The Warriors: The Rune by The Warriors (beach books TXT) 📕

you sure it’s working?” the voice of The Beatle attracted Fury’s attention to the centre of the warehouse, where a huge metal crate stood. She noticed it had dragon runes engraved into it and the front of it was open. In front of the crate stood The Beatle and several guards dressed in black carrying rifles.
“Positive.”
“And once activated, it’ll open one huge gate?”
“Absolutely!”
“Good. Now all I need is the rune that bitch stole from me.”
The Beatle stormed away from the guards and made her way to the front entrance. Fury followed her, pausing on the roof above the entrance.
“We need to hide this crate in another warehouse. We need to make it as inconspicuous as possible. Guard the exits lightly, have no guards inside. Move the crate between the warehouses each night. Don’t tell anyone where or what it is.” The Beatle told the guard.
Well, this is interesting, thought Fury.

“So what is it you actually did, exactly?” asked Georgia.
“Do I have to explain again?” mumbled Nicki.
“Oh go on! It’s hilarious every time I hear it!” chirped Verity.
Nicki scowled up at her. “Fine. I was waitressing at the Golden Lion Pub and I may have sneezed and char-grilled some one’s fish and chips, to the point where there was just a pile of ash on the plate.”
Verity burst into fits of laughter.
“It’s not funny! I got fired for sneezing! SNEEZING!” growled Nicki.
“It’s pretty funny!” giggled Verity.
“Quit it guys!” snapped Georgia. “Anyway, where’s Daniel?”
“Outside working on his secret project.” mumbled Nicki.
“What’s his-”
“Don’t ask, he’ll go into a 24 hour long rant about how it’s top secret and of the upmost importance to be kept that way.”
Georgia leaned back in her newly-reclaimed arm chair and took a sip of tea form her china tea cup.
“Shouldn’t you be at work?” asked Nicki.
“It’s Saturday. We’re closed.”
“Oh. So, is that what Fury gave us?” Nicki reached for the box and opened the lid.
“Yeah. We don’t know what it does.” replied Georgia.
“But it’s something dragony because it’s got a dragon rune on it.” added Verity.
“A dragon rune?” mumbled Nicki. She reached in and slowly took the rune from the box. As she did this, a low rumble started top reverberate the walls.
Georgia stood, immediately cautious and Verity had her bow at her side in an instant.
Before the three of them, blue energy began to flow from the rune that Nicki clasped and formed a ball in the middle of the lounge. It slowly grew until it became the size of the room; Verity pointed a loaded bow at it and Georgia stepped back, trying to sense what this anomaly was. Nicki dropped the rune back into the box with a gasp and tensed, ready to change.
The three of them stood there in silence, staring in horror at the blue ball. Through the silence, a low growl came from the energy, making the three of them jump slightly, but ready themselves. Something stirred in the energy and a huge, black shadow burst from the ball, causing the whole house to shudder. Nicki squealed and Verity yelled, pelting it with arrows.
The beatle’s beady blue eyes searched the room and found Nicki, who met his gaze for a moment before turning for the front door. The beatle roared and followed Nicki, getting caught on a light hanging from the ceiling.
“Run Nicki!” yelled Verity, aiming at it’s eyes. Nicki reached the front door and fell through it, Georgia and Verity following the Beatle as it tried to fit through, but only crashing through the wall, taking an electric lamp that had got tangled round one of it’s many, skeletal legs with it. Bits of wooden wall went flying through the air as the beatle managed to take flight and come crashing down on top of Nicki.
Georgia and Verity paused, fearful that it had killed Nicki. The beatle gave a triumphant roar, blue phlegm flying from it’s mouth.
Silence one again filled the air as Verity and Georgia were glued to the spot. Georgia felt out with her mind and sensed a single, tiny thought of annoyance from beneath the huge, bumbling mass of childish pleasure.
Nicki?
As soon as Georgia had uttered the thought, the Beatle was thrown into the air, letting out a groan of pain as it went and from beneath it emerged the huge body of a dragon! Nicki caught the Beatle mid air, clamping her jaws round it’s thick, squidgy neck and pushing the Beatle’s body back down to the ground, right on top of Daniel’s green house.
Nicki nose-dived towards the ground, just before impact turning back into her human self in a shower of scales. She looked at the body of the Beatle, a guilty look on her face.
“Oops.” She mumbled.
“What in the name of all that is sane is going on?” asked Georgia.
“It was a gate.” Verity murmured, realization clouding her face. “You touched it and opened a gate to the Sky Realm and let through a beatle.”
“So it’s not The Beatle?” asked Nicki.
“No, just one that happened to be passing a gate to Earth.” replied Georgia.
An almightily roar echoed behind them and the three of them looked at one another in horror.
“Did it close or it the gate still open?” asked Nicki.
“Nicki, go close it, quickly!” yelled Verity, running towards the house. Georgia and Nicki ran after her. Once at the house, Nicki dived over the sofa and leapt for the rune just as a dark shadow began to appear through the blue energy. As soon as her fingers touched it, the blue energy dissolved into nothing and silence fell once again.
“I’m never touching that again. Never.” announced Nicki, firmly.
As she turned, from outside came the distressed yells of Daniel. They went to the front door and immediately saw Daniel, on his knees, yelling, “NNNNOOOOOOOOOOOO, MY CUBE MR.2, THE HOURS OF BUILDING, HOURS OF PLANNING, ONCE AGAIN, GONE, SHATTERED TO PEICES! NOOOOOOOOOOO.”

