Blood in the Fire

Chapter Ten Agents In Battle

Prison Caves - November 2184

Elizabeth

The cave we were in must have shifted and been replaced by a guarded one. Before my assailant had the chance to warn more wizards, I lifted my arm and elbowed him in the ribs. He loosened his grasp and I slipped out, then turned to see him doubled over.

Mark grabbed my shoulder and tried to pull me back, but the wizard reached for the red communicator pinned to his waist. The alarm would sound the moment he punched the button. I couldn't let that happen. In one motion, I twisted away from Mark and landed a back-kick across the side of the guard's head.

Liz, we have to be quiet, Anton warned. But it was too late. The alien guard bounced against the corner with a loud thud, then landed in a heap. Three more guards rounded the corner and only paused for a moment when they saw the four of us standing there. A moment was long enough. I lunged for the first one and knocked him back into his comrade. Anton unclipped his weapon and fired it at the third, but missed as the wizard ducked.

Guys, we can't let them activate those red buttons on their waists, I instructed. It will sound the alarm. Luke was on it. He wrapped his hand into a fist and landed a powerful upper-cut under the wizard's jaw. The alien would have gone flying if the wall hadn't been there to interject his trajectory.

Meanwhile, the wizard I had landed on jabbed his knee into my abdomen. I remained on top of him, but the guard beneath shoved us both away, and we rolled across the floor. My elbow slammed into the ground, knocking my weapon out of my grasp. Then, my head bounced off the wall. I felt dazed. Mark lunged for the free wizard. Another knee landed in my stomach, and the wizard I was fighting started whispering a spell.

Anton couldn't fire his gun with Mark, Luke and I so entangled in the fray. Instead, he lifted the guard away from me and hit him in the head with the hilt of his laser weapon. The wizard dropped to the ground, unconscious.

Are you okay? Anton asked as he helped me to my feet. I nodded and surveyed the scene. Luke had pinned his wizard face-first to the floor with the guard's arms twisted behind his back. The wizard was struggling to get free, but Luke had a strong grip. That guy wasn't going anywhere. But then, my gaze turned to Mark and my heart sank.

The alien was holding Mark so that they were both facing us. One hand was on Mark's shoulder and the other was pointing my laser gun at his head. I could see the wizard's lips moving to the tune of a spell. Mark's expression was one of pure anguish.

"Stand back or your friend dies,"the enemy threatened. A red burn expanded across the side of Mark's neck. Obviously, he was the target of the wizard's spell.

Instinct kicked in. I said a single word to release one of the spell's I'd prepared on the station. It identified the floor beneath the wizard's feet and the ground began to groan. Every atom on the surface shifted to one level, and the electron clouds froze in place. The floor was transformed into a frictionless plane. Meanwhile, Anton started his own spell.

Take a small step back, I told Mark, just one. Mark did as I said and it was enough. The guard toppled backwards and slid across the floor. He tried to slow himself with his hands, but they glided ineffectually along the smooth rock. Mark fell too, but they both skated in opposite directions.

Without waiting to see where the wizard would stop, I started my next incantation. It created a force-field around the alien. Anton said his last word and a yellow gas exploded inside. The wizard fell unconscious. Slowly, the yellow smoke decomposed into oxygen, hydrogen, water and carbon dioxide. It left the floor a little wet but no other evidence remained.

I returned the atoms to normal, then darted to Mark's side. He was still crouched over in pain, and his hand gripped the side of his neck.