Bloodlord (Soulguard Book 3) (16 page)

Chapter 30

I could feel the gate below us and my rage was bleeding through my walls. It's so hard to keep it beat down as we wait to be able to attack. The hours and hours of riding in the plane had been torturous. Our little side trip helped a lot but the wait was almost over.

I could see the Souls below us as we made a circle of the Gate. They were pouring through the Gate as fast as they could run through it. And that was pretty fast. The newcomers pushing the ones ahead of them.

"If we hit out right in front of the Gate, they'll keep pourin through," I said.

"What if we hit about a quarter mile up the stream and cause a traffic jam?" asked Brighton.

"That may be workable," I said, "We get em all jammed up at the Gate, we can drop an Alpha on em. Then we gotta close the Gate. We used a contraption I built to do it last time and it worked, so that may be the best way to go. I'd love to study the damn thing from this side, but we don't have time."

"I don't see a Farrara'Ti down there," Lyrica said, "It must either be through already or still on the other side."

"One of our prime objectives is to find that bastard and kill it. Don't go after it if you find it. I saw the power at Kil'Sin'Deres' disposal. You don't wanna tangle with that. Leave him to me. That goes for you too, Lyr. The safest way to kill one of em is to rip it's Soul out. I'm the only one who can do that."

She nodded, "Use that skill sparingly, my love, It doesn't come without its price."

"That I know," I said, "It's one I have to pay. Those bastards are tough."

"What about the Mark?" Rostov asked.

"I don't have the juice to take this guy without the backup of the Shak'Tar or another group of Kresh. Plus the Mark is indiscriminate. It would Mark all of you, as well as the Kresh. It's not something we can use."

He nodded.

I clicked my coms, "Move us about a quarter mile north and keep the altitude. We'll jump from there. The nearest airstrip I know of is the Academy. We'll rejoin you there if we can."

"Roger."

"Hicks, I need your guys to set up when the planes land. Keep our guys safe and if it gets hairy, make em leave. We can come out on foot if we need to."

"Will do," he said.

"Alexei, Adaya, you're with Lyrica," I said, "Combat drop. Prada, Brighton, you're with me. Lyrica, I want you guys on the left side of that valley mouth. I'll be on the right. Juggernaut and come together. We'll create a landing zone for the rest."

"Got it." Lyrica said and headed for the rear of the plane.

"Keep her safe," I said to Trent and Mattie as they passed me.

"Will do," Trent said.

Mattie nodded as she went past. I knew they would be at her back and I wouldn't need to worry. They would never let anything get to her.

Prada and Brighton were at the rear of the plane when I got there and I pushed Prada out the door and Brighton laughed and followed. I was right behind them.

My adrenaline was spiking and my beast was at the gates. I focused on the ground below and the Kresh I was about to destroy. I formed the platform and my group formed up on it. We hit our chosen height and gave the signal. Prada and Brighton pulled and I snatched the power and added my own. The blast of power slowed our platform, the pressure pushing down on us. Then I signaled again and closed the portal on the feeder.

We landed with a crash amidst the charred forms of the Kresh that had been below us.

"Fire!" I ordered and Prada, Brighton and myself opened up with our disc launchers. Each of us faced a different direction so our discs blew a great hole in the center of the Kresh around us.

"Juggernauts!" I ordered and all of us opened the portals on our juggernaut armor.

The Juggernaut armor is a shield that incorporates most of a Mages Soulstream to feed. It is a large shield with blades along the sides that will demolish anything in its path. The front is sloped like the front guard of a train with blades along the top as well.

Each of the Mageguards is trained how to construct this shield as soon as they are ascended. It doesn't require a Pull and it is a devastating weapon.

We formed a V formation and launched ourselves forward, toward the center of the valley mouth we had aimed for.

I could see Lyrica's group hit across from us and erupt in fire. Then I hit the first of the Kresh and blood exploded around me from the multitude of blades I had placed on my Juggernaut shield. For large, compact groups of Kresh, the juggernaut shield is ideal. When they aren't as packed, Kresh can dodge around us.

What we ran through, here, was a huge compacted group of Kresh. They resembled sausage after we had passed.

I still had to reign in the beast in me. This was important. When I could set it free it would be when we were hand to hand with the enemy. It would come soon enough.

"We meet in the middle," I said over the coms, "Then Lyrica is goin to raise a shield across the mouth of the valley."

"Roger," Lyrica said.

"Then we drop the sky on that Gate and all the Kresh around it. When I give the word, Reyna will raise a shield between us and the valley and we'll Alpha. Then we go for the Gate."

"Copy," Reyna returned.

"We've only got thirty Mages for the Alpha but, we'll do what we can. Need to work with some of the Mageguards after this to be able to do that Pull."

"Give me a minute and I'll whip out my notebook and write that down for ya," Prada said.

"Smart ass," I returned.

"You did throw me out of another plane."

"No, it was the same plane."

