It took a few more minutes for the last of the team to get into position. Some of them had to go around to the other side of the mountain first, and not all of them have had the second dose of serum, so they’re not all as fast as those of us who have. Christian was singing again, something about soldiers, and I took some deep breaths, knowing I’d have to work fast.
The potential was there for this to be the biggest battle we’d ever faced, yet, our team was relatively small. I understood why; it was hard to organize people with such short notice, and we couldn’t use all of the Hunters. The idea that this could be it, that this might be the apocalyptic battle I’d been imagining for almost two years was surreal. If we defeated Daunator, the Vampires would have no one left even remotely as strong. If we didn’t defeat him, the world would be a different place when people woke up the next morning.
It was a lot of responsibility....
“We’re all in position now.” Aaron sounded as confident as he always did, but my sister’s hands were fidgeting with the grenade on her utility belt, something she didn’t usually wear but had thought appropriate. Aaron had already told her he didn’t want her to even consider using that weapon—he didn’t want her that close to the monster that could kill her. Cadence had nodded in understanding, but I knew my sister well enough to understand she wouldn’t back down from a fight. As long as Aaron was with her, though, I felt like she’d be fine.
“Let’s go get him,” Cadence said, perking up a bit as she looked at me. “Cass, can you bring up the dirt on top of the hole? It can’t be too thick, can it?”
I stepped closer to where I knew Christian was buried. Using my X-ray vision, I looked at the ground, and my breath caught in my throat. This wasn’t good at all. “I’m not sure what’s holding the dirt in place. It’s some sort of power I’m not familiar with. There are holes all over the place here, but the loose earth overtop of them doesn’t fall down inside. If a person were to step on one, they wouldn’t fall through either.” This was going to be a huge problem.
“That’s good. Otherwise, we might just end up with six people in holes in the ground instead of just one moron in a hole in the ground,” Elliott said.
“I said person,” I reminded him. “I think Daunator could very well intend to suck us all down.”
He understood me, then, and the worry I felt inside magnified on his face.
“You can’t levitate us all at the same time,” Jamie pointed out. “How do we avoid the holes?”
“You can use your X-ray vision to see them, but even then, he can still suck you down. He can make new holes any time he wants to.”
I looked around, and they all seemed to understand the gravity—literally—of the situation now. We didn’t have any choice but to move forward, though. I wondered how many people I could float if I needed to.
“All right, we’ll move forward, Cass will stir up the ground over Christian, and the rest of us will hold the perimeter while she pulls him out.” Aaron made sure we all understood, and the Guardians moved ahead. “Cadence, stay in the back,” he added. My sister gave him a sharp look but complied, dropping behind me.
I followed Elliott and Aaron to the hole and signaled for them to stop when we were directly on top of the hole Christian was in. There were so many, we had to be careful where we placed our feet. There were other people down there, I could sense them. What state they were in, I couldn’t be sure, but it was uncomfortable thinking about them incubating down there, Daunator’s blood turning them into his minions.
I floated up off of the ground so I wouldn’t have to worry about my own feet as I pulled Christian out. “Okay, guys. It’s about to get dusty.” I took another deep breath and then circled the air around the hole, lifting it out of the way and moving it over toward our left into the open clearing before I dropped it to the ground and focused on the hole.
“All right, Christian,” I said over the IAC and to him using my telepathy. “It’s time for you to come out of your hole.” Without seeing him, it was hard to tell at first if I was even lifting. It’s much easier when I can see what I’m doing, and I had to readjust my aim a few times to get a grip on him. Eventually, I could tell from his thoughts that he was moving. He wasn’t happy.
“Hey, Findley! What are you doing?” he was screaming at me. “Put me back down! I’m not done yet!” The closer he came to the surface, however, the calmer he became, almost like he was losing a bit of the crazy. His IAC came on when he was almost to the top of the hole, and then everyone got to hear him lamenting the fact that he hadn’t been successful in his endeavor.
This was hard work, and I had beads of perspiration on my forehead by the time Christian was visible beneath me. He reached over the edge, and I let him do most of the work at the end. He reeked, which I guess should’ve been expected considering he’d been down there for so long, but the odor of sweat and who knows what else wafted off of him and brought tears to my eyes. My sister came around me and helped him up, and I could tell by her expression she was having a hard time dealing with it.
“Nice to see you,” she said to the Guardian as he dusted himself off. It didn’t help any. He was still covered in dirt and stunk to high heaven. “Now, we need to get out of here.”