The Lycan Rebirth (The Flux Age Book 3) Read online

  9

  New York City, USA

  Yasmin ripped apart the padlock and paid no attention to the alarm. There was little chance security would come to investigate a breach tonight.

  She felt a twinge of guilt at having to break into Julian Banes’s office building, but the tower afforded a superb 360 view of Manhattan. It was the perfect place to watch the battle unfold.

  Yasmin and her dark army had the task of providing support where it was needed. Jack and Nate led the naturebound army to the north in Harlem. Florence and Gustav led the arachne army in the south near Soho. Yasmin’s dark forces, made powerful by the night, would swoop from high above when the right moment came.

  She and Tomas rode a bullet elevator right to the top. Florence had provided her with the private code to Julian’s penthouse suite. She passed through external security without an issue and allowed her various minions to make themselves comfortable. All up there were some seventy night creatures of varying origin. The Odessa siblings offered to keep them all in check whilst Yasmin and Tomas ventured out to the rail to survey a city under attack.

  As always, Manhattan was beautiful by night, a sea of glittering lights. The steady drone of car horns and police sirens betrayed the fact that the streets were in chaos. Despite the cacophony, it was difficult to tell if a major attack had been launched yet.

  If Yasmin’s theory was right, the Berlin Club wouldn’t be able to resist attacking the chapter house a second time. After all, Yasmin had made her base there and she’d made certain that a certain rumor flew through the streets. By now Herr X was bound to know that the Fellowship still had some dark tissue and planned to use it. If she knew Herr X at all, the bait would be impossible to resist. There was little chance of the Berlin Club allowing another entity to use the precious substance.

  Or so the theory went. If the Berlin Club took the bait, they would go all out to attack the chapter house. That was where the Fellowship could dictate where the battle took place. Which was why they had chosen to defend a few key choke points. Places they had a chance in hell of coping with swarming ghoul hordes. Florence was in charge of Canal Street Station to the south. Jack was in charge of 135th Street Station to the north. Of course, there was a key subway station that granted access to the tunnels to the largely undefended chapter house - Lincoln Center Station. It was this building that Yasmin and her people needed to keep an eye on. Even though the ghouls were swarming the city’s lower tunnels, Jack and Florence had confirmed that entry into the chapter house was possible through one of these three stations. There was also the ocean tunnel, but the Fellowship had detonated a charge behind the red door, sealing off that particular entry with rubble. The trap had been set and hopefully the Berlin Club believed they could just steamroll their way over Fellowship forces. The only question now was whether they would concentrate their forces on one subway station or attack all three at once.

  Yasmin felt her body tensing for battle as she scanned the distant lights. She had been diligently exploring the full range of her powers and was anxious to unleash them on the unsuspecting ghouls.

  Tomas was pensive as he looked through a pair of high powered binoculars.

  “So many people down there,” he commented. “Seems the mayor wasn’t able to evacuate Manhattan.”

  “People always stay until the last minute,” Yasmin said. “It’s human nature.”

  A woman’s scream drifted up from the street, but that in isolation wasn’t enough to suggest anything sinister. It seemed the ghouls were still running underground. There had been several sightings but no reports of an attack as yet. Yasmin suspected the ghoul armies were moving into a pre-arranged position and would make a coordinated attack. Herr X was no fool and would leave nothing to chance.

  The minutes dripped by like molasses from a spoon. A pall of anxiety hung over the city streets and threatened at any moment to become panic.

  A dull boom echoed down Broadway and a plume of flame lit up the night sky.

  “Gas main,” Tomas said. “They’re trying to shut the city down.”

  “Won’t matter to us,” Yasmin said confidently. She didn’t want to sound arrogant, but couldn’t wait to enter the fray and give the ghouls a taste of their own medicine. They weren’t the only night creatures doing battle tonight.

  A fresh wail of sirens greeted the distant explosion. A wave of panic rolled across the city, carried to Yasmin’s high position by the northerly breeze.

