Read Online Wardbreaker: An Urban Fantasy Novel (The Lillim Callina Chronicles) by J.A. Cipriano - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: J.A. Cipriano
Tags: Fantasy
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moment.
“I got him. He’s the one I used to power the spell,” Luc said as my eyes swept over the surroundings. He nodded toward the back of the prison van.
“Okay, you stay there. Just give me a second.” I stumbled toward the spot he’d indicated, walking on limbs that didn’t work quite right. I’d heal from the damage soon enough, especially if I got some food in my stomach, so I wasn’t too worried about it. Even the pain didn’t bother me that much. You don’t become a Hyas Tyee in the Dioscuri without getting the crap kicked out of you once or twice.
Luc moved like he was going to show me something, but I slashed through the air in front of him so the tip of my blade passed within an inch of his throat. “I said don’t move,” I repeated, and the heat in my words sort of scared me. It was the same sort of voice my mother often used around me, and I hadn’t known I could make it.
He nodded, eyes wide at the sight of the wakazashi gripped in my hand which was a little strange since he’d just blown a vampire to ash, but then again, he’d said the spell wore off. I guess that made sense. Most spells used to augment a person’s strength or speed didn’t last terribly long. Still, I didn’t want him near me.
The dismembered vampire, if you could still call it that, was lying in a puddle of blood at the back of the van, mostly hidden by the open doors, which was probably why I hadn’t seen him earlier. He must have tried to get Luc in the back when the others had come at me, but evidently, things had gone wrong.
For one thing, he looked flayed open and his heart had been torn out of his chest. Blood covered the inside of the van’s doors. Was that where all the blood covering Luc had come from? Wait a second...
I spun back around and stared at Luc wide-eyed. “Why aren’t you still covered in blood?” I gestured from him to the corpse and back again.
“I told you already, Lillim. I used up his blood to power the spells.” Luc sighed and began to unbutton the cuff on his black dress shirt.
“Don’t,” I said, narrowing my eyes at him and moving away from the heartless vampire. For all I knew, it was rigged to explode. “I don’t know what you are, and I sure as hell don’t want you undressing in front of me.”
“It’s not like that at all,” he exclaimed, pulling the sleeve of his shirt up to reveal a series of scars on his flesh. Only… only they didn’t look normal. They looked more like someone had carved designs into his skin, but that was impossible. Getting a tattoo was one thing, but carving symbols into your arm so deeply that your skin became a puckered mass of scar tissue? That was crazy!
“What the hell did that to you?” I exclaimed, my mouth going dry as he showed me his other arm. It had more symbols written along it.
“I did it to myself a long time ago.” He reached up and began to unbutton his shirt before pulling it open to reveal a well-muscled chest covered in even more scar tissue. It was way worse than his arms. It was a little weird because there were a couple spots that looked like they’d been done with ink originally. Had he started with tattoos? Why?
My eyes played over the designs. They looked vaguely magical, but unlike anything I’d seen before. Still, when I saw the huge series of concentric circles on his chest, I realized what he had on his skin. Magical symbols.
“You’re covered in magical wards, and they actually work.” I shook my head in amazement. “That shouldn’t be possible… wait, wait. You’re using vampire blood to power them?”
He nodded at me. “We stumbled upon it a few years ago. This vampire had cut me up pretty bad, and after I killed it, I was covered with its blood. My friend tried to staunch the wound by using a healing ward even though it almost never worked.”
“And the ward touched some of the vampire blood and blazed to life…” I finished, and he nodded at me again. “But you’d don’t
“I got him. He’s the one I used to power the spell,” Luc said as my eyes swept over the surroundings. He nodded toward the back of the prison van.
“Okay, you stay there. Just give me a second.” I stumbled toward the spot he’d indicated, walking on limbs that didn’t work quite right. I’d heal from the damage soon enough, especially if I got some food in my stomach, so I wasn’t too worried about it. Even the pain didn’t bother me that much. You don’t become a Hyas Tyee in the Dioscuri without getting the crap kicked out of you once or twice.
Luc moved like he was going to show me something, but I slashed through the air in front of him so the tip of my blade passed within an inch of his throat. “I said don’t move,” I repeated, and the heat in my words sort of scared me. It was the same sort of voice my mother often used around me, and I hadn’t known I could make it.
He nodded, eyes wide at the sight of the wakazashi gripped in my hand which was a little strange since he’d just blown a vampire to ash, but then again, he’d said the spell wore off. I guess that made sense. Most spells used to augment a person’s strength or speed didn’t last terribly long. Still, I didn’t want him near me.
The dismembered vampire, if you could still call it that, was lying in a puddle of blood at the back of the van, mostly hidden by the open doors, which was probably why I hadn’t seen him earlier. He must have tried to get Luc in the back when the others had come at me, but evidently, things had gone wrong.
For one thing, he looked flayed open and his heart had been torn out of his chest. Blood covered the inside of the van’s doors. Was that where all the blood covering Luc had come from? Wait a second...
I spun back around and stared at Luc wide-eyed. “Why aren’t you still covered in blood?” I gestured from him to the corpse and back again.
“I told you already, Lillim. I used up his blood to power the spells.” Luc sighed and began to unbutton the cuff on his black dress shirt.
“Don’t,” I said, narrowing my eyes at him and moving away from the heartless vampire. For all I knew, it was rigged to explode. “I don’t know what you are, and I sure as hell don’t want you undressing in front of me.”
“It’s not like that at all,” he exclaimed, pulling the sleeve of his shirt up to reveal a series of scars on his flesh. Only… only they didn’t look normal. They looked more like someone had carved designs into his skin, but that was impossible. Getting a tattoo was one thing, but carving symbols into your arm so deeply that your skin became a puckered mass of scar tissue? That was crazy!
“What the hell did that to you?” I exclaimed, my mouth going dry as he showed me his other arm. It had more symbols written along it.
“I did it to myself a long time ago.” He reached up and began to unbutton his shirt before pulling it open to reveal a well-muscled chest covered in even more scar tissue. It was way worse than his arms. It was a little weird because there were a couple spots that looked like they’d been done with ink originally. Had he started with tattoos? Why?
My eyes played over the designs. They looked vaguely magical, but unlike anything I’d seen before. Still, when I saw the huge series of concentric circles on his chest, I realized what he had on his skin. Magical symbols.
“You’re covered in magical wards, and they actually work.” I shook my head in amazement. “That shouldn’t be possible… wait, wait. You’re using vampire blood to power them?”
He nodded at me. “We stumbled upon it a few years ago. This vampire had cut me up pretty bad, and after I killed it, I was covered with its blood. My friend tried to staunch the wound by using a healing ward even though it almost never worked.”
“And the ward touched some of the vampire blood and blazed to life…” I finished, and he nodded at me again. “But you’d don’t
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