Out of Luck Page 11

  "I don't care if I’m the underdog, I have to fight him. I have to end him for what he's done," I hissed through my teeth.

  "No Sean. Let's do this togeth—" started Nehemiah. But I didn't let him finish.

  "You face me like a man. Just me. Let my friends go," I challenged Donn.

  "You insinuate that I am no man. And you are right for I am a God. A God of death."

  His blasphemy made my ears ring. I had no words, only my sword. His mouth was calling for blows.

  "I will let your friends go but only if you stand alone,” said Donn.

  "Well don't just stand there! Run!" I yelled at the group and they fled, Rob leading the way.

  Nehemiah stayed and spoke low in my ear. “Don’t try to be a hero Sean.”

  I ignored him. Tain wouldn’t budge. “Go boy!” I yelled at him. He did one of those dog circles where they are literally physically conflicted, and obey you but change their mind last second. He barked at me and pawed the ground. “Go Tain! Follow Rob,” I said pointing.

  The shriek of the Banshee echoed off the ancient walls, and the screams of the people we’d just helped escape soon followed.

  “I thought I killed her!” I said.

  Nehemiah shook his head at me while forcefully tugging Tain by the collar.“Banshees require a threefold death, one for each form.” Tain submitted and they both ran to help leaving me alone with Donn.

  Donn laughed and raised his arms. His cloak fell beneath him like great black wings.

  All of the Sluagh around the courtyard raised their wings in unison, their feathers ruffling and bristling with vile intent. I was suddenly painfully aware of how utterly vulnerable I was.

  With a rushing of wind the whole host of hundreds of Sluagh descended upon me.

  Chapter 22

  Black Birds Rain Down

  The Sluagh came at me like a mass of black darts.

  There was no way I could dodge them all and keep up with their speed. I decided to switch things up. As one came at me I crouched low. It followed suit and as it’s head craned down I leapt up and turned around mid air so that I mounted its neck. The creature screeched in protest but I grabbed a handful of feathers and yanked upward causing it to take flight.

  Up we went into the air and suddenly my mount became confused as it’s brethren turned on it and started attacking it. I leaned in and clenched it with my legs so that I wouldn’t fall off. As other Sluagh came at me the soaring arcs of my katana kept them at bay.

  We got too high and I pushed the massive birds head down forcing it into a dive. The wind picked up blowing through my hair. The whole host was at my back and I lead my bird to fly in between the columns. I vaguely knew the way back to the entrance we had come through and I directed my bird as best as I could.

  The other Sluagh couldn’t keep up and many of them ran headlong into the ebony stone pillars. Bones crunched and feathers flew. We weaved back and forth, but I felt my Sluagh losing steam. I turned my winged steed almost completely sideways to shoot straight between two massive stone columns. The weird outdoor light struck my face and fresh air filled my lungs. I did it. I got out of there.

  Below me my friends were rushing down the flight of stairs that served as the entrance to the fortress. But they were cut off by the Dullahan and the Banshee. The Dullahan was striking escapees down with his spine whip and the Banshee was flinging helpless victims like ragdolls with her sonic scream. Nehemiah was doing his best to defend the helpless people, but there was only so much he could do.

  I brought my Sluagh low scanned the crowd for Charice. I could fly to her and be there at her side, but I’m bringing the whole host of bird monsters in my wake. I decided to fight fire with fire and headed for the Dullahan.

  “Sorry PETA,” I said. Whipping the shotgun slung on my shoulder around, I aimed it point blank at the back of my steed’s head and pulled the trigger. The Sluagh’s head blew clean off and the wings went limp instantly. I rode the corpse into the Dullahan, head on and took him and his horse to the ground with me. My bird took most of the impact. As soon as we slid to a halt I used the momentum to spring up turn, cocking the gun and firing into another Sluagh that would have punctured a hole in my back if it’s beak wasn’t immediately blown off. Nehemiah ran past me taking the Dullahan to task with his staff.

