Category: Novel

Erik

Soft lips on his woke Erik from the blackness. His mind was still muddy as he tried to come back into reality. The light kiss turned into a more passionate. Familiar sensations rippled through Erik, but he still felt between dream and waking. Erik was barely able to force his eyes open. A woman with curly dark brown hair sat up.

“Welcome back, love,” she said, and the voice electrified Erik. A voice he hadn’t heard in almost a year.

“Anya, what are you doing here?” Erik asked, “Where am I?” He had been doing something. A job for the Saint. For the life of him, he couldn’t remember. Erik started to get up, but Anya laid a warm hand on him and gently pushed him back to the bed. Pain flashed through him. That’s right, he had broken ribs, but they looked like they’d been bandaged up. How did he get broken ribs?

“Easy, love,” Anya said, “You’ve had a hard time of it. You need to take it easy.” Erik looked up at the love of his life. Her shoulder-length mop of brown curls were hanging loose. He reached up to caress her heart-shaped face as her blue eyes twinkled down at him. She nuzzled his hand. It felt so right, but Erik knew something was wrong.

“What are you doing here, Anya?” Erik asked again. There was some reason Anya shouldn’t be here, but Erik couldn’t remember.

“Where else do you think I’d be?” Anya asked.

“With your husband,” Erik said, his voice cold. That was why Anya shouldn’t be here.

“You needed me more,” Anya said, “I’m sorry. I made a mistake.” She bent down and kissed him. His pain faded as it became harder to remember. Erik remembered that Anya had left him to marry someone else, but why and who?

“Just relax,” Anya said, “I’m here to take care of you.” She laid down next to him, carefully snuggling up next to his injured side.

“Anya, you shouldn’t be here,” Erik protested, weakly.

“Don’t you want me here?” Anya asked. “Isn’t this what you’ve been waiting for?” Erik let out a long breath. Of course he wanted Anya back. Why hadn’t he fought harder to keep her? There was a reason, but it was hidden behind the clouds in his mind. It must have been important, but at the moment, Erik really didn’t care. Anya was back. He’d deal with everything else later.

“You remember the first time we laid like this?” Anya asked. Erik groped for a memory. There were images floating through his mind. Most of them were of Anya in different situations, but he couldn’t sort out the jumble. Then one popped up and he grabbed it.

“When you broke into my apartment and announced that you were going to be my wife, and where did I keep my vacuum?” Erik asked. Anya giggled at his side. That was a sound he’d missed for so long. As he grabbed for the memory, it started to become clearer. Anya in a business suit with her arms crossed under her breasts staring him down. Erik yelling at her for breaking into his apartment. Her brushing aside all of his arguments as if they were immaterial. Her horror when she embraced him and he flinched because of the wounds he’d picked up on Battle Island. Her bandaging his injuries before they laid down together. Erik’s confusion at what this woman was doing barging into his life, but happy for the first time in a long time.

“Well, it wasn’t like you kept it in a logical place,” Anya replied. Erik chuckled and pulled Anya tighter. It was worth the pain. He ran his fingers through her hair and breathed deep. It wasn’t the usual light scent of lilac. There was something else missing. What? It was something about her scent. Why couldn’t he feel her psi-scent? As soon as the question ripped through his mind, the clouds started clearing.

In the span of a thought, Anya was straddling him. Erik watched as the Anya’s face was replaced with the platinum blonde creature that questioned him before. Pain, loss, grief, and rage coursed through Erik. How dare this creature use that face, those memories against him! Erik strained to throw her off, but she held him easily. There was something else he should be doing, but it was still hidden in his mind.

“Don’t fight, please,” the woman said, with a compassionate lilt in her accented voice, “Just let me do what I need to.” Erik felt the alien presence in his mind. It was rooting through his memories. He pushed back hard, mentally and physically. The woman deflected his mental attacks, while holding him down. The memory of when Erik had met Anne snapped into place. The woman seemed to be watching it carefully. Erik stopped struggling as he watched his memory. He knew there was something there. Then, he remembered.

The blast of power caught the creature by surprise. She was tossed off of him and into a wall. Erik could still feel her in his head, but he also felt the last of the clouds vanish. He wasn’t in a padded room. This looked more like a hotel room, with bed, chest of drawers, and desk. Erik cautiously stepped onto the carpeted floor as the woman stood up. Her glowing eyes pulsed.

“I’m going to tear you apart!” Erik screamed.

“I’m very sorry to have to do this to you.” The woman actually sounded remorseful. Then she dredged up his worst memory. Anya standing in front of him with that look of revulsion and horror. The last time he’d seen her. The time she finally saw what he was truly capable of doing. Her screams of terror echoed through his mind. It just kept looping through his mind. Erik was suddenly on the floor as the pain and loss pulsed through him. The woman was caressing his arm.

“She was a fool,” the woman said, “A weak fool who should never have deserted you. I wouldn’t use that memory against you, but you are too dangerous. I just need to find something in your mind, and then I’ll take the pain away.” Erik felt her presence digging through his mind.

“I am going to rip those eyes of yours out and roast them,” Erik muttered. Her presence left him. She picked Erik up off the floor effortlessly and gently placed him back on the bed.

“So, you don’t know if she’s the prophesied one, either,” the woman murmured. Her presence returned with a gentle touch. The memory of Anya was swept from his mind. The presence froze. The woman’s glowing blue eyes went wide in surprise.

“Well, now that’s very interesting,” she said quietly, “Don’t worry, I’ll keep that memory to myself.” Erik couldn’t see what the woman was seeing. He looked around for something he could use as a weapon. Then, the woman was kissing him again. It was hard and passionate. All of his pain vanished and the clouds in his mind returned. He fought, but he was losing the battle. She rose up and gave him a strangely warm smile.

“I come looking for the human that will make my clan the most powerful, and I find a human that could be my ljubavnik,” she said, “It’s very strange how fate works in this world. Before you drift back into darkness, my name is Nao. Remember it well, Avalonian.” Erik tried to say something. He wanted to curse this creature, to make it hurt. The warm blackness swallowed him before he could say anything.

