The water turns tumultuous as the hydra whirls, trying to crush me with its draconic legs. Its serpentine tail whips through the pool in search of me, but I latch onto it. Struggling to keep my grip on the scaly appendage underwater, I uncap the tranquilizer from my pocket and drive the long needle deeply between the scales of the beast.
Del Mar shrieks and finally shakes me off, sending me spinning underwater. My forehead smacks against the pool’s edge, and then dagger-like claws slice across my back. Searing pain explodes through my spine, and water floods my mouth when my body’s reflex is to scream.
Pivoting underwater, I kick up to finally break the surface, coughing up water and gasping for air. By now, the hydra’s fumes have dissipated enough, but Del Mar’s nine heads are still screaming, hissing, and gnashing their teeth. He staggers, less focused on me and more focused on what I just did to him.
One of the legacy guards standing just outside the pool aims at me with a spell. Ignoring the burning pain in my back, I grip the edge of the pool to launch out of the water and roll away fromthe attack. Whipping wet hair out of my face, I withdraw Pierce again and drive it through the sorcerer's neck.
A pulse of elemental air slams into me, sending me smashing into one of the house's walls. I hear the distinctivecrackof my ribs breaking, but I can't waste time processing more pain. Instead, I launch several dark magic attacks in quick succession.
One hits the air elemental. He screams and falls into the pool, drowning while the hydra continues to thrash and screech, fighting the effects of a forced shift.
My vision blurs from pain and exhaustion, but another buzz fills me.
Two of the security members from upstairs race into the room. I hear the now-familiar sound of a gun cocking and dive aside just as the woman opens fire. Using my unnatural revenant speed, I dash around the pool to get to her, but not before one of the bullets lodges in my thigh.
Ouch.
I snap her neck. She drops like a ragdoll.
I wanted to keep this swift and professional—but between the rush of fresh kills and the pounding of a fight inside my veins, I can’t stop the unhinged grin that spreads across my face when the other security guard turns and tries to flee. Pulling out one of my new knives, I hurl it at his back. It sinks deep where his heart is, and he falls forward, lifeless a moment later.
Another wave of dark, delicious force floods through my system. My vision dips again, but this time, it's because my berserker side wants to break free.
If I weren’t so determined to get back to my quintet as soon as fucking possible, I would let it.
Instead, to stay in control, I recite the list of mantras that Amadeus and the necromancers drilled into me as I approach the pool where the hydra shifter is now shrinking to his human form.
“I feel nothing. I’m on my own. I need no one.” Wiping blood from my neck, I take a deep breath and check my broken ribs, which aren’t as bad as they could be. “I am but a weapon who is one with death. I am nothing but deadly calm.”
Repeating these old mantras staves off the berserker as I crouch beside the pool. Iker Del Mar finally bursts from the surface with a ragged gasp, left naked from the shift.
He lurches forward in the water to bare sharp teeth at me, ready to attack. I beat him to it, sending a silver dagger into his right shoulder. He screams, struggling to tread water through the pain and the effects of the nightshade root powder.
Gripping him by the arm, I yank him onto the pool’s edge. The immortal hisses and tries to bite me, but I have a smaller knife already ready that I slice through his mouth, straight across his cheeks.
He hisses in agony.
“Telum.”He sprays blood when he speaks, his forked tongue flicking in and out as he grimaces in pain. “This does nothing. You cannot kill?—”
“Oh, right. Your life link. Slipped my mind, but give me a moment.”
I slit his neck. He gurgles and twitches before going still.
The buzz doesn't fill my veins, of course. I need to destroy his etherium anchor first. With a grimace, I pick the bullet out of my leg and do a basic necromantic healing spell on my leg and back, ignoring the throbbing in my head as I go to look for Iker's life link.
It’s a ring. Engela described it in detail, along with all the ways he tends to hide it.
Searching the entire house takes twenty minutes. During that time, five more security team members either return or show up for their shift, only to join the heady buzz coursing through my system—which is convenient since it takes a hell of alot of destructive magic to break into the enchanted safe Del Mar had hiding under one of the guest beds upstairs.
I grab the little etherium ring, yawning as I drag myself back down the stairs to the pool room littered with corpses. I crouch beside Del Mar and wait.
And wait.
Really, I should just kill the son of a bitch right now. I could destroy the etherium ring before he wakes up and then return to my guys.
But I want a few words with this monster first.
Del Mar's eyes flutter, his gaze whited out for a moment as his neck wound begins to seal itself. Before it heals completely, I stick my gloved index finger through the remaining hole so when he comes to, he chokes and struggles, hissing at the pain.
