Outside the iron gates of the Blackthorn Estate, the night air grew thick with the acrid taste of burning oil.
Luthor Greymoor leaned out the window of his black-lacquered carriage. He watched the orange glow pulse rhythmically against the low-hanging clouds while sparks drifted over the high stone walls like confused fireflies.
"What in the blazes is happening in there?" Luthor demanded. He dabbed sweat from his forehead with a silk handkerchief. "Listen to that racket. Men are screaming for water."
Beside him, the portly noble shifted nervously. "It sounds terrible, Luthor. Perhaps a riot? Or an accident? Is this why Carl kept us waiting like commoners?"
Luthor turned his furious gaze back to the mutant guard by the gate. The brute stood like a statue and ignored the chaos erupting behind him.
"You there!" Luthor shouted. "I demand an explanation! Is the estate under attack? Open this gate so we may seek safety, or at least speak to Lord Blackthorn!"
The guard turned his head slowly. He picked a piece of gristle from his teeth.
"Shut your mouth," the guard grunted.
Luthor recoiled as if slapped. His face flushed a deep, violent crimson. "Excuse me? Do you know who—"
"I said shut up," the guard interrupted. He hefted his rifle. "One more word and I'll put a hole in that pretty carriage."
"How dare you!" Luthor's wife shrieked from the interior. She leaned over her husband's shoulder. "You filth! You must learn to be civilized in the presence of royalty! I will have your head for this!"
The guard didn't answer. He simply stared past them.
…
Inside the subterranean laboratory, the temperature spiked.
"Pons De Flamontz!"
Zareth whipped his leg in a wide, vicious arc. A crescent of blue and orange fire detached from his toes and roared toward Vanderznak like a scythe.
WHOOSH!
Vanderznak didn't dodge. He simply snapped his massive wings forward. The sudden gust of wind possessed the force of a hurricane. It met the flames head-on and scattered them into harmless embers that died on the cold floor.
"Futile," Vanderznak boasted.
He folded his wings back with a leathery snap. "I have already analyzed your Gospel, Priest. Unlike my useless minions, you cannot restrict my airflow with such puny flames. My lungs are enhanced. My biology is superior. I am the perfect predator designed specifically to combat your kind."
"Shut up and die," Zareth cursed.
BOOM!
Zareth kicked the concrete floor. A burst of explosive fire propelled him upward. He reached the ceiling in a heartbeat and used the momentum to shoot downward like a missile. He aimed his mutated fist directly at the scientist's skull.
Vanderznak looked up. His golden eye gleamed.
"I've already seen through your attack, Priest!"
ROAAAAAR!
Vanderznak unleashed a deafening sonic roar. The sound waves hit Zareth in mid-air and rattled his bones. The sheer pressure slowed his descent for a fraction of a second.
It was enough.
SNAP!
Vanderznak didn't use his hands. His left wing-claw lashed out and clamped around Zareth's waist.
"Guh!" Zareth gasped.
Before he could break free, Vanderznak's thick tail coiled around his legs and chest. The limb tightened like an anaconda and pinned Zareth's arms to his sides.
"Got you."
Vanderznak brought Zareth close to his face.
"You hesitate. Even now, you pulled your punch to avoid collapsing the ceiling on those breeding pods. I suppose you can't help it. Priests are trained to protect the weak. You say you are retired, yet you still act accordingly."
The tip of Vanderznak's tail peeled back like a banana skin. A long, dripping bone needle emerged. He hovered the point inches from Zareth's neck.
"Your moments of defying me end here."
Zareth struggled, but the grip was iron. "Get that thing away from me, you bastard!"
"You are trying so hard to suppress the mutation. What will happen when I inject you with a potent dose? Hmm? Will your Gospel be able to counteract it? I hope you will be foolish enough to try. With your fiery toenails disabled, I can easily finish you!"
"You better not dare!"
STAB!
Vanderznak plunged the needle into Zareth's neck.
"Kuhahaha!"
The pump hissed as Vanderznak injected a concentrated sludge of tainted genes directly into Zareth's jugular. This was a stronger cocktail than the one he had given Beltrom and Hunter. He wanted to break the Priest completely.
"Damn him!"
Zareth's eyes rolled back. The blue flames on his toes flickered and died instantly. He tried to redirect his internal Gospel Rhythm to burn the poison, but the surge was too massive. The dam broke.
"GUAAAAA!"
Zareth screamed. It was a sound of pure agony.