"We killing Kresh or doing a stand-up act for them?" Lyrica's voice interrupted, "Battle Com System."

I laughed as my shield slammed through the last of the Kresh between our converging groups.

Lyrica dropped her Juggernaut shield and raised another across the mouth of the valley.

Reyna dropped hers and raised another on the other side of our party. We slaughtered the few Kresh that were inside the perimeter.

"Alright," I said, "Ten supports. Code Alpha."

Thirty Mages Pulled and steered the power upwards where I snatched it. Power flowed through ten streams into me as my body balanced the power usage.

I turned the fire in the sky into the circling pattern for a good thirty seconds. Then I slammed the whole roiling mass into the ground with the Gate as the center of the inferno.

"Cease."

The power stopped pouring into the sky and I threw the rest of what was already there at the Gate.

When the smoke and mist cleared we could see very few living Kresh near the Gate but the valley was still crawling with them. There wasn't anything coming through the Gate at the moment. The blast of fire must have gone through the Gate when I dropped it.

"Time to clean em out and go for the gate," I said, "Lyr, keep the shield up and Prada, your squad is guarding her. The rest, split into two groups. One with me, one with Rostov. Rostov on the left. I'll take the right. Kill everything that moves and ain't Human."

Rostov headed left and I headed right. Reyna dropped her shield and I let the beast out of its cage.

When I let it out, it scares me because I love it so. Rage floods my mind and my whole being is consumed for a moment. I push past it to a clarity I don't see that often. It's like I'm riding this monstrous beast. I can barely control it and sometimes I lose control altogether.

The beast consists of two things most of the time. Rage and Power. I used them both as I launched myself into the horde of Kresh and Kresh'Far.

My inhuman roar echoed across the valley and I ripped anything within my reach apart. I Pulled and fire exploded in front of me. The ones who followed me spread out into a v formation and we rolled over the Kresh. Discs exploded forward from any of the Mages and the Mageguards waded into the horde and tore them to shreds.

It was different from the last invasion in Kansas. There we faced them with Soulguards. Mageguards, well, they're another thing. They fight as Guards fight but they have the strength and speed of Mages. There isn't much that can stand up to an onslaught like that and this small valley full of Kresh wasn't one of them.

I saw a black shield come through the Gate and my beast roared, victoriously. Could we be this lucky? I turned and charged toward the Gate. The shielded figure stopped and surveyed the area. I felt his mental commands and the Gate closed.

He should have backed through it, first.

I ripped his shield apart and was inside in a fraction of a second. I saw his aura as surprise flooded it at the ease I had gotten to him. He started to Pull but my discs started hammering into his chest. He was a strong Kresh'Ma'Nar, but my discs ripped through his chest in an explosion of fire, blood and ash.

The shield was gone and all of the remaining Kresh charged toward me. I stood and waited.

Most of them were picked off by the Mageguards as the charged toward me. One lone Kresh'Far made it through and I seized it by the throat. It froze as I looked into its mind and it felt the strength of the mental grip I put on it.

It was six and a half feet tall and I had seized it and slammed it to the ground. I stared deep into its eyes.

"Tell them Rash'Tor'Ri is coming for them. Tell them to run as fast as they can. I come to devour their Souls."

I threw the Kresh'Far toward the shielded mouth of the valley. The Kresh on the other side were long gone toward the north.

"Drop the shield," I said over coms.

As the Kresh'Far landed, he looked back at me with fear in his Soul. He ran north past Lyrica and her group.

Chapter 31

"Apparently," I said, "My little trip over to Kresh has made em a little skittish."

We stood near where the Gate had been.

"Accordin to what I saw in its mind," I said, "They came here because I was in Kansas. They're worried I'll go back and kill more Farrara'Ti. That was why that Ma'Nar ordered the Gate closed."

"But you're such a likable chap," Stone said.

"He does tend to break stuff," Prada said.

"You can't buy him anything pretty," Lyrica said.

"I'm right here."

"He flies off the handle at a moment's notice," Trent added.

"Always running around screaming," Reyna said.

"Leaving Graffiti on walls," Adaya said.

"Right here, people."

"Killing, I guess you'd call them, leaders of state," Mattie said.

I just walked away. As I looked around the small river valley, I had an idea. The sides of the valley were far enough away from the Gate that we'd never get enough power to blow the sides in to cover the Gate.

"How deep do ya think this valley is?" I asked.

"Fifty, maybe sixty feet," Brighton answered.

"So what if we put a dam on the mouth and let this Gate be at the bottom of a lake?"

"They have to have some sort of system to let them know the Gate is blocked," Lyrica said, "It might just work."

"So how do you make a dam that will hold?" Rostov asked.

"We call Jack," I said, "He's an engineer. Who's got the sat phone?"

As everybody pointed at each other, I sighed.

"Did we leave it on the plane?"

Silence.

"Damnit."

