The Huntress : The Alterealm Series Book 1

“Hey!” I called out, loud enough for the assortment of followers to hear. When they started to turn around, I stopped and lifted my arms in a vague gesture. “Can anyone join the club or do we have to buy the membership package?”

I didn’t have to look behind me to know I had some large backup behind me when the expressions of fear, hatred and just plain shock appeared on Marcus’s little collection of sleazeballs. A quick looksee told me there were probably only four of five that were all human like myself. Good thing to know I thought as I started walking cautiously toward them.

“Marcus,” I said in a taunting tone. “You have been a very, very bad boy.”

The scary as hell guy in the middle glared at me. “So, the Huntress has come to be after all.”

“Bet your ass she has.” Reaching behind me, I pulled the Sais free from their harness. I could hear blades clearing leather from all around me. Opening my arms, I held the Sais in the air. “Easy way or their way?” I motioned to the men behind me.

Marcus snarled, his eyes flashing an electric purple.

I took that as the latter and started walking toward them. I barely took two steps when four blocked my path to the magician. Before I could assess which one I wanted to beat on first, Tim and Chase flanked me, tipping the odds in my favor.

A rush of bodies went by us as we stood eyeing each other up. The sound of grunts and metal clashing came from behind us. I suddenly felt like I was in slow motion with everything moving but me.

That feeling lasted a whole of two seconds before a blonde chick wearing a really bad cat woman knock off, with the scary glowing green eyes tried to take a slice out of me with the extra pointy knife she held. I had no problems getting out of her way, but wasn’t about to back down. With a flick of the Sais, I kicked into a spin that came so easily I almost went right past her. Ducking, I came up behind her and kicked out her knee to bring her down to my height. She growled and went down, her blade skittering across the pavement. I shifted the Sai to my other hand and pulled the scanner off my belt. Hoping it was just a simple push of a button, I held it over her and pushed. Her eyes widened and that was the last expression on her face before there was a light and an odd popping sound. All that remained of her now was her blade. I had to get one of these gadgets that worked for my side. Bounty hunting would so much simpler with one.

Clipping it back on my jeans, I spun back to the action and assessed how many bodies were between Marcus and me from the looks of it, all of them. Quinton and Rafael were double teaming an enormous man that looked like he belonged in a street fighter game. It was clear to see they had the advantage of fighting together for so many years. The big dude didn’t stand a chance. When he went down, I ducked down and worked my way towards them, barely missing a blade that was intended to dice up someone else. With a scowl, I flipped around and got well out of reach.

Rafael was disarming the guy when I reached them, with a quick nod to me, he stepped back. The same bulging eye expression appeared on the downed man’s face as I held the scanner over him. Pop, and he was no more.

A screeching made me turn quickly to see a woman with normal, non-glowing eyes charging for me. I didn’t need to be psychic to know I’d just sent her boyfriend to a holding cell in another realm. She wielded a wooden baseball bat. I wanted to ask her if she was insane bringing that to a fight like this, but she swung it a few times and I decided questions would have to wait.

Putting one Sai back in the strap, I pulled my raptor out, surmising that if I got close enough she was going to have to go down fast before the wood connected with any part of my body. I hadn’t asked Victor if I could scan humans, but she was wearing one of those devices on her wrist, so she was going to be my guinea pig. I jumped back out of her reach, only to have a thick arm wrap around my neck and squeeze. Breathing was barely possible.

Being confined in any way just happened to be one of those things that equally freaked me out and pissed me off. Without so much as a struggle, I went lax in the hold and brought the hand holding the Sai across my body and stuck it right into the side of my captor. With a loud howl, I found myself free again but still facing the bat whooshing past my face. Scanning her was going to be a pleasure.

