Sirens screamed through the city, and rubber burned thin on concrete as police cruisers were locked in hot pursuit of the red sedan.

  Inside the car were four masked assailants. The police didn’t faze them; they’d been in enough chases to know how to stay calm under pressure, confident there was no way the feds could catch them.

  Dragonblade, though, was an entirely different story.

  The driver glanced at the cracked windscreen mirror hanging on by a thread. The glass chipped with every bump, but it gave him just enough of a view to spot Dragonblade soaring above, only a few meters ahead of the flashing police lights.

  “Boys,” the driver said, trying to sound calm as his hand tightened around the steering wheel. “We’ve got a boogie at twelve o’clock.”

  The others turned immediately, twisting in their seats, faces pressed up against the windows as they caught a glimpse.

  “What are we gonna do?” asked the masked man riding shotgun, nervously twiddling his fingers. “The feds are one thing, but Dragonblade? How do we prepare for something like that?”

  The driver kept one eye on the road and the other on the mirror. His foot sank deeper into the gas pedal.

  The police replied in kind, shifting gears quickly and flooring the gas pedal.

  Above them, Dragonblade saw everyone making their move and burst forward through the air.

  “Well, boys,” the driver said, his grin sharp, “if he’s a bug, he must bleed like one too. Let’s see if that big ol’ dragonfly likes lead pumped into him.”

  They all began to laugh as they loaded their firearms, ready for Dragonblade to make his move.

  Gabriel took a steady breath, calming his nerves as he readied himself.

  “Let’s do this,” he muttered, soaring through the air and hovering above the red sedan speeding down the street.

  The officers in pursuit looked up, catching a glimpse of him as he passed over their windshield. The officer in the passenger seat reached over slowly, scrambling below, his mouth open as his eyes followed Dragonblade.

  His hand finally met what it was reaching for, the radio. He grabbed hold of it and pressed the button. The radio began to crackle.

  “Should we call this in?” the officer asked, clutching the device tightly in his hand.

  The officer driving took his eyes off the road momentarily, shooting his comrade a sharp look. He reached over, covering the officer’s hand and pushing it—and the radio—back down.

  “Are you mad?” his partner shouted. “He’s here to help us. Those guys are no doubt heavily armed, Afra’s men. Think! Do we really want to head into a firefight without his help?”

  The officer driving tapped two fingers against the side of his partner’s head.

  “We need all the backup we can get.”

  The officer in the passenger seat swallowed hard, nodding.

  “You’re right.” He let go of the radio, head turning forward as he kept his eyes on the chase.

  Inside the getaway car, tension was high.

  “He’s here!” one of the criminals shouted.

  “Then what are you waiting for? Light his ass up!” commanded the driver. “If we lose these packages, we’re dead men!”

  The windows of the sedan rolled down, and armed men popped out on both sides, opening fire at Gabriel as he sped toward them.

  This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

  Bullets whizzed past, and Gabriel gave a cocky grin as he easily weaved in and out, pushing his speed to its limit.

  He had faced danger before, but he had never been hit. A sense of invincibility had grown within him, and he had begun to believe that nothing could touch him.

  But something was wrong. All of a sudden, he began to slow down. His body hadn’t maintained this speed for this long before, and it was starting to take its toll. The grin that never left him quickly faded as fear crept in, its icy fingers wrapping around his heart that thundered against his ribs as breaths came quick and fast.

  But Gabriel wasn’t about to give up here. He tried to accelerate, to push his body past its limits, but it backfired. His movements became sluggish, as if he were swimming through molasses.

  “What’s going on?” he thought. “My body... it feels so heavy.” He looked at his hands.

  But in that moment of taking his eyes off the men, a bullet came soaring out of nowhere and clipped one of his wings, sending a shiver through his entire body.

  “Argh!” he shouted, the sound tearing from his throat as a second round tore through his shoulder.

  Gabriel grabbed his shoulder as his heart pounded like an unrelenting drum. His hand tightened instinctively as the pain hit, a shockwave—intense and debilitating.

