The Guardian Lineage (25 page)

“Not yet,” Mike said, standing up straight. “I've got to kill Caulderon first.”

“He is probably long gone by now,” Stockton said, brushing off his uniform. “I'm sure he will not want to face Dementae, not after allowing all of us to escape.” Then he turned to Steph. “Where are the Gargoyles?”

“They're being held in separate chambers.” Steph limped over to them, holding the back of her head. Her eyes were puffy. Mike went to support her, but she waved him off. “At least what's left of them.”

Stockton looked like he might faint. “What do you mean, what's left of them?”

Steph looked terribly uncomfortable. “Dementae's been using…” Her voice trailed off. She choked up, bringing a hand to her mouth. It looked like she was going to cry again.

“Let's just find them, okay?” Mike said, putting a hand on Steph's shoulder. “Come on.”

This seemed to compose Steph a little. She nodded at the floor and wiped her eyes clean. Then she ripped off her Brethren robe and kicked it to the side, revealing the bottom of her Guardian uniform and a white tank top.

“I swear, I had no idea he would actually…” She looked at Minor for a minute, then bit her lip. Her face scrunched up.

“It's not your fault.” He held her by her shoulders and said it again. “
It's not your fault
.”

Steph nodded, her eyes wet.

One of the students started to pick up Minor's body, but Stockton said, “Leave him.” Somebody protested, but Stockton said, “There is nothing we can do for him now.”

Everyone was silent.

“In the meantime, Dementae will be wondering why Mike and Aaron have not come upstairs yet.”

With that, Stockton charged up the stairs.

“He'll probably need my help,” Julius Brutus said aloud, and ran after him.

Mike chuckled.

“We'd better get after him,” Mike said, taking Steph's hand in his.

Steph wiped hear eyes. “Yeah, let's go.”

The smell of decaying body parts hit Mike square in the nose as he entered Chateau de Vincennes' old Dining Hall. The pile of bodies was still here, and Mike dropped Steph's hand to hold his nose. Then, out of nowhere, Mike heard a sound echo throughout the castle, much like a prison siren.

Several vampires appeared from the far end of the room, pointing and screaming. Without hesitating, they charged the Guardians.

Mike looked behind him, just to make sure he wasn't missing anything. There were still about thirty Guardians, and only four vampires—

Who were joined by about four
hundred
others. Mike's body trembled as the room shook with a vampiric mass. The noise of their bloodlust was terrifying, and Mike took one or two involuntary steps backwards.

“Go for the heart!” Steph ran forward and engaged the first group. She slipped the double-sided blade out from around her hip and took out two creatures in an instant, kicked a third to the side and slashed the fourth in the throat. Quickly she jumped on the vampire and plunged the knife into his heart.

Mike was so impressed he almost didn't take after her. Only after a vampire was almost on top of him did he remember he was in the middle of a warzone. He thrust his hand forward. The vampire flew backwards as if shot by a cannon. Grabbing electricity from the chandeliers overhead, Mike blew his way towards Steph, who was isolated with four or five vampires near the door to Dementae's makeshift laboratory. Mike kept his eyes peeled for a stake or something. If he couldn't kill the vampires, it was going to be a long fight…

Mike flung one vampire backwards with telekinesis, then fried another with a jolt of electricity. He had almost reached Steph when a vampire grabbed him from behind. Mike used the vampire's forward motion and flipped the creature over, slamming him to the ground. Steph ducked to the floor, somersaulted over to the prone vampire, and plunged a stake into his heart. Then she pulled a metal stake out from her pocket and tossed it up to Mike.

“You keep these things on you, just in case?”

Steph said, “Behind you!”

Mike turned his head only to be greeted with a punch to the face. His world exploded, the lights turning out and his nose flooding with warm liquid. Blood seeped into his mouth. Mike felt himself get tackled him to the ground. The stench of his breath was nauseating as the vampire dove in for a bite. Mike's fingers grasped the vampire's head, sticking his fingers into his eyes, pushing him desperately. The vampire squealed like a pig, trying to get at Mike's neck. Mike pushed harder, now scratching at the creature's nose, careful not to stick his fingers into its mouth—

There was a hiss of flame. Then Mike's attacker disappeared, leaving only a flurry of ash and Steph's arm outstretched for Mike to grab.

