The Tome of Bill Compendium Vol. 1 (Books 1-4) (124 page)

“So you weren’t there because I was...what did you call me...the Icon?”

“I didn’t even know you were the Icon until you nearly blew my head off a month ago.”

There was a pause as she considered this. I held my breath for her answer, not the least of which was because she could seal our fate with just a few words. Finally, she looked me in the eye and said, “I believe you. I’m not sure why, but I do.”

There were grumbles from the Templar. I was relieved as shit, but they obviously weren’t.

“Good, because you need to believe me again. What I was saying earlier about you being in danger was real. I’m here to help you.”

She stared at me hard for what felt like an eternity, but was probably just a second. At last, she said, “Ben, take your men out please. I’d like a word with Bill and his friends.”

“No, Your Holiness. We cannot...”

“Yes, you
can
,” she replied, that tone of authority back in her voice. Holy shit, I almost didn’t recognize her as the same person who handled the paperwork for our group at work. Here stood a person who could have put our CEO in his place, no problem. “I’m in no danger.”

“You can’t believe them.”

“Even if they’re lying,” she replied calmly, “I am quite capable of taking care of myself.” She laid her hand on the hilt of her broadsword.

Goddamn she was hot.
Red Sonja
had nothing on her. All she needed was a chainmail bikini and...I shook my head. I really needed to save the fantasies for later.

Benny and she stared each other down in an unspoken battle of wills, but it didn’t take a genius to see that it was over before it even began. After a few moments, he averted his gaze like a dog who’d just been whacked on the nose with a newspaper. “As you wish, Blessed One. We shall be right outside should you require our assistance.” He nodded to the others, and they began to spread out toward the multiple exits. The move was obvious. They followed her orders but made sure there wouldn’t be any easy escapes in our future. My opinion of Benny begrudgingly went up a fraction of a notch.

Unfortunately, my respect of his security measures was immediately undone as a blur of movement near one of the entrances caught my eye. The figure moved fast, but not fast enough to escape my vision. The black trench coat gave him away, but even had it not, the fate of the Templar nearest that doorway would have. The guard fell to the floor, his intestines splayed out before him.

Vampire claws can have that effect on a person.

The first vampire wasn’t alone...not even remotely. Before I could shout a warning, two Templars burst into green flame.

The training of the Templars wasn’t anything to sneeze at, though. In the space of seconds, they began to fall back from the entrances - drawing their weapons and assuming defensive stances. It was impressive. Unfortunately, it just wasn’t enough.

Before they could form ranks, several witches materialized out of thin air atop the closed bleachers. From there, they’d have the high ground and couldn’t easily be reached. Decker was amongst their ranks...the fucker. Unfortunately, I only had that moment to take in the scene as Remington and his men poured through the doors.

Several of the Templars had their crosses out before them, but it wasn’t going to do them any good. Remington’s people were trained killers. A faith empowered cross wasn’t much good if the hand that held it was ripped out at the shoulder.

Worse yet for the outclassed holy warriors, Decker’s coven rained fire down upon them from afar. A Templar would successfully fend off a vampire, only to be engulfed in supernatural flame. It was like the world’s most realistic LARPer gathering...most lethal, too, by the look of things.

All of this happened in the space of a few seconds. It wasn’t enough time for Ed and I to do anything more than gape at how quickly things had turned to shit.

Sally, though, had been in far more scrapes than either of us. She uttered a quick curse and threw herself into a dive - the Desert Eagle still lying on the floor her obvious goal.

She almost made it. Three of the nearby Templars, no doubt misinterpreting her actions, threw themselves on top of her and again began pummeling her with their crosses.

I considered the odds and came to the conclusion that she could probably handle herself against that number. She’d have to.

“Ed, protect Sheila!” I shouted, momentarily forgetting that he was the least likely creature in the room to protect anyone.

Even amidst the din of battle, I heard a voice question, “Sheila?” It was Decker. Oh fuck. He stared at her, mouth agape.

“Harry?” she asked, even as she hefted the sword and assumed a defensive stance in the middle of the room.