  With the wizard guarding my back I cocked the gun and discharged it five more times, each shot echoing off of the pillars of the colonnade silencing the screeches of five more Sluagh. The massive corpses piled, one on the other and I climbed on the top of the heap. “Come on! Let’s do this!” Slinging the gun over my shoulder I switched to my katana. Hopefully this will buy my friends some time. Starlight reflected off of the blade, its bowed edge begging me to butcher some birds.

  As they swarmed me I danced atop the pile of winged corpses. I hacked off talons, wings, and heads. I stabbed, kicked, and punched, doing anything to survive. I thought about Charice, about my family. I recalled the jogger, and the unidentified victim from the alley. This was for everyone who had been hurt and everyone who would be hurt. This will end with me. The revenge poured through me. I was the physical manifestation of retribution.

  At some point the birds stopped attacking me. I looked around and saw that Nehemiah and the gang had made it back to the pathway. The remaining flock eyed me warily, maintaining their distance. “Fine by me,” I said, sheathing the sword and loading the last seven shells into my shotgun. Step by step I moved steadily into the flock. I fired the shotgun into the fold, firing from the hip. Plumage littered the ground.

  Before I knew it I was down to the last few shots and the birds were taking flight, fleeing before me. I switched back to the katana. “I’m not done with you!” I screamed my throat raw. Some of the birds didn’t ascend fast enough and I hacked them to pieces.

  I was left standing in a puddle of black blood and feathers, carnage in my wake. My adrenaline died down, the momentary strength afforded me by my rage taxing me almost double the strength it gave me. I fell to my knees.

  Chapter 23

  After All That

  In my killing spree I had definitely taken out a lot of Sluagh. I’d just not payed attention to anyone else.

  As I was trying to rise up from my knees I saw the Dullahan and his black horse galloping towards me. I had not time to react as he lashed his spinal whip around me. The sharp bone of the whip punctured my clothing. As he dragged me over the rough terrain the edges of the whip stabbed into me.

  No matter how much I struggled I could not break free. I tried to tap into my magic but the Dullahan made sure to hit every rock and pothole. The whip wounds weren’t deep but they were painful enough to prevent me from focusing on anything else.

  Finally the rodeo ended as the Dullahan came to a stop and released me. I groaned and rolled over in the fetal position. I had just gotten owned.

  I heard Charice cry out and my mind snapped to attention. Through bloodied and blurry vision I saw Nehemiah, Tain, and Rob all a few steps away from me. Behind my friends were the entire party of escapees whom the Dullahan was currently circling like a cowboy herding cattle. At the front of the group was Charice. Her eyes were wide and I traced her stare to see Donn the Red descending the steps of his fortress.

  He looked at me then at Charice, smiled, then said something in his ancient tongue to the Banshee. The she-devil turned and tried to claw Charice in two, but Nehemiah stood in the way. As the Banshee came at him he drew his .357 Magnum revolver and emptied four of the eight shots into her, ending the second of her three forms.

  Then Donn backhanded the wizard and he landed in an unconscious heap.

  Donn yelled at the Banshee, and she rose in her final form, the hideous old hag. She grabbed Charice by the arms and held her so that she was defenseless before Donn.

  I tried to get up but only managed two steps before collapsing on the ground in pain. Tain was at my side barking, dancing around me, encouraging me to rise.

  I looked up and s
aw Donn’s hands glowing. He raised them at Charice and began blasting her with some kind of Chaotic magic. She cried out in pain.

  Scraping the ground I moved closer, inch by inch but I wasn’t going to make it in time.

  Out of nowhere an orange tabby cat lept into the air, claws extended and latched on to the Irish lord’s face. Yes Rob! Get ‘im Swellfellow!

  But Donn ripped the cat away from his face and flung my Hobgoblin friend to the ground. The lord of the dead towered over the cat and brought his foot down, stomping Rob.

  Stomp.

  Stomp.

  Stomp.

  Stomp.

  With each stomp Rob involuntarily changed forms. Cat. Owl. Salmon. Hob. Rob tried to get out from under Donn, but the stomping was relentless.

  “Stop!” I cried out.

  Finally Donn stopped and Rob lay there, his green cap and wool coat disheveled, his forehead and open mouth leaking blood.

