The Geomancer by Clay Griffith Read Free Book Online Page B

see here today is another application. This will win the war for you. In terms of the empress, I’m not too concerned about her. She can be dispatched with a bullet or a knife. Cesare almost succeeded in that. In any case, once I win the war for you, I will move on to more interesting theoretical work.”
    Hallow cleared her throat and glared with menace. “Your theories won’t help you if we don’t defeat the humans first, Goronwy.”
    â€œYes, ma’am.” The Witchfinder nodded with unexpected deference to the pale female. Then he held a green crystal between his thumb and forefinger. “If you will look out the windows, you will see the first step on that road.”
    Caterina felt Honore and Hallow join her. They watched the scattered crowd of humans standing restlessly or squatting with fatigue. The cold sun sinking below the distant tree line illuminated the scene with a sad light.
    The Witchfinder found a spot on the floor and set the green crystal into the larger pattern. He made one final check with his brass instrument before letting it fall to his side on its leather strap. He gently moved the crystal a quarter inch clockwise.
    Outside in the winter shadows, hundreds of humans screamed. They flailed and tried to run, but few made it more than a couple of steps. They dropped to the ground, screeching, wide-eyed, fingers grasping at nothing. One after another, they fell writhing, then went still. In a few seconds, hundreds of humans were dead.
    Caterina stared in disbelief. It didn’t seem real, but she knew it was. She had sensed the terror in the herd and she smelled the death wafting through the shattered windows before her. Next to her, Honore had lost the pretense of a hardened warrior. He grasped the edge of the window in shock. His face was a mask of incredulity.
    Lady Hallow laughed.
    Caterina watched the last of the spasms play out below her. She had certainly seen death before, and on a large scale, but never without violence and bloodshed. This was stunning in both its suddenness and in its mystery. The Witchfinder had merely set a crystal on the floor and hundreds of humans died. He hadn’t laid a hand on them. There were no weapons. She backed away from the window, disturbed by the unnatural field of death below her.
    She crossed the gallery toward the Witchfinder. As she grew near, she felt a painful slap of heat and drew back with a hiss.
    The human remained calm. “Oh, I’m sorry. I’d advise that you don’t get too close, Your Majesty. I carry many traditional talismans on me which serve to repel your kind.” He reached into one coat pocket and pulled out a yellow crystal, and from inside his waistcoat he withdrew a small gold cross. When the queen pulled back farther, the Witchfinder slipped the talismans back into his pockets. “Nothing personal. One can’t be too careful. There may be some vampires who may not realize I am the clan’s science advisor.”
    â€œScience advisor?” Caterina realized she was likely the only vampire present without a protective talisman. She gathered herself, eyeing the disturbing human before returning to the window. “What happened to those humans out there?”
    Goronwy leaned against the far wall with his hands clasped before him. He didn’t move toward the window to view the carnage. He seemed satisfied with the screams as proof of concept. “The power of the rifts. I used the Earth to kill them. It’s the very same principle that killed the British clan, but frankly much more complicated to accomplish. You vampires are susceptible to such energy. It’s actually very easy to kill you by overloading the rifts. What the empress did was impressive only in its scale.” He smiled with pride. “Humans are hard to kill with geomancy, but I have grasped the principle. They are vulnerable to having their energies drawn out of them and into the Earth. Next I will