Myths and Gargoyles by Jamie Hawke (interesting books to read in english txt) 📕

“Watch this,” Pucky said, and as the bullets flew at us she steered straight for them. The front with its banshee acted as a shield, deflecting the shots, and then when one shot got around it what looked like an energy shield popped up.

“You’re going to hit them!” I shouted, watching as it became inevitable.

“No, I’m going to shoot them,” she yelled back, pulling out a pistol with one hand and using her teeth to adjust the settings on the side. “Always hit agents with tranqs.”

And then she spun the bike, turning it so that I was certain she was going to lose control and go crashing right through them. Instead, she turned again at the last minute so that we skidded past them, her shots going strong as we passed, dropping three of them.

“Now!” she shouted, and I had no idea what she was talking about except that she turned, grabbed me, and pushed off. The bike went flying into the glass of the airport, shattering it, while we went rolling, the ground slamming into my side and stinging as I slid, tearing my pants.

“Dammit,” I shouted, forcing myself up and going for my knife as a line of Shades appeared around us. “A little warning next time!”

“You would’ve been more scared if you knew what was coming.”

I merely ground my teeth in response, watching with curiosity as the enemy closed in. Back in the terminal others were fighting, working toward Red.

“Mowgli’s team,” Pucky said. “Fight toward them if you can, and…” She debated, then cursed and tossed me a pistol. “Remember, tranqs only!”

As she said that, a shot hit the ground at my feet. My adrenaline kicked into overtime with the realization that I was being shot at. Without much of a clue how to handle a pistol other than from laser tag and paintball, I ran for the cover of the building, shooting at the agents moving my way in the process.

“Let go of yourself,” a voice seemed to say, though I didn’t know where from, and halfway there, I realized I was growing in size, increasing in speed and power. The thoughts of tranqs or saving lives no longer lingered at the front of my mind but were floating around in some nebulous place that was my consciousness.

“Jack, no!” another voice said, but I was already gone, my new self leaping in through the shattered glass, shooting and clawing—yes, apparently I had claws—and roaring, and agents were actually retreating from my path.

“Protector!” a man shouted, and I recognized him as Mowgli but was too caught up in the fight, roaring for him to get out of my way or I’d knock him the fuck back too. “Not like this!”

An agent came for him but I pounced, slamming my pistol into his head and then kicking him away, and when I pounced again, this time claws at his throat, I realized my hand was covered in hair.

This was enough to stun me, to recall what they’d told me about the Big Bad Wolf, and I was staggering back by the time two men took me to the floor. One was a man with knuckles big and scary, a real thug type, the other more long and narrow, with a greenish tint to him.

“Get ‘im straight, Jiminy, or I will!” the thug said.

“He’s good,” Jiminy replied, waving a hand in front of my face. “Aren’t you, Protector? You’re new, you’ve been bitten—but you have the choice, and it’s yours alone. Resist… resist.”

It didn’t take more than that to fill me with hatred for what I had started to become. My mind flashed with images of me and Pucky running, of her laughing at some stupid joke of mine, of her hand in mine.

“He’s back,” Jiminy said, and then the thug had me on my feet, pointing me away from the main fight, to where three agents had Red and were moving to the area where the private jets were waiting.

I was about to take off after them when Pucky came jumping over the back of the closest ticket counter, shot over it, and then ducked down next to me.

“You sure you’re good?” Pucky said, signaling the other guys that she had this.

My breaths were coming hot and heavy, my mind swimming, but we had to get to Red. I knew that much, so nodded.

“Keep your shit together,” she said. “We’re going to train you on this, help you fight the wolf. No matter how much he huffs and puffs, don’t fucking let him in!”

“I’m good!” I shouted, seeing Red disappear from sight, and then pushed off in pursuit.

Pucky joined me, providing cover fire. Halfway there, a strange sight came from my right—more Legends, I supposed, in the form of flying monkeys!

“Stay on Red!” Pucky said as she moved to the nearest window and shot it out, then unloaded on the monkeys as people shouted and ran from the area Red had been taken. I went past them, amazed at the idea of how this would all look like some sort of terrorist attack. Running through the door, two airport security guys tackled me, but the thug from earlier came pounding in, slamming one of them off of me and then turning to tackle the other.

“Don’t wait on me, princess,” he said with a grin that revealed wooden teeth, then went about putting the guard in his own restraints.

I turned toward the jet and ran out after it, into the hanger where Red was almost at the jet’s stairs and a team was moving my way. They paused though, turning and making room for someone else. I slowed to a jog.

A man strode forward, emerging from the jet. For the first time, I felt something dark within. Not large, not intimidating in any traditional sense. He was grinning at me wickedly, his pointy ears barely visible under his green cap and mop of brown hair. Clearly