Soullord (Soulguard Book 2) Read online

  "Good morning," I said.

  "It's a very good morning," She answered and her aura told me that she didn't lie.

  Jacobs rolled out the door with his chair, "Hey Boss."

  "Ivan," I nodded in greeting. Out of all the men who had been hitting on the beautiful woman at Hooters, she'd went home with Jacobs.

  "Boss, can I talk to ya a couple a minutes?"

  "Sure," I stopped beside him, "What can I do for you?"

  He turned to the woman, "I gotta talk a bit here, Darlin’. I'll see ya later though?"

  She bent down and kissed him quite thoroughly.

  "Count on it, Hero," she said with a smile. She turned and headed for the elevators.

  "You tellin’ your war stories to that girl, Ivan?"

  "To be honest, Boss, she knows as much about us as any regular person I know. She recognized me from the news reports on the battle. She says I'm a hero."

  "Well, she's right, Ivan," I said, "But if you repeat what I just said, I'll deny it."

  He chuckled, "Maybe I should start recordin’ conversations so people can't deny the fact that your's truly here is a hero."

  "Speaking of hero's," I said, "I have a small project I would like for you to work on for me."

  One thing I know about Ivan Jacobs is that he feels useless now that his arm and leg were ripped off. He's always been a fighter, and now he can't do what he's been doing for forty years. It tends to make a person feel lost when their life has such a drastic change.

  "As long as it's not typing, I'm up for it."

  "If you type like I do, I doubt the Soulguard can afford the time it would take you to type anything out," I returned, "No, what I want is someone to really put some time in to figure out how to imbue a bullet."

  "That’s not something that'll be easy to do, Boss. Powder is tricky around Soulfire, but I got a couple of ideas I've kicked around over the years. I'll definitely see if I can get some results for ya."

  He looked at me for a moment, and I could see the emotions rolling in his aura. He wanted to ask me something very serious, and was almost afraid to do it.

  "Just ask," I said softly. "What is it?"

  It came out in a flood, "Dammit, Boss, I'm friggin’ useless. I can't fight anymore! It's all I know how ‘ta do. It's the only skill I have that’s worth anything!"

  "I know it's hard, Ivan. You'll learn new skills." I placed my hand on his shoulder. "You just have to give it some time."

  He was silent for a few seconds before he asked, "Will you make me a Mage?"

  This was the question. Somehow I knew it was what he was going to ask, and I knew, also, that this was what he needed. But it was dangerous, very dangerous. Three Guards died when I did that Pull in Kansas, including Patrick Shoffner.

  "It's a very dangerous process, Ivan, but I do understand why you want this," I said. "We lost Guards when I did that last time, including Pat. Think another week on it, and if you still wanna try it, then come see me. If your focus slips for an instant Ivan, it’s the end. Think about it, and think about your focus skills. Make damn sure this is what ya want. The Source is one unforgiving bitch, and she will burn you down in seconds."

  "I've thought for a good bit, Sir," He said. "But I'll wait another week to tell ya the same thing. I'm useless as a Guard, but as a Mage, I can still fight."

  "There's no guarantee, Ivan, how strong you can be," I said. "You may be no stronger than a support Mage."

  "Boss, a support Mage can still be used in the war, a one armed, one legged Guard can't."

  I nodded and gripped his shoulder, "Just come see me in a week if ya still plan on this. I'll have to clear something like this with the Archmage. I could do it and ask for forgiveness instead of permission, but it really sets a bad precedent if I do that. If she supports it, I will try my best."

  "Boss, that's all I can ask for. Thank you," he said. "I'll get right on the other thing as well. You know anyone with a gun that is willin’ to risk it getting blown up?"

  I handed him a credit card, "Buy whatcha need. This is high priority, Ivan. We need it for some surprises I have in mind for the next Kresh visitors."

  "A very nasty surprise, I hope?" he asked.

  I smiled, "Very nasty."

  ***

  "That's not surprising," Paige said, "I wondered who would be the first to come forward and request this. I'm a bit surprised it was Ivan Jacobs, though."