Glancing over my shoulder, I made sure there was no one on my team that was going to meet a stray swing when I ducked. As she raised the piece of wood to swing, I executed the new roll and duck I’d practiced and glided my raptor across her side. She grunted, but the bat still went up. Before she could turn, I was behind her and kicked out both her legs so she went down to her knees. She maintained her hold on the bat and I really had to give her bonus points for that; she was determined. In front of her the guy I’d stabbed was getting back to his feet. The sheer size of him down on one knee was enough to make me double take. Seriously someone on the Alterealm side had slept with an honest to Christ giant, they had to have.

Pulling the scanner off the clip again, I held it out to the woman and pressed the button, hoping I hadn’t just sent her to Kansas instead of Alterealm. I’d have to ask about that later. She growled out a low gurgle just as the light flashed and I found myself with no one between me and the gothic Hercules, who was now on his feet again. In his massive hand was a battle axe that had to be almost as long as I was tall. Nothing short of a grenade launcher was going to take him out and one of those I didn’t have.

Replacing the scanner, I grabbed my Sai again and backed up to assess how the hell I was going to survive this one. A quick glance over his shoulder allowed me to see how terribly thrilled Marcus was looking, and that pissed me off. Troy was suddenly at my side, and I wanted to bow at his feet and thank him, but before I could even make eye contact the hulk of a man came at us.

Normally I would baulk at someone stepping in to aid me when I was fighting but with the first deafening clash of Troy’s broadsword blocking the axe, I decided maybe this one time would be allowable. Troy grunted, telling me just how much brute strength the other guy had. Admiring his ability was going to have to wait. I ducked and weaved out of the way, trying to find the right moment to help out as they met each other blow for blow. The first time I’d seen Chase fight I had thought it was beautiful, and Troy was no different as his moves were a masterpiece in action.

The battleaxe went up again and I noticed the wielder was favoring the side I had jabbed. Timing it for the next swing, I went down and flipped, coming up on my knees between the two large men. It wasn’t the Sai in my hand this time, the scanner was held out and ready. Wasting no more than half a breath of time I pressed the button and then had to shuffle back before the axe came down on my head.

Troy scooped me up with a hand under my arm and gave me a quick nod before he turned to face a blade swinging past his head. I stood there, watching for all of a second, feeling like I was an ant in a horse race. Tall bodies and weapons were all around me and I couldn’t see anything for the bodies that towered over me. Glancing at a dumpster against the wall, I moved over and climbed up on it so I could see where everyone was.

When I straightened up, I wished for a camcorder to capture what I was seeing. The brothers and guards were kicking some serious ass and it was so pretty to watch I wanted to weep. Shopping excited some females, not this one, a well-executed fight was better than a fifty percent off sale in my mind.

When I glanced in Marcus’s direction I noticed he was waving his arms around like he was trying to do tai chi but just with his hands. I didn’t know a thing about magic, but the intense look of concentration on his face told me he was whipping up something that wasn’t good for us. I waited until he glanced in a direction and then jumped down and headed that way as fast as I could manage through the scuffling bodies.

Dodging a stray swing, or one that may have been aimed at me, I ducked around Arius and a man wearing a steel plated jacket as they tried to give each other a haircut with some sort of razor thin blades. I was in front of Victor laying a serious beat to yet another contestant for the scariest award. Turning to see Marcus looking at me and not at all pleased, I knew I had found the target he was after. Take out the justice and things would go to pot fast.

I couldn’t exactly interrupt Victor to tell him he was in serious peril in the middle of a one on one, so I tried to stay in the direct path between him and the purple eyed psycho waving his hands in my direction. I really, really hoped all the talk of his powers being useless on me were true, because unless he was conducting an invisible orchestra I was about to find out.

When I heard a familiar pop behind me, I knew Victor had sent his tango partner to a holding cell. “Vic, get back. Marcus is targeting you.” I didn’t have time to turn around and see if he was listening.

Marcus raised his hands in the air, and everything around him blew in a wind that only seemed to surround him. He glared at me and dropped both hands toward me. I don’t know what he was supposed to be doing, I could feel pressure brushing over me but nothing that would make me worry too much.

