Breathing Through the Pain
Jim breathed through the pain, trying to make sense of what was happening in front of and above him.
The fallen phone receiver had gone to dial tone. He hoped Claire had hung up and was getting in touch with Douxie's friend. Because the fact that she couldn't shadow portal to him was...
Jim didn't want to think about it. Think about the fact (obvious now in hindsight) that Claire had been blocked from reaching him.
Douxie clearly knew the woman who was in charge of the goons with the sci-fi Nerf guns. Given that she existed in this hellhole of a facility, Jim was automatically inclined to dislike her. But the way Douxie was talking to her...
Jim focused on his senses, and carefully inhaled.
He nearly choked on the reek of vampire. And it wasn't just Douxie being so close to him, either. It was the woman, and-
And-
Looking at the array of yellow-suited minions, the penny dropped for Jim.
"Douxie," he said lowly, "they're all-"
"I know," the wizard-vampire said, never looking away from Kubritz. A blue plasma circle was in the air in front of him, held up before the fingertips of his remaining hand. A runic shield, Jim thought it was called. Huh. Guess Blinky's books had been good for something.
"You can't keep that up all day, Casperan," the woman called.
Douxie's smile might be better described as a snarl. "Sure I can, love. Didn't you know, wizards grow power?" He held up his truncated arm, wiggling it. Drawing attention to what was no longer there. "Now that I've got that bracelet of yours off? I've got fourteen years worth of juice." He bared teeth. "The thing you might want to be asking yourself is, what do I plan to do with it?"
Her eyes widened. "You wouldn't dare."
"Wouldn't I." Douxie inclined his chin. Jim's eyes dropped, as did Kubritz's, to the ground beneath the wizard's bare feet.
Which was glowing bluer and bluer by the second.
Douxie raised one foot... and stomped.
For a moment, nothing happened.
Then glowing blue lines shot out and up the walls. They reached to the far-distant ceiling of the building. Jim stared in horrified fascination as it began to crumble. Debris falling down as the roof seemed almost to rot away, exposing the high summer sky.
Letting in the sunlight.
"No!" Kubritz yelled.
Douxie grinned, feral. His shield dissipated as he slashed his hand out. The rubber yellow radiation suits of Kubritz's minions shredded away, revealing men and women wearing military uniforms and shocked expressions.
And then the sunlight touched them and the screaming started.
Jim watched, unable to tear his eyes away from the blistering, clawing figures until Douxie looked up and swore, diving for the ground as debris came crashing down.