  "Why?"

  "I mean, he's already been through the mill. He's received injuries that would have killed him under normal circumstances. Yet he wants to run right back toward the fight. I would have thought he would be ready to say he's done enough."

  I chuckled, "If you spend as much time with the Guard as I do, you'll understand. There is one thing above all else I learned about them. Soulguards never quit. You take his leg, he'll hobble to the fight. Take his arms, he'll hold the blade in his teeth. They fight because it's who they are. There will be a new breed of Guard after this, though. Our Guards are warriors. The new Guards will be soldiers."

  "What is the distinction between them?"

  "Warriors fight because it is who they are," I said. "A warrior lives to fight and fights to live. He fights for the fight itself."

  "And a soldier?"

  "A soldier goes to war when there is no other recourse left," I said. "A soldier fights for a cause or for his home or his people."

  "Don't get me wrong," I said. "There are soldiers in the Guard. But the majority of the Guard were enlisted after the Demons destroyed families and friends. Vengeance and retribution-these things breed warriors. You'll see that the threat of the world's end will breed a new Guard of Soldiers, and we will bring those bastards to their knees with this army."

  "But as for Jacobs?"

  "Jacobs is a warrior born and he won't quit, whether this works or not," I said. "I want to do this because he needs it. But, even more, because I think we need him and every one like him for this war."

  "I agree," she nodded. "You can do it then. Thank you for asking me before you just went and did it though. That’s not very characteristic of you."

  I laughed. "Probably true but it's the way things need to be done, and that's the bottom line. You are our Archmage, not a figurehead. If I won't follow the rules, how can we expect anyone else to do so?"

  "True enough," she said with a grin. "How is the demonstration plan coming?"

  "I have to meet with a General tomorrow to hash out the details. I'm trying to get automated drones to put against our men. Don't want to hurt any soldiers."

  "Good luck dealing with Generals," she laughed bitterly. "Maybe they'll listen to you better than they listen to me."

  "They'll listen," I said with a little of my rage trying to surface.

  She was taken aback for a split second, then laughed again, "I bet they do."

  Chapter 7

  "How is this going to be a real test without any of our men in the field?" General Reginald P. Gasper almost yelled. He was standing behind his desk with both fists planted firmly on the desk top. His whole head was turning red.

  I had flown into Washington D.C. specifically to meet with this man about the demonstration. It was our job to hash out what we needed for the event.

  "As I said before you interrupted," I returned with a bit of rage surfacing, "I don't want to hurt any American soldiers in a simple demonstration."

  The General was taken aback by the tone of my voice, or maybe I was projecting my rage a bit. Maybe my eyes were burning again, I don't know. Either way, he stepped back half a step.

  "What I want is for you to provide automated tanks or drones of some sort if it is possible. The more actual soldiers that are in the field, the more my Guards have to hold back. You need to see what the Soulguard is capable of, and I need to know that innocent men and women aren't going to get hurt as I show you."

  "You honestly believe your men with, humph...swords, can stand up to my main battle tanks?" he scoffed.

  "
I think your tanks will be utterly outclassed, but you just get them there and we will see."

  I stood and turned toward the door, "I suggest you bring some you are prepared to lose, and bring plenty."

  I knew this was like a slap in the face to the man, but it seemed to be the only way to get the arrogant bastard to listen. God I'll be glad when we can get past all the bullshit, and get to work on the defense of our world, I thought.

  I heard him as I left the room, mumbling, "...why that cocky little bast..."

  I chuckled as I rounded the corner. You could bet he'd bring out his best for this now. It’s the best way to show them exactly what they face, both in the Soulguard and in the foe that we must face together, if we are going to survive as a species.

  As for the capabilities of their tanks, I was working on several ways of dealing with them, although I was sorely tempted to just let Paige blow them all to hell by herself.

  ***

  Waiting for the government to do anything was torture. I know that the U.S. government is a large institution, and it's going to be slow getting results. But that doesn't help the rage burning inside of me. Hell, if the Kresh want to get rid of me, they may only have to stay away for a few years. I might spontaneously combust.

