Previously - Dr. Telford and Rebecca are taken down to the research lab where they confront Sir William and are introduced to one of the research subjects.
Douglas released a portion of what his cane held, and the air shimmered in front of him, flickering sharply as the Barghest made contact. Without waiting, he took one long step forward and swung the cane, as he would have a cricket bat. It contacted the supine creature, and the stench of ozone and burning fur filled the air.
It struggled to its feet and took a few steps back, growling again.
“Douglas, watch-” Rebecca was unable to finish her warning as an eldritch bolt split the air between her and Sir William. Rather than target the elder magus, he had focused on her. She fell to the ground.
Douglas had no time to check on her and used his right hand to draw the twisted wand from its sheath, uttering a string of words in the tongue of the Fae as he did. It was a beautiful language, even when the words themselves were the direst of curses. Both the cane and the wand shone like moonlight. Fae magic wasn’t the best for direct combat. They still favored swords and bows in the Seelie court. It was good for defense though, provided you were creative.
“Stand down, Sir William. What you’re doing here is an...”
“Abomination?” Sir William snorted. ”I’ve heard that word before about my work.” He slashed with his wand, and another beam of energy washed out. It broke on Douglas’ shield.
“Never more applicable than now. You’re correct. I’m not here working for Her Majesty, but the people need to know what you’re doing.” The door began to open behind him. He pointed just the wand. “Stone like waters, flow.” The doorjamb performed as bidden, becoming fluid long enough to bind the rock. The soldiers outside began to beat on the door, slowly and methodically. “And not just what you’re doing to the Fae, but to your own men.”
“Fallen soldiers, given opportunity to serve God and Queen, once again.” He spat out the command, and the Barghest advanced on the older man again, more warily this time.
Douglas knew his shield wouldn’t hold against another direct physical assault. It was there as a deterrent, most effective against truly intelligent foes. The Fae dogs were smarter than natural ones, but only slightly.
He made another pass with his wand and nothing seemed to happen. He cursed colorfully as the dog jumped, and its master laughed. Both were confused when it passed through a colorful mist where Douglas had been.
Douglas lashed out with his cane again from his current position, two feet to the left of where he had been. The ball caught the dog solidly behind one ear, and there was a crunching noise that turned his stomach. The hound collapsed where it stood.
A searing and simultaneously numbing cold enveloped his body. Some of it bled off into the arm band he wore. He had enough sense of the flow of energies to know that. From his prone position on the floor, and with his limbs unresponsive, it was hard to know what to do about the knowledge. He did have the presence of mind to feign being unconscious and to realize Rebecca was likely in a similar state.
He heard the shuffle of feet near his head. “It’s a shame you killed the Barghest. We have more, though.”
He heard more than felt the foot impact his side. The spell Sir William cast was beneficial in that regard. At least one rib broke under the assault.
“I know you’re awake, old man. Your shield caught the brunt of my spell, and you have your arm band.”
With great effort, Douglas turned his head. With greater effort came the power of speech. “I am. Shall you kill me as I lay here? Coward?”
The epithet earned him another kick. “I am no coward. I’m a member of the Black Watch and deal with...” Sir William screamed.
Douglas saw the hilt of the dagger suddenly protrude from Sir Walter’s stomach. With a few mumbled words and an exertion of will, he pulled the last of the stored power from his cane into himself. Warmth flooded back to his limbs. Unfortunately, the pain from the kicks quickly followed. He groaned deeply and heard movement from behind him.
Pushing through the pain forced some of the energy back out of him. “Still as the mighty oak.” The sound of wind blowing through the trees was foreign to this dank basement. Douglas stood, relying on the cane as it was originally intended. He recovered his wand and tucked it back up his sleeve. With no small amount of relish, he tapped on the still form of Sir William. The dull thunk of wood on wood answered. The spell would hold him for a half hour at least.
He turned to check on his companion and saw she was sitting up. “Welcome to the land of the living, Ms. Brenner. Frankly, I am a little surprised you were able to use your weapon to such effect.”
She smiled weekly and stood. “I had five brothers older than me. I could stick a tree from twenty paces with a table knife.”
With some great effort, he pulled the blade free from Sir Walter. A mix of sap and blood stained the first three inches. He wiped it on his sleeve and handed it back to her. “Take it easy. I’ll get us out of here.”
She looked at the door. “Through them?”
“Just take your pictures, and let me worry about an exit strategy.” He watched as she recovered her still-intact, camera. Her youth allowed her a quick rebound from Sir Walter’s attack. Either that or he had intended to keep her alive for later. Douglas shuddered at the thought.
Pushing the unpleasantness aside, he called out to the stones and the very earth beneath them. His wand moved like a conductor’s baton. What he needed to do would have taken more power than any single magus could generate on their own. Thankfully, one side effect of what these people had done was a weakening of the veil. If one knew the right formulae and just where to look, parting it was at least possible, if not easy.
