Another highly specific spell, and again Will knew it almost certainly hadn’t been prepared in advance. It had been reflex cast. None of the spells Will knew could save him from such a monster, not even if he was able to reflex cast all of them. He was overmatched in every single way.
As the sorcerers died, their elementals began to fade away, no longer forced to manifest, though they had already set fire to some of the boxes and furniture that had been trapped near them. The force-ring vanished, and Androv turned back to Will. “You said I shouldn’t ask questions without offering something in exchange. How about this? Are you here looking for this?” The vampire reached into a coat pocket and withdrew a short iron rod decorated with silver runes. The end had metal flanges mounted on it, like a small mace. Will knew immediately what it must be. “We found this yesterday. It’s a shame you didn’t come sooner.”
“You should be careful,” said Will. “I hear that all the previous owners had bad luck.”
The vampire laughed. “Bad luck is for inferior beings. You should know better than that. After all, your luck has improved considerably today.”
Will noted that the smoke was increasing rapidly in the enclosed basement. Eventually it would choke him to death, but in the interim it might provide an advantage. He already knew that vampires could see heart-light as well as ordinary light, but the flames and smoke were already creating a chaotic haze that his own vision was having difficulty with.
It was his normal sight that was making up the difference, using the ordinary light produced by the flames. He adjusted his vision until the smoke vanished, and the room was clear except for the solid objects within. “I’m not feeling very lucky,” said Will, waiting for the smoke to grow thicker. He began walking rapidly to his left, causing the smoke to swirl and making it difficult for the vampires to track him visually.
“Clever, boy, clever!” shouted Androv. “The reason you’re lucky is because I found you first! Most of my minions would simply devour you, but I understand your true worth! How far have you progressed? Are you merely first-order? Or did you manage second-order?”
Will said nothing, but he released the chameleon spell. Between it, and the smoke and flames, even the vampires would find it hard to see him. He watched them and saw that their heads were no longer tracking his position. Instead they swiveled back and forth, trying to catch sight of him again. Androv snapped his fingers, and Alexa moved forward. “Be careful, my sweet. We want him alive.”
Alive? Will felt a stone appear in the pit of his stomach. He wants to recruit me.
“You can’t escape, young wizard. The smoke obscures everything, for both of us. But I know you need air to live. The door is your only hope and I’ll be waiting here for you.”
So you think, asshole.
The master vampire was still holding the relic in his hand as Will quickly formed a force-lance. Point-defense shields only worked when you could see the attack coming. Androv screamed as Will’s spell removed the vampire’s arm at the elbow, sending the relic and the hand holding it skittering away into the smoke-filled basement.
Androv responded with a volley of blue bolts, but Will was able to see them coming. He blocked those that threatened to skewer him, then began circling in the other direction, heading toward Alexa, who was stalking blindly through the smoke. As he moved, he prepared another force-lance.
She must have heard something, for she shifted the direction of her travel, moving around a collection of bookcases and wardrobes to circle around behind him. But he could see her every move. Reaching down, Will picked up a broom someone had dropped and tossed it ahead and to the right, so that it landed ten feet in front of him.
Alexa pounced.
Taking aim, he blew her left leg off. The leg would limit her movement, and since it was the same one he had nearly removed last time, it had a sense of irony that he felt sure she wouldn’t miss.
He backed away quietly, but with his next breath the smoke was too powerful, and a choking cough escaped his lips. Alexa leapt toward him on her remaining leg.
She moved too fast for him to dodge, but a point-defense shield met her in midair, stopping her forward motion and causing her to fall. Then a force-lance took her in the shoulder, shattering her clavicle and spine. It had been a reflex cast spell. Damn, I wish I could do that on command. Currently, panic seemed to be a good motivator for his new ability.
Turning, he began to run, coughing as he went. He had to get out soon, or the smoke would be the death of him. He headed in the direction he had seen the relic fall, which was also in the direction of the exit. Unfortunately, his coughing also gave his position away, and he saw Androv running past boxes on his right, moving to intercept him. Will stopped and focused, and then he felt what he had hoped for. Keeping his eyes on the moving vampire, he began to fire force-lances, one after another in rapid succession.
It was like finding a rough spot on your tooth with your tongue, impossible to forget. Once he had latched onto the knack of it, he was able to launch the bolts at will.
But the master vampire had anticipated him after his previous surprise attack. The creature was moving with some kind of mobile shield protecting him. The force-lances scattered impotently away from it.
Will ducked sideways between two looming piles of wooden crates that were just beginning to catch fire, hoping to buy himself some time. But he couldn’t stop coughing. Androv would find him in seconds.
Not that it mattered. Spells had failed him. He was utterly inferior to the vampire wizard in every regard. Magic, usually his greatest tool, was about to be his undoing. For a moment his mind flashed to all the people who he would miss. Selene, his mother, Tiny, Janice, his half-sisters, and perhaps even Mark Nerrow—then the man’s face brought an idea to him.
Will summoned a small object from the limnthal and placed it on the ground in front of him. Then he summoned a second and took five steps back, waiting and coughing. One might be enough, but the second was his insurance against failure.
Seven feet away, Androv rounded the corner like a vengeful ghost. He was close enough to see Will through the smoke, and the vampire’s eyes lit with triumph, seeing the end of his chase.
Will put the point-defense shield directly in front of the vampire’s chest, forcing him to stop exactly where he wished, then his eyes dropped, and he fired a force-lance at the vial at Androv’s feet.
The vampire’s reflexes were too fast for a human to comprehend, and if it had relied on them Will’s gambit would probably have failed. But Androv was a wizard first and foremost, and he trusted his magic more. He blocked the force-lance with a point-defense shield and started to grin at the human who had been foolish enough to try and trap him.
His smile vanished as the second vial of alchemist’s fire, the one Will had thrown, landed beside the first, shattering and exploding into raging white flames. The fire swept over the master vampire, clinging to his clothes, and a moment later the second vial exploded as well, adding to the conflagration as the monster screamed and howled in wounded fury.