Fury held the phone to her ear and after a moment, heard Georgia answer, her voice slightly muffled and a high pitched, wailing somewhere in the background.
“Hi, it’s me. What’s going on in the background?” Fury frowned.
“Erm, it’s fine, Daniel’s just scared for life again. What is it?” she asked, concerned.
“I’ve been following the Beatle and found something big.”
“What?” asked Georgia, impatiently.
“I followed her to a bunch of warehouses and in one of them is a piece of soft ware. I don’t know what it is, but I found out that, when activated, it’ll open up a huge gate to the Sky Realm. I think it’s a computer, but the Beatle needs something to activate it and I think that’s what she needs the rune for.” explained Fury. Georgia went quiet.
“What is it, what’s happened?” snapped Fury.
“Erm, well, we found out what the rune is.”
“What is it?”
“When Nicki touched it, it opened up a gate to the Sky Realm and a beatle came through. We killed it, but it crushed Daniel’s Cube again.”
“Again?”
“Don’t ask.”
“Ok, well, now we’re one step ahead, we need to destroy the software to ensure that the Red-haired Maiden can’t use it.”
“Why can’t we just not let her get the rune?”
“Because she’ll find you, kill you and then summon an army. We need to be sure she can’t do that.”
Georgia sighed.

Part 4: The Bit with the most action.

“Just so you know, I still don’t trust you.” Snarled Verity form the other side of the kitchen table. Fury sat on the opposite side, staring right back at Verity with equal dislike.
“Guys, not now, whether we like it or not we have to trust her!” snapped Georgia. “Now, explain the plan.”
Fury spread a map out on the table and once everyone was sat at the table, she began.
“So, there are 12 warehouses in a line and in one of them is the computer. They move it each night, so we have no idea which one it is in. Each of us will split up and search a warehouse each, Holly, you’ll search the first two, Daniel the next two, Nicki the next two, Verity, the next two and I’ll do the last three. Georgia, you’ll be patrolling outside. When one of us finds the computer, we’ll relay a telepathic message to Georgia who will alert the rest of us. Upon that massage, we will all make our way to that warehouse and Georgia; you will go to the car and position it opposite the warehouse. Nicki, you will stand guard t the front door, taking out the guards who stand there and Verity, you will patrol the balcony inside the warehouse so you have a view of the whole place. I will patrol the back door. Daniel and Holly, it’ll be up to you to disable it. All you have to do is upload this virus. Just stick it in the port that fits and let it do it’s work. Once it is done, we’ll all make our way to the car and Georgia will speed us away.”
Fury plonked a memory stick down onto the table and pushed it towards Daniel.
“We’ll have to be subtle, there’ll be guards guarding the entrances only so, Nicki, you’ll have to distract them and then take them out so no one notices.”
No one spoke.
“Well, we better suit up then!” sang Daniel, excitedly.

Georgia pulled up behind a line of buildings opposite the back of the warehouses. Letting everyone out, she breathed in the cold, night air and checked the pistol was still snug in her gun holder. Verity adjusted her quiver on her back and Holy flexed her fingers.
“Right everyone, good luck. Remember, Georgia, you’re connecting everyone, you are crucial.” Whispered Fury and with that, she sped off into the night.
“Later guys.” Mumbled Georgia and watched as everyone disappeared into the darkness.

Remember everyone, we’re looking for a metal crate with dragon runes on the sides.
Nicki confirmed Georgia’s thought and continued into the first warehouse through the back entrance, careful not to disturb any unsuspecting guards round the front, just a few yards away. Nicki came to the back door, a small, wooden frame locked with a pad lock. She cupped the padlock and crushed it in her hands, brushing the debris from her palms. She entered the warehouse, eyes pealed...
Shit! Nicki thought as she stared in horror at the thousands of metal crates all with dragon runes on the sides, piled high to the ceiling.
Fury didn’t think of this did she? Nicki stabbed the thought back at Georgia.
It’ll be in the middle, just look around, stay calm .Georgia replied.
Nicki made her way through the narrow alley way formed between the towers of crates to the middle of the warehouse, where there was a small clearing. Scowling, Nicki turned to leave the warehouse, turning from the empty clearing and made for the back exit.

Verity stood in the middle of her warehouse, looking around. The clearing in the middle was empty, but it made her smirk how Fury had not anticipated the hundreds of identical metal crates. So she’s not perfect after all!
Verity paused for a moment, convinced she heard something scuffling along the concrete floor, but dismissed it and was about to leave when Georgia’s voice filled her head.
Holly’s found it! The second warehouse along! Go, go, go!
Verity was on the move immediately, moving silently to the back of the warehouse and moving along the line.
Hurried footsteps could be heard behind her and Verity was suddenly sure