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The rain fell in huge round drops that hit the roof of the Challenger like a drum beat. Alex drove carefully down the long driveway up to the mansion where his teacher lived. It was late, the lights that lined the drive making the drops on the windshield sparkle. He couldn’t hear the crunch of the gravel on the drive. He had the stereo on too loud for that. The refrain of Radar Love rattled the windshield.
Or that’s what he thought it was. A crash of thunder made the ground shake as a huge blast of lightning blinded Tully. When the spots cleared from his eyes, he saw an unfamiliar motorcycle in the driveway. It was a big black Harley hard tail. The raindrops were quickly falling off of the wax on the bike’s paint.
Alex ducked as another bolt of lightning seemed to come from inside his mentor’s house, the windows on the second floor of the old brick mansion blew outwards sending down a shower of razor edged shards down towards him. He brought up his arm to shield his face. Just because he was immortal and would heal didn’t mean that he didn’t feel pain. He didn’t want to think about picking glass out of his eyes.
That was when he felt it, a surge of power that roared like a waterfall. As he grabbed for his katana out of the trunk of the car, the pressure in his ears built up. It was a different feeling, but he knew what it was. He was feeling another immortal, and this one wasn’t someone he knew like Caleb or Morgan. It didn’t feel like Helena either.
He slid the sword out of its sheath. Part of him thought about getting back in the car and driving away. But he had to know what was going on. Morgan might need his help, not that he thought he’d be much if push came to shove.
His long legs carried him up the steps two at a time up into the foyer. The lights were out. More glass crunched beneath his boots from busted out light bulbs and shattered mirrors. Alex could feel his heart pounding. He was afraid, but he knew he couldn’t let that fear paralyze him.
“Morgan?” he asked quietly as he headed towards the strong call of the other immortal. Please, he thought, be Morgan. Don’t be the other guy. When he came through down the hall, into the large room that his teacher used to train him, the mirrors that covered the back wall were all broken. Piles of broken glass were spread half way across the hard wood floor. In the middle of the floor was Morgan’s body. His head had fallen several yards away. Morgan’s dark eyes were wide open, and Alex felt like they were looking right at him. “Oh fuck.”
“A student,” the voice was a husky purr. Alex turned to see a willowy woman with skin the color of dark chocolate melt out of the shadows. She had a long sword angled over her shoulder. Her hair was beaded and hung down to the middle of her back. “How nice. I was feeling like I could have a little bit more.”
“More?” Alex held his own sword at the ready. He swallowed hard. He’d just proposed to Eden, and he’d promised to take care of her. He had no intention of dying now. “You kill my teacher and you’re ready to take me on already? Greedy much?”
“Shut up and play, boy,” she snapped. “As if I’d give you years to get better when I can just take you now.”
She didn’t say another word. Instead she lept towards him, her hair fanning out as she twisted and brought her blade down in a deadly arch. Alex darted to the side, bringing his katana up with both hands to block her strike with the unsharpened edge of his blade. He felt the force of her blow up the length of his arms. He was surprised he hadn’t felt it in his fillings.
Her next strike came close to slicing off his ear. Alex felt his hair move in the breeze of her blade and then felt the trickle of blood running down his cheek as he jerked away. As he fell back, he took a slice at her midsection and was rewarded by a hiss of pain coming from between her lips. First and second blood had been drawn.
Their blades skirled and rang as they danced back and forth across the floor. Alex slipped in a pool of Morgan’s blood and went down on one knee. As the woman rushed toward him, he brought up his blade at the last moment and impaled her through the stomach. Alex gritted his teeth and twisted the blade, just like Helena had done to kill him.
“I am not ready to die.” He didn’t withdraw his katana, instead he used it to help get back to his feet. “Morgan taught me how to fight with a sword. Hannibal King thought me how to fight dirty.”
The female immortal was gasping for breath at his feet. He knew he’d torn a lung from the frothy pink foam on her lips. He gave the sword one more savage twist and felt it cut through her spine. She collapsed on the floor only a few feet from Morgan with her legs spread out uselessly like a broken puppet. “There can be only one. That is how it goes isn’t it?”
When the Quickening came he knocked him to his knees. What hadn’t broken or burned out when she had killed Morgan was destroyed now. The lightning tore through the house and then hit Alex, burning along his nerves and frying his synapses. He screamed in pain as it kept coming in waves of energy and memories from Morgan, from Olivia and from each and every immortal they had killed in their long lives flowed through him.
