Tome of Bill (Companion): Shining Fury Read Online Free PDF Page B

It’s dependable.”
    “Yeah, well, Old Reliable there is going to get us arrested.”
    “Relax, I’ll put a glamour on it. You and V should grab something, too, just to be safe.”
    “I’ve never fired a gun in my life,” Veronica said. “I’m afraid I’ll end up shooting myself.”
    “Just as long as you don’t shoot me,” Meg replied conversationally.
    “If it’s all the same with you, I’ll stick to magic.”
    Kelly demurred on taking a gun as well. She instead pulled a mace out of the trunk. After Meg and Veronica stared at her for a few seconds, she said, “What? Magic can fail. I had this hanging on my wall at home. Bought it online a few years back. Figured it can bust a head or two if need be.”
    I smiled as the three witches continued to bicker, but it was a struggle to keep myself in check. I could see the pommel of my sword peeking out, beckoning me, but I waited my turn while the others got ready. Despite Bernadette’s insistence, I’d decided to forgo my old Templar armor. I no longer felt a part of them and didn’t want the added burden of pretending I belonged. It also chafed something fierce.
    “You want this peashooter, Sheila?” I looked up to find Meg holding out a handgun to me. “Looks like we have a spare .357.”
    In an instant, the pull of the sword was forgotten and I found myself stammering for an answer. The impossibly large barrel of Remington’s gun flashed through my mind’s eye. “Um, no thanks. I’d probably shoot my own foot off, too.”
    “The Blessed One doesn’t require the trappings of modern man to protect her,” Bernadette added. That was one I owed her. Pity that she’d never know.
    Almost as if in response to Bernadette, I felt the call again, stronger than ever, and this time I heeded it.
    I stepped up, grasped the grip of the weapon – my weapon – and lifted it out. Almost immediately I felt better, more whole, more myself. Though entirely unnecessary, I pulled the blade from the sheath, watching as it lit up with a white glow that seemed to be all its own.
    The sword had once belonged to Joan of Arc, the last known Icon before fate had chosen me for whatever reason it had. However, I had a sneaking suspicion, one I dared not share with the Templar, that its history went further back than that. Legend said that Joan heeded the voice of angels who told her where to find the blade. I suspected it was less angels and more the sword itself calling to her as it now called to me.
    Had other Icons wielded this weapon before her, channeling their power through it, and leaving a little bit of themselves behind? I had no way of knowing for certain, but that felt right. The sword was more like a supercharged battery than a mere blade – one attuned to my power, yet seemingly possessing a force of its own.
    It was silly in a way, almost like the sword in the stone. Yet, I couldn’t deny it either. I may not have been King Arthur, but in my hand, it surely felt like Excalibur.
    * * *
    “All are accounted for, Bles ... Sheila,” Bernadette said.
    I almost had to laugh. I’d asked for everyone to try to look inconspicuous, but now together, with our group over three dozen strong, we looked like an angry mob waiting to happen.
    Echoing my concern, Kelly said, “Oh, yeah, I’m sure nobody’s dialing 911 from behind drawn curtains right now.”
    She may have had a point. Though the buildings around us were dark, there was no way of telling how many eyeballs were peering down upon us. The best we could do for now was hope they were friendly eyeballs.
    I nodded my agreement and then consulted the map the Templar had provided. It was kind of weird in this day and age. I couldn’t even remember the last time I’d needed to go somewhere when I couldn’t just consult my phone. Still, technology was iffy at best right now. In some places, the power grid worked and in others, we might as well have been in the Stone Age.
    All eyes in our contingent were turned my