Chapter Twenty-Nine
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URZRA SHOULD HAVE FELT guilty that he wasn’t actively searching for his brothers, but he didn’t. He felt like he was exactly where he was supposed to be; with his cambion. Bria slowly came out of her shell as they kept up a fast walk. It was late afternoon when they heard the sound of an engine.
“It sounds like a pickup truck,” Bria said, head turning in the direction they could hear the vehicle coming from.
“There’s a cluster of houses in that direction,” Urzra said, holding out his hand for the binoculars she’d slung around her neck. She handed them over and he peered through the lenses. “I can see a truck heading away from us,” he reported.
“Can you see any people near the houses?” his female asked.
“Two men and three women are talking on the sidewalk,” the knight said. “They appear to be arguing.” He handed the binoculars to Bria and she examined the people. “I think we should move closer and see if they have any other working vehicles,” Urzra suggested.
“Good idea,” Bria said, looping the binoculars around her neck again. “Maybe we can steal one and zoom away before the other truck returns.”
Trees lined both sides of the roads. The trunks shielded them from view as they hurried towards the humans. All five were still arguing when the pair drew closer to them.
“I’m telling you, we need to hit that house where we saw lights shining in the windows now,” one of the women said in a harsh tone. Her face was lined and her hair was gray. Urzra sensed their souls were black as he and Bria quietly crept around the properties without being seen.
“We’re running out of meat and we need to stock up, just in case the plague that’s killed all the animals in some of the other states hits us next,” one of the men agreed.
Bria stopped dead and gave Urzra a horrified look. “They’re cannibals?” she whispered incredulously.
“So it would seem,” he replied in a grim tone. “New plan. We wipe them all out, wait for the truck to return and kill them, too,” he said.
“They’re sick in the head,” Bria said bleakly. “I’m not a killer, but if we don’t cut them down, they’ll just keep hunting people for food.”
His admiration for his female grew and he didn’t try to hide it.
She gave him a sidelong look and some of her tension faded.
“I’ll do the killing, female,” he said. “But it would be a big help if you could confuse their minds for a few seconds.” He didn’t want his foes to be able to fire the weapons they were holding.
Bria might get shot in the crossfire by accident.
“Tell me when you’re ready and I’ll distract them,” she said. They put their gear down and she crossed to the nearest fence. She only had to duck slightly to remain out of sight as she peered through the palings.
“I’ll whistle when I’m in position,” Urzra said, then silently vaulted over the fence. He loped down the side of the nearest house, moving closer to the humans. He whistled and sensed Bria send her magic out.
The humans stopped arguing and went silent. One of the females let out a frightened screech and turned to run. The others took off after her, unaware they were being pursued by an alien holding a gold and silver sword.
Urzra took no pleasure in hunting his quarry.
Scared out of their minds by the cambion’s manipulation of their emotions, they didn’t even try to fight back.
His sword flashed into action five times, ending their lives in seconds.
He’d waited until they’d reached the back yard of one of the houses before striking.
Their bodies were hidden from view of the rest of the people in their small, twisted community.
“There are other people in the houses further along the street,” Bria said when he returned to her. She glanced at his sword and saw blood dripping from the blade.
“I sense them, too,” he said. “We need to eradicate them all for the safety of any survivors who don’t have black souls who might come this way.
They’ve already hunted down others who’ve passed through their town.
” He indicated some cars that were parked on the street. They all had plates from other states.
“Let’s get it done,” Bria said in grim determination.
She used her magic on the couple inside the closest occupied house again.
Urzra swiftly entered and grimaced when he saw them entwined on their bed.
The female was on top, moaning loudly. Neither of them were aware they were about to die, since they were lost in desire.
Urzra ended them both, feeling bad despite them both being evil.
Bria sensed his guilt when he trudged back out through the back door. “At least they died happy,” she whispered to try to cheer him up. He snickered, then she giggled, muffling the noise with her hand. It was macabre to be laughing at a time like this, but they couldn’t seem to help themselves.
One by one, they entered the houses where they sensed humans. Bria’s power ensured none of them were aware of what was happening. It was more merciful than any of them had deserved.
“I can hear the truck returning,” Urzra said seconds after he’d cleared the last house of its occupants.
“I’ll blast them with my power when you give me the word,” Bria said.
She was brave to assist him to wipe out these cannibals, even if she didn’t think so.
They crouched behind one of the parked cars and waited for the truck to pass.
It pulled into an open garage diagonally across the road from them.
Four men climbed out, then rounded to the back of the truck.
“We got a good haul that time,” one of the beefy, well-fed hunters said with a smirk. He reached into the bed of the truck and one of his buddies helped him lift a body out.
“Gross,” Bria murmured, looking away from the bloodied corpse.
“Now,” Urzra said, calling on his sword he’d dismissed a short time ago.
He felt her power swell, then the humans dropped the body and fled.
The other two were on their heels, gibbering in terror.
The warrior easily caught up to them and slaughtered them all.
He dragged their bodies off the street so they wouldn’t drive over them when they left.
“I hope that’s all of them,” Bria said as she crossed to the truck. “There are four more bodies in here,” she said, backing away again.
“I’ll take care of them, female,” he said. “Why don’t you take a break? It must have been exhausting using so much of your magic.”
“I’m a bit tired, but it’s not that bad,” she said, then headed for one of the empty houses.
Urzra removed the bodies from the truck, then retrieved their belongings.
He put them on the back seat, since the bed of the truck was bloody.
Bria was sitting in the living room, eating some crackers when he entered the house.
She trusted him more now. He’d never felt so protective of another being before.
He would die to save her life, just like he would with Amaros.
He snorted out a laugh when a memory surfaced.
“What’s so funny?” Bria asked as he sank down onto an armchair.
“I was just thinking about one of my brothers,” he said.
“Ziegel goes to extreme lengths to save our commander whenever he sees Amaros in danger. One time, Amaros was about to be attacked by five Soldiers of Chaos. Ziegel launched himself off a cliff and landed on them, killing two of them and knocking out the other three. He saved our commander’s life, but broke both of his legs in the process. ”
“Was he okay?” she asked, both impressed and incredulous.
“I can’t remember what happened to him,” Urzra said. “I just remember him being his usual crazy, heroic self.”
“He sounds like he must be a real character,” she said in amusement.
“He is,” Urzra confirmed. “I wonder if he’s dead yet,” he mused. “Ziegel is always the first knight to die in every single war we’ve ever had.”
“Wow, he must be unlucky,” his female figured.
“It’s a mystery why our brother suffers the same fate every time,” he said with a shrug. “I’m going to see if I can wash out the bed of the truck with something. It will draw wild animals after us if I leave it the way it is.” Bria nodded and he ambled back outside.