The Angaran Chronicles: Of Frozen Death and Mysteries by BAD Agar (best book club books for discussion .TXT) 📕

Alathis cried out as pain blasted through him, causing his fingers to go limp and let go of his shotgun, but his enhanced constitution allowed him to weather the shock, and he spun into a round-house kick aimed for the side of Daviksar's skull.

But the dwarf had already erected a small bubble of magical light around him, and Alathis leg smashed against that, making more pain.

Yelling out again, Alathis stumbled back.

'W-what are you doing?' Alathis shrieked; he continued to stumble away to the other side of the lounge, clutching at the knife in his back. The pain was unbearable, but if he hadn't moved, it would've pierced the base of his skull. 'W-what hell.'

Daviksar didn't reply; he just deactivated his shield and raised his hands.

'No!' said Alathis. 'Please, don't do this. Not this again!'

A huge fireball burst from the dwarf's hands and flew straight for Alathis.

Having no room for him to manoeuvre, Alathis managed to raise a light shield of his own in the last split-second. The world was a wall of flames; the shield prevented him from cooking, but not from much of the explosive force. Alathis was sent flying, smashing through the wall and outside into the cold. 

He still managed to keep his shield up, even as his whole world became a whirling of spinning, bashing, rolling and bouncing and pain so much pain. He was sure if it weren't for his shield protecting him, all of his bone structure would've been ground into dust, even with the reinforcement.

It seemed an age but must've only been a few seconds before he finally stopped. His brain and vision a blur, Alathis began to climb to his feet. But still, he kept up his shield as he tried to shake himself back into sanity.

A blast of light exploded out through the hole in the house and smashed against Alathis' shield as he managed to get to his knees. He knew his magical radiation was running out fast. He was never the best at retaining radiation or using the right amount at the right time, Daviksar was. That was because he was among the rare type of Hunter who chose to specialise in magic, as the Hunters don't want the enemy, The Church of Jaroai, to know they can use it. Most like Alathis specialised in more conventional means of combat.

Alathis reached around and grabbed the knife sticking from his back and, with one tug, pulled it out in a spurt of crimson, and he felt the blood flow down his skin.

He roared out the pain and stumbled, but he still kept up his shield long enough to prevent another light blast from frying through him. 

Then the shield blinked and died, so the horrific, well below zero, and wind struck him he barely had to throw himself to the snow, and he suppressed his aura.

Another light blast passed where he'd stood a split-second before.

After Daviksar used so much magic, another Hunter, allied vampire or even the local priest, someone must've sensed it and were heading here to see what's going on!

Them, or a whole heap of rogue vampires.

Alathis shuddered, but it wasn't from the cold, and he began to crawl to the right.

If Daviksar didn't kill him, or he didn't freeze to death first.

As summoned by Alathis' thoughts, the dwarf stepped out of the hole in the house wreathed in a light bubble, visible even through the curtain of white. 

Alathis managed to frown through his chattering teeth. What in hell was going on? Why was his friend trying to kill him? But most of all, besides the knife, he was unarmed. He still had his sword and side-arm in cloaking-space to summon, but the flash of light would attract Daviksar's attention.

It seemed the weapon-cloak ability could be a detriment.

'Alathis!' Daviksar screamed. 'Alathis, I know you're out there.'

Trying to keep from breathing too hard, Alathis dropped even closer to the snow. He was unarmed, but did he want to be armed? Did he want to fight another...friend? Could he? Why? Why in hell was this happening to him?

'I have always hated you,' said Daviksar. 'This is what you deserve this, damn you. You were always better than me. All the girls liked you more than me!'

Alathis frowned, he couldn't see Daviksar through the light, but he could see the exclamation was fake, that it seemed like the d was trying to bolster himself, convince himself this was how he honestly felt so he could gain the courage to kill Alathis.

'Even at magic! The teachers would almost beg you to specialise in magic, always go on about how much potential you had.'

I'm not better at magic than you! Alathis thought, his brow furrowed. Don't be ridiculous!

'The only reason I'm better than you at magic is because I have spent countless hours practising.'

Alathis rolled his eyes, and the only reason why I'm a better swordsman and the best swordsman in our coven is the countless hours I dedicated to the blade too.

'Where are you? Damn you!'

The began dwarf prowled outside further, his shield dissipated, and he stopped as though a thought seemed to hit him.

'You killed her, didn't you?' said Daviksar. 'You were right; I can guess, and I did. I saw what happened to those who...lost control. I heard their agonised shrieks; you put her out of her misery, right? How good of you, how noble. No wonder you do not wish to talk about it.'

Alathis couldn't guess where Daviksar was going with this; he knew the Dwarf-Hunter was trying to goad him out of hiding.

'I wouldn't have,' said the dwarf. 'I would have let her die in agony. The agony she more than deserved.'

