Chương 36: Act 1, Chapter 36: Fat chances

Day in the story: 6th October (Monday) As Ramirez slammed the brakes, Thomas shoved the side doors open. We leapt out before the camper had even fully positioned itself as a barricade across the narrow bridge. Rain lashed against us, but adrenaline kept it from mattering. Two cars were still tailing us. Thomas dropped to one knee, braced himself, aimed and pulled the trigger on Noxy. The resulting blast cracked the sky.

The sonic boom vaporized the rain around him in a perfect sphere, a sudden dome of dry air forming in the downpour. But Thomas, caught by the force of the discharge, was flung backward directly opposite to the bullet. Noxy flew from his hands, still glowing with residual discharge, spinning in a glittering arc before landing somewhere near where Thomas crashed to the ground. The shot landed.

The lead car exploded—no other word for it—torn in half by a bullet moving faster than sound, ripping steel and flesh with no discrimination. The second car veered wildly, caught by a glancing blow and the shredded husk of the first. The driver fought for control but lost. The vehicle slammed sideways into a tree with a sickening crunch.

"Fuck!" Thomas yelled from the ground.

"You weren't kidding. I think I broke my arm." He might've. But there wasn't time to check. Four figures scrambled out of the second car. They raised their machine guns and opened fire. Johny returned fire and sprinted for cover behind a thick tree. Ramirez was shooting from somewhere inside the camper and managed to hit one of De Marco's crew in the chest, he went down hard. I sprinted in front of Thomas, raised Ella and held her wide. The bullets struck, but none made it past.

The umbrella, infused with my will, stopped each round dead. Due to imagination and Authority, Ella had become a shield in both function and purpose.

"You okay?"

"Never better," Thomas said through gritted teeth. I felt Noxy laying nearby, grabbed him and stripped the Authority, restoring him to its dormant form.

"I'll leave you the umbrella," I said, handing Ella over.

"Stay behind it. It'll block the bullets."

"You're going out? Are you crazy? Wait for Ramirez and Johny to take them out. They're covered." Thomas was right. I trusted Lebens and their demonstrations, but I couldn't know for certain if I was truly bulletproof. Not yet. I had accepted it too easily. Still, I waited a few seconds and reached for my mask. Be the senses of the rabbit, I asked of it. The world sharpened. Light cut through the gloom. I could smell burnt flesh from the wrecked first car, the stench of gasoline slick on wet asphalt.

The rain in the air was thick and clean, a contrast to the copper tang of blood. Then I the sharp, mechanical click-clack of a magazine being changed. That was my chance. I drew a card from my deck. As I pulled it free, I made it metallic and sharp. There was no time to practice finesse; this wasn't the moment to experiment. It was a fire card. Perfect. I peeked from behind Ella, just long enough to see the puddle of gasoline and threw.

Be the fire, my thoughts whispered as I felt the threads of shadowlight leave my fingers and trail briefly behind the thrown weapon. The card hit the ground without a sound and the world erupted. A fireball roared to life, devouring the spilled fuel. The explosion rocked the bridge, sending debris and scorched bodies flying. Smoke and flame lit the rain like a flare. Johny and Ramirez followed up with clean, practiced shots.

Two of the mobsters, caught mid-reaction, dropped before they even had a chance to return fire. One remained. Big guy, still standing despite all my efforts. Ramirez emptied his clip into him, but the bullets didn't seem to matter.

"I'll kill you all," he bellowed.

"Your little mage too!" No doubt about his bulletproof status now.

"I'll deal with him," I said to Thomas.

"Tell the others to come get you when it's clear. Get to safety. I'm taking Ella." Thomas relayed the message through comms as I stepped forward, pulling Ella back. I released her Authority and collapsed into baton form, then immediately re-infused it. The big guy had tossed his empty gun to the ground. I'd heard him curse while reloading and guessed he'd given up on it.

"A rabbit?" he sneered.

