Dani
Dani tried to gather her power, but it was like sucking water through a trick straw, one stuck with pin holes. Useless.
Marvin moved around the room to the window, took in the view, and met her eyes, shaking his head.
Mable wasn’t outside.
The big guy had been zapped. That could be really dangerous to old people. If she got zapped on top of all the drugs in her system, she’d be down for the count. Maybe dead. Their plan hadn’t included magic-using goons.
She tried again to draw up her magic, but nothing happened.
She was powerless, Marvin was still pressing his chest, and Sandra had never before used her power on purpose. And their rescue knight on a white horse was . . . Mable and her tiny transformed bird dragons.
“Problems,” Sandra said. She backed away from the door. “They’re bringing in voids and a battering ram.”
Over Building Z’s emergency loudspeaker—the one used to call out codes when patients crashed—a voice said, “Code Red,dining room. Code Red, dining room. Code Red, dining room. This is not a drill. Code Red, dining room.”
It was Mable’s voice, breathless and hollow. As if she was running.
Dani tried again to pull up her power and this time it hurt. She had to stop for a while.
Marvin breathed deeply, closed his eyes, and did the same. He shook his head again. Neither of them were going to be any help.
“Code Heart, room 205. Code Heart, room 205. Code Heart, room 205,” Mable’s voice said.
Then, “Code SOB, room 312. Code SOB, room 312. Code SOB, room 312.”
SOB?Dani thought.Oh. Short of breath. Laughter tittered up through her tight throat.I’m pretty SOB myself right now.
Sandra
Her muscles were quivering, her breath short and fast as she backed away from the door. Whatever Mable was doing with the speakers and the codes, it wasn’t enough. The security team was ready to break down the door.
“Oh. Oh nonono.” She began to pull up her power. “No no. Dear God, please stop them. Please stop them. Oh no. Please stop them. Please—”
A crash knocked her back.
The door rammed open. Slammed against the wall.
Black-suited figures rushed in. They had magic.So much magic.
Sandra released her power at them.
It shuddered through her. Whipped her spine. Blasted out of her gut and down her arm to her fingers. It struck the line of jack-booted thugs.
Power blasted into them.
So much power it was like fire, hot and burning. It ricocheted over them and into the wall.
Overhead, the lights blinked several times and went off.
Smoke blew through the air with the smell of burning feathers.
Soft, odd grunting sounds filled the room.
Emus appeared out of the smoke.
In a panic, small-brained, long-necked birds stomped off their boots and flung their clothes away. Spread their short wings and grunted loudly. Then they started booming, the sounds caught in the small room, reverberating as they raced in circles and then strode, long legs reaching. The wild mob raced down the hallway, claws clacking on the floor. They pecked at everything that moved.
