The Irispire Portal Page 23

  Lev and Tamon move to the front of the boat. Tamon is heavily armored like his dwarven cousins below and is dual wielding AK-47s with those huge arms of his. Lara, and I move to the sides of the boat. Our erolith pilot stays at the back.

  I too am wearing a suit of elven armor. It’s the same design as Lev's brown and green, with strategic plates over my chest, shoulders, midsection, and thighs. As an extra bit of protection, Lara gives us all shining blue crystals to attach to our backs. It's a variation of their arcane shield. I've seen them in action in Thaddeus' office. Kyle attached one to the small of Lev's back. Whenever something hit him, or he crashed into something, the crystal created a barrier around him, which would soften the blow.

  "We've got incoming lords and ladies," says Tamon.

  The vampires get closer, and their snarls float across the air like a horrific wind.

  Lev squirms in his kneeling position, the rushing wind blowing his orange curls back. His finger is shaking over the trigger.

  "Hold lad," says Tamon.

  Lara unsheathes her shortsword. I unsheathe The Destroying Angel, holding her in a low, middle guard to my right — Porta Di Ferro. Lev and Tamon move into firing position.

  "Hold, lad," he says. "Just a bit more."

  The vampiric swarm grows closer. Their faces are a mix of beauty and horror. Like elves, they have Field energy flowing through their bodies. The elves have the Field energy created by the elements of nature, vampires are corrupted by demonic Field energies through possession, which gives them otherworldly beauty and monstrosity at the same time.

  "Pick your first five targets," instructs Tamon. "Relax. Breathe."

  "When?" Lev asks.

  "I'll tell ya," says Tamon.

  My left leg twitches. Adrenaline is coursing through my body. From the forest below us, the movement of hundreds of thousands of ogres shake the trees. Two miles in front of us, the screaming wails of the vamps make it sound like we're going through a wind tunnel. They're flying at us fast, and when they get to sixty feet...

  "Now!"

  Fire from thousands of guns peals out like thunder. The boats flying with us in a line unleash a gout of muzzle flame. Each dwarf on each boat knew exactly when to fire. A hail of zipping bullets sprays out into the night sky.

  Below, grenades explode in unison. Birds take flight, screaming. Then assault rifles cut the air. I can see short flames of gunfire through the trees below. Bullets streak out like flaming insects in the night. The sweetly stinging smell of gunsmoke fills my nostrils.

  Lev and Tamon continue to shoot the vampires coming at us. Silvered bullets tear their beautifully horrific faces to shreds, and pieces of their skulls fly off with every bullet that hits. But even though the volley of steel and silver bullets cause hundreds of vamps to fall from the sky, hundreds more manage to avoid our fire and get to the boats. We break formation and try to keep our footing steady, trusting our pilot to make the right moves.

  One vamp tries to grab Lev by the shoulders like an eagle snatching its prey, but I split its head with a downward cut. Then I bring the false edge of my sword up, and across in a horizontal ribbon cut, slicing the head off of another vamp. The head drops on the deck of the boat. I kick it up, hitting another vampire in the face. As the vamp pushes the head away, I thrust my sword right through its heart, pull it out, and fight some more.

  Lev rolls on the deck and picks up a twelve-gauge. Pump-boom-pump-boom-pump-boom! Vamps explode as the silver shots rip through their bodies.

  Tamon continues to fire with double fisted AK's. Once he’s used up all his ammo, he doesn't reload. He starts punching. I've been punched by his shotput like fists before, and it's not a good feeling. Agile and strong, he can use all four limbs to attack. His legs, built like tree trunks, propel him up, and his arms, long and strong, allow him to change direction, tumble, cartwheel, punch and kick. Once in a while, he would tumble near a firearm, fire off a few rounds, then go back to barehanded fighting.

  But when it comes to fighting, Lara tops us all. Each one of her movements has a graceful fluidity that allows her maximum efficiency using both movement and stillness to her advantage. Each one of her moves flows effortlessly into the other. She slices at one here, then spins and bashes another one with her shield, delivers a front push kick to get a bit of distance from another, and shoots out a quick bolt of arcane fire at the next. The lady is an expert at combining silvered steel and magic into one seamless dance. And no matter how much our boat shakes, she keeps her footing.

