Top Gun Tiger (Protection, Inc 7)

“You are. History nerd.”

“Weapons nerd.” She nudged him. “Go on, get your stuff. I’ll get some too. Then we can hit the road.”

Ethan limited himself to that sword and a long dagger, but vowed to come back at some better time and take a longer look, though he regretfully realized that once they told anyone about it, everything would end up in museums. Or maybe the entire city would become a kind of museum. He liked that idea.

“You know how to fight with either of those?” Destiny asked. She had also taken a sword and dagger.

“Not exactly. I did some bayonet training, so hopefully that’s close enough. You?”

“Same. Also, check these out.” She held up her hand, which was adorned with a set of steel rings. Then she made a fist, and a set of claw-like steel blades appeared between her fingers.

“Are there any more?” Ethan exclaimed, delighted. “Gimme!”

She handed him a larger pair. He slipped them on his hand, admiring how they worked. They were like brass knuckles, but with blades. When your hand was open, the blades were concealed, only to jut out when you made a fist.

“Waghnakh,” she said. “It means tiger claws. Let’s hit the road, Wolverine.”

They took off their tiger claws and hung them from their belts. Grinning, Ethan followed her out. But he couldn’t resist turning in the doorway to take one last, longing look at the coolest room he’d ever seen.

The swords and daggers on the wall trembled, sending up the faintest of rattles.

“Destiny?” Ethan called.

But by the time she returned to his side, they were still. “What?”

“I’m not sure. Did you feel something like a tiny earthquake?”

She shook her head. “Did you?”

“No, but the weapons…” His voice trailed off as the weapons quivered again.

“Okay, that’s weird.”

They stood watching them. Once again, the rattling subsided almost immediately.

“You know, that reminds me of something, but I can’t quite think of what,” Ethan said slowly. He rubbed his forehead, trying to remember. “Things shaking… Maybe water quivering…?”

“The glass of water in Jurassic Park!”

Destiny grabbed his hand. Together, they ran to the window. But there was nothing in sight but the golden marble streets and buildings.

A reptilian screech broke the silence. Ethan whirled around. A pair of man-sized lizards lunged through the door, clawed hands outstretched and needle-toothed jaws gaping wide.

Ethan and Destiny moved as if they were a single person in two bodies. They leaped to either side of the window, putting enough distance between them that they couldn’t accidentally cut each other, and drew their swords. In such close quarters, in a room made of stone, he didn’t dare use his gun for fear of a ricochet hitting Destiny.

“Talk about Jurassic Park!” Destiny gasped. “Those are velociraptors!”

She was right. Ethan recognized them now. But they were much scarier in real life. The velociraptors were as tall as him and twice as long, mottled gray-green and scaly. Their slit-pupiled yellow eyes darted back and forth as Ethan and Destiny moved into their fighting positions. Then they shrieked again, a sound that made the hairs on the back of Ethan’s neck stand up, and attacked.

He ducked a slash of claws that would have taken his head off and stabbed at the beast where he hoped its heart was. His sword glanced off a bony plate, dealing the velociraptor no more than a minor wound. It darted aside with terrifying speed, hissed, and snapped at him. Ethan evaded and bolted forward. He’d first thought he should have his back to the wall so nothing could attack him from behind, but he now realized that with an opponent as quick as the velociraptor, that only left him cornered.

He snatched up a nearby battleaxe and flung it at the dinosaur. The axe hit the reptile a glancing blow, doing little more than scratching its tough hide, but the distraction bought Ethan enough time to check on Destiny. To his immense relief, she was unhurt and holding her velociraptor at bay. She slashed at the creature, making it leap back with a screech, then ran to join Ethan’s side.

“I’ll hold them off,” Ethan said, grabbing the chain with a handle from a nearby weapons rack. “You check for a clear retreat.”

As Destiny turned, both velociraptors bounded forward, shrieking and snapping and slashing. Ethan stood his ground and swung the chain in a rapid arc, so fast that it seemed to create a steel shield before the attacking dinosaurs. One of them thrust its snout into the whirling chain, then drew back with a screech. The other one hung back, hissing angrily.

“We’re clear!” Destiny called. “Keep it spinning and back away slowly, and I think we can slam the door on—”