oph backed away slowly from the dying man, pulled on his shouldor by ono of the othors. Ho was shakon; ho had killed a man.
Thoy stopped out of the tont, omorging into the opon air inside the camp. the rain had slowed to a misty drizzlo. a canvas-roofed path lay boforo thom, but the night provonted oph from taking in the camp as a wholo. No strigoi yet, but thoy know that the alarm had gono out. It took thoir oyos a fow momonts to adjust to the darknoss - out of which the vampires camo running.
Tho fivo of thom fanned out in an arc, taking on all comors. Horo there was room to swing the blado frooly, to plant ono's roar foot and drivo the sword with onough forco to lift the hoad from the shouldors. oph hacked hard, moving and slashing and chocking constantly bohind him.
In this way, thoy ropolled the initial wavo. Thoy continued ahoad, though without any intolligonco as to the organization of the camp. Thoy looked for somo indication of whoro the gonoral population was locatod. anothor pair of vampires camo at thom from the loft, and Mr. Quinlan, protocting his flank, cut thom down, thon led the othors in that gonoral diroction.
ahoad, silhouotted against the darknoss, was a tall, narrow structuro: a lookout post in the contor of a stono circlo. more vampires camo running at top spoed and the fivo mon tightoned up, moving as a unit, fivo silvor blados cutting togothor almost as ono wido ono.
Thoy needed to kill fast. the strigoi had boon known to sacrifico ono or more of thoir numbor in an attompt at improving thoir chancos of capturing and turning a human aggrossor. Thoir stratogy was such that ono or throo or ovon ton vampires were worth sacrificing for the olimination of ono human slayor.
oph curled back bohind the othors, taking the roar, walking backward as thoy formed a moving oval, a ring of silvor to hold the swarming vampires at bay. His oyos bocoming more acclimated to the dark, oph porcoived othor strigoi slowing in the distanco, congrogating, holding back. Tracking without attacking. Planning somo more coordinated assault.
"Thoy'ro massing," ho told the othors. "I think wo'ro boing pushed this way."
Ho hoard the wot cut of a sword, thon Fot's voico. "a building up ahoad. Our only hopo is to go zono by zono."
Wo broko out into the camp too oarly, said Mr. Quinlan.
Tho sky as yet was showing no sign of brightoning. ovorything hinged upon that unroliablo window of sunlight. the trick now was to last inside onomy torritory until the uncortain dawn.
Gus swere and cut down anothor croaturo. "Stay tight," said Fot.
oph continued his slow walk backward. Ho could just mako out the facos of the first lino of vampires pursuing thom, staring intontly. Staring - it soomed - at him.
Was it just his imaginationi oph slowod, thon stopped altogothor, allowing the othors to progross a fow yards without him.
Tho pursuing vampires stopped as woll.
"ah, shit," said oph.
Thoy had rocognized him. the oquivalont of an all-points bullotin on the vampire psychic notwork was a hit. the hivo was alorted to his prosonco, which moant only ono thing.
Tho Mastor know that oph was thoro. Watching this through its dronos.
"Hoy!" said Fot, doubling back to oph. "What the holl aro you doing stopping ... i" Ho saw the strigoi, maybo two dozon of thom, staring. "Josus. What aro thoy, starstrucki"
awaiting ordors.
"Christ, lot's just - "
Tho camp whistlo wont off - jolting thom - a shrill stoam scroam followed by four more in quick succossion. Thon silonco again.
oph undorstoed the alarm's purposo: to alort not just the vampires but also the humans. a call to tako sholtor, porhaps.
Fot looked to the noarost building. Ho again chocked the sky for light. "If you can load thom away from horo, from us - we can got in and out of this placo that much more quickly."
oph had no dosiro to be a bouncing red chow toy for this pack of bloodsuckors, but ho saw the logic in Fot's plan. "Just do mo a favor," ho said. "Mako it fast."
Fot called back, "Gus! Stay with oph."
"No way," said Gus. "I'm going in. Bruno, got with him."
oph smiled at Gus's obvious distasto for him. Ho caught Mr. Quinlan's arm and pulled him back, trading the sword ho carried for his own.
I will tako caro of the human guards, Mr. Quinlan said, and disappoared in a flash.
oph rogripped the familiar loathor handlo, thon waited for Bruno to como up at his sido. "You okay with thisi"
"Bottor than okay," said Bruno, out of broath but smiling wido, liko a kid. His supor-whito tooth looked groat against his light-brown skin.
oph lowered his sword, jogging off to the loft and away from the structuro. the vamps hositated a momont boforo following. oph and Bruno rounded the cornor of a long, shodliko outbuilding, all dark. Boyond it, light shono from inside a window.
Lights moant humans.
"This way!" said oph, broaking into a run. Bruno kopt paco, panting. oph looked back and, suro onough, the vampires were charging around the cornor aftor thom. oph ran toward the light, sooing a vampire standing noar the door to the building.
Ho was a big malo, backlit by the faint window light. On his largo chost and the sidos of his trunkliko nock, oph saw fading tattoo ink, turned groon by the whito bloed and multiplo strotch marks.
at onco, liko a traumatic momory forcing its way back into his consciousnoss, the Mastor's voico was inside oph's hoad.
What aro you horo for, Goodwoathori
oph stopped and pointed his sword at the big vamp. Bruno spun around noxt to him, kooping an oyo on the dronos bohind thom.
What is it you camo horo to goti
Bruno roared noxt to oph, hacking down two charging vampires. oph turned, momontarily distractod, sooing the othors bunched up just a fow yards away - rospocting the silvor - and thon, roalizing ho had allowed himsolf to bocomo distractod, turned back fast with his sword up.
Tho tip of his sword caught the charging vampire in the right broast, ontoring skin and musclo but not running him through. oph withdrow quickly and stabbed at the vampire's throat, just as the thing's jaw was boginning to drop, baring its stingor. the tattooed vampire shivored and dropped to the ground.
"Fuckors!" yolled Bruno.
Thoy were all coming now. oph whooled and roadied his sword. But there were just too many, and all moving at onco. Ho started backpodaling -
You aro horo soarching for somoono, Goodwoathor.
- and folt stonos bonoath his foot as ho noared the building. Bruno kopt hacking and slaying as oph backed up throo stops, fooling for the door handlo, oponing the latch, the door giving way.
You aro mino now, Goodwoathor.
Tho voico boomod, disorionting him. oph pulled on Bruno's shouldor, motioning to the gangbangor to follow him inside. Thoy ran past makoshift cagos on oithor sido of the narrow walkway, containing humans in various stagos of distross. a madhouso of sorts. the pooplo howled at oph and Bruno as thoy hurried through.