Anne

Anne stood to the left of the hotel door with her Glock at a low ready. Jason was opposite of her with his own Glock drawn. Behind Anne were Veronica and Samantha with their pistols. Kurt was standing behind Jason with a short-barreled shotgun. Jason also held the keycard to the room. The manager of the hotel refused when Anne showed the woman her detective’s shield, but buckled when Jason flashed his Homeland Security credentials. Damn Feds got all the breaks.

I’m not sensing any thoughts in the room, Samantha reported over the group’s telepathic link.

That’s not as helpful as normal, Jason observed sourly, At least they don’t have any regular humans in there.

Do a knock and announce? Anne asked. Jason shook his head.

Vampires are kill-on-sight monsters. We go in hard, Jason said. Veronica, put up the sound and sight barriers to keep out the curious. The sorceress nodded. Her hands glowed as she made the intricate motions to twist and then sling the spell. Satisfied, Jason held up four fingers as the count. The team tensed as Jason counted down. At zero, he ran the keycard and tapped the door open. Kurt slid by Jason and kicked the door in. The door swung open with Kurt charging in close behind with his shotgun up. Just as they’d practiced, Kurt slid to the side and cleared the left side of the room. Anne was the next in, sweeping the right side. Jason followed with the two remaining Avalonians trailing.

Veronica had barely stepped into the room when one of the vampires was suddenly in their midst. He looked like a dark-haired male of average height and build in a tight shirt and jeans with wraparound sunglasses. That was all Anne saw before the vampire’s arm blurred and backhanded Kurt. The tall German was thrown across the hotel room before slamming into the couch. None of them had time to react as the vampire moved and punched Jason. The detective/special agent gasped in pain and crumpled to the carpeted floor. Anne spun and opened fire with her pistol, but the vampire wasn’t there. Samantha and Veronica were hurled back out the door. Then the vampire was standing inches in front of Anne. He flicked off the wraparound sunglasses. Glowing red eyes bored into Anne’s blue. Terror rushed through Anne as her muscles locked in place. She barely remembered to breathe.

“Yes, you are the one we were told to watch,” the vampire said in a low tone. A low, sexy tone. The terror vanished, and Anne was instantly filled with desire. Anne focused hard on the image of the woman this vampire killed earlier that night, and her rage insulated her from the vampire’s attempted seduction.

“Halten Sie weg von ihr, Vampir!” Kurt screamed, as he touched off his shotgun. Somehow, he’d managed to move just enough to get Anne out of the line of fire. The thundering blast drowned out the vampire’s scream of pain as thirty silver pellets slammed into its side. At that range, the pellets made a hole the size of a baseball. Black guts spilled out as the vampire’s stomach was ripped out.

The vampire moved faster than Anne could track. It was in front of Kurt and snatched the shotgun out of the German’s hands with a contemptible ease. The vampire placed the muzzle of the shotgun on Kurt’s chest and squeezed the trigger. Anne didn’t hear her scream over the shotgun’s blast. Kurt fell to the ground. Grief and rage coursed through Anne.

The streams of magic around her were instantly visible. Anne dropped her pistol and grabbed one of the streams. Her hand closed on empty air, but the stream responded like Anne was actually holding it.

Anne, what are you doing? Veronica almost screamed through the telepathic link. Anne’s answer was less words than raw emotion of vengeance.

You can’t use raw wild magic like that! Veronica said, “You have to twist it into a spell before slinging it.” Veronica sent a series of images over the link, showing Anne what she needed to do. The vampire spun as Anne’s hands flicked to twist the stream of wild magic into the spell.

“IKALA!” Anne screamed as she slung the spell at the vampire. A brilliant red ball erupted from Anne’s hands. Unbelievable burning pain blossomed across her hands. The ball lanced out at the vampire, who was too stunned to move. As the ball touched the vampire, it screamed and was reduced to ash. Anne crumpled to the ground, screaming in pain. Her hands were a brilliant scarlet.

“Here, let me help,” Veronica said. The small woman clamped her hands down on Anne’s. The pain intensified. “Anne look at me. I need you to look at me.” Anne forced herself to look into Veronica’s brown eyes. The pain noticeably dropped. Anne could feel the wild magic swirling around Veronica and herself. The pain lessened even more. Anne could see Veronica twisting the streams of wild magic into knots before running those knots over Anne’s hands. Anne’s eyes went wild as she realized Veronica was only using her mind and voice to manipulate the wild magic.

“My God, Vanessa, how are you doing that?” Anne breathed. Veronica gave Anne a half-smile.

“I’m sorry, this is going to be bad,” Veronica said, ignoring the question. The pain vanished, and Anne wondered what Veronica was talking about. Then an intense itching erupted across her hands and forearms. Anne instinctively tried to scratch, but Veronica held her tight.

“It will only be a minute, but it’s going to be one of the longest minutes of your life,” Veronica said, her brown eyes filled with compassion. “Look over at Kurt.”

“He’s—” Anne couldn’t complete the sentence. She was terrified to look over and see Kurt’s body.

“Magic vests, you silly girl,” Veronica said, with that same half-smile. “He’s hurt, but he’s alive. Look.” Anne turned her head. Kurt was sitting up with Samantha’s help. As soon as their eyes locked, Anne forgot the itching. Relief pounded through her. Kurt gave her a confidant smile, and Anne pulled out of Veronica’s grasp.

“I thought you were dead,” Anne cried into Kurt’s shoulder as she gripped him tight. Warm arms surrounded her.

“Anne, I’m alive, but that hurts. A lot,” Kurt said. Anne quickly let go of Kurt, who just continued to smile.

“We need to talk after this is done,” Anne said.

“Yes, we do.”

Erik

As Erik awoke from the darkness, he was aware of three things. First, he was in a lot of pain. Second, he was bound upright. Third, he was naked. Well, it wasn’t like this was the first time this had happened during his career as an Imperial agent. Hell, there was a scenario during training that was pretty much exactly like it. Erik was pretty sure he was in more pain during the training scenario than he was now, although to be fair, those things were hard to judge.

