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

one way, then the other. “Tough call, really. But that was just the first step—the fact remained that he cost us dearly in our way by doing so, and when confronted about it, basically made a move for a much larger cache. He blamed himself for what happened over there, not realizing how many innocents would be hurt, I guess, and that ate at him until he just couldn’t hold out and started lashing out at everyone around him. That’s when the Legends moved in with their Shades, filling the void in his soul.”

“And then you killed him,” I said, turning back to Pucky. “That must’ve been difficult.”

“Emotionally?” She shrugged. “Nah, he was always an arrogant prick anyway. His men, some followed him, others stayed. Physically, he was a beast, his skill with the bow impressive but he led me out into the woods where everyone else would’ve stood at a disadvantage to him.”

“But not you?”

“My powers have a pretty strong connection to nature,” Pucky said. “Guess his hubris caused him to overlook that little fact.”

Instead of going for new weapons, she opted for ammunition for our current ones instead. Red grabbed a couple of magic knives and handed one to me to replace the one she’d thrown on Peter Pan’s jet, along with an amulet that she hung over my neck and tucked into my shirt.

“For protection,” she said then glanced down at my crotch with a chuckle.

“Grow up,” Pucky said. “But seriously, that will help shield against magic to a certain degree—at least get you to where we are now. It’s a low-level Warrior-class item.”

“Gotcha,” I said, glad I at least had enough power to manage this one.

“But then you’ll be able to handle cooler shit, so chin up, buddy.”

I laughed nervously, still not quite at terms with the idea that we were about to charge into a pizza place to go to war and hopefully free some Myths who’d been captured. At the moment, my mouth was really watering at the idea of pepperoni pizza, with the edges of the pepperoni burnt just right. Maybe some pineapple on there just to spite all the weirdos who didn’t understand the awesomeness that a pepperoni and pineapple pizza could be. Not that I needed it every time, so whatever.

Agh. I had to remind myself that we weren’t going in there for pizza at all. Not even a root beer. Damn, I’d have thought the Mexican would’ve tided me over, but it seemed to have fueled my appetite.

Or was it that, since getting bit by the wolf, and especially since seeing it manifest in me, I’d been extra hungry?

“Got your big boy undies on?” Red asked, walking past me toward the pizza place.

“I don’t know what that means,” I muttered, glancing over to Pucky at my side as we followed.

“I never get half of what she says,” Pucky whispered. “Just laugh along with it or she gets all emo.”

I nodded and chuckled, though it was too late. And strode right past a family who were leaving the pizza place and didn’t even notice our weapons.

“The wonders of magic,” Pucky said, grinning, and entered as I held the door for her.

While it looked like a normal pizza joint, the second we stepped inside it became clear this wasn’t the case. What looked like an image of an eagle over a cup of root beer turned its head and let out a screech that sent customers running. The old woman behind the register sprang into action, pulling two hot pans from the stone oven and charging us as the door slammed and chains dropped from the walls, hurtling inward.

“Fucking witch,” Red said, grabbing me and rolling together, so that we were out of the way of the chains. She was up and pouncing, blade tracing pink and red light as she nearly sliced into the witch, but a chain was flung down and wrapped around Red’s arm.

Now it was my turn, because Pucky was fighting off the chains and one of those glowing pans in the witch’s hands was coming for Red’s face. I drew the knife, but a chain came for me too. Thinking fast, I remembered I still had the taser, and instead of going for the witch, pulled the taser out and hit the chain with it. Electricity burst to life, flowing through the chains so that Red yelped and was flung to the ground, but the witch got the worst of it—as if the chains were part of her, she shrieked and crumpled to the ground.

I leaped over Red, taser still at the ready, and hit the witch in the fucking throat with it. Her eyes went wide and flames erupted from the pizza oven, her body convulsing. I lifted the taser as Pucky and Red ran for us, weapons ready, both shouting for me to finish her off.

With an upward thrust of the witch’s hand, the flames came again, this time whipping through the air and coming right at me! The taser found her again, causing the flames to pull back slightly, and then I took the knife and plunged it into her heart.

The flames were gone, even from within the oven, and she was dead.

“The Gingerbread Witch, some called her,” Red said, staring down at the corpse as it withered into a skeleton. Then a red ball of Ichor floated over to me, vanishing into my chest. “We thought Hansel and Gretel had done away with her…she went evil a long time ago and refused the choice to change back… apparently we’re going to have to talk to them about this.”

“Shit, who did they kill then?” Pucky asked.

Red shook her head, looking doubtful. “Never did trust those two. Could’ve been a lie to begin with.”

I sat there, chest heaving, unable to quite process that I’d just killed the witch from the Hansel and Gretel stories. The skeleton pirate had been one thing, but this was… it was too much.

“Are we… done?” I asked, feeling like