his robe, revealing a bald head and a chiseled face with a black goatee. Strange tattoos curved beneath his eyes. They almost seemed to glow. The man's lips pulled back in a snarl. A staff in each hand, he slammed the butts against the ground. Roiling red energy gathered between the ends, glowing brighter and brighter.
"Run!" Shelton shouted. "Run your damned ass off!"
I snapped from whatever trance held me and raced back toward the exit even as a high-pitched whine split the air.
"Jump!" Shelton said.
I jumped high as a red beam tore through the stone floor beneath me. Still in the air, I saw the beam angling upward. I flung out a hand, and cried " Shoryuken !" A rope of magical energy shot from my hand and coiled around the nearest support column. I jerked, snapping myself out of the line of fire at the last minute. I hit the ground, rolling behind a nearby arch and glanced back as Shelton sent a scorching orange meteor whooshing down the aisle. The bald Arcane dove out of the way as it shot past.
Shelton and Adam raced for the exit. I blurred after them, deadly bolts, rays, orbs, and spheres raining down all around me.
I saw the arch operators huddled in the far corner of the room, the whites of their eyes showing. What pattern on the modulus had the man been talking about? The answer to finding the Grand Nexus had been so close. Now we definitely couldn't return to find out. I ran out the exit, slamming the door shut behind me. Adam aimed his staff at the door, invisible behind an illusion, and a thin beam of red light struck where the seam would be.
"That should weld it shut for a few minutes," he said.
We ran down the narrow alley, through the way station, and left via the doors to the pocket dimension housing Queens Gate.
Shelton and Adam were panting by the time we reached the shuttle station. Luckily, the sky car to the university was nearly ready to depart when we rushed inside. Most students were away on holiday break, so only a few curious eyes regarded us when we stumbled into our seats.
"Mother of sheep farts," Shelton said, breathing heavily, a sheen of sweat glistening on his forehead beneath the wide-brimmed hat. "Those people aren't playing around."
"Battle mages," Adam said in a dark mutter as the sky car lurched upward. "Mercenaries."
"Who do they think they are attacking like that?" Shelton said.
"I guess they figure working for the Conroys gives them free license," Adam said, inspecting a burn mark on the sleeve of his shirt.
Shelton glared down at black smudges on his leather duster. "Good thing I just refreshed the armor charm on this baby." He reached beneath, pressing a hand to his chest and winced. "Still hurts like hell."
My shirt was charred in various places where I'd been hit, leaving raw, burned skin beneath. As my adrenalin receded, pain grew. The puckered skin where one of the silver bolts had sliced me looked like a knife wound. My supernatural healing seemed to be mending the wound much slower than usual.
"Magical injuries can take longer to heal," Adam said, noticing my discomfort. "At least that's what Meghan once told a lycan after his bar fight with an Arcane."
I caught Shelton looking at me with undisguised confusion. "Mind telling me what you did in there?" he said. "You've never demonstrated that kind of raw firepower before."
I shrugged. Winced at the pain in my shoulders. "It just kind of happened." I described the feel of the heat flowing from my chest to my hand. "It felt like it came from my heart."
Adam and Shelton traded looks.
"Angel magic?" Adam offered with a quizzical look.
Shelton grimaced. "I think so." His face brightened. "Hey, at least you learned something."
"Not to mention stayed alive," I said. "I don't know if I can reproduce it though."
"Obviously a byproduct of my teaching." He shivered. "Whew! What an adrenalin rush." Shelton flicked his staff back to compact form and slid it into a holster on his side.
"Those men have some serious battle
"Run!" Shelton shouted. "Run your damned ass off!"
I snapped from whatever trance held me and raced back toward the exit even as a high-pitched whine split the air.
"Jump!" Shelton said.
I jumped high as a red beam tore through the stone floor beneath me. Still in the air, I saw the beam angling upward. I flung out a hand, and cried " Shoryuken !" A rope of magical energy shot from my hand and coiled around the nearest support column. I jerked, snapping myself out of the line of fire at the last minute. I hit the ground, rolling behind a nearby arch and glanced back as Shelton sent a scorching orange meteor whooshing down the aisle. The bald Arcane dove out of the way as it shot past.
Shelton and Adam raced for the exit. I blurred after them, deadly bolts, rays, orbs, and spheres raining down all around me.
I saw the arch operators huddled in the far corner of the room, the whites of their eyes showing. What pattern on the modulus had the man been talking about? The answer to finding the Grand Nexus had been so close. Now we definitely couldn't return to find out. I ran out the exit, slamming the door shut behind me. Adam aimed his staff at the door, invisible behind an illusion, and a thin beam of red light struck where the seam would be.
"That should weld it shut for a few minutes," he said.
We ran down the narrow alley, through the way station, and left via the doors to the pocket dimension housing Queens Gate.
Shelton and Adam were panting by the time we reached the shuttle station. Luckily, the sky car to the university was nearly ready to depart when we rushed inside. Most students were away on holiday break, so only a few curious eyes regarded us when we stumbled into our seats.
"Mother of sheep farts," Shelton said, breathing heavily, a sheen of sweat glistening on his forehead beneath the wide-brimmed hat. "Those people aren't playing around."
"Battle mages," Adam said in a dark mutter as the sky car lurched upward. "Mercenaries."
"Who do they think they are attacking like that?" Shelton said.
"I guess they figure working for the Conroys gives them free license," Adam said, inspecting a burn mark on the sleeve of his shirt.
Shelton glared down at black smudges on his leather duster. "Good thing I just refreshed the armor charm on this baby." He reached beneath, pressing a hand to his chest and winced. "Still hurts like hell."
My shirt was charred in various places where I'd been hit, leaving raw, burned skin beneath. As my adrenalin receded, pain grew. The puckered skin where one of the silver bolts had sliced me looked like a knife wound. My supernatural healing seemed to be mending the wound much slower than usual.
"Magical injuries can take longer to heal," Adam said, noticing my discomfort. "At least that's what Meghan once told a lycan after his bar fight with an Arcane."
I caught Shelton looking at me with undisguised confusion. "Mind telling me what you did in there?" he said. "You've never demonstrated that kind of raw firepower before."
I shrugged. Winced at the pain in my shoulders. "It just kind of happened." I described the feel of the heat flowing from my chest to my hand. "It felt like it came from my heart."
Adam and Shelton traded looks.
"Angel magic?" Adam offered with a quizzical look.
Shelton grimaced. "I think so." His face brightened. "Hey, at least you learned something."
"Not to mention stayed alive," I said. "I don't know if I can reproduce it though."
"Obviously a byproduct of my teaching." He shivered. "Whew! What an adrenalin rush." Shelton flicked his staff back to compact form and slid it into a holster on his side.
"Those men have some serious battle
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