Update
Today, it was a slightly shorter update, but that's made up for by having more action than yesterday's.
Current Word Count: 24,191
Scene of the Day
“Now that’s a
helluva warding!” Mikhail said with a rough bark of laughter. “You definitely
pull out all the stops when you want to impress, lady.”
“No shite. Yer damn aura nearly blinded me, there,”
Collin complained with a wince.
“I aim to please. So, the shield’s up. Now, we just have
to wait for the morons to show up,” I said with a quick glance at a nearby
clock.
“Actually, I know I shoulda’ asked this before, but how
do you know they’ll be coming tonight? They could come around in the morning.
Actually, they could’ve come running straight here from your office,” Collin
mused.
Just as I was about to respond, Nyx gave a shrill cry
that sent all three of us on full alert.
I sensed the incoming power outside my ward, a second
before I dove.
Mikhail and Collin both went with me as Nyx dropped to a
low squat on the floor.
The world fell into blinding chaos.
A loud, brilliant explosion of light surged across the
windows of the Zodiac.
They held up surprisingly well, against the force, at
least for a while.
As my wards flared just as brightly around the borders,
the glass began to wobble and crack.
Smoke began to seep inside, forming a solid wall of inky
black against the molecule-thin walls of magic at every entrance it tried.
The attack pressed against my mind as it repeatedly
bashed into the wards.
Whoever was throwing magic around really wanted us dead.
The assault was relentless, with green fire and black
smoke constantly rushing at us anew.
It became a matter of which magician had more power to
burn, and the flickering barriers suggested I hadn’t put enough energy into
mine.
As I started throwing my own magic into the ward, I
noticed a pair of flickering, coal-red eyes that moved from window to window,
always staring at me.
I’ll admit, petty as it was, knowing that our attacker
had summoned a fire demon made me feel slightly better about how quickly the
protections were failing.
At the same time, I cursed the stupidity of not taking
into consideration that our assailants might have a contracted spirit or two
latched to their soul.
Still, humans were, I found, much less easy to deal with
than creatures bound by magical rules written into their blood.
“I cast thee out from this domain, assailer from the
shadows! Spirit of fire, leave with this covenant intact, before the hounds are
set loose in recompense!”
The eyes flickered, and whatever spirit it was seemed to
give a growl in response, if the rumbling floor was any indication.
“Shite, that was the wrong move.”
For one second, the fire and smoke pulled back, and I
began to think I’d spoken too soon.
Then, it collected into a single fist of solid Hellfire,
and the black form rammed solidly into the wall directly in front of me.
Had it just been a magical attack, my wards still might
have held.
But it had put mass into its attack, and while the magic
was kept out, the red-hot flames managed to get inside.
The fire flared like a living creature, and surged at
us.
That the building was still standing after that assault,
when it would normally be turned to a large pile of ashes, said something about
my magic, if nothing else.
“Fek! Mick-”
I was already moving before Collin could give whatever
command he had in mind, dagger clutched tightly in my hand.
“Under the domain of Mercury, I charge this blade with
the power of North’s frost! Undines, spirits of the world’s blood, grant me
more of your power this night!”
The steel flash froze in my grip, sending off waves of
chilled air and cold, hard power into my hand.
The fear of frostbite quickly became legitimate, and I
sent it hurtling, with a hiss, right into the flames.
Flames continued to spread for a few brief seconds, the
magic seeming to do nothing.
Then, there was a blast of blue light, and the fire was
snuffed out in an instant.
Ice crystals danced in the air as my dagger fell,
sticking up to the hilt into the wooden floor.
More ice rushed out of the window, following the source
of the offensive magic.
I followed that, moving outside in a single vault
through the shattered glass.
By the time I was outside, three men were scrambling for
the black van across the street, seeming to have just realized their pet had
vanished with a bellow of rage.
I didn’t need to do any guesswork to figure out it was
the same team that had tried killing me in my own office.
One of them was slower, due to a noticeable burn through
his right leg.
He released a very high-pitched squeal of surprise when
I slammed into him, grinding his face into the road as we both went down.
In a word, the magician was greasy, hair sticking to his
entire face, save for half his mouth and an eye, in an oily black mess.
The blood and dirt added to the effect.
Clearly, the thugs weren’t friends, since the sound of
screeching tires is what pulled me from my short analysis.
Headlights filled my vision as they hurtled towards me,
and I felt the whole world dim.
My new friend and I were across the street with a dive
just before it would’ve hit us.
While I turned after the van, perhaps to throw a ball of
explosive essence if I could get it fast enough, it took a corner and
disappeared.
The good news was that, apparently, whoever was hiring
them wasn’t paying enough to make dying seem like it might be worth it.
The exertions of my magic and sudden burst of exercise
hit me at the same time, driving my breath out in a nasally wheeze.
With a cough, I spat a clump of dirt to the ground, and
my arm throbbed with pain in time with my heartbeat.
“That was a show,” Collin quipped from just by the
window I’d left.
“Glad ya’ approve. Don’t worry, Maxwell, yer fee also
covers any medical bills,” I hissed.
Spinning, I sent a swift but powerless kick into the downed
thug’s side.
“Wake up, arsehole, yer not lucky enough ta’ be dead
yet.”
With a groan, he rolled over and forced himself up.
A knife flashed as he drew it from his sleeve as he
went, sending a swirl of red light with the motion.
My magic leaked out, and he paled as the air darkened
and gained a wild, natural scent that the city would normally have long choked
out of existence.
“Drop the toy. Gettin’ firebombed put me in a bad mood,
an’ I’ll be happy ta’ take it out by turnin’ yer body into a piñata,” I
growled.
My vocal chords rumbled with the magic flowing through
me, signaling just how pissed I really was.
Reining it in took a lot more concentration than it
should’ve, which is how he managed to move first.
The thug lunged, flash aimed straight for my throat.
Fortunately, I recovered quickly, and he hadn’t made a
full three steps before I ducked under his arm and slammed my hand into his
wrist.
Green light pulsed at the contact, and he squealed as
smoke rushed up from a circle of completely withered skin.
His dagger clanged noisily to the cement, snapping on
impact.
Before he could come out of his idiotic charge, I
brought my knee up into his midsection and sent him down in a limp heap.
“Any other stupid moves ya’ wanna’ give a try, ya’ thick
cretin?”
“Screw you!”
“Not even in yer best dreams. So yer the one that just
tried ta’ torch us, yeah?”
He opened his mouth to retort, and I raised a hand
testily.
“Let me make it clear that, if yer honest, I’m less
likely ta’ break anythin’ important.”
Collin laughed at that, which seemed to terrify the
magician even more.
“Shut it. Now, that guy, he hired me ta’ find yer
number. Be helpful, save me the time, an’ I swear on Styx I won’t light yer ass
on fire an’ send ya’ runnin’ fer tryin’ ta’ kill us.”
He finally managed to get back to his feet, eyes
narrowed in hateful slits.
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