  As the fight goes on, the three of us who know how to fight in close quarters are fighting around the deck, while Lev is in the middle with all the guns, protected from the melee, and firing whenever he's needed. I want to say that we're winning, but that isn't the case. The best case scenario is that we're at a stalemate, with neither side gaining ground. We have fighting skill on our side. They have numbers on theirs. As soon as we finish five vamps, there are ten more to take their place. I'm not immune to fatigue. I am the most susceptible to it.

  Lara, whenever she needs it, casts a little heal spell on herself so that she can have some recovery. Tamon's got stamina for days. His legs, arms, and core muscles are strong, and he fights tirelessly. Lev, who doesn't have to worry about stamina at the moment, has problems of his own. Eventually, he'll run out of ammo.

  We're getting hit now. Also, some vamps know a lot more spells than just flight. Some know how to shoot bursts of wind, shards of ice, and some bolts of fire. They're not quite as graceful as Lara, but still effective. Our minor shields absorb most of their arcane attacks. I know I got hit with a couple of fire bolts, and I felt the impact of it, without the burning. My shield crystal is failing, and I have to use my sword to block some of their arcane projectiles. But you know what can't block balls of fire? Our boat. A conflagration engulfs the prow, and we are standing on a lot of gunpowder.

  "Lev!" I yell, as I block a fire projectile with The Destroying Angel, and punch a vamp in the face.

  "What?" Lev asks.

  "We've got a problem!" I say, and I point to the fire at the front of our boat.

  "Oh shit," he says.

  As Tamon, Lara, and myself fight on, Lev quickly gathers all the guns and ammo he can, putting them in ammo bags and slinging them over his shoulders. The guy looks like a mule covered in saddle bags.

  I spin closer to Lara until we're fighting with our backs against each other. "We need to get off this thing!"

  Lara finishes stabbing a vampire through the face, and as the demonic spirit leaves the human host, the vamp's body disintegrates into bones and ash. "Tell me something I do not know, former Bearer," she says.

  Then Lara looks to the back of the boat. Our pilot is in danger. He's fighting off vampires by shooting little motes of flame. He needs help, and Lara moves quickly to his aid.

  I am distracted for a moment, and a vamp gets right in my face, knocking me down to the deck, trying to bite my face off. Tamon grabs it by the neck with his giant hand, and with the other, pulls the head clean off of the body. The vamp turns to dust right in front of me. Then Tamon helps me up.

  "We're losing this fight, lad," Tamon says.

  "Tell me about it," I say.

  Our boat is almost all on fire. Not just ours, either. The other boats that flew out of The Palace of Souls with us are either on fire or being overrun. I look out at the starlit night, and see elves and dwarves fighting side by side, putting up as much of a fight as they can, but slowly getting worn down by this seemingly never-ending swarm. A vamp flies right at me. I miss with a downward strike. My arms are tired. My timing is off. Smoke stings my nose and eyes.

  "Larastrumbala!" I yell.

  Through the smoke, I see Lara surrounded by seven vamps. She's doing her best to protect our pilot, but the vamps are getting blows in. Then a vamp swoops in and snatches our pilot away. Our boat angles down and starts its freefall. Lara grabs the helm to right the ship. A vampire punches Lara right in the kidney from behind. S
he falls to one knee with her hands still on the wheel and is about to get dumped on, when Lev, still looking like a giant saddlebag, starts firing with a Glock-17. I join in, swinging The Destroying Angel at every monster I see. Lev and I manage to fend off the vamps around Lara and help her up.

  "I can't carry all of these!" Lev complains.

  Tamon balances on one arm and kicks a vamp in the head. Then he jumps at it and completely pulverizes its skull into the deck. He joins us at the back end of the boat. Fire surrounds us. Vamps are hovering above us waiting to see us burn from the outside in. All of them looking eerie as firelight dances on their beautiful faces.

  "Hand some of those over, boy," Tamon says to Lev.

  Lev gladly unslings several ammo bags. I take a loaded AK-47, an ammo bag full of fifty round mags, and sling them both over my shoulder. Lev reloads his AR-15 and butts it against his shoulder, aiming up at our attackers who are watching, waiting for us to die a slow and painful death by fire. The fire is almost at our toes, as we four stand with our backs to each other.