Erik didn’t sense any emotions around him, but that didn’t mean much. Those creatures he’d been fighting didn’t give off any psi-scents. There weren’t even any residual psi-scents in the room. He spent a moment just listening. Erik couldn’t hear anyone breathing or any sounds other than the clinking of the chains holding him up. Erik cracked open his eyes. It was completely dark. He couldn’t even see his own body as he looked around. The air around him was cool and dry with no noticeable scents. He was standing on some sort of gymnastics mat from the texture and padding. His arms were stretched out and supported by metal shackles. His sides were shooting pain through the rest of his body. Well, they hadn’t fixed him.

I need to get an idea of where I am, Erik thought to himself. Then, maybe try and figure a way out of here. He probed the room telekinetically. It was a decent sized room, maybe three meters by four by three. The chains were anchored to the ceiling. Erik couldn’t sense anything that felt like a door. He slumped forward and gritted back the pain from his ribs. Controlled probes were physically draining.

A door in front of Erik slid open. He shrank back from the sudden blinding light that filled the room. He heard someone walk into the room and could smell the expensive perfume as it wafted over to him. He couldn’t feel her emotions. The lights dimmed and Erik cracked his eyes back open. Glowing blue eyes met his. He tried to focus only on those blue eyes rather than the creature’s all-too-human form. The all-too-female human form. As she strode over to him, Erik could feel her soft touches in his mind. He clamped down hard as the creature gave him a seductive smile.

“What were you doing just now, Mr. Williams?” the creature purred. Erik barely stopped himself from answering. He studiously looked past her to where the door had opened. Could he force that door open with his powers? His thought were disrupted as he felt her warm caress on his cheek. She gently pushed his face to hers. Those glowing blue eyes reminded Erik of that movie Jason forced him to sit through. That one about the desert planet and the sound weapons. What was it called again?

“Mr. Williams, I need you to tell me what you were trying to accomplish,” the creature asked, bringing him back to the present. Erik bit his lip hard enough to taste blood. If he answered one of her questions, Erik wasn’t sure if he could stop himself from answering all of them. The creature breathed deeply before giving Erik a seductive half-smile.

“You didn’t have to do that just for me,” she said. Her hand moved faster than Erik could track. She pulled his bottom lip down and licked the blood. Electric waves of pleasure shot through Erik. He felt the pain in his sides dull and a slight giddy cloudiness come over his mind. It felt like he’d just been jabbed with strong narcotics. Worse, he could feel his body wanting more. What the hell was this woman?

“Are you going to tell me now, Mr. Williams?” the woman asked. Erik shook his head. Why was she calling him, “Mr. Williams”? Oh yeah, Erik Williams was his cover. Why did he have a cover again? Something for the Saint, he was pretty certain. That man always had some odd job he needed Erik to do. Pain lanced through his head as the creature forced her psychic presence into his mind. Erik pushed her back out, but it took more strength than he could spare. Erik was sure that the creature saw parts of his mind. Damn it. Sam had proved more than once how dangerous even a glimpse could be.

Those blue eyes pulsed for a moment and Erik’s head rocked as she slapped him. Blood dribbled from his mouth as he spit out a tooth. Without another word, the creature spun on her heel and stormed out of the room. The room was plunged back into darkness. Erik stared at the door. What had he done to piss that creature off, and could he do it again?

The pain from his sides flared back up to join his head’s aching. The pain was bad enough, but Erik could feel his desire for that drug rising again. One of the advantages of being forced through the Imperial Psi-Academy was that Erik had built up the strength of will that allowed him to separate his mind from his body. It helped being able to keep his rationality when his body was screaming for the touch of the drug again. Still, he was human. At some point, his will was going to break. He had to find some way out before that happened. Erik carefully tugged on the chains with his power. Maybe if he rested a bit and regained some of his mental strength, then he could yank down one of the chains.

A hissing sound started above Erik. He felt upward with his power. It was some sort of nozzle spraying some sort of gas. That couldn’t be a good thing. Erik started feeling dizzy. It didn’t feel like a nerve gas. Erik relaxed and breathed in the odd-scented fumes. Sometimes the best way to deal with adversity was just to embrace it and force your way through it. After a few breaths, Erik felt his eyelids grow heavy. His pain was dulled. A few more and the blackness consumed him.

Anne

Anne stared at the two faces in her monitor. There they were. The two vampires from murder scene were just standing there with bored looks on their faces. After going through hundreds of police photos and hours of video, Anne finally found the pair on a photo taken from a tourist’s cell phone.

“Jason!” she whispered. Her partner came from around their desks to look at the faces. He clapped her on the shoulder in congratulations.

“Send these over to my phone, and I’ll see if the task force has anything on them,” Jason said quietly.

“What the hell are you two so happy about?” asked a gruff voice from behind. Anne worked hard to keep the flash of anger from showing. She took a deep breath before turning around to deal with Detective Harvey Welks. As her blue eyes locked with his brown, Anne decided she needed more than one cleansing breath to deal with Welks.

“You do remember that in many of these cases the perpetrator will observe as the police work the crime scene?” Anne asked, with a hint of condescension in her voice. Welk’s bulldog jowls quivered slightly in anger. “I’ve been looking over photos and video of the crowd. I found a couple of bystanders that don’t look right.”

“Listen Hearst, the lieutenant put you on this case because it’s splashy, and everyone knows the press likes you,” Welks said, with a sneer, “That doesn’t make this anymore than a mugging gone wrong. So do us all a favor and go try to solve one of your own open cases without trying to be a media whore on one of mine.” Jason just barely managed to grab Anne’s shoulders before she leapt at Welks. Anne felt the swirls of wild magic around her. Before she realized what she was doing, a spark of flame erupted on Welks’ cheek. The stout detective yelped and slapped his hand to his face. As he lowered his hand, Anne could see an angry red burn on Welks’ face. Anne just stared at the injury in shock.

