began circling each other. “So what, you like getting your ass kicked by chicks in leather, is that it?”
He laughed. “Depends on the chick. You know, I wasn’t happy about coming here, but now . . . I’m going to enjoy seeing what you’re made of. What all the fuss is about.”
“Which won’t ever happen if you don’t stop yapping,” I pointed out. “You gonna talk or fight?”
“I do love you humans and your penchant for trash talking. No one does it better.”
He cracked his knuckles. A maniacal gleam entered his eyes. He made a motion so quickly I couldn’t follow it and then a bolt of blue energy shot from his hands and hit me square in the chest. I slammed into the sphere. All the breath went out of my lungs and a sizzling vibe radiated through me, lighting every nerve with pain.
How the hell did I fight him with no weapons of my own, unable to use my powers, and only reliant on my physical abilities?
I rose slowly and then charged him. Another bolt shot from his hand as I used my momentum to slide like a runner hitting home plate. The bolt slid an inch over my head. I slammed into him, taking him out. He fell forward over me. I rolled, popped to my feet, and roundhouse kicked him in the jaw as he tried to rise. He flipped to his side, rolled, and got to his feet. His hand went to the corner of his mouth and pulled away blood.
“You can’t take me in a physical fight,” I taunted him. Probably wasn’t the case, but if I could get him to physically engage, get my hands on him without him using his power . . .
“You have no idea how much I’m holding back already.”
I laughed. “Anyone who has to point that out tends to think they’re stronger than they really are.”
He came at me. God, he was fast. Every punch I blocked knocked me back several feet. And it was true; he was holding back. Way back. As long as I made him bleed, I didn’t care. I’d learned a thing or two in my training on the job. I’d been fighting off-worlders for years, criminals who didn’t fight fair and ITF trainers who did.
A punch to my side left me gasping for air and backpedaling. He pressed relentlessly. I went to grab his shoulder, but he grabbed both of my wrists as I knew he would, leaving the rest of his torso unprotected. I brought my knee up and slammed it into his groin, then spun out of his hold and slugged him as hard as I could in the jaw with both fists locked together. Before he could react, I grabbed his shoulders, dropped all my weight backward, and pulled him down. With my boots in his gut, I launched him over me.
He slammed upside down into the sphere, catching himself from landing on his head and flipping to his feet, but satisfactorily bent over due to the pain in his groin.
I could barely breathe, but I got to my feet, staying crouched over, holding my side, pretty sure one of my ribs was cracked. “Hope you weren’t planning on having babies anytime soon.”
“My ability to do that is just fine,” he ground out. “It’d better be.”
“You know, you didn’t need this dome. I don’t run from a fight.”
He smirked. “It’s not to keep you from running. It’s so you can use your power without Death coming for you.”
My jaw dropped. One, because he knew about Sachâth. And two, because all this time, I could’ve been using my power, power that I’d had pent up for what felt like years. The idea of being able to release it almost made me weep. I forgot about the pain and stood. “Don’t fight fair, do you?”
“People who do are stupid and don’t live very long.”
“Did I mention you’re an ass?”
“Did you? When a woman speaks, it just goes in one ear and out the other, especially when they’re dressed in leather.”
I made a face at him. I was going to
Leander was about to taste a little divine retribution.
My arms and limbs tingled all the way to my toes, fingertips, and my scalp. I clapped my hands together and threw out both arms. Bolts of blue and red shot out as Leander’s own power leapt forward to collide with mine.
It ate his up, wrapped around it, scurried down its length, and absorbed it all while speeding its way toward him and finally slamming into him.
He flew back into the dome as my power exploded, radiating around the perimeter and then shattering the dome in a shower of sparks and a boom so loud it shook the house. I fell to my knees.
Leander landed on his feet in a crouch. Now he looked serious. Now he looked deadly. Shit. I straightened.
The breeze once again blew in from the sea and we stood there staring at each other.
Leander’s scowl was dark and menacing. He spoke in a tongue I had never heard before at the same time moving his arms and hands in a graceful set of gestures, as though pulling some invisible force to him. The air warbled as he spoke. Even with the spell Lightwater had given me, I couldn’t understand the words. They were deep and so powerful it felt like all the air had left the house. He made a swirling motion with his arms and spun. Light shot out in all directions, and then came back in again, bringing with it sparks and colors, all condensing down to where we stood. Leander released another word and the dome went back up and my power blew through me as it erupted inside of the sphere and then dissipated.
I ended up on my ass, breathing heavily, eyes wide with shock.
Leander knelt in the center of the circle, one forearm draped over his bent knee and his head hanging low.
My brain scrambled to make sense of what had happened. I’d never seen anything like that before. Never even heard of anything like that before. “What the hell are you?”
His head lifted. His eyes glowed and then slowly faded.
He stood, brushed off his jacket, and then regarded me with a curt expression. “And that concludes this portion of the interview.”
I rolled my eyes and got up. Leander wasn’t too bad at trash talk and sarcasm, either. “Can I have my clothes and weapons back now?”
He snapped his fingers and everything was back where it had been.
“So what exactly was the light show about?” I had an idea but I wanted to hear it from him, mainly because it seemed so impossible.
“I have business to discuss with you. Your power escaped the confinement circle. Sachâth coming here would’ve delayed proceedings. I hate delays. You should make a note of that.”
“So you brought it back. My power. You pulled it back and manifested the circle to contain it. Are you a siren?” I’d seen beings manipulate powers that weren’t their own, but this . . . this was
He lifted an eyebrow. “Done yet?”
“No, not yet.” I was too intrigued to stop now, and if the guy had wanted me dead, he’d have done it by now. “How do you even know about Sachâth? And how do you know about me? And Hank? Is he alive?”
“I know many things, Charlie Madigan.
I blinked. “What?”
Leander walked closer to the column to stare out at the dark blue sky. Only a few slashes of muted orange remained. “Putting it mildly, the Circe can be . . . cruel.” He smiled ruefully, his voice dropping low. He turned to me and there was a brief look of empathy in his eyes. “Death might be the most merciful option for Niérian now.”
I swallowed, my throat suddenly dry and my heart pounding. Before I knew it, I was next to Leander, grabbing his arm and jerking him around to face me. “Where is he?” My voice broke.
Leander said nothing. His hand covered my own and instead of removing the death grip my finger had on his bicep, he closed his hands over mine. “Surviving the NecroNaMoria is . . . rare. I’m sorry.”
I flung his hand away and released him, stepping back. “Then you don’t know Hank. If I can get to him in time, he’ll heal from this . . . Necro thing. He’ll sleep for a long time and then he’ll be fine, he’ll . . .” Leander’s eyes