Recognition turned to rage as Decker put two and two together. “The Icon!” he screamed, pointing at her. “Kill it!”

Oh shit! Several of the witches turned toward her and began invocations. I didn’t wait for them to finish.

“GET DOWN!” I shouted even as I hurled myself at her.

It was a mistake.

In my haste to protect her, I had forgotten that we were absolutely incapable of touching without things turning explosive.

* * *

Whatever force I would have plowed into Sheila with was redirected back at me tenfold. There was a white hot flash and then I slammed into, and through, the bleachers at the far end of the gym. I barely had enough time to register how much it hurt.

Well, okay, that’s not quite true. It hurt like a motherfucker. Fortunately, it wasn’t all for naught. The undead projectile I had become hit hard enough to knock several of the witches off balance. Their shots went wide, or at least I assumed they did. I was too busy seeing stars to tell for sure.

“Bill!” It sounded like Ed’s voice, although it was hard to tell amongst the screaming and blasting going on.

I tried to clear my head and stand, but it wasn’t going to be that easy. It felt like I’d been hit by a speeding car. If I didn’t shake it off quickly, there was no telling what would happen. I was so close. There was no way I was going to lose her now.

All of this was my fault. I had obviously not been nearly as clever as I had thought. Decker and Remington had somehow tailed me. Even an idiot could tell that much. That made it ten times worse. If she died now, it would be entirely on my head.

Fortunately, fate is occasionally kind to even me. A pair of Templars drove one of Remington’s troops back in my direction. Mustering my strength, I waited until he was nearly within reach and sprang at him. Not caring one iota for anything except protecting my friends (and the girl I really hoped would be more than a friend), I grabbed the vamp from behind and sank my teeth into his neck.

The vampire let out a surprisingly high pitched scream - freaking pussy. Christ, even I can take a hit without sounding like a fucking five year old throwing a temper tantrum. He wasn’t the only one freaked out, though.

As the vampire’s blood flowed down my throat, I heard the Templars gasp in surprise as well. Guess they hadn’t been expecting that either.

The vamp I was latched onto was strong, far stronger than me. He was at least a century in age. That being said, strong or not, it can be kind of difficult to shake someone off who’s holding on with a death grip while digging into you like some kind of human-sized tick. It also didn’t hurt my cause that any forward momentum on his part would just take him straight into the waiting crosses of the Templars.

I took great gulps of blood, feeling the power course through me. Within seconds, the damage I had sustained was healed. Gotta love that. Better than a
Band-Aid
.

Sensing I had gotten all I was going to get from this vampire, I pulled my teeth out and wrapped my arms around his neck. With a twist, bone snapped. I let go and he dropped to the floor. What I had done would have instantly killed a person, but not a vamp, though. Still, he was definitely out of the battle for now...one less foe in a room full of them.

“Thank you for that, fool,” a voice said from behind me. I turned to find Harry Decker standing about ten feet away, a big grin on his face. Guess the dude had finally gone off the deep end.

“For what, powering myself up so that I could kick your ass?”

“No, for leading me to the Icon and now giving me an excuse to watch you both die.”

Realization sunk in just a moment before he shouted, “The Freewill has turned on us! He’s in league with the Icon!”

I guess I kind of deserved that one. Thankfully, when I absorb the power of another vampire, I get the full deal: strength, speed, heightened senses and reflexes. The last two were of particular interest right at that moment. Decker’s coven must have been waiting for his signal, for no sooner did he raise his voice then several pinpricks of light shone in my peripheral vision. I dove to the side just as the spot where I had been standing was turned into a miniature Bikini Atoll. The area erupted in multicolored flame, leaving a crater where the floor had been. The vamp I had bitten was caught in the blast and immediately immolated. Even the Templars who had been threatening him were blown back by the shockwave. Guess these guys weren’t fucking around.

I weaved into the battle so as to deny them an easy target. Most of the participants were currently occupied, so it gave me a moment to take stock of the situation. The Templars were slowly losing ground. The vampires were far faster and stronger. The firepower of Decker’s coven augmented their numbers. I couldn’t see Sally. Hopefully she wasn’t currently in a state more fit for lining a cat box. I shook my head. No, Sally was a survivor. I had to trust in that. I had other people to worry about, anyway.