  He defended Charice, I thought. He bought me just enough time to rise to my feet and blow Donn away. My Mossberg was still attached to me thanks to the lanyard. I raised my shotgun and pulled the trigger firing a shot.

  With an outstretched hand he summoned a flat disk of Celtic knots that acted like a shield made of raw magic. The magic shield rippled but was otherwise intact completely guarding him from my shotgun.

  Donn the Red came at me like a wrecking ball. I felt like a piece origami paper.

  Tain lept in Donn’s path, but was kicked aside like a tumbleweed. Tain!

  I cocked my gun again but he swiftly ripped it from my hands like a Black Friday shopper and cast it aside. As if by its own volition my katana leapt into my hands. The blade danced before me faster than even I could register. But quick as sand he produced his own blade that even Final Fantasy's Cloud could not have lifted. He blocked my every attack and then parried. I raised my sword to block, but his blade broke mine like a plastic butter knife.

  Gun gone. Sword severed. Sean defenseless.

  Nehemiah was out cold. Tain was kicked to the curb. Charice was in a full-nelson, and Rob was battered. I had acted foolishly and doomed my friends and all of the people we were trying to save. If I'd listened to Nehemiah we could've attacked them together. This was all my fault.

  Donn brought my attention back to him by slugging me in the face with one of his brick size hands. Instantly there was blood in my mouth. He lifted me with one arm in the air by my neck, and as if I wasn't able to breathe already he uppercut me in the stomach knocking all the wind out of me. I tried to reach the shotgun that dangled below me from the lanyard, but he cast me to the stone floor like a rag doll. I tumbled over and over adding new bruises all over my body. I rolled out of the way just as his fist smashed the ground where I had been. Ebony brittle flew and scratched my face and a crater was left in the ground where his fist had made the impact.

  I'm way out of my league here. All the odds are stacked against me, I thought. This guy had strength in numbers as well as raw power, and he'd only used his magic defensively so far. He hadn't even attacked me with it.

  I hadn't even begun to use my magic. I'd only aimed the pathetic peashooter at him and swung at him with my butter knife. He was just toying with me and had yet to even bring out the big guns.

  I thought about my life as one does in near-death experiences. If I thought last week was bad this week totally sucked. My sister was dead and my dad was gone too. My mom and my brothers would have to throw the third funeral in way too short of a time span. I'd never get to be with Charice. We'd be dead.

  I had bad luck.

  No, I was out of luck entirely.

  A raven landed next to me and croaked. But in my muddled mind I didn’t hear croaking. I heard, Sean, remember. Remember.

  Why won’t my magic work? I thought.

  Remember Sean.

  The raven reminded me of the Oak tree back at home.

  I thought about all the times my Good Luck had worked. First when I touched Nehemiah’s staff it had awakened. Then at my house I’d used it again after being slammed against the Oak tree, I’d uppercutted the first Banshee. The third time was when I was in the Otherworld like I was now. So why wasn’t it working?

  My head lulled facing the helpless people that the Sluagh had kidnapped and I realized that they were hurting too. The group of escapees were hopeless now and their wailing echoed off the columns of the fortress.

  I was wallowing. This wasn't about me. It never had been. It was about saving my girlfriend and maybe the other captives and putting a stop to the Sluagh. Man my back hurts. Dang Dullahan. I hadn’t even gotten a hit on Donn yet. He’d knocked me flat on my back.

  Wait a minute, I thought. My mind connected the dots. Nehemiah unlocked my power, but I was only empowered with Good Luck after I hit the tree. That’s why there was a dark patch where my bare back hit it.

  The raven croaked in my ear, bobbing its head up and down.

  My hand went to my pocket. The Oak leaf was still there and the natural oils rubbed off on my fingertips. Images of my father and my sister flashed in my head. I remembered that day in the Oak tree, the whole family together and happy. I could never have the moment back. But I couldn’t make new moments either if I didn’t move on.

  The raven bobbed croaked one last time, then flew away.

  When I realized that it wasn’t about me, the Luck magic came back. Beaten or broken, I need to lead them to the threshold.