The black veins on his neck bulged until they looked ready to burst. The mutation surged upward and consumed the left side of his face. His left eye turned pitch black. His left ear elongated and pointed sharply like that of a corrupted elf.
CRACK. POP.
His left arm spasmed. It grew heavier, darker, until he lost all sensation in the limb. It fell limp against his side, a dead weight of alien meat. Even his beard and hair on the left side darkened, turning jagged and coarse.
Zareth grit his teeth until they cracked. He fought a mental war to keep the corruption from taking his mind, but god knows he was experiencing hell.
"HIYAAAAH!"
"GUAAAAA!"
"HIYAAAAH!"
Vanderznak became excited by the screams. He trembled with scientific ecstasy.
"Yes! Sing for me! Soon, you will become the future, old man. Endure it! The world needs to hear this beautiful serenade!"
Vanderznak looked up at the reinforced ceiling.
"Come! We shall ascend!"
He tightened his tail around the writhing Priest. He crouched low and then exploded upward.
CRASH!
Vanderznak burst through the concrete roof. Debris rained down on the pods below as the two combatants shot into the open night sky.
The cool air hit Vanderznak's face. He hovered high above the estate, ready to broadcast his victory to the moon. But his golden eye caught movement below.
CRACKLE!
"What the…?"
Vanderznak looked down. The generator building was an inferno. Men rushed like ants, throwing water on a fire that refused to die.
"The generators exploded? So that earthquake earlier… hmm?"
Because of his altitude, his vision cleared the rooftops. He saw the Preservation Wing. And he saw the line of small figures moving in the shadows.
"My specimens!"
Vanderznak's face twisted in rage. His precious test subjects were being led out of storage by a group of unworthy farmers.
"YOU INSOLENT RATS!"
His voice boomed from the sky like thunder.
"Capture those children! Kill the bastards who caused this! Do not let a single one escape!"
Below, the henchmen froze. They looked up in shock at the winged nightmare silhouetted against the moon.
"Is that… the Boss?" one guard stammered.
Even Carl Blackthorn, who had stepped onto his balcony, looked up in utter bewilderment.
"He… he flies?" Terror gripped his heart. "He has become a god."
"What are you idiots standing idle for?" Vanderznak roared again. He dove slightly, and the wind pressure knocked a chimney over. "Need I repeat myself? Capture the specimens!"
"Specimen?"
"That's Lord Vanderznak!"
The command snapped the men out of their trance. They tossed away their buckets.
"Move! To the Preservation Wing!"
Carl Blackthorn didn't wait to see the outcome. He scrambled backward into his room and hassled his servants.
"Pack the gold! Forget the clothes!" Carl ran toward the door that led outside. "Get the carriage ready! We are leaving now!"
He knew the peaceful tyranny of his estate was over. A monster ruled the sky, and Carl had no intention of being around when it decided to feed.
…
Near the Preservation Wing, Wenamor froze. He looked up at the flying mutant and felt his blood turn to ice.
"We're found out."
Wenamor turned to the line of children.
"Run! Faster!" Wenamor waved his arms frantically. "Get to the underground tunnel! Don't look back!"
He grabbed a straggling child and shoved him gently toward the drain grate.
"Go! Go!"
He looked at the dozens of children still waiting to enter. He knew it was impossible to save everyone. The guards were already turning the corner.
Wenamor made a decision.
"You men!" He pointed to the two villagers helping at the grate. "Take the ones who are inside and go. Seal the hatch behind you. Escape to the river!"
"But what about you?" one villager asked.
"We buy time." Wenamor turned to Jerrick. "Ready?"
Jerrick grinned. It was a grim, terrified expression, but his hands were steady. He ignited the pilot light on his flamethrower.
"I've been waiting for this."
"Count me in," Laviss said.
She stepped up beside them. The boy tied to her back hissed at the approaching guards. Laviss racked the bolt of her rifle and settled the stock against her shoulder.
BANG!
She fired. The lead henchman grabbed his leg and fell screaming.
"Get them!" the other guards yelled. "Gut them like rabbits!"
They charged. A dozen mutants against three farmers.
WHOOSH!
Jerrick pulled the trigger. A wall of fire erupted from the nozzle. It created a blazing barrier between the children and the monsters.
"Come and get some!" Jerrick screamed.
Wenamor gripped his machete. His hands shook, but he stood his ground. This was their desperate stance against Vanderznak's goons. They would hold the line, or they would die trying.