MudMan by James A. Hunter

Author:James A. Hunter
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Men's Adventure Fiction, Fantasy Action and Adventure, Dark Fantasy, Paranormal and Urban Fantasy, Thrillers and Suspense Supernatural Witches and Wizards, Mystery Supernatural Witches and Wizards, Mage, Warlock, Shapshifter, Golem, Jewish, Mudman, Atlantis, Technomancy, Yancy Lazarus
Publisher: Shadow Alley Press, Inc.
Published: 2016-02-24T05:00:00+00:00

EIGHTEEN:

Break for It

Levi flew forward, this time aiming not for the impenetrable energy shield, but rather the ground just outside the golden circle. The front door, so to speak, was locked up nice and tight, but with most summoning and binding circles—like the one holding Ryder—there was usually a backdoor: the circle itself, which generated and maintained the energy field, might be vulnerable. If he did enough structural damage to the binding ring, it might break the construct holding her in place. Had he been inside the circle, such a task would border on the impossible, but from outside his chances of success were … well, not good, but better.

His hands shifted as he came down, massive pickaxe blades forming in their place. He thudded onto the deck, using his considerable mass to drive both picks into the rough stone below. Jagged chucks of rock spun through the air, accompanied by a hail of gravel as his hands beat out a steady rhythm, pounding away like the pumping gears of a truck engine. The orb zipped over to his side, circling about, surveying the damage.

“Please cease your activity immediately,” the orb said. “You are diminishing the structural integrity of the containment circle. Status report: Integrity compromised by thirty-four percent.”

Levi ignored the chirping machine, his mind bent to his task. Each blow fractured the stone further, irregular cracks radiating toward the circle, snaking underneath the ring—the ring held, but wouldn’t for much longer. Each blow delivered up more rock chips and, in turn, widened the fissure in the floor.

Something wrapped around Levi’s leg, entwining his calf like a python, constricting as it worked its way up his leg, trying to crush the limb like an empty soda can. He stole a peek even as his arms flew back and forth, hammering away: the vines were everywhere now—no longer confined to the walls and overgrown chairs—crawling across the floor with life and purpose. A thick cable of greenery had already wound itself around his left leg, all the way from foot to knee, and every second it inched higher. The flowers clamped down, driving their circular mouths in and shaking their heads like a dog working at a chew toy.

“Status report: Structural integrity compromised by seventy-two percent,” the orb said. “Please cease your activity, now, or you will be redesignated as threat, extreme. This will result in the immediate activation of termination protocol F13-5: you will be summarily executed. Please comply now.”

Another choking vine twisted its way up his right leg, digging fleshy, probing tendrils beneath his skin, their barbed hooks tearing directly into the muscle below. The memory came in a flash, an instant that lived inside of an eyeblink:

I whimper, though it hurts. My throat is coarse and raspy from screaming, but I can’t keep it in. I strain against the leather bonds securing my hands and feet to the table, checking them for the hundredth time, hoping this time they’ll be loose. They aren’t. Every movement sends a renewed wave of red-hot agony—like glowing fire irons embedded in my bones—but I can’t stop fighting.

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