formed another wall, cutting off the room in half and leaving us no way to escape.
In that instant, a few feet from whatever Claire had in mind to escape, the damaged door gave and Zundergrub’s three men spilled into the room.
“I need some light,” Claire complained as she entered the darkened vault, but I had no time to help her. I had other things on my mind.
They were Zundergrub’s hired dogs, men with no honor and no compunctions about killing for pay. The first one through the crushed door was a small, mousy Asian fellow, wearing a suit splattered with blood that also colored his mouth, neck, and chest. His teeth were jagged, filed down sharp points, and he had a large-caliber revolver in his left hand. Coming into the dark chamber, he took one quick glance at me and at Claire, his gaze settling on her with rapacious longing. He aimed his hand cannon at her and fired.
I stepped in the way of his gunfire, taking bullets meant for Claire, noting a flash of frustration cross the newcomer. But he wasn’t alone.
The next man into the room was an impressive mutation, a man-creature with the muscled lower torso of a wrestler and the shoulders and head of an eagle. This wasn’t a mask or helmet dedicated to the Egyptian god Horus. No, this guy had the head of an eagle, with yellow-white feathers, spreading around his head and across his broad shoulders, and with a loud keening cry, he rushed me and threw a swing intended to take my head off. I backed up, avoiding the blow and then the follow-ups; a front kick with his right leg and a spinning kick with his left. While I managed to avoid the first couple blows, he twisted and threw his back leg at my face, using too much speed and force for me to react. The booted foot connected with a solid thud across my jaw, and my world exploded as I staggered back, losing my footing and falling to the floor.
Horus didn’t wait for me to get up, closing the gap and grabbing at my arms. Once he had a good grip, the gigantic beak flashed open and he brought down the sharp weapon on my neck. The tip pressed through the robe and into the fleshy part of my shoulder, and I felt it penetrate the skin. Blood welled around it and soaked the remaining robe to my skin in an instant. Wrenching my arm hard, I broke his grasp and crossed my arms around my upper body. Instead of ripping my throat out, he bit into my left forearm, grabbing the limb with his maw.
Looking into the darkness of the vault, I could see the Asian goon moving closer to Claire’s shadowy form. She was fumbling through the boxes that lined the walls, throwing them aside in frustration, oblivious to the threat.
“Claire!” I yelled, but Horus growled, drawing my attention to his burning eyes. He was stronger than I was in my present condition, and heavy enough that he could exert his leverage on me, keeping me pinned. He opened his beak and released my arm, then dug his three-inch claws at my eyes. I shot up my arms defensively, but he grasped and scratched at my cheeks through my guard.
I brought my right knee up, but it just slammed against his buttocks no little effect. In the moment’s pause, I looked again at Claire, but she still ignored her approaching attacker as she frantically searched. She stopped at one small box, her face illuminated by something within when she cracked it open. She had found what she was looking for.
“Behind you!” I shouted, but she made no move to defend herself as the squirrely man rushed up to her and kicked her in the midsection. She clutched at her abdomen and sank to the ground slowly, first falling to her knees, then toppling over onto her side. He hurled himself on her, leveling the gun at her head. Slamming his free arm across her neck, he pinned her with the forearm, angling the hand down to grope at her breasts. She continued to struggle for the box, which had fallen just out of her grasp.
Horus could feel my desperation and exerted himself to keep me in place, trying to turn my face toward Claire and his companion, as if he enjoyed watching me suffer. But he forgot one thing.