A Darkness Below - Chapter 13
Another week, another seven days of law school kicking me in the behind hard. However, I think I've got the hang of it now. So, without further ado, here's another chapter! As always, upvotes and comments are appreciated, as well as critique of the work.
If you're just coming to A Darkness Below, you can check out the previous chapters here:
She immediately regretted that thought as the cellar door slammed shut behind them.
The three spun around to train their flashlights on the stairwell as cackling laughter filled the suddenly claustrophobic space beneath the house. All three sparked their flares in unison, but it was an act that came too late. As soon as the blinding red light flooded the area not covered by the beams of their bulbs, a obsidian spike flew through the air, tearing through Daniel’s chest and sending him flying from between Warrick and Maggie. He slammed into the wall behind them with a loud, sickening thud, the force of the impact no doubt crushing his ribs. Her eyes went wide as she tried to register what just happened, terror, anger, and despair creating a tempest of emotion that clouded her mind and broke her concentration. His eyes were still open, but she could already tell the spike had obliterated his heart, carving out a hole the size of her fist through his chest.
“Three hunters just for me,” the voice said, echoing off the stone walls of the cellar. “I must be someone really important for all this trouble.” The mocking tone snapped her out of what was turning into her own personal nightmare, and she threw her flare out, grabbing another two from her pocket and doing the same with those. Warrick was no slouch either, despite being caught by surprise; he had another three in hand, and he struck all of them. Within a minute, the entire cellar was bathed in bright, red light, filling virtually every nook and cranny of the subterranean space.
That’s when they saw the bloodsucker. Sticking to the wall farthest away from them, they made out a tall, lanky figure, dressed in darkness that was receding away from the offending red. Pale skin was now exposed, along with oily black hair and two red eyes that glowed with the same intensity as the flares. Robbed of his ability to call on the darkness, the creature instead relied on his superhuman speed and strength. A blur of movement brought him across the room towards his quarry, lunging toward Warrick with the force of a moving car.
Maggie caught enough to know what was coming, and she drew her dagger from its sheath. As the leech made contact with Warrick, she estimated his position and brought the blessed blade down in an arc. A roar escaped the beast’s throat, catching him off-balance and sending him and Warrick tumbling across the floor and slamming into the wall. She didn’t hesitate; her conscious mind shut down, letting the hunter take control of her body. Bounding across the floor, she zeroed in on the injured creature as she leaped toward him, dagger drawing down at him. Another blur of movement left her without her quarry, and she spun around, green eyes scanning the red light for signs of movement.
Whatever wound she managed to inflict on the leech, it had been enough to cause a generous amount of blood to seep out onto the dusty floor. That was good; the less blood he had coursing through his system, the faster he’d run out of endurance, and the easier this fight would become. That had always been the trick with these monsters. Avoid the initial barrage, bide your time, and let them wear themselves down. A bloodsucker that moved faster than one could track was terrifying, but one that only moved a bit faster than oneself? That was child’s play for her. She caught motion on the other side of the stairwell, and she sprinted after it, rounding the stairwell with a stake in her other hand drawn and ready to plunge into the monster’s heart.
Her attack was rebuffed by a blast of darkness that blinded her for a second, sending her onto her back with a grunt. Her eyes were open quickly enough to see him pouncing on her, and she brought the stake up defensively without a thought. Muscle memory saved her, and the weight of the creature’s torso drove the rosewood stake into his chest, just shy of the center of his heart. A coughing grunt left him as he slumped down on top of her, clawing at her face and arms. She brought her knees up and planted her feet against him, kicking him off her body and rolling to her feet. Savagery gleamed in her eye as she stalked over to the monster trying to crawl away, reaching for the stake embedded in its chest. She wasn’t going to let it get away that easily.
Picking up one of the flares off the floor, she kicked him onto his back and brought the burning red end down into one of his eyes like a knife. The creature let out a scream of pain, deafening her in the enclosed space as it desperately clawed at its face. She brought he foot down forcefully into the back of the stake, driving it deeper into the creature’s chest cavity and causing it more pain. Another stake was drawn out of her jacket pocket as she dropped her weight down onto the creature’s chest, causing him to involuntarily gag and giving her enough of an opening to snatch one of his hands from his face. That hand was pulled out, and she drove a stake through it, nailing it to the ground to another loud wail of pain. She spun around to grab her dagger off the ground where she’d left it, drawing the blade up to the creature’s throat.
“You undead piece of shit,” she seethed, glaring down at the monstrosity beneath her. “I’m going to take my time sawing through your neck. You killed Daniel, you fuck!” She dug the dagger into the side of his neck, but instead of another scream, she was met with cackling laughter.
“Oh you stupid girl,” the leech started, knocking his head back against the floor a couple of times. “You think that’s all we have in store? You think yours was the only target that we set out for you? We divided you up,” he continued, clenching his teeth as another wave of pain shot through him. She stared down at him, expression draining from her face along with whatever color was in her pale skin.
“What do you mean,” she demanded, digging the blade into his flesh. “Tell me, damn you!”
“Castle Cahir,” he started again, moving his jaw deliberately against the protestations of his flesh, “will be ours by morning. The Order dies tonight.” She clenched her teeth, tears of rage stinging her eyes as she began sawing through his throat. Blinded by her anger, she didn’t even notice that Warrick was still alive and limping over to her. By the time the creature’s head was removed from its body, hot tears were streaming down her face, and she realized she was sobbing uncontrollably. Warrick touched her shoulder, but she flinched away, picking herself up off the pile of ash below her and running to where Daniel’s body was.
Without its controller, the shadows that had formed into that solid spike had dissipated back into the darkness of the room, leaving his lifeless body slumped down against the floor. She dropped to her knees in front of him, cradling his head in her hands and straining to see any sign of life in the fading red light of the flares around the room. She begged God silently to let him still be alive, but it was all in vain. His eyes were open, but there was nothing there. Nothing but a vacant gaze where life and vibrancy had been not more than an hour ago.
“Sullivan, we have to get back,” Warrick said, trying his best to coax her away from Daniel’s body. She clung to him, rocking him slowly, and said nothing in response. Warrick winced, leaning down to touch her shoulder. Her first instinct was to flinch away, but she still didn’t move, letting the weight of their situation settle on her. She broke out of her daze slowly as she realized that Warrick was right; they needed to get back.
If this was a trap like the monster said it was, they had precious little time.
You can also find me in the Fiction Workshop on PALnet:
This moves quickly, at a good pace. And the laughter coming from the dying monster - very unexpected. Good twist in the action.
upvoted you, keep on postin'!!!
Hey, I have a new story too. Would you pop over to @joe.nobel and check it out?
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