  It was time to return to Jacobs, and see if he was still set on being turned into a Mage. Rumors had gotten out about it. Lyrica had seemed to be trailing me for the last day. I think she was afraid I would hurt myself again with the Pull.

  "Is my shadow still close by?" I asked Ric.

  "No doubt, Boss," he chuckled. "Everybody knows what you're plannin’. You can't really blame the girl. You almost died last time you did somethin’ like this."

  "It was a much larger scale," I said, "but I'm more worried about Ivan. If his focus fails, I'll kill one of my closest friends."

  "He's a big boy, Boss," Prada said. "He knows the risks. Besides, he won't slip. He's got a good bit of skill at focusing. I know we lost a few of our men last time, and you feel it's your fault, but it's not. We all took the chance. We all accepted the risk for the opportunity to end the battle without losing more lives."

  "She's right," Ric said. "We lost three lives. If we had just continued to fight them, we would have eventually lost hundreds. They died no less heroes than any of the others who fell in Kansas."

  I pointed at my head, "I know this up here." I tapped my chest, "but I still feel here that it was my doing. I know it's not really logical, but it is what it is."

  I do know that what they say is true, and we are in a war, although some people don't truly understand that yet. But I just feel that I should have learned what I could do faster. I should have been pushing the boundaries much harder than I had been. That is part of why I chose to do this for Jacobs. If I succeed without incident, there will be more who request the change. In all honesty, we will need as many Mages as we can get.

  My actual thought is that every veteran Guard will be Mages, and the new recruits will be the Guards before all of this is done. I don't think I will try to increase any Guards who haven't been there for quite some time. Focus is essential, and the ones who had died in Kansas were relatively new recruits. But these are just my own thoughts on the matter. It will be subject to the Archmage, and her Council to decide if I can proceed with this.

  I entered the Dome with my swords in the harness on my back. Before I go get Jacobs, I needed to work off some of the rage that has been building for weeks inside of me. Rictor and Prada both followed with their weapons as well. In moments, Lyrica and her two shadows followed us in.

  As I took my place in the center of the Dome, Lyrica stepped up beside me. She held two swords as well. Behind us I heard swords unsheathe as Rictor, Prada, Mattie, and Trent all drew weapons.

  I drew my blades and settled into the first stance of the Dance. I let my mind relax as I flowed from that stance to another, then another. That is what the Dance of Blades is. It is the seamless flow from stance to stance with the least amount of wasted movement. I heard the others doing the same, wordlessly.

  I began to speed up and I began to release the rage I held pent up inside myself. Faster and faster I Danced. It seemed that the more rage I released, the more I wanted to let it all out. It would be a relief to just let it go. The older I get, the stronger the rage seems to become. The Demon DNA inside me is still altering me at a genetic level, and I don't know where it will take me. It scares me to think what I could become in the years to come.

  I've seen what that DNA can do to an evil person. Regina Worthington had indeed had the same sort of DNA. Pickney had confirmed it for me the day before. She had been consumed by hate when she walked these halls. I had seen the ugliness inside her, and not really understood where it came from. I do understand where it came from now, and I have the same thing inside me.

  I just fight it where she relished it. I don't want to be a monster. But if it is my fate to become one, I will use that monster to fight the Kresh. I will fight with everything I have.

  My thoughts returned to where I was. I had no idea how long I was off in my own little world but I was soaked in sweat, and my rage was noticeably less than it had been.

  I brought the Dance to an end, and I heard the harsh breathing of the others around me.

  "That was a little eerie," I heard Paige say from behind us.

  I turned with a smile, "How was it eerie?"

  "When you started, all of you started in different stances," she said, "In moments, you're all synchronized."

  I looked over at Lyrica who shrugged, "I just started going with the stance that felt right."

  "Me too," Prada said. The others nodded as well.

  "You were doin’ that thing again," Ric said, "projectin’ your moves to us."

