Conceal Me What I Am Ch. 06

"Sean, I've never felt protections like this ever before in my life. There is a big major aversion field that surrounds the whole house. Not even a mailman could ever set foot on the pavement or the grass... and what's lurking in the grass is too nasty to even contemplate further. This is major visitation... something wicked and nasty that should never be here at all. I'm not sure I can handle this! Back home I'd scurry off with my tail between my legs and call in the BMA, and the Marines, and find the local burghermeister to have him arm everyone else in the village with torches and pitchforks."

"Aye, this is bad. Nearly as bad as it comes, but trust me lad you're going to see worse... so gather your strength and we'll see them off right soon enough!" I liked the sound of that word "we". Sean never had involved himself directly in human affairs before, no matter the personal danger to myself, but I had just the inkling that direct confrontation with other entities was quite permissible within his code of conduct.

I took Bel's hand and helped Janice in soothing her, enough so that she could concentrate again enough so that I could ask them both a single important question.

"Bel, Janice... we're all seriously fucked now either way, but the moment we step foot onto these grounds we'll be going rogue, with every government hand against us. You both can leave now, making whatever report you need to give to your bosses to keep your jobs, but I have to go inside to deal with what is in there, regardless of the cost. If you want your pensions, or don't want every government wizard hereafter looking for your head, then go... and please take Miranda away with you to safety."

Miranda, bless her young teenaged heart, just squeezed my hand tighter and shook her head vigorously. Hell or high water, she was determined to come with me. Like Bel, she was nearly too exhausted to even stand, but she still wanted to fight and press on.

Bel and Janice also smiled, as the determined FBI agent assisted my partner in magic to her feet and they together squared their shoulders together in determination.

"Fuck my pension, fuck the FMBA, fuck my boss, and fuck anyone that tried to get into our way!" Bel grunted with more sincerity than she had body strength and will, but her eyes were fixed and determined. Janice just muttered 'Me too!', and took out her sidearm from its jacket holster. The yellow jackets gunsels, about six of them, were all out of their vehicle and approaching us from about half a block away, blatantly toting rifles and other guns.

My companion's bravado was comforting but the time for words was over. I gathered up my will and started to focus my strength to unravel the rather potent and unearthly weave that formed the massive barrier of aversion. Already I could tell that other wards and protections were arming themselves behind this field and that a host of magical alarms were now going off. Now for the first time I felt Sean's own magical powers join with mine, more slender and delicate but with at least the strength of will of my own. His force was much more nimble, lighter and more subtle and it danced, glided and flowed from him in an oblique angle and manner that I couldn't even remotely understand and never hope to replicate, but it complimented my own forces.

I gathered all of the power that I dared to draw upon, and it was in fact quite the magical feast here with Leys of all five magical forces right here nearby, easily within my grasp. My force became the bulwark, or rather the frame, of the siege tower itself, allowing Sean a salient within and his castings were both too swift and too intricate for me to follow, but irresistible just the same to the defenses. The aversion field suddenly collapsed, and so did the next obvious barriers along the walkway.

We, the invaders were at the very gates of the citadel and even those defenses couldn't hold for but a few moments more, and with a great kick of my cowboy boots the doorway was penetrated, and in the very nick of time. The internal defenders were on their way, I could feel them approaching, cold and unearthly, and the Clinton gangsters were now arrayed for battle, already exchanging rifle and pistol fire with Janice, while Bel shielded her lover with her feeble, badly weakening strength.

To add to the confusion, another car was now arriving, featuring well dressed men in very dark but prim suits, undoubtedly the mysterious and powerful government representatives that were protecting and sheltering these unspeakable visitors. This left us with an unprotected flank that young Miranda couldn't hardly hope to cope with.

We were now outnumbered and outgunned. Facing, significant and potent magical and military forces now beyond our ability to probably resist for long, but for some reason this thought cheered me up. They had us surrounded now, and that was just where I wanted them! Poor bastards!