  “They’re coming,” Tomas said. Yasmin followed where his binoculars were trained. Straight down Broadway there was a a frenzied commotion, like the the turbulence in front of a wave. Civilians were clearly running for their lives. Further to the north, partially obscured by a building, an indistinct greyness spread across the street like sludge.

  “Ghouls, moving very quickly,” Yasmin concluded, glancing inside the penthouse where the Odessa siblings waited for her signal.

  Panicked shouts could clearly be heard now as citizens rushed down side streets to avoid to rampaging ghouls. Yasmin could see the massed ranks of state troopers in front of the Lincoln Center Station. The police commissioner had authorized the allocation of M16 assault rifles on loan from the army. The navy blue uniforms were hard to pick out in the gloom of night, but Yasmin could tell they were holding their positions well. A ghoul war cry had risen up between the skyscrapers. It was designed to arouse fear and despair in the enemy. Yasmin had briefed the police commissioner on what to expect and evidently that information had been relayed to the troopers.

  Broadway was mostly clear of civilians now. The ghouls approached like a thick flood, clearly intending to strike the trooper line with brutal force. Yasmin watched nervously as the percussive retort of two hundred assault rifles rang out over Manhattan. The enemy front line sagged a bit as ghoulish flesh was ripped apart. Several of the fallen writhed on the ground, engulfed in flames. Yasmin breathed a sigh of relief. Her advice to the commissioner had been to use incendiary rounds as fire was the only way to truly kill a ghoul. Such ammunition was hideously expensive but it really was their only chance of avoiding a massacre.

  As it turned out, incendiary rounds weren’t going to be enough.

  <135th Street Station under attack,> came Jack’s voice in Yasmin’s ear. The leaders of the Fellowship had decided to communicate via radio, agreeing to provide battle reportage only.

  Florence piped in.

  “Three out of three then,” Yasmin said calmly. “I’ll be needed here, then I’ll work toward whoever needs me most.”

  Jack said.

  Florence promised. Yasmin grimaced. The enemy were attacking all subway stations at once, which meant that Yasmin’s shock troops could only engage one enemy attack unless Yasmin spread her forces. She decided to take care of the central station first and pray that Jack and Yasmin could hold out long enough for her to arrive.

  “Let’s drop,” she called loudly, dropping over the side of the building and scrambling over the smooth glass windows. She’d already tested this ability on the tower at Frica. The first time had been a hair-raising experience but it seemed Yasmin actually had the ability to stick like a limpet to smooth vertical surfaces. She built speed as she crabbed down the Brandis building, focusing solely on the ghouls attacking the station entrance.

  The state trooper line had fallen back and were now standing at the top of the steps cascading from the front entrance. Yasmin hustled as as fast as she could as she watched the ghoul front line reach the troopers. The carnage was difficult to watch. Boosted by the night, the ghouls were strong enough to toss the human bodies around like autumn leaves. Yasmin saw several navy blue bodies sailing into the street where they fell awkwardly. The ghouls seemed to penetrate the police ranks like a warm knife through butter, leaving nothing but dead bodies in their wake.

  Yasmin hit the ground and bolted toward the station entrance. Several succubi hissed and shrieked over
her shoulder. She was relieved to see Tomas close behind, sprinting almost as fast. He dropped to one knee and hurled a glowing lantern at the rearmost succubus. The seductive apparition caught flame immediately and called her sisters in. The succubi indulged in a vaguely bizarre group hug and when they separated all were ablaze.

  Yasmin maintained her approach, racing up the station steps. Tomas stayed behind as he wasn’t able to resist extreme temperatures like his queen could. Again, all this had been tested at Tomas’s request back at the castle. The scientific approach was about to pay off handsomely.