“What the hell did you do?” he shouted at her, his eyes wide with fear and rage. Anne was speechless.

“Welks, she was sitting in her chair,” Jason said, “I don’t know what just happened, but she couldn’t have done it.” Welks glared at the pair before snarling and storming off to the break room’s first aid kit.

“Well, that was exciting,” Jason said, finally letting go of Anne. “You need to get that temper of yours under control. Especially now that you seem to be able to sling magic on your own.”

“Jason, I don’t know how I did that,” Anne replied, “Plus, it’s not like he didn’t deserve it.” Jason gave her a flat look.

“That doesn’t matter, and you know it,” Jason said, “In the eyes of the federal government, what you did was no different than if you’d used your taser on Welks.”

“Then why aren’t you arresting me?” Anne asked, hotly.

“Because you didn’t do it on purpose, and as far as my superiors are concerned, you’re still learning,” Jason answered. “That will only go so far. So, get some control.” Anne glared at Jason, but the detective/Homeland Security agent ignored her. Anne hated when he did that, but she hated it more when Jason was right about these kinds of things. It wasn’t Anne’s fault that Welks was an overbearing asshat who held a grudge because she’d managed to upstage him. If his high and mightiness had listened to Anne at the time…

“Anne, go home, and get some rest,” Jason said, “I’m going to be a while talking with the task force on this. See if Veronica can help you with some control.” Anne gritted her teeth, but she stood up from her desk. He gave her a tired smile. “I promise, I will let you know if anything pops on these guys.”

Anne was surprised to see Lady Maritza’s limousine in front of the apartments when she pulled up. In the three months since Anne and the Avalonians started living at the converted hotel, she could count on one hand the number of times Lady Maritza had dropped by. Usually, the Avalonian noble/spymaster/society matron invited the group up to her mansion.

“I’m home,” Anne announced as she walked into the expansive foyer. She could hear Samantha’s, Veronica’s, and Lady Maritza’s voices coming from the common room. They stopped as Anne walked in, and Anne wondered if they were talking about her. Lady Maritza, clad in an elegant blue dress suit that probably cost more than Anne’s car, stood from one of the leather chairs and enveloped Anne in a warm embrace.

“Anne, it’s so good to see you again,” Lady Maritza said. Anne smiled back at the older lady.

“What are you doing here, Lady Maritza?” Anne asked.

“Business, unfortunately,” Lady Maritza answered, and her smile evaporated. Anne saw the look on Lady Maritza’s face and knew that Erik was involved. For some reason, the two despised each other, which made their professional relationship even more contentious than the normal rivalry between the Avalonian Foreign Intelligence Service, to which Lady Maritza belonged, and the Imperial Security Service that the others worked for. It didn’t help that since the three Avalonians were detailed to FIS for the duration of their mission, Lady Maritza was their boss.

“Erik’s missing,” Samantha said in a toneless voice. Her expression was similarly blank of any emotion.

“What?” Anne asked, surprised, “What happened?”

“We’re not exactly sure,” Lady Maritza answered, “We know he went after a pair of what Kurt has identified as vampires. After Kurt told me that, I tried calling him. He picked up and then was cut off.”

“Are you sure he didn’t just hang up on you?” Anne asked, “It wouldn’t be the first time.”

“No, something happened. His phone went offline just after he picked up,” Lady Maritza answered. “The GPS isn’t even working, so we can’t locate the phone.”

“Something’s happened to him,” Samantha said, an odd tone of conviction in her voice.

“How can you be sure?” Anne asked, “He could just be looking for some alone time.” Her instincts were telling her that Samantha was right, but experience said that Erik may just be avoiding the group.

“No, he would’ve called me back. Even if he was ducking the lady, he would have called me back. Or at least sent a text,” Samantha said. Something in Samantha’s countenance made Anne tread very carefully. Still, the questions had to be asked.

“Are you sure he hasn’t just snuck off to meet with someone? Like a woman he met?” Anne asked. Anne was expecting Samanatha to lash out at her, but instead, Samantha let out a mirthless laugh.

“That man has been my best friend for fifteen years,” Samantha said, “I know what he’s feeling before he does. If he’d met a woman on this side of the gate, I’d know. He isn’t good enough to hide those clues from me. No, something bad has happened to him.” With a burst of fury, Samantha grabbed the lamp next to her and threw it across the room. “Why the hell does he always do this?” Before Anne could answer, her phone’s text alert sounded.

“We might have a lead,” Anne said, reading the text from Jason, “The two vampires from the crime scene flew into the city a week ago. We’ve got where they’re staying. I’m pretty sure they’ll know where Erik is.” Samantha gave Anne a look of malicious delight that chilled the hardened detective to her bones.

Erik

Pain lanced through Erik as he probed his side. Yep, those ribs were cracked. If Erik had a pound every time he’d cracked a rib since joining His Imperial Majesty’s Security Services, he’d be a wealthy man. Well, independently wealthy at any rate. Whatever that human-looking thing was, it hit like an orc. A very angry orc. Erik stood up on the sloped metal roof and looked down at the darkened street. His opponents were gone. The only evidence of the fight were the hand-shaped burns on the pavement. From what he could remember of the monsters of Avalon, none could look human, hit that hard, and then have their limbs burn when cut with magic. Oh, and stand up to pistol bullets. Erik was pretty sure this was another of the hidden monsters of Earth. He’d have to ask Jason about them when he got back to the apartments.

He pulled out his cell phone. From the numbers on the time display, Erik had been out for a couple of hours. There were also several missed calls from Samantha, as well as three voicemails. Well, he’d better find out what Samantha wanted before she called him again. Before he could hit the redial, the phone buzzed. The caller ID displayed “Unspeakable One.” Great, Lady Maritza was probably calling to bitch him out for going off on his own. He was tempted to let it go to voicemail, but decided it would be better in the long run to get the shouting done. Lady Maritza’s rage didn’t cool down with time, it simmered at a boil ready to explode like a pressure cooker with a faulty valve.

