Deathless King

A demon dragon known as the Caoránarch is on the loose in the City of Sorcery, killing indiscriminately and then disappearing without a trace.

Remi and her friends are certain the appearance of the Caoránarch has something to do with the corruption of the summer Fae, and their acquisition of the Twilight Horn, but as they investigate the origins of the demon dragon, their head instructor throws new obstacles into their path—including banishing them to dangerous departments not meant for students.

As they struggle to survive their new roles, the killings continue and a strange plague takes hold in the city. Overrun with problems, and struggling with their new departments, Remi and her friends make one last desperate play to save the city—or doom the world if they fail.

Deathless King
Chapter One

Manuel could smell hot, hungry pheromones waiting to be picked out of the packed bar. The Tattered Tome wasn't his usual hangout spot, but he was on the other side of town tracking a mage who had killed his wife for accidentally throwing away an important reagent—or that's what the story was. Manuel really didn't care as long as her parents were good for the money, and he was certain they were, given their address in the first ward.
He leveraged his way past a group of college-aged guys in collared shirts drinking from mugs made to look like they'd been used in the Middle Ages. The biggest turned to make something of his passing, but when they saw his staff, they turned away, no longer interested in confrontation.
When Manuel had first joined Justicars, he'd thought the staff was an outdated sigil of their Hall. A gun or something more immediate was to his liking, but over the five years of schooling, he'd come to appreciate the staff in both use and symbology.
A whiff of floral perfume mixed with a heady scent had him diverting to the bar, elbowing the big man on the way just for fun, to find a sleek honey sitting all by herself in a painted-on white dress.
He casually leaned the staff next to her spot as he gestured towards the bartender, who was filling a trio of mugs. Manuel purposely didn't make eye contact, even when the honey glanced his direction.
"Compensating much?"
The barb caught in his throat, but he cocked a smile and casually answered.
"Working."
She started to ask another question but the bartender came over.
"Two fingers of nightshade-infused whiskey. Bone Fist, if you have it."
The bartender frowned.
"I can only serve it to—"
Manuel tapped the staff with an index finger, and the gemstone at the top flashed with eldritch energies, which put out a soothing aura that would make those around him more pliable.
The bartender stared at the fleeting light, then shrugged.
"Your funeral."
"You really a mage?" asked the honey with an eyebrow raised. "Or just cosplaying as one?"
Manuel produced his card, flicking it into her lap. She lifted it up.
"Manuel Iniesta. Private detective slash bounty hunter. Bonded by the Bank of the Arcane. Justicar Hall. This real?"
The whiskey was delivered in a chunky glass that could have doubled as a fallen meteor. Manuel swirled the amber liquid, gave it a sniff, then downed it in one go. The nightshade burned through his neural system, lighting up his senses and giving him a warm sense of invulnerability.
"Another."
The bartender walked away shaking his head.
"I guess it's real," said the honey. "You after the demon dragon?"
Manuel furrowed his brow.
"That's just a rumor."
The honey shook her head, making her blonde tresses dance around her heart-shaped face. She looked like the kind of girl who hadn't realized she was hot until after high school and wasn't going to squander an ounce of her newfound power.
"I saw it last week near the Cryptozoo. Nearly stopped my heart and I was two blocks away. Smashed a car and fled the other way, thank Merlin, or I think I would have fainted. Or is something like that too big for you?"
"I killed the Harpy Twins when they tried to come for one of my clients using vorpal wire and a come-hither bell. I doubt a demon dragon, no matter how fierce it sounds, would be much of a problem."
The honey lifted her shoulders.
"It was pretty big."
A second glass of whiskey appeared. He swirled it once before taking a sip and letting the warm liquid run down the back of his throat.
"You ever heard of Big Mag'thanan?"
"Should I?"
Manuel grumbled under his breath.
"A big ol' hob. Was squatting in some buildings on the edge of the thirteenth and scaring the daylights out of the people living in the fifth. When he wouldn't move, I melted his innards and sent him to the sewers."
"You killed a squatter?" asked the honey, seemingly not too impressed.
"He was dangerous. He could have hurt somebody."
"It's no demon dragon."
Manuel finished the whiskey, slamming it down next to the honey and making her jump.
"If the demon dragon showed up, I'd take care of it. Easy as Pi."
She recoiled, blinking and shaking her head.
"Not the thing I saw. Had nightmares every night since. It's killed a half dozen people already, and those are the ones they know about. My mom didn't even want me to come out tonight, but it's lonely sitting in my apartment alone all the time."
"I could keep you company," he said with a wink.
"I just met you and I don't know if I trust mages. Never know when one might enchant you, or slip something into your drink."
"I'm a bonded Justicar. I'd lose my license if I did something like that. Even if I was just accused." Manuel put a hand over his heart. "I wouldn't even do that if I could get away with it."
The honey lifted her glass of what looked like chardonnay, the official drink of annoying, self-righteous women. His interest was rapidly fleeting.
"It doesn't matter. You couldn't kill the demon dragon anyway."
