Love Among the Gifted - A Pride & Prejudice Alternative

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Darcy heard Mr. Collins exclamations and could take them as nothing but a confirmation that the desired connection the neighborhood had been speaking of was now formalized. He could not bring himself to believe that Miss Elizabeth loved that man, but she did care deeply for Longbourn and its people. She must have accepted an arrangement that would please her family, while allowing her to maintain her care for the estate and tenants. Regardless of the reasons, it put an unhappy end to the internal dispute he had been suffering for weeks. He had no choice.

He fled the ball before the dance had ended. He had been intending on asking Miss Bennet to dance, in the hopes they might be able to recapture the friendly impertinence of their earlier interactions. But now he could not force himself to endure the agony of dancing with the woman he loved when she was promised to another. He left the house through the front door, ostensibly to check on the militia troops stationed near the gate. In truth he needed to be free of the cage that Netherfield had suddenly become. If he had no obligations holding him in the county he would have flung himself into the air and flown all the way to Pemberley, there to bury himself in balm of familiar places and his dear sister's arms.

The tall gentleman could see the bulk of the platoon split into three squads. One was guarding the gate. One was marching the perimeter of the cleared grounds. And one was posted in front of the house. The temporary command post was just off the lane, half way between the house and the gate. He stalked to the small brazier around which Captain Denny and his sergeants were clustered for warmth. A small marquee had been pitched to keep any rain or snow off the small table and several chairs that were more comfortable than Darcy felt was appropriate for an active guard post.

"Anything to report?" he asked brusquely. Captain Denny hesitated for a moment, looking at the civilian resentfully.

"Nothing yet, sir," answered an older man with sergeant's stipes. "But the night's young. The last guests arrived less'n an hour ago. If there's gonna be trouble, I wouldn't expect it 'til ..."

A fusillade of gunfire poured from the woods to the west, most of which seemed to be aimed at the command post. The sergeant speaking was the first to fall. Darcy felt at least two balls hit him, but while they holed his evening clothes, they bounced off his dense skin. A round snapped the tent pole, bring the covering to the ground on top of the company commander. When another shot hit the brazier, knocking it over and scattering hot coals on the oiled cloth, flames danced up, spreading their light into the yard.

In the distance he saw a tree trunk fly out of the woods to strike the patrolling squad. Bright blades of light lanced out of the sky to cut down the squad in front of the house. A familiar flying woman poured flames onto the roof of the house, setting it ablaze. At the gate, men started to scream and fall.

The crown magistrate took to the sky, his eyes glowing as he adjusted his sight to brighten the night. He started sending pulses of gravity at the ExtraOrdinaries, knowing the gunmen would have to reload, giving the troops a moment to recover from the surprise, if he could keep the gifted assailants from pressing their advantage. He succeeded, as he became the focus of attacks from three sides.

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When the gunshots sounded and the flame lit up the night, Elizabeth turned away from the sounds and began scanning the back gardens for the squad she knew was supposed to be patrolling. She found them under silent attack by the same six-armed man and several other men with blades and guns. As the attackers were avoiding firearms, it was obvious they were trying to be stealthy. She could see at least one of the attackers was able to use levitation to hold several of the troopers. She had no other indications of gifts among the attackers.