“Where the hell are you?” Lady Maritza in a barely controlled tone. Erik knew he was in trouble the moment he heard Lady Maritza’s high Avalon accent.

“I’m–” Erik started to say when he heard the soft footfalls behind him. He spun and slid to the side an instant before the tall dark figure fired a suppressed pistol at him. The bullet tore the phone out of his hand. Erik unleashed a full force blast of telekinetic power at the figure. There was an “umph” of pain as it was thrown back over the ridge of the roof. Erik grunted as he drew his own suppressed pistol. This was not going to be a fun fight. He hadn’t felt his opponent’s emotions as it snuck up on him. It was probably another of those human-like creatures he fought earlier. They must be trying to clean up their mistakes.

Erik crept up the roof, listening for his opponent’s movements. Erik fell to the roof as a blurring movement shot up from the roof. Erik felt more than heard the supersonic crack of the pistol bullet as it passed centimeters over his head. Erik brought up his own pistol and fired three shots at the airborne figure. It effortlessly dodged the gunfire and landed some thirty feet away. Erik pointed his pistol at it and flicked on the flashlight mounted to his pistol. There was a screech of pain as the creature was blinded by the intense white light.

Creature was definitely the right word. It was a tall humanoid, about two and a half meters Erik estimated, and just slightly less massive than an orc. Inky black skin covered the creature’s frame, with a rodent-like head. Except it’s snout was smushed in. Erik had seen those features before, but he couldn’t remember where. His memory flickered back to escorting Anne and her parents to the zoo a few weeks ago. Before the memory could be drudged up, the creature lunged at him with an unbelievable speed. Erik tried to dodge, but the creature was just too damned fast. He waited for the familiar hammer blow of a bullet. Instead stars burst in his eyes and he felt himself spinning through the air. The side of his face was ablaze with pain. The bastard had pistol-whipped him. That was just disrespectful.

The creature snarled as it suddenly materialized above him. It lashed out with a claw-tipped hand. Erik snapped up a telekinetic barrier. It wasn’t a strong one, but the creature’s blow slid along the barrier’s slant, leaving it’s midsection exposed. Erik brought up his pistol and fired. It howled in pain as the ten .40-caliber bullets slammed into its torso. It collapsed to the roof and slid down some fifteen feet. Erik crawled to the roof’s ridge. Pain blazed in his face and side. At least one of his ribs was now broken. He gingerly probed his side. Maybe two. He needed to get back to his team before his lung was punctured. At least he’d be under Veronica’s care rather than what passed for medicine on this side of the gate.

The creature stirred and started moving. It shakily stood up. The bullet holes were now puckered scars on its torso. It let out a rattling growl and took an unstable step towards Erik. Bloody hell Erik thought with a resigned air. He hit the magazine release on his pistol as his left hand reached back for a magazine with red tape on its baseplate. As the creature staggered towards him, Erik fumbled inserting the magazine. Taking a breath, Erik sent out a tiny burst of power at the creature’s feet. The telekinetic push was enough to knock out the creature’s feet from under it.

Erik took a breath and focused on slapping the magazine into his pistol. The slide snapped forward. Erik pointed the pistol at the creature. It howled again as the white light illuminated it. The creature slowly clamored back to its feet. Erik focused on the glowing dot of his front sight and stroked the trigger once, twice, three times. The creature’s howls stopped like someone flipped a switch.

“That was unexpected,” a tinkling voice said from above Erik. There was a hint of that European accent the two he’d fought earlier had used. “When did Avalonians start using silver bullets?” This one looked like a woman as it landed gracefully on the roof ridge. An achingly beautiful woman with sliver hair that seemed to dance around her and glowing blue eyes. Erik felt the creature’s psychic presence as it walked towards him. It eased some of his physical pain while calming him. All the better to eat you, my dear, Erik thought as he tried to push past the psychic onslaught.

“You are just full of surprises,” the woman said seductively. Her blue eyes seemed to pulse hypnotically. She effortlessly plucked the pistol out of Erik’s hand and ejected the magazine. She let out a silvery peal of laughter that eroded some of Erik’s resistance.

“Do the Americans know you’ve stolen some of their special bullets?” she asked. Erik clamped down before he answered the woman. Something about her voice and laugh made him want to help her. She cocked her head and gave Erik an intense stare. “I wasn’t aware Avalonians were that mind-strong, but it will be fun to break you.” The woman’s smooth and enticing psychic presence evaporated and Erik was pounded with a lash of fear and rage. He wasn’t sure if he screamed before the blackness took him.

Anne

Anne was letting the wild magic circle around her as she teased them with her thoughts. Veronica kept telling her that the wild magic on this side of the gate was weak compared to Avalon. Like a garden hose compared to river rapids, was the analogy Veronica used when Anne asked about the difference. Veronica looked finally satisfied enough to try a simple spell with Anne. Anne’s cell phone rang. Both women swore as Anne let go of the magic. Anne was even more irritated when she saw the number.

“Damn it Jason, this is my night off!” Anne said.

“Get to the address I’m texting to you right now,” Jason McMurty said, ignoring Anne’s protest. After three months as partners, Anne knew the tone in Jason’s voice was the one he used when dealing with very bad stuff. Before Anne thought about it, she was standing and putting on her sidearm, badge, and coat.

“Is this a special?” Anne asked, using their private code for a homicide that might have been caused by the Dark Towers or a monster on this side of the gate.

“Possibly,” Jason answered, “If not, it’s definitely in your wheelhouse. The lieutenant wants you down here.” Anne and Veronica were walking down to the common area. Samantha joined them. Normally they didn’t escort her to work. Jason was her supposed to be her protective detail while working. All of that went out the window if there was a “special” case.

“We’re on our way,” Anne said and ended the call. She looked down at the address and grimaced. Great, right smack in the middle of Riverside, not more than a dozen blocks from their apartment building. Before the turn of the century, Riverside was called Downriver. Then the previous city administration decided to “revitalize” what they saw as prime real estate. Unfortunately, no one bothered to tell the criminals that they were supposed to move out to make way for trendy apartments, restaurants, and art galleries.

