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Without further ado, the Hazmats exploded into action, and the battle was on

Souns were knocked away Soht, reminiscent of firecrackers Pop Pop Pop

Two suited bodies fell

Punches were thrown Grunts abounded Bones cracked Screams joined the chorus For several heartbeats, I stood there, pinned by uncertainty--I was supposed to step back, wait Forget being benched I marched toward Kelly as he watched the madness

From the corner of my eye I saw Cole knock the mask off one of the Hazmats Trina took a punch to the chin, but quickly recovered, swung her ax and hit her et back up Frosty played with his prey, grinning as he sliced through his opponent’s suit Bronx whaled on twothe other

Justin backhanded the guy in front of hihs around his neck and arched back, forcing him to his back So him until he passed out Veronica blocked a punch to the head only to take one to the side from another Hazmat Impact stunned her, but she recovered quickly, and oh, was she angry! Growling, she threw herself into the culprit, and the two hurtled to the ground in a tangle of limbs Two of the suits had Lucas’s arms trapped behind him while another suit tried to fit a metal collar around his neck

In front of Kelly, I punched hilared, fury blazing in his eyes

"You won’t stop us," he said "I won’t let hter die"

"We will stop you--and you’ll have no one but yourself to blame"

He ether As he fell, flailing for an anchor, I dived on hi at me, but I shifted out of the way Then I broke his nose Cracked his eye socket Split his lip His teeth shredded the skin on s between us, flattened his feet on my belly and pushed I sailed backward, and he ju away from me As I stood, I searched the crowd for hi hihtened as he tripped over one of his fallen coainst air and turned to see aa blade at h Iuy’s wrist, saving me

"Thank you!" I called over the screams

"Anytime, cupcake"

Movement at un already aih to pull me to th to twist the guy’s arun dropped as bone snapped He unleashed a wail of agony as his knees buckled

I caught sight of Trina a few feet away, a collar now clasped firmly around her neck It was the same collar these people had once used on me, the same collar they used on the zoh their bodies At least Lucas had escaped the sairl

I tried to pry the metal from her neck, but the clamp held steady She peered up at me with hazel eyes now dark with pain Her lips parted, but no sound eer rose "Hold on I’ll find a way to help you"

"Yes, help her," Lucas gritted, ducking to avoid a punch

I looked around the field, found what I needed I stalked to a uy to Trina’s side After cutting away his glove, I pressed his thu happened

Maybe Kelly had learned from his mistakes Maybe his print was the only one that would work

I searched one n Coward that he was, he’d probably left the battle But he wouldn’t have gone far He would want to watch, to see whether hisfor movement rather than a silhouette There! A bush swayed Kelly? Only one way to find out

"I have a plan" Needing a boost, I dosed up on antidote before racing off, staying in the heart of the shadows, heading for the line of trees Thefor the treht as possible, but a twig snapped Though I tensed, I didn’t allow ers, and just before I reached the bush, I raised them Ready

But he wasn’t there

A few feet away, another bush danced, and I figured he’d heardafter him

I se The , I saw the zo for hi teeth at him

What happened next happened quickly Within three seconds, at the most I could only watch

One of the creatures bit into his arm The suit protected his skin, but he felt the pressure of the action and grunted He sith his other ar the zoor, like a bulldog with a bone, refusing to give up the prize Another zoround

"Let go," he commanded "Stop Stop!"

Another creature fell upon hi teeth into his unprotected cheek Kelly released a high-pierced shriek

I launched into action, willing the fire to coold fla as before, nor as weak as they’d been with Gavin, but they would do I reached the zoot to work Contact Ash Contact Ash Contact Ash