"I could do it with one hand tied behind my back. I'm not even sure I'd need my staff."
"Guys like you always need your staff."
A ripple of alarm shot through the crowd. The festive atmosphere took a nosedive and people were moving away from the entrance. Manuel heard their concerns long before the honey, but he didn't react until she turned.
"Did you hear that?"
"Of course. I heard the bouncer when he spoke to the cop outside. They wanted everyone off the streets until the danger passed."
It was a bit of a fib as the bouncer had been inside, but it wasn't a falsehood either.
"Are you going to kill it?"
Manuel huffed.
"It's probably not the demon dragon. That thing isn't the only dangerous creature in the city. Why, just the other day, I saw the Whistling Man—"
"Oh, I see," said the honey, rolling her eyes. "Big talk until you have to perform. Figures."
He squared off.
"You don't know what you're talking about."
She raised an eyebrow.
"Oh, guys like you are a dime a dozen. You're not the first to ask yourself back to my apartment and you won't be the last. But I don't date guys who can't walk the talk."
His mood improved rapidly.
"So you're saying if I take care of this so-called demon dragon, you'll invite me back to your apartment."
The honey put a sharp fingernail under his chin and gave him an open-mouthed smile with her tongue resting on her bottom teeth.
"With pleasure."
He grabbed his staff.
"Then follow me and enjoy the preshow."
She grasped his hand on the way through the crowd, buoying him with a sense of fate. The bouncer tried to stop them, but Manuel flickered the eldritch lights in his staff and they were allowed on the street.
The warm Invictus evening brought a bead of sweat to his forehead. Manuel leaned the staff against the brick wall and replaced the weather enchantment that had faded since he'd been inside the bar.
The honey craned her neck in both directions while not moving too far away from the entrance.
"Do you think it's still out here?"
A crunch in the distance had him turning his head.
"Three blocks that way, and another to the north."
He grabbed her hand and placed his lips against the cool back of it. She smelled even more ready than when he'd found her at the bar.
"When I return..."
The honey licked her lips.
"I can't wait."
Manuel jogged towards the sounds of destruction, his heavy boots ringing across the concrete. He spun the ring on his right pinky finger, waking the protective enchantment, and considered pulling out the Taka Charm.
His adrenaline soared as he approached the corner. He'd heard a muffled scream a short time ago, but that could have been anyone.
The first thing Manuel saw was a crushed cop car with one faint blue light spinning. It looked like a giant had stepped on the front. He was certain anyone inside was dead.
He thought the creature might have moved on until he saw the shifting of shadows in the park past the apartment buildings. The suggestion of movement had him reaching for his Taka Charm from a hidden pocket. He snapped the bracelet around his wrist. The activation sent out a high-pitched buzz before modulating to silence. He was protected from anything short of a major explosion. Activating the charm would cost him later, but he sensed this was a bigger challenge than he was letting on with the honey.
"You'd better be worth it," he said as he padded down the street, staying in a hunch even though he was walking down the center line.
Manuel crouched by the low wall that went around the park. A lamppost snapped and sent up a geyser of sparks about fifty meters away.
"Okay, what's the plan? It's probably the size of an elephant. Best to blast out one of its legs, reduce its mobility, and then whittle it down to size."
He tilted his head, hearing the bevy of police sirens and at least two helicopters headed his way. Manuel jogged into the park, determined to take care of the creature before the cavalry arrived.
A thick oak tree provided a good hiding spot. He peered around it to see the next one over had been severed in half.
"Maybe it's bigger than an elephant," he whispered to himself.
Manuel channeled faez into his staff, charging it up until he was certain he could blow a hole through a warship if required.
"Come on, baby, come to Daddy Manuel."
He saw movement through the trees, and stepped out near a freshly painted jungle gym. The first thing he saw was a scaled leg, wider than the tree trunk. He thought the helicopter had somehow flown over the park without sound until he realized the movement above the trees was an enormous head.
Glowing, fiery eyes peered at him like a bug in a glass, sending ripples of fear through his midsection, but he was no stranger to tough fights. Manuel slammed his staff on the concrete, sending out sparks and warning the creature that he would not be an easy kill.
"Come on, you oversized worm! I'm not afraid of you!"
The announcement brought the demon dragon into the open, massive and serpentine, the scales shimmering with a dark iridescence that was both mesmerizing and frightening. The sounds of approaching copters felt distant, even as he could see their lights reflecting off the nearby skyscrapers.
Manuel held his staff tilted forward as if he were about to fire a mortar. He prepared to trigger the pent-up energies and teach the demon dragon what it meant to tangle with a Justicar.
"Come on, come on..."
The dragon shifted forward like a dark, swirling river overflowing its banks and rushing after him. Manuel screamed with battle rage as he fired his staff. The blast filled his vision with white light. As it faded, he saw the deflection of his fell energies off the scintillating scales. The realization of his grave mistake lasted half a second before a talon took his head off.