  "Remember the bridge?" Lara says to me.

  I nod. "Lev."

  "What?" Lev asks.

  "Don't freak out. But get ready to fly," I tell him.

  "What does that even mean?" Lev asks.

  Lara gathers Field energy. A gray light swirls behind us. I look back, and the crystals that Lara attached to the small of our backs turn from its previous shade of blue to a dull gray.

  "What's happening?" Lev asks.

  "I've changed the crystals on your backs from the shield spell to the fly spell," says Lara.

  "What does that mean?" asks Lev.

  "It means try not to get hit, boy," Tamon explains.

  "I am about to drop the vessel," says Lara. "Ready yourselves."

  "I still have no idea what the rest of you are talking about," says Lev.

  "Don't think about falling," I say to him.

  "What? Why would I think about fa—"

  In the middle of Lev's protestations, Lara releases the controls and lets our flaming coffin plummet like a meteor. It's a strange sensation to be levitating in midair. Tamon opens fire on the vamps around us as he is floating. Lara lunges toward the vamps and starts fighting with sword and shield. Lev, surprised, looks down, screams, and drops in a freefall.

  "Damn it,"

  I sheathe The Destroying Angel at my hip, then dive down to catch him.

  Thirty-Seven

  The rushing air cools the sweat dripping from my face as I fall. I remember this feeling. I remember falling from District Seven's sewer system, looking at District Six's buildings coming up to meet me, and me counting the seconds until I go splat. Last time I had a friend unconscious over my shoulder. This time a friend is falling and screaming. Lev is looking at me with wide eyes. His limbs are flailing trying to grab at me. I angle my body down, making myself more streamlined so I can fall faster. When I catch up to Lev, I grab him in my arms and think about hovering. The crystal stuck to the small of my back happily complies and allows me to hover, stopping our fall.

  "What the hell, man!"

  "I told you not to think about falling," I say.

  The sound of battle rages around us. Beneath us, fires burn along Superior's mountain valley forest. Both sides, vampires and elves are shooting fire and ice at each other, looking like lasers of orange and white streaking between the trees. Above us is more of the same. Elves and dwarves with crystals stuck to their backs are flying and fighting. Gunfire is ringing out everywhere. It's as if we're in the middle of a thunderstorm. Lev and I are in between both fronts. I am magically hovering, and Lev is hanging onto me for dear life.

  "Picture yourself hovering here in this spot," I tell him.

  "Okay."

  "You got it?" I ask.

  "Yeah."

  "Okay, let go," I say.

  Lev lets go of me and finds himself floating in midair. "Holy shit, I'm flying!"

  "Think where you want to go, and the crystal will do the rest," I tell him. "Now, follow me. And be prepared to shoot something."

  Lev nods and readies an AR-15. But before we can fly up, Lara's face materializes in front of us. She's gritting her teeth, huffing, and puffing.

  "Nyyx, are you all right?" Lara asks.

  "Yeah. We're about to come up to join you," I say.

  "Do not come up here!" she says. "We are getting overrun. There are too many of them. We are going down to the ground."

  "Okay. Should we meet you?"

  I didn't get an answer because I get hit in the face by what feels like a ninety-mile an hour fastball. If you think I don't know what that feels like, you are sadly mistaken. July 5th, 2020. I was up to bat for the A's when I took one right to the head. But at least back then I was wearing a batting helmet. This time I'm unprotected. My head is foggy. All I see are colored lasers and bullets whizzing across the sky. Then I see Lev's face, trying to get my attention. I can't hear him at first. His voice sounds like muffled womps.

  "Nyyx!” says Lev. “You all right? Nyyx."

  "Y...yeah...what happened?"

  "I don't know, man,” Lev says. “You were talking to Lara, and something blew by us."

  "Where's my—"

  I roll around in midair, looking for The Destroying Angel, and am relieved to find it sheathed at my hip.

  "Whew! Thank god," I say.

  "Don't thank him too soon," says Thaddeus. His voice echoes loud and clear. The demon general Dracul inside him gives his voice some celestial oomph.

  I shake more of the cobwebs from my head, and there he is, floating ten feet away from Lev and me. The air around him is warped and pulsing. Behind him hover ten of his succubi and incubi friends, all salivating and snapping their jaws at us.