It was the most bizarre sense of déjà vu.

Because back at the Slayer lair, it had been Laura who'd done the exact same thing.

Not that Mike was complaining. He took Steph's offering, then jumped in front of her to stake another vampire through the heart. First he felt the impact of wood on hard cartilage. Then he felt nothing, as if the body had never been there before.

“That's
wicked
,” Mike breathed.

“Sure is,” Steph called as she uppercut a girl vampire, then finished her off. Mike took a moment to survey the battle. His nose was probably broken, but he couldn't think about that now. It was impossible to tell who was winning. Mike saw flashes of light and flame amongst the mass of bodies, so he knew there were at least a few Guardians left. But how many, and how they were doing… it was impossible to know.

“We have to find the gargoyles!” Mike called to Steph as they fought back to back. He flung two vampires off to the right, then electrocuted another in the head. The fried vampire convalesced on the ground. But then he got up again, a nasty look on his face. There was
really
only one way to kill them…

Steph disengaged herself from battle. She surveyed the scene, as if thinking about which way to go. “Okay, the best way is through the lab! But we might need more than the two of us.”

Mike nodded. If Dementae didn't already know about the battle, he'd find out any minute now.

Touching his amp, Mike thought,
Magus, can you fight your way over to our position?

A little busy, Michael
.

Then can you be busy over here?

Mike saw an extended wall of flames shoot up from over on the left, so large that he felt the heat on his face from all the way across the room. His palms sticky, Mike wiped them on his sweat-soaked t-shirt. Which was pretty much the worst surface to soak up unnecessary perspiration.

“Come on,” Mike said, grabbing Steph by the arm. He telekinised his way in Stockton's direction. The pair fought their way through mass until they reached the flamethrowing Magus.

“We're going to free the gargoyles,” Mike said loudly. The Magus only nodded in response. He threw up his hands, and a shimmering barrier encircled the three Guardians. The noise of the battle dimmed slightly, and Mike saw vampires throw themselves against the shield, only to bounce off like they had been electrocuted.

“It won't last long,” Stockton cautioned. He hurried towards the entrance and burst through the doors to the Greeting Hall of Chateau de Vincennes, which was now Dementae's laboratory. Stockton spoke a locking charm on the door, and the crystal barrier dissolved around them.

Surprisingly, there was no one in the room. The huge white sheet lay flat on the ground. The body it had covered had disappeared, and the electric chair stood unused. Mike wondered where Dementae was, but he was not about to question this stroke of good luck.

“Hurry!” Steph ran towards the elaborately carved wooden doors that led to the courtyard of the palace. “They're keeping most of the gargoyles outside!”

Steph threw the door opened and Mike followed her out. But as he exited the building, he was greeted by a tempest, with gusts of wind that nearly pushed him back inside the building. Something howled – no,
roared
– behind the gusts of air.

Mike shielded his face and his body, struggling to stand upright against the airstream. As he peered through squinted eyes, Mike beheld the most terrifying creature he had ever seen.

It was
enormous
, dragon-like, a reptile with wings the size of airplanes. A pointed tail snapped back and forth. Its scales were jet-black. Enormous claws and legs protruded from its body. And two heads extended from its chest, tendrils of flame curling from its nostrils, screams of anger exiting its mouths.

Stockton grabbed both Steph and Mike and pulled them back inside. Then he closed the door with telekinesis, struggling against the gusts but finally pushing it shut. He spoke a locking charm on both doors, then rested his arms on the wood, breathing heavily.

“I see you've met my Chimmy.”

Mike whirled to see Dementae, standing with his arms crossed, a placated smile on his face. On his arm stood Cassandra, who was sucking on a lollipop as if she was at a carnival or something. And hunched over next to them, with her eyes glazed over in a blank stare, was Sepulchra Prior.

“Mom!” Mike yelled, to no response. She was a zombie dressed in Guardian clothing. “What did you do to her?”