  The succubi dived fearlessly into the rampaging ghouls, scattering them on impact. The sheer power of their collective shriek was enough even to make their queen’s skin crawl. The succubi disappeared from Yasmin’s view as she raced up the last set of steps to the station entrance. The open plaza at the top had been doused with fuel earlier in the night. As Yasmin reached the top, a searing wall of flame erupted on all sides. Their work done, the flaming succubi rose into the air. There were two less than before, and Yasmin feared the worst. A crackling, roasting sound rose along with the flames as a hundred ghouls were consumed. Their cries of agony were off-putting, but Yasmin forced herself through the inferno so she could stand on the other side. She felt her skin tightening against the extreme heat but she was otherwise unharmed as she reached the cooler air of the inner station plaza. A small force of twenty or so troopers had been pushed back here and had formed a line at the turnstiles. They seemed to recognize Yasmin and held their fire. The vampire queen made a mental note to thank the police commissioner for being so diligent in his preparation.

  “Stand firm,” Yasmin said. “The next wave is coming.”

  Perhaps buoyed by Yasmin’s presence, the troopers formed a tight knit defense. A high-pitched wail pierced the air as the ghouls pursued their attack. The flames outside were already diminishing, allowing the ghouls to make it through with minor burns only. Yasmin saw a charging line of sweating, frothing ghouls through the smoke as she automatically activated one her powers.

  Blood mist. It was a complicated maneuver and Yasmin had only discovered she was capable of it by accident. After an uncomfortable few seconds in which her body felt like it was being turned inside out, Yasmin was moving across the plaza in the form of a white mist. It would appear innocuous enough to the enemy but the mist was actually laced with long, razor-sharp strands of her hair. She had no idea if blood mist was capable of killing ghouls, but she hoped it would slow them down at the very least.

  The results were spectacular. The ghouls bounded headlong through the mist and it seemed at first they would make it through to the state troopers. By the time they reached the far end, however, they found that they had actually been sliced into lateral sections by Yasmin’s cursed air. Heads, arms and torsos slid neatly to the ground. It seemed the ghouls, famous for their recuperative powers, were no match for a vampire queen.

  Yasmin felt herself weakening slightly but wanted to see how far she could push the blood mist. The best thing about it was how it killed silently, so the ghouls that perished at the front of the attack force weren’t able to warn others behind them.

  Yasmin glided forward in a peculiar way that gave her a sense of direction without actually being in one spot at one time. The mist rolled with her until she felt too weak and drained. At the top of the stairs outside she felt herself coalesce into solid form once again, the mist spinning around her like water down a plug hole. Thankfully, she still had her clothes on.

  When the mist had gone completely she could assess the trail of carnage she had created. The station plaza was littered with dismembered ghouls, the concrete slick with foul ichor.

  Yasmin had destroyed an entire battalion in a single attack. She almost laughed at how absurdly powerful she felt.

  Tomas appeared by her side and shook his head in wonder.

  “I saw the mist coming and bolted,” he said. “No way I was hanging around.”

  “You might have survived, being a vampire and all,” Yasmin said dryly.

  “We need to test that,” Tomas said seriously.

  Yasmin smiled. The scientist had never been as endearing as he seemed at that moment.

  “Where are the others?” she asked.

  “I had them conceal themselves in the side alleys and alcoves,” Tomas said. “Just in case this isn’t over.”

  The doktor was right - the battle wasn’t over. Crossing Broadway at the base of the stairs was a support battalion. Only this time a larger ghoul marched at its head. It was green and scaly, with long limbs and a hideously spiked spine that protruded from its neck and back. It carried a peculiar weapon that Yasmin had only seen in books about the medieval age. The weapon consisted of a straight handle, a chain and a spiked ball attached to the end of the chain. It was jet black and pulsed with some kind of purple energy.

  “What’s that thing?” Yasmin asked Tomas. For some reason it struck fear into her heart.

  “Stay away from that, queen,” Tomas said, his eyes wide with fear. “That’s a dark morning star.”

  There was no time to ask Tomas what a ‘dark morning star’ was. The huge ghoul bounded up the stairs three at a time, showing no fear of Yasmin whatsoever.

  “Finally, a chance to smoke the bitch,” the thing growled in slightly accented English.

  Yasmin recognized the voice even though it was several octaves lower than usual.

  “Herr X,” she said, trying to keep her voice calm. “It’ll be a pleasure to kill you so early in the battle.”

  “You can try,” came the arrogant reply. “But I think you’ll find that ghoul kings make for perfect vampire killers.”

