Pursuit

Maya ran as fast as she could. She activated the Battletrance almost instinctively and lost herself in the deluge of information it provided. She knew the exact position of the members of her group, the spots where the enemies were hiding, and when they would attack.

She navigated the battlefield as if she possessed some magical compass in her head, pointing the way to safety. Nevertheless, she couldn't be everywhere. The Tainted were hot on their heels, and more than once her skill warned her that one of her companions was going to die.

Not one of these warnings came true though. Her senses registered their pursuers dropping dead every time they came too close to the group. Strong pulses of energy accompanied these events. Maya didn't understand what they were exactly, but she knew that they came from Adam.

She couldn't dwell on that matter for now though. The group reached the line of buildings and delved into the residential area located next to the intersection. She had to find a way to throw off their pursuers, and fast.

Charlotte was already panting heavily, going forward only thanks to Adam pushing her from behind. She began stumbling though, and it was only a matter of time before she fell. The group would have to leave her then.

Finally, she saw an opportunity. A tall fence between two buildings with a wide-open gate in the middle.

"Adam, hold them back after we reach the gate!" she shouted and sprinted toward the fence without waiting for a response.

She passed the gate and made a hard turn, stopping right beside it. The rest of the group began crossing it.

Adam could feel only a burning pain taking hold of his brain as he ran. He didn't know how many Tainted he had killed on the way but he vaguely remembered the level-up message popping before his eyes for a second. The reprieve had lasted only a short moment though, and the headache had returned quickly.

He pushed Charlotte, who was running in front of him, again, hoping that she wouldn't stumble. She was weakening quickly and didn't have much time left. He would have to make a choice soon. To leave her behind or fight against their pursuers and risk the whole group's safety.

He suddenly heard Maya shouting his name and saw the fence in front of them. Adam turned his head and looked behind. The group was pursued by a river of Tainted filling the space between the building to the brim.

The fence would stop them only for a moment, but it was all they needed to vanish from the sight of the monsters. Adam gritted his teeth and braced himself. He had an idea of what he had to do and knew that it was probably going to hurt a lot.

As soon as he crossed the gate he stopped next to Maya and concentrated on the Tainted in the lead. He raised his hands, trying to visualize the effect he wanted to achieve, and mobilized all of his willpower.

A dozen or so Tainted on the front of the horde suddenly stopped, their heads inflating and turning crimson in a second. They burst violently, blood gushing forth and gathering over them. Now came the hard part. Adam closed his fists, looking with wide-opened eyes as the crimson orbs shoot forth a barrage of red spikes that buried themselves in the head of the mass pursuing them.

As the last survivor passed the gate, the horde faltered and stopped for a moment. The first rows of the Tainted fell over, decimated by the conjured spikes, while the ones behind them stumbled over their bodies.

Maya slammed the gate shut and shouted, "Move, move, move!"

She grabbed Adam by the arm and led him away from the fence. The horde was already on the move again.

The group ran into an adjoining street, then right, then left, and again to the right. They stopped afterward and listened for the noises of the Tainted. They heard the horde moving over the fence and forward. Earth itself vibrated from the force generated by its charge.

The noise began to quiet down after a while, however. The Tainted passed them. They were safe, for now.

Adam collapsed to the ground. Two messages floated in front of his eyes. He was accustomed to one of them already, but the other was something new.

[You have gained a level.]

[Your proficiency in the skill - Blood Manipulation reached a new level.]

"We can't stay here," Maya whispered to the group and grabbed Adam by the arm again. "The noise must have woken up every Tainted in the vicinity. We have to move further."

As she helped him to his feet, she hissed into his ear, "We have a lot to talk about."

Adam looked at her and saw anger burning in her eyes. It seemed that his secret was out and she wasn't happy that he had withheld it from the group. Not that he could blame her for that.

"Let's reach the river. There aren't many buildings there and we'll have a good view of our surroundings. We can decide what to do next then," he proposed. "There are some bars and restaurants on the river bank, we could rest there for a while.

The group agreed readily. Adam understood that they still weren't aware of his powers as he observed them. It seemed that Maya was the only person to notice his actions.

He felt her glare on his back as the group began to move again. They encountered a few Tainted woken by the commotion and roaming around the buildings, but the group could handle them easily at this point.

Nevertheless, they made sure to finish any fights quickly and silently, fearing revealing their position to the horde.

Finally, they reached the Vistula River. It meandered majestically through the city, and from their location on its bank, the group had an excellent view of the bridges spanning it, as well as the Wawel Royal Castle. The fortress was nowhere to be seen though.

The castle and a part of the river were covered by the same multicolor barrier that Adam spotted when he had approached the valley the city was located in. It extended into the Old Town, claiming a large part of the city center.

The group observed it stupefied while Adam concentrated on the banks of the river. He saw groups of Tainted roaming slowly around them, although they weren't as numerous as the ones they had encountered earlier.

They could sneak through them with some effort. The group had to rest first though and come up with a route that would take them across the river. He also had to deal with Maya.

Adam focused on their surroundings as he thought about it. They left the residential area near the Forum Hotel, one of the city landmarks. He observed it for a while, wondering if there were any survivors inside. It was an ideal place for a hideout.

Built during the late '80s as, and closed at the turn of the millennium, it was a long concrete construction connected to the ground only by several massive pillars. It had only one entrance to the upper floors, located in the main pillar in the middle of the building.

It was easy to defend and the restaurants located on the ground floor could provide food to the survivors. The roof of the building was also a great vantage point.

Adam decided to use it to rest and scout the area. The group moved silently and cautiously approached the hotel. It was in a state of disrepair, mostly abandoned, with only its food court on the ground floor and basement floors still in use.

The survivors reached the building and maneuvered among the shattered glass littering the ground around it. They quickly found the entrance, a set of massive doors that had been barred with wooden planks.

They were open now though, indicating that someone else took shelter in the abandoned hotel. Adam immediately activated Bloodsense and noticed a few dozens of weak heartbeats in the upper part of the building, as well as a few black clusters on the ground floor.

They could deal with the Tainted later if need be, but Adam wanted to meet with the other group as soon as possible. Judging by their shine, they didn't pose any danger to him, but he could try recruiting them nevertheless.

First, he had to deal with Maya though. The group entered the hotel lobby and barred the entrance with pieces of furniture. The survivors collapsed on the old musty sofas, exhausted from the pursuit.

Maya didn't join them but pointed at the stairs leading to the next floor.

"The doors were already busted. We might not be alone here," she spoke to Adam. "Let's check the place, you and me."

"Sure, let's do it", he answered.

The two entered the stairs and quickly vanished from others' sight.