.  “Thade and Marcus have gathered their wolves and are closing in on the Complex.”

“What about the Banshee?”

“She killed two of the Manticores,” Irulan sighed.  “I got there in time to watch them fall to her blade.  I sent the remaining guard back to the FaeLands.  He's not in a position to help anyone.”

That didn’t sound hopeful.  That meant there were only four Manticores left to help drive the Banshee
toward the Vault.  I was confident in my abilities, but I’d be a fool if I failed to recognize they were a lot better at combating the Harbinger than we were.  I had one last question.  “How much time do we have?”

The word ‘none’ popped in my head the same time the Banshee came into view.  Tamerlane didn’t have to deactivate the security measures.  The freaky, Fae bitch opened her mouth and began to wail.  We scattered; diving to the ground. 
Her yowl took out an entire, twelve foot long section of the fence; along with it, the terminal that he needed to override the security system.

Vedo and Tamerlane jumped up and began firing their weapons.    “No,” I yelled at them.  This wasn’t what I had in mind.  They were supposed to be back inside with Tamerlane, manning the panels that controlled the explosives we set.  I had to get her attention focused on me long enough for them to make it inside.

“Come on, Brother,” I grunted, and grabbed Constantine by the collar.  “I gotta you guys out of here.”

I tossed my oldest brother through the air, leaving Tamerlane and Valerian no choice but to drop their weapons and catch him.  He hit them with enough force to knock the two of them onto their asses.

She belted out another scream, and I jumped into the air.  Her neck craned as she tracked my movements.  Now was my chance.  I slapped my hands together, and black lightning erupted from them.  Where the energy orbs required a little finesse to generate and were more controllable, the bolts were easily tapped and completely wild.  Ever since I almost fried my father’s Bentley, I’ve been hesitant to form them.

The lightning shot
toward the Banshee.  Of course, she used her wail to keep it from hitting home, but as long as I could hold out, the beam of energy would stay a constant stream.  If I didn’t let up, neither could she.  Here’s to praying that I could keep my hands touching a lot longer than she could hold her breath.

I dropped to the ground with my hands on fire and the beam intact.  The Banshee’s eyebrows came together in a scowl.  She didn’t look happy at being put on the defensive.  Doubt me again.  I looked past her and saw my brothers running for the nearest entrance to the main building.  I breathed a sigh of relief and shook away a bead of sweat that had gathered on my brow.

Keeping her away from me wasn’t that hard, now I had to get inside without getting torn apart.  That proved easier said than done.  The ground beneath me began to rumble, and I was forced to throw out my hands to balance myself.  There went my lightning.

The Banshee used my momentary distraction to her advantage, inhaled, and let loose another volley.  I dug my heels into the ground and backpedaled as fast as I could, heading for the gap in the fence.  I got within inches when I heard a small whine.  I looked behind me and saw a crisscross
pattern of blue lines beginning to fill in the missing links.  Lasers.  The backup defenses for the fence were powering up, and I didn't have an access terminal to shut them down.

I stopped short and headed back in the other direction.  Bad move.  The blast hit the ground less than a foot away from me.  The impact knocked me into the air, sending me sailing
toward the electrified section of the fence.  I screamed and unfurled my wings faster than I ever had before.

The leathery appendages ripped themselves free of my back, catching the air, bringing me to a halt, but not before the smell of burnt hair filled my nostrils.  That was too damn close for comfort.  I twisted and whipped my wings back.  My body cut through the air.  I needed to find a tree big enough to offer some cover.  In my hurry to find it, I flew right into the Harbingers path.

She smiled and threw open her jaws, unleashing a wail that hit me dead on.  I screamed as the force ripped through my wings.  The sensation was like nothing I’ve ever felt before.  I’ve been hit with energy attacks and bombarded with magic.  I’ve been shot, stabbed, punched and kicked.  The feel of her wail tearing away the thin, nerve filled membranes of my wings, made me long for a nice bullet to the gut.

White-hot pain engulfed me, clouding my thinking as I began falling
toward the ground.  When I hit, I hit hard; bouncing twice before coming to a stop on my back.  The crunch of bone filled my ears, and I groaned.  That was my leg.  I rolled onto my side and tried to lift it.  Fuck that hurt.  Yep.  It was broken.

The ground beneath me shook again, and my mind scrambled to function through the pain.  The earth moving was significant, but I couldn’t remember why.  I heard laughter and the crunch of dead leaves.  She was coming to finish her kill.  That was all the motivation I needed to focus.  I shook a strand of burgundy hair from my face and took a deep breath.

“Is that the best you’ve got, bitch,” I spat around a mouthful of blood.  Dear God, please let me sound more intimidating than I felt.  I forced myself onto my stomach and then to my feet.  My leg hurt like a hell, healing at a snail’s pace because of blood loss, but I’ll be damned if I was going to let her kick me while I was down.

I lifted my head, and there she was, standing a few inches away from me.  Her bottomless, hollow eyes locked on my own, and she had me.

“That’s more like it,” she crooned, her voice without the wail, just as effective a weapon.  She touched the gashes on her arm and drew away a bloody finger.  She reached out and ran that finger down the side of my face, leaving a trail of blood.  “It’s a pity you all have to die.  I’ve never had a quarry fight the way you have.  Your brother managed to draw blood,” the Banshee’s silver hair whipped around her as she circled me.  “Not many can claim that.”

I should have wanted to shrug my shoulders, or come up with some smart-mouthed reply to further piss her off, but my mind was hers.  “No, it’s not,” a voice shouted.  I tried to turn my head to find it, but my body wasn’t cooperating.

“I’m so close,” the voice said again.  The Banshee continued to talk, but her voice wasn’t as effective.  That other voice was pushing against it, fighting.  I could almost feel invisible fingers latched onto my brain in a tug of war for the control of me.  Is that what people felt when I took them over?

“Val,” the voice screamed again.  This time I recognized it.  It was Irulan.  I caught the blink before my eyelids closed and stared into the night; trying hard not to let on that I wasn’t under her compulsion.

The longer Ire talked; the clearer my mind got, no matter what the Banshee said.  Why is it the bad guys love to preach before they kill their targets?  Seriously, if they would just shut the fuck up, maybe they'd get something accomplished.  But who am I to point that out?  Her long-winded ass was the only thing keeping me alive until Ire got here…Or my brothers figured out a way to help me from inside.