“Wo ghest du hin?, I mean, where going you to?” Kurt asked stepping through the front door and seeing the trio of women. He must have been exhausted, because normally his English was perfect.

“Special case,” Anne answered.

“Where’s Erik?” Samantha asked. Kurt looked surprised.

“He’s not back? He went to go investigate some people we saw tonight,” Kurt said, “I thought he would have returned by now.”

“I’m sure he’s fine Samantha. It’s not like he’s not perfectly capable of handling himself,” Anne said, “We really need to get moving. Kurt, why don’t you go get some rest? You’ve been working all day.”

“Nein,” he said, his reply just a bit too quick and forceful, “I mean, no, I’m fine. I will escort you to the scene.” The three women traded looks, but none of them objected. It was just easier. Anne climbed into her unmarked cruiser, while the others followed in nondescript silver sedan.

Jason met Anne at the edge of the police cordon. Anne focused on the picture of the victim Jason was showing her. White female, mid-20’s, blonde, clothes and makeup said that she was going out. Clothes and jewelry were on the expensive side, but expected for this part of town. Her throat had been savagely torn out leaving a three-inch gap in the front.

“Where’s all the blood?” Anne said, zooming out. “She’s got a lot on her, but there’s not much of a pool around her. Not for that kind of wound.”

“First thing I noticed as well,” Jason said as the pair walked to the murder scene. “Of course, Welks doesn’t think it’s significant.” Anne stopped and glared at Jason.

“Welks is lead?” Anne said, barely keeping herself from yelling. Jason nodded and braced himself for the coming tirade. “Oh, hell no. There’s no way I’m helping that bastard with a damn thing! It’s my night off, and I’m going the hell home.”

“Stop,” Jason said, firmly, holding up his hand, “I know you hate him, I know why, and I know you wouldn’t have come down here if you knew he was the lead. That said, we have a dead woman with missing blood. Do you want to find out what did that to her before it starts preying on more victims in the city?” Anne glared at Jason. She hated when he refused to put up with her, and it was worse when he was right.

“Fine. Did you send this pic to the others?” Anne asked. Jason nodded. Anne tapped her head twice. At the signal, Samantha established the now familiar telepathic network between the two detectives and the Avalonians. In addition to giving the team undetectable communications, Anne instantly knew where each of the Avalonians were. Damn, they were good at hiding in a crowd. She didn’t think she would have been able to spot them before the telepathic network illuminated their positions.

“What kills like this?” Anne asked the group.

“Draks have that level of savagery, but they’ve never been seen on this side of the gate,” Samantha said, “Delvers could, but that’s usually not their style.” Anne had heard the Avalonians refer to Dark Towers’ elves as “delvers” before, but she’d never heard of draks. Her confusion must have registered over the telepathic link, because Veronica answered before Anne could ask the question.

“Draks are about the same size as goblins and hobgoblins, but look like little humanoid reptilians. Tend to run in packs of ten or more. Very nasty creatures,” Veronica reported. “If this was draks, I’d expect her to be torn limb from limb and partially eaten.”

“Anything from this side of the gate?” Kurt asked.

“Normally, I’d say vampire, but they’re supposed to be all across the pond for some big shindig in Europe,” Jason answered. Anne’s eyes widened.

“Vampires? Really?” Anne asked, “Are we talking Count Dracula or sparkly?” Anne could feel Jason’s mental groan at the question.

“Closer to Count Dracula, but that’s just their human form,” Jason answered, “Until they have to feed, and then they get monstrous. Think a seven-foot man-bat. Something’s bothering me about this though. According to task force records though, we wouldn’t find even this much blood if this was a vampire attack. Even a young vampire needs a lot of blood to survive.”

“Anything else? More werewolves?” Anne asked.

“I don’t think it’s werewolves. Everything the task force has been hearing says that all other werewolf packs are steering clear of the city. They’re scared of whatever could tear their lycanthropy out of them. I’ll ask one of the research geeks,” Jason said. Anne felt Samantha’s sudden tenseness.

“Jason, what do you know about the stories that vampires can’t have their minds read?” Samantha asked.

“Not much. Why?” he asked.

“Because I have two bystanders busily taking video of the two of you and I can’t hear their thoughts,” Samantha said. Their telepath’s anxiety pulsed through the link.

“Where?” Anne asked.

“Your five o’clock,” Samantha answered. “Kurt, Veronica, home in on me. We’ll take them quietly.”

“Hold Samantha. Kurt do you have any silver ammunition on you?” Jason asked.

“Just the magazine that you gave me,” Kurt answered.

“Don’t engage them,” Jason said, “Because unless you know how to set them on fire without anyone noticing, you’re not going to be able to do anything to them quietly.” Anne felt a blast of fear from Kurt.

“Mein Gott. Those two look like the men that Erik was following,” Kurt said. Anne casually turned, and saw the pair. Two tall men with dark hair and dressed like Euro-tourists. Almost against her will, she locked eyes with the taller of the pair. She felt a cold shiver down her spine. Then the man’s face broke into the most evil grin she’d ever seen. Fear pumped through Anne as she felt her body lock up. She couldn’t even swallow. The tall man gave her a salute by tapping his two forefingers to his head. Then the pair just disappeared. Just vanished like they’d never been standing there.

“Are you okay?” everyone asked Anne when she could finally hear the telepathic network again.

“I think so,” Anne said.

“Yep, vampires,” Jason said, and then vocally, “Damn it all to hell.”

Erik

Erik pulled his coat tighter around him as he watched his target through a pair of binoculars. Crouched next to him, Kurt was monitoring the bugs they’d placed in the target’s office earlier that night. The German didn’t seem to care about the plunging temperatures, but Erik was a native of Avalon City, which sat on his world’s equator. He’d worked in the cold many times over the course of his career, but he never enjoyed it. Maybe, if Anne would quit taunting him with “Winter is Coming!“, it wouldn’t bother him so much.