  For the first time as Dragonblade, Gabriel felt real pain, a brutal reminder that even with his powers, he wasn’t invincible. He was flesh and blood, vulnerable to the same injuries as anyone else. The realization shook him to his core, making him question everything he thought he knew about himself.

  His vision blurred as he spiraled toward the ground, bystanders in the street directly in his path.

  “Watch out!” he yelled as he fought to regain control.

  Gabriel’s adrenaline kicked in, his mind focused on avoiding catastrophe. With a Herculean effort, he managed to stop inches above the crowd’s heads, his wings faltering.

  Gabriel wiped sweat from his brow as he steadied himself, his breath ragged. He was shaken, his confidence bruised.

  For a moment, he hovered there, assessing the damage. His shoulder throbbed with pain, and he knew he had to get out of there—to find a safe place to tend to his wounds—but that would have to wait until later.

  He took a calming breath, steadying his racing heartbeat. Then he cast his eyes ahead. The red sedan was already half a mile ahead, its taillights fading into the distance.

  If Gabriel was going to catch them, he had to move now before it was too late.

  He gritted his teeth, determination burning within him. He would not let this setback defeat him. He would heal, he would recover, and he would come back stronger than ever.

  The armed men were still a threat, but Gabriel knew he couldn’t let fear dictate his actions. He took a deep breath and assessed the situation, his mind racing with possibilities.

  “That was close,” he muttered. “I need to be more careful.”

  He hovered for a moment, wings fluttering, as cameras flashed from the growing crowd. Before anyone could get another shot, he vanished into the sky.

  Inside the speeding sedan, one of the criminals glanced over his shoulder.

  “I think we lost him.”

  “Hell yeah!” another cheered. “That’s what I’m talking about!”

  But their celebration was short-lived. As the men continued to drive, smiles plastered across their faces as they thought they were in the clear, a loud thud shook the roof of the car.

  “What the hell was that?!” the driver shouted.

  “I don’t know!” the man in the passenger seat stammered. He turned to the back. “One of you, check it out!”

  One of the men leaned out of the window and was instantly grabbed by Gabriel.

  “Arghh!” he screamed as he was yanked out of the car with ease.

  Gabriel slipped through the open window with stunning agility, launching a vicious kick that sent the other gunman flying out of the car along with the door.

  “Shit!” the masked man riding shotgun shouted, drawing his weapon. But fear took hold. He choked as he raised the gun, unable to pull the trigger. His hand trembled as he pointed it at Gabriel.

  The driver took one glance at his comrade.

  “Shoot him!” he shouted, but his pleas fell on deaf ears.

  “Not this time,” Gabriel shouted as he lunged forward, grabbing the gun and crushing it in his hand. The thief’s eyes widened in horror.

  Panicking, the man threw the door open and jumped out of the moving car, rolling between oncoming cars and straight into the path of the pursuing police.

  Gabriel maneuvered his way to the front seat, where the driver tried his best to fend him off. A short but intense scuffle followed, with Gabriel dodging every desperate strike.

  “Give it up,” he said, yanking the keys from the ignition and holding them just inches from the driver’s face, taunting him as that smug grin— the one that doubt had held hostage, reappeared as the car slowly came to a halt.

  “What the—?” The driver was mesmerised, staring back and forth between the ignition and the keys dangling before his eyes.

  “I hope this is a lesson learnt, and that your time behind bars will be your last.”

  The robber went to open his mouth, but Gabriel didn’t give him a chance to reply. His fist extended, knuckles crashing across his jaw as he struck, knocking him unconscious.

  The thief’s face hit the dashboard before sliding across and slumping on top of Gabriel. Gabriel gently lifted him up and placed him in the driver’s seat, his head resting back against the headrest, then shot out of the car just as the police surrounded it.

  Officers swarmed the car, weapons drawn and ready, as Gabriel ascended into the sky once more, leaving the criminals to face justice.