A Flight of Broken Wings: Aeriel Trilogy #1

Chapter 8

Simani's eyes flitted across the darkened meadow, taking stock. Of the human combatants, two had been killed by Ashwin. Ruban had killed one of the gangsters and had watched another get stabbed in the gut by Simani.

"Three, I think," she said, confirming his calculations. "They've scattered, though. Won't be easy to find in the darkness."

"We have to find them. We need to capture at least one of the gangsters alive, preferably more. That was the whole point of—"

A shot rang out, and a bullet whizzed past his ear.

Before he could react, Simani fired off two shots in the direction from which the gunshot had originated. Lowering her weapon, she sprinted into the darkness, followed closely by Ruban.

Moments later, the roar of a powerful engine reached his ears. A large black SUV — the kind typically used by the Hunter Corps — swept into view, screeching to a halt a few feet ahead. A team of four leapt out of the vehicle and were quickly briefed by Simani.

Ruban smiled. At long last, they outnumbered their enemies.

A brief gunfight ensued, and the remaining gangsters were soon rounded up. Overhead, the battle between the two Aeriels raged on. Ruban squinted at the sky through the smoke and dust that now covered the meadow. Ashwin's current opponent wasn't even an X-class. He wondered if Ashwin was dragging it out because he really wanted to maintain his cover, or if he simply didn't want to kill another Aeriel.

The captured thugs were handcuffed and trussed into the two SUVs. The backup team took one of them, while the other two were forced into the car in which Ruban and Simani had arrived.

The black SUV roared to life and began inching forward through the debris.

Simani placed a hand on the hood of their car and glanced back at the scorched meadow. "One of them is going to survive the night."

The Aeriels. Ruban closed his eyes. "And we'll Hunt down the one that does. No point wasting our energy when they're killing each other for us. It's not like they're going to hurt any civilians out here."

"And the wings?"

He shrugged. "Not worth getting ourselves killed over. We've gotten what we need. The sooner we can make them talk, the sooner this whole operation can be dismantled, once and for all."

"Yes, but—"

A blazing energy shell streaked through the air and hit the black SUV, which had just reached the edges of the meadow.

The explosion nearly knocked Ruban off his feet. The stench of burned flesh and scorched metal assailed his nostrils. He gripped Simani's shoulder to keep himself upright, his other hand unsheathing the sifblade at his belt.

"My God," Simani whispered, her eyes fixed on the destroyed SUV. "There's another."

The next few minutes were a blur of shells, sifblades, and bullets. After destroying the black SUV, the new Aeriel attacked the remaining Hunters and their vehicle. The Aeriel was fast, and it was all Ruban and Simani could do to avoid its energy shells. There was barely any opening for a counterattack.

They moved away from the car, hoping to keep it from being blown to smithereens by distracting the Aeriel. The only two gangsters still alive were inside that car. The third had been with the backup team in the black SUV, and had died with them.

Soon, Ruban and Simani stood back to back a few meters from their car. The Aeriel circled them overhead, the air crackling with energy. Ruban gripped his sifblade and felt Simani tense behind him. If they failed, there wouldn't be a second chance.