"We'll just do the best we can," Lyrica said, "Then after we kill the rest of the bastards, we'll come back and make sure it holds."

"I guess so. Let's get to it then."

We jogged toward the mouth of the valley. The opening was about a thousand feet across.

"Lyr, you build a wall and plant it deep, maybe forty feet. I'll build a sloped back and do the same. Then we'll connect em."

"Sounds good."

It took a little while. But once we planted the walls, we met in the middle with the feeders.

"I sure hope this doesn't blow up," I said, looking at the parts we had planted in the ground.

"It's a construct, it won't blow up," Reyna said, "What blew up was when you filled the empty spot between the shield walls with the Source. Let's not do that here."

Everyone backed up and raised their personal shields anyway.

"You first," I said to Lyrica, "Then me."

She pushed her twenty four inch feeder into the ground and the Source poured into the construct. I watched as the dam took shape and as the power poured up the feeder I was connected to, I pushed it into the Source and cut my connection. The power fluctuated and the construct was finished.

The water from the river began to whitewater where it hit the shield and I could already see it start to rise.

"Let's hope it's strong enough to do the job," I said, "Now it's time to keep a promise I made that Kresh. We pursue and kill any that we can get ahold of. Maybe we can keep em movin fast enough to miss some people."

"If we're lucky," Trent said, "More than likely, they'll all turn around and dogpile us."

"Target rich environment," I said.

"You may be a nutbar," Trent said, "but I kinda like ya. So let's get on with it."

"Damn right."

We started north at a run. Lyrica ran right by my side and I was remembering days spent running through the hills of Montana. I think that may have been when I really fell in love with her. I'm not certain. I just knew at some point that I could not imagine a life without her. It really came to the fore when I had thought the Shak'Tar had killed her. I was deep in thought and I almost missed the group of Soulguards coming from the east, toward us.

"Halt," I said over coms and our group slowed down and came to rest.

"What is it, boss?" Rostov asked.

"We've got company inbound," I said, "It looks like the group from the Academy. We'll wait here for em."

"They must have seen the ruckus at the Gate," Adaya said.

I Pulled and sent a fiery blast into the sky for them to home in on. Lyrica and I could see Souls. No one else I had ever met could do that.

The group turned their path toward us. We didn't have to wait long before they cleared the hills and closed with us.

Ekene Dakarai stopped in front of me. I had never actually met him and he was tall. Nearly seven feet tall. He wasn't huge like Kharl, but tall like a basketball player. I had to look up at him.

"Rourke," he said with his huge hand outstretched.

"Good to meet ya, Dakarai," I said and shook hands.

"We saw the fireworks down at the Gate and figured it might be you," he said, "Malcolm has told us many stories of the Soullord since he came back."

"He was a good man," I said, "It saddened me to see him and his men fall."

"Me, as well," he said, "What are your plans?"

"I intend to attack their rear and drive them north. Hopefully we can push em faster and they'll start missin people. The countries above us are being evacuated for the most part but there will be people still there. Some wouldn't have left or were just plain missed. If we keep pushin they me yet survive this."

"How do you know they will run?"

"Because every time we get within range, we're gonna drop the sky on em. They don't like that. If we get lucky we'll find the Farrara'Ti and really piss em off. If that happens, we run north and they follow. That's about as much planning as I have."

"Simple but it should be effective," he said.

"Fall in with us," I said, "We're makin a stop at the Academy, first and sending any wounded out with Lyrica on the planes. How many of your guys are hurt?"

"We have a camp in the hills over there," he said, "There are nearly a hundred wounded there and some of our men are wounded, here but I couldn't get them to stay."

"Here's what we'll do," I said, "Lyr, I need you to take a couple of our squads and get those wounded to the planes at the Academy. We'll send some of Dakarai's wounded with you so you can find the camp. As soon as you can, do your thing. We need healthy warriors. Get em to Cairo and tell them what we're doin."

"You be careful, down here," she said, "Who do you want me to take?"

"Take Reyna," I said, "She's got the best shield."

"Then you should keep her," Lyrica said, "You'll be fighting, I won't. Use your head here, not your heart."

She was right, I wanted her protected and that was influencing my choices. I could use Reyna's Shield.

"If I might make a suggestion," Dakarai said, "My injured are mostly Guards. The Mages are harder to kill. Keep all of the Mages and send the Guards with her. What we are about to do is infinitely more dangerous for them."

"That would be the smartest thing," I said, "Ok, that's the plan. Round em up and let em all know. We're headin north in ten minutes."

Lyrica moved close and we kissed. The whole world was gone for a moment. The war, the Kresh, all the worries.

We parted and it all came back.

Ten minutes later, I started running north with seventy three Mages and three hundred and ninety Mageguards. When we caught up with them there would be hell to pay and my beast was in the forefront of my mind, reveling in the hunt.

I poured on the speed. There wasn't much risk of running off from the group, they were all Mage strength and we could run like the wind.