  Herr X began swinging the morning star above his head as he climbed the last few steps. The sheer speed of the attack caught the waiting vampires off guard.

  Not even Yasmin’s unnatural senses could prepare her for the king ghoul’s next attack. The spiked ball seemed to speed up as if drawn to her fragile frame. The next thing she knew Tomas was throwing himself across her body and there was a wet, meaty sound. The doktor was sent sprawling across the concrete, his chest a mass of blood.

  “Queen,” he gasped, a fountain of blood gushing from his mouth.

  “No!” Yasmin heard herself cry as a primitive survival instinct prevented her from rushing to Tomas’s side. She was overcome with a horrible twisting sensation and then she was up in the air, her wings flapping furiously. She soared over the station plaza and landed at the base of the steps. Now she was behind the ghoul king and his battalion, which was now ascending the stairs. With a painful wrench she shifted back into human form and realized she’d been a vampire bat for a few seconds. Just enough time to save her life. Now it was time to attack.

  “Night creatures!” she howled into the darkness. “To me!”

  The succubi returned, screeching from their hiding place. They weren’t ablaze anymore but they swooped the ghoul ranks with undiminished violence. Fades and night wraiths surged from the shadows, their terrifying sonic powers probing the ghouls for weaknesses. Several of Herr X’s soldiers stopped short and held claws over their ears in alarm. This made it easier for Yasmin’s vampire followers to devour them. Ralph Odessa, imperious in his black cape, scythed through the confused, fearful ghouls en route to the ghoul king. Yasmin herself began drifting through the enemy pack, devouring several ghouls with lightning bites to the carotid artery. Overflowing with dark fury, Yasmin was almost impossible to strike. She felt as though she was aware of every foe on the battlefield and had all the time in the world to respond to their movements. Except for Herr X. That weapon he carried was a real concern.

  Yasmin brutalized her way to the top of the stairs, leaving agony and confusion in her wake. She didn’t care if her blows hadn’t killed the ghouls outright - for now they were incapacitated and unable to contribute to the battle. If Yasmin’s dark army was victorious they could be thrown onto a huge street bonfire to finish them off.

  At the
top of the stairs Herr X was surrounded by eight wary vampires. The Odessa sisters took it in turns to draw an attack from the wily ghoul king, and Yasmin could see that sooner or later one of them would be hit.

  “Face me, coward,” she spat venomously. The ghoul king stiffened and turned to face her with a grin.

  “You can’t defeat me,” he gloated. “I can match your speed, your strength and, most importantly, your guile.”

  “The Berlin Club is finished, Herr X,” Yasmin promised, waving the other vampires away. “You destroyed the Lycan Society but helped create a far more powerful entity.”

  Yasmin moved in close to Herr X and leered at him with blood-stained teeth. The large ghoul swung his morning star viciously but Yasmin was no longer in its path. She was filled with so much anger that everything seemed to be in slow motion. On some crazy impulse she spat a gob of blood at Herr X and was gratified to see it splash across his beady, pus-filled eyes. In the second it took him to blink, Yasmin darted behind the ghoul’s range of attack and grabbed his throat with a small, trembling hand. She squeezed as hard as she could, pouring all her rage and grief into her hand. Herr X’s windpipe not only buckled and snapped, the blood seemed to drain rapidly from his head so that by the time he fell to the concrete it was dry and shriveled like a prune.

  Her face a mask of quiet determination, Yasmin dragged the body by the ankles, lugging it unceremoniously down the stairs. She began piling the bodies of dead ghouls into a heap. Her night creatures assisted her without a word.

  Once the grisly task was done, the vampire queen lifted an assault rifle from a fallen trooper and fired a single incendiary round into the corpse pile. The bodies caught fire immediately, sending a pall of acrid smoke into the seething New York night.

  Her business done, Yasmin wandered tiredly over to where Tomas lay. Her heart felt like it would drip through her rib cage when she saw what she feared the most - her doktor, her faithful admirer, was dead. His chest had been eaten away by whatever substance had coated that horrible morning star.