  "Interesting," Paige said. "Were you trying to project?"

  I shook my head. "I was a million miles away. I was running on autopilot."

  "I wonder how far you can project what you want done," Paige mused.

  "It worked with a hundred Guards in Kansas," Rictor said. "There's really no tellin’ how far it will work."

  "I don't really try to do it," I said, "it just happens. It will take some experiments to really find out the limits of it."

  She nodded. "So, when are you going to get Jacobs and do this thing? Everyone is waiting with bated breath. I think some of them will explode if you don't get on with it."

  Rictor laughed, "At last, someone has the guts to bring it up. She's right, Boss. Just get it done, and we'll see what happens."

  "I just wanted to get myself centered for it. The Dance helps me get myself together."

  "Bleeds off some of the rage, too," said Lyrica. "It's noticeably less after that workout."

  "True enough," I answered. "All right, let's get to it."

  Chapter 8

  "What do ya need me ‘ta do, Boss?" Jacobs asked.

  We stood out near the giant oak tree behind the Guard Barracks. It had a trunk nearly thirty feet in diameter, and it towered above the Guard barracks like some huge sentinel. The enhanced Stream that fed it had even grown with the time that had passed since I had unblocked Paige so many years ago.

  When I had gone to get him, Jacobs had been waiting. Gina Peters, the girl who had come home with him from Missoula, had been there as well. Apparently the two of them had struck it off quite well. She seemed to be a nice person, and I can say that after seeing her Soul. A person is the sum of the things accrued in their Soul, and Gina’s was vibrant with color.

  A Soul that is ugly with browns and greys is typically that of a person who has done evil things. Demon Souls are black and purplish, but they are more than just a color. They have a sense of evil or repugnance that emanates from them that I sense.

  I'd only seen one Soul that had been pure black but hadn't been the black of evil. It was complicated with this man. He had done some very bad things, but he'd done them to very bad people. Much of what your Soul displays is the way you perceive what you have done. If
you do evil and know it is evil, your Soul will reflect that with a repugnance that I can see and feel. His Soul was black, yes, but it held a beauty of its own as well. His acts, that would have been considered evil, were tempered with the righteousness of his cause. He killed monsters that walked in human form. He was known as The Whisper in the Night by all that knew of him, and that was a small list of people.

  My thoughts returned to the task at hand. "When I Pull, you focus on steering that power straight up into the sky. Before, I used the power I Pulled, so I had them steer to a particular point. Since this is not for a purpose past the Pull itself, focus straight up into the sky."

  I lit up my Soulstream, formed a tendril that went to the side, and turned it straight up.

  "This is what I want you to form," I said. "Then concentrate all your focus to send everything I Pull out that tendril."

  I watched as a tendril formed on the side of his stream, and began to form into the exact shape I had shown him.

  "Don't lose focus, Ivan," I said with a warning tone. "The Source is an unforgiving bitch, and she will burn you down in a heartbeat."

  "I know the stakes, Boss," he said. "I'm ok, so do your thing."

  I nodded and stepped forward. As I started to Pull, I felt three hands land on my shoulders. I turned my head to find Lyrica on my right. She raised her eyebrows as if to dare me to say something. I chose not to say a word. I looked left to find Rictor standing with his hand on my left shoulder. He shrugged and I knew it was hopeless to even think he wasn't going to be Support if it was needed. I didn't even need to see who was behind me. Andrea Prada was undoubtedly standing there.

  "On three," I said, "one...two...three."

  At three, I Pulled through Jacobs stream. Power poured into the sky, but I wasn't Pulling hard. I just wanted to be sure it was going where it was supposed to. I watched for a second as the several people who had come out to watch looked on. I could see various stages of nervousness around us in auras.

  Then I Pulled a great deal harder. I could feel power flowing through my Supports. Nothing like what had ripped through Gregor, Darrel, and Paige while in Kansas. But the power flowed through them easily. Jacobs stream, on the other hand had become a huge gout of Soulfire spewing into the sky.