A confused and then angry look flashed over the magician’s face, telling me one thing. His mojo was useless against me. I’d breathe a sigh of relief later. “You didn’t think we were going to make it easy for you, did you, Marcus?”

Out of nowhere the one with the red shirt stepped in front of me. Crap was the first thing that entered my mind. I was running on pure hearsay through all of this and wasn’t in the mood to see if my huntress power was impervious to this guy. I didn’t know how exactly this one fed and wasn’t about to find out.

He advanced on me like I was a huge bug that needed terminating, stepping around him I ducked under his arm and tried to get behind him. My luck, the big guy had moves that were faster than the rest of the oversized Alterealm mutants.

Almost kissing the dagger he jabbed out toward my face, I dropped down to one knee and then kicked out trying in a poor attempt to take out his knee cap. My boot met solid leg that didn’t budge at all. Double crap seemed the appropriate thought.

This time when he swung his arm in my direction, I reacted with an upper swing of my Sai, barely skimming it along his arm. His eyes turned this eerie washed out white and my brain said to run away but my damn body wasn’t willing to throw in the towel. He lunged at me again and my foot caught something as I tried to step back. Landing on my side, I didn’t stop to assess if any damage was done before I rolled and got to my feet.

Damn he was fast and I was running out of moves. I worked to stay out of his reach and not make eye contact with him long enough for him to see mine as I sheathed the one Sai and grabbed the knife at my side. For this I needed something I was comfortable with.

He came at me again and I tried a jump kick to his chest, but again it was like bouncing into a solid tree. When a new strength flooded into me, I almost stumbled in my step to stay out of his reach. My veins were suddenly over loaded with adrenalin and it took three more swipes and dodges for me to realize somehow Chase was using our connection to lend me some assistance. It also meant he could see the deep shit I was in but was a little on the busy side to lend any physical aid.

With sheer determination, I tried the kick again and actually made him stumble back a half step. It wasn’t much but I’d take it. Changing tactics, I twisted around, jabbing at him with my knife to distract him so I could get beside him. Charging at him, I dropped down and attempted to take out his knee once more at the same time I poked at him with my knife. I connected with flesh, but not enough to even make him pause.

What did I have to do to give him a clue? There was no way in any life or realm he was taking a taste of anything me. Another wave of strength flooded into me and I soaked it up this time and did the exact move again hoping to catch him off guard with a repeat performance. The knife grabbed into some meatier flesh this time and he stumbled to the ground. Dropping my Sai, I pulled the scanner off my waist and aimed it at him. Before he could blink I sent him home. “We’re going to need a medic for that one,” I said mostly to myself.

Chase was standing over me when I looked up from retrieving my weapon off the ground. He glared at me and I wanted to laugh. “So sue me. He came to me I was trying to stay the hell out of his way.”

He pulled me to my feet and gave me a quick once over. The pressure shoving at me was back and I knew that dick Marcus was at it again, this time he was hitting on Chase. Giving me an odd look, Chase looked over to where Marcus was and grinned. The wind burst through the alley sending garbage and anything not tied down scattering all around us.

“I think we pissed off magic boy up there,” I said under my breath.

Before he could reply five guys came out of nowhere, swinging Bo’s like they were nothing more than ribbons.

“Shit,” Chase muttered.

“What?” I looked around at him.

“I think he just found a way around your charm.”

I looked back to Marcus and then checked the guys moving slowly toward us, boxing us in. “What?

Chase put his back to me to cover behind us. “The guys are powered via Marcus magic and I’d bet my ass they’re stronger than a freight train.”

I groaned. “That is so cheating. I am going to kick his ass just for being a weenie.”

The chatting was done as the first Bo was swung in my direction. What I wouldn’t give for a taser right now, alfalfa with the bad hair-do and long stick needed a zap to adjust his personality. Ducking down, I slid and attempted to kick his legs out. It was like a fly kicking an elephant in the ass and less than effective.

