Page 100 of As Darkness Fall
“Vir,” I said, making a decision.
If we were going to fight, then we would take as many of them down with us as possible. The others would be on guard and would come running in no time. If Vir could protect us long enough, maybe we could drive them back.
I sensed the energy burgeoning in Vir before it manifested around him in a swirl of blue that wrapped itself in circles around his wrists and cast a pale glow over the clearing.
“Ah-ah-ah,” Lars said, wagging the blade at us. “No more of that, I think.”
I stared as power blossomed from Lars as well. A brilliant lavender, far brighter than the violet energy I had wielded in the temple.
“Dani,” Vir hissed. “This is not good. Not at all. He’s summoned the power of the Idol already.”
Licking my lips, I nodded, the motion jerky and uneven. “Yeah, you know what?” I said, fighting to keep my voice steady. “I’m going to have to agree with you. This is not good.”
“I’m glad we’re in agreement.”
I shot Vir a glare. “Now isnotthe time for you to develop a sense of sarcasm,” I ground out.
“You see,” Lars said, the power swirling around his limbs and torso. “I am prepared. So I wouldn’t try anything if I were you.”
“Can you take him?” I asked Vir.
The Champion of Amunlea shifted his weight from one foot to the other. “I don’t know,” he said after a pause.
Well, that wasn’t good either. If Vir wasn’t sure, it meant Lars had already amassed nearly enough power of his own to counter a literalgod. Sure, most of Vir’s true world-shaping powers had been left in the Direen when he crossed through the barrier to Earth, but he was still a god. That should have counted for something.
“Trust me, Champion of a dead empress,” Lars said, speaking to be heard over the dull roar of the matching energies. “You don’t want to try this. After all, in this realm, you are not a god. Youcandie.”
I stiffened, my head whipping around to stare at Vir. “Is that true?” I hissed.
Vir had never mentionedthatlittle tidbit before. If he, a being I thought to be immortal, could die, then we most definitely were not going to fight.
“With the knife, yes,” Vir answered softly.
Okay. Well, that was good to know.
“So, what are you going to do?” I asked Lars, the clearing now brightly lit by both matching energies. “Kill us?”
I needed him to talk more. There was nowaythe light wasn’t visible to our companions in the truck. We were maybe a hundred yards into the brush. Fred and the others would have spotted this in an instant. I’m not sure how much help they could be, given all the wolves I knew to be stalking us in the grass, but if they could keep the others at bay, maybe Vir and I could manage something.
I fervently wished I’d hit Lars in the temple in Shuldar. That I’d killed him, then and there, when I had access to powers like Vir’s. Maybe then I would have been helpful.
“No,” Lars said, surprising me. “It’s not worth the price it would take. Icouldkill you, yes, but too many of my men would die in the process. Can’t have that.”
Interesting. Now, why would Lars still need his men?
“You’re letting us go?” Vir asked, his voice tinged with disbelief.
“For the greater good.” Lars grinned. “This one time. After all, you’ve given me all I need. You are no longer of consequence to me. So, I offer you this. Get out of Seguin. Leave my town, and never come back.”
“Just like that?” I asked. It seemed too good to be true. There was no way he could be serious.
“Unless you wish to die,” Lars said with a shrug. “Then step forward, and I’ll prick you with the knife. One tiny cut from the blade, and poof. No pain. Just the sweet embrace of death awaiting you.”
“Sweet embrace of death? Listen to yourself, Lars!” I called. “This isn’t you.”
Lars howled with laughter. Around us, the wolves howled in answer. There were a lot more than I thought. Shivers ran down my spine, and I stepped closer to Vir, seeking out what little protection he could grant.
“You have no idea who I am,” Lars said. “None at all. Not even your father, that lying bastard, has any clue who I am or what I can do. Now, get out of Seguin. If you show your face here again, I will force you to watch, helpless, as I cut your parents’ throats with a regular blade. They will bleed out before I do much worse to you. Am I clear?”
