On the Hunt

Cool air moved over his skin, thanks to the mechanical ventilation system down here.



Behind him were businesses and shops built into the stone. They were all closed at this hour, their parking lots empty and interiors dark. He doubted any of the employees knew they were nestled in among demons.



If he had anything to say about it, he'd take care of their infestation and leave them none the wiser.



He glanced at Viviana. "Stay close. On my left."



"Got it. I do not want to be anywhere near that sword when you start swinging it."



"If things get hairy, you run. Keys are in the truck."



He could see her trembling, but she gave a brave nod. "It won't come to that."



Not while he drew breath, it wouldn't. He didn't think she'd be comforted by that fact, so he kept his mouth shut.



"I heard that thought. You're not going to die. I won't allow it."



He couldn't help but smile. She was cute when she gave orders. "Yes, ma'am."



They passed through the entrance, and the smellof wet animal assaulted his nose. It was dark, so he channeled a few sparks of energy to his eyes, using their link to show Viviana how to do the same.



She pulled in a startled breath. "Amazing."



The floor had once been smooth, but was now cracked and pitted. Abandoned metal racks meant to hold pallet loads of goods leaned precariously against one wall. Crooked light fixtures sagged from electrical conduits along the ceiling. A rusted forklift covered in dust and cobwebs sat to their left, tossed on its side, and the remains of a small office stood behind a cracked glass window.



Whatever had happened here had been unexpected and brutal.



There were two tall doorways leading deeper into the network of caves. "Which one do we take?" asked Neal.



"Right."



Neal headed toward it, listening for sounds of movement. His sword was in one hand, ready to strike at anything that got near her.



"It's close," she said.



A second later, she opened herself up to their connection, and Neal felt what she did. A resonant hum came from beyond the doorway, almost tangible in its intensity. He could practically see the sound waves emanating out from the disk, reverberating with the magic the object housed.



He opened his mouth to tell her how amazing that was when he heard a scuffling noise to their right, inside the room where the gadget was.



Viviana gasped in fear. Neal gripped his sword in both hands and stepped between the noise and her. "Easy," he whispered. "I've got you covered."



Some of the terror streaking through their link abated and he heard her let out a controlled breath. Power flowed out of him, and though he had no idea what she was doing with it, the feeling gave him a sense of pride. Of rightness.



"That's it, sweetheart. Just like that."



A second later, a flurry of motion exploded from the room as four sgath charged.



Power filled Viviana. It flowed through her veins and seeped between her cells until she was vibrating with it. She sucked it into herself, reveling in the ease with which it poured from Neal into her.



Pressure built within her until she felt like her ribs would burst under the strain. She had to let it out—get rid of the energy before it killed her.



Neal had told her she could wield magic, but he had no idea where her abilities might lie, other than her obvious talent for finding Sentinel artifacts. Unfortunately, neither did she, and it was swiftly becoming too late for thought.



A few feet away, Neal fought the monsters that had charged them. She could sense his need to keep them all occupied and away from her, but there were four of them and only one of him.



In a blur of smooth motion, he lopped the forepaw from one of the beasts as it attacked. Its blood spattered across Neal's arm, singeing his leather jacket. The thing howled in pain and fell back, lapping at its wound.



Two more surged forward to take its place, but one ignored Neal and looked right at her. Its Mr. Yuck green eyes flared with a hungry light and it sprang forward, jaws open.



A vibrant pulse pounded against the inside of her skull, nearly blinding her. Viviana gathered a ball of power and flung it out at the sgath.



Its body spun in midair, and it let out a pained snarl. It landed hard, skidding over the cracked floor before its sharp claws slowed it to a stop.



It turned, hackles raised, hissing as it slunk toward her.



She hadn't hurt it. All she'd done was knock it around.



Viviana realized then that she was no match for these things. She wasn't a fighter. She was a bookworm. An intellectual. She had no business wading into battle where brawn and blades were the only things that mattered.



Neal roared and spun in a deadly arc. The head of one of the sgath flew up into the air while its body continued to claw at him for another few seconds.



"Pull it together!" he shouted. "You can do this."



She wasn't convinced, but if she didn't do something, they were both dead.



That was the thought that brought a sense of calm down over her. She would not let Neal die, not when she had the power to stop it at her fingertips.