Flipping, I came up practically under him and thrust up with both Sais, I connected and from the sound he made I was pretty sure he wouldn’t be procreating any time soon, if ever. I actually had a very brief flash of guilt for that move; it was almost too low even in this fight.

When the next guy advanced on me, my weak moment was long gone and I hoped for the chance to try it again. He made this screeching sound and I paused long enough to wonder what the hell good a noise like that would be in the middle of the death dance. His Bo connected with my shoulder hard enough my teeth felt like they’d just come loose. Now I was pissed. Like the much larger otherworldly guys didn’t already have enough of an advantage over me, they had to feed them freakin magic and then pummel me.

Gritting my teeth, I integrated my old street fight style with the new moves Chase had taught me and went completely Taz on his ass. It was one of those moments when I was glad no one had a camcorder or the time to use it. He obviously had seen what I did to my last opponent because there was no way he was going to let me get near that region of his anatomy.

While I took on one, I could hear the sounds behind me and knew Chase had his hands full with the rest, which meant sadly, I was on my own with this hopped-up villain. Moving to the side, I managed to avoid him, his Bo wasn’t as slow as his feet though and it swiped past my head close enough to move my hair.

If I couldn’t take him down, I was going to have to send him packing. With the Sai in one hand I grabbed the scanner and waited for the moment to use it. It didn’t even phase him when I was all of a sudden fighting with one weapon and a little box in my hand. Clearly his IQ was no threat to anyone.

I had to abandon the other Sai and put it back in the strap when I came within an eyelash width of having my nose relocated on one swing. I really hated to lose a nice blade, but I needed something I could throw at this jerk while staying out of his reach. With a well-timed flick, I tossed the knife in his direction and did the mental happy dance when it embedded in his side and stopped him where he stood.

Not even caring if he was still breathing, I leaned over him and scanned without one ounce of remorse. As soon as he vanished from my sight, I turned and zeroed in on the guy holding his crotch and rolling around on the ground. That time I almost felt regret as I scanned his ass to Vic’s jail.

Pulling my Sai back out, I spun around to help Chase. He was battling it out with two of them. I had no idea where the fifth guy went and really didn’t care at this moment either. He could be found at a less crucial moment.

Chase took another swing and sent the one flying back on his ass. Knowing I wouldn’t get another chance I lunged in his direction with the scanner aimed at him. When he went pop, I turned back to see the missing guy heading my way. What had he been observing and now decided I was the best target?

A swing of Chase’s blade distracted him long enough for me to get closer. We worked as a team, with him blocking their swings and me trying to stab at any body part I could in hopes of striking a blow that would take them down.

It felt like it took us ten years to finally send one of them to the pavement. I scanned him, not even caring if he lived or not. Before I could even take a deep breath the last one took a wild swing in my direction and I stumbled back, landing on my ass and just barely missing a deadly smack upside my head with his Bo.

Tim appeared out of nowhere and snapped the guy’s neck and then paused just long enough to raise one eyebrow at me.

“What, “I panted, “my boot was undone.” A smile crossed his face before he turned to fend off another attacker.

Chase reached down and pulled me to my feet. “Rest later, kitten.” He knocked back someone that stumbled toward us, “dire situation now.”

Picking up the scanner, I glanced over to where Marcus was, only to find him gone. “I’ve had it with these jerks. You distract and I’ll scan.”

He nodded once and then headed back into the thick of it. There were only a half dozen left to take down, but it felt like thirty. Chase came at them from behind and assisted the brother or guard fighting them. When they were immobilized or distracted I rolled in and scanned.

After the last pop sound, it was silent. Looking around I checked to see if all of our guys were still standing. I wouldn’t exactly say they were all on their feet and ready to go as they leaned, slumped and sat against anything. It was right about then my own legs decided that would be enough jumping around and I squatted down only to tip over.