"That's what they send?" He was massive. A little shorter than Thomas, but built like a military-grade truck. His skin shimmered faintly with a haze of power, authority cloaking him like fog. The color was dark and hard to place: navy, violet, maybe steel grey. Whatever it was, he was charging something. Preparing. But I'd learned long ago: standoffs aren't for me. I'm not the strongest. Never was. Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

So I have to be the fastest. The smartest. Or the dirtiest cheat in the room. I didn't wait. I started drawing cards, one after another, infusing each with its metallic form. As they left my fingers, I read the face and poured in the essence of what they were meant to be. Fate shuffled in my hands. And I was ready to play. First went the noisy ones, two cards, screeching through the air as I flung them at the mobster. One struck his thigh with a satisfying burst of blood.

The other missed, clattering to the ground just to his left. He looked around in confusion. He howled in pain. Good. Bet he hadn't felt real pain in a long time. His Authority probably protected him most days, but not today. I drew again. Luck was with me: five light cards in a row. I arced around him, moving toward the trees, keeping low. As he cursed and staggered, I tossed the light cards down in a star pattern ahead of him. They weren't meant to injure, only to blind.

Five beams flared to life and moved through the air to finally lodge themselves in the ground, converging on his face, turning his world into a strobing blur. Then he surged. His speed spiked, fast. Too fast. He lunged toward where I'd been seconds ago. Thank Reality I'd moved before that. Two more cards sliced through the air and sank into his exposed back. He screamed, blood spattering across the wet road. Still no clear sign of his Domain. Speed, strength, something physical. Momentum, maybe.

He was a big guy, built like a walking engine. Could be something like Lebens' gift too. I couldn't risk testing the limits of his ability. Distance was key. But then he did the last thing I wanted. He turned and charged, not at me, but at the camper. The others. Shit. I'd let him drift too close.

"You coward!" I shouted, sprinting after him. He paused mid-step, turning slightly. Stupid men and their egos.

"I'm not a cowa— " he tried to spit out. A card lodged deep in his throat before he could finish. He staggered, choking on blood. I closed the distance, jammed Ella forward and hit the button. A surge of electricity shot through him. He dropped to his knees, eyes wide with fury. Sirens echoed in the distance. I had to finish it.

Ramirez seemed to understand—he restarted the camper and peeled away, tires screeching across wet pavement, leaving me alone in the glow of burning cars and the sharp sting of gunmetal in the air. The mobster was still alive. Even with a life-threatening wound, he didn't stop. Clutching his ruined throat with one hand he swung at me with the other in a massive, wild arc. I ducked beneath it, feeling the air slice past my head. My mask sharpened my senses, letting me react to even the smallest twitch.

Rabbits were prey. And he was the predator I had to outmaneuver. He thrashed with raw fury, eyes glowing with shadowlight and Authority. Rage bled from him in waves, a light streaming from the cracks in his being. I waited for the next opening, then jabbed him again with Ella. Another electric jolt. His body convulsed, seizing violently. Then the ground shattered. He stomped hard, channeling something deeper, his Domain flaring around him in a ring of brutal force.

The road beneath us cracked open with a deafening sound—throwing me across the asphalt. I hit the ground hard and rolled, debris scattering around. By the time I got my bearings, he was already moving. Still holding his throat, he charged, faster now. Almost silent. Weight manipulation. That was his Domain. He shifted his mass like a lever: light for speed, heavy for power. No wonder the bullets barely mattered. A human wrecking ball. I couldn't let him close the distance again. I drew another card. A light one.

Infused it with radiance. Flashed it straight in his eyes, with quick flick of my fingers. He stumbled, blinded for just a moment, just enough. I changed the card's infusion to metal and hurled it. It pierced his arm and he howled. Another card. This one wind-based, rotor pattern etched across the back. He was light again, I could feel it in his movement. The rotors activated and a violent gust of wind surged from the card, slamming into him. He was thrown farther than I expected, hitting the ground hard.