Deserved?

Rage made Alathis grip the snow, and he fought the urge to summon his pistol. No one deserved such a horrific death. No one!

'That's right, Alathis, she deserved it, more than deserved it. If I were with her, I would have stood and watched it, all of it, and I would laugh. I...would...laugh.'

That was it; with tears in his eyes, Alathis summoned his pistol and opened fire.

The flash of light was subtle, but it was enough to warn Daviksar as he raised his shield again just in time, so the shot sprang off. Alathis' leapt to his feet and continued to shoot as he advanced on his former friend; he could only thank goodness that most mages, including Daviksar, could use one spell at a time. 

As he came close and his pistol clicked dry, Alathis summoned his sword and slashed it across the bubble of light. In a few seconds, Alathis rained down dozens of slashes; he ignored the pain which shivered through his muscles and the aching the rapid movement blasted from the stab wound in his back.

Daviksar reeled from the ferociousness of Alathis' attacks as he blanched and backed away.

When the shield seemed to flicker and die, the dwarf summoned a shotgun and jumped back, deactivated his shield and fired a desperate barking blast.

Alathis weaved aside of it and darted diagonally left when he was mortal Alathis could average a sprint of ten metres in 0.86 of a second; after The Ritual, he moved ten times that. Not even Daviksar, with his enhanced reflexes and the spread of the shotgun rounds, could the dwarf-hunter could draw a bead on Alathis. Daviksar only managed two more desperate shots before Alathis sliced his shotgun in two, then slashed diagonally for the dwarf's torso.

Daviksar threw himself back, just out the arcing blade and summoned his pistol. Then Firing off a fervent flurry.

Alathis weaved and darted through it, then summoned and threw Daviksar's knife.

The dwarf seemed taken by surprise but still managed to duck it. The pause in the shooting allowed Alathis to burst forwards into close combat again and cut through the pistol as well as reliving the Hunter-Mage of two of his fingers. Daviksar cried out in pain, but that didn't prevent him from opening his hand right in Alathis' face.

Alathis froze and clenched his teeth; he'd thought Daviksar had used up all of his radiation! He'd never been the best at judging the level of radiation use of others, and now Daviksar was exploiting that.

He threw himself aside from the blast of light in the very last split second and exploded into another sprint. The beam followed his wake, melting the snow into waves of up-rushing water.

Alathis couldn't outrun it, so just before it sliced him in two, he dropped his sword and jumped into the air. The beam passed beneath his feet by a mere millimetre, and he brought into being another clip of ammunition for his pistol, slammed it home and spun to shoot.

Daviksar cancelled the beam to bring up another shield just in time.

Alathis got off two shots before he landed, picked up his sword and continued the withering hail as he began to advance.

The dwarf's magic can't last much longer! But even with that gone, the fight wasn't over; Alathis could feel exhaustion beginning to leaden his every movement. His lungs seemed like they were made from cold steel. His...enemy might soon be unable to use his magic, but he'd be fresher for the final, physical fight.

Again his pistol clicked dry, and he summoned another clip from cloak space and reloaded. That was the last one he had and-

Then Daviksar did something Alathis had no idea he could; with a roar that hurt Alathis' ears, he expanded his light shield. It erupted outward so fast it smashed him Alathis his off his feet so hard when his back against the snow, his pistol and sword flew from his grasp. The whiplash made the back of his head hit it. Agony blasted through him; it felt like his ribs and lungs had blasted from his chest and into the atmosphere; his spin seemed like it broke. His world a blur, he writhed and cried.

'You didn't see that coming, did you?' said Daviksar as he approached. 'Didn't expect me being so talentless to be able to use such an advanced magical technique? Two magical techniques at the same time.'

'Why?' Alathis could only cry. 'Why are you doing this to me? I...I thought we were friends!'

'I do this because I have to.'

Alathis vision managed to clear somewhat, to find Daviksar standing over him, Alathis' pistol aimed at him.

'Of course, you had to be the only one!' said the dwarf. 'You just had to be the only one to escape Him.'

'Him? Who...?'

'You know damned well who.'

A figure seemed to materialise behind the dwarf, and before Alathis could cry out, the sword tip burst through Daviksar's breast.

The dwarf's eyes widened, and his mouth gaped in abstract shock; then, the vampire plunged his teeth into the side of the dwarf's neck, the vampire's glowing eyes fixed on Alathis.

It only took about half a minute to drain Daviksar dry, and the whole time the dwarf mouthed over and over, "how?" "How?" Then the vampire chucked aside the dwarf a though he was a piece of trash.

By that time, Alathis had managed to climb into a crouch, despite the agony all through him and his pounding, spinning head.

Alathis expected the vampire to then rush at him and drain him dry too, but the vampire just stood,