Speaking of which, I managed to spy Sheila and Ed. True to what I had asked of him, Ed was...oh wait, no he wasn’t. He was actually hiding
behind
Sheila. Three vamps had closed on her. She stepped back, holding her sword up in a defensive stance, but there was uncertainty in her eyes. Oh no!

The vamps saw the same thing and lunged at her, their silver stakes at the ready. Goddammit! She was too far away. Even with my stolen strength there was no way I was going to be able to...

*SNICKT!*

What the fuck? In one smooth move, she spun, swinging the sword in a graceful arc. The blade connected just as the vampires came into range. There was an explosion of dust as three silver stakes clattered to the floor. Holy shit! It had been a ruse on her part, a good one too. Jesus Christ, I wasn’t sure if she was the Icon or the second coming of Chuck Norris.

“Templar to me!” a voice rang out. Still weaving amongst the combatants, I saw Benny break away from the witch he had been grappling with...real manly. A room full of vampires, and he chooses to tussle with a girl.

Cross raised, he made his way to Sheila’s side - much to my consternation. If the dude had designs on my woman, we were gonna have words about it. I’d kick his ass if he so much as...

A clawed hand swung out at me, one of Remington’s vamps - obviously heeding Decker’s warning. Jeez! No honor amongst the undead. No doubt Colin had some say in this. It wasn’t hard to imagine him giving orders dictating that the preservation of my life was low on the priority list.

I stepped into the blow before he could remove a chunk of my face and grabbed the vamp by the lapels of his trench coat. I flung him to the side with everything I had and he went flying, right into the outstretched cross of a nearby Templar. I may not be the most impressive physical specimen on the planet, but I had gotten more than my fair share of ass-kickings since being turned. Even someone like me is bound to learn a thing or two from continual beatings.

Benny’s voice rang out again. A half dozen Templars raced in from the entrance in full battle gear, armor and gleaming swords at the ready.

The cavalry had arrived.

* * *

And, just as quickly, they were gone. Decker’s witches had been ready for them. No sooner had they come charging into the room when their armor began to glow bright red. The Templar knights were roasted alive inside of their own chain mail before they could take five steps. So much for the reinforcements. I could appreciate these guys’ adherence to traditional weaponry, but they’d have been much better served with a couple of shotguns. As any gamer knows, a low level mage is pretty much a glass cannon. Add a few levels of experience, though, and you do not fuck with them unless you want to die a messy death. Jeez! Did none of these guys ever pick up a twenty-sider?

Oh well, that was neither here nor there. I found it hard to feel any sympathy for them, considering their attitude toward me. I still had my primary mission, and that meant saving the one person in the room who could incinerate me with a friendly handshake.

To do so, however, I’d need to get us the fuck out of there. Sooner or later the combination of Remington’s and Decker’s forces would prove too much. Sure, it would save me the trouble of embarrassing myself at some future date - pathetically trying to lead our armies into battle against God knows what - but still. I was fond of my ass and not quite ready to kiss it goodbye yet.

Fortunately, I had a secret weapon at my disposal...a dumbass wizard named Harry Decker.

* * *

“You cannot escape your fate, Freewill!” Decker shouted, raising a hand to point me out.

I had fought my way to the far wall and then huddled there trying to make myself look as small as possible.

“Die like the coward you are!” he screamed.

Like I said, a total dumbass.

Multiple blasts of energy converged on my spot, just as I’d planned. Using the stolen strength still coursing through my veins, I jumped. Vampires can’t fly, but we could sure as shit make kick-ass NBA center guards. I must’ve cleared over ten feet vertically, more than enough to take me out of harm’s way.

The furious spellcraft exploded against the wall, blowing a hole in it large enough to drive a van through. I landed and could see the parking lot through the smoke the explosion had created. Thank you, Mr. Decker.

The inferno caught all, save me, by surprise. I used the distraction to race back into the fray, my eyes scanning the battle.