Excerpt from Retaliation, The Alliance Series. Vol. 2 I have seen a lot of things in my life. I have fought cyborgs with the help of a gryphon and a werebear, I have assassinated everything from a Celtic banshee to a frost giant. I have battled Djinns and small bands of elves, but what I saw below me was something I wasn’t expecting. Standing at least seven feet tall was the largest minatour I had ever seen. Granted I have never seen one in person before, but I could say with relative confidence that this one was one of a kind. He stood on his strong legs, his hooved feet shuffling back and forth as he kept turning, looking for something that seemed to be flitting back and forth, like a fly that constantly buzzes around your head. His hair covered legs ended at his waist and the rough cows hide was replaced by sun weathered skin covering a torso that was packed with ample muscle. His arms were corded with strength and his shoulders were deep and looked as though he could easily dead lift a car. He wore a simple strap across his chest that housed the double bladed axe he carried in both hands, standing in a defensive position. His head was enormous as its bovine nature dominated his features. The large horns coming from his head showed that we were dealing with a male, seeing as how only males had the telltale longhorns. His eyes shone with intelligence and anger. As he turned to his left I saw a shape appear out of thin air, where the minotaur was an awesome display of power and strength the dark fairy that popped into existence encompassed grace and polished beauty. Her gossamer wings didn’t flutter, yet she stayed aloft, they were a dark purple and matched the fairy in style and beauty. She wore a dark black dress that was at once form fitting and also loose and flowing. Her body was beautiful as she exuded strong feminine features, an ample breast and a slender waist would make any woman jealous as her dark black hair floated around her head in a dark halo. Her eyes were large and feline in appearance, their light blue shade reminded me of the purity of an iceberg, or the sky before the sun fully sets and night takes hold. She held two long swords, their blades were slender and curved. The handles were black and in contrast to the white bone colored blades. Her face held a gentle wonder as her lips were full and ripe, like a juicy fruit on the verge of spoiling. An instant after appearing she rushed the minotaur and before he could react sliced him on his upper shoulder, drawing a small line of blood. He roared in anger more than pain, swinging wildly at the fairy. She easily dodged his attack and after letting out a soft giggle full of disdain and mocking joy, winked out of existence again. He turned in a full circle, anger and contempt filling his features, again she appeared, this time from behind him and stabbed him in the lower back, the tips of her swords red from his blood. He let out a howl of pain, this time her strikes hurt him. Over and over she assaulted him, her speed and agility too much for the much larger much stronger minotaur. I wanted to go out and stop her from hurting him again, I had no idea why they were fighting, but it was obvious that the minotaur was outclassed. I have seen plenty of atrocities over the course of my career and what I was witnessing was an act of cruelty, pure and simple. Normally I would have left these two to their own devices, but my change in vocation was due to my change of heart about these sort of matters, I could no longer leave knowing a creature was being tortured without due cause than I could walk away from my own shadow. I turned to Peotr and Nathan, both of them showing the same reflection of my own feelings in their faces. It made my heart swell seeing them supporting me without saying a word, it’s good to have friends like these. “I’ll see if I can’t distract dark and dangerous long enough to find out why she’s torturing big and hairy. Maybe she has a good reason.” I said. “Dark fairies don’t really need a reason to be viscious. I think it comes with the union membership.” Nathan added. “Da, they are a spiteful race.” Peotr added. “Maybe she’s just having a bad hair day.” They both smiled as we got up. I nodded once to them both gravely and jumped from the overhang. I don’t know why, normally a drop of twenty feet would be daunting and enough to make me want to find another way down, but something about this place gave me a sense of confidence and youthful energy, as if the normal rules of physics and my limits were not as rigid as they were back home. I landed in a smooth movement, slowly standing up to my full height. Nathan and Peotr both dropped down next to me, our appearance drawing the attention of both the minotaur and the fairy. They looked at us with surprise, Bignasty was on one knee while Dark and Dangerous was standing over him, both of her swords dripped with his blood as he kneeled in pain, waiting for death. A look of hope crossed his face at our appearance to quickly be replaced by open disdain. “Men, here? What foul trickery are you playing at?” He snarled at the fairy. She answered by absently swiping behind her without looking, causing another deep red line to appear on his chest. He hissed in pain. “Know your place, beast. These humans are not of my doing.” She said, turning to face us, she stepped to the side, keeping Bignasty on her right. “Easy lady macdeath, there’s no need to take out your anger on him.” I said. Nathan and Peotr had slowly spread out making us a larger target. “Then go about your business, this is none of your concern.” She hissed. Her voice was sensuous and came to me as if it was part of a song, a sad and malicious song, whose music drew forth feelings of remorse and dark despair. “Here’s the thing. I don’t know what’s going on here, and there’s a good chance ole bull face over there deserves what he’s getting, but I have recently adopted a new philosophy in my life and it just won’t let me walk away knowing you might be about to kill him just because you want to.” As I talked Nathan and Peotr had gotten about fifteen feet away and stopped. “You see I have had some run-ins with guys like that and I don’t really react well to that kind of thing.” “I need not explain myself to a mere mortal man, you and your kin have but one chance to leave, now, lest I turn my wrath on you.” “What say you, Bignasty?” I asked, hoping he could shed some light on the