Tearha: The Number 139

Chapter Seventeen: Dragon of Revolution

What did I get myself into? Luce thought internally.

The Watcher stood stunned before them, the body of Kathleen unmoving on the streets. She noticed the man balling up his fists, arms shaking. Luce saw a muzzle flash in the distance. The Watcher raised his hand forward, palms opened. The gunshot reached their ears. The Watcher lowered his hand and reopened his palm. The lead bullet clunked to the ground.

Catching bullets. Great.

From her side, Miguel exclaimed, "Hilde!"

"Yes, Grandmaster." The female Enhancer rushed forward, sabre blade flashing out of its sheathe.

Hildergard stopped between Kathleen and The Watcher, and The Long Arm, stabbing her sabre straight into the ground. Her two hands glowed yellow, lines of magic circuits shining. She thrust her arms out together and arcs of electricity danced from the tips of her fingers towards the two ends of the coil. Another muzzle flash. Another ring of gunshot. From the sabres' copper hand-guard, an arc of lightning shot out to seemingly thin air. The lead round combusted upon impact.

Lightning Coil magic. Wonderful. Luce was internally chiding. It seemed she had somehow gotten herself involved with a group of powerful, dangerous, and incredible people. She was starting to miss her hut.

Miguel said, "Lady Ranger." She turned to him. The man continued, "As powerful as my apprentice is, we do not have much time." He tilted his head in gesture to Kathleen.

She nodded back in understanding, "Right."

They rushed to The Watcher who knelt beside his fallen companion.

Miguel instructed, "Let's move her round the corner."

The trio worked quickly. Luce carried Kathleen by the legs while the men held under each arm. They shuffled their way back into town, turning the corner and gently laying Kathleen onto the ground beside the inn. Once behind the cover of the walls, Hildergard ran back to the group as two more shots rang out behind with bullets whizzing by.

Kathleen's body was riddled with half a dozen bullet wounds with one in the thigh. Blood drenched her shirt and their hands. Miguel set his hands over the two wounds that looked the most crucial, over her left lung and stomach. His circuits glowed, sending a pulse of blue light to his hands that resonated softly.

Miguel worriedly explained, "She's still alive. Barely. I'll try to stabilize her but I'm not great with healing magic."

The Watcher asked, "Will she make it?" His face creased into the most devastated frown Luce had ever seen. Guilt, sadness, anger, all mixed into a single pained expression.

Miguel did not look up to him, focusing his gaze on Kathleen instead. "If we don't get professional medical help soon, she might not make it."

Hildergard exclaimed, "The town's doctor should be in the park." Without another word, she took off without anyone's complain from the group.

"Luce," Miguel began. "I need you to take a perch in the inn and give us some covering fire with you rifle."

"I can't hit anything from this range," she explained, hugging her gun closer to her chest. Despite the firearm, she had never actually killed a human being, and the only life she had ever took had already been on the verge of death.

"I don't need you to hit anything. I just need you to make sure they don't come near us." He finally looked up to The Watcher. "I believe someone is going to take care of them up front."

She looked to the traveller. The Watcher had his back turned to them, standing straight and tall. The man looked larger than she remembered, his presence seemingly tripling and emanating from him in spades.