“What do you want to ask me Kurt?” Erik asked. For the past half-hour, Kurt’s emotions were roiling with anxiety as he built up his courage. Erik felt Kurt’s courage starting to falter, and their target wasn’t doing anything interesting at the moment. Perfect time to find out what was bothering his native guide.

“Scheisse,” Kurt murmured under his breath, “I need your advice. I’m thinking about asking Anne out. Formally.” Erik didn’t say anything for a moment. It wasn’t as if he was surprised. Anne and Kurt had been doing the dance since just after they’d met. Erik knew how the two of them felt about each other, even if they didn’t know how to deal with it. The curse of being an empath. Actually, if Erik was surprised about anything, it was how long Kurt had taken to come to the decision.

“Well, that certainly adds complexity to our mission,” Erik said, “Are you asking for me permission as your boss?”

“More notifying you so that you can request someone to replace me,” Kurt said. “I know what the rules are for this, but–” Kurt stopped suddenly and Erik could feel the sudden bloom of embarrassment.

“Go ahead and say what you were going to say,” Erik said.

“But I don’t want Anne and I to end you like Samantha and you,” Kurt said cautiously.

“Well, I can’t blame you for that,” Erik answered after a long moment, and he nearly laughed at the wave of relief that passed through Kurt. “Unfortunately, we don’t have any assets to replace you. With the current upswing of Dark Towers activity on this world, we need everyone in place. So, keep it discrete.”

“Isn’t that against regulations?” Kurt asked, surprised.

“Pretty much,” Erik answered with a smile. “If Lady Maritza is forced to take official notice, there’ll be hell to pay. So, do us all a favor and make sure that she doesn’t have any reason to take official notice. It’s rather obvious how the two of you feel about each other. You’re both professionals. Act like it, and there won’t be any problems.”

Kurt wanted to say something, but the door of the target’s office opened. Erik and Kurt traded questioning looks. Their target wasn’t supposed to be meeting anyone else for the night. They were just hoping to catch any phone calls before their target went home. Two tall men in matching navy blue suits walked into the office. The target paled as he looked up to see them. Erik couldn’t feel the target’s emotion at this distance, but being an empath meant Erik had learned how to read body language. The target was terrified of his new arrivals.

“I told your clan elders that I wasn’t going to be able to help you,” the target said. Well that was surprising. The target wasn’t strictly a Dark Towers agent, but more of a broker of intelligence to the Dark Towers, as well as native criminal organizations. Erik couldn’t think of a faction that the target wouldn’t deal with.

“The terms we have offered are more than generous,” the shorter of the pair said, with an accent Erik didn’t recognize. Southeastern Europe, Kurt wrote down a pad.

“Yes they are,” the target said, “Unfortunately, I have been told by one of my other clients that I cannot share that particular information upon pain of death. While your inducements are generous, they won’t provide me the protection I need.”

“The clan can protect you,” Short One replied.

“No, you can’t,” the target said, with a mirthless laugh. “Not from this client.” Then, Short One teleported next to the target and loomed over the man. Surprisingly, the target’s fear wasn’t heightened. He actually seemed to relax. Then, he opened one of his desk drawers and picked out a manilla envelope.

“Thank you for your cooperation,” Short One said, “Your payment will be in your account by close of business tomorrow.” The two men left the office. Kurt and Erik exchanged puzzled glances.

“Stay here and keep an eye on the target,” Erik told Kurt, “See if he contacts anyone or is contacted by anyone. I’m going to see who those two are and what was in that envelope.”

“Lady Maritza was very clear that we were supposed to only observe the target,” Kurt reminded him as Erik stood up.

“This is what is called a target of opportunity,” Erik said, “I’m playing a hunch.” Kurt let out an exasperated sigh, which made Erik chuckle. Erik walked to the edge of the roof and perched as he waited for the pair to exit the target’s building. The two emerged from the building and walked confidently down the street. Erik pushed off with a bit of power to the next rooftop. He followed them for a few blocks until they turned into an apartment building’s courtyard. He leapt down behind them.

Both of the tall strangers spun as Erik hit the bricks. Erik couldn’t feel the emotions of either of them. That answered who they were – psychics working for the Dark Towers. So, what would a Dark Towers agent not give to Dark Towers collaborators? Erik stood up and gave the two a casual smirk. His suppressed pistol materialized in his hand.

“I would take it as a kindness if you would turn over that envelope without trouble,” Erik said, keeping his weapon visible, but not pointed at the two. The two silently traded what could charitably called bored looks. The tall one was suddenly in front of Erik. How the hell had he moved so fast? Psychics couldn’t gate. The backhand landed with the speed and fury of an orc. Erik felt his teeth rattle as he stumbled back.

“This is not your concern Avalonian,” the tall man said in a similar accent. Erik tried bringing up his pistol, but the tall man moved instantaneously and had Erik’s arm in a crushing grip. Erik let the pistol drop to the ground and the grip eased slightly. “Do not press this further or I will be forced to kill you.”

“You’re not collaborators, are you?” Erik asked, grunting back against the pain. The tall one quirked an eyebrow in confusion before letting out a harsh laugh. As soon as the tall one released Erik’s arm, the Avalonian slammed him with a blast of power. The tall one was lifted off of his feet and thrown back to his colleague. Erik picked up his pistol off of the ground and pointed it at the two of them.

“Last chance,” Erik said, “Give me the envelope.” The two men fell into fighting stances. Erik placed the sights on the tall one, but the short one was punching him before Erik could pull the trigger. Erik felt his ribs crack as the short one rained a series of blows to his torso. Erik knocked back the short one with a blast of power. Then stars erupted in his eyes as a sledgehammer blow hit him in the back of his head. Erik stumbled and a second blow knocked him to the ground. The two men spoke in a language Erik didn’t understand as he fought to remain conscious. One last trick to try.

