Page 95 of Outlaw Witch

I then focus my attention on the two main threats in front of us. The last thing I want to do is to stimulate their trigger fingers accidentally by knocking them both out.

Luckily, their attention is drawn to the guy now splayed out on the concrete ground, trying to pull himself up as he curses.

“Lance? What the hell?”

“What did you do to me? My fucking legs don’t work.”

“Can I introduce you gentlemen to our friend Silver? You might want to put those weapons away, you don’t want to see what else she can do. It’s a lot more... messy.”

“You. You broke my fucking legs.” The guy sprawled on the ground spits at me and I just shrug.

His circulation will come back... probably. Like I say, I’ve not played much with this type of magic.

The threat seems to work, though. Or at least, they lower the guns. I then take the opportunity to focus on cutting the circulation off to their hands so that they drop to the ground. It’s risky, but thankfully neither of them was dumb enough to have the safety off, so we avoid getting our feet shot off.

Damn, I hate human weapons.

“What made you think that you could get away with it? That we’dletyou get off scot-free?” Roscoe asks.

I’m still eyeing the threats in front of me while he does his whole questioning and posturing routine. I’m not sure what he’s expecting for them to say. They wanted to skim a little extra off the top, so they did. Clearly, no one was paying that much attention.

For a group of people that have made a business out of shady dealings, the Nexus mages are an oddly trusting bunch. It’s like they assume their people are all loyal to them, although clearly that’s only been the case while Fabian’s been running things.

Once the weapons have clattered to the ground, I consider my options. What I’d like to do is knock them all out, but it’s not much of a lesson if they’re all unconscious. Instead, I meet Zeph’s eye as he grunts something that sounds like ‘bud cored’.

Ah. The blood sword.

One thing I never asked Fabian and haven’t considered before this point is where the blood comes from in order to create the sword. I’m certainly not going to make myselfbleed.

I eye up Zeph for a moment. The guy is massive and surely he’d be fine losing just a little for the cause? Although, I don’t really fancy him passing out on me. I move on to eyeing the guy on the ground before my eyes flick back to the multiple Roscoes around me. Even I don’t know which one is the real one at this point.

“Cover me,” I mutter, and his eyes widen. I then dart forward as my clones do the same. We move as one, like a synchronized dance routine made up of doppelgangers.

Once I reach Lance, I make a grab for the duffel bag on the floor and swiftly kick him in the face. His nose explodes and blood spatters all over the ground and my jeans.

I focus my blood magic until the pool of blood hovers in the air, reforming until it’s a vicious weapon.

It’s more... a blood knife. You could maybe call it a dagger if you’re being generous. Definitely not a sword, but it’ll do.

I swing it around and return to my place among the multiple Roscoes and Zephs. The latter smirks at the dagger in mine and my clones’ hands and I subtly flip him off.

“You know how long the Nightshades and Hawksheads have been at the top of the pyramid? For-fucking-ever,” one of the previously gun-toting men says, spit flying everywhere. “You know what all the rest of us have got out of it? Jack shit.”

“How about a fucking place to live and a steady income, you greedy fucks,” Roscoe replies. “Seriously, Lance, you've worked in our clubs for years. What the hell, man?”

“Fifteen years,” Lance grouches from his spot on the floor. “Fifteen fucking years throwing dumb kids out on their asses and living in a shitty basement flat. You know how much money I’ve raked in over the past couple of months? Enough to get me and my kids out of that shitty fucking basement and into somewhere with windows.” He chuckles drily. “Not that any of you fucks would understand.”

“Wave your little... knife around,” Zeph mutters to me. “Make them shit themselves.”

“You fuckers can’t have a monopoly on the entire district,” the guy in the back who hasn’t spoken up until this point says. I can still feel something bubbling up inside him.

And then he lunges for me, faster than any person or mage without super speed.

Shit. He’s a vamp.

I wield the blood knife and slash it in front of my body, but it doesn’t hit flesh, and he’s almost on me. There’s a burst of pure energy that vibrates through the air, ricocheting off the vamp as he heads toward me. I’m knocked back with the force of it and stumble a few steps until I trip over onto my ass. The vamp’s body hits the wall, and he flies backward, his head smashing against the wall and his body flopping hard against the floor.

A bolt of lightning then zaps him in the chest and he seizes until his body goes still.

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