Southwest Days (Semiautomatic Sorceress Book 2), Kal Aaron [book recommendations based on other books .txt] 📗

This wasn’t going as well as her first encounter. There were tears in her regalia and blood dripping from her wounds, but she still had her mobility and her ability to shoot. Her limits remained far away.

Aisha pelted the first panther with fireballs, her attacks sanding off the thick armor. It bounded toward her, growling, but she rocketed into the air, avoiding its claws. She spun in midair and flipped over to drop and land in a crouch behind the creature, then threw out her hand. Another fireball exploded against the panther’s back.

Lyssa smiled. It was a lot easier to appreciate Aisha’s skills now that they weren’t blood enemies.

She spared a glance for Antoine. He was on the ground, not moving. She found it hard to believe he’d been killed by one hit with all his preparation, and the best thing she could do for him was keep the panther from following up.

Confident that the rest of her team could handle the other panther, Lyssa focused on the large and angry monster in front of her. It wasn’t going for the easy lunge, but its steady, slow advance was backing her toward the other chamber and away from the others. She wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or not. At least she was keeping it away from the healer.

“Maximum damage potential might be necessary,” Jofi said. “You should consider the use of a showstopper to destroy this enemy.”

“Not in here.” Lyssa jumped back. “It’s no different than before. There’s too much of a risk of bringing down the cave, and now we also have a bunch of other people inside. Just because I don’t mow somebody down like nothing doesn’t mean I need to go right to the top. These guys aren’t that tough. All I have to do is not die for a minute or two.”

“I would caution you against that strategy. It might not maximize your life expectancy.”

Lyssa snickered. “Trying not to die will get me killed earlier?”

“Yes.”

“Then shut up and let me concentrate.”

She was convinced that someday Jofi would start cackling and explain he’d been messing with her the entire time. It wouldn’t surprise her.

Everyone on the team was as battered as she was, but no one was down except Antoine. Two overgrown monsters couldn’t take out four Illuminated. She wouldn’t use the showstopper out of pride, if nothing else.

Lyssa ejected her empty magazines and continued backing away. She shoved one gun back into its holster before pulling out another penetrator magazine and loading it into her remaining weapon. Her panther opponent stalked toward her and let out a low, menacing rumble.

It was moving slower than before. A win by attrition was still a win. She was glad she’d brought more ammo.

Explosions, yells, and roars sounded behind the monster, with Aisha and Ryan engaging its partner. The panther in front of Lyssa hesitated for a moment and started to turn toward the other.

“Not so mindless, huh?” Lyssa frowned. “Think I’m no longer a threat? That’s rude. You’re still dancing with me.”

She fired a single penetrator round into its flank, eliciting another horrendous roar but not the death she would have preferred. The dead monsters shook, along with the water.

“Like I said, we’re not done, you reject,” Lyssa shouted.

The panther jumped to face her. She’d gotten what she wanted.

“Kill me, then you can go help your friend.”

Lyssa fired roughly where an eye would be on a normal-sized, non-armored panther. The bullet ripped through the armor plates, and blood splattered out. She put a round into each of its front legs and sprinted toward the wall.

A fireball from Aisha exploded against the side of the first panther’s head, vaporizing another layer of the bony armor. It snapped its head toward her and growled.

Lyssa liked their chances. For the first time since beginning the fight, she felt like her team was controlling the tempo of the battle. They didn’t need showstoppers. Their teamwork would be enough.

After Aisha nailed her target again, Ryan took his chance and charged the distracted panther. It swiped at him, but he was leaning back before it’d lifted its paw. The savage claws passed over him, and he snapped up and hacked at the paw with his invisible blade. His blow sliced past the armor and cut the flesh. He leaped back and shoved his hilt into the ground.

A dull rumble followed, and the ground cracked and shook beneath the panther. Ryan whipped his arm back and low, rhythmic oscillations echoed throughout the chamber, almost making Lyssa lose her footing. It would have been nice if he’d announced the attack before doing it, but she managed to right herself a second later.

Ryan shot into the air and stayed there, hovering in place. The panther leaped for him but missed and fell back to the ground, landing in a pile of dead monsters with a squelching, popping noise.

Lyssa was half-tempted to use Dark Steps to get into the air like the other Torches. Antoine lay on the ground, still not moving from the earlier attack. She didn’t have time to worry about him. They needed to down the threats, then they could check on him.

Ryan dropped out of the air, his hilt pointed down as he fell toward the monster’s head. His ultrasonic blade pierced the already thinned armor on the top, the victim of Aisha’s not-so-tender attentions. The panther howled in pain and rage and bucked, trying to shake off the man connected to it by an invisible sword of sound. Ryan quickly changed his attack to the neck of the beast.

Aisha pivoted to deliver fireballs to the back of the panther advancing on Lyssa. She advanced toward it, throwing up her left and right hands in succession to conjure quick fireballs. Lyssa matched her off-hand rhythm with shots from her gun.

The panther roared and ran to the side. It wasn’t going to last long in a Sorceress pincer.

Ryan swung back and forth,