for a first try. What do you think, T?”
“He learns fast, but is very slow,” she said, turning to me. “You must work like a tank, using your power to armor yourself from our attacks. Then strike back.”
“He stopped telegraphing his bolts right away… is good,” Arkady rumbled.
I started to feel better about my performance. “I wonder if his circle or shields are bulletproof? We should try them out,” Tanya said, matter-of-fact.
Now I didn’t feel better… now I just felt terrified.
Chapter 25
Chris took pity on me.
“Ah, let’s go back down to the first floor and we can experiment… very carefully,” he said. “Circles work best right on the ground, right?”
“Yeah, I don’t think activating one this far up would be useful for physical protection. It might block a magical attack, but for shielding from objects or direct attack, touching ground is a must,” I said.
“Wire circle on rafters worked, no?” Arkady questioned.
“Yeah, but I was desperate, plus I could see the ground. I think that helped.”
We went back down the steps to the open beam floor, where they all just dropped through the gaps in the beams to land lightly on the concrete below. I squatted, grabbed a floor joist, and lowered myself till I could let go. My wire hoop had come with me, so I dropped it on the ground and looked up at the others to see what they were planning.
Arkady was screwing a suppressor onto a foreign-looking pistol.
“Makarov? Sweet,” Chris commented.
“Dah, spoils of war,” Arkady replied, looking up from the pistol to me. I gulped. I mean, my Craft was strong, but shooting my circle with bullets? Never done it.
“Step in circle please,” the giant vampire requested.
“Ah…” I started.
“Declan, just sit on the ground. Arkady will shoot at the air above your head so that if it doesn’t work, it won’t hit you,” Chris said.
“What about ricochets? What if it gets through one side and bounces down the other?” I asked, really scared.
A warm hand grabbed mine. “Come on, I’ll sit in here with you,” Stacia said, pulling me into my circle. “You won’t let anything hit us, will you?” she asked, head tilted to one side. I gulped again but followed helplessly. Damn. I hoped like hell she didn’t ask for my lunch money because I would likely empty my bank account.
She sat gracefully with her legs crossed in front of her, patting the ground beside her, feet still bare.
“Now, forcefields on or shields up or whatever it is you do,” she said with a smile. I touched one finger to the wire hoop and pushed power into my circle, closing it, looking anywhere but at the bombshell next to me.
Arkady pinched the slide and grip of his gun with one massive finger and thumb, peeking into the minute amount of chamber that this revealed. He grunted, having most likely seen the brass of cartridge case chambered and ready to go. He was going to freaking shoot my circle. Granted, he was aiming over our heads, but shit happens with guns and who knows where a ricochet might go. With a glance at Stacia, who was smiling at me with complete confidence, I closed my eyes and thought, stop the bullets—stop the bullets.
There was a sharp snap, followed by the clatter of the gun’s action cycling and the ping of a brass case on the concrete floor. Four more pops, like an air rifle going off, four more cases tinged on the cement right beside me.
“Damn. That’s cool,” Chris said.
I opened my eyes and looked where the others were looking. Five perfect bullets hung in the outer edge of my circle, each ringed with a bluish hue. Suspended, not moving, all clustered in a tight little group.
Stacia patted my hand and popped upright. “Go ahead, big guy. Empty the mag,” she said, facing the giant vampire with just my circle protecting her.
Without any hesitation at all, he fired six more times till the slide on his gun locked back on an empty magazine. Three bullets hung in front of her face and another three right where her heart would be.
“Holy shit. You guys don’t play around, do you?” I asked, stunned by their nonchalance.
“Actually, the rumor is that the one next to you is all about playing around,” Tanya said from nearby, her arms crossed.
Stacia’s eyes narrowed for just a second before she turned to me. “That was awesome, Declan. Now let’s get out of here before you freeze to death from all the cold,