Chase was beside me doing pretty much the same thing, so we leaned back to back while we tried to catch our breath. “I think,” he hissed out a breath, “we need to stop Mitz from feeding us so damn much.”

Quinton chuckled. “Maybe we’re just getting old.”

Leaning forward I found where he was sprawled on the pavement. “Speak for yourself gramps. This chick hasn’t even seen thirty yet.”

“You fight well for an infant.” Quinton grinned at me.

“And you for a geriatric,” I added still trying to catch my breath.

“Can we insult each other after a nap?” Rafael added to the banter.

Victor moved away from the wall and looked around at the few bodies lying motionless in the shadows of the alley. “I’ll send these ones back to be disposed of.” He looked around at everyone. “Leone, once I’ve got it cleaned up you go back up to the roof and take them back to our side.”

Getting to his feet, Leone came over and looked down at me. “Caught some of your action, little Huntress.” He grinned, “you can back me up anytime.”

He may as well have just told me I was the most beautiful woman in the world, I felt pride fill me. “I’ll keep your number on speed dial.”

Grinning, he nodded and turned to leave the alley.

Michael, pulled Quinton to his feet and nodded down at me. “How are your interrogation skills?”

“I don’t even know if I have any, but I can shake down scum for information.” I moved to get to my feet, wobbling too much so I stayed kneeling.

“Good enough.” He came over and pulled Chase to his feet. “Bring her to the cells.”

Bending down Chase picked up his blades and put them back into the harness on his back. “We’ll be there shortly.”

I watched Victor lean over a body on the ground, he checked for a pulse and then did something with his scanner before he sent the body away. When I turned back, Troy towered over me holding out his hand. I let him pull me to my feet, keeping a hold on his hand until I checked to see if my legs were in working order again.

He stood there looking down at me with red eyes. “Are you alright?”

Exhaling loudly, I did a quick assessment of the aches starting. “Going to have some wicked bruises, but I think so.”

I wiped at blood on his jaw and was pleased to find out it wasn’t his. “Thanks for the assist by the way.”

Grinning, he lowered his head. “You fought well, little Queen.” Slowly he released my hand. “Are you still coming back tomorrow?” His eyes strayed to his twin standing a few feet away.

“Of course.”

His expression relaxed. Clearing his throat, he straightened and turned to Chase. “I’ll meet you at the holding cells.”

Chase nodded and stepped over to brush something off my shoulder. I didn’t want to know what I just figured I was better off not asking. “I don’t know about Daxx, but I need a quick rinse before we start digging for answers.”

The image of the large tubs on Alterealm came to my mind. “I could use a quick soak.” Rolling my shoulders, I winced when the one the bat had clipped complained loudly. “And maybe an ice pack.”

Both men hovered over me.

“You said you were alright.” Troy’s voice was filled with concern.

Holding up my hand to stop them from crowding me any further. “I am, just a little banged up in a few places.”

Troy’s eyes went to his brother. Chase nodded. “I’ll take care of her then we’ll meet you there.”

Troy walked away without another word. Turning to Chase I looked up at him. “No more blood. This connection thing is freaking me out.”

He shrugged. “You didn’t mind it when I boosted you with a bit of motivation.”

“That was different.” I checked to make sure I had everything. “That wasn’t an emotion I can’t do anything with.” Having nothing else to do to avoid looking back at him, I turned around and looked into yellow eyes. I wanted to think it was because he was hungry after all the energy, but my skin flushed with warmth letting me know it wasn’t the only reason. “Like that, right there. Don’t you believe in the element of surprise?”

He grinned. “I love the element of surprise, kitten and someday maybe I’ll get to show you just how much.” Taking my elbow, he moved away from the wall out into the open of the alley. “Had enough of your realm for tonight?”

Sighing, I glanced around the dismal space and then nodded. “Yeah, let’s go.”