The Dark Edge Chronicles - Clan War

Comrades in Battle

And, despite the anger and confusion still raging through his body, the big vampire felt a surge of relief to find an equally familiar figure standing there, bracketed by a pair of the modified Storm Wolves that served as his personal guard.

"Mordecai of the Lone Gunmen," he said in English, naming the powerful psylord. "What brings you to Ireland? The green hills? Or the bracing sea air?"

The arrogantly handsome psionic chuckled as subtle gestures sent the two Storm Wolves winking out of sight.

"Neither, actually," he said, striding forward. "It's the probability node you vampires are making in this very spot that threatens to split the reality stream into a dozen tendrils!" He came to a halt in front of the kneeling vampire just as the restraints on Lash's wrists suddenly disappeared. "Do I even want to know what you're doing here, in broad daylight, confronting a bunch of modified humans in advanced tactical gear?"

Glancing back at the two who were restraining him and finding them frozen satisfactorily in place, Lash came to his feet in a smooth rush. He then returned Mordecai's questioning gaze with a grim one of his own.

"I won't bore you with the details," he began, rubbing his wrists where the restraints had bitten into his flesh. Looks to either side yielded his team also frozen in place, as were the rest of the humans.

"Suffices to say, the Night Council took umbrage with our temporary alliance to stop the Brotherhood threat in North America."

Mordecai frowned.

"But you were involved at the behest of a Lilith," he pointed out. "That supersedes the Council, if I remember your laws correctly."

Lash frowned even as he nodded.

"Your memory hasn't failed you, my friend," he said. "The Lilith Aizea herself commanded me directly to assist you in stopping the Brotherhood plot to replace the human leaders of the most advanced countries in the world. And her word should've been law." His expression tightened. "Instead, someone on the Council declared her command, and their subsequent adherence to it, invalid and named my entire clan blood traitors for conspiring with the enemy."

It was Mordecai's turn to frown.

"Even though we did them the favor of basically dismantling the Brotherhood's North American network single handedly and putting their plans back nearly three decades?"

Lash shrugged.

"To this corrupt council member, a psionic is a psionic," he replied. "And they've sufficient power and leverage on the rest of the Council to sway them to their way of thinking."

"And Ventru's representative on that council?"

"Dead!" Lash grimly reported. "Murdered by the Council's personal thugs, the Hand of the Council."

Mordecai's frown deepened even as he let his eyes slide off the grim vampire to the nearest human, the man who had fired at Lash.

"What about these clowns? Who, and what are they?" he asked even as a tendril of psyken scooped up the bullet so he could take a better look at it, letting the rifled round hover at eye level a good half meter away. A look that quickly made him grimace.

"And using irradiated munitions no less!"

In reply, Lash also gave the humans frozen in place a long look before grimacing himself.

"I don't know," he admitted, looking back over at Mordecai. "We encountered them for the first time trying to rescue my mentor and Qos Viran Supreme Commander, Lord Magnar, who was being held hostage on his own estate." He folded muscular arms over his thick chest. "They, however, seem to know a great deal about us, recognizing my neural armor and EM generator as originating with the Lone Gunmen. They also confessed to some knowledge of this current pogrom against my clan."