Bloodflowers Bloom (The Astral Wanderer Book 2), D'Artagnan Rey [essential reading .txt] 📗

“Pot and kettle,” Wulfsun said as he stood. “I need to hit the head. If I run into them, I’ll let you know. Or if you see them again, let me know.”

“Understood,” Devol confirmed with a nod.

“And start planning for when we get into the city,” the Templar ordered as he slid out of his row. “When we get our boots on the ground, we need to be ready.” With that, he left them and the train car and moved to the next one.

“Planning?” the young swordsman asked in bemusement and looked at the others.

Asla was equally as puzzled. “I’m not sure what we can accomplish. He’s the one with all the plans.”

“He’s probably trying to sound like a general or something,” Jazai quipped as he stretched his arms before he slid them behind his head to rest. “Welcome to being official Templar recruits.”

Wulfsun walked casually through another train car and passed one of the restrooms. He had also caught a glimpse of the figures Devol had seen, and his anima was always up. They were more than odd. There was something foul about them. He knew they were aboard because he could feel them although he couldn’t place them. The farther he moved down the train, the more he could sense them, and the lingering unease strengthened to a sickening aura.

He let a steward pass and both men gave the other a friendly nod. As soon as the official had left, he tried to open the door to the next train car but it was locked. He used a trickle of vis to force it open and grunted when the lock cracked loudly. Quickly, he stepped through and shut the door. This car was larger than the others—storage, most likely. He took a few more steps and could now feel the foul magic all around him. The interior was dark with only a few lights above and below to illuminate the space.

A rattle caught his attention a moment before something landed on the floor. Wulfsun strode forward and unleashed his anima as the cloaked figures emerged from the shadows. He stared intently at them but their hoods hid their faces. “Are you taking a walk there, lads?” he asked.

One of the cloaked figures held a hand up. A tattooed rune on the palm lit up and he braced for an attack. Instead, the rune created a thin field around the car and everything immediately grew quiet.

“A silence spell?” he asked and thumped his fists together. “So it’ll be an exciting walk, will it?” The cloaked figures let their gloves slip off to reveal gray, spotted skin and pointed nails. Two of them brandished jagged daggers.

“Oh, I see.” Wulfsun grinned and punched his fists together until the knuckles cracked. “Quite exciting, then?”

Chapter Seventeen

The strangers attacked first. Those with only their claws lunged at the Templar and swung the talons down as Wulfsun raised his gauntlets to block them. A blast released as his majestic activated to coat his body in a hardened mana shield. The barrier knocked them back and slowed the strikes of the other attackers.

The Templar moved to the side. He had little room in the car to maneuver but enough to let their attack slide past as he powered his fist into the back of one man’s head and hurled him into the assailant behind him. The other attempted to strike at his throat and he noticed a coating of liquid running down the blade—poison, no doubt.

He was able to snatch the figure by the wrist. At least they appeared to be smart enough to aim for the places that weren’t armored, but as he wrestled with the dagger-wielding attacker, he was finally able to shake its hood off. He recoiled instinctively when he understood why they had such a sickening presence.

The assassin’s skin was gray and his eyes were lifeless with nothing but yellowed corneas and no irises. It had the appearance of a male but had been shaven bald and browless and its mouth was sewn shut. A dark spot between its eyes allowed a small trickle of mana to seep out.

These were ghouls, corpses reanimated by magic and under someone’s control. When the surprise wore off, the entity lifted a leg and drove it into Wulfsun’s chest. Although it did no damage, the force was strong enough to jostle him and make him take a step back. This weakened his hold and allowed it to wrest its hand free. The Templar snarled as he tried to adjust to this new reality of ghouls that could use vis. It was unusual, even in this strange moment.

The being he had previously knocked back had begun to recover. It focused on the Templar’s undefended back as its comrades began to descend on their quarry. One of them raised a hand that formed ice around the fingertips. Wulfsun could sense the ghoul behind him preparing to strike as the three others moved toward him.

He straightened and lifted a leg as the creature in front of him fired an ice lance and the assailant behind him prepared to stab its dagger into the back of his neck. When he slammed his foot down, it activated his great barrier around him. The ice lance struck it and broke apart, while the dagger met the barrier and shattered. He balled a fist, turned, and dropped the shield as he drove his fist into the chin of the ghoul behind him. The blow landed with a sickening crack and launched the being into the roof of the train car. Its skull was crushed by the impact with the metal and it fell heavily, and what little mana was left within evaporated.

“Yer master must have not known who he was dealin’ with.” Wulfsun snarled defiance, his voice almost a growl more akin to a beast than a man. He turned to face the remaining assassins. “Or perhaps I wasn’t your primary target. You