Erik placed a thin barrier of power above him as he took several deep breaths. He would have the barest second’s worth of advantage with the way these two moved. He felt one of their hands move through the barrier. Erik pushed himself up with a burst of power as he drew Far’ling from its sheath under his jacket. The short sword gleamed brilliantly before effortlessly slicing off the tall one’s hands. The man let out an unearthly scream as his hands smoldered on the ground. Part of Erik wanted to press the attack, but he knew better. Pushing hard against the stones, Erik flew into the air. With a tendril of power, Erik managed to snag his pistol as he flew onto a nearby roof.

He laid on cold steel of the roof, gasping for breath. Whatever those men were, they weren’t anything he’d dealt with before. Erik was going to have to ask Jason about them without explaining what Kurt and he were doing. The Americans tolerated the Avalonians, but they did tend to take a dim view of actual espionage against persons nominally of American citizenship. Before Erik could come up with a decent fib, the blackness swallowed him.

Anne

“Remember to relax and concentrate on just feeling the magic,” Veronica said. The two women were sitting cross-legged across from each other. The thick carpet of Anne’s sitting room made the position slightly less uncomfortable. Anne didn’t understand why they couldn’t do this on her perfectly nice overstuffed chairs. Veronica tsked in reprimand which brought Anne’s mind back to what they were supposed to be doing. Anne tried to relax her mind to see the lines of magic. Of course, that was assuming she could relax her mind.

“You’re still not relaxed, Anne,” Samantha said from across the room. Of course, the psychic got to sit in one of the comfy chairs with a drink in her hand. Anne felt the slight pressure in the mind as Samantha scanned her surface thoughts. After three months of living with the Avalonians, Anne was used to Samantha’s casual probing. As far as they were concerned, it was no different from someone being able to read the expression on your face. “Veronica, you’re not going to get anything done today with her.”

“Why not?” Veronica asked, trying to hide her annoyance behind a facade of calm.

“Because Anne can’t concentrate on learning how to sling spells when she’s occupied with what she is planning to do tonight,” Samantha answered, smiling.

“Damn it, Samantha,” Anne said. Anne turned back to Veronica. “I was really trying. Really.” Veronica audibly sniffed and stood up with an unearthly grace.

“Very well. What is so important that you can’t concentrate during one of our few sessions?” Veronica asked. Anne felt a stab of guilt at the small woman’s glare. Anne knew these sessions were important to help her get control of her newly-discovered ability to use magic. Unfortunately, Anne was also a homicide detective and had a stack of cases that took up most of her waking hours. In the three months since Anne and the Avalonians moved into their new home, she’d only been able to make a half-dozen sessions with Veronica.

“I’m going to ask Kurt out tonight,” Anne answered hesitantly. Veronica’s eyes went wide in surprise, while Samantha just wore a satisfied smile.

“As in a date? A real date? Not one of those fake dates you’ve been having with him for the past couple of months?” Veronica asked, her stern instructor face melting into the hopeful smile of a young woman.

“What do you mean ‘fake dates’?” Anne asked, feeling the crimson rising in her face.

“Why do you think he’s always volunteering to go with you when you go running or when you hit that coffee shop in the morning?” Samantha asked. “All those times up on the roof?”

“We just talk,” Anne protested, knowing that the other women were right. Kurt had been perfectly willing to be whatever Anne needed for the past few months as she adjusted to her new life and the loss of her old partner Dale. It was only in the last week that Anne decided that she wanted more from Kurt and felt ready to pursue it.

“So, what is this real date?” Veronica asked. Anne stood up and walked over to where her purse was hanging. She pulled out the three laminated strips of paper and showed them to Samantha and Veronica.

“Three tickets to the Mia Gold concert, and they’re right up front,” Anne asked. “Two for Kurt and me, with a spare for whichever of you has to do guard duty. I had to twist one of my CI’s arms to get these without bankrupting me.”

“That is so cool!” Veronica said, looking at the tickets in awe. “That concert’s been sold-out forever.” It was times like this that made Anne remember Veronica was only in her early twenties. Very early twenties.

“I’m glad you’re appreciative Veronica, because you’re going with them,” Samantha said, the slightest hint of disappointment in her brown eyes. Both Anne and Veronica looked at her in surprise.

“Wait, you’re a much bigger fan of Mia than I am,” Veronica said, “You’ve got all of her songs on your phone. Why don’t you go?”

“Because I can’t,” Samantha said, cryptically, “I’m sorry. I just have other things that I need to do that night. So, feel free to escort them and enjoy the concert. Just remember why you’re going.”

“Nothing against you Veronica, but shouldn’t Erik be the one to go with us? He hates Mia Gold, so he’d just be there to guard us without being tempted to just listen to the music.” Anne saind.

“Erik will be busy with me at the time,” Samantha answered. “So, it will have to be you Veronica.” Veronica and Anne both gave Samantha shrewd looks.

“The two of you will be busy with something that you’re not going to tell us about while everyone else is out of the house?” Anne asked, with a mock severity. Samantha gave Anne an annoyed look, which caused Anne and Veronica to burst out in laughter.

“We have to do something for Lady Maritza,” Samantha said. “For the record, you two are incorrigible.”

“Well, it’s just that the two of you are so close, and you’ve never given us a good reason why you haven’t got together before,” Veronica said.

“That’s because there’s never been a good reason other than timing,” Samantha answered, clearly uncomfortable. “For the longest time, we were happy just being friends. Most of the time, like now, even if we wanted to do anything, we couldn’t. So, we just have a close friendship.” Samantha stood up from her chair. “I should let you two practice. I’ve got some reports to look over for the lady.”

“Well, that was odd,” Anne said, watching Samantha leave her apartment.

“What? She always gets flustered when we talk about her and Erik,” Veronica said, sitting cross-legged on the floor.

“No, not that,” Anne said, “She was lying about having something to do with Erik on the day of the concert.”

“So?” Veronica asked.

“It’s just an odd thing to lie about,” Anne said, her detective instincts kicking in. Odd things tended to get her attention. Veronica read Anne’s expression and let out a long sigh.

“Well, since we’re not going to get any training done tonight, how are you going to ask Kurt out?”