subject. Minotaurs were very similar to centaurs in that they put a lot of stock in honor and integrity. They could be as mean and dangerous as any being from the Otherworld, but they would be honest about why they are trying to kill you. It was kinda refreshing. “I have done nothing wrong, except fall behind my herd mates and be snared in this dark ones foul web.” He said through pain-clenched teeth. The dark fairly spun on him as he spoke and thrust her bone swords for his eyes, in a flash she moved, almost faster than could be followed. Nathan was faster. Her swords rang and the dome shaped shield Nathan had created around the large minotaur flared with a golden light as her attack was blocked. The vibration from the deflection caused her to stagger off balance and a dark and deadly anger filled her eyes. She turned to Nathan and hissed something unintelligible and then winked out of existence only to reappear directly in front of him with her wicked blades leading the way. This I had anticipated and when she came into contact with Nathan’s own personal shield I sent an amber bolt of lightning straight for her. At the last second she again blinked out of sight as my bolt flew past her harmlessly. The hairs on the back of my neck rose and on instinct I ducked as a razor sharp bone sword sliced the air where my neck had been. I heard a deep growl and Peotr slammed into the dark fairy, trying to bring her to the ground. She again escaped his grasp by teleporting out of it. She appeared ten feet away from the four of us, Nathan had went to the minatour’s side, Peotr and I both moved to close the space between us giving her a united front. “So, you are not weak mortals after all are you? There is more to you than there seems. It is no matter, I will kill you all.” She giggled again and again I felt her despair and ill intent wash over me. She came at Nathan, from every angle, slamming his shield with her swords, her power was immense and soon even with the energy provided by this place, Nathan’s power began to wane, with a grunt of effort he released his grip on them. She wasted no time and lunged at Nathan for the kill. I did not particularly approve of that and sent a tight, controlled gust of wind at her. I managed to deflect her trajectory enough so that she missed Nathan with her sword, but still she managed to swing her leg out and her foot connected with his jaw in an audible clack. Nathan went down from the mighty blow, the impact knocking him senseless. Peotr rushed her, beginning to change form and she adapted to his charge with unearthly grace. He rushed her, using his deadly claws to battle her bone swords, she was fast and used the same tactic on Peotr as she did on the minotaur, and it was working. She kept coming at him and landing attack after attack, her ability to teleport kept Peotr confused, I knew even with his healing power, if she managed to get a shot at his exposed neck it would kill him. I took a deep breath and hoped Peotr would forgive me for what I was about to do. I raised my hand and unleashed a large spread out wave of electricity, something like this would have been hard to do on my best day at home, but here it felt as though I had just scratched the surface of my limits. The amber wave rushed over Peort and he tensed as the lightning locked up his muscles, the fairy had not prepared for this tactic and as she came in for another rush was also caught in the web of electricity. Her flight ended and she flopped on the ground as 20,000 volts caused her nervous system to overload. I released the power in a rush and felt just a slight weakness that was quickly refilled. If I could bottle the air here and take it home I would be unstoppable. Peotr shook his head as he quickly recovered from my attack, his muzzle threw tendrils of saliva as his eyes focused on the dark fairy. He looked at me and I saw in his eyes understanding, and forgiveness, a look that also seemed to express the idea that I should have warned him first. He went over to the dark fairy and before she could recover grabbed her neck, placing his sharp claws just under her chin, he brought her close to his animalistic face, his dark yellow eyes bored into her as he said through a mouth full of razor sharp teeth. “Your quarrel with the minotaur is over, go and fly back home, knowing that we are not to be meddled with, we give you your life to let others know that our passing is to be unchallenged and uncontested.” He dropped her and without looking back stalked off, going over to Nathan who had begun to sit up. Unbridled fury blazed from her face, a dark aura flared to life around her and she rushed Poetr faster than I could react, faster than Peotr could react, he was caught unprepared for her reaction, her unrestrained anger fueled her as she flew at him with her blades. “AHVYKI!” Nathan’s voice boomed with untapped power. I had never heard the specific words he said when he released his magic, I could always tell they held power, but I never heard them. This time the word reverberated in my brain, echoing through all the dark corners as the power behind it pushed it through the air. The dark fairy slammed into a sphere of pure energy, it shone with a golden radiance when she hit it. Over and over she contacted it as she tried to teleport through it, but its solidity interfered with her magic and she was stuck, unable to escape. She flitted inside the small bubble, seemingly full of energy as she continuously banged against the inside of her prison, anger and fury driving her actions. Nathan just walked over to her, slowly. He stood in front of the clear bubble and watched as she tried to escape, eventually she calmed at seeing him staring at her. Her anger slowly evaporated as she met Nathan’s gaze, both became locked in each other’s gaze. He looked at her with pity, and she looked back with open wonder. “Why is something so amazingly beautiful so twisted?” He said to her alone. She turned her head slightly, a look of confused curiosity struck her followed quickly by another flash of anger. She turned from him and sat, placing her back to him. Nathan looked for a few more seconds at her then composed himself and turned to us. We looked at him with open wonder, shocked at his ability to trap a being as powerful as her when she had just so recently broken through his shield.
Posted on: Tue, 20 Jan 2015 02:48:52 +0000
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