Dementae tapped his Amp. “Amazing what this thing can do, isn't it?”

“Morningstar, of all the despicable things,” Stockton said, his mouth curled into a vicious snarl. “Breeding
Chims
?”

“Oh, come off it now, Magus. I'm only making upgrades on the Gargoyles. They're like gargs 2.0, or something like that.”

“Chimaeras are abominations, that thing is enormous!”

“I know, isn't she beautiful?”

Stockton shook with rage. “How many gargoyle hearts did you use, Evan? Twenty? Thirty?”

Mike's eyes widened. So
that
was why he had found the gargoyles ripped open at Windham. Dementae needed gargoyle hearts… and he wouldn't have been able to get them if the gargoyles were in their stone form…
that's
why the Brethren had attacked at night…

“For Chimmy?” Dementae rubbed his chin. “I think it was forty four?”

“Aaarrggghhh!” Stockton shot an electric bolt at Dementae, who merely rolled his eyes and flicked his wrist. The weapon ricocheted off an invisible shield and slammed harmlessly into the stone wall.

“Please, Magus, save the theatrics for the fans,” Dementae gestured to Steph and Mike. “All I have to do is
think
the order, and my Brethren – who I'm leaving out of this for the moment, by the way, because it's infinitely more entertaining without them – and my Brethren will feed all the remaining gargoyles to my Chimmy.

“Come now, consider the facts. I have your Guardians outnumbered a million to one in that room.” Dementae threw a thumb over his shoulder. “I have all your Gargoyles hostage, and I have the beautiful Sepulchra here attached to my mind.” Dementae tapped his temple. “Which means if I go, she goes. And we wouldn't want that, would we?

“Oh, and by the way, Stephanie?” Dementae shook his head. “I had high hopes for you, I really did. But I have to admit, your mother called it first. I just didn't listen.”

“She's
not
my mother,” Steph said, an acerbic tone in her voice.

Mike trembled with anger. Or was it fear? Probably a mixture of both. “So the video… the video that showed my mom…”

Dementae's face brightened. “Ah, you
did
see it! I was beginning to think you cute little magicians had missed it. A piece of art, wasn't that? I must say, my old classes in moviemaking really paid off there.”

“What are you talking about?” Steph said.

Laughing, Dementae said, “I rigged the surveillance video in Windham in hope that Mister Prior here would see it and assume his mother was on my side. Which, technically, she is.” Dementae patted Mom's hair like she was a pet. “I was really hoping you would join me willingly, Mister Prior. I
so
despise using threats to get what I want. By the way, I hope you appreciate my honesty in our business dealings. Like I said, I always keep my word.”

“I swear I'm going to kill you when this is over,” Mike muttered. “Let her go!”

“Now,
that
wouldn't be good for business, would it?” Dementae disengaged himself from Cassandra's half-embrace and took two steps in the Guardians' direction. “But I'm a man who loves competition on the highest level. And I see three of you, and three of us.” Dementae grinned widely, displaying yellow teeth that were a bit uneven in length.“How about a little three on three? Last team standing controls the fate of the universe?”

For a moment, no one said anything. Stockton glared at Dementae the entire time, his gaze never wavering. Steph looked uneasily from her stepmother to Dementae to Sepulchra, clearly unhappy with the proposition. It was one thing to be disloyal to her stepmother, but another thing entirely to have to kill her…

“Nobody opposed? In that case – Sepulchra!” Dementae's eyes narrowed as Mom snapped to attention.

“Kill your son.”

Sepulchra charged into action, flames twirling from the torches in the room directly to her wrists, then flying off in Mike's direction at incredible speeds. Mike reacted quickly by throwing up a shield.

The battle sprung into motion, as if a switch had been flipped. Stockton charged Dementae with electric fire, while Cassandra pulled out a broadsword from underneath her robe and ran towards Steph.

Mike had no time to watch anyone else. His mother fought furiously, and Mike found himself parrying intense volleys of flame. Even worse, he hadn't figured out how to attack back. He didn't want to injure her, but he couldn't just sit back and wait for something to happen… he had to disable her somehow…