The air smelled like ozone, sweat and blood. But he wasn't done. He roared, drawing another surge of power, pulling straight from his Domain. He grew heavier again; the ground cracked under his steps. I threw another card, but this time he caught it. Crushed it like tinfoil. I finally pulled myself to my feet. Rain washed blood down my face. He locked eyes with me, crouched slightly, ready to charge. He lunged. I drew Noxy and fired at close range. The shot hit him between the eyes.

Steam rose from his corpse, skull fractured inward, the final shadowlight leaving his eyes. I didn't pause for a triumph to settle. Sirens were closing in. I rifled through his pockets until I found a wallet. Then I touched the Grimoire and jumped, back to the camper.

"How's your arm?" I asked Thomas as I reappeared in the car. Johny jumped at the sound of my voice, twitching in surprise.

"It was forced out of the shoulder socket," Johny answered, recovering quickly.

"I popped it back in. Muscles are bruised, but bones are solid. He's a beast. But this weapon—girl—I don't know who your dealer is, but that thing is a cannon. People shouldn't shoot from it."

"You're a pussy, man," Thomas said with a crooked grin. Then he looked at me.

"Please make one like that for me."

"I'll think about it. You guys okay?"

"We're fine. You dealt with the big guy?"

"Yes. Since you're safe, please excuse me. See you later." I touched the Grimoire and focused on my room. Reality twisted, space folding and moving and within a heartbeat, I was standing back in my room. Penrose was seated at my desk, flipping through one of my sketchbooks.

"Are you alright, sir?" I asked. He turned to me, calm despite my sudden arrival.

"Yes. Thanks to your magic, I'm alive. Thank you, Alexandra. I owe you." Those three words, I owe you, didn't come easily from him. I nodded silently, acknowledging the weight of them.

"Thomas, Johny and Ramirez are safe, sir. Sanchez, Bobby and Big Jolly—they were already gone by the time I got there."

"I saw them fall before I lost clarity."

"Do you want me to portal you back to your office?"

"No. I've already authorized my things to be moved. A transport's on its way to take me home. James will pick me up here."

"That bad?"

"It is. I've never abandoned Finest before, not in all the years you've known me. But I need to reevaluate. I've been operating in a world I no longer fully understand. If I'm going to survive in this one, I need people who can do what you do."

"Why did he attack you, sir?"

"We were talking business, discussing how to join forces. It was going well, until I brought up his wife. I asked if she'd be a problem. He attacked me immediately after that."

"You think she was listening?"

"My guess exactly. He couldn't risk me saying something he couldn't control. That moment painted a target on my operations. I shut them down when I was waiting for you." I tossed him the wallet I'd taken.

"The heavy guy was a mage. I think his Domain was weight or mass. His name might help."

"Could be useful. Unfortunately, the other names on the list you gave me didn't lead anywhere."

"I figured. Most of the places she mentioned were vague. Tracking someone from those scraps would be nearly impossible."

"Indeed." He glanced at his phone.

"My ride's here. I'll leave you now, but be careful, Alexandra. You're still listed as an employee under Finest. I've ordered Miriam and the others to take a paid vacation."

"I won't run, sir, but I'll lay low. How soon until they can check the employee list?"

"Hard to say. Public offices are closed now, so probably tomorrow morning."

"I ask because I have a meeting with Shiroi in about forty minutes. At his home."

"Assassination?"

"No. Private tutoring." He raised an eyebrow.

"I hope it's worth the risk. After that, avoid anyplace they could find you by name. That includes your university. Are you listed on the lease for this apartment?"

"No. Only Peter and Sophie."

"Good. Then you know what to do." He stood, straightened his coat.

"Take care, Alexandra."

"You too, sir." I had to change my plans after everything that went down, so I packed fast. No time for careful arrangements, just the essentials and the suit.