The theatrics were over and we walked into the chruch. Vin and Ant both hesitated at the threshold for a moment before their faith in me kicked back in. Doubt was a powerful thing, and with magic it could eat you alive.
It was strangely comforting that the church used wiccan magics to make their truths be reality. The whole blood dripping, the water to wine, the fish and bread from rocks. All magic and pagan to the core. But humans don’t believe in magic. They believe in God and religion and miracles. When in reality it was one and the same. And that was the Clandestine Providence – humanities innocence at all costs. We were their Gods protector. We saved them from the horrors of the world ‘he’ created. We left the blind and unknowing so that they could live in their world.
There were no people in the pews. No one at the later. The church was eerily empty. We headed down into the depths of the basement, and then the catacombs. There were no sounds of fighting. But the impending doom was thick around us.
Firelight light brightly and flames shot from no where. I threw walls of air around us and they splattered against it in those moments just before reaching us. “The boy comes prepared.”
“I’m always prepared.” I said. “Come out Valence. I don’t want a fight.”
“Of course you don’t. You’d prefer to parlay. You work with those humans like they are worthy of our power. Look at you.”
I could imagine him gesturing at me and my power. But the tunnel was dark so I couldn’t actually see him. “The power comes off of you in waves. And you are nothing but a pawn for the humans.”
“And you are a traitor to your own kind. You turn on those that made you. We both have a few faults.”
A man in a t-shirt and jeans stepped into the light of an overhead grate. His eyes were bright blue and he large ears that stuck out the side of his head. I suppressed my smirk. But Ryan didn’t. “First time I’m seeing you Valence. Cari never let near you”
“Just a boy. Always will be.”
Ryan laughed, “That’s an insult? You insulted Nox better.”
Valence growled.
“I hope the weather here didn’t affect your flight patterns, Dumbo.” Ryan laughed, and I put a hand on his shoulder.
“That’s enough Ry, he’s stalling us.”
“Take him alive if you can, dead is preferable.” I said.
Valence laughed.”Ditto.”
Except there were fireballs thrown in my direction, but not from Valence, he wasn’t strong in that. The European Enforcer was darker, more evil that the US one. Which was really a crock of shit if you knew Cari.
I wove a shield around us and then thought of a different plan. There were bullets and fire flying back and forth, the fight had started and there were brawls down every corridor. I drew a set of runes on my hand and watched it sink into my skin. Instead of stopping there I pushed it through my bond to my people. I heard their yelp of fear and confusion and then I sent a mass of air through the corridors. It was like a sonic boom went off without the sound. Every one of the bad guys fell clutching their heads and mine were able to subdue them.
I felt Valence building power. “You aren’t the only one who can do that.”
His power seemed to come from something else somewhere else – a conduit. I pulled the gun from it’s place at my back and I fired one single bullet and the vampire dropped and the power with him. “Does he always underestimate his enemies?”
Ryan laughed, “I don’t think he expected you of all people to pull a gun on him.”
“Bring them all in.”
Ant frowned, “We don’t have enough cells that will hold them.”
“We don’t need to I can make more. Just get them to a place we can hold them. Even him.”
Everyone was looking at me like I was crazy – except Ryan. He was smirking. “Do you always learn things when you have temper tantrums?”
I gave him a grin back. “Not usually. But I have a plan now. They want to build me a place right? But that’s for later – right now let’s get them taken care of.”
The Mind of Nox 