What she needed was a way to cage the beasts long enough for Neal to kill them—a way to protect him from their attack.



Viviana looked around for something she could use. Steel bars would have been nice, but all she saw was a broken pallet stacked with rotted-out sandbags. If she used her power to shove the pallet against one of the things and pin it to a wall, that might work.



The sgath stalking her circled to her left. Neal was too busy fighting off the others to stop it.



She formed a picture in her mind of what she wanted to do and convinced herself she could make it happen.



One by one, the busted sandbags flew off the pallet, freeing it. Elation filled her as she pulled on more of Neal's power, working faster as the sgath closed the distance.



The last bag split open, spilling sand between the wooden slats. She lifted the pallet into the air, seeing a faint wavering of energy connecting her to it as it moved. She shoved on it hard, sucking in as much energy as her straining body would allow, and hurled it at the beast.



It hit the sgath, slamming it back against the rock wall. The thing snarled and clawed at the wood. Its jaws snapped, sending wooden splinters into the air.



The pallet was swiftly crumbling to uselessness.



Panic sliced at her; then she felt a warm touch brush over her mind. Neal. Even during his own life-threatening battle, he was worried about her.



She could grow to love a man like that if they survived.



Viviana held the disintegrating pallet in place while she looked around for another option. The only thing she saw was dirt, sand, and flimsy metal shelving.



What she wouldn't give to have these sgath dead, stuffed, and behind glass in some museum.



Glass. That was it. She needed to put them behind thick, heavy glass.



Glass. That was it. She needed to put them behind thick, heavy glass.



As soon as the thought entered her mind, the power flowing through her leaped to obey. Heat shimmered from her, making the air waver. The plastic bags left in the pile of sand melted away, creating a chemical stench.



The sgath bashed through the remains of the pallet and lunged toward her, only to stop short as it neared the searing heat that was now making the sandpile glow a fiery orange.



Energy funneled through her so fast she could feel it chafing her insides. Heat built inside her skin until each breath came out as a puff of steam.



"Too much!" she heard Neal shout somewhere outside her world of heat and pressure. She didn't respond. She couldn't stand to let her focus slip for even a second.



The sand softened, allowing her to shape it into a thick, viscous blob. She kept the heat coming while she sent thick tendrils of molten sand toward the two remaining sgath.



Neal jumped away from the searing heat. She hadn't realized where he'd gone until she felt his cool touch at her nape.



Something changed in that instant. She felt a click, as if a magnet had stuck against her necklace. A heartbeat later, the conduit she'd been using to pull Neal's power into herself opened wide, letting a roar of energy sweep into her.



It was too much. She didn't know how to control it.



She gritted her teeth and concentrated on finishing the job. If she was still alive when that was done, she'd find a way to stop the torrent of power from destroying her.



The molten sand flattened into a plane and shaped itself to cage each sgath inside. The smellof burning hair and the sound of feral screams bounced off the cave walls.



She couldn't breathe. Neither could Neal. Now that she'd taken care of the threat, she realized she'd created another. She'd burned off the oxygen in here.



Black spots flickered in her vision. Behind her, Neal gasped for air.



Viviana cut off the flow of heat, and used the energy seething inside her to push the hot air from the room.



A cold wind swept over them. She sucked it into her lungs as she collapsed to the ground.



Neal eased her down, going right along with her as they crumpled in a heap. His sword clattered against the pitted floor. His arms surrounded her, holding her close. He was saying something against her hair, but she couldn't get her mind to work enough to understand his words.



Across the room, the smoking skeletons of two sgath sat trapped behind grainy, tarry sheets of warped glass.



"Hell of a trick," said Neal. "How about we get the gadget and get you someplace safe?"



"Works for me." She reached out with only a faint wisp of power and saw the artifact glowing in her mind's eye on the floor across the room. It was still inside the carved box, unharmed.



She was too tired to get up, so she pulled it to her. It floated through the air toward them.



"I see you're not having any adjustment issues," said Neal. "You're using my power as if you'd been doing it all your life."



The box landed in her hand, warm to the touch. An instant later, her world went cold, as if all the joy had been sucked from it. Something smooth and warm slid down into her shirt. A high, pained noise of mourning erupted from her. A second later, thick, suffocating darkness fell over her.