  Chapter 24

  Full Power

  I got to my feet and spread my legs shoulder width apart, put my arms to my sides and clenched my fists. I inhaled deeply and I swear my hair fluttered as wind rushed around me. The Celtic knots pulsed from my Oak leaf and through me. Both of my fists were aglow with warm emerald light, a light that I could not contain. In the distance Charice was about to get clawed open by the vengeful Banshee sister.

  In a flash I was upon the hag catching her wrist. The Banshee turned to me, eyes glowing red, mouth agape in shock. As I punched her gut magical energy coursed from my fist, through her gut, and exiting her back leaving a scorched, smoking hole. She fell to the ground and Charice stared at me, not sure if she should thank me or run from me.

  Screeches filled the air as the remaining Sluagh answered the beckoning call of their master. My feet moved to a more grounded stance and years of kata practice and conditioning took over. I unleashed a flurry of punches, each one emitting blast of Luck Magic. As the birds dove at me, it was as if I knew instinctively when to dodge, I didn’t even need to think about it. The Luck coursing through me willed me to move into just the right places. I blasted hole after hole through the feathered creatures of Chaos. But still they came.

  I heard a familiar voice cast a spell. “Ukuqhuma!” A purple blast filled the air. Nehemiah’s back! The wizard shot birds from the sky like an expert marksman.

  Donn the Red was confused and taken aback.

  No matter how much people dog on the show, Dragon Ball Z was, and still is, one of my favorites. And right then I totally felt like Goku. I think Donn sensed it too because he stopped attacking me and simply watched as I dismantled his forces.

  “Is ó Duir rí na gcrann í? Dodhéanta,” said Donn.

  I didn’t understand a word, but “Duir” rang a bell for some reason. Black beaks and wings caught my attention, and I blasted more Sluagh. I noticed that no matter how much Nehemiah was attacking the Sluagh, their attention was more or less focused on me as a whole. Why are they only concerned with me?

  Nehemiah was undoing them with their own Bad Luck, their own Chaos. I was finally fighting with Good Luck, Order. They must be attracted to Good Luck like flies to light.

  I scanned the mayhem for Donn the Red. He was gathering shadows, literally melding into the darkness. At risk of getting attacked myself, I turned from the Sluagh and began launching attack after attack at Donn. The magic blasts of Good Luck were pummelling him into the staircase. He was trying to recoup but every step forward resulted in getting smashed
with two or three hits. I doubted I was actually hurting him any more than someone getting hit repeatedly with barriage of dodgeballs is not really getting hurt, but I was making it difficult for him to attack. And more importantly, my theory was right. The Sluagh were focusing all of their attention on him now.

  In a moment of focus I pushed the Celtic knots away from my hands. The lines extended out in front of me, weaving and and interweaving. I flung my Luck at the lord of the dead. The Celtic knots spread rapidly over Donn the Red until he was rendered immobile.

  The Sluagh as one flew at him and began pecking him and slicing him with their talons. He cried out in his foreign tongue, no doubt telling them to stop. But soon his words subsided and he was simply grunting and moaning in pain. So much for being a god.

  I didn’t stay to see the Sluagh gorge on their master. Instead I grabbed Charice with one arm, my Mossberg in the other. Tain was at my side and Nehemiah was leading the escapees once more, but this time cradling the Hobgoblin.

  Chapter 25

  Shattered Staff

  We were running away for dear life, running from the sound of stirrups kicking a horse into gear. The hoofbeats were thumping faster than my heart. It's gaining on us, I thought.

  The shadow horse neighed and snorted louder than a Harley-Davidson. We ran away from the colonnade and the massive steps, through the crumbling wall, and back down the path.

  The good news was that we were running downhill. The bad news was that the Dullahan was running downhill. Apparently gravity worked exactly the same over here as on Earth.

  The journey down seemed way quicker than the journey up and was probably because all necessity for sneaking had been cast aside. Before long I could see the threshold, the dolmen that led from this world into the spooky unknown, and back to our world. It was just within reach, that we were going to make it with the Dullahan on our heels.