Excerpt: Under A Blood Red Moon

“Hell!” I heard myself scream, clearly not having expected her action and not having closed my eyes fast enough. Dots danced in front of my eyes, and I heard Victoria scream again. The Dogs clearly had the keen senses of the Wolves. Having sensed weakness on us, they used the moment to attack. Panic was contagious, and I had to force myself to not just bolt in the help of my two companions. Instead, I glanced about, checking for any possible threats from the shadows and I saw none. The second assailant had come from a reduced hole on the wall – Richard possibly had underestimated him by thinking him to be across the wall, and, thus, cut off from us. Smart. Resourseful. Prepared their territory to their best advantage. Not at all what I’d expect from mindless creatures. I shouldn’t waste time singing their praises, however. Richard was down, Victoria was down, and I had the sensation they’d come for me next. This was a matter of split seconds, but I realize, on instinct that I should move.

Above!

Old house – easy to cut a whole through the floor to give you instantaneous access to the lower floor and from an angle most people wouldn’t expect. My reactions, magnified by my magic, got me out of impact point right on time. As I slid back, I kicked forward, still half blinded, and I was rewarded with a satisfying crunch. The immediate threat being taken care of, I went to a followthrough by unleashing two of the remaining bullets I was holding, not waiting to see where they hit, as long as they kept the Dog busy. I was still seeing spots in front of my eyes, but I was recovering enough to notice where Richard had fallen, and the prone figure on top of him. I went for an old trick and, pulling my leg back, I kicked the guy on the unmentionables. Crazy mega powerful junkie or not, it seemed no amount of drugs could protect you against certain cheap shots. It let out a long mournful wail and promptly keeled over.
Richard was bleeding, but seemed mostly unarmed, and gave me a nod of thanks as I turned to check on Victoria, who I came to notice had just bounced her attacker off the ceiling. I gave her a thumbs up, and then kicked the whimpering one, still clutching his crotch, a swift, heavy kick to the ribs. It made a soft gurgling sound, and I kicked it again. Three dead, one out of commission, and we were still missing Frederick. Richard tossed me a pair of handcuffs and I managed to get them on the Crotch Guy. Took me a bit more than I expected, because I had never slapped cuffs on anyone, and I had to wonder for a moment what was Richard doing carrying them in his pocket. Okay, maybe we’d manage to bring someone alive.

“How many left?” I asked Richard, quietly. He rose two fingers in answer and then pointed upwards. I nodded in answer, and crouched, increasing my kinetic potential, before jumping up, through the hole the guy that had pounced me had used. I landed in a crouch, silently, glancing about. No immediate threats, so I quickly scooted over, allowing Richard and Victoria to have room when they followed me. I didn’t wait to check on them, wanting to make sure all was in order. I needed Rich with me up there as fast as possible, to try and spot Frederick. My wish would soon be granted, because something hit me hard enough to slam me into the ground. I could feel my head snap back, and I had to make an effort not to let it hit the floor – didn’t manage to do it entirely, but at least I didn’t hit it with as much strength as I expected. It took me a moment to realize I hadn’t suffered from the blunt impact alone, because I felt warmth sliding down my left side. I had to pray it was only blood. Curling my knees upwards, I strove to use them as a shield between me and my assailant. Didn’t do a lot of good, but bought me a moment’s respite, which I used to clinch his adam’s apple and squeeze. I was rewarded with a muffled scream of pain, a choking sound and heavy gagging. A backhanded slap made me release my prey, with such force that I blacked out for a split second. With my dogtags out of reach, I wasn’t certain I’d manage to survive the next attack, because I could sense him pulling his hand back. He had been forced to backhand me since he didn’t have a ready angle to do anything more lethal than that. But now, I could feel him reading his claws for a clean swipe for my most available target – my face.

Again, need for survival won, and I prayed that Victoria and Richard had not had enough time to climb up – I reached into a Dragon Vein, not too distant, and I braced myself, conducting all my will into managing only one small amount of the incoming energy, drinking only ever so lightly. The impact of the wave of energy that followed made me arch my back, but, thankfully, not pass out. I had timed it as best as possible, to try and draw in as little energy as possible, but I still brought too much. The explosion shattered every window in the building, and when my ears stopped ringing, I could hear the car alarms in the distance. I had to be grateful for the higher resistance of leather and the light chainmail I was wearing – this time, my clothes were in rags, but I wasn’t entirely naked. And I had managed not to disintegrate entirely my opponent. Sure, he was dead as a doornail, and it was all my fault, but he was still moderately recognizable. Point for me.