Free The Immortal Coil by J. Armand Page B

out against my will, captivated as I still was by their beauty. Just looking into their inviting eyes filled me with courage. I can do this, I did it once before. At least this time I’ll have Noah with me so I shouldn’t have to actually do too much .
    “Marvelous!” Aurelia rejoiced and turned her attention to Noah. “Do watch out for one another. I wouldn’t want either of you to be harmed by those vile things.”
    “Of course, your Highness.” He bowed to her with a hint of sarcasm.
    Noah grabbed the back of my shirt and the halls of the chateau flew by. We were outside surrounded by a maze of tall rosebushes faster than I could blink. The mutants’ threatening growls echoed through the night ahead of us.
    “Well, good luck, ‘hero’,” Noah chuckled as he dropped me to the ground.
    “What? Where are you going?” I panicked at the thought of being left alone out here with those things.
    “To the far side. We’ll split up and flank the enemy. Work your way to the fountain at the center. Sun Tzu, The Art of War , man. Pick it up sometime; it might save your ass.”
    I wanted to inform him how irrelevant that advice would be in about five minutes, but he was already gone along with my tiny shred of confidence.

Chapter Five
     
    The sickly sweet scent of roses did little to detract from the horrors in store for me ahead. Light out here was scarce. The only way I could see anything at all was from the light of the chateau and some lampposts around the garden. There was nothing in sight I could use to defend myself with either, just winding rows of ten-foot-high rosebushes.
    It sounded like the monsters were scattered throughout the grounds, but I had no way of telling how many of them there were. Hopefully, Noah would just take care of them all before they found me so we could get out of here. A growl came from the other side of the hedges, and it was moving fast. Those things were cutting through the maze. With no way to tell what sort of progress Noah was making, I would have to figure out some way to help, or else they would reach the chateau. Despite impending doom, the classical music from the party was starting up again as if the dancers hadn’t a care in the world.
    I crept to the first intersection, trying not to get ambushed from either side. The pounding footsteps on the ground followed by unearthly growls made me wish I were back in the company of the Archios. A violent rustling from a hedge nearby made me tense up. I knew what was coming, but I was still unprepared.
    A roughly human figure came bounding out toward me. It was further mutated than any of the infected people in New York. Most of the mutant’s clothes were torn off, but it was nearly impossible to discern what they had looked like originally. I could make out the same black veins and creepy eyes, but it was so deformed that there were no longer any discernible facial or body features. The skin was sunken-in, like it had suffered from a sudden extreme weight loss. If these people had any shred of life left in them, they were suffering badly.
    One look at the monster’s claws and I wanted to run, but it wasn’t about to give me the chance. A thick fog was rolling in, making visibility even more of a problem. I had no clue how effective my powers would be without a weapon to use them on. I held my breath and put out my hands in front of me as the creature charged.
    I hit a home run, as I knocked the creature back through the bushes much further than I expected. The fog was blinding now, obscuring the little visibility I had to start with. However, the crash the creature made when it landed must have alerted the rest of them. Their snarls and trampling footsteps were all headed in the direction of their fallen friend. The distraction might work in my favor if I could navigate the maze swiftly to the fountain where Noah said to meet.
    The maze felt like it went on for miles. Turn after turn was just getting me more lost, but I could