  War cries, screams, and death gurgles echo from the battle on the ground. Ogres are swinging from the treetops. Their hardy exterior withstanding more than a few silvered bullets, and are taking several blows even from the strong and stalwart dwarves. The elves, even with their magic, are falling back as the ogre army stampedes across the land like wildebeests.

  I draw The Destroying Angel.

  "Hey that's mine," Thaddeus says.

  "I'd be more than happy to give it to you."

  He smiles at me. "Followers of Asmodeus! To me!" he yells up to his army.

  "Uh...Nyyx!" says Lev. He tugs on my sleeve, and looks up.

  I follow his eyes. Coming down from above, are hundreds of vamps, funneling down toward us like an F-5 tornado. My eyes widen with horror. I sheathe The Destroying Angel.

  "Dive!" I yell to Lev.

  We both swoop down from where we are. It takes Lev a few seconds of flying until he can turn around and fly backward, unloading silver on our vampiric pursuers. I should have known Thaddeus wasn't going to take me head on then and there. He wants to tire me out. He wants to punish me, bring me down to the brink of death so that he can deliver the final blow. It's been his style for centuries. Why change now?

  Lev turns around and flies forward, making sure that he's hovering above the treetops, then turns back around and opens fire. I ready my AK and start firing as well. I empty a full fifty round magazine. Reach into my ammo bag, find a new magazine, and start unloading again. Rinse and repeat. I do this four more times, turning around from time to time and making sure I don't run into a tree. Lev points up, and I get what he's trying to say.

  We start flying up. The tornado funnel made up of hundreds of vampires follow us. They're gaining on us. Lev and I keep firing at our pursuers. But no matter how many we kill, they keep on coming. The barrel of my rifle burns my hand, and I have to let go.

  The air stirs around us, and I look up. Twenty feet above us, Captain Haloran, is gathering Field energy into a black crystal. I turn back, and from out of nowhere appears a twenty by twenty arcane barrier, in midair, behind us. Fifty vamps smack their faces against the arcane wall, like bugs smashing against an unbreakable windshield. Captain Haloran lets out a battle cry, and behind him co
me a Phalanx of a hundred elves — a flying shield wall of blue arcane energy. The first line shoots out fire bolts in quick succession, while the second line follows with shortswords drawn, hacking and slashing any stragglers, like a flying Blitzkrieg.

  Lev and I join in, flying on the attack, this time behind two lines of elven warriors. I unsheathe The Destroying Angel, while Lev switches from one assault rifle to the other. Lev is getting the hang of flying, his reflexes are pretty good, and does well at avoiding lighting and fire shot by magic-wielding vamps. His gunplay is improving as well, and can switch between rifle, handgun, or shotgun depending on the range and the effect he wants.

  Below us, in the forest, the battle rages on. The dwarves are giving the ogres a hard time. The Thadamar are fierce warriors and can swing and jump from tree to tree as nimbly as elves can. They use their overdeveloped legs and arms to push off of tree trunks, and swing off of branches, all while kicking ogres in the face. The enemy's numbers, however, are what's keeping them in it.

  Amid all the chaos, Lara's face appears in front of me, nearly startling me. Her helmet is gone, and her beautiful face is beaten up pretty bad, with several bruises and cuts. Blood is trickling down her cheek.

  "Nyyx, we must retreat," Lara says. "There are too many. Our casters are succumbing to fatigue. Even we erolith cannot hold on for much longer."

  "Did you say, 'retreat'?" I yell over my gunfire. "No! We can't go back!"

  "We cannot sustain this kind of battle for too long!" says Lara.

  I look around. Lara is right. We can't win this. The dwarves are fighting valiantly against the ogres, but they are getting pushed back, trying to fend off as many as they can, swinging giant battleaxes and warhammers. They wield heavy weapons as if they were daggers, running tumbling and performing athletic feats of twists and turns effortlessly. The ogres are dying, but their battle lines are not getting thin. One-by-one, the elves I see are relying less and less on their magic and more on their sword arms. Even their arcane shields are failing.

  "What's the plan?" I ask.

  "We need to regroup!" says Lara. "Captain Haloran and those under his command have been ordered to escort you and Levinson back to The Palace."