In the end, he rolled over and gripped the wall to get back up. Rain was coming through what was left of the windows as he limped back to his car. Alex’s step grew stronger as he went, his body healing any damage that had been done to it.
As always the Challenger started right up, and he drove home without checking the rear view once.
Or that’s what he thought it was. A crash of thunder made the ground shake as a huge blast of lightning blinded Tully. When the spots cleared from his eyes, he saw an unfamiliar motorcycle in the driveway. It was a big black Harley hard tail. The raindrops were quickly falling off of the wax on the bike’s paint.
Alex ducked as another bolt of lightning seemed to come from inside his mentor’s house, the windows on the second floor of the old brick mansion blew outwards sending down a shower of razor edged shards down towards him. He brought up his arm to shield his face. Just because he was immortal and would heal didn’t mean that he didn’t feel pain. He didn’t want to think about picking glass out of his eyes.
That was when he felt it, a surge of power that roared like a waterfall. As he grabbed for his katana out of the trunk of the car, the pressure in his ears built up. It was a different feeling, but he knew what it was. He was feeling another immortal, and this one wasn’t someone he knew like Caleb or Morgan. It didn’t feel like Helena either.
He slid the sword out of its sheath. Part of him thought about getting back in the car and driving away. But he had to know what was going on. Morgan might need his help, not that he thought he’d be much if push came to shove.
His long legs carried him up the steps two at a time up into the foyer. The lights were out. More glass crunched beneath his boots from busted out light bulbs and shattered mirrors. Alex could feel his heart pounding. He was afraid, but he knew he couldn’t let that fear paralyze him.
“Morgan?” he asked quietly as he headed towards the strong call of the other immortal. Please, he thought, be Morgan. Don’t be the other guy. When he came through down the hall, into the large room that his teacher used to train him, the mirrors that covered the back wall were all broken. Piles of broken glass were spread half way across the hard wood floor. In the middle of the floor was Morgan’s body. His head had fallen several yards away. Morgan’s dark eyes were wide open, and Alex felt like they were looking right at him. “Oh fuck.”
“A student,” the voice was a husky purr. Alex turned to see a willowy woman with skin the color of dark chocolate melt out of the shadows. She had a long sword angled over her shoulder. Her hair was beaded and hung down to the middle of her back. “How nice. I was feeling like I could have a little bit more.”
“More?” Alex held his own sword at the ready. He swallowed hard. He’d just proposed to Eden, and he’d promised to take care of her. He had no intention of dying now. “You kill my teacher and you’re ready to take me on already? Greedy much?”
“Shut up and play, boy,” she snapped. “As if I’d give you years to get better when I can just take you now.”
She didn’t say another word. Instead she lept towards him, her hair fanning out as she twisted and brought her blade down in a deadly arch. Alex darted to the side, bringing his katana up with both hands to block her strike with the unsharpened edge of his blade. He felt the force of her blow up the length of his arms. He was surprised he hadn’t felt it in his fillings.
Her next strike came close to slicing off his ear. Alex felt his hair move in the breeze of her blade and then felt the trickle of blood running down his cheek as he jerked away. As he fell back, he took a slice at her midsection and was rewarded by a hiss of pain coming from between her lips. First and second blood had been drawn.
Their blades skirled and rang as they danced back and forth across the floor. Alex slipped in a pool of Morgan’s blood and went down on one knee. As the woman rushed toward him, he brought up his blade at the last moment and impaled her through the stomach. Alex gritted his teeth and twisted the blade, just like Helena had done to kill him.
“I am not ready to die.” He didn’t withdraw his katana, instead he used it to help get back to his feet. “Morgan taught me how to fight with a sword. Hannibal King thought me how to fight dirty.”
The female immortal was gasping for breath at his feet. He knew he’d torn a lung from the frothy pink foam on her lips. He gave the sword one more savage twist and felt it cut through her spine. She collapsed on the floor only a few feet from Morgan with her legs spread out uselessly like a broken puppet. “There can be only one. That is how it goes isn’t it?”
When the Quickening came he knocked him to his knees. What hadn’t broken or burned out when she had killed Morgan was destroyed now. The lightning tore through the house and then hit Alex, burning along his nerves and frying his synapses. He screamed in pain as it kept coming in waves of energy and memories from Morgan, from Olivia and from each and every immortal they had killed in their long lives flowed through him.
In the end, he rolled over and gripped the wall to get back up. Rain was coming through what was left of the windows as he limped back to his car. Alex’s step grew stronger as he went, his body healing any damage that had been done to it.
As always the Challenger started right up, and he drove home without checking the rear view once.
tired