other side, struck the frame twice and the cabin once. Then she tossed the sword my way without looking to see me catch it and leapt straight up in the air… twenty-five or so feet in the air. Coming down in a rapid streak, she slammed into the roof of the Hummer directly in line with her cuts. The impact was loud—mother of all drums kinda loud.
It broke—in half, the frame splitting at the cuts, the roof crumpling, front and back lifting as the middle hit the ground. She jumped lightly down and surveyed her handiwork before strolling to the front and grabbing the heavy-duty brush bar. A slight squat and a press and she had the front end lifted over her own head, two tons of vehicle weight further folding it at its middle. The axle must have been a tough mother as her fold wasn’t perfect, but twisted slightly to one side. She shoved and the front wheels were now over the back, the cabin mostly compacted.
“Close enough. Questions?”
It was dead silent in the clearing. Then a woman, one of the CSI types, raised her hand, tentatively.
“Yes?”
“Ah, what did the car do?” the woman asked, honestly puzzled.
I laughed and Tanya smiled. The woman, now realizing her question might be funny, smiled tentatively.
“The car carried these brave agents to what was supposed to be their doom. These Hummers are also tough, so it gave its life to help convince you of the truth of my words. Any idiot can wear false fangs, but most would have difficulty compacting a heavy vehicle.”
“Ah, Miss… err… I never got your name,” Leland said.
“Tatiana Demidova, Major,” she answered.
“Ah, Tatiana, what did you mean about them killing us?”
My Grim side perked up. Something was heading our way—fast. My mental image came back up and expanded. A flying object was rocketing our way from the east. It was maybe five miles away and coming really fast, like five hundred miles an hour fast.
> Kirby< I called, eyes locked in the direction of the object. I’ve been told that my God’s Hawk friend had taken down aircraft before, in my earlier life. He did it again, appearing in open air a half mile from our position, directly in the path of the missile, which flew through his smoky form. The hyper whine of the engine cut off instantly and the missile plunged directly toward the earth, tearing through small pines, flipping end over end before smashing to a smoking stop a scant hundred yards from the crowd of cops, EMTs, and technicians.
It was scarred and charred, but the underlying color was white and the fins were orange. It looked like a torpedo.
“That, Major. That’s pretty much what I meant,” Tanya said even as I flashed across the distance to the missile and hit it with the biggest burst of aura I could manage.
Chapter 10
Whatever spell Tanya’s voice had cast was gone, the cops and techs all reacting at once—loudly. It was a mixture of shock, anger, and fear. Being as most were cops, it didn’t take long for the predominate emotion to be anger.
Leland was good, though, quickly grabbing back command and directing the response. A few people had been hit by flying pine splinters and he got the EMTs working on them. Then he approached me and the missile, a handful of his people in tow. The NSA agents were with them.
“You did something to it? To crash it? Right? Don’t tell me I’m crazy. I’m hoping you know how to disarm it?” Leland asked me.
I shrugged. “I’m pretty good at crashing things. But disarming it? Well, let’s say I did the best I could,” I said.
“Your best is usually very, very good,” Arkady said from behind and to the Major’s right, making him and the troopers closest to him jump. As close to seven feet tall as he is to six, Arkady is pretty scary without even considering
It broke—in half, the frame splitting at the cuts, the roof crumpling, front and back lifting as the middle hit the ground. She jumped lightly down and surveyed her handiwork before strolling to the front and grabbing the heavy-duty brush bar. A slight squat and a press and she had the front end lifted over her own head, two tons of vehicle weight further folding it at its middle. The axle must have been a tough mother as her fold wasn’t perfect, but twisted slightly to one side. She shoved and the front wheels were now over the back, the cabin mostly compacted.
“Close enough. Questions?”
It was dead silent in the clearing. Then a woman, one of the CSI types, raised her hand, tentatively.
“Yes?”
“Ah, what did the car do?” the woman asked, honestly puzzled.
I laughed and Tanya smiled. The woman, now realizing her question might be funny, smiled tentatively.
“The car carried these brave agents to what was supposed to be their doom. These Hummers are also tough, so it gave its life to help convince you of the truth of my words. Any idiot can wear false fangs, but most would have difficulty compacting a heavy vehicle.”
“Ah, Miss… err… I never got your name,” Leland said.
“Tatiana Demidova, Major,” she answered.
“Ah, Tatiana, what did you mean about them killing us?”
My Grim side perked up. Something was heading our way—fast. My mental image came back up and expanded. A flying object was rocketing our way from the east. It was maybe five miles away and coming really fast, like five hundred miles an hour fast.
> Kirby< I called, eyes locked in the direction of the object. I’ve been told that my God’s Hawk friend had taken down aircraft before, in my earlier life. He did it again, appearing in open air a half mile from our position, directly in the path of the missile, which flew through his smoky form. The hyper whine of the engine cut off instantly and the missile plunged directly toward the earth, tearing through small pines, flipping end over end before smashing to a smoking stop a scant hundred yards from the crowd of cops, EMTs, and technicians.
It was scarred and charred, but the underlying color was white and the fins were orange. It looked like a torpedo.
“That, Major. That’s pretty much what I meant,” Tanya said even as I flashed across the distance to the missile and hit it with the biggest burst of aura I could manage.
Chapter 10
Whatever spell Tanya’s voice had cast was gone, the cops and techs all reacting at once—loudly. It was a mixture of shock, anger, and fear. Being as most were cops, it didn’t take long for the predominate emotion to be anger.
Leland was good, though, quickly grabbing back command and directing the response. A few people had been hit by flying pine splinters and he got the EMTs working on them. Then he approached me and the missile, a handful of his people in tow. The NSA agents were with them.
“You did something to it? To crash it? Right? Don’t tell me I’m crazy. I’m hoping you know how to disarm it?” Leland asked me.
I shrugged. “I’m pretty good at crashing things. But disarming it? Well, let’s say I did the best I could,” I said.
“Your best is usually very, very good,” Arkady said from behind and to the Major’s right, making him and the troopers closest to him jump. As close to seven feet tall as he is to six, Arkady is pretty scary without even considering
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